52 Ancestors #13: Adam Beard (c1727-1777): Constable of Bedford County

Adam Beard, five times great grandfather
DNA Haplogroup: I-M253

Adam Beard was the only known son of John and Elizabeth Beard. His parents were early settlers of what became Bedford County, but it is not known if Adam was born in that county. Adam and his father were paying taxes in Lunenburg County, a portion of which became Bedford County, by 1748 so Adam was born before or in 1727.

He married a woman named Elizabeth whose maiden name is unknown sometime before 1745.

View from the Peaks of Otter, lithograph by Edward Beyer from Album of
Virginia, 1858; courtesy of Internet Archive

Appointed Constable

In 1754 he was appointed Constable of the newly formed Bedford County by the county's Board of Justices. A Constable was appointed for each precinct in the county and were generally responsible for keeping the peace. They had to be literate, knowledgeable about tobacco cultivation and have enough free time to inspect the tobacco crops in their precinct. Their term was generally for one year but the term of service could be extended by the court. After constables were appointed, they were required to appear in court to be sworn into office. The oath required after the 1730 tobacco laws were enacted was as follows:

"I __________ do swear, That I will diligently and carefully view the several fields...whereon tobacco shall be planted...within the precincts whereof I am constable; and will cut up or destroy...all stalks from which any tobacco-plant shall be cut...and all slips or suckers growing from...the same which I shall find standing...in any fields...above the height of nine inches from the ground; and that I shall make information of all persons within my precinct, whom I shall know to be guilty of any breach of any law of this colony made against the tending of slips or seconds, to the next court...So help me God."

The 1730 tobacco laws were enacted to regulate the tobacco and improve the quality of the tobacco exported from Virginia due to falling prices. In 1731 tobacco sold for about twelve shillings six pence per hundred pounds. The General Assembly ordered Constables to enforce the law forbidding planters from harvesting suckers after the end of July. Violators were to be heavily penalized. This seemed to have the desired effect -- in 1736 tobacco sold for fifteen shillings per hundred pounds.

Constables were usually paid one pound of tobacco for each tithable person living on the tobacco farm where the constable had inspected the tobacco. Tithes were a capitation tax assessed on every male age 16 and above. Free men, hired hands, indentured servants and slaves (male and female) were counted. Tithes were typically paid in pounds of tobacco.

The colony also encouraged the growth of hemp by paying a bounty to the farmers. Beginning in 1726 and constables were required to provide growers a certificate of weight. Hemp farmers were required to pay constables five shillings per ton.

Constables could also be ordered to by the sheriff to assist in arrests and guarding prisoners or even act as church wardens but these duties were more ad hoc in nature and not performed regularly.

Land and Church

In 1760 Richard Randolph was granted a 6,000-acre patent in the new county of Bedford near the Peaks of Otter. Randolph sold 100- to 300-acre or larger parcels to a number of families including Adam Beard who purchased 413 acres.

A number of Presbyterian settlers formed the Peaks Church about 1761. By 1766 the region's governing Presbytery appointed Rev. David Rice to serve as minister at the Peaks and one other church.[2] Rev. Rice served at the church until about 1784 and described its congregation as "large...covering an infinite space of territory around the Peaks mountains.

Peaks of Otter Presbyterian Church (the original church was destroyed
by fire); photograph by Rev. Ken Barnes

The congregation wanted a full-time minister and decided that could only be achieved if their church used slaves to raise and sell products, according to Peter Viemiester, author of From Slaves to Satellites: 250 Years of Changing Times on a Virginia Farm. Viemiester went on to write:

"In 1774 the Peaks congregation petitioned the Virginia House of Burgesses at Williamsburg for permission to own slaves. One hundred two men signed the petition including" Adam, Jr., David, and Samuel Beard, sons of Adam, Sr., the subject of this post. The Virginia Burgesses granted permission and members of the congregation contributed money to buy slaves named Jerry, Kate, Tom and Venus. The church had a 100-acre tract of land, likely contributed by one of the congregation's large landowners, which those slaves worked.

Last Will and Testament

Like his father, Adam died while the Revolutionary War was raging. After the colonies declared their independence, Thomas Jefferson drafted the statute that ended entail, the act of protecting land from the debts incurred by spendthrift offspring, in 1776. He also drafted the statute that ended primogeniture in 1784. These changes to British Common Law would become law throughout the United States when Congress established probate and surrogate courts and 1793 and in 1795 required wills, deeds and other important instruments be recorded. So I find it fascinating that when Adam Beard wrote his will in 1777, still before primogeniture was abolished, he divided his lands among his three sons.

Last Will and Testament of Adam Beard; courtesy of Ancestry.com

In the name of God Amen. I Adam Beard being sick in body but of perfect mind and memory, knowing it is appointed for all men once to die do hereby make and ordain this my last will and testament.

First of all I recommend my soul to God who gave it, and my body I recommend to the dust to be buried at the discretion of my executors in a Christian like manner. Nothing doubting but I shall receive the same again by the mighty power of God and as touching [?] such worldly estate as it been pleased Good to bless me with in this life. I hereby dispose of the same in the following form and manner to wit:

Item: I give and bequeath to my beloved wife, Elizabeth Beard, all the planation I now live upon with all my stock of every kind as well as all my plantation materials [?] and all my household furniture together with my four Negros, Henry, Martin, George and Fanny during her natural life.

Item: I give and bequeath to my son David Beard all my survey of land lying on the branches of Goose Creek adjoining Ewing and Reed's lines with my Negro Martin after his mother's death to him and his assigns forever.

Item: I give and bequeath to my daughter Rachel Dickson my Negro girl Fanny to her heirs and assigns forever. Only she shall not get possession of said Negro girl Fanny until her mother's death.

Item: I give and bequeath to my son Samuel Beard all my lands adjoining and south of the survey I now live upon together with my Negro George at his mother's death to him and his assigns forever.

Item: I give and bequeath immediately after my beloved wife's death to my son Adam Beard, Junior, all the survey and plantation I now live upon together with my Negro Henry with my black horse colt called Bolton to him and his assigns forever.

Also it is my further will and pleasure that provided my son Samuel Beard possess my father's lands on Falling River as a legatee that in case the lands I now give him adjoining that I now live upon shall then [illegible] unto and become the absolute property of my son Adam Beard to him and his assigns forever.

Likeways if my son Samuel should die before his return from the war also in that case I give said above mentioned land to my son Adam Beard to him and his heirs and assigns forever.

Item: I give Mary Vance now living with me her bed and furniture with one cow and yearling with three head of sheep to her and her heirs and assigns forever.

Item: It is further my will and pleasure that all the remainder of my moveable estate at my beloved wife's death be divided between my children at my said wife's discretion.

I hereby appoint my wife Elizabeth Beard executrix of this my last will and testament revoking and disannuling all wills and testaments heretofore by me made [illegible] or executed confirming this and no other to be my last will and testament. Witness whereof I hereunto set my hand and affix my seal this second day of December 1777.

Signed and acknowledged in presence of

Adam Beard (seal)

Robert Ewing
William Armstrong
Alex Armstrong
William Soarby [?]

