John Froman's Intestate Court File as it Pertains to Family History

I never know what I'll find when I look at a court file so it's been interesting to transcribe and evaluate this one.  Learning so many details helps me place all of the family members in time and environment, but it leaves a lot to be desired in the way of family history information.

Nowhere in the file was Widow Catherine's maiden name mentioned.  Nowhere in the file was any family relationship mentioned except for naming John's wife and children.  I was pleased to see the list of children and their birth dates (even if they may be inaccurate).  I  was disappointed in the absence of information about John Froman's death.  Other than the vague "died about a year ago" I didn't learn his actual date of date, cause, location, or cemetery of burial.

What I hoped to learn (but did not)

• John's date of death
• the location of John's death
• the cause of death
• his burial location

The family history information contained in the file

• John died about December 1871
• John's wife's name was Catherine (but her maiden name was not given).
• John had six children at the time he died.  Another was born in January, 1872, several months after his death.
• the names and birth dates of his children
• John owned property in West Salem Township, Mercer County, Pennsylvania and in Beaver Township, Crawford County, Pennsylvania.  In and of itself this is not family history information but searching property and deeds may reveal some family history information.

John and Catherine's children were named on several documents in the file.  Several of the names had variations in different documents.  Below are their names/variations and dates of birth as given in the file.

• John, born January 18, 1863
• Jacob, born October 20, 1864
• Lizzie, born January 5, 1866  (Lizzie's name is never noted as Elizabeth.)
• Tress/Theressa, born Aug 20, 1867
• Adam, born November 15, 1868
• Gust/Augustus, born October 18, 1870
• Kate/Catherine, born January 29, 1872

Possible family history information

• Jacob Seylor/Seyler/Sailer was the administrator of the estate.  He was also named as Jacob D. Seylor/Seyler.  Catherine's maiden name is Saylor and her father's name is Jacob.  It's possible that the administrator is Catherine Saylor Froman's father.  Because of the spelling variations with a name like Saylor/Seyler I don't know a way to make a connection between the name in this file and any other Jacob Saylor that I might find in a census record or some other document.
• C. Froman and Casper Froman may be the same person.  Both names were one lists of people to whom John owed money.  I have a passenger list with Johannes, Casper, and Heinrich Frommann sailing together.  C. and Casper may be John's brother or some other relation.
• H. Froman is named as one of the men to whom John owed money.  Is H. Froman the same Heinrich Frommann on the passenger list mentioned above?  Could H. Froman be one of John's relatives? 

The more I learn the more questions I have.

Other posts about this court file:
Of Orphans and Widows
Petition for Guardianship for Theressa Froman
The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 1:  Administrator's Bond and Inventory
The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 2:  Petition, Exhibits 'A' and 'B', Petitions, Decree
The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 3:  Sale of Real Estate, Accounts, Inventory of Children 

--Nancy.
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The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 3: Sale of Real Estate, Accounts, Inventory of Children

This is the last installment of posts specifically about my great-great-grandfather John Froman's Mercer County, Pennsylvania, Orphan's Court file.  You can read Part One:  Administrator's Bond and Inventory and Part Two:  Petition, Exhibits 'A' and 'B', Petitions, Decree if you'd like to read about the file in sequence. My thoughts, comments, and questions are at the end of the post.

On December 16, 1872, Jacob Seyler, administrator of the estate of John Froman, petitioned and received authorization to sell John's two properties:  three (or part of three) acres in West Salem Township, Mercer County; and about 88 acres (100 minus the 12 retained by his widow) in Beaver Township, Crawford County.

Sale of the Real Estate of John Froman
On February 20, 1873, Jacob Seyler reported his actions to the court.  He had given due public notice of the sale as requested by the court and on February 13, 1873, he sold the property by auction.  The record reads,

he did on the 13th day of Feby 1873 upon the premises expose the property herein described as being the undivided half of three acres to public out cry & sold the same to S. W. Mannheimer for the sum of Seventy five dols [sic] he being its highest & that the best price bidder therefor [sic] But that in offering it he found it would not sell separately & therefore the interest of the Estate of John Froman was sold with this by Mary E. Sailer Adm the whole bringing 150 Doles [sic] and the sale was by that means made for a better price than if sold separately....

Account of Jacob Seylor Administrator of Estate of John Froman
The next document, dated March 22, 1876 and June 21, 1876, lists credits out of the assets of the estate, listed by name of payer and credits in dollars and cents.

