Who actually drafted deeds? Did the seller draft the deed and sign it or did a clerk draft the deed and the seller simply sign (or place his mark) as the seller? I have several deeds for Pendleton Dist SC for the 1790s and two deeds for Hall Co GA in 1825 and it appears to my untrained eye that the handwriting that drafted the body of the deed(s) is the same handwriting of the seller's signature. I would have expected this when the seller signed with a mark but in these cases the seller actually signed with a signature. Thank you, Eldon mailto:[email protected] Researching: WADE and HAMES - SC, GA, AL
Eldon, If you have copies of deeds from the deed books in the courthouse, then you are not looking at the actual deed. The deed is a document that is signed by the grantor, and conveyed to and retained by the grantee. The grantee (or possibly the grantor who may retain a copy) brings the deed to the courthouse to have it recorded. The Clerk copies all the information off of the deed and transcribes it into the deed book at the courthouse. So the signature and indication of a seal are normally transcriptions made by the clerk. I suppose there may be instances where all the parties are at the courthouse and the grantor actually signs the entry in the deed book, but I don't think that is the usual case. This is my understanding of it, but if anyone can offer a better explanation, please do. Dan ----- Original Message ----- From: Eldon Wade To: [email protected] Sent: Wednesday, May 29, 2002 4:36 PM Subject: [GAHALL] Who drafted that deed? Who actually drafted deeds? Did the seller draft the deed and sign it or did a clerk draft the deed and the seller simply sign (or place his mark) as the seller? I have several deeds for Pendleton Dist SC for the 1790s and two deeds for Hall Co GA in 1825 and it appears to my untrained eye that the handwriting that drafted the body of the deed(s) is the same handwriting of the seller's signature. I would have expected this when the seller signed with a mark but in these cases the seller actually signed with a signature. Thank you, Eldon mailto:[email protected] Researching: WADE and HAMES - SC, GA, AL ==== GAHALL Mailing List ==== Visit the Hall County GAGenWeb Page http://www.rootsweb.com/~gahall/