Papers Of Abraham Lincoln

Mortgage Deed of William Green Jr. to Reuben Radford, 15 January 18331

William Green J^r
To
Reuben Radford

Know all men by these presents that I William Green J[r] of the County of Sangamon and State of Illinois for and in Consideration of the sum of Two hundred dollars to me in hand paid the receipt whereof I do hereby acknowledged have given granted bargained and sold and by these presents do give grant bargain and sell all my right title interest and estate in an to the west half of lot number five North of Main Street in the 1^st survey in the Town of New Salem in the County an State aforesaid together with all and singular the appurtenances thereunto belonging or in anywise appertaining thereunto Reuben Radford his heirs and assigns forever— In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal this fifteenth day of January in the year of our Lord one Thousand eight hundred and thirty three—2
William Green Jr seal

[ certification ]
Lincoln, Abraham (President)

Attest
A. Lincoln

[ endorsement ]
01/15/1833
Green, William G.Radford, Reuben

The condition of the above obligation is3 such if the said William Green J[r] shall comply with the requisites of two promissory notes made and executed on this day for the sum of one hundred and eighty eight dollars and fifty cents each payable to the said Reuben Radford the above deed of bargain to be null and void and of no effectBut if he the said William Green J^r shall prove insolvent and utterly unable to comply with the demands of said notes the above deed of bargain is to remain in full force and virtue at lawIn testimony whereof the said

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William Green J^r and Reuben Radford have hereunto set their hands this 15^th of January 1833
William Green Jr Reuben Radford

[ certification ]
07/10/1833
Conover, Robert

State of Illinois
Sangamon County

This day personally appeared before the undersigned a Justice of the Peace in and for said County Abram Lincoln whose name appears signed as a subscribing [wring?] to the annexed deed of conveyance the said Abram Lincoln being personally known to me to be the person whose name appears subscribed to the said deed and the said Abram Lincoln after being duly sworn deposit[deposeth] and saith that the said deed was executed and delivered in his presence by William Green whose manes[name] appears subscribed to the said Deed that the said William Green whose name appears subscribed to the said deed is the real person who executed the same and that he the said Abram Lincoln subscribed his name as a witness in his presence and at his requestGiven under my hand and seal this 10 day of July 1833—
Robert Conover J. P[Justice of the Peace] seal

[ docketing ]
08/01/1833
Recorded August 1^st A.D. 1833—

1Clerks transcribed the mortgage deed into Sangamon County Deed Book F1 and also into Deed Book F2, shown here. The original document has not been located.

2In 1833, Abraham Lincoln and his partner William F. Berry ran one of three general stores in the village of New Salem. When Reuben Radford’s store was ransacked by locals in January 1833, he sold his building and stock to William Greene, who immediately sold it to Lincoln & Berry. Lincoln and Berry signed promissory notes to cover the purchase of their initial business as well as Radford’s building and stock. By April 1833, Lincoln and Berry’s store had failed and in 1835 Berry died, leaving Lincoln to pay the partnership’s debts.
Promissory Note of William F. Berry, Abraham Lincoln and William Green to Reuben Radford; Vanbergen v. Lincoln et al., Martha L. Benner and Cullom Davis et al., eds., The Law Practice of Abraham Lincoln: Complete Documentary Edition, 2d edition (Springfield: Illinois Historic Preservation Agency, 2009), http://www.lawpracticeofabrahamlincoln.org/Details.aspx?case=140678; David Herbert Donald, Lincoln (New York: Simon & Schuster, 1995), 47, 49, 54.

3“is” written over “if”.