Will of Garrett VanSweringen: MARYLAND STATE ARCHIVES, HALL OF RECORDS, ANNAPOLIS, MARYLAND PREROGATIVE COURT (WILLS) 6, PAGES 210 AND 211, (MSA S538, MdHR 1286, 1-11-1-8) IN THE NAME OF GOD, AMEN I Garrett Vansweringin of ye Citty of St Mary's in St Mary's County haveing Consideredly Many Yeares I have Lived in this World & therefore but a Little time to remain and for Reason of the Uncertainty When this tyme shall be Expired I doe hereby Will and require that When it Should be ye Will of God to Call me Out of this Mortall Life My body shall be buried if God Doth pmitt According to ye Custom of ye Roman Catholique Church and ye Priest That shall bury me I doe give him One Thousand Pound of Tobba and further I doe require of My Executors hereafter named To take Care that dureing ye Ensueing Year Mass shall be done for me Soly at all ye Lady Days St. Josephs day St. John ye Evangelist St. Mary Magdaline in Holy Week at all Saints days and in ye Christmas hollydays further That all my Just debts shalbe paid and doe therefore appoint and Nominate My Wife and My Son Joseph Vansweringen Exrs of my Will and this My Testament to doe and act as here shalbe mencond And My Now dwelling house & Land thereunto belonging also ye Councill Roomes and Coffee house and Land thereunto belonging I give unto my two Sonns Joseph and Charles Vansweringen For them and their Heires for Ever but in Case of Any of them should Come to dye then ye houses & Land fall to ye Surviving Brother herebefore Named and if both should Come to Dye then it shall fall to my Girles gotten by my now Liveing wife the 5(?) only equally that is to be Understood that are and Were not married, or unprovided and Shall be unmarried after my decease and in Case Any of them should So come to be in Possession of Any of the aforenamed Land and houses and Shall Come to dye Without Issue then ye forenamed Land Should returne againe to those that are Unmarried & to them that shall have issue in the Nature as before but their Issue dying shall ye said Land returne again to those yt have issue or be unmarried I doe alsoe require that my Wife doe Alsoe remaine in Possession of All my Estate Moveables and unmoveables dureing her Life that if she shall remaine unmarried, but in Case she should Come to Marry that then her Exershp shall Cease and My Sonn Joseph shall only remaine ye only Executor of my Will and Testament & allow According to Law to my Wife one third of my Estate but remaining unmarried (she ?) shall Continue in Sole(?) Possession of all as if I was my Selfe Alive for ye good of our children and doe hereby Absolutely Debarr all Persons not being of My blood to Meddle or Concern themselves With any of my Children or there Estate but What shalbe by ye Election of My Son Joseph with ye advise of Mr. John Hall of St. Innegoes the Unaged Children will be Co.....ed with their brother Joseph be their Guardian I will that ..... weekes after My Decease My Estate shalbe Appraised and not Undervallued as ordinarily in this Country is done but to ye Reall Vallue Silver Plate Brass Copper Pewter ledd (?) in Quantity and Quality or other m..ead of them to my Aforenamed Children that Shalbe unmarried or Never were Married before Proportionable But dureing my Wife shall Remaine Unmarried I doe Empower her over All nothing Excepted to .... remaine unmolessed either by Children or Sonns in Law Provideing she shall not distribute more to ye one than to ye other & that noe Portcon shalbe given to any of them dureing My Said Wife her Life to put her Self to Want and beggary ye rest of my Younger Children only by ye Way of assistance ye necessily should require in part pay of their Porcon or Sheare but if my Wife should Come to dye then those children that are left unmarried Shall remain under ye Guardianshipp of Their Brother Joseph to take Care of them till they Come to be Married but if the said Joseph Should doe them any Injustice wch God forbidd then ye offense shall be refered to Mr. John hall hereafore named Mr Charles Carrolle Mr Charles Egerton Mr thomas Georing(?) or Any two of them and their settling upon ye matter shall definitise Either for ye said Joseph to remaine their Guardian or to Make Eleccon of Any of those Aforenamed instead of him and their porcon Must and Shall be given to them one Yeare after they are married if they remaine Alive and Not otherwise for if any of these Children aforenamed Comes to dye their prcon shall remaine amongst their Sisters herebefore named and not to ye two brothers haveing ye Land Except issue if they should be married and have issue before ye Expiracon of ye Year or being bigg With Childe but ye aforenamed Brothers shall alsoe have an Equall Share out of ye moveables estat ye day of My departure but not to prtend(?) Any share of ye porcons of these girles that should Come to dye but shalbe Equally divided to ye Sisters that are Unmarried, and further if my Son Joseph Should Come to dye and if mother remaines Alive then shall ye Executorshipp remain in her and in All Power as is Layd before at large, but if my Wife also should Come to dye then ye Children shall Chuse one or more Guardians Out of ye forenamed whom are hereby desired to see my Will pformed And in testimony that this is my Last Will and Tesamt Have I hereunto Signed and Sealed with my hand this the 25th day of March 1698 But as I have sd my Wife to remain Exer if my son Joseph Should Come to dye is allways understood un- married but if Married the Children GARE VANSWERINGEN (SIGED) shall have Guardians as afrsd in order to shake off ye Yooke of a father-in-Law Further if it doth appeare any Gift Given in my Lifetime to any of my Children of Vallue thereof shalbe allowed to ye other Children Pportionable Signed Sealed Published and declared by the sd Garrett Vansweringen as his last will & testamt ye 25 day of Octobr 1698 in the presence of us Nicholas Croutch Willm Aisquith Thomas Grunwin Thos Sinnodd And at ye bottom of ye forgoeing Will was Written .... Endorsemts following vist Then Came Mr William Asquith and Mr. Thomas Grunwyn two of ye Wittnesses to this Will and made othe that they did See garrett Vansweringen ye Testator Signe Seale Publish and declare the within & above written to be his last Will and testament and the sd Garrett was at ye isuing thereof Was of Perfect and Sound Mind & Memory KENELM CHESELDYN March 20th 1698 Then did Mr Nicholas Crowtch another of ye Wittnesses to ye Within last Will and Testament Depose upon his Oath as ye other Witnesses above have deposed KENELM CHESELDYN =========================================================================== File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Elizabeth F. Randolph efrpac@mocty.com USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be freely used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. 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