This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: Roper, Wotton, Saunders, Sasseen, Burnett, Franklin, Larseen, Larsen, Hatcher Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/kgDBAEB/807 Message Board Post: Will of Joseph ROPER, of Chesterfield, VA (Dated 25 Jan 1803) Chesterfield Will Book 5 (Reel 28), Page 116-118. In the name of God amen, I Joseph ROPER the elder of Chesterfield County being of perfect memory do make and ordain this my last Will and Testament Item. I lend unto my daughter Nancy WOTON thirty acres of Land adjoining of SAUNDERS’s tract during her natural life and after her decease my desire is that her Daughter Anna possess it. I further lend to my Daughter Nancy one Negro Girl name Beak but my Will and desire is that my Executors shall Heir said negroe and the money arising thereupon to support the family during her natural life. I lend to my Daugh- ter Nancy one Feather Bed and furniture and three head of Cattle and after her death the above mentioned articles to be equally divided among her Children. Item. I lend unto my Daughter Sally SASSEEN one negroe Rose and one named Charles but my Will and desire is that my Executors do hire the said Negroes and the money arising therefrom go to support the family during her natural life and at her decease that the Negroes be sold and the money equally divided between her Children. I further lend my Daughter Sally one cow during her life and then to be divided in the manner aforesaid. Item. I give and bequeath to my Daughter Rodah BURNETT one cow and Calf to her and her Heirs forever. Item. I give and bequeath unto Elizabeth FRANKLIN one negroe boy named Manuel, one Feather Bed and furniture and three Head of Cattle to her and her Heirs forever. Item. I give and bequeath to my son Drury ROPER five Shillings Cash forever. Item. I give and bequeath to my son Joseph ROPER all my Land lying on James River that I have not given also one negroe Girl named Charity one Feather Bed and furniture one woman name Holy and one cow and Calf to him and his Heirs forever. Item. I give and bequeath to my son John ROPER the Land and plantation whereon I now live also that ten and a half acres lying south Buckingham road and also one negroe Boy named Hamton and one woman Silvery and one Hundred and fifty pounds cash to be laid out in Land at the discretion of the Executors also one feather Bed and furniture and one cow and Calf to him and his Heirs forever. Item I lend unto my beloved wife two Negroes Daniel & Rachiel with all the remainder of my Estate both within Doors and without during her natural life and after my wife’s death my desire is that the remainder of my Estate be equally divided between my sons John and Joseph ROPER to them and their Heirs forever. I do hereby appoint my sons Joseph ROPER and John ROPER my Executors. I do hereby wholy revoke and disannul all other Wills by me heretofore made declaring and this alone to be my last Will and Testament. In Witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal this 25th day of January Eighteen Hundred and three. Signed sealed and delivered in presences of Daniel FERGUSSIN?? Thomas X SMITH [his mark] Charles ROPER Joseph ROPER <seal> * I seem to have NEGLECTED to copy the page immediately following, which presumably includes the probate information, including the date this Will was PROVED. If someone has occasion to obtain this information, please Post it as a Reply. * * * NOTES: 1. Sally ROPER m William LARSEEN on 21 Feb 1794 in Chesterfield. 2. Rhoda ROPER m Edward BURNETT on 02 Jun 1797 in Chesterfield. 3. There is a marriage of a John ROPER to Asenath HATCHER on 06 Jan 1807. 4. There are NO ROPERs enumerated in Chesterfield County in the 1810 Census enumeration. We need to carefully scrutinize the Chesterfield County Personal Property Tax and Land Tax records beginning in 1782 to identify precisely which ROPERs were taxpayers and tithables in Chesterfield each year from 1783 through 1850. 4. John ROPER is shown in the 1820 Census residing in Chesterfield. One way of viewing this data is that this John ROPER is Joseph ROPER’s SON. As is shown in the Will, John ROPER was to receive the plantation upon which Joseph ROPER lived plus one half of the residue of the estate after the death of his mother. But there is also another possible ascription that may make more sense under the circumstances. Samuel ROPER (d aft 06 Nov 1811 – Chesterfield), also had a son named Joseph ROPER and a son named John ROPER. John ROPER’s Census record shows: John ROPER: 1 - 3 - 0 - 0 - 1 - 0 -- 2 - 0 - 0 - 1 - 0 -- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 2 - 3 - 1 - 0 -- 0 - 2 - 1 - 1 -- 0 - 0 - 1 - 0 – Nelson COUSIN – 19 Retter JOHNSON: 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 1 -- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 0 - 2 - 0 - 0 -- 1 - 1 - 0 - 1 -- 6 [Image 3 of 38 at the Ancestry.com presentation of the 1820 Census data for this jurisdiction.] It appears to me that the Rettor JOHNSON, enumerated in the adjacent record is probably the widow of Samuel ROPER (d aft 06 Nov 1811 – Chesterfield). Daniel JOHNSON m Rettor ROPER on 03 Jun 1817 at Chesterfield. 