Thomas
Stanton Seniors exact date of
birth is unknown, although most
researchers have his birth year
down as 1689. How many times
Thomas married and who he may of
married is also unknown. At the
time of his death, he was
married to a Sarah, and by her
will it appears that she was
married several times before
Thomas.
Thomas’s parents are also
unknown. Given the possibility
that Thomas was born
in
Virginia, and assuming that he
was born about 1689, this would
make Thomas
to be around the age
of 15 in 1704. In 1704 on the
Quit Rent Rolls List there were
only two Stanton’s mentioned,
both Johns, one in Essex County
and the
other in Accomack County
Virginia. John Stanton in Essex
County was listed
with 95 acres
in 1704. Its interesting to note
that Thomas patented 214 acres
in the fork of the Rappahannock
River, St Mary’s Parish
Beginning by the river side” (1717
22 Jan Pat 10 1710-1719 Page 354
Essex Co) when a year
later in Essex County A John
Stanton’s Will had been proven
on May 20 1718 (1718
John Stanton Wills Etc No 3 Reel
40, 1717-1720)
It is
not known that this John is the
father, or even brother of
Thomas, but it makes one wonder.
Another Stanton in Essex Co was
Godfrey who married Elizabeth
Pettit married secondly
Godfrey Stanton in 1711
(recorded in Land Trials book;
page 489 of Index to
Marriages of Old Rappahnnock and
Essex Counties, Virginia -
1655 to 1900 by Eva Eubank
Wilkerson). By deed dated
September 1714 Godfrey Stanton
and Dorothy his wife deeded 280
acres in Essex County to Thomas
Wyatt”
No
further research has been done
on Godfrey or John Stanton.
Thomas
was in Richmond Co VA as early
as Dec 15th 1715.
Thomas was granted 236 acres,
“on the eastward or lower side
of Deep Run issuing out of the
North side of the Rappahannock
River, about 12 miles above the
falls” 1715 Northern Neck Grants
No 5 1713-1719 Page 111
Photo of Deep Run where it
enters the Rappahannock River
Terry Gladfelter took the photo.
The Rappahannock River’s basin
stretches from Rappahannock
County to where it meets the
Chesapeake at Lancaster County.
It measures 184 miles long and
its drainage basin varies in
width from 50 to 10 miles. The
watershed drains 2,715 square
miles, about 13 percent of
Virginia's bay basin. Land use
in the basin
is primarily forestall and agricultural.
Forested land comprises 61
percent of the land use,
agricultural about 35 percent,
and urban about 4 percent. The
basin's largest city is
Fredericksburg in Spotsylvania
County
The
Rappahannock River is a very big
tidal river. John Smith
designated the river "Toppahannoc
Flu" on his 1606 Map. Prior to
that it was sometimes called
Queen's River. The river arises
in the Blue Ridge Mountains,
falls more than 4000 ft. during
it's course, and its lower
portion forms the county
boundary
of
the Northern Neck of Virginia.
The
settlers along Totuskey Creek
and Rappahannock River were
planters. They grew tobacco,
corn, peese, and garden
vegetables. They all had a few
cows and hogs and several horses
if they were fortunate. The
animals all ran loose in
the
swamps and each planter had his
own mark or "crop" on each one
so they could recognize them. In
reading the Virginia Court
records, there were many law
suits in those day too. The
settlers concentrated on growing
tobacco, and had their problems
in that too; mostly with the
prices of their tobacco. I read
that they transplanted the
tobacco plants between the
stumps the first week in May.
Then it bloomed; they pinched
off the blooms and harvested the
tobacco in fall, and hung the
leaves up to dry. When the
weather turned wet, they
gathered it up in "Hands" and
"Prized" it by packing it
tightly in barrels called
Hogsheads. When the time was
ready they simply rolled it over
the Indian paths to the
plantation landings where it was
put on boats for Europe. But,
after some years without
fertilizer, the land was
depleted and the prices dropped,
and they had to look for new
land.
In
the fourth year of Reign of King
William and Queen Mary of
England it was enacted that
Rappahannock County be divided
into two counties, "So that
Rappahannock River divides the
two, and that part which is on
the North side be called by the
name of Richmond County, and
that part on the South side be
called Essex County...., That
the records belonging to the
county seat of Rappahannock
before, shall be kept in Essex
County, that belonging to Their
Majesties, and the other to the
proprietors of the Northern
Neck...." The name of the
new county of Richmond was put
in the County Court Records on
the 12th Day of May, 1692
The
Rappahannock River Basin or
Watershed includes the land and
water drainage area that flows
to the Rappahannock River. The
area of the watershed is
approximately 2715 square miles,
and includes the counties of
Albemarle, Caroline, Essex,
Fauquier, Greene, King George,
Lancaster, Madison, Middlesex,
Northumberland, Orange,
Rappahannock, Richmond,
Spotsylvania, Stafford, and
Westmoreland. The City of
Fredericksburg and several towns
also share the watershed.
The
waterway begins as streams
flowing from the eastern slopes
of the Blue Ridge mountains. The
southern streams form the
Rapidan River, while the
Rappahannock River forms in the
northern localities of the
watershed. The Rapidan meets the
Rappahannock just west of
Fredericksburg, where Culpeper,
Stafford, and Spotsylvania
counties share borders. The
river at Fredericksburg travels
through the fall line geologic
formation, characterized by
rocks and rapids. East of
Frederickburg, the Rappahannock
enters the coastal province of
the state, where the waters
receive tidal influences from
the Chesapeake Bay. The river
continues to widen and becomes
increasingly brackish as it
flows east toward Stingray Point
and Windmill Point where it
meets the Bay.
