can you decipher ????

[JAP]

The information that a Joseph BAGGS died in 1809 in Aston Rowant, Oxfordshire is obviously interesting.  (Incidentally, that might well be the Joseph BAGGS, father of Robert BAGGS, mentioned earlier by DudleyWinchurch in reply #34 - from the IGI, Robert BAGGS, son of Joseph & Ann, bap 1771.)

However, it's surely unlikely that a chap who had died in 1809 would be the person named as the alternate/residual beneficiary in an 1818 Will (unless, of course, James BAGG, Yeoman in Wotton, Surrey wasn't aware that the person named in his Will as Joseph BAGG of what appears to be Assen Low^r, Oxfordshire had died 9 years earlier ...).

I wonder whether anyone has access to Oxfordshire directories ...

JAP
PS: Iain, perhaps you could tell us all you know about James BAGG, and what the Will says (I see that it's only a couple of pages).

[rreadings]

I agree that a chap who died in 1809 doesn't appear at first sight to be the likely beneficiary of an 1818 Will, however I still can't find a relevant BAGGS in the area even when I extend the search to Henley, Watlington and villages further afield. I'm afraid I don't have access to the records of parishes on the Buckinghamshire side of the Stonor valley, but I would have expected someone living in Assendon to have attended the closer churches of Bix, Pishill, Nettlebed or even Swyncombe. I can't find any relevant BAGGS in those parishes.

[243rose]

hello.

the will was proved in 1818. It is not clear when it was made as there is some crossing out and correction. James Bagg died in 1818 and was born in 1730 according to his age at death in the Abinger, SURREY parish register.
His wife Ann BAGG (nee CARTER) died in 1828 and was born in 1753..............she was some 23 years his junior. They were married in Wotton, Surrey in 1782. James BAGG was not born in Wotton or Abinger.
they had 4 children.
john b.1783 d.1799
ann b.1785
Louisa b.1787
Harriet b. 1790
there is an additional text to the will scrawled in the margin which i cannot read....
i wonder whether i could e-mail the will to anyone interested so they can have a better look. the will is 576KB so i cannot post it on the forum. If you could send me a private message with yr e-mail i would be happy to send the will.

Thanks
Iain.

[JAP]

Iain, Thanks for emailing the Will to me.  I'll email a full transcription (insofar as I can decipher it!) to you in a while.

However, I'll just mention that the Will was actually drawn up in January 1801.  This date suggests that the Aston Rowant records of a Joseph BAGGS who was father of a Robert bap in 1771 (found by DudleyWinchurch) and a Joseph BAGGS who died in 1809 (found by rreadings) are probably one and the same person, and very probably the right chap    It would be interesting to know the age of the Joseph who died in 1809.  Perhaps he might have been a brother of James of the Will?

The 1801 Will was proven in 1818 - obviously James hadn't bothered to amend his original Will in the intervening years (and it wouldn't really have been necessary as residual provisions were spelled out in detail at the time the Will was written).

The date when the Will was drawn up is clearly stated as follows:
"Witness my hand this Fifth Day of January One thousand eight hundred & one
James Bagg"
But another clue to the fact that the Will was drawn up considerably earlier than the date (1818) when it was proved is that it has references to the three daughters which indicate that they were under 21.
From the baptismal dates you've given for Ann, Louisa and Harriett, they would have been well over 21 by the date of James's death (1818).  They would have been aged 33, 31 and 28 respectively  in 1818 but would have been under 21 - 16, 14 and 11 respectively - in 1801.

All the best,

JAP
PS: As far as I can determine, the 1830 entry in the margin doesn't help - it's just passing administration of the Will, following the death of James's wife Ann, to one of the daughters - described as Harriott KNIGHT wife of Thomas KNIGHT.

[Jinxy]

Looks like 'Assen South Oxfordshire'. Sorry to muddy the waters.

The South being written with the 'th' to look like when writing dates (i.e.  20th).

[rreadings]

Well here's a compromise: since Aston Rowant is only 11 miles from Assendon it is not inconceivable that Joseph Baggs was living in Assendon at the time the Will was written and moved back to Aston Rowant in late middle age - possibly to be near his son Robert (b. March 24th, 1771).

rreadings

[243rose]

Hi.

I don't see any reason why that can't be the case after all, 10 miles is not far even in  those days.... did you happen to work out when the will was made, Joseph Bagg apparently dided in 1808 ?

cheers
iain.

[JAP]

Iain, My reply above reveals that the Will was drawn up in 1801.  And according to rreadings, Joseph BAGGS died in 1809.

Jinxy, Could be - but that doesn't really get us further forward I guess.
I've looked at the whole Will and I'd have to say that the scribe is anything but consistent in his upper case 'S's and upper case 'L's - in most of the words, one can pick which letter it is meant to be from the context but just looking at one separately, it could be either.
He's also inconsistent with his lower case 'e's and 'o's.  Sometimes the 'o's are circular and closed but at other times they are indistinguishable from his Secretary Hand 'e's.  I really can't pick which he means (i.e. 'e' or 'o') in the extract we are looking at ...

And if the second word is Sou^th, then is it:
Assen/Asson in South Oxfordshire
or
Assen South/Asson South in Oxfordshire
 

I guess Assen/Asson could be a slurred version of Aston.  And it could be an abbreviated reference to Aston Rowant.  But I see from maps that there's also a hamlet called Aston in Oxfordshire ...

However, the Joseph BAGGS of Aston Rowant (whether one person or two different people) does sound most likely.  rreadings, is his age at death/burial mentioned by any chance?

Cheers,

JAP   

[Rabbit B]

Looks like 'Assen South Oxfordshire'. Sorry to muddy the waters.

The South being written with the 'th' to look like when writing dates (i.e.  20th).

Now we are back to the beginning and what I said to start with!

However, I have just had a thought, in those days Assendon  [came under Henley Rural District Council as an administrative area, the South Oxfordshire bit did not really come in until the 70's when they reorganised eveything]

But of course Assendon is in the south of the County!

Rabbit B