Additional information on women's rights to property. Betty Pace --------- Forwarded message ---------- From: Ken Daniell <daniellk@bellsouth.net> To: PACE-L@rootsweb.com Date: Wed, 14 Feb 2001 22:40:25 -0500 Subject: Re: [PACE-L] Colonial property rights of women and legal age Message-ID: <3A8B4FA9.7AADD2B8@bellsouth.net> References: <20010214150954.EAIH142.mta09.onebox.com@onebox.com> I'm very interested in this legal age issue (guardianship, own property, sell property, witness deeds) because it can help to establish at least a range for birthdate. On the issue of women and the law I would like to add a point that doesn't get mentioned often. I have encountered three surprisingly early instances of widows getting prenuptial agreements prior to remarriage. One was 1660 in England where a widow was shielding the legacies of her minor children from their future stepfather. Another was a woman in Charleston, SC who had prenups for two different marriages in the early 1700s . Her first prenup was before her marriage to the speaker of the SC House of Assembly and the second was before her marriage to the son of a former governor. In both lengthy agreements she spelled out in great detail all the property she was bringing into the marriage and that it was not to become the property of her future husband. Ken Daniell --------- <snip> Ken I have seen that many many times. The step father did not need to give any property to his wife's previous issue even though she brought most of property into the marriage UNLESS it was agreed to and signed before the marriage -- it is often recorded on the day of the marriage. Most of my research is in the south. In my PA research women's rights and property were not so protected although as you say when an agreement was reached it went into great detail. This is an short verion I carry with me for Southern Colonial research. At times state laws may vary. from birth inherit enumerated in censis age 12 female witness documents age 14 male testify in court choose guardian be punished for a crime sign contracts act as executor bequeath personal property by will marry age 16 be taxed muster into militia procession land take possession of land holdings age 18 practice trade age 18 female release guardian age 21 male release guardian own land devise land by will be taxed plead or sue in court be naturalized fill public office serve on jury vote Ruth Keys Clark, Kansas