In the Name of God Amen. I Mary Ann Little being of sound and perfect Mind and Memory do this 1st day of June 1812 Make and publish this My last will & Testament in Manner following that is to say - First I give and bequeath unto William P. Little one Mahogany Table (Tea) one Bed & Furniture & Floor Cloth likewise his own Picture. Secondly I give and Bequeath to William Blunt all the Household Furniture that I bought at the Sale of Sharp Blunt,
Three Lots in Murfreesboro one on the Main street and two Back Lots. His Mothers Picture and the eldest of My Bay Mares Fillys to him and His Heirs forever. Thirdly I give and bequeath unto George Blunt the following Negroes: Old Lamb, Aggy, James son of Aggy, Little Lamb, Riddick, Mary, Creasey, Martha, old Tim, Daphney, Liddey, Pompey son of Daphney, Chloe, Matilda, Hampton, young Will, Rhealy, Leving, Tempy, Harry & Simon. Also the tract of Land I bought of the Estate of Abram Porter.
Fifthly I give & bequeath unto Thomas P. Little all the rest of my Negroes after all My just debts shall be paid to him and his Heirs forever. Sixthly I give & bequeath unto George Little son of William P. Little the tract of Land whereon I now live to him and his Heirs forever.
My Will & desire is that the Negroes that I have given to George Blunt should be kept on the Plantation whereon I now live for the benefit of George Blunt until he shall arrive to Lawful age or dies.
Seventhly My will & desire is that all the residue of My Estate after the payment of all My just debts should be equally divided between my four grand daughters - Mary Ann Little, Lucy Little, Nancy Little & Cinthia Little to them and their Heirs foreverAnd hereby Make and ordain My Worthy Friends Timothy Ridley, William H. Murfree & My Son William P. Little Executors of this my Last Will & Testament. In witness whereof I the said Mary Ann Little have to this My Last will and Testament set My hand & Seal the day & year above written signed sealed published & declared by the sd Mary Ann Little, the testator as her last will & Testament in the presence of us who were present at the time of signing and sealing thereof Henry Wright & Isaac Langston.
I Mary Ann Little being of perfect Mind & Memory do Make & ordain this to be a Codicil to My Last Will & Testament bearing the date of the first day of June anno Dom 1812, and to Make & Constitute a part thereof as Much as if it had been Contained in the Body of My said will : First the Land whereon I now live which in My will to which this is a Codicil is devised to George Little. I do hereby give unto the said George Little & Thomas P. Little sons of William P. Little to them and Their Heirs forever to be equally divided between them. It is however my desire & Will that the Negroes given to George Blunt should remain on & be kept on the plantation whereon I now live until the end of the year 1821 unless he should die previous to that time & my son William P. Little have one half the profit thereof as compensation for his Trouble as one of my Executors & that George Blunt have the other half. Secondly it is My Will & desire that my son William P. Little convey to George Blunt a tract of land lying near Granvill Court House containing four hundred acres More or Less adjoining the Land of the Heirs of Pomplorey Davis decd. Thirdly It is My Will & desire that My woman Aggy have the free use of her time during three years Next succeeding My Death as a compensation for her faithful services & that after the expiration of that time she is considered the property of George Blunt, as Expressed in My Will. Fourthly I give unto William Little, son of William P. Little a Negro Child named Moses, son of My woman Ruby Boon. Making my Will above mentioned. Lastly It is My Will & desire that My friend Doctor James Maney Act as one of the Executors of this My last Will & Testament with these heretofore Named in My Will signed sealed & acknowledged as a codicil to her Last Will & Testament by the Testatrix in presence of us - J.S. Baker, Lewis Gatling, This 25th Feby AD 1813.
I wonder what became of those four mahogany tables that were so important to Mary Ann Little ? As important (or more so) than the human lives she equally divided amongst her kin? Were the tables handed down from one generation of Littles to the next? Did they travel West as the country expanded? Are they in a museum, on display somewhere? Or perhaps they were lost over the centuries - to war, or natural disasters, or perhaps just benign neglect.
I wonder what became of them ....
2 comments:
A thought-provoking comment about Mary Ann Little's will was brought to my attention this morning:
"That was an interesting article about Mary Ann Little. Can you imagine being given the opportunity to have "free use of your time" (I know that was not freedom!) for three years and then have to go back to belonging to someone else? I think that would be even harder to live with. Some people had strange ideas of compensating someone for devoted and constant duty. "
The writer of murfreesboronc.blogspot.com has written a superior article. I got your point and there is nothing to argue about. It is like the following universal truth that you can not disagree with: Light travels faster than sound. This is why some people appear bright before you hear them speak. I will be back.
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