Richard Whitlock (1616-1666), Oxford Graduate, Anglican Parson, Heir to Manor of Beches, Berkshire, England

Anthony à Wood, Athenæ Oxonienses, An Exact History of All the Writers and Bishops Who Have Their Education in the University of Oxford, vol. 3 (London: F.C. and J. Rivington, 1817), pp. 984

Or, Subtitled: “This Mr. Whitlock was a man of wit & learning”

Richard Whitlock (1616-1666), son of Richard Whitlock and Katherine Burchett and father of James Whitlock (1651-1516) the Virginia immigrant, was baptized 17 November 1616 at St. Peter le Poer church in London.[1] St. Peter le Poer, which no longer stands, was on the west side of Broad Street in the city of London. The church was of medieval origin and was rebuilt from its medieval foundations in 1540 and 1792, in the latter instance according to a design by Jesse Gibson. The church was demolished in 1907.

St. Peter le Poer church, from Robert William Billings and John Le Keux, The Churches of London by George Godwin (1839), at Wikimedia

James Whitlock (abt. 1718 – 1749) of Hanover and Louisa County, Virginia, with Wife Agnes Christmas

Louisa County, Virginia, Will Bk. 1, p. 13

Or, Subtitled: Drugget, Shalloon, and Hanks of Silk, Execution of an Enslaved Man, and a Father Disinheriting His Son

Having completed a series of postings discussing the children of James Whitlock (abt. 1718 – 1749) and Agnes Christmas of Hanover and Louisa Counties, Virginia — Charles, James, Mary (Jones), Ann (Austin), Thomas,[1] and Nathaniel — I’m moving back a generation to share my (sparse) information on their father James Whitlock (abt. 1718 – 1749).

Children of James Whitlock (abt. 1718 – 1749) and Wife Agnes Christmas: Nathaniel Whitlock (abt. 1747 – aft. 1800)

Albemarle County, Virginia, Deed Bk. 4, pp. 366-8

Or, Subtitled: Confusion and Sparse Records Coupled with Clearly Discernible Patterns

If I’m correct that the 20 September 1757 Louisa County, Virginia, settlement of the estate of James Whitlock and the 29 December 1768 Hanover County, Virginia, will of Thomas Christmas, James’s father-in-law, name the children of James Whitlock and Agnes Christmas by order of birth, then their last child was Nathaniel Whitlock.[1] In the posting I’ve just linked, I provide my reasons for thinking that the child of James and Agnes who preceded Nathaniel, my ancestor Thomas Whitlock, was born around 1745. In my view, Nathaniel would likely have been born about 1747, no doubt in St. Martin’s parish in Louisa County, where his father James Whitlock died between making his will on 7 March 1749 and the will’s probate date of 28 November 1749.[2] The 1810 federal census for Greenville County, South Carolina, which I’ll discuss below, assigns Nathaniel a birthdate prior to 1755.

Children of James Whitlock (abt. 1718 – 1749) and Wife Agnes Christmas: Mary Whitlock Jones (1741 – 1810/1820) and Ann Whitlock Austin (abt. 1742/4 – ?)

Signature of William Jones transcribed by Will Graves at the Southern Campaigns American Revolution Pension Statements & Rosters website, from South Carolina Revolutionary Audited Accounts Bk. V, pp. 19-20, audited account 4125

Or, Subtitled: Elusive Sources for Birth and Death Dates, and Stories of Englishmen Coming to Virginia in the 18th Century

Following their sons Charles and James, James Whitlock (abt. 1718 – 1749) and wife Agnes Christmas of Hanover and Louisa Counties, Virginia, had a daughter Mary, with a daughter Ann born after Mary. My reason for putting Mary and Ann, about whom very little is known, together in this posting will be apparent as the posting unfolds.

Children of James Whitlock (abt. 1718 – 1749) and Wife Agnes Christmas: Charles Whitlock (abt. 1739 – 1814) of Louisa and Albemarle County, Virginia, and Stokes County, North Carolina

Original will of Charles Whitlock, 1811, Stokes County, North Carolina, on file with North Carolina Archives

Or, Subtitled: “In witne∫s hereof I have Set my hand and affixed my seal”

With my last posting, I finished sharing my information about the descendants of Thomas Whitlock (abt. 1745 – 1830) and wife Hannah Phillips, my 5th great-grandparents. I’m now going to climb back up the Whitlock family tree and start a series of postings about Thomas Whitlock’s siblings, the other children of James Whitlock and Agnes Christmas of Hanover and Louisa County, Virginia, whom I haven’t yet discussed in detail.