Photo of the Rapidan River
Terry Gladfelter took the photo
The
Rapidan meets the Rappahannock
just west of Fredericksburg,
where Culpeper, Stafford, and
Spotsylvania counties share
borders. The river at
Fredericksburg travels through
the fall line geologic
formation, characterized by
rocks and rapids. Today the
Rapidan is located in the
Shenandoah National Park.
On
Jan 22 1717 it was recorded
that
Thomas Stanton was “of Stafford
County VA.” and that Thomas
patented 214 acres in the fork
of the Rappahannock River, St
Mary’s Parish Beginning by the
river side” (1717 22 Jan Pat 10 1710-1719
Page 354 Essex Co)
From
1717-1722 Thomas Stanton was in
Spotsylvania Co (1717-1722
Deeds Etc. #16" by John
Frederick Dorman )It
stated that Thomas Stanton’s
Stafford Co lands lay in the
part of the county that was part
of King George Co.
1726 May 30th Thomas Stanton patented
1000 acres “In the Fork of the
Rappahannock River, Beginning
and extending by the side of the
Rappahannock River adjoining the
land of Colonel Spotswood”(
Spotsylvania Co., 1000a.Patent
12 page 382)
1728
Sept Leonard and Thomas Stanton
JR also patented also 1000 acres
in Spotsylvania Co, “ Beginning
and extending standing on the
side of a hill on
the North side
of North River of the Rappidan
River near the Mountains. (Spotsylvania
Co.1000 Pat 13 pg 367)
An
interesting story on The Thomas
Stanton Family can be found In
the book titled LostTrails and Forgotten
People: The Story of Jones
Mountain, by Tom Floyd (The
Potomac Appalachian Trail Club,
Washington, D.C., 2nd edition,
revised, 1985). This book is one
of several that are devoted to
telling the lives and histories
of the people who lived on the
land that now comprises the
Shenandoah National Park.
Lost Trails and Forgotten People
relates to a portion of the
Park encompassed within Madison
County, Virginia.
“The
History of Jones Mountain” Page
27 The Mid 1700s
With
the Establishment of Jones Mill
and the Settlement within
Earshot of the Great Mountains,
the pioneers opened a narrow
cart trail about four feet wide
from near Elk Run to Jones Mill,
following about the same route
as present day Route 662 from Wolftown to Graves Mill. The
local people call it Stanton’s
Road and used it mostly for
packhorse traffic. The route
meandered to the river to
provide watering stops for the
horses and oxen. The Rapidan
River was first known as
Stanton’s River. The Lower part
of the Stream, below the
juncture with Conway, was known
as the Rappadan (pronounced and
later spelled Rapid Ann.) named
about 1713 by Gov. Spotswood in
honor of Queen Anne of Great
Britain. The Upper branches of
the river, known today as the
Rapidan and the Staunton, were
known in the 1700’s and early
1800’s as the North and South
Forks (or Prongs or Branches) of
the Stanton River. (Later
spelled Staunton but always
pronounced “Stan-ten”)
“The
vanguard of the frontiersmen,
English and a few Scot-Irish--
ranged across the bottomlands in
the early 1700s and pushed into
the Great Mountains. They
settled in the old Indian fields
along the upper banks of
streams. One of the first
settlements in the area went up
near a stream called Elk run an
off shoot of the Rapidan about
five miles from Jones Mountain.
There John Addins and a few
followers lived in the 1720's "a
parcel of...woodland
ground...near the upper side of
an old field," according to the
description in the land patent.
Coming in the wake of the first
trailblazer were the Cavaliers
of the plantation society,
gentlemen and planters, men of
moderate wealth and influence
who turned the borderlands of
wilderness into producing farms.
On May 30th 1726, planter Thomas
Stanton took title to a thousand
acres of frontier land on the Rapidan River, not far from
present day Graves Mill.
Thomas Stanton was no the
typical Cavalier. Born about
1690, he grew up with extensive
education. He was a self made
man who had the vision to
succeed, He and his wife Sarah
had first arrived in the Blue
Ridge area in Jan of 1717, when
they staked out 214 acres of
valley land farther down the
river than their later
acquisition, adjacent to a large
tract owned by Governor
Spotswood.
After acquiring the
thousand-acre parcel in 1726,
Thomas Stanton and his sons
Thomas Jr and William built and
operated a grist mill on the
Rapidan River about four miles
from Jones Mountain. With the
help of slaves and indentured
employees, the Stanton’s cleared
part of the valley above the
mill and opened grazing land for
cattle and horses.
They
cultivated the bottoms and
planted wheat, barley, corn,
beans, and some tobacco. They
also started an apple orchard,
brought in sheep and expanded
their cattle herd.
Prospects for the future were
good, and in 1731 Thomas Stanton
brought another 400 acres,
paying to the Virginia Land
Office a price of Forty
Shillings. The new land was
closer to what is now Graves
Mill, located on both sides of
the Rapidan. This acquisition
and land owned by the sons
brought the Stanton holdings to
nearly 3,000 acres. The slaves
lived in quarters located on the
plantation. The Stanton's
employees lived in houses on the
vast outlying lands. Thomas and
Sarah and their five daughters--
Francis, Sarah, Mary, Jean and
Elizabeth-- lived in a manor
house near the mill, a short
distances from the present day
route 662
Within a few years, Thomas
Stanton built the valley into a
working plantation. He often
made rounds on horseback,
wearing leather trousers and a
long linen jacket. By the late
1730's he had more than forty
cattle, about seventy hogs,
sixty-five sheep and several
horses. He did not have a wagon
or carts because the roads were
not wide enough. Everything was
transported by packhorses.
Thomas Stanton garnered the
harvest. One winter he stored
thirteen bushels of beans,
fifty-six bushels of corn, and
eighteen bushels of barley. He
also had 270 gallons of vinegar,
and eight bushels of salt.
