James Henderson, of Somerset County, Maryland

Not the son of Sir John Henderson, Kt., 5th of Fordell

Don't merge with James Henderson of Fordell

There is a helpful note at WikiTree about keeping this James Henderson, who emigrated, separate from James Henderson who died in Scotland. - Jim Henderson

James Henderson, Sr. 1

• Gender: Male
• Born: Abt 1630 - Place: Scotland 1
• Christened: Place:
• Anecdote: Abt 1664 1 Place: He settled at Pitts Creek in Somerset County in what is now the southern most part of Worcester County.
• Land patented: 17 Nov 1665 Place: Pocomoke River, Worcester Co, Maryland 1, 2. He was shown as James Henderson who received 400 acres southeast of the Pocomoke River. Wise shows that it was before the boundary was determined between MD & VA (which was in 1668) and that the 400 acres was then in Accomack County on the south side of the Pocomoke River, bounded on the east by land surveyed for Thomas Davis, in return for transporting 8 persons into the county.
• Land patented: 16 Aug 1667 Place: Accomack Co, Virginia 3 He was shown as James Henderson and was granted 150 acres for transporting Michael Towes, Joseph Miller and Davy Glascock.
• Land patented: 1677 Place: tract The Endeavour, Worcester Co, Maryland 1 It contained 200 acres.
• Land patented: 1685 Place: tract Moreclock, Worcester Co, Maryland 1. It contained 500 acres. He also patented Double Purchase in 1685.
• Reference Ide@nNti'fhiearm:p
• Record ID :85789
• Will: 18 Nov 1690 Place: Somerset Co, Maryland 1, 4
• Died: Bef 22 Oct 1692 Place: Somerset Co, Maryland 1, 4 It was on this date that his will was probated.
• Buried: Place:
• Father:
• Mother:
• Spouse: Mary (--?--) (Abt 1640 - Yes, date unknown) 5 - Married: Abt 1660 Place: Northampton Co, Virginia

Children:

1. John Henderson, I (Bef 12 May 1661 - Bef 9 Jan 1743/44) 6, 7. Married Elizabeth Barnaby.
2. William Henderson (Abt 1663 - Yes, date unknown) 8. Married Sarah Bishop.
3. Jane Henderson (Abt 1665 - Yes, date unknown) 8. Married John Williams.
4. James Henderson, Jr. (10 Jun 1669 - Abt 1724) 8.

Will

Will written 18 Nov 1690 Somerset Co, Maryland, probated 22 Oct 1692 Somerset Co, Maryland

• He was shown as James Henderson Sr.
• To eldest son John the tract Moreclock in Cypress Swamp on the Pocomoke River.
• To son William land where his dwelling house is and he mentioned a bridge between the house I now dwell in and the house of my son William.
• To son James land adjacent to his brother John.
• To daughter Jane, wife of John Williams Jr.
• Witt: Robert Price

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James Henderson Sr., the progenitor of the Hendersons of Somerset Co MD, Onslow Co NC and Chatham Co NC (aka as James Henderson, immigrant, of the Eastern Shore) is first found in the records of Hungars Parish, Northampton Co VA on 5 May 1661 when he and wife Mary baptized their eldest son, John.

His birth is estimated as say 1632 in Perthshire, Scotland, and he died before 9 Aug 1692 before about age 60 in Somerset County, Colony of Maryland.

Origins

Please note that Y-DNA testing has shown that the Hendersons of the Eastern Shore do not share a common direct line male ancestor with the Hendersons of Fordell in Fife.

Relationship to Gilbert

In the same parish register at Hungars Parish we find Gilbert Henderson (Hinders) who married Mary Major on 25 Mar 1661. Gilbert is first recorded in Virginia in May of 1652 when he is listed as one of 9 headrights of Thomas Johnson Jr. in Northampton Co VA. There is some circumstantial evidence that James and Gilbert were brothers or close relatives (there may have been a third brother or relative, Robert, a mariner). Researcher Robin Henderson hypothesizes that James and Gilbert may have been part of a contingent of Scottish prisoners of the English Civil War who were deported to the Caribbean and diverted to Virginia in 1651.

Property

About 1664 He settled at Pitts Creek in Somerset County in what is now the southern most part of Worcester County.

Land patented 17 Nov 1665 Pocomoke River, Worcester Co, Maryland: He was shown as James Henderson who received 400 acres southeast of the Pocomoke River. Wise shows that it was before the boundary was determined between MD & VA (which was in 1668) and that the 400 acres was then in Accomack County on the south side of the Pocomoke River, bounded on the east by land surveyed for Thomas Davis, in return for transporting 8 persons into the county.

Land patented 16 Aug 1667 Accomack Co, Virginia: He was shown as James Henderson who received 400 acres southeast of the Pocomoke River. Wise shows that it was before the boundary was determined between MD & VA (which was in 1668) and that the 400 acres was then in Accomack County on the south side of the Pocomoke River, bounded on the east by land surveyed for Thomas Davis, in return for transporting 8 persons into the county.

