History and Genealogy of Peter Montague (1603S2003) Volume One
Montagues of Boveney 1634
History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of JAMESTOWNE, VIRGINIA 1603S2003 ______
VOLUME ONE Generations: 1S8
______
QUADRICENTENNIAL EDITION ______
Researched and Compiled by Robert V. Montague III
Edited by Jana Sloan Broglin, CG, OGSF
HOUSE OF MONTAGUE NAVARRE, FLORIDA Montague, Robert V., III History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne, Virginia, 1603S2003 / Robert V. Montague III Quadricentennial Edition Includes bibliographical references and index Library of Congress Control Number: 2012952964 Set ISBN: 978-0-9710239-7-0 ISBN, Volume 1: 978-0-9710239-1-8 1. Genealogy―Authorship. 2. United States—Genealogy—History
The text of this book is composed in Book Antiqua; titles are composed in Edwardian Script ITC. Composition and book design are by House of Montague. Portions are reprinted with the permission of the acknowledged authors.
J The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the American National Standard for Information Sciences―Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials.
Q U A D R I C E N T E N N I A L E D I T I O N
© 2012 Robert V. Montague III
Please direct all correspondence and book orders to: 2500 Cypress Point Circle Navarre, Florida 32566-8761 www.houseofmontague.com [email protected]
― All rights reserved ― Produced in the United States of America
No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form, or by any means, without written permission of the author, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages for a review. IN MEMORY OF my sister and dad who died while this work was in progress: _ ROBERT V. MONTAGUE JR. (1925S2007) _ CYNTHIA LYNN MONTAGUE (1961S2004)
Contents
List of Illustrations x About the Author xi Preface xiii Acknowledgments xv Notes to the Reader xvi Abbreviations xx Frontispiece xxii
INTRODUCTION 1
HISTORY and GENEALOGY VOLUME 1 Generation 1 15 Generation 2 43 Generation 3 59 Generation 4 73 Generation 5 87 Generation 6 115 Generation 7 231 Generation 8 761 VOLUME 2 Generation 9 1587 Generation 10 2427 Generation 11 2781 Generation 12 2875 Generation 13 2917 Generation 14 2923
APPENDICES A: Peter Montague 101 2925 B: Grave Site/Memorial 2930 C: HGPM (1894) Revisited 2960 D: Montague Migration 3001 E: Heraldry: Montagues of Boveney 3032 F: George WashingtonSMontague Connection 3036 G: DNA Genealogy: The Montague Project 3042 H: Photo Album 3049
Bibliography 3059 Index 3077
ix Illustrations
FIGURES (not including descendant images) 1. Montague of Boveney Visitation of 1634 8 2. Arms of Sir Simon de Montacute 12 3. Arms of Montague of Boveney (circa 1634) 12 - Boveney Church 15 - 1599 Geneva Bible 20 - Will of Peter Montague 31
TABLES 1. Analysis of Peter Montague’s Birth Date 6 2. Peter’s Montague’s Charles Shipmates 22 3. Short List of Names for Peter’s First Wife Named Ann(e) 36 4. Peter’s 8-Year Pattern 41
x About The Author
Robert V. Montague III is proud to be one of 33 (or so) 9th great-grandsons of Peter Montague who in 1621 immigrated to the first permanent settlement in the Virginia Colony―Jamestowne. The present work began 14 years ago when he accidentally discovered his ancestry amongst a pile of family papers his father, Robert V., Jr., passed to him in 1998―with no mention of the Jamestowne connection. These papers had been hand-typed on layers of carbon paper. Further investigation revealed that almost nothing had been done during the past 100 years to bring the family up-to-date, but for one notable exception―an update by Carman and Carman, History and Genealogy of Peter Montague: 1894S1972 (Supplement). In Dec 2000, he established HouseofMontague.com to maintain continuity with the larger public and to provide a clearinghouse for collecting and distributing updated and new information. In 2010, Mr. Montague and four others chartered the Montague Family Association (MFA) of America (http://www.montaguefamily association.com) and was elected MFA’s first Historian. As Historian, he inaugurated The MFA Newsletter which is currently issued triannually. Mr. Montague holds a BS in Physics, MS in Business Management, and completed National Genealogical Society’s, “American Genealogy: A Basic Course”. In 2002, he completed the genealogy technical writing course at Samford University. His ongoing genealogical memberships for the past 12 years include Association of Professional Genealogists, National Genealogical Society, New England Historic Genealogical Society, Virginia Genealogical Society, and the Jamestowne Society. Following publication of this Quadricentennial Edition, Mr. Montague will seek formal certification of credentials through the Board for Certification of Genealogists.
The author is always interested in hearing from anyone with corrections, updates, and additions to this family history. Readers wishing to contribute their information or feedback are encouraged to contact the author through this website: (www.houseofmontague.com) or email: ([email protected])
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xi
Preface
n 1894, George William Montague, compiler of the original work upon which Ithis research is based wrote, “The compiling of this work has been a pleasure.” The present author agrees and adds it is also a privilege to advance and expand his history of the Peter Montague Family of America. This two volume set is published as a quadricentennial celebration of both Peter Montague’s 400th birthday (1603S2003) and the founding of Jamestowne (1607S2007). These volumes are intended to serve as the master genealogical library of the First Montague Family in America―a living document to preserve the past, refresh the present, and secure the future as each generation of Montague descendants, in their turn, makes their mark. Even after 13 years of near daily effort, this book would not have been completed in thrice the time without internet technology and email.
Genealogy, as an academic discipline and professional field of scholarship, has been fundamentally reinvented since George Wm. Montague compiled his impressive 1894 Edition of the first Montague family in America. For example, today’s stricter standards of proof and the imperative to mercilessly cite sources didn’t emerge until the 1930s when the great Donald Lines Jacobus (1887S1970), considered the father of modern genealogy scholarship, evolved our current standards. The 1894 Edition of the “Peter Montague Book”, while predating Mr. Jacobus, is nevertheless in some ways ahead of its time. Though it lacks a foundational underpinning of formal documentation crucial to establishing credibility in a work of genealogy by today’s standards, it is of inestimable value to the Montague family. Were it not for the “Peter Montague Book”, this Quadricentennial Edition could not have been compiled in any meaningful time frame―if ever. George Wm. Montague acknowledged the truth of this in his original Preface: “And the record of them here given, however imperfect it may be considered, can only be regarded as facts snatched from the very verge of oblivion.” The Preface in the 1894 Edition describes something of the manner in which that book was compiled and the difficulty encountered in making sense of scarce and diverse records. In essence, the 1894 Edition was compiled from a combination of meager scraps of county records and the few remaining vestry books of Christ Church, Middlesex. To these individual name records, were added the family histories from Virginia Genealogies, by Rev. Horace Edwin Hayden, and individual family histories wherever they could be found; also Hotten’s Emigrant Lists [aka John Camden Hotten, The Original Lists of Persons of Quality] for ship’s arrival records and emigrants to the Virginia colonies. These raw materials and years of dedicated hard
xiii History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne work gave us, without apologies, the best that the technology of the times could produce. Prophetically, George Wm. Montague sums his work up thus, “Those who discover errors, while they criticize, should remember that if the work serves no other purpose, it will be a foundation and guide to some historian of the family in the far distant future who may issue a second and more perfect edition, and correct the errors made in this.” This Quadricentennial Edition strives to be that more perfect edition. To be more perfect, this edition undertakes the following four changes: (1) resets the original source material within the modified register system (NGSQ)* numbering system; (2) updates known family lines and identifies previously unidentified ancestors; (3) provides documentation for every fact of genealogical value or, in lieu of adequate citation, acknowledges the use of hypothesis or informed judgment whenever such is asserted; and (4) preserves, not only the substance, but the format, style, look, and feel of the 1894 Edition. The author apologizes for the clarity and quality of some images, particularly the headstone images. Headstone images are offered not so much for reading their inscriptions as for showing their overall appearance during field trips to locate them.
Eight Appendices. Six of these appendices contain original research focusing on specific aspects of “Montagueology” (the study of the Montague family). Appendix A is a condensed, ten-minute overview of Peter Montague’s life and is recommended as a “pre-read” or jumping off point. Most ground-breaking of all is Appendix B for its deconstruction of HGPM’s assertion that Peter was buried on the north side of the Rappahannock River where an impressive Memorial was erected in 1903 by the Governor of Virginia. Appendix C is a reprint of the Introduction from the 1894 Edition, preserved for its account of early English Montague lineage back to AD 1066. Appendix D showcases the first statistical study of Montague family migration across America from 1759 through 1930 and includes distributive, demographic data. Readers will want to refer often to Appendix D for the maps depicting migration routes and for following the history and time line of Peter’s pre- Revolutionary War descendants. Appendix E presents Montague heraldry for what it says―and doesn’t say―about Peter Montague’s connection with earliest English nobility by the same name. Appendix F provides a comprehensive analysis on the identity of George Washington’s maternal grandmother―popularly alleged to be Mary Montague, granddaughter of Peter. Appendix G introduces DNA genealogy as a revolutionary new form of direct evidence for establishing (or disproving) blood lineage through the use of volunteered male DNA. Lastly, Appendix H is a family album of never before published “family” photos of churches, Montague homes, and other images relevant to the earliest events in Peter Montague’s life and history.
* (NGSQ) National Genealogical Society Quarterly
xiv Acknowledgments
As might be imagined, dozens of people over the years have shared their personal private family information (sourced and unsourced). A select few individual contributions were invaluable for the level of personal information not to be found in online sources; and without which some branches would have remained incomplete―probably forever. A small, but dedicated, cadre of internet/email friends went out of their way, despite the long and tedious nature of information gathering, to make this genealogy more useful and complete. I am deeply grateful to the following special contributors:
Cynthia Clark, Beverly Cowden, Brenda Dudley Eanes, Gail Fisher, Linda (Montague) Franks Erdmann, Mark Jenkins, Curt Montague, James Edward Montague, John Peter Montague, Melinda Anne (Montague) Gimblett, Pamela Ann Montague, Percy Montague III, Roger Wilson Montague, Robert Latane Montague III, Skiles Montague, Thomas Dru Montague, Karen Repko, Jo Anne St. Clair, Robert G. Terry, Donna Welch, and Millard F. Zeagler Jr.
More broadly, I wish to acknowledge the staff of the National Genealogical Society (NGS) library from which I received my basic training and guidance through their education programs. The NGS and its staff are a national treasure and one of America’s greatest private sector genealogical resources. A heartfelt, though posthumous, appreciation goes to my father, Robert Vaughan Montague Jr., who’s contribution was getting me started in 1998, by transferring his mother’s pile of old family files and pictures, without mentioning Jamestowne, saying simply, “See what you can do with these.”
. . . and to my wife Linda without whose spiritual and emotional support this work would not, could not, have been completed. She willingly―without threats of retribution―assumed the role of “genealogy widow”, knowing that writing is a lonely endeavor and because she knew how important completing this compelling history and genealogy was to me.
Robert Vaughan MONTAGUE III Navarre, Florida 7 Aug 2012
xv Notes to the Reader
In compiling the thousands of sources cited herein, I regret, but do not apologize, for not citing original sources in each and every citation. [Original sources, whenever they can be located, are always the goal in professional genealogies]. It was simply not feasible in a genealogy of this size to limit citations to original sources. The time, and cost, to travel to each and every applicable county court house was simply prohibitive for me. Nevertheless, whenever possible, original source documents were retrieved and cited after many trips to the National Archives and Record Administration in Washington, DC, as well as to Virginia, Alabama, Kansas, Mississippi, and Missouri. The genealogy section is virtually complete through 1930. The time period from 1931 through 2003 is limited only by the lack of releasable public records (primarily census schedules) and the willingness of my modern-day cousins to reveal themselves, their family particulars, and their sources. My hope is that this publication will inspire modern-day cousins to identify themselves and their families for inclusion in future updates. In the meantime, I will continue researching, updating, and correcting these contents and providing periodic updates at the House of Montague website: www.houseofmontague.com.
How to use this Edition. Internet based repositories may no longer be current (e.g., in 2003, genealogy.com was acquired by ancestry.com, but genealogy.com references can be found at ancestry.com). Still, this genealogy is sufficiently sourced so that anyone directly related to Montague descendants can cite the footnoted sources as proof of eligibility in lineage societies such as Jamestowne Society. I highly encourage the reader to use the footnoted sources provided as a guide for locating the original source documents and closing the evidence loop.
-STYLE NOTES- Two style guides were consulted in the writing of this book: The Chicago Manual of Style, 15th Edition; and Professional Genealogy, Elizabeth Shown Mills, editor. While developing drafts for these volumes, two fundamental style questions had to be confronted from the outset. Firstly, was the question of how to treat previously published information which has been proven to be inaccurate and which was being superseded here. This is an issue because inaccurate information passing down unchallenged through the ages “assumes” a veneer of truth through sheer longevity; and like the “emperor’s new clothes”, revelations can be uncomfortable for those whose family lines are presumably linked. Wherever this occurs, I have opted to preserve the historical context of the old information, in order to juxtapose it with the updated research―properly sourced and cited, of course―for instant analysis.
xvi History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne Notes
Secondly, certain literary devices and standards have been implemented here that I believe enhance production value and readability. Implemented and extensively employed throughout are the following two devices for which the careful reader will derive much benefit: (1), brackets [ ] used to insert corrections/updates and to add my personal commentary; and (2), HGPM reference numbers―a parenthetical number following a descendant’s name as assigned by George Wm. Montague in his 1894 Edition. If no parenthetically enclosed number follows the surname, the descendant was not identified in the 1894 Edition. Preserving HGPM reference numbers allows the reader to readily cross-reference descendants to the 1894 Edition. It is an unambiguous way of identifying pre-1894 descendants regardless of how they may be compiled, recompiled, and reported in future updates.
- STYLE STANDARDS - HGPM. History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Nansemond and Lancaster Counties, Virginia, and His Descendants, 1621S1894, by George Wm. Montague, 1894; is referred throughout as HGPM or 1894 Edition.
ABBREVIATIONS. Universally accepted abbreviations are implemented without punctuation for states and dates. Two-letter postal service abbreviations (e.g., CA, OK, SD, NM) are preferred over the somewhat arcane, albeit traditional, standard US state abbreviations (e.g., Calif., Okla., S.Dak., N.Mex.). While these two-letter postal codes are not currently in vogue with mainstream genealogical custom, it has been chosen here for simplicity and a cleaner, leaner look over the page. Exception to this format occurs under the following four conditions: (1) when written otherwise within quoted material; (2) when part of a military unit designation (e.g., Co. D, 9th Reg’t Ill. Infantry); (3) when identifying a census record; and (4) when standing alone (i.e., name will be spelled out). United States is abbreviated as either US or not at all. CENSUS DATA. Census data, whenever cited, always refers to the US Federal Population Census unless identified otherwise. Information derived from the US Census is the most important, single source cited―though not the most accurate―for identifying family members. All census data was extracted exactly as enumerated, even if obviously incorrect. After researching thousands of census images, it is my sense that roughly 30-40% of census records contain verifiable errors. Most of these errors are discrepancies in birth dates and places and spellings of family names. Regardless of inconsistencies in the body of the narrative, the correct information is in the header paragraph containing the individual’s vitals (name, birth, death, burial, and marriage). Whenever HGPM and census data conflict, HGPM data was cited (unless noted otherwise) as the primary source. Information provided by informants about their direct ancestors trumped HGPM when the informant provided sources. Although rare, some ancestors are found to have been enumerated twice in the same census year―though no person was found to have been identified three times. When this occurred, both census records were documented.
xvii History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
This edition implements standardized census data entry so readers can develop an expectation of content. True, the content of census data varies slightly from decade to decade, nevertheless, it is always extracted and presented in one of the following two standardized formats: (1), HOH (head of household); or (2), eHOH (enumerated with/HOH). Format differences are italicized in the following example:
HOH: Romeo Q. Montague is head of household on the census of 1 Jan 1920 at Jamestowne, VA, as Romeo Montague, a 30-year old, married white... eHOH: Romeo Q. Montague is enumerated on the census of 1 Jan 1920 at Jamestowne, VA as Romeo Montague, a 30-year old, married white... He is enumerated in the household of... Every HOH and eHOH census entry from 1850 through 1930 ends with the definitive statement, “There are no others listed.” This definitively signals to the reader that all desired data from the record has been extracted.
DATES (OLD/NEW). Months of the year are in the standardized three letter form, without punctuation and always follow the genealogical convention―day, month, year (e.g., 8 Sep 1603). Nonstandard styles in quoted and abstracted materials are copied as originally entered. Occasionally, dates will be in the format “Jan 1622/3”, reflecting the dual calendars being observed in the world between 1582 and 1752. This occurred when the Catholic world moved on with the new (Gregorian) calendar in which 1 Jan would be the first day of the new year; while the English (i.e., non- Catholic) world, including the American Colonies, stayed with the old (Julian) calendar in which 25 Mar was the first day of the new year. It is only necessary to remember that this dual date format only effects dates between 1 JanS25 Mar for the years between 1582 and 1752. For example, Jan 1622/3, means Jan 1622 (old date) is equivalent to Jan 1623 (new date). Original documents with dates lying between the dates defined above are understood to be the old date style. DOCUMENTATION AND FOOTNOTES. Source citations were developed―as closely as possible―using guidance outlined in Evidence, Citation & Analysis for the Family Historian. Evidence author, Elizabeth Shown Mills observes, “Effective source citation is an art, not a science.” With over 17,000 footnotes, the reader will appreciate the art of footnoting. Every genealogical fact (vital statistic) in these volumes is sourced and cited, but not necessarily footnoted. Two shortcuts have been implemented to avoid overwhelming these pages with thousands of duplicative and repetitive footnotes: (1), for descendants identified with an HGPM reference number following the surname, the HGPM reference number serves as the source for the entire entry. Any newer, or more accurate, information that supersedes the HGPM reference is cited in the usual manner; and (2), for descendants without an HGPM reference number, sources (e.g., Social Security Death Index (SSDI) or census data) embedded within the narratives are self-citing. For example, if a narrative contains an SSDI entry with a birth date, then footnoting that birth date is redundant.
xviii Notes
A commonly used footnote citation includes the phrase “citing family sources”. This citation implies that the informant relied on their own personal family records, memoirs, personal knowledge, or inter-familial relationships. I have allowed their participation as a ‘trusted source’. Family informants were not required, as a practical matter, to provide copies of their privately-held documents to me―although many did and their documents are identified in the usual manner―nor was it realistic to expect privately-held family documents to be freely supplied to strangers (even for genealogical purposes). Readers who wish to pursue additional documentation from “family sources” should contact the cited informant directly. The alternative to “citing family sources” was to censor family-sourced information from publication, thus depriving future researchers and descendants a possible “hook” for new leads. GENEALOGICAL NUMBERING SYSTEM. There are three imperatives for renumbering the original HGPM compilation: first, to “fix” some of its numbering irregularities and discontinuities; second, to simplify the process of supplementing the original HGPM with sorely needed source citations and references; and third, to facilitate the transition of names from HGPM to this and future editions. The National Genealogical Society (NGS) Quarterly System, otherwise known as the Modified Register System, was chosen for renumbering HGPM due to its robustness and for its overall acceptance amongst the professional genealogical community. INDEXING STANDARD. The basic indexing principles described in the manual for genealogical research, Professional Genealogy (ProGen), are observed with one notable exception, it being limited to personal names only―no place names and no subject matter entries. ProGen grants there may be few exceptions to the principle for a “good” index in a family history and this index qualifies due to scope (14 generations over 400 years), depth (includes children of female Montagues and their families), and its primary objective―identifying, documenting, and memorializing Peter Montague’s 6,148 descendants identified so far. In this context, family members have the ultimate source reference for validating their membership applications into lineage societies such as Jamestowne Society, Daughters of the American Revolution, Sons of the American Revolution, etc. Interested readers are encouraged to consult a list of lineage societies at (http://www.cyndislist.com/societies/lineage). SPELLING. In colonial times and the earliest days of statehood, the spelling of names and places was more an art form or an educated guess. Official clerks and recorders of the day did not much concern themselves with whether names were correctly spelled because the colonists and newly arrived, illiterate more often than not, weren’t sure. The clerk or recorder necessarily spelled names by the way they sounded. Wherever spelling variances exist within original sources, they are preserved as cited. Whenever the reader might reasonably construe a spelling to be a typographical error on my part, I have inserted “[sic]” following the spelling to indicate that I did not create a mistake during the transcription process. After about 1700, spellings were standardized (some would say “Americanized”) based on evolved modern day variance in narratives and other non-quoted source material (e.g., “Mountague” and “Mountecue” became “Montague” after about 1700). ?
xix ― Abbreviations―
abt about (+/- 1 year) est. estimated aka also known as FHL Family History Library b. born H. Va. Gen. by Rev Bapt. Baptized Horace E. Hayden bef. before Hen. Henings Va. Law Statutes bet. between HGPM History and Genealogy bur. buried of Peter Montague CCPR Christ Church Parish Register (1894 Edition) Ch. ch. Christ Church L. Lancaster Co. C.H. Court House M. Middlesex Co. circa +/- 5 years m. married Co. County p. page d. died Spotts. Spotsylvania County dau. daughter Twp Township DC District of Columbia unk unknown decd. deceased Vol. volume
Abbreviations for Sources of Descendant Images
BDE Brenda Dudley Eanes PGM Phillip Gregory Montague CL Carolyn Luckbach PAM Pamela Ann Montague CRM Curt Montage PMIII Percy Montague III JAS Jo Anne St. Clair PT Peggy Terrell JEM James Edward Montague RGT Robert G. Terry JPRM John Peter Romeo Montague RWM Roger Wilson Montague LMF Linda Montague Frank SEM Saja Elizabeth Montague MAM Melinda Anne Montague TDM Thomas Dru Montague MH Marianne Hughes VBN Vivian (Bates) Noblett
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xx History and Genealogy of Peter Montague (1603S2003) Volume One Peter Montague Memorial in Lancaster Co., VA (Photo Courtesy of Thomas Dru Montague, 3 Sep 2006)
xxii Introduction
s it not awe-inspiring how the life of one individual becomes the genesis for so much that follows in the wake of one’s passing? How could we fail to appreciate the subtlety with Iwhich the cumulative events in our own lives, like softly falling snowflakes, create an avalanche of biological cause and effect—each of us intermingling in our own season—adding layer upon layer atop the genealogical record. Witness here the history and genealogy of Peter Montague . . .
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Welcome to the House that Peter Montague, of Jamestowne, Virginia, built.
he American House of Montague first broke ground in Nov 1621 when Peter Montague arrived at Jamestowne, Virginia, at the age of 18.1 About 273 years later, TGeorge Wm. Montague completed the first major renovation in his genealogical monograph, History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Nansemond and Lancaster Counties, Virginia, and his Descendants, 1621S1894, (hereinafter referred to as HGPM). In the intervening 118 years since the “family bible” of the first Montague family in America was written, new sources have been discovered, new stories surfaced, new facts verified, old facts disproved, and mysteries solved. Moreover, six new generations of Peter Montague descendants are currently evolving and waiting to be identified in this book of life. This Introduction supplements George W. Montague’s 1894 Introduction (reprinted in Appendix C). Our purpose here is to update the 1894 Introduction with fresh, new insights; and to stimulate renewed interest in 21st century descendants for one of the oldest continuous lineages in America today—the first Montague family of America. While some overlap between the two introductions is inevitable, when it occurs it will be to maintain continuity and preserve an historical perspective. Unlike the 1894 Introduction, this Introduction includes an analysis of the likely birth dates for Peter Montague, a short look at his paternal ancestry, and an overview of Montague Heraldry. Concluding this introduction is a time line depicting the most significant milestones in Peter Montague’s life which the reader may wish to consult while following his story. George Wm. Montague’s 1894 Edition of HGPM is the foundation for this Quadricentennial Edition and our departure point for the rest of the story . . .
1. George William Montague, History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Nansemond and Lancaster Counties, Virginia, and His Descendants, 1621-1894 (Amherst Massachusetts: Press of Carpenter & Morehouse, 1894), 49 and 52. (Hereafter cited as HGPM).
1 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
I. THE QUINTESSENTIAL PROTO-AMERICAN Surely the most intriguing, if ever unknowable, piece of Peter Montague history is coming to grips with the circumstances and/or incentives that lured Peter from the known to the unknown across a dangerous ocean. Most can only imagine making the decision at the age of 18 years, to leave a comfortable 200 year ancestral family home for any reason. What motivated young Peter to say goodbye―essentially forever―to his mother, father, siblings, and friends? What incentives induced young Peter to opt for a hostile and brutal existence in an English colony thousands of miles across a vast ocean accessible only by a small wooden ship? Within the past 118 years since George Wm. Montague wrote his Introduction to HGPM, new facts have emerged that shed new light on these lingering questions. Today we are in a better position to evolve the Peter Montague story line with more informed, fact-based speculation as to Peter’s motivation for sailing into Jamestowne and then surviving for 38 years, against all odds. The records do not allow us to know the exact number of those who came to Virginia between 1607 and 1624, but it is believed that of some 7,100 or so, about one- seventh (1,014 or so) survived.2 …and Peter Montague of Boveney, England was among them.
EARLY COLONIAL CONDITIONS. From 26 Apr 1607 to the first great census of Virginia taken from 20 JanS7 Feb 1624/5, it is pitifully clear that a mere handful of hopefuls had managed to survive and acquire the status title of ‘Original’.3 Peter Montague was one of these Originals.4 Adventurers of Purse and Person, p. xv, describes the scenario faced by the early immigrants: “After living for two to four months in overcrowded and unsanitary ships, they landed in a wilderness in which savage enemies always lurked. Accustomed to living in a temperate climate, they had to become adapted to a semi-tropical one for four months of each year. A sufficient supply of food was never certain, and a balanced diet impossible. In the early years approximate starvation prevailed. Many lost their minds, and it is not surprising that shocking incidents occurred.”
THE GOOD FRIDAY MASSACRE, ETC. On 22 Mar 1621/2, the population of the Colony was at 1,240 white people before the Indians massacred at least 347 men, women, and children in a single, coordinated attack by Chief Powhatan’s successor Opechancanough (Opechankano).5 A list of the dead, by name, can be found in, “The Records of the Virginia Company of London", 565-571, Volume III. Peter had arrived just five months earlier, in Nov 1621, on the ship Charles at the age of 18.6 Obviously Peter survived the 1622 massacre―but how? The Virginia Muster of 1624/5 has Peter listed as a 21-year old servant on the plantation of Capt. Samuel Mathews, along with 23 other servants (all men). There were apparently no women at the plantation, indicating a lack of settled (civilized) conditions. The plantation itself
2. Virginia M. Meyer and John Frederick Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, Virginia, 1607-1624/5, 3d edition (Richmond, Virginia: Order of First Families of Virginia, Dietz Press, 1987), xv. 3. Peter Wilson Coldham, The Complete Book of Emigrants, 1607-1660 (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1987), viii. 4. As one of the Originals, Peter Montague’s descendants are eligible for membership in the Jamestowne Society. The Jamestowne Society is a lineage society open to anyone who can prove descent from any of the 1,500 or so original colonists. The Jamestowne Society website is (www.jamestown.org). 5. Nell Marion Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants, 1623-1666, 7 Volumes, (1934; reprint, Richmond: Virginia State Library, 1992), xviii; also Carol McGinnis, Virginia Genealogy, Sources & Resources (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1993), 5, cites 347 men, women, and children killed. 6. Meyer and Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 40.
