Richard [M Bourden] to James Lee, 1839 June 19

Item — Box: 2, Folder: 9, Item: 6

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Richard [M Bourden] to James Lee, 1839 June 19

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Scope and Contents

A letter, dated June 19, 1839, from Richard [M Bourden or McBourden] in Hempstead County, Arkansas to James Lee in Williamsburg, Virginia. Enclosed newspaper clipping attached.

[M Bourden] asks for a letter of recommendation from James Lee. Bourden says that he has been mistaken and apprehended in Arkansas for a murder committed in Tennessee by a Jefferson Blagg whose description matches his own. He asks Lee to write and to inform his family and to encourage them and others to write to assert his innocence. His postscript reads, “Excuse the orthography bad hand etc. I am chained to the floor and have no table or [?] to write on.”

Dates

Creation: 1839 June 19

Creator

From the Collection: Ludwell Paradise, Lucy (Person)
From the Collection: Lee, James (Person)
From the Collection: Lee, Philip Ludwell (Person)
From the Collection: Slater, Virginia Helena Lee (Person)

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Collection is open to all researchers. Manuscript collections and archival records may contain materials with sensitive or confidential information that is protected under federal or state right to privacy laws and regulations, such as the Virginia Public Records Act (Code of Virginia. § 42.1-76-91); and the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (Code of Virginia § 2.2-3705.5). Confidential material may include, but is not limited to, educational, medical, and personnel records. If sensitive material is found in this collection, please contact a staff member immediately. The disclosure of personally identifiable information pertaining to a living individual may have legal consequences for which William & Mary Libraries assumes no responsibility.