Laetitia Corbin Cardwell

GEDCOM Note

One of History’s Mysteries By Dorothy Phillips Bray ( W.Phillips, Ella Cardwell, Marshall, James, John, George-Letitia) Was our gggggrandmother Letitia Cardwell a member of the famous Lee Family of Virginia? If so, we share a common Lee family ancestor with the following:

• Lighthorse Harry Lee,
• Famous Revolutionary General Richard E. Lee, Revolutionary War Patriot who spoke these immortal words at the Memorial for George Washington: “ First in War, First in Peace, and First in the Hearts of his countrymen.”·
• Robert E. Lee, famous Civil War Confederate General and later President of Washington and Lee University in Virginia. n An enduring mystery in our family genealogy is whether our ancestor, Letitia Cardwell b circa 1726-d circa 1779, wife of George Cardwell, (1724-1767) was a member of the famous Lee family of early Virginia. Letitia is the recorded wife of George Cardwell, mother of John, and grandmother of James, our Illinois Cardwell ancestor. So far, research has not verified her family name with certainty. But family researchers have identified her as “Letitia Lee.” WHAT IS KNOWN: George Cardwell married Letitia, last name unknown. However, various family researchers conclude that her last name was LEE. If so, then we would assume that Letitia Lee would be a descendant of Richard Lee, the Emigrant and thus related to the famous LEE family of Virginia. The mystery is which branch of the Lees did she belong to? The Lee family of Virginia was, in reality, a large clan whose first five generations are well known as participants in many of the early historical events of Colonial Virginia, the Revolutionary War Era and the earliest days of American government development. Can we claim descent from this distinguished family?The simple fact is we don’t know which Lee line our Letitia belonged to.Even the last name of Letitia comes from family history rather than legal documents. Why don’t we know her family name? First, many historical documents of this period of Virginia history have been lost or destroyed. Second, many legal documents of that time identify wives by their married name, not maiden name. In the absence of written records that fix her parentage, historical connections provide a plausible framework for a marriage between Cardwell-Lee families in circa 1747 Virginia. Thus we can place our ancestral claim to descent from the Virginia Lees, based on circumstantial and historical similarities that are more than coincidental. For at this historical time in Virginia the number of families who could have produced our Letitia was small and whose family lines, with whom she would have interacted, was small. So of the 100 or more families in early Virginia who would have intermarried, the Lees and the Cardwells were in the same group of wealthy, land-owning Piedmont Planter families. Both Cardwell and Lee family clans had much in common and both families were large with numerous family groups, adding to the complexity in identifying which Lee family Letitia belonged to. We don’t know the Cardwell family personal attributes as well as the Lees who have been the subjects of several books. What we know of the early Cardwells and Lees comes from early land and will documents. But we can document that the types of social, geographic, economic, and public lives that they led was similar. The founder of the Cardwell clan, THOMAS CARDWEll like the founder of the Lee clan, RICHARD LEE, shared these commonalties: n Both emigrant ancestors, Thomas Cardwell and Richard Lee came to Virginia within a few years of each other. Lee, in the latter part of 1640 and Thomas Cardwell, born ca 1614, the immigrant, was an indentured servant barrel maker who came to Virginia in 1636 at the age of 21 aboard the ship 'Tristam and Jane", which sailed from London that spring. n Both acquired plantations in the following decades --Lee 1500 acres on the North side of the York -- and Cardwell began acquiring land in a similar manner primarily in Henrico County: A land grant in 1680, 550 acres in 1688 via headrights, 500 acres in 1689. He settled on the Mattaponi River, about 25 miles north of Williams burg, what is now King William County, Virginia * By 1666 he had moved to the north side of the Mattaponi. (Lancaster County Deed Book, p4, p. 12) shows purchase of land: n Both appeared to be men of standing who made substantial economic progress. Cardwell’s is ship passage showed that he paid a much higher fee than the other indentured servants aboard; they landed at what is now Strawberry Banks, Hampton Roads, VA in the fall of 1636 after having sailed from London to the Caribbean and then back across the Atlantic before the winter storms hit. A researcher in Utah said Thomas could read and write as well. He paid off his indenture and bought land around Goochland, Co. Va for tobacco farming. n An exceptional circumstance is that both founding ancestors