Maine Wills

 From York County Probate Records, Volume One (1680-1706)

   I Charles ffrost of the Town of Kittery in the Prouince of Maine Esq^r, being by Gods Providence Sick and weak in body but of good and perfect Memory and of a Disposing mind considering the uncertain Estate of this life and not knowing how Soon it may please almighty God to remove me out of this world Doe make constitute ordaine and Declare this my last Will and Testament in manner and form following, hereby revoaking and adnulling all former Wills and Testaments by me made either by word or writing And first I comend my Soul to God my Creator Hoping for the pardon of all my Sins and euerlasting Saluation through the alone Merrits of Jesus Christ/ And after my Decease my body to be decently buried according to the discretion of my Executrix with the aduice of the ouerseers hereafter named/ And as to my worldly Estate my will and meaning is the Same shall be bestowed as hereafter by this my Will is Expressed after the payment of Such Iust Debts as are due by me

   Inprimis/ for the loue and affection I bear unto my wife and for other considerations hereafter Expressed I doe will bequeath and giue unto her the Sole use of all my Reall Estate, as houses outhouses barns, orchard, Garden Lands Arable or pasturage together w^th all Meadows belonging or any ways Appertaining to me untill my Children come to Age, to whome by this my will they are to belong And it is my mind and will that there be noe wast of timb^r taken off my lands afores^d excepting what may be nessesary for builing fencing and fireing/ Alsoe I doe giue and bequeath unto my beloued wife Mary ffrost afores^d one halfe of my dwelling house Scituate and Standing upon Stirgeon Creek in the town and Province afores^d, together with one halfe of all out houses orchard Garden lands belonging to said ffarm and adjoyning to s^d house, being in all about fiue hundred Acres of land more or less together with one halfe of the Stock of Cattle Sheep hoggs horses & Mares that may be in being when my eldest Son comes of age, during her Naturall life/ Alsoe I doe giue and bequeath unto my beloued wife afores^d all my other personall Estate in Goods or Chattells whatsoeuer/ She paying the Portions and Legacies hereafter expressed & disposing y^e remainder to my Children as she may think meet/ And it is my will that all my Children shall haue their Education & Maintainance, untill they come to lawfull age or be Married, out of my personall Estate or the produce thereof.

   Item. I giue and bequeath unto my eldest Son Charles ffrost to him and his heirs foreuer my dwelling house ffarm and lands whatsoeuer Scituate and being Near Stirgeon Creek, being about fiue hundred Acres more or less with all Appurtenances thereof with one halfe of all the life Stock which may be in being or in Possession of my wife when he comes to lawfull age and then to enter into full possession of one Maytie or halfe of Said ffarme and haue equall use and benefit with my wife to all the Appurtenances thereof Alsoe I doe giue unto him my Son Charles my Gold Seal Ring and after the Decease of my wife to possess and injoy the whole ffarm afores^d. And in case my Said Son Should die before he come of lawfull age or w^thout Legittimate Issue Then my will is that my ffarm afores^d with all its Appurtenances Shall Descend to my Second Son Iohn ffrost and his heirs for euer And in case he alsoe Should die without Isue as afores^d, then I doe giue the said ffarm to my youngest Son Nicholas ffrost and his heirs for euer.

   I alsoe giue to my Son Charles my Negro man Seruant called Tony after my wifes decease.

   Item I doe giue and bequeath to my Second Son Iohn Frost and his heires foreuer my part of a dwelling house & land at Strawberry bank in Portsm^o in the Prouince of New hampshiere which part house and land I purchased from Iohn Shipway my son in law lately Deceased As alsoe I giue to my Said Son Iohn one hundred acres of land near the Town of York, be it more or less being in the Township of Kittery afores^d as by the Town grant appears Alsoe I giue to my said Son one piece of Gold called a Guinia as also a Negro boy called Esq^r All the aboue to be in his actuall possession when he comes to lawfull age And in case my said Son Iohn should die without leaueing lawfull Isue behind him or if the Estate allotted for my son Charles by his Decease w^thout Lawfull Isue Should descend to my Son Iohn, in either of these cases Then it is my Will that my Son Nicholas ffrost and his heirs Shall haue the aboue part of house and land at Strawberry bank, and the parcell of land near York.

