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Sept 5

For those who are not familiar with my area, I live near the small town of Martinsville, Virginia. It is in Henry County, and adjacent to Patrick County and Pittsylvania County. At one time, Henry and Patrick counties were one county. We have a rich history, and are close to several historical and memorial sites.

It seems that some very interesting historical papers also lurk around in our little area. In the September 3 edition of our local paper, the Martinsville Bulletin, it was reported that local auctioneers found several documents dating back to the 1700 and 1800s. At least one is believed to have been signed by Thomas Jefferson himself.

There is the land grant signed by Jefferson, a couple of sales records for land, documents relating to slave values and medical care (this last I believe was uncommon in those days) and at least one document with the details of slave trading.  The bill for the medical care was a whopping $37.50. In those days…probably about the same as the several hundred dollar billings most doctors give these days.

The auctioneers were gathering articles for an up coming auction, and it seems most of these papers will mostly be up for auction. The family stated they need to money for medical bills, but would be keeping the document that was definatively linked to there family (or donating it to the Patrick County Historical Society). I just hope they have time to get them authenticated so they get the full value of the items. Medical bills can be horrendous,  so I am sure they can use every cent they can possibly get at this time.

For those interested in knowing all the details, the article can be found here.

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