William Columbus Bennett

Will of William Bennett b. c. 1749, d. April 17, 1825 Transcribed by Anita (Brocato) Hollis, Westlake, LA

In the name of God Amen, I William Bennett of the State of Georgia & County of Jackson a planter of the same being weak in body but of sound & perfect mind & memory blessed be almighty God, for the same calling to mind the mortality of my body & knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die do make and ordain this my last will & testament. That is to say principally of in & of all I give & recommend my soul unto the hands of Almighty God who gave it to me & body I recommend to the earth to be buried in decent Christian burial at the discretion of my executors nothing doubting but at the general resurrection I shall receive the same again by the mighty power of God & as touching such worldly estate where with it has pleased (?) God to bless me within this life, I give dismiss & dispose of the same in the following manner & form, first I lend to my beloved wife Rachael Bennett all & singular my whole estate both movable & immovable during her natural life or widowhood Item 2 I also bequeath to my son Hezekiah Bennett five shillings Sterling Item 3 To my daughter Sarah Hardy five shillings Sterling Item 4 To my son Armsted Bennett five shillings Sterling Item 5 To my daughter Judy Hardy five shillings Sterling Item 6 To my daughter Polley Perry twenty dollars Item 7 To my daughter Patsey Bennett twenty dollars Item 8 To my son Thomas Bennett one cow & calf feather bed & furniture Item 9 To my son Asa Bennett one horse bridle & saddle cow & calf feather bed & furniture Item 10 My sons William Bennett and Barltley Bennett, Thomas Bennett & Asa Bennett I give and bequeath to my beloved four sons after the death of my beloved wife Rachael Bennett all remainder of my property both movable & immovable to be equally divided between them named four sons, And I do hereby constitute my sons Wm Bennett Thos Bennett & my wife executor of this my last will and testament & do hereby utterly disallow revoke & disannul all and every other former testament will & legacy & executors by me in any wise before named wills & bequeathes & confirming this to be my last will & testament & no other, in witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand & seal this 25th day of July in the year of our lord eighteen hundred & twenty two by the within named Wm Bennett the within to be his last will & testament in the presence of us who in his & the presence of each other hereunto subscribed our name, the day & date above written.William Bennett (seal)Absolam CrislerAbram Crisler

In the name of God Amen, I William Bennett of the State of Georgia & County of Jackson a planter of the same being weak in body but of sound & perfect mind & memory blessed be almighty God, for the same calling to mind the mortality of my body & knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die do make and ordain this my last will & testament that is to say principally of in & of all I give & recommend my soul unto the hands of Almighty God who gave it to me & body I recommend to the earth to be buried in decent Christian burial at the discretion of my executors nothing doubting but at the general resurrection I shall receive the same again by the mighty power of God & as touching such worldly estate where with it has pleased (?) God to bless me within this life, I give dismiss & dispose of the same in the following manner & form, first I lend to my beloved wife Rachael Bennett all & singular my whole estate both movable & immovable during her natural life or widowhood Item 2 I also bequeath to my son Hezekiah Bennett five shillings Sterling Item 3 To my daughter Sarah Hardy five shillings Sterling Item 4 To my son Armsted Bennett five shillings Sterling Item 5 To my daughter Judy Hardy five shillings Sterling Item 6 To my daughter Polley Perry twenty dollars Item 7 To my daughter Patsey Bennett twenty dollars Item 8 To my son Thomas Bennett one cow & calf feather bed & furniture Item 9 To my son Asa Bennett one horse bridle & saddle cow & calf feather bed & furniture Item 10 My sons William Bennett and Barltley Bennett, Thomas Bennett & Asa Bennett I give and bequeath to my beloved four sons after the death of my beloved wife Rachael Bennett all remainder of my property both movable & immovable to be equally divided between them named four sons, And I do hereby constitute my sons Wm Bennett Thos Bennett & my wife executor of this my last will and testament & do hereby utterly disallow revoke & disannul all and every other former testament will & legacy & executors by me in any wise before named wills & bequeathes & confirming this to be my last will & testament & no other, in witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand & seal this 25th day of July in the year of our lord eighteen hundred & twenty two by the within named Wm Bennett the within to be his last will & testament in the presence of us who in his & the presence of each other hereunto subscribed our name, the day & date above written.William Bennett (seal)Absolam CrislerAbram Crisler