At a court held for Bedford County the 23rd day of March 1778
This last will and testament of Adam Beard, deceased, was proved by the oaths of William Armstrong, and Alexander Armstrong witnesses thereto subscribed and ordered to be recorded and on the motion of David Beard one of the Executors therein named who made oath thereto. Certificate is granted him for obtaining probate in due form giving security whereupon together with David Wright, James Buford, and James Patterson his securities. Entered into and acknowledged their bond in the penalty of two thousand pounds for the executors due and faithful administration of the said decedent's estate and performance of his will. Adam Beard the other executor having liberty to join in the probate when he shall think fit.

Teste,
J. Steptoe, Clerk

Adam died sometime between 2 December when he wrote his will and 6 December 1778 when his wife Elizabeth wrote hers. In her will she referred to Adam as her late husband. Both of their wills were proved in Bedford County court on 23 March 1778. Elizabeth had named two of her brothers-in-law, David and Adam, Jr., executors. Their other son Samuel was away fighting in Continental Army regiment under Gen. George Washington.

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. The theme for this week was "The Old Homestead," which as usual I didn't follow.

Using the Ancestral Reference Numbering System, Adam Beard is Ancestor number 144 on my family tree:

144 Adam Beard, Sr. born before 1727 in Virginia; died between 2 December 1777 and 6 December 1777; will proved in Bedford County, Virginia, on 23 March 1778; married Elizabeth maiden named unknown. She died between 6 December 1777 and 23 March 1778.

144.1 David Beard born 1745 likely in Brunswick County (now Bedford County), Virginia; died on 11 January 1815 in Sumner County, Tennessee; married Isabella Carson, daughter of John Carson and Ann Dixon/Dickson.

144.2 Rachel Beard likely born about 1747 in Lunenburg County (now Bedford County), Virginia; likely died about 1810 in Maury County, Tennessee; said to have married George Dixon/Dickson .

72. Samuel Beard born in 1750 in Lunenburg County (now Bedford County), Virginia; died in October 1814 in Bedford County; married Mary Mitchell, daughter of Robert "the Elder" Mitchell and Mary Enos, on 5 September 1778 in Bedford County.

144.3 Adam Beard, Jr., born about 1755 in Bedford County, Virginia; died between 9 October 1787 and 25 February 1788; will proved in Bedford County on 25 February 1788; married Margaret Mitchell, daughter of Robert "the Elder" Mitchell and Mary Enos, on 29 July 1780 in Bedford County.

_______________
[1] In 1746 the western portion of Brunswick County became Lunenburg County and in 1753 the northwestern portion of Lunenburg County became Bedford County.
[2] Rev. David Rice was another five times great grandfather. For more about his ministry at the Peaks Church, read Memoirs of Rev. David Rice: His Comfort and Success Among the Peaks of Otter

Sources:
An Act Declaring Tenants of Lands or Slaves in Taille to Hold the Same in Fee Simple 1776, Encylopedia Virginia (accessed 9 Mar 2018)
An Act for Regulating Conveyances 1785, Encyclopedia Virginia (accessed 9 Mar 2018)
Ancestry DNA and Finding a New Cousin, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 7 Mar 2018)
Beard, Irene. History of Adam Beard and His Descendants, (Salt Lake City: UT, Genealogical Society of Utah, 1982), pages 1-93.
Bedford County, Virginia, Wikipedia (accessed 9 Mar 2018).
Brunswick County, Virginia, Wikipedia (accessed 9 Mar 2018).
Glossary of Colonial Legal Terms, Milam in Virginia (accessed 9 Mar 2018).
Herndon, Melvin. Tobacco in Colonial Virginia: The Sovereign Remedy, Project Gutenberg, 2008 (accessed 9 Mar 2018)
Interactive Map of Virginia County Formation History, Map of the U.S. (accessed 7 Mar 2018).
John Beard (c1705-178): A Man of Means, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed Mar 2018).
Lunenburg County, Virginia, Wikipedia (accessed 9 March 2018).
Memoirs of Rev. David Rice: His Comfort and Success Among the Peaks of Otter, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 9 Mar 2018)
Primogeniture and Succession, Bob's Genealogy File Cabinet (accessed 9 Mar 2018)
Thomas Jefferson and the Practice of Law, Encyclopedia Virginia (accessed 9 Mar 2018)
Viemeister, Peter. From Slaves to Satellites: 250 Years of Changing Times on a Virginia Farm, (Bedford, VA: Hamilton's, 1999), pages 21-36.
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 (database and images), Ancestry.com, Adam Beard, 23 March 1778, Bedford County, Virginia, citing Will Books Vol. 1 1763-1787, images 193-194 (accessed 3 Jan 2018).
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 (database and images), Ancestry.com, Elizabeth Beard, 23 Mar 1778, Bedford County Virginia, citing Will Books Vol. 1 1763-1787, image 194 (accessed 3 Jan 2018).

John Beard (c1705-1780): A Man of Means
Who's Your Daddy, Adam Beard?
Beard and Jennings: More Interconnected than I Thought
The Court Case Regarding the Slaves of Mary (Mitchell) Beard
Proving James Harvey Beard's Father
Slaves of John Beard (1705-1780) of Bedford County, Virginia
The Court Doth Adjudge, Order and Decree
The Mother Nobody Knew
George Washington Spoke to Him
Ancestry DNA and Finding a New Cousin

Warren's Art Collection

Ebenezer Burgess Warren, a Philadelphia capitalist and philanthropist, began collecting art about 1873 when he retired from his business interests during the economic panic. A well-known art critic for an article requested by the International Studio in London described Mr. Warren:

"Mr. E. Burgess Warren has gathered a most interesting collection of modern pictures; in fact, has made his selection with fresh judgment and a criterion of actual preference.

Mr. Warren has had his opinions many years, so many, by the way, that he has seen the art estimate change until the pictures he first admired are now considered among the most admirable art treasures. He has a perfect art history of Corot in examples of his work from the beginning of his career. He has mile-posts of Millet on the long road that artist pursued from obscurity to fame, and of Daubigny from the searching after technic to the unconscious mastery of it; and the same may be said of his Rousseaus. He has the art lover's collection, the pictures that convey the personal note.

A Morning Dance of Nymphs by Jean-Baptiste-Camille Cordot circa 1850;
courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

Morning on the Oise by Charles-Francois Daubigny, 1866; courtesy The Paine

Mr. Warren's collection numbers over eighty pictures, the most of them a synthetic study of the Barbizon painters; around which are grouped the correlative examples of the period preceding this school and the more recent art that has sought to break away, yet nevertheless has really emanated from it. Of this latter, there are examples of Jacque, Dagnan-Bouveret, Cazin, de Neuville, Lhermitte, Isbey, and others, but the Barbizon remains both the nucleus and the accomplishment. Mr. Warren has had no academic training as an art critic; he has never attended art lectures nor gone into it except in a detached way, and his higher education at Harvard was devoted to chemistry and scientific investigation. Since then he has pursued the life of a business man. But the main-spring of his love for art was native, and it was widened by his love for nature when he was a boy in the Green Mountains of Vermont. From that closeness to nature has come the love of nature in art; so it is that the great painters of the Oise have been the most attractive to him, penetrated as their works are with beauty and the full of the spirit of dedication.

