Amanuensis Monday -- 1775 Will of Hepsabeth Hammant (1699-1791) of Medfield, Suffolk County, Massachusetts

 This week's document for transcription is the 1775 will of Hepsabeth Hammatt (1699-1791) of Medfield, Suffolk County, Massachusetts Bay Colony in the Suffolk County, Massachusetts Probate Court records.

*  Suffolk County, Massachusetts Probate Court, Volume 90, page 608-609:

*  Suffolk County, Massachusetts Probate Court, Volume 90, pages 610-611:

The transcription of this document (starting on page 609 and finishing on page 610) is:

In the Name of God Amen.  This Twenty fifth Day of October

one thousand seven Hundred and Seventy Five & Sixteenth Year of

our sovereign Lord George Third King &c I Hepsabeth Ham-

mant Widow of Timothy Hammattt Late of Medfield deceased

in the County of Suffolk and in the Colony of the Massachusetts Bay

in New England being in health but having many Admonitions

of My Mortality and of a sound disposing mind and Memory

thanks be given to god Therefor, Do make and ordain this my

last Will and Testament in manner and form Following.

That is to say First and Principally, I commend my Spirit into

the Hands of God that gave it hoping and trust^ing in his Mercey thro'

The Merits and Mediation of Jesus Christ, my only Saviour I

commend my Body to the dust to be interred in a decent manner

at the discretion of my Executors hereafter named in Hopes of the

Resurrection of the Just.  It is my Will and pleasure that all my

Just debts funeral Charges and Legacies be paid with all Convenient

speed after my decease then Imprimus I give and bequeath to the

Children of my beloved Son Seth Hammant deceased and to

their Heirs the Sum of Five Shillings.  Item I give and bequeath

to my beloved Son Timothy Hammant and to his heirs forever

The Sum of Five Shillings.  Item I give and bequeath to my beloved

Son Francis Hammant and to his Heirs forever The Sum of Five

shillings.  I give and bequeath to my Beloved daughter Mehitable

Hammant & to her heirs forever The one fourth part of all my Real &

Personal Estate.  Item I give and bequeath to my beloved Daughter Patience

Smith the one fourth part of all my Real and Personal Estate and to her

Heirs forever.  Item I give and bequeath to my daughter Bathsmah Walker

one fourth part of all my Real & Personal Estate & to her Heirs forever.  Item I give

and bequeath to my Daughter Dinah Chenery one Fourth part of all my Real

and Personal to her heirs forever.  I do constitute and appoint my Son Ephriam Chenery

to be the Sole Executor of this my last Will and Testament hereby revoking all others

and ratifying this and this only to be my last Will and Testement.  In Witness Whereof I have

hereunto Set my Hand and Seal the Day and year above written.

Signd Seal'd and pronounced & declared by her                 her

the said Hepsebah Hammant to be her                  Hepsaeth x Hammant

last will and Testement in presence of us                             mark

Elihu Chenery        }         Suffolk ss Probate Court holden at Medfield

Simeon Chenery     }        within and for the County of Suffolk on the fourth

Eleaz'r Wheellock  }        Day of October 1791 By the Honourable Thomas

Dawes Jun'r Esq'r Judge of the Probate of the Said County.  The annexed

Will being presented by Ephriam Chenery The Executor ^therein named for Probate, Elihu Chenery & Simeon Chenery^ and Eleazer Wheelock

appear and Make Oath that they saw ^the said^ Testatrix Hepsebah Hammant

sign, Seal & heard her publish the Same Instrument as his last

Will and Testament & that she was then to the best of their discernment

of a sound disposeing mind and Memory and that they subscribed

their their names thereto as Witnesses in her presence.

Examind W'm Cooper Reg'r    Thomas Dawes Jun'r  Judge Probate.

The source citation for this deed is:

Suffolk County, Massachusetts Probate Court, will of Hepsabeth Hammant, dated 25 October 1775, proved 4 October 1791; imaged, "Massachusetts, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1635-1991," Ancestry.com  (https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/9069/images/007702027_00321 : accessed 11 August 2024), "Suffolk > Probate Records, Vol, 90, 1790-1791," pages 609-610 (stamped), images 321-322 of 461; original rccords in Suffolk County, Massachusetts Probate Court records, microfilmed by FamilySearch, and indexed by Ancestry.com.

This will is a Derivative Source (because it is a court clerk copy in a bound record volume) with Primary Information and Direct Evidence of the disposal of the real and personal property of Hepsabeth Hamant to her children and their heirs.  The will names six children of Hepsebeth - sons Seth (deceased), Timothy and Francis, and daughters Mehitable, Patience Smith, Bathsmah Walker and Dinah Chenery.  No inventory, account or distribution of the estate was found.  

Note that the Hamant surname was interchangeable with Hammant in contemporary times, and the given name Hepsabeth was interchangable with Hephzibeth, Hepsabah, etc.  

Since Timothy Hamant (1699-1774) died before his wife Hepsabeth died, his estate was probated in 1775 (See https://www.geneamusings.com/2016/05/amanuensis-monday-post-318-1771-will-of.html).  In his will, he bequeathed to his wife Hepsabeth Hammant one third of all his real and personal property, and distributed real property to his sons, and money to his daughters.  In this present report, Hepsabeth is distributing her one third share of the real and personal property to her four daughters, leaving unsaid in the will which property was to be theirs.  She probably waited until Timothy's estate was probated before she wrote this will, noting that it was troubled times as the War of the Revolution had started.

Hepsabeth (Clark) Hamant (1699-1791) was born 2 February 1698/9 in Medfield, Suffolk County, Massachusetts Bay, the daughter of Joseph and Marie (Wight) Clark.  She died in August 1791 in Medfield (now in Norfolk county, Massachusetts, after 1793).  She married Timothy Hamant (1699-1774) on 19 October 1727 in Boston, Suffolk County, Massachusetts Bay.  Timothy was the son of Timothy and Melatiah (Clark) Hamant, and died 6 June 1774 in Medfield.  They had nine children, with three deceased and six still living in 1775.

Timothy and Hepsabeth (Clark) Hamant are my 6th great-grandparents.  I am descended through their daughter, Patience (Hamant) Smith (1735-1780), who married Moses Smith (1732-1806) in 1762.

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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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