Dr. Richard Wells

He immigrated from England to Virginia before Sep. 13, 1637. Probably 1635 - this is generally thought to be him: Wells, Richard (age 26) ship "Globe", London to Virginia 1635

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Richard Wells of Herring Creek, Anne Arundel County, Chirurgeon and Gentleman, was a scion of an ancient family of England and it is not beyond the realm of the imagination that his ancestry fit somewhere within the ennobled family of de Welles which held the barony from 1299 until it was declared in abeyance in 1748. When Richard Wells left England for Virginia, there are all reasons to believe that he carried the seal of his family as well as when he left Virginia for the more promising Province of Maryland. No coat-of-arms are mentioned in his will, but the impression may be seen today on documents of his sons and grandsons.
The most perfect impression is on the will of John Hollis of Baltimore County which was written by Colonel George Wells of Richard in 1680.{1.} The wax impression is unmistakably the arms of the Wells of Saltash, County Cornwall, which settled in that shire about 1530 from Lincolnshire. The arms on the Hollis' will contain a shield with a chevron on which are spots between three birds and a distinct horse's head for the crest; all of which conform to the arms of the Wells Saltash, that is, "Argent, a chevron vert powered with ermine spots between three martlets sable"; Crest: "On a chapeau azure turned up ermine a horse's head argent maned or and ducally gorged gules".*
(* The impression is likewise on the will of Abraham Holman of Baltimore Co. 1686, and while the shield is plainly impressed, the crest is somewhat blurred. Ref: Box H, folder 86. The extant will of Colonel George Wells 1695 contains at least four wax impressions, but it is impossible to distinguish the charges perhaps broken or melted during the lamination process.)
In the 1702 inventory of Benjamin Wells, a younger son of Richard the Emigrant, is a coat-of-arms appraised at one shilling and pictures--presumably Well family portraits or his wife, Hanslap, an armigerous family which settled early in Anne Arundel County.{2.}
As John Wells was the only member of the Wells family to be registered at the visitation, it can be assumed that he was the only armigerous Wells residing in Cornwall at that time. Only two of his children were listed--Anne born about 1607 and William born about 1608. The birth year of Richard Wells of Herring Creek is unknown, but in 1653 he entered Maryland with eleven children which would indicate a nuptial lif of approximately 22 years, discounting the contingency of twins, and which would place his marriage about 1630 and his birth around 1610. All of which would not refute his being a son of William Well of Saltash except for the fact that he was not listed in the visitation. The pedigree filed by John Well is rather sketchy and he could have listed only his two eldest children and omitted younger ones. Biologically it would seem as if he would have had children born after 1608 and before 1620.
Richard Wells did not commemorate a plantation by the name of Saltash, but plantations connected with his sons were given the nams of "Bednall Green" and "Browsley Hall".
Although the Saltash branch came to Cornwall from Lincolnshire, it is possible that the background was Sussex. The basic charges of the Lincolnshire branch was a lion rampant which was likewise the charge used by the barony. The registrant at the 1530 Visitation of Sussex was Richard of Buckstead with nine children who carried his lineage back five generations or about 1475.* (*The grandmother of Richard of Bucksted was Mary Shelly whose brother William was knighted on November3, 1529, by King Henry VII at Whitehall.)
Another branch of the Wells family which was seated at Buckstead, Sussex, was registered at the 1530 Visitation of Sussex and credited with the identical shield of the Saltash branch, but used a different crest: "A Talbot passant argent collared sable garnished or". Other branches of the family which were credited with basic charges of Bucksed and Saltash were all seated in the southern shires of Hants and Dorset. To counteract the belief that the Wells of Herring Creek used the incorrect arms, the 1738 will of John Wells, a grandson of Richard the Emigrant, impressed only the crest on his will showing plainly the chapeau and the head of a horse.
John Wells of Saltash was the registrant at the 1620 Visitation of Cornwall, but unfortunately he carried his lineage only to his grandfather and the printed version described the shield but not the crest, but Burke's Armory is the authority for the crest.{3.}
1. William Wells m. Elizabethn dau. of ___ Bennet
2. Thomas Wells of Lincolnshire m. Elizabeth Harrington, dau. of William of Witham
3. John Wells of Saltash in Co. Cornwall m. Elizabeth Elyott, dau. of William
4. William Wells, son & Heir aged 12 in 1620 and Alice Wells, aged 13 in 1620.
It is certain that Richard Wells, Esq., was in Virginia before settlement in Maryland where he was actively engaged in politics of the liberal trend. It cannot be denied that his affiliation or leadership with the Puritan forces made him quite unpopular with the conservative element in Virginia and the complete religious freedom offered by Lord Baltimore had its appeal.
Being a gentleman of estates in England he is placed as the Richard Wells who emigrated, that is financed his own passage who on September 13, 1637, received 50 acres of land in Charles River County, lying on the river between two creeks.{4.} He had certainly been in the Colony prior to his claim for head-rights, and there is no record of his transporting a wife and children. The inference is therefore great that he found his wife in Virginia and eleven children were conceived before his emigration to the Maryland Palatinate when in 1653 he claimed land-rights. His wife, Frances, was a lady of quality and there are indications that she was of an armorial. The family spoke of members of Chew family as cousins, so there was some relationship not as yet established.
From 1645 to 1647 during the regime of Sr. William Berkeley, Knt., Richard Wells represented Upper Norfolk County in the House of Burgesses. He undoubtedly acquired a landed estate of some magnitude, but the record of his disposal before or after his arrival in Maryland has not been found.{5.}
Upon his settlement in Maryland he did not join the large group of non-Conformists around the Severn, but settled on Herring Bay nearer to the settlement of Quakers. The Herring Bay plantations later became the nucleus for Herring Creek Hundred and then St. James Parish.* (*To add further to genealogical entanglements around Herring Creek contemporary with Richard Wells, Esq., was Richard Wells Blacksmith who left numerous descendants. The male issue of Richard Wells, Esq., all left Herring Creek and settled in Baltimore County and on Kent Isle of the Eastern Shore.)

