RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Inquests_Mary_Coffe_004.jpg

New Haven County Superior Court Inquest Correspondence Collection

Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/4/2025, 3:20:22 PM

Added description

Description

New Haven County Superior Court Inquest Correspondence Collection

Overview

This is a 1749‑dated collection of legal correspondence produced by James Wedworth for the New Haven County Superior Court. The material documents the court’s inquest into the murder of an Indigenous woman, Mary Coffe, in New Town, Connecticut. It is preserved by the Connecticut State Library and is part of the library’s New Haven County court project that focuses on Black, African American, and Indigenous (BAAI) history.

Background

James Wedworth, a court clerk, compiled the correspondence in the early colonial period when inquests were the primary investigative tool for sudden deaths. The case involved a “Negro man” accused of killing Mary Coffe, with Constable Richard Newman presenting evidence. The collection reflects the court’s procedural record and the broader social context of racialized justice in 18th‑century Connecticut.

Contents

  • Inquest Report Document – a handwritten report titled “Report of the Jury of Inquest on the corpse of the Indian Woman murdered at our Town” dated 2 July 1749.
  • Image of the Report – a high‑resolution JPEG (RG003NHSCBAAIPSInquestsMaryCoffe004.jpg) and a TIFF scan (RG003NHSCBAAIPSInquestsMaryCoffe004.tif).
  • OCR Text – machine‑extracted text of the report, reproduced in the collection’s metadata.
  • Subject Indexing – the collection is indexed under the NHSC BAAI Cases Papers Subject field, linking it to broader BAAI case files.

Scope

The collection covers a single inquest event in July 1749, focusing on a murder involving Indigenous and African‑American individuals. It is geographically limited to New Haven County (New Haven and New Town) and is relevant to scholars of colonial legal history, Indigenous studies, and African‑American history. The material is exclusively in English and is accessible through the Connecticut State Library’s digital repository.

Entities

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Entity Relationships

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Raw Cheimarros Data

@file_pinax -> documents -> @inquest_correspondence_collection:collection {title: "New Haven County Superior Court Inquest Correspondence Collection", creator: @james_wedworth, institution: @connecticut_state_library, created: @date_1749_07_02, language: "en", subjects: ["Inquests","Murder","Indigenous people","African Americans","New Haven County","Superior Court","Legal correspondence"], description: "Correspondence related to inquests conducted by the New Haven County Superior Court, including reports on the murder of an Indian woman in 1749.", place: [@new_haven, @new_town]}

@james_wedworth:person {full_name: "James Wedworth", role: "Creator", affiliation: @connecticut_state_library}

@connecticut_state_library:organization {type: "Library", location: @new_haven}

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

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

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

@mary_coffe:person {full_name: "Mary Coffe", ethnicity: "Indigenous", gender: "female", role: "victim"}

@negro_man:person {description: "Accused of murdering Mary Coffe"}

@richard_newman:person {full_name: "Richard Newman", role: "Constable"}

@indian_woman_murder_case:event {type: "Murder", victim: @mary_coffe, accused: @negro_man, constable: @richard_newman, date: @date_1749_07_02, location: @new_town, court: @new_haven_county_superior_court}

@inquest_report_document:document {title: "Report of the Jury of Inquest on the corpse of the Indian Woman murdered at our Town", author: @james_wedworth, date: @date_1749_07_02, language: "en", related_case: @indian_woman_murder_case, contains: ["Accusation against Negro man","Corps of Indian circumstantial evidence"]}

@ocr_text_004:document {content: "Honorable Gen't\n\nThe Inclosed is the report of the Jury of Inquest sett upon the corps of the Indian Woman murdered at our Town. The negro man that owns that he did the murder, I send to the Goal by our Constable, and am well certified that 1st negro hath made his escape, therefore think it not necessary to examine out the negro's Examination, or the Corps of Indian circumstantial evidence taken upon oath referring to 1st murder.\n\nHonorable Gen't\n\nI remaine your humble servant,\n\nJames Wedworth.\n\nFor the\nHonorable the Judges\nof His\nMajestie's Superior Court\nSitting in\nN. Town 2 Tuesday of July\n1749\n\nRichard Newman"}

@image_report_004:asset {type: "image", format: "jpg", related_document: @inquest_report_document, ocr_text: @ocr_text_004}

@file_rg003_nhsc_baai_ps_inquests_mary_coffe_004_jpg -> asset -> @image_report_004:asset

@image_report_004 -> depicts -> @inquest_report_document

@inquest_report_document -> authored by -> @james_wedworth

@inquest_report_document -> reports on -> @indian_woman_murder_case

@indian_woman_murder_case -> victim -> @mary_coffe

@indian_woman_murder_case -> accused -> @negro_man

@indian_woman_murder_case -> investigated by -> @new_haven_county_superior_court

@indian_woman_murder_case -> constable -> @richard_newman

@nhsc_baai_cases_papers_subject:concept {description: "Subject terms for New Haven County Superior Court files concerning Black, African American, and Indigenous cases and papers"}

@inquest_correspondence_collection -> indexed by -> @nhsc_baai_cases_papers_subject

Metadata

Files (2)

RG003_NHSC_BAAI_PS_Inquests_Mary_Coffe_004.jpgJPEG
397.77 KB
OCR Text

Honorable Gen't The Inclosed is the report of the Jury of Inquest sett upon the corps of the Indian Woman murdered at our Town. The negro man that owns that he did the murder, I send to the Goal by our Constable, and am well certified that 1st negro hath made his escape, therefore think it not necessary to examine out the negro's Examination, or the Corps of Indian circumstantial evidence taken upon oath referring to 1st murder. Honorable Gen't I remaine your humble servant, James Wedworth. For the Honorable the Judges of His Majestie's Superior Court Sitting in N. Town 2 Tuesday of July 1749 Richard Newman

Version History (4 versions)

  • ✓ v4 (current) · 12/4/2025, 3:20:22 PM
    "Added description"
  • v3 · 12/4/2025, 2:51:17 PM · View this version
    "Added knowledge graph extraction"
  • v2 · 12/4/2025, 6:40:54 AM · View this version
    "Added PINAX metadata"
  • v1 · 12/4/2025, 6:33:47 AM · View this version
    "Reorganization group: Correspondence_to_Superior_Court"

Parent

01KBKZZ2D383NZAZV0KP1BRBG0

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