1847 Estate Inventory
Inventory and appraisement of all the Goods and chattels, rights and credits of James A. Bryan, Deceased, as far as was produced to us by Robert C. Bryan, Administrator, to the best of our judgement and understanding.
— Wilson Smith, Wm. Haddock, M. Joiner · Appraisers · November 5, 1847James A. Bryan died March 22, 1847. By November, three appointed appraisers had counted and valued everything on his plantation: the land across eight Georgia counties, the livestock, the crops still in the field, the tools in the barn, the furniture in the house — and the forty-one people he claimed to own. Their work, filed with the Court of Ordinary at Perry, Georgia, is one of the most complete surviving records of a mid-Georgia plantation household at mid-century.
| Category | Principal items noted | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Enslaved Persons | 41 named individuals; 9 cattle in Dooly Co. listed alongside, not appraised50% of total estate value — the single largest category | $18,450.00 |
| Land | 1,188 acres in Houston Co.; additional lots in Cherokee, Gilmour, Lee, Baker, Dooly, Paulding & Lumpkin counties | $10,486.00 |
| Notes & Accounts | Notes on M. H. Means, Calvin Bryan, Parr & Everitt, A. W. Stephens, Jacob Rhodes & others; receipts from Warren & Scarborough, Harmon & Cook, Wright Mims; specie $60; bank bills $100 | $3,220.00 |
| Livestock | Horses, mules, stallion, colt; 17 head cattle, 12 cows & calves, 1 bull, yoke steers; 53 head hogs, 49 stock hogs, 1 boar; 29 sheep; 13 goats | $1,764.35 |
| Crops & Provisions | 2,500 bu. corn @ 37½¢; 125 bu. wheat; 500 bu. potatoes; 12 stacks fodder; oats, rye, peas, sugar cane, ground peas | $1,466.50 |
| Farm Equipment | Wagons, gin & gear, sugar mill, plows (turning, scooter, sweep), blacksmith tools, carpenter tools, axes, hoes, scythes, corn sheller, wheat fan, bee hives, steelyards | $1,100.00 |
| Household Furnishings | 7 bedsteads & bedding, 3 beds, clock, bureau, loom, 5 spinning wheels, 26+ chairs, tables, bookcase, wash stands, 3 maps | $581.50 |
| Arms, Books & Other | 2 shot guns, 1 rifle, 1 pistol; lot of books; silver spoons; crockery, pot ware, coopers ware; saddles & bridles, bark collars, paint | $298.37 |
| Total | ~$36,966.72 |
We do Certify that the foregoing Contains a true appraisement of all the Goods and chattels rights and credits of James A. Bryan Deceased as far as was produced to us by Robert C. Bryan, Administrator, to the best of our Judgement and understanding.
Given under our hands and official signatures this 5th day of November, 1847.