Will of William Rea

William Rea named relatives, left an unnamed enslaved person to Joseph Allison after his wife's death, and appointed Joseph Allison and William Rea executors.

Kind of paper

Will

Testator

William Rea (printed WILLIAM REA), of Little River, Parish of Saint Matthew.

Dated

16 October 1769

Proved

May 1774 court

Family named

Catherine (wife); William (son); David Rea (grandson); Michael Robbinson (son-in-law); John Mordah (son-in-law); James Mordah (son-in-law); Patrick Rutherford (son-in-law)

Executors

Joseph Allison; William Rea

Witnesses

Robert Willson; James Rea, Jr; Samuel Sample

Enslaved people not named

An enslaved person

Money and goods

money that is now in Joseph Allison and Patrick Rutherford's hands

Places

Little River; Parish of Saint Matthew

Names and places are given as the abstract writes them, spelling and all. This record has not been checked against the will book.

Where to find it

• Orange County Will Book A, page 154.
• Abstract: Ruth Herndon Shields, Abstracts of Wills Recorded 1752 through 1800 in Orange County, North Carolina, Will Books A, B and C (Davie Poplar Chapter NSDAR, revised edition 1966).
• Also listed in Mark Chilton, “Wills Recorded in Orange County, NC 1756–1893” (Wandering through the NC Piedmont, 2019), an index of the will books with references to the court minutes.
• Microfilm at the Orange County Public Library, Wall Local History Collection: reel 80001, “Record of Wills, 1752–1795, Vols. A, B” (State Archives film).