Durant

GEORGE DURANT (1730 Will)

DURANT - GEORGE DURANT - 1730 Will - Perquimans Co NC - by Susan C Griffin - 1

QUAKER COMMUNITIES IN ALBEMARLE by Anne L. McCarthy

QUAKER COMMUNITIES IN ALBEMARLE

From The Hill Family of Chowan County North Carolina

By Anne L. McCarthy

The land configurations of Albemarle made the area attractive and accessible. Laced with small streams, creeks, and deep rivers, the easy access by water into the untamed region offered ports for ocean-going ships able to take the settlers’ products directly to Caribbean ports and to the other colonies. Abundance of water also aided the farmers with their crops and for their homes. The Chowan, Perquimans, Pasquotank, and Little Rivers were linked with the smaller streams making a veritable water highway throughout the area. The source of these rivers was the Great Dismal Swamp, where the color of the water was a deep red, caused by the waters passing through the roots of the cypress trees. The water, however, was perfectly clear, tasted by no means unpleasant, and was quite wholesome. It had a diuretic effect on those who drank it, and prevented agues and fevers, or so it was claimed. Filled with the perils of virgin forests, native Indians, wild animals, insects, snakes, and reptiles, this area south of the Great Dismal Swamp was also more isolated from the English authorities.

Following the first landowners who settled along the main rivers and shores of Albemarle Sound, new arrivals were finding homesites father up near the heads of the four main rivers. When the word spread that this was a place where people were able to worship in freedom and that the Virginia government had less influence in the region, the Quakers in southern Virginia came to Albemarle in increasing numbers. They were an industrious, plain, sober, and hardy people who had already endured much hardship and privation. They were soon joined by other Quakers from the New England colonies who had heard that new Quaker settlements were being started in the south. One of these couples who came in the 1660’s was Henry and Hannah (Baskel) Phelps from Salem, Massachusetts. Among those who came from the Charlestown settlement in southern Carolina were Patrick Henley, John Culpeper, and Edward Mayo who had come originally from Barbados in the Caribbean.

On February 6, 1665, the first group of six freeholders met beneath a giant oak tree on the banks of Hall’s (Hill’s ?) Creek in Pasquotank Precinct1 to organize community affairs. William Drummond, one of those present at that meeting, had been appointed the first Governor of Albemarle in 1664 by Gov. Berkeley, acting on orders of the Lord Proprietors. George Catchmaid of Perquimans was chosen Assembly Speaker.2 Samuel Pricklove and George Durant were probably also among the original six at the meeting. Both served as local officials and were the first two settlers of the area. The isolation of Albemarle and the independent nature of it’s people were factors contributing to unstable government in the young colony in its first years of existence.

In 1676 Drummond returned to Virginia where he became actively involved in Bacon’s Rebellion. He was an ardent supporter of Nathaniel Bacon and thereby angered Governor Berkeley. When the rebellion was put down after Bacon’s death from illness, the Governor made Drummond the first of the rebels to pay the price for their disloyalty to his authority. Drummond was sentenced to be hanged. Mrs. Drummond and the children were put out of their home and were left wandering in the swamps near starvation.

The Lord Proprietors next named Samuel Stephens as Governor of Albemarle. He served from 1667-1669. Stephens was born in Jamestown in 1629 and was the first governor of any colony to be born in America. He was married to Frances Culpeper, the sister of Lord John Culpeper. When Stephens died in1669, she married Governor William Berkeley. After Berkeley’s death in 1677, she married thirdly Phillip Ludwell, Governor of Charlestown, in ‘south’ Carolina. Stephens had owned a tract of 4,000 acres of land in Albemarle which was sold upon his death to John Hill of York County. In 1693 this same tract of land was sold by John Hill’s son, Samuel Hill of Warwick Co. and his wife, Mary, to Governor Seth Sothel (Southwell).

Bacon’s Rebellion in Virginia had reverberations in Albemarle. Some of Albemarle’s residents had been active in the Virginia revolt, and they returned to Albemarle to continue stirring up discontent there. John Culpeper, who had come to Pasquotank in 1675 from the Charlestown settlement where he had been accused of inciting the people against their government, was one of these. He left Pasquotank in 1676 to become Nathaniel Bacon’s lieutenant during the rebellion in Virginia. When the revolt was put down, he escaped to Albemarle, where he continued to sow seeds of discontent.

Disagreement between the early settlers who bought their lands from the Indians and those who had received land patents from the Lord Proprietors was an underlying cause of dispute. In addition, conflict between Quakers and non-Quakers, while government attempts to restrict export of tobacco (the money crop) also resulted in discontent. Nine Friends were fined and imprisoned in 1680 for refusing to bear arms. Samuel Hill of Warwick was one of these men.

When unrest in Albemarle broke out in Culpeper’s Rebellion, in 1677, Thomas Miller, an apothecary from Pasquotank, was serving as Deputy Governor in place of Thomas Eastchurch. The rebels, led by John Culpeper, arrested Gov. Miller and Customs Collector, Timothy Biggs, and took over the government. In Pasquotank County, Culpeper is proudly claimed as America’s first governor of a free people in this country and Albemarle as the first independent colony in the new world. Culpeper’s widow, Sarah Mayo, daughter of Edward Mayo, again married in 1693 to Patrick Henley, the earliest Henley ancestor of the family that later became closely associated with the Hills.

Bacon’s and Culpeper’s Rebellions came perilously close to the members of the Hill family. As Quakers they did not take active roles in the insurrection, but they were closely associated with the officials who did.

For the first thirty years Albemarle was governed by independent men, and Quakers served in all levels of political office. While there was a steady conflict for governmental control in Albemarle between members of the established church and the Quaker faction, the Quakers dominated in early Pasquotank. John Archdale followed Culpeper as Governor from 1694-1696. He was a Quaker and a Lord Proprietor, having purchased John Berkeley’s share. When a law was passed requiring officeholders to take an oath to serve the English crown, the Quakers, who believed oaths should be made only to God, met opposition and were prohibited from holding public office. From that time on their influence waned.

