The Will of Richard Davis of Charleston, Montgomery County, New York

Richard Davis was one of the sons of Loyalist Thadeus Davis, who moved to Niagara towards the end of his life with many of his adult children.  I  believe that Richard moved to Ontario briefly and then returned to the United States, where he lived in Charleston, Montgomery County, NY.  He was the husband of Mabel Mann and the father of Deacon William Davis, one of our Baptist ancestors who moved to the Aylmer area as a young man.  Here is his will, which names his wife Mabel and all of his children then living.  It was written January 2, 1823 and registered June 2, 1823.  Richard was 61 years old at the time of his death.

Highlights:

• he identifies himself as being of Charleston, Montgomery, NY and says that he is "weak in body but of sound and perfect mind and memory"
• he leaves  his "beloved wife Mabel Davis" all his personal property and the interest and profit of it "to be under her control as long as she remains my widow for the bringing up and educating of my son Henry Davis and my son Joel Davis and my son Hosea Davis"
• he gives two hundred dollars each to his younger sons Lyman, Henry, Joel and Hosea, with the caveat that if his estate is not sufficient to cover the amount they are to get the equivalent in real estate after the death of his wife
• he leaves to his children William (whom he names as his eldest son), Joseph, Simeon, Andrew, David, Mary, Sally, Lyman, Hannah, Henry, Joel and Hosea all his property to be divided equally between them
• his daughter Sally's share he gives to his sons William, David and Lyman to control,  and instructs them to give her the interest from it and upon her death to give the principal from the property to her children.  Why is her share treated differently than the others?  
• he names William, David and Lyman as executors of the will
• witnesses are Francis Carey, Wright Davis (Richard's brother), and (Wesn?)  Gage. 

What The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record Has To Say About Richard Davis

The New York Genealogical and Biographical Record is an old and respected journal catering to researchers who are interested in former residents of New York State.  It's clear that the Davis family passed through New York on their way to Canada, and that at least three of them eventually returned.  I went to my local reference library today (it has a full run of the Record) and looked up all 26 volumes that had a Richard Davis indexed.  Most of them were other Richard Davises, but I did find a few articles with some good information.

I'm most excited about finding an abstract of Richard's will.  There are several databases of wills in New York state that I have checked to no avail, but now I know that Richard definitely did write a will, and I have the probate date.  One step closer to finding the will itself!

From Volume 57 (1926), p. 176, "Abstracts of Wills, Montgomery County, New York".

"RICHARD DAVIS of Charleston, will dated 1-2-1823, probated 6-2-1823, mentions--wife Mabel, sons, Henry, Joel, Hosea, Lyman, William, Joseph, Simeon, Andrew and Daniel;  daughters, Mary, Sally and Hannah.  Executors:  sons William, Daniel and Lyman.  Witnesses:  Frances Carey, Wright Davis, Wessn (?) Gage."

Richard died in 1823, so obviously he wrote this will shortly before his death.  Even the abstract gives us valuable information, most obviously which of his children were still alive in 1823.  Wright Davis was Richard's brother.

From Volume 59 (1928) p. 268 "Tombstone Inscriptions, Montgomery County, New York".

"Cemetery 3/4 mile North of Oak Ridge, Town of Charleston, Montgomery County, N.Y., Map No. 22...
Davis, Harry E., son of Henry and Mariah d. 2-19-1831, ae. 1-1-24.
Davis, David N., son of Henry and Mariah, d. 4-4-1839, ae. 4-8-13.
Davis, Mary C., dau. of Henry and Mariah, d. 12-15-1849, ae. 10-3-7.
Davis, Richard, d. 3-8-1823,  ae. 61-11-19.
Davis, Mabel, wife of Richard, d. 9-23-1846, ae. 79-206.
Davis, Infant son of  Hosea and Phebe, d. 12-14-1852 ae. 2 days.
Davis, Henry, d. 4-3-1876, ae. 69-9-3.
Davis, Maria, wife of Henry, d. 5-19-1861, ae. 54-5-15.
Davis, Lyman, d. 5-12-1878, ae. 79-8-10.
Davis, Catherine, wife of Lyman, d. 1-1-1858, ae. 54-9-   . 
Davis, Phebe Jane, dau. of Wright and Ursula, d. 9-27-1842, ae. 2-3-23.
Davis, Mary Jane, dau. of Wright and Ursula, d. 1-9-1851, ae. 4-10-15."

