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A Collection of Newfoundland Wills
(P)
Thomas Elias Power

 

Will of Thomas Elias Power
from Newfoundland will books volume 18 page 241 probate year 1941

November 8th, 1933

I, Thomas Elias Power[1], of the town of Grand Falls, Newfoundland, being of sound mind, memory and understanding do make my last will and testament in manner and form following.

I do give, devise and bequeath to my oldest son, Philip Mary Power[2], all any right, title and interest in and to that water side premises at Oderin[3], Placentia Bay, Newfoundland known as the Deep Cove[4], also my right, title and interest in that property known as Crow Island[5], situate near the western extremity of the aforesaid Oderin, Placentia Bay, Newfoundland.

I do give, devise and bequeath to my aforesaid son, Philip Mary Power, one fifth of any money which I have or of which I may be possessed at the time of my decease, also any wearing apparell (sic), namely one heavy overcoat, 1 suit of clothes, several articles of underclothing and 6 pairs of socks.

I do give, devise and bequeath to my second son, Cecil Ignatius Power[6], one fifth of any money which I have or of which I may be possessed at the time of my decease, my two books entitled (Hodgeson on the Steel Square), my plowplane[7], rip-saw and tenon saw[8].

I do give, devise and bequeath to my youngest son, George Cyril Power[9], one fifth of any money which I now have or of which I may die possessed or which I may have at the time of my decease. I also give, devise and bequeath to my aforesaid son, George Cyril Power, my gold ring, once the property of my father, the late Philip Power.

I do give, devise and bequeath to my oldest daughter, Mary Teresa Power[10] (wife of William Francis Nugent), one fifth of any money which I may have at the time of my decease, my life insurance policies, namely my policy with the Crown Life Insurance Company for one thousand dollars ($1000.00) and my group insurance policy for two thousand dollars ($2000.00) taken through the Anglo Newfoundland Development Company[11] from the Sun Life Insurance Company.

I also give, devise and bequeath to my aforesaid daughter, Mary Teresa Power, my furniture, household effects, my bed and bed-clothes, bed-stead and bureau.

I do give, devise and bequeath to my youngest surviving[12] daughter, Elizabeth Anne Power[13] (wife of Joseph Blackmore), one fifth of any money of which I may be possessed at the time of my decease, also any books of mine she may choose to possess, other than those I have already given, devised and bequeathed to my son, Cecil Ignatius Power.

I do give, devise and bequeath to my grandson, Thomas Elias Power[14], my tools that I used at carpenter and millwright work, that is to say my tool chest and its contents.

I do by these presents appoint my daughter, Mary Teresa Power, to be the sole executor of this, my last will and testament.[15]

Signed by the said Thomas Elias Power in the presence of us present at the same time, who in his presence and the presence of each other attest and subscribe our names as witnesses thereto.

Witnesses are John Burke, Michael Brennan and F.E. Ireland, J.P.
Dated at Grand Falls, Nfld., this 8th day of November, 1933.[16]

End Notes

  1. Born December 1, 1866 in Oderin, Placentia Bay, Newfoundland, the seventh child of Philip Power, Jr. and Bridget Sparrow. Married November 8, 1893 in St. Kyran's, Placentia Bay, Newfoundland to Mary Hayden, of James Hayden and Anne Wakeham of Petite Forte, Newfoundland. Died April 20, 1941 in Grand Falls, Newfoundland.

  2. Philip was born May 19, 1895 in Oderin. He moved to St. Bon's school in St. John's upon his mother's death in 1909. Philip eventually settled in Petit Forte, NF and married Beatrice Gaulton on December 27, 1921. He floated the original Power home from Oderin to Petit Forte. Philip and Beatrice had two sons, Thomas Elias and Philip Mary, as well as daughters Clara, Mary and Gertrude. In 1941, the probate documents show Philip was a carpenter in "Pettifort".