The Storm by Narcisse-Virgilio Diaz de la Pena, 1871; courtesy of National
Gallery

The Approaching Storm by George Morland, 1793, private collection;
courtesy The Athenaeum

In a social conversation Mr. Warren gave the history of his collection. With the first idea of it in mind, it was decided that the pictures were to be bought solely as a matter of pleasure to himself and his family. It was agreed that the pictures were to be of such character as would make them personally desirable; they were to be beautiful in art and tendency and altogether representative of the labor of love they really sought to be. That was the beginning; but while holding to those tenets, it quickly resolved itself into an education of a peculiar and wonderful phase of art, its significance as a collection lying in the pictorial history of the Barbizon school, with the art events that led up to it, and the gradual departure from it to the days of Raffaelli. The development of the school he has traced through Moreland, Constable, and Gainsborough, in England, and through Michel, in France, to the Barbizon painters, and has collected enough of these old masters to show the breaking away from the classic school.

The Barbizon was to be the heart of the collection, and while he did not oftentimes possess the most noted pictures of each individual artist, he had carefully chosen such pictures as represented the different periods of his development; as an instance of this, a little Millet may be cited, of the period when the painter very highly finished his work. This painting was said by Francois Millet to be the most excellent example that he had seen of the time when his father went so carefully into detail. Taking all this into consideration, Mr. Warren's collection as it stands, for a critical estimate of the Barbizon school, can safely be said to be the best in America and one of the very best extant. But, valuable as each picture must be, one never hears them rated in a commercial sense. The art is paramount."

______________
Davis, Betsey Warren. The Warren, Jackson, and Allied Families Being the Ancestry of Jesse Warren and Betsey Jackson, (Philadelphia, PA: J. B. Lippincott Co., 1903), pages 1-284.

Warren's Thrilling Escape
The Sagamore Investors: Ebenezer Burgess Warren (1833-1917)
Christmas Eve at the Sagamore

Warren's Thrilling Escape

Ebenezer Burgess Warren was a Philadelphia capitalist, philanthropist, and art collector, who since 1875 had been making his summer residence at Lake George in upstate New York. Prior to 1882, he stayed at Mohican House where he grew to be friends with several other wealthy guests, who became his partner in the Green Island Improvement Co. and The Sagamore resort in Bolton Landing.

Ebenezer Burgess Warren; courtesy of The Warren,
Jackson, and Allied Families

In 1882, E. B. built Wapanak on Green Island, which became his permanent summer residence. He also owned Ellide, the fastest steam yacht on Lake George. Above all things, Warren loved to fish. According to William Preston Gates' book about the resort, "his friends often joked he hypnotized the bass." Warren was also a founding member of the Lake George (Yacht) Club. But not all his days spent on the Lake aboard the Ellide were pleasant ones, especially one in 1901. The following account appeared in several newspapers across the U.S. This particular one in The Daily Notes, 25 September 1901, page 3. The paper was published in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.

Steam yacht Ellide; courtesy of the Lake George Mirror

Warren's Thrilling Escape

In Forest and Stream A. M. Cheney, the well-known pisciculturist and writer, gives the following detailed account of the thrilling accident that befell E. Burgess Warren, of Philadelphia, at Lake George:

"The daily newspapers have had a more or less accurate account in brief of a fishing accident on Lake George July 18. Mr. E. Burgess Warren, of Philadelphia, owner of the fast steam yacht Ellide, has another steam yacht on Lake George named Cyric and both are used for fishing, the latter being about sixty feet long. Mr. Warren, his fisherman and pilot, Alec Taylor, his engineer and his valet were on board the Cyric fishing for lake trout.

Dinner was about to be served when a storm came up. The curtains on the sides of the boat were fastened down to keep out the rain, but the wind was so severe that it rolled the boat until the water came in and the steam had gotten so low that the boat could not be headed into the wind. After twice rolling the boat went down by the stern but a watertight compartment in the bow held the bow out of the water.

Mr. Warren and his valet in the stern of the boat were caught in a trap, but the valet cut the curtain and released Mr. Warren and himself and the valet and crew passed a line around Mr. Warren and held him on the bow. The men were washed off again and again, and were pounded against the boat by the wind and waves, and one of Mr. Warren's ribs was broken before men in small boats put out from the shore and rescued the entire party after they had been in the water nearly an hour. I understand Mr. Warren begged the men to let him go and save themselves, but all were saved and the boat afterward towed ashore. I cannot comprehend what Alec Taylor was doing without steam.

Mr. Warren was about to eat his dinner when the storm came, and he put his waistcoat, containing a valuable god repeater and a pocket knife, which he had carried nearly forty years, on one of the seats, where there was a quantity of fishing tackle. Everything that went out of the boat went down in more than one hundred feet of water, and the waistcoat and the contents went down.

Yesterday, the day after the accident, some fishermen saw some cork fishing floats on the water near where the yacht capsized, and they rowed there and secured them, and found they were attached to a fishing line or lines, for there was a mass of them; pulling them in, they found a weight on one, and this proved to be Mr. Warren's waistcoat, with the watch and the knife still in the pockets and they were promptly returned to him. The cloth of the waistcoat had caught in some hooks, to which were fastened lines with cork floats, and thus the watch and knife were saved. Real fishing stories are often more extraordinary than imaginary ones.

________________

The Sagamore Investors: Ebenezer Burgess Warren (1833-1917)
Christmas Eve at the Sagamore

52 Ancestors #12: John Beard (c1705-1780): A Man of Means

Ancestor: John Beard, six times great grandfather
Haplogroup: I-M253

Today, I begin writing about my Beard ancestors and the families allied to them through marriage. John Beard was the three times great grandfather of my great grandmother, Effie (Beard) Jennings.

Beard Direct Ancestors with Allied Families (Ancestral Reference Number System
identifier in lower left corner); created using Microsoft PowerPoint

When I took over Dad's genealogical research, Dad had recently discovered the maiden name of his grandmother, Effie, and that she had been born in Bedford County. He did not know who her parents were. In 2013 my brothers and I took the autosomal DNA test offered by Ancestry. One of the first matches I was able to resolve that did not have an already identified common shared ancestor was to a family tree with extensive information about the Beard family. That tree and others provided direction to my Beard family research and eventually I was able to prove my descent from John Beard (1705-1780).

Peter Viemeister, author of From Slaves to Satellites, had this to say about John Beard:

"John Beard's grandfather, Richard Beard, had come to Virginia back in the 1600s...John and son Adam Beard were paying taxes in this region as early as 1748, before Bedford became a distinct county apart from Lunenburg. John was a man of considerable resources: the evaluation of his estate revealed him to be worth several million in today's terms."

Peaks of Otter and the Town of Liberty, Edward Beyer, oil on canvas; courtesy
of Amazon.com

Later Viemeister wrote, "The Beards brought British heritage..." Did Viemeister mean the Beards were English?

A different theory of Beard origins, and one to which I subscribe, indicates they were Scots and perhaps John's grandfather took what became known as the Great Wagon Road through the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia and eventually he or his descendants settled in Lunenberg County. Later Beard descendants were members of a Presbyterian church and they intermarried into Scots-Irish families in the area. The Presbyterian Church was the national church of Scotland at the time and had been for several years when John Beard was born.

It is not known where John Beard was born or exactly what year. Some secondary sources indicate he was born between 1705 and 1710 and that his father was named Matthew.  A possible land record indicated he was the son of Thomas. John married a woman named Elizabeth, but her maiden name is not known. They had several children, including one son. When John Beard settled in Lunenburg County, it was frontier country. The settlements developed by European Americans were widely scattered. The settlers worked hard to clear land and establish productive farms.

In 1750 John deeded 150 acres on Reedy Creek to William Rutherford "for love and affection I have for my "son-in-law." In 1755 John sold 400 acres to his son-in-law Edward Phair. The land was described as lying on both sides of Falling River including the mouth of Reedy Creek beginning at John Manley's corner.

