17 Unusual Wills from History

2. Shakespeare in Love was not reflected in the Bard’s last will and testament

William Shakespeare was the credited author of nearly forty plays (some authorship is disputed) more than 150 sonnets, epic poems, and other works, many of which are still being discovered from time to time. According to extant records he married Anne Hathaway in 1582, when she was 26 and he but 18 years of age. Six months later Anne was delivered of their first child together, Susanna, explaining the suddenness of the marriage which had surprised Shakespeare’s friends. Twins would later follow, a son and another daughter, though the son, Hamnet, died at the age of 11. The couple would have no further children, and lived together in London after Shakespeare began his career as an actor and writer there in 1592.

Shakespeare died, somewhat suddenly, in 1616, just 52 years of age. How and from what remains unknown, he had described his health as perfect when signing his last will and testament just a month before. One rumor was that he died as the result of an extensive drinking binge. In his will Shakespeare left nearly all of his estate – which was large for its time – to his eldest daughter, Susanna, with instructions that it would pass to her firstborn son upon her death. His wife, Anne, was for the most part ignored in the document, though by English law she should have been entitled to a portion of the estate. Shakespeare did specifically bequeath her his “second best bed”. The strangeness of the phrasing by the man considered the father of the English language by many remains a subject of dispute among scholars.

3. A rose by any other name

Comedian, vaudevillian, film star, radio and television personality, and self-deprecating violinist Jack Benny made his own penuriousness a significant portion of his act and his persona. Benny famously played a violin badly, claimed for decades to be 39 years of age, and developed a comic timing which was widely admired among his fellow performers. But of all of Benny’s many memorable roles and performances, he was probably best known for his projected image of being a miser of Dickensian proportions, able to squeeze a penny until Lincoln begged for mercy. His running gag of keeping his money in a guarded, alarm protected vault (the alarm rang even when Benny opened the vault) appeared on numerous television and radio broadcasts.

Although Benny built his career around specious images, including the appearance of being nearly totally self-absorbed and tight as a drum, his will revealed another aspect of his character which he had carefully kept from the public. At his death of pancreatic cancer on the day after Christmas in 1974, his will contained instructions that a single rose was to be delivered to his widow, Mary Livingstone (married 47 years) every day for the rest of her life. Mary received her single rose daily for nine years, until her own death in late June, 1983. After his death Benny’s skill on the violin and his well-hidden generosity in private were revealed, giving the lie to his carefully crafted public image.

4. Leona Helmsley left more money for her dog than for her grandchildren

When Leona Helmsley – known as the Queen of Mean for her tyrannical behavior to servants and employees – was on trial for income tax evasion in 1989, a former employee testified having heard her say, “We don’t pay taxes; only the little people pay taxes”. Helmsley, over the course of her career, made a fortune through four marriages (two to Joseph Lubin, a wealthy garment executive) and finally through the hotel and condominium empire she ran with her husband, Harry Helmsley. When Harry’s son died in 1982, Leona had his widow evicted from the property which she (Leona) owned, and successfully sued the estate for money which she claimed to have lent the deceased. By the time the Helmsley’s were charged with tax evasion in the 1980s Harry was ruled to be too ill to stand trial.

Leona was convicted and eventually served nineteen months in prison after the lengthy trial and appeals process was completed. Upon her release in 1994 she became a near recluse, withdrawing even further after Harry died in 1997. She died ten years later, and in her will most of her estate was left to the Leona M. and Harry B. Helmsley Charitable Trust (more than $4 billion) with the proviso that the money be used for the care of dogs. She left another $12 million for the care of her own dog, a Maltese named Trouble. In comparison, two of her four grandchildren received $10 million and the other two received nothing. Legal actions by various entities involved led to a finding in 2008 that Leona was not of sound mind when she executed her will, and the estate was adjusted by the court.

5. Houdini’s will specified that a séance be held on the anniversary of his death

Harry Houdini is well remembered as possibly the greatest escape artist of all time, a man who thrilled audiences in the early 1900s with his daring escapes and feats which cheated death. What is less well known was Houdini’s fascination with life after death. Houdini used his experience as a magician – the ability to deceive an audience into believing they had seen something other than what really happened – to debunk spiritualists and mediums who claimed to have connections with the afterlife. At the same time, Houdini sought legitimate contact with the dead, spurred on by the loss of his own mother. His efforts to debunk spiritualists became, as he was, internationally famous, and the subject of debate between spiritualists and non-believers.

