Snoopin’ with the Snoop

Daniel Sackett died in Troy, Rensselaer County, NY in 1845. After ordering images of his probate record from sampubco in the beginning of November (2009), I’m finally finished with the transcription.

Because I’ve worked for an attorney in a legal assistant/paralegal capacity for the past two years, I easily recognized many words, which in years past have been undecipherable:

• heretofore
• that is to say
• pursuant to the statutes in such case made & provided
• thereof
• as aforesaid
• made due & satisfactory proof
• in manner and form
• in pursuance of
• thereupon
• afterwards
• affidavits
• whereof
• the hand caused the seal … to be hereunto applied (in otherwords, the person signed the document)
• instant
• annexed
• deponent / depose
• abovementioned
• herein
• thereon
• hereunto
• thereof
• attesting Witness
• thereto
• whereas
• said (as in “said person”, “said document”, “said date”, “said place”, …)

I also think it is interesting, that back then, they had to different “and” symbols. A lowercase “and”, which is most like “+”, and an uppercase “and” — ” &”, though, in my transcript, I did not differentiate between their appearances.

Thankfully, attorneys have ceased, for the most part, being wordy, and have caught on that the best writing is simple and direct. Nightmarish legal writing hasn’t totally fled from existence, but it is less common to find documents as redundant and wordy as this court document. My favorite sentence from the will (p.396)  is “And it is further ordered by said surrogate that said Will & Codicil thereto annexed together with the proofs thereof be recorded as a will of real Estate which said proofs so ordered to be recorded are here and before recorded & contained, and which said will so ordered to be recorded is recorded in the words and figures following to wit.” That and of course the common phrase “my hand caused the seal to be hereunto applied.”

p.386]
at the City of Troy in said County on the 17th day of June
1845
Present Stephen Reynolds Jr Surrogate
In the matter of the }
last Will & Testament of}
Daniel Sackett deceased} Be it remembered that heretofore that is to say at a Surrogates Court held for the County of Rensselaer at the City of troy in said County on the 12th day of April 1845 before Stephen Reynolds Jr Surrogate of said County personally appeared Charles H. Kellogg an Executor named in the last Will and Testament of Daniel Sackett late of the City of Troy in the County of Rensselaer deceased & made application to said Surrogate to have the Will of the deceased proved and recorded pursuant to the Statutes of the State of New York in such case made & provided & thereupon presented a petition for the proof thereof both as a Will of real and personal estate verified by his oath setting forth that the said Daniel Sackett died a natural death at his residence in the City of Troy in said County of Rensselaer on or about the 8th day of April 1845 and that said will relates to both the real & personal estate.
And the Said Charles H. Kellogg Executor as aforesaid then & there made due and satisfactory proof before said Surrogate of the names, ages & places of residence of the Widow (& next?) all the heirs at Law & next of Kin of the said Daniel Sackett deceased so far as the same could be ascertained according to the form of the statutes in such case made and provided.
And thereupon said Surrogate did then & there issue a Citation to the Widow and heirs at law & next of kin of the said Daniel Sackett deceased requiring them to appear before the said Surrogate at his office in the City of Troy aforesaid to attend the probate of the last Will & Testament of the said Daniel Sackett deceased in manner and form & in pursuance of the Statutes in Such Case made & provided. And thereupon afterwards that is to say at a Surrogates Court held for the County of Rensselaer at the City of Troy in said County on the 2nd day of June 1845 the said Charles H. Kellogg Executor as aforesaid again appeared & the Citation heretofore issued not being returned the said Surrogate by an order duly adjourned the hearing of the matter to the 17th day of June 1845 at 10 o’clock at the office of said Surrogate in Troy aforesaid.
And thereupon afterwards that is to say at a Surrogates court held for the County of Rensselaer at the City of Troy in said County on the said 17th day of June 1845 the said Charles H. Kellogg Exectuor as aforesaid again appeared before the said Surrogate

Names mentioned on page 386:

• Stephen Reynolds, Jr
• Daniel Sackett
• Charles H. Kellogg

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Names from DARING AND SUFFERING: A HISTORY OF THE GREAT RAILROAD ADVENTURE BY LIEUT. WILLIAM PITTENGER, ONE OF THE ADVENTURERS (see the bibliographic record at Project Gutenberg and download if you wish). The Introduction author describes a bit of  Mr. Pittenger’s family and path to the railroad adventure:

William Pittenger, b. 31 Jan 1840, Jefferson Co. Ohio, son of Thomas Pittenger. His mother’s family were the Mills’s. He was under the command of Colonel Harris in the Ohio 2nd, and General Mitchell after transferring to a division encamped at Louisville.

Two other names in the introduction:
Chaplain Gaddis of the Ohio 2nd
Rev. Capt. J. J. Geer

Names from DARING AND SUFFERING: A HISTORY OF THE GREAT RAILROAD ADVENTURE BY LIEUT. WILLIAM PITTENGER, ONE OF THE ADVENTURERS (see the bibliographic record at Project Gutenberg and download if you wish). This book describes the adventurers’ roles in the Union’s run to destroy the Georgia State Railroad during the Civil War. It is easiest to copy the names here as they are listed in the book: