East Tennessee Supreme Court Box 1836, TSLA.
This file was submitted by Bruce Price.
[page 1] …Circuit Court of Cocke County…between Jonathan B. Birdseye pltf and Lorenzo D. Turner deft…08/08/1855…we, Jonathan Birdseye and Ezekiel Birdseye…attest Athen McGinty…Jonathan Birdseye by his atty A. J. Fletcher…[page 2]…a plea of trespass…William McSween clerk …the 1st Monday after the 4th Monday of July, 1855…T. S. Gorman shff of Cocke Co…[page 3] …Dec term 1855….On 08/01/1855…plaintiff was lawfully and rightfully seized and possessed in fee simple of a certain tract or parcel of land …below the Pigeon Roost Branch on W. P. Gillett’s line…Henry Runion’s SE corner…intersect Wm. Hall’s SW corner of a 378-acre survey on the Chestnut Top Mountain…[page 4] corner to Osborne Ball’s 1500-acre survey north with Wm. P. Gillett’s 5000-acre survey 350 poles to a stake on E. Birdseye’s 2500-acre survey…
[page 5] …Tuesday, 04/01/1856 Jonathan Birdseye vs Lorenzo D. Turner} …
[page 6] …Tuesday, 12/01/1857…And Alexander Mathis of the County of Washington and H. H. Baer of the County of Cocke are appointed to survey the lands in dispute…
[page 7] …Friday, 08/06/1858…jury to wit: John R. Shults, George Roberts, Allen Hightower, John Hatley, Martin Lewis, C. T. P. Conway, Hezekiah Holdway, McKinney McMahan, Robt. E. Murphy, Benj. Holt, Isaac Allen, and Wm. Newcom [page 8]…[page 9]…[page 10]… Ezekiel Birdseye is the attorney in fact of the said Jonathan Birdseye…[page 11]…
[page 12] …08/01/1860…[page 13]…jury, to wit: John E. Ottinger, Mark Sisk, A. S. Fine, Robt. Wiley, Wyatt Jones, Geo. W. Carter, Amos Dawson, Thos. McNabb, Nathaniel Yeats, James Moore, Wm. Brooks, & D. V. Stokely…find for the defendant…
[page 14] …prays an appeal…to the next term of the Supreme Court to be held at the town of Knoxville…
[page 15] …plaintiff read the grant from the state of Tennessee to plaintiff #24569 for 5000 acres…[page 16]…entry taker’s office of Cocke County of #1667 dated 12/31/1838 by Jonathan B. Birdseye…5000 acres…on the south side of French Broad River…below the Pigeon Roost Branch on W. P. Gillett’s line…Henry Runyan’s SE corner…intersect with William Hall’s SW corner of a 378-acre survey on the Chestnut top Mountain…[page 17] corner to Osborn Ball’s 1500-acre survey north with W. P. Gillett’s 5000-acre survey…on E. Birdseye’s 2500-acre survey…Surveyed 04/17/1840 …01/01/1842…[page 18]…grant to Ezekiel Birdseye #24568 for 2500 acres…in the Entry Taker’s office of Cocke County of #1666 dated 12/31/1838 by Ezekiel Birdseye…on the south side of French Broad River…on William P. Gillett’s and others 500-acre survey and corner to Birdseye 500-acres survey…[page 19]…corner to said E. Birdsyeye's 1000-acre survey…surveyed 04/16/1840…01/01/1842…[page 20]…grant to E. Birdseye & Jacob Peck for 5000 acres #24571…Entry Taker’s office of Cocke County of #1638 dated 12/03/1838 by David Bugg and by him assigned to William P. Gillett and by the said William P. Gillett assigned to Ezekiel Birdseye and Jacob Peck…on the Lambs fork of Big Creek…corner to an entry made by Royal Ball for 70 acres of land on the NE side of said Creek…on Adnijah Ball’s line…corner to W. P. [page 21] Gillett 100-acre entry made by Wm. Garrett…corner to Adnijah Ball’s and said Gillett…corner to John Stuart’s 300-acre entry made in the name of Jno. Ellison Jr…on Osborn Ball’s 1500-acre entry…crossing the Lams fork of Big Creek…corner ot Gillett, Birdseye, and Peck at the mouth of the Laurel fork of Big Creek at its junction with the Lambs fork thence with Gillett, Birdseye, and Peck’s 3000-acre entry…on a line of E. J. and M. A. F. Peck’s 5000-acre entry…to a line of David Guinn’s 1000-acre entry…cor to said Green, thence with Jeremiah Green Sr 100-acre entry…crossing the Lambs fork [page 22] of Big Creek below said Green’s mill on said Green’s line and Reuben Black’s line…corner to Osborn Ball’s 1500-acre entry…surveyed 12/06/1840…01/01/1842 …[includes plat of surveys]