'23 July 1658. Mr Richard Wells Entreth these Rights Transported into this Province:** Richard Wells Senr     George Wells            Mary Wells

Frances Wells John Wells Anna Wells
Richard Wells Junr Robert Wells Elizabeth Wells
Frances Wells Junr Benjamin Wells
William Wells Martha Wells
Warrt to Surveyor to lay out for Richd Wells Eleven hundred Acres. ret. 22 Feb. next". In addition to transporting himself and wife and eleven cildren, he transported at his own expense twenty other inhabitants into Maryland.

• * In the margin of the recorded claim appears "Memo that all these person were transported since 1652 as appeareth upon record anno 1653 Oct. 3. Martha is now the wife of Mr. Selway and Mr. Will Ayres entered her rights formerly anno 53.
  

His grant under the above rights was "wells' Neck" of 1100 acres on the west side of the Chesapeake Bay on the south side of Back River, bordering the land lately laid out for Thomas Cornwallis, Esq. It was located in Spesutia Hundred of Baltimore County, later in St George's Parish, now Harford County. Children of Richard and Frances Wells
1. Richard Wells married Sophia Ewen. q.v.
2. Frances Wells.
3. William Wells.
4. George Wells married Blanch Gouldsmith. q.v.
5. John Wells married Mary_____. q.v.
6. Robert Wells.
7. Benjamin Wells.
8. Martha Wells married Anthony Sallloway.
9. Mary Wells married Thomas Stockett and George Yate. q.v.
10. Anne Wells married Dr. John Stansby.
11. Elizabeth Wells.

