- Collection Overview
- Collection Description & Creator Information
- Access & Use
- Collection History
- Find Related Materials
Parker, William, Jr., Court Proceedings for the Trial of Asa Light, Rockingham County, New Hampshire, 1808 October 1-3
Collection Overview
Collection Description & Creator Information
- Scope and Contents
Consists of court proceedings for a theft case brought by Samuel Tenney (1748-1816), a white man who was a Federalist member of the United States House of Representatives, against Asa Light, an African American man from Exeter, New Hampshire, under the jurisdiction of justice of the peace William Parker Jr. (1731-1813). Materials include a complaint and warrant for the arrest of Asa Light, who is described in the document as "a boy of colour, labourer...[who] on the twentieth day of September 1808 with force and arms broke and entered your complainants store and with like force did steal and carry away...five dollar bank bill...a half dollar bank bill and three pen knives." There is also a summons for three witnesses, a statement from deputy sheriff F.B. Lathan confirming that Light had been apprehended and the witnesses summoned, an account of costs, Light's guilty plea, and a detailed statement of the sentence delivered by Parker. Light was ordered to pay a fine of three dollars, damages of $13.50 (twice the value of materials stolen, which were returned), and seven dollars in court costs; the documents note that Light was to pay Tenney funds earned from three months service to any individual of Tenney's choice and "to stand committed till this sentence be performed." These court proceedings provide an example of how Black men were treated in the legal system in New England during the early years of the United States.
- Arrangement
Arranged alphabetically by the name of the creator or by the date of acquisition.
Collection History
- Acquisition:
AM 2021-13
Purchased from Robert H. Rubin Books in 2020 .
- Appraisal
No material was separated during processing.
- Processing Information
This collection was processed by Lisa Yankowitz during the summer and fall of 2010 . The finding aid was written by Lisa Yankowitz in January 2011 and was regularly updated with new acquisitions by Faith Charlton, Kelly Bolding, Armando Suárez, Amy C. Vo, Kalliopi Balatsouka, and Lauren Williams.
Collection-level notes were revised by Faith Charlton in 2024 to more accurately describe the nature of this collection.
No additions will be made to this collection. Single item acquisitions will be added to Princeton University Library Single Item Acquisitions (C1771).
Access & Use
- Conditions Governing Access
Collection is open for research use.
- Conditions Governing Use
Single copies may be made for research purposes. To cite or publish quotations that fall within Fair Use, as defined under U. S. Copyright Law, no permission is required. For instances beyond Fair Use, it is the responsibility of the researcher to determine whether any permissions related to copyright, privacy, publicity, or any other rights are necessary for their intended use of the Library's materials, and to obtain all required permissions from any existing rights holders, if they have not already done so. Princeton University Library's Special Collections does not charge any permission or use fees for the publication of images of materials from our collections, nor does it require researchers to obtain its permission for said use. The department does request that its collections be properly cited and images credited. More detailed information can be found on the Copyright, Credit and Citations Guidelines page on our website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us through the Ask Us! form.
- Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements
For preservation reasons, original analog and digital media may not be read or played back in the reading room. Users may visually inspect physical media but may not remove it from its enclosure. All analog audiovisual media must be digitized to preservation-quality standards prior to use. Audiovisual digitization requests are processed by an approved third-party vendor. Please note, the transfer time required can be as little as several weeks to as long as several months and there may be financial costs associated with the process. Requests should be directed through the Ask Us Form.
- Credit this material:
Parker, William, Jr., Court Proceedings for the Trial of Asa Light, Rockingham County, New Hampshire; General Manuscripts Miscellaneous Collection, C0140, Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library
- Location:
-
Firestone LibraryOne Washington RoadPrinceton, NJ 08544, USA
- Storage Note:
- Firestone Library (mss): Box 37
Find More
- Existence and Location of Copies
Parts of this collection are available on microfilm, cataloged separately as RCPXM-7497696.
- Subject Terms:
- African Americans -- New Hampshire -- History. -- 19th century
- Genre Terms:
- Criminal court records.
- Places:
- Rockingham County (N.H.).
