Lost Land: Was Daniel and Abel Fenn's Property Seized in 1857?

In an earlier blog post, Abel R. Fenn and Daniel C. Fenn Lose Court Case, I shared the attachment notice that was printed in the Ann Arbor Michigan Argus newspaper. Last fall I conducted further research at the Archives of Michigan, where I examined the Washtenaw County court records from 1857. Here is Part II of my findings.

During my research, I located additional court records documenting the appraisal of the Fenn brothers' property. Due to the poor quality of the photographs, I have chosen to share transcriptions of these records rather than images. Below is the record detailing the appraisal process and the property involved in the attachment.

Court Notice of Appraisal

State of Michigan

Washtenaw County

 

I do hereby return that by virtue of the attachment

 hereunto Annexed, I did on the 20th day of December

AD 1856 Attach the premises mentioned in the Inventory

Hereunto  Annexed, as the property of Daniel C Fenn and

 Abel R. Fenn. Defendants in the said attachment

named. All of Which Said property was appraised

by Edward H. Branch And John W. Brown two

disinterested freeholders who were by me first

duly sworn to make a true appraisement thereof

And whose appraisal is in writing signed by

 themselves And herewith returned, and I do

Further return that on the 5th day of January A.D 1853.

I served Daniel C Fenn one of the defendants in said

Attachment named with a copy thereof together and

A copy of an inventory of said property duly

Certified by delivering the same to him and

I also further return that I am unable to find

Abel R Fenn in said attachment named in my

Bailiwick

Dated January 6th 1857                     John C Mead

My fees   $4.25                                               Sheriff

? for ? fee 1.00

                 $5.25

Property Attached by Court

 State of Michigan

Washtenaw County

 By virtue of the writ of attachment

hereunto Annexed I did on the 20th

day of December AD 1856. Seize and attach all the right

Title and interest of Daniel C. Fenn and Abel R. Fenn

Vs Either of their defendants in Said Attachment named in

And to the following described premises situated in the

County of Washtenaw and State of Michigan to ? the

South East quarter of the North East quarter of section

twenty three (23) The South west quarter of the North

West  quarter of section twenty four (24) Containing

Eighty acres more or less Being in Township Number

Two (2) South of range Three East 

Also lots number seven (7) Eight (8) and Nine (9) in block ten according to

The recorded plat of the Village of Chelsea

Also a part of lot number six (6) to wit

Seventeen feet in width off the North Side and

Extending the whole length of said lot. And a strip

Off the South side of Lot number five (5) being five

Feet wide and extending the whole length of said

Lot the whole being in block number two (2) in the

Village of Chelsea according to the recorded ?

Of said village in the county of Washtenaw

State of Michigan

Dated December 20, 1856

 

                                                John C. Mead

                                                            Sheriff

December 20, 1856 copy filed with Register of Deeds

These documents offer a glimpse into the legal and financial troubles faced by my second great-grandfather, Daniel C. Fenn, and his brother Abel R. Fenn. It provides insight into the properties they owned and subsequently lost due to the court case. The court's inability to locate Abel adds another layer of mystery. Was he intentionally evading the legal process, or had he already moved away from Washtenaw County?

As I continue to uncover more about the Fenn brothers and their history, I hope to piece together the circumstances that led to this lawsuit and its long-term effects on their lives. If any descendants or researchers have additional information, I would love to hear from you.

I asked GPT-4o to plot the coordinates on a map, and this was the result on a present day map. I have not cross-referenced it with an 1856 map, so proceed with caution.

Chelsea, Michigan Google Map

The Washtenaw County map from Google Maps shows red pins marking Chelsea, MI, matching the locations on the map above. 

The blue pins indicate locations in Lima Township.

This paragraph was written entirely by GPT-4o when I prompted it to write a summary of map resources for Washtenaw county and Chelsea, Michigan in 1856.

"The Old Maps Online platform provides access to various historical maps of Washtenaw County, including detailed surveys from the mid-19th century. One of the most valuable maps for this research is Gustavus R. Bechler’s 1856 Map of Washtenaw County, Michigan, which depicts township boundaries, landowner names, and property divisions. This map, available through the Library of Congress, allows researchers to locate Township 2 South, Range 3 East (Lima Township) and pinpoint specific land sections, including Section 23 and Section 24, where Daniel C. Fenn and Abel R. Fenn owned land. Additionally, inset maps of Chelsea from this period show individual blocks and lots, including those attached in the legal proceedings against the Fenn brothers. Platforms like Historic Map Works and David Rumsey Map Collection also offer high-resolution scans of period maps, which can be cross-referenced with modern GIS tools to precisely map historical property locations."

Additionally, I have Family Maps of Washtenaw County, Michigan by Gregory A. Boyd, J.D. that I will look at to find older maps of the Fenn land. It looks like I will be digging into land records soon.

This isn't all that I have found. Stay tuned for further updates as I continue my genealogical journey!

AI Disclosures

This blog post used the assistance of the artificial intelligence (AI) tool GPT-4o.

While the content reflects my ideas, writing, and research, GPT-4o was used for grammar and style suggestions, and for the transcription of court documents.

The summary of old map resources was entirely written by GPT-4o.

The headlines on this blog may be suggested by AI algorithms. I review, select, and edit the most fitting ones to capture the essence of the content.