Will of Joseph Adair, Jr.
Laurens District, South Carolina
Written 20 January 1812 · Proved 15 January 1813
At a Glance
- Who: Joseph Adair, Jr., son of Joseph Adair, Sr., Deputy Commissary of the Little River Regiment in the Revolution (see Joseph Adair, Jr. – Deputy Commissary). He married Sarah Dillard.
- Written: 20 January 1812, “in good heath and in my Natural Sences.”
- Proved: 15 January 1813, before David Anderson, Ordinary. Recorded in Will Book D-1, page 105.
- Executors: his sons Elisha Adair and John Adair.
- Witnesses: Richard Holland, William Adair, George McCrary.
- Heirs: eight children: John, James, Robert and Elisha Adair; Elizabeth (Mrs. John Hughston); Jane (Mrs. Thomas Holland); Casey (Mrs. Thomas McCrary); and Charity (Mrs. David Little). Also his grandson Joseph, son of Elisha.
- Enslaved people named: eight. See the table below.
On This Page
- The Will
- Enslaved People Named in This Will
- A Descendant’s Research
- Family Connections
- Sources, Open Questions, and How You Can Help
The Will
Editor’s note: Transcribed from the typescript in the South Carolina Will Transcripts. The original spelling is kept, and the paragraph breaks have been added for easier reading. The typescript spells the son-in-law’s name “Hutron”; a handwritten correction on it reads “Houston,” and the family name is Hughston. “Charity” and “Little” are also corrected by hand on the typescript.
State of South Carolina } In the Name of God Amen —
Laurens District } Know all men by these presents that I Joseph Adair of the Same State and District are Now in good heath and in my Natural Sences at this date and time make this my Last Will and testament at my Death I Bequeath My Body to the tomb My Soul to the Almighty God my maker and cratar and Jesus Crist My Redemer
Likewise I give and Bequeath Unto John Adair my Son all the Land that I Layed of for him that Richard Hollen and John prier Now Lives on and one negro Woman Named Jude — Likewise I give and Bequeath unto my Son James Adair all that part of a tract of Land he Now Lives on lying on the South Side of Littel Dunkins Creek Bounded on Land of Thomas McCraryes Alexander Wilkersons Elisha Adair & one Negor man Named Duke Likewise I give and Bequeath Unto My Son Rober Adair the money that he did Rieve from Alexander Wilkerson for a tract of Land made over by me and my Son to Elisha Adair to Said Wilkerson and one Negor Girle Named Tamer
Likewise I give and Bequeath to my Son Elisha Adair all that part of Land I now Live on containing three hundred and Seventy five acres moor or less Resurvayed by John A Elmore one Negro Boy Named Morris one New Waggon and all her harness Likewise I give and Bequeath Unto My Grand Son Joseph Adair Son of Elisha Adair one set of Silver coate Buttons and one Set of Silver Breaches Buttons — to my son Robert Adair
I Likewise Give and Bequeath Unto My Daughter Elizabath and her husband John Hutron one Negor Girle Named Chavis to be tharne During thare Natural Life and at thair death to be Eaqually Divided among all Elizabeth Hutrons Children children of her Natural Body Likewise I give and Bequeath unto my Daughter Jane Wife of Thomas Holland one Negro girl Named Dice — Likewise I give unto my Daughter Casey Wife of Thomas McCrarey one Negor Woman Named Sid — Likewise I give and Bequeath Unto Charity Wife of David Littel one Negro Woman Named Sarah and all the rest of my perishable property to be Eaqually Divided among My Eaight Children of my Natural Body
I hereby Set my hand & Seal this 20th of January 1812 — it being in the thirty Sixth and thirty seventh yeare of American Indenpendency — and I do hear appoint Elisha Adair and John Adair my Executors —
Witness present
Richard Holland
William Adair
George McCrary
Joseph Adair (Seal)
Recorded in Will Book D-1 Page 105. Recorded date not available. Proven Jan. 15, 1813. David Anderson, Ordy.
Enslaved People Named in This Will
Joseph Adair, Jr.’s will names eight enslaved people. Their names are given here as they are spelled in the will, so that descendants searching for them can find them.
| Name | Left to |
|---|---|
| Jude | Son John Adair |
| Duke | Son James Adair |
| Tamer | Son Robert Adair |
| Morris | Son Elisha Adair |
| Chavis | Daughter Elizabeth and her husband John Hughston for life, then Elizabeth’s children |
| Dice | Daughter Jane, wife of Thomas Holland |
| Sid | Daughter Casey, wife of Thomas McCrary |
| Sarah | Daughter Charity, wife of David Little |
A Descendant’s Research
Research now suggests that Jude was the mother of Dice. A descendant, Cousin Leona, shared her family’s findings:
My 2nd great grandmother was Viney (Louvenia?) Adair (1820-1870). She married Martin Holland, who we believe was the son of Nep Holland (1791-1878) and Parmilia Miles (1793-1871). It was very hard to trace my family line because there are almost no records of black people before 1870, but thru family stories, Greenville Library and one of my Holland cousins who lives and breathes Ancestry, we narrowed it down to Viney being the daughter of Dice Adair, who was the daughter of Joseph Adair Jr. (1733-1812) and a enslaved woman named Jude. My cousin made most of her discoveries thru GEDmatch, comparing many, many DNA results. So, while it is not written in stone, her conclusions seem to be well founded.
— Cousin Leona
Family Connections
- Joseph was the son of Joseph Adair, Sr., whose 1788 will named him an executor.
- His daughter Jane married Thomas Holland, Sr. Her own will is Jane Adair Holland – 1830.
- Richard Holland, a witness, is probably the “Richard Hollen” living on John Adair’s land.
Sources, Open Questions, and How You Can Help
Sources
- Will of Joseph Adair, Laurens District, Will Book D-1, p. 105. Typescript in South Carolina Will Transcripts (Microcopy No. 9), South Carolina Department of Archives and History.
- Joseph Adair in the Archives index.
Open Questions
- Who were Dice’s descendants beyond Viney Adair Holland, and where did Jude, Duke, Tamer, Morris, Chavis, Sid and Sarah go after 1813?
- Where exactly was Joseph’s 375-acre home tract, “resurveyed by John A. Elmore”? A plat would place it on the map.
How You Can Help
If you descend from any of the people named in this will, or can answer one of these questions, please get in touch.
Family wills: Joseph Adair, Sr. – 1788 · Joseph Adair, Jr. – 1812 · Jane Adair Holland – 1830 · Jeremiah Leake – 1851