Many thanks to all who have responded to my questions about this will. I 
think the second one, on manumitting slaves and assisting them, is 
resolved, but I'm still trying to understand the issue raised in my 
first question, i.e. how to interpret the fact that the testator 
provided large sums of money to several different women.

The will in question is that of Joseph Gallego. He was born in Spain in 
1758, resided in Philadelphia for several years around 1783, and spent 
the rest of his life in Richmond, where he owned the Gallego Mills, the 
largest or second-largest flour mill in the world at the time. He became 
very wealthy and associated regularly with the cream of Richmond 
society. Joseph's wife, Mary Magee, died in the 1811 Richmond Theatre 
fire. He was Catholic but was most often seen in an Episcopal context, 
probably because there were no Catholic churches at hand. For example, 
he was married in an Episcopal church in Philadelphia and is buried in 
St. John´s churchyard in Richmond.

In his will Gallego left money to support the construction of a Catholic 
chapel and land to provide a site for the project. The first Catholic 
cathedral in Richmond was built on the site. This legacy was the subject 
of a lengthy suit because the bequest was not made to a specific 
individual or board. A second suit, also lengthy, dealt with the 
question of the right of a husband to a legacy left to his wife--Gallego 
had left some money to a niece whose husband was indebted to Gallego for 
several hundred dollars.

In his will Gallego also provided considerable legacies for a number of 
women. Several were for $8000, and some for $4000, $2000 and $1000. He 
also showed special concern for the female slaves he emancipated, and he 
included $2000 to be distributed among the poor and needy, particularly 
"respectful widows." Most of the woman who received legacies seem to 
have been the wives and daughters of Gallego's friends. There were also 
women for whom he wished to provide special support, among them Jane 
Mackenzie, foster mother of Rosalie Mackenzie Poe as well as Rosalie 
herself. Also listed were the wives and daughters of some of Gallego's 
friends. Women named in the will include the following, among others: 
Caroline Pickett Currie, Marian Pickett Lambert, Caroline Homassell 
Thornton, Sophia Scott Hancock, Josephine Pascault, Hetty Raubell, 
Eleanora Pascault O'Donnell, Elizabeth Lindsay, Susan Duval, Betsy 
Gibbon and her sister Mari Carter, Margaret, Elizabeth and Virginia 
Picket, Martha Gilliat, Emmeline Robert, etc. Only a couple of men were 
left legacies similar to those Gallego provided for the many women he named.

My questions: How should we interpret these legacies? Was it common for 
individual women such as those mentioned by Gallego to receive a 
significant portion of an estate? We also know that Gallego had 
portraits of several of these women in his home, probably from the time 
when his wife was still alive. Was all of this common or was there 
something special about Gallego's concern for the women he knew?

Understanding the will is part of the research I am doing for an article 
about Joseph Gallego.The will itself is clear enough and, actually, 
makes a very interesting read, but I feel that some aspects need 
interpretation. That's why I have come to you for help. I'd welcome your 
thoughts about Gallego's many legacies to women, particularly any based 
on knowledge of Richmond society of the period.

Rita Goldberg


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