Subject: Petition of St. Peter's Parish 17 January 1759
Resent-Date: Sun, 29 Mar 1998 19:39:39 -0800 (PST)
Resent-From: SCROOTS-L@rootsweb.com
Date: Sun, 29 Mar 1998 22:42:18 -0500
From: Steve Coker 
Organization: gamecock@yours.com
To: "SCROOTS-L@rootsweb.com" 

Wednesday the 17th Day of January 1759.

"... A Petition of the Inhabitants of St. Peter's Parish was presented to the
House and read, Setting forth,

That the Petitioners are informed that Messrs. Charles and Jermyn Wright
supported by a few of their nighest Neighbours have lately laid a Petition
before the House in which they endeavoured to obtain the public Sanction and
Support for restoring a certain old and scarcely ever practicable Road, that
leadeth by a round about of Seventeen Miles from Coosehatchee over Day's Creek
to Purysburgh, and that the Petitioners that live within ten Miles of the said
old new Road, that is to say almost the whole Township of Purysburgh should be
compelled to work thereon, which if obtained would make your Petitioners fall
again a Sacrifice to the most sordid, most glaring and most palpable
Self-Interest, to which for want of public Spirited Men amongst them that
understood thoroughly the Laws and Language of the Country and the Libertys of
the Subject, according to the happy form of Our Government, they have ever been
an easy Prey, wanting even that commonly remaining and last Comfort of an
injured and distressed People, i.e. the means and Capacity of seeking Redress to
their Sufferings and Grievances: It would throw Your Petitioners into the old
Dilemma again, either to have no Road at all to the Capitol or only a very bad
One, that leads Seventeen Miles round about, out of which they have been so
lately delivered, It was they think in the year 1754, when the Petitioners
applyed for, and obtained An Act, which exempted them for ever working upon the
said Road again; And the Commissioners for the high-Roads were directed to mark
Out a more practicable and more direct Road from Purysburgh to Coosehatchee,
which was accordingly done and a new strait Road marked out, which was found not
only more practicable than the old Road, but withal (which is no small Benefit
to the Public) full 17 Miles shorter.

That the Petitioners have worked thereon these 4 Years past, that tho' the said
Road be not the shortest possible yet it is considerably so in Comparison of
that designed by Messrs. Wright. That for these Reasons and many more the
Petitioners might justly add (if this was the place to expose all the Variety of
their Distresses from the first settling the Township beyond and above what any
other Community of this flourishing Province ever did, which has reduced this,
at first so populous a Settlement to a handful of poor People) and praying the
House to maintain the Petitioners in all and Every the Appointments of the
above-mentioned Act.

Ordered that the said Petition be referred to the Consideration of the Committee
to whom the Petition of Jermyn and Charles Wright was referred...."

Source:
The Colonial Records of South Carolina
The Journal of the Commons House of Assembly
Published by the South Carolina Department of Archives and History
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 51-62239
ISBN: 1-880067-28-5

==== SCROOTS Mailing List ====
Have you visited the South Carolina Genweb site yet? http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Hills/3837
Address your comments & suggestions to:
Steven J. Coker
carolina@yours.com
http://www.wp.com/Coker/links9.html