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Library of Virginia
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Processed by: M. Long
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Northumberland County (Va.) Declarations for Revolutionary War Pensions, 1822. Local government records collection, Northumberland County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, 23219.
These records came to the Library of Virginia in a transfer of court papers from Northumberland County.
Declarations for Revolutionary War Pensions, 1822, were removed from a box of miscellaneous Northumberland County Court Papers and then processed and indexed as a distinct unit by M. Long.
Encoded by M. Long: July 2024.
Context for Record Type: In 1818, Congress passed the first of three major Revolutionary War pension acts. The act granted lifetime pensions to all men who had served as regular army soldiers in the Continental Line and who could demonstrate financial need. Prior to the passage of this act, pensions had been restricted to former soldiers who were no longer able to support themselves due to injuries sustained while in service. The second act, passed by Congress in 1820, required applicants to provide more concrete evidence of this financial need in the form of a certified inventory of his property and income. They also had to include an account of all members of the applicant's family, including their health and ability to contribute to household income. In 1832, the third act extended pension benefits to include soldiers who had served in the state troops or militia. Congress also passed a related act in 1836 granting pensions to the widows and orphans of Revolutionary War veterans.
Locality History: Northumberland County was named probably for the English county. It was formed about 1645 from the district of Chickacoan, the early-seventeenth-century name for the region between the Potomac and the Rappahannock Rivers. The date of the county's formation is conjectural because the act of assembly creating it is no longer extant, but internal evidence shows that the county was functioning in 1645. The county seat is Heathsville.
Lost Locality Note: The county suffered some losses in a fire in the clerk's office on 25 October 1710. Volumes beginning in 1650 that record deeds, court orders, and wills exist.
Northumberland County (Va.) Declarations for Revolutionary War Pensions, 1822, primarily record the declarations of individuals seeking to obtain Revolutionary War pensions provided by various acts of Congress. The applicants present detailed testimony of their time of service during the Revolutionary War. Information found in the declarations include date and location applicants entered into service, names of military companies they served in, names of military commanders they served under, names of fellow soldiers they served with, length of service, their age, and their place of birth. The predominant portion of the declarations are narratives of their tours of duty during the Revolutionary War with emphasis on battles they fought. The declarations also include affidavits from witnesses who could verify information provided by applicants.
This collection is arranged into the following series:
Series I: Declarations for Revolutionary War Pensions, 1822, arranged chronologically.See also: Northumberland County (Va.) Military and Pension Records, circa 1785-1919 at the Library of Virginia.
Additional Northumberland County Court Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm."
Northumberland County is one of Virginia's Lost Records Localities. Additional Northumberland County Records may be found in the Lost Records Localities Digital Collection available on the Library of Virginia. Search the Lost Records Localities Digital Collection available at Virginia Memory.