52 ANCESTORS IN 52 WEEKS 2017 WEEK 4: JOSEPH ELLINGWOOD AND JOHN ELLINGWOOD SR.

I posted previously about my next two Ellingwood ancestors.

My 5x time great grandfather Joseph Ellingwood was born in Beverly, Ma. on 22 Feb 1723, was
married twice and had thirteen children. He died at Lyndeborough,Ma 15Jun 1790 at Lyndeborough, Ma. You can read the posts about his probate file (he used the Ellenwood spelling of the family name  at the link:

http://westinnewengland.blogspot.com/search/label/Ellingwood%20Joseph

Joseph's son John Ellingwood  was born at Amherst, NH on 19 Sep 1765 and married Zerviah Abbott 29 Dec 1789 at Andover, Ma.They had nine children most of whom were born at Bethel Me. where John died on 19 Jun 1847.John was a cordwainer and shoe maker, I did a series of posts about
his probate file which you can find at this link:

http://westinnewengland.blogspot.com/search/label/Ellingwood%20John%20Sr

My next post in the 52 Ancestors series will be on my 3x great grandfather John Ellingwood Jr.

THE ESTATE OF JOSEPH ELLENWOOD PT5

And so at last we come to the last document in the Probate File
of Joseph Ellingwood Sr., a listing of debts owed by the estate. I
see some familiar family names in this list. Joseph's youngest
sister Eunice had married a Uriah Cram, so it's possible Benjamin
Cram is related by marriage. Also, the Cram's were the owners of a
brickyard so it is likely Joseph purchased his bricks from them  
 

Samuel Punchard Jr. is another possible relation: Joseph Ellingwood
Jr. was married to a Mary Punchard.

Finally, Levi Spaulding while not related to the Ellingwoods may be
related to me. My 5x great grandfather Lot Spaulding lived in the
same area as Joseph Sr and was a contemporary so there may be a link
to this Levi Spaulding.

Again, all monetary values are in English pounds, shillings and pence.
I apologize again for the wandering column of figures.

Admn. Acct.  Joseph Ellingwood's Estate
The following Adm. Acct. of the estate of Joseph Ellingwood
late of Lyndeboro, deceased, exhibited 15th June 1790 by
Sarah & Joseph Ellingwood Admt& Admt. These accountants
charged themselves with the amount of the personal estate as
pr. inventory.                                                                            62..4..6                                   

Ballance due to Adms. for paying debts yet due from              24.90.2 3/4
said estate                                                                                86.14.8 3/4

The two thirds of the real estate appraised at                          66...0..0
Remains to be divided among the heirs                                   41...9..9 1/2


The accountants pray allowance of the following articles
of discharge, (to wit.) The funeral charges of the Dec'd              4..0...0
To Dr. John Hale                                                                         9..8..  2
     Dr.Benjn Jones                                                                       7..3..  1
     Joseph Herrick                                                                       0..14..10
     Levi Spaulding esq                                                                 4..10..11 3/far
     John Raynolds                                                                        8..9..  4
     Revd. Sewall Goodridge                                                        1..4..  0
     Capt. Sam Houston                                                                 3..6.. 9
     Levi Spaulding esquire                                                           0..15.10
     Stephan Burnam                                                                      0..12.0
     Robt Day                                                                                 0..8..0
     James Burnam                                                                         0..10.0
     John Grant                                                                               1..1..1
     Joshua Stiles 3/ and Arael Stiles 3/                                        0..6..0
     Benjamin Cram                                                                       0.10.0
     Samuel Punchard jr.                                                                0...3.4
     Benjn Epes                                                                              1.16.9
     paid in the probate office                                                        1...3.0
     Amos Whitmore                                                                      0.12.0
     John Ordway                                                                           1...6.0
     Amos Green                                                                            0.12.0
     Daniel Gould                                                                          0.18.4 

To Moses Nichols esq.                                                                7.17.7
     Benjn Epes                                                                             0.18.3
     Levi Spaulding esq.                                                               0..2.10
     Nathl Bachelor                                                                      0..6.0
     William Taylor                                                                       0.9.3
To the admin.expence of Money, Time &in carrying on
the Admn.as pr.acct.herewith exhibited                                     4.17.0

To allow'd Widow for upholding life                                         9.0.0

To debts still due from said estate for which
the adm. is accountable includng Interest on
Notes to this time amounting in the whole to                           24.9.0

drawing, examg.allowg. & recording this acct                  0.8.0

attending to exhibit this acct                                                      0.5.0

decree for settlement and bond                                                   0.8.0

(?) on note to Susannah Dodge Adm.                                          2.3.6
Of inventory of record from original                                      86.14.8 3/4

 Att Wm. Gordon Regr.