Houdini promised his wife that should there be a means for the dead to contact the living he would find it after his own death and provided her with a coded message to validate that it was in fact him making contact through a medium. The message was “Rosabelle believe”. Houdini also specified in his will that on the anniversary of his death a séance be held to attempt to contact him. He died, somewhat appropriately, on Halloween night in 1926. His widow, Bess, held a séance for the magician annually on Halloween night for a decade, and though in 1929 the code was revealed, Bess later claimed that it had been arrived at through a hoax. Harry apparently never contacted her, and after 1936 she discontinued the attempts. She later said that “ten years is long enough to wait for any man”.

6. Dusty Springfield included her cat Nicholas in her last will and testament

When the film Pulp Fiction included the decades old song Son of a Preacher Man on its soundtrack it led to a revival of the career of Dusty Springfield, an English songstress who had risen to the heights of fame during the Swinging London years of the 1960s. She had an impressive string of hits during the decade, though subsequent to 1970 her success dwindled and her career went into a slump. She never again gained the level of success she enjoyed between 1964 and 1968, when she enjoyed success in music and television as well as international acclaim. Still, she continued to work until a long battle with breast cancer ended with her death in 1999. She had never married, and had no immediate heirs.

Dusty died in Henley-on-Thames in England at the age of 59. At the time she shared her home with a 13 year old cat by the name of Nicholas. Dusty specified in her will the treatment she expected for Nicholas following her death. This included importing baby food from the United States with which to feed the animal, who was to reside in an indoor tree house in which the cat could listen to recordings of its late master singing throughout the night. Dusty also specified that the nightgown worn when she died be used to line Nicholas’ bed. Nicholas was bequeathed to Lee Everett-Akin, along with the means to ensure his care in the manner Dusty desired.

7. One man’s will was for a womanless library

Townsend Murphy Zink was a lawyer and minor politician in Iowa during the late nineteenth century, who was usually identified as T.M. and who was married twice, losing his first wife when she died in 1910 after fifteen years of marriage. In 1926 he married the widow Ida Bennison. Both Zink and his new bride had daughters, one each from their previous marriages, and the daughters were allegedly good friends. Zink died in 1930 from complications of gall stone surgery at the age of 72. In his will Zink left his daughter $5, and he left his wife nothing other than permission to remain in their house and pay rent to his estate. Zink placed most of his estate in a trust which was to be used for farm loans for a period of 75 years.

After a defined period, a portion of the estate was to be used for the construction and stocking of a library, to rank among the finest in the world in its collection of materials, accessible by all over the age of fifteen with one notable exception. No women were to be allowed entry. No works by women were allowed to sully the shelves. All doors were to be clearly signed that no women were allowed to enter the library. Zink referred in his will to his “intense hatred of women” based on “my experiences with women, my observations of them, and study…” The will was subjected to legal challenges by Zink’s daughter and the library was never built.

8. Eleanor Ritchey left an oil fortune for the benefit of over 100 dogs

Eleanor Ritchey was the granddaughter of Philip John Bayer, who founded the Quaker State Refining Company and created a fortune. Eleanor never married and had no children, preferring to live alone in her Ft. Lauderdale home. She wasn’t really alone though, as she spent her days being driven around the Florida city, looking for abandoned dogs which she would take home with her. Eventually the number of her canine charges forced her to purchase 180 acres in Deerfield Beach to provide room for the 150 animals which she had rescued over the years. She was still in the process of moving them all to their new home when she died of a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of just 58. Her will included over 1,700 pairs of seldom worn shoes which she left to the Salvation Army.

The rest of her estate, which included over 100,000 shares of Quaker State stock, extensive Florida real estate holdings, and cash, bonds, and Treasury notes, totaling more than $4 million was left to her dogs in the form of a trust. The trust was created to manage the dogs’ home and provide for their care until the last of the dogs died. After all the dogs had either been adopted or died the remainder of the estate was bequeathed to Auburn University’s School of Veterinary Science. Though relatives contested the will they were successful in obtaining only about 15% of the estate. In 1984 the last of the dogs died and in accordance with the will the principal, by then in excess of $12 million, went to Auburn University, where it was used to support research into canine diseases and behaviors.

9. Jeremy Bentham requested that his body be stuffed and displayed

Jeremy Bentham was an English philosopher who is credited rightly as one of the founders of utilitarianism and wrongly as one of the founders of University College London. Bentham, as a social reformer, was one of the early opponents of the death penalty, corporal punishment of children, and a supporter of equal rights for women. Bentham was a leading supporter for the reform of poor laws, including the abolition of debtor’s prisons, workhouses, and child labor. Bentham was also a proponent of the creation of organized police forces which took an active interest in the welfare of their communities rather than simple reacting to crimes when they occurred.