In this new setting life was a constant challenge for survival. Families were more isolated and vied with the Indians for sustenance off the land. Living on lands bought from the Indians meant they were living among the natives. Early on the Quakers learned how to treat the Indians with respect and to coexist with them. In the process their children acquired the Indian skills of living with nature. In the next generation these were skills that enabled the young men to lead their people into newer untouched lands to the west.

In Albemarle life spans were short. With little medical resources other than the remedies handed down from generation to generation and surrounded by accidental risks, fevers, poisonous snakes and wild animals, men and women often were suddenly widowed and left with small children to care for without a home-maker or protector-provider. The widowed remarried quickly and often, some having three or four wives or husbands in their lifetimes. New marriage partners often came from within the small circle of neighboring families. These families came to be linked by intermarriage many times over. Marriage occurred at a young age for girls in particular. They learned the skills of home-making as a necessity to assist their mothers. Providing food, clothing, and health care for a family in the wilderness was no easy task and required the help of every hand at an early age. Without a pair of hardworking parents, a family could not survive. Families were large and children learned early to contribute to the work.

SAMUEL PRICKLOVE: AGITATOR

Samuel Pricklove was one of the first residents of Perquimans Precinct, arriving even before settler George Durant, in 1662. Pricklove was the first known purchaser of Indian lands in Albemarle and held a grant from Governor Berkeley of Virginia for a large tract on the Perquimans River near Durant, where the two men became life-long friends. Pricklove had moved from Nansemond County in Virginia with his wife, Rachel Lawrence, whose brother, Thomas Lawrence, was one of Nathaniel Bacon’s supporters in Bacon’s Rebellion. Pricklove held the offices of Registrar of deeds and Clerk of the Inferior Court under the administrations of two early Quaker Governors of Carolina in the 1650’s: Governor William Drummond (executed by Governor Berkeley in Bacon’s Rebellion) and Governor Archdale. Both Pricklove and Durant took part in the Culpepper Rebellion of 1677 and assisted in “leading the rabble” to depose the Deputy Governor Thomas Miller. For this crime of activism, Pricklove was sentenced to have his right ear amputated and be banished from the colony. The sentence was never carried out because Miller was deposed. Samuel Pricklove died in Perquimans County in 1692. He and his wife left two sons, Samuel and John. John Pritloe and his wife, Elizabeth, had six daughters, all of whom married men of substance and influence in Albemarle:

• Priscilla married John Sanders

• Judeth married Abram Sanders, son of John Sanders of Virginia

• Rachel married Robert Wilson, son of a Virginia Burgess

• Elizabeth married William Elliott

• Rebecca married Zacariah Chancy

• Leah married Joseph Smith. Leah and Joseph Smith were the grandparents of Mary Smith, wife of William Hill. John Smith, brother of Mary Hill, was one of the founders of Richmond, Indiana. Basil Sanders, who left 860 acres of land in Chowan County to a William Hill of Antigua in 1721, was likely the son of one of the above Sanders couples.

The early Quaker communities were models of life based on their Christian beliefs. The Quaker believed that God speaks directly to the human heart, and that no ministers or priests are needed to receive the blessings of God, which are available to every man and woman. They believed in the equality of men and women. They used no hymns or outward manifestations in their worship, keeping silent until a person felt moved by God to share a message. The Quakers tithed. They refused to take an oath of any kind, as they owed their allegiance only to God. They believed in simplicity which strips away the accretions of the centuries and used the term Thee because Jesus used Thee to His Friends. The appellation, Quaker, came from their enemies who accused them of Quaking in the presence of God, which they did.

The Quaker dissenters in England had been prohibited from attending the public schools there, leading the Friends to establish their own schools to provide their young people with the education and religious precepts of their faith. A high priority was placed on having the best teachers and schools possible in order to preserve their sect.

The Quaker Meeting House had two sides separated by partitions which could be removed for general meetings. The men had their meetings on one side and conducted their affairs with their own appointed committees. The women, treated as equals, had their own meetings and committees to deal with their own particular concerns. Each group assigned overseers to monitor the conduct of their members, arrange for disputes between members to be settled in a peaceful and fair manner, and to “look into and approve or disapprove” of the appropriateness of the intention of members to marry. The poor and orphaned children were provided for by funds set aside in each meeting from tithes for that purpose, and new homes were arranged for the orphans where they would be clothed, fed, and taught a trade.

In the frontier communities the safety and welfare of the people depended on the cooperation of all and a commitment to the good of the community. Because they lived in primitive circumstances and close proximity to the Indians from whom they had bought their land, the Quakers took care to treat the Indians fairly and to learn their ways of survival off the land. They set up schools for the native children to help them come to understand the ways of the white man. The earliest religious meetings in Albemarle were held in the homes of their leaders.

While the Quaker communities continued to grow in North Carolina and in Isle of Wight Co., Virginia, there remained a lingering unease over the tight control of the mother country affecting both the settler’s religious and economic lives. Young men were being conscripted into the militia to fight Indians on the western borders of Virginia and North Carolina and brought home with them news of the beautiful, undeveloped lands in the western parts of those states. The Quakers were assessing their local problems and the possibility of starting new settlements in the west.

Concerned with the question of slavery, they knew they could not operate their farms without slave help. They preferred living in frontier areas where they were free of the social pressures of concentrated population. Albemarle was becoming quite populated.

HENRY WHITE

One of the earliest Quakers in Pasquotank County was Henry White who had come from Isle of Wight County, Virginia, around 1670. He had purchased lands at the head of Little River where a preparatory meeting had been established as early as 1663. White served as Registrar for Little River Meeting and for the Pasquotank Monthly Meeting which included four other meetings besides Little River. He served on the North Carolina Higher court and for short periods of time on the Precinct County Court.

White gave land for the building of a school alongside the meeting house which was the first school built in North Carolina, and he taught in that school. A poem White wrote in 1698 as a teaching tool for his students came to light at Guilford College in Greensboro, NC. This long poem is said to be the oldest extant work of poetry from the southern states. It apparently was used as a form of communication with other Quaker meetings in various regions and to instruct his pupils with a religious message of the Quaker faith at the same time.

As a young man White had attended school in Isle of Wight County, where his father made a living as a cooper and served as Justice of the Peace. His grandfather, Henry White, had lived on Queen’s Creek in York County, north of Williamsburg.

In 1631 Governor John Harvey determined to secure the area between the James and York Rivers by building a palisade across the peninsula between Archer’s Hope (College Creek) and Queen’s Creek. Incentives were offered to any settler who would relocate to that area to defend and protect the development of the area. Fifty acres were offered to each man who would relocate there for the first year, twenty-five acres for a second year. This may have been the incentive for families like the Whites and the Hills to spend a short period at Queen’s Creek in York county, later returning to the counties south of the James River.

REED Family by FRED P. MARKHAM, III

Source: Year Book – Volume 4 – Pasquotank Historical Society – Elizabeth City, North Carolina. Compiled and Edited by Edna M. Shannonhouse (1983).

NATHANIELL BATTS – The First Landholder in North Carolina

Source: Year Book – Volume 3 – Pasquotank Historical Society – Elizabeth City, North Carolina. Compiled and Edited by Lou N. Overman and Edna M. Shannonhouse (1975).

SWANN

William Swann was grt 1200a in James City Co Va, Nov 5, 1635, for trans 24 persons, some of whom were Richard Jones, John Swann, Nicholas Stallings, Nicholas Foster, Edward Champion, & Richard Perry. This grant was reissued to Thomas Swann, by Sir John Harvey.
Thomas Swann had land grant, Mar 1, 1638, 1200a (as above) on South side of James River, “to half way Neck.” Another grt, May 9, 1638, on South side of the James, “at a place called Swanns Bay.” He was a member of the House of Burgesses, from James City Co, (Surry) 1645-49, and from Surry Co, 1657-58. In Council 1660-80; d Sept 16, 1680. His home was on Swanns Point, Surry Co Va, & the English sent to suppress Bacons Rebellion, met at his house. He married five times, Miss Codd being his first wife, by whom he had, 1st Samuel, b May 11, 1653, who moved to Perq Co, N. C.
Maj Samuel Swann, “Eldest son of Thomas Swann Esq, of Southwarke pish, dec’d, for £30 pd by Mary Swann Widow of afsd” sold 300a in Surry Co, upon Grays Creek, “part of a grt unto my dec’d father, for 1930a, Oct 4, 1645.” Seal Feb 25, 168½. Sarah Swann Ack’ sd Deed, Mar 7, 168½. (Surry Co records.)
Sarah Swann, wife of Maj Samuel, (by letter) apt’ Capt Thomas Swann of James City Co, her Att’ to recover “goods, Chattels, & money due my sd husband.” April 30, 1694. Test’ Will Foster, Will Gray, Roger Williams. (Surry Co records.)
Samuel Swann “Sone and heir of Thomas,” for £75 s4 pd by John Tuke of Surry Co, sold “All Right in Est of my father, the late Capt Thomas Swann,” and apt’ Maj Arthur Allen Att’ Feb 8, 1704. (Surry Co records.)
Samuel Swann “of N. C. gent; sold to Joseph John Jackman of Surry Co Vir” for £450, land called Swanns Point, 1650a, was 300a grt by sd Samuel, by deed, to Mary Swann Relict of Thomas, which was grt sd Thomas “his father” by patent, Feb 15, 1645, in Southwarke Parish, on South side of the James River. Mar 4 1706. Elizabeth wife of Samuel Ack’ her Dower right. (Samuel Swanns 2d wife née Lillington.)
Samuel Swann proved rights for 13 persons, in Perq precinct 1694, & received for importing them 640a of land; himself, wife Sarah (d of Wm Drummond) & sons: William, Samuel, Sampson, Henry, & Thomas, Elizabeth Hunt, & 5 negroes.
He was grt by John Archdale 450a in Pasq Co, Feb 26, 1696, “at the mouth of Newbegun Creek,” which he conveyed to said Archdale, the next day.
