Abstract of will & codicils.

PARTIES: 1. William Francis Lowndes Stone of Baldwin Brightwell, Esq.

2a. Caroline, wife of 1.

b. James More Molyneux, son-in-law of 1.

SUBJECT OF TRANSACTION: Will

1. Appoints 2 executors & confirms the settlements made on the marriages of his daughters.

2. Devises all estates at Thornborough to 2b & the Revd. Henry Rice & the Revd. George Day (his sons-in-law) in trust for the sale therein mentioned & from the proceeds to discharge debts & c & to pay £1000 to the trustees of the settlement of his dau. Caroline Molyneux, £1000 to those of his dau. Emma Rice & £1000 to those of his dau. Isabella Anne Day, acc. to their settlements.

3. Meadow in North Crawley, bought of - Goodman, & all lands contiguous to his estates at Brightwell Baldwin which he can dispose of by will, & all other his real estate which he can so devise to Edward Gatty of Red Lion Square, co. Msex. & Reginald Bray of Great Russell St. Bloomsbury Square, co. Msex., for the same trust as therein are mentioned, under & subject to the same provisions as the Manors &c. mentioned in a settlement of 23rd July 1835.

4. Carriage & carriage horses & harness &c. to 2a.

5. All jewels, trinkets, plate, household goods &c. &c. in his Mansion House at Brightwell at time of death (except the heirlooms) as she might choose to 2a.

6. All the heirlooms (specified in a schedule annexed to the will) to the trustees in trust to allow 2a to use them for her life & after her death to the use of the person in possession of the entailed estates.

7. An inventory to made of the heirlooms after his death, 1 copy to be kept by 2a & 1 by the trustees.

8. The heirlooms to be adequately insured against fire; form of plate & jewels may be altered of intrinsic value kept up.

9. £100 to 2b in compensation for trouble as exec.; £50 each to daus. & £5 per parish to the poor of Brightwell, Holcombe, Chalford, Astwood & North Crawley.

10. Ready money & money owed to 2a.(without issue, or if such issue shd, fail.)

11. Grand-dau. Catherine Charlotte to be made a Ward of Chancery if under age & unmarried at time of his death; if she should be dead or subsequently die (without issue, or if such issue shd, fail.) leaving her sister under age & unmarried, then Margaret Susan to be A Ward of Chancery.

Schedule of Pictures in Brightwell Hall

The Entrance Hall: Sir Richard Stone, Kt., father of John Stone Esq. of Brightwell, A.D. 1651.

John Stone (his son)

Carleton Stone with a favourite greyhound, 1st son of John Stone.

John Stone junior, younger son of John Stone.

A Hunting Piece - King Charles - Stag hunting.

A Turkish Fight, by Wyke.

Four Carved oak Coats of Arms.

One large map of the Brightwell estate.

The Drawing Room: Mrs. Elizabeth Lowndes Stone, wife of William Lowndes Stone Esq. (formerly Miss. E. Garth), by Gainsborough, full length, with a dog. 'Supposed to be one of Gainsborough's best productions'.

A Fox at his Repast, By Snider.

A Scenery Piece.

The Dining Room: A large picture- the finding of Moses, by Franchacheri.

A large picture of the junction of the English & French fleets at the Nore, where King Charles went to view them, by Wm. Vandervelde the younger.

A large picture - a Storm at Sea, by William Vandervelt.

The Hall, next the large Staircase: a picture of very ancient date supposed to be one of the Carleton family.

William Stone, Serjeant at Law.

Richard Stone, 2nd son of John Stone, Esq. & Bro. of Carleton Stone.

John Stone, Serjeant at Law, father of Sir John Richard Stone A.D. 1640.

The Stair Case: The Rape of Proserpine (2 large pictures by

The Rape of Europa (Lucius Jordanus.

Mr. Lowndes Stone's Dressing Room: Mrs Lowndes Stone, wife of William Lowndes Stone (of Astwood) (Miss. Catherine Lowe), the eldest dau. of Francis Lowe, Esq. of Brightwell.

The Library: Full length of Sir Dudley Carleton of Brightwell, created Viscount Dorchester by Charles I.

2 pictures, unknown but supposed to be some of the Lowe or Stone families.

2 small pictures:

1st William Glanville son of Sergeant Glanville who was Speaker of the House of Commons 1640.

2nd Mrs. Frances Gipps, dau. of Sir Henry Gipps, 1st wife to William Glanville & then 2nd wife to John Stone Esq. of B'well.

William Lowndes Esq. of Astwood Bury co. Bucks, 1 of the Auditors of the Exchequer, 2nd son of Wm. Lowndes Esq. of Winslow. 'He is in a sitting posture with his favourite Spaniel by Gainsborough'.

William Lowndes Esq. (father of the above), Chancellor of the Exchequer temp. Queen Anne & George I, commonly called Ways & Means Lowndes (By Sir Godfrey Kneller).

Mrs. Stone 1st wife of John Stone Esq. of B'well - Miss. Catherine Carleton, 2nd dau. of sir John Carleton, Bart. of Brightwell.

