Elizabeth River Parish was an antecedent of Saint Paul's Church of Norfolk, Virginia. Colonial vestry books, which are collections of the minutes of church business, are valued by genealogists because the place the persons mentioned in them at particular points in time and place. "The Vestry Book of Elizabeth River Parish" is no exception, as it discloses the names of the various Elizabeth River ministry and vestry, as well as all persons who either rendered service or testimony to the parish or were compensated by it. When Mrs. Walter transcribed this vestry book for publication, she also included two loose pages of births and deaths in the year 1727/8 that were found with the original register. In all, her transcription refers to about 1,500 colonists living in Elizabeth River Parish between 1749 and 1761.