On Oct 29, 1702 Samuel Swann Esq, was grt 850a, “in ye prect of perquimons, adj Mr Thomas Durant, and Roan Oak Sound, Northerly on Batemans Creek, & Easterly on lands of Geo Katchmaide (now in poss’ of Mr Jno Hawkins) being part of 3333a grt by Sir Wm Berkley, late Gov of Vir, to sd Katchmaide, late of the precinct of Perq dec’d.” April 1, 1663.
Hon’ble Maj Samuel Swann Sec of State. (At a Gen’l Court in Perq pre’t 1700.) The ages of his first children, can not be found in Perq. His wife Sarah, died April 18, 1696. Samuel Swann (1) m 2d Elizabeth née Lillington (d of Alex & wife Sarah née James) widow of John Fendall. (See deeds, for mar contract.) Issue: 1 Elizabeth, b June 26, 1698—2 Sarah, b Dec 29 —.
Maj Samuel Swann d 7 ber 14, 1707. (Berkeley Par Reg, Perq Co.)
Samuel (1) Swann, m Elizabeth Fendall (widow) before Oct 10, 1698.
John Fendall late of this County, died Dec 20, 1695, at Capt Walkers house. (Capt Henderson Walker, one time Gov of Albemarle m Ann Lillington, sister of Elizabeth, 2d wife of Samuel Swann.)
For the will of Maj Samuel Swann, see Grimes N. C. Wills, p 368, which was p April 20, 1708. He bequeathed to s William “a Bible, & seal ring,” to sons: Sampson, Henry, & Thomas, “land between Muddy Creek, & Marshy Gutt” sons: Samuel, & John, dau’s Elizabeth, & Sarah; wife Elizabeth.
Henry Swann of Perq, Merchant: apt’ Mr William, & Thomas Swann his Att’ Sept 21 1709.
Thomas Swann of Pasq Co, conveyed 127a in sd Co, “to his cousin Wm Drummond of Vir, to him & his heirs forever” Oct 18, 1726. (Pasq County Records.)
Samuel Swann of Perq was dec’d 1704. Mary widow & Admix. (Col Rec Vol I.) This could not be Maj Samuel’s son, as he names a son Samuel in his will, 1708. If the Samuel who died 1704, left any issue, there is no record of it in Perq.
(3) Samuel (s of Maj Samuel & Sarah née Drummond) m Mary — (Widow Vail) issue: Mary, b Mch 5, 1726/7, m Richard Clayton—2 Sarah, b Sept 3, 1729—3 Samuel, b Dec 8, 1731.
Samuel Swann (3) will Perq, p April 1753, names his dau Mary “wife of Richard Clayton,” to whom he left “land on the Sound side,” other dau’s Sarah, Ann, Elizabeth, Martha, Jane, Margaret. Exrs John, & Jeremiah Vail (brothers). Test’ Susannah Vail, William Woolard.
Thomas Swann (s of Maj Samuel & Sarah Drummond) lived in Pasq Co, where his will was p Aug 9, 1733. Sons: Samuel, & William. He made bequest to Dau’s Rebecca, & Elizabeth, “land at Moyock, in Currituck Co,” wife Elizabeth.
John & Thomas Swann moved to Hyde County, where their descendants are now living. The county seat of Hyde, Swan Quarter, was probably named for this branch of the family.
(3) Samuel Swann, was Speaker of the Assembly in 1715. Samuel Swann Gent, was sworn in by George Nichols, Att’ Gen’l, for the Counties of Currituck, Pasquotank, Perquimans, & Chowan, Oct 3, 1752.
Samuel Swann, & son John were Exrs of the will of Thomas Snowden, p in Perq Oct 1736.
One of Maj Samuel Swanns dau’s m John Baptista Ashe, another m Frederick Jones, of Chowan County, Chief Justice of N. C. 1720.
Major Samuel Swanns record in Perq, is without a blemish. The family adhered faithfully to the faith of their fathers, & Samuel Swann was instrumental in establishing a Church according to his belief, the Church of England, believed to be “old Nags Head Chapel” which has long since disappeared. This Chapel, not far from his home, was still unfinished at his death, but it served the people of “Durants Neck” for many generations, finally falling into decay, it was turned over to the Methodist congregation, and it is said the present New Hope Church rests upon the old foundations of Nags Head Chapel. This Methodist Church, is the oldest in the county, so it seems. Here New Hope took root upon “old hope” buried in the past.
At the present time there is not a living representative of this influential family in Perq, the last to be found, being Samuel, who was dec’d June 13, 1771, without heirs. Like so many other families, once numerous in our county, they have drifted away, & only the records are a reminder that they at one time wielded a strong hand in the public affairs of this section.
The New Hanover Land Grants, in N. C. show that Samuel Swann, was grt 320a in said county, on East side of the road, from Wilmington, to Brunswick, below his line, Feb 23, 1754, and 300a on same day, same runnings, and 200a on Long Creek, all same date. Thus we see the Swann family continued to migrate ever southward. The Counties of Hyde, Beaufort, & New Hanover, would probably yield valuable information, about this splendid family.

