Isaac Ross Wade was the grandson of Revolutionary War veteran, Captain Isaac Ross, who migrated to the Mississippi Territory from South Carolina in 1808. After settling in Jefferson County, Captain Ross established Prospect Hill Plantation, built by some of his slaves. A man with some insight into the future, Captain Ross believed that an end to slavery was not far off and made provisions in his will for the freeing of his slaves and transporting them to Liberia through the American Colonization Society. The Captain named his grandson, Isaac Ross Wade, as executor of the estate.

The heirs of the estate, greatly angered by the terms of the will, contested. The battle lasted twelve years following the death of Ross in 1836. In 1847, the Supreme Court ruled that the will of Captain Isaac Ross was valid.

A great part of the estate's revenues had been spent for court costs, making it necessary for the slaves to be kept an additional year to raise money for their passage to Liberia. In the early part of 1849, these slaves were shipped to Liberia by way of New Orleans. Only 90 managed to reach their destination.

Information for this history was taken from Thomas M. Wade's "Captain Isaac Ross and Some of His Descendants" in the Journal of Mississippi History, v. 9, 1947.

This collection contains sixteen letters received by Isaac Ross Wade from his attorneys, H. T. Ellett and John Kerr during the twelve years of litigation involving Prospect Hill Plantation. These letters provide an excellent source of information following the course and progress of the litigation during the twelve year period. It also allows one to examine the administration of the estate seven years following the Supreme Court's decision.

Series: 1. Correspondence 1845–1849; 1855; n.d 1.75 cubic feet.