Description:

Simon Kenton
[Mason County, KY], April 20, 1789
Frontiersman Simon Kenton & Partner William Ward Agree on Locating and Surveying Lands in Kentucky
MDS

SIMON KENTON and William Ward, manuscript document signed apparently secretarially, articles of agreement between Ward and Kenton, April 20, 1789, [Mason County, Kentucky]. 2 pp., 5.25" x 8.5". Repaired separation on fold; some edge tears and small hole at intersection of folds; general toning.

Simon Kenton developed a partnership with Virginian William Ward who acquired military land warrants from veterans, and the two speculated on land in Kentucky and Ohio and perhaps beyond. This agreement involves the location of 2,100 acres of land from military warrants. Kenton would supervise the surveying of the warrants, and Ward would pay the costs of surveying. In return, Kenton would receive 1,000 acres, and Ward would receive 1,100 acres of the land.

Excerpt
Articles of Agreement entered into between Wm Ward of the one part & Simon Kenton of the other Part Witness That the sd Kenton hath agreed to locate military Warrants furnish by sd Ward to the amount of 2100 Acres & to direct & superintend the Surveying of the same and the sd Ward on his Part doth oblige himself to bear all Cost & Charges that may be due for the Surveying &c of the same and to divide the Land aforesd in Quality having Regard to all local Conveniences if in one entire Survey, and after choosing eleven hundred acres thereabout to make sd Kenton a title to remaining one thousand acres and in Case the Warrants should be located in more than one Tract then sd Ward to have Choice of Tracts tell he makes up the Quantity of eleven hundred acres as aforesd & to make sd Kenton a Title to remaining one thousd as aforesd For the due Performance of which the Parties respectively bind themselves & their Heirs to each other in the Sum of ten thousd Pounds Virginia Currency & have hereunto interchangeably set their Hand & seals this 20th Day of April 1789.
Wm Ward {Seal}
Simon Kenton {Seal}
Witness
Geo: May
Samuel Cooper

Without aney the cost to me or to my heirs or assigns I assign the within article of angreement to William McClung his heirs &c for which assignment I am to be no wise answerable for as the said McClung stands in my shoes and is never to blame aney thing from me if he Loses the hole of the Land [stricken text and signature] except what lies south of Rusts preemption which the said Kenton reserved & is not sold witness my hand and seal this 21st day of May 1803
Simon Kenton {seal} By John Kenton his tr[ustee?]
Attest
Rob Taylor Jnr

Historical Background
Frontiersmen Simon Kenton and Daniel Boone founded what became Maysville, Kentucky, where Limestone Creek empties into the Ohio River. Kenton first settled there in 1775, and Daniel Boone's cousin had a tavern there. Kenton left to participate in the western battles of the Revolutionary War but returned in 1784 and built a blockhouse to protect settlers from raids by Native Americans.

The settlement was incorporated as Maysville in 1787 but was known well into the nineteenth century as Limestone. It served as a harbor for river commerce and a starting point for settlers moving into the Bluegrass region of Kentucky. A buffalo trace that Native Americans had used for centuries formed the route for a road from Maysville to Lexington, 60 miles to the southwest. In the first decade of the nineteenth century, Maysville and Louisville were Kentucky's two principal ports.

Mason County, Kentucky, was created from Bourbon County, Virginia, in 1788 and named for George Mason, the "Father of the Bill of Rights."

Simon Kenton (1755-1836) was born in Virginia and fled to the frontier in 1771 after fearing he had killed a man. He later learned the man had survived. In 1777, he saved his friend Daniel Boone's life during an attack by the Shawnee. He served as a scout for George Rogers Clark in 1779 in Clark's expedition to capture Fort Sackville in what is now Vincennes, Indiana. In 1785, a teenager taught Kenton how to write his name. In 1793-1794, Kenton fought in the Northwest Indian War with General Anthony Wayne. He began making claims in the Ohio country as early as 1788 and led settlers there in 1799. He served as a brigadier general in the state militia and led militiamen in the War of 1812, including participation in the Battle of the Thames in 1813.

William Ward (1752-1822) was born in Virginia to Irish and Scotch-Irish immigrants. He served in his father's company of volunteers to retaliate against Native American raids. When his father was killed in battle in October 1774, Williams took command of the company and served through the Revolutionary War on the frontier. After the war, he married Rebecca Anderson (17-1805), and they had seven children. In 1780, he collected a land warrant for 2,000 acres for his father's military service in Williamsburg, Virginia, then proceeded to the frontier, where he presented the warrant to Simon Kenton. The subsequent description of the land assigned to Ward was so vague that it yielded several lawsuits between Ward and Kenton. In 1782, Ward was a member of a committee that organized Lewisburg, (West) Virginia. From 1784 to 1786, he accompanied his uncles into Kentucky, where he staked large amounts of land and redeemed military land grants. He and his family settled in Washington, Kentucky, where he became a business associate of Simon Kenton for more than three decades and managed Kenton's store. From 1792 to 1795, he represented Mason County in the Kentucky legislature. In 1805, he lobbied the Ohio General Assembly to form Champaign County with Urbana, where he owned considerable land, as the county seat. As Ward's fortune grew and Kenton's dwindled, many accused Ward of taking advantage of the frontiersman, but when Kenton sued in 1818 for shares in Champaign County lands, the court found no evidence that Ward cheated or defrauded Kenton.

This item comes with a Certificate from John Reznikoff, a premier authenticator for both major 3rd party authentication services, PSA and JSA (James Spence Authentications), as well as numerous auction houses.

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  • Dimensions: 5.25" x 8.5"
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