Whence I Came

Mr. John White of St. Paul's Parish, Hanover County, Virginia had seven children with two different wives. Unfortunately, the name of Mr. John White's first wife is unknown, but she was most likely born about 1675 or earlier based upon the birth year of about 1695 for her son, also named John White. Fortunately, John White b. about 1695 left behind records and YDNA evidence which help us piece together a general outline of his life. Baptism Record for John White b. abt 1695 The St. Peter's Parish, New Kent County Vestry Book includes a baptism record which has been transcribed as: John son of John White baptis. the 30th May 1697 The below image is the actual page from the Vestry Book which was downloaded from Family Search with the John White entry noted by a red star on the left: As you can see, the year is very difficult to read. Do you think it reads 1697? When processing this record, one of the first questions that comes to mind is who was the father, John White?  Alth...

While researching the Starke family of early Hanover County, it became clear that there is a lot of "online confusion" involving Major John Starke and Colonel John Starke. Online trees showed that their military ranks were so interchangeable that I began to wonder if the two men were actually just one man. To know for sure, I decided to do a land tax analysis for Major John Starke and Colonel John Starke.  But before we get to the results of the land tax analysis, a quick summary of military rank should be explored. Today, a Colonel holds a higher officer rank than a Major. But did the same hold true during the 1780s? Fortunately,  Steven A. Bingaman's  The History of American Ranks and Insignia   provides an excellent description of military rank during the Revolutionary War and confirms that as early as 1775, Colonel was a higher officer rank than Major. With this in mind, please take a look at the land tax analysis d isplayed in the below table followed by a descr...

FamilySearch.com never ceases to amaze me! Today, from the comfort of my own home, I came across the original pages that were transcribed by C. G. Chamberlayne for his publication  Vestry Book of  St. Paul's Parish Hanover County Virginia 1706-1786 ! Thank you FamilySearch.com! In a previous entry, I noted how many Burnett researchers have ignored Chamberlayne's transcription of Precinct 27 in 1708. In his transcription, Chamberlayne listed a John BARNET and an Edwd BURNET within the same precinct. Unfortunately, Chamberlayne's meticulous transcription effort has been ignored for this precinct and some Burnett researchers decided that a transcription mistake was made and that the transcription for "John BARNET" should have read, "John BURNET". So, let's take a look at the full original page! And here's a cropped version. Without a doubt, the original entry is "John BARNET" who was listed as an interested landowner in the 1708 entry and ...

Did John and Elizabeth Burnett of 1695 New Kent County ever live in St. Paul's Parish, Hanover County, Virginia?  Many researchers believe they did.  But where is the evidence for this claim?  Researchers refer to two documents to support the claim that John Burnett of 1695 New Kent lived in early St. Paul's Parish, Hanover County.  Let's take a look at the evidence.   1677 Blisland Parish Grievance In 1677, the Crown sent to Virginia representatives to investigate the state of affairs as a follow up to Bacon's Rebellion the previous year.  When the Crown's representatives arrived, they let it be known that they would receive written grievances that were signed and sworn to by inhabitants.  One such written grievance was submitted by men of Blisland Parish, New Kent County.  The Blisland Grievance was  dated April 2, 1677 and listed a number of  oppressions under Governor  Sir William Berkeley including high taxes, Native Amer...

Why do so many Burnett family researchers focus on connecting John Burnett of New Kent County, son of Richard Burnett of York County, to the St. Paul's Parish, Hanover County Burnetts?   The claim is that John Burnett, son of Richard Burnett and husband of Elizabeth, was living in Blisland Parish, New Kent County and then moved to St. Paul's Parish where he allegedly died about 1706.  As a focused Hanover County researcher, I've found no evidence of John Burnett of New Kent County having lived or died in St. Paul's Parish.  However, there is substantial evidence of a John Burnett and an Elizabeth Burnett that lived in Blisland Parish well into the year 1756.  Perhaps a fresh look at the records needs to be taken. 1695 - John and Elizabeth Burnett of New Kent County, Virginia The record of interest is the below 1695 York County deed involving John Burnett of New Kent County and Daniel Parke Esq. of York County (it is not clear at this time if this was the grandfa...

