Colonial Roots

The entire Register has births recorded from 1853 to 1896 and more than 21,000 entries. For printing, and user handling purposes it has been divided into three volumes, 1853-1876. 1877-1886 and 1887-1896. It was the parents or informants who gave the information to the Tax Collector or Assessor as he was called. The tax Assessor then gave the information to the Clerk of the Court or Justice of the Peace. The Clerk then recorded it, sometimes two years after the fact. At a time when only some big cities were recording births and the mode of collecting the data was lengthy The Accomack County Birth Register is a great source of information and includes; parents, place of birth, occupation of the father, residence, and informant. 245 pp. 8 1/2x11.