Hi Johan,
In my opinion, my vote is LIKELY -- that Isham and Eliza were the parents. (Note: "Likely" does not mean "definitely.") Here's why I personally believe this.

1. The will establishes that Isham and Eliza were husband and wife. Chances are good that they had kids.

2. Since two young kids were listed after the bequeathing of Isham and Eliza, it seems likely that those two kids were theirs.

My vote would have been "DEFINITELY" if the will had stated something like, "Eliza and her children..." or "Eliza and two children...."

1. Did you ever find Francis in the censuses? Notice any naming patterns? In my opinion, Francis was Elijah's sister, so if you notice any similar names among Francis's family, that would add to the "preponderance of evidence" that Isham and Eliza were their parents.

2. What about Elijah's death certificate?...or Francis's death certificate?

3. Did you find an inventory of the estate? How are the slaves listed on the inventory? If Elijah and Francis are listed on the same line as Eliza and all three were given one value, then yes, she was DEFINITELY the mother. Or, if Elijah and Francis were listed immediately after Eliza's name and given separate values, this helps the case that Eliza was DEFINITELY the mother. However, in a lot of cases (not all), children under 5 are valued with the mother instead of separately.

Mel