Anbury, Major Thomas.--Travels Through the Interior Parts of America in a series of Letters. Two Volumes. Printed for William Lane, Leadenhall Street, London, 1791. Major Anbury was a British officer who was captured at Saratoga and was brought south with the Convention Prisoners. He was paroled and had an opportunity to see much of Virginia. His observations upon the social life of the state are interesting, although tinged with prejudice. Viewing life in the New World with the eyes of one accustomed to the conventional ideas of England his writings throw light upon conditions in the Old Dominion that cannot be found in the works of native authors.
Bagby, George W.--Selections from the Writings of. Whittet and Shepperson, Richmond, Va., 1884. Two volumes. The articles in this work touching on Virginia life are well worth the attention of the historian. Dr. Bagby traveled through many parts of the state and had an unsurpa.s.sed opportunity of becoming acquainted with this life. The style is pleasing and the stories entertaining.
Barton, R.T.--Virginia Colonial Decisions. The Reports by Sir John Randolph and by Edward Barradall of the Decisions of the General Court of Virginia, 1728-1741. Two volumes. The Boston Book Company, Boston. Accompanying the decisions is a prospective sketch of the contemporaneous conditions during the period covered and of the lawyers who practiced at the bar of the General Court in that day. In addition, the first volume contains an interesting account of the settling of Virginia and its history in the seventeenth century. Chapters are devoted to a description of the land, of the people, of the government, of the church, of the lack of cities, and of education. The chief value of the work, however, lies in the light that is thrown upon the history of Virginia during the years between 1728 and 1741, by the publication of the decisions which were before in ma.n.u.script form and practically inaccessible to the investigator.
Bernard, John.--Retrospections of America, 1797-1811. Harper and Brothers, New York, 1887. One volume. Bernard was famous in his time as a comedian and one of the earliest American managers of theatrical companies. He visited Virginia in 1799 and made many excursions to the homes of the wealthy planters. He thus had an opportunity to see the inner life of the most refined cla.s.s of the state. His descriptions of their manners and morals, their tastes, their hospitality and their love of out-of-door sports are interesting and usually accurate.
Beverley, Robert.--The History and Present State of Virginia, in Four Parts. Printed for R. Parker, at the Unicorn, under the Piazza"s of the Royal-Exchange, 1705. One volume. The work consists of an outline of the history of the colony from 1607 to 1705; of a statement of the natural productions of Virginia; its industries and its facilities for trade; of an account of the Indians and a brief summary of the government at the time of publication. The work is of value chiefly as a description of Virginia at the beginning of the 18th century. In the account given of the history of the colony in the earlier days there are many errors.
Brown, Alexander.--The Genesis of the United States. Two volumes.
Houghton, Mifflin and Company, Boston and New York. This work consists of an account of the movement which resulted in the founding of Virginia, presented in the form of a series of doc.u.ments not before printed, and of rare contemporaneous tracts reissued for the first time. The author, in a later work, criticises The Genesis of the United States in the following words, "I did not fully understand the case myself. I had failed (as every one else had previously done) to give due consideration to the influence of imperial politics on the history of this popular movement. I had also failed to consider properly the absolute control over the evidences, in print and in ma.n.u.script, possessed by the crown." The chief value of the work lies in the fact that it presents to the public numerous historical evidences which were for so many years inaccessible.
The First Republic in America. One volume. Houghton, Mifflin and Company, Boston and New York. This work gives an account of the origin of the nation, written from the records long concealed in England. It not only is not based on the printed histories of the day, but expressly repudiates them as false and unjust, and as written in the interest of the Court Party. Much discredit is thrown upon the narratives of Capt. John Smith. The author says; "He never returned there (Virginia) and--if every one else had done exactly as he did, there would have remained no colonists in Virginia, but mountains of books in England, conveying incorrect ideas, and filled with a ma.s.s of vanity, "excellent criticism" and "good advice," amounting really to nothing." In a later work Mr. Brown says of The First Republic in America; "I wrote from the point of the Patriot Party. It was the first effort to restore to our foundation as a nation the inspiring political features of which it was robbed by those who controlled the evidences and histories under the crown."
