http://xrl.us/HopperLastWill1833Seller's description:
Last Will and Testament of John J. Hopper, Hackensack, New Jersey, sixth day of August, 1833. Distribution of his estate including slaves and " . . . my five Blacks who are born under the manumission act . . . ".
Three and one-half pages manuscript last will and testament leaving his wordly goods to wife and children. The will is quite detailed. After requiring his debts to be settled by his son, John Hopper states that his son-in-law Jonathan Hopper ( apparently some inter-marriage here) is indebted to him on a bond & mortgage in the sum of four hundred dollars. John Hopper requires that his son-in-law pay this with interest to " . . . my son Jacob".
Following this is the dividing up of the real estate and mentions the boundary with the land of James Brinkerhoff, Esq. Further on Hopper leaves " . . . one mare and colt . . . two horses, two yoke of oxen, one bull, ten cows, ten sheep, seven hogs, five pigs - three wagons, one pleasure sleigh . . . . one windmill . . . bed & bedding to be chosen for him by his mother . . . and also two cows to fatten for winter beef for himself and his mother . . . ".
His son John next receives some money yearly to be paid out by his brother, Jacob. John also receives a " . . . riding horse and new saddle and a feather Bed Bedstead and Bedding". After this, Hopper's wife, Maria and their daughters are given various sums of money. In the middle of this section regarding the daughters and husbands, Hopper stipulates that the receipts are to be " . . . free from any control of her said husband and after his decease . . . ". Hopper then returns to his wife and gives her " . . . the Bay Mare and topp waggon (sic) . . . rest & residue of my household furniture and kitchen furniture . . .".
Following this : Item - "My slaves old Joe Young and Lame Joe, Sam & Luke and my five Blacks who are born under the manumission act and all the grain which may remain at the time of my death I give & devise unto my wife Maria and my son Jacob ". The remainder of his personal estate is then devised unto his son John and six daughters. The final page names his wife as Executrix and his son Jacob as Executor. This portion is dated " . . . the year of our Lord One Thousand eight hundred and thirty three . . . ". Hopper signs the will and it is witnessed by Maria Zabriskie, Abraham Terhune and R.W. Stevenson. At the bottom is the signature of David J. Christie, a clerk or official of some sort.
Measurements and condition : Approximately 8-3/8" by 13-1/2". Age-toning and various stains to the paper, paper is still fairly supple. Some partial seperations to all fold lines at margins, minor missing areas ( see photos). The last page which constitutes pages # 3 & #4 of the will is seperated at the top quarter as shown in my pictures. There is however, nothing missing. Back page is darker at bottom half where it was exposed to sunlight, etc.
Special note : I am listing concurrently an earlier incomplete draft of John J. Hopper's will. This partial will is undated, though it appears to be perhaps 10, maybe 20 years earlier. A son, Albert is listed in this will who is not present in the final 1833 will. I would have preferred to list the two wills together, however I could not include enough pictures of both documents to give a meaningful sense of their content.
I have included in my pictures copies of some old newspaper articles regarding the Hoppers and their house. If the buyer of any of my listings would like to have copies of these newspaper articles I will include them when I mail your item to you. One of these is an article from the Bergen Evening Record in 1935. As I indicated in my earlier isting of the orphan children receipt documents, all of these documents were found in the Hopper house sometime in the mid-20th century underneath the attic floorboards.
In addition to this, by the end of this week, if time permits I will be listing the complete 4 page last will & testament of Garrett Hoppe(r) from the year 1770. At that time I also plan to list a handful of other receipts regarding the care of orphan children in New Barbadoes ( Hackensack) from the early 1770's. These are similar to the first two I put on E-bay with Jacob Hopper as one of the Poor Masters in charge of placing the orphan or poor children in local homes. These are all fascinating, one of a kind documents, a number of them pre-Revolutionary in date.Seller provided 12 photos and I can only use 10, so see the auction for the other 2. I did not alter any of the images.
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