Tennessee Wills, Probate and Estate Records
Greene County, Tennessee
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- Adam Smelser, 24 Oct 1822
- To wife, Mary and six children she had by me George, Henry, Samuel, William, David,Barbara Fry, to receive personal property from sale. Executors: Son George and Wife Mary.
- Eight children I had by my first wife: John, Adam, Betsey Elley, Hannah Winkle, Fredrick, Jacob, Susanna Good and Joseph to have plantation near James Henry. Executors of this part: son Joseph and Nicolas Elley. Written: 24 Aug 1822. Witnesses: Joseph Brown, William McClelland
- Signed: Adam Smelser
- Barbara Smelcer, 4 Oct 1875
- Barbary Smelcer and Mary Clowers, both of lawful age, appeared as witnesses to establish a Non Cupative Will of Barbary Smelcer decd., wife of Joseph Smelcer decd., who died 4 June 1875. Son, Isaac Smelcer to have all her property for taking care of her. Witnesses: Maggie Pickering, C.W. Bible
- Signed: Barbary Smelcer
- Mary Clowers
- George Smelser, 7 July 1845 Non-cupative
- Wife, Elizabeth. Children: Adam, Henry, William, Jonathan, Phebe, Malinda, Barbary Ann, Ephraim, Polly, Elizabeth and Margaret. At house of John Harmon where he was sick. Witnesses: John Fisher.
- Signed: Charles Gass, who wrote the Will at Mr. Smelser's direction
- Jacob Smelser, 5 March 1838
- Wife, Elizabeth, gets all after funeral expenses and debts are paid. Son, John , to have my bay horse and pay George Andes and Andrew Reader sixteen dollars. Children: Polly, John, Katherine, Margaret, Eliza Jane. Children to share equally. Executors: Wife, Elizabeth, Adam Ealey. Will dated: 14 January 1838. Witnesses: William H. Gasscock, Jacob Missemer, Daniel Lechner.
- Signed: Jacob Smelser
These are wills of other surnames in Greene Co, TN which mention Smelser. You may be asking yourself "why would she put other wills in our Smelser page??" If you pay close attention, you will see these are people who married into the Smelser family. These are here to give you possible clues to help you find your Smelser/Smeltzer families. Sort of putting all of the pieces together. The people, the time, the way they did things. An aid in sorting out all those Smelsers we have. Building a history of the time and area.
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- George Ely, 27 July 1813
- To Wife, Elizabeth Ealy, to live on plantation her natural life - at her decease, furniture to go to daughters. Children: Adam, George, Nicholas, Mathias. To son, Adam 82 acres. To son, George, 51 acres and six months schooling. To son, Nicholas, 3 sheep. I give to Jacob Smelser and Michael Koble (Cobble), one horse each. Executors, Son, Michael Ealy. Written: 25 May 1813. Witnesses: William Snyder, Ellen Snider, one in German**.
- Signed: George Ely
- Below is the actual German signature** of the witness on George Ely's will. I have been told it is Johannes Smeltzer.
- This was submitted by Marshall Styles who has written a book called:
- My North Carolina Heritage, Volume 2. It contains many other original documents
- of families in Greene County Tennessee. Some of the family names in his book are:
- "Rollins, Ealy, Morgan, Smelser, & Lamb"
- Mary Ann Butler
- Husband, James N. S. Butler - to control and maintain my farm and give my grand-daughter MARGARET L. SMELCER, a home during her natural life. After husband's death, farm to be devided between my son, John L. Butler and my daughter, Margaret J. Cloyd. B.C Cloyd - farm renter to remain.
- Signed: Mary Ann Butler
- James Delaney,1784 Greene County, State of North Carolina
- To wife, Elizabeth, and her heirs and assigns forever, everything including puter and holloware. Three daughters, Margaret, Jane, Sarah, lawful begotten heirs. Executors: Wife, Elizabeth, Jacob Smelser of Greene Co, North Carolina. Dated: 8 Oct 1784. Witnesses: Anne Yoham?, Mary Mckenney, Joseph Hind?
- Signed: James Delaney
Take a close look at James Delaney's will.....North Carolina is not a typo.....following is an excerpt from Everton's Handy Book for Genealogists:
- The Blue Ridge Mountains, which form the boundary between North Carolina and Tennessee, are barriers to travel. they were more so in the early days than now. For that reason it was easier to come into Tennessee from the north than from the east. Many of the settlers therefore, came into Tennessee from Virginia. It was in fact thought by some that it was part of that state.
- Also, starting as early as 1768, several families came into the NORTHEAST CORNER of Tennessee from the Uplands of North Carolina. They banded together as the Watauga Association in 1771 and spread over the eastern part of the section. In 1776, North Carolina accepted the district as Washington County which eventually embraced all of the present Tennessee. To secure federal protection for that territory, North Carolina handed it to the national government as a present. Apparently no one in Washington became enthusiastic about the gift, refusing even to acknowledge it. After it had been ignored for four or five years, some of the settlers retaliated by organizing the territory into a new state, Franklin. But even that action received cold treatment from Washington, and eventually vanished into thin air.
- Greene County was formed in 1778 from Washington County which was formed in 1772. Have any of us checked for records in Washington County or North Carolina for that matter????????? I know I have not.....hmmmmmmm
- Greene County is in the NORTHEAST CORNER.
See The Lost State of Franklin petition
