A Wilson Family Tree
Notes for Samuel Wilson
According to information from Katherine Bushman that James Hotchkiss passed on to me, Samuel sold 461 acres of land to his brother Robert in Jun 1755. Samuel had bought it from George and Robert Breckenridge in Feb 1745. The land was in the so-called Beverley Patent, which was part of Augusta Co., VA, after it was split off from Orange County.
I'm not sure how certain it is that Samuel and Robert were brothers. This identification apparently comes from a March 1760 will of Samuel Wilson (Augusta County Will Book 2, pp. 355-356), in which he names his brother Robert his executor. However, how sure are we that this is the right Robert? This Samuel bought 400 acres of land in the Borden Grant in 1751 (Augusta County Deed Book 4, p. 190), which were then left to "cuzens" Thomas and Samuel Wilson in the 1760 will. (The Borden Grant was south of the Beverley Patent; Samuel's land was in what is now southern Rockbridge County.)
Samuel's death occurred a few months after the Kerr's Creek Massacre of October 1759, which took place in his area [http://www.werelate.org/wiki/The_Kerr%27s_Creek_Massacres_(1759-1763)]. It has been suggested that he might have died of wounds suffered in that incident. The website just cited lists a Samuel Wilson as killed in the raid of 10 Oct 1759; it seems unlikely that one Samuel Wilson died in October and then another one died the next March.
Here is a portion of the deed from George and Robert Breckenridge to Samuel Wilson dated 8 Feb 1745 (Augusta County Deed Book 1, pp. 12-14):
This Indenture made the Eight day of February in the Year of our Lord one thousand Seven hundred and forty five Between George & Robert Brackenridge of the County of Augusta of the One part & Samuel Willson of the same County and Colony of Virginia of the Other part. Witnesseth that for and in Consideration of the sum of fifty pounds Current Money of Virginia to the said George & Robert Brackenridge … paid Samuel Willson at or before the sealing and Delivery of these forever the Receipt whereof he doth hereby Acknowledge and thereof [?] doth release Acquit and discharge the said Samuel Willson his Executors and Administrators by these presents, he the said George & Robert Brackenridge Have [?] granted bargain’d sold … Released and Conferred and by these presents Doth grant bargain sell … Release and Confirm unto the said Samuel Willson (in his Actual possession now being by virtue of a bargain and sale to him thereof made by the said Robert Brackenridge for one whole year, by Indenture bearing date the day next before the day of the date [?] of these presents and by force of the Statute for Transferring … and his heirs four hundred and Sixty One Acres of Land on Augusta [?] and Mannor [?] of Beverley part of a tract of Land containing seven hundred and Sixty One Acres granted by Deed of Lease and … to George and Robert Brackenridge by William Beverley Esq. of Essex County bearing date the Twenty fifth and Twenty sixth days of November in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and forty two Declaring that the said George should have three hundred Acres of the north west end of the tract and the remainder thereof to Robert Brackenridge … by the said Deeds remaining of Record in Orange, which remainder [?] … of [four] hundred and Sixty One Acres as bounded as followeth … beginning at a red Oak [?] Corner to said land thence North Sixty five Deg’rs West three hundred and twenty Nine poles to a white Oak & two hickorys [?] Corner to the afores’d George’s land and with his line South twenty Five [?] degrees east two hundred and Sixteen [?] poles to a Locust [?] in a line of said tract thence with the lines of the same South Sixty five degrees East three hundred & thirty poles to two small Chestnuts [?] and a hickory North forty three degrees East two hundred and Eight poles to … White Oaks by the South River North Sixty One degrees West seventy [?] poles to [?] the beginning and all houses Buildings, orchards, Ways Waters, Watercourses [?], profits commodities, hereditaments [?] and appurtenances Whatsoever to the said premises hereby granted, or any part thereof, belonging or in any wise appertaining [?] and the Revertion and Revertions [?] remainder and remainders [?] … Issues and profits thereof and also, all the Estate, Right, Title … use, trust, property, claim, and Demand, whatsoever of … George & Robert Brackenridge of in and to the s’d premises and all Deed Evidences and Writings touching [?] or in any wise concerning the … To have and to hold the said tract of land and all and … Other the premises hereby granted and Released, and every part & parcel thereof, with their and every of their appurtenances … said Samuel Willson his heirs and assignes forever to the only … use and behoof of him the said Samuel Willson and of his heirs and assigns forever and the said George and Robert Brackenridge for himself his heirs Executors, and administrators ...
As with the 200-acre tract described in the notes for William Wilson, the angles in the description above do not make sense to me. It seems likely that this is a not-quite-rectangular tract tilted at an angle of 25 degrees toward the east. I think the 200-acre tract is probably a rectangle at the western end of this tract, and since the surveying was probably more accurate in 1817 than in 1745, the tilt angle is probably more like 21 1/3 degrees rather than 25 degrees. There is a figure and additional discussion in the WilsonNotes document.
Note: Some of the information in these pages is uncertain. Please let me know of errors or omissions using the email link above. ...Mike Wilson
Page generated on 31 October 2023; see http://wilsonfamilytree.org/ for further updates