1) Letter of Administration (Barnstable County, Volume 16, page 29, right-hand page on image):
The transcription of this document is:
Barnstable,
ss. Province of the Massachusetts Bay.
By
the Honourable James Otis Esq^r.
[L.S.]
Judge of the Probate of Wills, and for granting Letters
of
Administration on the Estates of Persons deceased,
having
goods, Chattels, Rights or Credits in the
County
of Barnstable, within the Province aforesaid.
To
Edmund Hawes of Barnstable in the County
and
Province, yeoman Greeting.
Whereas
Elizabeth snow late of
Eastham
in the County of Barnstable widow
deceased,
having while she lived, and at the Time of her
Decease,
Goods,
Chattels, rights or Credits in the County aforesaid, lately
died
Intestate, whereby the Power of committing Administration
and
full Disposition of all and singular the Goods, Chattels, Rights and
Credits
of the said Deceased; and also the hearing, examining, and
allowing
the Accompt of such Administration doth appertain unto Me:
Trusting
therefore in your Care and Fidelity, I do by these Presents,
commit
unto you full Power to Administer all and singular the Goods,
Chattels,
Rights and Credits of the said Deceased; and well and faith-
fully
to dispose of the same according to Law; and also to ask, gather,
levy,
recover and receive all and whatsoever Credits of the said Deceased,
which
to her while she lived, and at the Time of her
Death, did
appertain,
and to pay all Debts in which the said Deceased stood bound,
so
far as her Goods, Chattels, Rights and Credits can extend,
according
to
the Value thereof; And to make a true and perfect Inventory of all
the
same intro the Registry of the Court of Probate for the County
aforesaid,
at or before the first Day of January
next
ensuing; And to render a plain and true Accompt of your said
Administration
upon Oath, at or before the first Day of
October
which will be in the Year of our Lord One Thousand
Seven
Hundred and Seventy Three. And I do hereby ordain,
constitute
and appoint you Administrator of all and singular the
Goods,
Chattels, Rights and Credits aforesaid.
In
Testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my Hand, and the Seal
of
the said Court of Probate. Dated at Barnstable, the first
Day
of October Annoque Domini, 17 72.
By
Order of the Honourable Judge James Otis
Da^d
Gorham Regr.
2) Inventory (Barnstable County, Volume 17, page 56, bottom of left-hand page]
The transcription of this Inventory is:
To
the Honourable Judge of Probate. We the subscribers being appointed
by persons
of
the Estate of the Widow Elisabeth Snow late of Eastham deceas^d: We
have Accordingly
taken
an Appraisal of all the Estate abovesaid that hath come to our
knowledge,
According
to our best Skill and Judgment, an Inventory of which is as follows:
| The household furniture | 12 – 7 – 0 |
| Wearing Apparell | 1 – 6 – 8 |
| English Grain | 3 – 0 – 0 |
| The Indian Corn | 2 – 0 – 0 |
| A Swine | 0 – 4 – 0 |
Eastham
Octo^r 7 1772 Gideon Freeman
Josiah
Merrick
David
Doane
Barnstable
ss. By the Hon^l James Otis Esq^r Judge of Prob &c Cause
Edmund
Hawes Adm^r presented the foregoing and made Oath that it is a true
and
perfectory
of the Estate of Elisabeth Snow late of Eastham de^d so far as hath
come to his
hands
& knowledge and if more hereafter appear he will cause it to be
added. the Subscribing
apprisers
were sworn as the Law directs.