Source: History of Perquimans County by Ellen Goode Rawlings Winslow, (1931).

SUTTON

Thomas Sutton, was a subject in the Colony at Jamestown, May 23, 1609. (Browns Genesis to America) Robert Sutton came to America, 1635, age 17 years. (Hotten.)
Nathaniel Sutton, (first in Perq Co) m in Nansemond Co Va, before coming to N. C. Deborah Astine, “by Mr. Babb, minister of gospel” Aug 12, 1668. They became Quakers soon after, arriving in Perq, as we find their names on all the Quaker records.
Sutton, Nathaniel (1), & wife Deborah, issue: George (2), b Mar 2, 1669—Joseph (2), b Aug 6, 1673—Rebecka, b Aug 8, 1676—Nathaniel (2), Aug 29, 1681.
Sutton, Nathaniel (1), died Dec 29, 1682. (His will Grimes, p Mar 12, 1682.) He left to son George, “plan’ where I now live,” to Joseph plan’, son Nathaniel 150a of land, d Rebeckah, cousin John Godby (Gosby). Wife not named, but she survived him, & m 2d John Whedby, May 10, 1685, who died leaving her a widow, when she m for her 3d husband, Dennis Macclenden.
Sutton, Joseph (1), (s of George, & Sarah) brother of Nathaniel, m Delemance Nicholson (Deliverance), (d of Christopher, & Hanah, of New England) Jan 1, 167-, issue: Christopher, b Aug 3, 1685—George (3), b Aug 7, 1687. Joseph Sutton Sr, died Jan 17, 1695. His will, p April 1696, names sons: Joseph (3), Christopher, George (3), & Nathaniel. Wife Deliverance.
Sutton, George, (s of Nathaniel (1) m Rebecka — issue: Elizabeth, b Nov 14, 1694—Deborah, b Jan 2, 1699—Richard, b Sept 12, 1697.
Sutton, George (2), will p Mar 11, 1699 (Grimes). Names son Richard (1), d Elizabeth, to whom he left “plan’ at Richland,” d Deborah, to whom he left, “plan’ at the Hickory.” His wife is not named in his will.
Sutton, Joseph (2), son of Nathaniel, & Debro) m Parthenia Duren (Durant) (d of George, & Ann) b Aug 1, 1675, m June 18, 1695, issue: George, b Aug 22, 1696—Elizabeth, b Sept 15, 1703—Parthenia, b Aug 8, 1705—Sarah, b Oct 10, 1711.
Sutton, Joseph (2), will Grimes; p Mar 10, 1723. He left to sons: George, & Joseph, plan’ “I now live on” d Pashence (Parthenia) d Elizabeth, to whom he left, “6 silver spoons, 1 silver cup, and silver tankard,” Gr-son Thomas Sutton. Made brother (bro-in-law) Richard Whidbee Ex.
(Thomas Sutton, gr-son of Joseph, moved to Bertie Co, where his will was p Mar 2, 1750, naming sons: Thomas, William, George, Joshua, & Jasper, Dau’s Parthenia, Mary, Elizabeth, & Judith, wife Elizabeth.)
Sutton, Joseph (3), (s of George, & Deliverance) will p Mar 26, 1724. Son: Christopher, Dau’s Sarah, & Elizabeth, to d Mary, “land on Suttons Creek” Hannah, “land on Cypress Swamp,” wife Rebeckah, brothers, George, & Nathaniel. Peter Jones, & Richard Whidby Exrs. (Rebecca Sutton (née Jones, d of Peter) m 2d Joshua Toms, & 3d Charles Denman.)
Sutton, Mary, (d of Joseph, & Rebecca) in her will, p Jan 1738, names her “mother Rebecka Denman,” sisters, Sarah Thomas, & Elizabeth Moulin (Maudlin) cousin & Ex Joseph Sutton.
Sutton, Joseph, called Jr, m Bennett — (d of John, & Merry (Bailey) Stepney)? Issue: Hannah, b Jan 6, 1705/6—John, b Dec 23, 1707—Joseph Sutton Jr, died Jan 18, 1723.
Sutton, Richard (1), (s of George, & Rebecka) m Mary — issue: William, b Mch 5, 1719.
Sutton, Richard (2), b Dec 9, 1722—Mary, b June 23, 1726—Elizabeth, b Mch 2, 1728—Sarah, b Dec 20, 1730.
Sutton, George (3), m Mary — issue: Mary, b Apl 18, 1725—Joseph, b Aug 9, 1727.
Sutton, Nathaniel (2), (s of Joseph, & Deliverance) m Elizabeth Chancey, (named in the will of William Chancey, as “sister” & her children, Joseph, & Deborah as “cousins”) had issue: Joseph, b Aug 21, 1727—Deborah, b Mar 13, 1729/30.
Sutton, Joseph (4), m Mrs Rachel Lee, Jan 11, 1732/3, issue: Elizabeth, b Feby 5, 1737/8.
Sutton, Nathaniel, m Elizabeth Chancey, In, 3, 1mo 1726. (Newbegun Creek Mo Meeting.)
Sutton, Samuel (1) (not placed) m Sarah, d of Peter Jones Sr, (see his will in Grimes) issue: George, b Sept 24, 1752, George (2d by name) b Jany 18 1754, John b Jany 31, 1756—George (3) b Nov 16, 1757—Mary b Feb 22, 1760—Samuel (2) b Nov 13, 1762.
Sutton, George, m Sarah Barclift, Dec 27, 1777. (Mar bonds Perq Co.)
Sutton, Samuel (2) m Elizabeth Barclift, Dec 3, 1784. (Mar bonds Perq Co.)
Sutton, Ashbury, m Nancy Reed, (d of Wm, & Penelope) Sept 11, 1779. (Mar bonds Perq Co.)
Sutton, Francis, m Deborah McConnell, Sept 6, 1783. (Mar bonds Perq Co.)
Sutton, George (3), Inventory, May 2, 1733, (Auditors act) Children Hannah, Samuel, and Mary Sutton. Division shows: “Cattle, a parcell of Smith Tools.” Hannah Robins Admix.
Sutton, Christopher, will Nov 4, 1723/4, Bequeathed to son Joseph, & wife Miriam, 344a of land, on No Est side of Suttons Creek, down to the River. (Deed of Joseph Sutton, 1772,) Christopher Suttons will, can not be found in Perq, & does not appear to have ever been probated, but this deed mentions the fact that he made one. Miriam Sutton, wife of Christopher, was d of Joshua Toms, named in his will, 1732.

GRANTS

Sutton, Deborah, (widow) grt 280a “on E. side of Piquemons River” being the Westermost bounds of another tract to sd Deborah, 1684. And 294a on E side of Perq River, “to ye mouth of Little Creek.” 1684.
Sutton, George, grt 344a “on ye So East side of Suttons Creek, to ye head of same.” (No date.)
Sutton, Nathaniel. 150a “in ye precinct of Perq, on ye East side of Suttons Creek, by a Branch, called ‘Eye branch’ along Joseph Suttons, line.” (No date.)
Sutton, Elizabeth, grt 125a “in precinct of Perq, called ‘ye rich thickett’ adj Jno Whidby.” Aug 19, 1713.

