Antique 1867-1934 Johnston RI Land Deed Archive Brown Farm Hughesdale Ephemera For Sale

Historic 1867-1934 Johnston RI Land Deed Archive - Brown and McKay Family Farm

Up for sale is a remarkably complete, multi-generational family land archive tracking the historic "Brown Farm" located off Atwood Avenue near Hughesdale in Johnston, Rhode Island. Spanning from 1867 to 1934, this unbroken chain of title serves as a fascinating historical, geographical, and genealogical profile of a single piece of 19th-century New England farmland.

The collection includes 8 interconnected documents:

• 1890 Quitclaim Deed (The Crown Jewel): This exceptional document officially verifies the 1860s roots of the homestead. The cursive text explicitly traces the plot back to a March 9th, 1867 deed from Andrew F. Brown to original patriarch John B. Brown Sr. (recorded in Book 22, Page 24) and a March 13th, 1869 deed from Owen Brown.

• The Barn-Split Family Drama: In an incredible window into late-19th-century estate division, the 1890 deed text describes the legal boundary line running "through the middle of the barn to a stone set in the ground," literally splitting ownership of the main farm infrastructure right down the center! Features a stunning red serrated paper seal.

• 1879 Warranty Deed: Features beautifully preserved, vibrant green star-cut paper seals. It outlines a complex estate division involving the widow Amy Brown and an underage heir settlement for Nellie E. Bucklin.

• 1887 and 1888 Deeds: Hand-signed and officially stamped by the Johnston Town Clerk, tracking property transfers between the brothers John A. and Charles H. Brown. Features a pink serrated paper seal and a dual-red paper seal page.

• 1912 Handwritten Document: A crucial early-20th-century family record that bridges the timeline, detailing internal agreements regarding the farm property boundaries and showing early development shifts in Hughesdale.

• 1932 McKay Quitclaim Deed: Bridges the lineage connection between the original Browns and the McKay family. The text traces "Lot 5" of the 1882 Amey Brown estate division backwards to a previously unrecorded April 15th, 1882 deed from John B. Brown to Susan A. McKay. Features two massive, pristine crimson sunburst paper seals next to the signatures of George L. and Mary E. McKay.

• 1933 Typed Property Agreement: Provides a complete boundary description of the 7-acre plot located directly "off Atwoods Avenue near Hughesdale," including an architectural description of the farm's stone-and-shingle homestead and its proximity to the old New York and New England Railroad line.

• Great Depression Financials and Tenant Clause: The inside pages of the 1933 agreement reveal the complete financial details of the farm's final sale to Herman B. Eckart for $2,200 at a 6% interest rate. It also contains a fascinating handwritten legal exception protecting an active "renter in one half of house," and bears the original signatures of Wendell S. Brown, John Allen Brown, Charles H. S. Brown, and Herman B. Eckart.

• 1934 Deed: References the original 1882 property survey map plotted by W.V. King.

Condition and Display Appeal:

The documents have been wonderfully preserved inside their original handwritten storage envelope. The ink remains sharp, bold, and fully legible. With their elaborate cursive calligraphy, official clerk stamps, typed depression-era contracts, and a gorgeous multi-colored variety of antique paper seals (Green, Pink, Red, and Crimson), these pieces double as an incredible piece of local history and highly displayable antique ephemera.