[ Colonial East Florida / St. Augustine to Cape Canaveral area ] -- [Land Holdings of John Moultrie, Deputy Governor of East Florida] A Schedule and apprasement [sic] of the property of John Moultrie in East Florida which he is now in possession of and did possess at the time that province was ceded to the crown of Spain

Moultrie

Verlag: Moultrie, 1784

Beschreibung

Moultrie / 1784 circa / [ Colonial East Florida / St. Augustine to Cape Canaveral area ] -- [Land Holdings of John Moultrie, Deputy Governor of East Florida] A Schedule and apprasement [sic] of the property of John Moultrie in East Florida which he is now in possession of and did possess at the time that province was ceded to the crown of Spain (Florida, 86619) Folio. Folded sheet of laid paper. [4] pages of manuscript text. Some separation at fold creases. Slight dust soiling to lower half of final page. Overall very clean. East Florida Land Holdings of John Moultrie, 1784 - Including a Description of One of the First Great Estates in Florida Erstwhile Deputy Governor Vacates the Province as British Transfer East Florida Back to Spain A very early manuscript document relating to East Florida, dating from the time when the British were transferring possession of the province back to Spain in 1784. The document comprises an appraisal of the East Florida plantations and land holdings of a prominent early figure in the province before the American Revolution, John Moultrie. Judging from the present document Moultrie owned a sizeable chunk of the coastal swamp land south of St. Augustine: thousands of acres planted with all manner of fruits and crops, a well-appointed mansion house, dozens of buildings, and houses, the whole valued here at 9432. Governor Tonyn issued a proclamation on May 6, 1784, ordering British inhabitants to make arrangements to embark on vessels set aside for the purpose from St. Augustine. However, many British residents of East Florida tarried in hopes of finding purchasers for their houses and land. The lack of Spanish purchasers depressed the value of real estate, at times down to a quarter of its value. Moultrie's vast land holdings in East Florida resulting in his eventual claim of losses made to the East Florida Claims Commission in London. Since few records of the Commission survive due to poor storage conditions (the records were transferred to the Treasury cellar in 1847 and mostly rendered useless due to sewer water damage) the present document is likely Moultrie's own retained copy or draft of the appraisal. He made claims to the East Florida Claims Office for losses of 9,432, clearly detailed in the present document. One source states he was awarded only 4,479 pounds. Of particular interest in this document is the detailed description of Moultrie's Bella Vista plantation home, a luxurious stone mansion and grounds valued herein at 2974. With buildings enough to house a hundred people, complete with pleasure gardens, thousands of trees, olives, dates, lemons and oranges, a bowling green, the spread must have been a sight to behold. The text of the document is transcribed below. A Schedule and apprasement of the property of John Moultrie in East Florida which he is now in possession of and did possess at the time that the province was ceded to the crown of Spain __ Bella Vista a Plantation situated on the Matawza river about four miles from St. Augustine either by land or by water his home and a place of residence. A stone mansion 52 x 42 feet - lower story rustic, upper ? - containing a rustic hall 44 feet long six arches supports the ceiling - a dining parlour - cov'd drawing room - six bed chambers - two unfurnished porticos . and other necessary buildings for a hundred people besides kitchen garden 10 acres fenced and laid out in pleasure gardens containing a bowling green, laid walks, planted with many thousand trees, olives, dates, oranges, lemmons, limes. stock vines, white mulberry pomegranate, peach and plumbs - banana pines &c. A park in good order about the house of about 30 acres with many pea fowls, poland geese, pidgeons, bees & c. 100 acres land. fish ponds stock[ed] with fresh wat. Bestandsnummer des Verkäufers 86619

Bibliografische Details

Titel: [ Colonial East Florida / St. Augustine to ...

Verlag: Moultrie

Erscheinungsdatum: 1784

Einband: No Binding

Zustand: VG

Art des Buches: Map