Repository:Fredericksburg, Virginia Historic Court Records

History

During the history of courthouses in Fredericksburg, Virginia, there sat many different courts. Until its incorporation as a town in 1781 the courthouse in Fredericksburg served as the courthouse for Spotsylvania County, of which Fredericksburg was a part. Starting in 1782 the Fredericksburg Courthouse was the site of the Fredericksburg Hustings Court, which continued until 1889 when the court was renamed the Corporation Court, coinciding with Fredericksburg's newly declared status as an independent city (no longer associated with Spotsylvania County). Due to lack of space at the Spotsylvania Courthouse the Fredericksburg Courthouse was also used for the Spotsylvania District Court and the series of Superior Courts to follow from 1789 until 1889.

Fredericksburg Circuit Court Records Preservation

In 1992 a program was initiated under the Virginia Circuit Court Clerks Preservation Program (VCCCPP) to process court records papers lodged in the Fredericksburg Courthouse for archival storage and reformatting. In 1998 the City of Fredericksburg started sponsoring the Fredericksburg Circuit Court records preservation work. Under these programs pre-1914 records are indexed on primary names after they have been processed and organized in an archival filing system. Unique to the VCCCPP work in Fredericksburg was the contribution of the Records Conservation Project which started extracting data of genealogical and / or historical note, entering the extracts into a database together with the primary names index. Development of the combined name/extract database continues under sponsorship of the City of Fredericksburg. This combined database is the basis for Historic Court Records.

Available Records

The range and depth of records contained in Historic Court Records changes as additional records are preserved, indexed and prepared for internet presentation. Record extracts from many of the courts are searchable.
Fredericksburg was formerly a part of Spotsylvania County, so records of Spotsylvania are housed here.
Court Records History
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