Will of Charles Connors
In
the name of God Amen, I Charles Connors of Clarendon and State of South
Carolina, Planter being infirm of body, but sound in mind, and Wishing as far
as pofsible to adjust my Worldly concerns do make and declare this to be my
last Will and Testament. hereby revoking and annulling all others
First
I recommend my Soul to God, the giver, and my Body to be intered at the
discretion of my Executors in the Burial ground long side my Children
Item It is my will and desire, That my funeral
charges and all my Just debts and Contracts be first paid and Complied with, by
my Executors to be hereafter nominated
Item I lend to my beloved Wife Elizabeth during
her natural life, the use of my Dwelling House, out Buildings and Lands whereon
they are Situated, Containing Eight hundred and Thirty six & three fourth
Acres, bought of Capt I.N. Johnson, with the privilege of working her hands on
lands bought of Brinkly Corbett containing five hundred & Eighty four Acres
part of which Lands is now enclosed and Cultivated, and Eleven Slaves, as named
Billy, Hannah, Jerry, Wife Dinah &
Child Peggy, Statira & four of her children, Lizy, Mary ann Isaac and
Margaret and Susanna a child of Lucretia, and the use of the Stock of Cattle,
hogs and goats on this plantation, my four Wheel Carriage and Carriage Horses,
Household & Kitchen furniture, and Charlotte to remain Cook if Tis my
wife’s desire and Sophia to be waiter in the house as heretofore, and after the
death of my Wife, Tis my will and desire That the above named Tracts of Lands
be given to my Son Mathew Henry to be to him and his lawful heirs forever, but
will be subject to be worked and Cultivated, by the Undivided Slaves, as noted
below for him and his Brother Julius Augustus, And the Slaves, that she my Wife
Elizabeth may be pofsesfed of at her Death shall be Equally divided among my
Children born of her, Share and Share alike, but the property of the Stock of
all kinds, with the furniture above mentioned, with the Carriage & horses
&c is to be Equally divided among the whole of my Children share and share
alike to be to them & their lawful heirs forever
Item I give to my beloved Daughter Elizabeth
Henrietta Henry, the girl Slave Juliet long sence In her pofsefsion with her
Increase, Also Eight Slaves Named, Morris & his Wife Sabina & six of
their Children, Betty, Sheppard, Milton, Morris, Abel & Agnes which is also
in her pofsefsion sence last January twelve months to be to her & the
lawful heirs of her body forever
Item I give to my beloved Son William John, The
Boy Slave State, long sence in his pofsefsion as compensation made him, for the
many years use of Cultivating his lands without his Charging Rent for the same,
Also give him Eight Slaves as Named, Joe & his wife Phillis, & their
Child Jack, Emperor & his Wife Molly, Emma & Parris a Child of Statira
& Amanda a Child of Lucretia to be to him & his Lawful heirs forever
Item I give to my beloved Son Charles Peter,
Eight Slaves as named July & his Wife Harriet & their three children,
Independence, Sarah & Clarifsa, Stephen, United & Penelope, with Lands,
if I should Succeed in making a purchase of a Certain piece of Land I have in
view for him if not, will give him Eight hundred dollars in lieu of Lands, to be to him and his lawful heirs
forever
Item I give to my beloved Son Jared Banks, one
moity or part of a Tract of land in Lancaster District whereon my Summer
residence is established Containing nine hundred and thirty nine acres Tis the
North East part of said land, is what I desire here. Reserving the other part of said land for Another Son, as will be
shown hereafter, Also give him Eight Slaves as named, Ben & his Wife
Lucretia & five of their Children, Juliet, Margaret, Dorcus, Hannah and
Lucretia, & William to be to him and his lawful heirs forever
Item I give to my beloved Daughter, Esther Sophia,
That Tract of land, bought of _.C. Dukes For four hundred Acres more or lefs,
and Eight Slaves as named, Peter & his Wife Sally & their four
Children, Nanny Nero, Peter and Ellen , Sammy and Susannah Sen.r to be to her
& the Lawful heirs of her body forever
Item I give to my beloved Son Thomas Harvey one
Tract of Land bought of Asa Rhame on Taw Caw Containing, by resurvey Twelve
hundred thirty nine acres with the improvements thereon, and Eight Slaves as
named Robin & his wife Rosilla & their five Children, Celia, Patience,
Anthoney, Serena and Robin and Sharper a son of Statira’s to be to him and his
lawful heirs forever
Item I give to my beloved George Washington one
Moity or part of a Tract of Land in Lancaster District, whereon my Summer
residence is established, Containing nine hundred & thirty nine acres Tis
the south west part of said Tract of Land and includes all the Buildings,
Fences and Cleared land thereon, and
trust that those two sons, will cause the dividing line made to the satisfaction
of both parties, and nine Slaves as named Violet & three of her Children
David, Lucy & Primus, Pagan & his Wife Fanny, Carloine & her Child
Milly & Tom the shoe maker to be to him and his lawful heirs forever
Item I give to my beloved Son Julius Augustus,
one Tract of Land bought of Estate John Greening, Containing two hundred and
Eighty three acres, and if I am spared to purchase a piece of land that I have in view will give him more Lands if not
will give him five hundred Dollars, and when his younger Brother Matthew Henry
arrives at the age of twenty one years he will be intitled to one half of the
Undivided Slaves, that are noted below to be to him and his lawful heirs
forever.
