Office copy, Essex Record Office reference D/ABR 9/243
In the Name of God Amen I John Alfounder of Dedham in the County of Essex being in good & sound memory praysed be god yt considering the frailty of life do make and ordaine this my last will and testament in manñer following Impi~mis I bequeath my soul into ye handes of god my Mercifull Creator & redeemer trusting pfectly through the alone satisfacõn of Jesus Christ my Saviour to obtain mercy and pardon and Salvacõn And my body to be buried at the disrecoñ of my Executor. And for my estate and goods and Chattells I dispose as followeth Imp. I give vnto my son Robert Alfounder and his heires all that my house wherin I now live called by the name of Crowch house with all the lands and appts whatsoever thereto belonging now in my owne occupacõn Excepting my lands called Bucks and Wools and my pte in great Lord Bridge meadowe Item I will and bequeath all my landes called Bucks & Bucks and Wools holden of Both Mannors & also my pte in great Lord Bridge meadowe containing two acres more or lesse & also my houses & landes thereto belonginge lying in Northsheal late in the occupacõn of Richard Fisher & now in my owne occupacõn I bequeath them all to be sould by my Exes and my sonne Charles Crouch, and my loving Neighbours John Hudson and Wm Barker or by any two of them one of my Executors being one at the best price they can & in as conveniail time as they can and the monyes thereof to be towards the payment of my Debts & legacies Item I doe bequeath all my houses and lands being in Thorpe in the Soken & now in the occupacõn of Thomas Pates or his assignes to be likewise Sold by the pties abovenamed or any two of them towards the payment of my debts as soon as conveniently they can Item I give & bequeath vnto my son Matthew Alfounder all my houses & lands in Dedham near Jopes Hill now in the occupacõn of Kennett Cleer & Wm Cross wth all the appts to them belonging I give them all to my said son Matthew & his heirs forever Item my will and meaning is that if my said son Robert desires to have any of the lands called Bucks & Wools & Lord bridge meadow or my house and land in Northsheel that he shall have them for his money before any other Item I give and bequeath vnto my daughter Mary Crouch the sume of fifty pounds of mony to be paid to her or her husband within one yeare after my decease if monies can be raised so soone besides my debts paid Item I give & bequeath vnto my son Matthew Alfounder my bedstead and bedds all the furniture thereto belonginge wch standeth vpon my little parler Chamber where he now lodgeth & also the table & all other houshold vpon the sd~ Chamber to him and his heirs forever Item I give vnto my two sonns Robert and Matthew Alfounder to each of them one peece of gold of thirty three shillings & more which are in my little trunk in my closett for a remembrance of me Item I give and bequeath all the rest of my household stuffes goods and chattells to be sold towards the payment of my debts and legacies and if any remaine over and above of them and of the mony of my lands bequeathed to be sold I will it shall be pted between my two said sonnes Item I give vnto my daughter Crowches four children to each of them fourty shillings a peece at theire ages of eighteen yeares and if any of them dy before their ptes to be divided among the Survivors Item I give unto my Son Woodthorps three children forty shillings apeece in the same manner as my daughter Crowches & at the same ages Item I give vnto Mr John Lander Minister of Dedham & to Mr Edmund Sherman Schoolmaster of Dedham to either of them fourty shillings a peece to be pd~ within one year after my decease Item my will is that if there be any overplus my debts and legacies being paid that my Executors shall give to my sonne John Alfounder twenty pounds if he be living & that they judge it convenient for I leave it to their discrec~ns to do as they think best Item I make & ordaine this to be my last will and testament being written with my own hand & do revoke all other wills formerly by me made And I do constitute & appoint my two sons Robert Alfounder & Matthew Alfounder to be Executors of this my sd~ last will & testament and if my son Robert by reason of his far distance bee not willing to intermeddle wth it then I appoint my son Matthew Sole Ex~ And I devise my son Crowch to advise & counsell him & help him what he can in it & I give him for his paines forty shillings In witnesse hereof to this my said Will I have set to my hand and seale this Eighteenth day of March in the yeare of our Lord one thousand six hundred seventy two John Alfounder Sealed and delivered in the ps~ence of vs Edmund Sherman Martha Owen her marke./
Probatum fuit hoc lestum apud Colce~ster decimanous die Apris Anno Dñi 1673 cor~ Will~a Oldys su~i &c justo Exers in eod~ ndiat Qui &c de bene &c juiat &c Salvo &c
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Transcribed by Peter Alefounder 1994 |
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