Description
Harden Williams enlisted at Leavenworth, Kansas, on September 17, 1863, and was mustered as a Private into the 83rd USCT Infantry, Company J. On November 9, 1866, Patrick S. Coots of Platte County, Missouri, signed claim for compensation #166 for enlisted slave Harden Williams and swore an oath of allegiance before Platte County Circuit Court Clerk George W. Belt.
Coots claimed he had acquired title by “…the mother of said Harden Williams was the property of the claimant and said Harden Williams, for whom compensation is claimed, was born the property of Patrick S. Coots, the claimant aforesaid.”
John D. Murray and A. T. Guthrie of Platte County swore under oath that Coots had owned Harden Williams for “8 years." James A. Stone and Miles Harrington of Platte County also swore oath that Coots was loyal to the U.S. Government and had defended it against the Confederate States of America. Platte County Circuit Court Clerk George W. Belt certified that Coots, Murray, Guthrie, Stone, and Harrington had personally appeared before him and swore an oath to the truth of the claim. Coots gave power of attorney to the law firm of Chipman, Hosmer & Co. of Washington, DC, to prosecute his claim for compensation.Date(s) of Creation
11/9/1866
