Crawford, Amanda, Arbogast Forbes and Lucetta Crawford Sammis. Descendants of Alexander & Mary McPheeters Crawford: Pioneer Settlers of Augusta County, Virginia. Baltimore, MD: Gateway Press, 1980.

William Crawford will

Page 63

William Crawford of Augusta County and State of Va. being weak in
body, but of sound & perfect mind & understanding & knowing that it
is allotted for all men once to die have thought proper to make this
my last will & testament in the manner and form following.

“I bequeath my soul to almighty God from whom it had its being in
hopes of a speedy resurrection & my body to the earth to be decently
interred according to the direction of my Executors hereafter
nominated and appointed.

“It is my will & desire that all my just debts be punctually paid as
soon as the nature of my affairs will admit.

“I bequeath unto my loving wife Rachel Crawford her thirds of the
first division and house during her natural life likewise the young
sorrel mare, saddle & one bed & furniture, with the cattle for
support of such of children as remain with her namely five head
of milch kine for the said use.

“Item it is my will & desire that she have the use of the house to
her herself without any interruption during her life.

“Item it is my will & desire that the first division of my land
begin at a black & white oak at the savannah adjoining to Robert
Rennock’s land & running a West course so as to run contiguous to
the wheat field sowed this fall thence to the top of the mountain
& from thence to the middle fording from thence to three Pines at
the right hand of the path that leads to the mountain corner the
line that Mr. Buckanan run last fall but not finished from thence
to where James Elliot & me joins corners, then bearing sixty poles
along the top of the mountain the nearest way of the branch within
twenty poles of James Elliot’s corner three white oaks & from
thence running to a white oak corner to Samuel Gardiners land from
thence to a Pine & White oak corner to the said Gardiner from thence
to the different courses of the old inclusive Survey to the beginning.

“Item it is my will & desire that my son Alexander Crawford shall
have the first division as described after his mothers decease to
him his heirs forever & the use of two thirds of the same during
her life time & that he shall furnish hls mother with a suitable
maintainance for herself & such children as remain with her till
they arrive at the age of maturity & to use his best endeavours in
giving him George Crawford learning if capable to receive it as far
as his capacity will admit.

“Item the second division in the forks of the run the third division
formerly Caswells, the fourth division formerly James Wilsons land
taking in such lands as are surveyed or located adjoining said division.

“Item it is my will & desire that my three sons namely James Craw-
­ford, John Crawford and William Crawford, have the said division

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Divided among them as equally as the nature of the case will ad-
mit and each of the above named to have one division to go by
seniority the oldest James to have first choice & so on to my
son William to them their heirs & assigns forever.

It is my will & desire that all other lands that I am now in
possession of or in dispute that may be recovered be sold to the
best advantage & the money arising from said sales to be laid out
for the purchase of land for my son George Crawford or be given
him in money so as to make him equivalent with one of my other
sons such part of the money arising from the sales as will answer
that end.

“Item it is my will & desire that my daughter Polly Armstron
shall have five pounds.

“Item it is my will & desire that Nancy Salman (Talman) have the
like sume of five pounds given to her.

“Item it is my will & desire that Jenny Crawford my daughter &
Rachel my daughter shall be equally provided for as my other
Daughters when married or arrive at the age of twenty one or more
if the estate will admit according to the discretion of their
Mother and the Executors.

“Item it is my desire that my wife Rachel and son Alexander
keep the bed clothing & such part of the household furniture as
they shall have occasion for at the appraisement.

“Item it is my desire that the Cooper be continued till he has
made up the stuff he has now on had & that all the plank pro
vided for the finishing of the house be kept that the floors may
be laid as soon as convenient that partitions may be finished &
the house painted.

“Item it is my will & desire that five work horses and waggon &
gear be kept on the plantation on which I now reside for the use
of my wife Rachel & my son Alexander Crawford & such of the family
as shall remain with them.

“Item it is my will & desire that what ready money is in the house
may go to the payment of John Moffett, if he threatens to bring
suit against the security & the remainder to be made up as soon
as the situation of the estate will admit.

“item it is my desire that my son James Crawford have one bay
horse commonly called his.

“Item it is my desire that there be an inventory taken of all the
property not mentioned by the Executors.

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“I constitute & appoint my loving friends hereafter mentioned to be
the Executors of this my last will & testament revoking all former
will or wills by me made & this only to remain in full force and
virtue. I nominate my loving wife Rachel Crawford first Executrix,
John Crawford, Samuel Crawford, & Alexander Craig & Alexander
Crawford my son & that the said Executors shall well & truly per
form according to the true intent & meaning of this my last testa
ment as they shall render an account unto Almighty God.

“Signed sealed & delivered this second day of October in the
year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred Ninety two, in the
presence of Joseph Thompson, Hannah Sawyers, Rachel Crawford,
Rebeccah Sawyers.

Signed William Crawford (seal)

“At December Augusta Court 1792 – This instrument of writing
was produced in Court by Alexander Crawford and Rachel Crawford
& proved by the oaths of Hannah Sawyers, Rebeccah Sawyers &
Joseph Thompson witnesses thereto & ordered to be recorded. And
on motion of the said Alexander Crawford, the Executor, Rachel
Crawford, the Extrix, therein named, who made oath and with se
curity entered into and acknowledged bond according to law,
certificate is granted them for obtaining a probate thereof in
due form they having taken the oath prescribed by law. And
leave is reserved by John & Samuel Crawford other Executors there-
in named to join in the probat. Whereupon Alexander Craig
another executor named int his will came into court & expressly
refused to take upon himself any part of the execution of this
will.”

This will can be found in the records for Augusta County, Virginia.

Virginia, Augusta County. Will books, 1745-1871; index to wills, 1745-1903.  Film #30318 DGS s7643869. William Crawford, 2 October 1792; Book 8: page 23 (image 268); digitized images, FamilySearch http://www.familysearch.org : viewed online 26 November 2023.