H. D. Cossitt   medical bill     11.00
Leninger Bros                        46.98
Geo Reznor                             4.00
E L Rose                                10.50
J C Brown                               4.00
C M Wood                                6.00
A J McQuiston                         1.00
D Lininger [?]                         24.64
Ad McQuiston                          5.00
H. Watson                               2.50
M Lech [?]                               7. 68
M. Maxwell                          212.00
Jesse Smith                             5.75
H. Froman                             40.00
Jos Anple [?]                           3.00
Erwin Fell                               5.10
W Maxwell                            28.00
Jacob Seyler                          10.00
Packard & Co                          2.95
Caspar Froman                      75.00
S W Mannheimer                  118.72
Lininger & Duncan                   3.68
Aaron Fell                               7.00
J Morford                                9.50
Casper Froman                      75.00
N Morford                                8.35
E. L Rose                                 5.20

On the same date (March 22, 1876/June 21, 1876), there is this:

The accountant [Jacob Seyler] charge himself as follows:
Account of Sale of Real Estate
in Crawford Co. to C Cashbaum [illegible]                    1300.00
Interest received on Same                                              66.00
                                                                                   1366.00

Account of Jacob D. Seylor
And again the account statement on June 22 and August 17, 1876:
          Total assets                                                             $1366.00
          Total Credits                                                            $1247.20
          Balance due.            Estate                                       $  118.80

Inventory of Amounts Paid to Children
The final document in the file is dated August 29, 1876 and is a list of John's children along with their birth dates, when they will be of age, and when they were paid (with the amount noted underneath).  At the top is the writing "Inv. M. Froman Est.  Each paid $20.00."  And at the end, "Amt. Aug 29 1876   $118.00.  Divided into 7 shares.  Ono.)

John
born 18 Jany 63
of age 18 Jany 84
paid 1 Jun 85  -  1.56

Jacob
born 20 Oct 64
of age 20 Oct 85
paid 20 Oct 85  -  3.00

Lizzie
born 6 Jany 66
of age 5 Jany 87
paid 19 May 87  -  2.66

Tress
born 20 Aug 67
of age 20 Aug 88
paid 6 Jun 92  -  owe .91

Adam
born 15 Nov 68
of age 15 Nov 89
paid 6 Jun 92  -  .37

Gust
born 18 Oct 70
of age 28 Oct 91
paid 6 Jun 92  -  2.32

Kate
born 29 Jany 72
of age 29 Jany 93
paid 6 Jun 92  -  3.00

Notes, Thoughts, Questions

• I don't understand what happened at the sale of John's acreage in West Salem Township.  It seems that half of the three acres went up for sale ("one undivided half deed no improvements" mentioned in Part 2).  If S. W. Mannheimer had already bid on and bought the property, who found that it would not sell separately?  Who owned the other part?  Who was Mary E. Sailer, whose estate did she administer, and how did she get involved in this sale?  Is Sailer another spelling variation of Saylor and could she be a family member?
• The only mention of the sale of John's property in Crawford County is "Account of Sale of Real Estate in Crawford Co. to C Cashbaum [illegible]  - 1300.00" with interest of $66.00.  (See above.)   Without knowing the date of the sale it would be difficult, but not impossible, to try to find a newspaper announcement (if I don't mind reading through 2 months' worth of newspapers).
  
• The term "credit" initially confused me.  My first thought was that it was money due to John, to be given to him at a later date.  Now I understand that it was goods or services that John had purchased/received on credit for which he owed.  In another word, debts.  How did John come to be in the situation of owing so much money and what goods or services did he purchase?  
• What happened to the administrator's bond mentioned in Part 1?  Did the court retain it or did Jacob Seyler and S. W. Mannheimer get it back?  What happened to the $1600 "bond with sureties" that he was required to give the court (mentioned in Part 2)?  Was that returned to Jacob Seyler?
• I don't understand the amounts of money for each children.  Had they already received some money?  Was this interest?  Had they borrowed on the money allotted to them?  Next to Tress's name is "owe."  Is the amount owed to her or does she owe that amount back to the court?
• It is good to finally get a list of all of John and Catherine's children.  Family records did not include Adam and did not have birthdays for all the children.  Not surprisingly, the birthdays may or may not be accurate compared to family records and some census records and obituaries.

I know some of my questions are completely unanswerable but if any of you readers can offer insights into this court file I would be grateful to hear them.  Thanks for following through with this series of posts.

