Description
Bonds resulting from "Fornication & Bastardy" cases initiated by the Commonwealth to protect the county from the costs of raising a child born out of wedlock. Information includes names of the single mother, the alleged father, the obligators (persons taking out the bond with their signatures), and the obligatees (Directors of the Poor). The child is identified only by sex. Additional information includes date, amount, and conditions of the bond. The bond became void if the child did not become an expense to the county taxpayers.
Note 1: These bonds are part of the "Fornication & Bastardy" cases filed with the Clerk of Courts for use by the Directors of the Poor House.
Note 2. Many of the original bonds are at the State Archives in the Miller Collection (MG 90), but copies have been scanned into the inventory.
Arrangement: Chronological by filing date of bond.
Index: None. Click "inventory" for list of processed holdings.