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Introduction to Bailey, Keeler & Remsen v. JS and O. Cowdery

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Introduction to Bailey, Keeler & Remsen v. JS and O. Cowdery Promissory Note to Bailey, Keeler, & Remsen, 12 October 1836 Praecipe, 7 September 1837 [Bailey, Keeler & Remsen v. JS and O. Cowdery]

Introduction to Bailey, Keeler & Remsen v. JS and O. Cowdery

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Bailey, Keeler & Remsen v. JS and O. Cowdery
Geauga Co., Ohio, Court of Common Pleas, circa September 1837, not litigated
 
Historical Introduction
In July 1837, wholesale merchants Bailey, Keeler & Remsen hired , a lawyer in , Ohio, to collect an unpaid debt from “Smith & Cowdery.” purchased approximately $1,800 of dry goods on credit from Bailey, Keeler & Remsen on 12 October 1836 and provided payment by a that was payable in nine months at the Bank of Cleveland. Although the invoice of dry goods and the promissory note identify “Smith & Cowdery” as the purchaser, they likely refer to the firm . The ability of Bailey, Keeler & Remsen to redeem the note was heavily curtailed by national economic conditions culminating in the Panic of 1837. As a result, the Bank of Cleveland refused to pay the Smith & Cowdery note and it was returned to Bailey, Keeler & Remsen. The firm circulated the note as currency, then later secured the note from the Morris Canal and Banking Company and forwarded it to Sterling for collection in July 1837.
After evidently considering multiple options, including suing JS and in the , Ohio, court of common pleas, renegotiated payment of the original note on 26 September 1837. This renegotiated debt included JS, , , , and as signatories on three promissory notes payable in twelve-, eighteen-, and twenty-four-month increments. Despite this renegotiation, Bailey, Keeler & Remsen and subsequent firms holding the claim continued to press Sterling to pursue payment of the original note; however, subsequent holders of the note could neither sue Bailey, Keeler, & Remsen nor pursue the firm’s assets for payment of the claim because the firm was labeled “without recourse” on the note. By 1839, the claim was “not in suit,” nor was “any part of it paid.” JS petitioned for bankruptcy in April 1842, and he included the debt he owed Bailey, Keeler & Remsen in the schedule of debts he created as part of his application. However, JS’s bankruptcy was unresolved at the time of his death. There is no indication that the Bailey, Keeler & Remsen debt was submitted against JS’s estate, and it is unclear whether the debt was ever resolved.
 
Calendar of Documents
This calendar lists all known documents created by or for the court, whether extant or not. It does not include versions of documents created for other purposes, though those versions may be listed in footnotes. In certain cases, especially in cases concerning unpaid debts, the originating document (promissory note, invoice, etc.) is listed here. Note that documents in the calendar are grouped with their originating court. Where a version of a document was subsequently filed with another court, that version is listed under both courts.
 

1836 (2)

October (2)

12 October 1836

C. A. Heary on behalf of Bailey, Keeler & Remsen, Invoice, New York City, New York Co., NY, to Rigdon, Smith & Cowdery, Kirtland Township, Geauga Co., OH

  • 12 Oct. 1836; JS Office Papers, CHL; printed form with manuscript additions in handwriting of C. A. Heary; insertions in handwriting of Newel K. Whitney; dockets in handwriting of Marcellus Cowdery.
12 October 1836

Smith & Cowdery, Promissory Note, Kirtland Township, Geauga Co., OH, to Bailey, Keeler & Remsen, New York City, New York Co., NY

  • 12 Oct. 1836; Lord Sterling Papers, Lake County Historical Society, Painesville, OH; printed form with manuscript additions in unidentified handwriting; signature in handwriting of Oliver Cowdery; dockets in handwriting of unidentified scribe, C. A. Heary, James Hall, and Truman P. Handy.
 
