MONROE COUNTY, TN - MILITARY - JR Burchfield SCC claim for GF Hawkins Estate --------------¤¤¤¤¤¤-------------- No. 19642 The Claim of Joseph R. Burchfiel, Adm of Gregory F. Hawkins, Monroe Co. in the State of Tenn. No. of Item Description Amount Claimed Amount Allowed 1 2000 lbs bacon 400$ 80$ 2 4000 bundles fodder 40$ 20$ 3 3000 lbs hay 30$ - 4 800 bushel corn 800$ 250$ 5 30 bushels potatoes 15$ 15$ 6 24 gal. Molasses 24$ - 7 100 bush. Wheat 150$ 50$ 8 600 lbs. Pork 60$ 25$ REMARKS: The claimant is the administrator of estate of Gregory F. Hawkins, who was a resident of Monroe Co. Tenn. And died in Sept. 1867. The Testimony is full & satisfactory that Mr. Hawkins & all his heirs were loyal to the Union cause throughout the War. The claim has been investigated & the report of our agent is herewith filed to which reference is particularly made and attention called from which it will be seen that the investigation had been very thorough. A considerable part of the population of Monroe Co. was loyal & the state's citizens was generally well defined, & in East Tennessee loyalty on that account was more certainly established on susceptible of proof. The claim is largely exaggerated. The property was taken in January 1864 by a portion of Gen. McCooks command. The witnesses to the taking of the property are the descendant's son and daughter, who are two of the heirs & interested in the claim, & Dr. Edwin Hall who is postmaster at Hopewell Springs, Tenn. The testimony of this latter witness as to quantity we take with some grains of caution. He happened at the house when the property was taken as he says, attending as a physician as many as these different times that he went out to the smokehouse on one occasion & weighed out bacon to the soldiers to upwards of a thousand pounds & he speaks to the quality of the corn & the other articles. Its difficult to understand how he should know anything on that subject, or if he did how he should remember the quality particularly after this lapse of time having, as he declares, no interest in the claim. From the size of the farm, its value, & the quality of the land, it is highly unprobable that any such quantity of property as charged was taken. Hay is charged, while witnesses called by our Agent testify there was no meadow land upon the place. This difficult to be satisfied, & impossible to be certain of the amount taken. We think the allowances on the opposite page all that are justified by the proofs. We recommend the payment of $440 A.O. Aldes J.B. Howell Commissioners of Claims J.F. Filsson The UNITED STATES, to Joseph R. Burchfiel Adm of , Gregory F. Hawkins, dist. of Tenn. For the amount allowed him by Act of Congress, Private No. 70 approved March 3rd, 1877, entitled "An Act making appropriations for the payment of claims reported allowed by the Commissioners of Claims under the Act of Congress of March 3, 1871. Four hundred and forty dollars $440.00 Letter from U.S. Special Commissioner PRIVATE Loudoun, Tenn June 1st The Hon. Commissioners There is a claims "ring" in the District where these claimants in the Hawkinses Case reside, and the Post Master is generally believed to be the head of it. The witness, William Click, told me this claim was greatly exaggerated but as he is father-in-law of one of the claimants I did not ask him for his deposition. In this Hopewell Springs neighborhood they all have claims, are all related and swear for each other. Jno. B. Brownlow ___________________________________________________________________ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by: Ray Ezell REzell@mbakercorp.com ___________________________________________________________________