Essay Contribution by Edin Beslagic
February 27, 2006

Biographical Sketch of Samuel Collins (1646-1708) in Somerset County : Original Research

Samuel Collins was a multi-faceted man. In his life he was a bricklayer, plantation owner, farmer, concerned citizen of the province of Maryland, and most importantly – a loving father. Not much is known from local records in Somerset County about his life prior to arriving in Maryland, but it is estimated that he was born around 1646. According to records, he immigrated to Somerset County around May 5th, 1679 and received head rights for fifty acres of land. He arrived here with an important trade skill – a bricklayer. At age thirty four, he started a family and kept steadily expanding it for the next twelve years, ultimately ending up with five children - two boys and three girls. His wealth expanded in terms of land and slave ownership, but his emphasis was always placed on his family. Samuel Collins lived to be approximately sixty two years old, at which point he anticipated his slowly approaching death over a course of about a year. He passed away, thoughtfully leaving his worldly possessions to his family and ensuring that they stick together.¹

Having only started with a head right for fifty acres of land in 1679, Samuel Collins demonstrated fortitude and managed to obtain much more over the next twenty nine years. Incomplete records suggest he may already have had a foot in Maryland property by that time, but that is pure conjecture based on an indenture contract terminated in 1688. Two years into his Maryland life, Samuel purchased two hundred acres of land in exchange for 5,000 pounds of tobacco. Evidence shows that seven years later he easily managed to recuperate a large fraction of that expense, with indications of his real estate value rising almost 100 percent, as he exchanged only fifty acres of his land for 2,320 pounds of tobacco. The last significant land gain took place in 1700, eight years after his last child was born, showing a patent awarded to him in the area of 223 acres of land.²

By all available accounts, Samuel Collins owned five slaves at the time of his death. Not much is known about the relationships of those slaves but, while he was alive, they resembled a nuclear family: an elderly male and female couple, two younger girls and a boy, somewhat illustrating Samuel’s adherence to family values. However, these slaves were passed off as inheritance and ultimately intentionally split up between Samuel Collins’ wife and children. An unclear record also exists of him releasing an indentured servant named Joseph Staten from a contract in 1688 and giving him a small parcel of land, around fifty acres, in exchange for 2,320 pounds of tobacco for him and his future family - yet again showing Samuel’s dedication to heritage. ³

The Collins family was dynamic in many respects. Samuel Collins was family-oriented and kept his focus on being the best father he could be. Starting his family through a marriage to Margarett Hodson at age thirty four, he had a late start in life. Because of his age and the fact that he got married within a year of arriving to Maryland, he was likely intentionally pre-emptive in allocating resources for his heirs to come. Within five months of his marriage, Mr. Collins procured a sizable chunk of land and dedicated its two hundred acres to his unborn children. On 30th of June in 1681 and only a year into his marriage, his first child was born – a little girl named Sarah. Approximately two years later, on January 6th in 1683, his favorite child was born – a son named after him. Samuel Jr. would become his primary heir and ultimately inherit the brunt of the Collins property as well as receive the symbolic task of repaying any debts belonging to his father. On May 29th, 1687, Samuel Collins’ wife gave birth to another daughter who they named Anne. Approximately two years after that, on September 15th 1689, their son John was born and eventually inherited the Collins plantation after his mother’s death. Three years later, on August 8th 1692 they had their last child - a girl named Mary.⁴