Hillsborough SS June 15th 1790 The above named Joseph
Ellingwood made oath to this acct. and produced
proper vouchers; it is therefore considered that the same
be and thereby is allowed by the Court

Att: Wm Gordon Regr

True Entry of Record  Att: Wm Gordon  Regr

And that concludes the transcription for the Probate File of
Joseph Ellingwood, Sr., my 5x great grandfather.  

THE HEIRS OF JOSEPH ELLENWOOD

I thought I'd give a little information on some of the heirs listed in the settlement
of Joseph Ellingwood/Ellenwood's estate.

Joseph Ellingwood had been married twice. He married Abigail Lamson sometime
before the birth of their first child; she died sometime after the birth of the second.

Joseph  b.11Sep  1746 , d.30Aug 1750, Amherst, Hillsborough,NH
Benjamin Tuck  b.20 Nov 1748

Abigail died sometime between 1748 and 1753. During that period, Joseph married
Sarah Herrick and they had eleven children, all but one born in Amherst, NH:

Joseph, b.31 Oct 1753
Sarah, b.15 Jul 1755 
Abigail, b.7 Sep 1757, d.5 Oct 1760
James, b.10 Oct 1758, d.7 Oct 1760
Martha, b.31 Jul 1761
Abigail, b.21 Aug 1763, d.21 Jul 1765
John,  b.19 Sep 1765
Return, b.15 Oct 1767
Jacob, b.14 Nov 1769
Daniel, b.6 Apr 1772
Ebenezer, b. 31 Dec 1774  at Lyndeborough, NH

In the settlement mention is made that Benjamin Tuck Ellenwood hadn't appeared
to claim his inheritance. That was because he had left New England years before
and moved to Ohio. Likewise, sister Martha had married Sherebiah Fletcher the
year before Joseph's death and was living in Vermont. 

Joseph Jr. had bought out the shares of his sister Return and brother John. John was
my 4x great grandfather and at the time of Joseph Sr.'s death was living in Hancock,
New Hampshire with his new wife Zerviah Abbott.

I haven't as yet found a record of the date of Ebenezer's death. 

This document may clear up one question about the family but also (in my opinion)is
the cause of an error concerning the family. The first concerns Ebenezer. I use two
Ellingwood family histories in my research, and they disagree over who Ebenezer's
parents were. In Florence O'Connor's The Ancestors and Descendants of Asa Freeman 
Ellingwood and Florilla (Dunham) Ellingwood Ebenezer is listed as one of  the children
of Joseph Sr. and Sarah. But in The Ellinwood (Ellenwood/Ellingwood) Family 1635-1963,
Leonard Ellinwood thought Ebenezer might be a child of Joseph Jr . "If, like his father,
he married a wife named Sarah."(p79). This settlement mentioning Ebenezer as a deceased
child  seems to support Florence O'Connor's findings. 

As for  the error that's the subject of a post concerning the identity of Sarah Herrick and
Daniel Herrick which I'll be posting later.

THE ESTATE OF JOSEPH ELLENWOOD PT4

My ancestor Joseph Ellingwood's estate was finally settled a little over a year after his
death. By this time there was a new new Registrar and the handwriting changed. It's
a very florid artistic hand. I wish I could reproduce the over-sized brackets here but I
can't. I'll have some information on the heirs in my next post.



