On the Fauquier Co. rootsweb list, there has been discussion of Virginia probates, primogeniture, laws of inheritance, etc. Although a URL for a website was posted, and the URL was of interest, a questioner (with good reason) wanted to know more--particularly about exceptions to the general rules. The authority for early Virginia laws would be the codes themselves, and they are largely referred to as Hening's Statues at Large (going up to 1808). There are multiple volumes of these statutes, of course, but if you are really interested, you may want to order films of these volumes from the Family History Library at Salt Lake City, the approximately dozen films of the 13 volumes (I believe that is how many there are.) Suggestion; Go to the URL for LDS at www.familysearch.org Click on the link to the Family History Library catalog on the lower right. Do an author search. I have cut and pasted some of the info so that you can see the author's name. Incidentally, there is an index to the proper names which appear in Hening's statutes, and you may want to check that also. The statutes at rge, being a collection of all the laws of Virginia from the first session of the legislature in the year 1619 : published pursuant to an act of the General Assembly of Virginia, passed on the fifth day of February, one thousand eight hundred and eight Stmnt.Resp.by William Waller Hening AuthorsHening, William Waller, 1768-1828 (Main Author) Good luck in your searches. Genealogy leads us into reading records which we never thought of using, doesn't it? (Some of my personal favorites: deeds, probates, and court records, many of which point out family relationships and also give a time and a place.) E.W.Wallace