5. John ROPER is again shown in the 1830 Census enumeration for Chesterfield: John ROPER: 0 - 0 - 1 - 0 - 1 - 0 - 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 0 - 0 - 0 - 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 4 - 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 5 - 2 - 2 - 0 - 0 - 0 – 18 [Images 49, 50 of 110 at the Ancestry.com presentation of 1830 Census data for this jurisdiction.] John ROPER seems to be age 40 to 49 in 1830 (b abt 1781-90). John ROPER’s wife appears to be already deceased by 1830. 6. In 1840, John ROPER is again enumerated in Chesterfield. A Samuel C. ROPER also appears as a head of household there for the first time. Samuel C. ROPER is enumerated in the adjacent record and would appear likely to be the male aged 20 to 29 residing in John ROPER’s household in 1830: John ROPER: 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 1 - 0 - 0 - 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 1 - 3 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 6 - 3 - 0 - 2 - 0 - 0 -- 18 -- 0 - 7 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 Samuel C. ROPER: 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 0 - 2 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 -- 6 -- 0 - 1 - 0 - 0 - 0 - 0 [Images 51, 52 of 60 at the Ancestry.com presentation of 1840 Census data for this jurisdiction.] Samuel C. ROPER seems to have married and had two children, a boy and a girl each under age 5 (b abt 1835-39). 7. John ROPER is again enumerated in the 1850 Census and this record shows him to be age 63 that year (b abt 1787). Also residing with John ROPER are a James ROPER, age 13, and an Ann ROPER, age 11. These appear most likely to be the young children shown in Samuel C. ROPER’s household in 1840. 8. Now learning John ROPER’s approximate year of birth from the 1850 Census record presents us with evidence suggesting that it is MORE LIKELY that the John ROPER shown in Chesterfield from 1820 through 1850 is probably Samuel ROPER’s son rather than Joseph ROPER’s son. Bear in mind that Joseph ROPER’s Will transcribed above names John ROPER as one of the Executors and makes an express bequest of his plantation. If the John ROPER shown in the Census records were to have been Joseph ROPER’s son, he would have been only about age 16 at his father’s death and therefore probably wouldn’t have qualified to be an executor. Samuel ROPER named son John ROPER and John JORDAN as Executors of his Will dated 06 Nov 1811. By the date of probate (10 Feb 1812), the John ROPER shown in the 1850 Census record seems most likely to have been about age 25. That he was enumerated adjacent to Rettor JOHNSON seems to further bolster such an ascription. It is therefore most likely that the John ROPER shown in the Census records cited above was Samuel ROPER’s son rather than Joseph ROPER’s son. A careful study of the Personal Property Tax Records, Land Tax Records and deeds for Chesterfield may give us a clearer picture of precisely what became of John and Samuel ROPER, sons of Joseph ROPER. 9. In 1860, John ROPER is no longer shown in the Census for Chesterfield. James ROPER is shown to be residing in the household of “A. BURNETT”, age 30. This appears likely to be James ROPER’s cousin. There is also an “R. A. BURNETT”, female, age 51, in this household. The daughter Rodah BURNETT mentioned in Joseph ROPER’s Will in 1803 must have been at least sixteen by that year (b bef 1787) to have been already married. That would make Rodah BURNETT at least age 73 by 1860. It seems unlikely that the 51 year old R. A. BURNETT would be the SAME Rodah. 10. There is a death notice in the Richmond Examiner abstracted: "Died at her father's in Chesterfield Co. on the 15th Inst., age 22, Amanda A. ROPER, leaving parents, sister & 3 brothers", Richmond Enquirer, 20 Nov 1835, page 3. Absent the discovery of another ROPER household in the Chesterfield Personal Property Tax or Land Tax records, this Amanda A. ROPER (b abt 1813, d 15 Nov 1835) seems most likely to be a daughter of John ROPER. It seems unlikely that Amanda would have been a daughter of Samuel ROPER, whose Will was dated 06 Nov 1811. Presumably Amanda A. ROPER was the female age 15 to 19 living within her father’s household during the 1830 Census enumeration. 11. There is a death notice in the Richmond Examiner abstracted: "Died at res. of his father in Chesterfield Co., Jan. 17th, age 33, Nathaniel J. ROPER, leaving parents, sister & 2 brothers", Richmond Enquirer, 28 Jan 1840, page 3. Absent the discovery of another ROPER household in the Chesterfield Personal Property Tax or Land Tax records, this Nathaniel J. ROPER (b abt 1807, d 17 Jan 1840) seems most likely to be a son of John ROPER. It is unclear whether Nathaniel ROPER is the male age 20 to 29 living in the household in 1830 or whether this was Samuel C. ROPER. But it seems most likely that this was Nathaniel and that Samuel C. ROPER had already left the household by that year. Taken together with Amanda ROPER’s obituary, it appears that there must have been a daughter and a son who had already left the household by 1830. This is certainly consistent with the 1820 Census record, which suggests the presence of four sons and two daughters.