COURT RECORDS
Ashe Co.,NC, Superior Court ; William Blackburn & Others vs Wesley Gentry and Others, petition for sale of land for partition,Sept 6th 1871.
The petition of William Blackburn, Edmund Blackburn, John Blackburn, H.B. Blackburn, Hannah Campbell, Jonathan Miller & wife Rebecca, William Miller & wife Elizabeth, William Davis & wife Sally against Wesley Gentry, Elizabeth Gentry, James Gentry, Hamilton Gentry, Burgess Blackburn, Sunilda Blackburn, Emiline Blackburn, _______Blackburn and _______Blackburn. Respectfully showeth that Levi Blackburn late of Ashe County is dead leaving him surviving your petitioners and the defendants his only heirs at law and sole next of kin. That at the time of his death he was sized and possessed of a tract or parcel of land lying in Ashe and in Watauga Counties adjoining the lands of H. A. Dobbins, Wm. Howell and others containing two hundred and thirty six acres more or less which descended (?) your petitioners as tenants in common. That there is a valuable mill on said land and that from the (nature?) of the land the mill and the number and (commixion) of the parties of this suit to with the heirs actual partition of th land cannot be made with out material injury to the parties.
That Wm. Blackburn, Edmund Blackburn, John Blackburn, H.B. Blackburn, Hannah Campbell, Rebecca Miller, Elizabeth Miller and Sally Davis are each entitled to our tenth part of said land and taht Wesley Gentry, Elizabeth Gentry, James Gentry and Hamilton Gentry heirs of Nancy Gentry are entitled together to one tenth share of the said land and that Burgess Blackburn, Sunilda Blackburn, Emiline Blackburn, ______Blackburn and ______Blackburn heris of Isaac Blackburn decd, are together entitled to one tenth part of said land and that James Gentry, Hamilton Gentry, Emiline Blackburn, ________Blackburn and ______Blackburn are minors and that the difendants are all now residents of this state.
Petitoners therefore pray that publication be made for secessive weeks in "The Mountain Messenger" a newspaper published in the town of Jefferson summoning the defendants to appear at the court house in Jefferson with in twenty days after the expiratio of the said weeks advertising and snsere the petition of petitioners. and giving them notice that unless they appear and answer with in that time the ptetitoners will be heard in part as to them.
Your petitioners further pray that you will order and decree that the land shall be sold on such terms you may decree just by some person who you may order and that the purchase money be divided among the parties acording to their respective interest. and that you will appoint some decent person to act as guardian and (?) for the infant defendants James Gentry, Hamilton Gentry minor heris of Nancy Gentry and for Emiline Blackburn, ______Blackburn and ______Blackburn to defend and assure for these in the (?)and grant all such other and further relife as the case may require . (Todd Atty.)