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NOTE:- Letters of Administration: When a person died intestate [i.e. leaving no will] the next of kin or a close friend would often have to apply to the probate court for Letters of Administration to enable them to take possession of and distribute the estate. The applicant had to swear that there was no will, that the applicant would pay all funeral expenses and debts, administer truly, and submit a true inventory and account of his/her stewardship. The Court then granted Letters of Administration and might require the administrator to enter into a bond to administer the estate faithfully, in which case a copy of the act was endorsed on the document. A Bond is a binding agreement with a penalty for non performance. A bond deed is in two parts, the Obligation and the Condition. Before 1733 the Obligation, which records the penalty, was written in Latin. The Condition describes what the bonded person has undertaken to do, or otherwise committed himself or herself to (e.g. administer an estate), and was always in English. This is clearly what we have here. My Latin is not good enough to do a proper translation of the first paragraph so I have confined myself to a summary of key facts to help make sense of the document. As with the great majority of seventeenth century records the document is written in Secretary hand which takes some getting used to and I have used the “Dictionary of Genealogy by Terrick VH Fitzhugh as my guide. As with medieval Latin some words are abbreviated. I have done the best I can with the translation adding some punctuation to help with clarity but would welcome a full translation by someone versed in Mediaeval Latin & Secretary Hand. I am the OPC for the Parish of Fordington and can be contacted in the usual way through the OPC site. words I am unsure of are highlighted in red |
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Latin Key facts: ---Thoma (Thomas) WYAT Prebendary of Fordington ---12th November in the year of Our Lord 1668 in the reign of Charles II King of England ---
Then the said obligation to be void or else to remain
in full force & virtue. An Inventory of the goods chattels and household stuff of Thomas FORD late of Fordington deceased, appraised by John LEVETT and Henry HOLMAN the Sixth day of October in the year of Our Lord 1668 as follows:- In the First Place: one tableboard; two joined stools; two chargers; two little forms and one trenchercage appraised at £0. 5s. 6d Item: two brass vats one iron pot, one old kettle and one little old tablel £0. 13s. 4d Item: one standing bedstead, one truckle bedstead, one chest, one box, one trunke, and one old cubbord appraised at £0. 12s. 0d Item: one old featherbed, one old flucke bed, one feather bolster, one fluke bolster, one feather pillow, one rug, one coverled, one pair of blankets, two pair of sheets, one tableborde; five napkins and two pillowties praised at £1 9s. 6d Itm: Two pewter platters, three pewter pottingers, one pewter plate, one brass morter with an iron pistle and one brass candlestick. (appraised at) £0. 5s. 10d Itm: Two hanging crooks, one spit, one pair of tongs one iron bar And one frying pan appraised at £0. 2s 6d Itm: three broad looms with sleas harness
An Inventory of the goods Chattoles and housholdstuff of Thomas FFORD late of ffordington deceased praised by John LEUETT and Henry HOLMAN ye Syith day of october Anno Dm 1668 as ffolloweth Impremis one tablebord; two Joyned stooles; two Chargers; Two little forms and one Trenchercage praised att vs vid Itm: two brass vats one Jron pott, one old kittle and one little old tabell xiijs iiijd Itm: one standing bedstead, one truggle bedstead, one chest, one box, one trunke, and one old cubbord praised att xijs Itm: one old ffetherbed, one old ffluckbed, one ffather bolster, one ffluk bolster, one ffeather pillow, one rugg, one Coverled, one payre of blankets two payre of sheetes, one tableborde; five napkins and two pillowties praised att jl ixs vid Itm: Two pewter platers, three pewter pottingers, one pewter plate, one brass Morter wth an Iron pistle and one brass Candlestick. vs xd Itm: Two hanging Crookes, one spitt, one paire of tongs one Iron bar And one ffrying pan praised att ijs vid Itm: three broade Loomes wth sles harniss and their things; there unto belonging praised att ijl vis viijd Itm: one hogg, And two troughs praised att xiijs iiijd Itm: Sum lumber wth wood & turfes praised att vis iiijd Itm: His wearing apparrell praised att jl vis viijd Itm: one Cottage or dwellinghouse backside and garden wth one Little Close of pasture ground thereunto belonging, as by leese granted unto the said Thoms FFORD under the hand and seale of Andrew ELLRICK gent att large it doth & may appear praised att vl Sum is xiijl. js. viijd John LEUETT: Hen: HOLMAN [Note:- Short entry in Latin - Rough translation:- ] --this Inventory was (approved?) at Fordington 12th day in the month of November 1668 Genealogical Notes:- (1). The feast day of St Thomas the Apostle was held on 21st December each year (2). Transcribed from CLDS film but Wintshire archives have as Administration Bond & inventory 1668 for Thomas Ford Ref 12: P15/12 & att Salisbury Probate Court SPC A. 16681. (3). I Cannot trace the burial of Thomas Ford and the main reason for this is because the registers for the year 1668 are missing. Alice is clearly being appointed Administrix of his estate and if I have read the date correctly this was granted on 12th day of Nov 1668 but with an Inventory taken earlier on 6th October. So he presumably died between the start of the year when the register is missing which was on 25th March and 6th October. Alice appears to have died in 1681 as the Wiltshire Archives have her Will with another inventory under ref P/15/56 (4). Link to article in Dorset Ancestors about weaving and the Act of 1666 for everyone to be buried in woollen. |