In 1761 John, his wife, Elizabeth, and their son, Adam, were co-founders of the Peaks of Otter Presbyterian Church.

John and Elizabeth Beard likely furnished supplies to the patriot cause during the Revolutionary War. Several of John and Elizabeth's grandsons fought in the war, including David, Samuel and Adam Beard, Jr., who all served in the Virginia Militia. Samuel Beard also served in the Continental Army.

John Beard's only son, Adam Beard, who had been appointed Constable of Bedford County and had a reputation for "good sense and responsibility,"[1] died sometime December 1777. Adam's wife died the early next year. John's daughter, Hannah (Beard) Rutherford and Rachel (Beard) Phair were also deceased. When John wrote his will on 20 April 1780, he felt it necessary to provide for his grandchildren.

Primogeniture was still law in Virginia in 1780 so the eldest son of John's only son, Adam, should have inherited John Beard's land. Primogeniture only included real estate, or land, and John's will bequeathed his personal property to his his children and grandchildren. 

Last Will and Testament of John Beard; courtesy Ancestry.com

In the name of God Amen. I John Beard of Bedford County and Commonwealth of Virginia being weak of body but of perfect mind and memory blessed by God, knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die do this twentieth day of April in the year of one thousand seven hundred and eighty make and declare this to be my last will and testament in form and manner following. Viz.

And first I give and recommend my soul to God who gave it and my body to the Earth to be lived in a Christian manner. At the discretion of my Executor nothing doubting but at the general resurrection I shall receive the same again by the mighty power of God and touching such worldly goods and estate wherewith it hath pleased God to bless me in this life I give and bequeath in the manner following. That is to say --

First I give and bequeath unto Elizabeth Beard my true and loving wife my negro woman Moll during her life and after her death I give and bequeath said wench to my granddaughter Elizabeth Campbell and I give and bequeath my negro Will to my daughter Elizabeth Campbell. I give and bequeath my negro boy to Isabel Boze[2] my granddaughter. I will and bequeath also my negro boy Jacob to my granddaughter Rosannah Russell. I will and bequeath also my negro girl Nell to my granddaughter Jean Rutherford. I also leave to Edward Phair my former son in law the sum of five shillings. Unto my grandson David Beard I leave the sum of five shillings as also to my granddaughter Rachel Dixon the sum of five shillings. To my grandson Samuel Beard the sum of five shillings. To my grandson Adam Beard, five shillings. To my granddaughter Rachel Robinson I leave my loom with the tacklings [?] thereto belonging. I like mays bequeath to my beloved wife Elizabeth Beard my negro man Dik and the whole of my moveable estate not before divided such as my stock, household furniture, etc., during her life and to be divided at her discretion at her death whom I likewise appoint as also my daughter Elizabeth Campbell Executrix of this my last will and testament and I also do hereby renounce all former wills made by me or for me. In witness hereof I have hereto set my hand and seal the day and year above written.

John Beard (his mark)

Thomas W. Reynolds
Charles Hall
James Campbell

At a court held for Bedford County the 26th day of Nov 1780:
This last will and testament of John Beard deceased was proved by the oath of Thomas W. Reynolds, Charles Hall and James Campbell witnesses thereto subscribed and ordered to be recorded and on the motion of Elizabeth Beard __________ the Executrix therein named who made oath thereto certificate is granted her for obtaining probate in due form giving security whereupon she together with James Campbell, Charles Hall and Archibald Campbell her securities entered into and acknowledged their bond in penalty of one hundred thousand pounds for the said Executrix due faithful administration of the said decedent's estate and performance of his will.

Teste,

J. Steptoe

I have not yet found the remaining documents of John Beard's probate package. According to Peter Viemeister, "John had been a very wealthy man. He had sold 2,106 acres of Bedford land between 1775 and 1779, most of which he had acquired before Bedford became a separate county. His estate was valued at 35,466.10 pounds sterling. In terms of equivalent amount of silver, the estate would be worth today between $2.6 and $7.9 million."

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. The theme for this week was "Misfortune," which I did not follow.

Using the Ancestral Reference Numbering System, John Beard is Ancestor number 288 on my family tree:

288 John Beard born about 1705 in Virginia; died before 26 November 1780 when will was proved in Bedford County, Virginia; married Elizabeth maiden name unknown.

144 Adam Beard born in 1725 in Virginia; died between 2 and 6 December 1777 in Bedford County, Virginia; married Elizabeth maiden name unknown.

288.1 Agnes Beard born on an unknown date; died on an unknown date likely in Burke County, North Carolina; married William Rutherford, widower of sister, Hannah.[3]

288.2 Rachel Beard born 1730 in Lunenburg County (now Bedford), Virginia; died before 1790 when her husband remarried; married Edward "Neddy" Phair in 1748 in Lynchburg, Virginia.

288.3 Hannah Beard born about 1735 in Virginia; died about 1755 in Virginia; first wife of William Rutherford (see sister, Agnes).[3]

288.4 Elizabeth Beard born on an unknown date in Virginia; died after 1780 in Virginia; married Archibald Campbell on an unknown date likely in Virginia.

There may be another daughter named Alce (not Alice) Beard who married Henry Brown, but she has not been proved to be a daughter of John Beard and the Brown children were not mentioned in John's will.

________________
[1] Viemeister, Peter. From Slaves to Satellites: 250 Years of Changing Times on a Virginia Farm, (Bedford, VA: Hamilton's, 1999), pages 21-22.
[2] This was Isabel Rutherford, daughter of William Rutherford and Agnes Beard. She married Shadrach Boaz.
[3] A note on John Beard (1705-1780), former DAR Patriot, indicates that Hannah and Agnes were the same person and the correct name was Agnes.

