Hunley, et al. v. Hunley

201 204.

Lucy Hunley vs Caroline M Hunly et al

Bill Filed May 8^th 1846

State of Alabama Lowndes County

To the Hon Anderson Crenshaw Chancellor of the Southern Chancery Division sitting for the twelth district at Hayneville --

Humbly, complaining therewith unto your Honor, your Oratrix Lucy Hunley, a feme sole, of the state and county aforesaid, that she is the relict and widow of the late Richard Hunley, who departed this life intestate, in the county of Lowndes and state aforeasaid, sometime in the year eighteen hundred and forty three, and left surviving him an only son and heir at law, to wit, Ransome G. Hunley, and your Oratrix his relict and widow as as aforesaid.

Your Oratrix further shews eth unto your Honor -- that the said Ransome G. Hunley also departed this life in the said year of eighteen hundred and forty-three, but subsquent to the decease of his father, the said Richard Hunley; that previous to his death, he executed and published his last will and testament, in the state and County aforesaid, in which he appointed Caroline M. Hunley, then his wife, and now his relict and widow, of the state and County aforesaid, and one of the defendants herein after named, the Excecutrix thereof; that said will and testament has been duly admited to probate in the Orphans Court of said County, and that the said Caroline M. Hunley has been duly qualified and taken upon herself the discharge of the duties of Executrix of said last will and testament, and is now the Executrix of the same said Estate not having yet been finally settled. --

Your Oratrix futher shews unto your Honor, - That the said Caroline M. Hunley, was appointed by the Orphans Court of said County of Lowndes, the adminstratrix of all and singular the goods and chattels rights and credits of the estate =

203. 202 of said Richard Hunley deceased; that she has duly qualified as such, and taken upon herself the discharge of the duties of such Adminstratrix, and is now acting as such, said estate, never having yet been finally administered and settled. _

Your Oratrix further shews unto your honor, That the said Ransom G. Hunley, left surviving him the following children and heirs at law and legatees to wit; Richard R. Hunley, Mary V. S. Hunley, Peter H. Hunley, Ann C. Hunley, and Ransome Hunely, who are all minors under the age of twenty one years and residents of the County of Lowndes and state aforesaid_ Your Oratrix further shews, that Richard R, Mary V. S. and Peter F. Hunley, are all over the age of fourteen years, and that Ann C. and Ransome are under that age,_ that none of said children of the said Ransome G. Hunley deceased. ever had a regular guardian, and they all reside with their mother the said Caroline F. who has the charge and maintenance of them all.

Your Oratrix further shews unto your Honor that the said children and heirs at law of the said Ransome G. Hunley are aslo heirs and distributers of the estate of the said Richard Hunley deceased; they beign entitled to the same proportion of said estate, that their deceased father would have been entitled to had he lived or were he now living.

Your Oratrix further shews unto your Honor_ that the said Richard Hunley the deceased husband of your Oratrix as aforesaid, died siezed and posession of a considerable estate both real and personal, and owing no debts_ or if any they were very small in amount_ That the said Caroline M. Hunley, as the Adminstratrix of said estate, returned into the Orphaus Court of the said County of Lowndes on the thirteenth day of January eighteen hundred and forty four, an inventory of said estate, a copy of which taken from the records of said Court is hereunto attached, marked Exhibit A._ which your Oratrix prays may be taken and considered as a part of this her bill of complaint,___

203 206. Your Oratrix further shews unto your Honor that in addition to the property in said Exhibit A, mentioned and described, of which the said Richard Hunley died seized and posessed as aforesaid, the said Richard Hunley also died seized and posessed of the following described slaves to wit: Hester a girl, Peggy, a girl Satilla a girl, Julia a girl, Polly a girl, Adaline a girl, Lawsen a boy, and Phil a boy, Your Oratrix shews that all of the slaves last above named, were the property goods and Chattels of the said Richard Hunley in his lifetime_ that they were born of slaves belonging to the said Richard Hunley in his lifetime and were in his posession at the time of his death, and have cense onto the hands of the said Caroline M, his adminstratrix since his death, or might have been reclaimed by her; but that the said Caroline M, has not returned the same in her said inventory, as a part of the goods and and chattels of said estate, as she should have done, or according accounted for said slaves in any way whatever, as said Adminstratrix, of which your Oratrix must justly complain, [?]