Upon his settlement in Maryland he became a large patentee of land, but the names of his plantations offer no clue as to his English background. His first grant was 600 acres recorded as "The Wells" lying on the west side of Herring Bay and on Stockett's Creek. In 1663 he patented "Little Wells" of 100 acres and "Benjamin's Choice" of 280 acres, both in Anne Arundel. In 1664 he was granted "Wells' Hills" of 420 acres and "West Wells" of 350 acres. In 1658 received "Wells' Neck" of 1100 acres in Baltimore County.
On Herring Bay he constructed his dwelling and there he resided until his death. His plantation took upon itself all the features of an estate in his native England, with servants both white and black. He had in his service an Irishman by the name of John and his wife Ellen whom he brought into the Province. In 1654 they absented themselves from his plantation without permission, whereby he appealed to the courts. John and Ellen declared that they had been abused by their master, however the court decided that the reprimand was justified and ordered them to return to their master. In addition they were sentenced to serve an additional eight months at the expiration of their indentureship.
By 1654 the Puritans and other non-Conformists had gained complete control of the Province and had reduced the prerogatives of Cecilius, Lord Baltimore, merely to those of a land owner. The insurgents met at Patuxent on October 20, 1654, with Richard Wells as one of the Commissioners who declared themselves under the authority of "his Highness the Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland and the Dominions thereunto belonging".{6.}
On March 1, 1654/5 William Fuller and William Durand representing the Lord Protector appointed Mr. Richard Wells and others "for the orderinge directinge and gouerminge all the Affrayers of Maryland".{7.}
When Lord Baltimore regained his sovereign rights at the downfall of the turbulent Richard Cromwell, Richard Wells continued for a brief period to be favoured with office. On July 12, 1657, Governor Fendall appointed him a Justice of the Peace and summoned him to appear at the plantation of Edward Lloyd to take the oath of office. He continued in that office until 1661, being a member of the Quorum in 1660.{8.}
On July 18, 1660, as Richard Wells, Chirurgeon, be bought of John Langford of the Parish of St Clement Danes, Middlesex, England, Gent., for 50 Pounds "The Neck" of 1500 acres on the Eastern Shore abutting upon Chester River and bounded on one side with a creek called Langford's Bay and on the other side by Grayes Inn Creek which became known as "Langford's Neck".{9.}
The will of Richard Wells was dated June 22, 1667, and probated on August 21, following, in Anne Arundel, with Francis Stockett, Bonham Turner and William Lincolne as the witnesses.{10.}
To son Richard 600 acres of "Wells on Herring Creek, 100 acres of "Little Wells" and 420 acres of "Wells' Hills.
To son George "Planter's Delight" of 300 acres in Baltimore Co., and "Well's Neck" of 475 acres in Baltimore Co.
To son John "Lankford's Neck" of 1500 acres in Talbot Co.
To son Robert "West Wells" of 350 acres in Anne Arundel.
To son Benjamin "Benjamin's Choice" of 280 acres in Anne Arundel.
To daugters Martha, wife of Anthony Salloway, Ann wife of Dr. John Stansby and Mary wife of Thomas Stockett personalty.
Executors --- five sons named above.

He signed the instrument and placed a seal beside his name. He referred to his younger sons under age, but did not name them. His bequest to his daughter, Mary, was as follows: "I do give and bequeath unto my daughter Mary wife unto Mr. Thomas Stockett three Cowes to be delivered after my decease in the County of Anne Arundel more over I do give unto my daughter Mary one hundred pounds of Lawful Money of England to be paid in the City of London within twelve months after my Decease".
He maintained an estate in Britain. Richard Wells Jr. sailed for England and proved the will at the Prerogitive Court of Canterbury in 1668 declaring himself as the son and heir "with power reserved for the others [executors]"{11.}.
His Maryland estate was appraised on December 5, 1667, by Captain John Howell and Godfrey Bayley. He was styled "Chirurgion of Herin Creek" and one of the items in the inventory was a case of chirurgion instruments also a "chirurgeon chest".
He maintained an interest in the ship "Majestic" in the service of His Majesty. The inventory reflected his great wealth of that day and indicated that he was associated with shipping as well as his profession of chirurgeon. The total appraisement was 1,755 Pounds/6/4 plus 57,145 lbs tob. He possessed a negro man and women and one white servant man 16 months to serve. There were a Bible and two other books, two small writing trunks, ten guns, 31 oz. of silver plate, 7/9/9 currency found in his house and also listed was one-sixteenth share in the ship "Baltimore" appraised at 259 Pounds/15/6 . Furthermore His Majesty owed him 212 Pounds/15/6 for hire of the "Baltimore". At the time of his death he had en route to Britain on the "Goulden" livestock and 39 hogsheads of tobacco. The inventory was signed by Samuel Chew and William Burgess, and he was styled "Richard Wells of Anne Arundel Sr. of Herin Creeke Chirurgion".
On July 22, 1674, George Wells of Baltimore County, Gent., John Wells of Kent County, Gent., Robert Wells of Kent County, Gent., "sons of Richard Wells late of Herring Creek, Gent"., conveyed to Captain William Burgess for 30,000 lbs tob. Benjamin's Choice", "Morley's Lot", "Bednall Green" and "Benjamin's Addition". It was stated in the deed of conveyance that Lord Baltimore on September 11, 1663, granted to Richard Wells, Chirurgeon, "Benjamin's Choice" of 250 acres which he willed to his son, Benjamin, and that it bordered the plantation of Francis Holland on Herring Creek. Blanche Wells, wife of George and Anne Wells wife of John waived all dower interests.
Sources: 1. Original Will, Box H. folder 25; 2. Inventories & Accounts, Liber 23, folio 161; 3. Vivian's Visitation of Cornwall, p. 551 4. Cavaliers & Pioneers, p. 71; 5. Hening's Statues, vol. 1, pp. 299; 340. 6. Md. Archives, vol. 1 p. 339; 7. Ibid vol. 51, p. 23; 8. Ibid vol. 4, pp. 89, 289; 9. Ibid vol. 57, p.139; 10. Wills, Liber 1, folio 287; 11. Testamentary Proceedings, Liber WT no. 1, folio 110.

