This week is bit­ter­sweet for Camp­bell House.  Octo­ber 10, 2009 was the 130th anniver­sary of Robert Camp­bel­l’s death.  Just a few months lat­er, Robert’s old­er broth­er Hugh fol­lowed.  These pio­neer­ing broth­ers expe­ri­enced and impact­ed Amer­i­can his­to­ry.  But per­haps more impor­tant­ly, they RECORDED it in their let­ters, ledgers, and jour­nals.  For 65 years, Camp­bell House Muse­um has striv­en to pass the incred­i­ble sto­ries of Robert Camp­bell, Hugh Camp­bell, and their fam­i­lies on to future generations.

Today we post Hugh Camp­bel­l’s Decem­ber 8, 1879 will.  It rep­re­sents the wish­es of just one per­son in the amaz­ing tale of the Camp­bell fam­i­ly.  We hope that Hugh’s words will fos­ter your curios­i­ty in this fam­i­ly’s sto­ry and that you will come see the his­to­ry they left behind at Camp­bell House Muse­um!  The sto­ry con­tin­ues to unfold in The Camp­bell Quest, the new exhib­it Immi­gra­tion Adven­tures to Amer­i­ca: Hugh and Robert Camp­bel­l’s Jour­ney from Ire­land to the Unit­ed States, and the upcom­ing release of Hugh Camp­bel­l’s 1818 jour­nal!  Thank you for fol­low­ing the sto­ry of the Camp­bells; we hope you find the will as inter­est­ing as we do.

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Hugh Camp­bell
WILL.
Dec 6.1879, Will (illeg­i­ble word)
44 J/ 591

Mar­garet Jane
(illeg­i­ble word) 2
9–28-35

Filed and admit­ted to pro­bate this
8th day of December
A.D. 1879. and duly record­ed in
Book “N” of Wills, on page 156
(sig­na­ture) clerk

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I, Hugh Camp­bell of the city of St Louis and
state of Mis­souri being of sound and disposing
mind do make this my last will and testament
here­ly revok­ing all oth­ers here to fore under by me

First I direct that out of my cetak my just debts and
funer­al expens­es shall be first paid and that
my mor­tal remains shall be buried in a lot at
Belle­fontaine ceme­tery which I pur­chased from
Mr Patrick. My beloved wife Mary select­ed this for me
and when it shall please god to call her heaven
she will prob­a­bly be buried beside me. We have
spent over forty five years of hap­py mar­ried life
and may then be unit­ed in the grave.
Sec­ond I give and bequeath to my broth­er Robert
Camp­bell my gold watch and chain together
with any of my per­son­al effects ( as mementos)
that he may choose togeth­er with six­ty volumes
from my library indulge the New American
Ency­clo­pe­dia. Such as he may select
Third I give (illeg­i­ble word) and bequeath all the residue of
my estate and prop­er­ty and per­son­al and
wiped which I may leave at the time of my
to my beloved wife Mary Campbell
to have and to hold the same (illeg­i­ble word) the saw
Mary Camp­bell to her keen (illeg­i­ble word) advices
(illeg­i­ble word) and assigns forever.

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In the event that my wife shall die before me
I give and bequeath and (illeg­i­ble word) the (illeg­i­ble words) of my
estate rear per­son­al and (illeg­i­ble word) as fol­lows. One third
ten of to my good broth­er Robert Camp­bell the next
one third there­of to my two nieces twins McFarland
and Mar­garet McCallagh, now read­ing in Ireland
to them (illeg­i­ble word) in equal shares. And the oth­er third
to my two sis­ters in law Mar­garet Kyle and Mrs
Jane Clark and to them keen in equal shares.
It had been my (Illeg­i­ble word) to make oth­er bequests
but my first desire is to pro­vide suit­ably for my beloved
wife. And on account of loss­es by fraud­u­lent debtors
and shrink­age in the val­ue of invest­ments since
1843 I am reduced to devise the said residue to
my wife
Fourth I nom­i­nate and appoint my broth­er Robert
Camp­bell and my wife Mary Camp­bell exec
tor and execubrex(possibly?) of this my last will and
I desire, if the law will per­mit, that no secur
ity be required of either of them for the pure
form anew of their duties
In tes­ti­mo­ny where­of I have
here­in­to set my hand and seal at St Louis
this twen­ty sev­enth day of June eighteen
hun­dred and sev­en­ty seven
Hugh Camp­bell (Sig­na­ture) Seal

Signed sealed pub­lished and declared to

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be his last will and tes­ta­ment by said Hugh Campbell
in our pres­ence who in his pres­ence and at his request
and in the pres­ence of each oth­er have here­in­to submitted
our names as instrusties thereof
John R Shelpy
John F. Gibbons
John M. Gloom

Pic­tured below: Pic­tures of the Camp­bell Mon­u­ment, the 1st page of Hugh’s will, and a paint­ing of Hugh Campbell