52 Ancestors 2020 – 16 – Air – Hannah (Albertson) Nixon

I must admit that this theme of Air had me baffled. So I chose an aunt “out of thin air.”

My 6^th great-grandaunt was Hannah (Albertson) Nixon. I had very minimal information about her on my website, her name, date and place of birth and her parents' names. She was born the 15^th day of the 2^nd month in 1719, which was before the calendar change so would be the 15^th of April. She was born in far northeastern North Carolina in the area that became Perquimans County, to Quaker parents, Nathaniel and Abigail (Nicholson) Albertson.

Since I had not entered a death date for her, I decided to check her father's will from December 1751 to see if she was living at that time. Her father did name her in the will as Hannah Albertson, so she was apparently unmarried at that time, even though she would have been 32 years old.

I enjoyed working on transcribing her father's will. It appears that 6 of the 8 children born to Nathaniel and Abigail were still living when he made his will, 3 sons and 3 daughters. Hannah was named more than once. She was to have the use of the “non Dwelling House” as long as she remained unmarried. Then she was to share with her brother Joshua a Negrow Girl named Rose and “her Increase” to be equally Divided between them. However if Hannah had no children her half was to go to her brother. Hannah had one more Item in the will: one third part of all his sheep, one Feather bed & furniture and one Chest. Nathaniel stated in his will that he was very sick and he was right because it was at the January Court in 1752 when his will was probated.

It was on March 10^th of the next year, 1753, that Hannah and John Nixon were married. John was about 10 years older than Hannah and he had been married 4 times previously. Each one of those women had died within a few years after their last child was born. Thus Hannah became stepmother for at least 5 children, from age 20 down to 2: Elizabeth, Miriam, Zachariah, John Junior and Ezra. Then Hannah had 5 children of her own with John: Mary, Lydia, Abigail, Frederick and Dorothy. But in this case, it was John who died a few years after the last child was born as he died 18 Jan 1762.

Again I found myself transcribing a will from the 1700s, this time for John Nixon, Hannah's husband. John did name Hannah in his will. He gave his son Ezra one half of the Plantation where he lived and then stated “my will & Intent is that my welbeloved wife Hannah Nixon shall have the use & benefit of sd part During her natural life or pleasure to reside thereon in this life.” John noted that this half of his property was adjoining his brother Phineas Nixon. After he makes more specific bequests to some of his children he concluded that his well beloved wife Hannah Nixon was to have all the rest of his personal estate and was to be one of the executors of his will.

Because Hannah had been willed one half a Negrow girl by her father, this caused her a problem at her Quaker church in the mid-1770s. North Carolina law prohibited freeing slaves, but the North Carolina Quaker Yearly Meeting had declared in 1775 that friends were prohibited from buying and selling Negroes. Apparently Joshua and Hannah did sell their “Negrow.” Both Joshua and Hannah are mentioned in the Quaker meeting minutes in 1777 regarding this transgression. Joshua was disowned, but the women's minutes from Pasquotank show the following about Hannah. “it appeared to them that it was hardly in her power to get her half of the negro back again & that she appeared to be very sorry for what she had done.” Therefore Hannah did remain within her Quaker congregation. The 1790 census for Perquimans County, North Carolina, does include an entry for Hannah Nixon. The household contained 3 females and 2 slaves.

Hannah's death was reported in the Quaker records, 16 Feb 1793. This means that she lived as a widow for 31 years and died at age 73, 2 months short of her 74^th birthday. It also means I had another will to transcribe. It was dated 29^th of 1^st month 1793 (29 Jan 1793). She named 3 heirs: daughters Abigail Nixon and Dorothy Nixon and grand-daughter Sarah Robinson. From the Quaker records her son Frederick had been disowned for some activity during the Revolutionary War. Her daughter Lydia had died in 1767 and her daughter Mary, who had married Rowland Robinson, died in May 1774, about a month after Sarah was born. So the 3 named, seem to be all of her female heirs at that time.

For someone I picked out of thin air, there were a number of very interesting items I discovered while researching “Aunt Hannah,” so I'm glad I picked her.

52 Ancestors 2020 – 13 – Nearly Forgotten – Ezra Albertson

When I checked the listing of names for this week to find someone who was “Nearly Forgotten,” I chose Ezra Albertson, because I had basically forgotten about him. Ezra died as a young teenager, so there are no descendants to honor him.

