Decree in Penny v. McHenry et al, [Law papers].

Summary: Penny owned 242 acres of land in Sangamon County, Illinois. In 1843, he gave Blankenship a mortgage deed on the property to cover a debt. Penny failed to pay the debt, and Blankenship had the land sold to satisfy the debt. John Irwin and Robert Irwin purchased the land and, according to Penny, agreed to allow Penny to redeem the land for $1,185. Penny stated that he reached an agreement to have his brother-in-law, McHenry, purchase the land from Irwin and Irwin, keep the east half and convey the west half with the cabin to Penny. McHenry purchased the land from Irwin and Irwin but refused to convey the west half to Penny. Penny sued McHenry, Irwin, and Irwin in a chancery action for a bill of relief. Penny charged McHenry with fraud for not conveying the west half of the land and requested the court to order McHenry to convey the land to him. The court dismissed the case, and Penny appealed to the Illinois Supreme Court. The supreme court affirmed the judgment. Justice Trumbull stated that Penny had lost the right of redemption by failing to redeem the property from the court after the sale to Irwin and Irwin and that Penny's failure to sue on the alleged oral agreement--that McHenry convey the west half to Penny--within one year voided the statute of frauds. Trumbull rejected Penny's claim that a resulting trust existed from his agreement with McHenry because Penny had not paid any part of the purchase price that McHenry paid to Irwin and Irwin. Lincoln and Herndon represented McHenry, Irwin, and Irwin in the trial and the appeal. (See also McHenry v. Irwin and Irwin; McHenry v. Irwin and Irwin; McHenry and Yocum v. Penny.)