Will of William Beakley

Date: [unknown] [unknown]
Location: Hickman, Tennessee, United States
Surname/tag: Beakley

Will of William Beakley

Transcribed by Homer Thiel

Hickman County Tennessee

:I William Beakley do make and publish
this as my last will and Testament
hereby revoking and making void all
other wills be me at any time made.

1st I direct that my funeral expenses
and all my debts be paid as soon
after my death as possible out of
any moneys that I may die possessed
of or may first come into the hands
of my executor

2nd I give and bequeath to my be-
loved wife the farm that I reside
on with all the occupants I have
joining there to also two Chan[?]
negroes one man and one woman
which property she is to have and
to hold during her life also all
the money that I now hold is to
[illegible] to the use of my wife with
the unusual amount of Provision
directed by law and at her
death the above mentioned
property to go to the following
of my children Wesley Lineza
John & Benedict

3rd I give and bequeath to John
& Wm. Beakley & Sarah Pery & Cully
Cook all my lands lying on both
sides of Creek at what if called
the Whiteside Mill place

4th I give and bequeath to Wright
Blakely a Soldiers claim of a quar-
ter section of land in Arkansas

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also Two hundred and fifty dollars
as his fill share of my estate

5th I give and bequeath to my daugh-
ter Nancy Blackburn a certain
tract or parcel of land lying on
Piney Three hundred and Twenty acres
more or less also a note an and
Judgment I hold against
John Blackburn

It is request that the balance
of my negroes and stock and
property not heretofore mention-
ed be disposed of and the pro-
ceeds equally divided between
the following of my children (viz)
John Beakley Wm. Beakley and
Sarah Perry & Culley Cook Wesley
Beakley Louiza Beakley John Beak-
ley and Benedict Beakley.

So I conclude my last will
and Testament this day the 26th
of August 1845
Signed and Sealed Wm Beakley {seal}
in the presents of us

Robertson Whiteside

Willliam Duncan

A True Copy

Attested J. D. Easley Clk

of the Hickman County Court Tennessee

Heirs^[1]

Celia Beakley, wife, lived in Hickman County, Tennessee

Children

Nancy Beakley, wife of Jno. C. Blackburn, lived Wayne County, Tennessee

Celia Beakley, wife of Robert J. Cook, lived Cook County, Tennessee

Louisa Beakley, wife of John Flowers, lived Perry County, Tennessee

Sarah Beakley, wife of Macenas G. Perry

Wright Beakley, lived in Arkansas

John B. Beakley, lived Wayne County, Tennessee

James W. Beakley, lived in Hickman County, Tennessee

William Beakley. lived in Hickman County, Tennessee

John Beakley, son of Celia

Benjamin Beakley, son of Celia

Original Letter of Agreement for William Beakley's Will

This document has been transcribed from the original.
The original can be located at the Deeds Office of Hickman County, Tennessee, Book M, Page 488.
The original last will and testament of William Beakley (1785 – 1849) was contested by his surviving children.
The transcription below was the Article of Agreement signed and instituted on 23 October 1849.
Whereas William Beakley departed this life on the 4th May 1849 having first made and published what purported to be his last will and testament which is now of record in the office of the clerk of the county court of Hickman said county leaving the undersigned his only legates, viz, Louisa Flowers wife of the undersigned John Flowers, Celia Cook wife of the undersigned – Robert Jasper Cook, Sarah Peery wife of the undersigned Marcenus Peery – Nancy Blackburn wife of the undersigned – Robert G. Blackburn, and Wright, John William, James M., Jehu, and Benjamin Beakley and who are also the only children and heirs at law of the said testator, and whereas by the terms of said will an unequal division of the property is directed to be made – giving a much larger portion to some than to others in effect almost excluding some of the undersigned, all of which will readily appear by reference to said will and testament – and whereas some dissatisfaction exists on account of said unequal disposition of the property of the testator among his said children, and it is contemplated by some of them to test the validity of said will and testament by a suit at law, now therefore in consideration of the premises and for the purpose of preventing litigation in the family and of affecting a more equal division distributed of the property belonging to said estate.

We the undersigned legates under said last will and testament and children of the testator do mutually agree and respectively bind ourselves and our heirs or for the consideration aforesaid to each other his or her heirs or aforesaid to renounce to each other all right title claim and interest which we hold in possession, remainder or revision to the property of the testator under the provision of said last will and testament and we do hereby renounce all interests that we have respectively acquired under said will and in lieu of the provisions of said will to agreed to be done away with as aforesaid we agree and bind ourselves to take each an equal portion of the property so disposed of by said last will and testament.

We further agree and bind ourselves to account for all advancement made to us by the testator in his lifetime as fully as if he had died intestate. It is further understood and agreed by the undersigned that Celia Beakley, the widow of the testator, shall hold the property left her according to the terms of said will and only at her death is the same to be equally divided among the undersigned children of the testator their heirs. We further agree that the executor of the said last will and testament shall proceed in administrating the assets of the Estate to divide the same according to the true intent and meaning of this agreement and not as directed by said last will and testament – that is to say, each one of the undersigned legates is entitled to one tenth part of said Estate, having first accounted for advancements as stated above. In testimony of all which we have applied our hands and seals, this 16th day October One Thousand Hundred and Forty Nine. John G. Blackburn [seal]
Nancy Blackburn [seal]
Robert J. Cook [seal]
Celia Cook [seal]
John L. Flowers [seal]
Louisa Flowers [seal]
Marcenus G. Peery [seal]
Sarah A. Peery [seal]
Wright [seal]
J.B. Beakley [seal]
William Beakley [seal]
J.W. Beakley [seal]
Jehu Beakley [seal]
Benjamin Beakley [seal]

Personally appeared before me, James D. Easley , Clerk of said county court – John G. Blackburn, Robert J. Cook, Celia Cook, John L. Flowers, Louisa Flowers, Wright Beakley, John B. Beakley, William Beakley, James W. Beakley, Jehu Beakley, and Benjamin Beakley. Some of the partys named in the foregoing agreement with whom I am personally acquainted and who acknowledged that they signed and executed the same for the purposes therein contained and Celiy Cook and Lousia Flowers two of the female covets named in the said agreement having personally appeared before me separate and apart from their husbands (Robert J. Cook and John L. Flowers) and acknowledged that they signed sealed and executed the same freely, voluntarily, and understandingly without compulsion or restraint from their said husbands and for the purposes therein contained on the 16th day of October 1849. Witnessed James D. Easley, clerk of our said court Officer
Signed
James D. Easley

Personally appeared before me James D. Easley Clerk of said county court Marcenus G. Peery and Sarah A. Peery, two of the party’s that signed the foregoing agreement with whom I am personally acquainted and acknowledged that they signed and executed the same for the purposes therein contained and Sarah A. Peery the aforementioned female covet having also appeared before me separate and apart from her husband (the said Marcenus G. Peery) and acknowledged that she signed sealed and executed the same freely, voluntarily and understandingly without compulsion or restraint from her husband and for the purposes therein contained on the 18th day of October 1849. Witnessed James D. Easley, clerk of our said court Officer
Signed

James D. Easley