Thomas Jefferson Papers
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Conveyance of Lands for Central College from John M. Perry and Frances T. Perry to Alexander Garrett, 23 June 1817

Conveyance of Lands for Central College from John M. Perry and Frances T. Perry to Alexander Garrett

This indenture made on the 23d1 day of June2 1817. between John Perry & Frances T Perry his wife3 of the county of Albemarle on the one part and Alexander Garrett proctor of the Central college acting in trust for the sd college on the other part witnesseth that the sd John & Frances4 in consideration of the sum of fourteen hundred and twenty one dollars twenty five cents, the payment whereof is sufficiently secured, doth hereby bargain & sell to the sd Alexander two parcels of land in the sd county of Albemarle, the one containing forty three acres & three fourths about a mile above Charlottesville on the public road to Staunton, the other about five eighths of a mile from the former, containing one hundred & fifty three acres, comprehending the top and part of a mountain, which tract first mentioned is bounded as follows to wit beginning at a stake on Wheeler’s road & running N. 30.° W. 35. poles to a stone pile, thence N. 19.° E. 29. po. to a stake near the garden of the sd John, thence N. 3.° W. 36. po. to a stone pile and persimmon, thence N. 10½° E. 22. po. to a stake on the three notched road, thence down & along the sd road 118. po. to a pine stump in the road, corner to Henry Chiles & Jesse W. Garth, thence S. 34. W. 48½ po. to pointers on Wheeler’s road, thence along the sd Wheeler’s road 65. poles to the beginning: and the other tract mentioned in the second place begins at a Pine tree on the Mountain road (which pine tree bears S 89.° W. 206. po. from the point of beginning and ending of the first mentioned tract, in Wheeler’s road) and runs from the sd pine tree N. 17. W. 52. po. to a Spanish oak, N. 31. W. 32. po. to pointers, S. 75. W. 92. po. to pointers on the mountain, N. 10. E. 24. po. to a red oak, N. 30. E. 24. po. to pointers, N. 5. E. 26. po. to pointers, N. 22. W. 7½ po. to a Chesnut oak, S 48. W. 37. po. to a chesnut oak, N. 58. W. 20. po. to pointers, S. 29. W. 38. po. to pointers, S. 14. E. 66. po. to a stake, S. 29. E. 41. po. to a white oak, S. 18. W. 45. po. to a stake, S. 20. W.5 20. po. to a stake, S. 25. W. 10. po. to a stake, S. 35. W. 54. po. to a white oak on Wheeler’s road, thence down the sd Wheeler’s road 118. po. to pointers near a branch, thence N. 8. E. 17. po. to a maple, N. 19. E. 44½ po. to a chesnut oak, N. 75. E. 48. po. to pointers on the Mountain road aforesaid, & along the sd road 48. po. to the pine at the beginning. to have and to hold the sd two parcels of land with their appurtenances to him the said Alexander, and his successors proctors of the sd Central college, to and for the use of the said college for ever. and the sd John Perry & Frances T Perry6 for themselves7 his heirs, executors and administrators the said8 two parcels of land with their appurtenances to the sd Alexander and his successors proctors of the sd College, and for the use of the sd College, doth covenant that he will warrant, and doth warrant and will for ever defend. Witness the hand & name of the sd John, and his seal hereto set on the day and year above named.

signed, sealed &
delivered in
presence of
} John M. PerryFrances T. Perry

MS (ViU: TJP); on indented paper; in TJ’s hand except as noted below; signed and sealed by John M. Perry and Frances T. Perry; with signed attestation by Albemarle County deputy clerk William Wertenbaker at foot of text: “In the Office of the County Court of Albemarle the 23rd day of June 1817. This Indenture of bargain and sale from John M Perry to Alexander Garrett Proctor for the central College was produced to me in the said Office and Acknowledged by the said John M Perry party thereto and thereupon the same is admitted to record”; endorsed by Wertenbaker: “Perry To Garrett Proctor of the Central College} Deed 23d June 1817 Acknowd before me by Jno M Perry & admitted to record Wm Wertenbaker DC”; with additional endorsements in two different unidentified hands: “Recorded Page 356” and “Commission & recorded Page 407 Examined.” Tr (Albemarle Co. Deed Book, 20:356–7); edge trimmed; in Wertenbaker’s hand and including his 23 June 1817 attestation; with additional notations in two different hands: “Examd” and “Delivd Pr Order to P U Va [Proctor, University of Virginia, i.e., Arthur S. Brockenbrough] the 13 Oct 1825.”

