| 30th March 1844 Will of Amelia Carroll Widow of William Landers, Wife of William Fogarty | From the Notary Records of Henry Charles Austin Record #5 From Microfilm #4M01-1193 at the Quebec Archives |
On the thirtieth day of March in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and forty four, before us the undersigned Notaries Public duly commissioned and sworn for that part of the Province of Canada heretofore constituting the Province of Lower Canada, residing at the City of Quebec, in the said Province, personally appeared and was present Amelia Carroll, widow of the late William Landers, deceased in his lifetime of the Parish of Ste. Catherine, Seigniory of Fossambault, Farmer, and now wife of William Fogarty of the said Parish of Ste. Catherine, Seigniory of Fossambault, Farmer, who being in good bodily health and of sound mind, judgment and understanding as appeared to us the said Notaries by her manner and conversation hath declared unto us that she was desirous to make her Last Will and Testament which she hath accordingly dictated and named word for word to Henry Charles Austin, one of us in the presence of William Bignell, his colleague, and which the said Amelia Carroll hath requested the said Henry Charles Austin to receive and reduce the same into writing and which the said Henry Charles Austin in the presence of William Bignell, his colleague, as aforesaid hath taken down as dictated word for word by the said Amelia Carroll as follows, that is to say:
First, the said Testatrix doth will and direct that her body be buried at the discretion of her Executor hereinafter named and further directing that all her just and lawful debts be paid and satisfied by her said Executor out of her estate as soon after her decease as may be convenient.
Second, the said Testatrix doth will, devise and bequeath to her well beloved husband, the said William Fogarty, the usufruct use and enjoyment of the one undivided half of Lot or parcel of land situate, lying and being in the said Parish of Ste. Catherine, Seigniory of Fossambault, being Lot Number eighty one in the Sixth Range of the said Seigniory, bounded as follows, in front by the Fifth Range and in the rear by the Seventh Range, on the north east by the lands of St. Gabriel, and on the south west by Lot Number Eighty containing two arpents and three perches more or less in front by thirty arpents in depth making a superficie [area] of eighty five arpents more or less to be enjoyed by him the said William Fogarty during his natural life.
Thirdly, the said Testatrix doth hereby will, devise and bequeath to the child or children issue of her marriage with the said William Fogarty the said one undivided half of the herein before above described Lot or parcel of land; and in the event of there being no child or children issue of the said marriage, then the one undivided half of the said above described Lot or parcel of land shall go to and become the property of the child or children then living issue of the first marriage of the said Testatrix with the said William Landers; and in case all the said children should die previous to the decease of her the said Testatrix, then the said one undivided half of the said above described Lot or parcel of land shall belong to the said William Fogarty.
And lastly, the said Testatrix doth hereby will, devise and bequeath to her husband, the said William Fogarty, all the household furniture, moveables and effects whatsoever of which she may die possessed, provided always that should there be a child or children issue of her marriage with the said William Fogarty at the time of her decease, then and in that case, the said moveables and effects shall belong to the said child or children issue of the said marriage, subject nevertheless to the life enjoyment of the same by the said William Fogarty.
To have and to hold the aforesaid legacies as heretofore bequeathed to the respective legatees subject to the conditions aforesaid and to and for their only proper use, benefit and behoof for ever.
And for the executing this present will and testament, the said Amelia Carroll hath named and appointed the said William Fogarty, of the place aforesaid, sole Executor in the hands of whom she divests herself of all her property according to the laws and usage of the Province. The said Testatrix hereby revoking all other wills, testaments and codicils which she may have made before these presents, these presents containing her last will and intentions.
Thus done, dictated and named word for word by the said Amelia Carroll to the said Henry Charles Austin on the day and year first above written. At the Office of the said Henry Charles Austin situate and being in the Lower Town of the said City of Quebec in the presence of his colleague as aforesaid at the hour of twelve o’clock and after these presents were read and read over by the said Henry Charles Austin to the said Amelia Carroll, the said Amelia Carroll said and declared that she understood the same perfectly and found these presents in every respect conformable to her last will. And in testimony of the promises, the said Testatrix hath set and subscribed her name and signature in the presence of the said Notaries also present subscribing, these presents having been first duly read according to law.
Four words struck our are null. Three marginal notes approved.
Emelia Carroll, her signature;
W. Bignell, N.P., his signature;
Henry C. Austin, N.P., his signature
Transcribed by Gerry Neville – March 2011
Notes by Patricia Balkcom: Amelia died 23 years later (May 12, 1867) at the reported age of 60 years. Her two husbands both predeceased her. She had six children with William Landers, two died in infancy. She had three children with William Fogarty, possibly one of these, Mary, predeceased her. By the 1851 Census, Amelia and the family had moved to St. Roch parish in Quebec City where she was operating a boarding house, so I imagine the land discussed in the will was probably sold. There may very well be a later will.