Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Baxter Family. Papers, 1828-1903. Accession 22969b, Personal papers collection, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Acquisition Information

Purchased 23 January 1949.

Biographical/Historical Information

Thomas Baxter was born about 1798 in Connecticut and moved to Petersburg, Virginia, about 1819. He was a carpenter and a master mechanic, and became a prominent property owner in Petersburg. He married first Maria Exall, and they had at least 2 children. Baxter's second wife was named Elizabeth. William Henry Baxter was born 30 March 1830 in Havana, Cuba, to Thomas Baxter and his first wife. William Baxter became a machinist, a businessman and a property owner in Petersburg. He eventually became superintendent of a gas works. He married Matilda Shanks (ca. 1829-1886) in July 1853, and they had at least 3 children. Baxter died 5 July 1915 in Petersburg.

Scope and Content Information

Papers, 1828-1903, of the Baxter family of Petersburg, Virginia, consisting of: accounts, agreements, bills of sale, bonds, correspondence, deeds, financial records, judicial records, memorandums, notes, receipts, and wills of Thomas Baxter (ca. 1798-1878) and William Henry Baxter (1830-1915). Papers include a hiring bond and bills of sales for slaves, and an agreement transferring a patent for hydraulic presses from Thomas Baxter to William H. Baxter.