Mann Page I of Rosewell

Reference 53 https://archive.org/details/cartertreecompil00cart/page/58/mode/2up

NOTE: The picture of the gentleman in the red coat identified as Hon Mann Page is Mann Page II.

ROSEWELL: Hon. Mann Page built the historic and costly mansion called Rosewell in Gloucester, Va. that was completed by his son Mann II. It was considered the finest example of colonial architecture in America. Mann Page was a good friend of our family's Randolph cousin Thomas Jefferson who frequently visited Rosewell. On one of those visits-in what was called the 'Blue Room'-he wrote the first draft of the Declaration of Independence. Rosewell (named for 'rose well'-a spring on the property) towered 3 stories and was known for its Georgian design, distinctive exterior brickwork, mahogany woodworking, checkerboard marble floors and vaulted ceilings. Sadly it burned in 1916- caused by a fire that had not been properly doused and escaped the fireplace. What are called its 'noble ruins' have been stabilized but there are no plans to restore it. It is on the National Register of Historic Places. It was a thrill to visit there in 2012. (These notes from Barbara Pixley.)

Birth: 1691; Rosewell; Gloucester County; Virginia, USA Death: Jan. 24, 1730; Rosewell; Gloucester County; Virginia, USA

Parents:

• Matthew Page (1659 - 1703)
• Mary Mann Page (____ - 1707)

Spouses:

• Judith Wormeley Page (____ - 1716)
• Judith Carter Page (1695 - 1750)*

Children:

• Mann Page (1716 - 1764)*
• Robert Page (1722 - 1768)*
• John Williamson Page (1724 - 1774)*

Inscription:

"Here lie the remains of the Honourable MANN PAGE Esq. One of His Majesties Council of this Collony of Virginia. Who departed this life the 24th Day of January 1730 In the 40th year of his Age. He was the Only Son of the Honourable MATTHEW PAGE Esq. Who was likewise a member of His Majesties Council. His first wife was JUDITH Daughter of RALPH WORMELEY, Esq. Secretary of Virginia; By whom he had two Sons and a Daughter. He afterwards married JUDITH Daughter of the Honourable ROBERT CARTER Esq. President of Virginia. With whom he lived in the most tender reciprocal affection For twelve years: Leaving by her five Sons and a Daughter. His publick Trust he faithfully Discharged with Candour and Discretion Truth and Justice. Nor was he less eminent in His Private Behaviour For he was A tender Husband and Indulgent Father A gentle Master and a Faithful Friend Being to All Courteous and Benevolent Kind and Affable. This monument was piously erected to his Memory By His mournful Surviving Lady.

Burial: Abingdon Episcopal Church Cemetery; White Marsh; Gloucester County; Virginia, USA

Created by: Ron Stewart; Record added: Sep 09, 2008; Find A Grave Memorial# 29680942

• ________________________

Mann Page of "Rosewell," Gloucester county, was a son of Matthew Page of the same place and was born in 1691. His grandson, Gov. Page, stated that he was educated at Eaton, and Foster's "Oxford Matriculations" shows that he was entered at St. John's College at that university in July, 1709. Early in 1714, a vacancy occurring in the council, Gov. Spotswood appointed him a member of that body, and on March 11, 1714-15, the English government confirmed his appointment. Page was a regular attendant at the sessions of the council until his death. Mann Page was the builder of the present house at "Rosewell," which was begun in 1725 and barely completed at the time of his death, Jan. 24, 1730. He married Judith, daughter of Secretary Ralph Wormeley, and had issue.

Source: Virginia Biographical Encyclopedia, pg 129

GEDCOM Note

It was "the finest, largest American house of the colonial period". Sadly, it burned in 1916.

GEDCOM Note

Educated at Eton, England.