MARRIAGES

Sutton, Hannah, (d of Joseph) m John Keaton, before Oct 27, 1728.
Sutton, Sarah, (d of Joseph) m Robert Hosea (No date).
Sutton, Christopher, m Sarah Jones, July 2, 1745. (Mar bonds, Perq Co, she was d of Peter.)
Sutton, Susanna, d of Abraham Warren, & Sarah his wife, gr-d of Mary Norcom.
Sutton, Ann, d of Francis Penrice, whose will 1758, names her.
Excursus, Wood:
Sutton, Deborah, (d of George & Rebecka) m William Wood May 8, 1718, by Dr Urmstone, of the Church of England. Issue: 1 Richard, b Oct 30, 1720—2 Sarah, b Oct 25, 1721—died Mch 21, 1722/3—3 William, b Sept 3, 1723—4 George, b Sept 2, 1724—5 Deborah, b Mar 25, 1726—6 Rebecca, b June 3, 1727—7 Elizabeth, b Dec 18, 1728. Deborah wife of William Wood, died Dec 18, 1728. Sarah Wood died, Mch 17, 1722/3. (Berkeley Par Reg, Perq Co.)
Wood, Richard, (s of William, & Deborah) m Hannah Lowry, 19, 10mo 1746, issue: 1 Tamer, b 21, 9mo 1747—2 Winnefred, b 29, 3 mo 1749—3 William (2), b 12, 11mo 1750—4 Roda, b 23, 1mo 1753—5 Benjamin, b 16, 4mo 1756—6 Samuel, b 29, 11mo 1758—7 Rachel, b 3, 1mo 1761. Samuel Wood, died 13, 11mo 1782.
Wood, William (2) m Mary — issue: 1 Deborah, b 25, 1mo 1764—2 Rebeckah, b 29, 5mo 1765—3 William, b 4, 10mo 1766.
Wood, Richard, m 2d Sarah Morris, (d of John of Pasq Co) at Simons Creek Mo Meeting, 20, 8mo 1764. (Suttons Creek Mo Meeting, Perq.)

This Wood family lived in, & around Woodville, & it is thought the place derived its name from this line of Woods. Another line of Woods, came to the county much later than this date, & made their home near Hertford. Edward & John Wood family who came to N. C. from Norfolk Co Va.

DEATHS

Sutton, George (1), Dept this Life, April 12, 1669. (Father of Nath’l, & Joseph (1).
Sutton, Sarah, Dept this Life, March 20, 1677. (Mother of Nath’l, & Joseph (1).
Sutton, Nathaniel, Dept this Life, Dec 29, 1682. (Son of George, & Sarah.)
Sutton, Joseph, Sr, Dept this Life, Jan 17, 1695. (Son of George & Sarah.)
Sutton, George, Dept this Life, April 7, 1700.
Sutton, John, (s of Joseph, & Benet) died Feby 16, 1707/8.
Sutton, Bennett, (d of Joseph, & Benet) died Nov 8, 1711.
Sutton, Christopher, died Nov 27, 1711.
Sutton, Joseph, Jr, died Jany 18, 1723/4.
Sutton, Nathaniel Sr, died Feby 3, 1724/5.
Sutton, Mary, (wife of Samuel), died May 7, 1754.

Source: History of Perquimans County by Ellen Goode Rawlings Winslow, (1931).

PRITLOW—PRICKLOVE

Samuel Pricklove a resident of Perq Precinct, prior to the coming of George Durant 1661, whose land was adj said grant to Durant from the Indian Chief, had his own grant directly from Sir Wm Berkeley. No mention of a grant to Samuel Pricklove can be found in Perq, but the records make mention of the fact that he had a grant from before stated source. Samuel Pricklove is supposed to have come to Perq from Nansemond Co Va, where that family was strongly entrenched. This family was united with the Quaker faith, but Samuel strayed far from the fold, “by taking up arms” and following the rebellion with the redoubtable Durant, at the time Thomas Miller was deposed from the Government 1677-79. For his part in this insurrection, he suffered the disgrace of being in the “Pillory,” and had his right ear amputated, and was sentenced to banishment from the Colony. The records do not show whether this drastic punishment was really carried out, but we do know his descendants remained in Perquimans. He was dec’d Apl 20, 1692, without a will, so no definite means can be found to establish his issue; except for one son whose age is given in the Berkeley Par Reg: His wife was Rachel, née Larance, m June 1, 1668, by whom he had son: Samuel b Dec 24, 1674, and it is thought another son (John) born before this date, of whom there is no birth date.
John Pricklove (1) m Elizabeth — issue: 1 Leah, b Mch 4, 1695, m Joseph Smith, and had several children, m 2d Thomas Winslow, (see Deeds)—2 Judith, b Dec 2, 1697, m Abraham Sanders—3 Elizabeth, b April 25, 1699, m William Elliott, & had son Pritlow Elliott—4 Rebecca, b Dec 10, 1705, m Zachery Chancey.
John Pricklove, Will p in Perq, May 1, 1728, names Dau’s: Rachel Wilson (wife of Robert) Judith Sanders, Elizabeth Eliot, gr-son John Smith, wife Elizabeth.
Pricklove, Elizabeth, will p in Perq July 23, 1728, names Dau’s: Leah Smith, Rachel Wilson, Priscilla Sanders, Rebecca Chancey, gr-children: John Smith, Silvanus Willson, Judith, & Priscilla Sanders. As a dau Priscilla is named in her will & not in his, Elizabeth may have been a widow when she m John Pritlow.
Pricklove, John, had a grant for land in Perq, 400a on Perq River, “at the mouth of Wolf pitt branch,” adj Jonathan Phelps. Jan 1, 1694. As Jonathan Phelps land lay on the mouth of same branch, up Castletons Creek, we may infer that John Pricklove lived near Hertford.
Pricklove, Samuel, b 1674, m Purina Penrice (d of Francis, & Elizabeth) Mar 25, 1696, issue: 1 Samuel (3) b Nov 6, 1698—2 Francis, b Mch 25, 1702.
His will (no County given, but Perq) p Jan 20, 1702-3, Sons: Samuel, & Francis, wife Peninah.
Pricklove, Samuel, had grant for land in Perq, 400a “at the mouth of a small Creek issuing out of Lillys Creek.” Mar 30, 1704.
Pricklove, Francis, had grant for land, 165a “in Perq pre’cs adj Jonathan Bateman. Mar 30, 1704. Both of these grants were in Durants Neck, and were probably taken up by their mother, as they were too young to be taking up land. The Perq records show that this was often done.
Pricklove, Samuel, (probably gr-son of Samuel (2) m Keziah Nixon, née Pierce, widow of Francis Nixon) 7, 6mo 1780.
Pricklove, Kesiah, was wife of Nathan Newby, Oct 1756, at the proving of her fathers will on that date. Her husband Nathan (2) Newby, succeeded his father at the Ferry, “on Nathans Point” and was one of the first Directors of the town of Hertford 1759, when it was incorporated. He was dead 1765 when Seth Sumner was made a Director in his place. Keziah his wife m 2d Francis Nixon, who died before Jan 1773, when his will was probated in Perq, whose will makes mention of the fact that Nathan Newby was “former husband” of Keziah. Francis Nixon, & wife Keziah made complaint to the Court 1765, agst Simon Perisho, for debt. Keziah Pritlow was allowed £13-13-1 “for keeping the Ferry, from her point to Hertford on public days.” Jan 1784. There can be no doubt that Nathan Newby inherited the Ferry House, & appurtenances on the point opposite to Phelps Point, and that Samuel Pritlow continued the same after he m Keziah.
Pricklove, Rebecca, m Zachary Chancey, who proved rights Apl 20, 1742.

