Nicholas Overbey, I

Biography
Nicholas " The Immigrant " Overbury. The progenitor of the Overbey, Overbay, Overby families in BCA.

https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/LD4Z-ZH9

He immigrated to America the year after his father died. Nicholas came to Virginia in 1654 as a “headright” for Colonel Abraham Wood who was a merchant, explorer and land trader. Based on ship records from Bristol, England, the port from which Nicholas sailed, he was not indentured or apprenticed like most other emigrants. Nicholas was employed in some capacity by Colonel Wood who was well known by the Overbury family. Virginia records show business transactions by Nicholas Overbey and Thomas Chamberlayne.

Abraham Wood operated his trading business from Fort Henry which was built in 1645 for the defense of the citizens on the south side of the James River. It was on a bluff near the falls not far from where the Appomattox River enters the James River. The garrison had 45 soldiers from the surrounding counties and Abraham Wood was placed in command. The Fort and 600 acres were granted to Abraham Wood. The area is north of what is now called Petersburg, Virginia.

From this little city of Fort Henry, Colonel Wood began exploratory journeys with pack trains of 50-100 horses loaded with trinkets, blankets and guns. In the year, 1650, he went on expeditions to the west and south with Edward Bland. In 1652, by order of the Assembly, Abraham Wood (then a Major) was granted the right to discover and trade for 14 years, places where no Englishman had ever been.

By the year 1654, our ancestor Nicholas Overbey, Sr., had been brought from England by Abraham Wood to help him in some way with his growing business interests. By 1675, Wood had expanded his business journeys over the Great Smokies and into the powerful Cherokee Nation.

There are no records of our Nicholas Overbey, Sr. owning any land of his own between 1654 and 1680. It is assumed that he traveled a lot and spent all these years helping Colonel Wood. He provided skilled labor and intelligence for the development of the trading empire and the management of the land holdings.

Nicholas Overbey, Sr., was the father of a son born about 1659 in Virginia. The son was called Nicholas "ye younger" and "ye son". I shall call him Nicholas, Junior.

In 1685, our Nicholas, Sr. purchased a developed tract of land for his son Nicholas, Jr. with all houses, edifices, buildings, orchards, gardens, forests and all profit on this same tract of land and plantation. (Henrico Co., VA Deeds, 1677-1692) This frontier land was an area that was administered by Charles City County, VA, but was formed into Prince George Co., VA in 1705. The land was probably near Fort Henry, just south of the Appomattox River, in what was called Bristol Parish. The land was a wedding gift to Nicholas Overbey, Jr. Witnesses to the deed were Dysons, who lived near the site of Woods Church, five miles north of Petersburg, Viginia. It is considered the "Mother Church" of Bristol Parish and was named for Abraham Wood. Nicholas Overbey’s son (Jr.) learned well from his father and from Colonel Wood and by the year 1690, (Jr.) was earning more land for himself, by transporting his own "headrights" from England and taking land grants for their emigration.

There were no further records of Nicholas Overbey, Sr. after 1690 and we assume he died shortly after 1690, in Bristol Parish, Virginia (originally part of Charles City County), somewhere between the Appomattox River and the town of Petersburg, VA, not far from Fort Henry.

1 •Birth: ABT 1628 in Isleworth, Middlesex, England 2 •Death: AFT 1690 in Charles City County, Virginia 2 •Immigration: 1654 America 2

Father: Giles OVERBURY b: APR 1590 in Quinton, England Mother: Ann SHIRLEY b: ABT 1603 in Isfield, Sussex, England Marriage 1 Spouse Unknown•Married: ABT 1658 in Charles City County, Virginia 3 Children1. Has Children Nicholas OVERBY b: ABT 1659 in Charles City County, Virginia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fort_Henry_(Virginia)

Fort Henry was an English frontier fort in 17th century colonial Virginia near the falls of the Appomattox River. Its exact location has been debated, but the most popular one (marked by Virginia Historical Marker QA-6) is on a bluff about four blocks north of the corner of W. Washington and N. South Streets in modern-day Petersburg, Virginia.