GEDCOM Note

(Research): From the book: «i»Old Virginia Houses «/i»pg 15; Mann Page was the only child to survive his mother. With inheritance from both parents, he was a very wealthy man...In 1725 he started building Rosewell. Built of red brick, in Flemish bond, and with marble lintels, and other elaborate trim, Rosewell was the finest house in America. In 1730, he died and the house he was building for joyful celebrations became a house of sorrow and death... Mann Page completed the house [Rosewell] but there were many difficulties along the way & he was compelled to have certain entails on the property left by his father lifted before he could pay his debts & continue work on the mansion. it was about 1744 before it was finished. Excavations at Rosewell indicate that Mann Page built his great mansion on top of the remains of his father's original Rosewell Plantation-which had burned in 1721. This building had not been known before. (See notes for Mary Mann.) In March 8, 1721 Robert 'King' Carter reported that "Colonel Cage's (sp) house" and which along with its barn "had burned to the ground."

PAGE AND CARTER FAMILIES The Page & Carter families were among those described as "The First Families of Virginia". Mann Page's marriage to Robert "King" Carter's daughter: Close ties between the Pages and the Carters are evident from the marriages between the two families. Both families shared the same outlook, having closely related aspirations and problems. They entertained frequently and on grand scale. They kept a bountiful table for travelers and strangers as well as friends... King Carter frequently called at Rosewell to dine and spent time with his son-in-law. The families exchanged innumerable social visits, shared experiences in the management of their plantations, the education of their children, and the care of their slaves. They borrowed books from each other's libraries, drank the other's wine, and participated together in sports of the field. ROSEWELL It would seem that Mann Page's wealth, catered to by his education and taste, responded to what his social position and in-law's example prompted. His maturity in reaching the late decision to construct a lavish house should be emphasized....He started Rosewell after sober consideration in middle life when he was in need of replacement quarters for his growing family. Built between 1725 & 1738-Mann Page died before the completion of Rosewell. From an entry to the King Carter diary in 1728: "Col. Page's milk diet agrees so well with him that makes me hope he can prolong his life to gray hair." We deduce that Mann had long suffered from illness before succumbing in January of 1730...King Carter was prompted to make a provisional legacy of 300 pounds contingent upon the completion of the house. This amount was subsequently paid to Carter's daughter, the widow Page in 1737. Mann Page was laid out in the great hall of Rosewell before being laid to rest a few yards to the east of the monumental-but still incompleted-house. The house was completed in 1737 by his son Mann II. The Rosewell Plantation was made famous by its mansion. it was named for the "rose well', a spring on the property. Rosewell was the largest mansion in Virginia & remained so for several years. In the colonies it was known as the most magnificent house & America's grandest home. A towering three stories, of early Georgian design, it was known for its distinctive exterior brickwork & the mahogany woodworking, checkerboard marble floors & vaulted ceilings of the interior. The brickwork at Rosewell-called 'Flemish Bond' was said to have been 'a nod to wealth' as it requires more bricks to used in construction: alternating long and short bricks in the same row. The same syle was used at the Randolph mansion-'Turkey Island'. On the river side of the house was the Rosewell garden in which can still be seen some of the surviving shrubs, trees & flowers. An avenue of cedars is reported to have bordered the path. Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries and durig the Civil War, Rosewell hosted the most elaborate formal balls and celebrations. Tragically, in 1916 it burned-evidently caused by a fire that had not been properly doused & escaped the fireplace. Rosewell is on the National Register of Historic Places & a registered Virginia Historic Landmark. Even in its present state, it has been called: "a noble ruin". It was a wonderful experience to visit there in 2012. What a magnificent edifice it must have been-and is still imposing in it present state. Book Page History-Rosewell Rosewell, Garland of Virginia Claude O. Lanciano Jr Gloucester Co Historical Committee 1978 Book was purchased in Williamsburg, Va 1985. Y Y Entire book. 3

