Wade-VA-Will-1767

Will of Robert Wade, Halifax Co, VA, written 1 May 1767, proved in Halifax Co Court 19 Apr 1770.
Will Book ?, p 218-222. VA State Archives.
Taken from a copy of the original. This will is extremely long and involved:

"I Robert Wade of Antrim Parish ...
... to my wife Elizabeth ... to have the Disposial of all the Increase of Sarah White in her Possession and the Slaves that she shall make choice of to be sold as soon as convenient after Her Death or Marriage to the highest Bidder of my sons and Daughters and the rest of my personal Estate ... but if my wife should make choice of any of the Slaves that I shall Bequeath to any of my children or grand-children in this will Its not my intent that any of those should _____ that they amediately at the Expiration of her Natural life of widowhood Descend to such of my children or grand Children as they are
... to my son Stephen Wade one Negro man named Joe
... I lend to my son Steven and Susana his wife one negro named Sarah During their lives and at their death I give her the said Sarah to my grandson Robert Wade, son of Stephen Wade and Susana his wife
... I Lend to my Daughter in Law Ann Wade Widow of Robert Wade Deceased During her Widowhood or till her son Hampton Wade comes to lawfull Age to Demand him one Negro man named Jack
... my son Charles Wade one negro man named Sam ... I also lend to him During his life one negro boy slave named Davie and at his (Decease?) I give the Negro boy to Robert Wade son of the said Charles Wade ... but if the said Robert Wade Die before his father Charles Wade ... Charles Wade may Dispose of the boy Davie in any manner he shall think proper
... to my Daughter Mary Hunt ... I having given her one Negro Woman Slave named Nan already to her
... my Daughter Sarah Stokes ... I having given her one Negro woman Slave named Tamor (?) One negro boy named Jimmey and one Negro boy named Robin
... to my son Edward Wade ... one negro man named Dick and one negro Woman Named Molley I having made him a deed of gift for one Negro girl named Anna
... to Edward his Heirs and Assignees with this Restriction - that if the said Edward should die without Lawfull Begotten son or Daughter that then the Estate to him hereby given Shall be sold
... to my grand son Robert Wade son of Hampton Wade and Jean his wife one negro boy named Servella (?) ... my four Negroes named Peter Robin Venus and Janey May each of have (sic) the Chusing Their Master or Mistres among my Children who May have them at the price they may be appraised to Giving Bond and Security to my Exr. For the payment of the money payable one year after they Recive them or any of them and the negroes to make Choice of their Masters Amediately after appraisement
... when Grandson Robert Wade, son of Robert Wade Deceased shall come to the age of Twenty on years I also Give unto my said grandson Robert one negro boy named Giles ..."

Signed by Robert Wade, witnessed by several individuals.

At the end of this document, nearly unreadable, there appears to be the beginning of an inventory for this estate (when I copied it at the Archives I did not realize that this inventory went with the above will) - I did not copy all of this page 222 so to get a full listing, the original document should be consulted. Among the items listed:

Negro Matt Sold for 71.5.0
Negro Lucey Sole for 58.0.0
Negro Tom Sold for 85.1.0

[Important Note: Some of the African-Americans listed in this will are likely the same people listed in Charles Edwards' estate in 1790 (see #15 above) and others listed in the Wade wills I have listed here, # 16 and 18. Edward Wade, son of the Robert Wade who wrote the above will, married shortly after the will was written to Letty Martin, daughter of Abraham and Elizabeth Marshall Martin. Edward was "loaned" the family estate to run and live on by his father in this will (he was also willed other property and a mill) - he was to hold it in trust for Robert Wade's grandson, Robert Wade (s/o Robert Wade, deceased) until he turned 21 years old. Edward was appointed guardian of his nephew, Robert. Edward and Letty had four children before he died in 1776. Letty subsequently married, in 1779, Charles Edwards. It appears that Charles took over some of Edwards property and also the guardianship of Robert Wade - I am uncertain if he actually lived on the original plantation of Robert Wade Sr or not. After Charles died in 1790, Letty again married a Leonard Cheatham who, court records show, tried to "bilk her out of much of her estate." She subsequently divorced him and moved with her children down to SC (Abbeyville, Edgefield areas), where her parents had moved. She may have taken some of the slaves with her. The court battles between SC, NC and VA involving the Edwards estate raged on for over 20 years before it apparently was finally settled.]

Contributed by: From: spice3@juno.com (Susan S. Buckley)
Slave Records from Linda Banwarth