LOT Old Heritage Auctions  /  2007 December Signature Texana Auction #661  / 

56323

Moses Austin Manuscript Document Signed; 1812

Currency:USD Category:Collectibles Start Price:875.00 USD Estimated At:1,500.00 - 2,000.00 USD
Moses Austin Manuscript Document Signed; 1812
<B>Moses Austin Manuscript Document Signed</B></I> "<I>Moses Austin</B></I>," one page, 7.75" x 7.5". Ste. Genevieve District [Louisiana Territory], March 12, 1812. In the Court of Common Pleas. Case of John Heathorn & Co. vs. Moses Austin. In full, "<I>Moses Austin being duly sworn on his oath saith that Benjamin Elliot is a necessary and material Witness for him on the trial of this case and is absent. That he ordered a Subpoena to be issued for him. That he cannot establish the same facts by any other Witness to his knowledge and that he has reasonable grounds to indicate that he can procure the attendance of said Witness - that the said Subpoena was ordered sometime the middle of February last.</B></I>" Moses Austin had served as a justice on the Court of Common Pleas and Quarter Sessions for the Ste. Genevieve District from 1804-1806. Unsuccessful in escaping debt through traditional business pursuits, Austin developed a plan in 1819 for settling an American colony in Spanish Texas. He personally presented it to Governor Antonio Maria Martinez. On December 26, 1820, Gov. Martinez sent Austin's petition for permission to bring 300 settlers into Texas to General Don Joaquin Arredondo, Commanding General of the Eastern Internal Provinces, for final approval. On his trip back to Missouri, Austin contracted pneumonia. Shortly after he reached home, he learned that permission for the colony had been granted. His health worsened. On June 8, 1821, two days before he died, he told his wife to tell his son Stephen that "it is his dying father's last request to prosecute the enterprise he had commenced." And he did. Horizontal folds, one lightly toned. Slight chipping at edges of folds. Soiling in blank area beneath the paraph of Austin's bold signature. On good quality, laid paper, in fine condition. <I>From the collection of Darrel Brown. </B></I><BR><BR><b>Shipping:</b> Flat Material, Small (<a target="_blank" href="http://www.heritageauctions.com/common/shipping.php">view shipping information</a>)
Sign In to Bookmark Lot