GEDCOM Note

(Research):
'ROSEGILL' The Rosegill plantation is a complex located on a commanding position near the end of a narrow peninsula with a sweeping prospect of the Rappahanock River. The tract of land was patented to the Wormeley family in 1636 by King Charles I & today contains 736 acres in Middlesex Co. It was to this home that Ralph Wormeley brought his bride Elizabeth. It ranks as one of the most historic estates in America-one of the most magnificent in Virginia-established in 1649 by Ralph Wormeley (I) who planted 3200 acres on the south side of the Rappahannock River. The brick house was built in 1650 & contains 11 rooms. During Ralph II's tenure is was an elaborate seat-described as consisting of "20 houses scattered along the plateau above the river." It faces an immense lawn that slopes to the Rappahannock River which is several miles wide at that point. The hall, perhaps the grandest in Virginia occupies the whole river front with a stairway at either end. Into this opens the dining room, library, sitting-room, paneled in mahogany & oak. 'Rosegill' was left to Ralph's son Ralph III then to his brother John, then to his son & grandson Ralph IV & V. (See their notes.) In Feb. 1973 it was nominated to the«i» National Register of Historic Places of the National Park Service.
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«/i»From: «i»gutenberg.org «/i»Rosegill, Middlesex County«i» «/i»The first Ralph cordially welcomed refugee royalists to Rosegill. Sir Henry Chicheley, Deputy Governor, made his home at Rosegill & died there in 1682. In 1686, the second Ralph Wormeley was host to the Frenchman Monsieur Durand of Dauphiné, who sought in the colonies a haven for the Huguenots, his forlorn compatriots. -------------------------------------------------------------«i» «/i» From: «i»The Wormelely Family«/i»: Secretary Wormeley married (1) about 1674, Katherine, daughter of Sir Thomas Lunsford, the noted Cavalier officer, and the widow of Captain Peter Jen(n)ings, Attorney General and member of the Council of Virginia. In the Register of Christ Church parish, Middlesex, is the following entry: "The Honorable Lady, Madam Katherine Wormeley, wife to the Honble Ralph Wormeley, Esq., Departed this life 17th of May 1685, and was buried in the Chancell of the Great Church between ye Honble___________ Chichley & _______________." Secretary Wormeley married (2) "Madam Elizabeth Armistead, of Gloster, at Collo Armistead's Gloster, 16th of February, 1687." She was the daughter of Colonel John Armistead, of Gloucester County, a member of the Council, and married secondly, Oct. 5, 1703, William Churchill, of "Bushy Park", Middlesex, who was afterwards also a member of the council.
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«i»Virginia Genealogies«/i» by Hayden Pg 230: Lists him as having been married 3 times but a Jennings is listed as a first wife..I believe this is Katherine Lunsford whose 1st husband was Capt Jennings (see above).
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«i»Descendants of Richard Eltonhed«/i» by Harrison states that "Ralph Wormeley Esq. was Secy of the State of Va. (1693). of "Rosegill", Middlesex Co. Va., Matriculated at Oreil College, Oxford En.land.(14 Jun 1665)Burgess (1674). Member of the Council (1677. Collector and naval officer of Rappahannock, Va. A Trustee of William and Mary College (1693.President of the Council (1693)Called "the greatest man in Virginia"

GEDCOM Note

Hon. Mann Page was a member of His Majesty's Council in Va in the latter part of the reign of Geo I and was serving during reign of Geo II at the time of his death in 1730. He inherited a vast landed estate and was the founder of the famous Rosewell Mansion.
Inscription on his tombstone at Rosewell reads in part:

..."Here lies the remains of Honourable Mann Page Esq.
One of his Majesties Council of this Colony of Virginia..... Courageous and Benevolent, Kind and Affable This monument is erected to his memory"...

NOTE: The Page tombs were removed to Abingdon Episcopal Churchyard-Abingdon, Gloucester, Co., Va. in Dec. 1969. Twenty members of the family are there. This includes Hon. Mann and wives Judith Wormeley & Judith Carter. Also his parents Hon. Col. Matthew Page and wife Mary Mann. They can be seen on «i»findagrave.com«/i»
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He had attended Eton before his admission to St. John's College, Oxford in 1709. His schooling completed, Mann returned to Virginia to claim his "rightful place in the sun". As the inheritor of his father's estate, he had his choice of several homes upon plantations in more than a half-dozen counties. He chose to settle at his family's Rosewell residence in Gloucester. Mann page carried out his family's interest in education and was named trustee of the College of William and Mary (where all six of his sons attended). He was not only the recipient of two family fortunes, but his outlook for increasing the wealth appeared excellent. (See Page book listed in sources.) He was probably the wealthiest land holder of his time in Virginia(except for the Fairfaxes) it is said he united in his person the rich inheritances of the Manns and the Pages. Fostered by his time in England manorial establishments--he was thoroughly ingrained in aristocratic trappings. Even in Virginia they were an accepted expression of success. Lavish taste was not only reflected in the houses of the Virginia gentry but in their imported furnishings and ornate gardens....[They] were not considered sumptuous displays of the 'nouveaux riches' but accepted as manifestations of honors earned.

