Item 17

                                                                                                 Tulsa, Oklahoma
                                                                                                 November 3, 1938

Mrs. B. G. Thatcher,
Logan Utah

Dear Mrs. Thatcher:
                            I have just received some information which I feel will interest you hence, I pass it on at once.  I had the Andrew County records checked to find out about Josiah N. Beattie, but the results were in a way very meager.

                           The J. N. Beattie file is Box 1, No. 9.  It shows his decease in 1845, but no dat [date] is shown.  Letters were granted that year to Lucien Hudgins (June 1845).  No wife or children were mentioned.  It seemed that probably the probate was by creditors of the estate.  It appears from one record that he must have owned a store somewhere.
                           One item found in the file indicated he owned five negro claves [slaves], two women and 3 children, which were redeemed from a deed of trust.  It also appeared that he owned some 400 acres of land in Lafayette, Mo.  Lands were in the NW of 5-50-27.  It seems that probably a WILLIAM BEATTIE had a joint interest in some of the above, probably the last named acreage, as a letter indicates a desire to sell the land.  The final settlement was dated July 7, 1851.
                           The name, the dates and the association with a Beattie in Lafayette Co., Mo. furnishes to my mind a complete identification of your ancestor.  No doubt records at LESINGTON, [Lexington] Mo. (County seat of Lafayette Co.) will disclose deeds there and may also show something with reference to his heirs, as they would certainly have had to join in some kind of a deed to pass title to land, unless of course, the land was sold to pay creditors, in which event the Administrator could sell, under order of court only.
                           In case you see fit to pursue this further, please let me know if you find anything at Lexington.
                          Wishing you success in discovering the truth about Josiah Beattie, I am,
     
                                              Yours sincerely,

                                                          Redmond Selecman Cole
                                                                        Box 92, Tulsa, Oklahoma.