Comm appointed to view the real estate of Joseph Ellingwood
Committee appointed to view the real estate of Joseph Ellingwood late of Lyndboro.
dec. made the following report. Having viewed the real estate of  Joseph Ellingwood
late of Lyndeborough decd and according to the appointment  find the same indivisble,
and have appraised it accordingly to the best of our judgement impartiually to be
worth sixty six pounds.
True entry of record from original.
Att: William Gordon Regr
Committee:
Joseph Herrick
Wm Reynolds
Nath. Burnam
Samuel Houton
Justice Spaulding certified the above committee was sworn before him.
Att Wm. Gordon  Regr

Decree for settlement  Jos. Ellenwood estate]
The hon. Samuel Dana esq. Judge of the Probate of Wills withing and for the
County of Hillsborough

Wherein the real estate of Joseph Ellingwood late of Lyndeborough decd., except
the widows third, has been viewed by a commttee for that purpose appointed in
order for a settlement acording to law;

And the said committee have reported the land incapable of a division, and have
appraised the same at the sum of sixt six pounds, and the eldest son of said
decd. not appearing to have the same settled upon him, and Joseph Ellingwood
of said Lyndeborough the second son of said deceased agreeing to take the same
at the appraisement _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

The said Judge doth further order and decree that the said real estate, the widows
dower excepted, be and the same is hereby assigned unto, and vested in him
the said Joseph to hold to him,  his heirs and assign forever. It is further ordered
that the said Joseph pay his brother  Benjn Tuck eight pounds, five shiilings and
nice pence being his share of said sum of sixty six pounds after deducting the sum
of Twenty four pounds, ten shillings and two pence three farthings due to the
Adminsistrator upon the settlement of their acct.; also to Danl Herrick Junr son of
Sarah Ellingwood four pounds, two shillings and ten pence  three farthings. Also
to his brother Jacob and Danl. each, said sum of four pounds, two shillings and
ten pence three farthings, and to heirs of his late brother Ebenr. said  last sum
mentioned from this. Jospeh having purchased the shares of brother, John, and
Return, no order is made respecting them.~

And in case any debts unpaid shall hereafter appears against said estate, the said
Joseph is hereby ordered to discharge the same, together with all the necessary
charges. Given under my hand & seal of the said Judge, this fifteenth day of June,
anno Domini 1790.
Samuel Dana J. Prob.
Inventory of record from original
Att: Wm Gordon Regr.

To be continued.

THE ESTATE OF JOSEPH ELLENWOOD PT3

The next document in the Probate court file for the estate of my ancestor Joseph
Ellingwood/Ellenwood  is short but sweet (at least for his widow Sarah):

"April 7th 1789 Sarah Ellinwood widow of Joseph Ellinwood late of Lyndboro
Deceased referred a Petition to the Judge for Allowance for upholding life and
was allowed nine pounds for that purpose- -
Exam'd per Saml Dana Regr"

This has me wondering. Was the nine pounds a one time payment, or was it a monthly
amount? The estate wasn't settled until a year later in August 1790. I know things were
inexpensive compared to the economy of today and of course people grew their own
food or had farm animals to supply meat. Still, it seems like a long time to stretch nine
pounds.

Also, this file shows how the spelling of family names  can change in one file. In the
Estate Inventory, Joseph was referred to as Ellenwood, but in the next two documents,
including this one, as Ellinwood. In the next two documents that I'll post here, he's
called Joseph Ellingwood. I've gotten used to looking for all the variations of the name
doing my research on the family but I use Ellingwood in my tree and files.  

THE ESTATE OF JOSEPH ELLENWOOD PT2

Now that Joseph Ellenwood/Ellingood's possessions had been inventoried, there
were two other matters that needed to be addressed. The first was Sarah Ellinwood's
 which would be taken out from the real estate Joseph had owned.

The second was a guardian needed to be appointed for the two youngest Ellinwood
children, sons Jacob and Daniel. Jacob was 17 and Daniel 14 years old at their father's
death. I'm not sure why Amos Whittemore was made their guardian. There were
several adult male men in the county related to the boys either by blood  or by
marriage. I can find no such connection with Whittemore. The best I can surmise
is that perhaps it was thought that their best interests would be served if their
guardian was not someone who could use the position for personal gain.

