Maude Blake, widow, tells us a great deal about herself in this will but does not name her husband which would have been helpful She names her children Henry, Severan (possibly), John and Robert. She names Robert Blake with sons Thomas and John, William Blake with sons Henry and daughters Anne, Mary, Henry Blake with sons William and Henry and daughters Gyles and Francis, John Blake with daughters Elizabeth and Anne,
There is a William Blake who married Maude Downe 2 Nov 1591 at Great Wishford, Wiltshire (M15228-1 Family Search). Since Maude is remembering a Robert Blake, a Henry Blake, a John Blake and a William Blake with various children, I wonder who all these men are with respect to her possible husband William Blake.There is a John Blake who married Mawde Heward Nov 1558 at Great Wishford (M15228-1 Family Search) but suspect that that would be too far back as Maude (testator) would likely have been around 20 at marriage or less thus having her born by or after 1538 and hence 78 when her will was written. Not impossible though so worth noting.
In the will of John Blake of Stoweford probated 20 Mar 1572 he names his sons John, William and Thomas with John having sons William and Thomas and Thomas with children unmentioned.
In the Will of John Blake husbandman of South Newton probated 6 Feb 1553/54 he mentions his sons Walter, Gylys, William, Edward and Robert. This testator had as witnesses to his will John Blake the elder and John Blake the younger.
The will of John Blake of Stooloford probated1545/46 has him married to Edyth with two sons Thomas and John. Thomas has a son Robert. The testator mentions Robert Blake carpenter at South Newton but no relationship stated.
This has possibilities in that the Blake males mentioned as sons of Maude were: Robert, William, Henry and John.
Still to come are the wills of Richard Blake, 1572, Thomas Blake 1550, 1565, 1573, 1584, William Blake 1538, 1545, and 1610. This set of wills has actually come along quite well. When I acquired them about eight years ago I found them very difficult reading. They are still difficult as wills in the 15th century seem to be using a different alphabet and language but having done so much in the 1500s and 1600s now I find it easier. Taking a course in Palaeography really worked very well for me.
I can see now that I could have separated these wills into locations and worked on them by year but my tendency is to be logical and so working alphabetically worked very well for me and I can still work back and forth looking at them. The advantage is time; each time I read one of these wills I see something else that helps me to look at them with the thought of finding something common between them. However, one can see that the Blake family at South Newton in particular is very very large in 1641 - 25% of the community roughly and this continues and in 1841 they are about 20% of the community.
Transcriber: Elizabeth Kipp
Recorded: 22 Oct 2012
Source: Swindon and Wiltshire Record Office P2/8 Reg/307
Name of testator: Maud Blake
Place: Stoverd, South Newton, Wiltshire, England
Type of Record: Will
Dated: 1 Jul 1616, 28 Oct 1616
Read: Electronic file images
Condition: early 17th century, middle English, copy bleeding through
[Margin] Blake 307
1 In the name of
2 God Amen, I Maud
3 Blake of Stoverd in the p[ar]ishe of
4 Southnewton sicke in body but whole and
5 p[er]fect of mind thanks bee unto God doe
6 make this my last will and testament in manner
7 and forme following: First I give and committ my
8 soule into the hands of Allmightie God my
9 Creator and doe trust to bee saved throughe
10 his free mercy by the onely means and
11 merrits of Jesus Christ my savio[u]r and bequeathe
12 my bodey to bee buried w[i]thin the Churchyard
13 of Southnewton in sure and certeine hope of
14 a ioyfull resurrecton Item I give unto Joane
15 Adlame five pounds thirtene shillings and fower
16 pence of good and lawfull money and one flockbedd
17 and a blew cov[er]led and one brasse panne the
18 best faveinge one and a bell skillett Item
19 I give unto Dorathe Adlame five pounds
20 thirtene shillings and 4 d in good and lawfull
21 money Item I give unto Mary Adlame
22 five pounds thirteene shillings and fower pence
23 of good and lawfull money to bee paide unto them
24 w[i]thin halfe a yeare after my decease: Item I
25 give unto John Blake the eldest sonne of
26 Robert Blake one redd cowe Item I give
27 unto Robert Adlam one sparked cowe. Item
28 I give William Blake the sonne of Henry
29 Blake the little white faced cowe. Item I
30 give unto Anne Blake and Mary Blake
31 twenty shillings a peece and each of them one
32 platter and one pottinger a peece of Item I
33 give unto Giles Blake and Francis Blake the
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34 daughters of Henry Blake twenty shillings a=
35 peece and each of them one platter and one pottinger
36 Item I give unto John Blakes two maydes
37 First I give unto Elizabeth Blake my feather
38 bedd and one bolster and my coffer standing at my
39 beds feete Item I give unto Anne Blake a
40 white cov[er]led the best and a blanket and two sheetes
41 a pillow and a lye for the pillow Item I give
42 unto Robert Blakes two sonnes I give Thomas
43 Blake one sheepe and unto John Blake one
44 sheepe Item I give unto Henry Blake the
45 sonne of Henry Blake one sheepe and one yeareling
46 bullocke Item I give unto my sonne Henry
47 Blake one aker of wheate and one aker of barley
48 growing in the field a cov[er]ledd a paire of blankets
49 and a paire of sheetes and a boulster and a brasse pott
50 and half my wooll in the backside and half my
51 wheate and halfe my maulte that is in the
52 howese at my decease and one little Cowle and a
53 beerell and an yearelinge bullchett one cov[er]ledd
54 that is upon the childrens bed and my greate
55 hogge pigge and a flitch of bacon and a muilinge pigge
56 a shede board bloke and each of your maides
57 one platter and a pottinger Item I give unto
58 John Blake my sonne all the thirds of my
59 corne growinge in the fielde and two meaweling
60 piggs and a flitch of bacon and a board bloke Item
61 I give unto Soveran Blake a blacke trendell
62 and a bowell and a barrell and a brasse kittle and a brasse
63 skillett and a platter and a pottinger Item I give
64 unto my sonne John Blakes wife my best
65 gowen lyned w[i]th blew and a smocke and a double
66 kerrcher and a hollen apron Item I give unto
67 Henry Blakes wife my next best gowne and
68 a smocke and an apron and a kerrcher Item I
69 give unto Marrian Lane my best redd
70 petticoate and a smocke and a kerrcher and an apron
71 and a s[ki]llett and a meuling pigge Item I give
72 unto Lanes three children each of them one
73 sheepe Item I give unto the Cathedrall Church
74 of Sarum xij d Item I give unto my p[ar]ish of
75 Southnewton three shillings and fower pence
76 Item I give unto greate Wisheford church xij d
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77 Item I give unto Henry Blakes two maides
78 Francs and Gyles my three wearinge coates
79 twoo of them to Gyles and one to Francis
80 Item I give unto John the tacker my
81 best candlesticke. Item I give to Henry
82 Blakes two sonnes William Blake and
83 Henry Blake each of them one candlesticke
84 And I appoint George Symes John
85 Horne and Henry Plenty Ov[er]seers of this
86 my last will and testament and I doe give
87 them three shillings and fower pence apeece
88 Item I give unto Mawdelin Blake my
89 white fustian wascoate and to Thomas
90 Abbott my blew wascoate Item I give
91 unto Thomas Lane my best cloake All
92 the rest of my Goods moveable and unmoveable
93 I give and bequeath unto Robert Blake
94 my sonne whom I make my sole and onely
95 Executor of this my last will and testament
96 written the first of July 1616 Maude
97 Blake her marke Witnes George
98 Symes John Horne John Plentie
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