Still he was my 2^nd great-granduncle and I expect my 2^nd great grandfather, Benjamin Albertson, would remember his little brother. Benjamin was born in January of 1826 while the family still lived in Perquimans County, North Carolina. Naturally he was with them when they moved to Indiana in 1832 and were charter members at Walnut Ridge Monthly Meeting in Hancock County in 1836. Benjamin would have been 15 years old when Ezra was born 30 Mar 1841 there in Hancock County, Indiana. Ezra would have been 6 years old when his oldest brother Benjamin was married to Sabina Marsh 25 Nov 1847.

And surely Ezra's parents, Nathan and Phariby (Nicholson) Albertson, would remember their child. He was listed as being with them as the family moved from Hancock County to Hamilton County, Indiana in mid 1850. Since they were in the process of moving, this may explain why I have not been able to locate them in the 1850 census.

The Westfield Monthly Meeting in Hamilton County mentions Ezra twice. In 1850 he was included with the family received at Westfield from the Walnut Creek Monthly Meeting. Then these Quaker death records show that Ezra H. Albertson died 15 Nov 1854 at age 13 years, 7 months and 16 days old.

It was the next spring, 1 May 1855, when Nathan & Phariby requested a certificate to move to Iowa. By the fall of 1855 Nathan had purchased property in Hardin County Iowa and the family moved there. I have discovered that often in my family after a child dies, the family moves to a new location. Maybe this is to escape the sad memories. Hopefully that child will never be totally forgotten.

Ezra's brother Alpheus, who was just 10 years older than him, did remember Ezra in a positive way. He named his only son, Ezra A. Albertson, when he was born in Iowa in 1866. I hope Alpheus told his son Ezra about his uncle Ezra so he would not be forgotten for many years, since this second Ezra lived to age 71.

52 Ancestors 2020 – 8 – Prosperity – Rachel (White) Winslow

With the theme this week of Prosperity, I decided I should look it up in a dictionary. Because I am focusing on siblings of ancestors who lived mostly over a hundred years ago, I chose a dictionary of 1909. The definition given there was: “Successful progress in any business or enterprise; good fortune.” It also listed some synonyms: well-being, weal, welfare, happiness, good luck. Within my self-imposed limits of their birthday being during the week and females during February, I only had 2 choices. So the “aunt” I chose was Rachel (White) Winslow, my 5^th great-grandaunt.

Rachel was one of the few individuals among my relatives who was a twin. She and her brother Thomas were born on the 25^th day of the 12^th month of 1730. But since it was before 1752 and the family were Quakers that translates to the 25^th of February 1730/31.

She was listed as the 7^th child of 13 born to Thomas and Rachel (Jordan) White.

Thomas and Rachel were married in Isle of Wight County, Virginia, in 1719. They moved to Perquimans County, North Carolina, at least by 1724 when Thomas Winslow deeded 330 acres to Thomas White. So this indicates that Rachel was born in North Carolina.

It so happened that Rachel married John Winslow, the son of John the 10^th day of the 3^rd month in 1752 “at the meeting house in the Piney Woods” as recorded at the Perquimans Monthly Meeting. I suspect that she could feel happiness on that day as there were

25 relatives and friends who signed as witnesses to their marriage. In the usual place for the parents signature there is Rachel White, but not Thomas.

It appears that Mrs. Watson Winslow, who wrote a history of Perquimans County in 1931, confused things when she stated on page 428 that Rachel married Benjamin Winslow, the son of John and Esther (Snelling) Winslow. When checking the public trees on Ancestry.com I found there were over 500 trees which have Abigail Rachael White, daughter of Thomas and Rachel, married to John Benjamin Winslow on 10 May 1752. There was listed in the Quaker records an Abigail White who married Benjamin Winslow, but this was in 1770.

There is a question in my mind of why Rachel does not appear in her father's will as it was recorded in the will book C of Perquimans County on page 1. The rest of her family does seem to be included there. In Mrs. Winslow's book on pages 370-371 she includes what she says was a newly discovered copy of Rachel's mother's will, undated and unsigned, which had not been probated. She quotes the entire will and in it she listed the following bequest: “Fifthly I give and bequeath unto my daughter Rachel Winslow, one Small Square table, and one brass Candle Stick, and one negro wench Judah, and one old feather bed and some furniture.” Rachel (Jordan) White died in 1768. In Thomas' will of 1761 his bequests to his wife Rachel included one negro woman named Judah and one square table. Were these what Rachel left to her daughter Rachel?

