Follow us on Twitter
Unusual Wills and Testaments
A will or testament is a legal document by which a person or testator regulates the disposal of his or her estate after death. However, many people use it as an opportunity to give rather odd instructions. So here’s a list of truly unusual wills.
Harry Houdini (1874 - 1926)
Harry Houdini was a Hungarian-born American magician widely regarded as one of the greatest ever escape artist, if not the greatest, of his era and probably of all time. He died in 1926 due to ruptured appendix, and not due to his failure to escape from one of his tricks, as is commonly believed. In his will, Houdini left his magician’s props and effects to Theodore Hardeen, his brother and former performing partner. His vast library on magic and the occult were to be presented to the American Society for Psychical Research (ASPR) provided that J. Malcolm Bird, its research head and editor of ASPR journal, resigned; but when Bird refused, the collection went to the Library of Congress instead. Houdini also gave his wife Bess a secret code composed of ten words randomly selected from a letter sent by his friend Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, which he would use to contact her from the afterlife. However, Houdini never appeared during séances conducted by his wife on every Halloween for ten consecutive years following his death.
Jeremy Bentham (1748 - 1832)
Bentham was a British philosopher and social reformer, best known for being a proponent of utilitarianism and the concept of animal rights. He gave his entire estate to the London Hospital on the condition that his remains were to be preserved and allowed to preside over its board meetings. Surprisingly, all the demands of his will were strictly abided by. His body was presented to Dr. Smith, who did a complete dissection for the purpose of teaching anatomy to educate both the public and medical students, as was stipulated in his will. His bones were reassembled into a skeleton that was wax-coated from a cast with his unexpressive face, outfitted with his clothes and put on a glass-fronted wooden cabinet seated in a chair. His wax likeness, accordingly noted as “not voting,” was in attendance at meetings for 92 years.
Gouverneur Morris (1752 - 1816)
Gouverneur Morris was an American statesman who served as a member of the 1787 Constitutional Convention and was largely credited for authoring major portions of the United States Constitution, particularly the Preamble. He got married late in life, at age 57 to be exact, to the youthful and vibrant Anne Cary Randolph, to whom he willed an already sizeable fortune. However, very much grateful for the wonderful memories she had given him, he made an additional provision stating that should she ever choose to remarry, her inheritance would be doubled.
William Randolph Hearst (1863 - 1951)
Hearst, American newspaper magnate, was the owner of the New York Morning Journal that started the unethical and unprofessional practice of what is now termed as “yellow journalism” in the late 1890s. Following his death in 1951 of a heart attack, his will provided for the division of his $60 million dollar estate into three trusts — one each for his widow, sons and the Hearst Foundation for Charitable Purposes. And to challenge those who alleged that he had children out of wedlock, he willed them one dollar if they could provide evidence that he or she is a child of his, with a declaration that such claim would completely be a lie. No one ever came forward to claim it.
Robert Louis Stevenson (1850 - 1894)
Stevenson was a well-loved Scottish writer, whose most popular works include the novels “Treasure Island,” “Kidnapped” and “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”; and two volumes of poems “A Child’s Garden of Verses” and “Underwoods.” Stevenson conveyed his wish to be buried atop Mount Vaea in Samoa, “under the wide and starry sky” he had depicted in his “Requiem,” a piece he had always determined to use as his epitaph. He also attempted to will his birthday to a good friend, who lamented that she never really had a birthday celebration as she was born on Christmas day.
Heinrich Heine (1797 - 1856)
Heine was one of the important German romantic poets, best known for his lyric poetry, many of which had been set to music by eminent “lied” composers as Franz Schubert, Johannes Brahms and Robert Schumann. In his last will, his wife would receive his entire estate on the condition that she marry again, stating the reason for such a provision with straightforwardness — “because then there will be at least one man to regret my death.”
Charles Vance Millar (1853 - 1927)
Millar was a successful Canadian lawyer and investor, who was very much well-known for his playing pranks that preyed on people’s greed and duplicity, such as leaving cash on a sidewalk and watching from a distance how passers-by sneakily pocketed it. His final and greatest practical joke was his will, which was full of humorous bequests. Anti-gambling proponents were given shares of beer distilleries and race tracks. Three men who loathed each other were granted joint lifetime tenancy in his vacation residence in Jamaica. However, the strangest bequest of them all: having neither dependents nor near-relatives, the remainder of his estate was to be given to the mother who gave birth to the most number of children in the ten years following his death. The fertility provision drove countless Canadian wives into a competition that became known as the “Great Stork Derby.” Although there were attempts to invalidate the will on the ground that it encouraged immorality, the will survived. By 1938, Millar’s investment had grown to be worth $750,000, which was equally shared by four Toronto women who each produced 9 children within the time span. One winner eventually declared her firm support for birth control in the future.
