Monday, October 17, 2011

Will of Robert Pincombe of Bampton Devon dated 21 Mar 1702 - PROB 11/476 - Image Reference 302/274

The will of Robert Pincombe of Bampton Devon has been in my cache of Pincombe wills for several years. In his will he mentions his wife Sarah (no children and the will implies a short marriage) and his four sisters whom he names executors but does not actually name them. In the probate three of the sisters are named as executors - Elizabeth Pincombe, Maria Pincombe and Joanna Pincombe. He is likely the Robert Pincombe who married Sarah Pearse 25 Sep 1701 at Oakford Devon. Oakford is 3 miles southwest of Bampton. This also places it in close proximity to Washfield, East Anstey, Rackenford and just a little further away from  Knowstone, Molland, Rose Ash, Bishops Nympton - hence not far from North/South Molton (13 miles).

From the earlier researchers the parents of this Robert were named John Pincombe and Elizabeth Graddon who had married 9 Feb 1640 at Roborough by Torrington Devon. This John is also a son of Richard Pincombe (my ancestor) but from his second marriage to Francis Gill. John and Elizabeth Pincombe lived at Bishops Nympton and had seven children baptized at Bishops Nympton which included Johan (21 Jan 1648), John (13 Mar 1650 - 13 Dec 1673), Elizabeth (22 Apr 1655), Frances (20 Nov 1657 - 27 Oct 1658), Emotte (31 Sep 1662 - 2 Nov 1692), Grace (died 27 Apr 1670 - no baptism found), and Robert (5 Aug 1668 - died after 25 Mar 1702 and before 31 May 1704). Robert would have been 33 years old when he married. He was the only remaining son in this line John having died unmarried in 1673. I have not found any marriages for his sisters and at the time of his death two of these sisters are still living but no Maria. I have transcribed Bishops Nympton Registers and decided to do a recheck just to see if I had missed one child of this family. In that I did not have a baptism for Grace, another two sisters are a possibility with one of them dying before 1702. Certainly he does have sisters Johan and Elizabeth. Looking at the land records for Bampton may assist with this linking back. The material on the John Pincombe and Elizabeth Graddon family does come from the earlier researcher with my verifying the children using the Parish Registers.

John Pincombe does not appear to have left a will at Bishops Nympton and I am curious why his son would be at Bampton. When the opportunity arises I will search out the land records for Bampton.

The transcription of the will for Robert Pincombe at Bampton follows:

Recorded: 16 October 2011
Source: The National Archives, London, UK, PROB 11/476 - Image Reference 302/274
Place: Bampton, Devon, England
Type of Record: Will
Dated: 25 Mar 1702  (probated 31 May 1704)
Condition: fairly clear, light, old English writing
[in margin] [Testato]r Rob[er]ti Pincombe

