Newman Virginia Roots

Old Rappahannock County, Virginia history

Old Rappahannock County, Virginia was formed from Lancaster county 10 December 1656.

map 31 Dec 1652, from Atlas of Historical County Boundaries, The Newberry Library

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Old Rappahannock County split into two counties in 1692, Essex and Richmond. However several other counties split from Essex and Richmond, meaning Old Rappahannock was much larger than the present day boundaries of Richmond and Essex Counties. This map shows the land extended to present day Orange and Culpeper Counties.

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Areas that used to be part of Old Rappahannock County, 1656-1692

present day county	year formed	from
1. Essex	1692	Old Rappahannock
2. Richmond	1692	Old Rappahanock
3. King George	1720	Richmond
4. Spotsylvania	1721	Essex, King & Queen, King William
5. Caroline	1728	Essex, King & Queen, King William
6. Stafford	1664	the part from King George county, Rappahannock River tributaries
7. Orange	1734	the part from Spotsylvania, originally from Essex
8. Culpeper	1749	the part from Spotsylvania, originally from Essex

A portion of present day Caroline and Spotsylvania would have been included in Old Rappahannock County. In 1721, Spotsylvania included Orange and Culpeper counties. Stafford County was formed in 1664. However, the area of present day Stafford County with tributaries of the Rappahannock River were part of King George County until the Revolutionary War, while the tributaries of the Potomac were Stafford. A portion of present day King George situated along the Potomac, like the area of Dahlgren, was in Westmoreland County during this time period.

Embry’s Index in the Old Rappahannock County books gives an explanation of the county history and land it includes.

Court Records for Old Rappahannock County, Virginia, available on FamilySearch.org

*Coming soon: A chart some of the first immigrants to Old Rappahannock, with large acreage totals. Families included: Catlet, Rowzee, North, Tomlin, Taylor, Moseley, Moss, Newman and Willson