Document A.12 · will register copy · transcription: verbatim
Will of Elias Van Court of Piscataway, Middlesex Co., N.J. — the Liber E recorded copy (pp. 449–451); made 4 April 1750, proved 23 August 1750.
- repository
- East Jersey Wills, Middlesex Co., N.J. — bound recorded-copy register
- identifier
- Liber E, pp. 449-451
- date
- 1750-04-04
What is transcribed: The Liber E recorded copy of the will, pp. 449-451, re-read in full 2026-09-01.
People named
| As written | Role | Identified as | What this document says |
|---|---|---|---|
| Elias Vancourt | testator | Elias Van Court Sr | residence: Piscataway, Middlesex Co., New Jersey occupation: Cordwainer |
| Daniel Cooper | executor | Daniel Cooper Sr 1695–1795 | |
| Ann VanCourt | executor | Anne (Cooper) Van Court ?–1779 | |
| Moses VanCourt | executor | Moses Van Court 1720 | |
| Eliass | child | Elias Van Court Jr 1719 | |
| Samuel | child | Samuel Van Court 1730–1777 | |
| Michael | child | Michael Van Court | |
| Thomas | child | ||
| John | child | ||
| Daniel | child | ||
| Agness | child | ||
| Jane | child | ||
| Ann | child | ||
| Elizabeth | child | ||
| Benjamin Runyon | witness | ||
| Jaco Sebring | witness | ||
| Edward Wilmott | witness | ||
| Anthony White | official | ||
| Thomas Bartow | official |
What this document records
Not the original
THE LOOSE-PAPER ORIGINAL IS [A.68] — NJSA File 2413-2421L — and it carries Daniell Cooper's actual autograph, plus the testator's own. ⇒ for the signatures, the executors' oath and the £258:16:1 inventory, cite [A.68]. [A.16] is Honeyman's published abstract of the same will.
The daughters are agness jane ann elizabeth
A THREE-MONTH-OLD "CONFLICT WITH HONEYMAN" TURNED OUT TO BE A MISREADING OF THIS PAGE. [A.68] recorded the register as naming the four daughters "Ann Ester Elizabeth and Mary", and Elias Van Court Sr carried that as an unresolved question about a possible fifteenth child. At 4× the foot of p. 449 reads: "bequeath to my four Daughters viz: To my Daughter Agness the Sum of five Pound. To my Daughter Jane the Sum of five pound." — continuing at the head of p. 450 with Ann and Elizabeth. ⇒ Agness, Jane, Ann, Elizabeth, which is [A.16] Honeyman's list exactly. Neither Ester nor Mary is in the document. The misreading is instructive: the daughters are named on p. 449, the page [A.68] had also wrongly recorded as absent from the scan — one pagination error produced both faults.
Four more readings corrected
The same pass corrected four clauses [A.68] had transcribed from this register with [?] guesses. The lands are in Middlesex or Somerset, not "[Hunterdon?]". The moveables are "Dry hids or Green, or Leather that may be in the Tanfats" — a tanner's working stock, not "Dry field or Groin, or [Authors?] ... Tannfield"; which is what the [A.68] inventory's tanning utensils, sides of sole leather, sheep skins and leather in currying are. The two portioned sons are Eliass and Daniel, not "Eligh". And they are "to cut off and Intirely Debar and for ever exclude" from the estate, not "to act of and Industry [Dollar?]".
The bartow note is a collation note
And the page proves itself. Bartow's note says "p. 450 l. 10 the words (Divided among) are undermarked being int. in ye Origl" and that a blank space at line 17 marks an illegible obliteration — and both are visible on p. 450: Divided among is underlined, and there is a ruled gap with a caret-inserted not. An independent confirmation that this register page and that note belong together, and that the clerk copied an original with interlineations.
The foot of p451 is a different estate
The lower half of p. 451 is an unrelated Belcher administration grant — to Samuel Dove, administrator of Isaac FitzRandolph late of Monmouth Co., 23 August 1750. [A.68] recorded this as "Saml Vail ... Thomas FitzRandolph"; both names were wrong. Not Cooper-relevant; recorded only so the page is fully accounted for.
Withdrawn readings
SEVERAL v165 READINGS THAT ONCE LIVED HERE WERE WRONG and are corrected at their destinations — do NOT resurrect them from git history: Anne died 1779, not 1750; Find a Grave memorial 194931739 is Elias's, not Anne's; Elias was born 1689 in Guernsey, not 1691.
Where the analysis went
Gutted to verbatim plus pointers on 2026-07-11 under the 2026-06-22 connections-as-claims rule. This entry had grown into a full dossier on the "Anne Cooper Van Court is Daniel Sr's sister" question. That analysis now lives on Anne (Cooper) Van Court (the sister hypothesis and its four-source consilience) and Elias Van Court Sr (Elias's Guernsey origin, the child roster, the Janeway-Store network, the Natchez branch).
Transcription and notes
Provenance, the second scan of the same pages, the withdrawn daughter-list "conflict", the four
corrected clauses, and where the analysis went are all in the source: and coverage: headers and
are not repeated here.
Liber E p. 449 — opening of the will [verbatim]
In the name of God Amen the fourth day of Aprill in the year of Our Lord One thousand Seven hundred and fifty I Elias VanCourt of Piscataway in the County of Middlesex and Province of East new Jersey Cordwainer being of Sound and perfect health in Body and of perfect mind and memory thanks be given unto almighty God therefore Calling unto mind the mortality of my Body and knowing that is apointed for all men once to die do make and Ordain this my last Will and Testament […]
Imprimis it is my Will and I do Order that in the first place all my just Debts and Funeral Charges be paid and Satisfied. Item I Give and bequeath to my loving Wife Ann VanCourt all my Real and fast [personal?] Estate to her so long as She shall live. Item I Give and bequeath to my four Daughters viz: To my Daughter Agness the Sum of five Pound. To my Daughter Jane the Sum of five pound.
