Grayson County (Va.) Petition to Remain in the Commonwealth, undated

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:

Grayson County Petition to Remain in the Commonwealth is 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:

Grayson County (Va.) Petition to Remain in the Commonwealth, undated. Local government records collection, Grayson County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia

Summary

Extent:
1 item; digital images
Creator:
Grayson County (Va.) Circuit Court
Language:
English
Abstract:
Preferred citation:

Grayson County (Va.) Petition to Remain in the Commonwealth, undated. Local government records collection, Grayson County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia

Background

Scope and content:

Grayson County (Va.) Petition to Remain in the Commonwealth, undated, consists of petition filed by Watt Leftwich, undated.

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: Grayson County was named for William Grayson, a delegate to the Continental Congress from 1784 to 1787 and one of the first two United States senators from Virginia. It was formed from Wythe County in 1792, and a part of Patrick County was added in 1810.

Acquisition information:
These records came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of court papers from Grayson County under an undated accession.
Processing information:

Petition to remain in the Commonwealth was originally described in the Grayson County Free and Enslaved Records descriptive record and was moved to this record in July 2026.

These records were processed and indexed by LVA staff for the purposes of digitizing them for the digital project Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative.

Encoded by M. Mason, July 2026

Arrangement:

This collection is arranged

  • Series I: Petition to Remain in the Commonwealth, undated

Physical location:
Library of Virginia
Physical description:
.