Upon his death at the age of eighty-four in 1832, his carefully prepared and detailed instructions for the disposition of his body were followed, though not without considerable discussion and controversy. Bentham demanded that his body be publicly dissected. Afterwards the skeleton was supported with straw and dressed in Bentham’s clothing for public display in a case which he designated the “auto-icon”. It was fitted with a head resembling Bentham’s made from wax, to which Bentham’s own hair was attached. It remains on display at the University College London’s South Cloisters. The real head was preserved and was displayed for many years before it was locked up to protect it from continuous student pranks. The auto-icon has journeyed to other sites, including New York in 2018, so that those unable to journey to London may gaze upon its wax visage.

10. John Kelly used his will to address his daughter’s shopping habits

John Kelly Sr., known to his friends as Jack Kelly, was one of the most successful rowing champions in history as well as a successful Philadelphia businessman, creating a fortune of several million dollars through the construction industry. He represented the United States in the Olympics from 1948 to 1960, played professional football in 1919, and was 12-0 as an amateur boxer while serving in the army during the First World War. In construction Kelly learned to ensure that he would be paid for his bricklaying work by installing class in chimneys. When the contractor informed him that the owners were complaining about smoke, Kelly would tell them that he would address the issue once he was paid for his work. A simple brick dropped down the chimney then resolved the problem.

Despite these and other impressive accomplishments he remains most famous for being the father of actress Grace Kelly, later Princess Grace of Monaco. Obviously Kelly’s practical approach to his construction work extended to his daughter, known to be a profligate spender on clothing and jewels. In his will, John Kelly requested that her daughter’s spending be curbed by her husband Prince Rainier (he had reportedly paid a dowry of $2 million for his daughter) so as not to bankrupt the Principality of Monaco. Monaco was still solvent when Princess Grace died in 1982. The Kelly family home in Philadelphia was purchased by Prince Albert of Monaco, Grace’s son, in 2017.

11. Benjamin Franklin’s will indicated his distaste for women wearing jewelry

Despite being a polymath of prodigious reputation on both sides of the Atlantic, Benjamin Franklin, in his will and on his tombstone, identified himself simply as a printer. His humility was misplaced. Franklin was one of the most influential of the Founders, a noted diplomat, an innovative musician, an inventor whose contributions are still in use in the form of the lightning rod, the Franklin stove, bifocals, and others, the founder of newspapers, almanacs, and lending libraries, and much more. His Philadelphia funeral was attended by more than 20,000 souls at a time when the population of that city was under 29,000 residents. He also left behind a substantial estate despite having arrived in Philadelphia nearly penniless decades earlier.

He disposed of that estate by providing large endowments to both Philadelphia and his native Boston (the Boston fund grew to over $5 million). His printing press went to his daughter. He also provided his daughter with over 400 diamonds which he had accrued over the years but his bequest contained a proviso which reflected the humble manner in which he had presented himself in Paris when attending the salons during the American Revolution. Franklin demanded in his bequest that the diamonds not be used as jewelry, nor worn as decoration by his daughter, “and thereby introduce or countenance the expensive, vain, and useless fashion of wearing jewels in this country”.

12. George Bernard Shaw used his will to request the creation of a new alphabet

George Bernard Shaw earned the distinction of being to date the only writer to be awarded both the Nobel Prize for Literature (1925) and an Academy Award, for the screenplay for Pygmalion in 1938 (later adapted as the musical play and film My Fair Lady). He wrote more than sixty plays in his long career, as well as dissertations opposing organized religion, critiques of musical works, essays on economics and in opposition to the First World War; worked as a theater critic, and was a noted political commentator. Clearly he was both comfortable with the English language and was a master of its use. Nonetheless, he attempted to replace the tool he had used to build his fortune in the writing of his will.

Shaw spent more than two decades of his long life in the study of the English alphabet and phonetics, including reforming English spellings. In his will he provided for the creation of the Shaw Alphabet, under the supervision of Isaac James Pitman. Shaw stipulated that the new alphabet contain a minimum of 40 letters or characters, each phonetically corresponding to pronunciation, and be completely separate from the Latin alphabet. His will was contested by heirs and funding for the work was reduced as a result, but the alphabet, called the Shavian Alphabet, was completed and is still being modified and used. Several classic works of literature have been published using the Shavian Alphabet, including Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Shaw’s own Androcles and the Lion.

