Lavinia and Thomas Parker claim title to four slaves. Mrs. Parker asserts that she is the illegitimate daughter of the late Thomas Egan. Born about 1805, she lived with Egan "when she was very young and small." About 1808 Egan married Sarah Colvin, and Lavinia lived with them until 1817. At that time, Sarah sent the twelve-year-old Lavinia away, claiming that Egan no longer wanted her. A man drove Lavinia "to the far side of this State near the Georgia line and left her on the road in the woods out of sight of any dwelling." Thomas Egan had been "exceedingly distressed" by Lavinia's "sudden disappearance" and had "felt and expressed extreme anxiety for her safety." He also had provided for Lavinia in his will and three codicils, bequeathing her money to buy "a negro girl" and directing Sarah, his major beneficiary, to support Lavinia. Sometime before 1817, Egan had purchased a slave named Mary for Lavinia. After Egan died in 1820, Sarah took possession of Mary and her children as Egan's executrix and Lavinia's trustee. Sarah prevented the sheriff from seizing these slaves to pay Egan's debts by claiming that they belonged to Lavinia. The Parkers only discovered this information in the last year, when they moved back to South Carolina. They want possession of the slaves, valuable house servants and mechanics, as well as compensation for their hires since Egan's death. They pray that Sarah and her current husband, Isaiah Thompson, be restrained from leaving the district or removing or selling the slaves.
Result: Granted.
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Repository: South Carolina Department of Archives and History, Columbia, South Carolina