Here's my transcription of the second document in Joseph Ellenwood's Probate
File.:

At a Probate Court the 18th of April A.D 1786
A warrant issued Messrs. Nehemiah Rand, Joseph Herrick, Amos Whittemore,
Nathaniel Burnham & John Runnels all of Lyndeboro to set off to Sarah Ellinwood
her dower in her late husband Joseph Ellinwood's estate who on their oath before
the Judge made the following return

August 15th 1786.
State of New Hampshire, Hillsborough }
We the subscribers appointed by the Judge of Probate for said County to set
off to Sarah Ellinwood widow, one third of the real estate of her late husband
Joseph Ellinwood late of Lyndborough deceased report as follows- The one third
set to the widow bound as follows all the land lying on the south of the road that
leads thru said land the dwelling house and the east end of the barn with the
priviledge of the floor way and three acres of wood land on the north side of the
road beginning at the northwest corner then running forty rods on Joseph Ellinwood's
land then 12 rods east then 40 rods to the north line then 12 rods to the first mentioned
corner with the priviledge of a road to said land.
The two thirds to have the priviledge of thirty feet square of land at the west end
of the barn with the priviledge of a road to said barn.
Nehemiah Rand
Amos Whittemore
Exam'd per Saml Dana Regr

Augt 15 1786 Amos Whittemore allowed to be guardian to Jacob Ellinwood and
Danl Ellinwood minors upward of fourteen years of age who with Joseph Ellinwood
gave bond in the sum of L200 for his faithful performance of that (?)
Attest Saml Dana Regr

To be continued.

THE ESTATE OF JOSEPH ELLENWOOD: SOME OBSERVATIONS

A few observations on this part of the Probate Court records of my ancestor Joseph
Ellingwood/Ellenwood's estate:

-I've already mentioned that this is the first mention I've come across of his
occupation of bricklayer. But looking at the inventory of the estate that listing of the
4500 (" four thousand & half")shingles got me wondering what a bricklayer would be
doing with that many shingles. Could Joseph perhaps have been building brick buildings
and the shingles were for the roofing?

- One of the fun things about reading these old documents is running across the
unfamiliar names of items listed in the inventories. In some cases trying to find
out what they were  is made complicated by what I fondly think of as the "creative
spelling" of our ancestors. Take for example this line:

"To Butte and wedges 5/ to a frow 2/6"

It took me a little while to track down what this meant. "Butte" could be the handle
or "butt" used with the wedges. The frow (now more commonly spelled as froe) is
an ax-like tool that someone working with wood would use to split a log or length
of wood along the grain. According to the Wikipedia article I found here, it would
be of use in making shingles.

-Finally, the mention  of a Joseph Herrick as a co-administrator may have shed some
light on a question inviolving the identity of Sarah Herrick. I'll be devoting a post to
that after I finish with transcribing the other four pages of the file.

THE ESTATE OF JOSEPH ELLENWOOD PT1

This has been a great year again for me research wise. FamilySearch has
released a bunch of record images from New England states and I've
found a lot of documents involving my relatives. I'm learning things I might
never have found about my ancestors.

One of my recent finds has been the estate records for my 5x great grandfather
Joseph Ellenwood/Ellingwood.  I don't have an exact date of death for Joseph but
the will and inventory were filed with the Hillsborough, NH Probate Court in
April of 1786 by his widow Sarah and his son Joseph. One of the things I learned
from it was that Joseph Sr. was a bricklayer, something that was not in either of
the Ellingwood genealogy books in my possession. Also, I was surprised to learn
the estate was valued under the British currency of pounds, shillings and pence.
Our young country hadn't adopted the dollar yet in 1786

I was puzzled by part of the document: the items on the inventory list followed by
a number and slash mark in the lines:  

I'd never seen anything like that before, so I asked my friends on Facebook if
anyone knew what it meant, and Karen Packard Rhodes posted an excellent explanation:

It is a unit price -- in shillings. The / means shillings. There were 20 shillings to
a pound. So take the item "To a yoke of oxen 175/ to a house 175/" 175+175=
350. Divide 350 (shillings) by 20 (# of shillings in a pound) and it comes out to 
17.5. The .5 is half a pound, which is 10 shillings. Thus you get the 17 10 0 figure 
on the right. So it is a unit price. For more information on old British money, see http://resources.woodlands-junior.kent.sch.uk/customs/questions/moneyold.htm .


