Joseph Melson

F:382
JOSEPH MELSON 02/22/1808 12/05/1809 "being sick and weak in Body . . ." Bequeaths to:
1. John Melson -son; to have the four following tracts of land "Cruelty" "Safety" "Melson's Folly" and "Savannah Swamp" and to have them until the testator's 4 grandsons, Daniel Melson, John Melson, William Melson, and Benjamin Melson respectively come of age 21 and then the same to be divided equally between them to have the 2 part of the saw and grist mill whereon the testator now lives with 2 of the stream, plank and stock yard and all the land lying on the west side of the mill pond and between the said pond and branch and an old road that leads from Thomas Johnson's to the place where Sarah Gibbons formerly lived and adjoining the lands of Manacen Bull, William Anderson, Joseph Copes and Thomas Johnson and all the land that lies between the two mill branches to the southward of a line drawn from a marked hickory standing near the tail of the saw mill south . . .with the testator's lane until it intersects the 2nd line of a piece of land laid off at the west end of the testator's little mill dam and will hereafter be devised to Priscilla Pusey thence. . .to the beginning; to have all the testator's wearing apparel; named executor with Ruah Pusey and instructed to sell all the lands which the testator purchased from Thomas Skinner with the saw mill and stream and all the testator's houses and lots in the Town of Laurel
2. Joseph Melson -grandson; to have the 2 of the saw and grist mill whereon the testator now lives and 2 of the stream, plank and stock yard and also all the land that lies between the testator's 2 mill ponds beginning at a marked pine standing at the north corner of a tract of land called "Jones's Neck" and thence. . .to the beginning
3. Priscilla Pusey -daughter; to have the testator's little saw mill and stream and as much land at the west end of the dam as is contained in the following courses, beginning at a marked pine standing a little below the dam near the edge of the branch and thence. . .to the beginning and also to have all the land that lies to the westward of the little pond that is included in the following meets and bounds beginning at a marked red oak standing near the edge of a branch and at the end of the 2nd line of the land devised to testator's grandson Joseph and thence. . .to the 1^st bounder of a tract of land called "Conclusion to Hickory Ridge" and thence. . .to the beginning; to have all of the testator's ;and lying on the south side of the mill pond between the said and the lands of Jacob Stockley, Jacob Cannon, Phillip Matthews, and the lines of the land the testator purchased at the sheriff's sale that was sold as the property of Henry Wingate for the term of her natural life; to have Negro man "George" for the term of 2 years and at the end of that time to be free
4. Joseph Pusey, John Pusey, Puah Pusey -grandsons; at the death of their mother to have the lands left her for her natural life; Joseph to have Negro boy "Sam."
5. Polly Rodney -daughter; to have all the lands that the testator purchased at the sheriff's sale that was sole for Henry Wingate to have for her natural life;
6. testator's 5 children to have all of the personal estate to be divided among them along with all the remainder and residue of the estate both real and personal
6. John Rodney, George Rodney, Daniel Rodney -grandsons; at the death of their mother to have the lands left her for her natural life to be divided equally between them
7. Lovey Harris -daughter; to have the testator's houses and lots in George Town and also the land to the northward of an old road leading from Thomas Johnson's to the place where Sarah Gibbons formerly lived and between the said road and the county road leading from Broad Creek Bridge to Lewes Town and adjoining lands of Joseph Copes, Edmund Hitchens, Sr. and to have for the term of her natural life; to have Negro man "Sam" and Negro man "Mingo"
8. Joseph Harris -grandson; at the death of his mother to have the lands left her for her natural life
9. Hannah Russel -daughter; to have 150 acres of land for which the testator gave her his alienation or conveyance
bond to her and also 150 acres of land to be laid off to her out of the testator's land at the south west end of the land mentioned in the bond adjoining the same and adjoining to the land that Jacob Cannon purchased from William Johnson --to have for her natural life
10. Joseph Sharp, John Sharp, Nathaniel Jones -grandsons; at the death of testator's daughter Hannah, to have the lands left her to be divided equally between them
11. Stephen Melson -grandson; to have all the part of a tract of land called "Third Choice" that is not already given to the testator's son John Melson and also all that tract of land called "Gibralter" which was granted to the testator by patent
12. John Melson --nephew (son of brother Jesse); to have all that land that lies between a branch that leads to the mill pond where the testator now lives and between the division line that divides the land of Thomas Johnson from that of the testator and a division line between Peter Hitchens and the testator and to the westward of 2 lines drawn from the end of the 5th line of a tract of land called "Melson's Folly" thence north . . .to a marked red oak standing at the edge of the aforesaid branch
13. Hannah Betts Holland --granddaughter (daughter of son John), Priscilla Melson --granddaughter (daughter of son John), Polly Rodney --granddaughter (daughter of William Rodney), Nelly Pusey & Betsy Pusey granddaughters Polly Pusey -granddaughter daughters of Puah Pusey, Betsy Harris -granddaughter, Kitty Harris --granddaughter Priscilla Harris -granddaughter daughters of Abraham Harris, Nancy Cannon --granddaughter (daughter of Hannah Russell); money from the sale of the lands above mentioned to be divided among them.
14. Ann Bryan --that now lives with the testator; to have 1 good bed and furn., 1 cow and calf
15. Negroes; old Negro man "Thomas" and Negro women "Sylvia" and "Peggy" are to be free
Witnesses: William Jones, Jonathan Downing, William B. Cooper
Then came: William B. Cooper and Jonathan Downing
Note: the testator signed the will in his own hand

Joseph married Elizabeth Creighton. (Elizabeth Creighton died before 1808 in Sussex Co., DE.)