William Kent

1748 - 1823  (75 years)

• Name	William Kent  [1, 2, 3]
  Birth	1748	, Halifax, Virginia, USA
  Gender	Male
  Residence	1820	Marseilles, Halifax, Virginia, USA   [1, 2, 3]
  Death	23 Jun 1823	, Halifax, Virginia, USA
  Person ID	I5539	Master
  Last Modified	11 May 2012

  
  

  Father	Robert Kent,   b. 1726, , Henrico, Virginia, USA d. 10 Oct 1783, , Halifax, Virginia, USA (Age 57 years)
  Mother	Mary Ligon Easley,   b. 1723, , Henrico, Virginia, USA d. 13 Oct 1782 (Age 59 years)
  Family ID	F2095	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Mary Cocke,   b. 1760, , Bedford, Virginia, USA d. 1818 (Age 58 years)
  Marriage	11 Mar 1773	, Bedford, Virginia, USA
  Children	1. Molly Kent   2. Betsy Kent   3. Mary Kantz   4. Pleasant Kent   5. Sarah Kent,   b. 1774   d. Yes, date unknown   6. George Kent,   b. 1775   d. Yes, date unknown + 7. Stephen Samuel Kent,   b. 1778, , Halifax, Virginia, USA d. 26 Aug 1861, , Halifax, Virginia, USA (Age 83 years)   8. Elizabeth Kent,   b. 1778   d. Yes, date unknown   9. Nancy Kent,   b. 1780   d. Yes, date unknown   10. Polly Kent,   b. 1782   d. Yes, date unknown   11. William Kent,   b. 1784   d. Yes, date unknown   12. Thomas Kent,   b. 1786   d. Yes, date unknown   13. Agnes Kent,   b. 1788, , Halifax, Virginia, USA d. 1860, , Nelson, Virginia, USA (Age 72 years)   14. Perry Pleasant Kent,   b. 1791   d. Yes, date unknown   15. Lucy Kent,   b. 23 Jul 1803, Childrey, Berkshire, England d. Yes, date unknown
  Family ID	F2037	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Event Map

  Birth - 1748 - , Halifax, Virginia, USA Marriage - 11 Mar 1773 - , Bedford, Virginia, USA Residence - 1820 - Marseilles, Halifax, Virginia, USA Death - 23 Jun 1823 - , Halifax, Virginia, USA  = Link to Google Earth

  
  