The Quaker record from Perquimans Monthly Meeting indicated that John and Rachel (White) Winslow had 3 children: Ann born in 1761, John born in 1763 and Samuel born in 1764. It stated that Ann “appears to have been married to John Sanders.” Then it listed 8 children born between 1776 and 1792, the last 2 being twins. Here is another place for prosperity for our Rachel, since she lived until after all 8 of these grandchildren were born.

In the Quaker record the clerk recorded her death in this manner after noting her husband's death of 1801: “Rachel Winslow his wife & mother of these children departed this life 10^th mo. 8^th 1794.”

52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks – 9 – Will

My procrastination inclination has set in again and here it is the last day of week 9 and the theme for this week on 52 Ancestors is Will. Thanks to Lisa Louise Cooke's blog on 2 Mar 2018 about state genealogy records I discovered that the State Archives of North Carolina has posted a new digital collection of Secretary of State Wills containing wills from 1663 to 1789. I already had some books of abstracts of those wills, so knew that several of my ancestors' wills were included there. With this new collection available there should be a number of wills that I can try to transcribe.

One of the earlier ones should be Albert Albertson, my 8^th gt-grandfather. I clicked on the link provided and was able to access the collection. I found Albert's will which was written in 1701 and probated in 1702. I find it amazing I can look at an image of my ancestor's will that has survived over 300 years. Below you can see a copy of the first page of that will. Tomorrow I will try to give my attempt for transcribing it.

Trying to Transcribe - Will of Jael Parker - Pt 2

A few minutes ago I posted part 1 of the will of Jael Parker, my 5^th gt-grandmother. Because I failed to post anything on Christmas Day, I am posting a second one today so I can be caught up on my number of posts.

The will I am transcribing here appears to be from the recorded wills of Perquimans County North Carolina. This section was from Volume E, page 406.

My friend William Hasket Executor to this My last ===

Will & testament in Witness whereof I have hereunto

set my hand & Seal & Seal [sic] this 10^th day of the 1^st month

1814----

Signd in presence of                            Jail Parker {seal}

Joseph Cox afirmed

John Hasket --

____ _________

Perquimans County \\ This Will of Jail Parker deas, was exhibited

Feby Term 1814       \\ & proved in open court by the affirm

of Joseph Cox one of the subscribing witnesses thereto & at

the same time appointed William Hasket the Exc. Therein

named & qualifyed agreeable to law.

                                                          Test. John Wood Clk

Trying to Transcribe - Will of Jael Parker - Pt 1

A few days ago I posted the will of John Parker, my 5^th gt-grandfather. This is the will of his wife, who of course was my 5^th gt-grandmother. Most of the Quaker records for her use the spelling Jael, while this recorded deed uses Jail. “If it sounds the same, it is the same” is a quote I heard at a national genealogical conference, so I believe that Jael and Jail are just different spellings for the same name. I was really glad she named my 4^th gt-grandmother, Peninah/Penninah Nicholson in her will.

The will I am transcribing here appears to be from the recorded wills of Perquimans County North Carolina. I found it both on familysearch.org and on Ancestry.com. This section was from Volume E, page 405.

State of N^o Carolina } I Jail Parker, being weak in body

Perq. County } but of a sound disposing memory

& considering the uncertainty of life & Death do make this my

last will & testament as follows Viz ) 1^st my will is that

all my just debts & funeral expenses be paid out of my

estate. Item. I give & bequeath unto my son John Parker one

cow & calf, the largest iron pot & hooks to him & his heirs

for ever. Item. I give & bequeath unto my daughter Sarah

Lacey one feather bed & furniture the smallest one, one pair

flat irons, One yoke & ox ring & Staple to her & her heirs

forever. Item. I give & bequeath unto my Daughter Ruth Bundy

ten shillings, to her & her heirs forever. Item. I give & bequeath

unto my son Seth Parker, one ox chain to him & his heirs

forever. Item. I give & bequeath unto my daughter Penniah

Nicholson all the remaining part of my estate to her & her

heirs forever. I do hereby constitute & appoint

Trying to Transcribe - Will of John Parker - Pt 1

Yesterday I posted about Peninah (Parker) Nicholson. This is the first section of the will of her father, John Parker, my 5^th gt-grandfather.

I found two copies of his will on-line. It appears that the image on familysearch.org is from the recorded wills in Perquimans County North Carolina. The other image I found was on Ancestry.com which was marked as original wills. When I compared them I found no substantial differences. I am using the Ancestry image here.

It seemed interesting to me how John specified who would get his “Still.”

