Person:James Unknown (3)

Will Transcript

Will of James Dickey

In the name of God amen, I James Dickey of Peters Township County of Franklin and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania being weak in body but in sound understanding memory and judgement and sensible of the fragility of life and the certainty of death, do on this eighth day of December in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and one, make and ordain this my last will and testament, and in the first place I do commit my soul into the hands of my gracious redeemer and my body to the grave in the hope of a blessed resurrection, hereafter, by the power of Jesus Christ; and as to the worldly goods with which it has pleased God to endue me in this life I do will and bequeath and give them, in the manner and form following. viz.

I will & bequeath unto my beloved wife Rebecca the one half of this house in which I live, the half of the kitchen and half of the garden adjoining, all, according to her choice; Also all my household furniture, except two beds and their furniture, which are prepared for my two sons, also my negro man ceasar, my mulatto boy Dick, and my negro girl Hannah; also sufficient keeping for one horse and two cows on this farm; also the one third part of all my remaining personal estate, not hereafter disposed of in this instrument; and also the one third part of all the benefits arising from all my real estate in this county; and it is my will that this last mentioned item viz. the third part of the profits of my real estate in this county and the bequests of the half of the house, kitchen & garden and keeping of a horse & two cows aforesaid shall be, to her, during her natural life; and all the other bequests to her, shall be to her heirs or assigns__forever.

Also I will and bequeath unto my son John under the reserves or restrictions in favour (sic) of my wife, and as hereinafter mentioned, all that my planation tract of land which I bought of Robert Dickey; and all that part of my planation and tract of land, which I bought of Robert Montgomery which lies west of a right line which I allow to be run from, a white oak corner between these two tracts being the most southwardly corner of the land I bought from Robert Dickey, and running from them the same of the line of the last mentioned tract, south six degrees east till it strike the southern boundary of the said Montgomery tract opposite to William Hays house.

Also I bequeath unto my son John the equal half part of my tract of mountain land adjoining the land of John Speer in the Township containing one hundred & seventy five acres, which half is to be laid off to him from the north end of the said tract. Also, the one half of the undivided two thirds of a Tract of Land of near one hundred acres lying on Scrub Ridge in Bedford County, called the copper ore bank, which I hold in partnership with John Dickey. Also, the one equal, upper, half part of a tract of Land of two thousand acres which I hold on the branch of the river Miami, called Ceasars creek, in the Northwestern Territory, to be divided by a line running outwards & from the creek & parallel to the end lines of the the said tract, so as to divide the whole into two equal parts.

I also will and bequeath unto my son John my equal and undivided ? of three thousand six hundred and ten acres of land lying on the Ohio river in the state of Kentucky which I hold in partnership with James Buchannon Esq. of this county. Also I will and bequeath unto my son John my negro boy Allek, also a bed and its furniture; also the one third part of my personal Estate except that which is herein particularly mentioned to my wife; Also I will and bequeath unto him the sum of thirty pounds annually to be paid to him, out of the profits of the mill, for three years by my son James, to commence in two years after my decease: And I well and appoint that all these aforesaid legacies to my son John shall be to him, his heirs and assigns forever.

I will and bequeath unto my son James under the reserves in favour (sic) of his mother all my plantation on which I now live with the mill and all its other appurtenances and also in connection with the said plantation and tract of land, the fifty acres which I bought of William Donaldson, containing the meadow on Conococheaques Creek and also also all that part of the plantation and tract of land which I bought from Robert Montgomery, which lies east of the line (mentioned as follows & required to be run, in the bequest to my son John from the aforementioned white oak corner, of said tract, South six degrees by east, to its southern boundary opposite to William Hays’ house;__Also the equal ? or half part of the aforesaid tract of mountain land adjoining John Speers land in this Township, to be laid off toward the south end of the same. Also the half part of the undivided two thirds of the aforesaid tract near one hundred acres of land on Scrub Ridge in Bedford County, which I hold in partnership with John Dickey, called the copper ore bank; Also the one equal half part of the before mentioned tract of two thousand acres of land lying on Ceasars Creek, a branch of the river Miami in the Northwestern Territory, the lower half of the said tract, divided as ordered, in the bequest to my son John.

