The 1807 will of Henry Bingaman of Garrard County, Kentucky

My brother has been following up on a theory about the wives of Henry Bingaman and his son, also named Henry Bingaman. He thought, perhaps, that the wills of one or both of them may clear up the possible misattribution. He sent me an early draft of his research, laying out his argument. In it, he had an index reference to the will of the elder Henry, of Garrad County, Kentucky. Since I had the clerk’s copy of the will of Henry Bingman that he was seeking, I decided to transcribe it and post it here. Spelling and punctuation are retained and shown as it appeared in the original. The only alteration is one of formatting (i.e. the line length) so it reads better in a blog format.

In the name of God Amen
I Henry Bingaman of Garrard County and Com.^th of Kentucky Being Sick and weak in Body but of Sound mind and mem^ry Do make and ordain this my last will and testament that is to say first of all I give & recommend Soul in to the hands of God who gave it and my Body to the earth be Buried in a Christian like and Decent ^manner at the discretion of my Executors, Imprimises it is my will and I do order that in the first place all my Just Debts and funeral Expences be paid and Satisfied – – – – – – –

Item  I give and bequeath unto Maryann Bingamin my dearly beloved wife the use of the plantation that I now live on – together with all the household furniture including all the wool and flax during her natural life also one Cow & Calf two head of sheep (ewes) and two head of hogs and the use of ten apple trees During her life Item I give and bequeath unto my two sons John and Christian bingaman the plantation where on I now live to be equally divided Between them to them and their heirs forever I is my will that my two sons John and Christian Bingamin pay to all the rest of my heirs the just and full Sum of ten pounds current money of Kentucky on or before the expiration of eight years beginning at the Eldest paying ten pounds anually it is my will that all the rest of my property be sold and desposed of at the direction of my Executors I hereby revoke and disanul all former wills bequeaths, or deeds of this and no other to be my last will and testament nominating and appointing my two sons, John and Christian Bingamin my Executors

In witness whereof I have hereunto Set my hand and affixed my seal this 21st of November 1807 Signed Sealed and acknowledged in the presents of –

Robt Brank                                  Henry Bingamin {seal}
Isaiah Nickols
Robert Henry¹

Preliminary analysis

1. This transcribed will directly states that on 21 Nov 1807 (the day the will was drawn), Henry Bingaman’s wife was named Maryann. Undoubtedly she was living on that date, as he left her valuable personal property.
2. He named two of his sons as executors, John and Christian Bingaman. We can make no assumptions about the ages of the sons since Kentucky law seemingly did allow for executors under the age of twenty-one.²
3. Since Bingaman discussed the payment of ten pounds “current money of Kentucky” to unnamed heirs over the course of eight years, beginning with the eldest heir, it can be concluded that there were at least ten heirs – the two named children, plus the eight unnamed heirs. The oldest unnamed heir would have received their cash legacy first, followed by the second eldest receiving their legacy the following year, and so on. Presumably, these heirs were his children, but more research is needed to establish exactly who the heirs could have been.

Suggestions for further research

1. All that we have here is the transcribed will of Henry Bingaman of Garrard County, Kentucky. Since the will would have been only one document recorded as part of the probate process, we should look for either the probate packet itself or further evidence of other court proceedings in extant county books or registers. Finding the loose papers, particularly receipts for legacies, would allow us to learn the names of the heirs.
2. The will does not indicate when it was proved, or by whom, which would allow us to bracket a death date for Henry Bingaman. All we know for sure at this point is that he died sometime after he wrote the will, therefore after 21 Nov 1807.
3. A closer look at Kentucky law is warranted, to learn who would have been considered an heir. Would it just be children, or were others entitled to inherit say, for example, the children of deceased children?

Sources:

¹ Garrard County, Kentucky, Book of Wills, Volume C (1805-1809), p. 199, Will of Henry Bingaman; digital images, “Kentucky, Wills and Probate Records, 1774-1989,” Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 4 Jan 2017), FHL microfilm 764,6424.

² As a starting point, see the discussion at 333 regarding infant executors in C.A. Wickliffe, S. Turner and S.S. Nicholas, compilers, The Revised Statutes of Kentucky (Frankfort, Ky. : State Printer, 1852); digital images, Google Books (http://books.google.com : accessed 12 Aug 2018).