Transcribed from microfilm and contributed by: Charles A. Sherrill, 1992
A project of the Bradley County Historical Society

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Petition Number 21, Year 1841_

[Cover sheet reads: “Petition of citizens of Bradley County praying for investigation as to sales of college lands in the Ocoee District, & etc.” Also “Petition of sundry citizens of Bradley Co’y in relation to the sales of College Lands in the Ocoee District. Walker, McM.”. The clerk has added: “Ho. of Reps. December 2, 1841. Read and refered to the Comty. on College lands. Jno. Blevins Asst. Clk.”

To the Honorable the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee now in Session at Nashville. We your Humble petitioners of Bradley County beg leave to represent to Your Honorable boddy that we the Occupant Holders and citizens residing on the Two Half Townships of Land the proceeds of which was set apart for the use of the Colleges at Knoxville & Nashville are placed [in] an awkward situation and are laboring under many disadvantages which we do not think is in accordance with the true meaning and intent of the Law disposing of the same.

In many instances we have presented to Luke Lea the Entry Taker for the Ocoee District our Locations together with the requisite amt of money to have entered the Same, but the entry taker has invariably refused to permit an entry to be made when the Location fell on land know[n] here as the College Lands, Saying at the same time and frequently endorsing on the Back of the Locations that the Colleges had previously entered the same at five Dollars per acre.

Your petitioners are so Situated that they can not Enter their Improvements and would pray your Honorable Boddy to look into the matters and see if a Base frawd has not been practiced upon the occupant Holders of this Land. It does appear to your petitioners that the Law can be so amended as to give us the relief we ask for by Instructing the present Entry Taker to permit the Occupant Holders to Enter their Lands and by filling the Entry Takers Office with some person who is not engaged in Speculations in the lands we are contending for, and as in duty bound your petitioners will ever pray.

Oct. 20th, 1841