Today I share with you a monumental will – very likely the longest I have typed – containing over 3,400 words.  The will was written by Thomas Kennedy, born September 11, 1757, in North Carolina and died June 19, 1836, in the Paint Lick area in Garrard County, Kentucky.  It is said that Harriet Beecher Stowe used Thomas Kennedy for her portrayal of the ruthless and cruel slave owner in her book Uncle Tom’s Cabin.  It is even said that Stowe visited the Kennedy plantation.  Thomas Kennedy died in 1836 when Harriet was aged 25.  Not impossible that she could have visited before his death, but rather unlikely I would say.  I would say if Harriet did visit Garrard County it would have been during the time Thomas Kennedy, Jr., owned the property, inherited from his father – although he died just four years after his father.  I don’t think we will ever know.   

Captain Thomas Kennedy served in the Revolutionary War from North Carolina, moving to Kentucky after the war.  He and his first wife, Agnes Ross, 1756-1807, are buried in Old Paint Lick Cemetery. 

This page from the 1835 Garrard County Tax Records shows the amount of property Thomas Kennedy owned – his list takes up 3/4 of the page. The total value was $109,700 worth of property.

In his will Thomas Kennedy lists four children – son Thomas M., son John W., daughter, Elizabeth Miller and daughter, Nancy Letcher.  His first wife, Agnes Ross, died in 1807.  Thomas married Edna Withers April 4, 1808.  She is listed as the widow Kavanaugh on their marriage bond.  I believe she is the mother of Thomas’ children, at least the daughters, since they both named their daughters Edna.

One feature that makes this will very different – other than its length – is the description given throughout the will.  When talking about land there is a description of who lives adjoining, or possibly renting the land, who the land was purchased from, if the land was named that is also given, as well as the various creeks or roads near the land. 

Slaves given to the different children are listed as a family unit – not something you would expect from someone who was very cruel to his slaves.  Sometimes both slave parents are named, sometimes just the mother.  I think this would be very helpful to those who have traced their slave ancestry to Thomas Kennedy.  Thomas also makes it very clear that the slaves are not to be sold or bartered.  They should remain within the family.  His slave Aggy is to be set free at his death and given a cow and calf.    

Thomas’ gold watch is given to his eldest son, Thomas.  Two portraits are listed.  Thomas’ portrait is given to daughter Nancy.  The other portrait that must have been of wife Edna Kavanaugh Kennedy is given to Jane Faulkner.  Jane Kavanaugh married John Faulkner December 18, 1832, in Garrard County.  Was she an older daughter of Edna Kavanaugh and her first husband?  Towards the end of the will Thomas Kennedy says son Thomas may have his inheritance immediately after his death.  Son John was younger and must wait until he was eighteen years old before receiving his inheritance.

Will of Thomas Kennedy of Garrard County, Kentucky

Will Book H, Pages 233-240

I, Thomas Kennedy, of the County of Garrard and State of Kentucky, knowing the uncertainty of life and now being of sound and disposing mind and memory, do make, ordain and publish this, my last Will and Testament, hereby revoking all other wills by me heretofore made.

First.  It is my wish and desire, and I do hereby direct that all my just debts be paid as soon as practicable.

Second.  I give and bequeath to my son, Thomas M. Kennedy, the plantation whereon I now live and to include the plantation where said Thomas now lives that I purchased from James Crawford, the plantation where John Kennedy now lives, formerly occupied by Thomas Faulkner, deceased, the plantation where Nelson Patterson now lives, the plantation where John Conner now lives, the plantation where Mrs. Austin lives and the place where Anthony Kinckle formerly lived, the said lands devised to my son Thomas to be bounded as follows, to wit, beginning at a fallen down elm, Rufus Carpenter’s corner, thence with my line on eastwardly course to Joseph Courtney’s corner on a stream, then down said stream with its meanders to an elm on the bank of the creek corner to Joseph Courtney, thence along the big road and Shumate’s line to the mouth of the same that leads to said Shumate’s house, thence an eastwardly course with the line of Andrew A. Kennedy and myself, crossing the creek below Andrew A. Kennedy’s and with the old original line to the corner of said Andrew A. Kennedy’s fence and an old field, thence down a stream until it strikes the line of the place where Thomas Faulkner formerly lived and continuing down said branch to its mouth, thence down the creek to the forks thereof, thence a westwardly course with my old original line to a sugar tree, Nathaniel G. Wood’s southwest corner and beginning corner of the Station tract, thence around with my lines to a crooked walnut, southwest corner of the land of Alexander Reid and a corner of the seventy-five acres I purchased of Samuel Gordon, thence with the course of the line between Alexander Reid and the place where James Gafney lives to the big road leading to Lancaster, thence a westwardly course along said road to the corner of my woodland pasture fence, thence a southerly course with said fence to the southwest corner of said pasture, thence a westwardly course the way the fence now stands to the corner of John Faulkner, near a branch, thence with the lines of said Faulkner around to the corner of his place he purchased from Robert Henry near the road leading to Crab Orchard, thence with my lines around to the beginning, to include all my lands called the Flatwoods and where Mrs. Austin and John live and the

place where Anthony Hinkle formerly lived, but not to include the place now occupied by Mrs. Whitico and others called the Bingaman place.