Source: Anne Arundel Gentry; A Genealogical History of Some Early families of Anne Arundel County, Maryland by Henry Wright Newman; Published by the author, Annapolis, Maryland 1971 vol. 2 p. 496-501.
[Notes: Upper Norfolk County
In 1637, the House of Burgesses divided New Norfolk County into Upper Norfolk County and Lower Norfolk County. Upper Norfolk County was renamed Nansemond County in 1646. Nansemond County has also "disappeared" and is now incorporated into the City of Suffolk.
http://www.virginiaplaces.org/vacount/uppernorfolk.html Accessed 11.5.2017.
http://www.ngw.nl/heraldrywiki/index.php?title=Saltash Accessed 11.5.2017.]

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Has info on 10 kids on FamilySearch.org

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There is controversial and undocumented/poorly documented matter involved with this profile. To be specific, there is a great deal of uncertainty, and very little documented evidence, about the identity of his wife or wives.

It is also not solidly documented that he was the son of John Wells and Elizabeth Elyott - primary sources, or reliable secondary sources drawing on and citing primary sources, would be of inestimable value.

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Richard Wells was probably born in 1609 in Saltish (or Saltash), Cornwall, England, but the only sources for this are secondary at best.

He probably embarked for Virginia at age 26, on the ship Globe of London on 7 August 1635 - there were two Richard Wells shipping out for Virginia in that year, but the other one (who sailed on the Assurance) was only 17. They both were single at the time, as far as the records show.

He was sometimes referred to as "Doctor", and as a "Chirurgeon", which means that he had at least a passing acquaintance with the art of medicine. He acquired some land, and then some more land, and then still more land. And he learned the arts of politics, getting into the Virginia House of Burgesses in 1645.

At some point not too long after setting up in Virginia, he married...whom? and had ten or eleven children (by her alone?) when he and his whole family removed to Anne Arundel County, Maryland, in 1653. And he quickly inserted himself into the political picture there too.

He was a member of General Assembly, Providence of Maryland, October 20, 1654, Provincial Commissioner of Maryland, appointed August 8, 1654. This information is taken from the Lineages of the National Society of the Sons and Daughters of the Pilgrims.

He cut two of his daughters off in his will (made 22 June 1667) with twelvepence each, with the strong implication that they had married men he did not choose for them and did not approve of as husbands. His daughter Mary (q.v.), with whose marriage, to Capt. Thomas Stockett (q.v.), he seemed less displeased, was to receive three cows and £100. He divided his property among his five sons, listing them each by name. Three other children, and his wife, weren't mentioned at all. http://www.ancestrees.com/pedigree/2957.htm

He died in (probably) July 1667, and the will was probated in Maryland on 31 August and in London on 14 November of that year.

To have had ten or eleven children by 1653, he must have gotten married between 1635 and 1640, and no later. Traditionally he is said to have married Frances White (or Whyte), daughter of Sir Richard White (or Whyte) and Lady Catherine Weston. But...the dates don't add up.

Lady Catherine was born in 1607 (calculated backward from her Epitaph in Rome, 1645, which gives her age at death as 38). Exactly when she married, we do not know, but that she could have had Frances as her first child in 1622 - when she herself was barely fifteen - is stretching it a bit. It is somewhat more plausible that she married circa 1625 (at eighteen) and had George as her first child in 1628 (this is the consensus birthdate for George White). But notice what that does to any possibility of her daughter Frances being married off even as "late" as 1640! (At age eleven at the very oldest???)

The White family were Catholics and Royalists, and England was getting too cold for them in many more ways than just literally. There exists in the House of Commons records a pass allowing the White family - husband, wife and children all cited by name - to go to France in 1642.

From the House of Commons Journal, Volume 2 - 08 April 1642 http://www.british-history.ac.uk/report.aspx?compid=14#sec-a15

White's Pass.

