Will of Francis Cook 11 Aug 1804 Elbert County, GA WILL OF FRANCIS COOK In the name of God, Amen. This eleventh day of August in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred four, I, Francis Cook of the County of Elbert, being of sound mind and memory and calling to mind the mortality of my body and knowing that it is appointed once for all men to die, do make, constitute and ordain this my last will and testament in manner and form as follows, to wit-- First, I recommend my soul to God, who gave it, and entreat him through the righteousness of Christ to receive it in mercy, and my body to the dust to be buried in such manner as my executors, whom I shall hereafter name and appoint, shall think fit. And as for my worldly goods with which it has pleased God to bless me, I do order and dispose of in the following manner, viz-- Item. I desire that all my just (debts) be paid. Item. I give and bequeath to my well beloved wife Betty two hundred acres of land to be divided off the west and upper end of the land on which I now reside in such manner as to give her the dwelling house and garden, and is to be divided by a straight line to proceed from a new made corner pine on John Willis line on the side of the old road, and to extend through my land to Walker Richardson's line, thence on to the line of the land at present claimed by him the said Walker Richardson, and on lines at present claimed by Josiah Cook and John Willis to the place of beginning; and also the bed and furniture that I got with her, one chest and one trunk, one horse equal in value to the mare I got with her, and one saddle and bridle, and five hundred dollars in money, which legacy is to my wife Betty, her heirs and assigns forever. Item: I give and bequeath to my two grandsons, James Ragans and Charles Ragans, five hundred acres of land in Franklin County on Hunter's Creek, which said legacy is to my said two grandsons, their heirs and assigns forever, which said five hundred acres of land is one half of a tract granted to Thomas Gregg and William Moss -- Item: I desire that the ballance of my estate of whatsoever name or quantity be equally divided amongst all my children; and the children of Dudley Cook, my son, deceased, I desire to inherit their father's equal part; and the children of my daughter, Nancy Ragan, deceased, I desire shall inherit their mother's equal part; so that the clause in my will stands thus: My sons Thomas Cook, John Cook; and the children of my son, Dudley Cook; my sons Josiah Cook, Joshua Cook, Benjamin Cook, and Elisha Cook; and the children of my daughter, Nancy Ragan, deceased; my daughters Sarah Long and Elizabeth Moseley, which said legacies is to my said children, their heirs and assigns forever -- Lastly, I appoint my two sons Thomas Cook and Joshua Cook and my trusty friend Richardson Hunt, executors, and my well- beloved wife, Betty, executrix of this my last will and testa- ment-- In witness whereof, I do hereunto set my hand and seal the day and year first written. Signed, sealed, and pronounced by the testator to be his last will and testament in presence of Francis Cook Jnr, William Lane Jnr, W. Woods. /s/ Francis Cook Georgia, Elbert Co. Court of Ordinary, March term 1813 Personally appeared in open court Francis Cook Jnr and William Woods, two of the subscribing witnesses to the within will of Francis Cook Snr, dec'd, and made oath that they saw the said dec'd sign his name to the within will and also heard him acknowledge the same as his last will and testament and at the time of executing the same he was of sound mind, memory, and understanding, and that they did in his presence and at his request, and in the presence of each other, subscribe their names as witnesses to the same, and that William Lane Jnr did at that time and in the presence of the testator and at his request subscribe his name to the same as a witness. Sworn to in open court this first day of March 1813. /s/ Francis Cook /s/ Wm Woods Test: John Banks, JIC And the same being approved, it is ordered to be recorded. Wm Woods, Clk CCO GEORGIA, Elbert County Executor's oath We, Thomas Cook and Joshua Cook, do solemnly swear the writing produced in court and herewith shown is the last will and testament of Francis Cook, deceased, so far as we know or believe, and that we will well and truly execute the same by paying first his debts and then the legacies contained in the said will as far as the goods and chattels will thereunto extend and the law charges us with, and that we will make a true and perfect inventory of such goods and chattels. Sworn to in open court the first day of March 1813. /s/ Thomas Cook Joshua Cook Attest: Wm Woods CCO Recorded the 16th March 1813, Wm Woods, Clk CCO (Transcribed from Elbert Co. court records.) Francis Cook was b. 27 Oct 1729 in York Co. VA, and probably d. Feb 1813. His will previously has been transcribed incorrectly and published listing Nancy Ragan(s) as Nancy Rogers. Nancy m. James Reagan in NC c. 1779. This family has been researched by Reagan desc. Thomas Cook RS m. 1776 Elizabeth Reagan in Guilford Co. NC. Francis Cook Jnr is son of Thomas and Elizabeth, according to Thomas Cook family researchers. ==================================================================== USGENWEB NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor. This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by: L. 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