Sources:
Ancestry DNA and Finding a New Cousin, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 7 Mar 2018)
Beard, Irene. History of Adam Beard and His Descendants, (Salt Lake City: UT, Genealogical Society of Utah, 1982), pages 1-93.
Deed Book A-1, Bedford Deed books, citing John Beard and Edward Phair, 24 Nov 1755.
Family Data Collection-Births, (database) Ancestry.com, John Beard, born 1705, Virginia, father Matthew Beard (accessed 17 Nov 2013).
Family Data Collection-Deaths, (database) Ancestry.com, John Beard, died 26 Nov 1780, Bedford County, Virginia (accessed 17 Nov 2013).
Family Data Collection-Births, (database) Ancestry.com, Rachel Beard, born 1730, Virginia (accessed 17 Nov 2013)
Genealogical Research Service, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, Ancestor A008059, David Beard (accessed 18 Mar 2018).
Genealogical Research Service, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, Ancestor A008062, Elizabeth X Beard (accessed 18 Mar 2018).
Genealogical Research Service, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, Ancestor A008077, John Beard (accessed 18 Mar 2018).
Genealogical Research Service, National Society Daughters of the American Revolution, Ancestor A008084, Samuel Beard (accessed 18 Mar 2018).
Great Wagon Road, Wikipedia (accessed 7 Mar 2018).
Interactive Map of Virginia County Formation History, Map of the U.S. (accessed 7 Mar 2018).
National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (compiler), Lineage Book, Vol. 158, (Washington, DC: NSDAR, 1920), page 231.
Pharr, Henry Newton, Pharrs and Farrs with Other Descendants from Five Scotch-Irish Pioneers in America, (Salem, MA: Higginson Book Company, 1955, pages235-237.
Prichard, A. M. Mead Relations, (Salt Lake City, UT: Genealogical Society of Utah, 1933), pages 99-102 
Primogeniture and Succession, Bob's Genealogy File Cabinet (accessed 9 Mar 2018)
Slaves of John Beard (1705-1780 of Bedford County, VA, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 7 Mar 2018)
U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1590-1900 (database), Ancestry.com, John Beard and Elizabeth (accessed 17 Nov 2013).
U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1590-1900 (database), Ancestry.com, William Rutherford and Agnes Beard, Virginia (accessed 17 Nov 2013)
U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1590-1900 (database), Ancestry.com, William Rutherford and Hannah Beard, Virginia (accessed 18 Nov 2013)
U.S. Sons of the American Revolution Applications, 1889-1970 (database and images), Henry Brown (?-?), SAR Membership 40644 (accessed 18 Nov 2013)
U.S. Sons of the American Revolution Applications, 1889-1970 (database and images), John Beard c1710-1780, died Bedford County, Virginia, father of Hannah Beard (accessed 17 Nov 2013).
Viemeister, Peter. From Slaves to Satellites: 250 Years of Changing Times on a Virginia Farm, (Bedford, VA: Hamilton's, 1999), pages 14-15, 20-24.
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 (database and images), Ancestry.com, Adam Beard, 23 March 1778, Bedford County, Virginia, citing Will Books Vol. 1 1763-1787, images 193-194 (accessed 3 Jan 2018).
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 (database and images), Ancestry.com, Elizabeth Beard, 23 Mar 1778, Bedford County Virginia, citing Will Books Vol. 1 1763-1787, image 194 (accessed 3 Jan 2018).
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 (database and images), Ancestry.com, John Beard, 26 Nov 1780, Bedford County, Virginia, citing Will Books Vol. 1 1763-1787), image 246 (accessed 3 Jan 2018).

Who's Your Daddy, Adam Beard?
Beard and Jennings: More Interconnected than I Thought
The Court Case Regarding the Slaves of Mary (Mitchell) Beard
Proving James Harvey Beard's Father
Slaves of John Beard (1705-1780) of Bedford County, Virginia
The Court Doth Adjudge, Order and Decree
The Mother Nobody Knew
George Washington Spoke to Him
Ancestry DNA and Finding a New Cousin

The enslaved named in the last will and testament of John Beard have previously been released to the Slave Name Roll Project. If you learn about named slaves in documents about your ancestors, I hope you will consider contributing.

The Sagamore Investors: Ebenezer Burgess Warren (1833-1917)

Ebenezer Burgess Warren, who most often went by E. Burgess or E. B., was a Philadelphia businessman, inventor and real estate speculator who refined asphalt for paving purposes. He was a highly regarded art collector, mainly paintings of the Barbizon School, and philanthropist. But during his leisure time, he preferred to be out of doors, fishing or boating on Lake George in upstate New York. For several seasons, he brought his family to Mohican House in Bolton Landing, which was operated by Myron O. Brown.

Ebenezer Burgess Warren; courtesy of Warren, Jackson,
and Allied Families on Internet Archive

Mr. Brown persuaded E. B. and a few other investors to purchase nearby Green Island. In two separate transactions, the men purchased all but two acres of the 72-acre island for $30,000 and formed the Green Island Improvement Co. The first improvement was a bridge from Bolton Landing to the island made of logs and stonework; it was completed in the spring of 1882. Construction began soon after of what the partners envisioned would be the finest hotel on the lake. The Sagamore opened on 2 July 1883 amid much fanfare. Soon after the island was purchased, four of the investors built "cottages" on the shores of Lake George. E. B. built "Wapanak," a Native American word meaning people of the morning.

Wapanak, summer cottage of Ebenezer Burgess Warren, built on the southern
shore of Green Island; courtesy of the Bolton Historical Museum

E. B. owned the steamship Ellide which was timed at 40.2 mph in 1900, not only the fastest boat on the lake but also in the world. In a biographical piece about E. B. Warren The Glens Falls Times wrote in 1905, Warren had, "retired from business during the panic of 1873 to become -- a fisherman."

Steamship Ellide on Lake George; courtesy of The Lake George Mirror

In 1903 his daughter, Betsey (Warren) Davis published a genealogy of her ancestors entitled, The Warren, Jackson, and Allied Families. About her father, she wrote:

"EBENEZER BURGESS WARREN, seventh son and eleventh child of Jesse and Betsey (Jackson) Warren, was born 18 April 1833, at Peru, Vermont, a town on the top of Mount Bromley, in the Green Mountains, whither his parents had moved from West Dedham, Massachusetts. He received his early education at Brandon, Vermont, and at Glens Falls Academy, Glens Falls, New York.

Like his elder brothers, he much desired a higher education, but it was not until 1850 that, after filling several positions of trust in Cincinnati and Louisville for his brothers Samuel and Cyrus, he was enabled, through their cooperation, to attend Burr Seminary at Manchester, Vermont, and afterward, in 1852, Harvard College, where he took a special course in chemistry under Professor Horsford.

Upon leaving Cambridge he lived in Baltimore, Maryland, until February, 1855, when he removed to Philadelphia to engage in business with his brother, Herbert Marshall Warren, and four years later form the firm of Warren, Kirk & Co. in that city, which has since been his home.

In 1865 Mr. Warren established a manufactory of hydrocarbons in Washington, DC, and was one of the first to refine Trinidad Lake asphalt for paving purposes, and was interested in laying the first successful asphalt paving, which was laid and generally adopted in Washington, but has since been the principal paving material of the large cities of the United States.

In 1866, foreseeing that the section of Walnut and Spruce streets west of Twentieth Street, in Philadelphia, would become the most desirable in the city for residences, he purchased real estate on Spruce Street above Nineteen Street, and also west of Twentieth and Twenty-first Streets, and erected costly dwellings upon all this land, some of which had been given over to a most objectionable, even disreputable settlement of people, known as the "Schuylkill Rangers," which were a menace to the neighborhood. Four years later he purchased many vacant lots on Walnut Street west from Nineteenth to Twenty-second Streets, building also upon these dwellings of greater value than any which have been built for sale in the city up to the present time. These dwellings numbered more than forty, and their total value was about two millions of dollars. This undertaking was considered at the time an enormous venture for a man of only thirty-two years, but the results have shown the wisdom of his foresight.

The constructive ability which was also thus demonstrated has made Mr. Warren sought for upon building committees in many charities. He was especially active in the building of the Hayes Mechanic's Home, the Hahnemann College and Hospital, and the Church of the New Jerusalem, Twenty-second and Chestnut Streets, of which building he was one of the original projectors.

Mr. Warren was educated as a Congregationalist, in the old-fashioned strictness of New England, and was named for his father's pastor at Dedham, the Reverend Ebenezer Burgess. He became interested, however, in the writings of Swedenborg and the doctrines of the New Church, through his brothers, who had already become members of that Church, and he himself became a member in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1853, and has since given his aid and encouragement freely to many churches of the organization besides that to which he was personally allied.

Mr. Warren is perhaps most widely known as an art connoisseur and collector. His interest in art began with his first leisure moments, about 1873, and he has since then aided art in all its branches in Philadelphia, through personal encouragement, and in his numerous official positions...

