Will of Henry Reeves, Sr.
Old Rappahannock County, Virginia
9 Jan 1686
Probated 6 Apr 1687
In ye name of God amen I Henry Reeves Senr of the County of Rappa in Virginia being sick and weake & in a low Condition but of Sound & perfect memory blessed be God doe therefore make Ordain Constitute & appoint this to be my last Will & Testamt in manner & forme following first and princepally I give & bequeath my Soule to God that gave it me in Shure & Certaine hope of a blessed Resurrection at ye Last day and by (sic) body I commit to ye ground from weace (sic) it came to receive shuch decent Christian like buriall as by my Exers shall be thought fit & Convenient Imprimis I give & bequeath unto my well beloved wife Eliza Reeves one third part of all my psonall Estate of what nature kind or qualitie soever it bee Item I give unto my sd wife the plantation where I now live wth two hundred Acores of Land adjoyning to it for & During her naturall life; and then my will is that after her decease ye sd Land to desend to my son Henry Reeves & to his heirs forever Item I give nd bequeath unto my sd son Henry Reeves all the remaining part of my Land on this side of the Beverdam that runeth up by the plantation that Thomas Strechley liveth on and bounding on the River adjoyning to the Land given to my sd wife to my son Henry and to his heirs forever Item I give & bequeath unto my Son Joseph Reeves & James Reeves all the Land belonging to the aforesd divident given to my sd son Henry and my loving wife that lyeth on the Other side of the sd Beverdam Including Thomas Strechleys plantation after his time by lease is Expired Equally to be devided between them both to them and their heirs forever Item I give and bequeath unto my sd son Henry Reeves my plantacon at James River now in the possession & Occupation of Bridgeff Ascough beginning at a marked Pine standing neere a wolf pitt in the fork of the Indian Bogbranch so runing So: to a marked gum Standing at the lower end of a thickett by the side of a great meadow so down the meadow branch Containing the bredth of 450 Acres of Land wch I purchased of Godfry Hunt runing from thence to the head of the spring branch So soe runing down the sd branch so far as that Deed extends to him & his heirs forever It I give & bequeath unto my sd son Joseph all the Remaining part of the western side of the above sd Deed together with the hundred & fifty Acres of Land which I tooke up bearing date the 18th March 1672 lying by the side of the bever dam Swamp to him & his heirs forever It. I give and bequeath unto my son James all the remaining part of the above menconed pcell of Land wch I purchased of Godfry Hunt lying on the East side of a branch called the Spring branch to him & his heirs forever If I give & bequeath unto my three younger Daughters Martha, Mary & Ann, two Cows a peace to --- for their use aftr my Decease and they to be delivered to them as they shall respectively Attaine to ye Age of Sixteen years; or day of Marriage togethr wth their female encrease my will is alsoe that my son Joseph and James be at full age to Receive their Estate when they Attaine to Eighteen years It: I give & bequeath unto my eight Children Henry, Joseph, James, Elizabeth, Rebecca, Martha, Mary, & Ann, all the remaining part of my personal Estate that is not here above given away to be Equally Devided between all Shear & Shear alike It: I do hereby appoint my Loveing wife Elizabeth & Son Henry to be my whole Executrs & Exr of this my last will and Testament revoaking and disannulling all former wills heretofore by me made either by word or writing it is also my will that my two sons Joseph and James have one years Schooling a peice out of the sd Estate given them speedily after my decease In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and fixed my Seale this ninth day of January Anno Dom 1686 Interlined before signed these words (viz) & son Henry) & Exex).
Signed Henry his P mark Reeves.
Witnesses:
Tho: New
Tho (his HH mark) Jones
Andw Streely
Proved on 6 April 1687 by Tho: New and Andrew Strelly.
Recorded in Wills 1683-92, Old Rappahannock County.
(Also recorded in Essex County, Virginia, Land Trials 1715-1741,
pages 124-127.)