2 Introduction was part of James City and was described as being located “over the river [James]” from Jamestown “Island”, which was not yet then an island.7 It is popularly recorded, but not historically correct that Jamestown, and the plantations immediately surrounding it, including the Samuel Mathews Plantation, was spared “because of the timely warning of an Indian named Chanco, who was loyal to his master (who treated him as a son).”8 Research published by Helen C. Rountree9 reveals that this Indian was never called out by name in the archives, although an Indian living with Richard Pace’s family at Pace’s Paines on the south side of the James River across from Jamestowne did warn Mr. Pace of the imminent attack. While history does not record the name of this hero Indian, Peter and his descendants are forever, and all time, in his debt as his actions likely saved Peter and the other 800 or so remaining colonists. For want of this warning, Peter Montague would undoubtedly have become a massacre victim, yet he lived. A place of honor is reserved for this unidentified, heroic Powhatan Indian in the Peter Montague Hall of Fame. About 22 years later on 18 Apr 1644, yet a second surprise Indian attack (again by Opechancanough) kills in excess of 500 settlers mostly living on outlying plantations. By this time, Peter is living in one of those outlying plantations. By the author’s hypothetical time line, this massacre would have occurred while Peter was living upon his 3rd land patent on the Chuckatuck River in Isle of Wight Co. (see Appendix A, Table A-1, Time Line.) No list of the dead resulting from this massacre has been found, but Peter Montague was not among them.
THE PLAGUE. On 30 Mar 1623, one year after the first massacre, a plague befalls the entire Colony, which is twice as deadly as the massacre itself. Only about 300 settlers remain alive in Virginia,10 and Peter Montague was among the 300 survivors and emerged to become one of the now revered―Original Colonists.11
EMIGRANT, SURVIVOR, AND ‘ORIGINAL’ COLONIST. So what kind of a young man was Peter Montague that he would become an English adventurer to the rugged and hostile Virginia Colony of Jamestown? The evidence assembled here suggests he was undoubtedly genetically fit, physically tough, mentally alert, and imbued with leadership qualities. Still, he apparently indentured himself to Capt. Samuel Mathews, for the standard seven years as he is listed as a “Servant” in the Jan 1624/5 Muster. But what were the circumstances of his servitude and what was his social status as a servant? The Complete Book of Emigrants, by Peter Wilson Coldham, states, “Virginia was founded by those who were compelled to it by legal process or economic necessity.” There is the tradition described by George W. Montague (HGPM, 50) of Peter having been ‘rather wild’, that he ran away from home perhaps to escape the legal consequences of a mischievous prank. That Peter was in some way caught up with the legal system can be discounted simply because the record shows that he was “duly examined by the Minister at Gravesend [Eng.]
7. Charles E. Hatch, Jr., Virginia, The First Seventeen Years, 1607S1624 (Charlottesville and London: University Press of Virginia, 1957), 3. 8. Mary Newton Stanard, Virginia's First Century, 170-173. 9. Helen C. Rountree, Pocahontas’ People―The Powhatan Indians of Virginia through Four Centuries, An Indian named Chauco, who is not related or connected to the mythical Chanco. 10. McGinnis, Virginia Genealogy, Sources & Resources, 5. 11. Original colonist was a term of distinction applied to colonists who arrived and settled in the Virginia Colony between 1617 and the recording of the 1624/5 census. Those colonists arriving and settled before 1617 were identified as “ancient planters’.
3 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne touching his conformitie to the orders and discipline of the Church of England and took the oath of allegiance and supremicie to the King.”12 Further, there is no evidence Peter, or his family, had been persecuted or was economically stressed in England. Either way―legally persecuted or economically stressed―people so compelled transported themselves to Virginia as indentured servants.13 Servant was a term generally used, in the modern sense, to mean employee.14 Surprisingly, there were several ways to indenture ones self as a servant: (1) Yeoman or Franklins were the middle class; landowners of free but not noble birth, ranking in England below the gentry. To pay for passage to Virginia, those who lacked money signed a contract to work for seven years, known as an indenture. Such emigrants were listed as ‘servants,’ but in a truer sense they were employees. On completion of their indenture, they could claim the 50 acres offered each settler;15 (2) Redemptioners were indentured servants who were given a certain amount of time after their arrival ‘to find their passage money and thus avoid servitude.’”(ibid.) However, this was more a practice of the 18th century and probably wasn’t an option for Peter; (3) Apprentices were the status of mostly children who were volunteered by their parents to be provided with training in a specific trade in return for their services. Orphans and abandoned children were also indentured in this manner. (ibid.) We know for certain that Peter was a servant; given his family background he probably arrived as Yeoman. In HGPM, George W. Montague strongly condemns the generally held impression that Virginia was settled by convicts from England, “No tradition ever existed which has so little foundation in fact.” (see HGPM, 50, footnote for more discussion) There was little difference, in effect, “between the indentured servant and a transported felon: both were slaves in every sense, and ranked as part of their master’s estate to be bought and sold at will.”16 While it is still popular on both sides of the Atlantic to recall how America was populated by the good, but downtrodden escaping oppression and the brave triumphing over misfortune, there is a lesser known aspect of this migration which is rarely given full light. Coldham provides this darker insight in The Complete Book of Emigrants, “it is a matter of record that for the Englishman Virginia was ‘a place where idle vagrants might be sent’.... It would have been inconceivable to a seventeenth-century Englishman to picture Virginia as anything but a disreputable penal colony since it was largely peopled by the scourings from English prisons, vagrants, waifs and strays, and those lured into migration by promises of land and wealth. Francis Bacon, the preeminent philosopher of that time, voiced much the same view in his Essay on Plantations, ‘It is a shameful and unblessed thing to take the scum of people and wicked, condemned men, to be the people with whom you plant.’”17 These statements must be considered in the context of the times in which they were spoken. The modern day reader should not take such language literally, as those of privileged class were compelled by their
12. Montague, HGPM, 51 13. McGinnis, Virginia Genealogy, Sources & Resources, 12. The system of indentured servitude was used in Virginia as early as 1619. Most indentured servants were at least 18 years old, though many were younger, and the length of their indenture varied from four to seven years. Interestingly, indentured servants ranged in background, education, and ability from the lowest to the upper classes. There was no stigma to being an indentured servant in 17th century Virginia. In fact, former indentured servants served in the Virginia House of Burgesses. 14. Meyer and Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, xxviii. 15. McGinnis, Virginia Genealogy, Sources & Resources, 12. 16. Coldham, The Complete Book of Emigrants, 1607-1660, ix. 17. Ibid., xi.
4 Introduction high station of birth and cultural responsibility to overstate the nature of these underclass ‘scum’ as a matter of style and pride. They reflect the excessive sensitiveness and pomposity of a deeply class-conscious society. Perhaps because Peter was his father’s second born son, he was not destined to inherit the family home, thus relieving him of familial obligations and expectations. Younger sons of the gentry in England, having no opportunity to acquire a landed estate, often obligated themselves by articles of indenture to serve required years in order to obtain passage to the promising land of Virginia.18
CONCLUSION. Peter’s motivation for indenturing himself into a dangerous, but exciting, Virginia was in all likelihood nothing more exotic or dramatic than a rational decision to improve his lot in life. Given Peter’s solidly middle class circumstances in England, and no evidence he was running from a legal issue, it is likely that he was free to indenture himself as a Yeoman, in order to pay his expenses of passage and build a new life on his own terms. He was young, fit, and adventuresome as earlier characterized in this Introduction. In England, the rules of primogeniture locked him out from inheriting any significant family assets, while over in Virginia, since 1616, every person who came into the Colony was entitled to 50 acres of land in their own name!―provided they weren’t one of the 6 out of 7 who died during the process of waiting. A chance to own land was motivation enough for nearly everyone, including Peter Montague, who had the courage and faith to make the journey and hope for the best. The tenuous record of his life, incomplete though it may be, is evidence enough of the courage, spirit, and toughness that would later come to be recognized as the American pioneering spirit. Peter was, in 1621, already ahead of his time―the quintessential proto- American.
II. PETER’S BIRTH DATE There are no known records stating Peter Montague’s birth date and there are only two records from which a reasoned estimate of his birth date can be derived: (1) the Virginia Muster Rolls, 20 JanS7 Feb 1624/5. If it were not for the Virginia Muster Rolls, a census document, miraculously surviving all these centuries, there would be virtually no record in English archives containing dates and names. In the Muster, Peter is shown to be 21 years old on 4 Feb 1624.19 Second, the only other records with age-related dates are sourced from HGPM as follows: (a) p. 49: “At the age of 18 years Peter emigrated (sic) to Virginia, in America" (b) p. 52: “He came in the ship Charles and landed in Virginia in the month of November, 1621.”
Unfortunately, the HGPM compiler did not cite sources for these two statements. We are left to assume the compiler had a source and neglected to cite it or he inferred it from sources not revealed to us. Giving the compiler the benefit of the doubt (there is no reason not to), and using these two documented data points, possible birth months can be narrowed to one of the nine months between Mar and Nov 1603 as shown in Table 1 (p. 6).
18. Meyer and Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, xxviii. 19. The Muster of the Inhabitants of Virginia taken 20 Jan – 7 Feb lists the following located at Captain Mathews’ Plantation, James City: Captain Samuell Mathews by Southampton 1622; Mr. David Sands, minister, by Bonaventure 1620. Servants by Southampton: Robert Mathews 24; Roger Williams 20; Samuell Davies 18; Henery Jones 25; Aaron Conaway 20; John Thomas 18; Michaell Lapworth 16. Servants by Charles 1621: William Lusam 27; William Field 23; Peeter Montecue 21.
5 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
This methodology computes Peter’s age for each of the only two known conditional sets of facts―immigration and muster. Table 1 presents these possible birth dates from Nov 1602 to Mar 1603/4. In this context the only possible birth months are those for which both age columns agree. Ages for mismatched condition set are grayed-out/striked-through. While this analysis did not produce a definitive birth month (i.e., between Mar and Aug), the oft- presented birth year of 1603 is at least definitive, in this analysis.. Note It is assumed, for this analysis, that Peter would have had to be 18 years of age to consent to indenture himself as a yeoman. According to HGPM, “…the records at least show that he was among those who came to America OPENLY and in a legal manner… and took the oath of allegiance and supremicie to the King.” Given this starting point and setting the duration of a transatlantic journey at about two months, one could reasonably conclude that he had probably turned 18 by Aug, thus eliminating Sep, Oct, and Nov. In other words, if he hadn’t turned 18 years of age by Sep 1603, he would not have been legally allowed to sail on his own account or give consent. With that said, Sep is the more likely than Oct, and Nov is the least likely of the three. ______
Table 1. Analysis of Peter Montague’s Birth Date ASSUMED IMMIGRATION AGE MUSTER AGE BIRTH DATES Nov 1621 = 18 4 Feb 1624/5 = 21 (Actual age must equal age on the above dates) Nov 1602 19 22 Dec 1602 18 22 Jan 1602/3 18 22 Feb 1602/3 18 22 * Mar 1602/3 18 21 * Apr 1603 18 21 * May 1603 18 21 * Jun 1603 18 21 * Jul 1603 18 21 * Aug 1603 18 21 + Sep 1603 18 21 + Oct 1603 18 21 + Nov 1603 18 21 Dec 1603 17 21 Jan 1603/4 17 21 Feb 1603/4 17 21 Mar 1603/4 17 20 Notes: Bold box indicates possible birth dates * Most likely birth months + Eliminated as he was unlikely to have reached the age of 18 years and thus legally consent to indenture himself or take the oath of allegiance. (See Note before table)
6 Introduction
III. THE MONTAGUES OF BOVENEY (1505S1634) The thesis of the current author is that the Montagues of Boveney “appeared” on the scene, circa 1505, without portfolio or, if one prefers, pedigree. This thesis includes clear and convincing evidence as to where facts end and assumptions begin. ROYAL ROOTS? For better or worse, George Wm. Montague’s, History and Genealogy of Peter Montague20 (HGPM) of 1894, is the de facto reigning “authority” on the pre-colonial ancestry of Peter Montague of Boveney, England. This authority has remained mostly unchallenged over the past 118 years and is overdue for a scholarly review of its assumptions and conclusions. For example, HGPM presents an extensive, detailed review of the lineage of Drogo de Montagu,21 the progenitor of English Montagues―royal, famous, and commoner alike. Against this backdrop, HGPM hypothesizes, but does not prove, that the “pedigree [of the Montagues of Boveney] is clear and perfect from the American branch (1634) back to AD 1500 and lacks (from there) two generations, possibly three, to make a perfect record back to the conquest of England, AD 1066.”22 Over the past 118 years, this hypothesis has quietly morphed into a “well-known fact”, as those missing two generations, possibly three, “got found” in one genealogy or another. Understandably, few people find fault with discovering they are descended from royal roots. Those Montague of Boveney descendants clutching descendancy charts showing lineage back to 1066 and Drogo de Montagu, will want to know there is not a single, verifiable fact connecting the Montagues of Boveney to the historic Drogo de Montacute. While the pre-1500 roots of the Montagues of Boveney may ultimately prove to be royal, it is just as likely to prove otherwise―as facts exist today.
PETER’S EARLIEST CONFIRMED ANCESTOR―ROBERT (NOT WILLIAM)
The Visitation of Boveney. The earliest documented ancestor of Peter Montague is Robert (not William) Montague of Boveney.23 The premise for this thesis is a pedigree of the Montagues of Boveney (Figure 1) presented during The Visitation of the County of Buckingham of 1634, hereinafter referred to as The Visitation; and newly published research provided here. HGPM incorrectly states William Montague (Peter’s alleged great-great-grandfather) is the earliest ancestor for whom connection to Peter Montague can be proved; however, current research and The Visitation pedigree shows that the earliest documented ancestor is Robert Montague (Peter’s documented great-grandfather), born in the Boveney hamlet around 1505, and who married Margaret Catton. His alleged father, William, has not been documented. The Visitation pedigree and much of the discussion that follows is part of a watershed article by Myrtle Stevens Hyde entitled, “The English Origin of Peter and Richard Montague” provided by permission of the New England Historical and Genealogical Register (NEHGR). The Visitation pedigree begins with Robert who married Margaret Catton of Warville Berks
20. George W. Montague, compiler, History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Nansemond and Lancaster Counties, Virginia, and His Descendants, 1621-1894. (Amherst, Massachusetts: Carpenter & Morehouse, 1894). 21. Ibid., 10. 22. Ibid., 32. 23. Myrtle Stevens Hyde, “The English Origin of Peter and Richard Montague,” The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, volume 142 (April 1988): 149-52, citing W. Harry Rylands, ed., “Mountague, of Boveney,” The Visitation of the County of Buckingham Made in 1634 (London: The Harleian Society, vol. 58 [1909]: 92-3).
7 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne producing two children, Laurence and William. The lineage continues through William who married Margaret Malthaus of Pynfield Bucks (Berks) from which issued five children. The youngest of these five―Peter―married Ellen Allen of Burnham, to become the parents of Peter Montague of Virginia. It should be noted that this copy of The Visitation pedigree (Figure 1) was reworked from the original (Figure 2) and shows a line incorrectly drawn by a scribe from “Peter now in Virginia 1634”, up to Peter’s Uncle George.24 Except for the quoted statement, there are no other dates recorded on the reworked visitation pedigree.
Figure 1. Montague, of Boveney Visitation Pedigree (Misprint: Showing Peter, son of George)
George W. Montague asserts that from 1500 to 1550, two brothers (William and John) lived in the County of Buckingham and Parish of Burnham, England.25 William, the eldest of the two, had four children―one of them named Robert. Without offering any evidence, Mr.
24. Myrtle Stevens Hyde email to the author citing, “John Frederick Dorman, CG, FASG, of Washington, D.C., reported that he also had noted this possible problem and made an inquiry to Thomas Woodcock, Somerset Herald, who examined the original record in The College of Arms. Mr. Woodcock's reply, dated 14 May 1986, confirms that the original document has the line from Richard to Peter; thus a printer's error incorrectly placed it from Richard to George. 25. Montague, HGPM, 27.
8 Introduction
Peter 2d sonne now in Virginia
Figure 2. Montague of Boveney Visitation Pedigree (Original)
Montague “anoints” this Robert as the Robert described in The Visitation pedigree. While he states that William’s will was proved March 21, 1550, he does not provide its contents. Here, reprinted with permission from The New England Historical and Genealogical Register, Vol. 142, p. 152, of Ms. Hyde’s article, are the contents of that will:
A photocopy of the original has been procured (Buckingham Record Office, Archdeaconry of Buckinghamshire Wills, March 1550/1). Dated 16 March 1550/1 and probated 21 March 1550/1, it calls him “Will’m Mountaguewe the Elder of Boveney in the p’r’she of Burnh’m, Fyssherman.” “Will’m Mountaguewe of Bray my eldyst sonne” was to receive the messuage at Bray where he was living, over the river northwestward in Berkshire. “Jone my wyffe duringe her lyffe” was to have the family dwelling in Boveney
9
Introduction
with ten acres and another lease of land. “Robt’e Mountagewe my yongist Sonne” was eventually to have Jone’s legacy and also a messuage called “Durdants w’t syxtene akers of arable lande medowe & pasture” that William had purchased. William additionally named daughters Alice and Katherine. Executors were to be his wife Jone and “Robt’ Mountague my youngiste sonne, Robt’e noneage [a minor].” Overseers were to be Thomas Grow and “Robt’e Mountagewe of Bovney.” [Note. Ms. Hyde states: As William’s son Robert was a minor in 1551, he cannot be the Robert who was born about 1505. Probably, the overseer Robert Montague of Boveney was the Robert born about 1505 and possibly was William’s brother―not father.]
As evidenced in the last three sentences of the will, Robert could not have been the son of William as asserted in HGPM because that Robert would have been too young in 1551 to have fathered the children attributed to him in the pedigree. Furthermore, although not proven here, it is probably the overseer, Robert Montague of Boveney, who is the progenitor of the Montagues of Boveney in The Visitation Pedigree of 1634 and probably a brother (not son) of the William whose Will was proved in 1550/1. Estimating a birth date for Peter’s great-grandfather Robert is a key data point in helping to establish the validity of the remaining lineage going back to the Royals. Ms. Hyde’s research suggests Robert, “was born about 1505 (based on the fact that a daughter of his became a bride in 1550, thus dating her birth around 1530)”.26 The importance of being able to support this date is paramount. Again, Ms. Hyde’s research is highly relevant in this regard:
Here in Boveney hamlet, where the castle parapets materialize from every fog, Robert Montague lived. He was born, probably in the hamlet, around 1505. Probably the pedigree earlier than Robert Montague could be ascertained from manor court rolls, as Robert held property in the hamlet of Boveney, also in the village of Burnham, and in the parish of Dorney, but few rolls for the involved manors have been found. Indications are, however, that the Montague family was well established at Boveney before Robert’s generation. Two lists of inhabitants, one in 1522 and one in 1524, probably include his father. The first of these two lists is The Certificate of Musters for Buckinghamshire in 1522 (Buckinghamshire Record Society 17 [1973]:246-248). As nearly as scholars can determine the value of the real estate (lands and tenements) and of goods of all independent adults was assessed. Forty-two names are on the list for “The Hamlett of Boveney in ye parishe of Burnham.” The seven Montagues among them are: Wm. Mountegue, land worth £1 6s. 8d.; Wm. Mountague senior, land worth 13s. 7d.; Wm. Mountegue, land worth 3s.; John Mountegue, goods worth £2; Agnes Mountegue, goods worth £3; John Mountague, land worth 1s. and goods worth £13 6s. 8d.; and Rob. Mountague, goods worth £3 6s. 8d. The second list, Subsidy Roll for the County of Buckingham Anno 1524 (Buckinghamshire Record Society 8 [1950]:14), contains just the names of taxpayers. The returns for Burnham include Boveney, and only two Montagues appear. Robert Mountague paid £1 on wages; this was the most common amount paid in the parish. John Mountague paid £9 on goods; only a few people paid more than he. (ibid.)
These lists give us some sense for when and how well established the Montagues of Boveney, Burnham Parish, were in the early 1500s. This discussion should also consign to the genealogical scrap heap the incorrect notion that William Montague (who married Joan) is the earliest progenitor of the “Virginia” Montague, as HGPM asserts. To learn the names of Robert Montague’s parents and grandparents, we must await the emergence of some as yet unfound or unstudied archival document(s).
26. Ibid., 152.
11 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
HERALDIC EVIDENCE
In HGPM, Mr. Montague makes a valiant effort to link the Montagues of Boveney with ancient Montague lineage through heraldry. He advances the following notions: (1) “The Boveney family bear the same name as the descendants of Drogo. (2) They [The Boveney Montagues] were residing in AD 1500 in the same locality and county of England where the descendants of Drogo had held possession and manors in AD 1400 and for centuries before. (3) They bear the same Arms, which alone would seem to silently but surely denote that they are a branch of the same family. As it may be of interest to many of the name and blood, to know exactly how the name has been connected with royalty in ancient times, the following has been carefully compiled, and will be found sufficiently complete to justify the tradition.”27 This ‘tradition’, by today’s standards of ‘clear and convincing’, can not be sustained. To elaborate, George Wm. Montague’s argument is essentially that “the arms of the Boveney family are the same as the arms of Sir Simon Montacute who signed the Baron’s letter (compare plates of both arms), except that to the former there have been added three ogresses [black ball or pellet].”28 How and when the arms of the Boveney Montagues separated from the main stem is not known, but George Wm. Montague admits that there are several places where such separation seems possible.
Figure 3. The Arms of Sir Figure 4. The Arms of Montague Simon de Montacute (circa 1301) of Boveney (circa 1634)
To be clear, there is no argument here with the notions advanced by Mr. Montague that heraldic evidence suggests connections between the Montagues of Boveney and the ancient Montague Pedigree beginning with Drogo de Monteacuto. But these mere notions carelessly become the basis for creating a pedigree that is “clear and perfect from the American branch (1634) back to AD 1500 and lacks (from there) two generations, possibly three, to make a perfect record back to the conquest of England, AD 1066.”29
27. Ibid., 31-2. 28. Ibid., 31. 29. Ibid., 32.
12 Introduction
IV. SUMMARY Peter Montague’s earliest proven ancestor is Robert Montague, born about 1505. Before that the records go dark, leaving us without genealogical basis for linking the Montagues of Boveney to any of the ancient Montagues described in the 1634 Visitation pedigree of Montague as HGPM compiler, George Wm. Montague, asserts without evidence. Still, the author is open-minded about the possibility there may well be lineal descent from Sir Simon Montacute down through Salisbury Montagues, but it is equally likely that, in the 1300s, truth be known, the Montagues of Boveney simply “assumed” their surname. Consider the aftermath of a dramatic disease pandemic such as occurred with the catastrophic black (bubonic) plague, which destroyed upwards of half the English population in the mid-1360s.30 Whole generations of families, scribes, monks, and official record keepers literally disappeared from the scene, as well as the historical record. Entire castles, churches, villages, and regions were abandoned remaining unpopulated for decades by survivors fearful of taking sick from the “black death” which was fatal within 2-4 days of onset. It was de rigueur to burn everything touched by the plague’s victims. The history of fourteenth century plague pandemics (of which there were six distinct waves) is well documented and beyond the scope of this history and genealogy.31 Suffice it to say the implications of its consequences on fourteenth century English culture, social structure, and demographics was devastatingly deep. Inevitably, abandoned areas would be reoccupied by brave, but desperately poor people, with few options. When eventually it was necessary to assert their legitimacy/ ownership, they simply assumed the identity of the owner’s “rightful heirs” to whatever abandoned castle, home, or pasture they were squatting upon, there being no one surviving to rebut the matter. The origins of the pre-1500 Montagues of Boveney is without a doubt the most compelling unsolved mystery in this history. Future researchers focusing on the etiology of the black plague’s impact on the local areas of Buckinghamshire and Berskshire counties may, as a minimum, explain the cause for the complete loss of records which would otherwise authenticate the origins of pre-fifteenth century Montagues of Boveney.
30. To be provided. 31. To be provided.
13
Generation One
1. Peter1 MONTAGUE (1),32 born between MarSAug 160333 at Boveney, Burnham Parish, Buckinghamshire Co., England; died 30 Apr 1659 in Lancaster Co. (southside Rappahannock River, now Middlesex Co.), VA. He married [―?―], circa 162934 at James City, VA;35 married Cicely [―?―] about 1637 at James City, VA.36
NOTE TO THE READER These narratives follow, for the most part, the style established in the 1894 Edition of HGPM so as to preserve the ambience of that early work. Brackets [ ], indicate editorial clarifications by the present author.
Peter was the son of Peter and Eleanor Montague of Boveney, in parish of Burnham, Buckinghamshire County, England. His mother Eleanor, was the daughter of William Allen of Burnham in the same parish. He was an elder brother of Richard Montague, progenitor of the New England Montagues.37 That Peter “the Virginia Montague”, and Richard “the New England Montague” were brothers is claimed by HGPM compiler, George Wm. Montague without presenting any evidence. In 1988, BOVENEY CHURCH (circa 2002) Myrtle Stevens Hyde published the most complete treatment of the (Courtesy of Gayle Fisher) subject in her April 1988 article, "The English Origin of Peter and Richard Montague" in The New England Historical and Genealogical Register. Ms. Hyde summarizes the available evidence, concluding that it "suggests strongly that the emigrants38 were brothers."… Since that publication, preliminary evidence collected from the Montague DNA surname project proves that the documented descendants from both Richard and Peter Montague of Boveney share an identical DNA Y-line haplotype, thus confirming Ms. Hyde’s conclusion. (See Appendix G, DNA Genealogy: The Montague Project.)
