Digest of the Early Connecticut Probate Records
(Hartford District),
Charles W. Manwaring,
Hartford, 1902,
Vol 2, p. 396
William HARRIS, Middletown. Inventory of lands, taken 7 Nov 1719, by Israhiah WETMORE, William SAVAGE & William WARD, apprisers, under oath:
Item. Land in the northwest quarter, 442 acres, £442-00-00
Item. Land lying westward from the Town, 624 acres, £374-08-00
Item. Land, five & half acres of boggy meadow, £27-10-00
Item. To two & half acres of land in the round meadow swamp, £3-02-00
Item. To two & half acres east side the Great River, 12-00-00
Item. To 34 Acres of upland east side the great river, £51-00-00
Item. To 40 acres, a half-mile lot east side the Great River, £27-00-00
Item. To 10 acres that was BOWE's, east side the Great River, £3-00-00
Item. To 150 acres of land east of Wangog, called BOWE's lot, £37-00-00
Item. To six & quarter acres at Pacowsett, £31-00-00
Court Record, Page 195 (Vol VIII) -- 17 May 1714: Solomon COIT of New London, grandson of William HARRIS, late of Middletown decd., moved this Court to grant Adms. to som suitable person. Mary GILBERT, Hannah WHITMORE & Patience MARKHAM of Middletown, children of sd. William HARRIS, appeared in opposition. Adms. not granted. Solomon COIT then appealed to the Superior Court.
Page 110 (Vol. X) -- 7 Aug 1719: Upon motion of Solomon COIT for himself and as attorney for John & Joseph COIT, heirs to Mrs. Martha COIT, late of New London deceased, daughter & one of the co-heirs of William HARRIS, sometime of Middletown deceased, that power of Adms. be granted on the estate of William HARRIS according to an act of the General Assembly at Hartford, 14 May 1719: It appearing to this Court that the covenant of agreement, dated 17 Sep 1717, signed by fourteen of the heirs of sd. estate, is not perfected according to the proviso made in said act concerning such agreement, this Court grant letters of Adms. to Capt. Joseph ROCKWELL, Francis WETMORE & Solomon COIT, heirs unto sd. estate. The Court also appointed Capt. William SAVAGE, Sergt. Israhiah WETMORE & Sergt. William WARD to apprise sd. estate.
Page 113 -- 3 Nov 1719: Inventory exhibited.
Page 136 -- 6 Sep 1720: The Adms. now exhibit an invt. of several parcels of land passed by deed of gift by the sd. William HARRIS, deceased, in his lifetime, dated 12 Dec 1678, and conveyed by deed of mortgage dated 7 Mar, 1687-8, to Francis WETMORE, late of Middletown deceased; also, several parcels of land recorded to John WARD, Daniel MARKHAM & Edward FOSTER. Solomon COIT appealed from a decision of the Court to the Superior Court at Hartford March next.
Page 152 -- 5 Jun 1721: Upon consideration of the motion of Solomon COIT, Joseph ROCKWELL & Francis WETMORE, heirs-in-law to the estate of Mr. William HARRIS, sometimes of Middletown deceased, respecting the opinion of the Superior Court, viz., that the estate given in the lifetime of the father cannot be joyned to the inventory of the estate of the deceased, but such estate shall be discounted in the distribution of the decd. estate at the value of which it was at the time of the gift made, this Court having searched the law and not finding any law before 14 Oct 1708, that obliged deeds of gift at large to be recorded, and finding in this case the records of the gifts of William HARRIS to his children were in 1668-1671 & 1674, and the heirs of sd. HARRIS have stood seized of them by sd. records and most of them by actual improvement, and do find Mr. HARRIS himself and most of the persons having land recorded to them in the Book of Records at Middletown are generally in those elder times after the same manner that these are, and having nothing more to show for their conveyance, this Court do therefore judge all the land given by deed, as also the lands anciently recorded to the heirs of the sd. HARRIS, were given in the lifetime of the deceased and shall not come unto the inventory, but be discounted in the distribution of the estate at the value of which it was at the time of the gift made.
Page 172 -- 3 Aug 1722: This Court order that the estate be dist. to the five daughters or their legal representatives: To Mary GILBERT decd., £230-04-05; to the heirs of Martha COIT decd., £244-14-05; to the heirs of Elizabeth FOSTER decd., £232-09-04; to Hannah WHETMORE, £221-14-05; to Patience MARKHAm, £219-00-00; which is their equal parts. And appoint Israhiah WETMORE, William SAVAGE & William WARD, distributors.
Page 173 -- 4 Aug 1722: Dist. exhibited & accepted. Solomon COIT appealed from the judgement of this Court to the Superior Court.
Page 10 (Vol. X) -- 22 Mar 1723: This Court direct the Adms. to sell some more land for the payment of debts.