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Legal Complaint Signed by Aaron Burr in the Case of Thomas Stevenson vs. John Lake, 1784 August 9

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Collection Overview

Collection Description & Creator Information

Scope and Contents

Consists of a manuscript legal complaint on behalf of Aaron Burr's client Thomas Stevenson in the case of Thomas Stevenson vs. John Lake in the New York Mayors Court regarding a woman who was enslaved by Stevenson and purportedly lured away by Lake. According to the 1786 New York City Directory, Stevenson was an auctioneer transacting business at 4 Murray's Wharf. In the complaint, Burr pursues damages on behalf of Stevenson, who accuses Lake of "contriving and fradulently intending craftily and subtilly to deceive and defraud" Stevenson when he "converted and disposed" of a "certain negroe woman slave...to his own proper use to the damage of said Thomas of eighty pounds." The document is completed in a secretarial hand and signed in ink by Burr.

Arrangement

Arranged alphabetically by the name of the associated person.

Collection History

Acquisition:

AM 2019-124

Purchased from David M. Lesser Fine Antiquarian Books in 2019 (AM 2019-124).

Appraisal

No materials were separated from the collection during 2019 processing.

Processing Information

This collection was processed by Anna Bialek in July 2005. Finding aid written by Anna Bialek in July 2005. Finding aid updated with a new acquisition by Kelly Bolding in June 2019.

Access & Use

Conditions Governing Access

The collection is open for research.

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:

Legal Complaint Signed by Aaron Burr in the Case of Thomas Stevenson vs. John Lake; Princeton University Library Collection of Aaron Burr (1756-1836) Materials, C0089, Manuscripts Division, Department of Special Collections, Princeton University Library

Location:
Firestone Library
One Washington Road
Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
(609) 258-3184
Storage Note:
  • Firestone Library (mss): Box P-000125

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Related Materials

Related collections include C0090 (Aaron Burr, 1716-1757, Collection) and C0081 (Fuller Collection of Aaron Burr, 1756-1836).

Bibliography

The Dictionary of American Biography (New York, 1977) was consulted during preparation of the biographical note.

Subject Terms:
African American women -- New York (State) -- History -- 18th century.
Slavery -- New York (State) -- History -- 18th century.
Names:
United States. Continental Army
Burr, Aaron, 1756-1836