DOCUMENTS IN SUPPORT OF THE RIGHT OF THE INHABITANTS OF THE CITY OF NEW ORLEANS, TO THE ALLUVION IN FRONT OF THE SUBURB ST. MARY, CONTESTED BY JEAN GRAVIER.
Washington: A. & G. Way, 1809. 53, [3 blanks] pp. Disbound, else Very Good.
Jean Gravier, a major landowner in New Orleans, claimed title to a river bank, known as a batture. The Mississippi River covered it for three months of the year, but during the other nine months it was dry and, from time immemorial, used by the public for its alluvium deposits and other purposes.
Gravier's claims triggered litigation against the City, which refused to acknowledge his title. In 1807 the Louisiana Superior Court awarded judgment to Gravier. The unpopularity of the decision resulted in years of acrimony and further litigation, which Edward Livingston, Gravier's successor in title, carried on against the City as well as the national government. This publication offers a wealth of material, in the form of public documents and affidavits gathered for the litigation, demonstrating the nullity of Gravier's title.
FIRST EDITION. Cohen 11679. AI 18892 [3]. Not in Harv. Law Cat., Marvin, Marke, Eberstadt, Thompson. Item #25953
Price: $1,000.00