Richard Aubrey/Awbrey

See source below, from a public post by Jerry Ferren http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/HOSKINS/2006-09/11576...

Jerry Ferren

Ancestors of Sarah Hoskins

Generation No. 1

1. Sarah Hoskins, born 1637 in Virginia; died 1672 in Rappahannock County, Virginia. She was the daughter of 2. Bartholomew Hoskins and 3. Mira Dorcas Isham. She married (1) Thomas Meador 1658 in Virginia. He was born 1635 in Charles Parish, York County, Virginia, and died Apr 1662 in Essex County, Virginia. He was the son of Thomas Meads and Sarah Wellstead. She married (2) Henry Awbrey Aft. Apr 1662. He was born Abt. 1637.

Notes for Sarah Hoskins: In a book by Victor P. Meador titled OUR MEADOR FAMILIES IN COLONIAL AMERICA, he indicates Sarah Meador (widow of Thomas) married Henry Awbrey after April, 1662. "page 37 - Sarah is first mentioned as his wife in 1664 when Henry appointed her his attorney to collect debts due him in his absence. She again appears in 1670 as party to a sale by Henry Awbrey and herself of a tract of 300 acres of land on the north side of the Rappahannock River. Her name again appears in 1672 as party to another deed, but no further reference to her has been found. When Henry made his will in 1694 he named his wife as Mary."

Notes for Thomas Meador: Thomas Meador (called orphan) apparently was close to legal age at the death of his father, Thomas Meads in 1655, because he was able to make a legal deed in 1658. Much heretofore has been made of his having to be between 14 and 17 years of age to choose his own guardian, but under English common law, 21 was generally considered to be the age of responsibility. Thus, it must be considered that Thomas, the son, was born as early as 1636 or 1637 to have attained 21 years of age by 1658. This also would appear likely in view of his marriage, which must have occurred about this time.

In the deed mentioned above, Thomas Meador contracted the sell to James Haire "25 acres of land, being part of the land that was given unto me by my father, Thomas Meads deceased, and to my brother (name missing)." This confirms his parentage and that he had a brother, who is given in the father's will as John. Thomas signed this 1658 deed with a unique mark, a cross with barred ends, and a signature found nowhere else in the county records.

Records of the distribution of the estate of the senior Thomas Meads are missing, so one cannot say just how the lands willed to Thomas and his brother John ended up in the possession of their sister Mary. One could speculate that the lands were traded to Mary for the rights to the two grants on Hoskins Creek, on the south side of the Rappahannock River, of which Thomas Meador (orphan) became possessed.

Of these two grants, the first one recorded was made to the younger Thomas Meador, of 320 acres for the transportation of seven persons to the colony, recorded June 3,1663. Sufficient data survives to permit the plotting of this tract. The grant shows a peculiar characteristic, in that it requires a southeasterly flowing section of Hoskins Creek roughly 181 poles (2986 feet) long, whereas the major portion of Hoskins Creek flows easterly. Of three possible locations along the creek where it flows southeasterly for that length, one would eliminate by its location two near the mouth of the creek, whereas the grant specified that it was toward the head of the creek. Another is eliminated by its encroachment upon property granted to Henry Awbrey further upstream, which also requires a similar-flowing southeast section. The area best fitting the requirements lies at what is known today as "Cheatwood Millpond". This location is just southeast of Rexburg, Virginia, and seven ! miles west of Tappahannock, county seat of Essex County.

The 320-acre grant later became the property of John Meador, who sold it to Ebenezer Stanfield in 1679. The deed states that the grant was to Thomas Meador, father of the said John Meador, thus confirming this parentage. Stanfield devised the property to his daughter, Rebecca, who married John Williams, Jr., and they later disposed of the property, which never again returned to the ownership of Meador descendants.

