Letter from Benjamin Jennings Seward to William Henry Seward, April 18, 1839

  • Posted on: 10 March 2016
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Letter from Benjamin Jennings Seward to William Henry Seward, April 18, 1839

transcriber

Transcriber:spp:dwr

student editor

Transcriber:spp:mah

Distributor:Seward Family Digital Archive

Institution:University of Rochester

Repository:Rare Books and Special Collections

Date:1839-04-18

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Letter from Benjamin Jennings Seward to William Henry Seward, April 18, 1839

action: sent

sender: Benjamin Seward
x

Person

Name: Benjamin Seward Birth: 1793-08-23 Death: 1841-02-24

location: Westfield NY
x

Place

Name:  City:  Westfield County:  Chautauqua County State:  NY Country:  US

receiver: William Seward
x

Person

Name: William Seward Birth: 1801-05-16 Death: 1872-10-10

location: Albany NY
x

Place

Name:  City:  Albany County:   State:  NY Country:  US

transcription: dwr 

revision: crb 2016-02-10

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Page 1

Chautauque Land Office
Westfeild April 18. 1839
Dear Henry
Tempting offers were made to me
on my return by the Fredonians to settle there:
and in Dunkirk
x

Place

Name:  City:  Dunkirk County:  Chautauqua County State:  NY Country:  US
the inducement was made to
be very inviting also: — but land office reasons
made me hesitate. Without cutting off the hope
that conversations between you & Walter Smith
x

Person

Name: Walter Smith Birth: 1800-03-21 Death: 1874-09-21
ex-
cited in relation to the latter place, or the de-
sire of friends in the former, to interest me in
their enterprizes I took the judgment of Mullet
x

Person

Name: James Mullett Birth: 1784-10-17 Death: 1858-09-10
&
others and in accordance with their wishes
determined to settle in neither for the present.
Gentlemen in Fredonia
x

Place

Name:  City:  Fredonia County:  Chautauqua County State:  NY Country:  US
are drumming up about
the county to see if they can raise funds or
means with which to establish a Bank
& hope some day to interest you.
I have taken the Farnsworth
x

Person

Name: Asa Farnsworth Birth: 1801-02-20 Death: 1883-04-30
house, be-
tween Col Rumseys
x

Person

Name: Stephen Rumsey Birth: 1785-06-01 Death: 1873-07-31
& Mr Huse
x

Person

Name: Nathaniel Huse Birth: 1781 Death: 1863-03-04
for 1 yr. at $200,
& expect to move next week.
I think I mentioned to you ^before^ that I had
advanced $600 to Underwood
x

Person

Name: Cyrus Underwood Birth: 1801-09-16 Death: 1881-10-12Certainty: Probable
while at Auburn
x

Place

Name:  City:  Auburn County:  Cayuga State:  NY Country:  US
.
Upon the authority of your late letter, I have
taken up his drafts on you here, amounting
I now find to about $1.900 more.
Two weeks ago I forwarded to Mr Blatchford
x

Person

Name: Samuel Blatchford Birth: 1820-03-09 Death: 1893-07-07

Page 2

the necessary lists, by which to make out the letter
of attorney — returns I suppose will come in good time.
Agreeably to Mr Duers
x

Person

Name: George Duer Birth: 1812-05 Death: 1888
request, I have
effected an arrangement with the Jamestown Bank
by which they recieve our funds to the credit of
the Trust Co — sending a check at the end of 50 days
to Mr Duer. This is the best arrangement to be
had: and under it, the balance of our Bank a/c was
transferred April 9. to the Cr. of the Trustees $4.344.33
due 14th May._ This increases our Cr with the
Trust Co to $68.507. 91/100
By addressing a circular to such of the At-
torneys in the Co, an economical arrangement
has been secured for foreclosing where that becomes
necessary. I send you a “J. Journal” containing
one of our running advertisements — much of
the expense, as accruing by the former mode
will now be saved to the settler. another ad-
vertisement may be seen in the “Magulle L.”
& similar tables will be sent this week to
Fredonian & Dunkirk papers. — Other tables
will follow, as fast as we can make them
out. — Thus far, all is straight forward
work — but about Articles, the course is not
so clear. To feel our way along, we have
divided round among the lawyers some
12 or 15 Cases — which will enable us to deter-
mine what may be best as a general rule.
Alarm is spreading — but no impatience is ex-
ressed — The blame is thrown upon the Trust Co
Page 3

and even they, I believe get off without odium
William Duer
x

Person

Name: William Duer Birth: 1805-05-25 Death: 1879-08-25
writes me from Oswego
x

Place

Name:  City:  Oswego County:  Oswego County State:  NY Country:  US

but sends me no form of an extension. After
learning his fathers
x

Person

Name: John Duer Birth: 1782-10-07 Death: 1858-08-08
determination not to be sat-
isfied with the extension now heretofore in use
I purposely left the question open — supposing
you could settle it better than I could. Pos-
sibly Mr Duer may recede — but he seemed
bent upon having a new B. & M. with secure An
interest.
Young Duer sends me the form of a
certificate of appraizal — setting forth a brief
description of lot — and its value — upon
a recent examination — the number of
acres cleared — value of buildings &c
&c to be signed by some persons
which his certificate calls “we” — and
appended to this, he has a second cer-
tificate for me to sign, sitting forth that I
am acquainted with the signers of the first
certificate — believe them capable — & from what
I know of the land, give ^full^ cridit to their state-
ment. To all this I return for answer
that I am so occupied with efforts to bring
up our business, after absence from it that I
have been unable to enter upon the duties
to which he calls my attention. I thank
him for his suggestions & promise him
to take them up for action the first hour
Page 4

I can — and all report to him ere long
of my progress in the matter. Thus is the
present state of affairs before you.
all well — remember me affectionately to
Frances
x

Person

Name: Frances Seward Birth: 1805-09-24 Death: 1865-06-21
and all — Yours as ever B.J. Seward
W. H. Seward Esq
Albany
N.Y.
Westfield N.Y. APR 19
x

Stamp

Type: postmark

seward-pen
x

Person

Name: William Seward Birth: 1801-05-16 Death: 1872-10-10
B. J. Seward
Apl 18. 1839

date: 
Thursday, April 18, 1839
year: 
place_node: