Sampson County, NC - Will & Estate Records Reason Royal In the name of God Amen: I Rezin Royal of North Carolina, Sampson County, being of sound and disposing mind and memory do hereby make declare and decree this paper written to be and contain my last will and testament. Revoking all or any other by me at any previous time made. First: I require my executors (hereafter named) to bury my remains in a suitable & decent manner and to pay all my just debts of any kind and denomination. Second: I give and bequeath unto my beloved wife Catherine Royal the four following Negroes and their increase. Delcinda, age about 25 years and her three children: Isaiah age 6 years, Henry age about 4 years, and Amos age 2 years, to have and to hold to my wife Catherine and hers forever. Third: I give, devise & bequeath unto my beloved wife Catherine Royal during her natural life, my home plantation whereas is situated my tract adjoining the same which I received by the last will & testament of my deceased father, Young Royal and after her death the above named land to my grandson John D. Carver, who is the son of my beloved daughter Edith who is intermarried with David Carver of Cumberland County NC. Fourth: I give and devise & bequeath unto my beloved wife Catherine Royal all my household and kitchen furniture of every description. All of my stock of horses, hogs, sheep, and poultry of every kind whatsoever, all my crops and provisions of any kind. Excepting only one good bed and furniture out of my house hold furniture or there full value which my executors are required to reserve to my grandson John D. Carver, before mentioned. Fifth: I give, devise, and bequeath unto my beloved grandson John D. Carver (1843), son of David Carver (1813) and my beloved daughter Edith (1811), now his wife, one tract of land known as the Wiley Herrings place to him and his heirs forever. But if the said John D. Carver should die before arriving at the age of 21 years, then the above named land is to go to the two brothers of the said John, namely Alexander (1838) and Josiah Carver (1845) and their heirs forever. Also I give, devise, and bequeath unto my grandson John D. Carver all my other lands after the death of my beloved wife who has been granted her life estate in the same. Also, I give, devise, and bequeath unto my beloved grandson John D. Carver (1843) all my Negroes not before granted to wife. To him & his heirs forever, under the following conditions, these Negroes intended for my grandson John D. Carver are left to my wife for her use and benefit until my grandson arrive at the age of 21 years. My wife awing this time being hereby required to educate & maintain my said grandson John D. Carver provided with my wife until that time that time if however he should leave or be taken away without my wife’s consent, then she is not to bound by his schooling or support, assuming the before mentioned age of his majority. Again, assuming my said grandson John D. Carver should not arrive at the age of twenty-one, then I give, devise, and bequeath all the Negroes intended for my grandson John D. Carver to his two brothers, Alexander and Josiah Carver to them & their heirs forever. Sixth: I hereby require and command my executor to first pay and discharge each debt as I may leave behind me unpaid. Wherever my friends Thomas I. Morrisey & William Ashford may be security or in any way be able for me attain in bank or to individuals. And for the payment of what debts I may leave. I hereby require my executors to sell any and all my other property before reaching the four Negroes granted to my wife Catherine. Seventh: I give, devise, and bequeath unto my three sons: Young (1813), Josiah (1815), & John Royal (1817) five dollars each to paid by my executors when called upon by my sons in person. Eighth: I hereby nominate and appointed my trusty relative John Royal Esquire & my beloved wife Catherine Royal Executors to this my Last Will and Testament. August 1849. Signed & Delivered in presences of Thomas Morrisey and Frank Roberts. /s/ Resin Royal Probated November Term, 1854. W.R. Beaman CK. NOTE: The key player in this will (John D. Carver) was six years old when this will was written. He was 11 years old when Reason Royal died and 21 during the heart of the Civil War in 1864. In the 1860c grandson John D. Carver was not living with Catherine. Not included in the will was Reason’s youngest who was dead. She was Mary Royal 1817-Sept 1832. Catherine Williamson was Reason’s 2nd wife. His first wife was Elizabeth Sykes 1786-1832. Catherine was born 1802 and died in c1880. She lived off hw 421 north of Clinton NC. When I was growing up the place had a fork and two stores. One was mostly farm stuff. The place was called Kitty Fork and named after Catherine “Kitty” Royal who lived nearby. The best that I can tell, John D. Carver never lived with his step grandmother. In 1852 his grandfather David Carver died and left a store. Alexander Carver and John D. Carver were clerks in the store in 1860. John D. Carver enlisted in Co. B of the 56th NC Regiment during the Civil War and he served three years and was a POW at Camp Lookout MD for some time. David Carver Jr. died before 1860. Edith Carver was then head of the house. In 1870 Catherine Royal was living alone. I do not see a condition in the will that John D. Carver was not to get the land if he did not live with Catherine. John D. Carver was just a child of six when the will was written. He was a man of 38 when Catherine died. It is not known to me if he got the land but it is quite clear, he kept no part of the bargain. The three sons of Reason as listed in the Will: $5 to be paid when called for in person. This means that they had moved away or had got their due. Young R. Royal, then 36, is located in Arkansas in 1850 with a wife Elizabeth age 17 with two small children age two and one. I could not find them in any other US Census. I could not locate Josiah Royal in any census. He must have died away and his family did not know it. Son John is in the 1850c for Sampson and living with Catherine Royal in 1860. His wife died before 1860. __________________________________________________________________________ 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. 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