I also give to my said son Thomas the following slaves, to wit, my blacksmith Dennis, Patsy and her six children Jim, Elijah, George, Beverly, David and Samuel.  Rose and her eight children, to wit, Moses, Annis, Henry, Mariam, Chany, Franky, Margaret and Alexander.  Maria and her five children, to wit, Julia, Felix, Aggy, Andrew and Jack.  Lucy, commonly called ‘Little Luce’ and her four children, Robert, Rachel, Lee and Jim, and also my Negro man Stephen.  I also give and bequeath to my said son Thomas my two mares, one a gray called Bonnet O’Blue and the other a bay or brown called Dido, my mare called the ‘Broke Failio Filly,’ a stud colt by Timolern, Diddo, a yearling colt by Collier, a yearling colt by King William out of my mare called the ‘Devil Filly’ and all the future increase of said slaves and stock.  I also give and bequeath to my said son Thomas ten young cows or heifers to be given him out of my stock of cattle at my death and also the one-half of all the beds, bedsteads and their furniture, then in my possession and also my gold watch.  I also give to my said son Thomas all the stock of horses, cattle, hogs, etc., and all other personal property that he may now have in his possession upon the farm where he now lives, together with all the property of every description that he may acquire before my death to him and his heirs forever.

Third.  I give and bequeath to my son John W. Kennedy the tract of land on Gilbert Creek that I purchased from Holtzclaw’s executors containing two hundred and sixty five acres, the tract of land adjoining the same where John Banton now lives, supposed to contain two hundred and sixty acres, also my tract of land called the Tate place adjoining David Kennedy, also the land I own on McCormacks Branch of Paint Lick now occupied by William Alexander, Mack Goldsberry, John L. Stephen and others to include all my land on said creek above the line of Robert Brank and also to include the place where Thomas Jenkins lives.  I also give to my said son John my tract of land in Madison County on the walnut meadow fork of Paint Lick, containing about three hundred and sixty-six acres, now occupied by James Baker and others.  I also give and bequeath to my said son John the following slaves, to wit, Will and his wife Charlotte and their three children,

Liberty, Phebe and Bill; Silva and her six children Jim, Wyatt, Betsy, Henry, William and Jane.  Edna and her two children, Almira and Cassa.  Ephraim and his wife Kizzy and their two children, Simon and Bob.  Charles and his wife Phebe and their four children, Fanny, Carter, Willis and Sarah Jane, and also a boy I purchased at Robert Henry’s sale by the name of Jim.  I also bequeath to my said son John my pet mare and her four colts, a three year old filly and a two year old stud colt by Kosinsko, a yearling colt by Collier and a sucking colt by Crawford, the bay mare I purchased from William Steen called Betsy Baker and also a three year old colt by Formby’s Potomac purchased of John Faulkner.  I also give to my said son John ten young cows or heifers and two breeding cows, also my eight day clock and the one half of all the beds, bedsteads and their furniture that I may possess at the time of my death, together with all the increase of said slaves and stock of horses (not disposed of by me hereafter) to him, the said John, his heirs forever.

Fourth.  I give and bequeath to my daughter Elizabeth J. Miller fifty acres of land adjoining the plantation bequeathed to her by John Jones, deceased, and also ten acres that adjoins said plantation, the fifty acres I purchased of Jones’ heirs and the ten acres of David Woolley and for which I hold Henry Wooley’s bond.  I also give to said Elizabeth fifty-three acres of land adjoining the aforesaid place bequeathed to her by John Jones, conveyed to me by William Stapp.  I also bequeath to my said daughter Elizabeth the house and lot in Lancaster conveyed to me by John Williams and wife, upon which Seymore Hopper now lives, to her, the said Elizabeth, her heirs forever.  I also give and bequeath to my said daughter Elizabeth the one half of all the slaves now in her possession conveyed to me by John A. Miller and including the Negro Cassa and her child.  The remaining half of said slaves I bequeath to my grandchildren Thomas K. Miller and Edna W. Miller, the said slaves are not in any event to be liable for sale or barter and at the death of said Elizabeth J. Miller the whole of said slaves with their future increase to pass to and be vested in the said Thomas and Edna Miller or the survivors of them or their heirs.

