Coggeshall v. Pelton

Decided July 1, 1823

New York Court of Chancery · decided 1823-07-01

WILLIAM HENDERSON, by his last will, dated January 16, 1812, among other legacies to individuals and -for charitable purposes, bequeathed as follows : “ I give and bequeath unto the town of New-Rochelle 1200 dollars, for the express purpose of building or erecting a town house in said town, for transacting town business, which sum I direct my executors to pay unto such persons as said town shall appoint to receive it, at a legal town meeting 5 they first giving my executors…

Good law ✅— No negative treatment on recordhow we know

Decided 1823-07-01

How this case has been cited

Cited by 25 later decisions — most recently April 1932 · most notably Fire Insurance Patrol v. Boyd (1888), Estate of Hinckley (1881)

1 federal appellate · 23 state decisions — followed in 10 states

Later decisions citing this case, by decade. The current decade is in progress, and our corpus holds fewer opinions from the most recent years, so the latest bars are undercounted — not a real decline.

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The Chancellor.

¶1The pecuniary legacy, in this case, to the town of JVew-Rochelle, for the purpose of erecting a town house for transacting town business, is valid as a charitable bequest. The cases of the Attorney General v. Clarke, (Amb. 422.) and of Jones v. Williams, (Amb. 651.) show, that bequests with descriptions and purposes as general as this, have been held good as charities. The object of this legacy, was a general public use, as convenient for the poor and the rich.

¶2 *295The defendaants are accordingly directed to pay the legacy to the plaintiffs, who are authorized, by statute, to receive it, provided security is given, as required by the will, to be approved of by a master.

¶3Decree accordingly.