Where there's a Will....

...there's a way to get to the Truth.

A new found elderly cousin related the story of  her Grandmother's will last week, she was rather bitter that her mother and siblings were only left a pittance while one brother and a man who had befriended the old lady got the bulk of the estate.

State Records NSW (our State Archives) is situated in Kingswood which is 50 kilometres to the west of Sydney CBD. While it is good that there is plenty of parking (once you get there) and lots of room for expansion but getting to the archives is a pain. It just so happened that I was going to have lunch in our Blue Mountains last Wednesday, a trip that took me along the Motorway past Kingswood.

State Records is out amongst the gum trees on the edge of Sydney

State Records NSW do a great job and, with the help of an army of volunteers, they have a number of Online Indexes to their holdings available.

State Records Online Indexes.

Remembering that they have indexed many Probate Files so I did a search for the Grandmother's file and was lucky to find that it was available. While I was at it I also found a Land Title file for the Grandmother's property. One can pay to have the files copied and sent but at $AU30 each I could think of other ways to spend my geneabudget.

The Reading Room at State Records

As I have a Reader's Ticket for State Records NSW I was able to order the files to be ready in the Reading Room when I visited. After spending time with my friends over lunch I set off for Kingswood arriving about 3:15pm. As the files were waiting for me I was able to get straight to work. It only took me around 45 minutes to read and digest their contents and to photograph the contents on both my camera and mobile phone (Back ups are important especially when Kingswood is so far away).

The File contained affadavits, receipts, a copy of the will, details of properties owned and an inventory of household goods and personal effects.

So what did the Probate Packet reveal? The one brother and the man who had befriended the old lady got a few extra bits and pieces like a piano and some furniture  and some of the grandchildren got odds and ends but the bulk of the estate was divided equally in five shares between the four living children of the grandmother with the fifth share going to the children of her fifth (deceased) child.

Since the Grandmother died in 1944 the story of her bequests to family members has become slightly twisted. The lesson here is that while elderly relatives can be great sources of information it is wise to check the facts via other available sources.

Part of the Inventory in the Probate Packet.

Slave Owners in the Family Tree

 This month my Progen homework was to transcribe and abstract a will. I chose the will of my maternal 3rd Great Grandmother Charity Stafford.
  Charity was the wife of Joshua Stafford and lived in Sumter District, South Carolina. Charity's parents and birth are unknown. Her will was written in February of 1839 and proved on 9 November 1840.

Last Will and Testament of Charity Stafford

    The following is the transcription of Charity's Will:

  In the name of God Amen. I Charity Stafford, of Sumter District, South Carolina, being in sound health and disposing mind, do make and publish this my last Will and testament.
Item, 1st it is my will that all my just debts be paid by the sale of my two negroes, Viz, Judia and her child, Bluford and the balance of the money arising from the sale of said negroes after my debts are paid together with my household furniture and all my stock to be equally divided between my two sons Lunsford C. Stafford and Hartwell Stafford.
Item 2nd I give and bequeath to my beloved Grand Daughter Barbary E Stafford my plantation whereon I now Live to be for the benefit of her father J Stafford till she my Granddaughter B E Stafford becomes of age, but not to be subject to any debts already or hereafter to be contracted either by her or any other person or persons.
Item 3rd I give and bequeath to my beloved Barbary Jones my three negroes, Viz, Robert, Molly, and Elmirah; during her lifetime, but not be subject to any debts already contracted, or that may hereafter be contracted by her or any other person, or persons.
And at her death, It is my wish that the three negroes (To wit) Robert, Molly, and Elmirah, together with their increase be given to her three children in the following manner Viz, I wish Hartwell E Jones to have Robert; and. Charity E Jones to have Molly with her increase; and Mary F Jones to have Elmyrah [sic] with her increase, and in case either of the children die before they become of age or marry their part of the negro is to go to the surviving one or ones, and neither the negroes nor their increase is to be liable for any debts now contracted or that may hereafter be contracted by any of the heirs or any other person or persons-(Turn over)

 In witnesses whereof I the Said Charity Stafford have to this my last Will and Testament set my hand and seal this the 16th day of Feby in the year of our Lord One Thousand Eight hundred and Thirty nine
her
Charity x Stafford (SEAL)
mark
Signed Sealed published and declared by the Said Charity Stafford as her last will and Testament in the presence of us who in her presents [sic] and at her request have here unto set our names as
witnesses
Noah Graham
Samuel P Hatfield
Alfred China

Recorded in Will Book D-2, Page 32
Sumter, South Carolina

 Judia and her child, Bluford to be sold to pay debts.
Robert, Molly and Elmirah and any children they may have to be given to her grandchildren. Human beings being sold and given away as property. So hard to comprehend.
Further in the probate package is a page listing some of Charity's "property" and the worth of each item. Listed just above the cattle and hogs are Judia, Buford, Robert, Molly and Elmirah.