32. George William Montague, compiler, History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Nansemond and Lancaster Counties, Virginia, and His Descendants, 1621--1894 (Amherst, Massachusetts: Carpenter & Morehouse, 1894), 49, (1). Hereinafter cited as History and Genealogy of Peter Montague (HGPM). 33. See Introduction, Section II, Peter’s Birth Date, for full analysis of the Mar-Aug birth range. 34. HGPM, 56. He married, probably in the spring of 1629, Cicely ______. [However, his first wife was almost certainly not named Cicely as she refers to son Peter (4) as her "sonne-in-law" [stepson] in a Lancaster Co. Order Book.] 35. Ibid. They [Peter and his first wife] were married some where in the vicinity of James City, for there it was that the first years of Peter’s life in the new world were passed. 36. John Frederick Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, Virginia, 1607–1624/5, 4th ed., 3 volumes (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 2005), 2: 653, Peter Montague married (1), [―?―], who was probably the mother of all of his children (certainly of Peter, Anne, Ellen and Margaret); and (2), Cicely [―?―]; Hereinafter cited as Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed. [The place of both marriages, while not documented, was likely James City, per the author’s hypothesis presented on p. 33]. 37. HGPM, 49. 38. Technically, Peter Montague was not an immigrant to America as he is so oft referred. He was a British citizen, traveling to a British Colony. With that said, he is nevertheless referred to as the immigrant ancestor for all his descendants who came afterward.
15 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
Boveney, the place where Peter was born, is a small hamlet, picturesquely situated on the river Thames, twenty-three miles above London, three miles from Eton college, that was founded in 1440 by Henry VI, while on the opposite side of the river in Berkshire is Windsor Castle, the residence of the Kings and Queens of England for the past 900 [now 1,000] years. In this vicinity the ancestors of Peter had resided, probably for 200 years before his birth. Here his childhood and youth were passed, and here he probably obtained a fair education, though there is no record that he was ever a member of Eton college. His uncle William Montague was a fellow of Kings college, Cambridge, and also of Eton.39 Newly discovered records concerning Peter Mountague and his family in England have uncovered some fascinating new details on Peter's birth place and the birth order of at least three of his siblings. A 1991 article in the Augustan Society Omnibus, by Arden H. Brame Jr., analyzes the value of these three newly discovered baptismal records to confirm that the birth order given in the Visitation of 1634 for Boveney was correct and that place of birth was likely Warfield, Berkshire Co. The newly discovered baptismal records reveal the following three siblings were also likely born at Warfield on the dates indicated: Richard Mountague, 29 May 1614; Margaret Mountague, 8 Mar 1617; and Robert Mountague, 27 Jan 1621/2. Ms. Hyde, in her article on p. 159, states:
The marriage of Peter and Ellen (Allen), as well as the baptisms of their children, occurred during the period of a gap in the extant registers of Burnham, the parish to which Boveney belonged. But William, undoubtedly their eldest child, was taken to neighboring Dorney and baptized there on 4 Mar 1596/7 as 'William Mountague the sonne of Peter Mountague of Bovenie'." Ms. Hyde, goes on to state, "The family moved to Warfield, Berkshire, by 1630, and perhaps years earlier.”
With this information and the new baptismal records, Mr. Brame revised (updated) the birth order in Ms. Hyde's article as follows: Ms. Hyde's birth order (shown parenthetically) is as listed in the 1634 visitation, where sons and daughters are intermingled without regard to their documented birth order other than for Peter and Richard):
BRAME’S UPDATED BIRTH ORDER OF PETER'S SIBLINGS 1. William Mountague 6 Mar 1596/7 at Dorney (no change) 2. Peter Mountague 1603 at Boveny (previously #3) — 11 year gap — 3. Richard Mountague 29 May 1614 at Warfield (previously #7) 4. Margaret Mountague 8 Mar 1617 at Warfield (previously #2) 5. Elizabeth Mountague about 1619 at Warfield (previously #4) 6. Robert Mountague 27 Jan 1621/2 at Warfield (no change) 7. Ann Mountague circa 1624 at Warfield (previously #5)
Mr. Brame concludes, "The Peter Mountague family may have removed to Warfield, Berkshire, by or slightly before 1600." The present author wonders how Peter’s family is counted in the 1634 census for Boveney if as Mr. Brame concludes, the family moved to Warfield, Berkshire Co. by, or slightly before, 1600; while Ms. Hyde concludes, “the family moved to Warfield, Berkshire, by 1630, and perhaps years earlier.” Clearly, they resided in Boveney in 1634, but when did they return to Boveney? One final observation: Note the gap of 11 years between Peter and Richard suggesting either a loss of several siblings and/or perhaps an undocumented first marriage for Peter’s father (prior to the documented Ellen). Asserting the convention of naming children to honor parents (Peter, the emigrant, named a daughter Ellen), it is almost certain that Ellen is the mother of Peter and all his siblings, and the gap is evidence of children lost due to complications of childbirth and/or infant diseases. Richard Montague, the celebrated divine, and bishop of Norwich, was his father's cousin. Peter's family consisted of his parents, an elder brother William, two, younger than himself―Richard and Robert―and three sisters, Elizabeth, Anne and Margaret. His father was an agriculturist, or was engaged in raising sheep, cattle, hogs, etc. This County was celebrated at that time for its beech trees, the
39. HGPM, 49.
16 Generation One nuts of which were said to be very nutritious for the feeding of swine which roamed through the woods at will. (ibid.) At the age of 18 years Peter sailed to Virginia, in America. (ibid.) HGPM cites no source for this statement, but the year is based on the census of 1624/5 in which Peter's age is stated as 21 years. Note Regarding Peter's birth date, two facts (the first documented, the second asserted) are acknowledged: (1), the muster roll of 1624/5 giving Peter's age as 21, and that he came in the Charles in 1621;40 and (2), at the age of 18 years Peter removed to Virginia, in America;41 and "He came in the ship Charles and landed in Virginia in the month of November, 1621".42 The only birth months which allow Peter to be 21 on the date of the muster range from 5 Feb 1602/3 to 4 Feb 1603/4. The birth year, 1603 (new date) is oft cited because most of the possible birth months fall within that year. If we factor in the second fact (really an assertion), that he was 18 years of age in Nov 1621, then his birth month is constrained to be somewhere between Mar and Aug. (See Introduction for full analysis.)
What motive led him to take this step is not known. (See Introduction for insight.) The oppressions of royalty, which at a later date sent so many to America, had not then begun. The Kingdom was at peace with all the world, and the King was loved by his people. There is a tradition43 in one branch of Peter's descendants which can be traced back as far as 1730, to the effect that "Peter was 'rather wild,' that he ran away from home, went to America, and not being 'in funds' had not the cash to pay for his passage and was sold for his passage money. The first half-day's work he did ruin his hands so that he had to rest. To pass the time he began to read his master's books, who caught him reading Latin, and soon obtained for him the position of a school teacher." The record of Peter's life in Virginia rather precludes the idea that he was "wild" to any alarming extent. If he ran away, records at least show that he was among those who came to America OPENLY and in a legal manner. The record is that he was "duly examined by the Minister at Gravesend [Eng.] touching his conformitie to the orders and discipline of the Church of England and took the oath of allegiance and supremicie to the King." It is
40. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 40. 41. HGPM, 49. 42. Ibid., 52. 43. Ibid., 50, footnote. This tradition is traced to Latane' Montague, son of Abraham of Essex Co., who was born about 1731, and if he received it from his father it would carry the date of it to A.D. 1700. It was a custom in the early settlement of America to sell political prisoners from England for a term of years by auction. There seems to be an impression that Virginia was settled by convicts from England. [See Introduction for fuller discussion.] No tradition ever existed which has so little foundation in fact. It has been stated that Hotten's Emigrant Lists were responsible for the tradition. We have examined Hotten's lists but do not find a single record showing that prisoners of any kind were sent there from England. The English used the Island of Barbadoes in the West Indies for the safe keeping of political prisoners, just as St. Helena was selected for Bonaparte. There is a difference between a convict and a political offender such as Hotten calls "convicted rebels." Charles I, Anne Bolin, Mary Queen of Scots, the first Napoleon, and hundreds of other royal personages have been political prisoners. At the time of the Monmouth rebellion, 1685, England sent a large number of "rebels" convicted of being concerned in that rebellion, to Barbados, men and women alike, many were the gentry, or persons brought up and nurtured in refinement and wealth. On the arrival of each ship these unfortunate prisoners were sold by auction for a term of years varying from five to ten years and the miseries inflicted upon them have never been half told, delicately reared ladies often were made to work in the fields. Those who lived to serve their time out were granted a ticket to go where they pleased. A few such went to Virginia and New England but the greater proportion of them went to St. Christopher, and other islands, and back to England. Every such record in Hotten's lists has been copied, with the result that "convicted rebels" who served out their time, who went to New England, [mostly to Boston] were 94; those who went to Virginia were 59; those who went to Carolina were 36. Thus as many went to New England as to both Virginia and Carolina combined. A study of the various Co. histories of England, and of the early emigration to both Virginia and New England, will show that the early emigrants of Virginia and New England, for the most part bore the same names, came from the same English Counties, and that the ancestry of both will meet in those English Counties. Surely no people can have a stronger claim to the same ancestry. Most, if not all of the early Virginia settlers left England in a legal manner, that is they took the oath of allegiance to the King and brought certificates from their ministers that they were loyal to the Church of England. After the accession of Charles I to the throne, there was a large emigration, mostly to New England, caused by excessive and unjust taxation. The "Ship Money" tax drove thousands to New England. They were "subsidy men" that is, men liable to the payment of a subsidy to the Crown, and of this the "ship money" was the most hateful. These men would not take the oath of allegiance and supremacy, and must have left secretly, and of such no record of departure would exist. It has not been found that any of this emigration went to Virginia. Hotten's Lists record only those who came legally and the larger part of the work is a record of St. Christopher, Barbadoes, and Virginia.
17 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne true he was under age, being only 18, and it is also true that no schools were founded until the arrival of the company with whom he came. It is quite possible that he may have been one of the founders of the first school established in Virginia.44 The ancient name of Virginia appears to have been Wingandacoa, it received the name of Virginia in honor of England's Virgin Queen―Elizabeth.45 [Note. Wingandacoa is derived from the name of the powerful Indian King called Wingina, whose name was given to honor those lands he ruled in Roanoke and surrounding Carolinas. The name was recorded in a travel diary by Arthur Barlowe, a young protégé of Sir Walter Raleigh, who co-captained the first voyage to Roanoke Island landing in 13 Jul 1584. Few realize that Sir Walter Raleigh himself never set foot upon Roanoke Island, or Virginia, or even North America, as popular legend would have it. Rather, Sir Walter Raleigh was the financier who outfitted three of the four expeditions that were sent to the Roanoke and Chesapeake Bay regions of Virginia between 1584 and 1590.]46 She died March 24, 1602/3 the same year that Peter Montague was born. This Queen was of Montague descent through her grandmother Elizabeth, daughter of Edward IV. On the same day and year of her death James the VI, of Scotland was proclaimed James the First, King of England. He too was of Montague descent through both his mother, Mary Queen of Scots, and his father, Henry lord [sic] Dernly.47 It was during the reign of this King James, and under his special care and protection, that the first Colony [sic] was established in Virginia.48 [This discussion of ancient royalty abstracted from HGPM, while true enough, should not be construed as being sufficient to support a claim for an unbroken lineage connecting Peter Montague, or any of the Boveney Montagues, to the royal line of Montagues extending back to Drogo De Montacu of Battle of Hastings fame.]
JAMESTOWNE AND PETER (1607S1621)
Note Technically, Jamestowne was never a colony―it was the first permanent settlement in the Virginia Colony. Virginia ceased being a British Colony on 4 Jul 1776. Its new status was militarily secured at Yorktown on 19 Oct 1781.
Little could even the most sanguine of the early emigrants to America have contemplated the subsequent effect which their action would work upon the world's history. Many of them were men of small means but they possessed large hearts and consciences. They were the seed grains from which the mighty Republic has sprung. Virginia was first visited by Sir Walter Raleigh in the year 1584,49 to whom the first Letters Patent were granted for making a Plantation there. But no colony was sent thither till the year [19 Dec] 1606 when the first adventurers set sail from Blackwall on the Thames with 105 colonists (not counting crew members) on three ships: the 100 ton Flagship, Susan Constant commanded by the one-armed Captain Christopher Newport; the 40 ton Godspeed commanded by Captain Bartholomew
44. HGPM, 49-50. 45. Ibid., 51. 46. Richard Hakluyt, The Principall Voyages, Traffiques, and Discourses of the English Nations (1599–1600) ( ?; reprint, New York: reprinted in Albert Bushnell Hart, ed., American History Told by Contemporaries, vol. I, 1898), 89–95. 47. HGPM, 51, footnote. Edmund Mortimer Earl of March, grandson of William Montague, by his dau. Philippa married Philippa, dau. of Lionel Duke of Clarence, son of King Edward III. From this marriage was descended Edward IV King of England and a long line of royal personages. Mary Queen of Scots and her husband lord Dernly were cousins. She was of Montague descent through her grandmother Margaret, the aunt of Queen Elizabeth and sister of Henry VIII who was married to James IV of Scotland. He was slain at Flodden Field, and Margaret re-married Archibald Douglas Earl of Angus and their dau. Margaret was the mother of Henry lord Dernly by her marriage with Mathew Stewart Earl of Lennox.–-[See Peerage of Scotland, 335, and Camden's Brit., 918, and Chronicles of the Kings by Sir R. Baker, 269; also Burke's Royal Families.]. 48. Ibid., 51. 49. Ibid. Not true. See note in previous paragraph describing Sir Walter Raleigh’s involvement.
18 Generation One
Gosnold; and the 20 ton Discovery commanded by Captain John Ratcliffe.50 The first to any purpose was in the year 1607 landing at Jamestown on 13 May 1607,51 under the conduct of Capt. Bartholomew Gosnoll (or Gosnold), Captain John Smith, and Mr. Edward Maria Wingfield, first chief councillor, who carried a colony thither of 105 [HGPM incorrectly states 100] persons, but of these many died of sickness, or were slain by the savages. Only one month later (Jun), there were 105 colonists still living, and by Jan 1608 the number had been reduced to 42 settlers remaining.52 A new supply (the first supply) included two supply ships: John & Francis, and the Phenix, arriving in the year 1608 the first ship arriving in Jan or Feb, again commanded by Christopher Newport. The second arriving in April, with 120 persons under the conduct of Captain Nelson. After which, in Oct 1608, a second supply ship, the Mary Margett carrying “three score and ten persons” [70 persons, mostly gentleman, few or no tradesmen whose numbers when added to the survivors, raised the overall population to under 120]; and in the year 160953, a "third supply" came [a fleet of 7 ships (Coldham states 9 ships54)]55 leaving England in Jun 1609 with all but one arriving at Jamestown on 11 Aug 1609. What happened to this missing seventh ship is an intriguing story in and of itself. The following narrative by Nell M. Nugent in Cavaliers and Pioneers, Vol. 1, describes the dramatic story:
“The seventh ship, the Sea Venture―Sir Thomas Gates' own vessel carrying some 100 settlers including Sir George Somers and Captain Newport, had been shipwrecked in the Bermuda islands. After nine months, the lost crew finally arrives on 20 May 1610. To accomplish this spectacular recovery, Sir Gates' men built two small boats (called Barques)―the Patience and the Deliverance―(ibid.), of 500 persons under a Patent granted to Sir Thomas West, lord Delaware, but conducted thither by Sir Thomas Gates [chosen under the second charter to be the "first and absolute Governor"] (ibid.), Sir George Summers, and others. Gates' auspicious arrival nine months latter on 20 May 1610 found Jamestowne in virtually complete ruin and desolation, finding no more than 60 settlers alive "most famished and at pointe of death, of whom many soon died." In less than a month, Sir Gates, with consent of his Council decided to abandon the settlement, and on 7 Jun 1610, the tiny and pathetic band of survivors boarded four small Barques (including the two built by Sir Gates in Bermuda) and started down the James River destined for Newfoundland. They had sailed only about 12 miles down river, when in one of the most divine acts of serendipity in all of New World history, the ragged band of survivors learned that a fourth supply of three ships was sailing up river toward them carrying the Honourable Lord [De] La Ware, 250 persons, new supplies, and fresh provisions―thus breathing new life and new hope into the momentarily abandoned settlement.” (ibid.)
In the year [22 May] 1611 was “a fifth supply” of 300 men [in three ships and three carvels, and carrying domestic animals and supplies] under the conduct of Sir Thomas Dale [HGPM incorrectly identifies Sir Thomas Gates] and reaching Jamestown after restoration stops at Forts Charles and Henry at the mouth of the Hampton River.56 In the year 1612 two other supplies “a sixth supply” were sent of forty men in each. In Apr 1614, Sir Thomas Gates returned to England in the Elizabeth, leaving the government with Sir Thomas Dale. In May 1616, at the time of Sir Dale's recall to England, only about
50. Virginius Dabney, Virginia: The New Dominion, A History from 1607 to Present (Charlottesville, Virginia: The University Press of Virginia, 1971), 1. Hereinafter cited as Virginia: The New Dominion. 51. Edward Wright Haile, editor, Jamestown Narratives, Eyewitness Accounts of the Virginia Colony, The First Decade: 1607S1617 (Champlain, Virginia: Roundhouse, 1998), 94. Eyewitness account written by Master George Percy. 52. Peter Wilson Coldham, The Complete Book of Emigrants, 1607–1660 (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1987), viii. Hereinafter cited as Emigrants, 1607–1660. 53. HGPM, 52, footnote. The 2d Charter of Va. Co. in England under date of May 23d 1609, contains the name of James Montague. [Hen. Va. Stat. 81, vo1. 1] The James Montague here mentioned was son of Sir Edward Montagu and brother of Henry, the first Earl of Manchester. He was first, master of Sidney College, Cambridge, where he was educated, afterward dean of the Chapel Royal, and then of Worcester. In 1603 he was made Bishop of Bath and Wells, and in 1611 Bishop of Winchester. He did not come to America. 54. Coldham, Emigrants, 1607S1660, viii. 55. Nell Marion Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants, 1623S1666, 7 volumes, (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1991), 1: xiii. Hereinafter cited as Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1. 56. Ibid., xiv.
19 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
300 persons were living in the Virginia Colony.57 The five-year tenure (1611S1616) of the Gates-Dale administration of the colonies provided the momentum, which finally established the Virginia colonies as an ongoing concern.58 It was during this time (Apr 1614), that John Rolfe's marriage to Pocahontas at Jamestown church helped to bind peace with the Indians―even if only for a few years.59 In the year 1618 Lord De La Warr came, with a supply of 200 people to take control of the Colony from Samuel Argall, but died at sea on June 7, 1618. [HGPM incorrectly states “Lord Delaware” [sic] died at Jamestowne.] As a result, Argall retained his office until the arrival of George Yeardley from England on 19 Apr 1619.]60 In 1617 (HGPM incorrectly records 1620), eleven ships were sent over with 1216 persons, and now (Jun 1617) they founded themselves into [4] Corporations [James City, Charles City, Henrico, and Kikotan (Elizabeth City)].61 In the year [Oct] 1621, Sir Francis Wyatt came over as Governor of the Colony, [replacing Sir Yeardley who retired from the governorship on 18 Nov 1621]62 in company with 1300 men, women and children, and now they founded schools and courts of justice; and the plantation was extended 140 miles up, on both sides of the James River. With this company was Peter Montague. He came in the ship Charles and landed in Virginia in the month of November 1621.63
THE GENEVA BIBLE, JAMESTOWNE, AND PETER. As Peter is now about to arrive on the scene, one wonders about the spiritual and cultural value system he shared with his contemporaries. The 1599 Geneva Bible, Four Hundredth Anniversary Edition,64 (www.genevabible.com) explores this perspective of the nature of those early planters who came to Jamestowne. The perspective written by Marshall Foster, D.D., Founder & President of The Mayflower Institute, for the Introduction of the 1599 Geneva Bible, captures brilliantly the spiritual and cultural sensibilities that motivated the early English colonists throughout the Jamestowne experience and is undoubtedly typical of Peter, his friends, and their governing leadership. The author gratefully acknowledges Tolle Lege Press of Liberty Alliance, LLC, for permission to allow select abstracts of Dr. Foster’s scholarly insight to be reprinted here.
“The Geneva Bible will be forever linked with the Jamestowne colony and the settling of the North American Continent by the English. ...In 1607 the Geneva translation had no rival. ...William Strackey, the secretary to the Virginia Company, arrived in Jamestown in 1609 and quoted from the Geneva Bible in writing his history of Virginia. ...Rev. Alexander Whitaker, who came in 1611, preached from the Geneva translation as observed in his surviving sermon notes. ...It was the Bible that John Rolfe likely would have used in the conversion of Pocahontas at Jamestown in 1611. ...It was the popular choice of serious Christians in and out of the Church of England. The Geneva was the Bible of the Puritans, the Separatists
AMERICA’S 400TH (e.g., the Pilgrims), and the Scots. It was small (6 ½ by 9 ½ inches) and portable and ANNIVERSARY was relatively inexpensive, costing about 5 pounds. In contrast to the Geneva Bible, EDITION the massive Bishops Bible, the only alternative to the Geneva, was poor competition. (1607S2007) It was twice the size, many times the cost and an inferior translation. “The permeating influence of the Geneva Bible from Plymouth in the north all the way to Virginia was profound. ...So popular was the Geneva Bible that between 1560 and 1644 at least
57. Ibid., xv. 58. Charles E. Hatch Jr., The First Seventeen Years, Virginia 1607–1624 (1957; reprint, Charlottesville and London: University Press of Virginia, 1995), 13. 59. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: xv. 60. Ibid., xvi. 61. Having inserted this comment after addressing the “1620, eleven supply ships”, suggests the compiler of HGPM, was under the impression the Corporations were formed after 1620. 62. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: xvii. 63. HGPM, 52. The year, but not the month, is documented in the census of 1624/5. 64. 1599 Geneva Bible Restoration Project, The 1599 Geneva Bible (1599; reprint, Whitehall, West Virginia: Tolle Lege Press, 2006- 2007).
20 Generation One
144 editions were published, compared to but four editions of the inferior Bishops Bible. The Geneva Bible lost its prominence only after the King James authorized version of 1611 was widely promoted by the King and Bishop Laud (later Archbishop of Canterbury and persecutor of Presbyterians), who outlawed the printing of the Geneva Bible in the realm. ... “The Puritan movement in England was at its zenith when Jamestown and Plymouth were settled in the 17th century. As these believers immigrated to America, far from the king’s henchmen, they became progressively more in favor of freedom of conscience and the limitation of the power of the government. America was born in the midst of this passionate spiritual explosion of love for God and knowledge of His Word. The remarkable soul of the unprecedented American “experiment” is to be found in this devotion. “Jamestown was the first settlement to build a permanent Protestant church in North America. America’s destiny as the ‘fountainhead of evangelical Christianity’ for the next four centuries was forged at Jamestown...The first settlement to establish representative government in the New World: the House of Burgesses in 1619. It was the initial assembly in America of representatives of the various towns around Jamestown who helped make laws for the Colony. The major power behind this critical step towards freedom was Sir Edwin Sandys. Sandys was an English parliamentarian, scholar, author, and pastor. He was well-grounded in the “rights of resistance” doctrines reasoned from Scripture by the Geneva Reformers and clearly expounded in the Geneva Bible. Sandys became the first business leader of the Virginia Company in 1619...The first to begin to practice the free-enterprise system in the colonies. In 1619, the settlers turned away from the failing welfare state and communal economics to private ownership and initiative. From Sandys’ economic reforms in Virginia to Governor William Bradford’s introduction of free enterprise at Plymouth Plantation in 1623, we see the seed of 400 years of overwhelming blessing.” [End of Abstracts]
Peter began life in the Anglican Church and, like many who came before and after him, the early Virginia Anglicans were Puritan and independent in their thinking and this greatly helped forge the spirit of American independence. Historian Sidney Ahlstrom says “an Anglicanism deeply colored by Puritan convictions would shape the early religious life of Virginia” making the founding of America basically a Puritan affair.65 As the first Bible to be read by the common people in English, the Geneva Bible inspired those who championed self-government, free enterprise, education, civic virtue, protection of women and children, and godly culture.66 In 1621, Peter enters this embryonic, pre-American environment and emerges the quintessential proto-American―land owner, business man, member of the Burgess, Sheriff, Church Elder. ------Peter was listed as one of 28 headrights transported at the expense of William Ewen, a merchant. The 1400 acres granted Mr. Ewen consisted of 400 acres by a patent granted him 15 Sep 1619, "& 1,000 acs. by patent granted him―of Jan 1621 also due for trans. of 28 pers….67 Jan 1621 is more correctly Jan 1621/2 (1622 new date), as Peter came to Virginia in the ship Charles in Nov 1621, at age 18. By endeavoring to know something of Peter's shipmates from the Charles and the course of their lives, we have gained insights into the motivating influences for the events in Peter’s time line. The ship Charles is known to have made the transatlantic crossing to Jamestowne three times: 1616, 1621, and 1624.68 Table 2 lists the 9 (possibly 10) shipmates, who came in the same ship (Charles), at the same time, and were his fellow passengers. Three years after the muster, two of the men, William Lusam and William Feild, are found to be engaged with Peter upon the same plantation [in James City (later Warwick), north side of James River. (Curiously, the ages given in HGPM, are consistently three years
65. 1599 Geneva Bible Restoration Project, The 1599 Geneva Bible (1599; reprint, Whitehall, West Virginia: Tolle Lege Press, 2006S2007), xviii. 66. Ibid., xx. 67. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: 176. 68. This is known from analysis of the number of times the Charles appears in the musters of the colony and in Coldham, Emigrants, 1607–1660.
21 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne younger than what is documented in the musters.) Following Table 2 is a brief accounting of these 9 (possibly 10) shipmates, who they were, and where they went:
Table 2. Peter Montague’s Charles Shipmates
PETER’S SHIPMATES WHERE RESIDED IN THE MUSTER OF AGE IN AGE IN ( *NOT IDENTIFIED IN HGPM) 1624/1625 MUSTER HGPM Randall Crew69 Shirley Hundred at Charles Cittie 20 17 Niccolas Browne70 Edward Waters in Elizabeth Cittie 18 15 William Feild71 Capt. Matthews’ Plantation (southside) 23 20 *William Hartley (ibid.) Edward Blaney’s plantation at James Citty 23 - John Hely72 Jordans Jorney at Charles Cittie 24 21 William Lusam73 Capt. Matthews’ Plantation at James Cittie 27 24 Robert Manuell74 Jordans Jorney at Charles Cittie 25 22 *Robert (Roger) Ruce75 Capt William Pierces at Mulbury Isle not given - Adam Thorogood76 Edward Waters in Elizabeth Cittie 18 15 *Daniell Wattkins77 Paces Paines near James Citty not given -
a. Randall Crew. Born about 1604, he was listed as a 20-year old servant in the Jan 1624/5 muster of Mrs. Katherine Benett (widow) at West and Shirley Hundred (north side of James River), Charles Cittie, along with her infant son, William Benett, aged 3 weeks.78 All the rest were dead, including her husband the minister William Benet [sic]. Three were killed in the Indian massacre of Mar 1622. He married (1), Mrs. Elizabeth Smalley, the much older, and childless, widow of Capt. Robert Smalley, who had come to Virginia in 1614. She died in 1638, and he married (2), Dorothy Beheathland. He was a Burgess from Upper Norfolk Co., in 1640, 1643, and 1644; and from Warwick Co. from 1645S1647. He died before Feb 1654/5 when his wife returned the inventory of his estate to Warwick Co. Court. He had two sons, Robert and Beheathland. Being also a Burgess from Upper Norfolk Co., (renamed Nansemond Co., after 1642/3) in 1640S45 time frame, Peter was almost certainly lifelong friends with Randall, being involved at some level in one another's lives. Both having lands in Nansemond, they were practically neighbors. It was later, in 1652, after Randall moved across the river to Warwick Co., that Peter also became a Burgess from Nansemond Co. b. Niccolas Browne. Born about 1606, he was listed as an 18-year old servant in the Jan 1624/5 muster of Mr. Edward Waters in Elizabeth Cittie,79 along with his, soon-to-be, very successful Charles shipmate, Adam Thorogood. In Oct 1639, Niccolas Browne is mentioned as one of several men who had
69. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, Virginia, 4th ed., 1: 16. 70. Ibid., 60. 71. Ibid., 40. 72. Ibid., 17. 73. Ibid., 40. 74. Ibid., 17. 75. Ibid., 47. 76. Ibid., 60. 77. Ibid., 39. 78. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 16. 79. Ibid., 1: 60.