Thomas wife, Sarah ran the
household and supervised the
daughters. The oldest, Frances,
caught the eye of John Dulaney,
whom she married about the year
1730. The younger girls were
still in the home, growing up
during the first twenty years
after the Stanton’s settled.
Thomas Stanton’s vision and
fulfillment was only partly
realized when, still in the
zenith of his life, he
contracted an illness beyond the
cure of pioneer medicine. Soon
thereafter." being now sick and
weak," he executed his last will
and testament. He died when the
leaves were falling in the
autumn of the year 1741.
In his will, Thomas Stanton
entrusted to his son William the
gristmill, the manor house and
the central plantation. He also
gave William 200 acres of land
on the north side of the river
and six slaves--Adam, Judy, Sam,
Winnie, Ned and Will. To each of
his daughters he bequeathed 200
acres of land. To Francis Dulaney (The name was then
spelled Delaney) he also gave a
mulatto Harry and also my Seal
skin trunk. " Son Thomas Stanton
Jr. received only two items both
mentioned in the same sentence:
" My still.... and also the
large bible."
In
Dec of 1741, The Court of Orange
Co (of which Madison County was
then a part) ordered that the
widow Sarah Stanton should
receive two Negro men Ned and
Old Harry, some sixty items of
personal property including
livestock and an annual stipend
of six pounds of current money
in recognition of her right of
dower to the manor and the
Plantation. Attorney Henry Field
who was a friend of Thomas
Stanton recommended the order.
Thomas Stanton's remaining
personal estate was sold at two
public auctions held December of
1741. Included in a lengthy list
of items were money scales,
candlewicks, an egg slicer, a
breastplate, spinning wheels,
fine linen, silk, mohair, a
powdering table, furniture,
shoes and boots, jackets and
coats, farm implements, saddles,
tanned leather, and about 225
head of livestock, Also sold
were a set of carpentry tools
and several stacks of lumber,
the last vestiges of Tom
Stanton's dreams.
Son Thomas Stanton Jr. was
already an established planter
who in 1728 had acquired a
thousand acres of land "lying at
the great mountains" on the
north side of the Rapidan River.
Tom Jr. was active in business
affairs buying and selling and
helping friends draw up legal
documents. Evidence suggests
that he was also a worldly man
who enjoyed all the pleasures of
life.
Tom Jr. and William carried on
the operations of the Stanton
plantations and the grist mill.
As the years passed the business
prospered, at least by Cavalier
standards. William increased his
land holdings and eventually
acquired twenty-nine slave and a
substantial increase in his tax
assessment. Thomas's fortune was
such that in 1749 he was able to
give his infant son as a present
one Negro man. Eventually the
Stanton’s moved away passing
from the scene of Jones
Mountain, but the progeny of the
patriarch Tom Stanton Sr. would
continue for several generations
through the lineage of his
daughter Francis Dulaney.”
1730
a Mathew Stanton appears. In
January and March of 1730 Mathew
Stanton was
a
witness to two deeds along with
Samuel Ball, William Smith
Andrew Harrison
and
Peter Russell. In April 1732
again Mathew Stanton was a
witness along
With
William Morgan all deeds were in
St Marks Parish Spotsylvania Co
VA. (Deed Book B 1729-1734 page
121) The relationship, if
any between Mathew and Thomas,
is also unknown at this time.
Other mentions of Mathew were:
Mathew
Stanton, Feb 17, 1735, made oath
in open court that he was
immediately from Great Britain
or Ireland and this was first
time proving importation to
obtain rights to land.“Orange Co
Virginia Order Book One”
Head
rights of Orange Co., Virginia:
Head
rights were grants of 50 acres
of land per "head" - or per
white male over the age of 16
who transported himself to the
colonies. They appear in the
Court of Common Pleas in the
county in which the land was
granted. The attached file
includes the head rights copied
from the Orange Co., Va. Court
of Common Pleas in the 18th
Century.
These
head rights function as the only
real immigration record for
English, Scot or Irish
immigrants in that time period.
The headlight identifies the
country of origin and generally
the port of entry in the
colonies.
17 Feb 1735
2 Feb 1737
Matthew Stanton
Matthew Stanton
1739
Mathew Stanton was still in
Orange Co and was taxed Virginia
Tax Records, Orange County Tithe
Lists, Page 294 1739 Mathew
Stanton 1
The
parish of St. Mark's was formed
in 1730 from St. George parish.
The latter had been coterminous
with the county of Spotsylvania,
which meant that it covered the
area of present day
Spotsylvania, Orange, Greene, Culpeper, Madison, and
Rappahannock counties. The
principal church building was at
Germanna, where Alexander
Spotswood had decided that the
county seat and church would be located. With Spotswood in
residence, and with the
courthouse either in his home or
nearby, and with the church
close by, Germanna was a
thriving frontier community.
There was only one problem.
Except for the Germans who lived
to the west of Germanna, most of
the citizens of the county lived
to the east. That is, the county
seat and the church were not
centrally located in a colony
where attendance at church was
compulsory. In short, Germanna
was very inconveniently located
for St. George Parish.
When
St. Mark's was created it was to
consist of the present counties
of Orange, Greene, Culpeper,
Madison, and Rappahannock. The
parish of St. George was limited
to the area, which is now
Spotsylvania County. Germanna
fell into the new parish. In
1735, Orange County was formed
and it was made conterminous
with St. Mark's, except that the
area was extended across the
Blue Ridge Mountains to the
Shenandoah Valley. At least
briefly, the church at Germanna
was the principal church in St.
Mark's parish, which was larger
in area than the present state
of Rhode Island. (Though this
church was built after the First
Colony had left Germanna, the
Second Colony, for a few years,
was located within a few miles.)