Frances T. Perry (ca. 1780–1837) was the wife of the builder John M. Perry. About 1835 the Perrys left Albemarle County and spent time in Louisiana and Missouri. Frances Perry died in Saint Louis (Woods, Albemarle description begins Edgar Woods, Albemarle County in Virginia, 1901, repr. 1991 description ends , 295, 393; Lynchburg Virginian, 25 Sept. 1837).

This transaction represents the first purchase of land for Central College (later the University of Virginia). A plat of these two parcels drawn by TJ is reproduced elsewhere in this volume.

On 7 July 1817 Micajah Woods and William Woods, justices of the Albemarle County Court, examined Frances T. Perry, who acknowledged that she consented to this conveyance of land freely and without coercion (MS in ViU: TJP, printed form, with blanks filled in by Garrett, signed by Micajah Woods and William Woods, with signed attestation by Garrett on verso: “In the Office of the County Court of Albemarle the seventh day of August 1817 This Commission & certificate of the relinquishment of dower of Mrs Frances T Perry wife of John M Perry were returned to me in said Office and annexed to record”; Tr in Albemarle Co. Deed Book, 20:407–8, with identical endorsement by Garrett).

On 7 Aug. 1817 Nelson Barksdale, the newly appointed proctor, acquired a third tract for Central College from Jesse Winston Garth for the sum of $1 and a credit of $30 an acre toward Garth’s pledge of $200 to the Central College subscription. This land measured 6.25 acres and adjoined the eastern border of the smaller of two parcels conveyed by the Perrys. It was described as “lying and being in the county of Albemarle on the main road leading from Charlottesville to Staunton the same being a part of that tract of land conveyed to the said Jesse W Garth by Henry West Alberly alias Henry Chiles and bounded as follows. to wit Begining at a pine stump in the said Staunton road formerly the corner of said Jesse W Garth and John M Perry now the corner of the Central College tract, thence down the said Staunton road to where Wheelers road empties into the said main Staunton road, thence up and with the said Wheelers road to the Corner of the Central college tract on said Wheelers road on John M Perry thence with the line of the said Central College to the begining” (MS in ViU, in Garrett’s hand, signed by Garth, with signed attestation by Garrett at foot of text: “At a Court continued and held for Albemarle County the 7th day of August 1817. This Indenture was produced into Court and Acknowledged by Jesse W Garth party thereto and Ordered to be recorded,” endorsed by Garrett: “Garth to Barksdale. Proctor to C.C} Deed,” and with note by Garrett beneath endorsement: “7th August 1817 Acknowd & ordered to be recorded Examd Recorded 406”; Tr in Albemarle Co. Deed Book, 20:406–7, in Garrett’s hand and including his 7 Aug. 1817 attestation, with additional notations in two different hands: “Examined” and “Delivd Proctor U Va 13 Oct 1825 pr Order”).

1Number added in an unidentified hand.

2Month added in an unidentified hand.

3Preceding six words interlined in an unidentified hand in MS and Tr.

4Preceding two words interlined in an unidentified hand in MS and Tr.

5Tr: “E.”

6Preceding four words interlined in an unidentified hand.

7Word reworked from “himself” in same hand as interlineations.

8Sentence from “John Perry” to this point interlined in Tr by original transcriber, with “Frances T. Perry” further interlined in the different hand noted above.

Index Entries

  • Barksdale, Nelson; as Central College proctor search
  • Brockenbrough, Arthur Spicer; as University of Virginia proctor search
  • Central College; land purchased for search
  • Central College; subscription for search
  • Chiles, Henry; Albemarle Co. land of search
  • Garrett, Alexander; as Albemarle Co. clerk search
  • Garrett, Alexander; as Central College proctor search
  • Garth, Jesse Winston; Albemarle Co. land of search
  • Garth, Jesse Winston; and Central College subscription search
  • Garth, Jesse Winston; sells land to Central College search
  • Jefferson, Thomas; Writings; Conveyance of Lands for Central College from John M. Perry and Frances T. Perry to Alexander Garrett search
  • Perry, Frances T. (John M. Perry’s wife); identified search
  • Perry, Frances T. (John M. Perry’s wife); sells land to Central College search
  • Perry, John M.; sells land to Central College search
  • Wertenbaker, William; as Albemarle Co. clerk search
  • Woods, Micajah; as justice of Albemarle Co. court search
  • Woods, William (ca.1777–1849); as justice of Albemarle Co. court search