Thomas Moore’s Genealogy Site - Person Sheet
Thomas Moore’s Genealogy Site - Person Sheet
NameJames Turner 
Documentation
On 18 March 1765, On the motion of Thomas Turner Executor &c of James Turner decdeased It is ordered that William Dunn (Black) Henry Purkins, James Banks and William Dunn (White) or three of them (being first sworn according to Law) do value the Estate of the said decedent in Current money and that the Executor return an Inventory thereof to the Court. [Essex County, Virginia, Order Book 26, page 42.]
In 1799, a bill was filed in Essex County chancery court:
To the worshipful justices of Essex County in Chancery siting, Humbly complaining shew unto your worships your orators and oratrixes Lewis Williamson & Catharine his wife who was Catharine Turner, & John Gibson & Polly his wife who was Polly Turner. That your oratrixes have intermarried with their present husbands and are the grandchildren of John Dickerson who sometime since departed this life, having made his last will & testament whihc has been duly proved & recorded in this workshipful court & which is refered to & prayed to be received as part of this their bill. That in the said will there is a clause contained in the following words “Item give & bequeath unto my two grand children Polly & Caty Turner one negroe wench name Chloe & her child Alice to be delivered to them when they come of age or arrive to the age of eighteen years & to be equally devided between them both That your oratrixes have arrived to full age and that their grand father John Dickerson died possessed of a considerble personal estate & of several slaves & owing very few or no debts. That the said John Dickerson having nominated & appointed his son John Dickerson & John Crow the exrs of his said will, John Dickerson qualified as the exor thereof received into his possession the whole of his testator’s slaves & personal estate. That your oratrixes have frequently since their attaining the age of eighteen years applied to the said John Dickerson for the said slaves Chloe & Alice with their encrease, but have never been able to obtain the said slaves or any equivalent for them. In tender consideration whereof and for as much as your orators & oratrixes are remediless in the premisses save by the interference of a Court of Chancery whose province it is to superintend testaments & enforce the delivery of legacies or satisfaction therefore to the end therefore that the said John Dickerson who your orators & oratrixes pray may be made defendant hereto with apt words to charge hin may upon his corporal oath, full true & perfect answer make to all & singular the premises as fully as if again repeated and interrogated & more especially that he may say whether his father did not make such a last will & testament as is refered to? Was it not recorded in the worshipful Court of Essex? Is not the annexed a faithful copy? Did not his father bequeath to your oratrixes the said two slaves & are not your oratrixes more than 21 years old? Has he not taken qualified as the exor of the said will & by virtue thereof received possession of the slaves & personal estate wch belonged to his father? Has he ever delivered the said slaves or either or given any satisfaction on account of [damaged] to your oratrixes or to any person for them? [damaged] the encrease of the said slaves and in whose possession are they? What was the value of Chloe & of Alice at the death of his testator? Did his testator owe much money at the time of his death & has he ever settled his admn account on the said estate? And that your worships would decree that the said John Dickerson deliver to your oratrixes & orators in right of their wives the said slaves Chloe & Alice with their encrease & that he pay such a sum of money as may be deemed a compensation for withholding the use & labor of the said slaves from your oratrixes from the period of their attaining the age of 18 yrs with interest thereon — or that if the said slaves & their encrease shall have been sold by he said John Dickerson, that he be decreed to pay to your orators & oratrixes in equal proportions the full value of the said slaves with interest thereon from the time that your oratrixes arrived at the ago of 18 years; and that yr oratrixes & orators may have such further & other relief in the premisses as may be agreeable to Equity may yr please &c
The 9 May 1801 answer of John Dickerson states, in part:
Notwithstanding the said testator died possessed of the said Chloe & Alice, yet very soon after the said testator’s death James Turner, the father and natural guardian of the said female complainants demanded the said Chloe & Alice of this deft & took possession of them & alledged that they were given to him by the said testator at the time of his marriage with the mother of the female complts, and then by him loaned to the testator; that the title of the said James Turner was by him & this deft refered to the arbitration of John Warden & Wm. Roane Esqrs & the said James Turner having proved such gift on his marriage & the subsequent loan, the said referees awarded that this deft should relinquish his title to the said slaves to the said James Turner, which this deft did accordingly very soon thereafter, and this deft hath never since been possessed of them. And this deft prays to be hence dismissed with his reasonable costs in this behalf most wrongfully sustained &c.