Ordered, That Rich. White, of Hutton in the County of Essex, with the Lady Catherine his Wife, and George, Jerome, Charles, Elizabeth, Catherine, and Francis [sic!] White, their Children, shall be licensed by this House to be transported into France, together with Three Men Servants, and Three Maid Servants (whose Names are also particularly to be inserted in the Warrant) and to transport their Trunks of Apparel, and other necessary Provisions: And the Searchers are required to take care that no prohibited Commodities be exported by them.

Note that Frances is listed last, which may suggest that she was the youngest child (that they had records of), or that the children's names were listed in no particular order.

If she went to France, and then on to Rome, with her parents and siblings, in 1642, then she certainly was not getting married to Richard Wells in Virginia in 1635 or 1640 or any plausible time for her to have been the mother of any of those ten/eleven children. And most particularly not of Mary Wells Stockett Yeats, who was probably born no later than 1642.

A possible solution to the conundrum is that Dr. Wells married a Frances White - but not that Frances White. "His" Frances White would be older - she would have to be - and was possibly the daughter of Richard White by his first wife, Anne Gray.

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ID: I36539

• Name: Richard Welles
• Given Name: Richard
• Surname: Welles
• Suffix: , Dr.
• Sex: M
• _UID: 8999D9D842F98C4290BDEF761746AAFA8F01
• Change Date: 28 Dec 2005

Maryland Genealogical Society Bulletin, Winter 1987, Vol. 28, #1 - p. 39 - "...set sail for Virginia where he was granted 50 acres . . . 12 Sep 1637..."

The Maryland Calendar Of Wills Compiled And Edited by Jane Baldwin (Jane Baldwin Cotton) Wills From 1635 (Earliest probated) To 1685 Volume I; Family Line Publications Westminster, Maryland 1988, p. 40

Wells, Richard, Sr., A. A. Co., 22nd June, 1667;. 31 Aug 1667

• To son Richard, 600 A., "Wells" on Herring Creek; 100 A., "Little Wells;" 420 A., "Wells' Hills."
• To son George, 300 A., "Planters Delight," in Baltimore Co.; also 475 A. "Wells' Neck," in Baltimore Co.
• To son John, 1,500 A. "Lankford's Neck," in Talbot Co.
• To son Robert, 350 A., "West Wells," A. A. Co.
• To son Benjamin, 280 A., "Benjamin's Choice," A. A. Co.
• To dau. Martha, wife of Antony Galloway, dau. Ann, wife of Dr. John Stansby, dau. Mary, wife of Thos. Stockett, personalty.
• Exs.: 5 sons named above.
• Test: Francis Stockett, Bonham Turner, Wm. Lincolne. 1. 287.

July 22, 1674, Captain William Burgess, he purchased from George Wells, of Baltimore County, Gent., John Wells, of Kent County, Gent., and Robert Wells, of Kent County, Gent., all sons of Richard Wells, late of Herring Creek, Gent., deceased, inasmuch as "Lord Baltimore granted on September 11, 1663, to Richard Wells, Chirurgeon, Benjamin Choice, lying westward of Herring Creek in the woods containing 280 acres, and adjoining the land of Francis Holland and whereas Lord Baltimore granted to Joseph Morley Morley's Lot of 300 acres .. ." therefore for 30,000 lbs. tob. Captain William Burgess was conveyed "Benjamin's Choice", "Morley's Lot", "Bednall Green" and "Benjamin's Addition". Blanche Wells, wife of George, and Ann Wells, wife of John, waived all dower rights.

Richard Wells, a leading Puritan, born in England about 1604 who entered the Colony of VA. in 1677, and where in 1645, he was a member of the House of Burgesses. By profession he was a surgeon. In 1652, after the Act of Toleration was passed by the State of MD., Richard and Frances Wells, with their Ch. removed to MD. and settled on Herring Bay in Anne Arundel Co., where they obtained large grants of land and where, it is said, their 'estate took upon itself all the features of an English Manor.' In 1654, Gov. Stone of MD., ... appointed Richard Wells of the Parliamentary Commissio. He was also given power to hold courts for the amd. of justice in such place and at such times as he thought necessary. He was also a member of the Seven Provincial Council in 1655. In 1667 he was appointed by Gol. Fendall, a Commissioner of Anne Arundel Co., and continued in office until 1661, in 1658 was appointed a Justice of the Peace, and was also inthe Puritan Council of 1658 after the Calverts had regained control of their provinces. In 1659 at the April session of 1661, a member of Grand Jury, and that year was presiding Justice of the Court..." Sons of LIberty, Baltimore Co., 1766

