To identify the mother, I would recommend that you identify possible parents for her and look for their probates. If the mother died before her parents, her child may have inherited her mother's share. If the mother's last name is fairly common, that could be difficult. However, if there are very few people of that name in the area, there's not as much research involved. I recommend you check Natchez Court Records by McBee and Calendar of the Natchez Trace Collection Provincial and Territorial Documents by me. The Spanish West Florida records may also be of help. If I follow your story correctly (it's difficult without names), the child would seem to be illegimate. In your first message, you referred to a will, but I gather that is not the father's will, but someone else's will referring to this child as someone's "natural" daughter. If, however, it's the father's will, then he was recognizing her as his child and she would be entitled to inherit her share of his estate. Judy Riffel ----- Original Message ----- From: <Ewprichard@aol.com> To: <LA-LGHS-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Monday, April 16, 2001 6:31 AM Subject: Re: [LA-LGHS-L] "natural daughter"??? > > In a message dated 4/15/01 11:07:50 PM, sacsmith@usunwired.net writes: > > << WHOA, HOSS!!! What in the world do you mean when you say "Today 'natural > > daughter' means an illegitimate child"??? Natural child is a biological > > child. Biological as opposed to adopted. NATURAL. >> > > OK, maybe not TODAY. I don't know; that's why I'm asking. Other genealogists > have told me that the term has been commonly used more recently for the > illegitimate child as opposed to "lawful"--or legitimate--child. > > The child in question was born in 1802 and reared by her childless uncle and > aunt. In the aunt's will and in subsequent legal papers filed by the uncle, > her father is identified and she bore his name. In 1827, after her first > husband died, her father--"the grandfather"-- was asked to a family meeting > in behalf of her minor child. For many years, names of her half-brothers > appear in her legal papers and family letters. > > Apparently her father had no will, and there is no probate or succession on > file in the West Feliciana courthouse until after the death of wife #3 (or > #2?), when only her children are provided for in the succession. However, > other parish records indicate that his children by wife #2 (or #1?) had > already received substantial property from their father. > > In other Louisiana probates of the era that I've seen, when there was no will > the family meeting was designed to insure that minor children received their > share of their deceased parent's part of community, as well as separate > property, even--perhaps especially--if the surviving spouse remarried. This > does not appear to have happened in the case of this child. Why? because she > was born during the Spanish era or because she was illegitimate? From 1851 > succession papers, we know she had only the separate property she inherited > from her first husband. > > As to her mother, there is no record of a marriage in the Natchez records or > the St. Joseph's church records of Baton Rouge. Where else should I look? In > fact, I have found no record of anyone with her name. I have found no > documentation in Natchez or West Feliciana records that this woman existed or > that the father was married prior to his documented 1807 marriage. Obviously, > there was a woman somewhere; but how would I even begin to search for and > identify her? > > Thanks again. E. W. Prichard > > > ==== LA-LGHS Mailing List ==== > LGHS: Serving Louisiana Genealogist since 1953. > To submit an article to be considered for publication in The Register, > contact Mike Smith at <mksmith1@bellsouth.net> > >