Back in April I completed a "background" task of transcribing a couple of issues of the Brooks Family Query Exchange, which later became the Brooks Historian, and is now defunct. I've sent the transcriptions on to Bill Brooks, who maintains the Brooks Historian site at http://brookshistorian.org/bbrooks/public_html/bhback.htm, but it may take him a while to format the text I sent into HTML and get it uploaded. In the meantime, I'll share here those portions of the test pertaining to New England lines. This first installment lacks the hand-drawn map included with the original. I expect Bill will include a scan of it when he uploads the issue to his site. Chris ============================ Brooks Family Query Exchange, v. 2 issue 1, May 1981, p. 3: DAVID BROOKS SELLS THE FARM Geo. Brooks, 5223 Balzer, Lansing MI 48910 On November 29, 1768, Esquire Thomas Chandler of Chester, Vermont, deeded a 100 acre plot of land to 19 year old David Brooks, Yeoman, acknowledging payments totaling 20 lbs. Sterling, in compliance with the terms of a one year contract. This deed was recorded by Town Clerk John Chandler, son of Thomas, on June 18, 1770. Said deed can be found at Volume I, pages 124 & 125, Cumberland County deeds of New York. This deed describes David Brooks' farm as having true East-West boundaries of 160 rods in length and true North-South boundaries of 100 rods (starting 120 rods South of the Middle Branch of Williams River), with all corners being right angles, thus forming a perfect rectangle. Young David Brooks' farm is shown at left, drawn to exact scale with corners designated as A, B, C and D. [HAND-DRAWN MAP GOES HERE] Nearly four decades later, on June 6, 1804, David Brooks sold this farm for $1200 to John P. Williams. The deed for this sale was recorded by Minister Aaron Leland, Town Clerk, and can be found at Book F, Pages 541 & 542 at the Chester Town Clerk's Office. In this deed Brooks described his property as having fifteen sides and corners, zigzagging, helter-skelter, around in acute and obtuse angles, and somehow showing a growth from 100 to 110 acres. See bird-like figure on scale drawing above. It would appear that this real estate deal must have resulted from a long day of bartering held at the local Town Pub! The shape of Brooks' farm, originally a rectangle, now looks like too many swigs from a jug of "Old Crow" or "Wild Turkey"! Or is it an American Eagle? Obviously, David Brooks encroached or borrowed some of his neighbor's land in order to create his? Wild bird estate - and one begins to wonder how he got himself out of this gerrymandering mischief? But this wasn't difficult for David. He had observed first-hand, many of the tricks of Thomas Chandler, Chester's First Real Estate Manipulator. Three months after selling his high-flying bird farm to John P. Williams - Brooks bought back the same Bird for the same price. Unlike Esquire Chandler, David had not developed Chandler's ill-famed "Fast Buck" techniques. This re-purchase deed was recorded by Reverend Aaron Leland on September 12, 1804 and can be found at Book G, page 80 in the records of Chester's Town Clerk. CONCLUSION My great-great-great Grandfather, David Brooks, was quite a real estate "Sharpie," but - HE CERTAINLY WAS NOT A TEA-TOTALER!