Document A.9 · probate abstract · transcription: verbatim
Calendar of Wills p. 84 — the published abstract of Daniel Cooper Sr.'s will of 1 February 1791 and its 24 April 1792 codicil, proved 20 June 1795.
- repository
- Published archival abstract
- collection
- New Jersey Post-Revolutionary Documents / Calendar of Wills
- identifier
- p. 84; the abstract itself cites Lib. 36, p. 67 and File 873N
- date
- 1791-02-01
What is transcribed: The complete 1791 will abstract and the complete 1792 codicil abstract on p. 84. The rest of the page is not transcribed.
People named
| As written | Role | Identified as | What this document says |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cooper, Daniel | testator | Daniel Cooper Sr 1695–1795 | residence: Morris Twp., Morris Co., New Jersey death: before 20 Jun 1795 |
| Hannah | spouse | ||
| son Daniel, dec'd | child | Daniel Cooper Jr 1729–1787 | |
| son John Cooper, dec'd | child | ||
| Son, Benjamin Cooper | child | Benjamin Cooper 1741–1794 | |
| daughter, Agness Ludlow | child | ||
| Daughter, Rosanna Gaston | child | ||
| Daughter, Providence Manning | child | ||
| daughter Anna | child | ||
| Daniel Cooper | grandchild | Daniel Cooper 1769–1826 | |
| Solomon Cooper | grandchild | ||
| Charity Cooper | grandchild | ||
| John Ludlow | grandchild | ||
| Joseph Gaston | grandchild | ||
| Lydia | grandchild | ||
| Mary Crane | grandchild | ||
| Robert Gaston, Esq. | executor | ||
| Elias Coriell | executor | ||
| James Linn | executor | ||
| Colonel Ephraim Martin | executor | ||
| Moses Squier | witness | ||
| Joseph Thompson | witness | ||
| Peter Runyon | witness | ||
| Robert Robertson | witness | ||
| David Burnet | witness | ||
| John Muckkel | witness | ||
| John Bruse | mentioned | ||
| James Van Derveer | mentioned | ||
| Peter Layton | mentioned |
What this document records
It is an abstract not the will
THE MANUSCRIPT IS [A.8] — NJSA Record of Wills Vol. 36 pp. 67–70, File 873N. This entry is a secondary printed summary of that same will. ⇒ both are kept because the abstract's enumeration of children and grandchildren is far easier to cite than reconstructing it from the manuscript, but where the two differ, [A.8] governs. A line-by-line collation of abstract against manuscript has NOT been done.
What it does not name
IT NAMES NO CHILD OF BENJAMIN INDIVIDUALLY. The will gives "Son, Benjamin Cooper, 1/8 part" and the codicil refers to the "children of son Benjamin" — so it attests that Benjamin had children, and stops there. ⇒ this abstract can neither confirm nor deny any particular person as Benjamin's child. What that closes off, and the untried document that could open it, are argued on Benjamin Cooper.
Two men named john cooper
DISAMBIGUATION — read this before crediting any "John Cooper" here. The "son John Cooper, dec'd" of this abstract is Daniel Sr's son, dead by 1791, whose children are named Daniel, Solomon and Charity. He is NOT Benjamin's son John of the CDV line. The two are routinely conflated on published trees.
The manuscript governs
[A.8] IS THE MANUSCRIPT; THIS IS A PRINTED SUMMARY OF IT. WHERE THEY DIVERGE, CITE [A.8]. But do NOT "correct" this entry from the manuscript. A.9 records what the abstract says, and the abstract legibly prints Carle, Muckkel and "Samuel Annin (?)" where the will has Earle, Muckelet and no query. ⇒ those readings STAY here, because this entry is the record of that publication — the divergence is a fact about the two documents, not an error in this one. Practical consequence: a person file should cite [A.8], not this entry, for anything the manuscript covers. This entry is worth citing for what the abstract asserts — which matters when tracing how a published error propagated into other people's trees.
Transcription and notes
Provenance, the abstract-versus-manuscript relationship, the fact that Benjamin's children
are not named, and the two-Johns disambiguation are all in the source: and coverage: headers
and are not repeated here.
- Verbatim abstract — 1791 Will entry (entire):
1791, Feb. 1. Cooper, Daniel, of Morris Twsp. and Co.; will of. Wife, Hannah, use of negro wench, Het, and interest from £100, while widow. Grandson, John Ludlow (son of daughter, Agness Ludlow), £50. Grandsons, Daniel Cooper and Solomon Cooper (sons of son John Cooper, dec'd), 28 acres lying in the great swamp whereon John Bruse now lives; also 6 acres northeast corner of land of Daniel Cooper, Jr., dec'd and the southwest corner of the land of James Van Derveer; also 23 acres in the long field running in straight course from said Daniel Cooper, Jr's corner to Peter Layton's line. Grandson, Joseph Gaston (son of Robert Gaston, Esq.), a negro boy. Granddaughter, Charity Cooper, (daughter of son John Cooper), a negro girl, 6 sheep and 2 cows. Residue of real and personal to be sold; children of son Daniel, dec'd (male and female), 1/8 part. Son, Benjamin Cooper, 1/8 part; he to discharge obligations in which I stand as his security, to wit: bond to Samuel Wells, bond to Elias Boudinott, Esq., £5 to Richard Stockton, Esq.; also for costs of suit brought by William Neilson. Granddaughter, Charity Cooper (daughter of son John, dec'd), 1/8 part. To the other children of son John (son John, dec'd), 1/8 part. Grandson, John Ludlow, 1/8 part. Daughter, Rosanna Gaston (wife of Robert Gaston, Esq.), 1/8 part. Daughter, Providence Manning (wife of Joseph Manning), 1/8 part. To the children of daughter Anna (wife of Jonas Carle), 1/8 part. Executors—Robert Gaston, Esq., of Somerset Co., Elias Coriell, of said Co. and James Linn and Colonel Ephraim Martin, of Somerset Co. Witnesses—Moses Squier, Joseph Thompson and Peter Runyon.
- Verbatim abstract — 1792 Codicil entry:
1792, April 24. Codicil. The bequest of 1/8 part of residue left to children of son Daniel, dec'd, revoked. Granddaughter, Lydia (wife of Samuel Annin (?) and daughter of said son Daniel), 1/11 part of revoked legacy. Granddaughter, Mary Crane (daughter of son Daniel), 1/11 part. The remaining 9 parts of revoked legacy to be equally divided between the children of son John, the children of son Benjamin, children of daughters, Rosanna, Providence and Anna, and grandson, John Ludlow (son of daughter Agness). Witnesses—Robert Robertson, David Burnet and John Muckkel. Proved June 20, 1795. Lib. 36, p. 67; File 873N.