Your Oratrix further then shews unto your Honor that early in the year eighteen hundred and thirty seven that said Richard Hunley, the deceased husband of your Oratrix as aforesaid arrived in the county of Lowndes and State aforesaid, with his family and property, having so moved from the state of South Carolina, to permanently settle himself in the county of Lowndes and State of Alabama, in that in said year he removed to the place and settled on the premises of his son, the said Ransome G. Hunley the said Ransom G. having proceeded the said Richard, in his removal to Alabama,

Your Oratrix further, shews unto your Honor that in the said year in the said Richard and Ransom G. commenced working their hands together in the business of planting [?] that they thus worked their hands together in said business, in each and every year from said year of Eighteen hundred and thirty seven down to the year eighteen_ hundred and forty three, and during the year eighteen_ hundred and froty three, in which last mentioned year both the said Richard and Ransome G. departed from this life as aforesaid,

207. 204 Your Oratrix further shews unto your Honor that in the year Eighteen hundred and forty-three, the said Richard Hunley worked about un ............... hands in number; but how many the said Ransom worked insaid year your Oratrix knows not

Your Oratrix futher shews unto your Honor that both said Richard and Ransom G. Hunley departed this life in 1843, before the crop of that year made by their hands working together as aforesaid, was sold; so that no settlement was ever made between the said Richard and the said Ransom G. in relation to the profits and proceeds of the crop made by their hands jointly, in said year, as aforesaid

Your Oratrix of the said year Eighteen hundred and fourty three, was sold by the ^said Caroline M, Hunley after the death of said Richard and Ransom G. and the proceeds of the same were recieved by her, for more of which has she ever accounted to the said estate of Richard Hunley in any way as appears by reference to the inventor of the property and effects of said estate, returned by her as aforesaid, to the Orphans Court of Lounder County, and a copy of which is hereunto attached as as Exhibit A. as aforesaid,

Your Oratrix further shews unto your Honor, that she knows not what quantity of Corn, Cotton, Fodder, [ilegible], [ilegible], was raised and grown upon said plantation in the said year of 1843, the proceeds of which were received by the said Caroline M, as aforesaid, and which she has not in any way accounted for the estate of said Richard as aforesaid= But your Oratrix charges that a crop was in said year by the hands of said Richard and said Ransom G. working together as aforesaid principally of Cotton, Corn, and Fodder, and that the proceeds of the whole of said crop have been recieved by the said Caroline M. as aforesaid. Your Oratrix further shews unto your Honor that, there has been a partial distribution of the estate of said Richard Hunley deceased among the heirs and distributees of the same. That on a division of the negro property contained in said inventory of which, Exhibit A, is a copy,

= your Oratrix recieved as her proportion of the same, the following to wit. [ilegible], Mary, Sylvia, George, [Epsy?], Binah, Ninny, Judy, Francis], Dinah, Ann, Betsy, Rose. Caesar, and Minta, [ilegible] that the children of the said Ransom G. Hunley, recieved, or their Mother the said Caroline M, recieved for them. teh following slaves to wit Suckey, Jeke, Aggy, Ephraim, Greene, Amy, Milly, Katy, Milly, and her infant Nancy, Sarah, Lotty, and her child, Rose, Brister, Celia, Curvy. a child name not known, as their propertion of the negro property. named in said inventory.

Your Oratrix further Shewith unto your Honor that said estate of Richard Hunley will be ready to be finally settled by the adminstrative thereof, after the said adminstrative, shall have accounted for the said eight negro Slaves here in before particulary named as the property of said Richard Hunleys estate, and which he has heretofore refused to return or account for as aforesaid, And after the said Adminstrator shall have in like manner, returned. or accounted, for the proceeds of the crops of the said year Eighteen hundred and forty three as aforesaid, so that the estate of the said Richard Hunley can recieve the proportion of said crop to which it is entitled.

Your Oratrix further thereof unto your Honor, ... that she has been informed and believes that all the debts due and owing said Richard Hunley estate if there were any other than as above stated, have settled or collected by the adminstrative, and that all the debts due by said estate have been like likewise settled

In tender consideration whereof, and for as much as your Oratrix can only have adequate relief in a Court of Equity in the premises, where matters of this nature are property Cognizable... To the end therefore that the said Caroline M. Hunley, Richard R. Hunley, Mary V. S. Hunley, Peter F Hunley, Ann C. Hunley, and Ransom Hunley, and their Confederates, when discovered, may ujpon their several and respective corporal oaths, to the best and utmost of their several and respective knowledge, rememberance, information and belief, full, true, direct, and perfect=