In the Name of God Amen I Thomas Broxholme Citizen and Haberdasher of London being weak in body but of sound and perfect mind & Memory (praised be Almighty God) Considering the Certainty of death & the Uncertainty of the time thereof do therefore make and declare my last will & testament in manner & form following (that is to say)First & Principally I Commend my Soul into the hands of Almighty God my Creator hoping and assuredly believing by & through the Merits death & passion of my only Saviour & Redeemer Jesus Christ to obtain full Pardon & free Remission of all my Sins & to inherit Eternal life My body I Committ to the Earth in hope of a Joyfull Resurrection to be decently interred according to the discretion of my Executor hereinafter named And as touching  such temporal Estate as God in his infinite Mercy & Goodness hath been pleased to bless me with I give devise bequeath & dispose of the same as follows (that is to say) Imprimis I will order & direct that all Such Just debts as I shall owe at the time of my decease together with my ffuneral Charges shall be fully paid & satisfyed And Whereas I advanced & paid unto my loving Daughter Mary Bolton now Wife of Thomas Bolton upon her Marriage with him the Sume of forty five Pounds Now I do hereby give unto her the further Sume of fifty pounds over & besides the said Sume of forty five Pounds advanced upon her said Marriage And Whereas I also advanced & paid unto my loving Daughter Rebecca Nicholls widow late Wife of John Nicholls deceased upon her Marriage with him the Sume of Sixty Pounds Now I do hereby give unto her the further Sume of One hundred Pounds over & above the said Sume of Sixty pounds advanced upon her said Marriage Item I give unto my loving Grandson Thomas Nicholls Son of my said Daughter Rebecca Nicholls forty Pounds to be paid unto him when he shall attain the age of twenty one years And my will & mind is and I accordingly desire that the said forty Pounds shall until the same shall grow due & payable to be by my Executor hereinafter named put & placed out at interest & other way of Improvement for the benefit of my said Grandson and I do appoint the Interst or other Improvement thereof to be from time to time appropriated & applyed towards the maintenance Education & bringing up of my said Grandson but in Case my said Grandson shall dye before he Attains the age of twenty one Years then & in Such Case I give & devise the said forty Pounds to & amongst my loving daughters Rebecca Nicholls and Elizabeth Broxholme equally Share & Share alike Item I give unto my loving Son John Broxholme One hundred Pounds & all my Goods Stock Toolls Utensills & Materialls in my Shop and in the Cellar under it And in the Cellar I rent that lyes under Mrs Chapman’s house but I desire that the same may be appraized by two sworn Appraisers as soon after my death as Conveniently may be to the intent that if the Value thereof shall not amount to fifty Pounds so as to make up my Son’s Portion One hundred & fifty Pounds then I will & direct that my Executors hereafter named shall make up such deficiency out of the residue of my Estate hereafter given to my said Son John Broxholme & to my said Daughters Rebecca Nicholls and Elizabeth Broxholme in equal Proportions if any such residue there may be but not otherwise And ‘tis my desire that my said Son John Broxholme do behave himself well to his said Sisters & use them kindly Item I give unto my loving Daughter Elizabeth Broxholme One hundred & fifty Pounds Item I give unto my said Daughters Rebecca Nicholls and Elizabeth Broxholme my table & other linen in use in the home to be divided between them Share & Share alike Item I give unto my Son in Law the said Thomas Bolton five Pounds to buy him mourning Item I give unto my said Son in Law Thomas Bolton & to my good friend Zachariah Gisborne One Guinea apiece to buy each of them a Ring to wear in Remembrance of me Item I give unto my good & faithful Servant ffrncis Harper five Pounds to buy him Mourning And Whereas I am possessed of a Lease of a house I now live in wherein there is about the Term of Nine Years still to come & under the Yearly rent of thirty one Pounds thereby reserved & made payable Quarterly Now I do hereby give devise & bequeath the Lease of my said house to my said Daughters Rebecca Nicholls and Elizabeth Broxholme for their better Support Settlement & Maintenance To hold to them for and during the remainder of the term therein to come & unexpired as Tenants in Common & not as Joint Tenants subject to the said Yearly rent of thirty one Pounds & to all