The Early Settlers of Maryland - An Index to Names of Immigrants Compiled from Records of Land Patents, 1633-1680, in the Hall of records, Annapolis, Maryland, Edited ... By Gust Skordas ... Baltimore, Genealogical Publishing Company, 1968, p. 494 - Mr. Richard Wells, Liber Q, Folio 7f1, Immigranted 1652-3; Folio ABH, Liber 347,

"Anne Arundel gentry Vol 2 by Newman addresses the Wells family in 1600s and early 1700s, starts with a Richard wells went from England to VA. and then with about 500 others to Anne Arundel co., MD. For transporting his family (11 ch.) and 20 others to MD. he got 1100 acres in first settled area of Baltimore Co. around Sepesutia Hundred (now Harford Co.)..."

MD. Gen. Soc. Bulletin, Vol. 35, No. 2, Spring 1994, pp. 206-214 - "...Dr. Richard wells, entered Maryland in 1653 with his wife and eleven children. His birth has been placed at about 1610. He came to MD. from VA. where he had been a leader in the Puritan movement. He was wealthy enough to finance his own passage to VA. in 1607 since he received only fifty acres of land as a headright. There is no record of his transporting a family, therefore he acquired a wife and eleven children in VA. before he arr. in MD. Here he settled in Herring bay near the Quaker settlement where he built his home "Wells" and remained there until his death. By 1654 the Puritans had gained control of the province and on 1 March 1664/5 Richard was appointed for the "orderings, directinge, and governinge of the affayers of Maryland" by William Fendall and William Durant who represented the Lord Protector. After Lord Baltimore regained his rights, Richard continued to hold office as Justice of the Peace under gov. Fendall. (His dual alliances obviously served him well.) Richard's will was dated 22 June 1667 and was proved Aug. 21 of that year in Anne Aundel Co. He left bequests to his dau., Mary, wife of Thomas Stockett, to be paid in the City of London after his death. He maintained an estate in Britain. His son, Richard, Jr., had the will proved in the prerogative court of Canterbury in 1668. He was known as a chirurgeon and the inventory in Md. noted a case of chirurgeon's instruments and chirurgeon's chest. He held an interest in the ship "Majestic" and the "Baltimore" and his entire inventory revealed great wealth for that period of time. His wife was Frances White.
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• Birth: 1 JAN 1608/9 in Saltash, Cornwall, England
• Death: BEF 31 AUG 1667 in Anne Arundel County, MD

Marriage 1 Frances White (b: ABT 1622 in Hutton Hall, Essex, England - this information is suspect)

• Married: ABT 1639 in Norfolk County, VA

Children

• 1. Mary Welles b: ABT 1631 in Norfolk County, VA - please note absurdity of birth date
• 2. Richard Welles b: ABT 1630 - please note absurdity of birth date
• 3. William Welles
• 4. George Welles b: ABT 1640 in Lower Norfolk County, VA
• 5. John Welles
• 6. Robert Welles
• 7. Benjamin Welles
• 8. Anne Welles b: in Nansemond County, VA
• 9. Elizabeh Welles
• 10. Frances Welles
• 11. Martha Welles

_____________ The information below is highly suspect:

• http://our-royal-titled-noble-and-commoner-ancestors.com/p2385.htm#...
• 'Richard Wells
• M, b. 1 January 1609
• Father John Wells b. c 1583
• Mother Elizabeth Elliot b. c 1585
• ' Richard Wells was born on 1 January 1609 at Saltash, Cornwall, England. He married Frances White, daughter of Richard White and Catherine Weston, circa 1640 at Norfolk, VA. His estate was probated on 31 August 1667 at Anne Arundel, MD.
• 'Family Frances White b. c 1621
• Child
• ◦Mary Wells+ b. c 1641, d. 21 Jan 1699
• ___________

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  • IMMIGRANT

Dr. Richard WELLS

•Marriage: Francis WHITE

•Died: ca or After Jun 22, 1667 Anne Arundel, MD, USA

Richard Wells could be the son of John and Elizabeth Elyott Wells of Saltash, England.

Harry Wright Newman supports this theory because Richard son, George, used a seal on his documents that was highly similar to the arms of the Wells of Saltash, County Cornwall, England.

That Wells family settled in County Cornwall about 1530 from Lincolnshire.

Their arms included a shield with a chevron with three birds and horses head for the crest.

This evidence suggests that the Wells in Saltash need to be studied closely.

What we know for sure about Richard is that he was a staunch Puritan of wealth and influence at a period of history when the Puritans were in power.

