Hunterdon-Mercer County NJ Archives Wills.....James SMITH, February 10, 1810 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/nj/njfiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Julia Lee juliareads@gmail.com January 3, 2010, 4:50 pm Source: Nj Wills & Inventories File 2498j Written: February 10, 1810 Recorded: 1810 A transcription of the 1810 will of James Smith of Maidenhead, NJ from NJ Wills & Inventories File 2498J In the name of God Amen I James Smith of the township of Maidenhead in the county of Hunterdon& State of New Jersey farmer being in an infirm state of health but of sound & disposing mind & memory & considering the uncertainty of life & the certainty of death do make ordain Constitute & appoint this to be my last Will & Testament First I Commit my soul to Almighty God & my body to the Earth to be buried in a plain & decent manner at the direction of my Executor herein of the named As to my Worldly Estate wherewith it hath pleased Almighty God to bless me with I give & dispose thereof as follows This: my wearing apparel I give & devise to my Sons in Law Thomas Stevens & John Pharis equally_________________ Then I give & bequeath to my dear & well beloved wife Charity one fourth part of my Moveable Estate / excluding my wearing apparel in full for her Right of Dower & also one fourth part of the Real or Landed Estate including Buildings during her remaining my widow, the back bed room in my house is to be entirely for her use. Then I give devise & bequeath to my daughter Hannah Stevens the wife of Thomas Stevens one fourth part of Removable Estate / excluding my wearing apparel / and Also one fourth part of my Real or Landed Estate including the Buildings to hold to my said Daughter Hannah & to her heirs & assigns forever Then I give devise & bequeath to my Daughter Mehatable the wife of John Pharis one fourth of my Moveable Estate / excluding my wearing apparel / & Also one fourth part of my Real Estate or Landed Estate including the Building to hold to my said Daughter Mehatable & to her heirs & assigns forever Then the Rest & Residue of my moveable Estate & Landed Real Estate I give devise & bequeath to Thomas Stevens Israel Stevens Executors in this my Will & the Survivors of them in formal trust for the use & benefit of my daughter Sarah Smith during her life the wife of Asher Smith to be distributed to her as they shall think proper & the benefit only to be taken therefore in which her husband is not at any time to have any part of or benefit from my Estate Then I give devise & bequeath the one fourth part of my Landed Estate/ after the expiration of the widow hood of my said wife / herein before mentioned given to my said wife during her remaining my widow / to my three daughters before mentioned to be divided to & for the benefit of each as in each devise to them Hannah, Mehatalbe to them their heirs and assigns forever the other to my Executors for the use of my daughter Sarah during her life & at her death that part therein before mentioned for her benefit use one third part of my Landed Estate I give devise & bequeath to Metable Smith & Elizabeth Smith the daughter of my daughter Sarah to their heirs & assigns forever as Tenants in Common and as joint tenants And(?) if any part or what was part of my moveable Estate herein mentioned to be for the use & benefit of my daughter Sarah shall remain unassigned at her death my Executors are to divide equally between her two daughters after which I do hereby unto them under the C______? of & I hope & trust that the foregoing is sufficient to explain my meaning on the division & the bequeath of my Estate & I impart_?_ the utmost harmony to _? __ between my wife & Children but as my daughter Sarah’s husband may assume? To get some part of my Estate from his wife or the Executors / as he is not to be trusted with any part / so I hereby charge my Executors not to let him have any part thereof but to be accountable to my said Daughter Sarah only as the then use as a widow Lastly I nominate Constitute & assign my son in Law Thomas Stevens & his brother Israel Stevens Executor of this my last Will & Testament instructing them to see that my Will is performed according to my directions. I do hereby Revoke all former Will by me therefore made codifying this one and no other to be my last will & Testament In Testimony whereof I have put my hand & seal this tenth day of February in the year of our Lord one thousand and Eight Hundred & ten. Signed noted published pronounced & devised(?) by his hand James Smith To be his last Will & Testament in the purpose of us who by his request & ? Wittnessed _?_ our names as Whitnesses hereunto – during his life - ?his whitnesses James Smith Witnessed by her Ann Slack mark Benjamin Vancleve Jasper Smith This will was transcribed by Julia Lee and in a few instances I was unable to make out the intended word. This has been indicated by _?_. The document lacks punctuation that we would expect today and I have left it the way it was written as best as I could determine. James Smith was born July 3, 1709 & died Dec. 1810. He was the third child of Thomas Smith and Hannah Hunt. Charity Pitney was his second wife; Mehitabel was his first wife. For more about James Smith and his family refer to the Lewis Cook article “The Smith Family of Bedford, NY and Maidenhead, NJ” in The Genealogical Magazine of NJ, May 1971, vol. 46. See page 128 where he is listed as 27c. 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