Attending church was not easy,
so there were subsidiary
churches or chapels. These
usually did not have regular
ministers, but employed readers,
a layperson that read sermons.
There were also Houses of Ease,
where attendance fulfilled one's
legal obligations for church
attendance.
A Board
of Vestrymen ran the parish.
These men, usually twelve, were
appointed by the colony to
launch the Vestry, but
thereafter the board elected its
own replacements. This was a
position of honor and one served
without pay. The duties were not
all that strenuous, as the
Vestry met only a few times each
year. The Vestry was both an
agent of the colony and an agent
of the church. Separation of
church and state was an idea
that would not come to Virginia
for another fifty years. The
Vestry had the power of
taxation, with the full support
of the colony, to raise its
monies. Among its functions,
which today we would think of as
civil functions, the established
church (the Church of England)
was to record births and
marriages and to take care of
the poor. The Vestry kept
minutes of the decisions of the
Vestrymen and several books of
the minutes has been preserved
in Virginia. A few records of
births and marriages have been
maintained, but not nearly as
many as the minutes.
The
opening paragraph of the Saint
Mark Parish Vestry Book reads:
"Persueance
to An Act of the General
Assembly holden at Williams
Burgh the twenty-first day of
May 1730 Intitaled an Act for
Dividing the Parish of Saint
George in the County of
Spotsylvania and that all the
other part of the said Parish
which lies above the said bounds
shall there after be Called and
Known by the Name of Saint Mark
and according to the said Act
the free holders and house
keepers of the said Parish of
Saint Mark did Meet at the
Church at Germanna in their said
Parish on the said first day of
January and there did Elect and
Choose twelve of the most able
and Discreet persons of their
Parish to be vestry Men for
their said Parish (viz) GOODRICH
LIGHTFOOT, JAMES BARBER, THOMAS
STANTON, HENRY FIELD, ROBERT
SLAUGHTER, BENJAMIN CAVE, JOHN
FINLASON, ROBERT GREEN, FRANCIS
KIRTLEY, FRANCIS SLAUGHTER,
SAMUEL BALL, WILLIAM PAYTON
having taken the oaths appointed
by Law and Subscribed to be
Conformable to the Doctrine and
Discipline of the Church of
England Doe Act as vestry Men
for the Parish of Saint Mark."
These
elected Vestrymen came together
on Saturday, January 9, 1730,
for the first meeting. This
latter date must be an
"old style" date; otherwise the
first meeting would have taken
place b parish was created by
the Assembly. At the first
meeting, all twelve of the
elected Vestrymen met, which was
probably the only time that
occurred. One of the first items
of business was to elect William
Payton as "Clark
of the said vestry". For his
work in doing this, he was to be
allowed six hundred pounds of
tobacco Convenant [?] for his
Service
1731
[Vestry Book 1730-1753, St
Mark's Episc Church Orange/Culpeper
Co Va FHL #00033856- item21].
Virginia Co Records pg 115
Religion: Elected member of
first vestry of St Marks Parish
- 1 Jan 1731
On 1
Jan 1731, freeholders and
housekeepers met at Germanna to
elect 12 Vestrymen to form the
new St Mark"s Parish. 3 Churches
were established in the new
parish, at Little Fork, Germanna,
and at S.W. Mountain:
"Pursuant to an act of the
General Assembly holden at
Williamsburg the 21 day of May
1730 Intitled an Act for
Dividing the Parish of St George
in thee County of Spotsylvania,
and that all that other part of
the said
Parish
which Lies above the Said Bounds
shall there after be called and
known by the Name of Saint Mark
and according to the Said Act
the free holders and keepers of
the Said Parish of St Mark did
meet at the Church at Germanna
in their Said Parish on the said
first day of January and there
did elect and choose 12 of the
most Able and discreet persons
of their Parish to be vestrymen
for their Said Parish"
Goodrich, Lightfoot
James Barber
Thomas Stanton
Henry
Field Robert
Slaughter
Benjamin Cove
Francis
Kirtley
John Finlason Robert Green
William
Payton Francis Slaughter Samuel Ball
Up to
1734-5, St. Mark's Parish was in
Spotsylvania. At that date the
line between St. George’s and
St. Mark’s Parishes divided
Spotsylvania. Spotsylvania was
limited to St. George's Parish.
All above that line, bounded
southerly by old Hanover County,
and to the north by the Lord
Fairfax grant (the Rappahannock
river), and westerly by the
utmost limits of Virginia, was
made the county of Orange
In
1738, Augusta and Frederick
counties and parishes were
separated from Orange and St.
Mark's, by a line from the
head-spring of Hedgeman's river
to the head-spring of the
Potomac, to take effect when
there were people enough in the
Valley for erecting courts of
justice; and in the meantime,
the people there were exempted
from levies by Orange and St.
Mark's. In 1740, St. Mark's was
divided by a line from the
Wilderness bridge up the
mountain road, to the head of
Russel Run; thence down the said
run to the river Rapidan; thence
up the Rapidan to the Robinson
river; thence along the ridge,
between the Robinson and Rapidan,
to the top of the Blue Ridge.
All north of said line to retain
the name of St. Mark's, and all
south of said bounds to be the
new Parish of St. Thomas
1732
The House of Burgesses ordered
there should be “several ferries
established, incl "at Thomas
Stanton's
1733
Thomas Stanton acquired 490
acres “between Stanton’s River
and the middle river of the
Rappadan River adjoining the
Land of Thomas and Leonard
Stanton, William Kirtlett and
John Burk” (Patent 15 page 141)
In August of that same year
Thomas was granted a tract of
land in Culpeper Co VA,( patent
28 Jan 1733[Deed of John \ Sarah
Rosson to John Delaney 20 Aug
1760 in Culpeper Co VA Deeds
1755-1762,pg 389] )This Land was
apparently had been deed to
Thomas Stanton’s daughter Sarah,
who Married John Rosson and in
turn they had deed the land to
John Delaney.
