Bidspirit auction | 1834 Philadelphia Real Estate Indenture

1834 Philadelphia Real Estate Indenture and Ground Rent Deed - This 19th-century manuscript real estate indenture is executed on heavy period rag paper and dated November 29, 1834. The document records a property transaction and ground rent agreement between Daniel R. Knight and Robert T. Knight, both identified as house carpenters, and their wives Susan and Anna, and William H. French, a plasterer from the District of Spring Garden. The deed describes a lot of ground on the south side of Locust Street in Philadelphia, located eighteen feet westward from Schuylkill Sixth Street (modern-day 17th Street). The text is written in a formal clerical hand and features a decorative blackletter heading. The document establishes a yearly ground rent of thirty-four dollars. The reverse side includes a Deed Poll Endorsed dated August 15, 1839, transferring interest to David B. Morgan, and an official recording statement dated May 10, 1841, for the City and County of Philadelphia in Deed Book G.S. No. 26, pages 663–666. The document bears the manuscript signatures of Daniel R. Knight, Susan W. Knight, Robert T. Knight, Anna Knight, and William H. French. Witness signatures include Charles Christian and William H. Knight. Five embossed paper sunburst seals are affixed to the face of the document adjacent to the primary signatures, with additional embossed stamps and red wafer seals on the reverse. Dimensions: Approximately 23 inches (width unfolded). The document is in good antique condition. It exhibits overall age-toning and scattered foxing throughout. There is minor wear and small separations at the cross-folds and along the edges, consistent with period folding and storage. The manuscript ink remains dark and highly legible.