Will of William Zeigler 28 Jul 1854 Crawford County, GA Will of William Zeigler (1799-1855) Crawford Co GA John Washington Dent (1817-1880) Executor of will of his uncle Page 29 Georgia Crawford County I William Zeigler of said County being of sound mind & disposing Memory & conscious that I must die do make, Ordain and Publish this my last Will & Testament Hereby Revoking all others by me made. Item 1st My soul I submit to God with a hope that he may Transport it to Eternal Bliss its passage I hope having been provided for, as I hope by the Blood of our saviour Jesus Christ. My Body I direct my Executor hereafter to be appointed to dispose of in the following manner to wit--To procure a patent Coffin (Fetche, Metalic or some other Patent Coffin of like nature). Let it be placed therein in a neat Christian Manner in a shroud of the neatest and best material. Let it there remain until the following preparations are made. Obtain a plat of ground in Rose Hill Cemetery Macon Ga -- sixteen feet square, as near the plat upon which is Erected the Monument to the late Oliver H. Prince & Lady as may be practicable. And erect thereon a vault of sufficient thickness to Guarantee its durability above the ground Plat the ground having been first leveled -- to be supplied with a suitable Iron Door & proper & secure fastenings -- and arched roof made of the best brick and the best Workmanship The whole of the said vault to be cemented with the best Hydraulic cemment and the whole Plat to be surrounded with Iron paleings & proper Gates of Iron with security fastenings. The vault to be of sufficiant size to admit the Coffin and persons to arrange it. Then let my Coffin be placed therein with a proper Monument in front of my vault -- suitable to my condition in Life and the Expenses I direct to be paid by my Executor out of my Estate for which a sufficient sum is hereby appropria -ted and bequeathed to my Executor for the use & Purpose aforesaid Page 30 Item 2 I give devise and bequeath unto my beloved Nephew John W. Dent the following described family of Negroes to wit -- Sampson and his Wife Hannah & their children Julia Tom & Nathan & their Increase forever in fee & the settlement of Land, which I now own that I bought from Isaac Dennis Sr & which is fully described in the Deed which was executed to me by said Dennis. All of the Lands which I bought at Sheriffs Sale as the property of Eleanah Sawyer and which is fully described in the Sheriff's Deed conveying said Lands. The Lands which I have since sold being hereby excepted, and the Lands which I bought of Watson Sawyer a portion of which I bought of him as his own and another of him as guardian which is also fully described by his Deeds -- And all the Lands which I bought of Thomas Stripling which is fully described in his Deeds to me -- and all of the Land which I bought of Thomas H. Hill, being fully described in the Deed to me from Hill to Myself and all the Lands which I bought of William B. Jordan fully described in his Deed to me And the Lot of Land Known as the Gafford lot, being the Lot where on Mrs Gafford lived a number of years and after -wards Mrs Taylor lived, the whole of said Lot as described by the Original Plat is hereby devised. All of the above Lands described in this Item is and are hereby devised unto the said John W Dent forever in fee simple. Item 3 I give and bequeath unto the son (William) of my Nephew John W. Dent five hundred Dollars in fee. Item 4th Is my desire, and so I direct, that the colored children of my Woman Slave Mary, be taken to a state where the laws thereof will tolerate their Manumission, or freedom & that they be there put under Competent and proper Teachers Keeping them together if possible where they may be properly educated according to the Means hereinafter set forth. That they be provided with good & suitable board and lodging having an Eye in this as with selection Page 31 of Teachers, to Strict Morality, also that they be properly Clothed. And in respect to the said William Henry -- it is my will and desire and so I direct my Executors to do that he shall receive a good Collegiate Education fiting him for any Profession he may choose & I, wish him to be allow -ed when he attains to the age of dicretion and is qualified so to do to choose his profession, and that this & the next Item may be faithfully and effectually caused -- I hereby Nominate appoint and depute my beloved Brother Henry Zeigler Guardian of the person of Malinda Ann and my Nephew John W. Dent guardian of the person of William Henry and my Brother Lewis Zeigler guardian of the person of Octavius. Item 5th I direct that all my Estate both real & personal of Whatever Kind, and wheresoever situated be sold at Public Outcry Upon reasonable Notice being given by publication except the special bequest & Legacies to my Nephew John