...Mr. Warren has been a director of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts twenty-four years; vice-president of the Art Club, 1898 and 1899, having also been one of the incorporating members. A member of the Union League for many years, he was director in 1900 and 1901, is at present chairman of the Art Committee, and is one of the Committee on Works of Art of the trustees of the Fairmount Park Art Association. He was at one time president of the Hayes Mechanics' Home, and has been for many years a manager of the Hahneman Hospital, of which he was elected vice-president in 1901. He was one of the original members of the Genealogical Society of Pennsylvania, and a member of the Philobiblion Society, the Sons of the Revolution, the New England Society of Philadelphia, having served as vice-president 1899 and 1900, a member of the Philadelphia Country Club, the New York Yacht Club, and the Ardsley Club upon Hudson. Since 1867 Mr. Warren's winter home has been one of the houses which he built on Spruce Street, and since 1875 he has made his summer residence at Lake George, where in 1882 he built his cottage "Wapanak" on Green Island.

He married, at Philadelphia, 21 January, 1858, Emma Bolton, daughter of James Murray and Mary Elizabeth (English) Bolton, whose families were among the original Friends in the settlement of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and of Burlington County, New Jersey. She was born on 7 August 1837, at her father's country home on the Schuylkill River, near the present Fairmount Water Works.

Children of E. Burgess and Emma (Bolton) Warren, born at Philadelphia:

I. MARY BOLTON WARREN, born 27 May 1859;  married, 30 December, 1884, Lieutenant Frederick Wooley, USA, son of Doctor Preston W. and Letitia Anne (Hearne) Wooley, born at Albemarle, Stanley County, North Carolina, 19 September, 1852. They reside at 121 East Thirty-fourth Street, New York City. Issue:
     A. BURGESS WARREN WOOLEY, born at West Point, New York, 3 January, 1886.
     B. FREDERICK HEARNE WOOLEY, born at Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 16 January, 1889.
     C. MARY BOLTON WOOLEY, born at New York City, 19 March, 1900. 

II. CAROLINE PEROT WARREN, born 7 December, 1860; one of the board of managers of the National Society of the Colonial Dames our America, the City Parks Association, the Presbyterian Hospital, the Eurydice Chorus, and member of the Civic Club of Philadelphia. She married 1 June, 1887, the Reverend Doctor Louis FitzGerald Benson, son of Gustavus and Margaretta FitzGerald (Dale) Benson, born at Philadelphia, 22 July, 1855. They reside at Philadelphia. Issue:
     A. CAROLINE WARREN BENSON, born at Germantown, Pennsylvania, 11 April, 1888.
     B. MARGARETTA FIZGERALD BENSON, born at Germantown, Pennsylvania, 27 February 1894.
     C. BARBARA ENGLISH BENSON, born at Bar Harbor, Maine, 28 July, 1897.

III. WALTER MOORE WARREN, born 19 June, 1862; died 28 July, 1862.
IV. BETSEY WARREN, born 24 October, 1867; married 29 November, 1892, Isaac Robert Davis, son of Edward Morris, Jr., and Sarah Louisa (Gibbons) Davis; born at "Chelton," Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, 13 November, 1864. They reside at 2015 Spruce Street, Philadelphia. Issue:
     A. ISAAC ROBERT DAVIS, JR., born 26 January, 1895.
     B. BETSEY WARREN DAVIS, born 29 May, 1900.
     C. BURGESS WARREN DAVIS, born 13 October, 1901.
V. CHARLES BOLTON WARREN, born 25 May, 1869; died 29 February, 1871.
VI. HELEN WARREN, born 19 July, 1879."

E. B.'s wife, Emma, died 6 June 1906 in Philadelphia of heart disease. She was interred at Laurel Hill Cemetery. E. B. died 26 January 1917 in Philadelphia also of heart disease and was buried beside his wife. The summer cottage on Green Island still exists and is owned by The Sagamore. It may be rented by the resorts guests.

Ebenezer Burgess Warren was a member of the eighth generation of descendants of Arthur Warren, who was born in 1613 in England and settled in Weymouth, Massachusetts, before 1638. He acquired several acres of land and when he died on 6 July 1658 was a prominent citizen of the colony. He and his wife, Mary, had five known children, all born in Weymouth:

I. ARTHUR and MARY (_____) WARREN
     A. ARTHUR WARREN, born 17 November 1639.
     B. ABIGAIL WARREN, born 27 October 1640.
     C. JACOB WARREN, born 26 October 1642.
     D. JOSEPH WARREN, living in 1671.
     E. FEARNOT WARREN, born June 1655.

II. JACOB WARREN, born 26 October 1642 in Weymouth; died 1722; married 27 June 1667, Chelmsford, Massachusetts, Mary Hildreth, daughter of Richard Hildreth, born 1 September 1650, Cambridge, Massachusetts, died 17 December 1730, Chelmsford. Issue born in Chelmsford:
     A. JACOB WARREN, born about 1668; died at Plainfield, Connecticut, 3 September 1727; was one of the founders of Plainfield; deacon of the church; married Sarah _____.
     B. JOSEPH WARREN, born 25 October 1670.
     C. ELIZABETH WARREN, born 3 March 1674; married 17 July 1695, Nathaniel Blodgett.
     D. EPHRIAM WARREN, born 24 June 1680; died at Killingly, Connecticut; will proved 4 May 1747; was one of the founders of Killingly; captain of Killingly train-band, 1729 until his death; married before 1792, Abigail Burnham.

Original Warren homestead in Chelmsford, Massachusetts; courtesy of
The Warren, Jackson, and Allied Families

III. DEACON JOSEPH WARREN, born 26 October 1642; married 11 March 1696, Ruth Wheeler, daughter of Sergeant Thomas Wheeler, of Concord, Massachusetts. Issue born in Chelmsford:
     A. ELIZABETH WARREN, born 9 December, 1700; died 30 December 1765; married Benjamin Parker; publishment, 18 February 1721.
     B. JOSEPH WARREN, JR., born 5 April 1699.
     C. JACOB WARREN, born 13 December 1700; died 1754; married, 1721/22, Ruth Stratton.
     D. THOMAS WARREN, born 5 March 1704; married, 1725, Esther Adams.
     E. EPHRAIM WARREN, born 6 December 1707; died 1799; married Esther Parker. He removed to Townsend, Massachusetts, about 1773, and was the father of General Ephraim Warren of the Revolution.
     F. RUTH WARREN, born 23 August 1711.
     G. JOHN WARREN, born 25 July 1714; married Elizabeth Howard; chosen deacon of the Chelmsford church in 1649; removed to Townsend in 1764.

IV. JOSEPH WARREN, JR., born 5 April 1699, Chelmsford; married Tabitha Parker, daughter of Benjamin and Sarah (Howard) Parker of Chelmsford on 18 July 1721/22. Issue born at Chelmsford:
     A. JOSEPH WARREN, born 24 August 1724.
     B. TABITHA WARREN, born 10 June 1727; married 7 February 1751, Josiah Burdge, of Townsend.
     C. BENJAMIN WARREN, born 30 August 1729; died 28 August 1800; served in battles of Lexington and Concord; married 1754 Isabel Farmer.
     D. SARAH WARREN, born 30 July 1733; died 11 August 1799; married 1755, Lachias Richardson.
     E. MARY WARREN, born 13 April 1736; married 29 April 1767, Abel Spalding.
     F. RUTH WARREN, born 4 September 1741; died 4 February 1804; married 26 April 1744, Joseph Emerson.