emigrated from geographically close counties of 16th Century England. The Lees from Shropshire and the Cardwells from Wiltshire, at that historical time geographically contiguous large counties in west and southwest England. n Both are described in early histories as “ men of substance”; both invested in headrights to acquire estates, and both had family connections in England. n Both made substantial progress in early Va officialdom. Both families then participated at the same time in the settlement of VA, which was a story of great, historic proceedings: the arrival of settlers, the parceling out of land, the establishment of homes in the wilderness, the cultivation of a single crop, and the establishment of plantations. We can conclude then that both the Cardwells and the Lees may be described as born of “antiqua familia” in early Virginia The first two generations of the Lees and Cardwells have particular interest for probable family linkages as they shared in these developments characteristic of early Virginia families: · The location of their plantations.· The type of family organization prevalent then.· Intermarriage between neighboring families, land estates passed on to heirs.· The role of women.· Large inheritances remaining intact through three generations.· The need for generation 4 to seek other lands after the Revolutionary war, where ownership of land shifted to accommodate demand for land outside of the original 13 colony borders. Dates and Geographic Setting for Cardwell-Lee MarriageMuch of the data supports that a marriage between a Lee and Cardwell during their life dates not only was plausible but probable. Any research on this mystery must work within the timeframe of George and Letitia-- within these key family dates and geographic areas. 1724-1767 George Cardwell born in Prince Edward, Co, VA and died in Cumberland Co. VA (some researchers place his birthdate as 1720) 1725- 1730 Letitia’s Birthdate possibilities 1745- George, age 21, inherited 100 acres of land from his father, Thomas 3 1748- George, age 24, Married Letitia Lee 1748- 1766 Six sons born in Virginia. Because of the age differences of the two oldest sons from the four younger ones, some researchers think that George may have been married before Letitia, however records don’t support this theory. - PROBABLE DATES OF BIRTH OF CHILDREN=All In Cumberland County, VAGeorge born 1748Richard born 1750Francis b 1756John b- 1757 Perrin b- 1761 Thomas b 1766 1767-June. George appeared in court (From “Some Early Pioneers of Western Kentucky by Helen Hart Peyton, 1990) “ George served as a defendant in debt cases, juror and processioner. He did appear in court, June 1767 and by August 1767, a Thomas Tabb was petitioned to be appointed the administrator of George’s estate. 1767- George dies in Cumberland, Co, Va. His youngest 4 children are named in documents assigning them as wards of the Church for training in an occupation. The minimum age required for such was 14. Letitia is still alive at this date as she receives a Widow’s Dower from his estate but the majority of their wealth (800 pounds of tobacco annually) is assigned to John Nederland, brother-in-law of George. Nederland is to be guardian of the Cardwell sons. 1771-1779- John Nederland granted assigned tobacco funding to support the Cardwell children. 1779- Letitia died probably in 1779 when her younger sons were identified as “orphan children of George Cardwell. 1780- Census lists Thomas, Perrin, and John as minors in the home of older brother Francis. 1781-At least four of the sons are known to have served in the Revolutionary war at ages of 24 to16.1800-Three Cardwell brothers migrate to Tennessee after the Revolutionary War: Thomas, John, Perrin, Ages of George and Letitia’s children in 1779 when they were declared “orphans.” George, 32 born 1748Richard, 30 born c 1750 (Service, Revolutionary War)Francis, 24 c. 1756William, 21 c. 1759 Three younger children bound out in 1779 (had to be 14 or older) John, 19 b-1757 Age for Revol War if 1781, age would be 21Perrin 15 b-1761 Served in 1781, age 17Thomas 14 b 1766 Add two years for service in 1781 would be 16 There are a number of important Lee-Cardwell family connections:· Name of LEE in Letitia’s descendants.· Searching for family connections through other Lee’s.· Geographic Proximity of Lees and Cardwells.· Re-occurrence of name Latitia Lee in other Colonial Virginia families.· Inter-marriages of Cardwell-Lee neighboring families. RENAMING OF DESCENDANTS WITH LETITIA OR LEE Her closest known Lee named descendant is RICHARD LEE Cardwell, b 1779, now hypothesized to be son of Francis Cardwell and therefore a grandson of Letitia. Richard Lee married Lucy Adams and his cousin Patsy Cardwell(Richard,George) married Dancy Adams. A grandson William Lee Worsham Cardwell,(Perrin, Letitia) born 1810 in Virginia; died 1863 in Portland, Multnomah Co, Oregon, carries the LEE as a middle name.

