Will: William Lee Sr. (1820)

Will of William Lee Senior
Prince William County Will Book L, pg. 343

I William Lee Senr. do hereby make my last will and testament in manner and form following that is to say:

1st. I desire that all my estate or property after my decease, my just debts & funeral expences being paid, shall remain in the hands of my beloved wife Mary Lee & her to be in full possession & enjoyment of the same during her natural life.

2nd. To my son Wm. Lee I give & bequeath a cow & calf at the death of my wife to come into his possession.

3rd. To my Daughter Nancy I give in like manner one heifer to be hers at my wifes decease.

4th. To my son Henry I give & bequeath a bed which now goes by the name of his to fall to him in like manner at my wifes decease. 

5. To my two Daughters Elizabeth & Wilhelmina I give & bequeath all the remaining property over which I now have controul after my just debts & funeral expenses are paid and the above Items are fulfilld after my wifes decease.

And lastly I do hereby constitute & appoint my friends Col. Gerard Alexander Sr. & Major Charles Ewell senr. executors of this my last will and testament hereby revoking all other or former wills or testaments by me heretofore made. In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand & affixed my seal this 24th day of June in the year of our Lord One Thousand and eight hundred & twenty.

Wm. Lee Senr. [X his mark] {seal}

Signed sealed published & declard as & for the last will & testament of the above namd. Wm. Lee Senr. in presence of us.

Wm. P. Dunnington
John W. Petty

At a Court of Quarterly Sessions Contd. and held for Prince Wm. County Augt. 9th 1820. This last will and testament of Wm. Lee Senr. decd. was presented to the Court and being proved by the oaths of Wm. P. Dunnington & Jno. W. Petty is ordered to be recorded.

Teste, Phil D. Dawe   Ct. Cur. 

PWCo Item: Letter from Brentsville (19 May 1875)

 Alexandria Gazette
19 May 1875

Letter from Brentsville
[Correspondence of the Alexandria Gazette]

BRENTSVILLE, May 17, 1875 -- The people of our county, for the last two or three weeks, have been considerably agitated over the claims of the many individuals who are willing to sacrifice themselves for the sake of serving the county for the next three or four years, but the agony is over and once more local excitement is subdued and everybody is now busy planting corn and praying for rain. A primary election was held for the benefit of the several aspirants, and in all respects was satisfactory in eliciting an expression of the will of the people. Prince William has about one thousand Conservatives, but at the election, held on the second Saturday in this month, only about nine hundred and fifty votes were cast, and as far as your correspondent can learn, all the candidates, both victors and vanquished, were satisfied, with the exception of one of the nominees who has raised the black flag and decries all who voted for his opponents, and proclaims them as enemies to himself and the public.

Our Circuit Court convened on the 10th. There were no criminals to be tried. The grand jury found a true bill against R. G. Troth, colored, for an attempt to burn the barn of Wm. H. Dogan. The court certified the case to the County Court for trial, the law providing that misdemeanors shall be tried in the County Court. On the chancery side of the court a large number of decrees were entered and some cases disposed of finally. On the common law side more issues were decided than at any previous term of the court for several years past. The bar was well represented, Alexandria and Fauquier putting in a very creditable appearance.

An old lady, named Mrs. Davis, died near Independent Hill this morning at the advanced age of eighty-four.

Sunday's Obituary: Mary Cleary

 Alexandria Gazette (Va)
6 May 1845

In Washington, on Saturday morning, the 3d instant, at the residence of her daughter Mrs. Mary Ann Spalding, in the 68th year of her age, Mrs. MARY CLEARY, relict of the late Michael Cleary, Esq., of Occoquan, Virginia.

Newspaper Tidbit: Letter of Appreciation

 Manassas Journal (Va)
14 April 1932

LETTER OF APPRECIATION

Editor, Manassas Journal,
Manassas, Virginia.

Dear Sir:

I wish by this method to express the appreciation of myself individually, and on behalf of Virginia Forest Fire Service, for the very valuable assistance extended this department by the Aviation Corp., at Quantico, by reason of reporting its observance of fires which could not be discovered where proper officers could give prompt relief.

Too often we criticize the various department of the National and State Government and fail to appreciate and give credit for the service they render our community; and I adopt this means of expressing publicly the appreciation of the department and of the undersigned.