At the
fall meeting in 1734, the number
of tithables was 981, for Orange
Co and the levy was set at
eighty and a quarter pounds.
Growth was very rapid in these
years. Thomas Stanton,
Gentleman, was paid 832 pounds
of tobacco for nursing a bastard
child. It was ordered that the
child be bound to Thomas
Stanton, Junior.
1735
Feb 17
Thomas Stanton to Guy Monk,
lease for Guy Monk, of his wife
and of his 1st son, for 21
years, after which time Monk
will be granted an inheritance
of 100 ac., adjoining to the
house where said Guy Monk now
lives on the S. Side of the N.
branch of the Rappadan River at
the Great Mountains. Monk
agrees to
rent. (Signed) Thomas
Stanton. Wit: John Latham,
Charles Duett, Thomas
Byrd. (Orange Co. VA Deed Book
1, page 16-17)
1735
Oct 10 - Resolved that Thos
Stanton, Gent./m be paid 832 pds
of
tobacco for nursing a bastard
child and that the said Child by
bound to Thos. Stanton Junr
according as the Law direct
1736 October
1736 John Simpson requested
a "view" and valuation of the
improvements made to his land,
in Orange County, lying between
the lands of "Kirtlet," Eddins,
and Thomas Stanton (Orange
County Deed Book 11, part 2,
page
12).
1736
July 20 John Vawter and Philip
Stogdale of Orange Co. patented
380 acres
of land adjoining
William Eddings, Robert
Slaughter and William Robinson
and John Vawter also patented
700 acres of land in Orange Co,
adjoining Thomas Stanton,
Francis Conway and William Neale
for transporting 14 persons into
the colony. (L.Gr. b. 17, pp.
129 & 135).
1736
Thomas Stanton of Orange Co VA
deeded half a tract to Gerard
and Ann Banks [Orange Co Deed Bk
1 pg 378] in which `for love
and affection', Thos. Stanton,
Sr., deeds to Gerard Banks of
Stafford and Ann his wife half
of a tract of `woodland ground',
adjoining land of Thos. Stanton,
Jr. and Leonard Stanton."
“Thomas
Stanton being in perfect memory
have previous granted and
confirmed
and by those proceeds
do freely and absolutely grant
and confirm unto the said Garrot
Banks and Ann his wife, the one
half a certain tract or
parcel of woodland ground now in
his actual possession by virtue
of a ? by him obtained date Jan.
28 1733. The bounds limits of
this tract is fully described in
the said ? , lying and being in
the County of Orange of the said
tract containing 400,000 and 90
? acres. The said tract being
first equally divided into 2
parts that part adjoining
thousand acres of Thomas Stanton
Jr and son Stanton., giving him
to be the beginning of this
border and to go along said
Thomas Stanton Jr and land ?
to William Kirthoffs ? Land
along side the said Kirthoffs
land to the land of John Bush or
the said John Bush land so far
as to ? half of the said tract
or parcel of the adjoining
bottom land of Thomas Stanton,
Esq Giving ? to the said Garrots
and Ann his wife, their heirs (
abbreviated names EX, Adam and
A-forever without any manner of
Claim , challenge, or grounds
whatsoever of ? Thomas Stanton,
Sr my heirs Eps and Adam or A
pig ? or any other person or
persons claiming by or under God
and I the said Thomas Stanton ,
Sr all ? and singular the before
granted land and properties ?And
things whatsoever unto the Said
Garrot Banks, his heirs and
issues ? the said Garrot Banks
and Ann his wife , in full and
possible by the gift of those
related to the said Garrot Banks
and his wife Ann the day of ?
. I have given and delivered all
said provisions . Dated Tues Oct
6 1736”
1737 June Thomas Stanton turned
around and bought 400 more acres
“In the first fork of the Rappidanne River beginning at Wm
Kirtletts corner at Rock Hall by
Stanton’s River Patent 17 pg 340
1738
Thomas Stanton of Orange Co
“Thomas and his wife sold a
portion of land, then in King
George Co [King George Co Deed
Bk 2 pg 206]
1738
Tithables List (six
persons) The 1738 transaction
reads as follows: " Thomas
Stanton and Sarah his wife of
Orange Co to John Piper of
Westmoreland Co. 236 acres on
east side of Deep Run which
empties into Rk. River 12 mi.
above the falls thereof” King
George Co bk 2 pg 206
With “6
persons” in the titables, I have
to assume that it is Thomas, His
wife Sarah, Mary, William,
Elizabeth and Jane Stanton.
1738
Feb Adam Banks, was Granted “250
acres on the south side of
Staunton's River adjoining the
land of Leonard Staunton, Thomas
Staunton, Jr., and Thomas
Staunton Sen.” Adam Banks was
the Father in law to Thomas
Stanton Sr.’s oldest daughter
Ann.
1739
Nov 21, Garrett Banks conveyed
to Thomas Stanton for other
lands to him made over, half of
the parcel given him.
Witnesses were James Proteus,
Thos. Wood and Wm. Power.
(Orange Co., VA Deed Books 3 and
4, 1738-1741, Judgments, 1736, J.F. Dorman,
1966, quoting, Bk 3, p 352-53)
1740
Thomas Stanton bought 160 Acres
in Prince William County “160
acres Beginning on the North
side the North Branch of
Rappanhannock river adjoining
land of Hackley , Duncan &c”
(1740 Northern Neck Grants E
1736-1742 page 212)
1740 Reconstructed Census Index
Thomas
J. Stanton - Orange County
(reference "Orange County Deed
Book3 1738-1740 & Deed Book 4
1740-41)
Thomas
Stanton - Orange County
(reference "Orange County
Tithables 1739" and "Northern
Neck Land Grand Book E"
Thomas
Stanton - Spotsylvania-Orange
County (reference "St.
