John Knight of Lunenburg County

3. John Knight of Lunenburg VA who left a will in 1772.

Disambiguation

https://laura-knight-jadczyk.com/genealogy/knight-lunenburg-knights...

As I noted in my article about John Knight of Sussex, at one point in time there were three John Knights who were from quite separate families, who have been erroneously connected to one another or conflated for a very long time. Lucian Lamar Knight did it in his book about Knights and Woodsons, and a whole lot of people have been doing it ever since. All three of the John Knights in question left wills proving that there were two John Knights in Sussex, one of whom was JR (designated as such in a record), and one John Knight of Lunenburg:

1. John Knight of Sussex VA who left a will in 1762.

2. John Knight, Jr., of Sussex VA who left a will in 1791.

3. John Knight of Lunenburg VA who left a will in 1772..

The will of John Knight JR of Sussex, son of John Knight of Sussex, eliminates entirely any possibility of John Knight of Lunenburg being that son.

Origins

Parents are unknown at this time.

There are a couple of factors that have dramatically increased our knowledge of the past: 1) the Information Age itself that gave birth to the internet; 2) the burgeoning interest in genealogy which has stimulated the search of archives and extraction and transcription of old records. As a result of this activity, we now know that there were two Peter Knights in early Virginia, and there was no "Knight-Basse" marriage, and that neither Peter Knight was the direct ancestor of the Knights of Lunenburg that intermarried with the Woodsons.

John Knight was born about 1710 in Virginia. John married Elizabeth Woodson, in Lunenburg County, Virginia. Elizabeth Woodson was born in 1713 in Henrico County, Virginia. John died in Lunenburg County, Virginia sometime between writing his will 7 Sept 1771 and the probate date of 12 March 1772. Elizabeth died in Lunenburg County, Virginia after 1784.

Elizabeth Woodson was the daughter of Robert Woodson, Jr. and Rachel Watkins. Robert was first married to Sarah Lewis. Sarah died before 1710. In that year Robert Woodson (Jr.) requested to be "liberated" from his Henrico County Quaker community in order to marry Rachel Watkins, who was not of that Quaker community. He requested to be received back into his earlier community of Friends in 1723, perhaps after her death.

John Knight served as a witness to an indenture between Samuel Gregory of Charles City County and William Knight of Goochland County in 1727. In this transaction, Gregory sold Knight 130 acres in Goochland County for 20 pds – land formerly owned, in part, by Joseph Woodson. Joseph had a sister Elizabeth Woodson, who married John Knight about two years later. In June 1742, William and John Knight sold the same 130 acres for 50 pds.

In February of that year, John had received a patent to 383 acres of land in Brunswick (now Lunenburg) County. John and Elizabeth had been married for 14 years when they moved to these newly settled lands. During the next years his name appears on the tithe lists. However, within six more years, John was buying land in North Carolina, owning finally about 1,000 acres. He lived there for a time, but eventually moved back to Lunenburg County.

June 24, 1748/49 John Earl Granville of Bedford Co., VA deeds 640 acres of land to John Knight, Planter of Granville Co., NC. Deed proved Granville Co., NC August 1749.

Granville Co., NC Deed Bk. A 311 Dec 4 1750 Thomas Christian & w Mercy to John Knight of Lunenburg Co., VA 100 acres in Granville Co., NC for 15 Va. money. He purchased another 900 acres adjoining the 300 on both sides of Grassey Creek, Granville Co., NC.

Feb 25, 1762 - John Knight deeded Jonathan Knight, William Knight & Memican Hunt 900 acres of his land in Granville Co., NC. All four men were residents of Lunenburg Co. VA at the time. Each man received 300 acres but paid different amounts for it. Jonathan’s southern line is noted as being shared with land of Charles Knight. These deeds were registered in May Court 1762 in Granville Co., NC.

Note: Granville County, North Carolina later became Edgecombe County, North Carolina.

There are grants of land in the Virginia State Registry beginning in 1638, for more than 25,000 acres, in Norfolk, Wight, James, & Gloucester counties for the Knight family.

John’s will, covering six pages, lists what his eleven children have already received and what he feels is due them.

