Will of Grace Sellwood of Cullompton, Devon, spinster

Proved 26 December 1848

© Crown Copyright

National Archives Catalogue Reference PROB 11/2085/189,
Records of the Prerogative Court of Canterbury  Volume number 19  Quire Numbers 901 – 936 

Transcribed by  Art Ames

In consequence of my sister Jane making me a deed of gift during her lifetime it is my will that should it please God to take me before her that she shall have from the date hereof receive her annuity of £60 per year during her life or in any other way that her father’s Will directs 
And also that she shall have it in her power to give to whom she will at her death the £400 given by her father's Will
And I also give her for her life in the interest of the £400 given to me by my father and to be disposed of at my death during her natural life and also all the furniture in the house 
I also give her £150 in cash to do with whatever she likes and 6 months after my decease I wish the malthouse with the malt etc. to be disposed of and all book debts and cash at the bank to be collected and to be divided as follows equally one share to my brother Daniel one go to my brother Charles's daughter  Ann Selwood one to my sister Upcott or in case of her death to her daughter Elizabeth one to my sister Ann Underhay and one also to my niece Mary Cosway with the addition of the £400 at the death of my sister Jane 
And also the furniture to be sold after the death of the above named sister Jane and all to be as before stated actually divided between my brother Daniel my brother Charles’s daughter and my sister Upcott or her daughter my sister Ann Underhay and Mary Cosway my niece 
And I trust my much esteemed nephew John Upcott will see this Will of mine executed as hearing expressed dated October 18th 1834 
Signed in the presence of and witnessed by Elizabeth Upcott Jane Membery

As I fear I have not stated sufficiently in the above as respects to the residuary property I further declare that it is also my will that my sister Jane shall also have the residuary property left her by her father's Will in the same manner as she would have been entitled to had she not made a deed of gift 
And that neither that nor the above mentioned £150 given by me shall be used for the benefit of her husband John Norcross from no ill will to him but from the fear that in her old age should it please God to prolong her life she might want it herself signed Grace Selwood

Prerogative in the goods of Grace Sellwood spinster deceased 
Appeared personally John Samuel Upcott of Cullompton in the county of Devon merchant Jane Rowland wife of Robert Rowland of Cullompton in the said county of Devon Carpenter before her marriage Jane Membery William Gabriel of Cullompton aforesaid surgeon and Philip Moor of the same place a lieutenant in Her Majesty's Royal Navy and jointly and severally under oath as follows 
And first the said John Samuel Upcott for himself made oath that he is the nephew and the executor according to the tenor of the last Will and Testament with a Codicil thereto of Grace Sellwood late of Cullompton aforesaid spinster deceased and which said Will bearing date the eighteenth day of October one thousand eight hundred and thirty four as also the said Codicil but without any date or witness thereto written on one and the same paper are now hereto annexed 
And this deponent further made oath that the said testatrix died on the fourth day of October last and shortly after that to wit on the 5th day of the same month this deponent with other near relatives of the said deceased met at her late residence at Cullompton in order to search whether she has left any Will or Testamentary disposition of her property and in the prosecution of such search they found the very Will and Codicil before said in a private box amongst her deeds and private papers of moment and concern at which time this deponent took possession of the said Will andCodicil both been in the testator's handwriting and as aforesaid written on one paper and he then particularly noticed that such Codicil was without any date or attesting witness thereto 
And he further made oath that he have made strict inquiries of the various relations of the said testatrix to ascertain whether she had stated to any or either of them that she had made her Will or Codicil thereto in order therefrom to discover if possible what when she wrote the said Codicil and this deponent finds that she mentioned having made her Will but did not refer to or mention anything respecting any Codicil and this deponent further saith she did not at any time mention the subject of her having made her Will or Codicil to him this deponent and with reference to the time of writing the said Codicil this deponent saith the bequest contained to Jane Norcross her sister is therefore is thereby directed by the said testatrix to be for her said sister and not to be used for the benefit of her husband John Norcross but from no ill will towards him only that in her old age she might want it herself and this deponent further saith that John Norcross mentioned in the said Codicil as then died on the tenth day of April one thousand eight hundred and thirty seven at Dawlish in the county of Devon with which fact the said testatrix was fully acquainted 
And as he this deponent therefore verily and in his conscience believes that the said Codicil must have been written prior to the said tenth day of April one thousand eight hundred and thirty seven but when more particularly this deponent is unable to ascertain or set forth except from the character of the note and the writing from both when of he verily believes it to have been written about the same time when she executed her said Will 
And lastly made oath that he hath made search to ascertain whether the said testatrix made any other Will or testamentary disposition than her Will and Codicil aforesaid but that he hath not been able to find any and verily and in his conscience believes there are none other in existence 
And the said Jane Rowland lately Jane Membery as aforesaid for herself made oath that she is the surviving subscribing witness to the last Will and Testament of the said deceased hereto annexed and bearing date as aforesaid and that she have carefully inspected the said Codicil written on the same paper as the Will such Codicil being without date or witness thereto but when such Codicil was written by the testatrix is unknown to this deponent say that she verily and in her conscience believes it was so done prior to the month of April one thousand eight hundred and thirty seven such being the time when John Norcross (mentioned in the same Codicil) died 
And the said William Gabriel and Philip Moore for themselves made oath that they knew and were well acquainted with the said testatrix for several years previous and to the time of her death during which they've often seen her write and write and subscribe her name to writings whereby they have become well acquainted with her manner and character of handwriting and subscription and having now carefully viewed and perused the said Codicil hereto annexed beginning “As I fear I have not stated sufficiently in the above writing this” she might want it herself signed and thus subscribed Grace Seward they say they verily and in their consciences believe that the whole body series and contents of the said Codicil and the subscription thereto set and subscribed to be of the proper handwriting and subscription of the said testatrix

John Samuel Upcot Jane Rowland Wm Gabriel Philip Moor

On the nineteenth day of December one thousand eight hundred and forty eight the said Samuel Upcott Jane Rowland William Gabriel and Philip Moor were duly sworn to the truth of this affidavit before me Wm Sykes officiating Minister of Cullompton Commissioner

Proved in London with a Codicil 26th of December 1848 before the Judge by the oath of John Samuel in the Will written John Upcott the nephew the executor attesting to the tenor to whom admor was granted having been first sworn by comon duly to administer