Infant Does Not Mean Baby

If you encounter the word "infant" in a legal document, remember that usually in the legal sense of the word it means someone under the age of legal majority. That age can vary from one state to another and over time.

But never assume that someone listed as an "infant heir" of their parent in 1817 was a young child too young to have married in 1818. They could easily have been "almost of age" in 1817 when they were referred to as an "infant," only to become of age the next year.