Other posts on this topic:
Of Orphans and Widows
Petition for Guardianship for Theressa Froman
The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 1:  Administrator's Bond and Inventory
The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 2:  Petition, Exhibits 'A' and 'B', Petitions, Decree

--Nancy.
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The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 2: Petition, Exhibits 'A' and 'B', Petitions, Decree

In the previous post I introduced John Froman's intestate orphan's court record and presented Administrator's Bond and Inventory.  Jacob Seyler was declared the administrator of John Froman's estate and an inventory was taken.  This post presents several petitions made by Jacob Seyler on December 16, 1872, and the court's decree.

Petition of  Administrator of Estate (who is Jacob Seyler)
On December 16, 1872, Jacob presented the following information to the judge.  This petition appears to be a statement of the situation as it was, not a request for something.

• John Froman died about one year ago leaving to survive him his widow, Catherine, and seven children:  John, Lizzie, Jacob, Theressa, Adam, Augustus, and Catherine.
• S. W. Mannheimer had been named the guardian of the children
• The personal estate of John Froman was insufficient to pay his debts as noted in "inventory hereto attached marked 'A'."
• An account of his debts was presented in "Schedule B."
• John Froman owned real estate in West Salem Township, Mercer County.  The plot of land was 3 acres but "the interest of intestate being one undivided half deed no improvements." 
• John Froman also owned "four sevenths of about One hundred Acres in Beaver Township Crawford Co Pa . . .  bounded by lot set apart for widow of intestate. . . ."

Exhibit 'A' (December 14, 1872)
No personal property

Exhibit 'B' (December 14, 1872)
B. Heardein                                  $160.00
A. Seifars                                          6.10
? Willowford                                      6.10
Irvin Fell                                           6.10
O. A. Irish                                         5.80
R. Liuenger                                      46.98
J. Morford                                          9.50
C. Froman                                      150.00
D. Lemuger                                      28.50
Leiminger & Duncan                           3.62
H. Froman                                        40.00
S. W. Mannheimer                           112.00
W. Maxwell                                     228.00
A. Fell                                                7.00
J. Seyler                                           10.00
Probable expense of administrator  100.00
Total                                               919.70

Petition (December 16, 1872)

• Jacob Seyler, S. W. Mannheimer, and Elias Ostheimer stated that they were held and firmly bound to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in the sum of $1600.00.
• Jacob Seyler applied to the Orphans Court for an order authorizing him to sell real estate in Mercer County and for "a decree authorizing him to raise a certain sum" by the sale of real estate in Crawford County.
• The petition was granted "if the said Jacob Seyler shall faithfully appropriate the proceeds of such Sale according to his respective duties" as administrator of John Froman's estate.

Petition
On December 16, 1872, Jacob Seyler stated

• that John Froman died intestate leaving a widow and seven children. 
• that John Froman's personal estate was insufficient to pay his debts.
• The property John owned, located in West Salem Township, Mercer County, was bounded on the north by lands of Jacob Seyler; on the east by Jacob Seyler; on the south by land of J. Bach; and on the west by the property of Martin Zint and contained "about three acres the interest of intestate being one undivided half acre no improvements."
• The 100 acres of property owned by John Froman in Beaver Township, Crawford County, was bounded on the north by land of A. Allen, on the east by public road or H. Reedler; on the south by the lot set apart of John's widow, Catherine; and on the west by land of Johnson and Odell.
• It would require the sale of all the property to pay John's debts.

Jacob Seyler asked the court to order "a sale of the premises situate in West Salem Township Mercer County which will bring about Sixty Dollars" and also for a decree authorizing him to raise the balance of the funds needed to pay John's debts (which, he stated, "will be about Eight Hundred and Fifty Dollars") from the real estate in Crawford County.

The Decree
On December 16, 1872, the court repeated the decree three times on different court forms in varying but similar language.  It decreed that Jacob could sell the property to pay John's debts but first required him to give "bond with sureties" in the amount of $1600.00.  He was to raise the sum of $850.00 from the sale of the real estate.  He was also required to give "due public and timely notice of the sale of said Estate in Mercer and Crawford counties by publication in at least one newspaper published in Each one of the Counties aforesaid for three successive weeks the last insertion to be at least ten days before the day of sale and also by written or printed handbills posted in at least six of the most conspicuous places in the vicinity of said Estate not less than twenty days before the day of sale...."


