Probate wills prove ancestors were bequeathed as property, not merely sold

Evidence

I knew from my mother’s oral history that he and his mother, Tena, had been separated from their family and “sold south.” Chris provided me with the probate wills, which helped me understand that they were not sold but given to Benjamin Franklin Taylor’s daughter Annie at the time of his death. As item 9 in the probate will states: “To my daughter Annie W. Mazyck, I give and bequeath the following slaves and their increase: Marian, Tena, Betsy and Nora.” — Tamara Lanier, From These Roots, 397

Categorization

• DEFINE: Item 9 of a probate will shows the legal form of inheritance of enslaved people — ‘and their increase’ is the key property-law phrase. Also flagged DEFINITIONAL for the reader’s property-law interest.