Property List
Charity Stafford
Probate Package
Bundle 132, Pkge 2 pg.3
Sumter County, South Carolina

The 1840 Sumter County, South Carolina Federal Census shows 

Charity Stafford in a household most likely with the enslaved named in her will-

1 Female 70 & under 80,  2 male slaves under 10, 2 female slaves under 10, 1 female slave 24 & under 36.

Placing the names of those in the will with the ages from the census, it is probable that Judia was between 24 and 36. Her son Bluford was under 10 as were Robert, Molly and Elmirah.

 There is no record in the probate file for a sale of Judia and Bluford.

In 1842 there is an auction and it appears that even though the will of her mother Charity left her children the slaves Robert, Molly and Elmirah, Barbary Jones buys them when they are, according to the document, "sold to the highest bidder".
   

Charity Stafford
Probate Package 
Bundle 132, Pkge 2 pg.7
Sumter County, South Carolina

What became of Judia, Bluford, Robert, Mollie and Elmirah? Did the three 10 year olds stay with the Stafford and Jones families as Charity's will instructed? Were Judia and her son Bluford sold together or were they torn apart?
 Perhaps further research will locate them in family documents.
 Until then, adding the information contained in Charity Stafford's probate package to  The Slave Name Roll Project may be one way to discover what happened to them and reunite them with their families.
  We can't judge our ancestors for actions we don't understand or times we didn't live in. We can only gather and share the information we find.

Do you have slave owners in your family tree? How do you deal with this difficult subject while still honoring your ancestors?
  I would love to hear from you.

Cheri

Genealogy 2014 - 2015: Successes and Goals

Mary Peacock (nee Hugill)

After today, someone else is taking over my '31st-of-the-month' time-slot. My previous posts were about sources and strategies for family history worldwide. Today I want to reflect upon the highlights of 2014 and my goals for 2015.

In 2014, unforeseen events (ranging from a back injury to moving house) meant that there were many disruptions to my usual genealogical activities. A health scare reminded me that spending quality time with family and friends is more important than being an educator, a genealogy professional or a blogger!

Genealogical highlights of 2014:   (links open in a new window)

1. Collaboration via CuriousFox.  I have been swapping information with a distant relative who contacted me via CuriousFox. She sent me certificates and other information for our PEACOCK and HUGILL ancestors from Yorkshire, and confirmed that my Mary PEACOCK (nee HUGILL) died 17 Feb 1900 at Stockton-on-Tees, Durham, England.


2. New data via National Probate Calendar.  I found many relevant entries in the National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations, England and Wales 1858-1966). For some, I've already ordered copies of the wills. Others are on my wish list, but in the meantime they gave me locations, death dates, occupations and relationship details that helped with research in other sources.


3. New data via FindMyPast.  Many record sets released on FindMyPast during 2014 revealed new information for my family history. For example:
   
   • 'British in India' collection has 5 pension fund documents for Mary PORTER (a widow in England) with names and exact birth dates (between 1811 and 1821) for her five children.
   
   
   • Yorkshire collection has records such as parish registers and Bishop's Transcripts for my many family lines in that county.
   
   
   • Trade Union records refer to my John William CORDUEX in registers of two different railway unions.
   
   
   • New South Wales will books 1800-1952 in which I have already found 13 records for my family (including some people who lived outside NSW). I expect to find more when I do a systematic search for all names in my family tree.


4. Newspaper notices.  In the York Herald, Yorkshire Gazette and Sheffield Daily Telegraph (digitised and available via FindMyPast and the British Newspaper Archive) I found obituaries and other items for some of my families including HUDSON of Barton-le-Willows and BATTY of Bolton-upon-Dearne.


5. HUDSON family at Crows Nest.  I added another generation to the family tree after finding clues in Queensland funeral records and cemetery burial registers.

My genealogy goals for 2015:

• Change my priorities.  Spend more time on my own research and less time on answering emails from people who expect everything to be free!


• Share my knowledge more efficiently.  (1) Write more mini-guides.  (2) Use my Twitter page more often (because it is a quick way to share genealogy tips and links).


• Organise my records.  Before scanning or taking digital photos of all my family history material, I need to write down a 'style guide' for naming and filing the images. I will use a modification of the system described by Nancy Loe (a.k.a. 'Sassy Jane') in Cataloging Digital Family Photographs and Records and Organizing Genealogy Research Using Archival Principles. My paper filing system has always been source-based, so Louis Kessler's idea of a source-based incremental fix will suit me perfectly.


