John Smith and George Meaders, executors of the estate of the late Lawson Thompson, seek an act of emancipation for certain slaves named in Thompson's will. During the past year "some improper claims" were advanced by the heirs, they assert, but these should have no bearing on the emancipation of the slaves. Smith and Meaders explain to the court that, by asking for the slaves' emancipation, they are conforming to the wishes of the late Thompson, who not only couched his desire to free his slaves in his will but often expressed it during his lifetime. In his will, Thompson also directed that land be purchased for the freed slaves out of his estate.
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Repository: Mississippi Department of Archives and History, Jackson, Mississippi
