Maine Wills

 From York Registry of Deeds (1640-91)

   In the name of god Amen/ the twenty fifth day of May In the nineteenth year of the Reign of our soveraign Ld Charles the secund, now King of England Scottland &c : & in the yeare of our Ld 1667, I Humfrey Chadborne of the Town of Kittery & parish of Vnity, In the County of Yorke or Province of Mayn in New England being deseased in body, yet haueing the right vse of my sences & memory, do ordajne this my last Will & Testament, hereby revoakeing renounceing, & makeing voyd all other former Wills by mee made, & for these outward earthly things that god hath given mee, I hereby dispose of them as followeth/

   Inpri^rs : I do hereby giue & bequeath vnto my three daughters/ Namely Lucey Aylce & Kattherne Chadborne, to each of them one hundred pounds, respectively to bee payd them in manner & forme following, vidz^t : If y^t estate of Lands houses & Mills with thejr appurtenances which I do now possesse, do remajne & continew to my executrix (hereafter in these Presents to bee named) quiettly & peaceably as now It is in mine owne possession, shee being not defrauded nor dispossesed of it nor any of it before the tyme that these my aforesd Legacys become due & payable by these Presents, then my will is that y^e aforesd Three hundred pounds shall be payd them & to each of them respectiuly at or before the full end of fiue yeares, after my decease in good M^rchandable goods, w^ch Legacys I ordayn to bee raysed out of & pd with the produce & profett of the Saw Mills, which are now in my possesion, by my executrix, & that Prson whom I shall hereafter in these Presents Impoure to take any part of the profetts or produce of the sd saw Mills, togeather with my executrix after my decease, which Legacy or portion respectiuely my will is should bee putt into the hands of some sufficient Prson or Prsons to bee Improued for y^e best aduantage of my aforesd daughters æqually & respectiuely vntill such tyme as they shall attayne vnto Marriage, or vnto the age of one & Twenty yeares, by my executrix & overseers, but if in case that y^e sd saw Mills doe not produce that benefitt & profett y^t heretofore they haue by reason of the troublesomness of the tymes or otherwise; Then my will is that the sd Legacys shall bee pd them at thejr marrage days to each one as they shall come to Marriage respectiuely or else as they shall come to the age of one & twenty yeares, respectiuely as aforesd to bee pade by my executrix, & that Prson that shall inioy the profetts of the sd Mills as aforesd with her provided always that If my wife doe happen to Marry, my will is, that y^t Prson with whom shee shall marry, shall give in good security to see these aforesd Legacys fully satisfyd, & payd, If then vnpayd to any or either of them, before hee or shee shall Inioy any benefitt or profett or haue any thing to doe with the sd Mills, vnto my overseers, for the true payment of the sd Legacys vnto my aforesd daughters as aforesd/ And if In case y^t any or either of my three daughters shall happen to dy before thejr Marrage, or the aforesd days of payment, then my will is, that y^e surviver or survivers of my daughter or daughters shall inioy that portion hereby given vnto the deceased æqually/ & if it do appeare hereafter that my wife bee now at this Present tyme conceaued with child, then my will is that if that child liue to y^e age of one & twenty yeares or marrage whither sunn or daughter, shall Inioy & haue all such portion & Legacys as is hereby given vnto my aforesd daughters, now Liueing; if in case that any or either of them shall happen to dy before thejr sd portions become due, & payable as aforesd, any thing here in contayned to the contrary, in any wise notwithstanding/

