Isle of Wight County (Va.) Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1840,1856

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:

Isle of Wight County (Va.) Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1840-1856, are digitized and available through Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative Digital Collection on the Library of Virginia website. Please use digital images.

Terms of access:

There are no restrictions.

Preferred citation:

Isle of Wight County (Va.) Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1840-1856. Local government records collection, Isle of Wight County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia

Summary

Creator:
Isle of Wight County (Va.) Circuit Court
Abstract:
Language:
English
Preferred citation:

Isle of Wight County (Va.) Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1840-1856. Local government records collection, Isle of Wight County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia

Background

Scope and content:

Isle of Wight County (Va.) Petitions to Remain, 1840, 1856, consists of two petitions, one of Dawson Boykins and one of James Patrick.

Biographical / historical:

Context for Record Type: Sometimes referred to as "Applications to Remain," these records are applications that formerly enslaved individuals submitted to state and local courts for permission to remain in Virginia with their free status. The Virginia General Assembly passed a law stating that all formerly enslaved people freed after 1 May 1806 who remained in Virginia more than twelve months could be put on trial by the state. Individuals who wished to remain in the commonwealth were to petition the state legislature. In 1816, a new Act of Assembly gave the local courts power to grant permission to remain. The documents in these cases will include: the name(s) of the petitioner(s), the circumstances of free status, and a request to remain in the county. Individuals needed to prove that they had in fact been emancipated. Therefore, application packets might also include supporting documents such as the formerly enslaved person's register, a copy of a will or deed of emancipation, or witness statements known as affidavits.

Locality History:Isle of Wight County was named probably for the Isle of Wight off the south coast of England. It was first known as Warrosquyoake for an Indian tribe living in the area whose name means "swamp in a depression of land," and was one of the original shires, or counties, first enumerated in 1634. The present name was given in 1637. Parts of Nansemond County were added in 1769 and 1772. The county seat is Isle of Wight.

Acquisition information:
Digital images of Isle of Wight Free and Enslaved records created by Library of Virginia Staff and are part of accession 54744.
Custodial history:

These items came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of court papers from Isle of Wight County (Va.) Circuit Court in 2013. Original documents returned at request of Circuit Court Clerk of Isle of Wight County in 2015.

Processing information:

After Local Records Staff completed the processing, indexing and digitization for Isle of Wight County records included in Virginia Untold, the records were returned to the locality by request of the clerk. At that time, the box barcodes and catalog records were deleted, while the digital images remained in Virginia Untold. In 2025, the Virginia Untold Project Manager and Local Records Staff decided to recreate these catalog records and assign digital barcodes to the images to help with internal tracking and to provide researchers with extended context for these records.

Encoded by M. Mason, May 2026

Arrangement:

This collection is arranged

  • Series I: Petitions to Remain in the Commonwealth, 1840,1856

Physical location:
Library of Virginia
Physical description:
.