   Item I doe giue & bequeath unto my Son Nicholas ffrost & his heirs foreuer all my other Lands whatsoeuer except what before expressed lying and being in the town of Kittery as by Town grants giuen to my Self or in company with my brother Iohn ffrost & Ioseph Hammond, as by Seuerall town grants may appear excepting alsoe two pieces of Salt Marsh about three Acres more or less lying upon Stirgeon Creek which I purchased of Iames Emery & Stephen Jenkins, the which Marsh I giue unto my son Iohn ffrost and his heirs/ Alsoe I doe giue unto my Son Nicholas all my money of old England Coyn and a piece of Gold called a Iacobus togeth^r with my Negro boy called Prince/ All the aboue bequeathed Portion to be deliuered to and be in the Actuall Possession of my S^d son Nicholas when he comes to lawfull age.

   Item I doe giue to my Daughters Mehetable Lidia Mary and Elizabeth to Each of them the vallue of ffifty pounds, whereof ten pounds to each of them in currant Money of New England and the remainder in Prousions or Such other Nessessaries as they may or Shall haue ocation for/ which is to be payd at y^e currant or usuall money price as Such comodities may be Sold at when it is paid, the aboue ffiftie pounds to each of them my daughters, to be paid at y^e day of their Seuerall Marriages or when they come to lawfull age of their Sexts And in case any of my s^d Daughters Should die before their Portions become due Then & in that Case the proportion allotted to each daughter Soe dying to be Eqully deuided amongst all my Daughters who Suruiue Married or unmarried but in case by the prouidence of God my personall Estate be considerably impayred or lessoned by the Inuasion of publick Enemies fire or any other casualty Then it is my Will there be proportionable abatement made of my daughters Portions according to y^e discretion of my Executrix and ouerseers or the Maj^r part of them/ Item it is my will that my daughters Sarah Shipway & Abigail ffryer Shall haue y^e remainder of what Portion I allotted to each of them or promised upon their Marriage which is to be paid to them by my Executrix She knowing what yet remains unpaid

   Item I doe giue & bequeath unto my Grand Daughter Mary Shipway to y^e vallue of fiue pounds in Prouision or what Else she may haue occation ffor to be payd when She comes to lawfull age at money price

   Item I doe giue unto my brother in Law Joseph Hammond my Pistolls & holsters and unto Cap^t ffrancis Hooke and my kinsman John Leighton both of the Town of Kittery aforesaid to each twenty Shillings as a Small remembrance of me which is to be paid to them after my Decease/

   ffinally I doe make Constitute and Appint my beloued wife Mary ffrost my Sole Executrix whom I ordain to pay all my Debts and Legacies when they come Due And if she should depart this life before my son Charles attain to lawfull age of twenty one Years In that case I doe request my ffriends Cap^t ffrancis Hooke Cap^t Ioseph Hammond & Iohn Leighton, all before named, to take y^e Charge of my Estate & to see to the disposing of the Same and euery part thereof as is in this my will & Testament Expressed/ giuing them ffull power of Executorship in case afores^d And in the mean time desire them as ouerseers to be assistant to my Executrix and to Se this my will performed in the plainest Sence it will admit without Critticks of Law In Testimoy to all and Singular the Premises expressed in this my last will and Testament I haue hereunto Set my hand and Seal the Seuenth day of Ianuary Anno Dom: 1690/91

Signed & Sealed in presents     of us    Geo : Iaffray    John Belcher       mark of    Sarah S Chadbourn		Charles ffrost (his Seal)
Probated 3 November 1697. Recorded 10 December 1697. Source: Maine Wills, 1640-1760 (Portland, Me., 1887), p. 114, citing Probate Office, 1, 45.