Arkansas Territory was organized on July 4, 1819, from land in the lower portion of Missouri Territory. French and Spanish immigrants had already partially settled the land, but with the creation of the Arkansas Territory there was an influx of families who moved west for new land and new opportunities. County governing bodies were established, merchants began enterprising operations, and workers of every trade came to help the Arkansas Territory flourish.
After 17 years as a territory, Arkansas was admitted to the Union as the 25th state on June 15, 1836. The Arkansas Territory Collection focuses on materials from pre-statehood Arkansas.
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Receipt for land purchase, William McElroy
This is a receipt for purchase of land in Hempstead County by William McElroy.
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Murder: U.S. v. James Bigger
This is the indictment of James Bigger for beating to death a slave woman named Lucy.
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Slave stealing: U.S. v. John Moore
This document contains two depositions of witnesses in the case against John S. Moore for unlawfully detaining a young slave boy.
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Court case, Peyton R. Pitman v. William Watson in a ferry boat dispute
These court documents include an appellate judgement, appeal court proceedings, and an execution in the case of Peyton R. Pitman v. William Watson.The first document is a copy of the Appellant Judgement which has a list of the accounts costs and states that William Watson had taken oath to remove two suits brought against Payton R. Pitman. The second document is the appeal court proceedings, which lists the names of the six jurors, who found in favor of the defendant, William Watson.The third document is an execution showing that Payton R. Pitman finally won an appeal to collect damages for William Watson in the sum of fifty-four dollars and fifty cents. This document also includes a comprehensive list of the court fees that added up to a fairly substantial amount.
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Bond for coroner, Meril Archer
This is a $7,000 bond posted by Meril Archer upon his election to county coroner in Lawrence County in 1832.
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Bond for surveyor, James M. Cooper
This is a $2,000 bond posted by James M. Cooper upon his election as County Surveyor in Lawrence County.
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Court subpoena, John Lawson Hemphill v. Mary Dickson
This is a court subpoena for Emily Callaway. The court case, John Lawson Hemphill versus Mary Dickson, was held in Clark County. Emily Callaway was called as a witness for the defendant, Mary Dickson. The members of the lawsuit were all related to one another.
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Apprenticeship indenture, blacksmithing
This indenture contracted Manly Manson, an orphan, to serve as an apprentice to Uriah Smith, a blacksmith, until the age of 21. During that time, Uriah Smith was obligated to send Manly to school, provide room and board, and teach him how to be a blacksmith.
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Bond, Peyton R. Pitman and Franklin W. Taylor
This is a penal bond of one hundred dollars for Peyton R. Pitman and Franklin W. Taylor as security for the operation of a ferry on Current River at his residence for the term of one year.
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Ferry upkeep: Lawrence County v. Peyton R. Pitman
This is an order to summon Peyton R. Pitman to appear before a Justice of the Peace on the charge that he has failed to maintain a proper ferry.
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Hillhouse murder: indictment and verdict
This is the indictment entered by the prosecuting attorney Samuel S. Hudspeth against Jarrett for murdering Polly Hillhouse. Both the grand jury and the trial jury found Jarrett guilty, as noted on the back of the indictment.
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Hillhouse murder: Jarrett remand to jail in United States v. Jarret, JP Court
This document commands James McCarroll the constable of Strawberry Township, Lawrence County to keep Jarrett in the jailhouse because he was found guilty of murdering Polly Hillhouse.
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Hillhouse murder: Polly Hillhouse inquest
This document describes the findings of the grand jury and stand-in coroner who examined the body of Polly Hillhouse and other evidence. They concluded that Polly was fatally shot once in the back by a rifle and that the perpetrator was her slave, Jarrett.
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Hillhouse murder: Statement of the defense of Jarrett
This is the motion filed by the defense claiming that the case be thrown out because the prosecuting attorney was not a sworn county official.
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Disturbing a religious congregation: U.S. v. Stubblefield brothers
This is the grand jury findings after examining the evidence against Coleman and Fielding Stubblefield who were accused of cursing and making rude gestures at David Orr while attending a church gathering at Benjamin Jones' home.
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Ferry bond, Thomas Drew and Casper Schmick
This is a $100 bond posted by Thomas Drew and Casper Schmick in order to operate a ferry across the Black River near Lewis deMun's mill in Lawrence County.
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Justice of the peace bond for James Raney
This is a $450 bond posted by James Raney upon taking the oath to become a Justice of the Peace in Lawrence County.
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Penal bond to operate as surveryor, Charles Hatcher
This is a penal bond of two thousand dollars for Charles Hatcher to operate as surveyor for Lawrence County, with William Black, Isaac Job, and Thomas Black as securities.
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Sheriff bond for James M. Kuykendall
This is a $5,000 bond posted by James M. Kuykendall upon his election as Sheriff of Lawrence County in 1830.
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Ferry bond, Thomas S. Drew, William Baird, and James G. Russel
This is a penal bond of one hundred dollars for Thomas S. Drew and William Baird to operate a ferry across the Black River for the term of one year.
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Kidnapping: Linen v. Massingale
This is Henry Linen's original complaint to the court about the kidnapping of his daughter as well as the judge's order to appear and the sheriff's findings.
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Letter, Joseph Egner to Chester Ashley
This is a letter from Joseph Egner in Batesville to Chester Ashley in Little Rock. The letter discusses the purchase of land in the Oil Trough Bottoms.
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Probate, doctor's receipt to Ellen Hardin estate
This is a note from Dr. Peyton R. Pitman to the estate of Ellen Hardin, asking for expenses for medical care provided.