2 small pictures:

1st Carleton Stone, Esq., eldest son of John Stone & Catherine his wife.

2nd unknown, but supposed to be Miss Winifred Glanville, dau. of Wm. Glanville of Broad Hinton Wilts, & wife of Carleton Stone.

Henry Lowndes Esq., 3rd son of Wm. Lowndes Esq. of Astwood Bury, by Gainsborough.

Mrs. Clara Lowndes, dau. of Wm. Lowndes Esq. of Astwood Bury & sister of Henry Lowndes, by Gainsborough.

The Housekeeper's Room: John Lowe, Esq., son of Francis Lowe, Esq.

The other maps of the estate are the Holcombe, Chalford & Astwood estates, which were in a small box in the cupboard in the testator's dressing room.

Codicil I, 4th July 1845.

The bequest of Jewels, plate, household articles &c. to 2a is to include any such articles given to her by him or anyone else, or which she might have bought, &c. Trustees to decide in case of dispute. &c. ½ year's wages to each of his servants who have been with him for 4 years or more.

The person or persons who become entitled to his estates settled in 1835 to take the name of Lowndes as well as Stone (which they would take under the will of Francis Lowe), & to sign themselves Lowndes Stone, their younger children to be known as Lowndes, as has been the case heretofore.

Codicil II, 4th July 1845

The settlement of 1837 was made on 23rd March & not on 23rd July, as was said above. (? is this a mistake for 1835? no settlement of 1837 has been mentioned)

Codicil III, 12th Aug. 1848

Revoked bequest of remainder of household ggods &c. (not heirlooms) to trustees, & instead bequeathed them to trustees in trust that the person entitled to the settled estates should pay the trustees £1000 for them, the £1000 to be treated as part of his residuary estate (& if not paid within 3 months trustees shd. do as think best.)

Since making of will has bought of Commissioners for the Chalgrove

Inclosure a plot of ground in Chalgrove called Bacon Lane, & a small meadow adjoining Brightwell in the parish of Easington Mead, now in occ. of William Bulford, which, with any lands not settled adjoining his estates at Astwood & N. Crawley, he now bequeaths to trustees on the same terms as the rest of the settled lands.

Any other lands &c. of which he dies possessed to sons-in-law to be sold as the other lands directed to be sold.

Codicil IV, 17th May 1853

James More Molyneux appointed an additional trustee.

Surplus money from sale of Thornborough estate redisposed.

Confirmed bequest of meadow purchased of Goodman at N. Crawley to trustees, & revoked bequests of all other disposable lands & instead left to 2a the cottage at Britwell Salome late in occ. of Appleby but now of James Jordan wh, he bought of James Wild Esq., + 2 cottages at Upper Town in Brightwell formerly the ppty. of Richard Coles of Ewelme, + Bacon Lane in Chalgrove, + the land in Chalford, Aston Rowant bought of John Fane, Esq, + the 2 a. land at Bancroft in Aston Rowant bought by the late Wm. Lowndes Stone, + all other disposable lands (exc. those at Britwell Prior), all to 2a for ever.

Tenements &c. at Britwell Prior just excepted to 2b + John Garrard in trust to the use of his 'valued friend' Miss. Emma Elm, dau. of Mrs. Martha Elm of Chosley co. Berks. for her life, & after her death to the trustees acc. to the 1835 settlement. (Bequest to include all the fixtures & all arrears of rent)

+ to the same Emma Elms £5 to buy a ring, & specific pieces of furniture, inc. the arm-chair he generally sat in in the drawing room, &c. £5 likewise to her mother, or if she shd. then be dead to her dau. Mrs. Martha Chin of Abingdon (not clear whether this is Martha's or Emma's dau.)

£500 advanced by 1 to the Revd. Henry Rice part of the £2000 to be paid to the said Henry Rice after 1's death (acc. to the marriage settlement of H.R. & Emma Lowndes); this £500 when repaid by H.R. to 2a. Dau.-in-law Catherine, widow of Wm. Chas. Lowndes, now deed., 1 has taken her 2 daus. into his own care; they to be under the guardianship of 2a, & after her death of 1's dau. Caroline Isabella More Molyneux. & then dau. Isabella Anne Day. Both daus. (Catherine Charlotte & Margaret Susan) to be made Wards in Chancery.

Clergymen of the respective parishes to have the distribution of the monies left to the poor.

Codicil V, 21st April 1856.

Son-in-law the Revd. George Day appointed trustee in place of Reginald Bray (resigned).

All bequests relating to the Thornborough estate revoked (it having been sold).

Codicil VI, 17th Feb. 1857

Profits of sale of Thornborough estate to be settled trustees of daus.' settlements

2 Insurance policies on his life, & £600 deposited in the London & Westminster Bank, & £1000 to be raised on the transfer of a mortgage of his Ox. & Bucks. estates to 2b + Richard Du Cane to pay the 3 sums of £1000 due on his death to the trustees of his daus.' marriage settlements.

PLACES: BRIGHTWELL BALDWIN; CHALFORD (Aston Rowant); N. CRAWLEY & ASTWOOD, co. Bucks; BRITWELL PRIOR & SALONIE