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300 years later, stolen records returned to Virginia courthouse

Both documents were taken from the courthouse during the Civil War.

PRINCE WILLIAM COUNTY, Va. — Two of Prince William County's earliest records were returned to the to the circuit court clerk after nearly 300 years. Both documents were taken from the courthouse during the Civil War and returned to Virginia during the mid-20th century.

According to Ron Turner, a circuit court historical research volunteer, in 1936, a collector in Rhode Island offered to return the books to the county at a cost. This began an ongoing dispute between the collector and the county. 

A previous inventory of the Prince William County Court's historical records led Tracy Harter and Greg Crawford of the Library of Virginia (LVA), along with Turner, to confirm the two books were still missing. One of the books was the county's first deed book from 1731-1732. The other was a court order book from Dumfries District Court dating from 1798-1799.

After some research, the books were recently discovered at the Library of Virginia. The LVA graciously preserved and delivered the original and rare volumes, color facsimiles and digital copies, which will soon be available for public viewing at the Clerk of the Circuit Court’s Office.

Credit: Prince William County Circuit Court Clerk

More information about the Clerk of the Circuit Court's Historical Documents and Research can be found here.

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