Geauga Co., Ohio, Court of Common Pleas, not litigated

1837 (1)

September (1)

7 September 1837

Lord Sterling, Praecipe, Willoughby, Cuyahoga Co., OH, to Geauga Co. Court of Common Pleas Clerk, Chardon, Geauga Co., OH

  • 7 Sept. 1837; Lord Sterling Papers, Lake County Historical Society, Painesville, OH; handwriting of Lord Sterling; docket in handwriting of Lord Sterling.
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Related Case Documents
Editorial Title
Introduction to Bailey, Keeler & Remsen v. JS and O. Cowdery
ID #
19763
Total Pages
1
Print Volume Location
Handwriting on This Page

    Footnotes

    1. [1]

      Invoice, Bailey, Keeler & Remsen to Rigdon, Smith & Cowdery, 12 Oct. 1836; Promissory Note to Bailey, Keeler, & Remsen, 12 Oct. 1836.

    2. [2]

      B. Graham, New York, NY, to Lord Sterling, Painesville, OH, 18 July 1837, Lord Sterling Papers, Lake County Historical Society. Repeated endorsements on the back of the promissory note by cashiers for the Commercial Bank of Cincinnati and the Commercial Bank of Lake Erie indicate the reluctance of other Cleveland banks to redeem the note. (Promissory Note to Bailey, Keeler, & Remsen, 12 Oct. 1836.)

      Lord Sterling. Papers, 1835–1850. Lake County Historical Society, Painesville, OH.

    3. [3]

      Bailey, Keeler & Remsen, New York, NY, to Lord Sterling, Willoughby, OH, 26 July 1837; A. A. Biddle, New York, NY, to Lord Sterling, Willoughby, OH, 28 July 1837, Lord Sterling Papers, Lake County Historical Society.

      Lord Sterling. Papers, 1835–1850. Lake County Historical Society, Painesville, OH.

    4. [4]

      Praecipe, 7 Sept. 1837 [Bailey, Keeler & Remsen v. JS and O. Cowdery].

    5. [5]

      Promissory Note to Bailey, Keeler & Remsen, 26 Sept. 1837–A; Promissory Note to Bailey, Keeler & Remsen, 26 Sept. 1837–B; Promissory Note to Bailey, Keeler & Remsen, 26 Sept. 1837–C.

    6. [6]

      Bailey, Keeler & Remsen, New York, NY, to Lord Sterling, Willoughby, OH, 29 Mar. 1838; Bailey, Keeler & Remsen, New York, NY, to Lord Sterling, Willoughby, OH, 4 Oct. 1838; Crumby & Draper, New York, NY, to Lord Sterling, Willoughby, OH, 13 Nov. 1838; Crumby & Draper, New York, NY, to Lord Sterling, Willoughby, OH, 17 Jan. 1839; Crumby & Draper, New York City, NY, to Lord Sterling, Willoughby, OH, 20 Mar. 1840, Lord Sterling Papers, Lake County Historical Society.

      Lord Sterling. Papers, 1835–1850. Lake County Historical Society, Painesville, OH.

    7. [7]

      Lord Sterling, Willoughby, OH, to Crumby & Draper, New York, NY, 25 Jan. 1839, Lord Sterling Papers, Lake County Historical Society. According to Sterling, JS and other signers of the notes wanted to pay the debt in real estate before leaving Kirtland, Ohio, but Bailey, Keeler & Remsen had not authorized Sterling to accept their offer. (Lord Sterling, Willoughby, OH, to Crumby & Draper, New York, NY, 28 Jan. 1839, Lord Sterling Papers, Lake County Historical Society.)

      Lord Sterling. Papers, 1835–1850. Lake County Historical Society, Painesville, OH.

    8. [8]

      Schedule of Creditors, ca. 14–16 Apr. 1842.

    9. [9]

      See Historical Introduction to Schedule of Creditors, ca. 14–16 Apr. 1842; Notice to Creditors and Others, 17 June 1842; and Introduction to Documents, Volume 10: May–August 1842.