Description
William Belt enlisted at Leavenworth, Kansas, on December 12, 1864, and mustered into the Independent Battery, USCT Light Artillery as a Private. On November 22, 1866, Mary A. Hollingsworth of Platte County, Missouri, signed a claim for compensation #28 for enlisted slave William Belt and swore an oath of allegiance before Platte County Circuit Court Clerk George W. Belt.
Hollingsworth claimed she had acquired title by "...the said William Belt was the property of her husband, Benjamin F. Hollingsworth, deceased, and at his death, viz, on the 25th day of February 1860, the said William Belt became the property of said Mary A. Hollingsworth, the claimant."
William D. Bonnell and Jeremiah Perry of Platte County swore that Hollingsworth had owned William for "4 years." S. F. (Solomon F.) Spears and W. J. Willoughby of Platte County swore that Hollingsworth 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 Hollingsworth, Bonnell, Perry, Spears, and Willoughby had all appeared before him and under oath swore to the truthfulness of the claim. Hollingsworth gave power of attorney to the law firm of Chipman, Hosmer and Co. to prosecute his claim for compensation.Date(s) of Creation
11/22/1866