Notes, Thoughts, Questions

• In the 1870 U.S. census John Froman was listed as 29, a coal miner, with $1 real property and $283 personal estate.  What changed between 1870 and 1871 regarding the amount of property he owned and its value?  How did he obtain real estate valued at about $850.00?
• Exhibit A indicates that he had no personal property.  Does that mean that the property retained by his widow, Catherine, was all the personal property he owned?
• I don't know what to think about all the debt.  Was he indebted to "the company store" and borrowed money from friends and family to keep up with needs and/or wants?  When looking at the inventory there doesn't seem to be much excess, little in the way of want versus need as far as material goods.
• John appears on the 1860 U.S. Census with Caspar Froman, age 7, and Henry Froman, age 10, (as well as Werner Froman, age 58).  John was listed as 20.  Could C. Froman and H. Froman on Exhibit B be Caspar and Henry?  Could they be brothers?  If C. Froman is Caspar, where would a 17-year-old boy obtain $150.00?  Could C. Froman be Catherine Froman?  Would Catherine have had money to call her own?
• Exactly how much property did John Froman own in West Salem Township?  One document described it as "about three acres The interest of intestate being one undivided half deed no improvements."  In another it was "about three acres the interest of intestate being one undivided half acre no improvements."  It is 1 1/2 acres or 1/2 acre?

Considering that Jacob Seyler was required by the court to advertize the sale of both properties in one newspaper local to each property for three weeks before the sale date, it's possible (though maybe not likely) that one of those newspapers exists on microfilm and that I might be able to find a copy published on the date of the announcement.

Other posts relating to John Froman and his intestate court file:
Of Orphans and Widows
Petition for Guardianship for Theressa Froman
The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 1:  Administrator's Bond and Inventory
The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 3:  Sale of Real Estate, Accounts, Inventory of Children


--Nancy.
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The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 1: Administrator's Bond and Inventory

John Froman died without having made a will, leaving an intestate estate; a pregnant widow, Catherine (Saylor) Froman; and six children:  John, Lizzie, Jacob, Theressa, Adam, Augustus, and Catherine.  John died about December, 1871.  The estate was processed through the Orphan's Court of Mercer County, Pennsylvania, beginning in March, 1872.

From The Source:  A Guidebook to American Genealogy, 3rd edition, by Loretto Szucs and Sandra Luebking, I learned that

When a person dies without making a will, his or her property becomes an intestate estate.  It is divided according to settlement shares determined by law.  In most states, if the deceased is a married man, the widow receives a prescribed interest in any real property her husband owned (known as her dower rights) and a prescribed share of his personal property, and the rest is divided equally among the children.

There are several processes before that division of property can take place.  Below are the first steps in the processing of John Froman's estate.

Administrator's Bond
As stated in the court record, on March 4, 1872, Jacob Seylor, S. W. Mannheimer, and B. Miller each paid $100.00 to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, taking on the responsibility of administrators.  Jacob Seylor became the named administrator of "all and singular goods, chattels and credits" of John Froman.  His obligation was to "make, or cause to be made, a true and perfect inventory of all and singular the goods chattels and credits of the said deceased, which have come or shall come into the hands and possession or knowledge of him the said Jacob Seylor" or anyone else, and to do it within one year.

The Inventory
In Pennsylvania law, according to a document in this file, the wife of a husband who died intestate could retain "goods and chattels . . . to the value of three hundred dollars . . . for the use of herself and her family."

It is hard to tell from the papers in the file whether the items that Widow Catherine kept (at right and transcribed below) are all the items that John Froman owned or whether the list contains only those items that Catherine retained.  (Click on the images to enlarge.)  This inventory was dated September 21, 1872.

      1 Cookstove / $10.00
      2 Coffeepots / illegible
      1 bucket / illegible
      2 Coffeemill[s] / $ .50
      1 Pot / $ .75
      1 Teakettle / illegible
      1 [illegible] iron / illegible
      2 Crocks
      1 Crant [or crout?] illegible
      2 Bread Pans / illegible
      1 Table  / $2.50
      ---page 2---
      Brought forward / $16.86
      1 Bureau / $6.10
      2 [illegible] / $2.75
      1 Small Rocking chair /$  .25
      1 Cubboard / $7.?0
      6 Seats [maybe?] / $  .60
      1 [illegible] / $  .25
      [illegible] / $1.75
      2 Bedstead / illegible
      1 [illegible] / $1.??
      Total / $49.98

John Froman also owned property.  The balance of Catherine's $300.00 was to be taken from that.  The record states,

For Balance of the Three Hundred Dols See Inventory & appraisement of twelve and half acres of land in Beaver Township Crawford County Pa Bounded North by part of Same lot on the East by public Road South by land of A. Inish and west by part of [illegible] lot being 20 rods North & South & 100 rods East & west & part of said J. Froman Estate which we value as two Hundred Fifty Dols 250$ & set apart to the said widow[.]

