Moses Musgrave the Elder

Moses Musgrave, was the son of Oswin Musgrave and wife Elizabeth. He was born in 1667 in Belfast, County Armagh, Ireland. He died Apr 1726 and was buried in Fallowfield, Chester, Pennsylvania. Moses married Elizabeth about 1700 in Chester, Pennsylvania.

After his brother John migrated to "the New World" as an indentured servant, he arranged for Moses to follow, also a an indentured servant. Once he was a free man, Moses farmed in the Chester County area in Pennsylvania and owned land there between Edgemont and Willistown as early as 1695. The land that John and Moses lived on, according to existing records was on the border line between Chester and Lancaster Counties. They prospered as farmers. In 1713 John purchased an additional 600 acres, and Moses, 300 acres more. It is believed that Moses, possibly with the help of brother John, paid the way for his parents and siblings to come to America.

These early Musgraves were Quakers. It is from their records that we learn that Moses was "unlucky in love". At the Sadsbury Monthly Meetings, Moses and Grace Roberts said their intentions of marriage. A month later they said their intentions again. ( This practice of "posting the Banns" was the usual procedure for marriage at his time throughout England.) Yet on the 28th of Dec in 1697 he requested a certificate to marry Patience Hussey of New Castle County (daughter of John Hussey). Moses had to bring his mother's consent to this marriage. We don't know if he married both of these women and they died, or if he actually married either. We do know that when John Hussey's will was probated, there was no mention of Patience, nor of a child of hers. It is possible she, like so many other women of those times, died in childbirth.

We do know that Moses married an Elizabeth who was the mother of his children. Moses lived to be 59 years old. At the time of his death he left a will dividing all of his land and belongs, and giving his home plantation to his eldest son, Moses, with the condition that he provide for Elizabeth.[See Will, copied below

Children of Moses Musgrave, Sr. and wife Elizabeth:

• Jean Musgrave, born 1699, and named in her father's will
• Moses Musgrave, Jr., born 1705 and named in his father's will
• Aaron Musgrave, born 1712 and named in his father's will
• John Musgrave, born 1713 and not of age when his father wrote his will.

The Will of Moses Musgrave

I Mosis Musgrave of Sadsbury in the County of Chester, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Yeoman being sick in body, but praise be to God of sound and perfect memory, thanks be given to God for the same and considering the mortality of my body do make and ordain this my last will and testament, in manner and form following that is to say first and princapally I Recommend my soul into the hand of almighty God and my Body to the Earth to be buried in such Christian and Decent Maner as to my [?] Executors hereafter named shall seem meet and Convenient. I will and ordain that all my just Debts and funeral Charges be paid and Discharged. and as touching all such temperal estates as it has pleased God to bestow upon me, I give and dispose thereof as followeth:

Item. I give and bequeath unto my dear and loving wife, Elizabeth,and to her heirs and asignes forever, all and everything of my household goods and cart and plows and gears and all my other plantation tools and all my horned cattell and five horses and a mare and colt, and the improvements which I have boght of Richard Hastings in the aforementioned Township which I have a bill of sale for bearing a [illegible] oat with these presents to her only proper use and behalf for and upon the Consideration of Paying ot of ye aforesd primeses of thirty pounds of good and Lawfull Corrant Money of ye province aforesd she to pay to my youngest son John, when he shall become of age of twenty-one years, the which Money I give devise bequeath to him the said John Musgrave and to his heirs and assigns foreer for his proper use and behalf but if said John should Dye before he comes of age aforesaid then this money shall Lodg and abide forever in the hand of my wife aforesd for her own proper uses. Likewise I give to my son John one gray mear with all her increes forever from y Deat hearof. son, John, one gray mare.

Item. I give to my oldest son, Moses Musgrave, and his heirs forever, the place I now live on containing 250 acres and all improvements and one chestnut mare and colt and my gun for and in consideration of his providing sufficient house room upon the said place for my loving wife, his mother, during her widowhood and providing sufficient maintenance, winter and summer for one cow and one horse and to provide sufficient firewood. These provisions are to be made during her widowhood.

Item. I give and bequeath to my son, Aaron Musgrave, and to his heir and assign, 250 acres of land lying and joining to Roger Dyers in the great valley and I give to my son, Aaron, one brown mare and colt, for and in consideration of his paying to his brother, Moses, one pound current money every year after he becomes of age, yearly during my wifes widowhood, as long as she lives, but no longer.

Item. I give to my daughter, Jean, one dark brown mare and two young brown horses and another mare two years old, and her colt, with their increase, from date hereof.

Now the use of my plantation I doth ordain for to bring or raise up my children in ye hands of my wife until my son Moses comes to one and twenty years of age; but if my wife should marry, the date thereof, I do appoint my friend, Abraham Marshall and Zekiall Harland, for to oversee and take care of my children and to take care of my stead plantatation and to see that neither children or plantation is hurt and I doth authorize and empower the afore said Abraham Marshall and Zekiall Harland to put my children to trades and disinhierate any man and my wife of ye plantation, if need be required.

Lastly, I make, a point and constitute Abraham Mashall and my loving wife Elizabeth to be sole executors of this my last will and testament.

In witness thereof, I have here unto set my hand and seal."

              Moses Musgrave,

signed, sealed and delivered in the presence of John Musgrave, John Walter, and Caleb Pierce.

The above will was probated 7 April 1726, and is recorded in Will Book A page 189 in the Court House at West Chester, Chester County, Pennsylvania

Links to additional material:

• http://www.musgravia.4t.com/Musgrave/moses.htm

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GEDCOM Source

@R850766019@ Ancestry Family Trees Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members. Ancestry Family Tree http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=114513819&pi...

• Residence:

                           Delaware, Pennsylvania                        

• Residence:

                           Sadsbury, Chester, Pennsylvania                        

• Residence:

                           Lancaster, Pennsylvania, USA - 1713                        

• Residence:

                           Sadsbury, Chester, Pennsylvania, USA - 1718                        

• Reference: MyHeritage Family Trees - SmartCopy: Sep 26 2023, 22:23:16 UTC