V. CAPTAIN JOSEPH WARREN, born 24 August 1724, Chelmsford; died 17 March 1792, Chelmsford; married 1) 15 April 1752, Joanna Fletcher, daughter of Josiah and Josanna (Spalding) Fletcher, and 2) 23 February 1769, Sarah Osgood, daughter of Jospeh Osgood. Issue born in Chelmsford:
     A. JOANNA WARREN, born 6 April 1753; married 1777, John Spalding.
     B. JEDUTHAN WARREN, born 24 November 1756.
     C. JEREMIAH WARREN, born 23 February 1763; died 20 September 1810; married 1 October 1789, Rachel Spalding.
Child of Capt. Joseph and Sarah (Osgood) Warren:
     D. JOSEPH WARREN, born 7 December 1769; died 9 February 1858; married, 27 February 1794, Mary Spalding.

VI. JEDUTHAN WARREN, born 24 November 1756, Chelmsford; died 28 October 1841, Westminster, Massachusetts; fought in the Revolutionary War as a volunteer in Capt. Ford's company in a regiment of Massachusetts Militia from 30 September to 8 November 1777; married 22 July 1779, Joanna Moors, daughter of Simeon and Joanna (Thorndike) Moors. Issue born at Westminster:
     A. POLLY WARREN, born 31 November 1780; died 1847; married Timothy Downe and resided at Fitchburg, Massachusetts.
     B. JOSEPH WARREN, born 17 December 1781; was lost at sea when a young man.
     C. JESSE WARREN, born 23 January 1784.
     D. EZRA WARREN, born 28 FEBRUARY 1786; died 21 January 1796
     E. JEDUTHAN WARREN, born 5 March 1788; died 7 May 1860; married Lydia K. Osborne and resided at Westminster.
     F. MICIAH WARREN, born 23 September 1790; died at Rushville, Illinois, 10 April 1864; married near Hilham, Tennessee, 1 January 1822, Mary Durant, daughter of Edward Durant.
     G. SIMEON WARREN, born 27 May 1794; married twice but names of wives not ascertained.
     H. JOANNA WARREN, born 15 October 1796; died 1882; married Ephraim Osborne and resided at Fitchburg.
     I. EZRA WARREN, born 9 October 1799; married Mary Ann Pitts.

VII. JESSE WARREN, born 23 January 1784, Westminster; died 18 June 1854, Fitchburg, Massachusetts; 20 September 1807, married Betsey Jackson, daughter of Oliver and Mary (Pierce) Jackson. Isssue:
     A. JOSEPH RUSSELL WARREN, born 15 December 1808, Westminster; died 13 February 1809.
     B. MARY ANN WARREN, born 18 December 1809, Dedham, Massachusetts.
     C. JOSEPH WARREN, born 3 February 1812, Dedham.
     D. BETSEY WARREN, born 17 February 1814, Dedham.
     E. ELVIRA WARREN, born 10 February 1817, Dedham.
     F. JOHN WARREN, born 11 September 1819, Dedham.
     G. SAMUEL MILLS WARREN, born 12 February 1822, Dedham.
     H. CYRUS MOORS WARREN, born 15 January 1824, Dedham.
     I. HERBERT MARSHALL WARREN, born 16 January 1927, Dedham.
     J. HARRIET NEWELL WARREN, born 9 January 1830, Peru, Vermont; died 19 September 1869, Fitchburg.
     K. EBENEZER BURGESS WARREN, born 18 April 1833, Peru.

West Dedham homestead of Jesse Warren; courtesy of The Warren, Jackson,
and Allied Families

______________
Davis, Betsey Warren. The Warren, Jackson, and Allied Families Being the Ancestry of Jesse Warren and Betsey Jackson, (Philadelphia, PA: J. B. Lippincott Co., 1903), pages 1-284.

Gates, William Preston. History of The Sagamore Hotel, (Bolton Landing, NY: W. P. Gates Publishing Co., 2015), pages 1-52.

Christmas Eve at the Sagamore

52 Ancestors #11: Henry Downs (bef 1761-c1825): Recently Discovered Direct Ancestor

Ancestor, Henry Downs, four times great grandfather
DNA Haplogroup: Unknown

Henry Downs is a "new" four times great grandfather. Of course, he has been one of my direct ancestors since I was born but I only learned of his existence late last year thanks to a comment on a blog post that directed me to a Fauquier County, Virginia, Chancery case.

Henry was enumerated in the 1810 and 1820 census as living in Fauquier County, which had been formed from Prince William County in 1759.

Census information about the household of Henry Downs; created using
Microsoft Excel

Henry Downs wrote his will on 8 December 1821:

The last will and testament of Henry Downs, Fauquier Count Will Book 13,
page 448, image 250; courtesy of Ancestry.com

In the name of God amen. I Henry Downs of the County of Fauquier and the State of Virginia, being at this time in good health of body and of sound disposing mind and memory, calling to mind the uncertainty of this life, do make this my last will and testament in the manner following, viz.

First, I will and desire that all my just debts and funeral charges be paid as soon as practicable after my decease.

Secondly, I will and bequeath to my loving wife Mary Downs all my estate both real and personal of every sort during her natural life or widowhood and at her death or marriage that all my personal estate be sold and equally divided among my three daughters, namely Elizabeth Garret, Sarah Jewel, and Mary Jones, share and share alike to them and their heirs and assigns forever.

Thirdly, I have already executed a deed to my son Henry Downs for part of my land therein mentioned which I consider his full share of my estate. Said deed is dated on the twenty-ninth day of July one thousand eight hundred and twenty.

Fourthly, I give and bequeath to my son William Downs one half of the residue of my land on the southernmost side of my tract to be laid off by a line parallel with William Battson's line on which it binds, to him and his heirs and assigns forever.

Fifthly, I give and bequeath to my son Thomas Downs the balance of my land it being the third share, being between the shares of my other two sons Henry and William aforesaid, his lawful heirs and assigns forever.

And lastly, I do hereby constitute appoint and empower my beloved son Henry Downs aforesaid and my trusty friend John Sinclair my executors to this my last will and testament, publishing and declaring this to be my last will and testament in the presence of to which I have set my hand and seal this 8th day of December one thousand eight hundred and twenty-one,

Henry Downs (signed and sealed)

Alex H. Bennett
Casper Johnson (his mark)
William D. Sinclair

At a court held for Fauquier County on the 26th day of January 1825, this last will and testament of Henry Downs deceased was proved by the oath of Alex H. Bennett a subscribing witness thereto -- And at a court held for said county on the 23rd day of February 1835 a writing purporting to be the last will and testament of said Henry Downs deceased was again produced to the Court, and it appearing to the satisfaction that this same has been heretofore proved by the oath of Alex H. Bennett on of the subscribing witnesses thereto, and that Casper Johnson another subscribing witness, is dead, and that William Sinclair the remaining subscribing witness has no known place of residence, and therefore Henry Downs was introduced and sworn as a witness who deposed and said that he was present and saw the said Casper Johnson attest the said writing -- and on the motion of Luther O. Sullivan the same is ordered to be recorded as the last will and testament of the said Henry Downs deceased. Henry Downs one of the executors named in the said last will and testament personally appeared in open Court and refused to take upon himself the burthen of execution thereof -- And at a court held for said County of Fauquier on the 23rd Day of March 1835, John Sinclair another one of the executors named in the said last will and testament, by his writing under his hand and seal, refused to take upon himself the burthen of the execution thereof. -- Administration with the will annexed of the estate of Henry Downs deceased is granted to Luther O. Sullivan who thereupon qualified and gave bond and security according to law, the security having satisfied.

