Estate of William Browne of Gloucester
Essex Probate Docket # None
I William Browne of Glocester in the County of Essex
in New-England being by Gods providence Cast upon my bed of Sicknesse and
not knowing how neare my departure out of this world may be at hand doe therefore
declare and make knowne this my last will and Testament in manner following
and first I Committ and Commend my soule unto God the Father of Spirits and
my body to the Grave to be decently buried by my good freinds Surviving And
in the next Place I give and bequeath unto my Sonne in Law Abraham Robinson
Two Acres of Meadow being Situate & lying on the North Side of little
good Harbour as als two Acres of vpland being Situate and lying next the
burying place on the South West Side thereof in Glocester aforesayd as also
three Acres || of meadow || be it more or lesse Situate and lying at Annasequam
So Comonly Called next to the Meadow of John Collins Sen on the North-East
& butting upon the mayne Creeke or River as also halfe that my Parcill
of vpland being Situate & lying in the Fishermans Feild betweene the
Land of Jeffrey Parsons also halfe that my Parcell of vpland at the Eastern
Poynt and adioyning to the land of Robert Elwell also I giue and bequeath
unto my Sayd Sonne in Law one Cow and two Ewes also a Bed and Bolster together
with a Rugge & one Blanckett These Lands Goods &Chattells aforesayd
to be Delivered to the Sayd Abraham my Sonne in Law together with one Iron
Pot when hee Shall attayne the Age of twenty one years to have and to hold
the Sayd Goods Lands & Chattells to him & his Heires for evar that
is in Case hee Shall accept of what I have here given and bequeathed unto
him in this my last will & Testament But if hee Shall not accept of what
is here bequeathed & given unto him then it is my will that all the aforesayd
Lands Goods Chattells Shall fall to my Executresse anything herein contayned
to the Contrary in any wise notwithstanding.
Furthermore it is my will and I doe by these Psnts assigne & appoynt
my Daughter Mary Browne to be my Heire & Executresse of all the rest
of my estate onely it is my will that my wife Mary Browne Shall injoy the
benefit vse & profit of all this my estate now last expressed unto which
my Daughter Mary is Heire I Say it is my will & I doe hereby appoynt
& determine that my Sayd wife Shall injoy all the benefitt vse &
profit of this my estate now last espressed untill my Daughter Mary doth
marry of attayne the age of Eighteene yeares and then when Shee Shall attayne
the age of eighteene yeares or otherwise if Shee doth marry before Shee doth
attayne the Sayd terne of yeares then It is my will and I doe hereby appoynt
and determine that my Daughter Mary Shall presently injoy halfe the benefitt
& Profitt of this my estate last expressed to her owne proper vse &
behoofe any thing herein Contayned to the Contrary in any wise notwithstanding
and after the death of her Mother Shee Shall injoy the other halfe which
her Mother was to injoy while Shee lived that is to say Shee my Sayd Daughter
after the Decease of her Sayd Mother Shall have and injoy all that my estate
Last expressed to which I have appoynted her Execitresse tp Her & her
Heires for Ever But if my Sayd Daughter Should dye before Shee doth marry
or before Shee doth attayne it || is ||my will & I doe hereby appoynt
and determine that her Mother Surviving Shall have full power to injoy &
dispose of all this my estate lest expressed But if my Sayd daughter doe
Survive or out-live her Mother and dye before Shee attayne the age of Eighteene
yeares or before shee doth marry then it is my will & I doe hereby appoynt
& determine that my Sonne in law Aabraham Robinson above expressed Shall
have & injoy that estate abovesayd unto which I have Constituted &
appoynted her to be Heire to him & his Heires for ever Any thing herein
Contayned to the Contrary in any wise notwithstanding
In witnesse whereof I the Sayd William have hereunto Set my hand the twenty
& ninth day of Aprill Anno Dom on thousand Six hundred and Sixty two.
William Browne
Subscribed In the Presence of us
John Emerson
The marke of I John Collins Sen
Philip Haywood
Source: The will of William Browne of Gloucester was proved in the court
at Salem 25: 4 : 1662. This is a copy of the original instrument on file
in the office of the clerk of courts at Salem, volume VIII, leaf 31.
Submitted by: