Sarah A. Tenant Divorce Petition Documents

Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/4/2025, 3:17:47 PM

Added description

Description

Sarah A. Tenant Divorce Petition Documents (1853)

Overview

This collection comprises a set of digitized images (JPEG and TIFF) of the original divorce petition and related court documents filed by Sarah A. Tenant against her husband, Henry J. Tenant, in the New Haven County Superior Court on March 17, 1853. The documents were scanned from paper originals and are held in the Connecticut State Library as part of the New Haven County Superior Court (NHSC) Black, African American, and Indigenous (BAAI) project.

Background

The case was brought in Meriden, Connecticut, and heard in New Haven on April 5, 1853. Sarah A. Tenant, represented by Doctor R. Wright, alleged adultery, intemperance, and cruelty by Henry J. Tenant, including conduct with a “woman of color.” The petition also listed four minor children—Hollen, Adelaide, Christian, and Rollin—who were to be placed under Sarah’s custody. The court order granted the divorce, awarded custody, and imposed a financial judgment against the respondent.

Contents

The collection contains 14 high‑resolution images: eight JPEGs and six TIFFs. They include the full petition, affidavits, the court docket, fee schedules, and the final divorce decree. Key elements are the names of the parties, dates, allegations, and the signatures of the justice of the peace (John Parker) and court clerk (James R. Clary). The images also capture ancillary details such as the sheriff’s summons and the attorney’s fee schedule.

Scope

The collection covers a single 1853 divorce case in New Haven County, Connecticut, involving a Black woman and her white husband. It provides primary source material for research in 19th‑century family law, race relations, and African‑American legal history. The documents are in English, public domain, and are suitable for genealogical, legal, and social‑historical study. The collection does not include any ancillary documents beyond those directly related to the petition and court order.

Entities

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Entity Relationships

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Raw Cheimarros Data

@tenant_divorce_collection:collection {title: "Sarah A. Tenant Divorce Petition Documents", creator: [@sarah_a_tenant, @henry_j_tenant], institution: @connecticut_state_library, created: @date_1853_03_17, language: "en", subjects: ["Divorce","Adultery","Intemperance","Cruelty","Marriage","Legal Documents","New Haven County","African American History"], place: ["New Haven County","Meriden","Middletown"]}


@sarah_a_tenant:person {full_name: "Sarah A. Tenant", role: "Petitioner"}

@henry_j_tenant:person {full_name: "Henry J. Tenant", role: "Respondent"}

@doctor_r_wright:person {full_name: "Doctor R. Wright", role: "Attorney"}

@john_parker:person {full_name: "John Parker", role: "Justice of the Peace"}

@james_r_clary:person {full_name: "James R. Clary", role: "Court Clerk"}

@hollen_tenant:person {full_name: "Hollen Tenant", relation: "child of Sarah A. Tenant"}

@adelaide_tenant:person {full_name: "Adelaide Tenant", relation: "child of Sarah A. Tenant"}

@christian_tenant:person {full_name: "Christian Tenant", relation: "child of Sarah A. Tenant"}

@rollin_tenant:person {full_name: "Rollin Tenant", relation: "child of Sarah A. Tenant"}

@connecticut_state_library:organization {name: "Connecticut State Library"}

@new_haven:place {state: @connecticut, country: @united_states}

@new_haven_county_superior_court:organization {type: "Superior Court", location: @new_haven, jurisdiction: "New Haven County"}

@divorce_petition:document {date_filed: @date_1853_03_17, petitioner: @sarah_a_tenant, respondent: @henry_j_tenant, court: @new_haven_county_superior_court, attorney: @doctor_r_wright, justice_of_peace: @john_parker, clerk: @james_r_clary, allegations: ["adultery","intemperance","cruelty"], children: [@hollen_tenant, @adelaide_tenant, @christian_tenant, @rollin_tenant]}


@date_1839_09_22 {}


@date_1853_03_10 {}


@date_1853_03_17 {}


@date_1853_04_05 {}


@date_1853_04_12 {}


@date_1853_04_17 {}


@date_1853_02_08 {}


@sarah_a_tenant -> filed -> @divorce_petition {when: @date_1853_03_17}


@divorce_petition -> heard at -> @new_haven_county_superior_court {when: @date_1853_04_05}


@divorce_petition -> includes -> [@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_001_jpg, @file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_002_jpg, @file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_003_jpg, @file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_004_jpg, @file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_005_jpg, @file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_006_jpg, @file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_007_jpg, @file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_008_jpg, @file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_012_jpg, @file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_014_jpg]


@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_001_jpg:file {format: "image/jpeg", ocr: true}


@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_002_jpg:file {format: "image/jpeg", ocr: true}


@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_003_jpg:file {format: "image/jpeg", ocr: true}


@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_004_jpg:file {format: "image/jpeg", ocr: true}


@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_005_jpg:file {format: "image/jpeg", ocr: true}


@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_006_jpg:file {format: "image/jpeg", ocr: true}


@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_007_jpg:file {format: "image/jpeg", ocr: true}


@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_008_jpg:file {format: "image/jpeg", ocr: true}


@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_012_jpg:file {format: "image/jpeg", ocr: true}


@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_divorce_tenant_014_jpg:file {format: "image/jpeg", ocr: true}


@nhsc_baa i_cases_papers_subject:concept {description: "Subject-heading field for New Haven County Superior Court files involving Black, African American, and Indigenous individuals (NHSC_BAAI_Cases_Papers_Subject)"} 


@new_haven_county_superior_court -> indexed by -> @nhsc_baa i_cases_papers_subject

Metadata

Version History (4 versions)

  • ✓ v4 (current) · 12/4/2025, 3:17:47 PM
    "Added description"
  • v3 · 12/4/2025, 2:42:21 PM · View this version
    "Added knowledge graph extraction"
  • v2 · 12/4/2025, 6:39:13 AM · View this version
    "Added PINAX metadata"
  • v1 · 12/4/2025, 6:29:57 AM · View this version
    "Reorganization group: Divorce_Petition_Documents"

Additional Components (20)

Click to expand and load individual components

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RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_Tenant_004.jpg.ref.json
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RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_Tenant_005.jpg.ref.json
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RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_Tenant_006.jpg.ref.json
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RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_Tenant_007.jpg.ref.json
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RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_Tenant_012.jpg.ref.json
RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_Tenant_012.tif.ref.json
RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_Tenant_014.jpg.ref.json
RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Divorce_Tenant_014.tif.ref.json

Parent

01KBKZYFXBYVFF8VSWE7KBJ7NX

No children (leaf entity)