72 Annals of tiif, Caknegie Museum. 



Attention is called to the efforts made, as disclosed in the proceed- 

 ings of the Court of Yohogania County now published, to have the 

 oath of allegiance to the State of A^irginia administered to all the in- 

 habitants of the Monongahela and Ohio valleys, within the limits of 

 the actually exercised jurisdiction of Westmoreland County, Pennsyl- 

 vania/ 



Why are the records of these old Virginia courts found in the vaults 

 of the court-house of Washington County, Pennsylvania ? A reply to 

 this (question may be made as follows : 



On March i, 1780, just before the fmal ratification by Pennsyl- 

 vania and Virginia of the agreement at the Baltimore Conference, on 

 the establishment of the boundary lines between the two states, and 

 whilst all the territory of Washington, Allegheny, Fayette and Greene 

 counties and of that part of Beaver county south of the Ohio River still 

 formed part of Westmoreland County, erected in 1773, the legislature 

 of Pennsylvania, " first of all the states," says III. Bryant's Hist, of 

 U. S., 177, passed an act for the gradual emancipation of all the 

 slaves within its jurisdiction." And on March 21, 1781, AV^ashington 

 County was erected, the first new County out of old Westmoreland. 

 Then on April 13, 1782, less than two years after the Virginia courts had 

 ceased to be held within the limits of Pennsylvania, and still before the 

 boundary lines had been actually run on the ground, an act was passed 

 by the general assembly of Pennsylvania, entitled " An Act to redress 

 certain grievances within the Counties of Westmoreland and Wash- 

 ington."' The preamble to this act recited : 



" Whereas a number of the inhabitants of Westmoreland and Wash- 

 ington counties have represented to the General Assembly that they 

 labor under many inconveniences by reason that Before the Boundary 

 was agreed to between the States of Virginia and Pennsylvania, many 

 of the inhabitants aforesaid, conceiving themselves under the jurisdic- 

 tion of Virginia, which exercised judicial authority over them, had 

 taken and subscribed the oath of Allegiance and Fidelity as prescribed by 

 the laws and the usages of the said State, [and] are considered in many 

 respects as not entitled to all the rights of free citizens of this State ; 

 and but for the reason above mentioned they have had no opportunity 



'Sff the ( )nlfr of Court on August 26, 1777, ami 9 Ilenning's Statutes 2S1. 

 2 See Ael of March i, 17S0, II. Carey & Bioren, 246; I. Dall. L., 838; i 

 Smith's 1,., 492. 



''lliis act is not found at length in an)- of the editions of our Pennsylvania la\\s, 

 but see it noted as obsolete in I. Dall. L., p. 55. 



