Amanuensis Monday -- 1857 Will of Samuel Seaver (1772-1857) in Sullivan County, New Hampshire

 This week's document for transcription is the 1857 Will of Samuel Seaver (1772-1857) of Springfield, Vermont in Sullivan County, New Hampshire

Sullivan County, New Hampshire Probate Records - Volume 19, Page 459:

Sullivan County, New Hampshire Probate Records - Volume 19, Page 460-461:

Sullivan County, New Hampshire Probate Records - Volume 19, Page 462:

The transcription of this document on the three pages is:

[page 429]

This is the last Will and Testament of me Samuel

Seaver late of Springfield in the county of Windsor

and State of Vermont.

After the payment of my just debts and the

charges of my funeral out of my personal estate I

give devise and bequeath the remainder of my estate

whether real or personal of which I shall die seized and

possessed in the following manner.  That is to 

say.  1. I give to my beloved wife All my household

furniture and it is my desire that no inventory thereof

be taken but that her general receipt therefor without

specifying therein the different Articles thereof to the

Executor herein after named be accepted by the Probate

Court as a sufficient accounting for the same by said

Executor.  And I also give to her all the grain Meats

and other provisions on hand at the time of my decease.

2.  I also give to my said beloved wife an Annuity or

sum yearly of Ninety dollars, which with the further

provision herein made to secure to her a full support and

maintenance, I mean to be, and that she accept the

same in full for all and every right or claim

which she might otherwise have in or to my estate,

whether real or personal, And I give the same upon

the express condition that she shall upon request

made to her by said executor execute and deliver to

him, or to his successor as said trust a deed of quit-

claim in which she shall acquit release and relin-

quish all her right, title and interest in the home-

stead, and all claims for dower, or to my personal

estate which she might otherwise have to the same,

save and except what I have given to her as above.

And to the end that said Annuity may be more effec-

taully secured and the same duly paid to her an-

nually, it is my will that Fifteen hundred dollars

of my personal estate shall be reserved and set apart

by my said Executor, and by him loaned and kept

at interest upon good land security and said interest

accruing Annuity. And if said sum of Ninety dollars

shall in any one year be insufficient for her support

[page 430]

in manner which she has ?????? been accustomed

then it is my will and direction that the defficiency

in such year be made up to her from the principal

of said annuity fund.  And whatever of said sum

of fifteen hundred dollars shall remain unexpended

at the time of my said wife's decease I direct to

be paid to and divided equally among my

grandchildren hereinafter named to whom I

give it.

3.  I give to my daughters Mary Powers, Valeria

Putnam and Louisa Dodge each the sum of One

thousand dollars to be paid to them respectively as

soon as conveniently may be after my decease in

money, except that Eight hundred dollars of the

One thousand for said Valeria is to be in a piece of

land estimated to contain thirty acres more or less

lying in Charlestown in the State of New Hampshire

now occupied be her husband John Putnam and

commonly known and called by the name of the

Garden Meadow which I give to her.

4.  And whereas I have deposited in each of the Savings

Banks (so called) located in said Charlestown,

Claremont, New Hampshire and Rockingham 

at Bellows Falls in this State, the sum of One

thousand dollars in cash, as will appear by the

deposite books in my possession and by the books

of said respective Institutions And it is my will

and I do accordingly give to said Mary Powers

the dividends that shall be due and unpaid if any on

said Thousand dollar deposit in the Claremont Savings

Bank at my decease.  And the dividend that shall

thereafter be declared thereon by said Savings Bank

or such other institution of savings as shall have

said fund on deposit for and during the term

of her natural life, and at her decease it is my will

and I direct the same to be divided equally among

her lineal issue.  And in like manner I give to

my said daughter Valeria Putnam the dividend

that shall be due and unpaid, if any, on said

deposite in the Bellows Falls Savings Bank at

my decease, and also the dividends that shall

thereafter be declared upon said deposite by said

Savings Bank or by such institution of savings

as shall have such fund on deposite for and

during the term of her natural life and at her

[page 431]

decease I give said deposit fund to her lineal issue

in equal shares.  And in like manner I give

to my said daughter Louisa Dodge the dividend

that shall be due on said deposit in the Charlestown

Savings Bank at my decease, and also the

dividend that shall thereafter be declared upon said

deposite by said savings bank or by such other

institution of Savings as shall have said fund on

deposite for and during the term of her natural

life.  And after her decease I give said deposite fund

to her lineal issue in equal shares.  And I direct

that each of the aforenamed deposits be kept where it now

is so long as my daughters having an interest in

the dividends therein shall live, unless circumstances

shall arise under which with the advice and

sanction of such daughter as has an interest therein

it shall be deemed prudent to withdraw said de-

posite and on such withdrawal I direct the same

to be deposited in some other institution of Savings

of approved Credit to be there kept for the purposes above

named.

