Maine Wills

 From York County Probate Records, Volume Seven (1721-49)

   In the Name of God Amen. To whomsoever it may concern be it hereby known, That I Iohn Wells of Wells in the County of York in the Province of the Massachusetts Bay in New England Yeoman, being of a Sound disposing mind, tho far advanced in Years; Do under the Apprehensions of my approaching Death commit my departing Spirit unto the Mercy of God, thrô Jesus the Mediator, and my Body into the Hands of my Executors hereafter mentioned to be by them decently interr'd in full Belief of the Resurrection thereof by the mighty Power of God. and dispose of the temporal Estate wherewith the Lord hath blessed me in the following Manner viz^t.

   1^st. I Will that all my just Debts and funeral Charges Shall be paid by my Executors hereafter named out of my moveable Estate

   2^ly I give & bequeath unto my beloved Wife Mary Wells Fifty pounds in old Tenor Bills of the Province aforesaid to be paid unto her by my Executors within three years after my Decease.

   3^ly I give and bequeath unto my beloved Daughter Mary Maddock, Fifty pounds in old Tenor Bills to be paid unto her by my Executors within three Years after my Decease.

   4^ly I give and bequeath unto my Grandson John Maddock Fifty pounds old Tenor to be paid unto him by my Executr within three years after my Decease.

   5^ly I giue and bequeath unto my Grandson Palsgrove Maddock Fifty pounds old Tenor to be paid unto him within Three years after my Decease by my Executors.

   6^ly I give and bequeath unto my Grand Daughter Mary Pike Fifty pounds old Tenor to be paid unto her by my Executors within three Years after my Decease.

   7^ly I give and bequeath unto my Grand Daughter Sarah Maddock Fifty pounds old Tenor to be paid unto her by my Executors within three years after my Decease.

   And my Will is, That in Case my Said Wife or Daughter Mary or either of her aforementioned four Children, Shall die before me, then my Executors Shall pay the Sum they were to have paid unto Such Dec^d person or persons, provided they had Survived me according to my foregoing Bequestments unto them, unto Such of those Six persons as Shall Survive me, dividing it in equal Shares amongst those Survivors over & above the Fifty pounds I have herein given to each one of them in particular, and that the afores^d Bequestments Shall be each ones full Share and Portion in & to all & every Part of my Estate to whom they are respectively made. Furthermore my Will with respect to my Said Daughter Mary and her aforementioned four Children, is that if I Should during my natural Life pay or cause to be paid unto her my Said Daughter Mary and her Said four Children or any of them all or any part of the Fifty pounds I have herein willed my Executors to pay them, my Executors Shall be discharged of Such Sum or Sums so paid to them or any of them in my Life time, any thing herein contained to the contrary in any wise notwithstanding.

   8. I give & bequeath unto my beloved Son Iohn Wells jun^r his Heirs & Assigns forever all that parcel of Land on which he now dwells and the Marsh adjoining thereunto excepting four Acres of Marsh lying next to Ioshua Wells Marsh, the Said Land & Marsh lying & being in Wells afores^d butted & bounded as is expressed in a Deed given under my Hand & Seal of said Land & Marsh unto my Said Son John Wells, Dated Anno Domini 1740. and recorded with the Records for Deeds in the Said County of York within w^ch Bounds the Said Four Acres of Marsh are included, but excepted and reserved in Said Deed and Since the making thereof conveyed by me unto my beloved Son in Law Thomas Goodwin and my beloved Daughter Hannah the Wife of the Said Thomas Goodwin; And further to prevent any Difficulty that may arise thrô any Weakness or Deficiency in Said Deed or on any Acco^t whatsoever I do likewise hereby bequeath and renewedly give unto my Said Son John Wells the Same one Half of my Part of the Saw Mill Standing over the lower Falls of little River with the one half of the Priviledge that belonged to me there before the making Said Deed, and the one half of the Utensils Implements & Appurten^ces belonging to my Said part of Said Mill as is expressed in the aforementioned Deed, together with the Buildings Fencings Trees Timber Wood Underwood Herbage and everything appertaining to the Land where he now dwells and to the Marsh adjoining thereunto, and likewise one fourth part of the Gristmill it being that which he himself has built over the lower Falls at little River Since my making the aforementioned Deed unto him.