The second of the two grants was for 450 acres, also near the head of Hoskins Creek. It was first granted to Thomas Browning on November 30,1657. It was then assigned to John Cooke in 1659, and he in turn assigned it to Thomas Meads (senior). Before this series of transactions was finally recorded on April 9,1664, Thomas Sr. had died and the property descended to his son, Thomas Meador, orphan. The above series of actions is recorded in the wording of the grant

By plotting these two grants, it can be seen that they lay side by side on the south side of Hoskins Creek, with the 450 acre grant upstream (west) of the 320 acre grant, and that they shared a common boundary. Both grants were recorded after the apparent death of Thomas Meador, orphan.

The 450 acre grant (made to Thomas Meador, orphan) clearly became the property of John Meador, who divided it among the children of his first wife. Portions were also divided among the children of his second wife through the terms of John's will. A descendant, William Meador, in a deed in 1728 and another in 1734, continued the lineage from his great-grandfather Thomas Meador through John, Richard, and himself, making the descent of the property and lineage involved unquestionable. The genealogy of the Meador family from Thomas Meads is thus established to that point.

No documentation has been found to show explicitly that Thomas Meader, orphan, was also known as Thomas Meador, the younger. Nevertheless, the only other Thomas Meador found in the area at that time was Thomas, the son of Ambrose Meador. It would appear that the known facts fit more logically with the conclusion that Thomas, orphan, and Thomas the younger were one and the same. Particularly, Thomas, orphan, is the only one who was also the son of an elder Thomas, thus requiring the description, "the younger".

This latter phrase is found in two documents made by a Sarah Meador, in which, describing herself as the widow of Thomas Meador the Younger, she declared her obligation to her three children in April, 1662. Those contemplating remarriage commonly made such declarations. In the first document, Sarah provided for the maintenance and education of her children, promising them four years of schooling apiece. (At this period, most children received only a year). In the second, Sarah gave her son John Meador a yoke of oxen and "one gun, seven foot by the barrel", to be delivered to him when he came of age. To her daughter Susannah she gave a red cow called "Cherry" and her increase. To her daughter Mary she gave a black heifer called "Slippery". We learn also that Susannah was several years less than 11 years old, and that Mary was less than 9 years old. Since the marriage of Thomas Meador the Younger (or orphan) took place no earlier than 1657 or 1658, all three children w! ould have been infants at that time.

No documentation has thus far been found to specify whom Sarah Meador then married. Nonetheless, it should be noted that a very prominent, highly influential and prosperous settler of the same area, Henry Awbrey, about this time took a wife named Sarah, who may well have been Sarah Meador, widow. Perhaps older than Sarah, Henry Awbrey is rumored to have married in England; however, no trace of such wife of surviving children of such a marriage has been found in Virginia records. Sarah is first mentioned as his wife in 1664, when Henry appointed her his attorney to collect debts due him in his absence. She again appears in 1670 as party to a sale of Henry Awbrey and herself of a tract of 300 acres on land on the north side of the Rappahannock River.

Her name again appears in 1672 as party to another deed, but no further reference to her has been found. When Henry Awbrey made his will in 1694, he named his wife as Mary.

The above mentioned deed for 300 acres north of the Rappahannock has caused considerable confusion among researchers. While it is true that a Thomas Meador once owned this property as stated in the deed, this was Thomas, the son of Ambrose Meador, instead of Thomas Meador (orphan), son of Thomas Meads. After Ambrose purchased 1000 acres from James Williamson in 1656, he sold 300 acres from that tract to his son, Thomas. This 300 acres was then divided in half by Thomas, who sold 150 acres to Richard Tomlinson in 1657 and 150 acres to Lambert Lambertson in 1658. Lambertson further divided his tract into 75-acre plots, which were then further sold. While it may seem unlikely that these various small plots could have bee reassembled back into a single 300-acre tract, the evidence points to that event. The remaining 700 acres of the 1000 acres purchase by Ambrose Meador can be fully accounted for. There is no indication that Ambrose purchased additional land from Williams! on, nor that he sold more to his son, Thomas. Yet the deed from Henry and Sarah Awbrey states that the property was from the purchase by Ambrose Meador out of the grant to James Williamson, and from the portion sold by Ambrose to his son Thomas.