Margaret Letitia Cardwell is a gggrandaughter of Letitia Cardwell. She was born 19 March 1853 in Missouri. She is listed in the home of her parents in the 1860 Big River, Jefferson County, Missouri census. She married Peter Casey in about 1877 in Franklin County, Missouri. They are listed in the 1880 Franklin County, Missouri census with Lawrence Casey, brother of Peter, living with them. Peter was born in December 1850 in Missouri. Margaret and Peter had the following children: (Lineage) Reuben Cardwell, Royal, John, George (gggrandaughter of Letitia)

Several descendants of James Cardwell, probable grandson of Letitia have LEE names including: a. Daniel Lee Cardwell- Grandson of Oscarb. Lee E. Cardwell, son of Isaac, grandson of Terrill Houstonc. Lee E. Cardwell, Jr. 1924, son of Levy Eagle, grandson of Isaacd. Ola Lee Cardwell, granddaughter Albert Pryor Cardwell. THE NAME LETITIA LEE OCCURRED IN VARIOUS LEE FAMILIES IN COLONIAL VIRGINIA. · The name is found as LETITIA, LATETIA, LETCIA, LETTICE., Laetitia, · There are 3 Letitia’s in the Stratford Line: (1) LETITIA CORBIN LEE, (2) LETITIA LEE CORBIN and (3) LETITIA b 1750. Letitia Corbin Lee is the earliest Latetia Lee (1657-1706) Richard Lee (#2) (1647 - 1714) m. Laetitia Corbin. Various Latetia Lees” 1 Latetitia Corbin, b 1657 England, m Richard Lee ( Stratford Line ) dau Richard Lee-Latetia Corbin 2. Laetitia "Lettice" Lee ca 1715-1768 m. John Corbin (dau of Richard Lee and Martha Silk) 3. Lettice Lee circa 1750’s Stratford Line 4-Lettice Lee m.1. James Wardropp; m.2. Adam Thompson; m. 3. Joseph Sims circa 1750’s 5-Lettice Lee m. John Whiting 1840’ 6 - Lettice Lee m. John Augustine Smith of Francis/Ludwell Line 7-- Lettice Lee, b 1730 m. William Ball. Daughter of Henry 1 and Mary Bland Possible Parents Based On Age of Letitia The problem with determining Letitia’s family ancestry is the sheer number of Lee families at that time. Also we find in many of the earlier genealogy records that while the husband’s last name is listed, many times the spouse is listed as LNU (last name unknown) This probably is due to flawed and incomplete historical records. Until documentation of her maiden name is found, we can but guess at possible LEE FAMILY BRANCH PARENTAGE. THE LEE FAMILY LINES ARE COMPLICATED AND OFTEN DO NOT CLARIFY THE GENEALOGY OF NUMEROUS LEE DESCENDANTS. There are descendants of several Lee family lines in various DNA projects Key Dates For Laetitia LeeBirthdate possibilities: 1725-1730, Married circa 1747She died possibly 1779 Our Letitia’s parents would be Generation 4 of the Virginia Lees and her contemporaries by birthdates would be Generation 5. INTERMARRIAGES OF NEIGHBORING FAMILIES OF LEES AND CARDWELLS-All Planter Families in Piedmont Area of Virginia Both Cardwell and Lee Family Clans were on the roster of leading planter families of early Virginia-all Virginia Planter families of property and socially connected. Both Cardwell and Lee families were large and complex, contributing to name identification problems. Clan 1: Lee Clan: Families Custis, Harrison, Ludwell, Bland, Carter-all governing families in Virginia. Clan 2: Cardwell Generations 1,2, 3 FAMILIES : Collyer, Cary, Bassett, Franklin, Epperson, Perrin-all leading historical and Planter families. Clan 3: Cardwell Generation 4 : Families Nederland, Lowe, LeGrande, Marin, Epperson, Lee Clan 4: CARDWELL/PERRIN/HATCHER/LEE CLAN CONNECTIONS Our Perrin Family Background (Mother of George Cardwell) The family of Martha Perrin, our ancestor, was an ancient English family whose name dated back to 1401. Our earliest Perrin ancestors, descendants of Pertus Peryn (1401) married into these distinguished English families: Brompton, Stocker, Parrot. Richard Perrin, the Emigrant was in Virginia in 1637 and acquired land in Henrico County. The Perrin Plantation called “Ye World’s End” is famous since it was located on the site of the City of Richmond. Perrin family marriages connected to Katharine Farrar Royal (1642) a descendent of the Plantagenet Royal Family of England. The marriages of Perrin sisters of Generation 3 in VA, linked Cardwells/ Perrins, Hatchers, and Lees by marriage. The PERRIN SISTERS: MARTHA m to Thomas Cardwell 3, Elizabeth Perrin m. Seth Hatcher, Hatcher’s sister Margaret married Andrew Lee. LEE-HATCHER-CARDWELL CONNECTION: Aunt of George Cardwell marries a Lee.