• Notes

  William Kent Sr, Halifax County, Virginia, Will Book 12, page 711. In the name of God amen. The first day of April in the year of our Lord Christ One Thousand Eight Hundred and Eighteen, I, William Kent Sen'r of Halifax County, being weak of body but of perfect mind and memory and calling to mind the fraility of my mortal body do make this my last will and testament in manner and form as follows that is to say first I recommend by soul into the hands of Almighty God who gave it Nothing doubting but I shall at the Resurrection Receive the Same again and be reunited Soul and body and as to my body I Recommend it to the Earth to be buried in a decent manner and as to my worldly Estate I do make my will and Dispose as follows Item I give to my son George Kent son Stephen and son William Thomas and daughter Lucy Wood and P rsy [Betsy?] Hardy and Nancy Cranshaw & Molly [illegible - Corner??] and Angess Stradivand one Dollar each & all of them & no more. I desire that all of my just debts be paid out of my Estate and the balance of my Estate Both real and personal of every kind I give to my son Pleasant Kent and he is to maintain his mother her life but provided my son Pleasant shall die without lawful heirs my will is that that part of my Estate which he has shall be Equally divided between his brothers and sisters. Item I do Constitute and ordain my son Pleasant and my friend Beverly Borum sole and hole Executors of this my last will and testament which I will have _____ after my death _____ revoking and dis....all and every other will or will heretofore in witness whereof I have set my hand and affixed by seal this seventh day of May One Thousand Eight Hundred and Nineteen. Witness Beverly Borum Richard B Borum Harriet Borum [Little note here...William Kent makes an "X" mark --- he can't write his name] At a Court held for Halifax County this 23rd of June 1823 the within written last will and testament of William Kent Deceased was proved by the oaths of two witnesses thereto subscribed and ordered to be recorded whereupon on motion of Pleasant Kent one of the Executors therein named who made oath thereto according to Said Certificate is Granted him for obtaining Probate thereof in _____ form. He giving security whereupon he together with Stephen Kent and John Kent his securities Entered into and acknowledged bond in the penalty of $10000 conditioned according to law. Teste Samual William CHC William's will is dated 6 May 1819 and filed for probate June 1823. Pleasant Kent was named the executor. William named the following children: Sarah "Sally" Kent [John Wood], George Kent [Polly Wood], Stephen S Kent [Mary Randolph Wilkerson], "Caty" Elizabeth [Henson Hardy], Nancy Kent [Cornelius Crenshaw], Mary "Molly or Polly" Kent [David Perry], William Kent [Mary Wood?], Agness Kent [Matthew P Sturdivant], and Perry Pleasant Kent [Sally Reynolds] Robert Kent Last Will & Testament In the name of God Amen. I Robert Kent of Halifax County, VA being of sound mind and memory blessed by God, do this thirteenth day of October in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and eighty two make and publish this my last will and testament in manner following. That is to say I recommend my soul to God who gave it and my body to Earth and to be buried in a Christian manner. First. I desire all my just debts to be paid and after I give and bequeth as follloweth. Item. I lend to my beloved wife, Mary all the goods and Chattells, Land and Tenements during her natural life, and after her death I desire and give the Tract of Land containing four hundred acres more or less to my beloved sons, John Kent and Peterford Kent to be divided equally the upper part of parcel or tract of land including the house and plantation where I now live to Peterford Kent, and the lower end of said tract of land to John Kent. Item. I give to my beloved sons Robert Kent and Obediah Kent ten pounds of hard money each and the remainder of my personal Estate to be sold at the discretion of Executor and equally divided amongst my children towit Luke Kent William Kent John Kent Peterford Kent Alexander Kent Candace Arnold Mary Posey and Caty Hendrick. And I hereby make and ordain my son Robert Kent and Obediah Kent Executors of this my last will and testament. In all things whereof the said Robert Kent and have this day at my hand and seal the day and year above written. signed sealed and witnessed in the presence of us. Warham Easley od. Robert R Kent Christopher Watson Benjamin Word [Ward] In a court held for Halifax County the 17th day of July 1783 this last will and testament of Robert Kent deceased with Exhibited in Court and the same was proven by the Oathes of two subscribing witnesses unto and the same was ordered to be valid. George Cunningham --- [Halifax County Virginia Wills, Will Book 2, pg 114] Robert Kent Jr Last Will & Testament The Will of Robert Kent written May 30, 1784 leaves one negro wench called Pat to Obediah Kent. One negro boy named Champ to Alexander Kent. One negro named Sam to John Kent. One negro named Joe to Peterfield Kent. 30 pounds 4 shillings to James Kent. 4 pounds to Mary Kent. 4 pounds to Caty Hendricks. 4 pounds to Candace Arnold. 4 pounds to William Kent. The rest of his property to be divided amongst six brothers Luke, Alexander, Obediah, James, John, and Peterfield. Obviously this is Robert Kent, Jr. who apparently died young without having married as he left his entire estate to his brothers and sisters. He names a brother James who was not mentioned in his father's will - could James have been disowned by his father? Perhaps we will never know, but this will does prove that James was a son of the elder Robert. PRIMOGENITURE - Although Robert's Will is pretty specific there could be a logical explanation why James Kent or Smith Kent are omitted from Robert Sr's will....primogeniture refers to the exclusive right of the eldest son, by virture of his seniority, to succeed to the estate of his ancestor - to the exclusion of the younger sons. In other words, the eldest son inherited all real property. If there were no sons, the daughters shared equally in the real property. In cases where the decedent made a will, the eldest son may even have been omitted from that will, as his rights were clearly protected by law. The law of primogeniture affected only real estate, not personal estate; the decedent could pass on the latter in any way he saw fit. Keep in mind that many individuals did not follow the law and by practice distributed their land equally to sons, or even to all their children. Virginia still practiced primogeniture until 1785. (Source: According to "Colonial Estate Distribution Shammas, Carole, et al. Inheritance in America: From Colonial Times to the Present. New Brunswick: Rutgers University, 1987")

  
  

• Sources

  [S1234] Ancestry.com, 1820 United States Federal Census, (Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.), Year: 1820; Census Place: Marseilles, Halifax, Virginia; Roll: M33_131; Page: 65; Image: 78. Name: William KentResidence Date: 1820Residence Place: Marseilles, Halifax, Virginia, United States http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=7977787&pid=-1009360891 http://trees.ancestry.com/rd?f=sse&db=1820usfedcenancestry&h=147682&ti=0&indiv=try http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=1820usfedcenancestry&h=147682&ti=0&indiv=try [S1234] Ancestry.com, 1820 United States Federal Census, (Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.), Year: 1820; Census Place: Marseilles, Halifax, Virginia; Roll: M33_131; Page: 65; Image: 78. Name: William KentResidence Date: 1820Residence Place: Marseilles, Halifax, Virginia, United States http://trees.ancestry.com/rd?f=sse&db=1820usfedcenancestry&h=147682&ti=0&indiv=try http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=1820usfedcenancestry&h=147682&ti=0&indiv=try [S1234] Ancestry.com, 1820 United States Federal Census, (Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.), Year: 1820; Census Place: Marseilles, Halifax, Virginia; Roll: M33_131; Page: 65; Image: 78. Name: William Kent Residence Date: 1820 Residence Place: Marseilles, Halifax, Virginia, United States http://trees.ancestry.com/rd?f=sse&db=1820usfedcenancestry&h=147682&ti=0&indiv=try http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=1820usfedcenancestry&h=147682&ti=0&indiv=try