Parliamentary & other taxes but my desire is that my said Daughters Rebecca Nicholls and Elizabeth Broxholme will give my said Son John Broxholme the liberty of renting of them the Shop, Kitchin and Room up two Pair of Stairs where I lye as now the same are used & enjoyed by me & Such Part of my Cellar as my Executors hereafter named shall think Convenient to allot him Provided always & the liberty aforesaid to my said Son John Broxholme is upon this express Condition that he punctually pays to my said Daughters Rebecca Nicholls & Elizabeth Broxholme or one of them in respect thereof the yearly rent of Eighteen Pounds by even & equal Portions at the four most usual feasts in the Year without any deduction or abatement whatsoever And for the better & more speedy and effectual payment of my debts & of all & every the Legacys herein by me given & bequeathed I do hereby desire and direct my Executors as soon after my decease as Conveniently may be to sell all and Singular my household Goods ffurniture Plate Rings .... & wainscotts  & all other my Goods & Chattells whatsoever & wheresoever except what is herein by me bequeathed And moreover to get in recover & receive all my debts outstanding & unreceived & by Sale or Recovery thereof or otherwise to pay & satisfy my Just debts & all & every the Legacys herein by me given & bequeathed But my will & meaning is that my household Goods & furniture except the Linen herein by me given to my said Daughters Rebecca Nicholls & Elizabeth Broxholme shall in the first place be appraized by two sworn Appraizers to be appointed by my said Executor & my said Son John Broxholme shall & may if he thinks fit buy & purchase all & singular the said Goods in that Part of the house which I have desired my said Daughters to let  him rent & not hereinbefore by me given him & the same shall go & be taken to be & shall be a Payment & Satisfaction of so much of the said Legacy of one hundred pounds hereinbefore given him as the said Household Goods & furniture so appraized shall amount to And my will & mind in like manner is that my said Daughters Rebecca Nicholls & Elizabeth Broxholme shall & may if they thinks fit buy & purchase all & singular the Goods & ffurniture in the other Part of the house & the same shall be & shall be taken & understood to be in Payment & Satisfaction (in Proportion of each of my said Daughters Legacys) of so much of the said household Goods & ffurniture shall amount unto And as to the rest residue & remainder of my Estate whatsoever & wheresoever & not herein before by me given and devised I give the same to my said Son John Broxholme & to my said Daughters Rebecca Nicholls & Elizabeth Broxholme to be divided amongst them equally Share & Share alike And in Consideration thereof my Will & meaning that in Case it shall happen by losses or misfortune or otherwise that my Estate shall fall short of fully paying the Legacys by me herein before given & bequeathed Such loss & deficiency shall fall upon my said Son & Daughters John Broxholme Rebecca Nicholls & Elizabeth Broxholme & a proportionable abatement & deduction shall be made out of the said Legacys accordingly And I do hereby make Name Nominate Constitute & appoint my said Son in Law Thomas Bolton & my said friend Zachary Gisborne Joint Executors of this my will not doubting but that they will see the same duly performed And I will & expressly declare that my said Executors shall not be answerable for any loss that may happen by reason or means of the said Executorship without their willfull default Nor one of them be answerable for the Act Receipt or default of the other of them but each for his own Act & Deed only And I desire my said Executors in the first place to pay & reimburse themselves all reasonable Charges & Expences which they shall be at in & about the said Executorship And lastly I do hereby revoke & make void all former will or wills by me at any time heretofore made & do make & declare this only to be my last will & testament In witness whereof I the said Thomas Broxholme have to this my last will & testament Contained in these three Sheets of Paper sett my hand to the bottom of the first & Second Sheets hereof & my hand & Seal to the third & last Sheet hereof this thirtieth day of August in the Ninth year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George by the Grace of God of Great Britain ffrance and Ireland King Defender of the ffaith Annoq Domini 1722 _ Thos Broxholme

(Attestation Clause)

Saml ......   Hy Hervey       Rich: Williams

Proved 18 October 1722

London Metropolitan Archives