22 Generation One certified a note on 7 Nov 1634.80 Next, on 11 Jan 1655, is a record of "Walter Harry of Bryngwyn, Monmouth, husbandman, bound to Nicholas Browne of Chepstow, Monmouth, yeoman, to serve 4 years in Barbados."81 And in the only other record, 22 Jul 1658, Nicholas Browne, yeoman, and John Browne, yeoman, bound to Humphry Diggens of Bristol, mariner, to serve 7 years in Barbados."82 If these three records concern the same Niccolas Browne, he probably had little to do with Peter. If these are merely other men by the same name, then it is likely that this Niccolas died early on in the Colony, perhaps in the 1644 Indian massacre, as there is no further evidence as to the whereabouts or fate of Niccolas Browne of the ship Charles. c. William Feild [sic]. Born about 1601, he was listed as a 23-year old servant in the Jan 1624/5 muster of Captain Mathews' Plantation at James Citty (south side of James River), along with two Charles shipmates, Peeter Montecue [sic], William Lusam, and 20 other servants; as well as Capt. Samuell Mathews and Mr. David Sands, a minister.83 Cavaliers and Pioneers, Vol. I, by Nugent, shows no less than seven people by the name of William Field being transported by persons receiving land patents. There appear to be no records documenting the activities or fate of any of these seven William Fields. While Peter and William Field spent their indenture time (5-7 years) together at Capt. Mathews' plantation, it is impossible to know what became of Peter’s shipmate William Feild. Interestingly, James Feild, aged 20 coming in the Swan in 1624 is listed as a servant with Anne Slater (not a servant), age 17 years coming over in the Guyst in 1622. Anne Slater is at the top of the author’s list of candidates for Peter’s first wife. See Table 3 (p. 34), Candidates for Peter Montague’s First Wife Named Anne/Ann. d. William Hartley. Born about 1601, he was listed as a 23-year old in the Jan 1624/5 muster of Mr. Edward Blaneys plantation "over ye water" in James Cittie, along with 14 others. (ibid.) None of these people are listed as "servant," although most, if not all, were undoubtedly servants. Although he arrived on the Charles, it is not certain that he came over with Peter in 1621. He may have arrived earlier in 1621 or later in 1624. Edward Blaneys' and Capt. Mathews' plantation were two of about five plantations situated as neighbors across the water from Jamestown. There is only one other record, dated 29 Sep 1655, showing a William Hartley, merchant, of Barbados.84 But for some trade relations, Peter probably had very little contact with William Hartley of Barbados. e. John Hely. Born about 1600, he was listed as a 24-year old servant in the 21 Jan 1624/5 muster of Mr. William Ferrar and Mrs. Jordan at Jordans Jorney, Charles Cittie, along with his Charles shipmate, Robert Manuell and 8 other servants.85 Also listed were William Ferrar and Sisley Jordan (soon to marry one another) and her three daughters by two previous marriages. Although there is no further record of John Hely or Robert Manuell, either one of them, or both, may have introduced their shipmate Peter Montague to Sisley/Cicely Jordan. This possibility is explored further in the narrative for Cicely, Peter's second wife. f. William Lusam. Born about 1597, he was listed as a 27-year old servant in the Jan 1624/5 muster of Captain Mathews' Plantation at James Citty (south side of James River), along with two Charles shipmates, Peeter Montecue [sic], William Feild, and 20 other servants; as well as Capt. Samuell [sic] Mathews and Mr. David Sands, a minister.86 As with shipmate William Feild, there appear to be no further records of his activities in the Colony, and it is impossible to know what became of him. g. Robert Manuell. Born about 1599, he was listed as a 25-year old servant in the 21 Jan 1624/5 muster of Mr. William Ferrar and Mrs. Jordan at Jordans Jorney, Charles Cittie, along with his Charles
80. Coldham, Emigrants, 1607–1660, 208. 81. Ibid., 283. 82. Ibid., 387. 83. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 40. 84. Coldham, Emigrants, 1607–1660, 297. 85. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 17. 86. Ibid., 1: 40.
23 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne shipmate, John Hely, and 8 other servants.87 Also listed were William Ferrar and Sisley Jordan (soon to marry one another) and her 3 daughters by two previous marriages. Although there is no further record of either John Hely or Robert Manuell, either one of them, or both, may have introduced their shipmate Peter Montague to Sisley Jordan. This possibility is explored further in the narrative for Cicely, Peter's second wife. h. Robert (Roger) Ruce. Born ___, he was listed in the 25 Jan 1624/5 muster [not a servant] of Capt. William Pierces at Mulbury Island, along with 28 other colonists.88 Mulberry Island is situated nearby to the west of Blount Point--the location of Capt. Samuel's plantation on the north side of the river. There was only one person, Thomas Read, aged 65 years, listed as servant. There is no further record of Robert (or Roger) Ruce in Cavaliers and Pioneers, and it is likely he died or left the Colony at some point. i. Adam Thorogood (also Thorowgood). Born about 1603, he was listed incorrectly as an 18-year old (should be 21-year old) servant in the Jan 1624/5 muster of Mr. Edward Waters in Elizabeth Cittie, along with his Charles shipmate, Niccolas Browne and four other servants.89 His age, 18 years, is known to be incorrectly recorded because his baptismal date, 1603, was documented at St. Botolph's, the parish church of Grimston, Norfolk, England. He became one of the most prominent and wealthiest men in the Colony. On 30 Dec 1626, as "Captain Adam Thorogood, Gen., of Kiquotan",90 he purchased 150 acres on the north side of Hampton Roads. This strongly suggests he served only a five-year indenture. He returned to England, where he married, 18 Jul 1627, Sarah Offley, baptized 16 Apr 1609. He received a huge patent, on 24 Jun 1635, for 5,350 acres at Lynnhaven, Lower Norfolk Co., where he moved his family from the north side of Hampton Roads. His will, was dated 17 Feb 1639/40 and recorded 27 Apr 1640. His widow, Sarah, was remarried by 2 May 1641. j. Daniell Wattkins. Born _____, he was listed in the 4 Feb 1624/5 muster of inhabitants [not as servant] of the Neck-of-Land near James Citty at Paces Paines (south of the James),91 along with five servants and seven other colonists, including Thomas Gates by the Swan in 1609. HGPM did not identify him as one of Peter's shipmates on the Charles. No other records have been found to reveal where he went or what he did in the Virginia Colony. [The census of Jan 1624/5 reported 1,232 people in the Virginia Colony.92 Of 500 men, women and children, who were alive in late 1609, only 60 were alive with the coming of spring.93 From 1607 to 1624, it is estimated about 7,000 to 7,200 people came to the Virginia Colony. Of these about one-seventh (about 1,000) or so survived. During those years approximate starvation prevailed, many lost their minds, and savage enemies lurked about them at all times.94 After 1624, the recorded population of Virginia had grown from less than 1,500 in 1624 to an estimated 5,000 in 1635.95] Where he went, or what he did for the first two years, no record has been found to say. In a list of the living and dead in Virginia, taken Feb'y 16, 1623/4, his name does not appear. He may have visited the Bermudas during this time, or the list itself may be at fault. In the Muster Roll of the inhabitants of Va., taken Jan'y 23, 1624 [1624/5], his name is found as residing on the plantation of Capt. Samuel Mathews at James City and gives Peter's age as 21, and states that he came in the Charles in 1621.
CAPTAIN SAMUEL MATHEWS’ PLANTATIONS. Until Jun 1626, Samuel Mathews had two plantation sites—one on the north side of the James River (Blunt Point on the north side at the mouth of Warwick
87. Ibid., 1: 17. 88. Ibid., 1: 47. 89. Ibid., 1: 60. 90. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 3: 326. 91. Ibid., 1: 39. 92. Ibid., xii-xiii. 93. Dabney, Virginia: The New Dominion, 19. 94. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: xiii. 95. Coldham, Emigrants, 1607S1660, ix.
24 Generation One
River) and a second on the opposite southside.96 At this time Peter lived on Mathews' southside plantation as stated in the Muster of 1624/5 showing Peter at the "Muster of Mr. Edward Blaneys Men over ye Watter" at Capt. Mathews' Plantation.97 This clearly places Peter on the southside of the James River in the Corporation of James City in what, in 1634, would be renamed Warrosquyoake County, and then Isle of Wight County in 1637. The Jan 1623/4 census, lists Capt. Samuel Mathews himself "at the plantation over against James City," (northside plantation), but a year later is recorded in the 1624/5 census on the south side plantation, "with Mr. David Sands, the minister, and a company of twenty men."98 (of which Peter was one). While Capt. Mathews had two plantations, he had but a single muster of men (based on the 1624/5 census), and that muster was at the cleared land on the south side of the James River. Mathews ultimately relinquished this southside plantation in a court dispute brought by the heirs of Capt. William Powell, on 19 Dec 1625. (ibid.) It seems that when Capt. Mathews returned to Virginia in Nov 1622, he had a patent granted for undertaking the transport of 100 persons to the Virginia Colony. About a month later he seems to have been interested in Capt. Powell's cleared ground across the water from Jamestown. The author believes this land is correctly identified as part of the 1200 acres granted Col. Henry Bisshop [Bishop] at James City Co., 20 Oct 1646, which, in part, states it was part of a 600 acres patent granted to Capt. William Powell.99 Mathews evidently seated on it and Powell loaned him 'the howses of the upper fort for the use of his servants. Shortly after this, about Jan 1622/3, Capt. Powell was killed, probably on the Chickahominy River, chasing down Indians after the massacre of Mar 1621/2,100 thus setting up the aforementioned dispute, in which Capt. Mathews ended up moving back to the north side of the James River near Blunt Point. Capt. Mathews had at least two separate patents in the area of Warwick River (both recorded, 20 Aug 1642)―the first being 3,000 acres butting upon west side of Warwick River101 and the second being 200 acres near Deep Creek east of Warwick River.102 This Samuel Mathews was afterward Governor of the Colony [1656].103
96. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 636. 97. Ibid., 1: 40. 98. Ibid., 2: 636. 99. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: 165, "On the S. side of James River commonly called by the name of Lower Chipoak [now Chippokes Creek]. Adj. lands of William Carter & William Nusum. Due sd. Bishop as followeth: 600 acs. part of a patent granted to Capt. William Powell, which land descended to George Powell, son & heir to sd. Capt. Powell, since deceased & afterwards for want of an heir was escheated, then granted to Sir William Berkeley, by whom it was assigned with the rights thereunto belonging to Col. Bishop, & 600 acs. for trans. of 12 pers:", citing Patent Book No. 2, 81. 100. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 765, footnote 7, Capt Powell came to Virginia in 1611 with Sir Thomas Gates and was a member of the first Virginia Assembly, 30 Jul 1619. 101. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: 133, the description continues "somewhat S. Bounded on N. with Pottash quarter Cr., adj. Christopher Boyce". 102. Ibid., 134, described as "Beg. at Munie Point, near land of Francis Rice & Robert Draper", then on p. 174, the Francis Rice patent is described as "at the miles end of his first devident, near Merry point, adj. Thomas Owen, etc. Mr. Thomas Davis, upon Deep Cr." 103. HGPM, 52, footnote. Capt. Samuel Mathews, upon whose plantation Peter Montague resided, came from England in the ship Southhampton in 1622, in the same ship came Robert Mathews, who was probably his younger brother. Associated with him was David Sands the minister. Their plantation [there were two plantations] was at James City. Campbell's Hist. of Virginia, 209, says, "Capt. Samuel Mathews was one of the Council in 1643, he had a fine house, sowed much hemp and flax and had it spun. He kept weavers, and had a tannery, where leather was dressed, and had eight shoe-sowed large crops of wheat and barley. He also supplied vessels trading with Va. with beef. He had plenty of cows, a fine dairy, a large number of hogs and poultry. In 1656 he was governor of the Colony." He married [(1), 24 Mar 1627/8, Frances Greville, widow of Nathaniel West and of Abraham Peirsey, she was dead by 1633; and (2), about 1634, ______a dau. of Sir Thomas Hinton (1575S1635)]. Capt. Mathews went to England on business for the Colony in 1657 and died there. Lord Amherst was Governor in 1658. —[See Blake's Biog. Dict., N. Y., 1835.] The following from Mr. Alex. Brown, Norwood, Virginia, author of Genesis of U. S., Col. Samuel Mathews was sent to England as agent for Virginia in 1652. He returned to Virginia in 1657. On March 13, 1657-8 he was chosen by the Assembly to act as Governor until the next Assembly, or until "the further pleasure of the supreme power of England shall be knowne." On March 7, 1658S9 the Assembly elected him Governor for two years. He died during his term of office in Jan'y, 1659S60, and at the next meeting of the Assembly, in March, 1659-60, Berkeley was chosen to succeed him. His second wife, [Frances Greyville] the widow of Abraham Percy [also Peirsey], was when Percy married her, the widow of Capt. Francis West. Mathews left two sons (Thomas and Samuel) by his first wife and very probably other sons and daughters. Founders of Maryland, by Rev. E. D. Neill, 49, says Sam'l Mathews came to Virginia, 1622 in ship (continued...)
25 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
ORIGINAL PLANTER (1621S1659) No further record of Peter has been found until the year 1637. Between the muster of 1624/5 and 22 Aug 1637, when he received his first land patent, Peter appears in extant records only twice. The first appearance is 19 Jul 1627, aged 24 years: “William Bonham, William Felgate, Nathaniel Snell, William Bootheby, Walter Ashton, Robert Eyre, Thomas Collins, Stephen Beale, Edward Clark, John Robinson, William Webb, Toby Fellgate, Peter Mountague, Robert Haye, and Edward Hard ship goods in the James. Mr. Toby Felgate, bound from London to Virginia, 19 Jul 1627.”104 This record is complemented by an earlier one which references Peter's father, dated 9 July 1627: "In the James of London, Toby Felgate master, for Virginia. Peter Montague, native, exporting wheatmeal, cloth, 2 small bibles, 28 small English books, shoes, gloves, ribbons, clothing, oatmeal, tobacco pipes, gingerbread, nutmegs, ginger butter. 9 July 1627.105 The following reference in the Augustan Society Omnibus, 76, by Arden H. Brame, although not referencing Peter the adventurer directly, probably refers to Peter's Uncle William (brother of Peter's father), dated 16 Aug 1627: “William Perkins, William Mountague, John Compton, Thomas Grindon, Michell [sic] Marchant/Marshall, William Peacocke, Thomas Harwood and William Olbery ship goods in the Truelove, Mr. Thomas Gibbs bound from London to Virginia 16 August 1627.”106 The second record identifying Peter is dated 3 Mar 1631/2, aged 28 years, when he witnessed the will of Andrew Howell.107 The Muster of 1624/5, shows Andrew Howell, "aged 13 yeres", listed as servant at James Citty, in the muster of Mr. Edward Blaney,108 where Peter was also listed in the "Muster of Mr. Edward Blaneys Men over ye Watter" at Capt. Mathews Plantation.109 Not surprisingly, it seems here that servants within musters likely established lasting friendships amongst themselves. On 10 Apr 1642, there is this Dutch notarial record of the city of Rotterdam, Holland, No. 159, Notary: Jan van Allen. “I, John Glover, English Merchant living in this City authorize herewith Jan van Allen, public notary of this city, to act for me and in my name, representing the interests of Pieter Montague for 13 barrels, and of Rebecca Ebens? [or Evans] for 8 barrels, and of Vilyat [Williard or William] Rippen for 9 barrels of tobacco, all brought from Virginia in the ship Elizabeth & Helen, William Wilkinson, master, to this city and stored in Abraham Cheppert's [Sheppard's] warehouse.”110 The bracketed names were added by Arden H. Brame Jr., author of the earlier cited article. Mr. Brame, speculates on the nature of his Holland trade as the genesis for his deep, personal friendship for Captain Meindert Doodes whose two children married two of Peter’s children (Peter II and Elizabeth):
103. (...continued) Southampton, lived at Blunts Point, a little distance above [northwest of] Newport News. The following from Mr. Paul Caine, Louisville, KY: Capt. Sam'l Mathews came to Virginia, 1622; was commissioner to examine into the condition of the Colony, 1623; Commissioner of Warwick Co. 1631, Member of the Council 1624–44, elected to the Council April, 1652, elected Governor Dec, 1656, and held the place until his death, 1658. He married (1), a dau. of Sir Thomas Hinton of Chilton Foliot Eng. [who at one time lived in Va. and was member of the Council], married (2), before 1638-9, the widow of Abraham Percy [Frances Greyville] of Virginia. Two sons were certainly the issue of the first marriage, namely Thomas Mathews of Stafford Co., Member of House of Burgesses, 1676, supposed to be author of T. M's account of Bacon's rebellion, and Lieut. Col. Samuel Mathews of Warwick Co., Member of House of Burgesses, April, 1652-1654, Member of Council, 1655, died 1670, leaving a son John then under age. Hen. Virginia. Stat., vol. I, 528, says, "Col. Samuel Mathews died Jan'y, 1659-60." The quotation seems to imply that he died in Virginia. 104. Coldham, Emigrants, 1607–1660, citing documents (E190/31/1) at Public Record Office, Chancery Lane, London WC2A 1LR, England. 105. Arden H. Brame Jr., "The One and Only Peter Mountague (1603–1659) of Warfield, Berkshire, England and Nansemond, Isle of Wight, and Lancaster Counties, Virginia," The Augustan Society Omnibus, volume 13 (1991): 76, citing, The Port of London Port Book-Searcher dated Xmas 1626-Xmas 1627 at E190/31/3 fo. 99 as published by Coldham, Peter Wilson. 1987. The Complete Book of Emigrants 1607–1660. Gen. Pub. Co., Baltimore, 79. 106. Coldham, Emigrants, 1607S1660, 76, citing, The Port of London Port Book-Searcher dated Xmas 1626-Xmas 1627 at E190/31/1 as published by Coldham, Peter Wilson. 1987; also, Emigrants 1607S1660, 79. 107. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 652, footnote 3, citing York Co. Deeds, Orders, Wills &c 1, 1633–94, 33. 108. Ibid., 1: 33. 109. Ibid., 1: 40. 110. Coldham, Emigrants, 1607S1660, 76.
26 Generation One
The above record shows that Peter Mountague (1603S1659) was an active merchant in Virginia as his then deceased father and uncle had been in England.” As an aside, it may have been in connection with his merchant business with Holland that he first met the Sea Captain, Meindert Doodes (later transliterated to Doodes Minor), in Nansemond Co., Virginia. The two families of Mountague and Doodes probably moved together in 1653/4 to Lancaster Co., [south side of the Rappahannock River], where Doodes Minor (son of Meindert Doodes) married Peter’s daughter Elizabeth around 1671; while her brother, Peter [born circa 1636], had married Doodes’ sister, Mary Meindert/Minor by 1664 [see narrative for Peter [5], and Appendix B].
From 1624 to 1637, thirteen years! he had reached the age of thirty-four―had married, and from his continuing to enter land in Upper Norfolk (renamed Nansemond Co. in 1642/3), no doubt can exist that he had removed his residence to that County. That Peter was in Nansemond Co. in 1639 is documented in this newly discovered record published by Mr. Brame: "Thomas Travers, gent. plt. vs. William Hobbs, gent. et. al. 19 May 1656. James Davye, now a prisoner in the Fleet, London, esq. aged 50 deposes that 17 years ago he was a planter in Virginia, and says that he has heard that Richard Hobbs was a planter there in Nansemond in Virginia and that he was formerly a goldsmith in London. He has heard it credibly reported by Thomas Davie, John Garratt and Peter Mountague, all old planters, that the sd. Richard Hobbs was gone thence to Barbados …".111 The above record referring to Thomas Davie places Peter Mountague in Nansemond County in 1639 as Thomas Davie and John Garratt were neighbors of Peter Mountague at Chuckatuck River (formerly New Town Haven River), Nansemond Co., Virginia.112 [Note. Upper Norfolk consisted of what is now [Suffolk City]. The present Norfolk and Princess Anne Counties were called lower Norfolk until 1691.] The Clerk's office and all the records of Nansemond were destroyed by fire in 1736 [Hening's Statutes, vol. 4, 526], and all the records were again destroyed by fire in February, 1866, and the history of Peter Montague during these years is entirely and irrevocably lost.113 By 1647, Peter had patented four land grants, all south of the James River. The earliest patent (1637) lies on the east side of what is today Portsmouth city on the Elizabeth River; the second patent (1638) lies in the Ragged Islands Wildlife Management area just two or three miles inside Isle of Wight Co. on the James River from the Suffolk City line; the third (1645) and fourth (1647) patents lie within Suffolk city lying on and near the present day Chuckatuck River. These patents have been plotted and documented for the first time by the author and can be referenced at Appendix D. As just noted, on 3 Nov 1647, Peter bought one hundred acres of land in Nansemond County [Virginia Land Office, Book 2, 130]. An obvious question here is why Peter is acquiring land in this area at this time. The answer will always be, necessarily, speculative unless new records are uncovered. The author submits that the likely answer is the second (and last) great Indian massacre that occurred on 18 Apr 1644. In excess of 500 colonists were butchered (more than the estimated 347 butchered in the first massacre of 1622), again by the same chief Opechancanough. Most vulnerable to the threat of Indian massacre were frontier settlements near the heads of the rivers and below the James river―exactly like the Ragged Islands location of his 1638 Isle of Wight patent. The relative safety of the interior along the New Town Haven River (Chuckatuck River) is where Peter and his family were likely living during the 1644 massacre. This makes a total of 450 acres of land which he owned in that [Nansemond] County, the purchase of which extended from 1637 to 1647―a space of ten years. This land is not mentioned in his will and probably he gave it to his son Peter, as we find son Peter disposing of land in that Co. after his father's death. This was the 100-acre Chuckatuk River patent granted to his father on 3 Nov 1647, and reassigned by his son Peter to John Turner on 11 Mar 1664 as part of 300 acres granted John Turner.114 Peter’s other three patents were reassigned by him during his lifetime as follows: the 1637 patent at Elizabeth River was assigned to Thomas Marsh (alias Rivers) on 21 Mar 1639; and the 1645 patent was
111. Arden H. Brame Jr., "The One and Only Peter Mountague (1603–1659)," The Augustan Society Omnibus, volume 13 (1991): 76, citing C24/798/101. 112. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: 156, patent of Thomas Davis showing Thomas Jordan who along with Davie and Garratt were neighbors of Peter Montague. 113. HGPM, 54. 114. Ibid., 1: 479.
27 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne assigned to John Thomas, 19 Nov 1654.115 There seems to be no record of how Peter disposed of his 25 Feb 1638/9 and presumably it was abandoned. That his mind often reverted to his family in England is evidenced by the fact that his children are named after his brothers and sisters in his native country, and the names of William, Peter, Ann, Margaret and Elizabeth are perpetuated in the new world. Having still another daughter he named her after his mother―Ellen (or Eleanor). (ibid.) Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2:653, gives the order of birth (without rationale) of Peter’s children as: Anne, Ellen, Peter II, Margaret, William, and Elizabeth. Only Peter II's birth date is approximately stated. Of the exact date of the birth of his children no records exists. The author submits the following working hypothesis that sometime around 1636, he moved his first wife (name unknown) and three children to his newly patented 150 acres in Nansemond Co., bounded on the north by the Elizabeth River and on the east by the Southern Branch (now Portsmouth City) and where it is most probable that his fourth child, Peter, was born about 1636. This location was relatively remote from Jamestowne. However, by 1639, perhaps due to remoteness and their vulnerability to the Indians, Peter had reassigned this patent on 21 Mar 1639 to Thomas Marsh, alias Rivers,116 and either removed his family to the site of his second land patent on Ragged Islands (Isle of Wight Co.) or, more likely, to the Chuckatuck River patents (Nansemond Co.). It was previously documented that Peter was in Nansemond Co. in 1639. In all probability, per the author’s hypothesis, between about 1639 and 1642 at the site of his Chuckatuck River patents, his remaining two children, William and Elizabeth, were born and not as HGPM suggests in the next sentence which follows: “There is no doubt that they were faithfully recorded in the church records of that County [then part of Lancaster, now Middlesex], but those records have shared the fate of other early church records of Virginia. No church records exist back of Nov 30, 1743.”117 This statement in HGPM is true for Christ Church Lancaster; however, the earliest record for Christ Church Parish Middlesex is 12 Sep 1653. “Nansemond was divided into two parishes, Lower or Suffolk parish, and the Upper parish in which was the town of Suffolk. In the Lower parish were two old brick churches, one on the left and the other on the right bank of the Nansemond River, each about ten miles from Suffolk. On a hill one mile back of Suffolk was an old graveyard, a very beautiful spot. But it too has disappeared, having long since been plowed up.” (ibid.) It is known that Peter was still residing in Nansemond in 1652 and 1653 as he represented that County in the House of Burgesses under dates of Nov 25, 1652, and July 5, 1653, and Col. Samuel Mathews was a member from County of Warwick during the same time [Hen. Va. Stat. vol. 1, 373S79]. Peter's children were probably born in this County. (ibid.) George Wm. Montague makes a most unfortunate and damaging observation in an otherwise excellent work of genealogy when writing: “Probably before the year 1654 he had removed his family from Nansemond to Lancaster Co. and made a home on the north bank of the Rappahannock River, probably not far from the present county seat of Lancaster.” (ibid.) A full and complete review of all available records related to Peter Montague, prove that Peter never owned any land on the North bank of Rappahannock! This observation is fully and clearly deconstructed in Appendix B and proves Peter was not buried on the North bank of the Rappahannock as Mr. Montague asserts toward the end of his narrative for Peter. That he settled on the south bank of the Rappahannock River, Lancaster Co. (now Middlesex Co.) is documented here and should settle the matter. “About 1654, [1653 is more likely] he moved his family to the Northern Neck Lancaster Co. where a number of Nansemond planters had gone to take up land after peace had been effected with the Indians in 1645.”118 That he owned considerable land along the river in Lancaster as early as 1651 or 1652 can
115. Ibid., 1: 297. 116. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: 122. 117. HGPM, 54. 118. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 652.