[page 23]…[page 24]…[page 25]…grant of Morris & Smith…#25070…Entry Taker’s office of Cocke County of #1668 dated 01/01/1839 by John Smith & William Morris…5000 acres…on the waters of Big Creek…on the north bank of Lambs Fork of Big Creek…[page 26]…on the yellow bank cor to Wm. C. Roadman…on the right hand fork of the Pigeon Roost Branch…surveyed 05/01/1839….03/09/1844…[page 27]…deed from W. F. Morris admr &c to pltff…12/18/1854 by and between Wm. Fowler Morris administrator of William Morris dec’d…and L. D. Turner…title bond executed and delivered by the said William Morris in his lifetime to the said L. D. Turner and which bears date 11/27/1850…[page 28]…on Parker’s corner…with Parker’s line to Carney’s entry…I, the said Wm. Fowler Morris administrator of the said William Morris dec’d…near Parker’s corner and on James Alexander’s line…[page 29]…on …near said L. D. Turner’s fence…[witness] John Gorman, A. Jones [page 30]…in Book 14 page 103…[page 31]…[page 32]… Morris and Smith had a field cleared around or close by the cabin…Martin Davis lived there at one time. I have sayed? with him all night in 1854. He was a chain carrier when I made a survey. The Yellow Springs, the town an, does not lie with the plaintiff’s grant …[page 33] Samuel Yeats – I live 2.5 miles from L. D. Turner…He lived there in 1854…Americus Jones – Knows L. D. Turner…[page 34] H. H. Baer Esq a surveyor…Martin Davis – He was a chain carrier in 1854 when the Birdseye grant was run out…I went to live on the Smith and Morris grant 18 or 19 years ago. There was a cabin there before I [page 35] went.…then went away and put Jason Harrison in possession…then William Morris put Jo. Messer in possession…I put Elihu Messer in and Jo Messer left. Morris has had an old claim at the Yellow Springs for a long time …[page 36]…I took a notion to go to Georgia and staid there 9.5 days…Birdseye took me out and wanted me to show him the Osborn Ball corner… did not tell E. Turner about 2 miles above this place in the fall of 1858…Robert Cureton – I built at the Yellow Springs in the summer of 1839. William Morris at the time claimed the land and gave me leave to build…[page 37] Elihu Messer – I lived on the land in dispute 8 or 9 years ago. Morris and Martin Davis gave me leave to go on the land…Eli Hill put them in…Green Inman – I have known the Morris have been in the habbit of going to the Spring 15 years ago…The McCoy house on the bank of the upper spring…O. Ball dep – 18 or 20 years ago.
[page 38] …Deposition Osborn Ball 03/25/1859…about the age of 80 years…[page 39]…in was on the mountain at Samuel Hall’s…[page 40]…[page 41]…
[page 42] …Anderson Fox, JP for Cocke County…Edward Turner -…[page 43]… Jo Paget subpoenaed me. I have told Bill Click for one and David Brooks…Bill Click and me married sisters…Ashby Wood…Eli Hill made me a lot of shingles near that house…Jack Messer throwed them out in the Spring…[page 44]…Eli Hill -… I have known the cabin that Martin Davis lived in 15 or 16 years…[page 45]…James R. Allen – 10 or 12 miles from him…Wm. McSween – never heard Davis character…called into question…David Guinn - … Appeal Bond – We, Jonathan B. Birdseye and Ezekiel Birdseye…08/06/1860…[page 46]…attest H. H. Baer…[page 47]…[page 48]...[page 49]…[page 50]…
[page 51] Bill of costs…
[page 52]…witness: Wm. K. Sims, Alex Martin, W. Wood, H. H. Baer, Chas. Stokely, D. Guinn, D. V. Stokely, John Wood Jr, Isaac Allen, Dan’l Stephens, Elijah Wiley, G. Inman, Mart Davis, N. H. Stokely, A. C. Huff, Wm. Holland, Elihu Messer, Ashby Wood, Eli Hill, Ed Teague, Ed Turner, R. P. Cureton, McK McMahan, A. Jones, Gipson Wood, Sam’l Yeats…[page 53]…[page 54] …