The Death Registers contain contents from 1853 to 1881, and recorded the deaths of every individual in the greater Roanoke area during this time frame, whether white, enslaved African American, or free African American. This would include the individual’s age at the time of their death and the manner in which they died. For enslaved people, their place of birth often was not listed or lacked specificity, and parents' names and occupations are not commonly listed. Nonetheless these records can be helpful for establishing an enslaved person’s date of birth and date of death, as well as where they lived.
In Common Law Book D was the petition of William Peyton to place Albert in the county jail for safekeeping. Albert was described as being "of unsound mind."
William Johnston was the husband of Lucy Johnston. He bequeathed enslaved people to the individuals listed below. A valuation of $1,950.00 was placed on Mary and Susan. However, the remaining enslaved people were valued at $4,300.00. After being divided amongst seven heirs of William Johnston's estate, it came out to each share being $614.00.