28 Generation One scarcely admit of a doubt, though the records that are preserved at Lancaster do not show it.”119 Again, he never owned land on northside Rappahannock River. (See Appendix B for full analysis.) Jan'y 16, 1657/8, he was granted 200 acres on the Rappahannock River [Virginia Land Office Book 4, 340, now Middlesex Co.] and this is the last recorded purchase he ever made. “He had now become a large landowner and a leading citizen of the Virginia Colony, an intelligent man of moral worth and of influence. He represented the County of Lancaster in the Assembly from 1651 to 1658. [Hist. of Virginia by R. R. Howson, p. 309-10] "In 1657S58, he represented the County of Lancaster in the House of Burgesses at James City." ―See Hen. Stat., vol. 1, 431. Failing health at this time no doubt was the cause of his resigning his official duties in that capacity.120 In his will, dated March, 1659, he says he is "weak of body but of perfect memory." “He was a member of the Established Church [Anglican], and the absence of church records will not prevent the fact being recorded here—that he was a leading member, prominent in all good works, one of the founders of the church in Virginia.” (ibid.) The following discussion abstracted from HGPM regarding White Chapel and Christ Church, is written within the context of Peter living on the north side of the Rappahannock, which as noted here is incorrect. While this church history is generally important it is not directly relevant to the church life of Peter Montague. (See Appendix B for updated discussion of the Church parishes in Lancaster and Middlesex counties relevant to Peter and his family.)
There were two parishes in Lancaster on the north side of the river, St. Marys and Christ Church. The White Chapel Church was in the parish of St. Marys. These two parishes were afterward united into that of Christ Church, Lancaster. The first vestry book known was dated 1654. The church [Christ Church] was completed in 1670 under the direction of Mr. John Carter, the great ancestor of many bearing that name in Virginia. The present church, built upon the same spot by Mr. Robert Carter [known as King Carter] son of John, and was completed in 1732. In 1654, Rev. Samuel Cole was the minister of this church, [the same who was minister in Middlesex in 1664]. He was at that time minister for the whole county—both sides of the river. After him the Rev. Andrew Jackson was minister, and he was succeeded by Rev. John Bell, who was minister from 1713 to 1743. Rev. David Currie succeeded him until his death in 1791, nearly fifty years. From 1796 to 1805, Rev. Daniel McNaughton was minister and James Ball, William Montague, and Martin Shearman were lay delegates. In 1732 a new church was built upon the site of the old one and was standing in 1857 in a good state of preservation, being very solidly built, the walls three feet thick. The first White Chapel church was torn down, and the present one was built in 1740. In 1724, Mr. Bell, who had been their minister for twelve years, informs the Bishop of London that there were 300 families in the parish. The name of John Washington of Westmoreland appears on the records of this church. The graveyard is full of the family of Balls." [Bishop Meades Old Churches of Virginia.] Having digressed for the purpose of recording this brief history of the old church, which Peter Montague attended, and probably was one of the founders, his own history will be continued.
PETER’S CONTROVERSIAL BURIAL As HGPM concludes its narrative of Peter’s life, the compiler, George Wm. Montague, compounds his earlier mistake regarding Peter’s residing on the north side of the Rappahannock River with the observation that he “was buried on the north bank of the Rappahannock, near his home”:
The occupation of Peter was that of a planter. His crops consisting of wheat, barley and tobacco, which was exported to England. There was much in this spot, upon this broad and grandly flowing river, to remind Peter of his old home upon the Thames in England, and here his last days were passed, among the solitudes of a new world. Here he peacefully passed away, surrounded by his wife, his children and neighbors, and with full and firm trust in his Redeemer and Savior. He died the last of April or the first of May, 1659, and was buried on the north bank of the Rappahannock, near his home. His tombstone was standing as late as 1849, but much defaced by the hand of time.121
119. HGPM, 54-5. 120. Ibid., 55. 121. HGPM, 56.
29 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
The incorrect statement (italicized above) regarding Peter’s burial “on the north bank of the Rappahannock, near his home”―asserted without evidence, and based on an errant assumption―led to an impressive monument being erected on the old Richard Ball plantation near Lancaster city in Oct 1903, by then Governor of Virginia, Andrew Jackson Montague―sixth great-grandson of Peter. The whole story of this “lost Memorial” is fully explored in Appendix B. The gravesite is now maintained by the Montague Memorial Association, and is currently (2011) being overseen by the Governor's grandson, Robert Latane Montague III, of Urbanna, Middlesex Co., VA. Peter Montague left a will dated 27 Mar 1658/59 at Lancaster Co., VA., which is transcribed here. Images of the original will, proved on 25 May 1659 (new date), follows this transcript:
THE WILL OF PETER MONTAGUE 122 In the name of God amen, I Peter Montague being weak in body and perfect memory do make this my last will and testament, this the 27th of March 1659 in name and form following, First I bequeath my soul into the hands of my redeemer Jesus Christ, and my body to be buried. Item, my debts being first paid I give to my loving wife Cicely one third part of all my real and personal estate according to law. Item, I give to my two sons Peter and Will. Mountague all my land lying on Rappahannock river to them and their heirs forever, and the land being divided it is my will, that the elder is to have the first choice, and in case of want of heirs of either, the survivor to enjoy all the land, and in case both of them shall depart this life without heirs, lawfully begotten, then my will is that the said land be sold by the commissioners of this county after public notice given either at an outcry, or by an inch of candle123 and the produce thereof to be equally divided between my three daughters Ellen, Margaret, and Elizabeth, and the child of Ann late wife of John Jadwin, and in case of any of these shall die without issue, then the produce of the said land to be divided between the survivors. Item, I give the other two thirds of my personal estate to my four children Peter, Will, Margaret, and Elizabeth to be equally divided among them. Item, I give to my daughter Ellen, the wife of Will Thompson, one thousand pounds of tobacco, and cask to be deducted, of a bill of thirteen hundred pounds of tobacco now due to me by the said Will Thompson. Lastly I ordain my loving wife Cicely and my son Peter jointly Executrix and Executor of this my last will and testament. In witness of the previous I have hereunto set my hand and seal the day and year above written 1659 interlined before the signing and sealing hereof. (Signed) PETER MOUNTAGUE Ye seal In presence of GEORGE MARSH THOMAS JAMES Probat fuit humoi testam 25th May A. D. 1659 p fanam George Marsh, Thomas James et Willi Montague and ded Peter Montague Jr. in Cir et record primus July 1659 pr Edward Dale Ilan
Note The first witness, George Marsh, was the stepfather of Mary Cole who married Thomas Haslewood. The Marsh, Haslewood, and Cole families were long-term friends of the Montagues. It would be interesting to know whether George Marsh is related to Thomas Marsh (alias Rivers) to whom Peter reassigned his Elizabeth River patent on 21 Mar 1639.
122. Lancaster Co. Deed & Will Book 2, 1654-1702, 62-3. 123. HGPM, 57, footnote. Sale by inch of candle, is an auction in which persons are allowed to bid only till a small piece of candle burns out.—Webster's Dictionary.
30 Generation One Will of Peter Montague (Image of Original) – (1 of 2)
31 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
Will of Peter Montague (Image of Original) – (2 of 2)
32 Generation One
PETER’S TWO WIVES. According to HGPM, 56, “He married probably in the spring of 1629, Cicely [―?―].” In this statement, HGPM got it half right in that he probably did marry in 1629, but his first wife was not named Cicely (unless he married two wives by that same name)―Cicely being the name of his second wife. The evidence for this is Lancaster Co. Court Orders, 12 Sep 1660, stating, "Cicely Montague Widdow of Mr. Peter Montague decd. & Peter Montague her Sonne in law Exors. to divide the Est." Indeed, the identity of his first wife is arguably the most profound mystery within the whole of this Montague genealogy. As it is likely that all records pertaining to the identity of Peter’s first wife are irretrievably lost, the author has endeavored to build a short list of candidates from the list of women living in the colonies during Peter’s life from 1629–1637. This short list considered women in the Colony sharing the names of his first three daughters―Anne, Ellen, and Margaret. Anne is at the top of this short list and all of this is more fully discussed below under the heading, “Peter’s First Wife”. That Peter had two wives is the keystone of the author’s hypothesis for understanding the trajectory of Peter’s life from 1629 until his death 30 years later. The hypothesis provides a plausible context from which to outline Peter’s life in the Colony in conjunction with extant records and beginning with the generally accepted notion that he married in 1629.
Note Dates and places described in the following hypothesis are illustrated in Appendix B, with maps and land surveys for the convenience of interested readers.
Hypothesis. Peter married his first wife (name unknown), most likely at James City, about 1628/9, while residing at Capt. Samuel Mathews’ plantation on the south side of the James River, where his first three children (Ann, Ellen, and probably Margaret) were born. The date of 1629, suggested, but not documented, by George Wm. Montague in HGPM, can be supported here by the fact that Peter would not likely have been allowed to marry prior to serving out the usual five or seven-year indentureship, which would have ended between 1626/7 and 1628/9. More likely his indenture was seven years because that was standard in the early Jamestowne era. (Note. In 1661, an Act for the Ordaining of Rights between Masters and Servants came into being to redress the severe violence and great oppression being increasingly visited by the Master upon the Servant. Article Two of the Act stipulated that for those under 18 years of age, indentures should not exceed seven years; for those over that age, five years.124) As Peter arrived 40 years before this Act, he was most likely subject to the harsher seven- year term. This assumption, combined with the birth order and approximate dates of his six children beginning with Anne's birth about 1630, makes 1629 a reasonable starting point for establishing the date of his first marriage. Newly married and free to work for himself, Peter would now begin accumulating the resources he would need to acquire his own land. He married his second wife Cicely [―?―], probably about 1637/8. This date is established by the author, firstly, on the premise that Peter's second wife was Cicely [―?―] Bayley-Jordan-Farrar, who was widowed before Jun 1637 by the death of her third husband William Farrar; and, secondly, on the fact that it was also about this time (22 Aug 1637), following about eight years of hard work as a free man, that Peter recorded his first land patent of 150 acres in the eastern most part of Upper New Norfolk Co. (present day northeast city of Portsmouth) on the Elizabeth River, presumably with the intent of planting it. But in less than a year, on Feb 1638, Peter records his second land patent at Ragged Islands (present day Ragged Islands Wildlife Refuge); and another year later, 21 Mar 1639, reassigns his first 150 acres on the Elizabeth River to Thomas Marsh, alias Rivers.125 Given the above land records, the author hypothesizes that something akin to the following scenario occurred: The first three children―Anne, Ellen, and Margaret―were undoubtedly born in James City, before the move to the Elizabeth River patent. It’s possible, but not probable, that his son Peter may also have been born in James City, but more likely he was born at the Elizabeth River patent especially when factoring in a typical two-year birthing cycle. Peter removed his family (wife and three
124. Don Jordan and Michael Walsh, White Cargo (New York: New York University Press, 2007), 190. 125. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: 122.
33 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne children), to the Portsmouth city area (Elizabeth River) and seeded a tobacco crop for the 1637 planting season. Unexpectedly, his wife dies and his highest priority becomes finding a new wife and a mother for his four children. He now marries Cicely, herself newly widowed by William Farrar (see “Who Is Cicely?” below, for more discussion.) Peter, his first wife, and four children, probably lived on his Elizabeth River homestead for only one (possibly two) planting season(s), perhaps because of the remoteness and hardships associated with that location, before moving up the James River to either the Ragged Islands patent or down to the Chuckatuck River patent. As son Peter is known to have been Cicely's stepson, Cicely must then be the mother of his two younger siblings―William and Elizabeth. It is highly probable (though not proven) they were residing on his New Town Haven River (now Chuckatuck River) patent when the second Indian massacre of Apr 1644 occurred. Perhaps it was for security reasons that Peter moved his family to this newly acquired 150 acres on the east side of New Town Haven River. On 19 Nov 1654, Peter granted his New Town Haven River patent to John Thomas, and, on or about then, Peter moved his family to the Northern Neck area of Lancaster Co. (southside Rappahannock River). Summarizing―Cicely is definitely not the mother of Peter or his older siblings (Anne, Ellen, and Margaret) as confirmed in Lancaster Co. Court Orders, 12 Sep 1660.126 HGPM offers the following, “Effort has been made to discover the maiden name of Cicely and something of the family to which she belonged. They were no doubt married somewhere in the vicinity of James City, [south of the James River] for there it was that the first years of Peter's life in the new world were passed.”127 HGPM states that she was a daughter of Samuel Mathews, who was Governor of the Colony in 1656, but this observation can now be dismissed. There is no evidence in the extant record that such a marriage record exists or that Capt. Mathews even had a daughter. It is true that Peter lived upon the plantation of Capt. Mathews during these early years, and that Capt. Mathews and Peter Montague were life-long associates and friends. Regrettably, all of the records of James City Co. were destroyed during the late war [Civil War] and no record there dates back of 1865. Peter’s wife Cicely outlived him and was executor of his estate jointly with her eldest son [in-law] Peter. No record of her death has been found, however, the record is clear that Cicely returned to England in 1667. “Mrs. Cicely Montague [and others]… gave notice of their goeing for Englande”.128 This documented evidence disproves a popular, but mistaken, belief that Cicely went on to marry after Peter’s death. The following Virginia land patent abstract is commonly misinterpreted to be proof that the widow (Cicely) of Peter Montague married Thomas Parker, and had daughters Dorothy and Sarah:
MR. THOMAS PARKER & MR. JAMES BAGNOLL, 470 acs., Low. Par. of Is. Of Wight Co., on W. side of Tapsters (alias the Long Ponds) Cr., 29 May 1683, p. 293. 50 acs. Granted to Peter Mountague 25 Feb 1638 & after severall assignments conveyed to Thomas Parker, whose Widdow the above Thomas [the younger] interrmaryed; 380 acs. joining, granted to Thomas Parker, dec'd, 18 Mar. 1650; 40 acs. Within the bounds &c. Which parcels descended to Dorothy & Sarah, daughters of sd. Thomas Parker, the eldest whereof, being married & of full age, did together with her husband sell & convey their rights to their Father in Law Thomas Parker abovesaid; the younger [Sarah] being lately marryed to James Bagnoll above said; the whole bounded, viz: 129
The relationships described in this land grant have been carefully analyzed and explained by Arden H. Brame Jr., OAE, in the 1991, Augustan Society Omnibus, Book 13: 73, article, "The One and Only Peter Mountague (1603S1659) of Warfield, Berkshire, England and Nansemond, Isle of Wight, and Lancaster Counties, Virginia." Regarding the statement in the above description "conveyed to Thomas Parker,
126. Lindsay O. Duvall, compiler, Virginia Colonial Abstracts, Series 2, Vol. 2, Lancaster County, Virginia Court Orders and Deeds 1656–1680 (1979; reprint, Greenville, South Carolina: Southern Historical Press, 1990), 10. Hereinafter cited as VA Colonial Abstracts, Lancaster Co. 127. HGPM, 56. 128. Ruth & Sam Sparacio, transcribers, Lancaster County, Virginia Order Book Abstracts 1666–1669 (No place: Antient Press, 1993), 16, from Lancaster County Order Book, 1666–1680, 30; also see Appendix B for more discussion. 129. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 2: 263.
34 Generation One whose Widdow the above Thomas interrmaryed…"; Mr. Brame points out that it is critical to the understanding of this 1683 land grant to know there are two Thomas Parkers (the father and the son), being described; and that when Thomas, the Elder, died before 9 Feb 1663, his widow Frances, married [her stepson] Thomas the Younger! Even without the premise of two Thomas Parkers (father and son), the word "interrmaryed" is key, in and of itself, in refuting the Thomas Parker―Cecily Montague marriage argument. The quoted abstract refers to Thomas Parker the Younger. Remember, Thomas the Elder is already dead (before 1663) and his son (who his widow interrmarryed) is inheriting his father's parcel―originally granted to Peter Mountague. Peter Mountague's importance to this land patent is relevant only by the fact that he is the original grantee of the 1638 patent. Mr. Brame's cogent analysis is appropriately documented and deserves the attention of anyone with a deeper interest in the matter. This discussion of Peter’s wives would be incomplete without addressing HGPM’s hypothesis that a Hannah Montague may have been related to Peter or his sons. We now know her to be Hannah Mountney.130 Hannah Mountney has no known familial relationship to Peter Montague. With this correction noted, the incorrect narrative from HGPM is preserved here for future reference and to account for this misunderstanding.
The records of Lancaster have an inventory of the estate of Hannah Montague, taken Nov 28, 1659, returned to court, Nov 30, 1659. It has been found impossible to state who she was. His will was proved in May, 1659, and this inventory coming so soon afterward would seem to indicate that it related to a part of his estate. Possibly said Hannah was a deceased wife of either one of the sons of Peter, but as it was the year Peter died it does not seem probable, if it was so she certainly died childless, as the will of Peter proves.
Peter’s First Wife: He married [―?―], about 1628/9, probably in James City.131 The name of his first wife is not known and the author has been unable to discover a single fact about her name or background. Peter most likely first married at James City where he is known to have been residing at Capt. Samuel Mathews’ plantation on the south side of the James River, and where their first three children (Ann, Ellen, and Margaret) were probably born. The marriage date of about 1629, provided by HGPM compiler, George Wm. Montague was not sourced, but is supported here by the fact that Peter would not likely have been allowed to marry prior to serving out a 7-year indenture, which would have ended about 1628/9 per the author’s hypothesis. This, combined with the birth order and spacing every couple of years of his first four children beginning with Anne, about 1630, through Peter's birth, about 1636/7; makes 1629 a reasonable starting point and is probably correct within +/- one year. Assuming their first son Peter [5] was born about 1636/7, it follows that Peter’s mother likely died shortly after his birth or no later than early 1637 as proposed in the author’s hypothesis. The best clue—the only clue—to the identity of Peter’s first wife may be family naming conventions traditionally followed in Peter’s day. Tradition required naming the first son in honor of his paternal grandfather and the first daughter in honor of her maternal grandmother. Indeed, it appears Peter followed this convention by naming his first son, Peter (after his father) and his second daughter, Ellen (or Eleanor) in honor of his mother. We don’t know the identify of his wife, or his wife’s mother, but knowing that his first daughter is named Anne, one can reasonably extrapolate backwards to conclude that his wife’s mother (his mother-in-law) was named Anne. Had his mother-in-law pre-deceased the birth of the first daughter, they may have named the first daughter, Anne, as a posthumous act of honor, or if not, then to honor the mother (i.e., Peter’s first wife). Either way, Anne is the most likely name of Peter’s first wife (and/or his mother-in-law) based on the naming convention of the day. Peter met his first wife in the Virginia Colony during the period between the 1624/5 muster and 1629. She was either living in the Colony during the time of the muster or she arrived after the muster.
130. Ruth & Sam Sparacio, transcribers, Lancaster County, Virginia Order Book Abstracts 1656S1661 (No place: Antient Press, 1993), 60, from Lancaster County Order Book, 1656•1666, 98. The record for 30 Nov 1659 referred to by HGPM shows name as Hannah Mountney. There is no evidence in any record for Hannah Montague. 131. HGPM, 56, "He married, probably in the spring of 1629, Cicely *______*." See”Who is Cicely [―?―]” following Table 3 for more on Cicely as Peter’s second wife.
35 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
There are two primary source documents available to search for eligible women named Anne―the 1624/5 Muster and the record of immigrants arriving before 1629. The latter record of immigrants arriving after the muster is not ready for consideration as this is written. The Muster Record. Recorded in the Muster of 1624/5 are 33 women named Anne/Ann living in the Colony. Of these, eight are eliminated for being married with children because there is no evidence suggesting that Peter had stepchildren. Of the remaining 25 only two are recorded with the spelling Anne―Anne Ellsworth, eliminated here for being 44 years of age in 1624/5, and Anne Slater, age 17 years, and sister of John. This Anne Slater is at the top of the short list of candidates for having the right age and single status. In addition, she is listed with a servant, James Feild. Could James Feild be related to William Feild, one of Peter’s nine shipmates as discussed earlier (see Table 2). Anne Slater and the remaining 23 “eligibles” are compiled in Table 3 for those wishing to conduct further research.
Table 3. Short List of Names for Peter First Wife Named Ann(e) (Drawn from the Musters of the Inhabitants in Virginia, 1624/5)
CANDIDATES (*) AGE STATUS LOCATION (MUSTER) Anne Slater (53) 17 sister of John, coming in 1622 Mihell Wilcockes and John Slater, Elizabeth cittie Ann Chard (9) 33 wife of Josuah, coming in 1623 Josuah Chard, Neck-of-land, Charles cittie Ann Woodlase (9) 7 Kinswoman of Thomas Harris Thomas Harris, Neck-of-land, Charles cittie Ann Coltman (11) 26 wife of Henery, coming in 1620 Henery Coltman, Neck-of-land, Charles cittie Ann Usher (13) 8 born in the Colony John Collins, West & Sherley hundred Ann Claye (17) - wife of John, coming in 1623 John Claye, Jordans Jorney, Charles cittie Ann Branlin (18) - wife of William, coming in 1622 William Branlin, Jordans Jorney, Charles cittie Ann Mighill (20) - maid servant, coming in 1619 Isack Chaplaine, Chaplains Choice Charles cittie Ann Doughtie (22) - wife of Thomas, coming in 1621 Thomas Doughtie, Peirseys Hundred Ann Baley (23) - wife of Nicholas, coming in 1621 Nicholas Baley, Peirseys Hundred Ann Binks (27) - wife of William Pasbehaighs, the Maine, James cittie Ann Thompson (29) - servants, wife of Roger Sir George Yearley, James cittie Ann Willis (29) - servant, coming in 1620 Sir George Yearley, James cittie Ann Addams (30) - maid servant Ralph Hamor, James cittie Ann Ashley (33) 19 servant Edward Blaney, James cittie Ann Soothey (33) - daughter of Elizabeth Edward Blaney, James cittie Ann Stoaks (34) - wife of John Edward Blaney, James cittie Ann Passmore (34) - wife of Thomas Edward Blaney, James Island Ann Fitt (34) - wife of Robert Edward Blaney, James Island Ann Marshall (35) - wife of Robert Edward Blaney, James Island Ann Hughes (45) - wife of Hugh Martins Hundred Ann Wood (47) - servants, wife of Percevall William Pierces, Mulbury Island Ann Potter (66) - not a servant John Ward, Elizabeth cittie Ann Savage (69) - wife of Thomas, coming in 1621 “Ancient” Thomas Savage, Eastern Shore * (page number), from Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th Ed., vol 1.
36 Generation One
With all this said, it is also true that Peter had three sisters―Elizabeth, Anne, and Margaret―and it could be argued that he named these daughters to honor his sisters. Still, Peter did name his first son in honor of his father and his second daughter for his mother. The identity of Peter’s first wife is the most intriguing and unsettling mystery of American Montagueology.
The four known children of Peter1 Montague and [―?―] are: + 2 i. ANNE2 MONTAGUE (2), born about 1630 at probably James City (now Surry Co.), VA; married John JADWIN. + 3 ii. ELLEN (or Eleanor) MONTAGUE (3), born about 1632 at probably James City (now Surry Co.), VA; married William THOMPSON. 4 iii. MARGARET MONTAGUE (7), born about 1634 at probably James City (now Surry Co.), VA;132 died probably before 1681. She married probably, William CHENEY. [Margaret’s date of birth is based on a time line developed by the author from documented land records and detailed in Appendix C. Her father's first patent in Upper Co. of New Norfolk wasn't recorded until 22 Aug 1637, so the family likely had not yet relocated from James City. It is believed she married William Cheney, though direct evidence is lacking. There is one William Cheney in Christ Church Middlesex Parish Register who was married to a Penelope as early as 8 Aug 1681. If she married Mr. Cheney, she would have been his first wife and therefore had probably died by 1681. Other than a mention in her father’s will, the only other mention of her existence is the will of Robert Portman, dated 8 Jan 1650/1, “Peter Mountague, son of Peter Mountague of Virginia and Margaret Mountague, daughter of the aforesaid Peter.”133 ] + 5 iv. PETER MONTAGUE (4), likely born about 1636/7 at Northeast corner of what is now Portsmouth city, Upper Co. of New Norfolk, VA; married Mary MINOR (aka DOODES).
Peter’s Second Wife: He married Cicely [―?―],134 about 1637. He married Cicely about 1637―an approximate year established by the documented fact that Cicely was not the mother of Peter’s son Peter who had to have been born about 1636/7 (+/- one year). She was almost certainly the mother of Peter's last two children (William and Elizabeth). She is definitely not the mother of Peter or his older siblings Anne, Ellen, and Margaret;135 as documented in Lancaster Co. Court Order, 12 Sep 1660, stating, "Cicely Montague Widdow of Mr. Peter Montague decd. & Peter Montague her Sonne in law Exors. to divide the Est." 136 The last documented appearance of Cicely Montague is this 13 Mar 1666/7 Lancaster Court Order as “Mrs. Cicely Montague…goeing for Englande.”137 She can only be Cicely Montague, widow of Peter, by the process of elimination of all Montagues who lived in the county at that time. Furthermore, she is named in every list of tithables from 1659 through 1665 as Mrs. Montague. Beginning in the 1664 list of tithables, Peter Montague II makes his first appearance, along with Cicely, which suggests (if not proves) he was well over legal age and was accounting for a tithable household. Mrs. Montague’s name follows Peter Montague in both 1664 and 1665, but in 1666 she is not listed for the first time since Peter’s death in 1659. [See Appendix B for complete list of tithables and sources.] When the widow Cicely Montague left for England in 1667,
132. According to HGPM, 58, (6), Margaret Montague, was born about 1640 in Nansemond Co., VA; however, Peter had already assigned this patent to Thomas Marsh (alias Rivers), in 1639, and was by then probably living on the Chuckatuck River patents. 133. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 653. 134. HGPM, 56, "He married, probably in the spring of 1629, Cicely *______*.” 135. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 653, states Peter's first wife (name unknown) who was probably the mother of all of his children (certainly of Peter, Anne, Ellen and Margaret). 136. Duvall, VA Colonial Abstracts, Lancaster Co., 10. 137. Ruth & Sam Sparacio, transcribers, Lancaster County, Virginia Order Book Abstracts 1666-1669 (No place: Antient Press, 1993), 16, from Lancaster County Order Book, 1666-1680, 30.
