Amanuensis Monday - Post #284: 1763 Will of Thomas Gach (1702-1770) of Woodbridge, N.J.

Genea-blogger John Newmark (who writes the excellent  TransylvanianDutch blog) started a Monday blog theme years ago called "Amanuensis Monday."  John offers this definition for "amanuensis:" 

"A person employed to write what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another."

The subject today is the 1763 will of Thomas Gach (1702-1770) of Woodbridge, Middlesex County, New Jersey:

The transcription of the will is (right-hand page of image above, transcribed line by line):

In the Name of God, Amen. I Thomas Gach, of the Township of Woodbridge, in the County of

Middlesex and Province of New Jersey, Esq'r, considering the Frailty of this Life, and that it is appointed

for all Men once to die, and being at this Time of Sound Memory and Mind, blessed be God, do make this

my Last Will and Testament, in Manner and form following, viz.

Imprimis: My Soul I commit to the Hands of a merciful God who gave it, Strongly hoping for a gracious

Reception thro' the prevailing Death and Merits of my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ; and my

Body I resign to the Dust from whence it Sprang, to be interred in a decent manner, at the Discretion

of those who may have the Direction thereof.

Item: Touching the Worldly Estate whereof the Divine Providence hath made me Steward, I give and bequeath

to my eldest Son John Gach, his Heirs and Assigns forever, one Half of the Plantation whereon he

now liveth, except the Ten Acre Lott at the West End thereof that was Surveyed in my own Right

with four Acres of Salt Meadow lying at the South End of my Meadow below Strawberry hill, as also

three Acres and a half lying in Rariton Meadows; together with one Half of my Freehold right in the Commons.

Item: I give and bequeath to my Grandson Thomas Gach the other Half of the above Plantation to him, his Heirs

and Assigns forever; but that it remain to the sole Use and Benefit of his Father John Gach, during

his the Said John Gach's natural Life.

Item: I give and bequeath to my son Philip Gach, his Heirs and Assigns forever all my home Plantation

whereon I now reside, with the remaining Part of my Salt Meadows and Land on Strawberry Hill.

Also the Lot of Land lying adjoining to Jonathan Harned and John Harned, and the above mentioned

Ten Acres of Land lying at the Westerly End of the Plantation whereon my Son John Gach now liveth

as likewise the other half of my Freehold Right in the Commons of Woodbridge; But in Case my said

Son Philip should depart this Life before he attain to the full Age of Twenty one years or have no

legal Issue before that Time, that then the Bequests to him, I will to be divided between all my

other Children, Share and Share alike, and to their Heirs or Assigns.

Item: I give and bequeath to my Daughters Mary, Elizabeth, Sarah, Martha and Anna all them several

Lots and Parcels of Land, lying on the South East side of the Road that leads to Amboy, to be sold

by my Executors herein after named, as soon after my Decease as shall be convenient, and the Monies

arising by the Sale thereof to be equally divided between my said Daughters, and Thomas

Shotwell, Son of my deceased Daughter Esther; But if said Thomas Shotwell should die before

he attain to full age, then his Share to be equally divided among my said Daughters, their Heirs or Assigns.

Item: I give and bequeath to my well beloved Wife Elizabeth the Use of all the above mentioned Lands

and Premises, or so much thereof, as She shall be fit to demand, during her natural Life or

Widowhood; Also I give and bequeath to my said Wife all my Moveables and Personal

Estate whatsoever, and wheresoever, to be at her own proper Use and Disposal, she paying

thereout all my just Debts and Funeral Charges.

Lastly, I constitute and appoint my said Wife Elizabeth and James Eddy of Woodbridge aforesaid the

Executors of this my Last Will and Testament, hereby revoking all former Wills by me made.

In Witness whereof, I have hereunto set my Hand and Seal, the Twelfth Day of

April, Anno Domini, One Thousand Seven Hundred and Sixty Three.

Signed, Sealed and Delivered, bu the

said Thomas Gach, as his Last Will

and Testament in the Presence of us                          Thomas Gach {Seal}

              Samuel F. Parker

              Samuel Inslee

              James Parker

The source citation for this will is:

New Jersey Surrogate's Court, Middlesex County, Wills, 4575L-5330L, No. 4713 (image 98 of 532) Thomas Gach will, 1763; "New Jersey, Wills and Probate Records, 1656-1999," indexed database with digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 2 September 2015); citing original data from New Jersey County, District and Probate Courts.

The Ancestry.com source citation is, in my opinion, completely inadequate:

Source Citation

Record of wills, 1683-1900; 1L - 17442L; Author: New Jersey. Surrogate's Court (Middlesex County); Probate Place: Middlesex, New Jersey

Source Information

Ancestry.com. New Jersey, Wills and Probate Records, 1656-1999 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.

Original data: New Jersey County, District and Probate Courts.

Like most Ancestry.com source citations, the user has to actually search for the record using the assumed name of the person of interest, and then find the correct entry in a (sometimes) long list of matches.

In this will, Thomas Gach mentions his wife, Elizabeth, sons John and Philip, and daughters Mary, Elizabeth, Sarah Martha, Anna and Esther (who died before he wrote his will), and two grandsons, Thomas Gach, son of John Gach, and Thomas Shotwell, son of Esther (Gach) Shotwell.  All of the daughters named had married before Thomas Gach wrote this will.  Unfortunately, he did not include their married surname.

I descend from Martha Gach (1730-????), who married Samuel Fitz Randolph (1730-????) in 1750.

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Copyright (c) 2015, Randall J. Seaver

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