Here's the first part of my transcription.  I'll discuss my thoughts on it in my next
post. My apologies for not being able to get the value column to stay in a straight
column:  

Hillsborough SS. At a Court of Probate held at Amherst for said County on the
Eighteenth day of April Anno Domini 1786.-
Administration of the Estate of Joseph Ellenwood late of Lyndeborough in said
County Bricklayer dec. was granted to Sarah Ellenwood his widow and Joseph
Ellenwood his Son with Joseph Herrick of Lyndeborough aforesaid husbandman
jointly and severally gave Bond in the Sum of Five hundred Pounds for their
faithful performance of that trust pursuant to Law.`~~~~~
                  Attest  Saml Dana Regr

At the same time a warrant issued to Messrs. Nehemiah Rand and Amos
Whittemore both of Lyndeborough in said Countyto take an Inventory of the
Estate of the aforesaid Joseph Ellenwood who on the 15th day of August 1786
made thee following return on Oath.
                                                                       Before Jon. Blanchard Judge of Probate
                                                                         Attest Saml Dana Regr
"State of New Hampshire Hillsboro."
An Inventory of the Estate of Joseph Ellenwood late of Lyndeboro. dec. shewn
to us the Subscribers by Sarah and Joseph Ellenwood Admins. on said Estate.
- Viz~~~~
The real Estate appraised at                                                                       £150~0~0
To a Yoke of Oxen 175/ To a Horse 175/                                                 £ 17~10~0 
To two cows 130/ To a Cow 63/                                                                     9~13~
To Seven young Cattle                                                                                     6~13~
To 2 Swine                                                                                                        2~0~
To wearing apparel                                                                                           1~10~
To a feather bed and pillows                                                                            1~4~
To Sheets and Pillow Cap                                                                                   ~9~
To Coverlets and Blankets                                                                                1~0~0
To a Bedstead and Cord 3/ a Chest 25/                                                            1~0~
To 2 Table Cloths 6 towels                                                                                  ~7~6
To a Loom and the harness                                                                                1~10~0
To 3 spinning wheels 16/ to a Cart 40/                                                             2~16~
To Bricklayers Tools 2/ Carpenters 10/                                                           1~6~
To one ax 3/ Cowbell 3/6, Stonehammer 3/6                                                  0~10~
To Butte and wedges 5/ to a frow 2/6                                                               0~7~6
To 27 ft of old iron4/10, 3 sickles 2/6                                                             0~7~4
To 35 ft of old chains 17/6  a plow 5/                                                               1~2~6
To 4 hows 5/ to a barrow 9/                                                                                0~14~0
To a grindstone 1/ to a sled 3/                                                                            0~3~0
To scythes and tackling 10/ to hayfork 1/6                                                       0~11~6
To four thousand & half of shingles                                                         1~7~0
To baskets 5/6 yoke irons 2/ irons 1/6                                                                0~7~0
To 3 pewter platters and six plates                                                                     0~16~0
To old pewter 3/coffee pot & tin ware 1/9                                                 0~4~9
To iron ware 20/ glass ware 3/                                                                            1~11~0
To old cans 7/6  wooden ware 6/                                                                        0~16~6
To earthenware 4/ to tables 3/                                                                             0~7~0
To old chest 4/  to chairs 8/                                                                                 0~12~0
To a gun 15/ to a fire shovel tongs 2/6                                                               0~17~6
To barrels 3/6  to a sive 1/                                                                                   0~4~6
To a teapot and cups 1/ to knives & forks                                                0~2~6
To old books 4/ boxiron heaters                                                                         0~5~0
To a sadelle & bridle                                                                                   0~12~0
To carts                                                                                                                    0~2~6
To a note of Benjamin Ellenwood dated Jan 30 1777                                      2~2~7
To a note of Thomas Ellsworth Dated Nov 10 1785                                        0~6~4
                                                                                                                         £   62.4.6
Exam'd for Saml Dana Regr
Nehemiah Rand
James Whittemore  

To be continued