Teste,
A. J. Marshall, clerk

An appraisement of the estate of Henry Downs was supposed to have occurred on 29 April 1825 and been filed with the court on 26 September, but it is not located at book and page numbers cited in the will index. I have yet to go through the will book for 1825 image by image. Luther O. Sullivan filed an account of sales and a second appraisement in 1835 and on 28 August 1837 made his last recorded administrator's account:

Administrator's account for the estate of Henry Downs, Fauquier County Will
Book 15, page 313; courtesy of Ancestry.com

In the account Mr. Sullivan stated all the personal property of Henry Downs, which was to be sold after this wife's death with the proceeds being distributed equally among his daughters, was sold by 3 April 1835. After expenses, there was $1,236.23 remaining to be divided. Next, he began paying the heirs and his administrator's account provided more new information.

Mary (Downs) Jones was dead by 1836; therefore, Luther O. Sullivan paid $136.51 on 15 February 1836 to the assignee of of her son, Notley W. Jones, a man named Amos Johnson. Mr. Sullivan noted in the account that Notley was entitled to one-third of the proceeds from the sale of his grandfather's personal property. This turned out not to be the case. (He should have received a third of a third.) On 13 May 1836 Mr. Sullivan paid Catherine (Garrett) Russell, daughter of Elizabeth (Downs) Garrett $414.43. This indicated that her mother died sometime before 1836. No mention was made of Henry's daughter, Sarah (Downs) Jewell in the administrator's account. And that, I think, is when the trouble started.

On 16 April 1840 the heirs of Henry Downs' daughters filed a bill of complaint in the Fauquier County Chancery Court against Luther O. Sullivan, claiming they had not been paid. All of the his daughters were deceased by the time their mother died and the sale of their father's personal property had been completed. And those heirs were numerous:

Heirs of the daughters of Henry Downs; note Elizabeth (Garrett) Russell
correct given name is Catherine; created using Microsoft PowerPoint

Eventually, after a year of haggling in court with Mr. Sullivan, the heirs of Henry Downs' daughters were all paid.

This is my entry for Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks. The theme for this week was "Lucky." I feel lucky that I began blogging about my family history as comments on posts have resulted in countless new cousins, new information, corrections, and so much more.

Using the Ancestral Reference Numbering System, Henry Downs is Ancestor number 70 on my family tree:

70.0 Henry Downs born before 1765; died before 26 January 1825; will written and probated in Fauquier County, Virginia; married Mary (maiden name unknown). Shed died before 1836.

70.1 Henry Downs, Jr. born about 1775 per 1850 and 1860 census; died after 1860; married Mary (maiden name unknown); father deeded him one-third of his real property on 29 July 1820

70.2 William Downs born before 1800; died after 1830

70.3 Thomas Downs born before 1800; died after 1830

70.4 Elizabeth Downs born on an unknown date; died between 1825 and 1836; married a man named Mr. Garrett.

35.0 Sarah Downs born on an unknown date; died between 1825 and 1833; married Thomas Jewell

70.5 Mary Jones born on an unknown date; died between 1825 and 1836; married a man named Mr. Jones.

_______________
Sources:

1810 US Census (database and images), FamilySearch, Henry Downs, Fauquier County, Virginia, 1810; citing p. 250 NARA microfilm publication M252 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration), roll 68; FHL microfilm 181428 (accessed 29 Dec 2017).
1820 US Census (database and images), FamilySearch, Henry Downes Sr, Fauquier, Virginia, 1820; citing p. 105, NARA microfilm publication M33 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration) roll 136; FHL microfilm 193,695 (accessed on 29 Dec 2017).
1830 US Census (database and images), FamilySearch, Henry Downs, Fauquier, Virginia, 1830; citing 451, NARA microfilm publication M19 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration) roll 194; FHL microfilm 29,673 (accessed (30 Dec 2017).
1830 US Census (database and images), FamilySearch, Thomas Downs, Fauquier, Virginia, 1830; citing page 451, NARA microfilm publication M19 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration) roll 194, FHL microfilm 029673 (accessed 30 Dec 2017).
1830 US Census (database and images), FamilySearch, William Downs, Fauquier, Virginia, 1830; citing page 450, NARA microfilm publication M19 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration) roll roll 194, FHL microfilm 029673 (accessed 30 Dec 2017).
1850 US Census (database and images), FamilySearch, Henry Downs, Fauquier county, part of Fauquier, Virginia, 1850; citing family 236, NARA microfilm publication M423 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration (accessed 30 Dec 2017).
1860 US Census (database and images), Ancestry.com, Henry Downes, North East Revenue District, Fauquier County, 1860; citing family 422 NARA microfilm publication M653 (Washington, DC: National Archives and Records Administration citing page 59, FHL microfilm 805344 (accessed 30 Dec 2017).
Discovering Henry Downs, a "New" 4X Great Grandfather, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 6 Mar 2018).
Powhatan Perrow Jennings (1812-1858): A Life Cut Short, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 6 Mar 2018).
Thomas Jewell (bet 1776 and 1784-c1833): Mystery Man, Tangled Roots and Trees (accessed 8 Mar 2018).
Virginia Chancery Court Records, 1786-1969, Library of Virginia, Fauquier Chancery Court 1841-009, 72 pages (accessed 28 Dec 2017).
Virginia Select Marriages, 1785-1940 (database), Ancestry.com, Henry Downs father of Charles M. Downes marrying Emily F. Windsor (accessed 1 Jan 2018).
Virginia Select Marriages, 1785-1940 (database), Ancestry.com, Catherine Russell and Thaddeus Russell as parents of Sarah E. Russell, bride, Fauquier County, 1855 (accessed 1 Jan 2018).
Virginia Select Marriages, 1785-1940 (database), Ancestry.com, Catherine Russell and Thaddeus Russell as parents of William H. Russell, groom, Clark County, 1874 (accessed 1 Jan 2018)
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1938 (database and images), Ancestry.com, Henry Downs Will, Appraisements, Account of Sales, and Administrator's Account, Fauquier Index to Wills 1759-1924, image 60 (accessed 30 Dec 2017).
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 (database and images), Ancestry.com, Henry Downs Will, 1821; Fauquier Will book 13, page 448 (accessed 31 Dec 2017).
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 (database and images), Ancestry.com, Henry Downs Appraisement, 1825; Fauquier Will book 9, page 312, (accessed 30 Dec 2017).
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 (database and images, Ancestry.com, Henry Downs Account of Sales, 1835; Fauquier Will book 14, page 41 (accessed 30 Dec 2017).
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 (database and images, Ancestry.com, Henry Downs Second Appraisement, 1835; Fauquier Will book 14, page 42 (accessed 30 Dec 2017).
Virginia Wills and Probate Records, 1652-1983 (database and images, Ancestry.com, Henry Downs Administrator's Account, 1837; Fauquier Will book 15, page 313 (accessed 30 Dec 2017).

Thomas Jewell (bet 1776 and 1784-c1833): Mystery Man
Powhatan Perrow Jennings (1812-1858): A Life Cut Short
Discovering Henry Downs, a "New" 4X Great Grandfather