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Auction: 316 - The Collector's Series
Lot: 676

Harlem Associated Heirs Title Company (MD) 1892. 66 shs. No.1010. Red. Illustration of a 1778 British map of Manhattan Island. IU. VF+ details, four short edge splits backed with archival paper. There is a stain in the upper right corner. We know of only one other example.This certificate represents the claim of various heirs for over 1000 acres of land and water in Manhattan from 74th to 128th streets. Based on a land grant given in 1666 (the year the Spink was founded), by English Governor Richard Nichols to five men. Potential heirs would sign over their shares in the property to the company, then pay a fee, with the fees being used to pay the expenses of pursuing the claim in the courts. This certificate would entitle the share holder to a portion of the proceeds. If the claim was successful the value of the land at the time could have been many millions of dollars. A certificate similar to this one was featured on an episode of the PBS television show, History Detectives, which aired on October 2011. Based on the research done by the History Detectives, no court ruling in this particular case was found. However, decisions were found in similar cases brought by other groups of Harlem heirs in which the courts ruled that the heirs´ claims were indeed legitimate. The courts would not enforce them due to the complexities of sorting out the titles and heirs over a period of several hundred years, and due to the possible repercussions this could have had on the stock market during a period of recession. A fascinating piece of financial and judicial history.

Estimate
$1,750 to $2,500