Petition of Joseph Aaron to the Massachusetts General Court
To the Honourable The Senate and the Honourable House of Representatives of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in General Court Assembled at Boston October the1 1787
The petition of Joseph Aaron, Indian Native of the Town of Grafton in the County of Worcester in said Commonwealth, humbly sheweth that your petitioner is a descendant of one of the ancient proprietors of Hassanamisco, now Grafton, that your petitioner petitioned Your Honors for liberty to sell about four acres of meadow and four acres of upland to make payment of his just debts at a former session2 which Your Honours were pleased to grant, but when the Trustees had measured said meadow it fell short of four acres as set forth [ in ] said petition, that the Trustees have made sale of said meadow but not sold the upland set forth in said granted petition, and that there is four acres more adjoining which is all his lands lying in that piece that said Trustees have computed your petitioner just debts and find that the whole eight acres of upland will not sell for more than to clear said debts together with what said meadow was sold for. These are therefore to pray Your Honors to take this petition under your wise consideration and grant liberty to your petitioner to make sale of the last mentioned four acres with the other four acres already granted in order to discharge his just debts and relieve him under his distressed circumstances said Trustees thinking themselves not safe to sell more than was granted in said petition without further order from said Honourable Court.
As your humble petitioner in duty bound shall ever pray,
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Certification: |
We, the subscribers, Trustees of the Grafton Indians, inform Your Honors that the facts set forth in the above petition is true and are of opinion it will be in favour of the above petitioner to grant said petition. Trustees of the Grafton Indians, Edward Rawson, Willis Hall |
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Endorsement: |
Resolve on the petition of Joseph Aaron, an Indian Native of Grafton empowering the Trustees to sell the lands mentioned, October 19, 1787 / One copy for Colonel Luke Drury / Recorded page 5 / Mr. Clarke / Mr. Drury / Mr. Brooks / 2 |
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Legislative Action: |
Concurred 4 |
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Docketing: |
Petition 2 Joseph Aaron |