Next of Kin in Colonial Maryland

It was recently pointed out to me that next of kin in colonial Maryland probate proceedings may provide clues to family relationships.  The Testatmentary Act of 1715 required the presence and approval of "next of kin" at estate appraisals, these were not necessarily direct descendants, but could be any two heirs who might be "in line" (under English laws in effect at the time). Next of kin might, for example, include parents, grandparents, uncles or aunts, siblings, or nieces or nephews (the latter often referred to as "cousins" in early records). And, although the next of kin present did not have to be nearest kin, they did have to be adults; and might be the representative (guardian) of a minor child (A male child was not considered an adult until age 21, but a female was an adult at age 16 or marriage, whichever came earlier).

The 1787 Montgomery County, Virginia Personal Property Tax List C

The 1787 Montgomery County Virginia personal property tax list was in three sections: List A, List B and List C.  I listed interesting taxpayers from List A in a previous post and from List B in this post.  The following are more taxpayers from List C.

Name that Skaggs: A Missouri Farm Boy

This Skaggs was born in 1911 and grew up on a farm in Grundy County, Missouri. He attended a one-room grade school and rode a horse three miles to high school. His father wanted him to take over the family farm, however, he liked designing and building gadgets and decided to go into science.  So he went off to college at the University of Missouri. His great-great-great-great-grandfather was Henry Skaggs the Longhunter.  Name that Skaggs.  The answer is below the fold.

The 1787 Montgomery County, Virginia Personal Property Tax List B

The 1787 Montgomery County Virginia personal property tax list was in three sections: List A, List B and List C.  I listed interesting taxpayers from List A in a previous post.  The following are more taxpayers from List B.

The 1787 Montgomery County, Virginia Personal Property Tax List A

The Harrell Collaborative put useful images of the 1787 Montgomery County, Virginia personal property tax list up on the internet for all to use.  This is an important list for descendants of Old Peter Skaggs because it is the year before Old Peter and Martha were married in Montgomery County.  Also, it was the year after William Lester and Rachel Skaggs were married in the same county.  There are some interesting taxpayers on the list and others who are interesting in their absence.