37 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne she was, by then, advanced in years (about 67 years of age), had not remarried, the children were grown, Peter II was established, and her health may have needed what only England could offer. Before leaving Cicely to the ages, there is one final, burning question... ______
WHO IS CICELY [―?―]? The maiden name of Cicely (commonly spelled also Sisley) has not been documented, but a search of extant records show only the following six women of that name were in the Virginia Colony during Peter's lifetime: (a) Cicely [―?―] Baley-Jordan-Farrar, (b) Cicely Farrar― daughter of the first Cicely, (c) Cicely Mathews, (d) Cicely Green, (e) Sisly Fisher, and (f) Mrs. Sisley Stone. No documentation is offered here that positively identifies which, if any, would have been Peter's second wife; however, it is nearly impossible to believe that she is not among these six. On the premise that one of these six women is Peter's second wife, a synopsis of each of these women is reviewed here for the likeliness of their potential for crossing paths with Peter Montague. Also identified and reviewed here is a seventh Cicely (though not living in Virginia)―Cicely Fitzpen of County of Cornwall, England.
a. Cicely/Sisley [―?―] Baley-Jordan-Farrar, born about 1600, was listed in the Muster of William Farrar and Mrs. Jordan [herself] at Jordans Jorney and Chaplain Choice on 21 Jan 1624/5, "aged 24 yeres" emigrating in the Swan, August 1611.138 She married (1), [―?―] Baley,139 by whom she had one daughter, Temperance Baley.140 Temperance was listed in the same muster with her mother, "aged 7 yeares, borne heare".141 She married, before 10 Dec 1620,142 (2), Samuel Jordan, one of the "ancient planters" coming to Jamestown in 1610,143 (and for whom Jordan's Journey takes its name). There is no record of their marriage date, but they had two daughters: Mary, born 1621; and Margaret, born 1623.144 Samuel Jordan died before Apr 1623 and she married (3), 2 May 1625, William Farrar,145 bapt., 28 Apr 1583,146 died 1637.147 Their three Farrar children were Cicely, born 1625; William, born 1627; and John, born about 1632. By 1637, Cicely Farrar, was thrice married and thrice widowed, and living in the Upper parts of Persie's Hundred between Appomattox River on the west and Bailey Creek on the East (now Hopewell city). How might she have come to Peter Montague's attention? With Cicely Farrar living at/near Persie's Hundred, and Peter 70 miles or so away (via the James River) at his 1637 patent on the Elizabeth River (near present day Portsmouth city), their chances of being introduced seem remote. However, two men listed in the muster of inhabitants at Jordan's Jorney on 21 Jan 1624, Robert Manuell and John Hely, were Peter's shipmates on the Charles in 1621. Friendships, understandably, were cemented for life by the effects of shared experiences during perilous trans-Atlantic voyages to the wilderness of Virginia (especially during the hurricane season between Jun and Nov). With Peter's wife dead and his lifetime friends taking the initiative―being concerned for his welfare and knowing of the
138. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 928, footnote 15, The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography (Richmond, 1893- ), 94 v., 384, correcting the [original] muster date of Aug. 1610. 139. Researchers speculate that his name was either John or Thomas Bailey, who came to Virginia in 1612. 140. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 928, footnote 15, The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography (Richmond, 1893- ), 94 v., 384, correcting the [original] muster date of Aug. 1610. 141. Ibid., 1: 16. 142. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: 226, “By the Governour and Capt. Genll. of Virginia....Give and grant to Samuel Jourdan of Charles Citty in Virga. Gen. an ancient planter who hath abode ten years Compleat in this Colony and performed all services to the Colony that might any way concern him etc and to his heirs and assigns for ever for part of his first genll. dividend to agumented &c., 450 acs. in his own personall right etc., ...Cecily his wife an ancient planter also of nine years continuance, one hundred acres more and the other 250 acs....Given at James City 10 Dec 1620.” 143. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: xxx, "of Jordans Journey, Charles City, Gent, 'who hath abode ten years complete,' as stated on Dec. 21, 1620". 144. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 364. 145. Ibid., 1: 927. 146. Ibid., 1: 926. 147. Ibid., 1: 927.
38 Generation One
37-year old Cicely's availability―introductions could have been effected. The widowed Cecily Farrar was hot property, having three times married well into the Colony's wealthiest and most well known political families. Could Peter Montague have been considered “worthy” of Cicely’s attentions and affections given her social standing and reputation? Peter, being only 34 years of age, may or may not have been as well along as William Farrar or Samuel Jordan who were his seniors, but in 1637, he was clearly making friends and influencing the right people along the way; as evidenced by his later election to the Burgess in 1651, as well as his serving eight years in various public positions as sheriff, justice, and vestryman. On this point of Peter’s social class status, it must be acknowledged that records for Peter Montague's time and place are virtually non existent, particularly in Nansemond Co.―the bulk of those records having been burned at least twice during the next 200 years or so. Those surviving records surrounding Peter's life and transactions are scrapish and tenuous. Still, even the records that survive seem sufficient to justify Peter as having been at least an up and coming person of some standing in the Colony. Finally, if Cicely Farrar had married Peter, about 1637, the 37-year old Cicely would have been well within her child-bearing potential to produce Peter’s last two children of record―William and Elizabeth―over the next five years or so. This Cicely would have been widowed for the fourth time at the age of 59 upon Peter’s death in Apr/May 1659. Some researchers are convinced that the maiden name of this Cicely [―?―] Baley-Jordan-Farrah is Reynolds, and this conviction, if not proven, is not unfounded. A more detailed analysis on this possible maiden name is provided in the next paragraph for her daughter. b. Cicely Farrar―the daughter, born 1625, the daughter of William Farrar and Mrs. Cicely [―?―]- Baley-Jordan;148 (discussed above) undoubtedly grew to adulthood in the Upper Partes of Persie's Hundred in the Charles City Corporation south of the James River. Her father, William, was appointed to the governing council on 14 Mar 1625/6 and apparently served there for the rest of his life. He died in 1637.149 Cicely Farrar―the daughter, appears only one other time in the record, this occurring in 1631 in her grandfather John Farrar's will where he had reserved bequests of deeds to his son William's wife and children, "Cecily his wife and Cecily and William his children".150 Author Alvahn [sic] Holmes in his 1972 book, The Farrar's Island Family and Its English Ancestry, p. 123, speculates she might have been Cicely Farrar [daughter of Cicely and William Farrar]. She was born 1625, daughter of William Farrar and Mrs. Cicely Bayley-Jordan. He also speculates on the possibility that if not Peter Montague, she married (1), Isaac Hutchins, who left will dated 23 Feb 1657/8; and (2), Henry Sherman, who being aged 60 years on 1 Aug 1690, left will 2 Sep 1695S1 Oct 1695, and who herself referred to her "great and declining age," on 30 Nov 1702.151 This later comment makes it the more likely course Cicely Farrar―the daughter followed in life. Finally, when Peter acquired his 1637 and 1638 patents, Cicely Farrar―the daughter’s age would only have been 13 years or so. It does not seem reasonable that Peter would take on a child wife when he desperately needed a mature woman to deal with his four children―the oldest being only four years older than this Cicely. It is possible that she could have married Peter about 1640, at the age of 15/16 years, but given her mother Cicely’s availability, and being more age-compatible with the 37-year old Peter, it is not a likely scenario. c. Cicely Mathews, daughter of Capt. Samuel Mathews. The only suggestion that she even existed is found in HGPM, "Tradition says she was a daughter of Samuel Mathews, who was Governor of the Colony in 1656."152 Other than this HGPM reference, there is no evidence in the extant record that Capt.
148. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 928. 149. Ibid., 1: 927. He returned to Virginia and died in 1637, before 11 June, when his young son William received a patent as his heir. 150. Ibid., 1: 927, footnote 14, citing the Public Records Office, London, C-54/2904, in Holmes’, The Farrar's Island Family, 31, in which the deed mentions an earlier one of 28 Jun 1631. 151. Ibid., 1: 928, footnote 16, citing Henrico Co. Wills & Deeds 1697S1704, 307. 152. HGPM, 56.
39 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
Mathews even had a daughter. He was known to have had two sons by his second wife: Samuel, born about 1629, died Jan 1659/60;153 and Francis (no birth date), died 16 Feb 1674/5.154 d. Sisley Greene, listed in the 16 Feb 1624/5 census at James City & with the Corporations thereof.155 The only other record (unsourced) of Sisley Greene is in HGPM, stating, "Cicily Greene" was "at the plantation of Capt. Ralph Hamor at James City".156 Of this Sisley no further record can be found. e. Sisley Fisher, born about 1623/4, daughter of Robert and Katherine Fisher; was listed in the muster of Robert Fisher and Jordans Jorney, Charles City, on 21 Jan 1624/5, "aged 1 yeare". Her father arrived in the Elsabeth [sic] May 1611; her mother, "his wife", in the Marmaduk October 1621.157 There appears to be no further record of this Sisley, suggesting, in this case, a high probability that she died young or married and is in the record by that surname. In any event, she too would have been age- incompatible for the same reasons as discussed for Cicely Farrar―the daughter, f. Mrs. Sisly Stone, age unknown, arrived in the Seafloure [Seaflower]. She was listed in the census of 1625 with her husband John Stone in the muster of Liuetennt Barkley at Hog Island.158 Hog Island is located over the water from Jamestown and just east of Captain Mathews' plantation. It seems reasonable that a "widowed" Sisley Stone would have been acquainted with Peter Montague over at Capt. Mathews’ plantation and can not be ruled out were she, in fact, widowed. The following seventh Cicilie did not live in Virginia, but had a daughter named Cicely who may have come to the Virginia Colony as possibly Cicely/Sisley [―?―] Baley-Jordan-Farrar. g. Cicilie Fitzpen/Fippen, born before 1620, age unknown, is identified in the Visitations of the County of Cornwall recorded 1620. In the Visitation pedigree she is shown as one of four children (three being sons) of Robert Fitzpen/Fippen and Cicilie (daughter of Thomas Jordan of Dorsetch). Her father Robert was the son of Jo. Fitzpen, who was the son of Henry Fitzpen of St. Mary Ox’y of Devon who married Alice, daughter of Peirse of Ireland. There is no evidence that she sailed from County of Cornwall to the Virginia Colony, but there are several intriguing facts that make her an interesting candidate. First, informed speculation (no sources) persists that Cicilie Fitzpen married Thomas Reynolds. Their daughter Cecily Reynolds came to Virginia in the Swan in 1611 and married Bailey- Jordan-Farrar (no sources). Second, her maternal grandfather’s name was Thomas Jordan. Was he related to Samuel Jordan (her second husband) of Jordan’s Journey reputation? Second, her paternal great-grandmother’s name was Alice, a daughter of Peirse of Ireland. Interestingly, in 1637, Cicely [―?―] Baley-Jordan-Farrar, was living in Upper parts of Persie's Hundred. Was Persie’s Hundred named for Cicily Fitzpen’s family from Peirse of Ireland? The author’s position is “No” to all of this because Cicely Fitzpen had not, as of 1620, married or removed to the Virginia Colony (per the County of Cornwall Visitation of 1620). Given this, there is little chance her alleged daughter named Cicely, could have been of an appropriate age to have been born after 1620 and been an eligible wife for Peter Montague in 1637.
The two known children of Peter1 Montague and Cicely [―?―] are: + 6 i. WILLIAM2 MONTAGUE (6), born about 1639 at probably the Upper Co. of New Norfolk; married [―?―]. + 7 ii. ELIZABETH MONTAGUE (5), born about 1641 at probably the Upper Co. of New Norfolk; married (1), Doodes MINOR; married (2), Maurice COCKE; married (3), James BLAISE (also BLAZE).
- END NARRATIVE -
153. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 639. 154. Ibid., 2: 640. 155. Coldham, Emigrants, 1607S1660, 38. 156. HGPM, 56, footnote. She is not listed in the musters of Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th edition. 157. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 17. 158. Ibid., 1: 44.
40 Generation One
EPILOGUE: Table 4 reveals an interesting, albeit subtle, pattern of activity embedded within the extant records of Peter's life in the Virginia Colony. Perhaps merely a curiosity or statistical quirk, the pattern has Peter moving and settling; again moving and settling, in eight-year increments. The record reveals Peter’s land patents being recorded in pairs―within a year or two―followed by about eight years of documented "silence". While this does not occur with mathematical precision, the tolerance is surprisingly tight. Table 4. Peter’s 8-Year Pattern Nov 1621 Arrives at Capt. Mathews' plantation (James City) – 8 years later – 1628/9 Marries first wife [identity unknown]; first child, Anne, born about 1630 – 8 years later – Aug 1637 Records 1st land patent (150 acres) in Upper Co. of New Norfolk Feb 1638/9 Records 2nd land patent (50 acres) in Upper Co. of New Norfolk – 8 years later – Dec 1645 Records 3rd land patent (150 acres) in Nansemond Co. (formerly Upper Co., New Norfolk) Nov 1647 Records 4th land patent (100 acres) in Nansemond Co. – 8 years later – 4 Dec 1652 Records 200 acres in Lancaster Co. (becoming Middlesex Co. in 1669) about 1653/4 Moves family to Lancaster Co. (southside Rappahannock River)
This pattern of behavior provides a contextual framework for rationalizing (speculating) when and why other undocumented events may have happened. For example, what was Peter doing during the eight years between his land acquisitions? No doubt, he was working the land and raising his family. He was also known to be importing and exporting goods with his father, uncle, and probably others for profit and personal comfort. Then, for reasons we will never know, he moves on. Perhaps after eight years, the land was "played out", and new land was needed―tobacco was well known for depleting the land after the second or third season―or the death of his first wife and the marriage of his second wife precipitated a change. The second Indian massacre occurred on 18 Apr 1644. Those settlements furthest removed from Jamestowne and located near the mouths of the rivers and below the James River were more vulnerable, and they felt the full brunt of the 1644 Indian attacks.159 Sensing this vulnerability, Peter moved from his homestead on the Elizabeth River to the more secure 1645 patent situated on the Chuckatuck River deeper within the interior of the Upper Co. of New Norfolk. Perhaps Peter acquired the Ragged Island patent to start an unrelated non-planter business (e.g., a ferry crossing point). This is the same patent that was conveyed to Thomas Parker and James Bagnoll after several reassignments as discussed in the hypothesis above in the context of refuting the marriage of Peter’s widow Cicely to Thomas Parker. This fact suggests strongly that Peter had abandoned it altogether, and likely never moved the family to the Ragged Island location.
- A Personal Note- ARDEN H. BRAME ―invited by the author to peer review this work―sadly passed away on 19 Aug 2004, before this work could be completed. The author is grateful for his original scholarship and singularly distinct contributions to the history and genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne.
159. Dabney, Virginia: The New Dominion, 45.
41
Generation Two
2. Anne2 MONTAGUE (2) (Peter1),160 born about 1630 at probably James City (now Surry Co.), VA;161 died before 27 Mar 1659.162 She married John JADWIN, previous to 1657.163 Anne was undoubtedly born in James City as her father had not recorded a land patent until Aug 1637―a date upon which it is reasonable to surmise he would have first removed from James City. It is more likely that the move from James City occurred about 1636, prior to her brother Peter's birth (about 1636/7). This line of thought is developed in the narrative for Peter (1)/[1]. Having had only one child, perhaps it is likely she died from the complications of giving birth. In addition to Bartholomew, two additional children―John, Jr., and Thomas―are identified in Colonial Families of the Eastern Shore of Maryland.164 There are two reasons these children have not been numbered in this genealogy: (1), the authors did not provide sources for their names or for the birth year, “about 1650" for John Jadwin; and (2), if born about 1650, John Jadwin would have been less than 10 years old when Anne Montague died; and (3), Peter’s will mentions “...the child of Ann, late wife of John Jadwin...”. Though Bartholomew is not identified by name, Peter’s will clearly indicates that Anne had one child. This child is identified as Bartholomew by Frederick Dorman in Adventurers of Purse and Person.165 She died before her father had written his will, dated 27 Mar 1659.166
John JADWIN, born about 1650;167 [this birth date is improbable as he would have been 20 years younger than Anne]; died before 24 Apr 1707, probably in Talbot Co., MD. He married (2), Hannah [―?―], about 1675. (ibid.) On 23 Nov 1658, John Jadwin bought 650 acres on south side Rappahannock River from William Thompson [husband of his wife’s sister Ellen] upon the head of Sharpes Creek.168 Of this 650 acres, 150 were in the possession of William Thompson and assigned to [his brother-in-law] John Jadwin. This patent is bounded on its northwest boundary by Peter Montague’s 1658 patent and on the southeast boundary by is sons’s 1701 patent at Sharpes Creek. (See map survey, Appendix D, Figure D-6c). The author submits that John Jadwin’s wife Anne was still living as of 23 Nov 1658 on the premise that he was simply acquiring a homestead for his new family. Anne dies before 27 Mar 1659. On 25 Aug 1663, 300 acres of this property was reassigned to Nicholas Cock and Maurice Cock,169 who in 1695 would become the second wife of Anne’s younger sister Elizabeth. The author acknowledges, but disputes the
160. Montague, History and Genealogy of Peter Montague (HGPM), 58, (2). 161. See Appendix C for time line analysis. 162. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 653-4 163. HGPM, 58, (2). 164. Christos Christou Jr., and F. Edward Wright, Colonial Families of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Vol 4 (1998; reprint, Westminster, Maryland: Willow Bend Books, 1999), 4: 133. 165. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 654 166. Ibid., 2: 653-4. 167. Christos Christou Jr., and F. Edward Wright, Colonial Families of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Vol 4 (1998; reprint, Westminster, Maryland: Willow Bend Books, 1999), 4: 133. The birth year 1650 is highly suspect and probably incorrect. 168. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: 383. 169. Ibid., 1:411, 439.
43 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne accuracy of narratives in both Adventurer’s of Purse and Person and Colonial Families of the Eastern Shore of Maryland,170 stating he was originally from Southampton Co., VA, and later lived in Calvert Co., MD, eventually settling in Talbot Co., MD, about 1675 with his second wife Hannah; and that on 28 Jan 1669/70, he was described as mariner of the Town and County of Southampton, became a member of the Society of Friends, and left a will dated 8 Jun 1706/probated 24 Apr 1707. (ibid.). Colonial Families further adds that he had at least six known children with Hannah: Robert, Hannah, Joseph, Elizabeth, Sarah, and John; and that he was the son of Cicely Jernew and immigrated [from England?] in 1665. The dispute arises from this statement that he immigrated in 1665, since he could not have immigrated in 1665, and also be documented as married to Anne Montague before 1659. Nevertheless, references to living in Talbot Co., MD, are likely mostly accurate.
The only known child of Anne2 Montague and John Jadwin is: 8 i. BARTHOLOMEW3 JADWIN;171 [not identified by name in HGPM] born before Mar 1659; died before 11 Jan 1692/3. He married Ann ASDELL (ESTELL), 26 Apr 1680,172 at his father’s house.173 They had two children: baby (unnamed) and Jeremiah.174 Baby (unnamed) was mentioned in the 1659 will of his maternal grandfather Peter Montague; and also was willed 2,000 pounds of tobacco at age 21 in the will of his paternal grandmother, Cicily Jernew on 20 Jan 1667/8.175 He resided in Talbot Co., MD. Bartholomew and his wife Ann were members of the Society of Friends. He had died by 11 Jan 1692/3.176
Ann ASDELL (ESTELL). After Bartholomew’s death, she married (2), Jacob Bradbury, 19 Feb 1692/3. (ibid.)
3. Ellen (or Eleanor)2 MONTAGUE (3) (Peter1),177 born about 1632 in probably James City (now Surry Co.), VA.178 She married William THOMPSON,179 before Mar 1659.180 There are no extant records documenting when her father moved his young family from James City to Upper Co. of New Norfolk (renamed Nansemond Co. in 1642/3) to the area that is now northeast
170. Christos Christou Jr., and F. Edward Wright, Colonial Families of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Vol 4 (1998; reprint, Westminster, Maryland: Willow Bend Books, 1999), 4: 133. 171. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 655. 172. Ibid., footnote 30, citing Kenneth Carroll, Quakerism on the Eastern Shore (Baltimore, 1970), 221; also Colonial Families of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, 134, citing Third Haven Monthly Meeting, gives marriage date, 26 Apr 1680 to spinster Ann Estell at the house of John Jadwin. 173. Christos Christou Jr., and F. Edward Wright, Colonial Families of the Eastern Shore of Maryland, Vol 4 (1998; reprint, Westminster, Maryland: Willow Bend Books, 1999), 4: 134. 174. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 655. 175. Ibid., footnote 29, citing Westmoreland Co. Deeds, Patents &c 1665-77, 32-32a. 176. Ibid., footnote 31, citing Third Haven Monthly Meeting, Talbot Co., MD, Minutes 1676–1746, 122. 177. HGPM, 58, (3). The present author suggests she was named after Peter’s mother Ellen as was the custom of the time to honor the maternal grandmother by giving her name to the first born daughter. 178. See Appendix C of this work for time line analysis. 179. Ibid., footnote. Thomson. This name is derived from the baptismal name of Thomas. More than 30 coats of arms have been assigned to the name. On the list of living in Virginia, 1623, are the names of Nicholas and Ann Tompson, George Thomson, William and Paul Thomson. On a list of the dead, 1623, is William Thomson. On the muster roll of 1624 are the following, Roger Thomson, age 40, came in London Merchant, 1620, and Ann his wife. Nicholas Tompson came in the George, 1622, George, age 17; Paul, age 14; William Thomson, age 11, came on the George, 1623. William Tomson, age 22, came on the Swan. Hather Tomson, age 18, came on the Ambrose in 1623. Morris Thomson had a patent granted him for 150 acres, below Blunts Point in 1626, Edward Thomson, age 24, came to Virginia from London on ship Transport, July 4, 1635. William Thomson, age 22, came on the George, Aug 21, 1635. 180. Ibid., 58, (3). She is mentioned in her father’s will, dated 27 Mar 1659, as “my daughter Ellen, wife of Will Thompson”.
44 Generation Two
Portsmouth City, but it must have been before about 1636/7 as he recorded his first land patent there about a year later (Aug 1637). This line of thought is developed in the narrative for Peter (1)/[1]. She married, before Mar 1659, William Thompson.181 Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 654, indicates two issues: 1. [THOMPSON] and 2. Elizabeth. There is some controversy as to whether Ellen and William had a second daughter, Mary [9], in addition to Elizabeth [8]. The primary evidence cited against siblings for Elizabeth has been this Middlesex Co. Land Patent Book No. 9, 25 Apr 1702, which states in part, "Elizabeth Sumers, his [William Thompson’s] daughter, & late wife of John Sumers, was 'sole heir' to said land (150 acres)".182 This reference does not unequivocally rule out the possibility that Elizabeth had a sibling, as there are a number of possibilities why someone is described as "sole heir": (1) being the "surviving" family member (not applicable since Mary outlived Elizabeth); (2) other family members being not legally entitled to inherit; (3) being unnamed in a will; or (4) simply being disinherited. We will probably never know the reason she was designated as "sole heir' of her father's property, but the possibility that she may have had a sibling can not be ruled out by this reference alone. On the other hand, what is the evidence for a second daughter named Mary? The best evidence is Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 231, citing, The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, XLV, 197–98: “James Day, married Mary Thompson, daughter of William Thompson of Nansemond County." Is she Mary Thompson, daughter of William and Ellen (Montague) Thompson? There are three other sources citing a William Thompson (Tomson, or Thomson) recorded in Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., (vol 1: page), as follows: {1} (1: 51), William Thomson is listed in the Muster of Capt. William Tucker coming in 1623 to Elizabeth City in the George, aged 11 years; {2} (1: 808), citing Somerset Co., MD, Deed Bk. B1/2, nos. 6, 7, on 30 Mar 1669, William Thompson of Virginia bought 100 acres of land from James Davis of Nansemond Co. where he apparently resided;183 and {3} (1: 62), William Tomson is listed in the Muster of Thomas Dunthorne coming in 1624 to Elizabeth City, VA, in the Swan, aged 22. First, William Tomson {3} is practically ruled out for both spelling of name and age alone. At the time of Ellen's marriage in 1659, when she was no more than 27 years old, he would have been 57 years old. While this 30-year age difference does not rule out the relationship, it is not insignificant, and there is no further mention of this William Tomson after the Muster of 1624/5. The remaining two references to William Thomson (Thompson) likely refer to the same person as both were known to be living in or owning land in Nansemond Co. (named New Norfolk until 1637, when it was divided into Upper and Lower Norfolk, and Upper Norfolk subsequently renamed Nansemond in 1642/3), where Ellen had lived since at least 1637. Furthermore, Williams {1} & {2} would have been no older than 47 years of age on date of marriage to Ellen Montague—their 20 year age difference being more reasonable than in the case for William Tomson {3}. William Thompson, his daughter Mary, and her husbands (1), James Day; (2), John Johnson; and (3), Reuben Gladhill all lived in Nansemond or Isle of Wight Counties.
Note John Frederick Dorman, C.G., F.A.S.G. the noted Virginia scholar and compiler/editor of Adventurers of Purse and Person,184 disagrees with the above line of thought (in correspondence with the author). He identifies an “entirely different” William Thompson of Surry County who was the father of this Mary (Thompson) Day- Johnson-Gladhill, but offered no sourced evidence when requested by the author. So, the author redoubled the search for a William Thompson of Surrey County and found no evidence for another William Thompson living anywhere other than Nansemond Co. or Maryland. Based on this research, it is most probable, if not proven, that the William Thompsons of Maryland and Nansemond Co., VA, (likely the same person) refer to the William Thompson who married Ellen (or Eleanor) Montague and had two daughters.
181. Ruth & Sam Sparacio, transcribers, Lancaster County, Virginia Deed & Will Abstracts 1654–1661 (No place: Antient Press, 1991), 56 and 109, from Lancaster County Court Records Deed & Will Book, 1654–1661, 113 and 194. These two references place William Thompson south of the Rappahannock River (Middlesex Co.) between 5 May 1656 and 23 Jul 1659. 182. Nell Marion Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants, 1695–1732, 7 Volumes, 3 (Richmond: Virginia State Library, 1979), 59. Hereinafter cited as Cavaliers and Pioneers, 3. 183. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 807, James Davis moved to Somerset Co., MD, on 10 Jul 1665, however, “The family moved back and forth from Virginia to Maryland…” 184. Letter from Mr. Dorman (175 Hulls Chapel Road, Fredericksburg, VA, 22406) to the author, 22 Apr 2004.
45 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
William THOMPSON; died before 9 Mar 1686 in Middlesex Co., VA.185 He was likely the son of Nicholas Thompson who arrived at Jamestowne on the George in 1621,186 the same year as Peter Montague. Nicholas Thompson/Tompson and Ellen’s father Peter probably knew one another as they both resided on Capt. Samuel Mathew’s Plantation over against James City according the Muster of 16 Feb 1624 and again in the Muster of 1625, 20 Jan-7 Feb, while Nicholas was nearby at Mr. Treasurer’s Plantation, James City.187
The two known children of Ellen2 or Eleanor Montague and William Thompson are: 9 i. MARY3 THOMPSON, died before 26 Jan 1712/3. She married (1), James DAY; married (2), John JOHNSON; and married (3), Reuben GLADHILL. In her will dated 30 Nov 1712, recorded 26 Jan 1712/3, she named son James Day, "only surviving executor of my deceased husbands James Day and John Johnson" and also named son [in-law] Nathaniel Ridley.188
James DAY, died before 1700/1.189 James Day married Mary Thompson, daughter of William Thompson of Nansemond Co.190 He left a will dated 10 Aug 1700; recorded 9 Jan 1700/1. (ibid.)
