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For this month’s Found in the Archives, HRC explored where graveyards and cemeteries appear in court records. While not frequently mentioned or provided with a lot of details, they are often important to the overall understanding of the document they are featured in.
Cemeteries and graves are mentioned in loose court documents regarding debts, trespassing, accounts, and trustee appointments.
In one case, a defendant was accused of trespassing on the land and “unlawfully but not feloniously” breaking a fence that enclosed a graveyard. A drawing in the term paper noted various landmarks on the property including the graveyard and the old fence.
 Figure 1 - Fairfax Term Papers, TP 1854-193
In 1883, correspondence was submitted to the court to appoint a trustee for the “Union Cemetery M. E. Church South” and is signed by the board of trustees.
 Figure 2 - Fairfax Term Papers, TP 1883-113
Another term paper is an account regarding paying William Demaine & Son, Dr. Funeral Directors and Embalmers for furnishing a coffin and grave for a person who died in Fairfax but was determined not to be a resident of Fairfax and did not have enough funds to pay the bill. These types of accounts not only give us insight into how the court could be involved with aspects of the burial of a person, but who also operated local funeral businesses.
 Figure 3 - Fairfax Term Papers, 1908-130
 Figure 4 - Fairfax County Deed Book G-5 p. 6
When cemeteries appear in deeds they can convey property boundaries or serve as landmarks. They may appear in plats in deeds as seen in the example provided.
While not a common occurrence in HRC records graveyards that do appear provide important landmarks, can lead to discoveries of individuals and organizations, and a glimpse into how the court functioned historically.
- No death records exist at the court prior to 1853.
- No deaths were recorded in Fairfax County between 1860 and 1865 due to the Civil War.
- The 1870 – 1897 Birth and Death Registers consist of oversized sheets and are incomplete. Due to the size and fragile nature of these registers, we cannot make copies from the original documents.
- No law existed in the Commonwealth of Virginia for recording deaths between 1897 and June 1912.
- Graveyards mentioned by name in court documents can be viewed in person by reviewing place name cards. This is not a comprehensive list.
- Wills up to 1936 are indexed and available online.
- After 1917, the recording of deaths transferred to the Virginia Department of Health.
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