Description:

Pine Barrens Land Fraud
n.p., February 3, 1797
GA Gov. Jared Irwin Signed Land Grant - Shocking Instance of Pine Barrens Speculation!
PPDS
Two documents related to the Pine Barrens land scandal, which took place in Georgia in the mid-1790s. The lot consists of two partly printed and partly manuscript documents, the first dated February 3, 1797 and boldly signed by Governor of Georgia James Irwin; and the other a land plat and surveying warrant dated August 1794, signed by two unidentified officials. Condition issues will be mentioned below, but is generally very good to near fine. The largest document unfolded measures 12.875" x 11.75."

The Pine Barrens land scandal referred to a spate of fraudulent land transactions in which millions of acres of land in central and eastern Georgia were sold, far in excess of the actual number of acres in existence. In essence, available land was sold multiple times over, potentially to different buyers. The Pine Barrens land scandal happened at the same time as the similar (and more famous) Yazoo land fraud, in the mid-1790s. The Pine Barrens speculation scheme can be tied to Northern financiers like Robert Morris. The land-selling frenzy was fueled by investors who viewed real estate as a more stable investment option than fluctuating currency. Fraudulent land sales during the Pine Barrens land scandal were so prolific in Montgomery County, Georgia, for example, that it's estimated some 7.5 million acres of land was sold - about 15 times the actual county land area of 407,000 acres.

Both the Pine Barrens and Yazoo land scandals are associated with a series of Georgia governors including George Walton, Edward Telfair, and George Mathews. The Georgia Governor who signed our first document, Jared Irwin, ran as a reform candidate. In a bold and decisive executive move, Irwin nullified the Yazoo Act in February 1796, wiping the sales clean from the state's record (and eventually leading to the U.S. Supreme Court case Fletcher v. Peck.) Yet here he is, in 1797, signing off on a Pine Barrens land fraud sale. This suggests how difficult it was to stop the wheels of corruption. It's likely that the after effects of the land scandals was felt well into 1798, until the tenure of Irwin's successor, Georgia Governor James Jackson.

The lot includes:

1. A 1p partly printed and partly manuscript document boldly signed by Governor of Georgia Jared Irwin (1750-1818), as "Jared Irwin" along the upturned fold of the bottom margin. February 3, 1797. N.p. Docketed at left and verso. On watermarked laid paper tied with a ribbon at bottom. Expected wear including flattened paper folds and creases. Isolated stains, rusted paper clip impressions, and closed tears, else very good. Measures 12.875" x 11.75" overall.

This land grant gave Micajah Vasser (died 1836) a full head-right of 1,000 acres in Montgomery County, Georgia, "butting and bounding North East by Weatherby's Land, and on all other Sides by Vasser's Land."

Military service records indicate that Vasser was a North Carolina-born Revolutionary War veteran who lost a leg at Legat's Bridge (May 13, 1781) and fought at Yorktown, emigrating to Georgia in 1786. Vasser was a frequent recipient of Pine Barrens land fraud land grants. According to original research conducted by historian Paul K. Graham, Vasser was issued 470,000 acres of land in Montgomery County. This was 470,000 times the amount of land usually allowed to ordinary Georgia settlers, and it also exceeded the entire territory of the county by 63,000 acres!

2. A 1p partly printed and partly manuscript document being a hand-drawn plat above, and a warrant at bottom, signed by two unidentified officials at lower right, dated August 1794 and corresponding to Micajah Vasser's 1797 land sale. On watermarked laid paper. Docketed at upper right. Expected wear including flattened paper folds and isolated minor closed tears. Isolated stains and toning, else very good. 8" x 13."

During the Pine Barrens land fraud, plats were often drawn up by surveyors sight-unseen, citing trees and bodies of water that were purely figments of their imagination. The fictitious plats were often easy-to-draw square allotments of land, such as this one.

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: largest document measures unfolded: 12.875" x 11.75"
  • Medium: PPDS

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