He and his wife were both the immigrant ancestors in this line.

He immigrated from England to Virginia before Sep. 13, 1637.

Richard was unmarried when he arrived and settled south of the James River in Virginia.

He received head rights in Charles City Co. Virginia and received fifty acres of land on the River between two creeks.

He apparently had property back in England.

He is sometimes confused with another Richard Wells also in Virginia.

Our Dr. Richard Wells is apparently the Richard who was a Surgeon.

He was elected to the Virginia House of Burgesses in 1645. He and his family probably moved to Maryland to seek religious freedom offered by Lord Baltimore in 1653.

The fact that he was a liberal puritan provoked the move.

He took with him all of his children but Martha who had not been born, plus his servants, Thomas Boone, Henry Symonds, George Hall, Thomas Linstead, Edward Howard and Martha Windright.

The birth place of he and his wife's children was in Virginia.

Only their daughter, Martha's, birth date and place is unknown.

In Maryland, he was granted 600 acres on Herring Bay that he named "Wells". Herring Bay is a bay in Anne Arundel County in the U.S. state of Maryland. It lies in the mid-Chesapeake Bay along the western shore.

He built the Manor House they lived in throughout their days on that property.

He was appointed a member of the Parliamentary Commission on July 22, 1654

He along with Capt. Fuller, Richard Preston, William Durand Edward Lloyd, Capt. John Smith, Leonard Strong, John Lawson, John Hotch, and Richard Ewen controlled Maryland's government from 1654-1658. Any four of them could act as long as one of them was Fuller, Preston or Durand.

He held multiple offices for the courts.

He accumulated much wealth in the form of land and a sixteenth of a ship called "The Baltimore."

In checking public record, one family researcher has found this Richard Wells and his sons to be ambitious, furious when thwarted, and unsympathetic to those who could not further their interests.

After his death in 1677, his son Richard returned to England where his fathers will was probated at the Prerogative Ct. of Canterbury, (1668).

He still owned land in England at that time.

His estate was appraised on Dec. 5, 1667 by Capt. John Howell and Godfrey Bayley.

In it, a "chirugeon chest" contained interest in the ship "Majesty".

His total worth was L1, 735/6/4 plus 57, 145 pounds of tobacco, several servants, silver plate, L7/8/9 currency.

His Majesty owed him several sums on top of that.

His will was witnessed by Francis Stockett, Bonham Turner and Wm. Linckhorne. He named five sons and three daughters. He wished all things to be divided including things in Maryland (the plantation where he lived), Virginia and England.

According to a book on the "Welsh Family" whom his grandson, Thomas Stockett through daughter Mary married into, Richard held the title of "Major" as well as Dr. 1360

• Will, Jun 22, 1667. 1358 The will of Richard Wells reads as follows. (Richard Wells, Senior, of the Coll. of Ann Arundel in the Province of Maryland, 22 June 1667, proved in Maryland 31 Aug. 1667 and in London 14 November 1668.) To my son Richard that plantation I do now live upon at Herring Creek., being called by the name of Wells and laid out for six hundred acres (and other tracts and parcels). To my son George my land in Baltimore County, namely three hundred acres, purchased of Capt. George Goldsmith, called the Planter's Delight "being now seated ". To my son John that parcel called Langford's Neck, on the N. side of Chester River in Talbot Co., being "patented" and laid out for fifteen hundred acres, and was purchased of John Langford, Gent. To my son Robert three hundred and fifty acres called West Wells, lying on the W. side of the plantation I now live on, in Herring Creek Bay. To my son Benjamin that parcel called Benjamin Choice, being patented and laid out for two hundred and eight acres, lying W. of a Divident belonging unto Mr. Francis Holland of Herring Creek. To my daughter, Martha, sometime the wife of an Anthony Salaway, twelve pence. To my daughter Anne, supposed wife unto Mr. John Stansby, chirurgeon, twelve pence as a reward for her disobedience. To my daughter Mary, wife unto Mr. Thomas Stockett, three cows to be delivered, after my decease, in the Co. of Ann Arundel, and one hudred pounds of money, to be paid in the city of London within twelve months after my decease. To my five sons all my whole estate remaining, to be divided amongst them both cattle, goods, money in England, tobacco, debts, servants, negroes and all things whatsoever belonging unto me in Maryland, Virginia or in England. And they to be my executors. With: Francis Stockett, Bonham Turner, and Wm. Linckhorne. (Probate was granted (in London) to Richard Wells, the eldest son, with power reserved for the others.) NEHGR, Vol. 47, p. 529.

