Monday, March 2, 2020

Amanuensis Monday - 1765 Will of William Richman (1694-1769) of Hilperton, Wiltshire

This week's document is the 1765 will of William Richman (1694-1769) of Hilperton, Wiltshire, England.  The will covers three pages.  The codicil and letters testamentary will be transcribed next week.

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The transcription of the will  is:

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In the Name of God Amen  I William Richman of 
Hilperton in the County of Wilts Blacksmith and Victualler being of Sound Mind and
Memory and Understanding Do hereby Revoke Disannul and make void all former
and other Wills by me at any Time heretofore made and Do make and declare this
my last Will and Testament in Manner and form following (that is to say) First
of all I Give and bequeath unto my Son John Richman of Hillperton aforesaid 
Blacksmith the Sum of fifty pounds of Good and lawfull Money of Great Britain to be
paid to him within six Months after my Decease and my larghe Silver Tankard, Clock
and Wearing Apparrell of all Sorts both Linnen and woollen to be delivered to him
soon after my Interment And I do hereby Release and for ever Acquit and discharge
him the said John Richman of and from all Sum and Sums of Money which shall
be due and owing from him to me at my Decease Also I Give Devise and bequeath
unto my Daughter Elizabeth the Wife of Joseph Cottle of Hillperton aforesaid a
Tallow Chandler my little Silver Tankard Also I Give to my Daughter Mary 
the Wife of Abraham Little of the Parish of Trowbridge in the County of Wilts
Yeoman the Sum of twenty pounds of like lawfull Money of Great Britain to be
paid to her within six Months next after my Decease.  also I Give unto my Soninlaw
Joseph Tirrell of Hillperton aforesaid Carpenter All that Messuage or Tenement
wherein I now dwell with the Brewhouse Pump Stable Garden and Orchard
thereunto belonging with the Appurtenances to hold to him the said Joseph Tirrell 
and his Assigns for an during the Term of his Natural Life and to receive and take
the Rents Issues and Profits thereof to his own Use and from and imediately
after his Decease Then I Give unto his now Wife my Daughter Ann Tirrell
and her Assigns for and during the Term of her Natural Life and to receive and take
the Rents and Profits thereof And from and after her Decease I Give the same to
my Grand-daughter Elizabeth the Daughter of the said Joseph and Ann Tirrell To
hold to her for the Term of her Natural Life and from and after her Decease to her
Child or Children lawfully to be begotten for his her or their respective

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Natural Life or Lives the Elder whether on or Daughter to be held before the Younger and to receive the
Rents Issues and profits thereof to his or her own Use And for want of such Issue That from and after
the decease of my said Grand-daughter Elizabeth Tirrell Then my Will is That if there shall happen
any more Child or Children of the Body of the said Joseph Tirrell on the Body of the said Ann Tirrell
to be begotten Then the said Messuage or Tenement and premises to go to such Child or Children if
more than one for and during their respective Natural Lives the Elder of such Children whether
Son or Daughter to hold the same and the Rents Issues and Profitts thereof to receive and take to
and for his or her own Use for and during his or her Natural Life and from and imediately
after his or her Decease Then my Will is that the next Eldest shall Enjoy the said premises
for Life And after the Decease of the last of them Then I Give the said Messuage or
Tenement Brewhouse Stable Garden and Orchard with the Appurtenances unto my said
Son John Richman his Heirs and Assigns for ever Upon this special Trust and
Confidence That he or they do and shall sell and dispose of the same for the most Money
and to the best Advantage they can and the Money arising by such Sale to be equally parted
and divided between the said John Richman, Elizabeth Cottle and Mary Little in Case of
Death to their respective Representitives Share and Share alike.  also I Give and
bequeath unto Elizabeth Cottle and Mary Little all my Ready Money I shall have in
House at my Death and all Sums and Issues of Money which shall be out at Interest and all
other Debts due and owing to me from any Person or Persons whatsoever (Save Except
the Money which my said Son John shall owe me at my Death, which I have hereby
released unto him) together with fourteen Hogsheads of Beer with the Vessells in which the
same is contained And moreover I Give unto them their Heirs and Assigns The Messuage
or Tenement adjoining to and scituate on the North Side of the Tenement wherein I now
dwell with the Garden to the same belonging formerly in the Occupation of Solomon Spragg
since of Paul Dimmery and now in my possession with the Appurtenances to the same
belonging And also all that Messuage or Tenement and Blacksmiths Shop to the same
belonging which was my Father's with the Garden ground adjoining to the said Tenement
running as far up to the Bake house with the Appurtenances to hold to them their
Heirs and Assigns for ever.  In Order and upon this special Trust and Confidence
that they shall with the ready Money and Debts and the fourteen Hogsheads of Beer and
Vessells aforesaid and by Sale or Mortgage of the said Messuages or Tenements or otherwise
raise a Sum of Money sufficient to pay off and discharge my debts Legacies and
Funeral Expences and what shall remain over and above paying and discharging the

