Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

Justice of the Peace Records, 1834-1870 that were transferred in accession 53810 under the title “Greensville County Dead Papers” and in adjacent boxes have undergone minimal processing. The remaining justice of the peace records from this locality are still unprocessed and need review prior to use by researchers. 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.) Justice of the Peace Records, 1834-1926. 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: October 2023.

Justice of the Peace Records, 1834-1870 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.).

The remaining justice of the peace records are still unprocessed.

Historical Information

Context for Record Type: First known as commissioners, the Justice of the Peace office originated with the county quarterly court in 1623. Commanders of Plantations (1607-1629) were predecessors of the commissioners, who since 1662 have been called justices of the peace. They have traditionally had both civil and criminal jurisdiction. They also served other functions, including performing coroners' and lunacy inquisitions, and performing civil marriages. Until 1869 justices served both as judges of the county court and as individual justices; since then they have had only the latter function.

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.) Justice of the Peace Records, 1834-1926, is comprised of records generated by justices, constables, and magistrates during the course of their official functions. A portion of the justice of the peace records, 1834-1870, have undergone minimal processing. This has allowed for the documentation of specific record types and various trends found in this set of records. The remaining justice of the peace records are completely unprocessed.

Justice of the Peace Records, 1834-1870 that have undergone minimal processing consist of the following:

Significant materials include an 1844 summons that specifically references and describes upcoming criminal cases involving enslaved individuals.

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