W. Dent. Then I direct that if the said Malinda Ann attaining to the age of twenty one the sum of Thirty Thousand Dollars be paid to her & the interest of said sum to be applied during her Minority to her support, maintenance & Education, and the further sum of thirty thousand Dollars to be paid to William Henry if he attains to the age of twenty one years, the Interest to be applied to the payment of his Board, Maintenance and Tuition during his Minority. And the sum of Thirty thousand Dollars to be paid to the said Octavius if she should attain to the age of twenty one. Which sums respectively I hereby bequea -th unto the said Malinda Ann, William Henry & Octavius Individually & Respectively When they respectively attain to the age of twenty one years, & the Interest annually to each of them during Minority or so much therof as may be necessary. The Surplus interest if any to be added to the thirty thousand Dollars & becomes a part of the principal, and if either of them should die before the age of Twenty one his or her Page 32 share of thirty thousand Dollars I desire & so I direct that the same be divided between the survivors to be paid to them as when directed upon Majority and if two of them should die before Majority then it is my will & desire that the survivor when he or she attains to twenty one years, shall receive the whole Ninety thousand Dollars together with all Interest that may have accrued thereon -- & if Neither of them should attain the age of twenty one years then it is my Will and desire and so I direct that it shall return to & become a part of my residuum or in case it should have been divided thereto take the same situation in respect to distribution that it has, as set forth in Eighth Item, and go to, and vest in the legatees in the same & by the same Divisions in the same proportions & to no one Else--Provided never the less if either the said Malinda Ann William Henry or Octavius should Marry & have a child or children & then should die before twenty one, then it is my will intention and desire that his or her legacy to which he or she would have been entitled of thirty thousand dollars, shall go to and vest in his or her child or children & not go to, vest in & be divided with and among the Survivors as mentioned herein before, and that they may be provided for until my Estate can be sold & the thirty thousand dollars apiece mentioned above be raised and Put to Interest it is my will & desire and so I direct that they shall be supported, maintained clothed & educated, out of my Estate. Item 7th It is my will and desire that my Woman slave Mary the Mother of the aforesaid children Malinda Ann, William Henry & Octavius be carried to a state where she may be manumitted and set free so soon after my death as it can con -veniently be done, after which I will & bequeath the sum of ten thousand Dollars to my Executor or either of them as she may choose in Trust for her use, as following to Wit,--the said sum of ten thousand Dollars shall be kept at Interest Page 33 at Seven per Cent per Annum or such other per centium as the Law will tolerate and the annual interest thereof shall be paid annually to the said Mary for her support maintainance &c, during her natural life, with remainder to the said children Malinda Ann, William Henry and Octavius, or the survivors share and share alike -- and in case either of them should die leaving a child or children, the child or children shalll stand in their place or stead. Item 8th After paying the Funeral Expences, the foregoing Legacies Debts & expenses of Administration It is my will & desire and so I direct that the residium shall be disposed of in the following manner to wit it shall be divided into three equal parts one of which parts I hereby Will & bequeath is unto my Brother Lewis Zeigler in fee, another of which parts I will and bequeath unto my Brother Henry Zeigler in fee, the remaining part I will and bequeath unto the children of my sister Catharine Dent as follows to wit one fourth of said remaining part or third to John W. Dent in fee another fourth of said part to the said John W. Dent in trust for the use of Jane White Wife of Joseph White formerly Jane Dent Sister of John Dent for her sole & separate use during her life exempt from any liability on account or control of husband, and free from his contracts & debts with remainder to her children in fee, and the remaining two parts of the said remaining part to the other two sisters of the said John W. Dent. Item 9th It is my intention as I have done to exclude my half Brothers & Sisters. Item 10th I hereby Nominate & appoint My Brothers Lewis & Henry Zeigler & John W. Dent provided each of them give Bond with approved security to the Ordinary of said County, for the use of the aforesaid children Malinda Ann, William Henry & Octavius in the sum of