The Will of Patrick Smith
of Great Paxton d.1745
1745 - Will of Patrick Smith, Clerk of Great Paxton - scan of the original
Rev Patrick Smith was Vicar of Great Paxton, Little Paxton and Toseland from 1702 to 1745.
In the name of God, Amen
I Patrick Smith of Great Paxton in the county of Huntingdon, Clerk, do this twenty second day of January in the year of our lord one thousand and seven hundred and forty four in consideration of my mortality and great age make and ordain this my last will and testament in manner following.
First of all commending my soul into the hands of Almighty God through the merits of Jesus Christ my saviour and my body to the earth to be buried in a private decent manner.
I thus dispose of my worldly goods and estate. Impremis, I give to the poor of Great Paxton aforesaid forty shillings and to the poor of Little Paxton twenty shillings and to the poor of Toseland twenty shillings to be distributed among them at the discretion of my executor within a week after my burial.
Item I give to my son James Smith the sum of two hundred pounds.
Item I give to my daughter Mary Petty one hundred pounds and my silver tankard and easy chair.
Item I give to Eustace Petty my son in law as I promised one hundred and fifty pounds to be deducted out of the money he owed me upon his bond and note to me in consideration of money lost by him by William Smith my deceased sons’s becoming and dying insolvent. And further I forgive the said Eustace Petty the two and twenty pound ten shillings which he owes me for two years rent of my Tythes of Chirt farm due at Michaelmas last, and I give him my mortgage upon John Emery’s Cotton Close for nine and twenty pound and interest. Also I give him my eight-day clock and I desire my executor to be further kind to him if the assets hold well out.
Item I give to my daughter Ann Hedding my mortgage for eight and fifty pound and interest upon the estate of Elizabeth Smith of Girtford in the parish of Sandy lying and being in Little Paxton aforesaid. And I give her my armed cane chair and cushion.
Item I give to Dorothy Smith my daughter in law twenty pounds and all my wearing apparel to help her to bring up and put out to trades her children by the aforesaid William Smith her late husband.
Item I give to every lawful Grandchild and Great Grandchild that I shall have at the time of my death ten shillings to buy them a good Bible and Common Prayer book.
Item I give to my aforementioned son James Smith all my personal estate with all my goods and chattels and credit whatsoever after all my just debts and funeral charges and legacies aforesaid are paid whom I also hereby make constitute and appoint to be the executor of this my last will and testament revoking all former wills by me made in witness whereof I have hereto set my hand and seal and published and declared this to be my last will and testament this day and year first above written being all written with my own hand.
P. Smith
Signed sealed and published to be the last will and testament of Patrick Smith in the presence of us
P. Wynne
Elizabeth Emery
I Patrick Smith do appoint as a Codecill to my last will and testament I further give and bequeath over and above what I have bequeathed in my last will to the above Eustace Petty thirty pound and to the aforenamed James Smith and Eustace Petty all my books and household goods not disposed of before equally between them.
Then I give to William Smith, my grandson now or of late in Virginia ten pound.
Witness my hand and seal this thirtieth day of January on thousand seven hundred and forty four.
P. Smith
Signed and sealed in the presence of us
P. Wynne
Elizabeth Emery
This will was proved at London (with a Codecill annexed) before the Worshipfull Robert Chapman, Doctor of Laws and surrogate of the right worshipfull John Betterworth also Doctor of Laws, Master Keeper or commissary of the prerogative Court of Canterbury lawfully constituted
Transcription by Rachel Osborne
