Territory of Missouri
Northern Circuit ssThe United States of America to the Sheriff of the county of St
Louis Greeting

You are commanded that you summon to her Butler that he be and
appear before the Judges of our superior Court of our territory of Missouri , at
our said superior court to be held in and for the northern circuit of
the said Territory at the Town of St Louis on the fourth Monday
March next, then and there in our said Court before our Judges of
our said Court to answer unto Lydia a free girl held in slavery
in a plea of trespass, assault Battery of false imprisonment to her
damage five hundred dollars and have you then and there
this writ and certify to our said court how
the same—

Witness the Honorable Silas Bent Esquire
presiding Judge afour said court at St Louis this fourteenth
day of December in the Year of our lord one thousand
Eight hundred and eighteen and of our Independence
the forty third

Served this writ 23rd
January 1819 by reading
It to the defendant at
His place of residence
Point Labbadie Town-
Ship

John K Walker
D shff

Service - $.80
Travel 110 ms 5.50
6.30

Filed April 26th 1829

No 192 Superior Court N.C.
March Term 1819.

Summons

Lydia a free girl
vs
John Butter

Trespass and
false imp--
risonment

To the clerk of the -
court this is
an action of trespass
and false imprisonment
damage $ 5.00
On which you will
issuesummons
To the sheriff of St Louis
County.

Barton and Geyer

Superior Court

And the said Defendant
by R Pettibone his attorney comes
and defends the wrong of injury when
and as to the assaultingbeatingbruising
ill treating, and
ing in prison, the said Plaintiff, as in her
said declaration mentioned, the said Defen-
dant saith that the said Plaintiff ought
not to have or maintain her aforesaid
thereof against him because
he says that before and at the said time
when in the said declaration mention
ed, to writ, at the place of within the
Jurisdiction aforesaid, the said Plaintiff
was and still is the slave of him the said
Defendant - wherefore the said Defendant
at the said time when he did beat
imprison and obtain in prison the said
Plaintiff so being the slave of him the
said Defendant as helawfully might
do - which are the same several supposed
trespasses whereof the said Plaintiff hath
above thereof complained against him
and this he is ready to verify - wherefore
he prays Judgment -

R Pettibone Atty for Deft

And the said Lydia by saith she
ought not to be barred and precluded
from having and maintaining her
aforesaid action by reason of any thing
by the said John Butter above in his
pleaalleged because she saith that
at the said time when she was
not the slave of the said John
in manner and form as he has
above in his said plea alleged
and this she prays many be
enquired of by the county and
the defendant doth the like.

John Butter
adm vs
Lydia

plea - Replication
and issue.

filed September 20th 1819
J. V.

St. Louis Circuit Court
Febry. Term 1822

On the trial of this cause it was proved
on the part of the plaintiff that are Winne mother of the
said plaintiff was carried into the now state of Illinois
between twenty and thirty years years since by one Phebe
Whitesides alias Prewitt and her husband when and
where the said Winne was by them held in slavery du-
ring the space of three or four years; that at the end of
the said time of three or four years, the said Phebe with
her said husband removed to the new State of
Missouri and that the said crime was from that time held
in slavery to the present time. The counsel for the de
fendant then required the Court to instruct the jury
that a residence in the then North West territory (now)
Illinois , as above mentioned did not render the said
Winne free under and in virtue of the ordinance of con-
gress of the year one thousand seven hundred and
eighty seven for the government of the territory of the
United States North West of the River Ohio which in-
struction the Court refused, but charged the jury
that said ordinance did in law set the said Winne
free if it should appear to the satisfaction of the
jury that the said Phebe and her then husband resided
there with intent to make that territory the home of
themselves and of the said Winne : and that the said
To this opinion of the Court delivered to the jury, the
counsel for the defendant excepted and prayed the
Court to sign and seal a bill of exceptions taken thereto
which is done accordingly in open Court this
tenth day of March in the year one thousand eight hundred and twenty two.

N. B. Tucker

St. Louis Circuit Court

Lydia free girl
vs
John Butter

Bill of exceptions

Pettibone and
Spalding

Superior Court Northern Circuit
March Term 1819.

County of St Louis . to writ Lydia
a free girl held in Slavery and who is
permitted by the court to sue as a
poor person by J Barton and Herry S.
Geyer his attornies assigned by the court
as counsel for the said Lydia complains
of John Butler of a plea of Trespass
for that the said John Butter heretofore
to writ on the first day of January in
the year of our Lord one Thousand
eight hundred and fifteen with force
and arms at the county aforesaid
unlawfully an assault did make
in and upon the said Lydia and
then and there beat bruised and ill
treated her the said Lydia and
then and there imprisoned her
the said Lydia and kept and
detained her in prisoned without
any reasonable or probable cause
whatsoever; and has ever since kept
and still doth keep and detain
her in prison against the will of the
said Lydia and contrary to the Laws
of this Territory. and other ways to the
said Lydia then and there did
against the peace of the United
States of America -and to the Dam
age of the Said Lydia five hundred
dollars; and therefore she sues & Co.

J.Barton & Geyer atts