In the Name of God amen, the Twelfth Day of December, 1746. I, William Bryan, of Craven County, & Provance of North Carolina, being Sick and weak In Body but of Parfect mind & Memory, Thanks be given unto God Therefore, Calling unto Mind the Mortality of My Body, and knowing that it is appointed for all men Once to Dye, Dow make & Ordain this my Last Will & Testament, That is to Say, principally & first of all, I Give & Recommend My Soul into the hands of God That Gave it, & my Body I Recommend to the Earth to be Buried in a Desent & Christian like burial at the Discretion of My Executors, Nothing Doubting but at the General Resurrection I Shall Receive the Same aGain by the mighty Power of God; and as Touching Such Worldly Estate Wherewith it hath pleased God to bless me with in this Life, I Give, Demise & Dispose of The Same in the following maner and form:
Item. I Give & Bequeath to Anne, My Dearly beloved Wife, one third part of my Negrews, and Likewise one third of all ye Rest of my Movable Estate, and the Use of the plantation I now Dwell on Dureing her Natureal Life.
Item. I Give & Bequeath the Remaining part of my Negrews & movable Estate to be Equally Devided amongst my Six Children, William Bryan, Elizabeth Bryan, Lewis Bryan, John Bryan, Anne Bryan, Jess Bryan, to them & their heir for Ever.
Item. I Give & bequeath to my well beloved Son, William Bryan, One hundred & Twenty five acors of Land the plantation I Now Dwell on, to him & his heirs for Ever.
Item. I Give and bequeath to my well beloved Son, John Bryan, One Hundred & Twenty five acors of Land, the one half of the Tract of Land I now Dwell on, known By the Name of kits Neck, begming at the Gut which the Cart bridge is Over & So Riming up to the head line, to him and his heirs for Ever.
Item. I Give & bequeath to my Well beloved Son, Lewis Bryan, One hundred acers of Land Lying upon the head of Smith Creek, which I Bought of Gunston Allen, known by The Name of Holley Neck, to him & his heirs for Ever.
Item. I Give & bequeath to My well beloved Son, Jesse Bryan, one Tract or persell of Land Lying upon the head of Goose Creek, Joyning upon Cohoons Savanah, Which I had of John Bryan, to him and his heirs for Ever.
I likewise Constitute Make and Ordain My Loving Wife, Anne Bryan, and my Brother, Joseph Bryan, and my Son, William Bryan, Executores of this my Last will & Testament, & I doe hereby Uterly Disallow of & Revoke & Disanull all former wills by me made, Confirming this & No Other to be My Last Will and Testament.
In witness Whereof, I have here unto Set My hand & Seal, the Day & Year above Writen.
William Bryan. (Seal)
Signed, Sealed, published, pro-
nounced, & Delivered by the Sd.
William Bryan, as his Last will &
Testament, In the Presents of us
the Subscribers:
Lazarus Pearse.
James Carraway.
William Carraway, Jun.
Craven County, ss.
At a Court of Comon Pleas begun & held at New Bern, the third Tuesday in June, Anno Domini, 1747, then the within will was Proved by the Oath of a Concuring Evidence thereto, & Joseph Bryan, Executor & Ann Bryan, Executrix of the said WIU Came into Court & took the Oaths by Law Appointed for their Qualification. Ordered that they have Letters Testamentary thereon
Will: Hedges: S: C. Cur.
Copied from Original Will filed in the Office of the Secretary of State.
Source: North Carolina Wills and Inventories, copied from Original and Recorded Wills and Inventories In the Office of the Secretary of State by J. Bryan Grimes, Secretary of State, Published 1912)
