A History of Buckingham County

Buckingham County was formed from Albemarle County in 1761.   The derivation of the name is not certain; however, it was probably named for a place in England.  It is the only Buckingham County in the United States.  

The English were the first Europeans to settle here, by way of Jamestown, beginning in the late 17^th century. As they came, the  local native Americans from the Monacan tribe moved north.  Early in the 18^th century, Scotch-Irish immigrants came to the county.  This mix was then flavored with an influx of Welsh immigrants who came to work in mining and processing slate, an important natural resource of the county.  The number of African-Americans in Buckingham became significant during the last half of the 18^th century.  Although most were brought here as slaves, some were free, and some of these were prominent, but without the full rights of citizenship.   

Within Virginia, the people of Buckingham County were in the vanguard for independence and later strongly supported the Revolution against England.  In May of 1775, the Buckingham County Committee of Public Safety was the first to offer refuge to fellow Virginians harassed and displaced by the British because of their criticism of English rule. Buckingham delegates to the May 1776 Convention were specifically instructed to vote for independence from England. 

Famous among Revolutionary War heroes was Peter Francisco.  At five or six years of age, he was found wandering the docks at Hopewell in the early summer of 1765.  It is not definitely known who he was, or from whence he came, but it is surmised that he may have been kidnapped from a Spanish speaking country.  By way of a poorhouse, he came to the home of Judge Anthony Winston near New Store in Buckingham County.  Judge Winston, an uncle of Patrick Henry, was a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses and the Winston home became a hotbed of activity supporting the American Revolution.   Peter Francisco joined the American army around the age of 16 and with his extraordinary size, strength, and bravery proved to be a superior soldier.   There is a monument to Peter Francisco at Guilford, NC to commemorate his bravery and feats in the Battle of Guilford.  Several states celebrate Peter Francisco Day on March 15 each year. 

In 1821, Buckingham County resident, Charles Yancey, secured a design from his friend, Thomas Jefferson, for a new courthouse in Buckingham. The new courthouse, using Jefferson’s design, was built between 1822 and 1824, but this courthouse and all of its records was destroyed by fire in 1869.  Another courthouse was built on the same location in 1873 and is a registered Virginia Historic Landmark.  An archeological study during recent courthouse renovation has revealed much information about “Jefferson’s Courthouse” and the footprint of Jefferson’s design has been preserved in the courthouse square landscape plan.

Buckingham County was one of the main sources of gold within the United States from 1830 until the California gold rush of 1849. Slate has been mined continuously since the late 1700’s in the Arvonia area of Buckingham and is considered some of the finest slate in the world.

Dr. Carter G. Woodson (1875-1950), noted teacher, educator, and historian was born and raised in the New Canton area of Buckingham County.  He established Black History Week, which has evolved into Black History Month.  Dr. Woodson is known as the “Father of Black History.”     

A local organization, Historic Buckingham, maintains a museum and historical library in a restored 18^th century home in the village of Buckingham Court House. (Information courtesy Historic Buckingham, Inc.)