The text by James Rood Robertson contains the following in a footnote on p. 82 pertaining to the first action taken by the General Assembly of Virginia toward the formation of Kentucky as a State. [Henings Statues, Vol. 12, 37 ]
"Whereas it is represented to be the desire of the good people inhabiting the district known by the name of the Kentucky District that the same should be separated from this Commonwealth whereof it is a part and be formed into an independent member of the American Confederacy and it is judged by the General Assembly that such a partition of the Commonwealth is rendered expedient by the remoteness of the more fertile which must be the more populous part of the said district and by the interjacent impediment to a convenient and regular communication therewith, Be it enacted, "
"A convention was to be held at Danville on the fourth Monday of September made up of delegates from the seven counties, five from each. The call was to be posted twenty days and the election was to continue five days to give full opportunity for expression of opinion."
"The boundary was to be unchanged, the new State was to assume its just proportion of the debt, the lands of non-residents were not to be taxed above those of residents, grants of land by the new State were not to interfere with grants made by Virginia, lands set apart for soldiers were subject to grant only by Virginia, up to 1788, the use of the Ohio River to be common, and assent of United States Congress to the separation necessary."
Wow...what a deal...all to happen at a convention to be held at Danville! Historic Danville...indeed it is.
Wednesday, February 24, 2016
Wednesday, February 10, 2016
Act of Separation 1785 (7)
The final part of this letter continues:
"In this Address we have discarded the complimentary stile of adulation & insincerity- it becomes Freemen when speaking to Freemen, to imploy the plain, manly unadorned Language of Independence.....September 23d 1785"
The individuals who signed this document that I have been able to find are: 1) John Coburn, 2) William Kennedy, 3) George Muter, 4) Samuel McDowell, and 5) Levi Todd.
This petition was sent to committee at the General Assembly of Virginia 14th November 1785.
This documentation taken from: Petitions of The Early Inhabitants of Kentucky To The General Assembly of Virginia 1769 to 1792, by James Rood Robertson, John P. Morton & Company, 1914. pp. 79 - 82.
"In this Address we have discarded the complimentary stile of adulation & insincerity- it becomes Freemen when speaking to Freemen, to imploy the plain, manly unadorned Language of Independence.....September 23d 1785"
The individuals who signed this document that I have been able to find are: 1) John Coburn, 2) William Kennedy, 3) George Muter, 4) Samuel McDowell, and 5) Levi Todd.
This petition was sent to committee at the General Assembly of Virginia 14th November 1785.
This documentation taken from: Petitions of The Early Inhabitants of Kentucky To The General Assembly of Virginia 1769 to 1792, by James Rood Robertson, John P. Morton & Company, 1914. pp. 79 - 82.
Monday, January 4, 2016
An Act of Separation 1785 (6)
The petition continues:
"We firmly rely, that the undiminished Lustre of that Spark, which kindled the flame of Liberty, and guided the United States of America to Peace & Independence, will direct the Honourable Body, to whom we Appeal for redress of Manifest grievances, to embrace the Singular Occasion, reserved for them, by Devine Providence; to Originate a precedent, which may Liberalize the Policy of Nations and lead to the emancipation of enslaved millions.-"
Almost to the end...what a group of individuals to join in this petition. Will try and identify the signers who are from Jefferson, Fayette, Lincoln, and Nelson counties in the "district of Kentucky" 1785.
"We firmly rely, that the undiminished Lustre of that Spark, which kindled the flame of Liberty, and guided the United States of America to Peace & Independence, will direct the Honourable Body, to whom we Appeal for redress of Manifest grievances, to embrace the Singular Occasion, reserved for them, by Devine Providence; to Originate a precedent, which may Liberalize the Policy of Nations and lead to the emancipation of enslaved millions.-"
Almost to the end...what a group of individuals to join in this petition. Will try and identify the signers who are from Jefferson, Fayette, Lincoln, and Nelson counties in the "district of Kentucky" 1785.
Sunday, December 13, 2015
An Act of Separation 1785 (5)
The words continue:
"Our application may exhibit a new spectacle, in the History & Politicks of Mankind- A Soverign Power; soley intent to bless its People agreeing to a dismemberment of its parts, in order to secure the Happiness of the whole- and we fondly flatter ourselves from motives not purely Local, it is to give Birth, to that catalogue of great events, which we pursuade ourselves, is to diffuse throughout the World. the inestimable blessings, which mankind may derive from the American Revolution.-"
Wow..."the inestimable blessings, which mankind may derive from the American Revolution" written and dated 23 Septerber 1785. Words that some would believe have come to pass.
Take from: Petitions of The Early Inhabitants of Kentucky To The General Assembly of Virginia 1769 to 1792, by James Rood Robertson, 1914.
"Our application may exhibit a new spectacle, in the History & Politicks of Mankind- A Soverign Power; soley intent to bless its People agreeing to a dismemberment of its parts, in order to secure the Happiness of the whole- and we fondly flatter ourselves from motives not purely Local, it is to give Birth, to that catalogue of great events, which we pursuade ourselves, is to diffuse throughout the World. the inestimable blessings, which mankind may derive from the American Revolution.-"
Wow..."the inestimable blessings, which mankind may derive from the American Revolution" written and dated 23 Septerber 1785. Words that some would believe have come to pass.
