I would agree that the wording of the will suggests that the wife is
dead. It also suggests that the property was divided upon Ann's marriage
(or soon thereafter). I would presume that Edward came of age in 1778 if
no evidence is found to the contrary.
Barbara Vines Little, CG, FNGS, FVGS
PO Box 1273
Orange, VA 22960
540-832-3473
[log in to unmask]
CG, Certified Genealogist, is a service mark of the Board for Certification of Genealogists, used
under license by board-certified genealogists after periodic evaluation; the board name is
registered in the US Patent & Trademark Office.
On 10/9/2014 1:59 PM, Martha Katz-Hyman wrote:
> Barbara,
>
> Thanks for the clarification. The last date for the guardian accounts is
> 1778, with no specific month and day. And the years 1775-1778 were
> presented all at one time, in 1778. And the accounts do list the slaves
> that were allotted to Edward in 1772 at the slave division. I have to do
> more research on Ann and find out if there is a record of her marriage.
>
> As for the will, it specifically leaves "all my Land & all its Purenants
> there so belonging" to the oldest son, John, then to Edward, and then to
> Ann (if John and then Edward die without a lawful heir). Should all 3 die
> with a lawful heir, then the land goes to his brother, William. The slaves
> are left in the care of the executor (William) until "either one of my
> children come to lawful Age or Married and then to be equally divided...."
>
> It was this wording that made me think that James's wife was dead.
>
> Thanks again.
>
> Martha Katz-Hyman
> Curator
> Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation
> Williamsburg, VA
>
> On Thu, Oct 9, 2014 at 1:07 PM, Barbara Vines Little <[log in to unmask]
>> wrote:
>> The age of majority for males and females was 21. However, a father could
>> establish a different age if he so chose.
>> You cannot assume anything. The court could have allowed the division
>> because the married daughter's husband petitioned for her share. The share
>> of an underage child would have been placed with the guardian, who guarded
>> not the child but the property.
>> The wife did not have to be named in the will. She automatically received
>> her dower portions--one third of any real estate for life and at least a
>> child's part of the personal property.
>>
>> The guardian accounts probably provide the best clue. What was the date of
>> the last item in the accounts? Since the guardianship ended when the child
>> came of age, this should provide some help in establishing that date,
>> unless there were later accounts that do not survive.
>>
>> Barbara Vines Little, CG, FNGS, FVGS
>> PO Box 1273
>> Orange, VA 22960
>>
>> 540-832-3473
>> [log in to unmask]
>>
>> CG, Certified Genealogist, is a service mark of the Board for
>> Certification of Genealogists, used
>> under license by board-certified genealogists after periodic evaluation;
>> the board name is
>> registered in the US Patent & Trademark Office.
>>
>>
>> On 10/9/2014 11:57 AM, Martha Katz-Hyman wrote:
>>
>>> In connection with research I am doing for the new museum that will
>>> replace
>>> the Yorktown Victory Center, I am investigating the life of Edward Moss,
>>> one of the members of the very large Moss family of York County.
>>>
>>> This Edward Moss (there were many of that name!) was the son of James Moss
>>> (son of William Moss & Elizabeth Goodwin) and an unknown wife who
>>> evidently
>>> predeceased him (no wife is named in his will). James died in 1762 leaving
>>> 3 children (John, Edward and Ann/Anna) all under the age of 21. James's
>>> estate appears not to have been finally settled until December 1772, when
>>> 16 slaves were divided among the three children (not all of the slaves
>>> named in the inventory are included in the division). By 1772 John was no
>>> longer an "orphan" and Ann was married, but I am assuming that this is the
>>> year that Edward also reached his majority.
>>>
>>> My questions:
>>>
>>> 1) What was the age of majority in Virginia for both genders in the third
>>> quarter of the eighteenth century?
>>> 2) Am I correct in assuming that the slaves were not divided until 1772
>>> because before that date Edward was still an "orphan"?
>>> 3) There are records in the York County Guardians Accounts from 1773-1775
>>> for the expenses Thomas Smith incurred as guardian of Edward Moss. Was
>>> Edward Moss still an "orphan" or are these accounts (recorded in 1774 &
>>> 1775) "after the fact" accountings that Thomas Smith presented to the
>>> court?
>>>
>>> Thanks for your help in figuring this out!!
>>>
>>> Martha Katz-Hyman
>>> Curator
>>> Jamestown-Yorktown Foundation
>>> Williamsburg, VA
>>>
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>>>
>>>
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