State of N^o Carolina }

Perquimans County } I John Parker Sen^r of the place

aforesaid, being of Sound & disposing mind and

memory do make & ordain these presents to be & containing my last

Will & testament in the following manner & form, Viz ------

First, It is my will that all the Just debts which may be owing from

me at the time of my decease, & all the necessary expenses be well & truly

paid out of my Estate in due time --- Whereas by Deeds of

gift bearing even date with these presents, I have made conveyances of

Lands to my Grandsons Nathan Bundy & John Nicholson, respectively

under several provisos, therefore I hereby confirm them, as it is my

Will that the said gifts to them shall be good, agreeable to my Intent

of meaning expressed in the said Deeds. ----

Item. I Give and bequeath to my son Seth Parker & His Heirs & assigns

for ever, my manor plantation whereon I dwell with all the buildings

& Improvements thereon & Woodland adjoining, with the Woodland

on the Easterly side of the fork Swamp joining and all my land lying

in the woods about Pine Glade; and in case he should Decease without

lawful years & before he lawfully disposes of or conveys the said lands,

then I give the said Lands unto my grandson Nathan Parker, son of

my son John Parker, to him his heirs & assigns for ever; Reserving

nevertheless unto my beloved Wife Jail Parker the use of all the said

Plantation, Lands buildings & Improvements until my said Son

Seth shall arrive to the age of twenty Years & and after that for my said

Wife to have the use of one half my plantation which part she shall choose

and one half of my buildings thereon & privilege of the woodland, the planta-

tion to be divided by my path or road straight from my Still house out to

the public road, to her during her natural life.

Item. I leave the use of my Still, Apple Mill, Cider Troughs, flat forms & other

cider utensils & all my Liquor Casks unto my said wife until my said

Son comes to the age of Twenty Years, and then I give them all to my

said son Seth, only for my said Wife to have the privilege of the Still &

as many of the Casks & other utensils as may be necessary for her own

Liquor, during her natural life; and if my said Son Seth should decease

in minority & without lawful ______ I give the said Still to my Grandson

John Nicholson above named..------- ---------- -------------- --------------.

Ancestor Birthday – July 22 – Peninah Parker 1781-1857

It was a few days ago, on 22 Dec 2017, when I wrote about Nathan Nicholson, my 4^th gt-grandfather. His wife was Peninah Parker. When I checked her entry on my website, I discovered I had neglected to enter her birth information there, so it didn't show on my calendar of birthdays. So I am trying to correct my oversight today. Also I didn't make a post yesterday on Christmas Day, so plan to catch up tomorrow by transcribing 2 pages of Peninah's father's will.

Peninah was born into a family which became Quakers before she was born. From the wills of her parents, John and Jael (Peel) Parker, their oldest son, John, was born before they had become Quakers, so his birth was not listed on this list of children from the Sutton's Creek Monthly Meeting in Perquimans County North Carolina.

As I wrote a few days ago Peninah married Nathan Nicholson on 16 May 1799. This means that she had not yet reached her 18^th birthday. She and Nathan had 8 known children. After her husband died about 1824 she remained in North Carolina with her younger children until 1832 when she moved to Indiana. Other of the Quakers from that area also moved there. She and the 3 youngest children, Mary, George and Nathan Parker, were first at Milford Monthly Meeting in Wayne County. The next year, 1833, they were listed as members of Duck Creek Monthly Meeting in Henry County. When her son George was married in 1835, her residence was listed as Rush County. She and her children were shown as charter members of Walnut Ridge Monthly Meeting in Rush County when it was set off from Duck Creek in 1836. She remained a member there for over 20 years before she died 18 Sep 1857 and was buried at Walnut Ridge.

Ancestor Birthday – December 22 - Nathan Nicholson - 1776-1824

Nathan Nicholson was my 4^th gt-grandfather. He was the son of Nicholas and Sarah (White) Nicholson, born in Perquimans County North Carolina on 22 Dec 1776. Nathan had 8 siblings, 6 older and 2 younger. He was one of my Quaker ancestors.

He married Peninah Parker on 16 May 1799 at Suttons Creek Meeting House. I enjoy the fact that often the Quaker church records show the names of the witnesses, or those who were present at the marriage. Many times relatives to the bride or groom can be recognized.

Of course you have to try to read the handwriting of the church clerk to be able to recognize those relative's names.

Nathan and Peninah had 8 children: John, Sarah, Phariby (my 3^rd gt-grandmother), Tempa, Esther, Mary, George, and Nathan Parker.

