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Upper Salford, Pennsylvania, Justice of the Peace Frederick K. Smith kept these two docket books between 1840 and 1863. They contain brief summaries of actions and documentation pertinent to Upper Salford lawsuits. The cases were largely civil suits not exceeding $100, for debts or damages, though cow theft, trespassing, insurance issues, and paternity are also present. Most often the dockets include details about summonses, non-appearance of defendants, appointments of arbiters, oaths, costs and fees, and judgements.

Upper Salford, Pennsylvania, Justice of the Peace Frederick K. Smith kept these two docket books between 1840 and 1863. They contain brief summaries of actions and documentation pertinent to Upper Salford lawsuits. The cases were largely civil suits not exceeding $100, for debts or damages, though cow theft, trespassing, insurance issues, and paternity are also present. Most often the dockets include details about summonses, non-appearance of defendants, appointments of arbiters, oaths, costs and fees, receipt information, and judgements. Inscriptions in the front of each volume indicates that they belonged to Frederick K. Smith in 1840, passed to Aug. N. Smith, and then to Justice of the Peace M. H. Walters on May 7, 1883.

The financial information present for a single case might, for example, include juror costs such as summons preparation, entry, taking oaths, and judgement; appointments of arbiters; constable costs such as mileage and summons-serving; and witness fees including per-day payments and mileage.

Multiple cow-related cases are present in the docket books. These cases include cattle being sold to one individual, then pulling out of the arrangement to sell them to another buyer instead; cow theft; and at least one insurance claim on a cow.

At least two paternity cases are present in the volumes. Anna Zeigler of Lower Salford, single and over 21 years old, attested on June 30, 1857, that Henry Zeigler was the father of her unborn child. The same day, Elizabeth Pundstein attested that Gottleib Frank was father of her unborn child; this case was settled July 1, 1857, when the two married.

P. H. Miller, Justice of the Peace for Warrick County, Indiana, maintained this docket book from 1869 to 1871 to record legal cases that came before him relating to debt, assault and battery, property disputes, and one case relating to mental illness. Additional financial documentation relating to the cases dates to 1887.

P. H. Miller, Justice of the Peace for Warrick County, Indiana, maintained this docket book from 1869 to 1871 to record legal cases that came before him relating to debt, assault and battery, property disputes, and one case relating to mental illness. Additional financial documentation relating to the cases dates to 1887.

The bulk of the volume relates to debt, and most of the entries do not reveal the nature of the transactions between the parties. Those that do, however, reveal how local dry goods merchants, doctors, and laborers used the court system to recoup unpaid bills. Several include copies of bills, providing insight into services and goods being exchanged in the community. In one instance where the defendant fled the state to defraud his creditors, the court included an inventory of his holdings assessed to cover his debts (p.119). They also reveal the kinds of work happening in the community, from blacksmithing, making molasses, farming, brickmaking, and more.

A number of assault and battery cases are also documented, including several that involve plaintiffs and defendants from earlier legal disputes indicating escalating emotion and violence. At least one involved domestic violence, where Josephine Mischke accused August Mischke of hitting her with a horsewhip (pp. 137-139). August Mischke was later taken to court for abusing a horse, and appears periodically throughout the volume as a plaintiff bringing debt cases against patrons of his dry goods store for unpaid bills.

Several disputes over land and household goods like quilts, beds, and clocks are also recorded. The entry for State of Indiana vs. John A. Bristow documents the juried case that adjudged John A. Bristow was "insane and dangerous to community if suffered to remain at large," appointing Larkin Bristow "to take charge of him" (pp. 62-63).

Miller wrote marginal notations about associated fees. Throughout the volume, individuals signed to acknowledge receipt of the "Judgment in full," or loose receipts were pasted or laid in acknowledging payment.