What are Pre-Bureau Records?
The Pre-Bureau Records for the Freedmen’s Bureau refer to documentation created by early efforts to address the needs of freedpeople before the formal establishment of the Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands (Freedmen’s Bureau) in March 1865. These records were created by organizations or military authorities tasked with managing the immediate needs of freedpeople during and after the Civil War.
Fort Monroe, VA - M1913
Superintendent of Contrabands
1861-1865
Fort Monroe in Virginia became a key refuge for escaped enslaved individuals at the outset of the Civil War. Following Union General Benjamin Butler’s 1861 decision to classify escaped enslaved individuals as "contraband of war," Fort Monroe rapidly filled with formerly enslaved people seeking freedom.
Key Activities:
- Contraband of War Policy Implementation
- Employment of Freedpeople
- Relief Operations
- Legal Formalization of Freedpeople’s Rights
- Education Initiatives
- Military Coordination
Descriptive pamphlets are important when researching the Freedmen's Bureau records because they typically provide detailed indexes and explanations of the contents within a collection of historical records.
| Roll | Year | Description |
| Roll 74: Target 3: Vol. 1 (154) | 1864 | Census of White and Colored Population of Accomack County |
| Rol 74: Target 4: Vol. 2 (155) | 1864 | Census of White and Colored Population of Accomack County |
| Roll 114 | Nov. 1863-Sept. 1864 | Subordinate Field Offices - Fort Monroe (Department of Negro Affairs, 1863-65) Departments of Virginia and Virginia and North Carolina. |
| Nov. 1863-Sept. 1864 | C Letters, Orders, and Telegrams Received by Lt. Col. J. B. Kinsman General Superintendent | |
| Roll 115: Target 1 | Oct.-Dec. 1864 | Letters, Orders, and Telegrams (cont.) |
| Roll 115: Target 2 | Feb.-April. 1864 and Apr. 1865 | Letters Received by the Superintendent |
| Roll 115: Target 3 Vol. 1 (201) | 1864-65 | Records Relating to Issuance of Rations |
| Roll 115: Target 4 Vol. 2 (202) | 1864 | Records Relating to Issuance of Rations |
| Roll 115: Target 5 Vol. 3 (203) | 1863-64 | Records Relating to Issuance of Rations |
| Roll 115 - Target 6: One Vol. 3 | Apri. 1863-Feb. 1865 | Quartermaster Accounts of Money and Materials Disbursed to Government Plantations |
| Roll 115: Target 7: One Vol. Undated | Undated | Census of People Helped by the Government at Fort Monroe, Virginia |
| Roll 115: Target 8 | 1864 and 1865 | Labor Contracts |
| Roll 115: Target 9 | Oct. 1864-Jue 1865 | Accounts of Lt. Col. Frank J. White, Superintendent, Fourth Disrict, Negro Affairs |
| Roll 116: Target 1 | 1863, 1864, and 1865 | Miscellaneous |
| Roll 149: Target 7 Vol. 371 | Dec. 1864-Apr. 1865 | Norfork (Assistant Superintendent See Princess Anne, Onancock - Register of Contracts |
| Roll 161: Target 7 Vol.1 (369) | 1863-65 | Accounts Relating to Expenditures on Government Farms |
| Roll | Year | Description |
| Roll 147: Target 2 Vol. (349) | Nov. 1864-Oct. 1868 | Register of Leased Property in Norfort County and Portsmouth |
