1770 Map - Notes

Meherrin River

The Forks of the Meherrin River & The Dividing line between Charlotte County and Lunenburg County

The 1770 map was drawn five years after Charlotte County was formed from Cornwall Parish, Lunenburg County, and seven years before the change from the point the South Fork of Meherrin joins the Lunenburg/Charlotte dividing line and northward.

In May 1777, the act (in part): "Whereas part of the parish of Cornwall and county of Charlotte, is very inconvenient for the inhabitants thereof, and would be more convenient to the parish of Cumberland and county of Lunenburg: Be it therefore enacted, that the surveyor of the said county of Lunenburg shall, on or before the first day of October next, run a line, to begin WHERE MECKLENBURG AND LUNENBURG STRIKE CHARLOTTE COUNTY LINE, DIRECTLY TO THE PLACE CALLED WIMBUSH'S ORDINARY; and that all that part of the said parish of Cornwall, and county of Charlotte, which shall lie on the east side of the said line, shall from thenceforth be add to the parish of Cumberland and county of Lunenburg." -- Charlotte County - Rich Indeed, page 62

It appears that in 1770, the map showing the line dividing Charlotte from Mecklenburg and Lunenburg was continuous and one angle. Present-day, the line dividing Charlotte from Mecklenburg is about 34.5 degrees east of north. The line dividing Charlotte from Lunenburg is about 12 degrees east of north. Theoretically, I assume, one could continue (on a present-day map) the Charlotte/Mecklenburg 34.5 degrees east of north line through Lunenburg and approximate the area of Charlotte that reverted to Lunenburg in 1777.

The forks of Meherrin are barely in Charlotte County. The North and Middle Forks flow southeastwardly through Lunenburg. The South Fork forms the division between Lunenburg and Mecklenburg before the forks join to form the Meherrin which divides the rest of Lunenburg from Mecklenburg.

The various labels given the Middle Fork (or Middle Meherrin) in deeds sometimes create confusion. It was frequently referred to as "Robertson Fork of Meherrin" and sometimes, Robertson Creek.

Roanoke River

Staunton is the name given the Roanoke River as it passes through Bedford, Campbell, Charlotte, and Halifax Counties. In Mecklenburg, it resumes its original name of Roanoke and so continues into Albemarle Sound.

Contributed 2002 by JoLee Gregory Spears