THE HATCHER FAMILY IS LINKED TO THE CARDWELLS The Hatchers were Henrico County Planter Families. 1. Seth HATCHER b. ABT 1686 in Henrico Co, VA married Elizabeth Perrin, sister of our ancestor MARTHA PERRIN CARDWELL who married THOMAS 3, parents in law of Letitia Lee Cardwell.

Seth Hatcher’s sister, MARGARET Hatcher, sister in law of Martha Perrin Cardwell, was born about 1775 in unknown place. On July 16, 1798, she married ANDREW LEE, July 16, 1798, son of Stephen Lee and Anne Poore, (July 16, 1798 in Botetourt County, Virginia. This Margaret Hatcher Lee would be the aunt of George Cardwell, thus making it likely that a Letitia Lee could have married a Cardwell. Seth Hatcher and his wife, Elizabeth (Perrin) (Alday) Hatcher, moved from Henrico Co, VA, after October 1720. Hatcher was granted 300 acres in Bertie Co, NC, on 1 February 1725. They sold this land 11 February 1728/9 and moved to South Carolina after 5 August 1730. Seth was 50 years old when he was granted land in SC in 1736. Elizabeth, his wife, Aunt of George Cardwell died shortly after 10 September 1748 and Seth married in 1749 Susannah and had several children by her before his death 26 September 1756 at age 2. Elizabeth Hatcher was born about 1770 in Franklin County, Virginia Colony .1 February 4, 1790. She married Charles Braxton Lee, son of Stephen Lee and Anne Poore, February 4, 1790 in Franklin County, Virginia.1 Elizabeth died about 1807 in Davidson County, Tennessee Lee-Bandy-Bandy Cardwell Richard Lee, Generation 2 married Elizabeth Bandy. Two generations later, Richard Bandy married Elizabeth Cardwell, sister of George Cardwell. According to the following chart Richard Lee, Generation 2 Lee, married Elizabeth Bandy, b 1659. Their son Richard Lee who married Anne Constable is considered the progenitor of the famous Lee families of Virginia. Their grandchildren would be the generation of Letitia’s parents. In Letitia’s generation a Richard Bandy married Elizabeth Cardwell, the sister of George Cardwell, abt 1740 in Henrico Co. Virginia. Thus the Lee-Bandy families would have been well known the succeeding generations producing a Cardwell-Bandy family linkage. Geographic Proximity of Lee and Cardwell FamiliesEarly Piedmont Virginia was populated by a relatively small number of planter families, who shared a limited geographical area. For at this historical time in Virginia the number of families who could have produced our Letitia was small and whose family lines would cross was small. Of interest to us Cardwell descendants was the origin of several family clans, linked by marriage, culture, geographic proximity. Also, the lack of large towns was a significant factor in family-intermarriages. People did not live close to roads. Rivers were the highways. Marriage occurred at this time between, neighboring planter families in Virginia. The Native Americans who populated the area east of the fall line in the late 16th and early 17th centuries called the James River the Powhatan River, named for the chief of the Powhatan Confederacy which extended over most of the Tidewater region of Virginia. The English colonists named it "James" after King James I of England, as they also constructed the first permanent English settlement in the Americas in 1607 at Jamestown along the banks of the James River about upstream from the Chesapeake Bay. The navigable portion of the river was the major highway of the Colony of Virginia during its first 15 years, facilitating supply ships delivering supplies and more people from England. Two property transactions establish a Lee-Cardwell linkage. 