John JOHNSON, died 1707 in Isle of Wight Co., VA.191
Reuben GLADHILL, died 1715.192 10 ii. ELIZABETH THOMPSON,193 died before 25 Apr 1702 in Middlesex Co., VA.194 She married John SOMERS or SUMERS or SUMMERS, 10 Jan 1675 in Middlesex Co., VA.195 Elizabeth is identified in her husband’s will dated 8 Jan 1702, but is deceased by 25 Apr 1702. His will also records three children: John, Catherine, and William; and “son-in-law Francis _____.”196 The correctness of this will is founded on the fact it was witnessed by her first cousin William Montague Jr. [18].
185. William Lindsay Hopkins, compiler, Middlesex County, Virginia, Wills and Inventories, 1673–1812, and Other Court Papers (Athens, Georgia: Iberian Publishing, 1989), 138, abstracted from Order Book 2, 1680–1694. Abraham Brierly presents “what he says” is the last will of William Thompson. John Sumers, in right of his wife Elizabeth Sumers the sister of the said Thompson, asks that administration be granted him and his wife. 9 Mar 1686. (p. 281). Hereinafter cited as Middlesex County Wills. 186. Coldham, Emigrants, 1607–1660, 40. 187. Ibid., 60. 188. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 231, footnote 36, citing Isle of Wight Co. Wills & Deeds 2, 543. 189. Ibid., 1: 231. 190. Ibid., citing The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography XLV, 197-98. 191. Ibid., 1: 231, footnote 35, citing Isle of Wight Co. Deeds & Wills 2, 484, will of John Johnson, 7 Jan 1703–9 Aug 1707; also David A. Avant, Some Southern Colonial Families, II (Tallahassee, FL, 1982), 147–53; Eddis Johnson and Hugh Buckner Johnston, The Johnsons and Johnstons of Corrowaugh in Isle of Wight County, Virginia (Martinsville, IN, 1979), 47–50. 192. Ibid., 1: 231. 193. Virkus, Compendium of American Genealogy, 5: 531. 194. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 3: 59, citing Patent Book No. 9: "John Sumers, 175 acs., Middlesex Co; on Rappa. River, adj. land of Maurice Cock, dec'd; 25 Apr 1702, p. 450. 150 acs. conveyed by John Sharpe to Wm Thompson, 23 Jul 1659, & after the decease of sd. Thompson, Elizabeth Suymers, his daughter, & late wife of John Sumers, was sole heir to sd. land, by whom the sd. John hath a son named John Sumers, who is heire to his sd. Mother. 195. Hopkins, Middlesex County, Wills, 35, abstracted from Order Book #1 (Deeds and Wills), 1673–1680. John Summers as marrying Elizabeth Thompson, one of the orphans of William Thompson, decd. 10 Jan 1675. (p. 49). 196. Witness for this will is William Montague Jr. of Essex Co. which almost certainly identifies this John and Elizabeth Summers.
46 Generation Two
The Christ Church Parish Register (CCPR) records the baptisms of five children for Jno/John and Elizabeth Summers—Elizabeth, baptized, 2 Jan 1680/1;197 John, baptized, 8 Apr 1683;198 John, baptized at the Upper Chapel, 14 Nov 1686;199 Elizabeth, baptized, 16 Mar 1689/90;200 and Francis, baptized, 14 Jun 1702,201 two months after the death of Elizabeth. Whether any of these are actually children of this Elizabeth and John Summers is doubtful.
John SOMERS or SUMERS or SUMMERS, died between 8 Jan 1702–1 Mar 1702 in Middlesex Co., VA.202
5. Peter2 MONTAGUE (4) (Peter1),203 born about 1636/7,204 in the Northeast corner of what is now Portsmouth city, Upper Co. of New Norfolk, VA;205 died before 1 Jan 1682/3 in Middlesex Co., VA.206 He married Mary MINOR (aka DOODES), circa 1663.207 He was born about 1636/7. This analysis supports his birth place as having been in Upper Co. of New Norfolk (renamed Nansemond Co. in 1642/43) in what is now the city of Portsmouth, on his father's first land patent, recorded, 22 Aug 1637, and described as "one hundred and fiftie acres of land scituate lying & being in the Upper Countie of New Norfolk". If so, Peter is probably the only child of the six who would have been born at this first land patent on the Elizabeth River. It is less likely he was born back in James City since Peter, the father, had likely already removed the family to his first patent at least a year before it was recorded in Aug 1637.208
197. Yurechko, Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register, 8, abstracted from CCPR. 198. Ibid., 14. 199. Ibid., 18. 200. Ibid., 26. 201. Ibid., 38. 202. Hopkins, Middlesex County, Wills, 47, abstracted from Will Book A, 1698–1713. John Summers...8 Jan 1702/1 Mar 1702...Wife Elizabeth Summers. Son John Summers. Daughter Catherine Summers. Son William Summers. Son in law Francis ______. Exors: Son John Summers when he is 16 and friends Thomas Buford of Middlesex Co. and William Mountague, Jr. of Essex Co. Wit: Thomas Buford and William Mountague, Jr. 203. HGPM, 59, (4). 204. Ibid., 58, (4), estimates birth date about 1634. The present author submits he was born in 1636/7 as this is consistent with the expectation that his birth would precede his father’s marriage to Cicely about 1637/8. See narrative at Peter (1), Peter’s Two Wives, for rationale regarding the marriage year of 1636/7 (see Appendix C). 205. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 654, "Born about 1638 in what became Nansemond County" [Patent plotted by the author lies in what is now the Northeast corner of Portsmouth city. See Appendix D]. 206. Hopkins, Middlesex County, Wills, 132, abstracted from Order 2, 1680–1694. Estate of Peter Mountague granted to his relict, Mary Mountague, with Mr. William Mountague and Jeremiah Obery as security. 1 Jan 1682. (p. 93); 144, Order to divide the Estate of Mr. Peter Mountague, decd., among his orphans. Peter Mountague, one of the orphans, has Mr. William Mountague as his guardian. 4 Feb 1688 (p. 392). 207. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 654, footnote 20. Meindert Doodes, a sea captain, native of Holland (The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, (Richmond, 1893- ), vol. VI, 208–9), in 1673, with his son, then known as Doodes Minor, was naturalized by Act of the Assembly (William Walter Hening, The Statutes at Large; Being a Collection of All the Laws of Virginia (Richmond, etc., 1809–23), second edition, vol. II, p. 308), confirmed 1705 (Hening, vol. III, 479). Meindert Doodes' will, 13 Dec 1677–7 Jan 1677/8 (Middlesex Co. Wills 1675–1798, p. 6), bequeathed to his wife Mary Doodes all the personal estate during her widowhood but if she should marry, son Doodes Minor's children were to have half of the Negroes and the other half to go to Peter Montague for the sole use of his wife, and after her death to the sole use of her children. Mary Doodes' will, 17 Nov 1678–7/Feb 1686/7 (ibid., 35), named her sons Doodes Meindert and Peter Montague and daughter Marie Montague's daughter Marye. Apparently following Dutch custom, both of Meindert Doodes' children used the surname Meindert, which rapidly became the more easily recognized (by English-speaking people) Minor. 208. Experts have observed and acknowledged that lag times of a year or two in recording deeds was typical of the early 1600s.
47 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
Peter undoubtedly died between 5 Dec 1682 and 1 Jan 1682/3 based on the following two records: (1), on 5 Dec 1682, he is identified as Godfather to Elizabeth Long;209 and (2), on 1 Jan 1682/3 his estate is recorded as being granted to his widow "relict, Mary Mountague".210 A review of Middlesex Co. Deed and Order Book abstracts by Ruth and Sam Sparacio, shows there are only nine entries for Peter Montague from 2 Feb 1673 to 1 Jan 1682/3 (the last date in which Peter’s name is documented). The HGPM narrative (italicized here) rationalizes this Peter’s [5] birth year at about 1634. This present work pushes his birth year back to 1637/8. The author’s counter rationale [in brackets] follows: He was at least 21 years of age in 1659, because at that date he was an executor of his father's will. The patent for 1000 acres of land in Middlesex, issued to Peter, the son of this Peter (4), and grandson of Peter the immigrant, states that said land was granted to the father of said Peter Dec, 1652, by patent from George Ludlow, Esq. Such patent would not have been granted to a minor, [not necessarily so—consider William, the 5-year old son of William Farrar, who received a patent as heir, when his father died in 1637]211 which appears to establish that Peter was at least 21 in 1652—and thus 28 years old at the death of his father, in 1659. This would place his birth in 1631/2. The wording of his father's will seems to render it certain that he was not married and had no children in 1659 when his father died. He was at that time between 21 and 28 years of age [i.e., born between 1630/1 and 1637/8 so that the compiler of HGPM seems to have derived Peter's birth date (about 1634), by splitting the difference between these two birth year limits. In any event, the basis for deriving the age range in the first place has been refuted above, and thus this author submits Peter [5] was born most likely about 1636/7 and was 22 to 23 years of age at the time of his father’s death.] Peter was a large land owner and prominent member of Christ Church, as was his father. [The HGPM compiler, George Wm. Montague, is making an ostensibly gratuitous observation; however, the present author disagrees and submits that Peter and his brother William were not prominent members of Christ Church, but instead were dissenters. Appendix B provides a full analysis on this point. On the 2d of June, 1662, Peter purchased from James Botler and his wife of Nansemond Co., 200 acres of land.212 Nov, 1665, Peter purchased from Doodes Minor and his wife Mary, 200 acres of land, on east side of Deep Creek, and in the same year he leased back said land for fifty-four years to said Doods Minor.213 In 1668, there is a deed from Peter Montague to Thomas Banks. Feb'y 15, 1668, there is an assignment, made by Peter Montague, to Thomas Banks and John Hawkins, of all his lands in Nansemond Co.214 In Essex Co. records, there is a deed Feb'y 10, 1703, for 100 acres of land sold by William Montague Jr., son of William Montague Sr., of Middlesex, to William Montague, son of Peter Montague late of Middlesex Co., for £30 sterling. It is not clear which side of the Rappahannock River most of these cited Lancaster records were located, except for the Nov 1665 record, which was specifically identified as being located on the North side.215 Among the records of Christ Church, Middlesex, is the following: "John Montague the son of Peter and Mary Montague was baptized 21st May, 1682." "Thomas Paine and Mary Montague were married 24th Oct, 1682." M. Co. records have a deed, "Dec 5, 1682, from Peter Montague to his god-daughter Elizabeth Long for one heifer calf." Peter [1] by his will, in 1659, gave all his land lying along the Rappahannock River to his two sons, Peter and William—the elder son, Peter, to have the first choice. When the will was made, Lancaster included all that is now Lancaster, Middlesex, Essex, and Richmond Co. In 1665, Middlesex [that part lying south of the Rappahannock] was cut off from Lancaster. The land which was willed to the two sons, or some of it, lay in what is now Middlesex Co. and included Montague Island, which is situated
209. Sparacio and Sparacio, Middlesex County, Virginia Deed Abstracts 1679–1688, 15. 210. Ibid., Virginia Order Book Abstracts 1680–1686, 38. 211. Ibid., 1: 927. 212. Lancaster Co., Deed and Will Bk 2, 1654–1702, 244-5. 213. Ibid., 333-4. 214. Lancaster Co., Deed Bk 4, 1666-1682, 67-8. 215. Lindsay O. Duvall, compiler, Virginia Colonial Abstracts---Series 2, Vol. 2, Lancaster County, Virginia, Court Orders and Deeds, 1656–1680 (1979; reprint Greenville, South Carolina: Southern Historical Press, 1990), 41, Lancaster County Deeds, 1666–1682, 67.
48 Generation Two near what is now known as Bay Port wharf, in Middlesex Co. This island was known as Montague Island as early as 1686 and probably bore that name in 1660. Christ church records have a date of the birth, 9 Sep 1686, of Henry, son of Henry and Ann Davis of Montague Island, and of his baptism 19 Sep 1686, also of the burial, in January, 1686/87, of Mrs. Mary Minor, a widow, of Montague Island. It was probably her son, Garrett Minor, who was presented by the Grand Jury of Middlesex, with William Montague, in 1704, for bringing oysters ashore on the Sabbath day. The tradition that Peter and William Montague lived upon this island is probably correct. One, or both of them, certainly owned it, and it remained in possession of the Montagues for many generations. Latane Montague (322) brother of Lewis B., owned it, it came to him through his wife Catherine Montague, daughter of Thomas. The island is now divided into three farms, and upon that part formerly owned by Mr. Robert Daniel, was a large tree upon which was cut in large letters, the name of William Montague, with the date, which was previous to 1760. The early church and parishes of Middlesex were called Lancaster, and Piankatank (see Appendix B.) In 1666 they became one, under the name of Christ church, and in that year it was agreed by the Vestry to build a mother church by the name of Christ church, which was built at a place about midway between Brandon and Rosegill, the seats of the Wormleys and the Grimeses, not far from the Rappahannock River. It was used until 1712, when a new one was built upon the same place. Rev. Mr. Cole was the minister in 1657. Rev. Mr. Morris was minister previous to the re-union in 1666, and then the Vestry wrote to England for a minister, and in the meanwhile, in 1668, employed Rev. Mr. Shephard who continued to minister until his death in 1683. Rev. Duell Read [from England] then became minister for seven years when he returned to England. In 1692, Rev. Mathew Lidford was chosen, but soon died. In 1699, Rev. Robert Yates was minister until 1704, when he returned to England. His son, Rev. Bartholomew Yates succeeded, until his death in 1734. Then his son, Rev. Bartholomew Yates, was minister until 1767. He (or his father) was Professor of Divinity in William and Mary College. William Yates was President of the college until 1764. "The old mother church! the GREAT church, as she is styled in her Journal, standing in view of the wide Rappahannock! More than 80 years ago [circa 1814] it was deserted. Its roof decayed and fallen in. Everything within it returned to its native dust. A sycamore tree sprung up within its walls. In 1840 it was a huge, overspreading tree, and was removed piecemeal from the house. The rich mould of fifty years' accumulation to the depth of two feet was dug up before the Chancel floor and the stone aisles could be reached. The walls were uninjured and may still remain while generations of frail modern structures pass away. The graves of our ancestors are all around it. In scattered fragments some of the tombstones lie." [Bishop Meade.] HGPM repeatedly asserts that Peter Montague was a prominent member of the church, even as his father had been in Lancaster. This assertion is rejected by the present author and fully discussed in Appendix B. There is also this questionable statement, “It is not improbable that his wife Elizabeth Morris was the daughter of the minister, Rev. Mr. Morris …”216
Note The continuation of the above quote from HGPM (italicized below) incorrectly states that this Peter [5] married twice: (1), Mary [―?―]; then (2), Elizabeth Morris. Proof of the error is evidenced by Will endnotes for Peter [5], to wit: "Estate of Peter Mountague granted to his relict, Mary Mountague, 1 Jan 1682/3, (Middlesex Co. Order Book 2, 93)". This proves he was married once, and that she (Mary) was widowed by his death. It appears this error was created when the compiler, George Wm. Montague, wrongly linked the following statement in HGPM, 61, to this Peter [5]: "This marriage [to Elizabeth Morris] is evidenced by a deed of M[iddlesex] Co. records, dated March 1, 1702, made by Thomas Morris, "for one negro, to his daughter Elizabeth Montague relict of Peter Montague… ". [As an aside the present author suggests that Morris may have been a misreading for Merry.] So it was not this Peter [5], but his son Peter [12] for whom the remainder of the discussion regarding Elizabeth Merry [or Merris (aka Morris)], should have been linked in the original HGPM. With this correction in place, HGPM’s original (though partially incorrect) narrative is preserved here in italics for historical reference and for archival purposes.
216. HGPM, 61.
49 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
... Certainly so if the minister's name was Thomas. The almost total destruction of church records prevents a more extended record of him. The marriage of his daughter Mary to Thomas Paine217 in 1682, indicates that he married first, as early as 1663, [which is probably not far from the correct date] Mary, daughter of *______* [Meindert Doodes/Minor and Mary Minor]. She probably died soon after the birth of her son John in 1682, and he soon after married (2), Elizabeth Morris, daughter of Thomas Morris.218 This marriage is evidenced by a deed of M. Co. records dated March 1, 1702, made by Thomas Morris, "for one negro, to his daughter Elizabeth Montague relict of Peter Montague, and increase at her death, to go to his grandson Peter Montague, and if Peter died before he was 21, it was to go to his brother Thomas Montague. He also gives to each of these, his grandsons, a colt, and a black horse." His second wife Elizabeth, outlived him, and was the administrator of his estate jointly with William Montague [probably his brother William] and Richard Kemp who gave bond dated March 1, 1702/3. He died Jan'y or Feb'y, 1702, aged from 65 to 70 years. He left no will. The inventory of his estate was filed, or recorded, May 3, 1703. [Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 453, associates this date with his son Peter (9)/[12].] If there were other daughters, trace of them is lost by destruction of early records.219
Again, this Peter [5] was married only once and died Dec 1682. Rather than delete the erroneous text (italicized above) from the HGPM narrative, it is preserved here as an historical reference and to account for the misplaced content.
Mary MINOR (aka DOODES),220 died before 5 Mar 1687/8 in Middlesex Co., VA.221 She was the daughter of Meindert Doodes and Mary [―?―]. HGPM, 61, (4), states, "The marriage of his daughter Mary to Thomas Paine in 1682, indicates that he [Peter] married first, as early as 1663, Mary, daughter of *______*." It appears that she was deceased by 5 Mar 1687/8, when Middlesex Order Book 2, 336, recorded "Peter Mountague, orphan son of Peter Mountague, decd., chooses Mr. William Mountague [his father's brother] as his guardian." (ibid.) A careful reading of HGPM's narrative regarding Mary, wife of Peter [5] reveals that the compiler (George Wm. Montague) never stated Mary's maiden name, though it has been speculated upon throughout the years that she was Mary Minor, sister of Doodes Minor who married Peter's sister Elizabeth. We now know she was, in fact, Mary Minor based on the following reference, "Mary Doodes' will, 17 Nov 1678/Feb 1686/7, named her sons Doodes Meindert and Peter Montague and daughter Marie Montague's daughter Marye."222 This is sufficient to definitively settle the identity of Mary's maiden name as being Minor.
217. Ibid., 62, footnote. Payne, Paine. This family name is derived from the Norman Paganus. Thomas Payne age 23, came to Va. from London on ship Transport, July 4, 1635; Elizabeth Payne, age 21, came on the Assurance from London, July 24, 1635; John Paine was living in Virginia in 1623. We find in a note, foot of p. 654 of "H." that Sir Robert Payne purchased land in Virginia and located thereon his two brothers William and John Payne who with Sir Robert were among the "Adventurers of Va., 1620." The arms of this family were "Gu. on a fess between two lions pass. ar." Crest, "a lion's gamb, couped ar. grasping a broken tilting lance, the spear end pendent gu." Motto, "Malo mori quam foedari." William Payne settled near Lynchburg; John Payne near Leedstown, in the Northern Neck. 1, John Paine had—Richard, North'd Co. born 1633 who had 3, John, Lancaster Co. born 1670. Oct. 6, 1655, Mr. John Paine had a grant of 610 acres, north side of Rapahannock River; head rights, John Paine Jr., Margaret Paine, Raleigh, Travers, & c. [H.] Christ Church Mdd. vestry book has the "burial of a certain Mary Paine, Feb'y 17, 1687, also the following: Nicholas Payne of London and Mary Hackney, native, married Dec. 17, 1687; Elizabeth, daughter of Nicholas and Mabel Payne, born March 3, 1688; Ann, daughter of Nicholas and Mabel Payne, bapt. Nov. 27, 1692; Ann, daughter of Barnard and Elizabeth Payne, born Sept. 22, 1693." 218. Ibid., 61, footnote. Morris. Is probably anciently derived from the baptismal name of Maurice, or from the French Du Marais, meaning "of the Marsh." Richard Morris, age 19, sailed from London for Virginia., on ship Speedwell, May 28, 1635. Davie Morris, age 32, came on the America, June 23, 1635. Joseph Morris, age 26, came on the David, Sep 2, 1635. Richard Morrice, age 17, came on the Abraham, Oct 24, 1635. The names of John Morris and Samuel Morris are on the list of the living in Virginia in 1623, and Richard Morris among the dead. On the Muster Roll of 1624 occur the names of Samuel Morris, age 20, came on the Abigail and living at Mulbury Island, and John Morris, age 24, came in the Bona Nova in 1619, and Mary Morris, age 22, came in the George, 1623, both the two last were living in Elizabeth City. 219. Ibid., 59–62, (4). 220. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 654, footnote 20. Both of Meindert Doodes' children used the surname Meindert, which rapidly became the more easily recognized (by English-speaking people) Minor. 221. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 141, abstracted from Order Book 2, 1680–1694. Peter Mountague, orphan son of Peter Mountague, decd., chooses Mr. William Mountague as his guardian. Recorded 5 Mar 1687. (p. 336) 222. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 654, footnote 20, citing Middlesex Co. Wills, 1675–1798, 35.
50 Generation Two
The six known children of Peter2 Montague and Mary Minor (aka Doodes) are: + 11 i. MARY3 MONTAGUE (8), born circa 1664 in Lancaster Co. [south side Rappahannock River, becoming Middlesex Co. in 1669]; married Thomas PAINE or PAYNE. + 12 ii. PETER MONTAGUE (9), born between 1666 and 1670 in Middlesex Co., VA; married Elizabeth MERRY. + 13 iii. WILLIAM MONTAGUE (10), born circa 1670 in Middlesex Co., VA; married Lettice "Letty" WEEKES. 14 iv. ELIZABETH MONTAGUE,223 [not identified in HGPM], born between 1670 and 1677.224 The following Middlesex Co., order book entry dated 2 Dec 1695, shows Peter had a daughter named Elizabeth to wit: "Peter Mountecough and William Mountecough and their two sisters, Elizabeth Mountecough and Catherine Mountecough, to receive the 5 negroes given by Mindrel Dodes to the children of Peter Mountecough, decd., after their mother's death."225 + 15 v. CATHERINE MONTAGUE, [not identified in HGPM], born between 1677 and 1680 in Middlesex Co., VA; married George TWYMAN; married Phillip WARWICK. 16 vi. JOHN MONTAGUE (11),226 baptized 21 May 1682 in Middlesex Co., VA;227 died before Dec 1733 in Essex Co., VA.228 He probably never married. He removed to Essex Co., VA. There is no evidence that he ever married. No children have been found that are not accounted for in other sources. His name does not occur upon any record from that of his birth until his death which occurred in Essex Co. in 1733. The appraisement of his estate was recorded in Essex, March 6, 1733.229
6. William2 MONTAGUE (6) (Peter1),230 born about 1639231 at probably the 1645 Chuckatuck River (aka New Townhaven River) patent in Nansemond Co., VA;232 died 7 Dec 1713 in Middlesex Co., VA;233 buried 10 Dec 1713 in Middlesex Co., VA.234 He married [―?―]. HGPM states William was born between 1635 to 1642235 in Nansemond Co., VA, and may have been referring to Peter’s first Nansemond Co. land patented in 1642 as described, but not sourced, in
223. Ibid., 2: 655, No. 12. Unmarried in 1695. 224. Ibid., 2: 655, shows Elizabeth as the fourth child of Peter and Mary. Based on the birth order of her older and younger siblings, her birth date would fall between 1670 and 1677. 225. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 160, citing Middlesex Co., Order Book 3, 1694–1705, 78. 226. HGPM, 62, (11). 227. John Otto Yurechko, compiler, Christ Church Parish Register, Middlesex County, Virginia, 1653–1812 (Westminster, Maryland: Family Line Publications, 1996), 10, abstracted from Christ Church Parish Register (CCPR). Hereinafter cited as Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register (CCPR). 228. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 655, footnote 26. CCPR. The John Montague whose 1733 inventory is recorded in Essex County (Will Bk. 5, pp. 204–5) was probably the man named in the 1722 will of Richard Webb of Essex (Wills &c 3, pp. 306–7) as "my cousin Jno., knowne by the name of John Mountague." 229. HGPM, 64, (11). 230. Ibid., 58, (6). 231. Ibid., 400, (6), estimates birth between 1635 to 1642 in Nansemond Co., VA, however, William was undoubtedly younger than Peter as their father's will orders his children: Peter, William, Margaret, and Elizabeth. 232. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 652, “His first land grant of record lay in the area which became Nansemond County in 1642.” It seems reasonable also to say the exact location was at Peter’s Chuckatuck River patents and not the 50 acre second land patent (Ragged Islands) of 25 Feb 1638/9; which was in Isle of Wight Co. See Appendix D for full analysis. 233. Ibid., 2: 655, footnote 28. Middlesex Co. Will Bk. 1713–34, pp. 9–10. It was presumably his estate for which Robert Ranson gave bond as administrator, 8 July 1714 (Essex Co. Deeds & Wills 14, 1711–16, p. 263). 234. HGPM, 401, (6), citing Christ Church records for his death, "Mr. William Montague Sr., died the 7th and was buried the 10th of Dec., 1713." 235. The author established the birth year of about 1639 based on HGPM’s estimated birth year of Peter in 1636/7 with rationale provided accordingly. See Appendix D for analysis.