Nathan Parker, their youngest son, was probably only 7 years old when his father died. The probate papers show the personal property sold on 20 Feb 1824.

Ancestor Birthday – December 7 - Sarah White 1742-1800

Sarah White was my 5th gt-grandmother. She was born 275 years ago today. I have a few of the "facts" about her life on my website. http://www.joanneskelton.com/p50.htm#i1237

Sarah probably was the 12^th child of 13 born to Thomas and Rachel (Jordan) White. Thomas and Rachel were married in Isle of Wight County Virginia in 1719. They had moved to Perquimans County North Carolina at least by the beginning of 1727. This was where Sarah was born in 1742. Because her family were Quakers, she is found in those church records. This was a listing of the children of Thomas and Rachel and Sarah is included.

It is believed that Sarah married Nicholas Nicholson 17 Nov 1762. They had nine children: 4 boys, including my 4^th gt-grandfather Nathan Nicholson, and 5 girls. I wrote about Nicholas on my blog on 7 Jun 2017.

Sarah was named in her father's will as Sarah White since he wrote his will 15 Sep 1761 and it was probated in Jan 1762 which was before she was married. There was a will now in the state archives undated, unsigned and unwitnessed for a Rachel White, who probably was Sarah's mother. That will includes a bequest to Sarah Nicholson. It was quoted in History of Perquimans County, by Mrs. Watson Winslow, on page 371. It shows that Sarah was to receive: “one feather bed, and furniture, that Mary Pritchet left me, one half Duzen Earthen plates, and one punch bole, one large pewter Dish, one Deep puwter Dish, one tee pot, and five tee Cups, and sas---(saucers) one large Stone pot, one Square table, one Chest, to her and hers forever.” I wonder if Sarah actually received all these items.

It is believed that Sarah died 22 Apr 1800. Some researchers believe that Nicholas died that same year.

Ancestor Birthday – November 13th – Aaron Albertson 1710-1782

I'm celebrating Aaron's birthday a day early so I can do a Monday Mystery Photo tomorrow.

Aaron Albertson was one of my 6^th gt-grandfathers. The Quaker records show that he was born the 13^th day of the 9^th month in 1710 in Perquimans County, North Carolina. Since this was before the calendar change in 1752, the 9^th month was November. His parents were Nathaniel and Abigail (Nicholson) Albertson. He was the 3^rd of 8 children.

The Perquimans Monthly Meeting reported on the 3^rd day of the 7^th month (September) in 1729 that the inspectors had brought a good report and Aaron Albertson and Ann Gilbert were at liberty to be married. The record is a little difficult to read. Their portion begins about half way through, and Aaron's surname is divided onto two lines.

The civil record shows that they were married on 10 Sep 1729. It is most probable that it was a Quaker style marriage.

Aaron and Ann had 5 children: Joseph, Abigail, Nathaniel, Jane & Benjamin. The youngest, Benjamin born in 1739, was my 5^th gt-grandfather.

My posts on June 22 & 23, 2017, were my attempts to transcribe Aaron's will which was written 15 Oct 1769 and probated in Apr 1782. He names his wife Anne [sic] and 4 children: Nathaniel Albertson, Abigail Cosand, Jean Charles and Benjamin Albertson. Apparently Joseph had died before 1769.

I found it interesting that when I searched the public member trees on Ancestry.com I found that there were over 300 trees which included Aaron.

Trying to Transcribe - Deed from Samuel Nicholson to Abigail Albertson 1708 - Pt 2

Today is the remainder of the deed from yesterday. Samuel made it clear who would get the property if Abigail had no descendants who could inherit it. But in my post from day before yesterday I noted that Abigail had at least 8 children, which included my ancestor Aaron Albertson

In full and ample manner but if in that my daughter

Abigail Albertson should die and should leave no heir

that proceeds from her own line that should come to possess

the above mentioned Plantation or the one half of the

said tract of land above mentioned then I give the above

said Plantation unto my daughter Hannah Nicholson

and to her heirs forever in witness whereof I set my hand

this the 12th day of the 5th month 1708.

                                           Samuel Nicholson

                                           Eliz {her mark}Nicholson

Perquimans Jany the 11th 1708/9

the within deed acknowledge

in open court __

                 Geo Lumley Clk

Registered the 10th day Jany 1708/9 ___ John Stepney 

Register of writings for Perquimans precinct ___

Trying to Transcribe - Deed from Samuel Nicholson to Abigail Albertson 1708 - Pt 1

Yesterday I did the ancestor birthday of Abigail Nicholson, who married Nathaniel Albertson. I noted that her father Samuel Nicholson did not name her in his will. But he did name her as his daughter when he deeded property to her a few years after she was married. This is that deed.