Children of Thomas Whitlock (abt. 1745 – 1830) and Wife Hannah Phillips: Daughter Who Married John Hammons (1)

Wayne County, Kentucky, Court Order Bk. A, p. 5

Or, Subtitled: A Cross-Slit and Underkeel in Each Ear — The Value of Earmarks in Genealogy

According to Margaret Austin of Bay Village, Ohio, who researched the Hammons family exhaustively for years and shared her research notes with me in April 1997, Thomas Whitlock’s son-in-law John Hammons appears to have been born about 1770-2. Margaret based this date on the fact that John Hammons Jr. appears on a jury list in Patrick County, Virginia, on 13-14 August 1793 in the cases of Lyne vs. King and Adams vs. Mankin and Keaton.[1] Margaret Austin’s notes also state that John Hammonds Jr. provided a deposition on 8 October 1792 in the Patrick County case of Dickerson vs. Laurance, and was sued on 13 May 1793 for debt in Patrick County in the case of Senter vs. Hammonds Jr. Note the variant spellings of the surname: Hammons and Hammonds (as well as Hammon/Hammond).

Children of Thomas Whitlock (abt. 1745 – 1830) and Wife Hannah Phillips: Daughter Who Married William Hannah

Original will of John Hanna, 15 April 1793, Surry County, North Carolina, on file with the North Carolina state archives, available digitally at FamilySearch

Or, Subtitled: Migrated from Surry County, North Carolina, to Sumner County, Tennessee, “and cast their lot in a land of strangers

I’m now resuming my chronicle of the life and family of Thomas Whitlock (abt. 1745 – 1830) of Virginia and Kentucky, which I interrupted in the past several weeks to report on new information I discovered on a trip to the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, most of it having to do with my Lindsey and Brooks lines, which connect to Thomas Whitlock’s family through the marriage of his daughter Sarah to Thomas Brooks, and the marriage of Thomas and Sarah Whitlock’s daughter Jane to Dennis Lindsey.

Thomas Whitlock (abt. 1745 – 1830) of Louisa and Wythe Counties, Virginia, and Cumberland County, Kentucky: Cumberland County Estate Documents

Cumberland County, Kentucky, Will Bk. B, pp. 428-430

Or, Subtitled: A “Coffy” Mill, Kows, Chears, a Barrel of “Dryed” Apples, and a Large Bible

This posting is a continuation of a previous one discussing Thomas Whitlock’s final years in Cumberland County, Kentucky. That posting ended with a transcription of the will Thomas made on 22 January 1824 in Cumberland, County, which was proved in Cumberland County at May court 1830. As my final comments in the posting I’ve just linked state, in my view, Thomas likely died in 1830, perhaps in May or shortly before May. In what follows, I’ll discuss Thomas Whitlock’s estate documents, which include an estate inventory and appraisal, an account of the sale of his estate, and a final settlement.

Thomas Whitlock (abt. 1745 – 1830) of Louisa and Wythe Counties, Virginia, and Cumberland County, Kentucky: Cumberland County Years

Cumberland County, Kentucky, Will Bk. B, pp. 423-4

Or, Subtitled: There is after 175 years of farming an air of peace and plenty — good homes, big barns, fat cattle, tall corn and tobacco, set mostly in wide valleys between low hills

It has been quite some time, hasn’t it, since I told readers following my series of postings about Thomas Whitlock (abt. 1745 – 1830) that, having disposed of his land in Wythe County, Virginia, in May 1805 and moved to Cumberland County, Kentucky (perhaps with a brief sojourn in Surry County, North Carolina), I’d complete Thomas’s story by discussing his years in Kentucky? After I promised to do that, I spent two weeks at the Family History Library in Salt Lake City, and since that time, have been busy sharing notes here on items I found during that research trip which fill in gaps in previous postings on this blog.

Thomas Whitlock (abt. 1745 – 1830) of Louisa and Wythe Counties, Virginia, and Cumberland County, Kentucky: Establishing a Date of Birth

James Whitlock’s estate division, Louisa County, Virginia, Inventory Bk. 1743-1790, p. 40

Or Subtitled: “[My will] and desire is that the Estate above mentioned shall be Equally de[vided between] my loving Wife Agness Whitlock and her Six children”

Thomas Whitlock was born in St. Martin’s parish, Louisa County, Virginia, around 1745. Or so I have deduced by putting a number of pieces of information together and asking what they tell me about Thomas’s probable date of birth. Figuring out birthdates of people born in the Southern states (and colonies) prior to the 1850 federal census, which first began providing specific ages of those enumerated, is notoriously challenging. Good luck at finding a family bible or a church baptism or birth record in most cases. If you’re fortunate enough to know exactly where someone — this is usually a male, since women unfortunately often do not appear in official documents — was living when he came of age and began appearing on tax lists, that’s one good way to get a fairly accurate fix on a year of birth. Otherwise….