Last Will and Testament of María Francisca Gutiérrez, 1799

María Francisca de la Trinidad Gutiérrez (c. 26 May 1771, Sandia Pueblo), wife of José Antonio García de Noriega, who was one of the original Cañon de San Diego grantees, made her last will and testament on July 11, 1799. The couple had just had their fifth child, María Juana on June 18th. Given that the will makes no reference to this daughter, perhaps the infant died shortly after being baptized. We can also speculate that the sickness afflicting Francisca was related to the recent birth of her child. A record of Francisca's death has not yet been found, but it is likely she passed away soon after writing the will, as there aren't any records of this couple having any other children.

The original manuscript of the will was filed with the Court of Private Land Claims on December 29, 1879. I have translated it into English. You can read more about the Cañon de San Diego land grant in this blog post.

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In the name of Almighty God, and of the Most Holy Virgin and Our Lady conceived without stain or shadow of original sin in the first instant of her pure and natural being, Amen.

Let it be known that I, María Francisca Gutiérrez, resident of the Cañón de San Diego, being ill in bed yet in my sound judgment, memory, and natural understanding, believing as I firmly believe in the mystery of the Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, three distinct persons and one true God, and in all else that our Holy Mother Church, the Catholic Apostolic Roman Church, holds, believes, and confesses, in whose faith I have lived and profess to live and die, taking as my intercessor the ever-immaculate serene queen of the angels, my guardian of my name and devotion, and the rest of the celestial court so that they may pray to Our Lord and Redeemer Jesus Christ, that by the merits of His most precious life, passion, and death, He may forgive my sins and take my soul to enjoy His most blessed presence. Fearing death, which is natural, and desiring to save my soul and avoid, after my passing, doubts and disputes, I grant my testament in the following manner.

Firstly, I commend my soul to God Our Lord, who created and redeemed it with the inestimable price of His blood, and my body to the earth from which it was formed, so that, as a corpse, it may be shrouded in the habit of my Father San Francisco, of whose order I am a tertiary.

Item: It is my will that if God Our Lord sees fit to take me from this present life, I be buried in the parish church of San Diego de Jemez at the foot of the steps of the main altar, and when the time comes, a sung Mass, vigil, and responsory with the body present be held for my soul, for which the alms shall be given at the rate prescribed. I also order that a novena of Masses be said for my soul to San Amador, along with five additional Masses I owe, and one to Our Lady of Guadalupe, whose alms shall be given according to the rate prescribed.

Item: I leave one peso for each of the obligatory alms.

Item: I leave to María Manuela, my servant, a shawl, which I order to be given to her.

I declare that I am lawfully married in facie ecclesiae to Antonio García, in which marriage we have procreated and have four children: María Rita, María Viviana, María Antonia, and José Rafael, whom I declare to be my legitimate children and heirs, and of these and any others we may procreate in said marriage, I appoint my aforementioned husband as their tutor and guardian. In consideration of his care for the preservation and increase of their assets, I consign to him the benefits and release him from bonds, and I request the honorable judge, before whom the original or certified copy of this testament is presented, to approve and confirm this appointment and to grant him this duty under the stated conditions. However, if he remarries, I order that, even with bonds, he be stripped of the guardianship, and the assets belonging to my children be handed over to the most Christian and reputable person deemed appropriate by said honorable judge, who shall provide for their sustenance and upbringing with what is deemed necessary for their nourishment, not from the benefits. Over all of this, I entrust his conscience and I abide by the laws that govern these matters.

I declare that when I married the aforementioned, he brought under his possession two milk cows and a yearling heifer.

I declare having as my assets the following: all the furnishings inside the house, which I order my said husband to manage in their entirety.

Item: I declare that I leave to my daughter María Rita a shawl of all-yellow silk.

Item: To my daughter María Antonia, I leave another shawl of all-silk, already used.

Item: To my daughter María Viviana, I leave a white mantle.

Item: To my son José Rafael, I leave my earrings, which I used.

And to carry out the contents of this testament, I name my husband as my executor and grant him the required power to sell, from the best of my assets, whatever is necessary to fulfill and pay the mandates and legacies of this testament, over which I charge his conscience, and whatever he does shall be as valid as if I had done it.

And after fulfilling and paying all the contents of this testament, with the remainder of my assets, rights, and present and future claims, I name as my sole and universal heirs my aforementioned children María Rita, María Antonia, María Viviana, and José Rafael, and my said husband, so that they may inherit in equal parts as provided by the laws of the kingdom, with God’s blessing and mine.

And by this testament, I revoke and annul all prior testaments and other testamentary dispositions I may have previously made, whether in writing, by word, or in any other form, so that none shall have effect or judicial or extrajudicial standing except this present one, which I desire and order to be regarded as such and as my deliberate and last will in the manner and form permitted by law. Thus, I grant it.

She did not sign because she does not know how. It is signed by me, the undersigned alcalde mayor Don Antonio de Armenta, in this Pueblo de Jemez, on the tenth day of the month of July, in the year one thousand seven hundred ninety-nine, with witnesses Hilario Mestas, Salvador López, and Tomás Sandoval, residents of the aforementioned jurisdiction, whom I, the said justice, attest to knowing, as well as the grantor.

Antonio de Armenta {rubric}

                                                            Tomás Sandoval {rubric}

Source: “New Mexico, U.S., Land Records of New Spain, 1692-1916,” Land Grant Case Files, Serial 10330, SG Report 122, Box 81 (Image 236/673). Available on Ancestry.com.