Source: History of Perquimans County by Ellen Goode Rawlings Winslow, (1931).

JACOCKS

Excursus, Jacocks.

No records have been found in the lower counties of Virginia throwing light on the Jacocks family, neither are the records in Perq very generous in details about them. The line has been well written up by Mr Hathaway, in N. C. Hist, & Gen Reg, Vol 1-3, page 330. In my work on same line a few stray items have been unearthed which may be of value to searchers after family data. As has been already shown by said Register, Thomas Jacocks was living in “Little River” 1689, with wife Ann. He is said to have been engaged in “farming & merchandising.” He died May 2, 1692.

His son Jonathan, m 1st Elizabeth Collins (widow of William) and made his home in Pasq Co, near Newbegun Creek. He was also a merchant, & planter. They had no issue apparently, she dying 1710-11. His 2d wife was Mary Blount (d of John & Elizabeth Davis, b 1696,) both of them dying 1735. A joint deed was made by them, July 20, 1721, to Matthew Pritchard of Pasq Co, 388a in said county, “formerly belonging to William Collins, and bequeathed by him to his nephew Thomas Woodley, and by him conveyed to sd Jacocks.” Jonathan Jacocks moved to Bertie Co, and took up 485a on Batchelors Bay, at the mouth of Chowan River, where he died, leaving sons: Jonathan, Thomas, Charles, Worth, Joseph, & dau Elizabeth. Thomas Jacocks (2) was Master of ship Swallow, from Edenton, to Boston, March 26, 1760, and m Rebecca Scolley of Boston.

Joseph Reed in his will, p July 1774, names his “mother Elizabeth Jacocks” who was before marriage a dau of George Durant (gr-son of George, & Ann Marwood) and sister of Mary Durant who m Christian Reed. Joseph Reed here spoken of was son of Joseph Sr, brother of Christian Reed. Thomas Jacocks 2d m Elizabeth, (widow of the elder Joseph Reed) but his issue is uncertain. (See N. C. Hist & Gen Reg, for further data.)

Source: History of Perquimans County by Ellen Goode Rawlings Winslow, (1931).

Of George Durant very little is known before his arrival in Perq Co, but it is an undisputed fact that he landed in Va before 1658. He made deposition in Northumberland Co Va, July 1658, that he “came to Virginia in the ship Potomack, age 25 years.” As this book is very much faded with age, all of this statement can not be deciphered. (Northumberland Co record, 1658-66. Archives Richmond Va.) In Berkeley Parish Reg Perq Co, his marriage is given as follows: “George Durant and Ann Moorwood was Married the 4th of January 1658/9, By Mr David Lindsey, Minister of gospel and was Licensed by Mr George Cowbough Magistrate, in Northumberland County Verginia.”

He had several grants for land in Va. prior to coming to N. C. One of these 400a in Lower Norfolk Co, on East side of North River, Sept 30, 1670, by Sir William Berkeley, for trans’ fourteen persons, and another grant by same authority, on same date, 700a on East side of North River, “which falleth in to Corotock” adj Thomas Tullies land, in what is now Currituck Co N. C. Prior to this date he had taken up land in Perq Co, and was already settled in what is called to this day, “Durants Neck.” This deed, or grant from the Indian Chief Kilcocanen, King of Yeopim, for all the land between the River Perquimans, & Roanoke Sound, March 1, 1661, where he had seated a Plan’ before Aug 4, 1661. In the second conveyance of the Indian King he spelled his name Cuscutenew, but they are supposed to be one & the same person, and it was the usual procedure at that time, to spell a name just as it sounded to the copiest. This deed is found in Deed book A, No 374, and has as Test’ Thomas Weymouth, & Caleb Calleway. Thomas Weymouth was a great navigator, and adventurer, sailing with Capt Pring, and he was among those who started out in 1603, in search of the ill fated colony on Roanoke Island.