English Politics in Early Virginia History. One volume. Houghton, Mifflin and Company, Boston and New York. The book is divided into five parts. The First Part gives an outline of the efforts of the "Patriot Party" in England to plant popular government in America and of the Court Party to prevent. Part Two recites the effort of the Court to obliterate the true history of the origin of Virginia. In Part Three the author shows the influence of politics on the historic record while the crown retained control of the evidences. Part Four shows what has been done both towards correcting and to perpetuating the error. In the Fifth Part is given a review of some of the features of the struggle of the "Patriot Party" and the Court Party.
Bruce, Philip Alexander.--Economic History of Virginia in the Seventeenth Century. Two volumes. Printed by the Macmillan Company, New York. This work treats of aboriginal Virginia, of the agricultural development after the coming of the English, the acquisition of t.i.tle to land, the system of labor, the domestic economy of the planters, the part played by manufactures in the colony, the inconvenience occasioned by the scarcity of coin. The author has expended much labor in acc.u.mulating a ma.s.s of interesting and valuable detail, and the work is a veritable store house of information which is invaluable to the historian. There is no attempt made to point out the relation of the economic history of the time with the political, religious or social developments that were taking place in the 17th century. The work is valuable chiefly as a source book.
Social Life of Virginia in the Seventeenth Century. One volume.
Printed for the author by Whittet and Shepperson, Richmond, Va.
In the first portion of this book the author attempts to explain in some detail the origin of the higher planters in the colony.
A startling array of individual cases are cited to prove the connection of at least a portion of this cla.s.s with English families of education and rank. As usual with the author little attention is paid to generalizations and he arrives at his conclusions by induction rather than by deduction. Interesting chapters are devoted to social distinctions, social spirit, popular diversions, public and private occasions and duelling.
Burke, John.--The History of Virginia from its First Settlement to the Present Day. Four volumes. Published in 1804. The chief value of this work lies in the fact that it contains a number of doc.u.ments of great interest to the historian. Chief among these is a series of papers relating to the dispute over the Arlington, Culpeper grant. As a general history of Virginia the work is antiquated. At the time Burke wrote a large part of the doc.u.ments and pamphlets relating to the colony were inaccessible, and as a result he is compelled to pa.s.s over very important periods with the most cursory mention.
Burnaby, Andrew.--Travels through the Middle Settlements in North America in the Years 1759 and 1760; with Observations upon the State of the Colonies. Printed for T. Payne, at the Mews-Gate, London, 1798. One volume. Burnaby"s criticisms of Virginia society are less accurate than those of others who have written on the same subject because his stay in the colony was so brief.
He is by no means sympathetic with the life of the colony, chiefly because he does not understand it.
Byrd, William.--The Writings of "Col. William Byrd of Westover in Virginia Esq." Edited by John Spencer Ba.s.sett. One volume.
Doubleday, Page and Company, New York, 1901. Col. Byrd gives an interesting picture in this work of the life upon the frontier of the colony in the first quarter of the 18th century. The style is flowing and easy, and the author shows a literary talent unusual in colonial writers. The Introduction by the editor consists of a sketch of the Byrd family. This is ably written, and the observations made upon Virginia politics and life show keen insight into the unique conditions that were moulding the character of the colony. It is, perhaps, a more valuable contribution to Virginia history than the writings which it introduces.
Campbell, Charles.--History of the Colony and Ancient Dominion of Virginia. One volume. J.B. Lippincott and Company, Philadelphia, 1860. In his preface the author says: "Her (Virginia"s) doc.u.mentary history, lying, much of it, scattered and fragmentary, in part slumbering in the dusty oblivion of Trans-Atlantic archives, ought to be collected with pious care, and embalmed in the perpetuity of print." The partial accomplishment of this task, so urgently advocated by the author, has rendered his work incomplete and insufficient for the present day. Upon numerous periods of Virginia history barely touched by him, a great light has since been thrown by the unearthing of ma.n.u.scripts and pamphlets.
Chastellux, E.J.--Voyages dans l"Amerique Septentrionale. Chez Prault, Imprimeur du Roi, Paris, 1786. Two volumes. Chastellux was a Frenchman who visited various parts of America at the time of the Revolution. His observations upon social life in Virginia are less prejudiced than those of many of the foreign visitors to the colony at this period. The work is valuable in that it gives the impressions made by the higher cla.s.s in Virginia upon one used to the refined life of France in the second half of the 18th century.
