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Official Records - County Records - Richmond County

Richmond County, on Virginia's Northern Neck between the Rappahannock and Potomac Rivers, was formed in 1692. A tidewater county, it was home to a large slave population, amounting to 57 percent of the total in the 1790 census. Richmond County's more prominent residents included Virginia leaders such as Landon Carter of Sabine Hall and John Tayloe of Mt. Airy. Excerpts from its order books below show the activities of Richmond's justices as well as their relations with neighboring counties such as Essex across the Rappahannock River.

Slaves removed from tithe lists, April 1781.
As productive workers, slaves sixteen and over were included among tithables. This is why masters were required to bring bound boys and girls before the justices who judged how old they were. As slaves grew too old to maintain adequate levels of work, their owners would petition the court to remove them from the tithe lists. Note that despite the wording it was not the slaves who were granted relief; masters paid the tax, and masters were given the exemptions. Why pay taxes on non-productive workers?

A division of property recorded, June 1781.
The Court routinely recorded inventories, probate, gifts, and divisions of property, including slaves.

County levy, November 1781.
County Justices approved the county budget for each year. Each inhabitant over sixteen years of age (termed a "tithable" or "poll") was taxed (the "levy"). Heads of households were responsible for paying for each tithable. In this excerpt from the account for 1781, the budget includes money paid to "patrollers," slave-catchers, as well as several other charges, such as the jailer and coroner. Values are given in pounds of tobacco.