1. CARDWELL/ Lee CONNECTION May 1772 Francis and Martha Cardwell Epperson (dau of Thomas 3 and Martha Ann Perrin and sister of George Cardwell) to Charles Lee --114 acres. Both of Littleton Parish, Cumberland Co. [The Charles Lee who was involved in this Cardwell related transaction was, likely Charles Lee, b 1758 and a possible relative of Letitia, b. on approximated date of circa 1724. Martha Cardwell sister-in-law of Letitia. 2. BIOGRAPHY: Edgecombe Co., NC Deed Book D - 355 ... sold to John Stokes,Sr, Oct 23, 1770 . . . a tract of land, 332 acres, on the Deep Branch ...granted to Jacob Evans by the Lords Proprietors by deed dated June 1,1762. Witness: Charles Lee and Shadrick Stokes. This transactions also must have been by Charles Lee, b. 1758. 3. There are three Charles Lee’s : Only Charles Lee 2, b. 1758 fits the dates for Letitia’s lineage. 1. Cobb’s Hall, Charles Lee, b 16962-- Charles Lee 2, 1758-1815, m. cousin Anne Lee son of Henry 2 b. 1758-1815 his father’s sister was Letitia, b 1730-d 1783 (not married) as was his grandmother, Letitia Corbin m. Richard, the Emigrant LEESYLVANIA line3--Charles Carter Lee, b. 1798, son of Light Horse Harry Lee, 1798- 1871-- student at Harvard Geographic Proximity of LEES and CARDWELLS in TIDEWATER VA COUNTY RESIDENCESKING WILLIAM- Thomas Cardwell 1 arrived in 1636MIDDLESEX CO; Thomas Cardwell 1 marries 2nd wife Mary Collyer in 1662 --Thomas Cardwell 2 and Ann Bassett also married in this county. --William Senior b 1639 and son move to Middlesex Co in 1660KING AND QUEEN - -Thomas 2, 1660 had plantation STAFFORD: William Cardwell, 1629 and Margaret LayneSOMERSET: 1691 William received a land grantNEW KENT: 1660 Birthplace of Thomas Cardwell 2 m. Ann Bassett a Powahatan Indian - 1691 William Cardwell Senior given land grantCAROLINE: 1691 William Cardwell, Sr. given land grantHENRICO: Established in 1611. 10 counties formed from it - 1685 Richard Perrin and Katherine ROYALL lived here- 1688 Thomas 2, received 550 acres as headright- 1689 Thomas 2, received another 500 acres- 1783 Thomas Cardwell 3 and Martha Perrin found in Census of 1783- The Perrin Plantation YE WORLD”S END 1673- 1711 Martha Perrin born here married Thomas Cardwell 3 - Perrins owned land contiguous to the Cardwells Their daughter, Martha Cardwell m. Epperson who sold land in 1778 to Charles Lee- Census of 1783 showed Thomas and Martha’s sons as John b 1717 m. Keziah Lowe George, b 1724 m. Letitia (LEE?) Cardwells And Lees In Westmoreland County Leesylvania" was located between Neabsco Creek and Powell Creek in Prince William Co., Virginia. It had a magnificent view up the Potomac River. It was the ancestral home of Robert E. Lee's branch of the family where his grandparents, Henry Lee II and Lucy Grymes lie buried. The plantation home burned about 1790. The estate was sold to Henry Fairfax in 1825, whose family lived there in a home which may have pre-dated the Lee residence. The Fairfax home burned in 1910 and the ruins of the walls and a chimney are all that remain. After the death of his older brother, John, Richard Lee became heir-at-law, inheriting his father's estate "Mt. Pleasant", consisting of about 2600 acres in Westmoreland County on the Potomac River. The "Stratford" line of Lees are descended from him. Another Lee family in Westmoreland: Richard Lee, III (Richard, Richard) born 1675 and died 1718 in London England. He married Martha Silk, 1711 in Westmoreland, and had son George Lee born 1714, died 1761 married Anne Fairfax. Philip Lee (Richard, Richard) was born about 1681 Westmoreland Co VA and died 1743 in Charles City Co VA. He married 1st Sarah Barbara Brooke d/Thomas Brooke and Barbara (Addison) who died 1724. He married 2nd Elizabeth Addison Cardwell Plantation in Westmoreland Richard Cardwell, Uncle of George Cardwell, owned a tobbaco plantation here and lived in close proximity to several Lee Families which provides a social milleu in which George Cardwell and Letitia Lee would meet. LEES And CARDWELLS IN NORTHUMBERLAND COUNTY

