Monday, January 31, 2022

Amanuensis Monday -- 1754 Deed of Land in Westborough, Massachusetts by Nathan Brigham to Son Moses Brigham

This week's document for transcription is the 1754 deed record for Nathan Brigham, Gentleman of Southborough, Massachusetts giving two tracts of land in Westborough, Massachusetts to his son Moses Brigham, yeoman of Westborough, for parental love and affection.

The transcription of this deed is (starting in the middle of the left-hand page of the image):

[page A245]

To all People to whom these presents shall come Greeting
Know ye that I Nathan Brigham of Southborough in the
County of Worcester and province of the massachusetts Bay in new
England Gentleman for and in Consideration of the parential
Love and affection which I have and do bear toward my well
beloved son Moses Brigham of Westborough in the County of
Worcester and province aforesaid yeoman Have Given Granted
Conveyed and Confirmed and do by these presents fully freely 
absolutely Give Grant Convey and Confirm unto him the said
Moses Brigham and his heirs and assigns forever a Certain
Tract and parcell of Land Containing about Sixty acres 
Scituate in Westborough aforesaid and Butted and bounded
as Followeth viz't. begining at a heap of stones at the Southwesterly
Corner of the hereby Discribed premises and thence it Runs northerly
by a Line of markt trees and bounding Westerly by Land now
possessed by Joseph Grout to a heap of stones and thence Easterly
by markt Trees and Bounding Northerly or northwesterly by up
Land or meadow Ground now possessed by Benjamin Fay

[page 246A]

and Jeduthurn Fay to a heap of stones and from thence ?????
Southerly and by markt Trees and Bounding Easterly or north-
Easterly partly by Land possessed by Jeduthern Fay and partly by
Land of Benjamin Fay aforesaid to a heap of stones in a Line for-
merly called Sutton Line being the Southerly Line of Eatons Farm
so called a part of which farm is the hereby Discribed premises and
from the Last mentioned heap of stones it Runs Westerly by said
Suttons Line to the bounds first mentioned.  More Ten acres of
Swamp Land or meadow Ground I the said Nathan Brigham do
hereby Convey to him the said Moses Brigham and bound it to him
as Followeth viz't. begining at a heap of stones the North Easterly
Corner of the above discribed Tract of Land and from said heap of
stones it Runs to Elizabeth River and Bounds Westerly by Land
of Jeduthern Fay aforesaid and then the aforesaid River is the
Bounds Till it Comes to the Land of Francis Whipple then runing
by a Line of markt Trees to a heap of stones being a Corner
of said Ten acres and a Corner of Land now possessed by Jeduthern
Fay and thence by said Fays Land to the Bounds First mentioned.
To Have and To Hold the said Given and Granted and Confirmed
premises as above Discribed be the same more or less Together
with the Buildings Fences and Improvements thereon with all y'e
Appurtenances priviledges and Commodities to the same belonging
or in any wise appertaining to him the said Moses Brigham
and to his heirs and assigns forever to his and their only proper
use benifit and behoofe forever and that the said Moses
Brigham his heirs and assigns Shall and may from time to
Time and at all Times forever hereafter by force and Virtue
of these presents Lawfully peaceably and Quietly Have hold use
Occupy & possess and Enjoy all the above Discribed Given Granted
and Confirmed premises with all their appur'ces.  In Witness
to all the above written I the said Nathan Brigham have hereunto
Sett my hand and seal this Seventh Day of Feb'ry 1754 and in y'e
27'th Year of the Reign of our sovereign Lord George the Second of
Great Brittain France and Ireland King &c.  Nathan Brigham {seal}
Signed Sealed and Deliv'd In presence of Edmund Brigham Hezekiah
Ward.  Worcester ss February y'e Seventh 1754  Nathan Brigham the
Grantor above named ^appeared &^  acknowledged his Signing and Presenting
the above above written Instrument to be his free act and deed before me
William Ward Just'e of peace Aug't 23'd 1754.  Rec'd and accordingly Entred
and Examined                pr J Chandler  Regr

 The source citation for this land record is:

 "Massachusetts, Land Records, 1620-1986," digital images, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 27 January 2022), Worcester County > Deeds, 1754-1756, Vol. 35-36, Volume 35, pages A245-6, Deed of Nathan Brigham to Moses Brigham, executed 7 February 1754, recorded 23 August 1754;  citing original records in County Courthouses, and on FHL Microfilms.

Some background:  Nathan Brigham (1693-1784) married (1) Dinah Rice (1693-1725), and had five children; Moses Brigham was the only son of this couple.  After Dinah (Rice) Brigham died in 1725, Nathan Brigham married (2) Hepzibah Ward (1708-1748) in 1729, and they had 8 children.  After Hepsibah (Ward) Brigham died in 1748, Nathan Brigham married (3) Martha (--?--) Gleason (1700-????) in 1751, and they had no children together.  

Because Nathan Brigham had 13 children by two deceased wives, and his eldest son Moses had married in 1749 and resided in Westborough, he gave Moses this land in Westborough as his portion of Nathan's estate, thereby avoiding complications in settling his estate when he died.  Nathan didn't die until 1784, and he wrote his will on 1 January 1783 to bequeath his property to the other children from his first two marriages, without mentioning Moses Brigham in his will.  

Moses Brigham (1723-1769) was the son of  Nathan and Dinah (Rice) Brigham of Southborough, Massachusetts.  He married Mehitable Grout (1725-1795) in 1749 in Westborough. Moses and Mehitable (Grout) Brigham are my 5th great-grandparents through their son, Phinehas Brigham (1755-1802), who married Lydia Batherick (1752-1795) in 1779.

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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."

Read other transcriptions for records of my ancestors at Amanuensis Monday Posts.

Copyright (c) 2022, Randall J. Seaver

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