Bedford County, Pennsylvania, Quarter Sessions, 1771-1801
Bedford County, Pennsylvania, Quarter Sessions, 1771-1801

Author: Gerald H. Smith

Publisher:

Published: 2010-01-01

Total Pages: 351

ISBN-13: 9780788452536

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Courts of Quarter Sessions derive from British common law. Pennsylvania's 1715 statute to establish a Court of Quarter Sessions of the Peace, gave these courts broad jurisdiction in a variety of areas. Quarter Sessions dockets contain administrative entries, such as oaths of office; governmental entries, such as petitions for roads; petty criminal offenses such as nuisance and keeping a tipling house (unlicensed sale of alcoholic beverages); as well as more serious criminal offenses, such as assault and battery, riot, forcible entry, house burning, and horse stealing. The dockets name husbands and wives, associate individuals with their township of residence, and clarify parentage in cases of illegitimate children. Illegitimate children and illicit relationships are found with charges of fornication, bastardy, and bigamy. Individuals from all social strata appear in these records: elected county officials, appointed township officials, common citizens as jurors or witnesses, and, of course, the miscreants. This volume includes abstracts of Docket 1 (1771-1789) and Docket 2 (1771-1801) which both begin with events at the formation of the county. Docket 1 begins with case entries and Docket 2 begins with oaths of office and oaths of allegiance. Thus, at the formation of the county two registers were kept concurrently. The dockets offer insight into history and the times. Oaths of office at the formation of the county reflect the political and religious climate in Britain, while the oaths used after the American independence have nothing to say about claimants to the British throne or religion. While most of this work abstracts court case information, certain items of historical interest, such as these oaths, are fully transcribed. Terms and Definitions and a full-name index add to the value of this work.

Faces of the Civil War
Faces of the Civil War

Author: Ronald S Coddington

Publisher: Johns Hopkins University Press+ORM

Published: 2012-11-12

Total Pages: 294

ISBN-13: 1421410397

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Archival images and biographical sketches of Union soldiers tell the stories of their lives during and after the Civil War. Before leaving to fight in the Civil War, many Union and Confederate soldiers posed for a carte de visite, or visiting card, to give to their families, friends, or sweethearts. Invented in 1854 by a French photographer, the carte de visite was a small photographic print roughly the size of a modern trading card. The format arrived in America on the eve of the Civil War, fueling intense demand for the keepsakes. Many cards of Civil War soldiers survive today, but the experiences?and often the names?of the individuals portrayed have been lost to time. A passionate collector of Civil War–era photography, Ron Coddington researched the history behind these anonymous faces in military records, pension files, and other public and personal documents. In Faces of the Civil War, Coddington presents 77 cartes de visite of Union soldiers from his collection and tells the stories of their lives during and after the war. These soldiers came from all walks of life. All were volunteers. Their personal stories reveal a tremendous diversity in their experience of war: many served with distinction, some were captured, some never saw combat while others saw little else. The lives of survivors were even more disparate. While some made successful transitions back to civilian life, others suffered permanent physical and mental disabilities, which too often wrecked their families and careers. In compelling words and haunting pictures, Faces of the Civil War offers a unique perspective on the most dramatic and wrenching period in American history.