William Pond Sr. is being sued by his children and son-in-law. The petitioners contend that their father improperly sold slaves that had been placed in trust for their benefit and that of their mother, Mary Pond, during her lifetime. They inform the court that and 1833 deed of trust stipulated that the children would have no claim to ownership of the slaves unless their mother remarried, if left a widow, or died before they did. In the occurrence of either event, the slaves would be divided among the children. The petitioners inform the court that their mother died in 1839, after which their father moved the family from South Carolina to Arkansas, keeping the slaves in his possession, with the exception of one young slave who was left with the trustee. In 1844, however, Pond, who is described by his children as a man of dissipated and reckless habits, sold four of the slaves to one William Barkman, who promptly sold them out of state. The petitioners contend that their father had no right to sell the slaves and that Marskman, the buyer of the slaves, knew the conditions of the trust and sold the slaves secretly in order to deprive the heirs of their rightful property. They ask the court to call upon William Pond Sr. and William Barkman to account for the slaves and profits resulting from their sale.
Result: Granted; appealed.
Or you may view all people.
Repository: University of Arkansas at Little Rock, School of Law, Little Rock, Arkansas
