Okla-homey
2/5/2009, 06:56 AM
February 5, 1777: Georgia constitution abolishes primogeniture and entail
232 years ago on this day in 1777, Georgia formally adopts a new state constitution and becomes the first U.S. state to abolish the inheritance practices of primogeniture and entail.
http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/9089/12779794oe3.png
Primogeniture ensured that the eldest son (or the "old boy") in a family inherited the largest portion of his father’s property upon the father’s death. The practice of entail, guaranteeing that a landed estate remain in the hands of only one male heir, was frequently practiced in conjunction with primogeniture. Together, the two practices essentially guarenteed the eldest male heir would inherit the father's land. Daughters and younger sons got zip, or at most, a little cash. Under this system it was good, to be the "old boy." Further, since only landed gentry could serve in certain governmental positions, Britain was run by a "good old boy" network.
Georgians restructured inheritance laws in Article 51 of the state’s constitution by abolishing entail in all forms and proclaiming that any person who died without a will (a/k/a "intestate) would have his or her estate “divided equally among their children; the widow shall have a child’s share, or her dower at her option.”
The British colonies in North America, and particularly the southern colonies, were known as a haven for younger sons of the British gentry. Most famously, Benjamin Franklin announced in his autobiography that he “was the youngest Son of the youngest Son for 5 Generations back.”
http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/5239/primoi6a00d83451f25369eca4.jpg
Ben Franklin
Moving to the colonies was an attractive option for younger sons like Franklin because there, younger sons could take their monetary inheritance and build up their own estates. Further, all their children could benefit when they died, unlike in Britain where primogeniture and entail prevented all but their oldest son from inheriting similar estates.
http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/637/insane7zoao4.jpg
232 years ago on this day in 1777, Georgia formally adopts a new state constitution and becomes the first U.S. state to abolish the inheritance practices of primogeniture and entail.
http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/9089/12779794oe3.png
Primogeniture ensured that the eldest son (or the "old boy") in a family inherited the largest portion of his father’s property upon the father’s death. The practice of entail, guaranteeing that a landed estate remain in the hands of only one male heir, was frequently practiced in conjunction with primogeniture. Together, the two practices essentially guarenteed the eldest male heir would inherit the father's land. Daughters and younger sons got zip, or at most, a little cash. Under this system it was good, to be the "old boy." Further, since only landed gentry could serve in certain governmental positions, Britain was run by a "good old boy" network.
Georgians restructured inheritance laws in Article 51 of the state’s constitution by abolishing entail in all forms and proclaiming that any person who died without a will (a/k/a "intestate) would have his or her estate “divided equally among their children; the widow shall have a child’s share, or her dower at her option.”
The British colonies in North America, and particularly the southern colonies, were known as a haven for younger sons of the British gentry. Most famously, Benjamin Franklin announced in his autobiography that he “was the youngest Son of the youngest Son for 5 Generations back.”
http://img26.imageshack.us/img26/5239/primoi6a00d83451f25369eca4.jpg
Ben Franklin
Moving to the colonies was an attractive option for younger sons like Franklin because there, younger sons could take their monetary inheritance and build up their own estates. Further, all their children could benefit when they died, unlike in Britain where primogeniture and entail prevented all but their oldest son from inheriting similar estates.
http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/637/insane7zoao4.jpg