1802 Debtors and Imprisonment
Furnished by : John Sharp

Imprisonment for Debt in the District of Columbia & 1802 Description of the Imprisonment System by the City Marshall to President Thomas Jefferson & List of 20 Debtors and 14 "Criminals" in the Washington County Jail

William Burdine, Senior, (1780-1858), who worked as a shipwright and carpenter at the Washington Navy Yard, for over fifty years and Tunis Craven (1781-1866) a failed businessman, later Naval Purser and son-in-law of Washington Navy Yard Commandant, Commodore Thomas Tingey shared something in common, they both had spent time in Washington County Jail imprisoned for debt Sadly this was an experience shared by the thousands of early Washingtonians who were confined to the Washington County Jail for debt. Like many others they were arrested for debt and imprisoned in the Washington Jail until they found someone to stand bail for them, were able to secure the means to pay their own indebtedness or were able to secure release under the District of Columbia's onerous "Insolvency Law". Imprisonment for debt has a long history and practice in the United States and was but a continuation of the laws of England and even though our Constitution under Article III Section 38 had provisions to protect debtors "No person shall be imprisoned for debt, but a valid decree of a court of competent jurisdiction or agreement approved by decree of said court for the support of a spouse or dependent children, or for the support of an illegitimate child or children, or for alimony (either common law or as defined by statute), shall not constitute a debt within the meaning of this section" All the states, including the District of Columbia, had debt laws which allowed creditors to imprison individuals as guarantee that they would be available for trial. In the District of Columbia, the practice was to allow creditors to secure a legal writ sufficient for the County Marshall to arrest and detain the debtor in the County Jail. Even small debts like $1.68 owed by Charles Neal (see List of Debtors in Washington County Jail) were sufficient to get the insolvent or unlucky thrown into Jail. Being debtor incarcerated in Washington County Jail was an unpleasant and precarious existence. In March of 1802, President Thomas Jefferson, apparently requested the City of Washington Marshall, Daniel Brant, to explain to him how debtors, who owed small sums, could end up in the District of Columbia prison, owning more in some cases, then they did originally. President Jefferson query was not probably just abstract interest for he like many southern planters who owned large amounts of land lived day to day on credit and at

Transcription These letters and enclosures were transcribed from the originals in the Thomas Jefferson Correspondence Library of Congress, Papers of Thomas Jefferson Series I, General Correspondence. 1651-1827, Daniel Brent's, letter of 30 March 1802 & A list of Debtors in the Washington Jail and Criminals in the Washington Jail dated 29 March 1803 and President Jefferson's letter dated November 3, 1803 to the Congress are also found there at :                          http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/P?mtj:1:./temp/~ammem_J6y6 I have endeavored to transcribe these documents as written including the use of ampersands, dashes and period spelling, punctuation, etc "Do" or "Ditto" used by Daniel Brant in his letter to Thomas Jefferson means to repeat the above information. I have formatted the List of Debtors and Criminals held in the Washington County Jail slightly differently then in the originals John G. Sharp                                                  August 26 2008