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same I Give unto them the said Elizabeth Cottle and Mary Little to be equally divided between
them Share and Share alike.  Item I Give and devise unto the said Ann Terrill All and
Singular my Household Goods Implements of Household whatsoever Linnen Bedding
Jewells and Plate (not therein before Given and disposed off) Furnaces Grates Brewing
Vessells of all kinds with the Remaining Stock of Beer and Vessells over and above the
fourteen Hogsheads of Beer and Vessells hereby devised to the said Elizabeth Cottle and
Mary Little.  also I Give my eight Grand Children Namely William and John
Richman Sons of my said Son John Richman William and Mary Son and Daughter
of the said Elizabeth Cottle Elizabeth Mary and Phebe Daughters of the said Mary
Little and Elizabeth Daughter of the said Ann Terrill Ten Shillings a peice to buy
each of them a Bible to be paid by my Executrixes herein after named within six
Months after my Death.  And Lastly I Nominate Constitute and Appoint
Elizabeth Cottle and Mary Little Executrixes of this my last Will and Testament.
In Witness whereof I have to this my last Will and Testament contained in three
Sheets of Paper to the first and second Sheets sett my Hand and to this the third and last my
Hand and Seal this sixteenth Day of March in the fifth Year of the Reign of
our Sovereign Lord George the Third by the Grace of God of Great Britain France
Ireland King Defender of the faith and so forth and In the Year of our Lord One
thousand seven hundred and sixty five.
                                                                            Wm Richman  {seal}

Signed Sealed published and declared by the
Testator William Richman as and for his last Will
and Testament in the Presence of us who have
subscribed our Names as Witnesses thereto in the Presence
of the Testator and of each other.
                                         Ann Palmer
                                         Step^n Palmer
                                         Palmer 

The source citation for this probate record is:

"Wiltshire, England, Wills and Probate, 1530-1858 ," indexed database with record images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com :, accessed 20 February 2020), P02: Probate records of the Archdeaconry of Salisbury > R, Ref. No. P2/R/751 (images 5151 to 5165 of 5942), William Richman of Hilperton, will written 16 March 1765, proved 23 October 1769.

There is a codicil to this will which was written before William Richman died in 1769.  I will transcribe it next week.  Some of the bequests are changed by the codicil.  The real value of this will is that it names the four living children of William Richman and his eight grandchildren living when he wrote the will in 1765.


William Richman (1694-1769), blacksmith of Hilperton,  married Elizabeth Sartin (1700-1758) in 1720 in Hilperton, Wiltshire.  He and Elizabeth had six children, but two of them died before the will of William Richman was written.  The four surviving children are:


*  John Richman (1724-1807), married 1756 Mary Crabb (1724-1802), had sons John and William Richman.
*  Elizabeth Richman (1728-????), married 1745 Joseph Cottle (1720-????), had children William and Mary Cottle.
*  Ann Richman (1736-????), married John Tirrell (1733-????), had daughter Elizabeth Tirrell.
*  Mary Richman (1736-????), married 1757 Abraham Little (1737-1794), had children Elizabeth, Mary and Phebe Little.

My current thinking is that this William Richman is not my ancestor.  My 3rd great-grandfather, John Richman (1789-1867) was born long after Williams' son John Richman (1762-????) was born.  My John Richman 1789 may be the son of John Richman 1724, but I doubt it.

Finding this will again - I abstracted it in 1993 in the Trowbridge (Wiltshire) County Record Office but did not transcribe it at the time - helped me figure out who some of the John Richmans in Hilperton and surrounding parishes are in a process of elimination of who might be the parents of my John Richman 1789.

Unfortunately, the Hilperton parish registers (available on Ancestry.com) and bishop's transcripts (available on FamilySearch digital microfilm) are incomplete, and there are few other Hilperton records available.  The parish chest records would likely be invaluable but probably exist only in the St. Michael's and All Angels church records in Hilperton.  In 1993, the church warden, Mr. Potts, had them in his home in Hilperton.

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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."

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