Records that survive
These are the record series the Library of Virginia has on microfilm for City of Petersburg, with the earliest and latest years filmed. A span can include gaps; it doesn't mean every year in between survives.
Land and deeds
- Hustings Court Deed Book1784–1901
- Hustings Court General Index to Deeds1784–1900
- Hustings Court Plat Book1787–1953
- Hustings Court Release Deed Book1884–1914
Wills
- Hustings Court Index to Wills1784–1944
- Hustings Court Will Book1784–1901
- Will Book1832–1971
- Hustings Court General Index to Wills1945–1973
- General Index to Wills and Fiduciaries1973–1974
Estates and guardianships
- Account Book1806–1866
- Index to Fiduciary Accounts1806–1973
- List of Fiduciaries1850–1945
Marriages, births and deaths
- Index to Marriages1784–1907
- Marriage Bonds and Licenses1784–1871
- Marriage Register1784–1975
- Hustings Court Marriage Register1785–1850
- Register of Births1853–1896
- Register of Deaths1853–1896
- Index to Marriage Registers1854–1910
Tax lists
- Land Book1851–1930
Court orders and minutes
- Schedule of Fees1745
- Dinwiddie County Clerk's Fee Book1763
- Minute Book1784–1904
- Clerk's Order Book1820–1891
- Common Law Minute Book1820–1837
- Execution Docket1823–1863
- Chancery Order Book1831–1973
- Common Law Order Book1831–1925
- Chancery Book1870–1905
- Index to Final Decrees1915–1920
- General Index to Chancery Orders1955–1973
Records of free Black and enslaved people
- Register of Free Negroes and Mulattoes1794–1819
- Hustings Court Registry of Free Negroes and Mulattoes1819–1865
Bonds and oaths
- Bond Book1850–1869
Elections
- Register of Voters1854
- Hustings Court Voter Registration Book1902–1903
- Register of Colored Voters1903
- Register of White Voters1903
See every volume and reel number at the Library of Virginia
Library of Virginia note: Reels 48 - 72 and 74 - 122 are not available through interlibrary loan
Source: Library of Virginia, County and City Records on Microfilm. Reels marked for interlibrary loan can be borrowed through your local library.
Where to find the records
- City of Petersburg official website
Hours, addresses and phone numbers for the circuit court clerk's office, and any online record search the independent city offers.
- The circuit court clerk's office
Virginia's deed, will and marriage books are usually kept by the clerk of the circuit court for the county or city, though many older records have been moved to the Library of Virginia. Call before you visit; hours and access to older volumes vary.
- Library of Virginia: City of Petersburg records on microfilmfree
Every filmed volume with its years and reel number. Use the reels in Richmond; many can be borrowed through interlibrary loan.
- Library of Virginia: Chancery Records Indexfree
Search equity court suits by name. They're rich in family detail: estate divisions, heirs and land disputes. Many localities' suits are scanned and free to view.
- FamilySearch Catalogfree
Search by place for "Virginia, Petersburg" to find filmed and digitized records, many viewable free online with a FamilySearch account.
Offices change their hours and access rules; call before you visit.
Boundaries and parent counties
Formed from: Became an independent city in 1902, separating from Dinwiddie County and Prince George County
Check the parent counties for earlier records: Dinwiddie County, Prince George County
Records stay with the county that created them. The atlas dates this city's independence to 1902, when Virginia's new constitution separated every city from its county. Many older cities already kept some of their own court records (hustings court records, for example), so search both the city's records and the county's. The Atlas of Historical County Boundaries shows each boundary change.
Research tip
Start with the deed and will books: they name relatives, neighbors and land. Then try the court order books, which mention almost everyone in the independent city sooner or later, as witnesses, jurors, road workers or parties to a suit.