I had already known that Richard and Mabel were buried together at the Charleston Cemetery, but it's great to have a record of other family members buried in the same place.

From Volume 50 (1919) p. 276.  "Mohawk Valley Householders in 1800".

This article gives some interesting information about the geography of Charleson, which it refers to as "Charlestown".  It then lists Richard and Thadeus as residents in 1800.  I had thought that they were in Ontario at that time. 

"The town of Charlestown included in 1800 the modern towns of Charlestown, Glen, and a portion of Root, in Montgomery County.  At thje census of 1790 this area formed a part of the old town of Mohawk, distinct from the modern town of that name."

The Richard Davis household is listed as having 1 male under 10 years, 2 males between 10 and 16, 2 males from 16 to 26, and one male over 45.
The Thadeus Davis household is listed as having 1 male between 10 and 16, 1 male between 16 and 26, and 1 female between 26 and 45.  These two households are listed side by side. 

There is another entry which I think relates to earlier Davises in our line.

Volume 128 (1997) p. 176.  "A Proposed Family for Thomas Jones of Fairfield, Connecticut and Huntington, Long Island" by Frederick Hart, Jr.

"Children of Josiah and Joanna (--) Jones:...
3.  Thomas, b. 1719/20, d. Stamford 1769, m. 6 Dec. 1744 Mary Davis, b. 24 Feb 1727/8, daughter of Richard and Martha (--) Davis."

The Record appears to be a journal that I could explore further.  I'd like to see what it says about Thadeus, about Richard's siblings and children, and about the Norton family.  
 

The Davis family in Watervliet, New York

The 1790 United States census, which occured before the family of Thadeus Davis moved to Canada, locates several members of the Davis family in the town of Watervliet, Albany, New York.

Unfortunately, as with all early census records, the 1790 census does not record the names of each household member, just the heads of families.  It also doesn't give exact ages--there are three columns, one for females of any age, one for males over 16 and one for males under 16.  The William Davis family has two males under 16, one male over 16 and three females.  The Thadeus Davis family has three males under 16, two males over 16 and four females.    The Richard Davis family has four males under 16, one male over 16 and one female.  Cornelius Vandenburgh, the husband of Lois Davis, is also living in Watervliet, with a total household of three people, two females and one male over 16.   It's possible that other Davis family members were living in other parts of New York;  I see some possibilities, but don't have enough information to confirm anything.

I don't know much about Watervliet, but here's what Wikipedia can tell us:  the town of Watervliet was officially created in 1788 when New York divided all of its lands into towns rather than districts. At the time of the 1790 census, the population of Watervliet was 7,419 people.    The original settlers of the area (who were there well before Watervliet was created) were Dutch, and the original name of the settlement was the Manor of Rensselaerswyck (Watervliet only covered the Western part of this formerly larger area).   I'm guessing that a few of the Davis spouses--the Ostrander brothers, Cornelius Vandenburgh, and Johannes Van Patter--came from a Dutch background.  Since 1790 the town of Watervliet has been separated into smaller towns, but a Watervliet still exists in New York.

Interestingly, Watervliet is known for its Shaker community (the Shakers were a religious group also known as "Shaking Quakers" who believed in abstinence, a simple lifestyle, and gender equality).  I'd be surprised if any of our Davis family joined the Shakers--they're all pretty firm Baptists when they reach Ontario!

Finding the Davis Family in America

I've always found it curious that so many Davis siblings immigrated from New York to Elgin, Ontario at the same time, leaving their parents behind in America.  There must have been a reason, but was it economic or political?  Where did they come from, and why?