How he came to be in Albemarle at this time is not explained. Caleb Calleway was of course already settled in the Province. This deed of the Indian King to sd Durant, is the oldest recorded document in North Carolina. If there were older records they were all destroyed in the uprising of 1677/79. Fifty-five years elapsed between the making of the deed by King Cuscutenew, and its recording on the books in the Reg Office, which was done by John Stepney “Reg of all writings for Perq Precinct” Oct 24, 1716 George Durants Plan’ was known by the name of “Wicocombe” and was situated between “two Rivers, Perquimans, & Kototine” (Little River). According to the record George Durant seems to have been a fair minded man, and quite honest in his dealings with both the Indian Chief, and George Catchminy, who set up a counter claim for said land, claiming a prior right, by a grt from Sir William Berkeley, therefore Mr. Durant, “who had cleared a small Peice of Ground,” at once “desisted” on hearing the contention of sd Catchmaid, who on Mar 13, 1662 made a bona fide deed to sd Durant for the disputed land. Later the Lords Pro’ made a secure deed to Mr. Durant for this land, Dec 26, 1673. No man with the exception of Timothy Clare, is more often, or more honorably mentioned in Perq. He stand out, virile, hardy, opinionated, with a following of all faiths, and from the records died much respected in the community. Some have classed him as a Quaker, but the records do not verify that fact. He was certainly married by an Episcopal Minister (Rev David Lindsey) and his children all but one (Deborah) m into Episcopal families. Not once is his name mentioned in the Quaker records, nor are the ages of any of his children recorded there. It is the opinion of many that he was a Scotchman, and therefore of Presbyterian faith, but his Church affiliations in Perq are uncertain. From the records he appears to have come from London to America. Exactly where this renowned man lies buried is shrouded in mystery. It is said his grave was once to be seen on the bank of a large drain, in Durants Neck, and that in cutting out the ditch, mud from the bottom was thrown out over it, until it disappeared. In the will of William Sherrell, Perq Co, George Durant’s place of residence is named as “Berty Point,” and the deeds in Perq speak of his “seating” being on a “Point which divides sd land from a Neck called Langleys.” His house has long ago disappeared, and even the location is now in doubt. There can be small doubt, however, about its being in the lower part of Durants Neck somewhere near the village of Little River. (See N. C. Hist & Gen Reg, for this family.)

Source: History of Perquimans County by Ellen Goode Rawlings Winslow, (1931).

CALLOWAY

Richard Calloway, served on the Jury, in Isle of Wight Co Va July 14, 1664. Nothing further found there, about Richard, or his descendants.
Caleb Calloway, was living in Perq Precinct, as early as Mar 1, 1661, when he signed the deed made by the Indian Chief, to George Durant, on sd date. He probably bought land from the Indians, as Durant did, but there is no record of such a transaction, to be found anywhere.
Calloway, Caleb, m Elizabeth Laraunce, 29 —. She was d of Will Lawrence, & wife Rachell Welsh. b Dec 24, 1655. Issue:
Calloway, William, s of Caleb, & Elizabeth, b Feby 13, 1671/2. d Nov 29, 1692.
Calloway, Dorothy, d of Caleb, & Elizabeth, b Aug 16, 1674.
Calloway, Caleb (2), s of Caleb, & Elizabeth, b Feby 21, 1676. d Dec 16, 1687.
Colloway, Joshua, s of Caleb, & Elizabeth, b July 17, 1679.
Calloway, Mary, d of Caleb, & Elizabeth, b Feb 19, 1681. d June 7, 1698.
Calloway, John, s of Caleb, & Elizabeth, b Sept 13, 1684. d Dec 18, 1687.
Calloway, Karhale, d of Caleb, & Elizabeth, b Feb 16, 1686.
Caleb Calloway died, June 15, 1706.
Calloway, Elizabeth, widow, m 2d John Pearre, (s of Wm & Margrett) 16— (no date).
Caleb Calloway’s will p (in Perq, but Co not given) June 13, 1706. He left to son & Ex Joshua, a “plan’ on Yawpim River” names d Rachel, wife of John Wiatt. Gr-dau Elizabeth Wiatt, wife Elizabeth.

It seems from this will, that all his other children were dead. The records do not show what became of Dorothy, & Karhale.

Joshua Calloway m Elizabeth, (thought to have been a d of John Stepney) Issue: Elizabeth b Apl 13, 1716, m Robert Harman (s of Robt, & Elizabeth Freeman).
Ann b Feby 26, 1718/19. (Roman Calendar.)
Samuel b Feby 5, 1731/2.
Joshua Calloway had also a son John, (no record of his birth) who was given liberty April Court, 1744, to “Chuse his Gardian.” (Minute book Perq Co.)
Joshua Calloway appears on the Tithe List, in Berkeley Parish Perq Co. 1740, with 4 Tithes.
John Calloway was Sheriff of Perq from Nov 25, 1751, to Mar 28, 1758. He was dead Mar 7, 1772. (Loose papers Perq Co.)
Joshua Callaway, will p in Perq Co, July 1742. Names sons: Thomas, John & Caleb, and dau Elizabeth Harman, gr-d Elizabeth Callaway, (d of Caleb) wife Elizabeth

This will proves that Joshua Calloway had as well as John, a son Caleb, & son Thomas, whose ages are not recorded, in Berkeley Par Reg.

Caleb Calloway (3) m Alice, (widow Calloway m 1st Joseph Pierce—his widow Feb 28, 1729). Issue: Mary b Dec 20, 1737. m — Barto, Caleb (4) b Apl 22, 1742.
Caleb Calloway was on the Tithe List in Perq 1740, with 3 Tithes.
Thomas Calloway (s of Joshua) m Isabel Gerratt, Mch 20, 1728. (no record.)
John Calloway m Johanna —
Issue: Elizabeth b Dec 31, 1750.
Zebulon b Oct 15, 1752.
Joseph b Dec 2, 1757.
Zipporah b Jan 10, 1761.
Sarah b Apl 20, 1766.
Thomas Pierce died before Oct Court 1757, when his Estate was divided, among the several representatives; To Alice Calloway “mother of sd dec’d” one part, to Mary Barto, “sister of the half Blood” to Caleb, & John Calloway, “brothers of the half Blood” each a part.

Source: History of Perquimans County by Ellen Goode Rawlings Winslow, (1931).