Cooke, John Esten.--Virginia, a History of the People. Houghton, Mifflin and Company, Boston, 1884. One volume. So many valuable doc.u.ments and pamphlets treating of Virginia history have been made accessible since this work was published, that it is quite antiquated. In addition, the author has failed to make the best use of the material at his hands, and there are numberless errors for which there can be no excuse. One wonders, when reading the book, whether the author has ever taken the trouble to glance at Hening"s Statutes, for he repeats old mistakes that were pointed out by Hening one hundred years ago. The style is entertaining and has given to the work a popularity out of proportion to its historical worth.
Dinwiddie, Robert.--The Official Records of Robert Dinwiddie.
Introduction and notes by R.A. Brock. Virginia Historical Society, Richmond, Va., 1883. Two volumes. A large number of ma.n.u.scripts of various kinds relating to the administration of Dinwiddie have been printed for the first time in this work.
Great light is thrown upon Braddock"s disasterous expedition and other important events of the French and Indian War. Dinwiddie"s account of the obstinacy and unreasonable conduct of the burgesses should be studied in conjunction with the journals of the House which have recently been published.
Fiske, John.--Old Virginia and her Neighbors. Two volumes.
Houghton, Mifflin and Company, Boston and New York, 1897. This work is written in the delightful and entertaining style so characteristic of the author, and like Macaulay"s History of England holds the interest of the reader from beginning to end.
Only a portion of the colonial period is covered, and this in a general and hap-hazard way. The narrative is not equally sustained throughout, some periods being dwelt upon in much detail, and others, equally important, pa.s.sed over with but cursory mention. Fiske did not have access to many of the sources of Virginia history, and this led him into repeating some old errors.
Fithian, Philip Vickers.--Journal and Letters, 1767-1774. Edited for the Princeton Historical a.s.sociation, by John Rogers Williams. One volume. Fithian was tutor at Nomini Hall, the home of Col. Robert Carter, during the years 1773 and 1774. His observations upon the life in the midst of which he was thrown, the life of the highest cla.s.s of Virginians, are intensely interesting and very instructive. The author was a young theologian, who had received his education at Princeton, and who seemed strangely out of place in the gay society of aristocratic Westmoreland. For this very reason, however, his journal and letters are interesting, for he dwells with especial emphasis upon what was new or strange to him and has thus unconsciously given an excellent account of all that was unique or distinctive in the Virginia aristocracy.
Force, Peter.--Tracts and other Papers, Relating Princ.i.p.ally to the Origin, Settlement and Progress of the Colonies in North America. Printed in 1836. Four volumes. By the preservation of these valuable doc.u.ments Mr. Force has done a great service to the history of the colony of Virginia. The papers relating to Bacon"s Rebellion are of especial interest, while Virginia"s Cure, A Description of New Albion and Leah and Rachel are hardly less important.
Goodwin, Maud Wilder.--The Colonial Cavalier or Southern Life before the Revolution. Lowell, Coryell and Company, New York, 1894. One volume. This little work is well written and is in the main accurate. It offers an interesting picture of the Southern planter and the unique life that he led in the second half of the 18th century.
Hening, W.W.--The Statutes at Large; Being a Collection of all the Laws of Virginia, from the First Session of the Legislature, in the Year 1619. In thirteen volumes covering the period up to October, 1792. In 1836 Samuel Shepherd published three more volumes, covering the period from 1792 to 1806. In addition to the collection of laws the work contains many historical doc.u.ments of great value. The Statutes at Large are invaluable to the student of Virginia history and they throw much light upon periods otherwise obscured in gloom. It is to Hening chiefly that the historian is indebted for his knowledge of the years covered by the first administration of Sir William Berkeley, while his information of what occurred during the Commonwealth Period would be slight indeed without The Statutes at Large. Since the Journals of the House of Burgesses have been copied, and thus made available to the investigator, the work is not so indispensable for some periods, but it const.i.tutes a valuable adjunct to these papers and no historian can afford to neglect them. The work shows throughout the greatest care even in the minutest details and will remain a monument to the indefatigable energy and patience of Mr. Hening.
