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North Carolina}
  Dare County }

I, A.B.L. Tillett, of the aforesaid County and state, being of sound mind, but considering the uncertainty of my earthly existence do make and declare this my last will and testament.

First:  That I hereby constitute and appoint my trusty friend Clarence L. Twiford, my lawful executor to all intents and purposes, to execute this my last will and testament according to the true intent and meaning of the same, and every part and clause thereof, hereby revoking and declaring utterly void all other wills and testaments by me heretofore made.

Second:  That the said Clarence L. Twiford shall give my body a decent burial, and pay all funeral expenses, together with all my just debts, if any, out of the first money which may come into his hands belonging to my estate.

Third:  That the said Clarence L. Twiford shall make a check in the amount of Thirty Dollars ($30.00) on the first day of each month after my death to my beloved father Benjamin D. Tillett at Kitty Hawk, N.C. out of the money belonging to my estate, until my father’s death, but not to exceed the amount of my estate.

Fourth:  My will and desire is that all the residue of my estate (if any) after taking out the legacies alone mentioned and paying all my debts, shall go to my executor and beloved friend, Clarence L. Twiford, his heirs and assigns.

In witness whereof, I the said A.B.L. Tillett, do hereunto set my hand and seal this the 4^th day of October 1921.
    /s/ A.B.L. Tillett

Signed, sealed, published and declared by the said A.B.L. Tillett to be his last Will and Testament in the presence of us, who at his request and in his presence  (and in the presence of each other) do subscribe our names as witnesses thereto.
    Charles William Perry
    E.W. Baum

North Carolina}        In the Superior Court
  Dare County }        Before the Clerk
In the matter of the will of A.B.L. Tillett, deceased.

    The paper writing hereunto attached and purporting to be the last Will and Testament of A.B.L. Tillett, deceased, is exhibited before the undersigned Clerk of the Superior Court of Dare County, North Carolina, by C.L. Twiford, the executor therein named, and thereupon the following proof thereof is taken by the oath and examination of  Chas. W. Perry and E.W. Baum, the subscribing witnesses thereto as follows:

North Carolina - Dare County
    Chas. W. Perry and E.W. Baum being duly sworn, depose and say, and each for himself deposes and says that he is a subscribing witness to the said paper writing now shown him purporting to be the last will and Testament by A.B.L. Tillett, and that he saw him execute (or heard him acknowledge the execution of ) this as his last will and Testament, and that affivant, attested it in the presence and at the request of said A.B.L. Tillett, deceased: and at the time of its execution (or at the time it’s execution was acknowledged) said A.B.L. Tillett was, in affiants opinion, of sound mind and disposing memory.
    Charles William Perry
    E.W. Baum

Severally subscribed and sworn to before me this 25th day of Sept. 1928.
    C.S. Meekins  CSC Dare County

    And thereupon it is considered and adjudged by the Court that the said paper writing and every part thereof is the last Will and Testament of A.B.L. Tillett, deceased, and it is ordered that the same with the foregoing examinations and this certificate, be recorded and filed.  This 25^th day of  Sept. 1928.
    C.S. Meekins  CSC Dare County

NOTE:  Avery Benjamin Love "Belove" Tillett was born in Kitty Hawk, Currituck Co., NC on Feb. 17, 1861 to Benjamin Dough Tillett and Lovey (Walker) Tillett.  [see his photo here] He died on Sept. 15, 1928 and is buried in the Baum Cemetery in Kitty Hawk.  Avery married Mary Frances Sibbern on Dec. 1, 1881 and they had one child, Martha Washington Tillett who only lived one year from Jan 2, 1894 to Dec. 5, 1894.  An article about Captain Tillett was found in an Elizabeth City, NC newspaper, The Independent, on Friday, June 16, 1922 which reveals how much affection he had for his father.
SIXTY-ONE YEARS OLD AND STILL "DAD'S BOY" - A familiar figure of portly mien is often seen on the streets of Elizabeth City appraising the passing throngs here and there along the wharves peering with anxious eyes at the vessels from down the sound as they slip their moorings. A pleasant face he has, and a twinkling eye and seldom much to say except to those who know the things he likes to talk about. Such a man is Capt. Avery Beloved Tillett, one of the four remaining old-timers in the Seventh Coast Guard District. Entering the Coast Guard Service when he was 18 years old, Capt. Tillett spent 35 years of his life at two stations within five miles of each other on one of the most lonely spots on the North Carolina beaches. He made his home at Kitty Hawk and one year later on December 1, 1881, he got married. After 35 years in the Coast Guard his wife died, the service retired him with a competency for old age, and he tried to settle down in the village. But life wasn't right in the village. The trees cut him off from the water and deadened the sound of the waves rolling on the beach. The routine of station life had passed out from him. Younger fellows were in his place. Capt. Tillett got lonesome and restless. He sold out his home and came up to Elizabeth City amid new scenes and new people where he thought the hustling life would keep time from hanging heavily on his hands. In Elizabeth City the first few days were fine for the old man. He was like a boy away from home on his camping trip. But like a boy away from home, he wanted to be back at the end of the week. So instead of staying in town all the time he went back to Kitty Hawk to see his father who is 82 years old. But the change of scene had put the home place in a different light. Capt. Tillett again got restless and came back to town. And so it has been with him for eight years. Back and forth between Elizabeth City and Kitty Hawk, the former Coast Guard Keeper goes, dividing his time between the two. No matter which, as soon as in one place, he longs to be in the other. Altho 61 years old, Capt. Tillett is active. He is quiet and modest in the extreme with respect to his adventures in the service. But his memory is phenomenal and he can tell the exact date and the names of every wreck at which he was present, recalling as if yesterday his trips to sea in the face of storms to save some sailor who was stranded: readily enumerating over 100 men he helped to land in the breeches buoy. Capt. Tillett was one of the youngest men to be promoted, and of the old time keepers who were in the service in his day, only three others are left. Sometimes Capt. Tillett goes on a trip as far as Washington, but inevitably he hurries back to Kitty Hawk to see his father. He still speaks of the old man as a boy would speak of his Dad, and says the only thing he thinks of in life is to make his father comfortable in his old age.