fifty thousand dollars each, and if one should refuse to act then the other two are to give bond with like Security & in like manner for Seventy five thous -and dollars each, & if two should refuse to act Page 34 then the other is to give like Bond in the sum of one hundred & fifty Thousand Dollars--my Executors to Execute this my Will & Testament In testimony whereof I have this 28th day of July 1854 to this my Will written on five Thirty and three lines on this the sixth sheet & 1st page thereof to the Test signed my name & set my seal. William Zeigler {LS} In presence of us the Subscribing Witnesses who signed this in the presence of the Testator and in the presence of each other, the Testator, we certify Signed also in our presence, the day and year above Written E.H. Jackson A.J. Simmons G.P. Culverhouse Georgia Crawford County Court of Ordinary July Term 1855 Previously approved in Open Court Edmund H. Jackson Allen J. Simmons & Green P. Culverhou -se the Subscribing Witnesses to the within and foregoing Will & Testament of William Zeigler and being duly sworn deposeth and saith that they saw William Zeigler sign the same in the presence of all of the Subscribing Witnesses -- That they signed the same in the presence of the said Testator and in the presence of each other as Witnesses -- That the said William Zeigler then and there Published & declared the same as as his last Will and Testament that at the time he was of sound & disposing mind & memory Sworn to and Subscribed in open court July 2nd 1855. E. H. Jackson A. J. Simmons G. P. Culverhouse James J. Ray Ordinary Page 35 I William Zeigler do hereby annex this Codicil to my Will, after a sufficient sum has been raised out of my Estate to pay my debts, funeral & other expenses that may arise & the sum of one hundred thousand dollars to answer the bequests in the fifth & seventh items, I hereby empower my Executor either to sell the Negroes or have them put up in families and valued by three persons disinterested & my Executors Individually, may take said families at the valu -ation thus put upon them by accounting to my Estate for the same and those Negroes which may be sold, I direct my Executors to sell in families, although they may not bring so much by being sold in this manner-- And this Item is not to be construed to interfere with or Controsel(?) my Special bequest in my Will to which this Codicil is annexed. And I wish the Seventh Item to be so altered as that instead of giving Mary the power to choose her trustee Henry Zeigler my Brother, and One of my Executors be appointed to be her trustee with all the rights and powers therein given to her appointee. And lest there may be some difficulty arise in consequence of my giving directly to William Henry Malinda Ann & Octavius the colored children of My Woman Mary the sums of Money in my Will bequeathed. It is my will and desire that the same should be only so far altered and changed as to vest said sums, so given them respectively in their guardians & trustees--to wit: Thirty thousand Dollars to John W. Dent in Trust for William Henry the sum of thirty thousand Dollars in Henry Zeigler in Trust for Malinda Ann & the sum of thirty thousand dollars to Lewis Zeigler in trust for the said Octavius said amounts to be raised the Interest thereof to be used and applied and the Principal as in said Will is heretofore directed This Codicil to this my last Will and Testament signed sealed declared & published this 29th day of January A.D. 1855 In presence of the undersigned Witnesses who signed the same in the Presence of the Testator and of Each other Page 36 William Zeigler {LS} Carey H. Smith Alexander M. Speer G.P. Culverhouse Crawford Court of Ordinary July Term 1855 In open court personally came before me the ordinary in and for the said County Carey H. Smith Alexander M Speer and Green P. Culverhouse Witnesses to the Codicil of the Will of William Zeigler and which is hereto attached and who being duly sworn depose and say that they saw the said William Zeigler sign seal and Publish and declare the same to be a Codicil to his last Will and Testament voluntarily and freely without compulsion -- and that they signed the said Codicil as Witnesses in the presence of said William Zeigler and also in presence of each other. Sworn to and subscribed before me this 2nd day of July 1855 Alexander M. Speer Carey H. Smith G.P. Culverhouse J.J. Ray Ordinary The forgoing will & codicil and the orders admitting the same to record. Recorded this 5th July 1855 James J Ray Ordinary Transcribed by Honey Lanham Dodge & Mary Early Dishner 28 Aug 1998. ==================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor. This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by: Honey Lanham Dodge Hslanham@aol.com ====================================================================