To fully understand the family history information on this website, it is first necessary to understand the early development of Virginia counties. The first permanent Virginia settlements were along the James River, which runs to the northwest off the lower Chesapeake Bay near its confluence with the Atlantic Ocean.
In 1623/24, courts were kept in the shires of Charles City, Elizabeth City, and James City. In February 1631/32, the General Assembly added five more. The eight original shires were: Charles City; Henrico; James City; Elizabeth City; Warwick River; Warrosquyoake, which became the Isle of Wight in 1637; Charles River, later York; and Accawmacke (Accomack). The creation of the shires, later known as counties, was intended to make the administration of justice more accessible to the colonists.
The General Assembly of Virginia passed an act of November 1738 [1] designed to encourage settlement by offering tax-free status for ten years to those who would settle “upon the Roanoke River, on the South branch (Dan River) of the same, above the fork,... and the lands lying between.” This incentive attracted large numbers of settlers. [2] It is certainly possible that this Act encouraged my earliest known ancestor, Edward Polly, to migrate to this area.
During the period from 1750 to 1770, twenty-six new counties were formed, at a rate of more than one per year. As this westward expansion continued, Virginia created Kentucky County (1776) and Illinois County (1778). Kentucky County (also known as Kaintuck and similar variants) was eventually split into three counties: Jefferson, Fayette, and Lincoln. These later became part of the state of Kentucky in 1792. Illinois County (the Northwest Territory) was ceded to the nation and became a territory. This voluntary gift to the nation encompassed the entire Ohio Valley and parts of Wisconsin and Michigan. There is a great animation of the formation of Virginia counties at the FamilyHistory101.com website. [3]
Before its formation in 1767, the land that is now Pittsylvania County was part of the western regions of Halifax County (formed in 1752), Lunenburg County (formed in 1745), and Brunswick County (formed in 1720 but not organized with a government established until 1732). Prior to the formation of Brunswick County, few, if any, Englishmen were living in this area. Pittsylvania County became its present size in 1777 when Patrick and Henry counties were formed from its western parts. This means a person could live in one place for just over 20 years, spanning three counties.
Pittsylvania County was named in honor of William Pitt, the first Earl of Chatham, an English statesman. It was formed from Halifax County in 1766. Its current area is 982.89 square miles, and the county seat is Chatham. When Pittsylvania County was formed in 1767, the tithables lists numbered 938 whites and 316 slaves, totaling 1,254 inhabitants. This list did not include white women unless they were widowed or heads of household, or white children under the age of 16. In 1773, the lists numbered 2,198, showing the rapid increase in settlement. [4] Pitt was a great friend of the American Colonies and played a prominent role in securing the repeal of the Stamp Act of 1766. It was a great honor to have the county and its county seat named after him. The first county court was held on Friday, June 26, 1767. When first formed, the county comprised what is now Pittsylvania, Franklin (part of), Floyd (part of), Henry, and Patrick Counties.
Prior to 1785, church parishes served as both local units of government and centers of religious and community organization. In Colonial Virginia, parishes and their boundaries were established (and altered) by acts of the General Assembly. After the January 16, 1786, passage of Thomas Jefferson’s Bill for Establishing Religious Freedom by the Virginia General Assembly, parishes continued to exist, but they were no longer official units of the state government. Various parishes served the area that is now Pittsylvania County at different times, including Antrim (formed in 1752), Cornwall (formed in 1757 serving Lunenburg and Charlotte Counties), Cumberland (formed in 1745 serving Lunenburg and Bedford Counties), St. James (founded in 1720), and Camden (see below). The boundaries of Antrim Parish were identical to those of Halifax County when that county was formed in May 1752. When Halifax County and Antrim Parish were organized in 1752, six new churches were ordered to be built, one of which was on Pigg River. Chapels were built on Snow Creek, Potter's Creek and Leatherwood Creek. It is very probable that the Pigg River church and the chapels on Snow Creek and Potter's Creek were all served by the early Pigg River Road. After Pittsylvania County was formed, the boundaries of Antrim Parish were adjusted to match those of the present form of Halifax County. [5,6] The first known meeting of the Antrim Parish was on 24 April 1753. [7]
The Camden Parish of the Episcopal Church was formed in the same year as the county [8]. Initially, there were chapels at Snow Creek [9] and Potter’s Creek [10], and at the home of William Heard. No Polley ancestors are listed as vestrymen. These chapels were established as part of Antrim Parish before the Camden Parish was formed. The vestry meetings of Antrim Parish were held at the courthouse, then located at Peytonsburg in the eastern part of what later became Pittsylvania County. The site of the old town of Peytonsburg is just off VA 57, where Pittsylvania borders Halifax County. The community of Peytonsburg was a part of Halifax County when the county was formed in 1752. Peytonsburg was incorporated as a town in 1759 by the Virginia General Assembly and became part of Pittsylvania County in 1767. By the late 1770s, during the Revolutionary War, Peytonsburg served as a supply depot for southern colonial troops. Horseshoes and wooden canteens were made there for the colonial forces. During the 1780s. Peytonsburg was a terminus of a mail route that ran from the town to Richmond. The inhabitants gradually left the town in the 19th century, and the buildings fell into disrepair. [11]
NOTES:[1] The Statutes at Large. . . of Virginia, Vol. V, William W. Hening, Richmond: by George Cochran, 1822, p.58[2] http://www.franklincountyvagenealogy.com/14.html “Companion Alphabetical and Chronological Index To A Settlement Map of Franklin County Made for The Franklin County Historical Society: Names and Locations of Many of the Early Settlers in the Area from 1786 to 1886” Rebecca R. Dyer Copyright 2001 Compiled 2001 by Rebecca R. Dyer. Accessed June 11, 2009, and http://files.usgwarchives.net/va/lunenburg/census/sun001.txt accessed August 24, 2025.[3] See http://www.familyhistory101.com/maps/va_cf.html [4] http://www.franklincountyvagenealogy.com/14.html “Companion Alphabetical and Chronological Index To A Settlement Map of Franklin County Made for The Franklin County Historical Society: Names and Locations of Many of the Early Settlers in the Area from 1786 to 1886” Rebecca R. Dyer Copyright 2001 Compiled 2001 by Rebecca R. Dyer. Accessed June 11, 2009[5] https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Halifax_County,_Virginia_Genealogy [6] https://www.victorianvilla.com/sims-mitchell/local/clement/mc/ap/01.htm has a detailed history of Antrim Parish.[7] Vestry Book of the Antrim Parish, Halifax County, Virginia 1752 – 1817. Transcribed by Marian Dodson Chiarito, 1982. Copyright Iberian Publishing. [8] Marriage Bonds and Minister’s Returns of Pittsylvania County, Virginia 1767-1805, Compiled and published by Catherine Lindsay Knorr, 1956[9] Snow Creek empties into the Pigg River, approximately. 2.7 miles south of the Rt. 40 & Armstrong Rd. Intersection, Sandy Level, and about 6 miles SW of Reddies Creek. [10] This creek is not found on the USGS Geographic Names Information System website[11] https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=20774
Updated April 7, 2026