Register of Free Negroes - Rockbridge County, 1803-1865

Larry Spurgeon (2020)

Virginia law required "free Negroes" to register with the county court clerk every five years, and each registration was then submitted to a judge for approval. If approved, the free person was given a certificate to verify free status. The original registration records for Rockbridge County are at the Library of Virginia, and Bob Vernon provided images of them to researchers in Rockbridge. This spreadsheet compiles the key information for each individual registration. It should be noted that the registration requirement was often ignored in Rockbridge - so that some free people never registered, and others registered once or twice.