MDSTMARY-L Archives

From: "John S Wilkinson" <>
Subject: [MDSTMARY-L] DEFINITIONS OF SOME WORDS USED IN EARLY DOCUMENTS (1700s & 1800s)
Date: Wed, 3 Dec 2003 11:19:06 -0500

DEFINITIONS OF SOME WORDS USED IN EARLY DOCUMENTS

Von Mings Stachon has been transcribing and contributing court records,

deeds and wills for several counties in Virginia. So far, she has

completed 562 documents and is still going. In the process, she has

collected a list of words that appear in these documents whose meanings may

not be known by the average reader. These words and their definitions may

be seen at:

http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/special/earlywords.txt

Feel free to pass this list on in your mail lists, or place them in your

archived records.

Some words have many meanings; listed here are the definitions that
pertain to wills, deeds, land pattents & inventories. All words listed here
were found in these documents.

abettor, abetter One who abets, or incites, aids, or encourages
another to
commit a crime. The legal form of the word is
abettor.

adz, adze An ax-like tool with an arching blade at right
angles to the
handle ground from a base on its inside to an outer
edge,
used for dressing wood, etc.

alien To make over (as property). Alienee: one to whom
property is transferred.

ancient In law: having twenty, thirty or more years
continuous
existence; used specifically in cases of defective
proof;
as, an ancient boundary

Anne, Lady Queen of Great Britain 1702-1714, daughter of James
II

Anno Domini A. D.

approbation To approve; sanction

archangel An angel of high rank

batting Cotton sheets prepared for use in making quilts

bbl An abbreviation used for barrel (1 barrel equals
31-1/2 gal)

behoof Advantage, profit

behoove To be necessary, proper, or advantageous; to be
necessary,
fit or proper

bolster A long pillow or cushion extending the full width
of a bed

capite Tenant in capite or tenant in chief; formerly in
England,
one who held land immediately of the king.
According to the
feudal system, all lands in England were considered
as held
immediately or mediately of the king, but the
tenants,
however, were considered as having the fee of the
lands and
permanent possession.

capitation A direct uniform tax imposed on each head

card To comb or open as wool, flax, cotton, etc. with a
card
for purposes of cleansing it of extraneous matter;
separating the coarse parts and making it fine and
soft
for spinning.

caske Casks of large sizes called tierces, pipes, butts,
tuns,
etc. do not hold any fixed quantity - quantity
usually
marked on them.

chain In general, a measuring instrument of 100 links
used in
surveying; a unit equal to 66 feet

clerk, Cl. A man who can read & write; a man of letters; a
scholar
(archaic) This would apply to the court person
whose name
appears at the end of Wills and other court
documents.

cock The style or gnomon of a sundial (one inventory
list showed
1 brass cock and sun dial)

consort Wife of the deceased

cooper One whose occupation is to make and repair barrels
and
casks of various kinds

coulter A knife in the form of an iron blade or sharp edged
wheel,
attached to the beam of a plow to make vertical
cuts in the soil
& facilitate the work of the plow share.


court of record A court whose acts and jusicial proceedings are
written down
for permanent keeping

coven Agreement
covenant To agree. A written agreement or promise - usually
under
seal between two or more parties

cruet A vial or small glass bottle; particularly one used
on the
table for holding vinegar oil, etc.

crupper The loop in a harness passing under the tail; also
a similar
strap attached to a saddle

cryer, crier A person who shouts out announcements of news,
court orders,etc.

crying Calling for immediate notice or remedy

dedimus A writ to commission private persons to do
some act in place of a judge, as to examine a
witness

demise The conveyance of an estate; transfer of the
sovereignty to
a successor; a cessation of existence or activity;
death

depute To appoint as a substitute or agent to act for
another

devise A gift of real property by Will

devolve To pass (on) to another; said of duties

dimity A light weight cotton fabric with fine twills much
used for
dresses; also a stout cotton fabric used for
upholstering

do Abbreviation for ditto

dog (dogg) Simple mechanical device for holding, gripping or
fastening
consisting of a spike, rod or bar; andiron.