  3. The island of Oderin lies in the western part of Placentia Bay, at 47o 17' 00" N latitude and 54o 48' 00" W longitude, half a mile northward of Cape Jude and six miles southeast of Baine Harbour, the nearest mainland port. The island is only 1.5 square miles in area and is horseshoe-shaped, with the open end facing southwest. The longer southern arm of the island is two miles in length and has more trees than the exposed northern arm. Oderin, originally named "Audierne" by the French, was probably first settled about 1700 by Breton fishermen of the port of Audierne in France - one of about sixty ports along the west coast of France which engaged in the Newfoundland cod fishery. Philip Power, father of Thomas, went to Oderin from Burin about 1840, with his mother (née Sheehan) and his brother Patrick. Their father, also named Philip, had died a few years earlier and their mother was remarried to a Mr. Fogarthy.

  4. The records of the Canadian Permanent Committee on Geographical Names show a number of places called Deep Cove, Deep Cove Head and Deep Cove Ponds within western Placentia Bay. None, however, are within 10 km of Oderin Island, suggesting perhaps that the Deep Cove to which Thomas refers in his will was a colloquial name for a small cove near the island rather than a formally adopted name.

  5. Crow Island is well marked, at 47o 17' 00" N - 54o 50' 00" W, located at the western extreme of Oderin Island, just as Thomas describes.

  6. C.I., as he was generally known later in life, was born in Oderin on April 30, 1903. In 1909, after his mother's death, he moved to live with his Uncle Patrick Hayden in Petit Forte. He moved to Grand Falls in 1914 to live with his father and the rest of the family. On August 10, 1927, he married Ellen Mary Rose, daughter of Jeremiah Rose and Mary Ellen Meade. Cecil started work at the paper mill in Grand Falls as a young man, sweeping broke on the paper machines. From 1953 to 1964, he worked in Quality Control for the paper mill and traveled worldwide to visit customers of the mill's newsprint. He retired from Price (Nfld.), after nearly 50 years, in 1968 as assistant superintendent of the machine room.

    He once served as President of Local 88 of the Canadian Paperworkers Union. As a senior, he was, for a time, president of the Grand Falls Senior Citizens Club. He was a founding member and sometimes Grand Knight of the Knights of Columbus in Grand Falls. He died on December, 15, 1986 in Buchans, Newfoundland. C.I. and Nellie had twelve children -- sons Philip, Cecil, George, Edward, Vincent, Paul and Leo; daughters Rosemary, Helene, Patricia, Ellen (or Nellie) and Christine (a.k.a. Teenie).

  7. Plow plane -- Used for cutting grooves for door panels, also used to rough in complex molding shapes. Older style fences adjust by means of arms through the body held in place by wedges, later on, the arms were threaded and held in place by wooden nuts. The common ones were made of beech. Less common are the ones with rosewood, boxwood, applewood, or ebony bodies. Brass and in some cases ivory was used to decorated the plane. These were the masterpiece item of the 19th century planemaker.

  8. Tenon saw -- A small saw, usually with a heavy steel or brass back, which stiffens the blade. It is used primarily for bench work, as extremely accurate cuts can be made. As the name suggests it is designed for cutting joints - such as the tenon half of a mortise and tenon joint.

  9. Born on May 31, 1905 in Oderin, George was the only one of the Power siblings to make a home outside Newfoundland. When his mother died in 1909, he moved to live with his Uncle Jim Hayden in Petit Forte, then to Grand Falls in 1914 with the rest of the family. At the age of 15 he went to St. John's to finish school at St. Bon's. The school registers confirm that Admission # 2115 on September 20, 1920 was George Power, whose hometown was Grand Falls and whose father had the occupation of machinist. George Moved to Ontario after St. Bon's and studied classics at the University of Toronto. It was in Ontario that he met and married, in July of 1949, Mary Saunders, originally from Bishops Falls, Newfoundland. In 1941 George was a schoolteacher in Morrisburg, Ontario. Not long after that he went back to university and obtained a law degree, then started a second career with the Ontario provincial government. George passed away on April 19, 1995 in Scarborough, Ontario. He and Mary had two sons, Maurice and Philip.

