Amanda asked, and I don't know whether she got an adequate answer: One last question. Why are the Chancery Records for Fauquier County scanned and other counties aren't on the Lib of Va. site? My response: I attended a lecture a few years ago at the Library of Virginia in Richmond--before the new building was finished--about the huge project being undertaken by the librarians and archivists at the LVA--the preservation of chancery records. The Library apparently had called in from the counties the surviving chancery records for each county. They were in deplorable condition, in many cases. One example was given to us--the box in which the records were stored was covered with coal dust. The mold, the dust, the condition of the papers are generally such that the archivists are allowed only a specified time to work on these papers. They had to be cleaned on the exterior, as indicated, then the papers had to be unfolded, and whatever else had to be done to preserve them, and only after they were in filmable condition could they be filmed--or prepared for digitization. This is a painstaking process. Those who have worked with OLD papers in courthouses probably have experienced similar events. Torn pages, falling apart covers, fading ink, etc. Example of a genealogist's experience: My first delving into old records was in England. My maternal grandmother was born in England, and her eldest son, my uncle, before the death of both of them, had interviewed his mother and had written about a 15 page history of the family--which helped me immensely. I was able to go almost directly to the county record office in England where her family had originated--although they had moved around quite a bit before migrating to this country in 1885. I requested in writing a specific parish record. At that time, the county record office was in a deteriorating county building--brick--which had been abandoned by another county office--I believe it was the school district building in a previous life. (Talk about recycling!!! I have worked in similar county recycled buildings in a much newer area than old England. Some buildings were so dark, one generally had to feel your way down the hall!!!) At any rate, eventually my request at the CRO was fulfilled. The parish record--a vellum little book with fading handwriting--was wrapped in what I, a layman, would call something like butcher paper. As I unfolded it, I saw this pinkish stuff--mold. That did not deter me from handling it, but it did bother me a good deal that such a valuable book was in such condition. Things are not much better in some of our US courthouses!!! (I have had some interesting--if offputting--experiences in courthouses in a good many southern States, mostly by beginning county clerk's helpers). At any rate, that particular English county record office has since moved into a much nicer building in the same town, but I now have to take a costly taxi ride from the train station! I only hope I live to get back there someday!!! I bet those of you who have been doing on-site genealogical research in various courthouses have had some similar experiences. Those of us whom have Virginia roots, even if several centuries ago, are fortunate that the Library of Virginia has been able to get the funding to preserve so many of its surviving records. Unlucky for me, in some respects--some of my colonial ancestors lived in counties which are now called *burned Virginia counties*! Be grateful for what is available to us, however long we have to wait!!! (And don't believe everything you read!!! And, furthermore, try not to be shocked once in a while!!! Our ancestors, their siblings, and their parents were human, after all.) E.W.Wallace who lives far away from Virginia **************Planning your summer road trip? Check out AOL Travel Guides. (http://travel.aol.com/travel-guide/united-states?ncid=aoltrv00030000000016)

Thanks!!! I didn't know that - I just assumed that they were scanning the records that they hadn't microfilmed, thinking that though via microfilmed they were still accessable to the public, it not in such a nice way. Hoping that they would get to the ones they'd microfilmed eventually, but after they had done all of the others first. I keep on checking back, because you never know, lol. that and the Bureau Of Land management site - even though they aren't doing the 13 colonies :-( Julie in CA [email protected] wrote: Amanda asked, and I don't know whether she got an adequate answer: One last question. Why are the Chancery Records for Fauquier County scanned and other counties aren't on the Lib of Va. site? My response: I attended a lecture a few years ago at the Library of Virginia in Richmond--before the new building was finished--about the huge project being undertaken by the librarians and archivists at the LVA--the preservation of chancery records. The Library apparently had called in from the counties the surviving chancery records for each county. They were in deplorable condition, in many cases. One example was given to us--the box in which the records were stored was covered with coal dust. The mold, the dust, the condition of the papers are generally such that the archivists are allowed only a specified time to work on these papers. They had to be cleaned on the exterior, as indicated, then the papers had to be unfolded, and whatever else had to be done to preserve them, and only after they were in filmable condition could they be filmed--or prepared for digitization. This is a painstaking process. Those who have worked with OLD papers in courthouses probably have experienced similar events. Torn pages, falling apart covers, fading ink, etc. Example of a genealogist's experience: My first delving into old records was in England. My maternal grandmother was born in England, and her eldest son, my uncle, before the death of both of them, had interviewed his mother and had written about a 15 page history of the family--which helped me immensely. I was able to go almost directly to the county record office in England where her family had originated--although they had moved around quite a bit before migrating to this country in 1885. I requested in writing a specific parish record. At that time, the county record office was in a deteriorating county building--brick--which had been abandoned by another county office--I believe it was the school district building in a previous life. (Talk about recycling!!! I have worked in similar county recycled buildings in a much newer area than old England. Some buildings were so dark, one generally had to feel your way down the hall!!!) At any rate, eventually my request at the CRO was fulfilled. The parish record--a vellum little book with fading handwriting--was wrapped in what I, a layman, would call something like butcher paper. As I unfolded it, I saw this pinkish stuff--mold. That did not deter me from handling it, but it did bother me a good deal that such a valuable book was in such condition. Things are not much better in some of our US courthouses!!! (I have had some interesting--if offputting--experiences in courthouses in a good many southern States, mostly by beginning county clerk's helpers). At any rate, that particular English county record office has since moved into a much nicer building in the same town, but I now have to take a costly taxi ride from the train station! I only hope I live to get back there someday!!! I bet those of you who have been doing on-site genealogical research in various courthouses have had some similar experiences. Those of us whom have Virginia roots, even if several centuries ago, are fortunate that the Library of Virginia has been able to get the funding to preserve so many of its surviving records. Unlucky for me, in some respects--some of my colonial ancestors lived in counties which are now called *burned Virginia counties*! Be grateful for what is available to us, however long we have to wait!!! (And don't believe everything you read!!! And, furthermore, try not to be shocked once in a while!!! Our ancestors, their siblings, and their parents were human, after all.) E.W.Wallace who lives far away from Virginia **************Planning your summer road trip? Check out AOL Travel Guides. (http://travel.aol.com/travel-guide/united-states?ncid=aoltrv00030000000016) ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message --------------------------------- You rock. That's why Blockbuster's offering you one month of Blockbuster Total Access, No Cost.