Actually they were protecting their assets from bankruptcy. The
Virginia constitution was re-written after the Civil War in the
1870s. I don't have the exact date handy at the moment (1873?). One
of the clauses of that constitution made it legal for Virginians to
declare certain assets exempt from bankruptcy proceedings. You can
imagine that this came in handy during Reconstruction when many
people faced economic difficulties. Consequently, you will find
"homestead" deeds with extensive lists of real and personal property.
The "grantor" of such a deed, if we can use that term, is really
exempting that property from his creditors. I have a "homestead" deed
for one of my ancestors that I believe was recorded in 1874.
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