Will of John Dawson of Dorchester Co, Md., written February 4, 1722/23, probated May 9, 1723

In the name of God, Amen, the fourth day of February in year of our Lord 1722/3. I, John Dawson, of the Province of Md. in the County of Dorchester, Planter, being very sick & weak in body, but of perfect mind & memory, thanks be to God, calling unto mind the Immortality of my body & knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die, make & assign this my last will and testament that is to say principally and first ...

I give & bequeath to my beloved sons Richard Dawson & Isaac Dawson and their heirs forever my now dwelling plantation and all land thereunto belonging to be equally divided between them at my wife's decease, except should she marry, the land to be equally divided and my sons have their part according to the herein division at the age of eighteen.  

I give to my beloved son Richard Dawson a young bay horse branded with AD on the buttock; I likewise give to my beloved son Isaac Dawson one mare yearling. Likewise I give to my two sons, Richard & Isaac Dawson, 3 sows & 14 shoats & their increase to them when they come to age of eighteen, hogs to be equally divided & each to have his equal part. I likewise give to my two sons before mentioned each of them one iron pot apiece, four pewter dishes, two basins, two plates apiece and to each of them a strong boar, a heifer & their increase. Each of them a gun, a feather bed and furniture .

Llikewise if it is my wife's desire that my two sons Richard & Isaac Dawson do each pay one thousand pounds of tobacco apiece to my son Thomas Dawson when he is at the age of twenty years old. 

Item: I give to my son Thomas Dawson one iron pot, two pans for cooking and one basin, two plates and two year old heifer & her increase.

Item: I give to my daughter Sarah Dawson one young cow big with calf and one dish and plate. Also one white mare branded on the buttock with ID and her increase excepting the first colt she raises that to be for my daughter Frances Dawson.

Item: I give unto my daughter Frances Dawson one cow, one pewter dish and one plate.

Item: I give to my daughters Rachel Dawson & Ann Dawson each one two-year-old heifer.

Item: I give unto my beloved wife Sarah Dawson the remaining part of my estate after debts and legacies are of those I constitute make & ordain her my sole executor of this my last will & testatment. I revoke and dismiss all & every other testaments, wills or legacies and  by anyone before this time...confirming this to be my last will & testament. JOHN DAWSON (seal)

Signed, Sealed, Published, Prounounced and Declared by the said John Dawson as his last will & testament in the presence of the subscribers [witnesses]: Edward Newton, John Person, and John Newton.

On the back of the aforegoing will: Endorsed by Witnesses who came forward May 9th, 1723, Edward Newton, John Person and made oath on the holy Evangelicals of Almighty God that they saw the therein named John Dawson sign & seal and hold him to publish and declare to the instrument of writing to be his last will & testatment and at the time of his so doing to best of their knowledge to be in sound memory and also their other witness appointed to be viz. John Newton. Signed John Polk, Deputy of Dorchester County.  

Source: "Md. Calendar of Wills" by Jane Baldwin Cotton & Roberta Henry, Vol. V, p. 134; Md. Will Bk. 18:81

Inventory of John Dawson of Dorchester Co MD dated June 17-19, 1723

An Inventory of all and singular Goods & Chattles and Credits of John Dawson, deceased, late of Dorchester Co, so far as concerns the knowledge & sight of witnesses & subscriber.

Wearing appairell, feather bed & furniture with bedsted. One sm feather bed & furniture, warming pan. One large chest 14 & 2 smaller chest @ 8/6 piece. Small trunk @ 5/piece full of Tobac. Hilliards & Cann hooks. 2 Iron candle holder & hooks. Eleven glass bottles & 3 drinking cups. l case horse flems? and one horse razor, one Dochet camp afs. 

In the Hall: old gunn & fowling piece, old flagg chair, sm table & 3 flagg chairs botter, one hackle & sickle, 3 pair old cards, 5 flax hooks, one stand & pinch bottle, small cooper tools, hand saws, files & setts, one cut cross saw, 2 files, 1 sett old.