Fifth.  I give and bequeath to my daughter Elizabeth J. Miller and my granddaughter Edna W. Miller the tract of land conveyed to me by Thomas Buford lying in the County of Clinton and State of Ohio, containing five hundred and fifty-eight acres, more or less, to them, the said Elizabeth and Edna Miller and their heirs forever.

Sixth.  I give to my grandson Thomas K. Miller the tract of land conveyed to me by Robert Perrin containing two hundred

six acres on in possession of Elizabeth J. Miller and also a Negro girl by the name of Jane, eldest daughter of my Negro woman Hannah, to him the said Thomas K. Miller, with her future increase, to him and his heirs forever.

Eighth.  I give and bequeath to my daughter Nancy L. Letcher the plantation upon which James H. Letcher now lives, to include all the land between the lines of the land bequeathed to my son, Thomas, and the land of Moses Collier, John Faulkner, George Clinton, Henry Hurt, Alexander Henderson, Nixon Palmer, Lydia Palmer and Alexander Reid, also a small tract of land adjoining Benjamin Proctor upon which James Edwards now lives, supposed to be about forty acres be there more or less and also a house and lot in the town of Lancaster, conveyed to one by John Aldridge and upon which Nelson Shield now lives, to her the said Nancy, her heirs forever.  I also give to said Nancy my portrait.

Ninth.  I give and bequeath to my grandsons Thomas K. Letcher and Benjamin Letcher, jointly, the following lands, to wit, the plantation where John Yakey, John Padgett and Henry Yakey now live, to be bounded as follows, beginning at a mouth of a branch and to run up said branch with the line of the land bequeathed to my son Thomas M. Kennedy, to the corner of Andrew A. Kennedy’s fence in an old field, thence with the old original line eastwardly and around with my lines to the corner of the land purchased by William Woods from William Renfro, three elms standing on the bank of the white Lick Fork of Paint Lick Creek, thence down said creek to Higginbotham’s corner, thence around with the lines between Higgenbotham and myself and Ebenezer Best and myself to the fork of Paint Lick creek, thence up the creek to the beginning to them, the said Thomas and Benjamin Letcher, their heirs forever.  But should either the said Thomas or Benjamin die before they have issue or come of age, then the whole of said land hereby bequeathed to them shall pass to and be vested in the survivor of them, his heirs forever.  I also give and bequeath to the said Thomas K. Letcher one Negro boy by the name of Peter that I purchased at the sale of Robert Henry, deceased, to him and his heirs forever.

Tenth.  I give and bequeath to my granddaughter Edna W. Letcher the plantation on Krake’s Creek that I purchased from John Proctor, two hundred acres be there more or less.  I also give to said Edna a Negro girl Maria, now in the possession of James H. Letcher, together with her future increase, to her and

her heirs forever.

Eleventh.  I give and bequeath to Nancy Cheatham, wife of Henry Cheatham, a Negro girl by the name of Paulina, daughter of my Negro woman called Nancy Burton, said girl Pauline to be under the sole management of the said Nancy Cheatham and in no event to be sold or bartered off and at the death of said Nancy Cheatham the said slave, with all her future increase shall pass to and be vested absolutely in the children of the said Nancy Cheatham.

Twelfth.  I give and bequeath to Robert Argo, who lives with me, the plantation where Mr. Whitis now lives called the Bingaman place, the said land to be leased or rented out by John Faulkner and James Fletcher or either of them and the rents to be warranted for the use and benefit of said Robert.

Thirteenth.  It is my desire and I do direct that John Faulkner and James H. Letcher, or one of them, make sale of a tract of land I own in the County of Monroe and State of Kentucky at such time and in such manner as they think best and the proceeds of the sale to loan out for the use and benefit of the aforesaid Robert Argo – or if they think best the said land may be rented out and the rents applied to the maintenance and education of the said Robert.  And when said Robert shall arise to the age of Twenty-one years the two tracts of land hereby bequeathed to him (if the one in Monroe County shall not have been sold) and all the rents not applied to his support of school shall pass to and be vested in the said Robert Argo. I also give to the said Robert Argo my Negro boy Norman and a girl as near his own age as practicable to be chosen by the executors out of my Negroes not specifically bequeathed, and it is my earnest desire and request that John Faulkner and James H. Letcher be careful to carry out my wishes with regard to said Robert into effect and to see that he is provided with a good home and educated as much as practicable.

Fourteenth.  It is my wish and I do so direct, that if the said Robert Argo shall die before he has legal issue that then the whole of said property hereby set apart for his support and schooling not expended and the increase of the Nero girl bequeathed to him, pass to and be vested in my four children or such of them as are living or their heirs.

Fifteenth.  I give and bequeath to my sons Thomas M. Kennedy and John W. Kennedy and my daughter Nancy T. Letcher my know land on the head waters of Paint Lick above Augustine Smith’s containing eight hundred acres, more or less, also my knob land adjoining David Kennedy, containing three hundred acres, more or less, the said lands to be equally divided among my said three children when

My son John arrives of full age in any manner they may think proper.

