GENEALOGY OF THE YARDLEY FAMILY, 1402-1881. Bv THOMAS W. YARDLEY. PHILADELPHIA: WILLIAM S. SCHOFIELD. 1881. /-?()r Sall' at Sower, Potts &,, Co.' s, 530 Market Street. FAMILY C>F YARDLEY, COUNTYSTAFFORO,ENGLAND. From Harley Manuscripts BRITISH MUS.hlUM. in the British Museum, England. May, 1881. JOHN .YA.R,DLEY daughter of Marbury, Nos. 1077, 1171, 6128. 1402~ 1 I of Dadesbury. · JOHN-daughter OLIVER YARDLEY, of Yardley, of Killlngworth,Tof Tickens. cotemporary of J Co. Warwick. Henry VI. JOHN, of YardleyTMARGARET, daughter and heir of JOHN YARD1-EY, of Killingworth. JOHN=;=;EHzabeth, daughter of William Birkes, of Yardley, I County Stafford. WlLLIAM-Eliz,abeth, daughter of William and Alice Brerertoh Morton, Uvfng 1588. of Morton, County Chester. ELL. 5. RANDI 4. GEORGE=Temperance,I 3. JOHN=Mar·y,I . 2. RALPH=Ellzabeth,. I 1. WILLIAM-TMargery, daui~hter of ·of daughter of daughter of Eliza eth, Randall Dodd, Caldecot, Randall Dodd, John Lawton, Argalll of Edge, County Chester. of Edge, County Chester. of Lawton. Francis, · George was knighted 160$, and appointed I Colonial Governor JOHN-Alice, daughter of WILLIAM-Dorothy, daughter of of Virginia. born 1579. R. Sutton, of Sir John Drake (who died 1636). Rushton Spencer, ---r-----------~---------J...:::;County Stafford. I WILLIAM-Jane, THOMAS= Mary. 4. John. 1. Edward. of Ransclough,T Jane. 5, Richard. 2. William. of Rushton Spencer, I · born 1632, Dorothy. County Stafford, 6. Thomas. 3. Ralph. emigrated to Margaret. born 1630. America 1682. Alice. SAMUEL. Enoch. THOMAS, William. nephew of William, the emigrant, Thomas. went to America 1704. PREFACE. IN I 876, after an absence of twenty-five years, I returned to Bucks County on a visit, and had the pleasure of seeing all of the papers which conveyed lands from William Penn to William Yardley (the emigrant), which papers are now in the possession of A. S. Cadwallader, at Yardley. On this occasion I for the first time learned the fact that we were not the descendants of William (the emigrant), but of his nephew, Thomas, who came to America in I 704. With this new light, a desire to know more of our _ancestors was awakened, and I was encouraged to commence this investigation of the family history. My success has been greater than I anticipated, but I leave much undone for others, who may desire to go farther into the records of the past, to make my work still more complete. As will be seen I have only given the descendants of the oldest son of our English ancestor; the other sons left no descendants, and the descendants of the daughters I have not attetnpted to trace. If the result of my labor here and researches in England shall give pleasure and interest to the family, I shall not have labored . 1n vam. THOMAS W. YARDLEY. YARDLEY, PA., July, 188r. NOTE. FoR convenience of reference, and to facilitate a quick understanding of the line of direct descent, various devices of number~ and types have been used. The descendants of John Yardley are numbered, to distinguish each, by the figures at the left of the page ; and such of them as became heads of families, have their distinctive numbers repeated in large type in the middle of the page, over the statement of -their marriage. A heavy antique letter has been adopted in printing their names, and an italic letter for the names of those to whom they were married. YARDLEY. THE first record we have of the name, is that of "William Yardley, L. M.," a witness to the signing of the first Magna Charta given by John I to ·England, dated June 15th, 1215. "The great charter was executed in the presence of many of the . clergy and nobles." It is possible his ancestors first made their appearance in England as followers of William the Conquerer; but, from the time of this invasion to the year r 2 r 5, and from this date to r 400, we have ·not obtained any well-connected trace of the name. From 1400 to 1682, when the emigrant William Yardley came to America, the· records found are complete. _ In the " Patronymica Britannica" we find the family is spoken of as an ancient one, with residence in Staffordshire, England, and whose heads were called "lords of Yardley." Their coat of arms are" argent, on a chevron azure three garbs or, on a canton gules, a fret or," Crest, "a buck, courant, gu. attired or." In the absence of reliable information previous to the year r 400, we commence with the DESCENDANTS OF John Yardley, of County Stafford, England, who married a daughter of Marburry, of Dadesburry, had ONE SoN. 2d GENERATION. r. John, of Killingsworth, County Warwick, who married a daughter of T£ckens. He had ONE DAUGHTER. THE YARDLEY FAMILY. I I 3d GENERATION. 