In the Kitchen:  16g of pott iron, 4 pots one small broken. One small pot, old box iron & heator. 1 Iron Destill, 4 broken glasses, 3 bullett moulds & marking irons, 2 pewter dishes, 24 broken ditto, 1 frying pan, 4 old ditto. Two small fire tongs and one fire shovel, one chaffing dish & old iron kettles, one old lanthorn, funnel, grater, and peper box.   

In the Work House: one broad axe, 1 adze, 1 hoe, one large one sm adze. old drawing knife & hammer and old wood adze, one large goudge & smaller jack blade, old fielding axes, sm hatchetts. One spade, 4 grubbing hoes, 18 old broad spades. Narrow hoes. Sm iron wedge and 10 iron knifes. Old frammed chair/hide leather. 3 hides and 2 smaller ditto.

In the Corn House:  6 barrells of Indian corn and 8 barrels. 1 saddle & briddle and one old saddle & bridle. One old side saddle & bridle, one old ditto & bridle, two sm horse bells and pair of botacco drews?, one iron plow & 13 sheare cutters, parcel of horse harness, old harrow, parcel of earthern & wooden ware, 3 small runletts of wooden dishes, parcel of old bucketts & canns, one sm brass kettle, one ? of corn, parcel of old lumber & old loom, 3 old lumber wheels & old wooler.

In the Cyder House: 2 ton of old cyder cask and small grindstone

In the Field: cart wheel & cart, flax brakes, 2 sm drum linen hooks, 2300 nails, parcel of sortable nails, parcel of old hooks & one large buckskin, 2 cows and calves, 6 cows & 30 heifers, 4 steers one-year-old, 6 2 year-old, 2 old horses, 1 stallion, one 3-year-old, one mare & colt, one ditto, 20 hoggs & 5 young ditto & piggs, 11 sheep at 5 yrs, 2680 tobacco hogsheads.

Total: 159 pounds, 18 shillings, 11 pence. 

We the undersubscribers have first been qualified as the law in that case provided directs as thereunto have appraised the Estate of the afs. John Dawson which in current money amounts to the sum of one hundred fifty nine pounds, eighteen shillings & eleven pence.

As wittnesses our hands this seventeen day of June: Appraisers: Edward Newton (seal) and Thomas Cannon (seal). Kindred: Richard Willis & Obadiah Dawson. Creditors: Henry Ennalls & Richard Willis. Came Sarah Dawson, gave her testimony according to law within Inventory. Signed John Pitt, Clerk for Dorchester County.

Source: Prerog. Court of MD Inventories Bk 8:194-196; also "Abstracts of Inventories of Prerog. Court of Md. 1720-1724," V.L. Skinner, FLP,   p. 34.

Accounts of John Dawson of Dorchester Co MD dated August 12, 1723

Being the Account of Sarah Dawson, executrix of last will & testament to John Dawson, late of Dor Co, deceased. The said accountant chargeth herself with and decrees whole estate as Inventory thereof taken & exhibited into the office for probate of wills & granting administrations.

Amount to Balance of 59.19.11.

Humbly craves allowance for payment of funeral expenses: 10 shillings.

Of Tobacco due from the deceased to Richard Willis upon bond quantity of 4000 pds, whereof is paid by the said accountant as receipt of land appears 2720 pds.

Of tobacco paid in Inventory to John Orrell, sheriff, to which became due in lifetime of the deceased and Account taken in receipt appears 277 pds.

Of a cow & calf due from deceased to John Mackgourey upon obligation valued ?.

Aug 12, 1723: Came Sarah Dawson by virtue of a commission out of the office and gave her teste according to law that the above is a true & just account of and upon her Adm. before me John Pitt, Dept. Com of Dorset County, Maryland.

Source: MSA No. S531, Prerog. Court of Md. Account Book 5, pp. 198-199.

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