This weekend, I came across several court records from 19th Century Maine; in particular, court records from the counties of Somerset and Franklin, where my Dodge ancestors lived during the 19th Century. James Dodge, my third great-grandfather, was a farmer and settler and purchased land in the area of Rangeley, Maine in October of 1832. The court records that I found indicate that this area was an unincorporated part of the county where he lived and was known as Lake Plantation. James Dodge and his brothers each set out to establish themselves during the 1830's and 1840's, and most of them ran into financial trouble during this time and faced financial judgments for failure to pay their debts. At least three of James' brothers filed for bankruptcy during the early 1840's, in the wake of the financial panic that crippled the American economy and wreaked havoc on financial and banking institutions.
When James purchased his property in Rangeley in October of 1832, he signed several promissory notes to pay back the loan in equal payments that were due annually over a period of five years. The loan called for five equal payments of $60.00 per year for five years, with interest. The first four notes promising payment were endorsed to Stephen C. Syford of Belknap, New Hampshire at the time the loan was secured. The fifth note was endorsed to Daniel Burnham of Portland, Maine. Danie Burnham sued for payment in October of 1842 and was awarded $101.40 (approximately $3,250.00 in today's dollars) and an additional $10.32 in court costs. Stephen C. Syford didn’t seek any damages for non-payment until March of 1849 for his four outstanding notes of payment. By the time this suit was brought against James Dodge, he was living in Dallas Plantation (next to Rangeley), according to court records. In September of 1850, Stephen C. Syford was awarded $460.66 (over $15,000.00 today) and $11.37 for court costs.
While living in
Rangeley, James incurred numerous debts (in addition to his mortgage) that he ultimately was unable to repay.
This is indicated by the court records that are available which show his
creditors sued for financial remuneration. It is unknown whether his inability
to repay his debts was due to financial reverses, economic hardships, or an
unwillingness to pay back his debts. On March 10, 1834, James, along with his
brother Samuel, borrowed $25.45 from Jonathan Wright (more than $700.00 in 2020
dollars). They were to pay him back, with interest, by June of 1834. They
failed to do so, and in November of 1834 were ordered to pay Jonathan Wright
$26.47, and an additional $10.27 in court costs. According to the court
records, Rangeley was also known as Lake Settlement and was an unincorporated
part of Oxford (now Franklin) County.
Also, in March
of 1834, James borrowed $64.51 (nearly $2,000.00 today) from Thomas Hunter and
was to pay him back, with interest, by June of 1834. He again failed to do so,
and judgment was entered against James Dodge for $66.44, in addition to $10.01
in court costs, in November of 1835.
On July 8, 1835, James borrowed $36.19
(nearly $1,000.00 in today’s money) from Benjamin F. Eastman of Strong. James
was to pay back the money, with interest. Another judgment was entered against
James on July 4, 1836, in the amount of $38.32, with an additional $13.08 in
court costs.
On May 4, 1837, James Dodge once again borrowed money. This time, he borrowed $61.82 (more than $1,700.00 today) from Francis Butler, who later passed away. His son, Francis G. Butler, as administrator of his father’s estate, sued for $150.00 repayment. James Dodge made the plea to the court that he did not have enough funds or possessions to pay back the amount that was sued for. It was discovered that he deposited into the possession of Benjamin Hunter and George Hunter his goods and possessions amounting to the money that was being sued for. They had volunteered this information when called upon to testify. It was ordered that they surrender the possessions belonging to James Dodge in order to repay the final amount of $99.97 (more than $3,000.00 today), along with court costs of $9.12, which was awarded by the Court in April of 1849.
On October 21, 1837, James, along with his brother Samuel, and one Daniel Dodge (no relation), borrowed $136.00 (over $3,500.00 today) from Samuel Belcher, to be paid back within one year, with interest. The money that was owed was payable to his widow, Hannah A. Belcher, following his death. She sued in court, and on September 13, 1839, was awarded $151.30 (over $4,000.00 today), along with $9.27 in court costs.
While it is easy to think that these amounts do not seem like much to us today, these were small fortunes during the 1830's and 1840's, especially to a small farmer seeking to establish himself with a growing family to care for. While I can't imagine not paying off my debts and taking financial responsibility for myself, there are numerous reasons why my ancestor didn't meet his financial obligations. It is likely that there was the hope that investing in land and establishing himself and his family would provide financial means to meet his monetary obligations. However, when things didn't turn out as expected, especially with the financial reverses experienced across the United States in the late 1830's, he wasn't able to pay off his debts and probably decided that they were no longer worth recognizing. It would be interesting to find out the entire story behind these judgments, as well as if there are still original pleadings in existence, which would help add to the story behind this chapter in my ancestor's life.