J. M. RUSSELL
Chief Fire Warden,
Prince William Co.

Sunday's Obituary: Virginia Cole Leary

 Richmond Times Dispatch (VA)
7 July 1909

Mrs. Virginia Leary
[Special to the Times-Dispatch]

FREDERICKSBURG, VA., July 6 -- Mrs. Virginia Leary, widow of Dr. W. B. Leary, of Quantico, died suddenly at her home Sunday.  She was a sister of Colonel E. D. Cole and Mrs. W. N. Tansill, of this city.

[Mary Virginia Cole, daughter of Horace Cole and Martha A. Taylor, was born in Prince William County 23 October 1841.  She married Dr. William Barry Leary and is buried with him in the Leary Family Cemetery in PWCo. ~ cgl]

School Record Saturday: Manassas Schools Begin Music Study

 Evening Star (Washington, DC)
4 July 1930

MANASSAS SCHOOLS BEGIN MUSIC STUDY

Miss Virginia Speiden Appointed Director, with Singing and Chorus Work Planned

Special Dispatch to the Star

MANASSAS, Va., July 4.--With the appointment yesterday by the school board of Miss Virginia Nelson Spieden to the newly created office of director of music in the Manassas schools, the plans for training graded school children in singing and high school girls in chorus work will be brought to fruition in September.

Miss Spieden is a graduate of Manassas High School, the Temple School of Music here, has studied under private instructors and was an honor graduate in music at Hollins College, Roanoke.

The honor of placing music in the local schools belongs to the chorus section of the Manassas Women's Club, as the school officials, though favoring the project, had no funds available for the purpose. The chorus section of the Woman's Club was organized last year by Mrs. R. S. Illingworth, and under her direction the chorus came to be the outstanding musical organization in Prince William County. Through a series of concerts given from time to time here and at other points in the county sufficient funds have been realized and turned over to the school board to finance the school music for the school term of 1930-31.

PWCo Item: Letter from Prince William (11 February 1870)

Alexandria Gazette (Va)
11 February 1870 (pg. 2)

LETTER FROM PRINCE WILLIAM
[Correspondence of the Alexandria Gazette]

BRENTSVILLE, Feb. 9 -- The February term of Prince William County Court was held yesterday and day before. There was a pretty general attendance of people.

Judge J. W. Moore delivered an address on the issues of the day. W. C. Balch, esq. and Judge Sinclair also spoke. I heard that after the above gentlemen finished, two Conservative colored men spoke.

The following cases were tried:

Com. vs. Hoor, assault and battery -- verdict not guilty. Clark & Gen. Payne for defendant.

Com. vs. Beender, (colored) petit larceny -- verdict guilty and imprisoned 30 days. Clark for defendant.

William Fuell a colored man, sentenced six months ago to 9 months imprisonment in the county jail, was released.

An effort was made by Round, Commonwealth's Attorney, to get the Court to release Franklin Taylor from jail. He is confined in default of giving $1000 bond to keep the peace. This is a novel move for a Commonwealth's Attorney, especially as Taylor has, it was said, threatened boldly and openly to burn all the property that two gentlemen in the county own, and to kill then too, in less than twelve months. The Court very creditably refused to entertain such a motion.

The two men, Henderson and Nelson who are confined on charge of having entered and robbed the store of Davis & Lynn in this county, made a desperate attempt a few nights ago to break jail by prizing the bars out of the jail window, working through the side which was decayed, and pulling out the bricks with their bands. The noise was heard, however, by W. N. Tansill the jailor, and the progress of it arrested.

Mr. Tansill then ironed them, and Henderson with his naked hands snapped one of the chains entirely in two pieces.

They have since been ironed more securely. Henderson was married on Tuesday -- made arrangements on that day to rob the store -- robbed it on Friday night, and was arrested in a day or two afterwards in the presence of his wife, and a large portion of the goods were found opened on the bed near him. His wife who is of respectable parentage and possess some beauty is, greatly horrified at the conduct of her husband, as I learn.

Candidates for office are thick as "leaves in Vallombrosa." One gentleman last Monday I understand was so full of speech that the chairman of the meeting found great difficulty in inducing him to simmer down and let of steam without going through the process of a general explosion, while another in his great eagerness to speak suffered his coat tails to be nearly torn from his body in spasmodic efforts to bring him to a sitting position.

There will be a general convention held here next Saturday week, the 19th inst., to consider county matters, make nominations &c.

TYRONE.

