Ancestors of Mandy Willard

The Will of

Ralph WOLVIN (1631-1684)

In the name of God Amen the four & twentieth day of April in the year of our Lord Christ 1684 & in ye 36 year of the Reign of our Sovraigne Lord Charles ye Second by ye Grant of God Kinge over England etc I Ralph Woolvin of Westgrinstead in the County of Sussex yeoman beinge of sound & perfect memory praised be allmighty God doo hereby renounce & make voie all former will or wills by me made & doo make order & appoynt this to be my last will and testament in writtinge in manner & forme followinge First I give & bequeath my Soul into the hands of almighty God my maker hopeinge through ye merritts of Jesus Christ my only Savior & Redeemer to [---] free pardon & forgiveness of all my Sins & my body to be decently buryed att ye descretion of my Extrix hereinafter named Item I give unto my brother John Woolven Six pounds a year & every yeare during his nrall live to bee py by my Extrix quarterly ye first payment of thirty shilliings to be made att three months end next after my decease and soo forward thirty shillings att only three months and dividinge his nrall live Item I give unto William Woolvin son of my said brother ten pounds to bee py within six months after my decease Item I give & bequeath unto my daughter in law Elizabeth Soale one hundred ponds of lawfull English money to bee paid unto her att her age of one & twenty years old or day of marryage [--- --- ---] of those dayes first happenst after my decease Item I give unto my brother Thomas Woolvin of Warminghurst in the said county twenty shillings Item I give unto his daughter Mary Woolvin twenty shillings Item I give unto Mary Woolvin ye daughter of my brother John Woolvin above named forty shillings Item I give unto the two children of James Somersall of Ashurst ---nty shillings apiece Item I give unto every one of ye children of William Paye of Ashurst that shalbee livinge att the time of my decease twenty shillings apeice Item I give unto Thomas & Richard Champion the sons of Walter Champion of Stenninge Twenty Shillings apeice Item I give unto Phillip Butcher of Stenninge ye Sum of Twenty Shillings And I doo [---] & appoynt that all those Legasies before mentioned shalbe paid with six months after my decease Item I give & bequeath unto all the five children of Ralph Woolvin of Westgrinstead aforesaid weaver ye son of John Woolvin ten pounds apeice and I doo appoynt that my Extors shall pay interest att one shilling [--- --- ---] unto their Father or Mother of Gardian duringe their minority for these Legacies and shall pay those Legacies to [---] ye Legatees severally as they shalbe in a capacity to discharge my Extrix of the same or into ye hands of such & son or & sons as they or any of them shall make [---] of and shalbe approved of by my overseer herein after named & that will [---] my Extrix ye Legacy or Legacies of them All other my money creditts cattell goods & chattells whatsoever that I shall dy seized of I give & bequeath unto Alice my lovinge wife whom I make whole & Sole Extrix of this my last will & testament shee to pay all my debts & Legacies and funerall charges & I give my Son in Law John Soale & Thomas -ingler of Nuthurst to bee Overseers of this my will to [--- ---] & formed acordingly & I give unto them ---nty shillings apeice In witness to this my last will & testament I have here unto sett my hand & Seale the day & year first above written Ralph Woolvin Published Signed Sealed & declared to bee my last will & testament in the presence of John Board ~ Elizabeth Soale ~ Nicholas Godsmarke

The above was transcribed by me, Mandy Willard, on 21 September, from a photocopy of the original document, ref. STC1/27, held at the West Sussex Record Office.

WOOLVEN