Will of John Packwood Jennings of Demerara
transcribed by
Karen Arp / June 2008

Note: items in [brackets] are mostly illegible in the original and are 'best guess'. Totally illegible words in the original appear here as [?].

On this day the 1st November 1823 Before me Thomas [E] Bagot  Senior Clerk of the Secretary's Office of this Colony as such [operating] as a Notary public and in presence of the [aftermentioned] witnesses personally appeared J.P. Jennings of this Colony being sick in body but appears to me in perfect Mind and Memory who declared that he was desirous of making his last Will and Testament hereby [revoking] and [canceling] all former Wills & [Codicils] made by him [Previous]. [1st] desires to leave and bequeath the sum of one thousand Guilders to Wife [Tomlise] living at present at Mr Anthony Osborns to her and her heirs.  Secondly, the Girl Margaret the property of Testator to be made free.  3rdly [he] leaves and bequeathes the Sum of fifteen [?][say] 330 to the [driver][Henry] the property of the Testator and the same sum to his wife Isabella the [sick][nurse].  4thly He leaves and bequeathes to to Anthony Osborne Esq all his the Testators [plate] that he may be [possessed] of.  5thly he [desires] to leave and bequeath unto his Brother in law John Murray of Glasgow and to Anne Murray his wife born Jennings jointly between them all the Residue and Remainder of his property wherever [situated] to them & their heirs and to the survivor of of them further requesting them to [continue] to his Testator's brother Joseph Clayton Jennings the Sum of two hundred pounds Sterling per Annum from his the Testators property in the West Indies as long as such property [continue] of value for his the said J.C. Jennings lifetime and further requesting and making it his particular and last desire to his above mentioned Brother and Sister John & Anne Murray that they do take into their charge and [house] and bringing up in whatever manner they may think fit [also] the Testator's two Children John and Eliza (children of the Girl Betsey) having the most confidence and reliance in their kindness in this Business and to that they will will do for them the said Children in the manner as he the Testator would do himself.  Lastly he declares to [nomimate] [?] and appoint as his sole Executor John Murray of Glasgow his aforsaid Brother in Law giving and granting to him full power of [?] [assumption] & [?] but further appointing pro [tempore] Anthony Osborn Esq as his agent in this Colony until such time as the Executor aforsaid may think it to alter this Arrangement.  I, the said sworn Clerk having read over the [foregoing] to the Testator declared it to [contain] his last Will and Testament.  [This] [Day] in [?] aforesaid [?] in presence of [H]Rankins, [J][Morson].  
Signed J.P. Jennings [?] Attestor.  
Signed H. Rankin, J Morson.  
Signed Thos Bagot, Sr Clk & Noty Public.  
A [?] copy - [?] Attestor [Wm][Heinrous], Deputy Secretary.

 
In the [perogative] Court of [Canterbury]
In the [Case] of John Packwood Jennings deceased

Appeared personally John Murray of the City of Glasgow [Esq][made][case] that John Packwood Jenning late of Demerary in the West Indies [Merchant] departed this life in the Month of November One thousand eight hundred and twenty three at [Demarary] aforesaid having whilst living made and duly [certified] his last Will and Testament in writing bearing date the first day of November One thousand eight hundred and twenty three and [therein] named him the [Informant] sole Executor and the Informant further made Oath that on or about the fifth day of January one thousand eight hundred and twenty four he received a letter in the General post from Anthony Osborn Esquire [sent][from] [Demerary] the [1st] November 1823 inclosing a copy of the aforesaid last Will and Testament of the said Deceased which said copy is [hereunto] [?] marked with the [Letter] A.  And he further [maintainth] that he [verily] and in his [conscience] believes that there is not in this Country any more authentic copy of the aforesaid Will of the said [Deceased] than the said Copy [received] by him as aforesaid now [hereunto] [?].  And he lastly [?] [saith] that it is [?] in order to prevent any Examination of the present Estate, and Effects of the said Deceased and for the general preservation thereof but now officially for the purpose of receiving certain Sums of Money now [due] on [?] to assure [?] to such Estate [?] certain Claims which the [deceased] had upon the [?] Government that a probate of the aforesaid Copy of the said Will limited until a more authentic Copy of the said will shall be brought into and left in the [Registry] of this Court should it be granted to him the Appearor without waiting the Arrival in this Country of a more Authentic Copy of the said last Will and Testament of the said deceased which is now deposited in the Secretary's Office upon [Record] in the [Registry] of the [Courts] of probate in Demerary aforesaid.   Jno Murray.

On the [twenty ninth] Day of August [1827] the said John Murray was duly sworn to the truth of this [applicant] at [Dunblairn] before the Sheriff [?] for the Western District of Perthshire By me Geo Bailie Sheriff.

PROVED at London 30th August 1827 before the Judge by the oath of John Murray the sole [Executor] to whom [Admin] was granted limited unto the original Will or a more authentic Copy of the [will] shall be brought into and left in the Registry of this Court  but is further or otherwise [?] [?] down by [?] duly to administer. 

Will of John Packwood Jennings
Notes and Observations

1.	Anthony Osborne was a 1st cousin to John Packwood Jennings. Anthony's mother, Mary Packwood Osborne, and John's mother, Elizabeth Packwood Burrows Jennings, were sisters.
	
2.	'the Girl Betsey', mother of John's children, was probably a slave.  Note similarity in phrasing to 'the Girl Margaret' (an identified slave) and the lack of a surname (which would have been expected if she were a servant).  Since John Packwood Jennings freed Margaret but not Betsey, it is possible/probable that Betsey died before 1823 when the will was written.
	
3.	Ages of John's children, Eliza and John, probably less than 10 years in 1823 (when the will was written) as there is no mention of them being apprenticed out, which was generally done by about age 12.  Furthermore, John Packwood Jennings requests that his sister & brother-in-law 'bring up' his children, which is also suggestive of them being fairly young.
	
4.	Surname for John Packwood Jennings wife, Tomlise (?) is unknown. She was not a sister of Anthony Osborne per will of Anthony's mother, Mary Packwood Osborne (will listed all of Mary Packwood Osborne's children).  However, her residence with Anthony Osborne suggests that she might be related to the Osbornes.
	
5.	John Packwood Jennings' children were apparently sent to live with their aunt & uncle, Anna and John Murray, in Scotland.  There is a marriage record for Eliza Jennings to William Grant in 1838 in Row, Dumbarton, and Eliza Grant, born in Demerara, is found in the 1841 and 1851 Census of Scotland.  Per other records, the Grants emigrated to Australia in 1852.  Eliza's brother, John, has not been found in either the 1841 or the 1851 Census of Scotland.  Did he die before 1841?  Or emigrate (possibly to Australia?) before 1841?