GEDCOM Note

≤table class="recordFieldsTable fitPageWidth record_fields_container" style="border-width: 1px 0px 0px; border-image: initial; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; font-size: 15px; border-spacing: 0px; line-height: 1.5; width: 533px; table-layout: fixed; color: #909090; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; background-color: #ffffff; border-color: #e5e5e5 initial initial initial; border-style: solid initial initial initial;"> ≤tbody style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;"> ≤tr class="recordFieldsRow lastField record_fields_custom-facts" style="border: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;" data-field-id="custom-facts"> ≤td class="recordFieldValue" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 9px 0px; vertical-align: top; box-sizing: border-box; width: inherit; letter-spacing: 0.3px; line-height: 24px; color: #333333; unicode-bidi: plaintext;"> ≤div class="recordSectionTitle" style="border-top: 0px; border-right: 0px; border-bottom: none; border-left: 0px; border-image: initial; margin: 0px 0px 10px; padding: 0px; font-size: 18px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #595959; letter-spacing: 0.3px; line-height: 30px; font-weight: bold;"> ≤div style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 16px 0px 0px; box-sizing: border-box;">Additional information≤/div> ≤/div> ≤div style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;"> ≤table style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; border-spacing: 0px; line-height: 1.5; width: 570.698px;"> ≤tbody style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;"> ≤tr style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;"> ≤td class="groupRowTitle" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 5px 10px; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: top; box-sizing: border-box; color: #999999; letter-spacing: 0.3px; line-height: 20px; width: 150px;"> ≤/td> ≤td class="groupRowTitle" style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 5px 10px; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: top; box-sizing: border-box; color: #999999; letter-spacing: 0.3px; line-height: 20px; width: 500px; white-space: pre-wrap;"> ≤/td> ≤/tr> ≤tr class="groupRow" style="border-top: none; border-right: 0px; border-bottom: 0px; border-left: 0px; border-image: initial; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; box-sizing: border-box;"> ≤td style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 5px 10px; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: top; box-sizing: border-box; letter-spacing: 0.3px; line-height: 20px; width: 150px;">LifeSketch:≤/td> ≤td style="border: 0px; margin: 0px; padding: 5px 10px; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: top; box-sizing: border-box; letter-spacing: 0.3px; line-height: 20px; width: 500px; white-space: pre-wrap;">Born in Prince William Co., VA, or what is now Fauquier Co. William diedApr 17, 1825 Jackson Co., GA, and is buried near Jefferson, Jackson Co., GA. He had written his will on July 5, 1822, and it was probated July 5, 1825. From his father's estate, he received one-half of Negro Peter's value if he paid the other half to John (III), Elizabeth, Jesse, and Ruth. In the proving of John (II)'s will, William was referred to as his eldest son. There is no marriage record for William, but according to information this author received from Frank N Edens of Ruston, LA, and the research done from him by professional genealogists, William evidently married someone in Pittsylvania Co., VA, prior to 1773, which is the birth year for his first child, and had four children. Then prod to 1785, he married in Pittsylvania Co., VA, Rachel White, and had eleven more children. Inthe will, dated January 15, 1811, of Rachel (White) Bennett's father, she was left $1 with what her father had already given to her. William took the Revolutionary loyalty oath in 1777. From Georgia Revolutionary War Soldier's Graves we also learn that he supplied beef and clothing for the Army and served as a soldier in the Pittsylvania Co., VA, troops. On the same day that John Bennett (II)'s will was further proved in Pittsylvania Co., VA, (1779), William Bennett sold 75 acres at Tunis Cole's property for 167 2/3 dollars to Hezekiah Bennett, his son. The last accounting in Pittsyl Co., of William and Rachel Bennett was the sale of 123 acres at the corner of Hezekiah Bennett and John Hendrick's land for 128 pounds to Silvany Gardner on Sept 21, 1801. It appears they were dissolving their land holdings in preparation for their move to Jackson Co., GA. They evidently left Pittsyl Co, GA, before Nov 20, 1802, when Judith signed her own permission to wed, saying "Father being absent." William showed up to Jackson Co., GA, in Capt. Johnson's military district with 200 acres of land on Turkey Creek in 1803. In 1809, he reported owning 191 acres of land in Capt. Joseph Hampton's district (still Turkey Creek). In the same district were Lewis and Reuben Hardy, Thomas Perry, Hezekiah Bennett, and Jesse Bennett (three sons-in-law, son, and brother). In Georgia a male was entitled to 200 acres of land on his own headright and 50 acres for each wife, each child, and each slave. William Bennett received 618 acres of land in Jackson Co., GA, by grant on Dec 10, 1819, and 50 acres Jan 12, 1820. William wrote his will naming all of his children by both wives, and died in Jackson, Co., GA. He left everything to his wife, Rachel. After her death, his estate was to go to his sons by Rachel, having already given to his children from his first wife. His personal property was sold at public auction in Dec 21, 1837, about six months after Rachel's death, in Jackson Co., GA. Amoung the buyers were Thomas Bennett, Asa Bennett, Bartholomew Bennett, Tapley Bennett, William Bennett, Polly Perry, Ludwell Worsham, David and Nathaniel Hix, Thomas Lord, J. Grober, William Freeman, M.A. Brooks, among others. All of the buyers named here were related family members. ("The Bennett Family of Southern Pittsylvania County, Virginia" by Betty Cox Collie)≤/td> ≤/tr> ≤/tbody> ≤/table> ≤/div> ≤/td> ≤/tr> ≤/tbody> ≤/table>