Below is Daniel Brant's reply his reply gives some idea of how complex the system was and difficult it was for debtors to get free of prison once they were in the City jail since even for a sum as low as one dollar the cost could run up dramatically. The only way-out for those with no funds was the so called "Insolvency law" which required the individual debtor to give up all property and to stay nearly two months in Jail. The District of Columbia Debt laws remained in effect until the 1850's March 30th 1802 Sir,   In answer to your enquiry of yesterday whether a debtor can be Confined in Jail by the Marshall for his fees. I send you herewith Mr. Mason's Statement of the law which shows, that he can, except where the Debtor is bound under the Insolvent law. I have in no instance however detained a man in Jail for this only-   The Costs upon a debt of one dollar is as follows Cost of warrant & Execution that is the        {$0.70 fees fees for the Magistrate & Constable is   { 0.12 Marshals fees for Poundage ...............         { 2.00 Serving the Causa ...............................---------------------                                                                     $2.83 ¼ If the Debtor when taken into custody has not the sum Sufficient to discharge the Execution & costs & the Officer Carries him to Jail ( he is liable for the Debt if he does not ) and the debtor remains in Jail only one day a further expense, as follows, is incurred           Commitment...................................50 Cents           Retainment.....................................50           1 days, Confinement ......................20                                                            -----------                                                            $1.20 So that the Costs alone upon a Debt of one dollar may amount to $ 4.03 Costs for every day the Debtor is in Jail he is chargeable with twenty Cents per day- Since Christmas 161 warrant Executions have been put into my hands, the average of debt not more than Six dollars- of these, 115 are Casa the remaining 46 sesa- a few of these Executions have been Suppressed - It is in the power of the debtor any time within two months after the rendition of the Judgment, at the execution shall have issued, to go before any Justice of the peace , together with Security, such as the Justice Shall approve of & Consent Judgment for debt for the debt, and cost of suit adjudged , with any executions for Six moths , a certificate under the hands of the Justice before whom the Confession of Judgment is made is a sufficient Supercedence to the Marshall to forebear Serving execution upon the body or goods of the person so obtaining such Certificate; but if the party be taken in execution before any Certificate be presented, such Certificate being afterwards obtained & produced shall be a sufficient Supercedos to the execution, the party paying or giving Security to such Marshall to leave such person out of prison, upon that execution, the party paying or giving Security to such Marshall for his feed due for imprisonment - The Magistrate before the Commission is made return thereof to the Clerk of the County & generally as soon as the time limited in the Commission of the Judgment expires, execution is taken out against the principle & his Sureties- upon execution of this kind Cost upon a Debt of 6 Dollars may amount to $12 ½ as follows   Cost of Warrant & Judgment ......................... $ 0.70   Clerks fees................................... $ 1.26   Marshals fees Viz poundage......... 45   Serving Execution on three persons     if all taken $2 each ............................. 6.00   if confined to Jail     Commitment & Confinement of 3 persons 3.00   1 days imprisonment of t3 persons 20 cents each 0.60     $12.01 ½ Any Debtor who is in Jail for Debt and does owe more then $ 200 Shilling can upon giving in all his property and remaining fifty -two days in jail can come out under the Insolvent law of Maryland - in which case the Debtor cannot be confined for his fees, nor is any person liable to the officer for them- I have gone into this detail with hope of giving you an idea of the warrant System in the County of Washington tho this can only give you a glimpse In the County of Alexandria no Commitments are made for ess than Twenty Dollars and there is no appeal from the judgment of the Justice - the executions for Smaller sums under the Twenty Dollars are Served by the Constable & the Marshall has nothing to do with them - I have omitted to mention that in this County appeals by from the Judgment of a Single Magistrate for all Sums, above twenty Shillings or one hundred pounds of tobacco - } that the Costs, upon Such appeals may amount to as much on suits in ordinary Cases With Sentiments of the highest respect from your Obt Servt             [SIGNED]                                        Daniel Brent

In Thomas Jefferson's correspondence also includes a list of Debtors in the Washington County Jail and A List of Criminals in the Washington County Jail. Among the "criminals" are four African Americans who were imprisoned by the Marshal for solely being runaways from their masters or for suspicion of running away.

A List of Debtors in Washington Jail	May 29, 1802
Names	Cause of Commitment
William Clarke	For want of Bail
Christian Myers	Do        Do
Herman Goosher	Debt $ 10 on Warrant of Execution
Samuel W. Quarier	Do     $11.25- Do and also for want of Bail
Thomas Wilson	Do     $ 14.21-- On warrant execution
John Hale	Do     $8.38- Do     Do     Do
John Creighton	Do $ 15.38- Do     Do     Do
John Valentine	Do
John Galvin	Do $ 3.78- Do     Do     Do
James Corbet	Do $ 3.62- Do     Do     Do
James White	Do $ 1.75 Do     Do     Do
James Mimm	Do $ 9.50 Do     Do     Do
John Hanker	Do $ 19.29 Do     Do     Do
James Burnes	Do $ 12.14 Do     Do     Do
William Ross	Do -
Richard Fenwick	Do-$7.00 -     Do     Do     also want of bail
Ross M. Laughlan	Do-$ 3.33- Warrant execution
Charles Neal	Do- $1.68- Do - Do - Do-
William Austin	Do $8.16- Do- Do -Do-
William Simmington	Do $ 5.58- Do -Do- Do-
Rezin Shipley	Do $2.61- Do - Do Do -

Criminals inWashington Jail
Names	Cause of Commitment
James MGuick	Suspicion of Murder
Charles Houseman	fines & fees
Daniel Hennessey	Do     Do and breaking jail
Thompson Naylor	horse Stealing
James Robinson	Stealing goods from Mc Cormack & Co
William Walker	Concealing stolen goods
David Thomas	For Stealing a negro
Nathaniel Turner alias Colins	For Stealing a wood
Frederick Sang	Fines and Fees
Samuel Pumphrey	Stealing
Abraham	Runaway
Sarah	Do
Jesse	Do
David Butter	Do Suspicion