Regardless of the subdivision and the further sales, this deed could easily lead one to believe that Sarah had inherited the property as the widow of Thomas, the son of Ambrose. But a more likely explanation is that Henry Awbrey reassembled the property into a single tract, for which no records remain. Several instances have been noted in which property reverted to the original owner, evidently when the purchaser had defaulted in paying the purchase price. But in this case reversion to Thomas, the son of Ambrose, would appear quite unlikely in view of the many subsequent continuing sales by several individuals. In any case, it should be noted that Thomas, son of Ambrose, and Thomas, son of Thomas, both must have died about the same time, which certainly adds to the possible confusion between the two men.

Henry Awbrey was Burgess of the County Court of old Rappahannock County and was a trustee in the formation of the portion of New Plymouth in 1682, which became Tappahannock. For the last two years of his life he was also Sheriff, perhaps an honorary position in view of his age. He received many grants of land for the transportation of persons to the colonies. One of these was for 1050 acres on the south side of Hoskins Creek in 1664, just upstream from the 450 acres granted to Thomas Meador, orphan. This site became Awbrey's home plantation. Other grants were for 480 acres in 1669 and for 5100 acres in 1679, lying between Hoskins Creek, Piscataway Creek, and the Mattaponi River; for 189 acres on Occupacia Creek in 1684 and for 1200 acres on the north side of Hoskins Creek in 1688.

The number of children of Henry Awbrey is not completely clear. Some researchers have maintained that there were sons named John and Francis; instead, these appear to have been sons of his brother, John Awbrey. It should be noted that in two deeds in 1690, Henry named Richard Awbrey as his "only son and heir apparent". In one of these deeds he gave Richard 500 acres from the 1050-acre grant on the south side of Hoskins Creek, which portion adjoined the lands of John Meador. When Henry Awbrey made his will in 169412 , he named as heirs only his wife Mary and his son Richard.

It appears quite certain that Richard Awbrey was the son of Sarah, because in a deed in 1675 Henry gave his son Richard a year-old mare called "Bonny" "until said Richard be 14 years of age". Thus, Richard would have been born after 1661-1662, when Henry and Sarah apparently were married.

When Richard Awbrey made his will, which was probated October 11,1697, he named John Meador as "brother". Considerable speculation has arisen about the exact nature of this relationship. Some have said that the term "brother" could have meant "brother-in-law", on the assumption that John Meador (for his second wife) could have married a daughter of Henry Awbrey and thus a sister to Richard. No such daughter of Henry Awbrey has been documented. Another speculation has been that Richard's wife, Dorothy, was a sister of John Meador. Nor has such a sister been found. In actuality, Richard's wife was Dorothy North, daughter of Augustine North.

Richard Awbrey also named as "Sister" Susannah McQuire, the wife of Phillip McQuire, both of whom were witnesses to his, will. A bequest was also made to Francis Gouldman (it has been thought possible that Mary, the younger daughter of Thomas and Sarah Meador, could have married Gouldman, whose wife was named Mary). Thus we find that Richard Awbrey names at least two of the children of Thomas and Sarah Meador, John and Susannah, as "brother" and "sister". Actually, it would appear that they were his half-brother and half-sister.

At this time, there was only one John Meador living. As we have seen in the chapter on Ambrose Meador, his son John and his grandson John were both deceased by 1683. His great-grandson John and the son of Thomas (son of John, the son of Ambrose) were not born until after 1700. So we must consider here only the John Meador who was in possession of the 450-acre grant on Hoskins Creek at this time.