Item I give to my beloved son Matthew Henry all
those two Tracts of Lands whereon we now live, but will be subject to my Wife’s
Dower during her natural life, but after her death to be his property, with one
half of the Slaves named below, as undivided property, when he arrives at the
age of twenty one years, to be to him and his lawful heirs forever
Note Here follows the names of the Undivided
Slaves, Charlotte & four of her Children, Robert Edmond, John and Sophia,
Mirer & her five Children, Jane, Nelly, Martha, Hannah and Milly Abigail
& her two Children, Murrier & Cylinda, Teener a Child of Sabin Yellow
Joe and Sam the black smith, Seventeen in number
Item Tis my will & desire, That my Son
Thomas H after being put in pofsefsion of the above named Property, should pay
to my Daughter Esther S Three hundred & fifty dollars, for the purpose of
putting their Landed property mor on an Equal Valuation, Well knowing this more
to his Interest to pay her that sum, then for me to cause any division of that
Tract of Land left to him
Item It is my Will and desire, that should any
of my Children die under age, or without leaving lawful heirs, such property as
they rec.d by my Will, is to be taken & Divided Equally among my surviving
Children share & shar alike to be to them & their Lawful heirs forever.
No further distribution of property than what I have heretofore made. Shall
take place among my Children after my death, till all my just debts &
contracts be first paid and Complied with, then & in that Case, I wish for
my Executors to give off those portions of Property as are named above, and
should my Mill Plantation that Tract of Land on Black River bought of Wm Lloyd
be not sold by my self, then I wish for my Executors to Dispose of them to the
best advantage & when infunds for the same, I wish then to divide the
money, among the whole of my Surviving Children, Share & Share alike to be
to them & their Lawful heirs forever
Note I here give my reasons for bequeathing more
Lands to my Son Matthew H- than to other Children first because there have been
lefs money expended to Educate him, Secondly because it Cannot be Apertain’d
what may be the Clairing of Lands going on here, during his minority, or length
of time may pafs away, before he obtains a fee simple, besides a large portion
of this land is Unfit for Cultivation
Lastly
I nominate and Appoint my Trusty & beloved friends William C. Dukes,
William J. Connors, Thomas H. Connors & George W Connors to Execute this my
last will & Testament
As
witnefs my hand & Seal this third day of May one thousand Eight hundred and
thirty six
Chas
Connors (SEAL)
Signed
and Sealed in the presence of
Thos
Chewning
Richard
W Chewning
Mathew
H Connors
Codicil
I
Charles Connors, in the foregoing last Will and Testament having further
Considered the same, do think proper to make and publish the following Codicil
Or addition thereto, as having succeeded in purchasing the Lands from my Son
William J Connors I then had in Contemplation, when my will was made, and
exprefsed therein and whereas, those two Tracts of Land, Containing 1064 Acres
as represented by a resurvey, do make it Known, that tis my Will and desire
that those lands be Divided in the following manner, To Wit, that all the land
lying East & South of the Public Road, which pafseth through both Tracts
are to be given to my son Chas P Connors with the Primises thereon in lieu of
the Eight hundred Dollars set down in the Will aforesaid, to be to him &
his lawful heirs, and all the other part of said two Tracts of lands Lying
North & West of said Road is to be given to my Son Julius Augustus in lieu
of the five hundred Dollars set down in the Will aforesaid to be to him &
his lawful heirs, And shewing that the Public Road is the Dividing line between
them two Sons, Neverthelefs, these two Tracts of lands has not a full fee
simple Conveyed with them, as I intend them to be Keep’d in my family’s name,
to the end of time, that this my present residence be occupied or owned by any
of my family and Name, And do herewith Authorize & empower my Executors to
make null & void any Sale of those lands or any part thereof shpuld they be
offered for sale to any Person or Persons whatsoever of a Different name or
family then that of a Connors
Witnefs
my hand & Seal this 10th Day of June, one thousand Eight hundred
& Thirty seven
Chas
Connors (SEAL)
Signed
and Sealed in presence of
Thos
Chewning
Richard
W Chewning
Math.
