William Leggett (1691 - 1763)

Born 1 Sep 1691 in West Farms, Westchester, New York

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 26 Mar 1763 at age 71 in West Farms, Westchester, New York

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Biography

William Leggett is the descendant of a New Netherland settler.

William Leggett has English ancestors.

William was born in 1691. William Leggett, a self-described sea captain, was an Alderman and the Mayor of the borough town of Westchester, New York, beginning in 1730. His father, Gabriel Leggett, once thought to originate from Essex but now believed to be of Ely, Cambridgeshire, England, immigrated to West Farms between 1661 - 1669. William's mother, Elisabeth Richardson, born in Connecticut, was descended from English families who arrived in America with the early Puritan migrations. She inherited West Farms acreage plus land already divided and presumably in her possession at the time her father, an original West Farms patentee, died in 1679. Thus, through inheritance and various acquisitions, William became owner of a certain home and lands at Hunt's Point, West Farms, Westchester, New York.^[1]

Spouse1) Sarah __ (1692 - 1744); md abt 1713/14 at West Farms.
Children:

1. William 1715-1763 md. Elisabeth __
2. Sarah 1720- ? md. Charles Fraiser
3. Elizabeth 09 Aug 1724 - bef. 1763 (believed to have md James Leggett, cousin)
4. Charity 1726 - ?
5. Abraham 1725 - 1813 md Geertje Childs
6. Mary 1730 - ? md Richard Lawrence of Staten Island
7. John 1733 - 1760 md Sarah Alsop

Sarah died 30 Aug 1744 and was buried in a Leggett family plot at Hunt's Point.

Spouse2) Abigail ___ (b. 3 Jul 1728); md 13 Apr 1745 at West Farms. No reported children.

Will at Westchester Co., N. Y., Page 197 #365. Wm Leggett Esq., Westchester. Leaves to wife Abigail £30, and " My Riding chair and chair horse, and all goods and chattels which she brought with her, and which did belong to her at the time when I married her." Leaves to son Abraham all real estate, houses and lands. Leaves to eldest son Wm 300 pounds. Legacies to daughters Mary, wife of Richard Lawrence, of Staten Island, Sarah Frasier, widow, (and her children Wm, Sarah and Mary) and to Abraham, W"', Frances and Susannah " children of my son John deceased." Witnesses. Wm Stephenson, Cornelius Willett, John Bartow Dated Dec. 8, 1762. Proved May 21, 1763. Liber 24. P. 78. ^[2]

William was buried at Hunt's Point, West Farms, Westchester, New York. His grave, along with several other family members, was re-discovered in 1891 and moved to Woodlawn Cemetery. ^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ Legget, Rev. Theodore A., and A. Hatfield, Jr. "Early Settlers of West Farms, Westchester County, N. Y.: Gabriel Leggett and His Descendants." New York, 1913. Also at Internet Archive, nd. archive.org. booklink
2. ↑ page 1971 Early Westchester Wills https://ia800907.us.archive.org/12/items/earlywillsofwest00pel/earlywillsofwest00pel.pdf
3. ↑ William Leggett's Grave Discovered. New York Times 01 Apr 1891. article

Acknowledgements

• updated, sourced -C-213 20:53, 29 November 2019 (UTC)

as remembered by Geoff Grant,