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Overseers of the Poor Collection Inventory

Series 1: Meeting Minutes 1787-1871

Meeting Minutes for the overseers of the poor consists of meeting transcripts from two volumes over the course of 1787-1871. The overseers generally held meetings annually, where they would discuss the conditions of the poorhouse, assess the costs for outdoors relief, and elect officials for the following years. 

Series 2: Correspondences 1866-1867

There two letters including in this series. The first is a correspondence between B.N. Way, Superintendent for Page County Poorhouse, and Jacob Byerly, Chairman of the Board of Overseers of the Poor. The letter requests clarification of the status of newly freed African Americans who find themselves in need of public relief. The second is a letter to Jacob Byerly from John T Harris, a former agent of the Overseers, requesting a review of his allowance.

Series 3: Indentures of Apprenticeship

Comprised of nearly 350 documents, the Indentures of Apprenticeship records illustrate the many destitute children bound out in Rockingham county over the course of the 19th century. These indentures were formal contracts between the Overseers of the Poor and the master of the indentured servant detailing the length of service and expected education of the child.