heirs relied on it for support while they themselves were wealthy and successful. The founder of the estate was Jacob Appley, the son of a German immigrant. He started out as a butcher working at a stall in the Oswego Market on Broadway. But his fortunes were greatly elevated by a windfall from a shrewd investment in the mutton market which he made in the early 1800s. He expanded his fortune by investing in properties around the Lower East Side on Eldridge, Delancey, Forsyth, Bayard, and First Streets. When he died in 1840, he left the estate, which included about 40 houses, in trust to his only son, Jacob Alexander Appley (Jacob A). The trust document, one of the earliest of its kind, provided Jacob A with the income from the estate for life and saved the properties to be distributed to Jacob A's issue (children) after his death. In case no issue existed, the trust named Jacob's sister, Barbara (Shrady), and her heirs, as the beneficiaries. As one of Barbara's grandsons, Dr. George Frederick Shrady was a potential beneficiary. Jacob A Appley had many children with at least 3 women, but none of them were legitimate, which, as the Shrady position maintained, disqualified them from being legal beneficiaries (under the laws in effect at the time). At the age of 25, Jacob A had married 16-year-old Mary Brown, and although she deserted him after a short time, they were never legally divorced. For 20 years after acquiring the estate, Jacob A acted as the trustee, and with full control of the properties, he freely funded an extravagant lifestyle and financed several business ventures. Then in the 1860s, the Shradys became aware of Jacob A’s unresolved marriage to Mary Brown. They allied with Mary providing her with support so that she would deny Jacob A a legal divorce and prevent him from having legitimate heirs. Control of the estate was transferred to an independent trustee and Jacob A was restricted to an allowance to preserve the principal until his death. Jacob A prevailed, at least partially, by living on for another 50 years continuing to receive income from the properties while they were left unimproved remaining like time capsules for 100 years. Jacob A was 91 when he finally died in 1906 and had outlasted a generation of the Shradys. When Mary Brown died in 1899, he finally was able