  10. Mary was always known by friends and family alike as Minnie, a common nickname for Mary in those days. She too was born in Oderin, on August 3, 1897. She wasn't yet a teenager when her mother died in 1909 and she was sent to St. John's to live with relatives. By 1914, her father had found work and made a home in Grand Falls. Minnie, a young woman by this time, moved there to tend house and cared for her younger siblings. They lived in a bungalow at 31 Bank Road, with the Whalens and Stapletons on one side and the Hanlons and Browns on the other. On February 2, 1931 Minnie married William Francis Nugent. The Nugents lived the rest of their lives in Grand Falls and never had any children. Minnie passed away on October 11, 1980.

  11. Grand Falls was established in 1905 as the original Newfoundland paper town by two British newspaper barons, the Harmsworth brothers (later named Lord Northcliffe and Lord Rothermere). In selecting their site, the Harmsworths recognized the vast timber resources of the region, the hydro-electricity potential of the Exploits River and the proximity to the deep-water port of Botwood. In 1905, the Harmsworths founded and incorporated the Anglo-Newfoundland Development Company (A.N.D.Co.) and the site for the paper mill was cleared in 1907. The town hall was constructed the following year, and the mill officially opened on October 9, 1909. The town was laid out around the mill which has been in continuous operation since it was built.

  12. Thomas no doubt used the word surviving here because another, younger daughter had predeceased him. Helen Isabella Power was born August 31, 1908. The family tradition is that the doctor from St. Jacques, who was to attend at Helen's birth, died suddenly of a heart attack. There were complications at the birth that Mrs. Mullett, the midwife, could not cope with. As a result, Helen died a few months later and her mother soon after that.

  13. Elizabeth was born in Oderin on January 8, 1900. Upon her mother's death, she was the only member of the family to stay in Oderin. She may have lived with Mrs. Mullett, the aforesaid midwife. Graduated from Littledale College in St. John's about 1918, she taught school in Grand Falls until she was married to Joseph Blackmore on October 8, 1924. Elizabeth was very well read and interested in music to the extent that she made sure all seven children had a good education and a grounding in music. Both she and her husband, Joseph, agreed that a well-rounded education was the best gift they could give their children and they devoted their life to this aim. Elizabeth died on May 19, 1951, in Grand Falls. The Blackmores had three sons -- Donald, Herbert and Robert -- and five daughters -- Helen, Margaret, Elizabeth, Madeline and Theresa.

  14. Thomas Elias Power, the grandson, was born November 19, 1923 to Philip Power and Beatrice Gaulton. According to his uncle, George Cyril Power, Tom married a woman from Marystown or Little Bay (just outside Marystown). Tom died about 1970.

  15. Minnie did survive her father and serve as executrix of the will. The will was probated on May 3, 1941 under petition by the solicitor, Leonard C. Hawco and accompanying affidavits from Mary Teresa Nugent and Michael Brennan.

  16. According to the probate documents, the gross value of the estate and effects of Thomas Elias Power upon his decease was $2895.12. The bulk of the estate, some $2420.12, consisted of cash on hand and in the bank. Other assets included $25 worth of land, which is not further described, $300 of book debts and promissory notes, $100 of furniture, consisting of "stove, bed, chairs, etc." and $50 worth of tools.

(End notes by Richard J. Power, great-grandson of the testator.)

 

 

Note: The will is for my great-grandfather, Thomas Elias Power, d. 1941. Five of his siblings married McGraths. Both families were from the island of Oderin in Placentia Bay. (Rick Power)

Page Contributed & Transcribed by Rick Power

Page Revised by Ivy F. Benoit (February 15, 2003)

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