Horatio Nelson (1758 - 1805)
Nelson was a British admiral, who famously took part in many Napoleonic wars, particularly the Battle of Trafalgar, a crucial victorious war for the British during which he lost his life. Even though very much married, Nelson became enmeshed in an open affair with Lady Hamilton, the wife of William Hamilton, a love affair that lasted until his death. As he was about to close in on the French during the Battle of Trafalgar, he prepared a will addressed it to his countrymen, detailing the services that his mistress had done for England, and bequeathing her as “a legacy to my King and country; that they will give her an ample provision to maintain her rank in life.” Well, the King and the admiralty totally snubbed the gift.
Patrick Henry (1736 -1799)
Henry was an American politician and patriot, best remembered for his declaration “Give me liberty or give me death,” a statement taken seriously by Dorothea, his widow. He left all his possessions to his wife for as long as she would never marry again. But then, if she did, he cut her off without a cent for, he explained, “It would make me unhappy to feel I have worked all my life only to support another man’s wife!” Dorothea opted for the freedom of choice and married his cousin Judge Winston anyway.
If you crave for more articles on the unusual, the strange and the bizarre, you might want to click on the following links:
Liked it
44 Comments
Some of these people had the weirdest requests. All in all this was an entertaining article to read. Thanks.
Another excellent article, Eddie!
so educational, Eddie, I really enjoy reading your articles.
great and informative article, well done
Very interesting…loved it!
Interesting and bizarre bunch of data. thank you
very interesting,thanks
nice collection bro,i truly enjoyed reading this one
Definitely different…great read!
I have often thought of willing my body away to be used as Art. Of course I will be in my 100’s when I plan on dying, but still… it’s all art.
Just let them fight over my junk when I go! And give my money to my pets! Burn my underwear, and play lots of U2 at the Funeral, people who don’t know the words will be kicked out!
Oh, quite an enjoyable piece, Eddie. Nice work.
excellent article…
This article is unique, Eddie. It is the first time for me to read about the wills and testaments.
unusual indeed! i like it.
it was a good read.
lovely, just lovely - I just adore completely useless information well presented
Thanks everyone for your wonderful comments and encouragements.
Superbly written!
I should sue you for writing such a great article, lol!
WHAT?! No Hunter S. Thompson?!
Good article none the less, but being shot out of a cannon is pretty sweet as well.
If you’re into poetry at all check out http://www.wespeakinmiracles.com
Excellent.
Thoroughly enjoyable read. Well done
I really liked the whole article, but especially that section regarding Charles Vance Millar’s will. What an offbeat guy! Ha ha.
Great job on a very interesting topic. You put a lot of work into this and it shows!
Great article and so interesting. I enjoyed it very much.
Very good work!
Blessings & best wishes.
Sincerely,
-Liane Schmidt.
OMG..Eddie! You researched all this?? What the heck, awesome job, man!! Keep it up!
A lot of work put into this one Eddie. Nice work.
Wow, you did yourself proud on this one. Interesting reading.
Very interesting stuff.
Truly an interesting article- not one which many would think about writing! Nice Work.
Great article!
They’re really unusual.
Great article; very entertaining finds!
Extremely well researched and presented - great stuff!
The one where the women competed to have the most children over a will was too bizarre. As much as I love my girls, there’s no way you’d see me doing that in a million years..lol! People do the strangest things.
Wonderful. I wish my will will be published one day
Vote for Obama!
Vote for Obama!
Nice presentation
Check out mines please
http://www.authspot.com/Short-Stories/The-Fall-of-Quagmire.309261
Excellent article, outstanding research, and in spite of that I like it.
Wonderful and enjoyable! This perfectly slaked my thirst for obscure and interesting history! Would love to see more like it in the future!
another great story from you.
Hi Eddie, I love the things that you write. You always come up with something humorous, and I love that. Great work!
Damon/johnny yuma
I just found your work looking Harry Houdini….very interesting…..told me something about history I didn’t know.
In his last will, his wife would receive his entire estate on the condition that she marry again, stating the reason for such a provision with straightforwardness — “because then there will be at least one man to regret my death.”
that is so funny. great article!!!