Justice's Docket Book. Amherst County, Virginia, 1850-1859. 2 books

Amherst County, Virginia, 1850-1859. 2 books. Antebellum Virginia Docket Book [Manuscript]. [Virginia]. [Justice's Docket Book, Amherst County, Virginia, 1850-1859]. 2 books. [200]; [212] pp. Folio (13-1/2" x 8-1/4" and 12-3/4" x 8"; "; 34.3 x 20.9 and 32.4 x 20.3 cm). Quarter and three-quarter sheep over marbled boards, one book has lettering piece reading "Justice's Docket." Bindings lightly cocked, moderate rubbing to boards and board edges with light wear to corners, spine of one book abraded, its boards partially detached. Light toning, light foxing in places, staining to leaves at beginning and end of each book. Text in legible hands to approximately 80 pp., a few leaves removed, torn or partially lacking with some loss to content, one book has additional annotations to pastedowns and adjacent endleaves. $1,850. * This paired set of manuscript ledgers captures daily legal and economic life in Antebellum Virginia, recording appearances at a Justice's Court in Amherst County. Local family names throughout the text-including Dr. William S. Dillard, a member of a prominent Amherst medical family-firmly anchor the volumes to the county seat of Amherst. (The volumes were acquired directly from a Dillard descendant). The legal entries are meticulously organized in columns under the following contemporary headings: "Parties Names," "Date of Judgment," "Amount of Judgment," "Interest from Costs," "Exon. [Execution] When Delivered," "To Whom Delivered," "When Returnable," and "Return." While the core legal record spans the turbulent decade of 1850 to 1859, the books remained in the family as a domestic record. The rear of one volume contains local sales transactions dating from 1880 to 1889, alongside a fascinating homegrown recipe for "foxgrape wine" dated 1881. An excellent primary source for Southern legal history, debt collection practices, and post-war rural ecology.…