The Commonwealth of Virginia is a little different than the rest of the states, in that they have independent cities. These cities have the same authority as counties. They all have their own court system, and with a few exceptions, their own record depositories (record rooms). There are 41 independent cities in Virginia, and 95 counties . Confusion occurs because some cities and counties are named the same. For instance, there is a Roanoke City and a Roanoke County, which are contiguous. There is also a Richmond City and a Richmond County, which are not contiguous, and in fact, are about 70 miles