A possible introduction of Letitia Lee and George Cardwell could have been in Northumberland County, where George’s brother Richard had a plantation and several Lee families had plantations. CONCLUSION While the only mention of LETITIA is in documents and in this account of the death of George Cardwell, numerous valid historical connections , detailed in this History, lead to the probability that Letitia was a member of the famous LEE family of Virginia.

Letitia’s Dower Rights are mentioned in one of the legal documents following George’s death.Dower was a widow’s right to a lifetime interest in one-third of all land owned by her husband, unless she chose, in place of dower, to accept other property left to her un der her husband’s will. Generally, dower applied to each parcel of land in which the husband held an inheritable interest an any time during the marriage. “ A wife’s dower right attached to land as soon as her husband bought or inherited it, and generally he could sell it “ free and clear” only if she released her dower interest, either by joining in the deed or by a separated deed of released. Documentation of George and Letitia Cardwell From Some Early Pioneers of Western Kentucky, by Helen Hart :Peyton: “George served the co. as defendant in debt cases, juror and processioner. He did appear in court, June 1767, and by Aug 1767, a Thomas Tabb was petitioned to be appointed the administrator of George Cardwell’s estate. The Court also ordered the dower right to be laid off for Letitia, in the estate of her husband, George Cardwell. The years of 1771-1779, records of the South Parish Vestry show a John Netherland being granted an annual amount of 800 pounds of tobacco to be used in the support of Letitia Cardwell’s children. Nederland was the brother-in-law of George Cardwell. In 18th century Virginia, education for the young was a family responsibility, not a legal entitlement. Guardians were to provide the orphans with a level of schooling judged appropriate to the economic scale of the family. “Orphans with not estate, or those whose inheritance was so small that it could not accommodate a “book education” were bound out to learn a trade.” Letitia Cardwell’s family name was omitted in documents found to date. However, in much of the genealogy research, especially of this historical time, wives often are referred to in documents as Letitia ____ or LNU ( last name unknown).

We conclude that the question is not “Was our ancestor, Letitia Cardwell, a member of the Lee family of Virginia, but instead the question is “ To which Lee clan did Letitia belong to”? Although not knowing positively her lineage, it is not an indicator that she is not a Lee, but rather the statement of a mystery to be pursued further by Cardwell historians.

Laetitia Corbin Lee aka Cardwell

Born 1730 in Leesylvania, Westmoreland, Virginiamap
Ancestors ancestors
Daughter of Henry Lee I and Mary (Bland) Lee
Sister of Sarah Lee [half], William Lee, John Lee, Richard Lee and Henry Lee II [add sibling]
Wife of George Cardwell — married 1758 in Virginiamap
[add spouse?]
Descendants descendants
Mother of Francis Cardwell, John Cardwell and Perrin Cardwell [add child]
Died 1788 at about age 58 in Lancaster, Virginia, United Statesmap
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Lee-3272 created 7 Nov 2011 | Last modified 14 Apr 2023
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Biography

Laetitia Lee was born in 1730 in Leesylvania, Westmoreland, Virginia. Her parents were Henry Lee and Mary Bland. She married George Cardwell in 1758. Together they had 1 child:

   Perrin Cardwell

   T Cardwell 

She died in 1788 in Lancaster, Virginia

(Ongoing Research)

In the 19th Century a daughter of the Lee/Cardwells of Cumberland County Virginia married into the Palmores. At this point the families might benefit from a time line until research brings us more precision.
Sources

   Family records

   see Richard Lee Cardwell notes