• Probate, Aug 21, 1667,,, MD, USA. 1358 His will was proved in Maryland on Aug. 31, 1667 and in London (or Canterbury, Kent Co., England) the following year on Nov. 14, 1668 in the Prerogative Court.

Dr. married Francis WHITE, daughter of Sir Richard WHITE and Lady Catherine WESTON. (Francis WHITE was born in, Essex, England and died before 1677.)

CHILDREN

•Mary WELLS •Richard WELLS •William WELLS •George WELLS •John WELLS •Robert WELLS •Benjamin WELLS •Ann WELLS •Elizabeth WELLS •Frances WELLS •Martha WELLS

NOTES ON PURITANS The Puritans were a group of English Protestants in the 16th and 17th centuries, including, but not limited to, English Calvinists. Puritanism in this sense was founded by John Calvin from the clergy shortly after the accession of Elizabeth I of England in 1558, as an activist movement within the Church of England. Puritan ideals either became incorporated into the Church of England, such as the formal rejection of Roman Catholicism They lost favor when Charles I and II reigned. many left England then

NOTES ON SALTASH Saltash is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It lies in the south east of Cornwall, facing Plymouth(where the Pilgrims left from) over the River Tamar. It was in the Caradon district until March 2009 and is known as "the gateway to Cornwall". Saltash means ash tree by the salt mill. Saltash is the largest town within the East Cornwall area and is one of the largest in Cornwall.

NOTES ON HOUSE OF BURGESSES The Virginia House of Burgesses was the first legislative assembly of elected representatives in North America. The House was established by the Virginia Company, who created the body as part of an effort to encourage English craftsmen to settle in North America and to make conditions in the colony more agreeable for its current inhabitants.

FROM MARYLAND ARCHIVES WELLS, RICHARD (?-1667). IMMIGRATED: ca.

1652 as a free adult with his wife and eleven chil- 

dren from Charles City County, Virginia. RE- 

SIDED: in Herring Creek Hundred, Anne Arundel

County. MARRIED Frances White, daughter of

Richard White and possibly Lady Katharine Wes-

ton. Frances was possibly the granddaughter of

Sir Richard Weston, Earl of Portland. Her brother

was Jerome White (?-by 1677). CHILDREN. SONS:

Richard, who married Sophia (?-1671), daughter

of Richard Ewen (?-1660); Benjamin, who mar- 

ried Frances Hanslap; George Wells (?-1696); John;

Robert; and William. DAUGHTERS: Anne, who

married John Stansby (?-ca. 1682/83); Mary, who

married first, Thomas Stockett (?-1671), and sec- 

ond, George Yates; Martha, who married first,

ca. 1652, William Ayres, and second, by 1658,

Anthony Selway (Salloway); Frances; and Eliz- 

abeth. PRIVATE CAREER. EDUCATION: literate. RE- 

LIGIOUS AFFILIATION: Protestant. SOCIAL STATUS AND ACTIVITIES: held provincial office within two

years of arrival in Maryland. OCCUPATIONAL PRO- 

FILE: physician, planter, merchant; held one-six- 

teenth share of the ship Baltimore. PUBLIC CA- 

REER. LEGISLATIVE SERVICE: Assembly, Providence

(Anne Arundel County), 1654; Parliamentary

Commission, 1654-1657/58. OTHER PROVINCIAL

OFFICE justice, Provincial Court, 1654-1657/58.

LOCAL OFFICE: justice, Anne Arundel County,

1658-1665 (quorum, 1661-1665). OUT OF COL- 

ONY SERVICE: burgess, Virginia, 1645. WEALTH AT

DEATH. DIED: between June 22 and August 31,

1667, in Anne Arundel County. PERSONAL PROP- 

ERTY: TEV, at least £1,735.6.4 sterling, 205,112

pounds of tobacco (including 4 black servants, 5

white servants, and 31 oz. plate). LAND: 4,025

acres in Anne Arundel, Baltimore, and Talbot

counties.

• Reference: Find A Grave Memorial - SmartCopy: Feb 25 2019, 17:46:52 UTC
• Find a Grave Memorial

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Richard Wells, Sr., transported to Virginia in 1635, born in England, died August, 1667, in Anne Arundel County, Maryland.
Service: Member of General Assembly province of Maryland, October 20,1654, Provincial Commissioner of Md., appointed August 8, 1654.