Source:The Thomas Jefferson Papers Series General Correspondence 1651-1827 Dated May 29, 1802 Both Lists were prepared by Daniel Brant as enclosures to his letter to President Thomas Jefferson's questions regarding imprisonment of debt     County Marshall, Daniel Brent, provided these dimensions to give President Jefferson, some idea of the size of the City prison, and the number of prisoners housed therein Imprisonment for Debt Daily National Intelligencer July 12, 1812 Washington County District of Columbia,Tunis Craven, insolvent debtor, confined in Washington County prison for debt.               William Brent, Clerk   Tunis Craven Portrait by C. B. J. Feret de Saint-Memin circa 1804 This portrait is from the Library of Congress Note : Tunis Craven (1781-1866) career as merchant was a failure, he was Washington Navy Yard Commandant, Commodore Thomas Tingey's son in law. Craven had greater success in his second career as a Navy Purser. Two of his son's had distinguished careers as naval officers.     In 1803, as President, Thomas Jefferson, tried to bring some order and to fix the Washington County Jail but his letter to Congress simply fell on deaf ears as most representatives tended to side with the creditors and bankers who thought the imprisonment system and the law sufficient.

Thomas Jefferson to Congress, January 24, 1803 January 24, 1803 I transmit a report by the superintendent [Thomas Munroe] of the city of Washington on the affairs of the city committed to his care. By this you will perceive that the resale's of lots prescribed by an act of the last session of Congress did not produce a sufficiency to pay the debt to Maryland, to which they were appropriated; and, as it was evident that the sums necessary for the interest and installments due to that State could not be produced by a sale of the other public lots, without an unwarrantable sacrifice of the property, the deficiencies were of necessity drawn from the treasury of the United States. The office of surveyor for the city, created during the former establishment, being of indispensable necessity, it has been continued; and to that of the superintendent, substituted instead of the board of commissioners, at the last session of Congress, no salary was annexed by law. These offices being permanent, I have supposed it more agreeable to principle that their salaries should be fixed by the Legislature, and therefore have assigned them none. Their services to be compensated are from the 1st day of June last. The marshal of the District of Columbia has, as directed by law, caused a jail to be built in the city of Washington. I enclose his statements of the expenses already incurred, and of what remains to be finished. The portion actually completed has rendered the situation of the persons confined much more comfortable and secure than it has been heretofore. Thomas Jefferson

Source pp. 337--38, AMERICAN STATE PAPERS, DOCUMENTS, Legislative and Executive, of the Congress of the U. S., I, 1834; the superintendent's report; also p. 103, DOCUMENTARY HISTORY OF THE CAPITOL. On November 3, 1803 President Thomas Jefferson Correspondence received this appeal from imprisoned debtors in the County Jail seeking assistance to have the prison coal delivered. Despite their florid and somewhat romantic language these debtors were apparently freezing. We have no reply to this letter hopefully the Marshall and Jailor received his coal.

To His Excellency Thomas Jefferson Esqr -                                     President of the United States             Sir             This Address is made to You as the common Father of Us all- the unfortunate claim I am sensible in your bosom an equally of protection with the fortunate -             We know not immediately the propriety of what We are doing Whether our approbation should come to the Head of the Executive or some other branch of Authority-             We shall subscribe Ourselves the unfortunate Debtors in Washington County Jail & our present claim on Your Humanity & Philanthropy is Fuel - Several fruitless applications have been made to the Marshall, who informs Us He has contracted for Coal & We must wait its arrival             May it please Your Excellency Water is a fluctuating Element & the Wind blows from Different points on the Compass the Young and the old immured with the cold & dreary Walls of a Prison would wish for more immediate Advantages of Comfort then what rests on the he Marshall's Contract             With every Hope for relief in Your power & every possible Sentiment for your political and Domestick Happiness We Write Ourselves             The Unfortunate Debtors in Washington County Gaol - Nov 3. 1803

Source Library of Congress, Papers of Thomas Jefferson Series I, General Correspondence. 1651-1827 Daniel Brent, letter of 30 March 1802 & A list of Debtors in the Washington Jail and Criminals in the Washington Jail dated 29 March 1803 and President Jefferson's letter dated November 3, 1803 to the Congress are found at http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/P?mtj:1:./temp/~ammem_J6y6 William Burdines's life is recounted at :        Obituary of William Burdine Tunis Craven's bankruptcy and economic struggles are described in Christopher McKee's A Gentlemanly and Honorable Profession the Creation of the United States Naval Officer Corps 1794-1815 U. S. Naval Institute Press Annapolis MD 1991 pp 81-85

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