   Item I do giue & bequeath vnto my Two youngest sunns James & William Chadborne all that Land & Meddow now in my possession, with y^e appurtenances lijng & being at a place Called Sturgeon Cricke, which land & Meddow I lately purchased of my Ounkle Nicho : Shapleigh which appeareth by his act & deede of sayle to mee made beareing date in the yeare of our Lord 1663 : togeather with the sayd deede & writeings, & all other the appurtenances therevnto belonging or In any wise app^rtayneing, Equally to bee deuided betwixt them by y^r mother, & my ouerseers to this my will, & testament to haue & to hould the sayd Land & Meddow with the appurtenances to them & to their or either of thejr heyres for ever, from & immediately after the deaths & deceases of my selfe & wife thejr mother, & not before/ And my will is that if my sun James dy, liueing, my sun William, or my sun William dy Liueing my sun James, & either dijng, without lawfull heyres or vnmaried, then the other that shall soe surviue, shall Inioy all the aforesd Lands & Meddow, but if one or both of my aforesd suns shall happen to dy in a married estate, & hee or they or either of them dy in a married condition without Issew, or heyres, my will is that his or thejr Widdow or Widdows shall each of them respectiuely quietly possess & Inioy that part of the sd Land & Meddow which did belong to there or her former husband or husbands for tearme of her or thejr naturall life, or lifes, if any such Widdow or widdows bee left soe, & after the decease of both my suns & thejr wife or wiues dijng without Issew aforesd, my will is, that all the aforesd Land & Meddow shall returne backe vnto my daughters, & to bee deuided amongst them, & thejr heyres lawfully begotten, or to bee begotten/ And if after the death of my aforesd two sunns soe dijng with out Issew as aforesd, there bee none nor neither of my daughters, nor not any Legitimate Issew by them at that tyme, then the sayd Land to returne backe & to bee possest & Inioyed by my next heyre at Law, either Male or female/

   Item I do hereby giue grant devise convay & bequeath vnto my Sunn Humfrey Chadborne w^ch is my Elldest son & heyre by Law all my Lands & meddows fenced or not fenced, with all my houses bujldings structures & Edifices togeather with my Saw Mills, togeather with the appurtenances therevnto belonging, all w^ch Lands Mills & houses are now lijng & being in Newgewanacke, with in the Parish of Vnity, now in my possession, & now or hereafter demed reputed & known to bee my proper Lands & estate, to haue & to hould the sd p^rmisses vnto him, & his lawfull & Legitimat heyres for ever, from & immediately after the deaths & deceases of my selfe & my now wife & not before : provided always & It is my trve Intent & meaneing in these & by these Presents, that y^e sd Humfrey Chadborne my son & heyre shall haue noe pouer, directly or indirectly to sell give or grant the sd Lands houses or Mills or any part or Prcell thereof vnto any Prson or Prsons w^tsoeuer (except it bee to Confirme Joynter or Dowry vnto his heyres wife) Neither to lease sett or lett the same vnto any Prson or Prsons for any Tearme exceeding Twenty & one yeares, & that from seaven yeares to seaven yeares/ And further my will is, that If either my sun Humfrey aforesd, or any of his heyres or successo^rs hereater at any tyme shall make any grant gyft bargajne or sayle otherwise then aforesd, w^rby to frustrate my will & to divert my aforesd Land & p^rmisses, from runneing directly hereditary to mine & thejr heyres for ever, I doe hereby declare all such or any such barganes, gyfts grant or sayle to bee voyd & of none æffect anything herein to y^e Contrary, in any wise Notwithstanding/ And if it soe happen hee die without Isue, either In a married estate or otherwise, then my will is after the decease of him & his wife, If hee leave his wife a Widdow after him, then all the aforesd Premisses in this article specifyd, shall then returne & bee my sun James his estate, if then Liueing, & his heyres for ever/ And for want of James Chadborne aforesd, or such Isue by him, If my sune William Chadborne bee then Liueing, vnto him & his heyres as aforesd, & for want of such Isue by William, vnto y^t child my wife is now conceaued with if a male & his heyres/ And for want of such Issew, vnto my Elldest daughter then Liueing, & to her heyres for ever, & for want of such Isue to the next daughter, & to her heyres, & soe to the longest liuer, or my daughters & her heyres/ And if they all dy without Issue, vnto my next kinesman that is my right heyre in Law & to his heyres, prouided always that they nor Neither of them shall haue any pouer to defrade nor disinheritt mine or thejr heyres otherwise but to Inioy it for tearme of life vpon the same conditions & provisoes that my sd sun Humfrey Chadborne is hereby to inheritt & hould my sd Lands & p^rmisses/

