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Dr. Page: Probate Records
Probate records show what a person owned at the time of his or her death. You can find these records in local or county depositories, where deeds are also often stored. Benjamin Page's probate record shows us what books were in Dr. Page's library when he died. We do not know whether he read every book he owned, nor which he owned in 1794, when he was called to assist in the Sewall delivery. It is likely, however, that he was familiar with the works on birth instruments by Smellie, anatomy by Hunter and others, opium and laudanum by Buchanan and others, and surgical procedures by several authors.

Interestingly, Dr. Page owned everything in the Page household except his wife's clothes, even though Mrs. Page was still alive.

 


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Questions to ask these pages:

1. How many medical books did Page have in his library?

2. How many works by William Smellie did Page own?


More Questions:

1. What items in Dr. Page's inventory might be considered Mrs. Page's today?

2. What information that isn't in this probate record would be useful to know?


Reading Help

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  Notes of hand amount valued at-
as good
Notes Geo Riley 11.25  
  James Trumble 15.00  
  Steven Smith 59.03  
  Owen D Norcross 18.65  
  Ebenr Hinkley 25.00  
  Wm Bond 16.83  
  Chs Kimball 6.50  
  Abesha Handy 10.58  
  John W Watson 20.00  
  John Folsom 25.00  
  Nathl Woods 21.66  
  do 10.67  
  Richard Perley 17.00  
  John Chamberlin 76.00  
  Benj Emmons 9.48  
  John Gilman 3.61  
  G D Simmons 9.00  
  Saml Loch 32.14  
  Wm Bond 50.00  
  Wilbur Furbush 24.00  
  Frederick B Page 1000.00  
  do 300.00  
  J B [Soule] 5.50 5.50
  Wm Nye 11.00  
       
  Elijah Conch 123.87  
  Mary Anne Percel 3.00  
  Hannibal C Hinckley 7.00  
  Capt James Kean   unsetted
  Thom Davis 3.50  
  Edward Davis 28.25  
  Geo Riley 3.25  
  Geo Phelps 9.00  
  Robert Gardiner   unsetted
  L Hovey   do
  John Bodwill   do
  Wm Nye 14.00  
  Benj Dutton unsettled 25.50 unsetted
  Saml [Lench] 47.00  
  L Lincoln 53.31  
  Isaac Sawyer 102.50  
  Daniel Hurd 6.22 6.22
  Jacob Rickens 5.00  
  Geo Hayden 9.50 4.75
  J W Winslow 16.17  
  Jm Belden 22.57 2257
  Nathan Moody 1.50 150
  Saml Smith 1.00 100
  Wm Harvey   unsetted
  John Good   unsetted
  Mrs Mary Cartes 11.00 .11
  Isaac Guys    
  RS Pond    
       
  over   52.54




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