The Library of Virginia (LVA) is pleased to announce the completion of
two more digital scanning projects. The processing, indexing, and
digital reformatting of the Arlington and Tazewell County chancery
causes is now complete.  The images have been added to the Chancery
Records Index <http://www.virginiamemory.com/collections/chancery/>
(CRI) on Virginia Memory <http://www.virginiamemory.com/> .  The
Tazewell County chancery index covers the years 1800 through 1920, and
Arlington County spans the years 1790 though 1842 (additional post-1842
causes will be added at a later date). These localities join thirty-five
counties and cities whose chancery causes have been digitally
reformatted and made available through the Library's innovative Circuit
Court Records Preservation Program, which seeks to preserve the historic
records of Virginia's Circuit Courts.  

 

To date, The Library of Virginia has posted over 3.8 million digital
chancery images. Seven localities are presently being scanned and will
be posted in the coming months. However, due to the recent reductions to
the Library of Virginia's budget, the pace of the agency's digital
chancery projects will necessarily proceed more slowly. Please know
these projects remain a very high priority for the agency and it is
hoped that the initiative can be resumed in full when the economy and
the agency's budget situation improve. Please see the Chancery Records
Index for a listing of the available locality chancery collections. 

 

Chancery causes are cases that are decided on the basis of equity and
fairness as opposed to the strictly formulated rules of common law
cases.  Chancery cases are especially 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 often contain correspondence; property lists, including
slaves; lists of heirs; and vital statistics, along with many other
records.  Some of the more common types of chancery causes involve
divisions of the estate of a person who died intestate (without a will);
divorces; settlements of dissolved business partnerships; and
resolutions of land disputes.

 

If you have any comments, questions, or corrections regarding the CRI or
scanned images, please contact [log in to unmask]

 

 

Vincent T. Brooks

Senior Local Records Archivist

The Library of Virginia

800 E. Broad St.

Richmond, VA  23219

804/225-4452 (voice)

804/692-2277 (fax)

http://www.lva.virginia.gov <blocked::http://www.lva.virginia.gov/>  

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