5.  The residue and remainder of my estate not herein

otherwise disposed of I give to my grandchildren

Ellen Powers, Samuel Powers and George Powers,

children of said Mary Powers, John Putnam,

Ann Putnam, Rosette Putnam and Wesley

Putnam children of said Valeria Putnam

Melinda Hamlin the wife of William Hamlin,

Horace Dodge and Arvilla Dodge children of

said Louisa Dodge, in equal shares and portions,

and if either of my said grandchildren shall die before said

remainder or any portion thereof can be divided,

the share of such deceased grandchild in such

portion thereof as may remain undivided shall

go to and be equally divided among the

survivors of them.

[page 432]

And to enable my Executor to dispose of my

real estate in Springfield with as little delay

and expense as practicable I hereby empower

him to sell the same and to execute all necessary Writings for the

conveyance of a title to the same.

And I hereby constitute and appoint Jonas B. Spencer Executor

of this my last will and testament.

In testimony whereof I hereto set my

hand and seal and publish and declare

this to be my last will and testament this

ninth day of May in the year of our Lord

One thousand eight hundred and fifty seven.

                                       Samuel Seaver   Seal

Signed sealed published

 and declared by the said Samuel Seaver as his

last will and testament in presence of us who at

have hereunto subscribed our names as witnesses

thereof at the request and in the presence of the

said Testator and in the presence of each other

this ninth day of May A.D. 1857.

                                 Samuel W. Porter

                                 M. G. Chase

                                 Fred M. Porter

State of Vermont     }

District of Windsor }  At a Probate Court held 

at Springfield within and 

for the District aforesaid on the sixteenth day

of January A.D. 1858.

Present the Hon. Henry Closson Judge

The instrument hereunto annexed purporting to be

the last will and testament of Samuel Seaver

late of said Springfield deceased was presented

to said Court and duly proved; the Court aforesaid

doth therefore by virtue of the power and authority 

thereunto given in and by the laws of said State

approve and allow of the said instrument  as the

last will and testament of the said deceased

and doth commit the administration thereof in

all matters and things concerning the same

and of the estate of the said Samuel Seaver

whereof he died seized and possessed in said State

unto Jonas B. Spencer the Executor therein

named, well and faithfully to execute the same

and to Administer the Estate of the said deceased

according thereunto, he the said Jonas B. Spencer

accepting said trust and giving bonds as the law

directs.

A true Record, Attest  Clark H. Chapman Register.

The source citation for this probate case file is:

"New Hampshire, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1643-1982," indexed database with record images,  Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com), Sullivan County, Probate Records, Vol 19, Wills 1852-1864,  pages 429-433 (images 235-237 of 123 of 298), will of Samuel Seaver of Springfield, Vermont, written 19 May 1857 and proved 16 January 1858; original data: New Hampshire County, District and Probate Courts.

Samuel Seaver (1772-1857) was or on 9 May 1772 in Westminster, Massachusetts, the son of Samuel and Sarah (Cutter) Seaver.  He died 20 December 1857 in Springfield, Vermont. Samuel married (1) Mary Holden (1778-????) on 1 April 1798 on Claremont, New Hampshire.  They had three children:

*  Mary Brown Seaver (1799-1868), married 1826 Ara Powers (1797-1865)

*  Valeria Ann Seaver (1805-1871), married 1827 John A. Putnam (1799-1865).

*  Louisa Jane Seaver (1809-1881), married 1830 Hosea Nahum Dodge (1807-????).

Samuel Seaver married (2) Betsey Glazier (1782-1867) on 18 February 1841 in Springfield, Vermont.  They had no children together.

Samuel Seaver's will was written 19 May 1857 and was proved in the probate court in Windsor District, Vermont.  Apparently, it was copied into the Sullivan County, New Hampshire probate court records because there was real property and bank accounts in Sullivan County mentioned in the will, and the three daughters resided in Sullivan County. 

There is a 51 page estate file in the Windsor District probate court in Vermont with bond, administration, order, guardianship, inventory and account papers in the file.  The estate file administration was not closed until 1867 after Samuel's second wife died.  The inventory taken in 1858 showed $2000 in real estate and $12,280 in personal property, including the bank accounts and notes due.

Samuel Seaver (1772-1857) is my 1st cousin 6 times removed, with our most recent Seaver common ancestor is my 6th great-grandfather Robert Seaver (1702-1752).

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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 of records of my ancestors at Amanuensis Monday Posts.

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