Fort Henry was built in 1645 by order of the House of Burgesses. It marked the 1646 treaty frontier between the white settlers and the Native Americans following the Second Anglo-Powhatan War. It was situated near the Appomattoc Indian tribe. It was the only point in Virginia where Indians could be authorized to cross eastward into white territory, or whites westward into Indian territory, from 1646 until around 1691. In later years it also came to be known as Fort Wood, after its first commander, Abraham Wood (1614-82), who sent out several exploratory expeditions from there. In 1675, command of the fort and adjacent Indian trading post passed to Wood's son-in-law, Peter Jones. The post became known as "Peter's Point", and eventually grew into modern Petersburg. At some unknown point the original fort fell into ruins.

page2image24008 page2image24168 page2image24328 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Petersburg,_Virginia

Archaeological excavations at Pocahontas Island have found evidence of a prehistoric Native American settlement dated to 6500 BCE. This is in the early third of the Archaic Period (8000 to 1000 BCE). Varying cultures of indigenous peoples lived in the area for thousands of years. When the English arrived in Virginia in 1607, the region was occupied by the Appamatuck, a significant tribe of the Powhatan Confederacy. They were governed by a weroance, King Coquonosum, and by his sister, Queen Oppussoquionuske. This Algonquian-speaking people later had a town at Rohoic Creek (formerly Rohowick or Indian Towne Run), on the western edge of present-day Petersburg.

Petersburg was founded and settled by English colonists. By 1635 they had patented land along the south bank of the Appomattox River as far west as present-day Sycamore Street, and about 1 mile (1.6 km) inland. In 1646, the Virginia Colony established Fort Henry a short distance from the Appamatuck town, near the falls. Col. Abraham Wood sent several famous expeditions out from here in the following years to explore points to the west, as far as the Appalachian Mountains. Sometime around 1675, Wood's son-in-law, Peter Jones, who then commanded the fort and traded with the Indians, opened a trading post nearby, known as Peter's Point. The Bolling family, prominent tobacco planters and traders, also lived in the area from the early 18th century. In 1733, Col. William Byrd II (who founded Richmond at the same time) conceived plans for a city at Peter's Point, to be renamed Petersburgh. The Virginia General Assembly formally incorporated both Petersburg and adjacent Blandford on December 17, 1748. Wittontown, north of the river, was settled in 1749, and became incorporated as Pocahontas in 1752. Petersburg was enlarged slightly in 1762, adding 28 acres (110,000 m2) to "Old Town".

Nicholas Ye Younger Overby lived in the neighborhood of Col. Abraham Wood and his son-in-law Thomas Chamberlayne mention above.

"Henry Wall, 275 Acres, Bristoll Pish., Chas. City Co., and (bounded) at or near Rahowick, at a certain hickory corner tree of the lands now or late of Maj. Chamberlin, thence E. ... crossing a run or branch ... one of the lines late of Col. Wood now or late of Maj. Chamberlin, thence along the line of marked trees S.W. ... The sd. Land was due by Trans. Of 6 psons., 21 April 1690."

On the same day, Nicholas Overby patented adjoining land:

"Nicholas Overbee the Younger, 323 Acres, Bristoll Pish., Chas. City Co., at ir bear Rahowick. Bounded: at a corner of the lands late of Col Wood which also is a corner of the lands late of Abraham Jones, and thence along the sd. Jones marked line E. ... to a pine by the side of a run of the lines of Henry Wall, crossing that Br., then along that line E. ... where it falls upon one of the lines of the land late of Col. Wood aforesd, then along that line N.E. ... The sd. Land was due by Trans. of 7 psons., 21 April 1690."

page3image25048 page3image25208 The Col. Wood mentioned in these two patents was Abraham Wood, commander of Fort Henry. Abraham Jones, mentioned in Overby's patent, was a "grandchild in law" (step-grandchild) of Abraham Wood, named as such in Wood's will. Abraham Jones was named as Abraham Wood Jones in a patent to John Ellis dated 4 Nov 1685, 464 acres "Beg. &c., belonging to the land of Abraham Wood Jones. (Patent Bk 7, pg 489). Maj Chamberlin, mentioned in Henry Wall's patent, was Thomas Chamberlain, Abraham Wood's son-in-law (Dorman, Adventurers of Purse & Person, 4th ed., v. 3, p. 677.