Albemarle County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1768-1969 (bulk 1880-1920)

Access and use

Location of collection:
Library of Virginia
The Library of Virginia
800 East Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Contact for questions and access:
POC: Archives Reference Services
Phone: (804) 692-3888
Restrictions:

Chancery Causes 1768-1871, use digital images found on the Chancery Records Index available electronically at the website of the Library of Virginia.

Chancery Causes 1872-1969, processed and indexed information is available on the Chancery Records Index, but digital images are not available at this time. Contact Archives Reference Services for availability.

There remain 7 boxes of unprocessed Chancery Records, 1885-1912. Contact Archives Reference Services for availability.

Terms of access:

There are no restrictions.

Preferred citation:

Albemarle County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1768-1969 (bulk 1880-1920). (Cite style of suit [and chancery index no. if available]). Local government records collection, Albemarle County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Summary

Extent:
Digital images; 270.6 cubic feet (592 boxes)
Creator:
Albemarle County (Va.) Circuit Court
Language:
English
Abstract:
Preferred citation:

Albemarle County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1768-1969 (bulk 1880-1920). (Cite style of suit [and chancery index no. if available]). Local government records collection, Albemarle County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Background

Scope and content:

Albemarle County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1768-1969, consists of cases concerning issues of equity brought largely by residents of the county and filed in the circuit court. These cases often involve the following actions: divisions of estates or land, disputes over wills, disputes regarding contracts, debt, divorce, and business disputes. Other less prevalent issues include freedom suits, permissions to sell property, and disputes concerning trespass. Predominant documents found in these chancery causes include bills (documents the plaintiff's complaint), answers (defendant's response to the plaintiff's complaint), decrees (court's decision), depositions, affidavits, correspondence, lists of heirs, deeds, plats, wills, records involving enslaved individuals, business records or vital statistics.

Chancery causes before 1870 contain a substantial amount of information concerning enslaved Black men, women, and children. While there are several suits concerning the freedom of enslaved individuals, these cases largely represent the perspective of white enslavers and their disputes involving the sale, hiring, financial responsibilities, and legality of ownership of Black individuals.

Biographical / historical:

Context for Record Type: Chancery Causes are cases of equity. According to Black's Law Dictionary they are "administered according to fairness as contrasted with the strictly formulated rules of common law." A judge, not a jury, determines the outcome of the case; however, the judge is basing the decision on findings compiled and documented by Commissioners. Chancery causes are useful when researching local history, genealogical information, and land or estate divisions. They are a valuable source of local, state, social, and legal history and serve as a primary source for understanding a locality's history. Chancery causes document the lived experiences of free and enslaved individuals; women; children; people living with physical disabilities or mental health struggles; people living in poverty; defunct institutions and corporate entities; or those that may not have otherwise left traditional written histories.

Locality History: Albemarle County was named for William Anne Keppel, second earl of Albemarle, and governor of Virginia from 1737 to 1754. It was created by a statue of 1744 and formed from Goochalnd County; part of Louisa County was added in 1761 and islands in the Fluvanna (now the James) River in 1770. The court met for the first time on 8 February 1745.

Lost Records Locality Note: All order books except the first and many loose papers between 1748 and 1781 were destroyed by British general Banastre Tarleton's raid on Charlottesville in 1781 during the Revolutionary War.

Acquisition information:

Most of these records came to the Library of Virginia in various transfers of court papers from Albemarle County (Va.) under undated accessions.

Additional Albemarle Chancery Records came to the Library of Virginia in 2016 under 51834.

Processing information:

Digital images of Chancery Causes 1768-1850 were generated by Backstage Library Works through the Library of Virginia's Circuit Court Records Preservation Program 2021-2022.

Digital images of Chancery Causes 1851-1871 were generated by Backstage Library Works through the Library of Virginia's Circuit Court Records Preservation Program 2024-2025.

Albemarle County (Va.) Chancery Causes, 1768-1969, were processed by field processors as well as various Local Records Staff and completed from early 2000s- 2010s

Chancery Causes, 1768-1840, were reprocessed and brought up to current processing and indexing standards by G. Crawford in 2018-2020.

Chancery Causes, 1840-1850, were reprocessed and brought up to current processing and indexing standards by M. Long and M. Mason, 2020-2021.

Chancery Causes, 1851-1871, were reprocessed and brought up to current processing and indexing standards by C. Collins and E. Swain, 2022-2023.

Encoded by M. Mason, December 2024; updated by M. Mason: April 2025

Arrangement:

Organized by case, of which each is assigned a unique index number comprised of the latest year found in case and a sequentially increasing 3-digit number assigned by the processor as cases for that year are found. Arranged chronologically.

of documents within each folder are as follows: Bill, Answer, and Final Decree (if found.)

Physical location:
Library of Virginia
Physical description:
.