Joseph Roberts Will 1777 – Orange County VA ************************************************************************ USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. ************************************************************************ In the Name of God Amen; I Joseph Roberts of the Parish of Saint Thomas in the County of Orange being of presant mind and sound memory and calling to mind the uncertainty of Human life do make this my last will and testament first I commit my soul into the hands of Almighty God trusting in his mercy and in the merits of my redeemer for the remission of all my sins my Body I commit to the earth to be buried at the Discretion of my Executor hereafter named. & as to my temporal Estate I bequeath and Dispose of it in the following manner. First item I give and Bequeath to my Beloved wife Elouise*1 Roberts one young Bay mare with one Eye between Three and four years of --*2 I w---*3 one cow her Choice of my Stock and one bed her choice And one large Iron pott and Hooks forever to do with as she Thinks proper and also the use of the Land and plantation Whereon I now live for one year after my decease. Then my will is that Ephriam -----*4 Should have the Land I sold him that is to say all the Lands Lying between the said S----*5's line and a branch Called Barbary's Branch upon the North fork to the head-- -- (a long dashed line) Then my will is that all the rest of my Estate both real and Personal Should be sold to the highest Bidder or bidders and after my just debts are paid to be Equally divided between my said wife Elioner Roberts and her Children hereafter name that is to say; Margery Roberts; Elioner Fryquel, Susanah Roberts, Reuben Roberts; Molley Roberts; Patcy (or Darcy) Roberts, Pricilla Roberts and Jeremiah Bruce Roberts my Grandson by Elizabeth Roberts and I do hereby Constitute and appoint my Beloved wife Eleonor Roberts and my son Reuben Roberts my joint Executors of This my last will and testament; and I hereby utterly revoke and Di----*6 all former *7requests and Legacies by me heretofore In any ways left (?) or made declaring this and no other to be my last will and tesament*8 In Witness whereof I have hereunto Set my hand and seal this twenty first day of October Anno Dom. 1777 In presence off [sic] Wm Bell James Beazly Joseph Roberts his mark X Charles Smith At a Court held for Orange County on Thursday 22 June 1780 This last will and testament of Joseph Roberts Decd being Presented unto Court was proved by the oaths of William Bell and James Beazly two of the witnesses thereto and ordered to be Recorded Teste James Taylor, C. O. C. *Note #1 this name is spelled differently in each case where it is written. *Note #2 'obo' or 'ob.'? *Note #3 'wood'? *Note #4 'Soranils' *Note #5 'Sernands' *Note #6 looks like 'Divoonub' *Note #7 should be 'bequests' *Note #8 tesament should be testament Copyright Julia Ryden 5th great granddaughter Joseph and Eloise Roberts