Dinwiddie County: The Countrey of the Apamatica

Dinwiddie County: The Countrey of the Apamatica is a charming 1942 historical work compiled by the Virginia Writers' Program under the Works Progress Administration (WPA). This little gem captures the essence of our county's heritage—from early explorers like Abraham Wood trading with Native tribes, to the growth of plantations, historic homes, and the everyday lives of Dinwiddie families through the centuries.

The subtitle "The Countrey of the Apamatica" (with that charming old-fashioned spelling of "country") comes straight from the early colonial history of the area that became Dinwiddie County.

In May 1607—just days after landing at Jamestown—Captain Christopher Newport and a small party of English explorers sailed up the James River and made one of their first inland contacts with Native Virginians at the principal town of the Appomattoc (also spelled Appamatuck, Apamatic, or Apamatica) tribe. This Algonquian-speaking group, part of the Powhatan paramount chiefdom, lived along the lower Appomattox River in what is now Petersburg, Chesterfield, Colonial Heights, and Dinwiddie County.

The English referred to the tribe's territory as the "Countrey of the Apamatica" in early accounts. The WPA authors chose this evocative historic phrase as the book's subtitle to highlight the deep Native roots of the land—long before it was Prince George County, and later Dinwiddie (formed in 1752).

It's full of that unique WPA "local color"—stories, sketches, and details gathered from residents during the Great Depression era—that really brings names on old records to life. Perfect for anyone tracing roots here!

Thanks to the generous efforts of volunteers (just like the spirit of USGenWeb since 1996), we're proud to share carefully transcribed sections right here on our free site—material you won't find on the big paywall genealogy platforms:

• Historic Homes — Sketches of landmark properties that tell family stories
• Early History of Dinwiddie County — Origins, settlement, and development
• War of 1812 Officers — Local men who served
• War of 1812 Privates — More Dinwiddie soldiers

Winona-Powell House — one of the historic homes featured in the book.

Additional view of Winona-Powell.

Typical uniform of American soldiers during the War of 1812 era.

While a full free digital copy of the book isn't available online yet (it's viewable on Ancestry with a subscription, and physical/microfiche elsewhere), these transcriptions give a wonderful taste of its content.

Two great ways to access the complete book:

1. The Library of Virginia has physical copies for in-person research. View the catalog record here.
2. FamilySearch has it on microfiche—visit a local FamilySearch Center or affiliate library. See the catalog entry here.

Standard citation for our transcriptions:
Writers' Program of the Works Progress Administration in the State of Virginia, comp. Dinwiddie County: The Countrey of the Apamatica (Richmond: Whittet & Shepperson, 1942).

If you've got access to the book and want to volunteer more transcriptions (maybe a favorite family sketch?), we'd love to add them—it's how we keep growing this free resource for everyone researching Dinwiddie roots!