In that grant, it is stated that it was being made to Thomas Meador, orphan, son of Thomas Meader, deceased. As no such father and son pair (both named Thomas) existed in the family of Ambrose Meador, it must certainly have been the Thomas Meads who died in 1655 and his son Thomas. The further descent of this 450-acre tract through (3) John Meador is very clear. This grant adjoined the grant of Henry Awbrey on Hoskins Creek, and particularly the portion given by Henry to his son Richard Awbrey. It is most logical that Thomas Meader, orphan, and Thomas Meador the Younger were the same, and that Sarah Meador, the widow of Thomas Meador the Younger, who made provision for her son "John Meador of Hoskins Creek", was the wife of Henry Awbrey and the mother of Richard Awbrey. Thus the conclusion is virtually inescapable that Sarah was the mother of both John Meador and Richard Awbrey, making them half-brothers. This would explain why Richard called John Meador his "brother" ! in his will.

Regrettably, efforts to trace descendants of the other two children of Sarah Meador/Awbrey have proven nearly fruitless. No further mention in Essex records has been found of Phillip and Susannah McQuire. Col. Francis Gouldman became a prosperous and prominent landowner in Saint Mary's Parish of Essex County, but when he drew his will in 1717, he mentioned no (living) children. Bequests were made to his nephews, the sons of Edward Gouldman, and to his niece, the daughter of his brother Thomas Gouldman, deceased. Mary, the wife of Francis, followed him in death a few months later. In her will no children were mentioned, but there was a bequest to Dorothy Billups, who was the daughter of Richard Awbrey and thus her niece.

Two confusing court records of "the orphans of Francis Gouldman" actually refer to the two sons of his brother Edward, to whom Francis had left the major portion of his estate. Therefore, even if this Mary Gouldman could be established as the daughter of Thomas and Mary Meador, the direct lineage ends here. Curiously, no documents have been found relating to any interactions between these daughters, their husbands, and John Meador, nor between John Meador and Richard Awbrey. Such documentation would most certainly have made the determination of these relationships between them much easier.

THE 450 ACRE GRANT "To all to whom these presents shall come, Greetings...now know ye that I, the said Sir William Berkeley, Knight, Governor of Virginia, give and grant unto Thomas Meador, orphan, four hundred and fifty acres of land in Lancaster County on the South side of the head of Hoskins Creek, beginning at a poplar standing by the side of a Beaver Dam near the Indian Path and running South by West two hundred and fifty poles, thence parallel to the Dam West by North four hundred and fifty poles [part of the description left out here] to the Dam to the first mentioned tree. The said land being first granted to Thomas Browning by patent dated the thirtieth of November, one thousand six hundred and fifty seven, and by him assigned to John Cooke, and by him assigned to Thomas Meads deceased, and by his will given to the said Thomas Meader. To have and to hold [etc]. Dated the ninth of April one thousand, six hundred and sixty four.

THE 320 ACRE GRANT "To all to whom these presents shall come, Greetings.... Whereas now know ye, that I, the said Sir William Berkeley, Knight, Governor of Virginia, give and grant unto Thomas Meador three hundred and twenty acres of land, situated on the south side of Hoskins Creek towards the head thereof in the county of Rappahannock, and extends itself from a marked red oak standing in a small neck by the main run side of the creek aforesaid and nigh unto the plantation of Hohn Gillet, thence by the said run side thirty two poles unto a marked oak in the westernmost point of said neck, thence along the northernmost side of a Beaver Dam until you meet with a line of marked trees that lead unto a poplar by the edge of the said Dam forty eight poles, thence with the said line South by West two hundred and seventy two poles to a marked pine on fallowing ground, thence East by South one hundred and twenty five poles to a white oak on the brow of a hill, thence East North-East twenty eight poles! to meet with the Westernmost line of marked trees belonging to John Gregory, which divides this land and the land of the said Gregory, thence North East down to Hoskins Creek aforesaid and finally parallel with the said Creek one hundred eighty one poles unto the marked Red Oak first mentioned. The said land being due unto the said Meader for transportation of Seven persons to this colony. To have and hold [etc]. Dated the second of June, one thousand, six hundred and sixty-three."