13. Charles Dickens used his will to request a modest and quiet burial

Charles Dickens during his lifetime was more than just a novelist who created memorable characters such as Ebenezer Scrooge, Uriah Heep, Mr. McCawber, and Oliver Twist. He was an international celebrity whose readings of his works drew large crowds on both sides of the Atlantic. His social commentary was influential regarding debtor and prison reforms, the reform of mental health institutions, child labor, the slums of the great cities, and social welfare. During his tours of America he created controversy by pointing out the contradictions of American society, including his harsh condemnation of slavery in America prior to the Civil War. His death was widely mourned in the United States and Great Britain.

Despite his international acclaim, Dickens specified in his will that his funeral be quiet and simple. “I emphatically direct that I be buried in an inexpensive, unostentatious, and strictly private manner”, he wrote. Dickens directed that there be no more than three “plain mourning coaches” in his funeral procession, which was not to be announced to the public in advance of the event. He also wrote, “…that those who attend my funeral wear no scarf, cloak, black bow, long hatband, or other such revolting absurdity”. Most of his instructions were followed, though his request to be buried in Kent was not, and instead the writer was interred in Westminster Abbey, with the day following his funeral being one of national mourning.

14. Napoleon requested bracelets be made of his hair

The last will and testament of Napoleon is a lengthy document, including several codicils and inventories of his possessions, with specific instructions over how they should be distributed to his relatives, friends, and those who had served them. Among them is a direction to Louis Joseph Marchand, his personal valet and friend whom the Emperor made a Count while on his deathbed, a title later confirmed by Napoleon III. In his will, Napoleon directed Marchand to “…preserve my hair, and cause a bracelet to be made of it, with a little gold clasp, to be sent to the Empress Maria Louisa…” Napoleon then listed several other recipients of his hair bracelets.

He directed that bracelets be sent, “…to my mother, and to each of my brothers, sisters, nephews, nieces, the Cardinal; and one of larger size to my son”. He did not, as is often erroneously recorded, direct that his hair be sent to his former generals and other friends. Whether Napoleon’s request was acceded to remains disputed; others of his last will and testament were not. He mentioned in more than one location that it was his wish that his ashes “may repose on the banks of the Seine, in the midst of the French people, whom I have loved so well”. Instead the British buried him on the island of St. Helena, and he was later disinterred and placed in a tomb in the Hotel des Invalides in Paris.

15. Robert Louis Stevenson willed away his birthday

Robert Louis Stevenson was a prolific writer who gave the world many indelible characters, including Long John Silver from Treasure Island, the epitome of the wooden-legged, eyepatch wearing, parrot bearing pirate. He also created Mr. Hyde, the frightening and violent other side of gentleman Dr. Jekyll. He wrote short stories and poems, travelogues, and political discourses. His health throughout his life was bad, plagued by tuberculosis which caused him to seek a place where he could recover his strength and continue his work. Despite his constant traveling and often short residences he made many lifelong friends with whom he corresponded regularly, adding to his voluminous pile of written material accumulated during his relatively short life.

Among them was Annie Ide, who often lamented to Stevenson of her misfortune at having been born on Christmas Day. Annie found the date inconvenient in that it was impossible for her to properly celebrate her birthday since everyone was instead in the process of observing Christmas. When Stevenson died, his will revealed that he had bequeathed to his friend his own birthday – November 13 – bestowing upon her “all rights and privileges in the thirteenth day of November”. Stevenson noted that the date had formerly been his birthday and was now hers, to “…have, hold, and enjoy the same in the customary manner…” There is no evidence to indicate that Annie accepted the bequest from the author, who died in 1894 at the age of 44.

16. Fred Baur requested his ashes be placed in a Pringles can

Anyone purchasing a bag of potato chips or other similar snack food has experienced the annoyance of opening the package to discover its contents smashed into crumbs. Beginning in 1956 marketing giant Proctor and Gamble decided to do something about it. Fredric Baur developed the fried dough chip and can to contain them over the next two years, though dissatisfied with the taste he eventually dropped the project. Others took up the cause. In the mid-1960s the product was marketed under the name Pringles, with each chip the same size and shape (a hyperbolic paraboloid for those who care about such matters) packaged in a stack in a tubular can. Although originally called potato chips they were eventually referred to as crisps.

