A Race Against Time on the Lort Branch

“next friday is the day that conner has set apart to sell sum bodys land”

Pull up a chair, friends. I’ve got something special to show you today—a scrap of paper that feels like it’s still vibrating with the urgency of a man in a tight spot. Back in the spring of 1874, a fellow named Eldridge Ginn was facing a real problem. A man named Conner was fixing to sell some land that Eldridge knew wasn’t his to take. In a scramble, Eldridge sent young Jacob Ginn over to Laben Ginn with a plea for four specific deeds to prove those lands had been signed over years before. It was a race against the clock, with Friday looming as the day of reckoning.

When you hold this letter today, you can see the toll of the years. The paper is that deep, honey-yellow color that only comes with a century and a half of aging. The blue horizontal lines across the page are still there, though they’re faint, and the ink has faded into a soft, rustic brown. You’ll notice the left edge is ragged and torn away, like it’s been through the wars, and there is an old embossed seal in the corner that speaks of official business from a long-lost era. The handwriting is a bit rough and the spelling is purely phonetic, reminding us that these were hardworking folks more comfortable with a plow than a pen.

This isn’t just about paperwork; it’s about a community looking out for its own. Along with his own troubles, Eldridge was looking out for Samuel Ginn, asking for a survey plat for 434 acres over on the Lort branch so Samuel could get his own portion sorted out. It paints a picture of a time when your neighbor—or your kin—was your lifeline. They were navigating a world of property lines and legal disputes just like we do today, but with the added weight of having to send a messenger on horseback or foot just to get the papers they needed.

Looking at Eldridge’s words today, we see more than just a property dispute. We see the grit and the heartbeat of the past. It’s a reminder that our history is built on these small, frantic moments of people trying to protect what they’ve earned and help their family get ahead. Even with the troubles Eldridge mentions, he kept pushing forward. It makes you wonder what stories we’re leaving behind in our own hurried messages today, doesn’t it?

Original Transcription

Aprile the 20 1874
Mr Laben Ginn after my respects
to you and famley I am well
next friday is the day that conner
has set apart to sell sum bodys land
I send Jacob Ginn to you fore my
Deeds I want you to send them
Sertin so I can show conner that
My lands wore deeded a way 6 years
be fore the dambed one washed off
theare is 4 deeds of mine
Eldridge Ginn
Mr Samuel Ginn
wants the plat of the 434 acre survy
on the Lort brench so he can run off
his part you will please send it
it shal be taken care off
Eldridge Ginn