Due to the handwriting it appears to be a copy made by the county from earlier records. This was available on FamilySearch.org from Perquimans County North Carolina records, deed book A, no. 285.

No. 285. To All People to whom these Presents shall come to be

seen heard or read I Samuel Nicholson of Perquimans

River in the County of Albemarle in the province

of North Carolina Send Greeting __ Know ye

that I the said Samuel Nicholson for and in Consi

=deration of the love and kindness that I bear unto

my Daughter Abigal Albertson I do give unto her

my Plantation that is at the River side with all

the Huses [sic] Edefices and buildings thereon being lying

upon the Easte side of Perquimans River to her in

hand delivered by me the said Samuel Nicholson

and further I have given granted aliened ____ conveyed

and confirmed and by these presents for me my heirs

Exec_ admi_ and assigns do fully freely and absolutely

give grant aline[sic] ______convey and confirm unto my

daughter Abigail Albertson to her heirs provided that she

hath or shall have any Children that shall come to

the years of discression for to possess the above said

Plantation or tract of Land above mentiond that is

to say that part of the said tract of Land lying next

to Ezekiel Modlens line but that part whereon Ann

Dorman doth live that she may Peasibly possess during

her natural life and after the discease of the above said

Ann Dorman then for my daughter Abigail Albertson

to have the one half of the above said tract of Land

containing two hundred acres of Land to her and her

heirs forever with all houses, orchards and _____ previl

=leges that doth thereunto belong whose all accounts

posted 25 Sep 2017

Ancestor Birthday - September 24 - Abigail Nicholson - 1689

Abigail Nicholson was my 7th gt-grandmother, the daughter of Samuel and Elizabeth (Kent) (Charles) Nicholson. She was born 24 Sep 1689 in Perquimans County North Carolina. It was in the 5th month (July) 1705 when she married Nathaniel Albertson in a Quaker ceremony. The record from Perquimans Monthly Meeting stated that it was a meeting at her fathers. Here is a copy from the original records. You can see why I prefer to use the abstracts done by Gwen Boyer Bjorkman, as published by Heritage Books, 1988

.

The Quaker records as abstracted in William Wade Hinshaw's Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy, Vol I for North Carolina, listed 8 children for Abigail and Nathaniel: Sarah, Elizabeth, Aaron, Jane, Joshua, Hannah Lydia and William, born between 1706 an 1724.

Bjorkman's book of Quaker Marriage Certificates showed Abigail Albertson (with various spellings) as a witness for the marriage of 3 of her sisters: Jane in 1712, Elizabeth in 1719 and Hannah in 1721. She was also a witness for her daughter Elizabeth's marriage in 1725.

Abigail was not listed in her father's will from 22 Mar 1727/28, so it is likely she died before that date and after 1725 when she was a witness for her daughter's marriage. Someone has posted an entry on Find A Grave for her, listing her death date as 1727.

Trying to Transcribe - Will of Mary Albertson

Since I used the wills of Benjamin and Mary Albertson yesterday (1 Aug 2017) to find the names of their children I realized that I had transcribed Benjamin's will, but I hadn't yet done Mary's will. So today I will work on that project. Her will fits on one page so it will be just one day. Mary's will was written 10 Mar 1807 and probated in Nov 1812.

372  In the name of God amen. I Marey Albertson

of the County of Perquimans (widow of old neck) Do

make this my Last will & Testament. Revoking &

Disannulling all former wills & Bequests by me

made ----

First, it is my will that all my Just Debts & funeral

Expenses be paid by my Executor Hereinafter named.

Item. I give unto my son Joseph Albertson the sum of five shill.[ings]

Item. I give unto my son Benjamin Albertson the sum of five shillings.

Item. I give unto my son Aron Albertson the sum of five shillings.

Item. I give unto my daughter Sarah Albertson's children the sum of five shillings.

Item. I give unto my daughter Phereby Griffin the sum of five shillings.

Item. I give, Devise & Bequeath unto my son Joshua Albertson

All the remaining parts & residue of my Estate (of what

Nature or Kindsoever) to Him my said son Joshua

Albertson His Heirs & assigns forever. -----

Lastly I nominate & appoint my son Joshua

Albertson my sole executor to this my last will and

testament, wishing him to have the same fully executed.

