Terry, you flatter! I was sitting back expecting others to plunge in on
this one but I will venture that the distance between Laura and Jim is in
the word "disposable." Wives (with living and present husbands)
certainly owned property and their dowries and dower rights, etc. went
with them into widowhood and were held sacrosanct from most legal
proceedings which might penalize husbands with confiscation. And, of
course, some wives were feme soles, whose independent business dealings
left them "uncovered" by their husbands. But as time went by, at
different rates in different localities and strata, fewer and fewer wives
could dispose independently of their own property. In most cases, its
management came under their husbands' control and their husbands were
responsible for debts they incurred with it. This does not mean that
they were not consulted in the disposition of their property or that they
might not initiate projects of their own (particularly along the lines of
patronage or charitable foundations) which their husbands would approve
without difficulty. So, in a general way, everyone is right here, I think.
Jo Ann
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