Dec^r
8 1772 Exam^d Da^d Gorham Regr James Otis
3) Inventory (Barnstable County, Volume 17, page 157, top of right-hand page of image):
The transcription of this document is:
Barnstable
October the 7^th day annoque Domini 1772 The Estate of Widdow
Elisabeth
Snow late of Easrtham deceas^d To Edmund Hawes Adm^r £ s d q
| To cash paid Judge Otis for fees | 0 – 7 – 6 – 0 |
| To cash paid the apprisers 2/ each | 0 – 6 – 0 – 0 |
| To my time trouble & Expence in taking out a Letter of Aministr^n | 0 – 7 – 0 – 0 |
| To one days attending the Apprisers & to Remove the houshold of furniture | 0 – 6 – 0 – 0 |
| Nov^r ye 11^th paid to M^r Enoch Atwood on Acc^o. | 0 – 9 – 4 – 0 |
| Same day paid to M^r Ebenezer Higgins on Acc^o. | 0 – 7 – 6 – 0 |
| The 12 paid to M^r Sam^ll Snow for his help in moving & Selling household stuff and the Ballance of his account | 0 –12 – 2 – 0 |
| Paid to M^r Seth Paine & M^r Isaac Paine for funeral Charge | 0 – 8 – 8 – 0 |
| Paid to the Rev^d Edward Cheever Last Bill | 0 – 6 – 6 – 0 |
| To my time and Expence Notifying & Venduing part of the household stuff & settling the above Account | 1 – 3 – 0 – 0 |
| Dece^r 8 paid to Judge Otis for fees | 0 – 4 – 0 – 0 |
| Same day paid to David Gorham Esq^r for fees | 0 – 7 – 6 – 0 |
| For my going to carry in the Inventory | 0 – 1 – 6 – 0 |
| January 4^th 1773 paid to M^r Henry Knowles | 0 –10 –10 – 2 |
| Paid to Doctor John Davis | 3 – 1 – 0 – 0 |
| Paid to M^r Joseph Remick | 0 –15 – 5 – 2 |
| Paid to M^r Robert snow for carting & cutting wood | 0 – 3 – 4 – 0 |
| Paid to Elisabeth Snow for nursing 17 weeks | 2 – 8 – 0 – 0 |
| January 7th to my going to Eastham to Sell the Corn & pay Debts | 0 –12 – 0 – 0 |
| For drawing this Account & Carrying it in | 0 – 1 – 6 – 0 |
| £ 12 –18 –10 | |
| To the Judge 7^r Reg^r 3/ | 0 --10 – 0 |
A
True Account Errors Excepted Edmund Hawes Admin^r.
| Credit to the Above Estate | |
| By the Inventory as given by the Apprisers | £ 13 –13 – 8 |
| By what Col. Knowles paid for the English grain | 3 – 0 – 0 |
| By what M^r Henry Knowles paid me for the Indian corn | 1 – 9 – 0 |
| £ 18 – 2 – 8 |
Barnstable
ss. By the Hon^l James Otis Esq^r Judge of Prob &c
Edmund
Hawes Adm^r presented the foregoing and made Oath that it contains
a
Just and true account of his administration on the Estate of
Elisabeth Snow late
of
Eastham widow deceas^d which is accepted and allowed. James
Otis
March
9 1773 Comp^d Da^d Gorham Reg
The source citation for these documents is:
"Massachusetts, Wills and Probate Records, 1635-1991," indexed database with digital
images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 6 December 2016), Barnstable County > Probate Records, Vol. 14- 16, 1763-1785 and Probate Records, Vol. 17-19, 1769-1793: Volume 16, page 29 (image 479 of 553), 1772 Letter of administration; Volume 17, page 56 (image 35 of 392), 1772 Inventory; Volume 17, page 157 (image 87 of 392), 1772 Account of estate of Elisabeth Snow; Original data from Barnstable County [Mass.] Probate Court clerk books.
Elisabeth Snow (1702-1772) was the widow of Jabez Snow (1696-1760), and had 6 children with him. She died 6 July 1772 in Eastham. The Letter of Administration was filed on 1 October 1772, and appointed Edmund Hawes of Barnstable as the Administrator. Three appraisers were appointed and they took an Inventory which was presented to the probate court on 7 October 1772. The calculated value of the inventory was 18 pounds, 17 shillings and 8 pence. The Account of the Administrator was written on 7 October 1772 and was recorded on 9 March 1773 in the probate court.
The Account details what happened to the inventory items, and the charges for the funeral, probate court fees, etc. The Account did not balance exactly, but fairly close - I may have erred in typing the numbers or adding them up.
Jabez and Elisabeth (Paine) Snow are my 6th great-grandparents, through their daughter Eunice Snow (1722-1816), who married Nathaniel Horton (1721-1771) in 1742.
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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."
My list of previous Amanuensis Monday posts is at http://www.geneamusings.com/p/amanuensis-monday-posts.html.
The URL for this post is: http://www.geneamusings.com/2017/01/amanuensis-monday-1772-estate-papers-of.html
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