dr An abbreviation for debtor; also for doctor

dsp Died without issue

ejecon (ejection) To throw out; cast out

ell A former measure of different lengths; used chiefly
for
measuring cloth; an English ell was 45 inches

emoluments Gain, profit, advantage

entayle (entail) To restrict (property) by limiting the inheritance
to the
owner's line descendants or to a particular class
thereof;
to impose, involve or imply as a necessary
accompaniment
or result

enure (inure) Use, custom. To accustom; to accept something
undesirable.

escuage In feudal law, a kind of tenure by Knight service,
by which
a tenant was bound to follow his lord to war.

evite To show; to avoid (archaic)
evitation The act of avoiding

everse To overthrow or subvert (obs)

extents Valuation (as of land) in Great Britain, esp. for
taxation;
a writ giving a creditor temporary possession of
his
debtor's property.

eye The hole in the upper millstone through which grain
passes;
also a loop of metal or thread

flax A plant; flax seeds are used to make linseed oil;
fibers of
the stem are spun to make linen thread.

fizgig Also called fishgig; an instrument for catching
fish at sea
consisting of a staff with barbed prongs

gaol (jail) British variant of jail

garret A room or unfinished part of the house; just under
the roof
(in one Will, that's where some slaves were housed)

gimlet, gimblet A small boring tool with a handle at right angles
to a shaft
having at the other end a spiral pointed cutting
edge

hackle, hatchel To separate coarse part of flax or hemp from the
fine
by drawing through the teeth of a hackle or
hatchel.

hereditament Hereditable property
hereditable Capable of being inhereited or of passing by
inheritance.

hogshead (hhd) A large barrel or cask, especially one containing
from
100 to 140 gallons; also a liquid measure,
especially one
equal to 63 gallons (52-1/2 imperial gallons)

hone A stone of very fine grit usually of a slaty
composition; used
to sharpen cutting tools; esp razors; also called a
whetstone

howel A plane with a convex sole used by coopers for
smoothing
the insides of barrels and casks

quit-rent A fixed rent payable to a feudal superior in
communication
of services - a fixed rent due from a socage tenant

imprimis In the first place; among the first things

indefeazable Not capable of being annuled or voided or undone
(indefeasible)

indemnified. Unharmed. To secure against loss or damage

indemnified letter One that rents or leases; such as a farm-letter

livery The act of delivering legal possession of property;
the
feeding stabling and care of horses for pay; ones
retainers
or retinue; the apportioning of previsions, esp. to
servants

inter-alia Among other things

joynture An estate settled on a wife to be taken by her in
lieu of
(jointure) dower; a settlement on the wife of a freehold
estate for her
lifetime

kersey A kind of coarse light-weight woolen cloth, usually
ribbed
with a cotton warp

last A mold or form of the human foot made of wood on
which
shoes are built or repaired (later lasts were made
of iron)

let A hindrance; obstacle; impediment; delay: used
commonly
only in the legal phrase, "without let or
hindrance"

letter One that rents or leases

let out To lease or rent out

lett suit One document refers to "lett suit trouble" meaning
trouble
with the ownership of the property (not wishing to
have any)

levy To arrange (a fine) in settlement of a suit to
establish
title to land

livery of seizin The putting of a person in corporal possession of a
freehold
by performing some ceremony before witnesses which
clearly
places the party in possession

manumit To set at liberty, free; to release from slavery

manumission Set free; being freed from slavery

moiety A half; one of 2 equal parts; as moiety of an
estate

noggin A small mug or cup

nuncupative To declare orally; oral-not written: especially of
Wills

outcry A public auction

pence Monetary unit of Great Britain; 12 pence equals 1
shilling,
240 pence equals 1 pound.

peremption A defeat; a quashing; non suit

peremptorilly Absolutely, positively; in a decisive manner

pestle A club-shaped implement for pounding or grinding,
stamping
or pressing.