Howe, Henry.--Historical Collections of Virginia; containing a collection of the most interesting facts, traditions, biographical sketches, anecdotes, etc., relating to its history and antiquaries, etc. One volume. Published by Babc.o.c.k and Company, 1845. In his preface the author says: "The primary object of the following pages is to narrate the most prominent events in the history of Virginia, and to give a geographical and statistical view of her present condition." In accomplishing the latter of these tasks Mr. Howe has done a real and lasting service to the history of the state. His description of the various counties in 1843 and the life of their people was the fruit of personal observation and as a consequence is usually accurate and trustworthy.
Howison, Robert R.--A History of Virginia, from its Discovery and Settlement by Europeans to the Present Time. Two Volumes. Carey and Hart, Philadelphia, 1846. The preface of the work has the following: "In writing the Colonial History, the author has endeavored to draw from the purest fountains of light the rays which he has sought to shed upon his subject." And throughout the book there is abundant evidence to show that Mr. Howison had studied the sources of Virginia history then available and had picked out as best he could the truth whenever his authorities differed. So much has been learned of the events he treats since 1846, however, that his work is today of little value.
Johns Hopkins University Studies in Historical and Political Science. The Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore. A number of these studies touch upon colonial Virginia history and they have done much in bringing order out of the ma.s.s of facts to be found in old books, in doc.u.ments and in journals. Some of the papers are: Justice in Colonial Virginia, O.P. Chitwood; History of Suffrage in Virginia, J.A.C. Chandler; Representation in Virginia, J.A.C.
Chandler; White Servitude in the Colony of Virginia, H.R.
McIlwaine, and Virginia Local Inst.i.tutions, Edward Ingle.
Jones, Hugh.--The Present State of Virginia. Printed for J. Clark, at the Bible under the Royal-Exchange, 1724. Reprinted for Joseph Sabin, New York. This work gives an entertaining and valuable picture of Virginia during the administration of Governor Spotswood. Those chapters are most useful which treat of the pursuits, the religion, the manners and the government of the colonists. The descriptions given are drawn largely from the personal observations of the author. This, together with the sincere and straightforward manner in which the book is written, leaves the impression of accuracy and trustworthiness.
Journals of the Council of Virginia as Upper House. Ma.n.u.script copies made of incomplete records in the State Library at Richmond, in the Library of the Virginia Historical Society.
Arranged in three volumes as follows: I, 1685-1720; II, 1722-1747; III, 1748-1767. These journals are by no means so important as those of the House of Burgesses. They are devoted quite largely to routine matters and reflect but little of the political life of the colony. The historian, if he gives careful study to their pages, will be rewarded by pa.s.sages here and there which draw aside the veil, and give fleeting pictures of the strife between the Council and the Burgesses.
Journals of the House of Burgesses.--In the State Library. Session of 1619; ma.n.u.script copies of sessions from 1680 to 1718, and from 1748 to 1772. These journals, so many of which have been buried for centuries in English archives, throw a flood of light upon the political life of the colony. They const.i.tute by far the most important source of information upon the long and tireless struggle of the middle cla.s.s in Virginia for a share in the conducting of the government. Something of this, of course, may be gleaned from the official correspondence of the governors, but this evidence is partisan in spirit and does injustice to the commons of Virginia. Hening gives in the main only bare statutes, and the discussions, the quarrels and the pa.s.sions of the sessions are omitted. The journals are to Hening"s work what the living person is to the stone image. It is a matter of the deepest regret that the journals from 1619 to 1680 are missing, for they leave a gap in Virginia history that it is impossible to fill.
Keith, Sir William.--The History of the British Plantations in America. Part One contains the History of Virginia. Printed by S. Richardson, London, 1738. The work is devoted almost entirely to the colony under the London Company. It contains little of value, following John Smith"s account throughout and presenting nothing new either of doc.u.mentary evidence or of criticism.
Long, Charles M.--Virginia County Names, Two Hundred and Seventy Years of Virginia History. The Neale Publishing Co., New York.
This little volume throws much light upon the history of Virginia through the record left in the names of the counties.
The work contains several valuable tables. One of these gives the governors of Virginia from 1607 to 1908.
McDonald Papers.--Copies of Papers in Brit. Rec. Office. Virginia State Library, Richmond. There were seven volumes of these doc.u.ments, but two of them have been missing for many years.