H Connors
Codicil
#2
I
Chas Connors in the foregoing or Annexed last Will & Testament having
Further Considered the same, do think proper to make and Publish the following
Codicil or addition thereto, and where as, my son Chas P Connors, has thought
it advisable to dispose of all the property I gave him Pofsefsion of, as are
stated in his receipt given me, on the 18th day of Jany 1839- and
from which Cause, I became again pofsefsed of said Tract of Land, Therefore be
it known, That tis my Will & desire that said land be given to my two Sons
Julius Augustus and Matthew Henry Connors & to be Divided Between them, in
the following manner, That Julius Augustus is to take the part whereon the
Buildings are Located, Say the Southwest side of the little hungry hall Branch
& Matt.ew Henry to have the other part of said Land, lying to the North
East side of said branch, making the run of the Creek of said branch, the
dividing line between them, to be to them & their lawful heirs forever—but
enjoins, on them both, never to make Sale of this Land, during their residence,
or the holding the fee simple of other Lands Adjoining, and in Lieu of the Land
now given them, I take from them, one share alloted to them, Say Teener a young
wench a Daughter of Sabina, who is now in the Pofsefsion of my Daughter E H
Henry, and now Sheweth That tis my Will & desire to give to my said
Daughter E H Henry the said young wench Teener, to be to her & her lawful
heirs forever—And do further make it known to my Executors, That tis my Will
& desire That after my Death & when they are infunds from my Estate,
That, they do pay to my Grand Son Charles Christopher Connors one gold Watch,
Worth one hundred & fifty dollars to be to him & his lawful heirs
forever—And whereas, I have become a Stochholder in the Louisville Cincinnati
and Chas.ton Rail Road Company, for ten shares, and has also taken up ten
shares in the Rail Road Bank, Wm C Dukes Esq.r of Chas.ton my agent, in said
businefs, and should those works be Completed in my life time or afterwards,
then &
in
that case I wish my Executors to have the Shares divided among my Children in
the following manner To Wit: First I give to my Daughter, E. H. Henry, one share
in the Rail Road and one share in the Rail Road Bank, secondly I give to my son
Wm. J. Connors two Shares in the Rail Road & two shares in the Rail Road
Bank, Thirdly I give to my Son Chas P. Connors one Share in the Rail Road, and
one Share in the Rail Road Bank,
Fourthly I give to my Son Jared Banks Connors one Share in the Rail Road
& one share in the Rail Road Bank, Fifthly I give to my Daughter Esther S
Connors, one Share in the Rail Road, & one share in the Rail Road Bank,
Sixthly, I give to my Son Thomas H Connors one Share in the Rail Road & one
share in the Rail Road Bank, Seventhly I give to my Son George W. Connors one
Share in the Rail Road & one share in the Rail Road Bank, Eighthly I give to my son Julius Augustus
Connors one Share in the Rail Road & one Share in the Rail Road Bank,
Ninthly I give to my son Matthew H. Connors one Share in the Rail Road &
one share in the Rail Road Bank, to be
to them and their lawful heirs forever— And leave it Discretional, with my
Executors, if practical, to divide by Shares, if not, to sell the Stock &
divide the money--
Witness
my hand and Seal this 28th day of February 1839--
Chas
Connors (SEAL)
Signed
and Sealed in presence of
Theophilus
Chewning
Matthew
H. Connors
Recorded
in Will book D- 2 page 81
Recorded
13th day of April 1843
W.
Lewis Ordy
Bundle
115 Pkge 3