> Thanks for sharing your knowledge. > Would she have sold the land as a widow or as a married woman? > Trying to bracket those dates. Usually a woman released dower during the life of her husband. When a man sold land, very often his wife would be called to publicly relinquish her right to claim dower (her marriage portion). At times a widow might sign a renunciation of dower, if she failed to do so during her husband's life, and the new owner of the land felt the need to protect himself from future suits. Most likely, Jacob Henry was living at the date that the renunciation was written, or Catherine would have been referred to as his widow or relict. The date that the document was recorded and the date that it was written are different (the date recorded being the later date), so be sure to read it carefully. > >> I found a legal document that says my ancestor Catherine Henry, wife of > >> Jacob Henry, to John Brownlee, renunciation. Dated 1793. > >> > >> Can someone explain what this is, please? > > > >Renunciation was a release of dower rights, usually involving the sale of > >land. Manumission was the term for the document that gave freedom to a > >slave.