Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Sheriff's Records, 1832-1865 that were transferred in accession 53810 under the title “Greensville County Dead Papers” and in adjacent boxes have undergone minimal processing. All records remain tri-folded or in original bundles and may be fragile. Contact Archives Research services for availability.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Greensville County (Va.) Sheriff's Records, 1832-1865. Local government records collection, Greensville County Court Records. The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia, 23219.

Acquisition Information

These records came to the Library of Virginia in a 2023 transfer of court papers from Greensville County under accession number 53810.

Processing Information

Encoded by M. Long: September 2023.

Sheriff's Records, 1832-1865 that were transferred in accession 53810 under the title “Greensville County Dead Papers” and in adjacent boxes were processed using minimal processing standards: Locality records were organized by broad record category (election records, fiduciary records, etc.) with minimal other arrangement. These records have not been flattened, foldered, mended, or separated by individual record type (like summons, appraisements, etc.).

Historical Information

Context for Record Type: Sheriffs appeared in Virginia when the original shires were formed in 1634. The sheriff was "the most powerful and the best paid of any county official in colonial times." They were appointed by the governor from a list of three names submitted by the county court and the term of office was for one year until 1731, after which it was two years. The sheriff's two deputies, also known as sub (under) sheriffs, performed most of the work.

The sheriff originally had three functions: law enforcement, conduction of elections, and financial officer. The sheriff was responsible for services rendered in the prosecution of court cases and acted as a combination of both the commissioner of revenue and the county treasurer. Among his many duties, he collected the taxes, which were paid in tobacco, took custody thereof and paid the county expenses as directed by the court.

The sheriff's duties have been curtailed over the years, but they are still the major law enforcing agent in a locality.

Locality History: Greensville County was named either for Revolutionary War general Nathanael Greene, commanding general of the Continental army in the South during part of the Revolutionary War, or for Sir Richard Grenville, leader of the Roanoke Island settlement of 1585. The county was formed from Brunswick County on 28 November 1780.

Scope and Content

Greensville County (Va.) Sheriff's Records, 1832-1865, traces the duties of the sheriff as law enforcement official, election official, and financial officer. The records have undergone minimal processing. This has allowed for the documentation of specific record types and various trends found in this set of records.

Sheriff's Records, 1832-1865 that have undergone minimal processing consist of the following:

Arrangement

This collection is arranged into the following series:

Related Material

Additional Greensville County Court Records can be found on microfilm at The Library of Virginia. Consult "A Guide to Virginia County and City Records on Microfilm."

Adjunct Descriptive Data