I have a similar situation in my family. In this case, the lady was the second wife of my ggrandfather. They had no children of their own but he had 4 sons by his first wife. His Will bequeathed to her (the second wife) a room in the home, bedding, wood for the winter, food etc. The eldest son was appointed executor of his father's will. Within a few days, he had her sign away her 'dower' rights, leaving with that which her husband had mentioned in the Will but none of the property although she could live there until her death, as long as she didn't remarry. Margaret in NV [email protected] wrote:In the early 18th century--did "Right of Dowery" refer only to property a woman had received from her father/mother/family? Did it always refer to a sort of prize--or bribe--for the groom? I had a theory about an ancestress being sort of an 'unwed mother in the snow', abandoned by her family, but then I found a deed in which she gave up her Right of Dowery" to the land involved. So I assume that she was probably given that land by her father when she married. Now I'm not sure why her maiden name was not mentioned in the record of her marriage. Any help would be appreciated. EC Humor is a rubber sword - it allows you to make a point without drawing blood. Mary Hirsch --------------------------------- Do you Yahoo!? Yahoo! Mail - You care about security. So do we.