(Marginal, left: "Elias VanCourt / Will / Recorded 4 Sepr 1750 / Exam.")
Liber E p. 450 — the body [verbatim]
To my Daughter Ann the Sum of five pound. To my Daughter Elizabeth the Sum of five pound. all to be money at eight Shillings the Ounce. Item it is Will that the aforesaid Legacies Shall not be paid to my four Daughters aforesaid till the Decease of my Wife Ann VanCourt each of the Legacies aforesaid I give my Daughters aforesaid or to the heirs of their Body.
Item it is my Will and I do Order that all my Lands either in the County of Middlesex or Somerset after the Decease of my Wife Shall be Sold at Publick Vandue and the money that the said Lands Shall fetch or come to Shall be equally Divided among my five Sons (namely) Moses, Thomas, Samuel, John and Michael And likewise all the Moveable Estate to be Sold by Vandue (after my Wifes Decease) and Divided among my five Sons aforsaid that is to say all moveable that belong to the Plantatation, or Dry hids or Green, or Leather that may be in the Tanfats is what is intended by moveable Estate.
Item is my Will that in case my younges Son Michael Should Outlive his Mother And ———— [blank] ^not be of the full age of twenty one years that then the Lands before mentioned Shall not be Sold till he comes to the age of twenty one, and then Sell the Lands as aforsaid and make Division of the money as aforementioned Excepting that I Order that my Son Samuel Shall have Ten pounds in money more then his equal Share of his Brothers out of the said Land.
Item it is my Will that if my youngest Son Michaell aforsaid Should die before his full age of twenty one and his Mother dead likewise that then the Land may be Sold as aforesaid and his part to be equally Divided among the four Surviving Brothers namely Moses Thomas Samuel and John and his part of the moveable Estate in like manner. Item it is my Will that if any one of my five mentioned Sons Should die before full age and without lawfull ^issue then there part to be equally Divided to the Survivours of my five Sons before mentioned.
Item I Will and I Order that all the moveable Estate that is belonging to my House or Houshold Stuff Shall be equally Divided among my four Daughters before mentioned after their Mothers Decease besids the Legacies given before mentioned.
Item it is my Will and I do hereby Order that my two Sons Eliass and Daniel Shall have the Sume of five pounds apiece paid to them or to their Heirs one year after the Decease of my Wife Ann VanCourt which Sum I give unto my two Sons afors.d namely Eliass and Daniell to cut off and Intirely Debar and for ever exclude they or either of their Heirs from Claiming or coming in for any part of my Estate for ever they having their Portions allready paid to them and every thing as aforsaid I Give to my Children and to their Heirs for ever
Note the two marks Bartow's collation note points at, both visible on this page: Divided among at line 10 is underlined, and there is a ruled blank with a caret-inserted not further down. The clerk was flagging interlineations he found in the original.
Liber E p. 451 — executors, witnesses, probate [verbatim]
And I do likewise make and Ordain my dearly beloved Wife, my Son Moses VanCourt and my brother in Law Daniel Cooper to be my Executors of this my last Will and Testament and I do hereby Disallow revoke and Disannull all and every other Testaments Wills Legacies and Executors by me in any ways before this time named Willed & bequeathed ratifying and Confirming this and no other to be my last Will & Testament In Witness whereof I have hereunto Set my hand and Seal the day and year above written.
Elias Vancourt (seal)
Signed Sealed published pronounced and Declared by the Said Elias VanCourt as his last Will and Testament in the presence of us the Subscribers viz: Benjamin Runyon, Jaco Sebring, Edward Wilmott.
Be it Remembred that on the twenty third day of August in the year of Our Lord one thousand Seven hundred and fifty Benjamin Runyon, Jaco Sebring and Edward Wilmott the Witnesses within Subscribed personally came before me Anthony White duly Authorized to Prove Wills and qualify Executors in the Province of New Jersey and they being duly Sworn on the holy Evangelists did Depose that they were present and Saw Elias VanCourt the Testator within named Sign and Seal the within written Instrument and heard him publish pronounce and Declare the Same to be his last Will and Testament and that at the doing thereof the Said Testator was of Sound mind and memory […] Anthony White
Be it Remembered that at the Same time Ann VanCourt Moses VanCourt and Daniel Cooper the Executors within named personally came before me and were Sworn to the due Execution and performance of the within Will and Testament according to Law. Anthony White
Probate Granted by Gov.r Belcher in the usual form
Note p. 450. l. 10 the words (Divided among) are undermarked being int.d in y.e Orig.l line 17 a blank space is left which is an Oblit: in the Orig.l not legible & the word (not) is int.d being so in the Original. Examined by Tho.s Bartow D. Sec.y
The "brother in Law Daniel Cooper" phrase is in the will body, not editorial, and is corroborated by Honeyman's abstract [A.16]. It is the primary-source hook for identifying Daniel Cooper Sr [p.1] as the brother of Elias's wife Ann [p.3]. (The two readings — Anne's brother vs a sister's husband — and the full-vs-half-sibling question are worked at [p.3].)
Bartow's note is what makes this page conclusively a register transcript. Consequently the "Daniel Cooper" cursive on p. 451 is the recording clerk's rendering of the name, not an autograph — so this scan cannot support a signature test. The genuine 1750 autograph is at [A.68].
Not part of the Van Court estate
The lower half of p. 451 begins an unrelated Belcher grant: administration to Samuel Dove of Monmouth Co., brother of the widow, on the intestate estate of Isaac FitzRandolph late of Monmouth, dated 23 August 1750, inventory due 24 November. Recorded here only so the page is fully accounted for.