2. Margaret, daughter and heir of John Yardley, of Killingsworth, married John, son of Oliver Yardley, of Yardley, County Stafford. ONE SON. 4th GENERATION. 3. John Yardley, who married Elizabeth, daughter of William Birkes, County Stafford. ONE SON. 5th GENERATION. 4. William, of County Stafford, who married Elizabeth, daughter of William and Alice Brererton Morton, of Morton, County Chester. SEVEN CHILDREN. 6th GENERATION. 5. William, the eldest, married Margery, daughter of John Lawton, of Lawton. Two CHILDREN. 7th GENERATION. 6. John, b. r 5 79, married Alice, daughter of R. Sutton, of Rushton Spencer, County Stafford. 7. William married Dorothy,_ daughter of Sir John Drake (who died 1636). Two CHILDREN. 8th GENERATION. 8. Thomas, of Rushton Spencer, b. 1630; married--. 9. William, of Ransclough, b. 1632; married 'Jane--; emigrated to America 1682 ; d. 5th month 9th, 1693. 8 Thomas, of Rushton Spencer, married --. Two CHILDREN. THE YARDLEY FAMILY. 13 9th GENERATION. Io. Samuel. r r. Thomas came to America in r 704, and married Ann, daughter of William Biles, of Pennsburry, Bucks County, Pa. 1 9 'f1 f Alff(' \ L ~. I) William (the emigrant) married 7a~e ~V\ There were three sons, Enoch, William and Thomas. They emigrated to America with their servant, Andrew Heath, "in the good ship Friend's Adventure," arriving in the Delaware River 7th month 28th, r 682. Soon there­ after they located on the west side of the river, three miles above the falls where is now the city of Trenton, N. J., and near the present town of Yardley, Bucks County, Pa., on the land purchased under an agreement with Wm. Penn, dated 3d month 20th, r 68 r, [this was only sixteen days after the grant from Charles II to Wm. Penn], covering some five hundred acres. The consideration-money was £ro, as per receipt, and deed bearing date 3d month 21st, 1681, [ now in the possession of A. S. Cadwallader, at Yardley, Bucks County]. The location of the land was made, the survey completed and patent issued 10th month 20th, I 682. The place was called "Prospect Farm," and by that name it is now known. As an additional inducemel)t to the first settlers to purchase not less than five hundred acres, Wm. Penn gave to each purchaser of that amount a lot of ground to be located in the city of Philadelphia. Lot No. 8, north of Chestnut Street, extending from Second to Third Streets, was given to Wm. Yardley. After his death, his sons (who were his heirs) sold th~ lot to Edward Shippen, of Philadelphia, 8th month 2 r st, r 696; the deed, however, was not recorded until -7th month 28th, I 768. With the exception of a few years, " Prospect Farm " has always been in the possession of some member of the Yardley family. It is now owned by, and is the residence of, Thomas S. Cadwallader. At the time of William Yardley's death, he was an active member THE YARDLEY FAMILY. 15 of the Society of "Friends." Thomas Janney, in his "Memorials Concerning the Lives of the Early Colonists," says: " That in his (William Yardley's) early life, he sought the knowledge of God, and joined in society with a spiritually-minded people, who called them­ selves 'the family of love.' He afterward was convinced of the prin­ ciples of 'Friends,' and, joining in fellowship with them, was called to the ministry about the twenty-third year of his age. He traveled in various parts of the nation, preaching the Gospel, and suffered imprisonment for conscience' sake nineteen weeks, during seventeen of which his only resting-place was the bare floor of his cell. He represented Bucks County in the first Colonial Assembly, and was afterward an active member of the Provincial Council." 1st month, 7th, 1686, Thomas Janney offered" Slate Pitt Hill" to Falls Meeting of "Friends" as a burying-ground. It was accepted, and deeded to Wm. Yardley and others, in trust forever, for that purpose. It is now known as the "Stone Grave-yard," and is situated one mile east of Yardley, on the road to Fallsington. From that time till 1800, it was the principal burying-ground for "Friends;" and, doubtless, in these grounds were buried all the Yardleys who died in this country prior to the Revolutionary War. Soon after the death of William's wife, Jane, 6th month 28th, 1691, he bequeathed by will to his eldest son, Enoch, one-half of" Prospect Farm," and the remaining half_ to William and Thomas. They, by deed dated 4th month 4th, I 702, conveyed their moiety to Enoch. Enoch, eldest son of William and Jane Yardley, married Mary, daughter of Robert Fletcher, of Philadelphia, Pa., 10th month 1697. THREE CHILDREN. Jane, b. 9 mo. 14, 1698; d. 9 mo.