In June of this year (2014), I obtained copies of the Saunders County probate file for P.W. Pearson. Peter William Pearson was my great-grandfather. He was also known as “Will” or “Willie” by family and friends. He had an untimely death, succumbing to cancer of the mouth at the age of only 43. He died on June […]
Probate Records of Christian Pearson, Part 3
Last time I was on this topic, I posted the contents of Christian’s will. In it, he left everything to his wife Johanna. However, upon Johanna’s death his oldest son “Per” William (aka Peter William, my great-grandfather) would get the original homestead farm, for which he was to reimburse $1,500 to his other siblings. The […]
Probate Records of Christian Pearson, Part 2
Included in Christian’s probate file was a copy of his will. It was prepared on July 23, 1906, about two years before he died. In it, he appointed Mr. J. J. Johnson as his executor. This could be the same John Johnson who signed an affidavit in Christian’s homestead claim in 1879. In the homestead […]
Probate Records of Christian Pearson, Part 1
My great-great-grandfather Christian Pearson died on October 16, 1908. A brief review of the last years of his life will help explain how his will was sorted out. We know from a letter written in January 1905 that Christian was very anxious for his son Will (my great-grandfather, also known as P.W.) to come home […]
A few last words from J.W. Johnson, 1921
I have two final letters from J.W. Johnson in my files. They are both dated early 1921 and are hand-written by J.W. himself. His handwriting reveals both his age and a Swedish accent. The text of both letters are at the end of this post. J.W. was my great-grandmother Clara’s wealthy uncle. He lived in […]