• Use DNA for genealogy.  I need to become more familiar with various tools for analysing DNA results, and to persuade more of my distant cousins to do the FamilyTreeDNA Family Finder test for autosomal DNA and the X-chromosome.


• Plan my genealogy cruise presentations.  Prepare my talks well in advance of Unlock the Past's 'Barrier Reef' cruise in March 2016. (You can get AUD$40 discount by quoting the code UTPC-WEB06 when you book any Unlock the Past cruise.)


• Research the HUGILL family.  My top priority is to find parents' names for Mary HUGILL (born c.1813, Hull, Yorkshire) and confirm that George HUGILL (born Hull, later of Stockton-on-Tees) was her brother. (Perhaps the wills and probate documents that I've ordered will help.)


• Write about my ancestors.  Many of those posts (which I will put in Jottings, Journeys and Genealogy) will be quite brief initially, but I'll update them as my research progresses. Hopefully people who read them will contact me and help fill the gaps in my knowledge.

Someone else is now taking over my '31st-of-the-month' time-slot, but watch for additions to my own blogs, which include UK / Australia Genealogy;  Genealogy Leftovers;  Queensland Genealogy;  and Jottings, Journeys and Genealogy.
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You might also like:

• Use FreeBMD postems to find new relatives


• CuriousFox: a gazetteer and message system


• Widen the Search: a Genealogy Success Story


• Finding Genealogy Data in an Unexpected Country


• A Genealogy Indexing Addict in Australia

(This post first appeared on http://worldwidegenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/12/genealogy-2014-2015-successes-and-goals.html.)

Finding Genealogy Data in an Unexpected Country

Image by David Castillo Dominici, FreeDigitalPhotos.net

In my first post I promised to show you how information about a particular family or individual can be found (perhaps unexpectedly) in another country. Here are a few of the many interesting examples that I have seen.

• Magdalene NIELSON died in America, but the State Archives in Queensland, Australia, have her probate file. It describes her as 'formerly of Bundaberg, Queensland, Australia, but late of the City of New York, USA; wife of Peter NIELSON (formerly of Bundaberg but at present of Copenhagen, Denmark)'. The file includes Magdalene's death certificate from America (giving her age, marital status, occupation, birthplace, how long in the USA, how long in New York City, names and birthplaces of her father and mother, her place and cause of death, and class of dwelling); and a transit permit for her body to go to Germany, stating the exact burial place there.


• Ellis READ owned land at Burketown, Queensland, Australia. When it was sold after his death, a grant of probate was required so that a certificate of title could be issued. The Supreme Court file at Queensland State Archives shows that he lived in Mexico from 1882 to 1890; and between 1887 and 1890 he made business trips to England and lived there for a few months at a time. He died in Mexico in 1890, but his widow did not apply for administration of his estate until ten years later. An affidavit gives a translation of details from his death certificate (age, cause of death, burial place, native place, occupation, wife's maiden name, father's name, mother's maiden name).


• Margaret STAPLETON died in Queensland, Australia, and her death certificate says 'born Ireland, parents names unknown'; but her probate file at Queensland State Archives reveals their names. In her will, Margaret left property to her sister Johanna in Ireland. As Johanna's surname was spelled incorrectly in the will, she had to prove that she was the person named as beneficiary. Johanna was unable to supply her birth certificate because her birth had not been registered. Instead she sent a copy of her baptism record from a parish register in England! It gave her father's name and mother's maiden name.


• Patrick DOWNEY was born in Tipperary, Ireland, and died at Cairns, Queensland, Australia. A Supreme Court equity file at Queensland State Archives says that his brother, John DOWNEY, died at Paterson, New Jersey, USA, in about 1884.


• James Edward BUTLER was born in Ireland. He was charged with wife desertion after he left his wife and six children in New Zealand. A few years later his wife was in Sydney, Australia, trying to find him. This information, plus a detailed physical description of James, appeared in a New South Wales Police Gazette. (Many Police Gazettes for various Australian States can now be searched online.)

There are entries for people from many parts of the world in:

1. Records described in 6 Genealogy Sources You May Have Overlooked.


2. Ancestry's collection of wills, administrations, probate records and death duty registers (including the National Probate Calendar for England and Wales)

~ ~
You might also like:

• Genealogy 2014 - 2015: Successes and Goals


• Use FreeBMD postems to find new relatives


• CuriousFox: a gazetteer and message system


• Widen the Search: a Genealogy Success Story


• A Genealogy Indexing Addict in Australia