Six heirs of the late Richard Farr ask the court to compel William B. Farr, an executor of Richard's will, to "come to a settlement with them" regarding the estate. Richard Farr's will devised "the whole of his estate" to his widow Lucy, during "the term of her natural life," and instructed that after her death it be equally divided among their children. The executors of the estate advised the widow to sell the estate's slaves, to purchase "the same for her own benefit," and to hire out as many slaves as necessary to discharge the estate's debts. Having "unlimited confidence in the counsel and good opinion of the Executors," Mrs. Farr followed their advice. She now testifies that while Colonel Joseph Gest, one of Richard's executors, has fully accounted with her for the slaves' hire, William B. Farr refuses to do so. She also reports that while Richard "lay a corpse in the House," William took possession of his property and has concealed the estate's true contents. The slaves have been divided among the heirs, but the petitioners seek an accounting of the property remaining in Farr's hands.
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Repository: South Carolina Department of Archives and History, Columbia, South Carolina
