Inquest, Jury Report, and Verdict for Mary Coffe
Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/4/2025, 3:20:21 PM
Added description
Description
Mary Coffe Inquest and Verdict Collection (1719)
Overview
This collection comprises primary documents from the 1719 inquest into the death of Mary Coffe, an Indian woman and servant of Mr. Hez: Talcott, found dead near S. & Pallcott’s house in Durham, Connecticut. The material includes a scanned image of the original memorandum (both JPEG and TIFF), the accompanying metadata record, and an OCR‑extracted text. The documents were produced by the New Haven County Superior Court and are now part of the Connecticut State Library’s digitization of court records, specifically the Black, African American, and Indigenous History (BAAI) project.Background
Mary Coffe’s death prompted a formal inquest held on 15 June 1719, with the jury’s verdict issued on 17 June 1719. The case is recorded in the New Haven County Superior Court Files (Record Group 3) and was later incorporated into the BAAI project to highlight Indigenous and African American experiences in early Connecticut legal history. The original memorandum was drafted in Durham and lists the names of the twelve jurors, the circumstances of the death, and the conclusion that the victim died from a gunshot wound.Contents
- Scanned Memorandum (JPEG & TIFF): A high‑resolution reproduction of the 1719 document, including the jury’s findings, the list of jurors, and the verdict.
- Metadata (Pinax JSON): Creator list, subjects, dates, and institutional information.
- OCR Text: Extracted transcription of the memorandum’s content.
- Entity Graph: Structured representation of key entities (persons, places, institutions) and their relationships.
Scope
The collection is limited to the inquest and verdict for Mary Coffe, covering the period of the inquest (15 June 1719) and the verdict (17 June 1719). It focuses on the Durham, Connecticut jurisdiction and does not include other court cases or broader court records. The material is valuable for researchers studying early colonial legal proceedings, Indigenous history, and the role of inquests in 18th‑century Connecticut.Entities
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Entity Relationships
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Raw Cheimarros Data
@durham_connecticut:place {state: @connecticut, country: @united_states}
@mary_coffe:person {ethnicity: "Indian", role: "servant", death_date: @date_1719_06_15, death_place: @durham_connecticut}
@new_haven_county_superior_court_files:organization {abbreviation: "NHSC", record_group: 3, institution: @connecticut_state_library}
@baai_project:project {title: "Black, African American, and Indigenous History", abbreviation: "BAAI"}
@subject_field:concept {code: "NHSC_BAAI_Cases_Papers_Subject", description: "Subject-index field for BAAI cases and papers"}
@inquest_jury_report_and_verdict:event {date: @date_1719_06_15, location: @durham_connecticut, description: "Inquest, jury report, and verdict for Mary Coffe"}
@samuel_parsons:person {full_name: "Samuel Parsons"}
@samuel_fairchild:person {full_name: "Samuel Fairchild"}
@robert_coe:person {full_name: "Robert Coe"}
@joseph_norton:person {full_name: "Joseph Norton"}
@samuel_norton:person {full_name: "Samuel Norton"}
@john_coe:person {full_name: "John Coe"}
@nathan_camps:person {full_name: "Nathan Camps"}
@joseph_camps:person {full_name: "Joseph Camps"}
@john_sutlief:person {full_name: "John Sutlief"}
@timothy_parsons:person {full_name: "Timothy Parsons"}
@david_robinson:person {full_name: "David Robinson"}
@caleb_leeward:person {full_name: "Caleb Leeward"}
@file_pinax:metadata {title: "Inquest, Jury Report, and Verdict for Mary Coffe", creator: [@samuel_parsons, @samuel_fairchild, @robert_coe, @joseph_norton, @samuel_norton, @john_coe, @nathan_camps, @joseph_camps, @john_sutlief, @timothy_parsons, @david_robinson, @caleb_leeward], institution: @connecticut_state_library, created: @date_1719_06_17, subjects: ["Inquest","Jury Report","Verdict","Murder Investigation","Indian Woman","Mary Coffe","Gunshot Wound","Durham","Connecticut"]}
@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_inquests_mary_coffe_003_jpg:image {ocr_text: "Memorandum. — Durham June 15th, 1719 ... June 17th 1719 the above Jury Gave in the above verdict, the Jury being under oath Revised by James Wadsworth"}
@mary_coffe -> subject of -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@inquest_jury_report_and_verdict -> documented in -> @file_pinax
@inquest_jury_report_and_verdict -> documented in -> @file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_inquests_mary_coffe_003_jpg
@new_haven_county_superior_court_files -> part of -> @baai_project
@baai_project -> has field -> @subject_field
@samuel_parsons -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@samuel_fairchild -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@robert_coe -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@joseph_norton -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@samuel_norton -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@john_coe -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@nathan_camps -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@joseph_camps -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@john_sutlief -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@timothy_parsons -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@david_robinson -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdict
@caleb_leeward -> served on -> @inquest_jury_report_and_verdictMetadata
Files (2)
OCR Text
Memorandum. — Durham June 15th, 1719 Mary an Indian Woman & Servant of Mr. Hez: Talcott was found dead lying near S. & Pallcott's house, and for as much as her death was sudden, and seemed by sum circumstaces, and signs upon the Corp that she was murdered, whereupon, the Constable of Durham forthwith nominated appropryed, and set upon the Corp a Jury of Inquest to Inquire into the Cause & manner of the Sd Mary's Death. The names of Sd Inquest are as followeth Lieut Samuel Parsons, Lieut Samuel Fairchild, Ensign Robert Coe, Joseph Norton, Samuel Norton, John Coe Nathan Camps, Joseph Camps, John Sutlief, Timothy Parsons, David Robinson, Caleb Leeward Senir. The Sd Jury having reviued the Corp of the Sd Mary return there verdict upon their oath, as followeth, "upon our view we found her to be fallen down backwards, one of her feet partly under her, her right hand fallen or lying across her breast, we found her Sd arm greviously torn and wounded, and a mortal wound into her body on the right side of her Breast, and we found her clothing about the wounds considerably sooty and the part about the wound upon her arm was black with gun powder, to the best of our observation. and we are full in our oppinion that the death of the Sd Mary was sudden and violent, and was occasioned only by the Shott of a Gun loaded with Lead, which made the Sd Wounds, one of which was a mortal wound and went into her Breast as above Sd. and by the lying of the Corp we conclude that shee drooped down dead upon the receiving of the Shott, without any other motion and this we give as our verdict, as witness our hands June 17th 1719. Samuell Parsons: Caleb Leeward Samuel Fairchild Nathan Camp Robert Coe Joseph Norton Joseph Camp David Robinson Samuell Norton John Coe Timothy Parsons John Sutlief June 17th 1719 the above Jury Gave in the above verdict, the Jury being under oath Revised by James Wadsworth
Version History (4 versions)
- ✓ v4 (current) · 12/4/2025, 3:20:21 PM
"Added description" - v3 · 12/4/2025, 2:51:01 PM · View this version
"Added knowledge graph extraction" - v2 · 12/4/2025, 6:40:56 AM · View this version
"Added PINAX metadata" - v1 · 12/4/2025, 6:33:44 AM · View this version
"Reorganization group: Inquest_Jury_Report_and_Verdict"
Parent
No children (leaf entity)