piggin A small wooden dipper; also a small wooden pail
with a long
handle

pole A varying unit of length, esp. one measuring 16-1/2
feet

pone In old English law, a writ whereby an action
pending in an
inferior court might be removed for trial to a
superior
one; a writ whereby a sheriff was ordered to take
security
of a man for his appearance at a specified time.

porringer A small metal vessel for porridge, etc., esp. one
for child

pottle Formerly a liquid measure equal to a half gallon; a
pot
or tankard having this capacity

pound (£) Monetary unit of Great Britain; equal to 1
sovereign,
20 shillings

£.s.d. Librae solide denarii - stands for
pounds/shillings/pence.
(you will find these symbols at the top of all
columns in
estate inventories)

provender Dry food for livestock; to provide with food; to
feed; to fodder

reap A small bundle of grain

refractory Stubborn, obstinate, hard to manage (used in
reference to
slaves)

relict Widow

riddle To separate or sift as grain from the chaff

remise To give, grant or release a claim to: deed

rod Equal to 16.5 feet

rundlet A small barrel or cask of varying capacities
(archaic);
the amount of liquor contained in this an old
British
liquid measure usually taken as equal to about 18
wine
gallons (archaic)

scimitar A saber made of a curved blade with the edge on the
convex
side and used chiefly by Arabs and Turks (in one
Will it
was left to his son).

seize To vest ownership of a free hold estate; seizer:
one that
seizes; seizure: to take possession of person or
property by
legal process

seizin To seize. In law: possession, specifically
possession of a
freehold estate

shilling Monetary unit of Great Britain; one shilling equals
12
pence; 1/20th of a pound; written, i.e.: 15/ = 15
shillings.

shoat A young hog

shuck The covering shell or husk of corn; to shuck (corn)
is to
remove the outer covering.

sickle Cutting tool consisting of a crescent-shaped blade
with a short
handle used for cutting down tall grasses & weeds

skein A quanatity of thread, silk or yarn wound in a coil
(in one
inventory it was spelled scains)

socage A tenure of land by agricultural service fixed in
amount and
kind or by payment of money rent only and not
burdened
with any military service.

specie A form of payment in gold, silver or other coin as
distinguished
from paper money

spider A frying pan, originally one with attached legs for
use
over an open fire

steelyard A balance or scale consisting of a metal arm
suspended off
center from above: object to be weighed is hung
from the
shorter end, & a sliding weight is moved along the
graduated longer end until whole arm balances.

subjoin To add at the end; to add after something has been
said or
written; to append (as an item subjoined to a Will)

suite (suit) Suite is archaic form of suit. Action to secure
justice in a
court of law; attempt to recover a right or claim
through
legal action

suithold In feudal law, a tenure granted for attendance and
services
rendered a superior lord

tallow The harder and less fusible fat in cows, sheep,
etc; it is
used to make candles, soap, etc.

tobo An abbreviation used for tobacco

traces Either of two straps, chains, etc. connecting a
draft
animal's harness to the vehicle drawn

truss A bundle of hay, especially one of a certain weight
(usually 50-60 pounds)

truss hoop In nautical usage, a hoop round a yard or mast to
which an
iron truss is fixed (this is the only definition I
could find for "trus hoops" which was listed in an
inventory).

unfeignedly Sincere

viz or vizt An abbreviation for videlicet meaning: That is to
say;
namely

voc vin Voc stands for vocative (haven't figured out what
vin is)

wafer An adhesive disk of dried paste with added coloring
matter used as a seal.

William, III, King King William III, b. 1650; d. 1694 of small pox;
addressed
Parliament on 31 Dec 1701. King of Eng. 1689-1702

&c. Latin for et cetera; meaning: and others; and so
forth;
(can be found at the end of all early Wills)

/ Symbol used to indicate shillings, i.e. (15/)




Copyright. All rights reserved.
http://www.rootsweb.com/~usgenweb/copyright.htm

This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives
by: Von Stachon

This thread:

• [MDSTMARY-L] DEFINITIONS OF SOME WORDS USED IN EARLY DOCUMENTS (1700s & 1800s) by "John S Wilkinson" <>