Source:
North Carolina State Archives in Raleigh
Written: November 16, 1878
Recorded: August 9, 1883
State of North Carolina
Duplin County
I, Elizabeth P Edwards of the County of Duplin and State aforesaid,
being of sound mind and memory but feeble in body, do make and declare
this my last will & testament in manner & form following, that
is to say:
I. That my Executor hereinafter named shall provide for my body a
decent burial and pay all funeral expenses, together with my just debts
howsoever and to whomsoever owing, out of the moneys that may first
come into his hands as a part or parcel of my Estate
II. I give and bequeath to my eldest daughter Katy, the piano now in my
possession in addition to her share in my estate as hereinafter devised
& bequeathed
III. I give and bequeath to my youngest daughter Jacob Ella, the
cabinet organ now in my possession also my watch and chain, in addition
to her share in my Estate as hereinafter devised & bequeathed.
IV. I give and devise to my five children, Katy, J Zwinglius, Frank
Hall, Jacob Ella & J C Hiden, all my Real Estate, consisting of
one house & lot in the city of Wilmington, New Hanover County and
the House and Lot in Kenansville where I now reside equally to them
& each of them & their heirs forever. And in case my executor
should see fit to sell the whole of said Real Estate or any part there
of, then the proceeds to be equally divided among my said five
children, share & share alike
V. I give and devise any other Real Estate that I may own or may come
to me from the Estate of my late husband, Jacob J Edwards dec. to my
said five children and their heirs, or the proceeds thereof if sold to
be equally divided among them
VI. I give and bequeath all my personal property of every kind (except
the articles hereinbefore given and bequeathed in sections II &
III) to my said five children to be equally divided among them share
and share alike. Said personal property consisting chiefly of the
following, to wit: About one Thousand dollars in Cash in the hands of
Hall & Pearsall, Wilmington. About Two Thousand dollars, being my
undivided interest in the personal estate of my late husband – also Two
Thousand dollars secured by a Policy on my life Household & Kitchen
Furniture, stock, poultry & cash on hand, notes and accounts – and
it is my will and desire in the event that the proceeds of the policy
on my life should be adjudged to belong to my two eldest children or to
any one or more to the exclusion of the others, then such amount as may
accrue to any one from this source to be reckoned as a part of his or
her share in the final distribution; and in like manner should any one
or more of my said five children receive a larger amount from the
Estate of their father my late husband than any of the others, then
such difference to be deducted in the division of the proceeds of my
Estate so as to make the share of each of my said five children from
all sources equal to the others, excepting only the bequests in
sections II & III as above set forth.
VII. and Lastly I do hereby constitute and appoint my trusty friend B
F Hall of Wilmington, 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 & clause thereof – hereby
granting to him full power and authority to sell any part of my Real or
Personal Estate if in his judgment such sale would be for the interest
of my said children, to provide for their education, comfort and
support and if the income annually from their respective shares should
be insufficient for these objects then he is authorized & empowered
to apply such part of the principal accruing to each as may be
necessary to fit them for the business and the duties of life. In
witness whereof I the said Elizabeth P Edwards hereby revoking all
former wills by one heretofore made do hereunto set my hand and seal
this 16th day of November AD 1878.
E P Edwards {seal}
Signed, sealed, published and declared by the said Elizabeth P Edwards
to be her last will and testament in the presence of us, who at her
request and in her presence do subscribe our names in witness thereto
James M. Sprunt
Jas E Sprunt
No. 77 APPLICATION FOR LETTERS TESTAMENTARY
Printed by John Nichols & Co Raleigh, NC
Duplin County: In the Probate Court
In the matter of the Will of Elizabeth P Edwards
Before J H Southerland Judge of
Probate.
B F Hall being sworn, doth say That Elizabeth P Edwards, late of
said County, is dead, having first made a published her last Will and
Testament; and that he the said B F Hall is the executor named
therein.
Further, that the property of the said Elizabeth P Edwards dec.
Consisting of one House & Lot in Kenansville, one House & Lot
in Wilmington, NC together with the personal property of said dec.
including claim of Life Insurance $ [amount illegible] so far as
can be ascertained at the date of this application; and that Katy
Edwards, J Zwinglius Edwards, Frank Hall Edwards, Jacob Ella Edwards
and J C Hiden Edwards all being minors with said B F Hall as
Guardian and residing in Kenansville in said County of Duplin are the
parties entitled under said will to the said property.
Sworn to and subscribed before me This 22n day of January 1880
B F Hall
J D Southerland
Probate Judge
North Carolina, Duplin County
Probate Court
January 22nd 1880
The foregoing paper writing purporting to be the last will and
testament of Elizabeth P Edwards is this day exhibited in open Court
for Probate by B F Hall the Executor therein named and the due
execution of the said paper writing is proven by the oath and
examination of James M Sprunt and Jas E Sprunt the subscribing
witnesses thereto. Who being duly sworn say: that they saw Elizabeth P
Edwards sign said paper writing declaring it to be her last Will and
Testament that they attested it in the presence of and at the request
of the said Elizabeth P Edwards and this at the time of the execution
of the said paper writing by the said Elizabeth P Edwards they believe
she was of sound and disposing mind and memory. It is therefore
considered by the Court that the said paper writing and every part and
clause thereof is the last Will and Testament of the said Elizabeth P
Edwards and the same is ordered to be recorded and filed, and thereupon
the said B F Hall Executor as aforesaid duly qualifies as such by
taking the oath, prescribed by law.
J D Southerland
Judge Probate
Examination of James M Sprunt and James E Sprunt, relative to a paper
writing purporting to be the last Will and Testament of Elizabeth P
Edwards, taken before J D Southerland, Judge of Probate of Duplin
County this 22nd January AD 1880.
James M Sprunt and James E Sprunt being duly sworn say that they saw
Elizabeth P Edwards sign said paper writing, bearing date 16th
November AD 1878 declaring it to be her last Will and Testament,
that they attested said paper writing in the presence of and at the
request of the said Elizabeth P Edwards; and that at the time of the
Execution thereof they believe she was of sound and disposing mind and
memory.
Sworn to & subscribed before Me this 22n January 1880
J D Southerland
Prob Judge
James M Sprunt
EXECUTOR’S OATH
Printed and for sale by John Nichols & Co, Raleigh, NC
State of North Carolina, Duplin County
ss In the Probate Court
I, B F Hall, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I believe this writing
to be and contain the last Will and Testament of Elizabeth P Edwards
deceased; and that I will well and truly execute the same by first
paying her debts and then her legacies, as far as the said estate shall
extend, or the law will charge me; and that I will well and faithfully
execute the office of an executor, agreeable to the trust and
confidence reposed in me, and according to law, so help me God.
Sworn and subscribed before me, this 22nd Day of January 1880
J D Southerland
Probate Judge
B F Hall
Mrs E P Edwards
Will Admitted To Probate Jan 22th 1880
Recorded Aug 9th 1883 by R C Broadhurst J P
Additional Comments:
Elizabeth P Sheffield was the daughter of Lincoln Sheffield of Duplin
County, NC. She married Jacob J Edwards and they came to live in
Wilmington, NC. Jacob Edwards partnered with Benjamin Franklin Hall in
a wholesale grocery and commissions business. The company was called
“Edwards and Hall.”