Vol. I covers the years from 1619 to 1626; Vol. II from 1627 to 1640; Vols. III and IV are missing; Vol. V from 1675 to 1681; Vol. VI from 1681 to 1685; Vol. VII from 1683 to 1695. This collection contains many papers that are to be found in Sainsbury, but they are usually more full, being often exact copies of the originals. In addition there are many papers in the McDonald collection not to be found elsewhere.
Maury, Richard L.--The Huguenots in Virginia. Col. Maury in this work has rendered an important service to Virginia history. On every page are evidences of the utmost care for truth and the greatest diligence in reaching it. Col. Maury made, before writing this book, a thorough study of the sources of Virginia history and the accuracy of his work reflects this labor.
Maxwell, William.--The Virginia Historical Register. Printed by Macfarlane and Ferguson, Richmond. In six volumes. This work is one of the fruits of the revival of interest in Virginia history which took place in the two decades preceding the Civil War. It contains many papers and doc.u.ments printed for the first time, and no student of colonial history can afford to neglect it.
Meade, William.--Old Churches, Ministers and Families of Virginia.
J.B. Lippincott and Co., Philadelphia. Two volumes. The t.i.tle does not indicate all, nor the most valuable part, of the contents of this work. In addition to giving numerous facts in regard to the old churches and their ministers and congregations, the author has presented an ecclesiastical history of Virginia. The contest of the vestries with the governors to obtain and to keep control of the church, is carefully and ably set forth. Also, the relation of this struggle to the political life of the colony is kept constantly in sight. The appendix contains several papers relating to church affairs that are invaluable to the historian.
Miller, Elmer I.--The Legislature of the Province of Virginia. One volume. The Columbia University Press. The Macmillan Co., Agents. This work is but the a.s.sembling and arranging of numerous facts in regard to the General a.s.sembly. It presents no new thoughts, it teaches no lessons in Virginia history, it settles none of the old problems, it presents no new ones.
Unfortunately, also, the author did not have access to a large number of the journals of the House of Burgesses, which, it need hardly be added, are indispensable for an exhaustive study of the a.s.sembly.
Neill, Edward D.--Virginia Vetusta, during the Reign of James I.
Joel Munsell"s Sons, Albany, 1885. The value of this work lies in the printing of numerous doc.u.ments throwing light on the affairs of the colony under the London Company. Mr. Neill takes the ground that John Smith"s narratives are not to be trusted, and he has made a long step towards correcting the errors contained in the works of that writer.
Virginia Carolorum: The Colony under the Rule of Charles the First and Second A.D. 1625-A.D. 1685, based upon ma.n.u.scripts and doc.u.ments of the period. Joel Munsell"s Sons, Albany, 1886.
Mr. Neill has been, with some justice, called the scavenger of Virginia history. In Virginia Carolorum he has gathered many papers and doc.u.ments which are bitterly hostile to the colony, and represent it in a light far from attractive. As, however, it is the duty of the historian to present truth, no matter whether pleasant or disagreeable, this volume is of undoubted value. Its chief fault lies in the author"s failure to point out the prejudices of some of those writers that are quoted, thus leaving the reader to give to their statements more weight than they can justly claim.
Page, Thomas Nelson.--The Old Dominion her Making and her Manners.
Charles Scribner"s Sons, New York, 1908. This work consists of a series of essays, in part addresses delivered before various societies at different times. It is written in the delightful style for which Dr. Page is so well known and is as entertaining as Fiske"s The Old Dominion and her Neighbors. Perhaps the most valuable chapter is that devoted to Colonial Life.
The Old South, Essays Social and Political. Charles Scribner"s Sons, New York, 1892. This work consists of a series of well written articles upon anti-bellum Virginia. Among these are Glimpses of Life in Colonial Virginia, The Old Virginia Lawyer, and the Negro Question. Dr. Page"s intimate knowledge of the life upon the plantation makes him peculiarly well qualified to write a book of this nature.
Perry, William Stevens.--Papers Relating to the History of the Church in Virginia, 1650-1776. Printed in 1870. One volume. This collection of ma.n.u.scripts is invaluable to the historian. Some of the papers have been preserved in other works, but many are to be had here only. The doc.u.ments relating to the controversy between the vestries and the governors for control of the appointing of ministers are of great importance. Not only do these papers give much information upon the ecclesiastical history of the colony, but they throw light that cannot be gotten elsewhere upon political conditions.