On 11 November 1857, Jacob S. Barnes of Edgecombe County (present-day Gardners township in Wilson County) executed a will in which he bequeathed, among other things:
- to wife Fanny Barnes Debby, Bob, George, William, Silvey, Manda, Sarah, Belcher, Deller, Dolly, Dick, Jo, Willis, Henry, Easter, Mary, and their increase
- also to wife Fanny, for her lifetime, a negro girl Jane (to go to Jacob Bass after Fanny Barnes’ death)
- to Julian Bass, for her lifetime, Nancy, Piety, Martha, and John (to go to her children after her death)
North Carolina Wills and Probate Records, 1665-1998, http://www.ancestry.com.