  In Testimony whereof, I the said Marey

Albertson have hereunto set my hand & seal this

the 10th Day of March, A.D. 1807 ---

Signed, sealed, published & declared

By the said Marey Albertson (the testator)                  Marey Albertson {seal}

to be her Last will & Testament.

In Presence of --

Gabl White

[???] test

                                                                                   John Wood clk

The Children of Benjamin and Mary Albertson?

If you have been following this the past few days you know that my 5th great-grandfather, Benjamin Albertson had two wives named Mary. I believe that Benjamin married Mary Small in 1760, then married a second time to Mary Wyatt in 1769. Yesterday I showed how I determined that my 4th great-grandfather Benjamin Albertson was born after 1769.

Today I want to look at the rest of the children of Benjamin and Mary. Since the births of the children of Benjamin and Mary (both of them) are not recorded in the Quaker records, I need to try other avenues. I have one good source to use. Both Benjamin and Mary (Wyatt) left wills.

However they don't list the children in exactly the same order, so I can't be sure of the order of births. This will take a lot more research to try to determine who was born when and if any are the children of Mary Small.

I transcribed the will of Benjamin on June 24th & 25th. The children named are Benjamin, who received half of the land. Then Aron and Joshua who shared the other half. Joshua received another bequest. Next he lists Phariby Albertson who received personal property. Then Miriam Anderson (who had married in 1790) and Joseph Albertson who received an amount of money. The rest of the estate was to be divided between his wife Mary and daughter Sarah Albertson (she had married an Albertson cousin in 1798).

Mary wrote her will in 1807 and gave a money amount to each of the following: Joseph, Benjamin, Aaron, Sarah's children, Pharaby Griffen. The balance was to go to Joshua. You may notice that Miriam is not mentioned. It is possible that she had died, but I don't know why she wasn't mentioned.

So I still have questions about the children in this family and more research needs to be tried. Maybe I will never know for sure.

Which Mary Was the Mother of Benjamin Albertson?

Yesterday I wrote about my 5th great-grandfather, Benjamin Albertson and his two wives named Mary. I believe that Benjamin married Mary Small in 1760, then married a second time to Mary Wyatt in 1769. I had come to this conclusion a number of years ago and asked for a second opinion from Raymond Winslow, a well-respected North Carolina researcher. He agreed it appeared probable. But then he noted that to determine which Mary was my ancestor, I needed to try to find when my 4th great-grandfather, Benjamin Albertson, was born. Was he born before or after 1769?

Of course the births of the children of Benjamin and Mary (both of them) are not recorded in the Quaker records. So using the suggestion of Mr. Winslow, I researched the 1800 to 1830 censuses for Perquimans County North Carolina to try to discover the approximate date for Benjamin's birth.

I located a Benjamin Albertson that I believe was my 4th gt-grandfather in the 1800, 1810 and 1820 censuses. When his son was married in 1824 it stated his father was deceased, so he was not in 1830. Since those censuses do not give an age, but a range, my calculations have to be an approximate. These are the results:

1800 -- age 16-26 = birthdate 1774 - 1784

1810 -- age 26-45 = birthdate 1765 - 1784

1820 -- age 26-45 = birthdate 1775 - 1794

Using all these censuses together it indicates he was born between 1775 and 1784. Therefore he would have been born after 1769 and his mother was Mary Wyatt. I do have one more clue to substantiate this belief. One of Benjamin's grandsons was named Nathan Wyatt Albertson.

But what about Benjamin's brothers and sisters. How do they fit? I will try to write about that tomorrow.

More Questions About Benjamin Albertson 1739 - 1800

Yesterday I wrote about my 5th great-grandfather, Benjamin Albertson and his date of birth. He has seemed to give me more problems about his records.

I noted that the records at the Quaker Suttons Creek Monthly Meeting include this section about Benjamin and his wife's birth and death.

You will notice that his wife's name was shown as Mary Albertson. Now I need to find out what her maiden name was. So I should be able to check the marriage records and find the answer to this question. But Benjamin didn't want to cooperate with me.

In Hinshaw's Encyclopedia of American Quaker Genealogy, in the section for Perquimans Monthly Meeting, pg 34, I found the following entries in the Albertson section:

1760, 2, 6. Benjamin rmt Mary Small.

1769, 3, 1. Benjamin rmt Mary Wyatt.