Mark's Parish Vestry Book")
According to the Vestry Book of
St Marks, Parish it stated that
Thomas Stanton was Present at a
Vestry meeting on Sat April 4
1741 and was not listed at the
Oct 12 meeting. “Capt Goodrich
Lightfoot appointed vestryman in
the name of Thos Stanton, Gent.
Deceased, he being chosen by the
major portion of Vestry.”
Will
Book 2, 1744-1778 (Reel 23) p.
56-60. Accounts rec. 23 May
1745. p. 71-76. Guardian’s
accounts rec. 22 Aug. 1745. p.
120-123. Guardian’s accounts
rec. 27 Aug. 1747. p. 135-136.
Guardian’s accounts rec. 25 Aug.
1748. Orange Co, Records Page
177....
In the
Name of God Amen The Last Will
and Testament of Thomas Stanton being
now sick and weak but in perfect
sound of memory thanks be to God
Almighty..................
Item my
will and desire is that my
trusty friend George Whitly and
Henry Field being sole ex of
this my last Will and Testament
and that they have full Liberty
to do as they think best in that
case and that after
paying all my just debts I
desire the remainder of my
estate may be disposed of as
follows:
I give
and bequeath to my son William
Stanton the grist mill with all
the appliances belonging thereto
with the Plantation I now live
on and all the land thereto
belonging Let it be more or
less.
Item I
give to my son Thomas Stanton my
still and all materials also the
Large Bible.
Item I
give to my daughter Francis
Delaney the half of the four
hundred acres of and lying on
the south side of Stantons
River.
Item I
give to my daughter Sarah
Stanton the other half of the
four hundred acres.
Item I
give to my daughter Mary Stanton
two hundred acres of land being
part of four hundred acres
joining to Francis Kirtley.
Item I
give to my daughter Jean Stanton
two hundred acres of Land being
the upper part whereon George
Simmons now live including the
Simmons Plantation.
Item I
give to my daughter Elizabeth
Stanton two hundred acres of
land lying on the south side of
the Stanton River Commonly know
by the name of Guy Meeks
Item I
give to my son William Stanton
the remainder part lying on the
north side being two hundred
acres
Item I
give to my son William Stanton
the following Negroes Vic, Adam,
Judy, Sam, Winnie, Ned and Will.
Item I
give to My daughter Francis
Delaney Molatto Harry an also my
seal skin trunk
Witness
my hand this day Oct 4 1741
Witnesses were George Hume,
Abraham Pearce, and Thomas
Stanton Jr.
Sarah,
Thomas Stanton’s wife was not
mentioned in the 1741 will of
her husband in Orange Co., VA
records, but she had her dower
assigned (Orange Co., VA Will
Book 1, p 187) later. [Date not
given]
Page
187......
The
Widow Stanton's part of the
.......Divided by William
Triplet, John Catlett, Grant
Slaughter, John Grind ordered by
the Orange Co Courts dated the
26 day of Nov 1741 Did meet
according to the said order and
set part of
the Widows part of her deceased
Husbands personal Estate as well
as Real on Wed., second Day of
Dec 1741
“One
gray mare, one bed furniture, one
steer one cow and one hefier,
11head of hogs, 1 posodinig Tub,
2 sides of leather, 10 lbs of
?????? One half cub bridle, 1
leather chair, 1 chest, 1 old
chair,2 siden casks, 2 negro
beds in quarter, 1 pot and hooks
and frying pan in Quarters, 1 ax
one grubing how in quarters, 1
warming pan, 1 box ????? 3 yds
of wide check, 2yds of Dyaper, 4
yds of garlicks, 7 yds of
Cotton, 3 bushels of beans,
6 barrels of corn, 2 bushels of
wheat, 2 pewter dishes,
1hogshead, 2 Negro men named
Ned and Harry, Her Right of
Dower to Manner Plantation and
Mill”
Orange
Co., VA, John Frederick
Dorman Will Bk. I - 1735-1743
cont.
1742
Jan 28 p. 187. Separation of
Sarah StantonÆs part of the
estate of Thos. Stanton, decÆd.,
with consent of Henry Field.
1742
Feb 25 p. 196. Henry Field is
grdn of Sarah, Wm. and Jane
Stanton, orphans of Thos. Stanton
decÆd.
1742
Feb pg 196 Bond of Thomas
Stanton grdn of Mary Stanton
1742
Feb 26 The order for summoning
George Wheatley (Whatley) to
inform the court if he is
willing to take upon himself the
guardianship of Elizabeth
Stanton, is continued to next
court. (Orange Co. VA Order Book
3, p. 106.)
1742
Mar 25 p. 205-06. Geo. Whitely
is grdn of Elizabeth Stanton,
orphan of Thos. Stanton, decÆd.
1742
May 27 Est inv made
1742
Nov 26 Sale of personnel
property pages
239-245 Thomas Stanton. Sale of
personal estate, on Dec 2, Dec
3, Dec 24, Dec 30 ( 1741) Jan 1, April 19, 1742
To Mr
Richard Bryan one barren
cow L 1.18
To Mr
Henry Field one
steer
1.18
To Mr
William Picket one
steer 2.2.6
To Capt
Tindlevon one steer
1.19.
To
John Delaney one steer
1.15.3
To
Thomas Stanton one cow and calf
1.17.
To
Garret Banks one cow and calf
1.12
To Mr
Pike 3 cows and
calves 5.
To
Anthony Soulthrop 1 black
horse 4.1.
