To the Honorable the speaker and the General Assembly of Virginia.

The humble petition of Stephen Wright, John Brumingham and Robert Moore Riddick humbly sheweth, that some years before the late Revolution, Edward Wright became security for John Goodrich & Co. for a certain sum of money payable to Elisha Copeland. And about the same time David Baker became security for the said John Goodrich & Co. for a certain sum of money payable to Benjamin Baker.

That the said Edward Wright & David Baker sometime after entering themselves securities as aforesaid have departed the life, having first made their last wills & testaments, and the said Edward Wright in his said will appointing Christopher Roberts & Stephen Wright his executors. The said Roberts taking upon himself the burden & execution thereof and is since dead. The said Stephen Wright being at the time the said will was proved an infant but since he hath attained the lawful age. He hath agreeable to the trust reposed in him by the testator to him upon himself the execution of the said will and the executor named by the other testator David Baker in his will, did not act as an executor, administration with the will annexed was granted to John  Bruminger on the estate of the said David Baker dec’d Robert M. Riddick becoming security for the said Bruminger’s faithful administration of the said David Baker estate.

And since the commencement of peace the above said Elisha Copeland hath instituted a suit in the court of Nansemond County on the bond of John Goodrich & Co. and Edward Wright executors and obtained a judgement for the same and costs amounting to the sum of seventy nine pounds, one shilling & two pence current money, which hath been paid out of the estate of the said Edward Wright dec’d.

And the said Benjamin Baker did also institute a suit in the same county court on the bond of John Goodrich & Co. and the administrator with the will annexed of David Baker dec’d and obtaining a judgement for the same and costs amounting to the sum of fifty one pounds, one shilling & one penny current money, which hath been paid out of the said David Baker dec’d estate.

And as the children of the said Edw. Wright and David Baker are thereby much oppressed and very needy. And as the said John Goodrich did leave behind him in this state property to a considerable amount which hath been taken by the escheator under the sanction of the escheat law & sold for account of the public. We your petitioners humbly conceive that your honourable body may and we humbly pray that you will give the distressed children of the two deceased persons, to witt, Edward Wright and David Baker, satisfaction (for the losses that they have sustained by the payment of the aforesaid judgements & costs) out of the sales of the said escheated property of John Goodrich as aforesaid.

And as we have the fullest assurances of your attachment & friendly dispositions towards the citizens of this Commonwealth, especially the distressed orphans therein. We pray you to give them such relief in their present distress as may be agreeable to equity and good conscious.

And your petitioner as in duty bound we’ll ever pray.

Stephen Wright esq, John Brumingham, Robert M. Riddick

Transcribed & submitted by Harry Schoettle, Jan 2008