1791-12-16 Will (of Oliver Hart Sr.): Dinah, Friday Truehart

Identifier
NJS-EVE-01164
Source
Will of Oliver Hart, Hopewell, NJ
Archives of New Jersey, Series 1, Vol. 38 (Calendar of Wills, Vol. 9, 1796-1800)

Will of Oliver Hart, Hopewell, NJ, December 16, 1791. Archival location: New Jersey State Archives, Department of State. Secretary of State Wills and Inventories, ca. 1670-1900. Probate file 1743J.

Hutchinson, Elmer T., ed. Documents Relating to the Colonial, Revolutionary and Post-Revolutionary History of the State of New Jersey. Archives of the State of New Jersey, 1st series. Vol. 38. Calendar of Wills, Vol. 9, 1796-1800. Trenton, NJ: New Jersey Law Journal, 1944. Page 165.
Event Description
Rev. Oliver Hart Sr. of the Baptist Church in Hopewell wrote out his will on December 16, 1791. The will mentioned two enslaved persons. First, Hart mentioned that Dinah, a Black woman belonging to him, was living with his daughter-in-law Sarah Hart (the widow of Oliver Hart Jr.), and the testator directed that Dinah was to stay with Sarah Hart as long as Sarah remained a widow, but if Sarah remarried then the testator wished Dinah to be sold. Second, the testator originally bequeathed a Black man named Friday to his son John Hart. However, a codicil was added to the will on January 15, 1793, which changed Friday's fate and revoked the bequest to son John Hart. Instead, Friday was now supposed to be the property of the testator's wife Anne Hart, and was to be freed after 7 years of service to Anne. The 7-year term would begin after Oliver Hart's death, which occurred in 1795.

The following is a transcript of the relevant passages from the original 1791 will that mention Dinah and Friday:

"Item. My Will is that Sarah, the Widow of my late Son, Doctr Oliver Hart, shall keep and have the use of one Negro Woman now with her named Dinah during the widowhood of her, the said Sarah; but in case she should marry, then the said wench should be sold and the money arising therefrom be divided of as follows, that is to say, it shall be put out on interest and the interest arising therefrom shall go towards the maintenance of the children which my son has left, until the youngest of them shall arrive at the age of eighteen years, when the Principal shall be divided between them, share and share alike.”

“Item I give and bequeath unto my son John hart one Negro Man named Friday; also my watch with the chain and seal, likewise silver soup spoon and a silver pepper box, together with a seal set in gold, on which our Family coat of Arms is engraven; to him and his heirs forever.”

The following is a transcript of the relevant passage from the 1793 codicil regarding Friday:

“Whereas, by the abovesaid Will I have given and bequeathed my Negro Man Friday to my son John Hart, I do hereby revoke that Bequest, and my Will now is that the said Negro Man Friday shall be fully and absolutely free at the expiration of seven years after my Decease. During which Term of severn years, said Friday shall be under the care and controul of my dear Wife Anne Hart, to dispose of his Time or Labor or any Profits arising therefrom, as she may think proper.”

An abstract of the will appears in the Calendar of Wills, Vol. 9, on page 165, although the names Dinah and Friday were not transcribed in that book.
Event Type
Will
Date
December 16, 1791 – January 15, 1793
Location of Event
Hopewell (Mercer County)
Primary Participants

Dinah (b. 1751)
Person identifier: NJS-PER-02703
Role: Person Listed in Will
Age: 40
Status: Enslaved
Enslaver(s) of this participant:
- Oliver Hart Sr. (1723-1795)
- Sarah Hart
Verbatim description from source:
"Negro Woman now with her named Dinah"
Comment: bequeathed to daughter-in-law Sarah Hart (widow of son, Doctor Oliver Hart Jr.) to serve her during her widowhood, and if Sarah remarries then Dinah is to be sold

Friday Truehart (b. 1767)
Person identifier: NJS-PER-02700
Role: Person Listed in Will
Age: 24
Status: Enslaved
Enslaver(s) of this participant:
- Oliver Hart Sr. (1723-1795)
- Anne Sealey Grimball Hart (1741-1813)
Verbatim description from source:
"Negro Man Friday"
Comment: to serve wife Anne Hart for 7 years, then to be manumitted
Additional Participants

Oliver Hart Sr. (1723-1795)
Person identifier: NJS-PER-02702
Role: Enslaver, Testator

Anne Sealey Grimball Hart (1741-1813)
Person identifier: NJS-PER-02701
Role: Enslaver, Heir or Beneficiary
Comment: widow of the testator

Sarah Hart
Person identifier: NJS-PER-02704
Role: Enslaver, Heir or Beneficiary
Comment: daughter-in-law of the testator
Record Contributor
Jesse Bayker
Resource class
Event