Will dated 25 Mar 1655. Entered in probate 6 June 1655

"Historic Southern Families" by Boddie:

The Meadors family belonged to the landed gentry of England and seems to have resided mainly in Suffolk. See page's History of Suffolk and the Harleian Visitation, Vol. VIII Pages 105 and 163.

Mann, Gertrude C. letters

Nunnally, Major Perkins, " The Descendents of Jonas and Francis Meador of Essex, Caroline, and Cumberland Counties, Virginia", Nine Oaks, Pine Bluff, Arkansas, 5 June 1968 is the source of dates, wives and children

1679, Fernham Ph, Rappahannock, Virginia, 7 August, DB, names Thomas Meador as the Father of John.

Meador, Daniel Burton, The Meador Family

Meador, John W., and Victor, Paul, The Meador Families of West Central Tennessee.

Generation No. 2

2. Bartholomew Hoskins, born 1600 in Suffolk, England; died in Norfolk County, Virginia. He was the son of 4. John Hoskins and 5. Benedicta Moyle Bourne. He married 3. Mira Dorcas Isham Jun 1624 in London, Middlesex, England. 3. Mira Dorcas Isham, born Abt. 1590. She was the daughter of 6. John Isham and 7. Elizabeth Barker.

Notes for Bartholomew Hoskins: He is an immigrant ancestor.

Child of Bartholomew Hoskins and Mira Isham is: 1i.Sarah Hoskins, born 1637 in Virginia; died 1672 in Rappahannock County, Virginia; married (1) Thomas Meador 1658 in Virginia; married (2) Henry Awbrey Aft. Apr 1662.

Generation No. 3

4. John Hoskins, born Mar 1565/66 in Herefordshire, England; died Aug 1638 in Herefordshire, England. He was the son of 8. John Hoskins and 9. Margery Jones. He married 5. Benedicta Moyle Bourne. 5. Benedicta Moyle Bourne, born 1575.

Child of John Hoskins and Benedicta Bourne is: 2i.Bartholomew Hoskins, born 1600 in Suffolk, England; died in Norfolk County, Virginia; married Mira Dorcas Isham Jun 1624 in London, Middlesex, England.

6. John Isham, born Abt. 1546 in England. He married 7. Elizabeth Barker. 7. Elizabeth Barker, born Abt. 1559 in England; died 1590. She was the daughter of 14. Nicholas Barker and 15. Joan?.

Child of John Isham and Elizabeth Barker is: 3i.Mira Dorcas Isham, born Abt. 1590; married Bartholomew Hoskins Jun 1624 in London, Middlesex, England.

Generation No. 4

8. John Hoskins, born 1540 in Herefordshire, England; died 1607 in England. He was the son of 16. John Hoskins and 17. Elizabeth ?. He married 9. Margery Jones. 9. Margery Jones, born Abt. 1540.

Child of John Hoskins and Margery Jones is: 4i.John Hoskins, born Mar 1565/66 in Herefordshire, England; died Aug 1638 in Herefordshire, England; married Benedicta Moyle Bourne.

14. Nicholas Barker, born Abt. 1520 in Sonning, Berkshire, England. He married 15. Joan?. 15. Joan?, born Abt. 1520.

Child of Nicholas Barker and Joan? is: 7i.Elizabeth Barker, born Abt. 1559 in England; died 1590; married John Isham.

Generation No. 5

16. John Hoskins, born 1505 in Herefordshire, England. He married 17. Elizabeth ? 1527 in Herefordshire, England. 17. Elizabeth ?, born 1510 in England.

Child of John Hoskins and Elizabeth ? is: 8i.John Hoskins, born 1540 in Herefordshire, England; died 1607 in England; married Margery Jones.