Northern Neck Parishes
Parishes were the geographical boundaries used by colonial churches. Generally each county was divided into two parishes. Parishes carried religious and civil authority. Each Parish was served by a single minister and governed by a vestry and churchwarden selected from local elites. Usually each parish had one main church and several smaller chapels where the minister rotated his services each Sunday. Each parish oversaw a wide range of social responsibilites from caring for the poor and maintaining roads to presenting moral offenders to the County courts. Parish vestry also saw to processioning (the regular marking and renewing of property lines and landmarks). When the colonial church dissolved with the Revolutionary War many of the parish duties were taken over by the new County governments. Many of the parish names are still used in some form today.
Lancaster County
Primarily served by Christ Church (1666-1669 when shared with Middlesex County) 1670-1785 and St. Marys Whitechapel 1669-1752
Other Parish Names: Lancaster 1651-1654 1657-1666, Lower 1654-1656, Piankatank 1657-1666, Poropotank 1661-1666, Trinity 1670-1724, Upper 1654-1656
Northumberland County
Primarily served by Wicomico (Known as Lee 1664-1680) 1648-1758 and St. Stephens1698-1785
Other Parish Names: Bowtracy 1679-1716, Chickacoan 1645-1664, Fairfield 1664-1699
Richmond County
Primarily served by North Farnham 1683-1785 and Lunenburg (formed from North Farnham) 1732-1785
Other Parish Name: Hanover 1713-1720 (Now in King George)
Westmoreland County
Primarily served by Cople 1644-1785 and Washington 1664-1785
Other Parish Names: Appomattox 1653-1664, Machodick 1653-1664, Nomini 1653-1660, Potomac 1653-1664, Westbury 1664-1680
Old Rappahannock County
Farnham 1656-1683, South Farnham 1683-1692