Sims History of Elgin County, Volume II talks briefly about William Davis and his beginnings:

"Catfish Corners [an early name for Orwell] was just a stake in the earth when Deacon William Davis and his wife settled there after a lengthy journey from his home on Schohario, New York, in 1809...William Davis was followed by his brothers Andrus, Daniel, Simeon, and Joel, and his sisters Hannah, Polly and the one that became Mrs. Brown in 1811."

That means that altogether nine Davis siblings came to Canada.  Corroborating the data in Sims History, William Davis, on the 1851 census, stated that he was born in the state of New York, and in the 1861 census stated that he was born in the United States. Now, if you google "Schohario, New York" you won't find anything, but you will discover that "Schoharie, New York" is both a county, a town and a village. I wasted a lot of time looking for the Davis roots there.  It turns out that they come from Charleston, Montgomery County, New York. (It's pretty close to Schoharie--the south town line of Charleston is the border of Schoharie County, and the east town line runs along the Schoharie creek.)  There is even a hamlet in Charleston called Davis Corners.  And I have found a marriage record for William Davis and his first wife, Temperance Leek, in a list of marriages performed by Elijah Herrick,  the first Baptist minister in the town of Charleston.

"Davis, William & Temperance Leak--September 14, 1803."

Original site of Charleston Baptist Church: "Baptist Church, Erected 1793, Elijah Herrick 1st Pastor".

Temperance Leek was the mother of William Davis' first five children;  we descend from his second wife, Mary Sibley of Nova Scotia.

I haven't seen the original records yet, but there appears to be consensus among genealogists that William Davis and his siblings were the children of Richard Davis and Mabel Mann, who were born in Connecticut, and that Richard was the son of Thaddeus Davis and Deborah Hall.  I have been able to find gravestones for Richard and Mabel in a small Davis family cemetery in Charleston, "3/4 miles north of Oak Ridge".   Richard's is somewhat damaged, but still readable.

"Richard Da...Died March 8, 1823, aged 61 years, 11 mo, & 19 days".

Mabel Mann, Richard's wife, has a grave marker which is barely legible now.  Mabel died September 23, 1846.

She is located on the right side of the tree, Richard on the left:

The sign in the middle says "Davis Cemetery".  It seems to be a real pioneer-type cemetery, all small and surrounded by woods, but someone is obviously keeping the grass cut.  I wonder if the Ontario Davis clan travelled back to New York to see either of their parents buried?

Here is a view of the whole graveyard:

Two of Richard and Mabel's children are buried in this cemetery as well:  Henry Davis (July 2, 1806-April 3, 1876) and Lyman Davis (September 2, 1798-May 12, 1878).

The History of Montgomery County  by Washington Frothingham, published in 1892 by D. Mason of Syracuse, New York,  has a chapter on the town of Charleston.

"Many of Charleston's early settlers, some who came prior to the revolution, were undoubtedly attracted to the locality by the availability of Schoharie Creek as a source of mill power, and at an early day along the banks of this stream were erected numerous grist and saw-mills....After the revolution the immigration was more rapid and included many thrifty New Englanders...Among these later settlers were...Abram Davis...Thomas Leek...[and] Richard Davis...

These early pioneers found a country covered with a hardy growth of timber, and traversed by few and laborious trails.  Many of the first comers, particularly those who came from adjoining counties, left their families behind for a time, until they could clear sufficient land to build a log dwelling and sow the first crop.  They generally went back to their old home during the intervening winters..." 

Now, when we go back to Richard's parents generation, things get really interesting.  Thaddeus Davis, Richard's father and William's grandfather, was born in Connecticut in 1738 and fought on the side of the British during the Revolutionary War.  He came to Canada in 1798 with his wife and 11 children, including Richard, and settled in Allenburg, in the Niagara area.  Richard was one of the few children who eventually returned to the United States;  most of the family stayed in Canada.  So it turns out that Richard's children moving to Ontario in 1810 was not so strange;  they had plenty of family here already and had probably travelled back and forth at some point in their lives.