Isle of Wight County Virginia USGenWeb Archives News.....History, 1929 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/va/vafiles.htm ************************************************ Isle of Wight Co., VAGenWeb Archives, Newspaper Articles "The Smithfield (VA) Times," Vol. 9, No. 46, May 2, 1929, p. 1. col. 2-3 Ancient History Brought To Light RESIDENT OF SMITHFIELD WHILE GOING OVER OLD ACTS OF GENERAL ASSEMBLY RUNS ACROSS ACT ALTERING PLACE OF HOLDING COURT IN THIS COUNTY. _____ The history of any county or town in Virginia is always interesting reading to one born and reared within the "Old Commonwealth" and Attorney A.S. Johnson, while looking at old Acts of the General Assembly a few days ago, ran across the Act by the General Assembly which changed, or altered the place of holding courts in this county. He also found the Act which, three years later changed the location of the clerk's office, which in meantime had been located here, while the place of holding court was at Isle of Wight. The article was copied from the Acts by Attorney Johnson and given to us for publication, and is as follows: Chapter 10 - An Act for altering the place of courts in the county of Isle of Wight. (Passed January 7, 1800) Whereas it has been represented to this present general assembly, that the place of holding courts in the county of Isle of Wight, is inconvenient to the inhabitants thereof, and they have made application for an act to pass to remove the same to the lands of Francis Boykin, as a more central location, who is willing to erect a courthouse and jail at his own expense, on having the materials contained in the public buildings at Smithfield vested in him: 1: Be it therefore enacted, That Emanuel Willis, John Goodrich, James Willis, Robert Eley and Joseph Moody, gentlemen, shall be, and they hereby constitutes commissioners, who, or a majority of them, are empowered and required to contract and agree with the said Francis Boykin, for erection at his own expense, a courthouse and jail (of proper and sufficient dimensions and strength) at the most convenient place on the land of the said Francis Boykin, and that when such buildings shall be completed, a court for the said county thenieforth [sic; thenceforth] be constantly held at the said place 2: And be it further enacted, That whensoever the said Francis Boykin shall have completed the building of the said courthouse and jail, and the same shall be received by the said commissioners, or a majority of them, that thenceforth all the public buildings at Smithfield, belonging to the said county of Isle of Wight, shall be, and they are, and in case any of the said buildings shall be sold before that period, that then the said Francis Boykin shall receive the amount of such sales: Provided, That noting [sic; nothing] herein contained shall be so construed as to effect the right, title or interest of any person or persons, bodies politic or corporate, of, in or to the present buildings of the said county herein mentioned, other than the right of the commonwealth: And provided also, That the said Francis Boykin shall be obliged to convey to the commonwealth the same quantity of land now claimed by it, and the building he shall so erect thereon, before he shall avail himself of the benefit of this act, relative to the present public buildings. 3: This act shall commence and be inforce from and after the passing thereof. Removing Clerk's Office Chapter 60 - An Act for removing the clerk's office in the county of Isle of Wight. (Passed January 4, 1803) 1: Be it therefore enacted, That as soon as Francis Boykins [sic] shall cause to be erected at the courthouse of the county of Ilse [sic] of Wight a convenient house of brick, covered with tile, lead or slate, according to the directions of the act, entitled, "An act to reduce into one all acts and parts of acts respecting county and corporation clerks," the clerk's office for the said county shall be thence forward kept therein, any law to the contrary notwithstanding 2: This act shall commence and be inforce from and after the passing thereof. Oold Building Still Stand [sic] The present residence of Judge E.H. Williams was the old courthouse; the little brick house by the corner was the clerk's office and the residence in which W.V. Wilson now resides was the old jail building. col. 7 includes a photographic portrait, labelled "Photo by VA. STATE CHAMBER," headed "On Commission," captioned: Attorney A.S. Johnson, of Smithfield, who was recently appointed by Governor Byrd on the newly created "Oyster Advisory Commission," to co-operate with the Commissioner of Fisheries. col. 4 has an article on Johnson's appointment - "Smithfield Attorney Is Honored By Governor" col. 7-8 This County One Of Eight Original