William Willis

 

AMERICA THE GREAT MELTING POT

Contact information on HOME page

Direct descendant is highlighted in red

William Willis

 

  see FAMILY TREE
Born: 16 Oct 1663 Wiltshire, England

 

    Immigrant Ancestor  
Married: 12 June 1687 at the home of the bride's father according to Friends tradition, Westbury, Nassau Co., Long Island, NY

 

   
Died: 07 May 1736 Westbury, Queens Co., Long Island, New York    

FATHER

Henry Willis

MOTHER

Mary Pearce or Pease

WIFE

Mary Titus

CHILDREN

1. William Willis b. 14 Jun 1688

2.. Henry Willis b. 19 Aug 1690

3. John Willis b. 15 Apr 1693

4. Jacob Willis b. 06 Nov 1695

5. Silas Willis b. 27 Jun 1700

6. Samuel Willis b. 30 Jun 1704

6. Mary Willis b. 23 May 1707

William came to America with his father when a boy of 12 years in 1675

The Willis family and the Titus family were Friends, and had been among the earliest adherents of George Fox, but no meeting house had been built yet.

William Willis was a prosperous man. He had inherited considerable land from his father, Henry Willis, to which he continued to add field after field and farm after farm. His wife had ruled dilligently in the wide range of work of a great farm household, and had enabled him to make profit on his many crops and thus, when in 1728 his youngest son Samuel was married, his land was all paid for and he had money out on bond. His Will, now on record in the Surrogate's office in New York (XII, 484) was written several years before he died, while he was still in vigorous health, and it gives interesting glimpses of his home, with his sons married and settled around his on his own land, and the Meeting house near by, and it will be of interest to his descendants of today to quote some passages from it as a picture of his times, and of the place in which William Willis lived in 1729. He describes himself as-
"William Willis, of Hempstead, in Queens County, on Nassau Island, Yeoman, being, this 13th day of November, in the year of our Lord, 1729, in health of body and my memory good and understanding sound, thanks being given to the Lord for the same, and being willing to set my house in order, do make, appoint and ordain this to be my last Will and Testament. * * I will my body to the earth, to be buried at the disrection of my Executors, * * and do commit my soul to God that gave it me, in hopes of eternal salvation through Jesus Christ my only Savior and Redeemer." He then directs all debts to be paid before any division of the estate shall be made, and goes on, "I will and bequeath unto my well beloved wife Mary, the equal half of my cleared land wheresoever, and the third part of my meadows both salt and fresh, and one of my dwelling houses, my cellars and kitchen and my barn, which of my dwelling houses she shall please to choose, and my two negro boys Dick and Prince, and my negro woman call Hager, and my negro girl Rose, all, both houses, barn, land and meadows, and the equal quarter of my uncleared land, and negroes above named I will unto my wife above name, for her to have the use, benefit, and profit thereof, and every part thereof, so long as she doth remain my widow and no longer." (This this date he was in his 67th year and she in her 65th) "And after her decease or marriage to be equally divided among my sons herinafter mentioned. I also will and bequeath unto my wife, all my household good, and the equal third part of all my movable estate out of door, in cattle, horses, sheep, swine, with all the corn in the barn, or stack, or growing in the ground, of all sorts, and the interest or use of all my money due to me upon bond. The use of said money due upon bond, I will unto her during her widowhood, and then the money to be equally divided between all my five sons. * * I also will unto my wife all the equal half of all my tools, with all my plow and beat tackling and utensils of husbandry.
"I will unto my eldest son, William Willis, and to his heirs and assigns forever, the farm he dwelleth on, bounded north by ten acres of land Thomas Baiden, deceased, and I bought of John Davis, and west of George Baiden's land, and east by the land of Nathaniel Seaman and my own land, and south by the road.
"I will and bequeath to my son John Willis, and to heir heirs and assigns forever, the land whereon his house standeth, with all the land that I have on the west side of George Baiden's path that goeth from his house through his lot, and the point to south, and a piece of land on the east side of my son Henry's land, between that and the road that parts it, and the Meeting house ground, be it, in both pieces, in quantity of acres more or less.
"I will and bequeath to my son Henry and to his heirs and assigns forever, the land joyning, and whereon his house stands, bounded on the east by the fence that parts it from the land of my son John, above bequeath to him, and on the north by the road, and on the west by the Brush plains, be it in quantity fo land more or less.
"I will and bequeath to my two younger sons, Jacob and Samuel Willis, and to their heirs and assigns forever, all my farm that I do dwell on, with all the dwelling houses, barns, fences, fields and pastures, it being the north end of the lot of land my father bought of John Seaman, deceased, and five acres I bought of John Davis, and half a lot I bought of Jonathan Seaman, d'ed, and fifty acres my father bought of Richard Stilts, and ten acres being overplus of meadows on the west side thereof, joining to the Harbor path from the plains that the trustees laid out to me on my right of land on the Commons-the one half thereof for them to enjoy when the first crop thereon, after my decease, is taken, and the other half at the decrease of marriage of their mother."

The will then adds sixteen acres "north of the road that leads from John Titus' house to the harbor." All of the land gives to them to be equally divided between Jacob and Samuel, and if either died without children, the other to have the whole-but they to pay 50 pounds each to their elder brothers, and two more after the death of their mother.
The will then divides many other parcel of land, particularizing them, among his different sons, including 250 acres of land at Fishkill, in Duchess County.
All the negroes to choose their masters from among his sons after the death of his wife.
He names his executors his "loving wife Mary Willis and my friends Thomas Pearsall, and Samuel Underhill."
The will was proved on the 7th of May, 1736, more than six years after it was made." (*)

Adam and Anne Mott, by Stephen C. Cornell, 1890

 

 

.