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Library of Virginia
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Processed by: LVA Staff
IN PROGRESS: Northampton County (Va.) Certificates of Importation, 1743-1744, 1816, are digitized and available through Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative Digital Collection on the Library of Virginia website. Please use digital images.
There are no restrictions.
Northampton County (Va.) Certificates of Importation, 1743-1744, 1816. Local government records collection, Northampton County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.
These records came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of court papers from Northampton County (Va.) as part of an undated accession.
Northampton County Certificates of Importation were originally described as part of the Northampton County (Va.) Free and Enslaved Records, 1737-1860, but were removed to the present Northampton County (Va.) Certificates of Importation, 1743-1744, 1816, record to enhance discoverability in July 2024.
The certificates of importation currently in this collection are believed to have been removed from Northampton County (Va.) Judgments and processed by LVA staff around 2007.
These records were scanned and indexed by LVA staff for the purposes of digitizing them for the digital project Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative in 2024.
Encoded by C. Collins: July 2024.
Context for Record Type: In 1778, Governor Patrick Henry enacted legislation preventing importation of enslaved people into the commonwealth. Those that did bring their enslaved people were required to register them with the county court and sign a certificate of importation agreeing that they were not bringing enslaved people into the commonwealth with the intent to sell. The enslaved person is sometimes named, but not always, and occasionally information is given as to age, birthdate, and the state from which the individuals were moving. According to Section 3 of the act "every slave imported into this commonwealth contrary to the true intent and meaning of this act, shall upon such importation become free." By this clause, those enslaved people who were brought into Virginia illegally could pursue their freedom in the local courts.
Locality History: Northampton County was named probably for the English county, of which Obedience Robins, a prominent early resident of the Eastern Shore, was a native. The county, which originally included all of the peninsula south of Maryland and which was one of the eight shires, or counties, first enumerated in 1634, was first called Accomack. The General Assembly changed the name to Northampton County in 1643. Accomack County was created from Northampton County about 1663, but in October 1670, the General Assembly temporarily reunited the two counties as Northampton County. In November 1673, Accomack County was again separated from Northampton. The county seat is Eastville.
Northampton County (Va.) Certificates of Importation, 1743-1744, 1816, sometimes entitled certificates of nonimportation, contain information whereby an enslaver swears that they have not imported the enslaved person from Africa and that the enslaver has not brought the enslaved person into Virginia with the purpose of selling the enslaved person. The enslaved person is sometimes named, but not always, and occasionally information is given as to age, birthdate, and the state the individuals are moving from.
The records include a certificate, 1816, which verifies that Harry, 13, and George, 19, were brought to Virginia from Maryland in 1816 by Edward Wilson; and two letters, 1743-1744, that reference Quodindoe (or Codenda), who was brought to Virginia in May 1741 by W. Charles.
This collection is arranged
Series I: Certificates of Importation, 1743-1744, 1816, arranged chronologically.See also: Northampton County (Va.) Free and Enslaved Records, 1737-1860
Records related to free and enslaved people of Northampton County (Va.) and other localities are available through the Virginia Untold: The African American Narrative Digital Collection on the Library of Virginia website.
Additional Northampton County (Va.) court records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia web site. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm."