The will of John Washington has been copied from the original when it was in a better condition than it is at present, and every word I believe is correctly interpreted. The other wills are from certified copies of probated wills on record. The deed of Roger and Mildred Gregory is copied from the original document, They are submitted as sources of history without further explanaiton or comment.-J. M. TONER, M.D., of Washington, D. C.]

WILL OF JOHN WASHINGTON THE EMIGRANT.

In the name god amen, I John washington of washington parish in y Countie of westmerland in Virginia, gen'. being of good & perfect memory, thankes be unto Almighty god (for it) & Calleing to remembrance the uncertaine estate of this trans[itory] life, & that all flesh must yeild unto death, when it shall plea[se] god for to Call, doe make Constitute ordaine & declare this my last will & testament in maner & forme following, revoaki[ng] & anulling by thes presents all & every testament & testaments] will or wills heirtofore by me made & declared ei[ther] by [oath] or by writing & this to be taken only for my last will & testament & noe other, & first being hartily & sorry from the bottome of my hart for my sins past. most humbly desireing forgivenes of the same from the Almighty god (my saviour) & redeimer in whome & by the meritts of Jesus Christ, I trust & beleive assuredly to be saved & to have full remission & forgiveness of all my sins & y' my soule wth my body at the generall day of ressurriction shall arise againe wth Joy & through the merrits of Christ death & passion, posses & inherit the Kingdom of heaven, prepared for his ellect & Chossen & my body to be buried on ye plantation wheirr I now Live, by the side of my wife yt is already buried & two Children of mine & now for the setling of my temporall estate & such goods Chatles & debts as it hath pleased god far above my deserts to bestow uppon me, I doe order give & dispose the same in maner & forme followeing

first I will yt all those debts & duties yt I owe in right or Consience to any mañer of person or persons w'soever shall be well & truly Contented & payd or ordained to be payd by my executors-herein after named

Imprimis I give & [be]quea[th] unto my eldest [son Lawrence Wash-] ington y seat of land wheiron Henery flagg liveth [wch I bought of John] watts & Robert fledges, being by patten seven hundre[d] ac[res] it being by my father pope made over to me & my heirs Lawfully begotten of my bodyItem I give unto my son Lawrence washington my watter mill with all appertinances & Land belonging to it a' the head of Rosiers Creik to him & his heirs for ever, reserveing to my wife her thirds dureing her Life

Item I give unto my son Lawrence washington yt seate of Land wch I bought of Mr Lewis marcum being about two hundred & fifty acres, at the mouth of rosiers Creik on ye northwest side, wth all the houseing their unto belonging to him & his heirs for ever reserveing to my wife her thirds dureing her Life

Item I give unto my son Lawrence washington y' seate of Land at upper machotick weh I bought of M' Anthony Bridges & Mr John Rosier, being about nine hundred acres to him & his heirs for ever, reserveing to my wife her thirds dureing her life

Item I give unto my son Lawrence washington my halfe & share of five thousand acres of Land in Stafford County wch is betwixt Coll Nicolas spencer & myselfe wch we [are engaged] yt their shall be no benifit taken by survivour ship to him & his [heirs] for [ever].

Item I doe give unto my son John washington yt plantation wheiron I now Live wch I bought of David Anderson & yt plantation next to M2 John

Foxhall y' I bought (wch was Ried Hills) to him & his heirs for ever & yt seate of Land of about four hundred acres weh lyeth uppon y head of Rappahaneck Creik & adJoyning uppon David norways orphants Land the Land being formerly John whetstons & sold to me to him & his heirs f[o]r ever reserveing to my wife her thirds of the afoare sayd Land dureing her life

Item I give unto my son John washington yt seate of Land weh Robert foster now Liveth on heing about three hundred acres to him & his heirs forever, Likewise I give unto my sayd son John washington y' seat of Land weh Robert Richards Liveth on weh I had of my bro: Lawrence washington being about three hundred & fifty acres to him & his heirs for ever reserveing to my wife her thirds of the two sayd tracts of La[n]d dureing her life-Item I give & bequeath unto my daughter Añ washington y1 seate of Land yt tract of Land y' Tho: Jordan now liveth on being about twelve hundred acres to her & her heirs for ever, Likewise I give & bequeath unto my sayd daughter that tract of Land wheiron John frier now Liveth being about fourtein hundred acres after M' fricke hath his quantity out of it to her & her heirs for ever reserving to my wife her thirds of the two above seates during her Life.

Item I give unto my sayd daughter, wch was her mothers desire & my promise, y Cash in y° new parlour & the Diamond ring & her mothers rings & the white quilt & the white Curtains & Vallians

And as for the rest of my personall estate after my debts & dues are sattisfied Justly, weh I desire should be sattisfied out of my Cropps, which I doe not question but will be far more than I doe owe (thanks be unto god for it) theirfore it is my desire yt my estate should not Come to any appraisement, but I order & bequeath a followeth yt is to say that their shall be a Just Inventory & List taken of my personall estate y1 I am possessed of & for to be devided in quantitie & qualitie by three men of Judgement I request the Court to nominate, into foure [par]ts to be equall & proportionable devided in quantitie & qualitie the one fourth part I give to my Loveing wife in Kind in Lew of her dower or Claime, & one fourth part to my son Lawrence washington in Kind, & one fourth part to my son John washington in Kind, & one fourth part to my daughter An washington in Kind to them & either of them severally & their heirs for ever & it is my will yt if either of my above sayd Children should happen to dy, before they obtaine the age of one & twenty years or day of marriadge then the Land of yt Child y' Dyeth to be the eldest son then Liveing, & if both my sons should dy then the Land to be my daughter Añ, & as for the personall estate if any of my three Children should happen to dy, before they Come of age or day of marriadge, then it is my will that the two surviveing Children should equally devide the personall estate of y' Child yt is dead betwixt them & theirs for ever

Item I give & bequeath after all my legacies payd out w mony I shall have in England to my son Lawrence washington

[Ite]m my desire is yt their may be a funeral sermon preached [at ye Church & that their be no other funerall Lest ye [fun]erall exceid four thousand pounds of [Tobb]co.

Item I give unto the Lower Church of washing[ton] parish [y] ten Comandements & the Kings armes wch is my desire should be sent for out of w mony I have in England

Item it is my desire yt w estate I shall dy possessed should be Kept Intire wth out deviding untill all debts & dues be payd & sattisfied

Item I give unto my bro: Lawrence washington four thousand pounds of tobbeo & Caske

Item I give unto my nephew John Washington my godson eldest son to my bro: Lawrence w[as]hington one young mare of two years old

Item it is my desire y' when my estate is devided in quantitie & qualitie into four equall parts, & yt my wife hath taken her fourth part, yt then every Childs part should be put out uppon their owne plantation or plantations theire for to [be] manadged to the best advantage, for the bringing up & educating off each Chil]d acc[ordi]ng to the proffit of each Childrens share

Item it is my desire yt my wife should have the bringing up of my daughter An washington untill my son Lawrence Comes of age or her day of marriadge & my wife for to have the manadgement of her part to my daughters best advantadge

Item I doe give to my bro: Thomas Pope teñ pounds out of y' mony I have in England

Item I doe give unto my sister marthaw washington ten pounds out of yt mony I have in England & wt soever else she shall be oweing to me for transporteing her self into this Country & a years accomodation after her Coming in & four thousand pounds of Tobbe & Caske

Item it is my desire yt my bro: Thomas Pope have the bringing up of my son John Washington & for to have the manadgement of his estate to my sons best advantadge untill be of age of one & twenty years or day of marriadge

finally I doe ordaine & appoint my bro: m' Lawrence washington & my son Lawrence washington & my Loveing wife m" An washington my whole & scale executors of this my last will & testament as witness my hand & seale this 21th of 7ber 1675. JOHN WASHINGTON.

signed & sealed in ye

presence of us

John Lord

John Appleton

proued by ye Oath of

Cap Jn Lord Cap

Ja° Appleton Being deces

[The following endorsement is on the back of this will in the hand-writing of General Washington:

Will-Lt Col°

John Washington
11th Sept 1675.

This further endorsement but in a different hand is also on the back:-" Recorded in ye County records of Westmoreland Co ye 10 Jan'y 1677.”—J. M. T.

The original of the above will of John Washington, the emigrant ancestor of President Washington, was preserved among the General's papers at Mount Vernon. After the sale of the estate in 1858 to the Ladies' Mount Vernon Association of the Union, the papers and other relics were removed by the owner. Some of them were exhibitd at the United States National Museum at Washington, for a few weeks, last winter, but were removed in February last to be sold. A catalogue was prepared and printed, and on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, April 21st, 22d and 23d, 1891, the collection was sold at auction in Philadelphia by Thomas Birch's Sons. The relics brought very high prices. This will was sold to Mr. Collins for $700. The original of the release of Roger and Mildred Gregory here printed was in the same collection. The relics sold were owned by Messrs. Lawrence Washington, Bushrod C. Washington, Thomas B. Washington and J. R. C. Lewis.

Much search has been made for about a dozen years for this original will of the Virginia emigrant, John Washington. In 1878 Mr. James Coleman, the well known genealogical bookseller in London, advertised for sale a deed of

certain real estate in London, from John Washington of London, citizen and draper, and Margaret his wife one of the daughters of Henry Harwood, gent., to Robert Abbott, citizen and scrivener. The deed was dated June 5, 1657. A deed of a John Washington, dated 1657, probably this one, came about 1878 into the possession of the late Col. Joseph L. Chester, who conjectured that this John Washington might be the Virginia emigrant, selling his property before leaving England, and as he knew his ancestry, he wished to procure an autograph of the emigrant, or a tracing of one, to compare with the signature to the deed. He wrote to Mr. Robert A. Brock of Richmond, Virginia, to the editor of the REGISTER, and to others in this country, asking them to assist him in procuring one. Mr. Brock had search made in the Westmoreland County Court House for the will, but neither the original nor the record was to be found there. Bishop Meade in his Old Churches, Ministers and Families in Virginia, published in 1857 (vol. 2, page 167), had printed an abstract of the will which was obtained from the papers at that Court House. This abstract must have been made from the record, as we now know that the original will was then in the possession of the family. But even the record book could not then be found in the office; and it was not discovered till last December, when Mr. J. Warren Hutt, the clerk, found it. He at once sent a copy to Mr. Moncure D. Conway and another to Mr. Isaac J. Greenwood. (See REGISTER, vol. 45, pp. 164-5, ante, pp. 510-511.) Mr. Conway communicated his copy to the New York Nation in which paper it was printed December 18, 1890. Mr. Greenwood sent his copy to the editor of the REGISTER. The record was much mutilated, portions of it being missing. Before Mr. Greenwood's copy of the record could be printed, the editor was informed of Dr. Toner's copy from the original, in which the missing portions are all found; and he has now the pleasure of laying it before his readers with other interesting Washington documents. The date on the original will looks like 21th, and the recorder read the figures 21; but Gen. Washington's minute is "11th Sept 1675." The record gives the date of probate "10th Jana: 1677."

This is the first time a perfect copy of the will has appeared in print. A facsimile of the original was taken by the National Museum in Washington, and another is given in Messrs. Thomas Birch's Sons' sale catalogue, from which we have had photo-engravings made of a few lines of the closing portion with all the signatures; of the minute of the probate of the will; and of the endorsement by President Washington. The fac-similes are given in the engraving facing page 523.-EDITOR.]

THE WILL OF LAWRENCE WASHINGTON, EMIGRANT.

In the name of God, Amen.

I, Lawrence Washington, of the county of Rappak, being sick & weak in body, but of sound and perfect memory, do make & ordain this, my last will & testament, hereby revoking, annulling, & making void all former wills and Coddicills, heretofore by me made, either by word or writing, & this only to be taken for my last will & testament. Imp's I give and bequeath my soul into the hands of Almighty God, hoping and trusting through the mercy of Jesus Christ, my one Savio' and redeemer, to receive full pardon & forgiveness of all my sinus, and my body to the earth, to be buried in comely & decent manner, by my Executrix hereafter named, & for my wordly goods I thus dispose them. Item,

I give and bequeath unto my loving daughter, Mary Washington, my whole estate in England, both real and personall, to her & the heirs of her body, lawfully begotten, forever, to be delivered into her possession imediately after my decease, by my Executrix hereafter named. I give and bequeath unto my afores daughter, Mary Washington, my smallest stone ring & one silver cup, now in my possession, to her & her heirs, forever, to be delivered to her imediately after my decease. I give and bequeath unto my loveing son, John Washington, all my bookes to him & his heirs, forever, to be delivered to him when he shall come to the age of

Twenty-one yeares. I give and bequeath unto my son, John, & daughter, Ann Washington, all the rest of my plate, but what is before exprest to be equally divided between them, & delivered into their possession when they come of age.

Item, my will is, that all my debts which of right & Justice I owe to any man be Justly & truly paid, as allso my funerall expenses, after which my will is, that all my whole estate, both reall & personall, be equally devided between my loving wife, Jane Washington, & the two children God hath given me by her Vizt John & Ann Washington. I give & bequeath it all to them, & the heires of their bodies, lawfully begotten, forever, my sonn's part to be delivered to him when he comes of age, & my daughter's part when she comes of age or day of marriage, which shall first happen.

Item, my will is, that that land which became due to me in right of my wife, lying on the south side of the river, formerly belonging to Capt. Alexander Flemming, & commonly known by the name of West Falco, be sold by my Executrix hereafter named, for the payment of my debts, immediately after my decease.

Item, my will is, that the land I have formerly entred with Capt. WTM Mosely, be forthwith after my decease, surveyed & pattented by my Exec hereafter named, & if it shall amount to the quantity of one thousand acres, then I give & bequeath unto Alexander Barrow, two hundred acres of the sd land, to him & his heires, forever, the remainder I give & bequeath unto my loving wife afores, and two children, to them & their heires, forever, to be equally devided between them.

Item, my will is, that if it shall please Ged to take my daughter Mary out of this world before she come of age, or have heirs of her body, lawfully begotten, then I give & bequeath my land in England, which by my will I have given to her, unto my son, John Washington & his heirs, & the personall estate which I have given to her, I give & bequeath the same unto my daughter, Ann Washington & her heires, forever.

Item, I do hereby make & ordain my loveing wife, Jane Washington, Executrix of this my last will & testament, to see it performed, and I do hereby make & appoint my dear and loveing Brother Coll' John Washington, & my loveing friend Thomas Hawkins (in case of the death or neglect of my executrix), to be the overseers and guardians of my Children untill they come of age to the truth whereof I have hereunto sett my hand & seale, this 27th of September, 1675.

LAWRENCE WASHINGTON [Seale].

Signed, sealed & declared to be his last will & testament,

in the p'sence of us,

Signed,

Cornelius Wood.

John B. Barrow

Henry Tandy, Jun'.

A codicill of the last will & testament of Lawrence Washington, annex* to his will, & made September 27th 1675.

Item, my will is, that my part of the land I now live upon, which became due to me by marriage of my wife, I leave it wholly & solely to her disposall after my decease, as witness my hand, the day & year above written.

LAWRENCE WASHINGTON [Seale].