Nicholas Day Amos Probate and Heirs 1815
Location: Bourbon, Kentucky, United States
Surname/tag: Amos
Contents |
Information about probate, related legal cases, and heirs for Nicholas D. Amos of Bourbon County, Kentucky
Probate, 1815
Nicholas Day Amos, Sr.[1] died about August, 1815 without a will. His son Nicholas Amos, Jr. was appointed administrator of the estate on September 4, 1815, with a $1000 bond secured by Nicholas, Jr. and Aquilla Parker.[2] When a man died without a will, the estate was divided equally among the man’s children, with the share for a deceased heir equally divided among the children (heirs) of the deceased heir.
The estate was appraised on September 14, 1815 as worth $1002.[3] The most valuable items were slaves Nell ($100) and Peg ($240). An estate sale was held September 15, 1815.[4] In June, 1818 the Administrator had $772.06 in the estate.[5]
Amos Heirs vs. Nicholas Amos, 1816
The administrator of the estate, Nicholas Amos, Jr., did not sell the two slaves Nell and Peg. This resulted in other heirs filing a law suit in Bourbon County, Kentucky to force the sale of the slaves and distribution of the proceeds. At the time of the 1810 US census, the household of Nicholas D. Amos in Bourbon County, Kentucky consisted of one man age 45 or older and two slaves.[6]
The law suit said that Nicholas Amos died about August, 1815 and it gave the names of his heirs, which included the names of his children. The original record of the initial law suit could not be found in 2021. The case is Bourbon County, Kentucky Circuit Court Suit #375 filed in November, 1816. The Kentucky Department of Libraries and Archives (KDLA) is the official archive for court case records like this.[7] A KDLA staff person was not able to find the initial records for this case in July, 2021. He said that many of the older records are missing. The Bourbon County Circuit Court Clerk also looked for the records in the county files in July, 2021 and did not find them.
Transcriptions of the lawsuit have been posted on the internet[8] and a brief abstract is in the book Scott’s Papers, Kentucky Court and Other Records, (1953).[9] The abstracts in the book were made by Hattie Marshall Scott in the 1930s. The original record was apparently difficult to read because the various transcriptions have variation in the names and some other words. All transcriptions have the death of Nicholas D. Amos, Sr. “about the month of August in the year 1815.” The abstract by Hattie Marshall Scott focused on the heirs and said:
- Amos Hrs: (Bourbon Cir. Ct. suit Nicholas Amos’ hrs. filed Nov. 1816—) He died Bourbon Co. abt. Aug. 1815 leaving: Mary m. Josiah Barton, Thos., Mordecai, Nancy m. Wm. Connaway, Christina m. Elias Melot, Ben., Abraham, Elijah, Sarah m. Daniel Thomas, Ditto, Pathia m. Jno. Barnett, all living at time of death of Nicholas Amos; and Elizabeth m. Parker then decd. had Cassandra m. Mahlon Hall, Clemency m. Michael Hornback, Mary m. Joseph Brown, Christiana m. Geo. Hughes, Henry, Wm. and Levi Parker and Ruth m. Michael Hornback Jr. then decd. had Elizabeth and Barbara infants; and William Amos then decd, had Christiana and Kitty with Geo. Barkett (Barnett?) Gdn.
(page 121)
The final court order in the case has been found and was one relatively short paragraph, with the key provision:[10]
- that the said defendant do make sale of said Negro slaves Nell and Peg in the bill mentioned at public auction for the best price which can be had, … and that he distribute the money among the legatees as the other personal estate …
Nicholas Amos’ Administrator vs. Nicholas Amos' Heirs, 1828
Nicholas D. Amos, Sr. also owned a slave boy named Peter that Nicholas, Sr. sent to Thomas Amos in February, 1815 for a period of 13 years. The allotted time ended in February, 1828, at which time Peter was to be returned to Nicholas, Sr. However, Nicholas, Sr. died before Peter was returned, and the slave became part of his estate in 1828.
As the administrator of his father’s estate, Nicholas, Jr. asked the Bourbon County, Kentucky Circuit Court to find the other heirs and obtain their approval for the sale of the slave and the distribution of the proceeds among the heirs. The Bourbon County Sheriff was given the list of heirs and was asked to summon each one to court to give their approval or objection. A newspaper notice was published for the heirs that the Sheriff did not find. Copies of the court case records were obtained from KDLA and are attached here.[11] The final order for the sale of the slave and distribution of the proceeds was issued in May, 1829.[12]
These court records give the names of the heirs of Nicholas D. Amos multiple times, including some with clear handwriting. The records also identify which heirs were found by the Sheriff and thus were known to be living at the time.
Children and other Heirs of Nicholas D. Amos
The 14 children of Nicholas D. Amos given in the 1828 court records were (not in order of age):
Nicholas, Jr.
Thomas,
Mordicia,
Elijah,
Ditto,
Benjamin,
Bertha, married John Barnett,
Nancy, married William Conaway,
Mary, married a Barton,
Sarah “Sally,” married Daniel Thomas,
Christiana, married Elias Melot,
Abraham (deceased with heirs),
William (deceased with heirs),
Betsy (deceased with heirs), married a Parker.
The grand-children heirs and other heirs of Nicholas D. Amos were:
Abraham left children: Isabella, William, and Abraham,
William left children: Christiana and Kitty,
Betsy (Amos) Parker left children:
Henry;
William;
Christiana who married George Hughes;
Levi (deceased) with children: Julian, Aquilla, and David;
Polly Brown with children unknown;
Cassandra Hall (deceased) with children: Darius, Aquilla, Caleb, Ambrose, Henry, Betsy, Eliza, and Polly Ann;
Ruth Hornback (deceased) with children: Betsy married James Neal, Barbary married Zephaniah Keith;
Clementia Hornback (deceased) with children: Aquilla, Ruth married John Ferguson, Polly, James, Nancy, and Christiana.
Only heirs of Nicholas D. Amos are included in this list. A child that had died without children (without heirs) would probably not be included in this list.
Research Notes
There has been a widely disseminated claim that Nicholas D. Amos, Sr. died in 1799. That claim is not consistent with the records noted here. As described above, (a) the court case Nicholas Amos’ Administrator vs. Nicholas Amos' Heirs, 1828 stated that Nicholas, Sr. was alive in February, 1815, (b) the court case Amos Heirs vs Nicholas Amos, 1816 stated that his death was about August, 1815, (c) probate began in September, 1815, and (d) the 1810 US census had Nicholas D. Amos, Sr. alive in 1810.
Sources
- ↑ Nicholas Day Amos, Sr., https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Amos-251
- ↑ “Bourbon County Kentucky [Circuit Court] Order Book Vol. E, 1813-1816,” page 441, September 4th, 1815. Copy obtained from the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, August, 2021. That copy is at https://www.wikitree.com/photo.php/2/21/Nicholas_Day_Amos_Probate_and_Heirs_1815.pdf
A better copy is available on FamilySearch.org at https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSLX-J9MM-S - ↑ “Kentucky Probate Records, 1727-1990,” Bourbon County, Kentucky, Wills, Vol E, 1814-1816, page 365, Inventory and appraisment of the goods and chatels of Nicholas Amos, Sr., September 14, 1815. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9PSY-3GC
- ↑ “Kentucky Probate Records, 1727-1990,” Bourbon County, Kentucky, Wills, Vol E, 1814-1816, page 239, Bill of Sale of the personal Estate of Nicholas Amos, September 15, 1815. https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9PSY-32P
“Kentucky, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1774-1989,” Bourbon County, Kentucky, Wills, Vol E-F, 1814-1821, Vol E, page 239, Bill of Sale of the personal Estate of Nicholas Amos, September 15, 1815. https://www.ancestry.com/imageviewer/collections/9066/images/004818820_00184 - ↑ “Bourbon County Kentucky [Circuit Court] Estate Settlement Book A, 1815-1824,” Part 2, pages 196-197. Bourbon County June Court 1818, The Estate of Nicholas D. Amos deceased. Copy obtained from the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, August, 2021. That copy is at https://www.wikitree.com/photo.php/a/a6/Nicholas_Day_Amos_Probate_and_Heirs_1815-1.pdf
- ↑ "US Census, 1810," Nicholas D. Amos, Stoner, Bourbon County, Kentucky. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XH2T-QH3
- ↑ Kentucky Departmenet of Libraries and Archives, https://kdla.ky.gov/researchers/Pages/recordsrequestforms.aspx
- ↑ Web pages with transcripts of the 1816 Bourbon County Circuit Court Suit Amos Heirs vs Nicholas Amos include:
(a) William Amos-1717-1814, http://kykinfolk.com/bourbon/Obituaries.html#Amos
(b) Bourbon Circuit Court Suit 375 Amos Heirs VS Nicholas Amos, Contributed by Kellie Scott. https://sites.rootsweb.com/~kybcgs/court/amos.htm
(c) Court case regarding will of Nicholas Day Amos, https://www.ancestry.com/mediaui-viewer/tree/113403768/person/420159856694/media/0229089a-af27-4a0e-b8ac-1df32bb70710 - ↑ Scott’s Papers, Kentucky Court and Other Records, (1953) Bayless E. Hardin, Editor, page 121, https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uva.x004034549&view=1up
The HathiTrust website classifies this book as public domain in the US. - ↑ “Bourbon County Kentucky [Circuit Court] Order Book Vol. N, 1816-1817,” pages 131-132, November Term 1816, First day. Copy obtained from the Kentucky Department for Libraries and Archives, August, 2021. That copy is at https://www.wikitree.com/photo.php/d/d6/Nicholas_Day_Amos_Probate_and_Heirs_1815-2.pdf
A better copy is available on FamilySearch.org at https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSKW-KGXV - ↑ Bourbon County, Kentucky Circuit Court case: Nicholas Amos’ Administrator vs. Nicholas Amos' Heirs, 1828-1831. That copy is at https://www.wikitree.com/photo.php/7/79/Nicholas_Day_Amos_Probate_and_Heirs_1815-5.pdf
A copy that is not as good is available on FamilySearch.org at https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSY9-T9ZW-5 - ↑ “Bourbon County, Kentucky, [Circuit Court] Order Book W, 1828-1829,” pages 150-151, May Term 1829, 7th Day. “Amos Administrator against Amos Heirs.” https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSLG-3546
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