Family

The 11 children of John Knight of Lunenburg County & Elizabeth Knight were:

• Jonathan (born in Goochland County, Virginia, married his cousin Judith Woodson, daughter of Joseph Woodson (1715-?) and Elizabeth Mattox),
• John,
• Peter (married Coleman Mason. Peter’s daughter, Nancy, married Coleman Knight, son of Charles Knight; witness to consent Richard Mays and Peter Robertson Dec 14, 1787. His daughter Molly married James Barnes: Witness to consent Coleman Knight, Isaac Holmes and George Bagley Jan 28, 1788),
• William,
• Joseph married Jerusha Cone,
• Rachel married William Dudley 8-12-1784,
• Charles married Mary Smith (Their son, Coleman married Charles' brother Peter’s daughter Nancy),
• Woodson,
• Elizabeth married Thomas Sturdivant 27 Dec 1784 by Rev. John Meglamore,
• Judith (b. ca 1739 m before 1776 in Amelia Co., VA to George Bagley (b. 1739-d 1795 in Nottoway Co., VA),
• Mary (Polly) married Joseph Lea,
• and his granddaughter, Lucy Cook.

John Knight’s Last Will and Testament (W.B. 2/384-6):

In the name of God Amen, I JOHN KNIGHT of Lunenburg County being very sick & weak of Body, but of perfect mind and memory, thanks be given unto God, calling to mind the mortality of my Body and knowing that it is appointed for all men once to die, do make and ordain this my last will and Testament, that is to say principally and first of all, I give and recommend my soul into the hands of Almighty God that give it, and my Body I recommend to the earth, to be __ in decent Christian burrial at the descretion of my Executors, nothing doubting but at the general resurrection I shall receive the same again by the mightly power of God, and as touching my worldly Estate wherewith it has pleased God to bless me in this life-

I give and demise and dispose of the same in the following manner and form.

Item its my will and desire that my whole Estate should be kept together undivided or seperated untill all my lawfull Debts are paid by means of croppng or otherways to be managed by my Executors, hereafter, named and after that is fully accomplished its my further desire that the Estate should be still kept together, and managed as aforesaid until the sum of two hundred pounds can be raised and layed out in the purchase of a tract of land, for my son, Joseph and then to be divided in the form and manner hereafter mentioned.

Item I lend to my wife Elizabeth during her natural life all that tract of land whereon I now live, except one hundred and fifty acres, hereafter bequeathed to my son Peter, also five Negroes, viz: Jack, Delcy, Agg, Isaac and Nutty, with all my Household furniture, stock etc and after her decease its my further will and desire the Negroes should be disposed of as follows.

Item, I bequeath unto my son William, after the decease of his mother, one Negroe man, Jack, to him and his heirs forever,

Item, I bequeath unto my son Joseph, after the decease of his mother, one Negroe man, Isaac, also a Negroe man Peter, to be delivered him at the dividing the Estate,

Item I bequeath unto my daughter, Rachel, after the decease of her mother a Negro girl, Nutty, also two young negroes, Lewis & Milla.

Item I bequeath unto my son, Peter, one moiety (a moiety is a half) of two Negroes, Agg and Delcy to be equally divided, between him and his Brother John, after the decease of their mothers, also one hundred and fifty acres of land more or less, joining the tract whereon I now live to be divided by a branch running from near Sheltons Bridge, in a straight line to Minors land, all the land to the North of that branch is what, I bequeath to him & his heirs forever.

Item, I bequeath to my son, John, one moriety of two Negroes above mentioned after the decease of his mother.

Item I bequeath to my son Jonathan one Negroe girl named Fanny, to him and his heirs forever.

Item I bequeath to my son Charles, three Negroes, Jane, Ceasar and Betta, to him and his heirs forever.

Item, I bequeath to my Daughter Elisabeth, a Negroe woman named ____ and her child,

Item I bequeath to my daughter Judith Bagley one negroe girl named Beck,

Item I bequeath to my Daughter Mary Lea , two negro girls Phillies and Tabby, during her natural life, and if she should die without issue to return to the surviving part of my children to be equally divided between them, its my further will and desire if she should have an heir or heirs that the negroes should decend to them as she directs.

Item I bequeath to my son Woodson, two Negroes, Tom and Cloe, also that tract of land before demised to his mother during her life, to him and his heirs forever being the same I now live on, with all my stock of every kind and household furniture except three Beds, which I desire may be given to Charles, Joseph and Rachel at the discresion of my beloved wife, Elisabeth.

Item I bequeath to my daughters daughter Lucy Cook, one negro girl named Tamer,

its my will and desire that if any my children, should die before the dividing the Estate, that his or her proportion should be equally divided between, the surviving parties. I also desire that every person within mentioned, should take in possession their proportion of Estate as is by this will divised provided it doth not consist in negroes upwards of ten years of age, on that part alotted for the immediate use of my wife Elisabeth. I do hereby constitute and appoint, Joseph, Charles, and Peter Knight Executors to this my last will and Testament. In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal, seventh day of September one thousand seven hundred and seventy one.