Jeremiah Burnett of the 1763 Hanover County Quit Rent Roll has always bothered me. The first time I saw Jeremiah's name in the 1763 alphabetical Quit Rent Roll listing, I noticed that preceding him was William Reynolds Burnett and Isaac Burnett. 1763 Hanover County VA Quit Rent Roll My mind imagined that the three Burnett men were all of the same family - probably living near one another.  So, I decided to cross check their names with the St. Paul's Parish Vestry Record to see if their lands were processed in the same precincts.  Here's what I found: William Reynolds Burnett was included in the extant St. Paul's Parish procession records from 1739 to 1779.  Although his name was listed with the same interested landowners over the years, the precinct number changed from 19 to 18 and finally to 4.  Other Burnetts listed in the same precinct with William Reynolds Burnett included Abraham and Bond Burnett.  A procession was conducted in 1763 (same year ...

While researching the Burnetts of Hanover County, Virginia, the name William Reynolds Burnett came up repeatedly.  Apparently, William took his middle name of "Reynolds" very seriously as he is referred to in full Christian name in many early records.  The first entry of his full name is in the 1739 St. Paul's Parish procession record for Precinct 19.  In the same precinct, Abraham Burnett was also listed but with no middle name or initial.  In fact, most of the Burnetts in the extant Hanover County, Virginia records were recorded with only a first and last name.  Occasionally, a middle initial would be used to differentiate Burnett men with the same first name.  But rarely was the full middle name used with such emphasis; William Reynolds Burnett.  Below is an example of Burnett's full name copied from the 1763 Hanover County Quit Rent Roll (transcribed) showing that he paid his land tax for 100 acres to the King of England. Each time I came acro...

The men and women who settled in early Hanover County were an adventurous breed.  Life was full of challenges, as well as opportunities.  Neighbors were indispensable and often times became kin through the marriage of children.  One such marriage was the union between John R. Thurman and Judith Hooper. Thurmans and Hoopers The Thurmans and Hoopers lived in an area of Hanover County that fell within the boundaries of St. Paul's Parish.  Although the parish was connected to the Church of England and provided worship services for the parish's inhabitants, the parish was also charged with many civil duties, such as holding regular land processions to maintain an ongoing record of ever changing property boundaries.  It is from one such procession record that we learn the Thurman and Hooper families lived near, if not adjacent, to one another. The Thurman family had been processioning land in the same area of St. Paul's Parish, with the same surrounding land own...

Did Littleberry Wade Jr. die after Littleberry Wade Sr. as suggested by the St. Paul's Parish personal property tax transcription ?  It makes logical sense that a senior would pass before a junior, but can we verify the sequence of their life events?  Dates inscribed upon their tombstones would be very helpful, but their grave sites have not been located.  And given that Hanover County lost so many historical records during the Civil War, there are few extant records.  What may help in this quest are the St. Paul's Parish land tax records which extend from 1782 forward in time, just like the transcribed personal tax list.  An analysis of these land tax records may be helpful in verifying when the two men died.  Let's begin by taking a detailed look at Littleberry Wade Jr's land tax information. Littleberry Wade Jr. The first known land record for Littleberry Wade Jr. is shown below.  The snippet shows all the land owners who were enumerated in St...

For years, maybe even for over a decade, I thought Littleberry Wade Sr. died in 1804.  After all, why wouldn't I think that?  The St. Paul's Parish personal property tax list indicates that Littleberry Wade Sr. was no longer taxed for being a free male above the age of twenty one, or as owning any taxable personal property as shown in the below transcription.  It would appear that he had died in 1804. Hanover County Taxpayers Saint Paul's Parish transcribed by William Ronald Cocke, III Other interesting information gleaned from the personal property tax transcription is that minors Hampton and Robert Wade were both listed as having lived with Littleberry Wade.  We know from the below snippet image from the Daughters of the American Revolution transcribed version of the Robert Waid (Wade) Bible that Robert's father was Berry Wade.  So, perhaps Hampton Wade was also a son. Bible Record of Robert Waid (Wade) Family of Hanover County, Virginia DAR Gene...