HUBERT and LAURENCE FAMILIES (of La Croix Châtel, Beauchamps, North of La Haye-Pesnel, Normandy)

Group of 6 items, in French, relating to their property in La Croix Châtel and Equilly, and its subdivision under "the laws relating to equal hereditary rights" (see item 2), with many fascinating details and consequences, as listed below, together 23 sides 4to., Beauchamps or Villedieu, 1814 - some light staining and browning, slight damage to parts of items 2,3 and 6 (almost all easily supplied), last 13 lines of item 1 faint but can be made out

(1) Gift of François Hubert, "merchant farmer", of property to his three sons-in-law (including Jacques Ange Guillaume Laurence), signed by them and his daughters, describing three somewhat scattered lots which the family have agreed are of equal value, one includes the farm house ("maison manable") but not the stables, the sons-in-law draw "bultins" from a vase to determine the order of a second draw for the lots themselves, with the result signed by all including the daughters in their maiden names, 6 sides 4to., Beauchamps, 15th February 1814.
(2) Division of property of the late Louis Toussaint Laurence, farmer and "marchand tamisier" (sieve-monger), in four among his two sons, one son-in-law, and unmarried daughter Claire, the house itself is divided between lots 1 and 2, after the proposed division the family allow "a day for reflection ... so as to make any lot larger or smaller", they then draw for possession as above, signed by all (one proxy) including Claire's mother (Claire Lepetit), whom Claire thanks in a postscript of 1822 on coming of age, 8 sides 4to., 22nd April 1820.
(3) Sale of a "piece of excavated ground" ("bout de fosse"), by Jacques Corbin to Jacques Laurence (see 1), for 18 francs, omitted from the sale of La Corbinière at "La Curoy Chastelle" in September 1824, signed by both, 2 sides 4to., 1st January 1825.
(4) 3 sides 4to., 10th April 1841, division by 3 lots of two pieces of farm-land (La Croûte and Le Jardin de La Croix) at La Croix Châtel, part of their inheritance from the late Claire Lepetit, among her son Louis Guillaume Laurence, daughter Claire (widow of Thomas Venisse), and son Jacques' son-in-law Pierre Rosselin, 3 sides 4to., 10th April 1841.
(5) Re-registration of a perpetual charge on a collection of 5 properties including Les Corbinières and Les Grandes Corbinières, recorded in 1734 in favour of the Hospice Civil at Villedieu, amounting yearly to 32.097 decalitres of wheat, (about 70 gallons or 9 bushels), by 1869 shared between 11 named landowners of the Laurence, Fontaine, Corbin and other families, 2 sides 4to., Villedieu, registered at Avranches 13th May 1869.
(6) Lease by Victor Joseph Desfontaines, employee of the Central Dairies in Paris, of all his properties at Beauchamps and Equilly (but not one at l'Augrinière), to Auguste Lehodey, for 9 years from Michaelmas last at 270 fr. p.a., signed by agent Angrain and the lessee, registered at La Haye-Pesnel 13th December 1876.
The items include detailed descriptions of boundaries and neighbours, except for the last, where M. Lehodey "says he knows perfectly well what he is leasing and does not want either the areas or even the names of the pieces, whether detached or not".
There are many references to marks ("devises") for the erection of party walls ("murs mitoyens"), thorn or willow hedges or fences, the hedges to grow for three years and then be regularly clipped. In (1) and (2) the measures are roods ("vergées", 1/4 of an acre) and perches (1/40 rood), by 1841 they are metric ("ares"). Some facilities cannot be divided, such as cattle-ponds, use of the cider-press, stone from ruins for making repairs, and rights of way, giving the "general clauses" a particular interest Several of the properties, such as La Corbinière, reflect the names of the associated families.

Item Date:  1876

Stock No:  19302      £325

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