To Mr
Geo Hoare (Hume?) 5 barrels of
corn at 9/ 2.5
To Mr
William Russell 10 bals. Do at
8/6 4.5
To Mr
Thomas Scott 11/2 bushell Indian
pease 3.10 ½
To Mr
Wm Abbit 1
grindstone
.7
To Mr
Kinner 2 wheat
sifters .3.4
To Mr
Geo Roberts 15 sheep at 6/10 per
head 5.2.6
To Mr
Whitley 2 brass laddles and
cullender .4.3
To John
Bond 60 gals syder
1.5.0
To
John Newport 60 gals Do
1.1.3
Sarah
Stanton died 4 years later, and
she too left a will, which
brings the suggestion that
Sarah, was his second wife.
1745 3
May Will of Sarah Stanton King
George Co VA
The
will of Sarah Stanton was
offered for probate 3 May 1745
by William Scott, executor.
(King George Co., VA Deed Book2,
p 440) Robert Elliott, Peter
Hoard, Jas. Hoard, Francis
Miller or any three of them were
ordered to appraise her estate.
In
the name of God Amen I Sarah
Stanton of the place aforesaid
being sick and weak in body but
of perfect sound memory thanks
be to God for the same, Do make
my Last Will and testament
Disannulling and rejecting all
other Wills heretofore by me
made and making this my last
will and testament and no longer
other and what worldly estate it
hath pleased God to bestow upon
me. I give and bequeath as
follows:
To
my lawful son William Scott my
two Negro men Harry and
Ned,(These Negro men were willed
to her by Thomas Stanton "2
Negro men named Ned and Harry,
Her Right of Dower to Manner
Plantation and Mill”) mare,
saddle, Tartan Gown and
petticoat, all my cattle, hogs,
corn, Tobacco, chest pewter,
kettle, pot and six pounds
current money due to me from
Henry Fields. to him and his
heirs or assigns forever.
I
give to my granddaughter Sarah
Scott daughter of the
above-mentioned William Scott my
feather bed and furniture.
I give
to my granddaughter Keziah
Simmons daughter to my son Geo
Simmons my wearing cloths, which
I commonly wear
I give
to my granddaughter Sarah
Simmons daughter to my son
Joseph Simmons my gold ring.
I give
to my four children George,
Joseph, Charles and Sarah Cooke
each one-shilling sterling.
I give
to my daughter Ann Mathews my
cloak and stroped holland gown.
I
desire and bequeath to my above
son William Scott shall be my
whole and sole executor to
settle the above-mentioned goods
and chattels according to law.
Dated
22 December 1744
From
this will of Sarah, I tend to
believe that she is not the
mother of Thomas Stanton Sr.
children. If you noticed none of
kids are in her Will nor any of
her kids are in his will. Sarah
was married I guess… Three times
before marrying Thomas Stanton…
Maybe first Scott, then Simmons
and then Cooke?
I
assume Sarah’s daughter Ann
married a Mathews, if not then
Sarah was married four times
before Thomas? It appears that
Sarah was the mother of 8
children before marrying Thomas
Stanton? I did see and IGI where
it was said that Thomas and
Sarah was married in 1730. The
First time Sarah was ever
mentioned in any records was in
1738.
The
Children appear to be: William
Scott, George Simmons, Joseph
Simmons,
George
Cooke, Charles Cooke, Joseph
Cooke, Sarah Cooke, and Ann
Mathews.
Its
interesting to note that in
Thomas Stanton Will… George
Simmons is mentioned:
“Item I
give to my daughter Jean Stanton
two hundred acres of Land being
the upper part whereon George
Simmons now live including the
Simmons Plantation”
Abstracts from Stafford Co.,Va.
Deed Book, 1722-It was taken
from the Court House during the
war between the States as were
many other Virginia Court
Records. Stafford Co. was
presented with a Photostat copy
of this deed book
William
Withers Sr. is father of William
Withers, Jr. who sold 500 acres
of land on 6 December 1699 to
John Symmons (Simmons) who is
the father of George Symmons
(Simmons) by indenture bearing
dated 8 March 1725 leases a part
of this land to Townshend Dade.
John
Scott, Stafford Co. decd. 1730
(will)
John
Scott 1729/30 page 341, will
page 348 inventory on CD#174
Family Tree Maker Archive.
It is
indicated that Sarah, wife of
John Scott, had an interest in
land belonging to John Simmons,
signed a lease to Townsend Dade
for 300 acres of
said
land on March 9, 1725. It is
probable that Sarah Scott was
the widow of John Simmons.
Children
of Thomas Stanton:
1 LEONARD
STANTON
Linn
Stanton first appears in 1724,
and in 1728 along with Thomas
Stanton
JR, Linn Stanton is
believed to be a son of Thomas
Stanton SR. With the date
given
of 1724 assuming that he is 21,
raises the question of was he
born
before Thomas Stanton JR, abt 1703? Linn was not named in
Thomas Stanton Srs
Will, nor was
the oldest Daughter Ann. On 1736
Thomas Stanton deeded 250
acres
to Ann and her husband Gerald
Banks, and it so happens that
this land
was adjoining land of
Thos. Stanton, JR and Leonard Stanton. "Ann is assumed
to have
been born abt 1717. Ann’s
first-born son was named Linn
and was born
abt 1737/39.
1724
Vol 1 of Stafford Co., VA
Tithable (1723-1790)
" A
List of Tobacco Tenders from the
South Side of Potomack (Creek)
To ye
Lower end of Overlwharton
Parish." On page 37, he is
bracketed with four
other men.
