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Official Records - County Records - Augusta County

Augusta County, west of the Blue Ridge Mountains, was formed in 1738 from Orange County. Little tobacco was grown there, and the county had fewer slaves than Virginia’s more eastern counties: a 14 percent slave population by the 1790 census. But as the records make very clear, Augusta had a very large servant population, many of whom appear in the order books.

Runaway servant
Runaway servant, March 17, 1778.

A case of murder
A case of murder, April 14, 1778.

Another petition from Nat
Another petition from Nat, the Indian servant whose mistress kept him as a slave. See orders for August 19, September 17, November 18, 1777. Nat is variously termed an "Indian," "mustee" or "mullatoe."

County levy
County levy, May 21, 1778; Andrew Wilson, who murdered his wife (see Examination, April 14, 1778), noted as a "madman."

A child whose father cannot care for him
A child whose father cannot care for him bound out by the Church wardens, August 19, 1778.

Two witnesses from the examination of Andrew Wilson
Two witnesses from the examination of Andrew Wilson (conveyed to Williamsburg to be tried for murdering his wife) declared too ill to travel to the capital, September 15, 1778.