In the Name of God Amen, this 25ttu day of June, in the Year of our Lord Christ, 1751- I, James Wood, Sener, of the North wess Parish in Northampton County, in the Province of North Carolina, being of perfect mind & memory, Thanks be given to almighty God therefore, calling into mind the mortality of my body, and knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die, I do make & ordain this my Last will and Testament, that is to say, Principally & first of all, I give & recommend my soul into the hands of God that gave it me; & my body I recommend to the Earth to be Buried in a decent Christian Buriall at the discretion of my Executors hereafter named,, nothing doubting but at the generall 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 in this life, I give, demise & dispose of the same in the following manner and form:
Imprimis, I Lend to my,beloved wife, Elezabeth wood, two Negros Named Pompy & Hanner, induring her widowhood, and after her marriage, I give pompy to my Daughter, Elezabeth Wood, & hanner to my Daughter, Susannah Wood; and I give unto my Wife all my share of the stock of hogs that John Parker leves for me and the rent of that Plantation whereon be now Lives. I likewise Lend to my Wife, Elezabeth Wood, one bed and furniture, one Iron pott & pott hooks, one peuter dish & Bason, two Plates, Six Spoons & five cows & calves, Induring the time of her Naturall Life; & after her decease I give it to my Youngest Daughter, Mary Wood-Item, I Give unto my beloved Son, Jame Wood, the Plantation whereon he lives, with all my Lands lying upon the North Side of Cuttowhisky marsh & half the pasture; & I give unto my Son, James wood, another tract of Land lying upon Cuttowhisky Swamp, begining at the mouth of tare arse Branch, and runing up the swamp to the head Line, the down the branch to the first Station, containing 250 acres, be the said more or less; and I give unto my Son, James Wood, a Plantation lying on the head of Tar River, on both sides of the river, with all the Land belonging thereto; & five Negros named will and tony & Bob and dick & young peter; and one Shilling Serling.
Item, I give unto my daughter, Mary Outlaw, one Shilling, Sterling-Item, I Give unto my Daughter, Sarah Duffield, one Shilling, Sterling.
Item, I Give to my Son, Moses Wood, one Shilling, Sterling.
Item, I Lend to my Daughter, Rosannah Bond, one Negro Girl named Jude she and her increase, during of her Naturall Life, then to the lawful! Heirs of her Body; & for want of such heirs shall return & be equally divided between my three sons here named, James, Joseph & Jonas; & I give to my Daughter, Rosannah Bond, one Shilling, Sterling.
Item, I Give unto my Son, Joseph Wood, a tract of Land lying upon Cuttowhisky Swamp, containing 650 acres of Land, be same more or less, begining at the mouth of the hog pen branch and miring along a line of markt trees to horsky marsh, & the including all the lands up the said marsh and swamp to tare arse branch; and Six Negroes, old peter and Cader, roben & rose, pat and fillis, they, and their increase for ever; and twenty pounds in cash; and one Bay horse and my great trooping Saddle.
Item, I give unto my Son, Jonas Wood, Plantation whereon I now Live, bounded as followeth: begining at the mouth of hog pen branch, runing aforesaid line of marked trees to ahorsky marsh, and all my land on the South side of Cuttowhisky marsh, and half the pasture; Likewise, Six Negros, named Cudger & Venus, & Jack, & pegg, nead & nan, they, and their increase for ever; and one Horse, & my rifield gun, and my still; & if either of my sons, Joseph Wood or Jonas Wood, dies without heir, the Land to fall to the other.
Item, I give unto my Daughter, Elezabeth Wood, two Negros named Tom & Jenny, they, & there increase for ever.
Item, I give my daughter, Susannah Wood, two Negros named hardy & Cate, they, & there increse for ever.
Item, I do leave my Plantation and land at the head of Coniritratt to the use of my three sons, James, Joseph and Jonas.
Item, I give unto my daughter, Winny Wood, 50 Pounds in Cash, and two Negros Nel & Scipio, the, & there mcrese for ever.
Item, I give unto my Youngest daughter, Mary Wood, 50 Pounds in Cash, and two negros named wicket & lucia, they, & there increase for ever.
Item, I lend unto my sister, Sarah Killingsworth, one negro Girl named dinah During her naturall life, she and her increase; and after her decease I give the said Girl to her two Youngest Daughters, Ann & Charity, to be equally divided betwen them.
and all the rest of my Estate, Stock of Creatures, Household Goods, Debts & moveablc effects, I leave to be equally divided amongst my Children here named: Joseph & Jonas, Elezabeth & Susannah, by my Executors which are my two Sons, Joseph Wood and Jonas Wood, whome I constitute & make and ordain Sole Executors of this myLast Will and Testament, and I do hereby utterly disallow, revoke and disannull all and every other former Testaments, wills, leagaces, bequeaths and Executors, by in any ways before named, Willed and bequeathed, ratifying and confirming this, and no other, to be my last Will and Testament.
In Witness whereof, I hereunto set my Hand and Sealed, the day and year above written.
his
James Wood W (L S)
mark
Signed, Sealed and Delivered
by the said James Wood as his
Last Will and Testament in the
Presents of us the Subscribers:
his
Barnaba X Baggott.
mark
his
John X Perker.
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Wm Fryer.
In Obedience to your Excellency's Command I went to the Hous of William Fryer and took the Deposition of his Oath as followeth; William Fryer, aged about forty five years, first sworn, and then saith: I was At the hous of James Wood in July or August, in the year one thousand, seven hundred & fifty one, & James Wood was in a Low- State of health and he told me he had made his will and he desired me to Witness it, he told me he had two witness to it and they never had heard it read, and he ordered his son to fetch lite will and Read it to me, and to the hbooshold, and after it was Head he takes the Will and Laid it down and took the pen and said to me that was his Last will and testament, and in the presents of the said Fryer he signed, Sealed and acknowlcdg this to be his last will and testament, and that he see Barnaba Baggotts mark and John Perkers mark before he witnesseth, and then he witnesseth underneath and that he acknowledged that to be his hand, and further saith not. March 18, 1752.
Taken before me, John Alston.
North Carolina, Edenhouse, 26 March, 1752.
I, Gabriel Johnston, Esqr., Governor and Comander in Chief, &c, in and over the sd. Province of North Carolina, do hereby Certifie that this day Personally appeared before me John Perker, one of the Subscribing Evidences of the within last Will & Testament of James Wood, late of Northampton County, Deed., and made Oath that he saw the sd. Testator sign. Seal & deliver the same as & for his last Will & Testament, and that at the signing thereof he was of sound and disposing mind & memory; and likewise at the same time the annexed Deposition of William Fryer, taken by Virtue of a Dedimus to John Alston. Esq., of Chowan County, directed was produced to me as farther proof of the sd. last Will & Testament of the sd Testator, the sd. William Fryer being another of the Evidences thereto; and likewise at the same time Joseph Wood one of the Executors appointed by the said Will, qualified himself as Executor, by taking the Oath appointed by Law for that purpose.
Gab. Johnston.
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)
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