   Item And further my will is that If my sun Humfrey Chadborne doe enter into a Marrage Condition before the death & decease of his Mother, that then hee shall hereby haue free Lyberty to fence in a quantity of the aforesd Lands, at Newgewanacke either tenn Acers more or lesse for planting Land, & alsoe free Lyberty to Erect & bujld him a Mansion house, & other houses to his pleasure & for his owne vse, vpon the same Land soe fenced in to bee layd out to him, & deliuered into his hands by my ouerseers at thejr discretion, & by the Consent & aduise of my loueing wife his Mother/ Moreover my will is that if my sun Humfrey doe happen to Marry, y^t then hee shall haue & Inioy the one halfe deale of my saw Mill, & the halfe deale of y^e profitts for & towards the payment of his sisters Legacys aforesd, if any bee vnpayd at the Marrage day of the sd Humfrey, & for noe other vse vntill y^e sd Legacys are fully payd, & satisfyd : And in the meane tyme after my decease & before his Marrage especially to bee aydeing & with the best of his skill & ability assisting to his sayd Mother, in the carrijng of the worke about y^e sd saw Mill, as long as his mother shall continew vnmarried for the best aduantage not onely his owne part but alsoe his mothers part by her direction, & after all the burthen & Legacys which are layd on the profetts & produce of the sd Mills are payd, hee the sd Humfrey my sonn shall haue hould & Inioy the halfe of the sd Mills, or one saw, & halfe of the Teame, & halfe y^e Marsh now belonging vnto, or now occupied with & for the sd Mills vsse, vnto his own proper vsse benefitt & behoofe, dureing the naturall life of his mother, paying the halfe deale of the Charges concerneing the same & after her decease to Inioy all the aforesd Lands & other the p^rmisses as aforesd; but dureing his mothers life, to hould but soe much of the Marsh, or hay as may serue to mantayne halfe the Teame, bee it eight or tenn oxen, but not aboue the residue, for his mothers halfe Teame, & for her other vsses;

   All the residue of my goods & Chattles moueable & vnmouable not heretofore nor hereby given, granted, conveighed or bequeathed, I doe giue & bequeath to my wife Luce Chadborne, whom I ordayne & make my whoole & soole executrix for to see my debts payd, & not onely such Legacys Prformed as are heretofore in this my Present Will & testament formerly given, but alsoe all such Legacys & bequeaths, as I shall hereafter giue it being small Legacys, & annexed to this as part of my whoole Will, soe it bee Attested signed & witnessed vuder mine & Witnesses hands/

   And I doe desire my Ouncle Nicholas Shapleigh, & my Cosson John Shapleigh & my Cosson William Spencer, to bee my ouerseers vnto this my last will & testament, to the vtmost of thejr pouer to see my Will observed, & Prformed according to the Tenour thereof, & I doe hereby giue vnto my Ouncle Shapleigh one very good beaver hatt, & to my cosson John Shapleigh & William Spencer each of them a good Castor hatt as good as can bee gotten, for thejr paynes to ouersee & see my will executed/

   Item I do vpon due & serious considerations of the pmisses aforesd, order & ordayne that my suns James & William Chadborne, In consideration to that Donation I gaue them at Sturgeon Cricke, that both of them shall to thejr vtmost pouer & assistance, always bee aydeing & assistant to thejr mother, & to bee at her Command vntil the tyme of there marrage if there mother see cause soe to haue it, & if they shall bee stubborne & disobedient to there mother, that then It shall bee lawfull for my executrix with the Consent of my ouerseers to dispossess them or either of them & to giue the aforesd Lands & Meddow of Sturgeon Cricke to any other of my children & to none else, any thing here in Contayned to the Contrary notwithstanding/ It is my will that my beloued wife being my Lawfull executrix take spetiall Care of my sister Spencer, & If it should soe happen y^t my sister should fall to decay, & bee in want that then my wife Luce Chadborn shall to her vttmost pouer & ability supply her & bee helpefull to her at all tymes hereafter/