Also I will & bequeath to my son, James, the one fourth undivided part of five thousand nine hundred acres of land lying on Molins Creek in Hardin County in the state of Kentucky which I hold in partnership with Doctor Robert Johnston, and James Buchannon Esq. of this county. Also I bequeath unto my son James one bed and its furniture, my negro boy bill, two horse colts of this year, also the one third part of all my personal estate not herein otherwise disposed of. Further, that the water of the run, here may never be interrupted from coming freely to the mill bequeathed to my son James. I will and bequeath unto my said son James the free and full use of the same from its source, that he may have power to preserve it whole and entire and cause it to run constantly at its natural rate, and freely and lawfully to remove any obstruction which may prevent it from doing so; at the same time, that I do allow and give unto my son John, his heirs or assigns the right and privilege of construction thereon such water works as he or they may think fit, not inconsistent with the rights & restriction herein mentioned in favour (sic) of my son James.

Further it is my will that if my son John shall build a barn on that part call Montgomery Place, the sawing necessary for the same shall be allowed by my son James to be done at the mill without cost to my son John = And further it is my [wish], that all those legacies bequeathed to my son James shall be to him, his heirs and assigns forever___

Further, in order to the convenient and lawful payments of the Debts that yet remain upon my estate; It is my will the aforementioned bequests and divisions of my estate shall not take place and have affect, until the expiration of two years after my decease; And that until that time, the whole family shall live together on this place and improve the whole property in the best manner, for the payment of all the debts; and after that term, then my son John and my son James shall be bound respectively, and to pay an equal half part, of all my debt, may then remain to be paid; And that their respective portions herein bequeathed shall be bound to each other for the discharge of the same.

And lastly I do constitute and appoint my beloved ____ [wife?] my son John and my son James Dickey to be the Executors of this my last will and testament to see & have it thus executed and fulfilled according to the true interest and means of the same; And in writing whereof, I have unto this as my last will and testament set my hand and seal on the day & year first above mentioned

(Signed) James Dickey

Signed, sealed, published and declared to be the last will and testament of James Dickey in the presence of us, who were requested by him thus to witness the same

John King

Thomas Lucas

Sam Thompson

Codicil

I James Dickey make and publish the following to be annexed to my foregoing last will and Testament, and ratify and confirm the same, to wit, that my wife Rebecca have all my personal estate except what my son James & John are to have, exclusive of the devises in the foregoing will, and also the one third of the rent of my mill & Robert Dickey’s plantation now belonging to me, during her natural life - and also my will is that the Montgomery place be divided and laid off to my son John by a due north course from Patrick Hays house to intersect the line of Robert Dickeys place; And also I give unto my wife her heirs or assigns all my negroes male & female___

In writing whereof I the said James Dickey have hereunto set my hand & seal this 13 day of March one thousand eight hundred & thirteen.

(Signed) James Dickey

Witnesses

Henry Reges

H. Work Esq.

James Walker

Franklin County s.s. On the twenty fourth day of March in year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred & thirteen, the Rev Doct. John King & Thomas Lucas two of the witnesses to the foregoing Instrument of writing appeared before me Register for the Probate of will and granting letters of administration in and for the County of Franklin who upon their solemn oaths duly administer depose and say that they were present and saw and heard James Dickey now deceased, write his name unto & seal and publish the foregoing Instrument of writing as and for his last will and testament and that at the time of doing thereof he the said decease was of sound & deposing mind memory and understanding according to the best of their knowledge and belief, that their names thereto subscribed as witnesses are of their own proper hands writing done at the same time, and that they also saw Samuel Thompson sign as a witness at the same time. Sworn & subscribed before John Findlay, Regr.

(Signed) John King, Thomas Lucas

Franklin County s.s. On the 24th day of March in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred & thirteen Henry Work Esq. & James Walker witnesses to the foregoing codicil appeared before me Register for the probate of wills in and for the County of Franklin who upon their oaths depose & say that they saw James Dickey now deceased write his name unto & publish the above as a codicil to his last will and Testament, and that at the time thereof he the said deceased was of sound and disposing mind memory & understanding according to the best of their knowledge & belief that their names subscribed as witnesses are of their own proper hand writing done at the same time.

(Signed) H. Work Esq., James Walker

Sworn subscribed before John Findlay Regr.

James Dickey sworn to execute this will, file Inventory & settle in one year or when legally required.

A True copy taken from the original

John Findlay Regr.

[Source: Pennsylvania Probate Records, 1683-1994 > Franklin> Wills 1811-1826 vol C, p. 96-99, img. 62-3]

1. ↑ Billie Haynes Padilla billie.pad@@verizon.net.
2.   Bates, Samuel Penniman; Fraise, Richard Jacob. History of Franklin County, Pennsylvania: containing a history of the county, its townships, towns, villages, schools, churches, industries, etc., portraits of early settlers and prominents men, biographies, history of Pennsylvania, statistical and miscellaneous matter, etc., etc. (Chicago, Illinois: Warner, Beers & Co., 1887).

   James Dickey died March 13, 1813, aged fifty-nine.