   9^ly I give & bequeath unto my S^d beloved Son in Law Thomas Goodwin and my beloved Daughter Hannah the Wife of the Said Thomas Goodin their Heirs & Assigns forever Fourteen Acres of Land Upland Interval or fresh Meadow Ground & Salt Marsh be it more or less lying & being in Wells afores^d butted & bounded as is expressed in a Deed to them given under my Hand & Seal Dated the twenty seventh Day of Ianuary Anno Domini 174¾ & recorded with the Records of Deeds for y^e Said County of York Lib^o 25. Fol^o 28. together with the Buildings & Fencings that are or Shall be thereupon at the Time of my Death with the Trees Timber Wood Under Wood Herbage & Minerals thereunto belonging; Still reserving the Strip of Land lying next to Nathan^l Clarks Land Two Rods Wide, which is reserved in Said last Deed, and the Liberty of flowing the Intervale as reserved in Said last Deed and herein hereafter disposed of; I likewise give unto my Said Daughter Hannah Goodwin her Heirs & Assigns forever One Quarter part of the lower Saw Mill on little River lower Falls with one Quarter part of said Falls & Priviledge where S^d Saw Mill Stands, and one Quarter part of the Utensils Implem^ts and Appurten^ces belonging to Said Mill : I also give & bequeath unto my Said Daughter Hannah Goodwin one Quarter part of the Grist Mill Standing on or over Said Falls at little River with a Quarter part of the Utensils Implements & Appurtenances belonging to Said Gristmill.

   10^ly I give & bequeath unto my Grandson Thomas Goodwin a Minor twenty Acres of Land be it more or less lying & being in Said Wells, to be to him his Heirs & Assigns forever butted and bounded as is expressed in a Deed I have given him hereof under my Hand & Seal bearing Date the twenty seventh Day of Ianuary Anno Domini 174¾. Still reserving the Liberty of overflowing any Interval Ground there may be in S^d bounded Land, which is reserved in the last mentioned Deed, and which is herein hereafter disposed of; and with the Said Twenty Acres of Land I give & bequeath unto my Said Grandson his Heirs & Assigns forever all the Buildings & Fencings that are or that Shall be upon it at the time of my Death, and likewise all the Trees timber Wood Under Wood Herbage and Minerals thereunto belonging.

   11^ly I give & bequeath unto my Grandson John Wells a Minor his Heirs & Assigns forever all the Land I now dwell upon on the South Side of little River in Said Wells, it being all y^e Lands I have in my Homestead Farm on Said Side of Said little River not otherwise disposed of, together with the Buildings & Fences that are or Shall be thereupon at the time of my Death together with the Trees Timber Wood Underwood Herbage and Minerals thereunto belonging.

   12^ly I give & bequeath unto my s^d Son Iohn Wells and my S^d Daughter Hannah Goodwin their Heirs & Assigns forever all Reserves of flowing any of my Interval Land, and of the Strip of Land lying next to Nathaniel Clark's Land, and all Reserves of Lands or Priviledges made in this Instrument or in any other Instrument of Conveyance at any time made by me to any person or persons and all Lands Meadows Rights Town & common Rights Household Goods Stock Money Debts & every part or parcel of my Estate real & personal of what Name Nature or Kind Soever it be, not otherwise disposed of to be equally divided between them.

   13^ly And now finally revoking all other Wills or Testaments w^ch may heretofore have been made by me, & declaring them Null & void, I constitute & appoint my Said Son John Wells, and my Said Daughter Hannah Goodwin Sole Executors of this, which I pronounce and declare to be my last Will & Testament. In Witness whereof I have hereunto affixed my Hand & Seal this tenth Day of May Anno Domini 1748. Annoque Rⁱ R^s Georgii Secundi magnæ Britanniæ &c. Vicessimo primo. N. B. The words Tho^s Goodwin were inserted before Signing to be read between the Words Law & and in the twenty ninth Line from the Top of the Second page.

Signed Sealed pronounced & declared    in presence of us    Nathaniel Clark    Ioshua Wells    Nathaniel Clark junr.		Iohn Wells (a Seal)
Probated 22 July 1748. Inventory returned 4 Aug. 1748, at £2,224: 7: 0, old tenor, by Samuel Wheelwright, Nathaniel Wells and Henry Boothby, appraisers.    This Will is again recorded at fol. 211. Source: Maine Wills, 1640-1760 (Portland, Me., 1887), p. 577, citing Probate Office, 7, 166.