Sixteenth.  I give and bequeath to my son-in-law James H. Letcher my tract of land in Pulaski County called Mount Airy for which I hold General Griffin’s bond containing four hundred acres to him and his heirs forever.  Also, my Negro woman, Phebe, but said Phebe is in no event to be sold, hired or bartered, but kept and supported while she lives.

Seventeenth.  I do hereby reserve for the use of the plantation bequeathed to my daughter Nancy T. Letcher the use of any timber upon the land bequeathed to my son Thomas called the flat woods.  It is therefore to be understood that James H. Letcher is at all times to have the use of my timber growing upon the land of my son Thomas lying west of the road leading to the Crab Orchard for the purpose of erecting buildings upon or for fencing the place hereby bequeathed to my daughter Nancy.

Eighteenth.  It is my will and desire that all my slaves not disposed of be equally divided among my four children as follows.  The slaves shall be set up and sold by my Executors and none shall have the right to bid except my children and no slave shall be purchased at said sale by any other person except by the consent of my children or a majority of them and the proceeds of the sale equally divided among my four children – Thomas M. Kennedy, John W. Kennedy, Nancy T. Letcher and Elizabeth J. Miller.

Nineteenth.  I do direct that all my personal property not herein disposed of be sold by my Executors at such time and upon such terms as they think proper and the proceeds of said sale together with all moneys that may be on hand at the time of my death and the proceeds of all notes, bonds after the payment of debts, be equally divide among my children.

Twentieth.  I give Jane Faulkner, wife of John Faulkner, immediately after my death, her mother’s portrait.

Twenty-First.  It is my wish and I do direct that the lands hereby devised to my grandchildren Thomas K. Miller and Edna Miller be leased or rented out for the use and benefit of said Thomas and Edna by John Faulkner, who is hereby vested with all the powers to carry this my wish into effect and the rents with its accruing interest shall be paid to said Thomas and Edna when they arrive of full age or marry, at which time they are to have possession of said lands.

Twenty-Second.  The lands bequeathed to my grandchildren Edna W. Letcher, Thomas K. Letcher and Benjamin Letcher are to be leased or rented out by James H. Letcher for the use and benefit of said Edna, Thomas and Benjamin until they shall arrive of full age or marry, at which time they are to have the possession of said land.

Twenty-Fourth.  I do hereby authorize my executors hereafter named to make titles or conveyances to any lands or other estates to which I am bound to make titles and to compromise my suit or any dispute or difficulty with any person where my estate is interested whether the same be in suit or not.  And I desire that my executors do everything in their power to carry into effect this my will and to give up the property hereby devised to the persons entitled thereto as soon after my death as possible.  And should any of my children set up any claim against my estate of any nature or description whatever or institute any suit against my executors or against each other for any of my estate not bequeathed to them, such child shall therefore forfeit all the estate bequeathed to them which shall go to and be equally divided among the rest of my children.

Twenty-fifth.  It is my will and desire that at my death my son Thomas have immediate possession and control of the property hereby bequeathed to him and that my son John have the possession of what is bequeathed to him when he arrives to the age of eighteen years.

Lastly, I do hereby constitute and appoint John Faulkner and James H. Letcher, Executors of this my last Will and Testament, hereby vesting them with all the powers necessary to carry the same into effect and I do hereby give said Faulkner and Letcher one hundred dollars each out of my personal estate as a compensation for their services in carrying my will into effect and all their services in relation to any estate.

In testimony of all which I have hereto set my hand and affixed my seal this  day of  1835.

Thomas Kennedy

Signed, sealed and declared on as the last Will and Testament of Thomas Kennedy, who signed and acknowledged the same in our presence and we have hereto set our names in his presence and at his request and in the presence of each other – Golson Stapp, James Mason Kennedy, Charles W. Kavanaugh

Codicil to the last will of Thomas Kennedy

I do hereby liberate and set free at my death my Negro woman slave Aggy and do direct that my Executor give to the said Aggy out of my estate a good cow and calf to be hers absolutely forever.

Given under my hand this 19^th day of August 1835,

Thomas Kennedy

Golson Stapp, James Mason Kennedy, Charles W. Kavanaugh

State of Kentucky, Garrard County

I do certify that the foregoing will of Thomas Kennedy was produced to Court on the 13^th day of July 1836 and proven by the oath of James M. Kennedy, a subscribing witness thereto to the sanity of the Testator as well as to the handwriting of the other subscribing witnesses thereto and approved and ordered to be recorded and the codicil thereto attached was proven to the satisfaction of the Court by the said James M. Kennedy in the same manner and also approved and ordered to be recorded both of which are truly entered of record.

Alexander R. McKee, Clerk by Bob McKee, Deputy Clerk