Fred Baur was not credited with the invention of the crisps themselves, though he was awarded a patent for the method of packaging and the package itself, the famous Pringles can. His pride in the invention was evident when he requested that his ashes be placed in one of the cans for interment. His family complied to some extent, a portion of his ashes were interred in a Pringles can, alongside a more conventional funerary urn containing another portion, and the rest in yet another urn given to relatives. Baur died in 2008 and his ashes within the can of his invention were interred in Springfield Township, Ohio, a suburban area near Cincinnati, home of Proctor and Gamble, which no longer makes Pringles.

17. The developer of the Frisbee had a strange request in his will

Ed Headrick was an army veteran employed by the Wham-O toy company when he was given the task of developing a new toy following the demise of the Hula-Hoop craze of the 1950s and early 1960s. He did not invent the flying saucer toy which became famous as the Frisbee, it had previously been developed by Walter Morrison. It was officially marketed as the Pluto Platter, but was later renamed the Frisbee, a name which came from a New England pie manufacturer, the Frisbee Pie Company. Headrick changed both the design of the flying disc and the manner in which it was marketed, and it became a sport as well as a toy, with sales of the Frisbee exploding in the 1960s.

Headrick, known to fellow Frisbee golf aficianados as “Steady Ed”, passed away in 2002 following a brief illness, and at his request, he was cremated. Also in accordance with his wishes a small number of Frisbees were manufactured using a special compound which incorporated his ashes, for distribution within his family and among close friends. A few discs containing Headrick’s ashes were offered for sale, with the proceeds going to the Steady Ed Memorial Disc Gold Museum, located in Georgia at the site of the Professional Disc Golf Association (PDGA) International Disc Golf Center.

18. Lincoln’s will is a mystery to this day

The biggest surprise over the last will and testament of Abraham Lincoln is that he did not have one, or if he had no evidence of its existence has ever been found. Abraham Lincoln was a lawyer of long experience, success, and skill, particularly in non-criminal matters. He was also a holder of real property and a patent which had yet to be marketed at the time of his death. He was aware of his wife’s mental health issues, and death surrounded him throughout his presidency, including striking his own family. That he would have been intestate despite the known threats to his life, considering his legal background and his certain knowledge of the need to provide for his family is astonishing. But at his death the request went out for legal assistance, as the president had not left behind a will.

On the morning following Lincoln’s death a telegram was sent to Supreme Court Justice David Davis by Robert Lincoln, the late president’s son, asking him to return to Washington to handle his father’s affairs (Justice Davis then being in Chicago). It took more than two years for Davis and other attorneys to settle Lincoln’s estate. In 1919 Robert Lincoln wrote to a friend of his deep thanks for the assistance Davis provided settling Lincoln’s affairs and handling the estate in an expeditious manner. If Lincoln had prepared a will it has never been found. Abraham Lincoln was the first American president to die intestate and one of four who failed to leave a will, the others being Andrew Johnson, James Garfield, and Ulysses S. Grant.

Where do we find this stuff? Here are our sources:

“Heinrich Heine: A Modern Biography”. Jeffery L. Sammons. 1979 (2014)

“The Routledge Guide to William Shakespeare”. Robert Shaughnessy. 2013

“Mary Livingstone, Radio Star With Husband, Jack Benny”. Les Ledbetter, The New York Times. July 2, 1983

“Leona Helmsley’s Fortune May Go To Benefit Dogs”. Stephanie Strom, The New York Times. July 2, 2008

“Dusty’s Will A Testament To Her Love For Pet Cat”. Bill Hoffman, New York Post. April 5, 1999

“Biographies and Portraits of the Progressive Men of Iowa: Townsend Murphy Zink”. Benjamin F. Gue, Benjamin Franklin Shambaugh. 1899

“Last Dog and Testament”. Art Harris, The Washington Post. February 27, 1984

“Bentham Project”. University College London. Online

“High Society: The Life of Grace Kelly”. Donald Spoto, The Washington Post. November 15, 2009

“The Last Will and Testament of Benjamin Franklin”. Benjamin Franklin. June 23, 1789. Online

“Dickens”. Peter Ackroyd. 1991

“This is my Testament, or act of my last will”. Napoleon I. April 15, 1821. Online

“The Last Will and Testament of Robert Louis Stevenson”. Sam Llewellyn. 1981

“The man buried in a Pringles can”. Jeremy Caplan, TIME Magazine. June4, 2008

“Ed Headrick, 78, Designer Of The Commercial Frisbee”. Douglas Martin, The New York Times. August 14, 2002

“Personal Finances of Abraham Lincoln”. Harry E. Pratt, Lincoln Monographs. Online