Monday, January 7, 2019

Amanuensis Monday - Will and Letters Testamentary for Nicholas King Estate in York, Pennsylvania

This week's document for Amanuensis Monday is the 1776 Will and Letters Testamentary for the estate of Nicholas King in York County, Pennsylvania:

[Volume C, page 342-343]



[Volume C, page 344-345]

The transcription of these records is:

[Volume C, page 342]

In the Name of God Amen I Nicholas
King of York Town in the County of York and Province of Pennsylvania being
Sick and weak in Body but of Sound and Disposing Mind and Memory do make
And Publish this my Last Will and Testament in the following Manner
First, I Commend my Soul into the Hands of God Who gave it and my
Body to the Earth from Whence it is taken, in a Christian and Decent
like Manner by my Executors hereafter named, And As touching Such 
Worldly Estate Wherewith it hath pleased God to bless me with I
give and dispose of the same in the following Manner Imprimis.
My Will and Desire is that all of my Just Debts and Funeral Charges
be first paid and Satisfied by my Executors as Soon As possible
Can After my Decease.  First, It is my Will and I do Order that
Loving Wife Susannah Shall Live Continue and Dwell in my
now dwelling house during her Natural Life & Shall have twenty
Pounds in money and part of the Bed I now be in so that it Will

[Volume C, page 343]

Make out an Bed for her. Which Money my Wife Shall have as Soon as
possible After my decease.  Secondly I give advise and bequeath
unto my Daughter Anna Elizabeth Cronemiller Widow my now dwell-
ing House & Lot of Ground Situate lying and being on the East ^side^ of Beaver
Street in the Town of York Aforesaid Containing in breadth on said Street
fifty seven feet & and half and in length, Back to a twenty feet Alley two
hundred and fifty feet, bounded Northward With Lot Number two hundred
and twenty two Westward With Beaver Street Aforesaid, Southward with
Lot Number two Hundred and twenty four & Eastward With Said
twenty foot Alley and Known on the General Plan of the said Town
by the Number two hunded And twenty three.  To hold to her the
said Anna Elizabeth Cronemiller her Heirs and Assigns for Ever.
Thirdly My Will and Desire and I Do Order that all my
Personal Estate Which is not Already Bequeathed be Sold at
Publick Vendue and the Money therefrom Ariseing Shall be Equal-
ly Divided Amongst All my Children Share and Share Alike
(to Wit) Godfrey, Anna Elizabeth Cronemiller, Philip Jacob King
and my Daughter Barbara now Intermarried to Adam Wilhelm
of Lancaster County to hold to them & each of them their Heirs and
Assigns.  And Lastly I do hereby Nominate and Appoint
my Loving Daughter Ann Elizabeth Cronemiller to be Executrix
of this my Last Will and Testament.  And I do hereby Disannull and
make Void ^all^ other and former Wills by me heretofore made Ratifying
And holding this for Firm and Effectual.  In Witness Whereof, I the
said Nicholas King the Testator have hereunto Set my Hand and
Affixed my Seal this ninth Day of March Anno Domini One
Thousand seven Hundred and Seventy Six.

Signed Sealed publised pronounced
And Declared by the said Nicholas                           his
King the Testator, ans and for his Last         Nicholas K King  {Seal}
Will & Testament Who in his                                  Mark
Presence and at his request
Signed our Names As Witnesses
to the same in the Presence of us
Note, the Words & Shall have and
the Words & an half, being first
Interlind before Signing
Henry Wolff
Geo. Lewis Lefler

[Volume C, page 344]

York County Ss Before me Samuel Johnston Esquire Deputy
Register for the Probate of Wills and granting Letters of Administration
in and for the County of York in the Province of Pennsylvania, Personally
Appeared Henry Wolff and George Lewis Leffler and the said George Lewis
Leffler on his Solemn Oath taken on the holy Evangelists of Almighty
God and the said Henry Wolff on his Solemn Affirmation taken According
to Law the Conscientious scrupling the taking of an Oath Do each of
them say that they were personally present And Saw and heard Nicholas
King in the foregoing Instrument of Writing named make his Mark
to and Seal publish and Declare the said Instrument of Writing as
and for his Last Will and Testament and that at the Time of his doing
thereof the said Nicholas King was of Sound And Disposing Mind and
Memory to the best of these Deponants and Affirmants Knowledge
And belief And that they Subscribed their names as Witnesses to the same
respectively in the presence of the said Testator And at his request.
Sworn by the said George Lewis
Leffler and Affirmed by the said                       Henry Wolff
Henry Wolff and subscribed by                       Geo. Lewis Lefler
them before me at York this 29
Day of March 1776.                           A true Copy compared with the Original
Sam^l Johnston  Dep. Reg^r.               at York

                                                                             Sam^l Johnston Dep Reg^r

The source citation for these probate documents is:

"Pennsylvania, Probate Records, 1683-1994," digital images, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org), "Will books, 1749-1882 ; General index to wills, 1749-1940," Wills v.A-D 1749-1779, Vol. C, pages 342-344, Nicholas King will and letters testamentary, 1776; also on FHL microfilm US/CAN 22,131.

Johann Nicolaus Konig (1707-1776), who apparently was known as Nicholas King, wrote his will on 9 March 1776 in York County, Pennsylvania.  It is likely that the original will was written in German, and was translated into English for inclusion in the York County probate records.

In the will, he named his wife Susannah, his son Godfrey King, daughter Anna Elizabeth Cronemiller, son Philip Jacob King, and daughter Barbara Wilhelm, wife of Adam Wilhelm, as his heirs, and named his daughter Anna Elizabeth Cronemiller as his executor.

Nicholas King is my 6th great-grandfather, through his son Philip Jacob King (1738-1792) of York, Pennsylvania.

                                     =========================================

NOTE:  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 URL for this post is:  https://www.geneamusings.com/2019/01/amanuensis-monday-will-and-letters.html

Copyright (c) 2019, Randall J. Seaver


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