51 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
Adventurers of Purse and Person; or HGPM may be referring to the Elizabeth River patent of 1637, but Peter had already assigned this patent to Thomas Marsh (alias Rivers), in 1639,236 and in all probability had since removed his family to the Chuckatuck River patent of 1645. The record of his older brother Peter [as updated in his narrative] states that Peter was certainly at least 22/23 years of age when his father died [1659]. William being younger would be at least 19/20 years of age based on a birth year of 1639. HGPM states he was likely 21 in 1656 which dates his birth to 1635, however, this author has updated his birth year here to 1639 as outlined in the narrative for his father Peter [1]. This is no doubt nearer the correct date and is further corroborated by his father's will which makes an equal distribution of his land between them and immediate possession at his death, only reserving the first choice to Peter who was the eldest. HGPM states, “Had William been under age in 1659, the will would have held his share in trust until he had reached legal age.” This author submits that a trust was not needed by the wording of Peter’s will, it having made equal distribution of his land. All the records of Nansemond Co., where he was born have been destroyed. The first mention of him on any record occurs in the will of his father, Peter [1], in 1659. The next mention of him, comes from Essex Co. records, where under date of 1699, his son William is described as "William, Jr., son of William, Sr. of Middlesex." His name appears on Middlesex records of Oct 7, 1700, together with the name of his brother Peter [not his brother, but his brother’s son (Peter III), as William’s brother, Peter II, had died by Dec 1682] and fifteen others of the freeholders of Middlesex, upon a petition to the House of Burgesses; Nov 4, 1701, his name is found on court records, as appointing his son William his attorney to acknowledge a deed of gift of one horse colt to Thomas Montague, eldest son of Peter (the grandson of his brother Peter II); March 1, 1702, he was one of the administrators of the estate of his bro. Peter; June 10, 1706 his name is on a deed of gift, (in Essex Co.) for land deeded by him to his son Thomas and Thomas’ wife Katherine. The few remaining records of Christ church do not mention him, except to record his death, as follows: "Mr. William Montague Sr., died the 7th and was buried the 10th of Dec, 1713." His will has been found, dated Oct 1, 1713, proved June 1, 1714 and a copy in full is given below. In his will he describes himself as "of Middlesex." All these records agree, that he resided in Middlesex Co. from the year 1699 to his death 1713. At the date of 1700, he was about 65 years of age [more accurately 61 years of age or less], his children were grown, married, and settled; his wife appears to have been deceased, and he was residing on his plantation, on or near Montague Island, in Middlesex. How the land on the Rappahannock River was actually divided between these two sons of the immigrant, there is no way to know, except that Peter, as the oldest, had the first choice. Here HGPM asserts, incorrectly, that the sons moved from Northside Rappahannock River to Middlesex Co. (See Appendix B for full analysis). The incorrect (italicized) text from HGPM states: but all records agree that both Peter and William had moved from Lancaster, before the year 1700 and were living in Middlesex, on or near Montague Island, which island they owned. Such is the tradition, and the records corroborate it. No record has been found which states that they had sold the homestead in Lancaster where their father died, all mention of them however ceases on the records of Lancaster in 1668 and it seems safe to say that they had sold it. This William Montague lived more than ten [should be 30] years after the death of his brother Peter. While his brother left no will, it is probable that in the settlement of the estate, some of the Montague Island land came to William, or perhaps it was his by the original division under the will of his father. This land he must have given to his eldest [should be youngest]237 son William [18], during his own life time, as he leaves him none in his will. Certain it is that his eldest [sic] son William owned 500 acres of the island or near it in 1733 (see Will record of William Montague [18]). He had evidently provided for his eldest [sic] son William before the making of the will, as the will itself is in favor of the youngest son Thomas. The wording of the will of Peter [1], renders it certain that William was not married at that time
236. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: 122, “THOMAS MARSH alias RIVERS, 150 acs. Up. Co. of New Norfolke, Mar. 21, 1639, p. 716. To be doubled, etc. N. upon Eliz. Riv., & W. upon Oystershell Cr. Due by assignment from Peter Mountegue & due to him for trans. of 3 pers: William Jones, Thomas Kedbey, Margarett Starford.” 237. HGPM erred in identifying William as the eldest son. This William’s will clearly indicates Thomas is the elder as he inherits the lands and is appointed to be his father’s whole and sole executor.
52 Generation Two
[1659]. No record has been found of the date of his marriage or name of his wife, who died before him as she is not mentioned in his will.238
THE WILL OF WILLIAM MONTAGUE [6] In the name of God amen. October ye first 1713, I, William Montague of Middlesex Co. in Virginia, being sick and weak, but in perfect memory and remembrance, I bless God for it, doe make this my last will and testament, revoking all other wills and testaments by me made in what kind so ever. First I bequeath my soul to God, hoping to receive pardon for all my sins through the merits of Jesus Christ my Redeemer, and my body to be buryed by my executors hereafter named. Item. I give and bequeath all my lands that I am now possessed with to my loving son Thomas Montague. Item. I give to my loving son Thomas Montague all my crop of tobacco and corn now growing and five yards of grey kersey and trimming, and one piece of shooting linning and one pair of mens shoes and stockings. Item. I give to my loving son William Montague all my wearing apparell. My will and desire is that all the rest of my movables of what kind so ever, to be equally divided between my two loving sons William and Thomas Montague. I doe hereby appoint my loving son Thomas Montague to be whole and sole executor of this my last will and testament as witness my hand and seale hereunto set the day and year first above written. h is WILLIAM NI MONTAGUE. mark Signed sealed and delivered in the presence of us John Smith, Richard Curtis, Wm. Lawson. At a court held for ye Co. of Middlesex ye 4th day of May 1714 Thomas Montague produced the above written will in court and made oath thereto according to law, and the same was proved by the oaths of John Smith, gent. and William Lawson, two of the witnesses to it which is hereby certified. Teste, WILL. STANARD Clerk. At a court held for Middlesex Co. ye first day of June 1714. This will was this day further proved in court by the oath of Richd Curtis and admitted to record. Teste, WILL. STANARD Clerk. Truly recorded, Teste, J. R. HICKMAN, Dp. Clerk. Virginia. In the Clerk's office of the County Court of Middlesex February 8th, 1894. I hereby certify the foregoing will to be a true copy from the records of my office aforesaid. Teste, B. B. CHOWNING, Clerk239 ______
The two known children of William2 Montague and [―?―] are: + 17 i. THOMAS3 MONTAGUE (3171), born circa 1675 probably in Middlesex Co., VA; married Katherine COLLINS; married C(K)atharine WILLIAMSON. + 18 ii. WILLIAM MONTAGUE (3170), born circa 1678 probably in Middlesex Co., VA; married Elizabeth [―?―]; married unknown [―?―]; married Elizabeth NORMAN.
238. HGPM, 401, (6). 239. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 54, abstracted from Will Book B, 1713–1734, Part 1. Inventory of Estate of William Mountague, decd., by Thomas Mountague. 5 Oct 1714. (p. 22); also HGPM, 402, (6).
53 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
7. Elizabeth2 MONTAGUE (5) (Peter1),240 born about 1641 in Upper Co. of New Norfolk, VA, at probably the 1645 Chuckatuck River (aka New Townhaven River) patent in Nansemond Co., VA;241 died between 7 Jan 1706—1 Nov 1708 in Middlesex Co., VA.242 She married Doodes MINOR, between 1668 and 1671.243 She married Maurice COCKE, after May 1695.244 She married James BLAISE, after 1697.245 Based on a time line developed by the present author using documented land records, Elizabeth was probably born at the 1645 Chuckatuck River patent, Nansemond Co., on or shortly after 1641. According to HGPM, 58, (5), Elizabeth was born about 1635 to 1642 in Nansemond Co., VA; however, in 1639, Peter had already assigned the Elizabeth River patent to Thomas Marsh (alias Rivers), and was probably living at the Chuckatuck River patent when she was born.246 By compiling extant bond and will records of Middlesex Co., we know that Elizabeth was unmarried as of 12 Mar 1666/7.247 She married (1), between 1668 and 1671, Doodes Minor, whose sister, Mary, married her brother Peter; married (2), May 1695, Maurice Cocke, son of Nicholas Cocke, no record of children (at this time she was approximately 54 years of age); and married (3), about 1697, James Blaise, again no record of children. Having had only four children in a 16-year span, with spacings of seven, four, and three years; it could be imagined that she had difficulty with childbirth and several children died at birth. Elizabeth left a will dated 7 Jan 1706 in Middlesex Co., VA.248
Doodes MINOR,249 died before May 1695 in Middlesex Co., VA.250 He was the son of Meindert Doodes and Mary [―?―]. His estate was probated on 27 May 1695 in Middlesex Co., VA.251 Doodes Minor and his father Meindert Doodes became naturalized citizens by an act of the Assembly. An extract of this act follows:
240. HGPM, 58, (5). 241. Ibid., estimates Elizabeth’s birth date about 1636, but this is incorrect based on the ordering of children in the father's will and her brother Peter's birth date estimated about 1636/7. Birth place is assumed in this research to be at the location of her father’s third land patent on the Chuckatuck River, granted, Aug 1645. See Peter (1), Peter’s Two Wives, and Appendix C for analysis. 242. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 49, abstracted from Will Book A, 1698-1713. Elizabeth Blaise…7 Jan 1706/1 Nov 1708… Son Minor Minor and then to granddaughter Elizabeth Minor (under 21). Son Garrett Minor. Son Peter Minor. Jane Smith. Agatha Blewford. Exor: Son Garrett Minor. Wit: John Smith and Thomas Mountague. (p. 210). 243. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 654, footnote 20. Mary Doodes' will, 17 Nov 1678–7/Feb 1686/7 (ibid., 35), named her sons Doodes Meindert and Peter Montague and daughter Marie Montague's daughter Marye. Apparently following Dutch custom, both of Meindert Doodes' children used the surname Meindert, which rapidly became the more easily recognized (by English-speaking people) Minor. 244. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 42, abstracted from Wills 1675–1798, Parts 1 & 2. Doodes Minor ... 13 Nov 1694/27 May 1695 ... Son Minor Minor. Granddaughter Elizabeth Mickleburrough. Wife Elizabeth Minor. My four sons viz Minor Minor [sic], William Minor, Garat [sic] Minor and Peter Minor. Exors: Wife and sons Minor Minor and William Minor. Overseers: Mr. Maurice Cock, Mr. Tobias Mickleburrough, Mr. William Mountague and John Smith. Sons as they "come of age". Wit: Maurice Cock, Nicholas Curtis, Arthur Hancock and John Smith. (p. 96). 245. Ibid., 164, abstracted from Order Book 3, 1694–1705. Elizabeth Cock, relict of Mr. Maurice Cock, decd., to receive her 1/3 part of his estate. 3 Jan 1697 (p. 96). 246. Nugent, Cavaliers and Pioneers, 1: 122, THOMAS MARSH alias RIVERS, 150 acs. Up. Co. of New Norfolke, Mar. 21, 1639, p. 716. To be doubled, etc. N. upon Eliz. Riv., & W. upon Oystershell Cr. Due by assignment from Peter Mountegue & due to him for trans. of 3 pers: William Jones, Thomas Kedbey, Margarett Starford. 247. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 653. 248. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 49, 44, abstracted from Will Book A, 1698–1713. Elizabeth Blaise… 7 Jan 1706/1 Nov 1708… (p. 210). 249. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 654, footnote 20. Both of Meindert Doodes' children used the surname Meindert, which rapidly became the more easily recognized (by English-speaking people) Minor. 250. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 42, abstracted from Wills 1675–1798, Parts 1 & 2. Doodes Minor's will was proved 27 May 1695 (p. 96). 251. Ibid., 159, abstracted from Order Book 3, 1694–1705. Probate of Dodes Minor, decd., granted to Elizabeth Minor, Minor Minor and William Minor, executors. (p. 46).
54 Generation Two
WHEREAS… John Peterson, Rowland Anderson, Michaell Vanlandigam, Minor Doodes, Doodes Minor, and Herman Kelderman, aliens, makeing humble suite… indulged with all priviledges… (Charles II.)252 This was affirmed again on Oct 1705. "An act confirming the Naturalization of Joshua Mulder and others.253 WHEREAS by former acts of assembly, Joshua Mulder, Henry Weedick, Christopher Regault, Henry Fayson Vandoevarage, John Mattoon, Dominick Theriate, Jeremy Packquett, Nicholas Cock, Henry Wagaman, Thomas Harmenson, John Peterson, Reynold Anderson, Michael Vanlandigham, Minor Doodes, Doodes Minor, Herman Kelderman, Christian Peterson, Garret Johnson, Abraham Vinckler, John Michael, Jacob Johnson, John Pimmitt and John Keeton, aliens, received grants of naturalization. Be it therefore enacted …That the same…and all other persons whatsoever having heretofore received any grant of naturalization…shall have, hold and enjoy all and singular the estates, priviledges, capacitys, rights, immunitys, libertys, propertys and advantages of the naturall born subjects of this colony. He left a will on 13 Nov 1694 at Middlesex Co., VA.”254 ______
The six known children of Elizabeth2 Montague and Doodes Minor are: 19 i. ELIZABETH3 MINOR,255 born about 1669 in Middlesex Co., VA; died before 1691. She married Tobias MICKELBOROUGH, 21 Dec 1684 in Middlesex Co., VA.256 She died before Sep 1691 as her husband Tobias had remarried Grace Lewis on 17 Sep 1691. They had one known daughter, Elizabeth, baptized 14 Feb 1685/6 in Middlesex Co., VA.257
Tobias MICKELBOROUGH, born about 1661 in Lancaster Co., VA, south side of the Rappahannock River, becoming Middlesex Co. in 1669];258 died 18 Apr 1727 in Middlesex Co., VA;259 buried 20 Apr 1727 in Middlesex Co., VA. He married (2), Grace Lewis, 17 Sep 1691 in Middlesex Co., VA.260 He was the son of Edmund Mickelborough Sr. The estate of Mr. William Nicholson lately come into the hands of Mr. Tobias Mickleburrough.261 20 ii. WILLIAM MINOR; died probably before 7 Jan 1706.
252. William Waller Hening, compiler, Laws of Virginia from the First Session of the Legislature in the Year 1619 (New York: no publisher, 1823), 25 Oct 1673, 308–9, provided to the author by Marty Grant, ([email protected]) provided by Nancy Sparks Morrison, ([email protected]). 253. Ibid., 479, date Oct 1705 provided by Marty Grant, ([email protected]), as it was provided by Nancy Sparks Morrison, ([email protected]), source not provided. 254. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 42, abstracted from Wills 1675–1798, Parts 1 & 2. Doodes Minor ... 13 Nov 1694/27 May 1695 ... Son Minor Minor. Granddaughter Elizabeth Mickleburrough. Wife Elizabeth Minor. My four sons viz Minor Minor [sic], William Minor, Garat [sic] Minor and Peter Minor. Exors: Wife and sons Minor Minor and William Minor. Overseers: Mr. Maurice Cock, Mr. Tobias Mickleburrough, Mr. William Mountague and John Smith. Sons as they "come of age". Wit: Maurice Cock, Nicholas Curtis, Arthur Hancock and John Smith. (p. 96). 255. Ibid., 39, abstracted from Wills 1675–1798, Parts 1 & 2. Mary Doodes... 17 Sep 1678/7 Feb 1686... Exor: Son Doodes Mindart his father's sealing ring. Daughter Marie Mountague and her daughter Mary [Mountague]. Marie Mountague, daughter to Peter Mountague. Mindert Doodes and Elizabeth Doodes, son and daughter of Doodes Mindart. My two sons Doodes Mindart and Peter Mountague. Wit: Nicholas Cocke and Henry Davis. (p. 35). 256. Yurechko, Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register, 13, abstracted from CCPR. 257. Ibid., 17. 258. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 44, abstracted from Will Book A, 1698–1713. Nuncupative will of Henry Osbond... 14 Nov 1698. Wife Alice Osbond estate for life and then to 2 children. Wit: Minor Minor aged 26, Joseph Carter aged 41, Tobias Mickleburrough aged 37 and Nicholas Brim aged 21. (p. 21). 259. Yurechko, Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register, 140, abstracted from CCPR. [This is presumed to be Tobias, husband of Grace. It is not improbable that it could be his nephew Tobias, born 17 Jun 1708.] 260. Ibid., 36. 261. Middlesex Co. Order Book 2, 1680–1694, 556.
55 History and Genealogy of Peter Montague of Jamestowne
He is not mentioned in his mother's (now Mrs. Elizabeth Blaise [7]) will dated 7 Jan 1706 and so likely had died by that date. 21 iii. MINOR MINOR, born about 1672 in Middlesex Co., VA;262 died 30 Nov 1716 in Middlesex Co., VA;263 buried 3 Dec 1716 in Middlesex Co., VA. (ibid.) He married (1), [―?―]. He married (2), Elizabeth NORMAN, 22 Aug 1710 in Middlesex Co., VA.264 His estate was probated on 2 Jan 1716/17 in Middlesex Co., VA.265 He left a will before 30 Nov 1716 in Middlesex Co., VA.266
[―?―]. (Identity unknown.)
Elizabeth NORMAN, born 19 May 1679 in Middlesex Co., VA; died before 1733. She married at least twice (1), 22 Aug 1710, Minor Minor (his second wife); and (2), 24 Dec 1716, William Montague Jr. [18] (his third wife). After the death of Minor, she married William MONTAGUE Jr. [18], 24 Dec 1717 in Middlesex Co., VA.267 CCPR of Middlesex Co., records the birth of Elizabeth Norman as 19 May 1679, but it is not possible, at this time, to know for certain if she is the same who married Minor Minor (born 1672) and William Montague [18] (born 1678), but their ages are compatible with hers. Note. The reader is cautioned that none of the following line of thought regarding three husbands for Elizabeth is proven. It is statistically likely that Minor Minor was Elizabeth Norman’s second husband as she was already 31 years of age when she married Minor Minor. As further corroboration of this possibility, CCPR records a son, Thomas Norman, born 9 Jan 1702/3, to Robert and Elizabeth Norman.268 Her age would have been about 22 years. In this scenario, it is possible that her alleged "first" husband Robert died before 1710, and she then married (2), Minor Minor. CCPR of Middlesex Co., also records the marriage of Robert Williamson and Elizabeth Minor on 21 Dec 1716. Some have suggested that this record refers to the 'widow' Elizabeth (Norman) Minor, however, she wouldn’t have become widowed until Nov 1716 when her husband, Minor Minor, died and so could not (or would not) have married Robert Williamson, a mere one month later, in Dec 1716. The only other Elizabeth Minor who could have married Robert Williamson is her stepdaughter, Elizabeth Minor (born circa 1711/12), but for the fact she was only 5 years of age. Her third husband’s (William Montague) will does not mention a wife, suggesting he was widowed at the time of his death (between 1 Apr–6 Jun 1733). If true, his wife Elizabeth (Norman) Minor, died before 1733, no older than 53 years of age.
262. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 44, abstracted from Will Book A, 1698–1713. Nuncupative will of Henry Osbond... 14 Nov 1698. Wife Alice Osbond estate for life and then to 2 children. Wit: Minor Minor aged 26, Joseph Carter aged 41, Tobias Mickleburrough aged 37 and Nicholas Brim aged 21. (p. 21). 263. Yurechko, Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register, 127, abstracted from CCPR. 264. Ibid., 58. 265. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 178, abstracted from Order Book 5, 1710–1726. Elizabeth Minor, relict of Minor Minor, decd., asks to be administratrix. 2 Jan 1716. (p. 307). 266. Ibid., 56, abstracted from Will Book B, 1713–1734, part 1. Inventory of Minor Minor, decd., by Elizabeth Minor, administratrix. 6 Mar 1716 (p. 60). 267. Yurechko, Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register, 116, abstracted from CCPR. 268. Ibid., 42.
56 Generation Two
22 iv. GERET MINOR, baptized 13 Apr 1679 in Middlesex Co., VA;269 died 2 Feb 1720/21 in Middlesex Co., VA, age 41;270 buried 4 Feb 1720/21 in Middlesex Co., VA. (ibid.) He married Diana VIVION, 17 Oct 1706 in Middlesex Co., VA.271 Geret is probably the maiden name of his paternal grandmother Mary (Geret?) Doodes. Geret is (also spelled Garat, Garrit, Garrot) left a will dated 27 Dec 1720 in Middlesex Co., VA, which was witnessed by Thomas Montague Sr. [17].272
Diana VIVION, died 16 Apr 1718 in Middlesex Co., VA.273 23 v. JOHN MINOR, baptized 6 Sep 1683 in Middlesex Co., VA;274 died before 1694. He is not mentioned in his father's will written 13 Nov 1694, listing only "my four sons viz Minor Minor, William Minor, Garat Minor and Peter Minor." Also not listed in his mother's [Elizabeth (Montague) [7] Blaise] will dated 7 Jan 1706. His absences in his parents’ wills suggests he died young. John's identification here as a child of Doodes and Elizabeth Minor is based on supposition and analysis of possible alternatives, for which there are none. Still, the reader is cautioned that this relationship is not proven. 24 vi. PETER MINOR, baptized 7 Mar 1685/86 in Middlesex Co., VA.275
Maurice COCKE,276 born circa 1662;277 died before 3 Jan 1697 in Middlesex Co., VA.278 There are no known children of Elizabeth2 Montague and Maurice Cocke.
James BLAISE, died before 3 Feb 1701 in Middlesex Co., VA.279 He married also Millicent [―?―].280 His estate was probated on 4 Dec 1701 in Middlesex Co., VA.281 He left a will on 10 Dec 1700 in Middlesex Co., VA. The name Blaise is not found in the CCPR of Middlesex Co., VA. There are no known children of Elizabeth2 Montague and James Blaise.
- END GENERATION TWO -
269. Ibid., 7. 270. Ibid., 133. 271. Ibid., 56. 272. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 59, abstracted from Will Book B, 1713–1734. Garrett Minor…27 Dec 1720/7 Feb 1720… Daughter Diana Minor. Son John Minor to be of age at 19 and daughter at 18. Exors: Mr. John Vivion, Thomas Mountague Sr., Thomas Vivion and son John Minor. Wit: Thomas Buford, Henry Buford, William Chossidle, William Flotiher (?) and John Tomson. (p. 156) 273. Yurechko, Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register, 129, abstracted from CCPR. 274. Ibid., 14, spelled Mynor. 275. Ibid., 17. 276. Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 1: 789, footnote 36, Nicholas Cocke, who patented with infant son Maurice 600 acres in Lancaster County, 25 Aug 1663, citing Patent Bk 4, p. 411; Patent Bk 5, p. 136 (1). Since Nicholas was an alien the land would have escheated at his death had not his son been included in this grant. 277. Ibid., 1: 789, stating Maurice was an infant son on 25 Aug 1663, suggesting an approximate birth year. 278. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 164, abstracted from Order Book 3, 1694–1705. Elizabeth Cock, relict of Mr. Maurice Cock, decd., to receive her 1/3 part of his estate. (p. 207) 279. Ibid., 45, abstracted from Will Book A, 1698–1713. James Blaise... 10 Dec 1700/3 Feb 1700 [sic]... Wife Elizabeth Blaise. Cousin Mary Osband. Cousin Agatha Vause. Catherine Lidford. Land whereon Mr. Maurice Cock, decd., did live. Two cousins Mary [Vause] and Agatha [Vause] to have 2 years schooling. Garrot Minor and Jane Smith to "live with my wife providing said Garrot doth not marry". Trustees: Garwin Corbin and Mr. Edwin Thacker. Wit: William Daniell, Garritt Minor and Christopher Barnard. (p. 47) 280. Ibid., 158, abstracted from Order Book 3, 1694–1705. James Blaise and his wife Millesant Balaise, executrix of John Jones, decd. 7 Jan 1694. (p. 8) 281. Ibid., 46, an inventory of his estate was returned, 4 Dec 1701.
57
Generation Three
11. Mary3 MONTAGUE (8) (Peter2, Peter1),282 born circa 1664 in Lancaster Co., VA, (southside Rappahannock River, becoming Middlesex Co. in 1669)283; buried 17 Feb 1686/7284 in Essex Co., VA.285 She married Thomas PAINE or PAYNE, 24 Oct 1682 in Middlesex Co., VA.286 She married, 24 Oct 1682, Thomas Paine (or Payne), and had one child, Thomas, Jr., before she died on an unknown date before Feb 1686/7. She is the Mary Montague, alleged to have married Joseph Ball whose only daughter, Mary Ball, became the mother of George Washington. (See Appendix F, The George Washington―Montague Connection, for full analysis of this issue.)
Thomas PAINE or PAYNE. He married (2), Elizabeth Elliott by 1694/5. Most of this narrative for Thomas Payne is based on the book, The Paynes of Virginia by Brooke Payne. Mr. Payne identifies five groups in and around the Rappahannock River region. Of these five groups, Thomas Payne who married Mary Montague is of the “Rappahannock group” a group headed by brothers Thomas and Ralph Payne. The brother Ralph was father of this Thomas. The brothers, Ralph and Thomas, lived and developed land along both sides of the Rappahannock River (Lancaster and Middlesex Counties).287 Before Ralph’s brother Thomas died in 1664, he married Elizabeth [―?―] and had two children: Nicholas and Penelope. Nicholas married Mabell Hackney.288 They lived in the upper part of Middlesex Co., and had three daughters: Elizabeth (born 3 Mar 1688),289 Ann290 (baptized 27 Nov 1692),291 and Mary. (ibid.) Nicholas left a will dated 1693/(1694). His sister Penelope married (1), Thomas Warwick;
282. Montague, History and Genealogy of Peter Montague (HGPM), 62, (8); also Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 656, #10, citing Lancaster Co. Deeds &c 4, 1666–82, p. 18: "Mary was given a 'heyfer' by her aunt Elizabeth Montague, 12 March 1666/7, and was mentioned in the will of her grandmother Mary Doodes, 117 Nov 1678." 283. Peter lived on his father’s Middlesex Co. homestead until his own death in Dec 1682. No record has been found to show that Peter ever lived in Lancaster Co. The earliest entry of a Montague in Middlesex Co. record books is the 21 May 1682, birth of their last child, John, in Christ Church Parish Register, Middlesex. See Appendix D for analysis. 284. Yurechko, Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register, 19, abstracted from CCPR; also Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, 4th ed., 2: 656, footnote 37, citing CCPR. 285. Patricia T. Jones, "The lineage of Mary Montague and Thomas Payne," e-mail message from ([email protected]) (5513 Camino Dos Lagos Dr, Sherman, TX 75090) to author, 11 Jul 2004, citing Brooke Payne, The Paynes of Virginia, 2d edition (Harrisonburg, Virginia: C. J. Carrier Co., 1977), 5. 286. Yurechko, Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register, 12, abstracted from CCPR. 287. Brooke Payne, compiler, The Paynes of Virginia (Richmond, Virginia: William Byrd Press, 1937), 4, online (http://searach.ancestry.com), downloaded 26 Jun 2012. 288. Hopkins, Middlesex Co. Wills, 46, abstracted from Wills Book A 1698–1713. William Hackney, Sr....30 Sep 1701/ 7 Jul 1701... Son William Hackney 100 acres for life bounded by Thomas Manston (?) and Frank Dobson and then to his heirs by his wife Mary Hackney, decd. Son James Hackney for life and then to his wife for her lifetime. Wife Elizabeth Hackney. Daughter Mabel’s children while she was Mabel Paine, the wife of Nicholas Paine. Granddaughter Rebecca Hackney. Granddaughter Elizabeth Paine. Exor: Wife. Wit: Roger Jones, Thomas Davis and John Michemen. (p. 95). 289. Yurechko, Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register, 24, abstracted from CCPR. She was baptized 3 Jun 1688. 290. Ibid., 41, abstracted from Wills 1675–1798, Parts 1&2. Nicholas Paine...25 Nov 1693/ 5 Mar 1693... Daughters Mary Paine and Ann Paine. Wife Mabell Paine. Wit:: John Loyd, William Mountague and Ann Gabrill. (p. 83). 291. Yurechko, Middlesex Christ Church Parish Register, 35, abstracted from CCPR.
59