1 In the Name of God Amen
2 the five and twentieth day of March Anno dom[in]i one thousand
3 seaven hundred and two I Robert Pincomb of the parish of
4 Bampton in the County of Devon yeoman being sick and weake
5 of body but of sound and perfect memory (praise be given to Almighty
6 God for the same) and knowing the uncertainty of this life on Earth
7 and being desireous to settle things in order doe make this my last
8 Will and Testament in manner and forme following: that is to
9 say first and principally I commend my soul to Almighty God
10 my Creator and Redeemer assuredly believing that I shall
11 receive full pardon and free remission of all my sins and be saved
12 by the precious death and merits of my Blessed Saviour and
13 Redeemer Christ Jesus and my body to the earth from whence
14 it was taken to be buried in such decent and Christian manner
15 as to my Executors hereafter named shall be thought meet and
16 convenient and as touching such worldly goods and Estate as
17 the Lord in mercy hath lent me my Will and meaning is
18 that the same shall be employed and bestowed as hereafter by
19 this my Will is expressed and first I doe revoke renounce frustrate
20 and make void all wills by me formerly had or made and declare
21 and appoint this my last Will and Testament Item I give
22 unto the poor of the parish of Brishford Twenty shillings to
23 remaine to their use for ever. Item I give unto Edward Crudge John
24 Heffers Mary Bryant one shilling apeice to be paid within one
25 month after my decease Item I give unto Richard Budd and
26 Dorothy Toute one shilling apeice to be paid within one month
27 after my decease Item I give unto Sarah Pincombe my wife all
28 the money Bills Bonds Morgages and all other things which did
29 of right belong to her before marriage alsoe I give unto her the sum
30 of five pounds to be paid within Twelve months after my decease
31 and what Bonds or Bill have bin taken in my name for her mony
32 since marriage I also give unto her All the rest of my Estate goods
33 chattles lands and Tenements whatsoever which do now of right
34 belong to me or which shall hereafter belong to me I give and
35 bequeath unto my four sisters to be equally divided betweene
36 them whom I doe make whole and sole Executors of this my last
37 Will and Testament utterly revokeing all other wills by me
38 ever had or made and Lastly I do nominate and appoint my
39 Unckle Davied Bedow to be a Ruler in Trust to see this my
40 last Will truly performed Robert Pincombe [signed] Sealed Signed
41 and Published in the presence of Rob[er]t Norris John Gardner
42 W[illia]m Hugars

I do not know yet how he is related to Davied Bedow whom he names as Uncle. His father's sister Kathern Pincombe married John Eame 1 May 1630 at Bishops Nympton and his father's second sister Mary married John Sanders 7 Jul 1634 at Bishops Nympton. His mother Elizabeth Graddon's parents are not yet known to me and possibly one of her sister's married into the Bedow family. In that I am mostly interested in the Pincombe family, I would do this collateral line to verify that Robert Pincombe who left a will at Bampton was the son of John Pincombe and Elizabeth Graddon (just to remind myself of that in the future!). But I will not be doing that anytime soon unfortunately. Robert must, for a while, remain unproven for his line of descent although it is certainly interesting how well this does fit in to the existing information including the earlier study which has been both right and wrong with some of the lines traced.

His remembering the parish of Brishford is rather interesting. Is this likely Brushford which is nine miles from Roborough?  I need to check this area out to see where the Graddon family lived as John Pincombe and Elizabeth Graddon were married at Roborough by Torrington. But again it is within a ten mile radius of where many Pincombe families lived also. But I wonder if the parish itself will answer a few questions and will investigate that later.

If he is indeed descended from John Pincombe and Elizabeth Graddon then he would be my half first cousin 9 times removed. Interesting all the relationships that ensue from the study of genealogy.

I continue with my charting of the Blake family marriages through the 110 years from 1841 to 1950 and I have now completed slightly more than 25% of the Registration Districts. Next project will be the births (and burials) to relate them to the marriages whereever possible. Then I can start to move backwards in time.

As well I am back to entering our library into Library Thing. With nearly 3000 items entered I am unbelievably about to start entering the larger portion now. But it does include as well as books all of our VHS tapes, DVDs, music CDs and my genealogy CDs and fiche. I still have all of my husband's genealogy material to enter and that is huge and where I am at now. I am trying for one bookshelf a day and there are about 20 bookcases (mostly six shelf) to enter still. I would like to accomplish the entry of all material by the spring so will have to try to keep at my shelf a day as it works into our schedule. There are days when I am completely distracted by genealogy and I fail to accomplish the other items that need doing.


Who would have ever thought I could become so distracted by genealogy? It has been an interesting journey these last eight years now since I first took on the Pincombe Family Profile for George DeKay (my fourth cousin) who was chairing the project for the Delaware-Westminster History Books now published. I have met an incredible number of third and fourth cousins who probably see me as this extremely distant relative whereas they are my closest kin aside from my own personal family (both married and childhood). It is interesting how one ends up viewing genealogy.

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