The case continued for several years, and the case jacket states 1805 July 17th abates by defendts death
[Essex County, Virginia, Chancery Causes, Lewis Williamson et al v Executor of John Dickerson, 1805-011 (old Box 16, 16-F).]
In 1799, a bill was filed in Essex County chancery court:
To the worshipful justices of Essex County in Chancery siting, Humbly complaining shew unto your worships your orators and oratrixes Lewis Williamson & Catharine his wife who was Catharine Turner, & John Gibson & Polly his wife who was Polly Turner. That your oratrixes have intermarried with their present husbands and are the grandchildren of John Dickerson who sometime since departed this life, having made his last will & testament whihc has been duly proved & recorded in this workshipful court & which is refered to & prayed to be received as part of this their bill. That in the said will there is a clause contained in the following words “Item give & bequeath unto my two grand children Polly & Caty Turner one negroe wench name Chloe & her child Alice to be delivered to them when they come of age or arrive to the age of eighteen years & to be equally devided between them both That your oratrixes have arrived to full age and that their grand father John Dickerson died possessed of a considerble personal estate & of several slaves & owing very few or no debts. That the said John Dickerson having nominated & appointed his son John Dickerson & John Crow the exrs of his said will, John Dickerson qualified as the exor thereof received into his possession the whole of his testator’s slaves & personal estate. That your oratrixes have frequently since their attaining the age of eighteen years applied to the said John Dickerson for the said slaves Chloe & Alice with their encrease, but have never been able to obtain the said slaves or any equivalent for them. In tender consideration whereof and for as much as your orators & oratrixes are remediless in the premisses save by the interference of a Court of Chancery whose province it is to superintend testaments & enforce the delivery of legacies or satisfaction therefore to the end therefore that the said John Dickerson who your orators & oratrixes pray may be made defendant hereto with apt words to charge hin may upon his corporal oath, full true & perfect answer make to all & singular the premises as fully as if again repeated and interrogated & more especially that he may say whether his father did not make such a last will & testament as is refered to? Was it not recorded in the worshipful Court of Essex? Is not the annexed a faithful copy? Did not his father bequeath to your oratrixes the said two slaves & are not your oratrixes more than 21 years old? Has he not taken qualified as the exor of the said will & by virtue thereof received possession of the slaves & personal estate wch belonged to his father? Has he ever delivered the said slaves or either or given any satisfaction on account of [damaged] to your oratrixes or to any person for them? [damaged] the encrease of the said slaves and in whose possession are they? What was the value of Chloe & of Alice at the death of his testator? Did his testator owe much money at the time of his death & has he ever settled his admn account on the said estate? And that your worships would decree that the said John Dickerson deliver to your oratrixes & orators in right of their wives the said slaves Chloe & Alice with their encrease & that he pay such a sum of money as may be deemed a compensation for withholding the use & labor of the said slaves from your oratrixes from the period of their attaining the age of 18 yrs with interest thereon — or that if the said slaves & their encrease shall have been sold by he said John Dickerson, that he be decreed to pay to your orators & oratrixes in equal proportions the full value of the said slaves with interest thereon from the time that your oratrixes arrived at the ago of 18 years; and that yr oratrixes & orators may have such further & other relief in the premisses as may be agreeable to Equity may yr please &c
The 9 May 1801 answer of John Dickerson states, in part:
Notwithstanding the said testator died possessed of the said Chloe & Alice, yet very soon after the said testator’s death James Turner, the father and natural guardian of the said female complainants demanded the said Chloe & Alice of this deft & took possession of them & alledged that they were given to him by the said testator at the time of his marriage with the mother of the female complts, and then by him loaned to the testator; that the title of the said James Turner was by him & this deft refered to the arbitration of John Warden & Wm. Roane Esqrs & the said James Turner having proved such gift on his marriage & the subsequent loan, the said referees awarded that this deft should relinquish his title to the said slaves to the said James Turner, which this deft did accordingly very soon thereafter, and this deft hath never since been possessed of them. And this deft prays to be hence dismissed with his reasonable costs in this behalf most wrongfully sustained &c.
The case continued for several years, and the case jacket states 1805 July 17th abates by defendts death
[Essex County, Virginia, Chancery Causes, Lewis Williamson et al v Executor of John Dickerson, 1805-011 (old Box 16, 16-F).]