Who combined had 32,805 Tobacco
Plants. The men that he was
bracketed with may be kin but
more likely Neighbors. John Simson, John
Robertson, John Dogen, and Lastly LENN STANTON
1728
Stanton, Linn and Stanton,
Thomas, JR Grantees Spotsylvania
Co.1000 on
the North side of
North River of the Rappidan
River near the mountains
1731 Spotsylvania Co Thomas
Stanton grantee: 400 acres at
the great
mountains. Beginning and
extending in a stony branch
corner to a patent
granted to Leonard and Thomas
Stanton's.
1733
Spotsylvania Co 490 acres Thomas
Stanton Grantee between
Stanton's
River and the middle
river of the Rappadan River
Adjoining the land of
Thomas and
Leonard Stanton, William Kirtlet,
and John Burk
1736
Thomas Stanton of Orange Co Va
deeded half a tract to Gerrard
and Ann
Banks [ Orange Co Deed Bk
1 pg 378] Oct 6, 1736 in
which `for love and
affection',
Thos. Stanton, Sr., deeds to
Gerard Banks of Stafford and Ann
his
wife half of a tract of
`woodland ground', adjoining
land of Thos.
Stanton,
JR and Leonard Stanton."
1738
Orange Co Adam Banks Grantee:
250 acres on the south side of
Stauntons
River adjoining the
land of Leonard Staunton, Thomas
Staunton, Jr., and
Thomas
Staunton Sen
1745
Mathew Stanton appears as a
Witness to a deed, Oct 18,1745
For Linn
(Leonard)
Stanton: Indenture April 23,
1746 Between Thomas Stanton and
Jeremiah
Early for 70 Acre, land part of
Patent granted Sept. 28 1728 to
Thomas
and Linn Stanton (Original grant
for 100 acres on Stanton River)
1749
Culpeper Co VA Jeremiah Eirly
Grantee 60 acres adjoining
Thomas and
Lynn Stantons Henry
Downs &c
2
THOMAS STANTON JR. born
abt 1707 VA....................
3 ANN
STANTON born abt 1708 VA.
Ann married Gerald Banks before
1736.
It is
known that she was married by
1736 when her father “with love
and affection”
deed Ann and Gerald 245 acres,
which adjoined her brother
Thomas JR and
Leonard. Gerard Banks died 1780
Amherst Co and Ann Stanton Banks
died Dec 1
1791 Amherst Co VA.
Ann and
Gerard were the parents of 10
Children: William, Ruben,
Thomas,
Mary, Married (Samuel Camp
Nov 12 1776 Amherst Co VA)
Sarah, Married (John
Pendleton Jan 1 1786
Amherst Co VA) Lynn, Adam,
Elizabeth (Hume), Rachel,
Married (John Higginbotham
July 9 1767 Amherst Co VA) and
Gerard. Gerard
was the son of Adam and Ann
Gerard Banks. Adam purchased
land in Stafford
Co VA 1674.
Gerard Banks and his wife,
living in Stafford Co., VA,
received 245 acres
in Orange Co., VA from
[Ann's father] Thomas Stanton, Senr. of St. Mark's
Parish,
Orange Co. The land was
described as a half parcel of
woodland
originally issued to
Thomas 28 Jan 1733 and adjoined
properties of Thomas
Stanton, Jr,
Wm. Kirkett and John Bush.
Witnesses were Jno. Newport and
John
Simpson
(Orange Co., VA Deed Books 1
and 2, 1735-1738; Judgments,
1735, J.F.
Dorman, 1961,
quoting, Bk 1, p 378-9) [As
will be seen shortly, Gerard
later leased land part of a
Stanton grant that was in the
forks of the
Rappahannock, i.e.
the area between where the Rapidan and Rappahannock join
in
today's southeastern Culpeper
Co. But the land described here
in the
1736 gift may be adjacent
to land that Gerard's brother
Adam obtained in
western Madison
Co., a county later formed from Culpeper Co. ] Information
from Rayhbanks @aol.com
21 Nov
1739, Garrett Banks conveyed to
Thomas Stanton for other lands
to
him made over, half of the
parcel given him. Witnesses
were James Proteus,
Thos. Wood
and Wm. Power. (Orange Co., VA
Deed Books 3 and 4, 1738-1741,
Judgments, 1736, J.F. Dorman,
1966, quoting, Bk 3, p 352-53)
1739, "Gerrard"
Banks now living in Orange Co.,
VA received 202 more acres
from
his father-in-law (Orange Co.,
VA, Deed Book 3, p 353)
Dorman (see
above)
adds that witnesses were G. Hume
and Abraham Pearce and land
adjoined
Goodrich Lightfoot.
24 Mar
1742/43, Gerrard Banks, G. Hume
and Peter Russell were witnesses
to
the deed of Thomas Stanton of
Orange Co. to John Deleny and
Joseph Rosson of
Orange Co.
(Orange Co., VA Deed Bk 7, p
197-201, quoted in Orange
County,
Virginia, Deed Books
5,6,7 and 8, 1741-1743, J.F.
Dorman, 1971)
26 May
1742, Gerrard Bancks, Phillip
Clayton, Thomas Sims, William
Duncan
and John Sutton were
witnesses to the deed of George
Hume and Eliza his wife
of St.
Mark's Parish, Orange Co. to
Edward Teale. (Orange Co., VA
Deed Bk 8,
p
45-50, quoted in Orange County,
Virginia, Deed Books 5,6,7 and
8,1741-1743,
J.F. Dorman, 1971
Mar,
1762, Gerrard Banks of St.
Mark's Parish, Culpeper Co.,
bought 150 acres
from Simon Thomison of Bromfield Parish,
Culpeper Co. The price was
25œ and
was
bounded by property of Thos.
Stanton (now Wm. Stanton's) on
the south
side
of the North River. [The North
River is possibly the main
branch of
the
Rappahannock but could be at the
site in Madison Co.] Witnesses
were
George Hume, Frances Hume
and [son] Linn Banks. (Culpeper
County, Virginia
