Twenty-three residents of Brazoria County seek an exemption from the laws prohibiting the residence of free persons of color in the Republic. Philadelphia-born James Richardson, a free black man who operates an oyster house and rest stop between Velasco and San Louis, is "useful to the public in a situation suitable to his class and at a locality where a white person equally serviceable could not be expected to reside." A man of "industry, sobriety, and correct deportment," Richardson served under John Bell during the War for Independence. In addition, Richards is sixty years of age and is not likely to promote "any of the evils" contemplated by lawmakers when they enacted the prohibition laws.
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Repository: Texas State Library-Archives Division, Austin, Texas
