CONTENT WARNING
Materials in the Library of Virginia’s collections contain historical terms, phrases, and images that are offensive to modern readers. These include demeaning and dehumanizing references to race, ethnicity, and nationality; enslaved or free status; physical and mental ability; and gender and sexual orientation.
Context
Prior to the Civil War, enslaved men and women were not legally allowed to marry. However, during slavery many men and women did consider themselves to be married despite the lack of legal protection and recognition, which meant that husbands and wives could be sold away from each other. After the establishment of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Land (generally known as the Freedmen's Bureau) in 1865 to supervise and manage all matters related to refugees, freedmen, and lands abandoned or seized during the Civil War, the Commissioner ordered county court clerks in Virginia to record the marriages for formerly enslaved couples. In February 1866, Virginia's General Assembly legalized existing marriages between formerly enslaved men and women, in part to prevent their formerly enslaved children from becoming wards of the state. The law authorized men to identify their wives and legalize their marriages and to identify and legitimize their children, but did not provide the ability for women to identify their husbands.
This cohabitation register, or as it is properly titled, "Register of Colored Persons of Roanoke County, State of Virginia, cohabiting together as Husband and Wife on 27th February 1866," was the legal vehicle by which formerly enslaved people legitimized both their marriages and their children. As a result, the surviving spouses and children could inherit property from their deceased spouse or parent in the event that they did not leave a will. This is the first page of the Cohabitation Register for Roanoke County and shows a variety of personal information about the men and women listed here. These records are often the first time that a former slave appeared officially in the public record, and they provide invaluable family information for African American genealogists.
Citation: Roanoke County (Va.) Register of Colored Persons Cohabiting Together as Husband and Wife, 27th February 1866, p. 1, Cohabitation Registers Digital Collection, Library of Virginia.
See other Cohabitation Registers online.
Standards
Suggested Questions
Preview Activity
Scan It: Scan the document. What information is provided on the document? Why might such a document have been necessary?
Post Activities
Analyze: What kinds of demographic information can be found in this document? How might it be helpful to someone trying to trace his or her family history?
Another Perspective: The information contained in the registers provides information to families seeking their genealogy and ancestral history. Why might it be difficult for the descendants of enslaved people to find such information in public records? Consider what recordkeeping was like for enslaved people prior to the Civil War and how that may impact a genealogical search.