Family

1. Husband of Mary (Unknown) Henderson — married May 1661 (to Apr 1668) in Northampton County, Virginia Colony
2. Husband of Alice (Stewkley) Henderson — married 1668 in Accomack County, Virginia

James Henderson and Mary were the parents of three known children:

1. John Henderson, I, b. Bef 12 May 1661, Hungars Parish, Northampton Co, Virginia d. Bef 9 Jan 1743/44, Worcester Co, Maryland (Age < 82 years). John "the Planter" Henderson married on 1 Jul 1680 in Somerset Co MD to Elizabeth Barnaby (see Note 5). John and Elizabeth Barnaby Henderson were the parents of 10 children: William "of Manokin" (b ca 1681), Hannah (b 4 Apr 1683), Anne Mary (b 6 Feb 1684), James (b ca 1685), Charles (b ca 1687-1691), John Jr. (b ca 1689), Comfort (b ca 1693), Benjamin B. (b ?) and Elizabeth (b ?).
2. William Henderson, b. Abt 1663, Northampton Co, Virginia. William "the Sawyer" Henderson b bef 1668, probably Accomack or Northampton Co VA, married on 10 Aug 1685 Sarah Bishop (probably the d/o Lt. Henry Bishop and his second wife, Ann, the widow of William Bowen) in Somerset Co MD. William Henderson died bef 1723 in Somerset Co MD. William and Sarah Bishop Henderson were the parents of: William "the Cordwinder" Jr. (b 9 Jan 1686 d bef 20 Jan 1790 new style, no known issue), Bishop (b ca 1687), and probably James "the Mariner" (b ca 1689-1690 d ca 1752) and Charles "the Mariner" (b bef 1702 d aft 14 May 1772), and possibly others.
3. Jane Henderson, b. Abt 1665, Northampton Co, Virginia. married on 18 Nov 1690 John Williams Jr. in Somerset Co MD. Jane died aft 1696, probably in Somerset Co MD. Jane and John Williams were the parents of John (b aft 1696) and Isaac (b aft 1696).

James Henderson and Alice were the parents of one known child:

1. James Henderson, Jr., b. 10 Jun 1669, Pocomoke Hundred, Somerset Co, Maryland. James Jr. died between 1728-1729 in Somerset Co MD. James Jr. and Esther had one known son, Francis "the Weaver" Henderson b 30 Oct 1691. They may have had a daughter, Elizabeth (currently attributed to John Sr.), or other unidentified children.

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References

1. Reference: Ancestry Genealogy - SmartCopy: Oct 10 2017, 22:11:02 UTC
2. https://www.espl-genealogy.org/getperson.php?personID=I85789&tree=1
   1. [S200] Matthew M. Wise, Wise, Matt - Boston Family, 2nd Ed, (Delmar Company, Charlotte, NC, 1986), p. 399 (#3 James Henderson), 200.
   2. [S572] Ralph T. Whitelaw, Whitelaw, Ralph T. - Virginia's Eastern Shore, (Gloucester, Mass.: Peter Smith, 1968), p. 1388 (Virginia Patents in Maryland), 572.
   3. [S579] Stratton Nottingham, Accomack Co, VA, Certificates and Rights, 1663-1709 and Tithables, 1663-1695, (Bowie, MD: Heritage Books, Inc., 1993), p. 38, 579.
   4. [S2065] Vernon L. Skinner Jr., Skinner, Som & Wor Co, MD Wills 1664-1775, (V.L. Skinner Jr., Brookeville, MD 1988), p. 6 (will of James Henderson Sr.), 2065.
3. https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Henderson-1383 Cites
   1. Chronology for 16th & 17th Century Hendersons in Perth, Perthshire Please note that this is a work in progress and currently contains minimal records.
   2. List of Hendersons in Commissariot Registers and Other Records of the Scottish Record Society
   3. Hungars Parish Records for 1660-1661: Northampton County, Virginia, by Robertson, Thomas B.; Publication date 1910; Publisher: The William and Mary Quarterly
   4. Chronology of the Eastern Shore Hendersons: Descendants of James Henderson Sr. and 1) Mary, then 2) Alice Please note that this is a work in progress and is frequently updated with new records.' The URL for this document is: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1ICdSLRdEdXpmotd_jNYM2tW_-Cw4eo1.... Please use it when sourcing this information."
   5. James Henderson: From Virginia to Maryland A Biography of an Early Settler, by Jason Illari.
   6. Cavaliers and Pioneers, Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants, 1623-1666, by Nell Marion Nugent
   7. Combined Rent Rolls, Warrants and Tax Lists for Eastern Shore Hendersons 1685-1800
   8. The Barnaby (Barnabe) Family Chronology of London; Jamestown and Elizabeth City, VA; Northampton Co VA; Manokin, Somerset Co MD
   9. Chronology of the Family and Descendants of Henry Bishop