The parish of St. Peter was established around the time that New Kent County was formed from York County in 1654. "St. Peter's Church still stands (the present edifice was built in 1703), and cost one hundred and forty-six thousand weight of tobacco. The steeple was added to the church twelve years after it was erected. As the place where the Widow Custis worshipped, and where, it is supposed, she was sometimes attended by George Washington, it possesses a peculiar interest." Saint Peter's Parish was the heart of its community, and its records are a rich source of names, personal relationships, and community interactions. These records are arranged chronologically, and include a wide variety of details regarding members: parish officials, parish levies, fees for goods and services, fines imposed, alms given to the needy, orphans and other custody issues, marriages, burials, and more. The original surname plus subject index is a bonus for researchers.