«i»MAGNIFICENT ROSEWELL «/i»He built the historic and costly mansion *Rosewell House in Gloucester Co., one of the most venerable relics of antiquity in Virginia. His landed estates were 11,000 acres called Pageland in Prince William Co. , 8,000 acres in Frederick Co., 45,000 acres in Spottsylvania, 1,000 in Hanover, 1.500 James City-besides others...and a magnificent plantation on the York River to which Rosewell gave its name. In a Guide Book of local historical homes: Rosewell--South on Rte. 17 from Long Bridge Ordinary 5.3 miles right on Rte 614 about 2.5 miles. Left on Rte 632 about two miles, and left on Rte 644 about 3 miles of private road on left. Begun in 1725 by Mann Page I, completed by his widow, Judith Carter Page. Rosewell was the largest and finest of the colonial mansions in Virginia until it was destroyed by fire in 1916. Built with a full three stories above an English basement-Rosewell's greatest distinction is its magnificent brickwork which evokes some of its former grandeur. Careful architectural and archaeological research has been done by the present owners in determining essential preservation measures to be accomplished. Lanciano writes in his book on Rosewell: "The masterpiece called Rosewell at the height of its glory, in mid-eighteenth century, knew few rivals and has been called by many the finest example of colonial architecture in America...Neither the surviving ruin or the pre-fire photography...provides more than a glimmer of the its former splendor. The ruin is a monument to an accomplishment that was the glory of its era and the pride of Virginia...If Rosewell should be reconstructed the effort will be sustained in large measure by lovers of its history". Rosewell in on the «i»National Register of Historic Places «/i»and a registered «i»Virginia Historic Landmark«/i». The ruins of the mansion have been stabilized but there are no plans to restore it. There are ongoing archaelogical excavations at the site which is now open to the public. «i» «/i» «i»Tradition has it that our cousin Thomas Jefferson wrote a rough draft of the Declaration of Independence at Rosewell before he went to Philadelphia. «/i» James Joseph MacDonald in «i»Life in Old Virginia «/i»(Old Virginia Pub. Co. Norfolk, Va. 1907) writes of Rosewell and Thomas Jefferson: "The mansion is subtantially built of brick, three stories and a basement. The foundation walls are three and one half feet thick. The reception hall in large, the ceilings lofty, and the whole mansion is indicative of refined taste and wealth. From the upper windows, a magnificent view is had of the surrounding level lands and waters of the creeks and the York River. During the life of Governor Page, Thomas Jefferson was a frequent and welcome visitor there. While on one of his visits he wrote the rough draft of the Declaration of Independence in what is now known as the 'Blue Room' situated at the northwest corner of the second story of this house." (Thomas Jefferson was a close friend of Gov. John Page, the son of Mann Page II & frequently visited Rosewell.)

«i»Descendants of Richard Eltonhed «/i»by Harrison states: "Hon. Mann Page married 2 times to 1st cousins. Built 'Rosewell", Gloucester Co. Va. Member of Va. Council 1714-30. Held over 27,000 acres in the country locations named... Referred to as Governor. The Declaration of Independence may have been drafted in his house by Thomas Jefferson. Member of the Va. Council."

GEDCOM Note

Book Scottish History by Steel Scotland's Story A New Perspective Tom Steel William Collins & Son Ltd. London 1984 Y Y

References

1. Mann Page in the Colonial Families of the USA, 1607-1775. Page 366. < AncestrySharing >; < AncestryImage >
2. Genealogy of the Page family in Virginia : also a condensed account of the Nelson, Walker, Pendleton, and Randolph families. (1893). Page 65. < AncestrySharing >; < AncestryImage >
3. <AncestryTree > with sources