Friend of Friends Friday: Emancipation: Hector Ross to Negro Dick

Emancipation:  Hector Ross to Negro Dick
PWCo Deed Book 1, pg. 2
6 January 1800

To all persons to whom these presents shall come I Hector Ross of the Town of Dumfries County of Prince William and Commonwealth of Virginia send Greeting:

WHEREAS William Templeman Esquire now deceased did in and by his last will and testament of record in the General Court of Virginia dated in or about the year of our Lord One thousand seven hundred and seventy three did devise unto me a negroe boy named Dick who hath now arrived at the age of about forty years Now know ye that for and in consideration of the faithfull services which the said Negroe Dick hath rendered me and in pursuance of the intention of the said Testator as expressed in the said Will I do hereby emancipate and set free the said Negroe named Dick for ever. And I the said Hector Ross do for myself my heirs Exors and Administrators do hereby covenant and grand to and with the said Negroeman Dick that he shall for ever hereafter remain free and emancipate from my claim and from all and every other person and persons claiming or to claim by from or under me which Emancipation is made by m in in pursuance and by virtue of an act of Assembly in force and in such cases made and provided In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand & seal this sixth day of January 1800.

H. Ross {seal}

Sealed & delivered in presence of }

At a Court held for Prince William County the 6th day of January 1800.

This deed of Emancipation from Hector Ross to Negro Dick was acknowledged by said Ross and admitted to record.

Teste
John Williams  Ct Cur.

Newspaper Tidbit: With the Rambler - Bel Air

Evening Star (Washington, DC)
29 March 1925

Rambler Makes New Visit to Bel Air,
Once Home of General Ewell's Ancestors

Sunday's Obituary: James Howison

Alexandria Gazette (VA)
2 June 1874

DIED.

At his residence, in Prince William county, of pneumonia, on Monday, the 18th of May, 1874, JAMES HOWISON, in the 70th year of his age.  He was an honest man, a kind friend and a good neighbor.  He leaves a large number of relations and friends to mourn their loss. --

[Baltimore, Washington and Fredericksburg papers please copy.]

[James Howison was born 3 July 1804 and is buried in the cemetery at Effingham.  --cgl]

Newspaper Tidbit: With the Rambler -- Brentsville

If you haven't checked out the Library of Congress's online newspaper archive, Chronicling America, it's definitely worth the time.  (And it's free!)


Evening Star (Washington, DC)
2 January 1916

PWCo Items: Court Day -- 14 May 1870

Alexandria Gazette (Va)
14 May 1870

LETTER FROM PRINCE WILLIAM CO.
[Correspondence of the Alexandria Gazette]

The May term of the Circuit Court for this county was held this week ending yesterday evening, under Judge Keith.

R. A. Sinclair and John Camper qualified as deputies under L. C. Osmun clerk.

The grand jury found an indictment against Sydney Cross for assault and battery.

In the case of the Commonwealth vs. Manly which has been pending for about two yeas, a demurrer to the indictment was sustained.  Clark and Hunton for prosecution, Payne and Sinclair for defence.

Com. v. James Javins -- assault with intent to kill -- verdict not guilty.  Clark for prosecution, Sinclair for defendant.

Judge J. W. Moore and Albert Stuart, esq., qualified as Attorneys in this court.

Carpenter and O'Brien vs. John Naglee and Teasdale, on attachment bond -- verdict for plaintiff for $500 damages. Payne and Sinclair for plaintiff, Hunton for defence.

John W. Davis benefit of W. G. Brawner's administrator, vs. A. Patterson -- verdict for defendant for $119, which interest from 9th April 1865. Hunton for plaintiff, Clark for defendant.

A number of decrees were entered and much other chancery business was attended to.

In the celebrated chancery case of Cormey vs. Taylor, involving the title to the "Missouri mills" property in this county, the Court appointed Benjamin S. West, esq., of Stafford county, a receiver, and recommitted the papers to the Commissioner.

Franklin Taylor confined in jail in default of giving security to keep the peace in a bond of $1,000, was brought before the Court on a writ of habeas corpus, and the matter being argued by Judge Sinclair for the petitioner, and Clark for the State, the party was remanded to jail. Gen. Payne has been employed to assist the Commonwealth's Attorney.

Lawrence Cole, esq., who lost his horse recently has heard nothing of the thief and it is feared tha the will escape with the property.  The horse was tracked towards Gainesville.

The Court House lot will be enclosed before the next term of the County Court.

The rainy weather recently has delayed the farmers greatly in getting in their crops.

The country is beginning to look very pretty, vegetation is coming up and the trees are commencing to spread their green foliage in lively contrast with their dreary appearance during the winter.

TYRONE.

Brentsville, Va., May 13, 1870