New Haven County Superior Court Inquests Collection - Peter Sunk Case

Version: 12 (current) | Updated: 12/4/2025, 3:25:32 PM

Added description

Description

New Haven County Superior Court Inquests Collection – Peter Sunk Case (1735)

Overview

This archival collection preserves the full set of legal documents related to the 1735 inquest, summons, jury selection, indictment, and bond concerning the death of Peter Sunk, an Indigenous person shot in Derby, New Haven County. The items are held by the Connecticut State Library and are part of its New Haven County Superior Court (NHSC) Black, African American, and Indigenous History (BAAI) project. The collection includes high‑resolution scans (JPEG and TIFF) of the original paper documents, OCR‑derived text, and metadata that links each item to the NHSC BAAI subject index.

Background

In colonial Connecticut, the Superior Court relied on grand juries and inquests to investigate deaths and crimes. The 1735 case of Peter Sunk involved an accidental shooting by Noah Durand, a European settler. The court’s procedures—summons of freeholders, jury selection, inquest recording by Justice of the Peace Saml Gunn, and bond issuance—are documented in the collection. The NHSC BAAI project, funded by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission, digitizes such records to illuminate the legal experiences of marginalized communities in early America.

Contents

  • Summons Documents (Sept 2 1735) – Two summonses issued by Clerk Edwards to the Sheriff of New Haven County, commanding the service of a grand jury.
  • Inquest Document (May 4 1735, Derby) – The sworn account of Peter Sunk’s death, detailing the circumstances of the shooting.
  • Verdict Document (Augusta, 1735) – The Jury of Augusta’s judgment following the inquest.
  • Indictment Document (May 22 1735) – The court’s indictment of Noah Durand for the murder of Peter Junk (an alias for Peter Sunk).
  • Bond of Recognizance (Sept 1 1735, Nifford) – A 1,000‑pound bond guaranteeing Durand’s appearance before the Superior Court, signed by Durand and surety Francis Trench.
  • Metadata and Indexing – JSON records (pinax.json) and subject‑heading links (Nhsc Baai Cases Papers Subject) that integrate the collection into the broader BAAI database.

Scope

The collection is confined to the 1735 legal proceedings surrounding Peter Sunk’s death in Derby, New Haven County. It covers the summons, jury selection, inquest, verdict, indictment, and bond, and is geographically limited to Derby, Augusta, and Nifford. The material is relevant to scholars of colonial law, Indigenous history, and the legal treatment of non‑European peoples in early America. It does not include subsequent trial transcripts, witness statements, or unrelated court records.

Entities

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Entity Relationships

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Raw Cheimarros Data

@sunk_case_master_collection:collection {title: "New Haven County Superior Court Inquests Collection - Peter Sunk Case", creator: [@edwards_clerk, @jury_of_augusta, @new_haven_county_superior_court, @noah_durand, @saml_gunn], institution: @connecticut_state_library, created: @date_1735, language: "en", subjects: ["Inquests","Verdicts","Summons","Jury Selection","Indictment","Court Proceedings","Murder","Accidental shooting","Death","Legal Documents","Black, African American, and Indigenous History","Indigenous People","Native American history","Grand Juries","Colonial America"], description: "Collection of documents related to the inquest, summons, jury selection, indictment, and court proceedings for the case of Peter Sunk, an Indian, who was shot and killed in Derby, New Haven County, in 1735. Includes documents on the investigation, verdict, and bond of Noah Durand."}

@sunk_case_master_collection -> contains -> @nhsc_summons_and_jury_selection_collection

@sunk_case_master_collection -> contains -> @sunk_inquest_collection

@sunk_case_master_collection -> contains -> @nhsc_indictment_collection

@sunk_case_master_collection -> contains -> @noah_durand_confession_and_bond_collection

@sunk_case_master_collection -> indexed by -> @nhsc_baai_cases_papers_subject

@sunk_case_master_collection -> part of -> @nhsc_baai_project

@file_pinax -> documents -> @sunk_case_master_collection

@peter_sunk -> alias -> @peter_junk

@peter_sunk -> alias -> @peter_indian_sunk

@edwards_clerk -> appears in -> @nhsc_summons_and_jury_selection_collection

@jury_of_augusta -> appears in -> @sunk_inquest_collection

@noah_durand -> appears in -> @nhsc_indictment_collection

@noah_durand -> appears in -> @noah_durand_confession_and_bond_collection

@saml_gunn -> appears in -> @noah_durand_confession_and_bond_collection

@edwards_clerk -> appears in -> @sunk_case_master_collection

@jury_of_augusta -> appears in -> @sunk_case_master_collection

@noah_durand -> appears in -> @sunk_case_master_collection

@saml_gunn -> appears in -> @sunk_case_master_collection

@peter_sunk -> involved in -> @summons_001

@peter_sunk -> involved in -> @summons_002

@peter_sunk -> involved in -> @inquest_document

@peter_sunk -> involved in -> @verdict_document

@peter_junk -> involved in -> @indictment_document

@noah_durand -> defendant in -> @indictment_of_peter_junk

@noah_durand -> involved in -> @bond_of_noah_durand

@bond_of_noah_durand -> signed by -> [@noah_durand, @francis_trench]

@bond_of_noah_durand -> recorded by -> @saml_gunn

@inquest_of_noah_durand -> involved -> [@noah_durand, @peter_indian_sunk, @saml_gunn, @francis_trench]

Metadata

Version History (10 versions)

  • ✓ v12 (current) · 12/4/2025, 3:25:32 PM
    "Added description"
  • v11 · 12/4/2025, 3:05:34 PM · View this version
    "Added knowledge graph extraction"
  • v10 · 12/4/2025, 6:44:51 AM · View this version
    "Added PINAX metadata"
  • v9 · 12/4/2025, 6:34:45 AM · View this version
    "Reorganized into 4 groups"
  • v8 · 12/4/2025, 6:34:44 AM · View this version
    "Added child entity 01KBM13YW1Y1PZBFW0TS1CM1C3"
  • v7 · 12/4/2025, 6:34:43 AM · View this version
    "Added child entity 01KBM13XDJDVWYJNVEQTZA86TQ"
  • v6 · 12/4/2025, 6:34:41 AM · View this version
    "Added child entity 01KBM13W2Y41CJMWJ0V2320NH5"
  • v5 · 12/4/2025, 6:34:40 AM · View this version
    "Added child entity 01KBM13THS9J82B4ZEEK3AXK8W"
  • v4 · 12/4/2025, 6:22:57 AM · View this version
    "Added OCR to 5 files"
  • v3 · 12/4/2025, 6:22:47 AM · View this version
    "Added OCR to 3 files"

More versions available (pagination not yet implemented)

Additional Components

reorganization-description.txt
# Reorganization Summary

The files were grouped chronologically and thematically according to the legal process surrounding Peter Sunk's death and the subsequent trial of Noah Durand. Each group represents a distinct phase in the legal proceedings: jury selection, inquest verdict, formal indictment, and the defendant's confession/bond. Matching JPG and TIFF versions of each document were kept together in their respective groups.

## Groups Created

- **Summons_and_Jury_Selection**: Documents related to the summoning of jurors for the inquest into Peter Sunk's death
- **Inquest_Verdict**: Documents containing the jury's verdict on Peter Sunk's death
- **Indictment_and_Court_Proceedings**: Documents related to the formal indictment and court proceedings against Noah Durand
- **Confession_and_Bond**: Documents containing Noah Durand's confession and recognizance bond

Parent

01KBKZYT0EP3B3FKJHAY6X008T

Children (4)