Take from: Petitions of The Early Inhabitants of Kentucky To The General Assembly of Virginia 1769 to 1792, by James Rood Robertson, 1914.
Friday, November 13, 2015
An Act of Separation 1785 (4)
The words continue:
"We therefore with the consent and by the authority of our Constituents, after the most Solemn deliberation being warned of every consequence, which can ensure, for them, for ourselves and for Posterity unborn - do Pray - That an act may pass at the ensuing session of Assembly, declaring and acknowledging the Sovereignty & Independence of this district. -
Having no objective in view, but the acquisition of that Security and happiness, which may be attained by a Scrupulous adherence to principles of private justice and public Honor, we should most willingly at this time, enter into the adjustment of the concessions, which are to be the condition of our Seperation, did not our relative situation forbid such negotiation, anxious however to bring this interesting part of the transaction, to a Speedy Issue, we have appointed the Honble George Muter & Harry Innes Esquires to present this Address, and in our behalf to enter into & ratify such engagements, as may ascertain the general Principles, on which the final adjustment of the conditions of Separation is to be established. -"
From: Petitions of The Early Inhabitants of Kentucky To The General Assembly of Virginia 1769 - 1792, by James Robertson. p. 81
"We therefore with the consent and by the authority of our Constituents, after the most Solemn deliberation being warned of every consequence, which can ensure, for them, for ourselves and for Posterity unborn - do Pray - That an act may pass at the ensuing session of Assembly, declaring and acknowledging the Sovereignty & Independence of this district. -
Having no objective in view, but the acquisition of that Security and happiness, which may be attained by a Scrupulous adherence to principles of private justice and public Honor, we should most willingly at this time, enter into the adjustment of the concessions, which are to be the condition of our Seperation, did not our relative situation forbid such negotiation, anxious however to bring this interesting part of the transaction, to a Speedy Issue, we have appointed the Honble George Muter & Harry Innes Esquires to present this Address, and in our behalf to enter into & ratify such engagements, as may ascertain the general Principles, on which the final adjustment of the conditions of Separation is to be established. -"
From: Petitions of The Early Inhabitants of Kentucky To The General Assembly of Virginia 1769 - 1792, by James Robertson. p. 81
Friday, October 16, 2015
An Act of Separation 1785 (3)
The petition from the folks at Danville, KY continues from the last post:
"Tis not the ill directed or inconsiderate Zeal of a few, 'tis not that impatience of Power to which ambitious minds are prone, nor yet the baser consideration of Personal Interest, which influence the people of Kentucky; directed by superior motives, they are incapable of cherishing a wish unfounded in justice, and are now impelled by expanding evils, and irremediable grievances, universally seen, felt and acknowledged, to obey the irresistible dictates of self preservation, and seek for Happiness, by means honourable to themselves, honourable to you, and injurious to neither -"
More to come!
"Tis not the ill directed or inconsiderate Zeal of a few, 'tis not that impatience of Power to which ambitious minds are prone, nor yet the baser consideration of Personal Interest, which influence the people of Kentucky; directed by superior motives, they are incapable of cherishing a wish unfounded in justice, and are now impelled by expanding evils, and irremediable grievances, universally seen, felt and acknowledged, to obey the irresistible dictates of self preservation, and seek for Happiness, by means honourable to themselves, honourable to you, and injurious to neither -"
More to come!
Wednesday, September 23, 2015
An Act of Separation 1785 (2)
The petition of 1785 from Danville continues:
"To recite minutely the causes and reasoning, which directed, and will justify this Address, would we conceive be a matter of impropriety at this Juncture; It would be preposterous for us, to enter upon the support of facts and consequences, which we presume are incontestible; our sequestered situation, from the seat of Government, with the intervention of a mountainous desart of two hundred miles, always dangerous, and passable only at particular seasons, precludes every Idea of a connexion, on Republican principles; The Patriots who framed our Constitution Sensible of the impracticability of connecting permanently, in a free Government, the extensive Limits of the Commonwealth, most wisely made provision for the Act which we now Solicit-, To that Sacred Record we Appeal.-"
The spellings are typed as given. The last post begins this record.
"To recite minutely the causes and reasoning, which directed, and will justify this Address, would we conceive be a matter of impropriety at this Juncture; It would be preposterous for us, to enter upon the support of facts and consequences, which we presume are incontestible; our sequestered situation, from the seat of Government, with the intervention of a mountainous desart of two hundred miles, always dangerous, and passable only at particular seasons, precludes every Idea of a connexion, on Republican principles; The Patriots who framed our Constitution Sensible of the impracticability of connecting permanently, in a free Government, the extensive Limits of the Commonwealth, most wisely made provision for the Act which we now Solicit-, To that Sacred Record we Appeal.-"
The spellings are typed as given. The last post begins this record.
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