John Knight, Sen (seal)

Witness

Miller Woodson

his

Francis X AMOS

mark

Thomas Jeffress

At court held for Lunenburg County the 12th day of March, 1772. This last will and Testament of John Knight, Sen. was exhibitted in court by the Executors, therein named and was proved by the oaths of two of the Witnesses thereto subscribed and ordered to be recorded, and on the motion of the said, Executors, who mand (typo? made) oath according to law, certificate is grated (typo? granted) them for obtaining a probate of the said Will in due form, they giving security, whereupon they gave Bond and Security according to law.

Teste:

Wm Tayler CLC

Recorded: Will Book 2, pages 382-387

A copy Teste:

(signature of)

Grace T. Marshall, Clerk

Lunenburg County Circuit Court

http://www.geocities.com/knighthistory/VirginiaKnights.htm

From page 55 of The William and Mary Quarterly, Volume 11 edited by Lyon Gardiner Tyler, Richard Lee Morton. "Woodson Family"

Robert (son of first Robert) married Sarah Lewis. Had sons, Stephen, Joseph and Robert; and daughters, Elizabeth, married to John Povall, Sarah to Joseph Parsons, Mary died a maid, and Agnes married Richard Williamson.
By Rachael Watkins, his second wife, Jonathan, and daughters, Elizabeth and Judith. Elizabeth married John Knight, and Judith married John Cook, and she was mother to all the money-making Cooks.

---

John Knight served as a witness to an indenture between Samuel Gregory of Charles City County and William Knight of Goochland County in 1727. In this transaction, Gregory sold Knight 130 acres in Goochland County for 20 pds land formerly owned, in part, by Joseph Woodson. Joseph had a sister Elizabeth Woodson, who married John Knight about two years later. In June 1742, William and John Knight sold the same 130 acres for 50 pds.

In February of that year, John had received a patent to 383 acres of land in Brunswick (now Lunenburg) County. John and Elizabeth had been married for 14 years when they moved to these newly settled lands. During the next years his name appears on the tithe lists. However, within six more years, John was buying land in North Carolina, owning finally about 1,000 acres. He lived there for a time, but eventually moved back to Lunenburg County.

June 24, 1748/49 John Earl Granville of Bedford Co., VA deeds 640 acres of land to John Knight, Planter of Granville Co., NC. Deed proved Granville Co., NC August 1749.

(Note the following correction Of John Earl's name was made by an anonymous contributor and confirmed at the following website: www.midwayplantation.com/wills/1757.doc ) The "reference John, Earl Granville as being of "Bedford Co, VA." This is not correct. Bedford is the reference to his seat in England. The earliest of the NC grants generally reference him as: "Right Honorable John Earl Granville Viscount Carteret and Baron Carteret in the county of Bedford in the Kingdom of Great Britain."

Granville Co., NC Deed Bk. A 311 Dec 4 1750 Thomas Christian & w Mercy to John Knight of Lunenburg Co., VA 100 acres in Granville Co., NC for 15 Va. money. He purchased another 900 acres adjoining the 300 on both sides of Grassey Creek, Granville Co., NC.

Feb 25, 1762 - John Knight deeded Jonathan Knight, William Knight & Memican Hunt 900 acres of his land in Granville Co., NC. All four men were residents of Lunenburg Co. VA at the time. Each man received 300 acres but paid different amounts for it. Jonathans southern line is noted as being shared with land of Charles Knight. These deeds were registered in May Court 1762 in Granville Co., NC.

Note: Edgecombe County, NC, was formed in 1741 from Bertie Co, NC. Granville Co, NC, was formed in 1746 from Edgecombe.

References

• "William and Mary Quarterly" Series l, Vols 10-11 1901-1903, page 46: "The will of John Knight was proved in Lunenburg March 12, 1772, and names wife Elizabeth, children Peter, William, Joseph, Rachel, John, Jonathan, Charles, Woodson, Mary Lea and Lucy Cooke. Witnesses, Miller Woodson and Thomas Jeffres." Knight, John 9-7-1771; 3-12-1772; W.B. 2/384-6
• https://laura-knight-jadczyk.com/genealogy/knight-lunenburg-knights...
• https://laura-knight-jadczyk.com/genealogy/knight-john-effingham.html
• https://www.familytreedna.com/public/knight/default.aspx?section=yc... Knight Lineage VI-a Y DNA Haplogroup R-M269
• https://ininet.org/descendants-of-elizabeth-woodson--john-knight-fi... (has errors)