Going to the section for neighboring Pasquotank Monthly Meeting, pg 127, I found this:

1766, 11,19. Benjamin, of Peruqimans MM, rmt Sarah Nixon.

Well, how many Benjamin Albertsons were there in that area in that time period? Checking the families I discovered that Aaron and Ann (Gilbert) Albertson had a son named Benjamin (my ancestor) and William and Sarah (Pritchard) Albertson had a son named Benjamin. Aaron and William were brothers and these 2 Benjamins were cousins. I could find just the 2 men named Benjamin.

We can see from the Sutton Creek record that our Benjamin's wife was a Mary. His will probated in Nov 1800 lists his wife as Mary. His cousin's will was probated in May 1802 with no wife named. But Sutton Creek records show that Sarah the wife of Benjamin died in the 8th month of 1801.

The will of Jacob Wyatt of Perquimans County was probated July 1788 and he names a daughter as Mary, wife of Benjamin Albertson. Since this was after the marriage of 1769 it seems evident to me that my Benjamin first married Mary Small in 1760 and she probably died and he married second to Mary Wyatt in 1769 and she is the one who is shown in the above record from Suttons Creek.

Now the question is, when was my ancestor, Benjamin's son Benjamin, born? I need to try to find the answer to this so I can see which Mary was my ancestor. I will try to give an answer to that question tomorrow.

Ancestor Birthday - July 29th - Benjamin Albertson 1739 - 1800

I must confess that my 5th great-grandfather, Benjamin Albertson has been giving me problems about the correct date of his birth. The change in the calendar in 1752 and the Quaker use of numbers rather than names for months has given me a challenge.

In the Quaker Perquimans Monthly Meeting records I found the following birth record for he and his siblings, the children of Aaron and Ann (Gilbert) Albertson.

He was the youngest child and this seems to say he was born on the 18th of the 5th month in 1739. Since this was before the calendar change, that would make the month July.

Then after he died the records at the Quaker Suttons Creek Monthly Meeting included this section about Benjamin and his wife's birth and death.

Here it states he was born the 29th of the 7th month 1739 old stile. Since this was written after the calendar change in 1752 it seems to indicate he was born on the 29th of the 7th month which would have been September under the "old style."

So he was born either on the 18th or 29th and either in the 5th month (July) or 7th month (September). It more probable that the Perquimans Monthly Meeting records were written first, since Suttons Creek Monthly Meeting was not divided from Perquimans until 1794. So because of that maybe I should choose July and believe the Suttons Creek clerk got confused. But then which day is correct, 18th or 29th. Notice there are 11 days difference. Look at a representation of the calendar for September in 1752 when the new calendar took effect.

In order to get the calendar back in sync 11 days were omitted. Maybe the clerk tried to account for that or maybe it was Benjamin. Maybe he was following the lead of the president. The story has been reported that George Washington was born 11 Feb 1731, but after the calendar change his birthday was celebrated on the 22nd of February.

So if I choose the Perquimans record for the month (July) and use the later day (29th) that would make today when I celebrate his birthday.

Trying to Transcribe - Will of Benjamin Albertson - Pt 2

This is part 2 of the will of my 5th great-grandfather, Benjamin Albertson, written 21 Sep 1800 and probated at November term in 1800 in Perquimans County North Carolina. If you find any errors please contact me.

123

Item     I give all the Remaining part of my Estate unto my Said wife and my

            Daughter Sarah Albertson to be equally divided between them.

Lastly Thereby nominate, constitute and appoint my Wife Mary Albertson

           Executor & my Son Benjamin Albertson executor of this my Last Will,

           Ratifying & Confirming this and no other to be my Last Will & Testament

           In Witness Whereof I the said Benjamin Albertson Sen^r have ^here unto

           set my hand & seal this 21st day of this 9th month in the year one

           Thousand & Eight Hundred.

           Signed, Sealed, published pronounced } Benjamin Albertson (seal)

           & declared by the Sd Benjamin Albertson }

           to be his Last Will & Testament in }

           presence of

               William Newby

               L. Munden

          Perquimans } November Term at Hertford 1800

            County      } This Certifies that the Within Will of Benjamin

         Albertson Dece was then & there Exhibited into Court & proved by

         by the Aff^m of Levi Munden, a Subscribing Witness thereto

         at the Same time Mary Albertson & Benjamin Albertson the

Exec & Executor therein Named came into Court & Qualified agreeable

         to Law                                          Test Jn Harvey clk

        Recorded the 14^th February 1801 Test Jn Harvey clk