In his will, Samuel Collins left most of his slaves and land to his two sons while his daughters received some cattle and remnants of their sizable property. Even with this blunt indication of preference towards his male children, Mr. Collins left clear signs of love toward his wife and daughters. An orchard, which was given to his youngest daughter Mary, was left with instructions to give one third of apples every year to her mother, likely meant to strengthen the family ties between the mother and her children. Furthermore, Samuel Collins was clearly not a misogynist. It is unsure whether or not he was too busy to deal with his own domestic affairs, but court records exist that indicate a level of power sharing with his wife in making official decisions on behalf of their estate, such as in one example where she filed a complaint in a court of law against a suspected hog thief. Once, while on a work site, he witnessed his employer abusing his wife and immediately jumped to her rescue. At first his intention was to defuse the explosive situation and perhaps attempt to save the relationship of his employer; but once he realized that the situation was escalating, he ignored the very real possibility of losing his job and physically prevented the man from committing more domestic violence. He even went a step further and testified in court against the man, potentially ruining his chances for future construction jobs by placing himself in the spotlight. Regardless of his economic situation, Samuel Collins prioritized family values over wealth.⁵

The inventory, taken after Samuel Collin’s death, described a wealth of material possessions. He had ample cattle and other livestock and five slaves likely meant for tending to them. He had owned some rudimentary furniture along with somewhat fancier pieces such as a couch and a feather bed. He owned a couple of dozen books, indicating he or his wife were at least somewhat literate; along with that he had other status symbols such as a silver belt and a rapier. The remainder of his belongings appeared to be miscellaneous tools, supporting both the utilization of his listed occupation as a bricklayer and as a plantation owner.⁶

Samuel Collins was responsibly prepared for his death. He drafted a will approximately one year prior to his passing in which he cited poor health and an awareness of his mortality. By 1708, he had enough land and available labor to let all of his children live comfortably. His inventory, taken shortly after his death, reflected his living will. He did not make any hasty decisions regarding the distribution of his property, and he did leave behind tokens of love for his wife and all of his children. He left large tracts of land to his eldest son; his rapier and cane, status symbols, he left to his youngest son. Since one of his daughters, Anne, was already married, she would be taken care of by her husband. Therefore, the daughters got gift of the land - cattle and an orchard which had produced fruit meant for shared family use. His wife received the plantation and slaves to assist her until her death. Samuel Collins took care of his family both in life and death. By his own request, he probably got a well-deserved proper burial for all the unselfish things he did in life for his family. ⁷

Endnotes:

¹ Samuel Collins, Maryland Prerogative Court Wills, 1705-1709, 12, 262, (Microfilm, SR 4406, Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture, Salisbury University, Salisbury, Maryland).; Atwood S. Barwick, ed., Archives of Maryland Online, Somerset County Judicial Records, 1691-1692. Volume 405, pages 51-52.; Atwood S. Barwick, ed., Archives of Maryland Online, Somerset County Judicial Records, 1689-1690. Volume 106, page 188-189.; Somerset County Liber IKL, 1649-1720, Jody Powell, ed., First Edition, 20; Maryland Land Office, Patent Record, 1673-1679, 15, 570, (Microfilm SR 4327, DD5/19, Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture, Salisbury University, Salisbury, Maryland).; Samuel Collins, Worcester County Court Records, 1688-1742, 15, 38, (Microfilm CR 46, 717, Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture, Salisbury University, Salisbury, Maryland).
² Head Rights Patent; Somerset County Land Records, 1665-1753, MA, 683, Clerk of the Court, Princess Anne, Maryland (Microfilm CR 31, 803, Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture, Salisbury University, Salisbury, Maryland).; Maryland Land Office, Patent Record, 1700-1713, 15, 570, (Microfilm SR 7378, Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture, Salisbury University, Salisbury, Maryland).; Indenture Release
³ Samuel Collins, Inventory; Samuel Collins, Will; Joseph Staten, Indenture Release
⁴ Samuel Collins, Liber IKL; Samuel Collins, Head Rights patent; Samuel Collins, Deed purchase; Samuel Collins, Will
⁵ Samuel Collins, Will; Samuel Collins, Deposition; Atwood S. Barwick, ed., Archives of Maryland Online, Somerset County Judicial Records, 1689-1690. Volume 106, page 188-189.
⁶ Samuel Collins, Inventory
⁷ Samuel Collins, Will; Samuel Collins, Inventory