   Item I do bequeath vnto my Cosson Mary ffose fiue pounds to bee payd her with in one yeare after my decease/

   Item I giue & bequeath vnto my sun Humfrey Chadborne my now rideing horse with all the furniture to him belonging, & my intent is that the sd horse with y^e furniture bee at his owne dispose, immediately after my decease/

   Item I giue & bequeath vnto my daughter Aylce Chadborne my great silver beaker, & my true intent is it shall bee quietly delivered vnto her at the day of her Marrage/ In witness w^rof, both vnto that former writeing here in expressed, & heretofore in this sedule of my will & testament at large expressed before I did ordayne & make my executrix & appoynted hereby my overseers, as alsoe to these bequeaths Legacys iniunctions & desirs of mine I have herevnto sett my hand & seale thereby Confirmeing it to bee my last Will & testament In the Presence of these Witnesses, hereafter vnderwritten & subscribed/

Humfrey Chadburne (his seal)

Sealed Signed & acknowledged,
   by mee Humfrey Chadburne Senjo^r
   to bee my Last will & testament in the
   Presence of vs/
      The Marke X of
    Humfrey Spencer/
      The Marke X of
   Moses Spencer
   Andrew Searle/

   And further I doe declare vnto all men that I Humfrey Chadburne Testato^r, haueing maturely & seriously considered my owne fraylty in particular, & euery Prsons mortality in generall, & haueing not yet formerly in this my last will & testament made any provission for the bringing vp of my 3 little daughters Luce Aylce & Katthrine Chadborne, & that child with which my wife is conceaued with, yet vnborne, how to bee brought vp according to my mind & Will at Schoole & Learneing, not spending vpon that stocke or portion or Legacys which I haue formerly given them, vntill they should every one of them respectiuely, bee of the age of Twelue yeares, or capable to gett thejr liueing, intending thereby & my will is that y^r portions shall remajne whoole & vnimbezelled vnto them at that age, & tyme respectiuely, for that end & purpose my intent & Will is, that my aforesayd daughters & youngest Children shall bee mantayned & brought vp by my suns Humfrey James & William Chadborne, respectiuely & proportionably, & my will is that my Sun Humfr y shall bee at the greatest Charge towards thejr bringing vp, and James & William some small part according to y^r abilitys & the discretion of my ouerseers, & I doe hereby bind my Land for the Prformance thereof, that my suns possessing my aforesd Lands & Mills, shall bee to the Charges of the bringing vp of my sayd youngest children, soe as that thejr aforesd portions may not bee spent nor in the least Imbeazelled vntill they shall accomplish the age aforesd, respectiuely, & I doe hereby declare that this here vnder written is as really a branch & a part of my last will & testament as any thing either gyft devise or Legacy heretofore given or bequeathed/

   In witness hereof I haue here vnto sett my hand the day & yeare aforesd, in the Presence of the same Witnesses aboue sd, whose names are here agajne subscribed/

Witnesse/    Andrew Searle    Humfrey Spencer X : Witness    Moses Spencer X		Humfrey Chadburne/
Sworn to by attesting witnesses 13 Sept 1667; recorded 15 Oct 1667; Inventory returned at £1713: 14: 0, by John Wincoll, Nicholas Shapleigh and William Spencer, appraisers Sept 12th 1667. Source: Maine Wills, 1640-1760 (Portland, Me., 1887), p. 45, citing Registry of Deeds, 2, 27.