Shires COUNTY WAS ORIGINALLY CALLED WARROSQUYOAKE, AFTER TRIBE OF POWHATAN CONFEDERACY. - CHANGED TO ISLE OF WIGHT IN 1637. - NOW NOTED WORLD OVER FOR HOME OF CELEBRATED SMITHFIELD HAMS. ____________ "Know Your State," is one of the slogans of the State Chamber of Commerce and a really good slogan at that and the writer believes that the people of this county should well adopt the slogan, "Know Your County," and for that reason this short sketch of Isle of Wight County is prepared for the readers of The Times. Students of history are aware of the fact that this county is one of the original eight shires into which the state of Virginia was divided in 1634 and this county was originally called "Warrosquyoake," after one of the tribes of the Powhatan confederacy, but in the year 1637 the name was changed to Isle of Wight, so named for the English Isle, which is located near the mainland of Southern England. This is one of the Tidewater counties on the south side of the James River, extending to within eight miles of the North Carolina border and the area is 314 square miles and the population at this time estimated at over 15,000. The surface is generally level in this county; soil medium to light sandy, easily tilled and very productive. Grain crops, peanuts, potatoes, cotton, grasses and legumes flourish in abundance. Large and small fruits, melons and vegetables grow to perfection. Trucks, fisheries, and peanuts are the most important industries. The James river bounds the county on the north and the Blackwater on the south. Pagan river and large creeks are streams within the borders. There are sea trout, croakers, spots, ock perch cat and others. Large quantities of fish and oysters are shipped to northern markets. Hogs are among the valuable outputs of every farm in the county and Smithfield, the largest town in the county, is the home of the world celebrated "Smithfield Ham." Nowhere else is the same quality produced. There are many good herds of dairy cows in different parts of the county, and conditions are good for the growth of this profitable business. The forest produsts are many and varied - oak, pine, poplar, gum and cypress abound. The manufacture of timber is a considerable industry. Four railroads pass through the southern end of the county, while the James river and its tributaries furnish transportation to hte [sic] lower or northen [sic] end. State highway No. 10 - Norfolk to Bristol - passes through Smithfield. There are four accredited high schools - Smithfield, Windsor, Isle of Wight and Carrsville. Five state banks funish [sic] capital to those of a deserving nature and all enterprises that are destined to upbuild the county are given encouragement not only by the banks but other financiers of the county. Isle of Wight, the county seat, is near the center of hte [sic] county and about eight miles from Windsor, on the Norfolk and Western railroad. Smithfield, which is the largest town in the county, was established in 1752, is situated at the head of the Pagan river with one boat daily to Newport News and Norfolk. Suffolk and Portsmouth are connected by good highways. Smithfield is a residence town of culture with prosperous business enterprises and two banks. Only one newspaper in the county, The Smithfield Times, which circulates in every section of the county. On the Suffolk-Smithfield highway, deep in an oak grove, stands old St. Luke's church, claimed to be the oldest Protestant church building in America, the original walls, erected in 1632, supporting the present structure. Much more indeed can be written about this historic county and will be from time to time and this paper will be glad to receive from its readers notes and also pictures of a historical nature which will be used as space permits. ____________ Additional information: The relocation of the courthouse & clerk's office and the subsequent legal battles is the subject of "The Strange Case of the Two Courthouses," Chapter 5, in the following source: Helen Haverty King, et al. "Historical Notes on Isle of Wight County, Virginia." Isle of Wight: Isle of Wight County Board of Supervisors, 1993. pp. 71-102 Albert Sidney JOHNSON (1874 - 1961), a veteran of the Spanish-American War, is buried in St. Luke's Memorial Park, Benns Church. Isle of Wight County Historical Society {IWCHS} Grave Site Survey Task Force {GSSTF} #18: http://www.iwchs.com/Cemetery-Reports.html That cemetery is adjacent to Old. St. Luke's. (GSSTF #17) His parents, Benjamin R. & Myra Ann JOHNSON, are buried in a JOHNSON family cemetery, Buckhorn Dr. (GSSTF #142) Contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by Matt Harris (zoobug64@aol.com). file at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/va/isleofwight/news/19290502st.txt