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Document 28 – |
Preemption Claim of Bernard Bird to a Lot in
La Salle |
May 26, 1848 |
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Document 28 |
Transcription Bernard Bird, claims Lot 6 in Block 126, Lasalle. Bernard Bird, sworn, says, that he owns all the |
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improvements on this lot, he bought
them of Patrick Moore in 1846. Patrick Moore bought them of John Gurry; Gurry bought of Michael Nolan, & Nolan bought of John Dooley, and Dooley bought of Revd. Mr. Raho, and Raho bought it of Michael Mawresy, and Mawresy bought it of John Dillon & John Martin, by whom they were made. The house was built in the winter of 1838. The house was the only improvement on the lot up to Decr. 1842,~ The house was vacant through the winter of 1842 & 3. Since Bird bought he has built aframed Carpenters shop on the lot. The lot has never been fenced. The house built 1838 was a Hewed log house, 14 by 15 feet, one story high. |
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Subscribed and sworn to
before Bernard Bird me this 26th day of May 1848 Thos W Hennessey Notary Public William Dempsey & Edward Norton, sworn, say they Know that all the facts stated in the foregoing affidavit of Bernard Bird are true. Subscribed and Sworn to before Wm Dempsey me this 26th day of May 1848 his Edwd x Norton Thos W Hennessey notary Public mark |
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When the log cabin in question had been built by John Dillon and John Martin in La Salle in the winter of 1838 the town had had two frontier stores, a blacksmith’s shop, and a substantial tavern. Residents numbered approximately 200. Canal workers living in the vicinity had built all matter of shapes and sizes of shanties in which to shelter themselves. The roofs of these mostly crude structures variously were composed of straw, grass sod, and wooden shingles.
By late 1842 canal work had ceased due to unpaid debt on the part of the I and M fund. Former workers left the line for good or found employment in agricultural ventures in the surrounding countryside. The town of La Salle was virtually deserted. Canal work resumed in July 1845 at which time the contract for the steamboat channel and basin at La Salle was re-let (see document 17). When the canal opened in the spring of 1848 La Salle, the western terminus, was thriving again. The town had a new grist mill and warehouse at the canal’s edge and substantial homes lined the main street.
Describe Bernard Bird’s property.
Why had this lot never been fenced?
Why had this house been vacant over the winter of 1842-1843?
How many separate owners had the house located on lot 6 in block 126 had over 1838-1848? Why had there been so many owners over such a short period?
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