Robert Houston
- Born: Abt 1737, Somerset Co., MD
- Marriage (1): Priscilla Laws
- Died: Between 23 Jan 1788 and 25 Feb 1788, Sussex Co., DE
His wife, Priscilla, is probably his last of at least two wives. She appears to be a Laws, the d/o John Laws who mentions her as "daughter Prisilah Houston and the two heirs of her body" to get 1/5th part of remainder of his estate. This indicates that there were only two living (unnamed) blood heirs of Priscilla in March 1790 when Laws wrote his will. Priscilla mentions a total of four daughters in her will in 1814 and one son (Liston Houston). We do not know which, if any, of these heirs of Robert Houston are blood children of Priscilla. Some genealogies on Ancestry claim Robert had an earlier wife, Mary Purnell, but this compiler cannot verify that as being correct.
Other genealogies claim he first married Sally Simmon Minors and some say Mary Purnell but, without reference to source material. If we were to believe along those lines, we might suggest that he married Mary Purnell first in c1752 and had children Mary and Purnell, then he married Sally Minors c1757 and had a few chidren including Sally Minors Houston, Liza, John, Robert, Joseph, Nancy I, Liston, Priscilla, and James. I stop there with four children remaining in the family (as verified from the extant from the Bible records) because of John Laws' mentioning only two heirs to Priscilla (Laws) Houston living in 1790. Of the four (4) final children of Robert Houston; Clement, Isaac, Samuel and Nancy II, two had died by 1790 (Isaac and Samuel) so, we might deduce that those four were borne of Priscilla whom he would have married c1776. Still, these are just educated guesses and, w/o any further proof, these are just speculation.
The birth dates of his children shown herein come from a digital copy of the family's original Bible records on ancestry.
Robert Houston, farmer will:
23 January 1788
To wife Priscilla - my manor plantation for her widowhood. Also Negro man Peter, man Harry. Also two beds and furniture, horse and saddle, two cows, one cart and yoke of oxen, all pewter, one desk standing in the new room, walnut table, plank table, dozen chairs and remainder of estate
To sons James and Clement Houston - plantation after wife's widowhood
To son James - Negro boy named Cudgoe. Also horse, bridle and saddle
To son Clement - horse, bridle and saddle and 15 pounds
To son John Houston - the above manor plantation if both James and Clement die without lawful issue. Also 100 pounds
To son Robert Houston - all that land that I bought of Levin Collings containing 200 acres
To sons Joseph and Liston Houston - the remainder of lands and also the land given to Robert if Robert dies without lawful issue. Also to each a horse, saddle and bridle
To son Purnell Houston - 5 pounds
To daughter Mary Hazzard - 5 pounds
To daughter Sally Collins - 5 pounds
To daughter Lizza Cary - one old desk in the old room and 5 pounds
To daughter Priscilla Houston - Negro girl named Hannah. Also horse, bridle and saddle and 15 pounds
To daughter Nancy Houston - Negro girl named Nan. Also chest of drawers in the new room
To granddaughter Priscilla Cary - Negro girl Nan if daughter Nancy dies without issue
To granddaughter Priscilla Collins - the chest of drawers if daughter Nancy dies without issue
Executor: wife
Witness: John G. Jones, Castily Truitt, Benjamin Riley
25 February 1788 then came John Goddwin Jones and Benjamin Riley
Robert married Priscilla Laws, daughter of John Laws and Unknown. (Priscilla Laws was born on 23 Aug 1740 in Somerset Co., MD and died between 08 Jan 1814 and 08 Mar 1814 in Sussex Co., DE.)
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