Notes, Thoughts, and Questions

• John Froman was about 30 when he died in about December, 1871.  Catherine was between 26 and 28.
• At the time of his death, their children ranged in age from 8 to 14 months with another born in January, 1872.
• Why was there a 3-month delay between the time of John's death in December, 1871, and the beginning of court proceedings in March, 1872?  Is that a common or uncommon amount of time?
• Why did the inventory not take place until September, 1872, 6 months after the case was opened?
• Looking at the list of items Catherine kept, they were either a very frugal family or a very poor family.
• What did Catherine do after her husband's death?  How did she manage with 6 little children and a newborn baby?  Did she live with family?  Her father was Jacob Saylor, possibly the Jacob Seyler mentioned as the administrator in this court file.
• The property she retained in Crawford County was 20 x 200 rods.  That translates to 330' x 1650' or about 12 acres.  It was a long, narrow strip, part of a larger parcel of land.  John also owned property in West Salem Township, Mercer County.  (In 1870, John and Catherine lived in Pymatuning Township, Mercer County.)  Why was she given the land in Crawford County?  And why a long, narrow piece?

This file, O.S. 3410-D, was obtained from Register of Wills & Clerk of Orphans’ Court, Mercer County, 112 Mercer County Courthouse, Mercer, PA 16137.

Other posts relating to John Froman and his intestate court file:
Of Orphans and Widows
Petition for Guardianship for Theressa Froman
The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 2:  Petition, Exhibits 'A' and 'B', Petitions, Decree
The Intestate Estate Record of John Froman - Part 3:  Sale of Real Estate, Accounts, Inventory of Children 

–Nancy.

Copyright ©2014-2019, Nancy Messier.  All Rights Reserved. 
Do not copy or use any content from this blog without written permission from the owner. 
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Of Orphans and Widows

After I learned that John Froman died between 1870 and 1880, I learned that his children had been assigned a guardian through the court even though their mother was alive.  I was new to family history at the time and wondered if their mother, Catherine (Saylor) Froman, was unfit to care for her children for some reason:  perhaps she had a physical handicap, emotional problems, or some medical condition that prevented it.

I recently obtained the Orphan's Court files for all of John's children which caused me to further question the reasons behind assigning a guardian to children whose mother was still alive.  When I wrote about Tressa Froman's petition for guardianship I mused about this situation.  Thank you to my brother, Bob, for his insight that women in that time period essentially had no rights and, therefore, could not guard the rights of her children.  An adult male would need to become their legal guardian.  I had not thought in legal terms, only in terms of the modern dictionary definition of the word orphan:  a child who has lost both parents.  Knowing the standing of a widow in the late 1800s and the legal definition of orphan changed my understanding of the situation of both Catherine and her children.

Wendy of Jollette, Etc. also responded and provided a link to Orphans and Guardians at Bob Baird's Bob's Genealogy Filing Cabinet.  Thank you, Wendy. 

Bob gives a history of the legal aspect of an orphan, discusses the role of guardian, guardianship versus custody, and the rights of orphans.

Several of his statements added insight and answered questions:

• The "guardian's responsibility was focused on the property of the orphan "rather than on the orphan himself."  His primary purpose "was to provide for management of the orphan's estate...."
• "The guardian’s primary role was management and preservation of the inherited property until the child reached majority and could manage it themselves."
• "It should be noted that guardians could be at considerable financial risk, for they were personally liable for loss of the child’s property.  (That was the purpose of the guardian bond.)"

All of those statements helped me understand the situation of Tressa Froman and her siblings after the death of their father.  It's true their father died with property but considering other circumstances it seems to have been essential for them to have a guardian.  All things considered, $100.00 does not seem as large a sum of money for bond as I originally thought.

If you're interested in this topic, I encourage you to read Bob Baird's post, Orphans and Guardians.

--Nancy.
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