Samuel J Tatum, Jr.

Nathaniel Tatum, baptized 18 Nov 1599 at Holy Trinity the Less, London, son of William Tatum and his wife Ellen Kirk who were married 3 Aug. 1589 at St. Benet Grace Church, London, was among the 75 boys and 25 wenches listed in the Bridewell Royal Hospital records, 27 Feb. 1618/9, to go to Virginia. These were children aged 8 to 16 found "running wild in the streets" of London, "sleeping under stalls", and begging and had been committed to Bridewell, which served as a house of correction. They were mainly homeless waifs , although some were probably petty pilferers. One of the ships that brought them to Virginia was the George, 150 tons, William Ewens, master, which left England in March 1618/9 and arrived in Virginia in May 1619. By Feb. 1624/5 there were alive in Virginia but very few young men who can be identified as "Bridewell Boys" and of these there are but two, Nathaniel Tatum and Nicholas Granger, from whom descent can be proved.

Nathaniel Tatum was living at West and Shirley Hundred 16 Feb. 1623/4 and at Shirley Hundred, Charles City, in the muster, 22 Jan 1624/5, he was listed as 20 years old, having come in the George, 1619. He patented 100 acres of land in Charles City County on Appomattox River, 25 July 1638, for the transportation of his wife Ann and his daughter Mary Tatum. This land adjoined a 500 acre patent to him which he re patented 4 Dec. 1641. An Act of Assembly of 6 Jan. 1639/40 named him as a tobacco viewer for the north side of Appomattox River. He was living as late as 27 Jan.1675/6 when a deed of gift from Nathaniel Tatum the Elder to his grandson Nathaniel Tatum was recorded in Bristol Parish court.

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See Tidewater Virginia Families by Virginia Lee Hutcheson Davis. Published by Genealogical Publishing Co. Inc.

Pages 690-695 for Tatum family history

Nathaniel Tatum left London on the "George" in March 1618. The "George" was a 150-ton sailing vessel, with William Ewen, the master. It took better than two months for the voyage and they arrived in Virginia in May 1619. Nathaniel was fourteen, having been born in 1605 in the vicinity of London, England. He was reported at the uster of Shirley Hundred in January 1624, as being aged twenty years, and as having come in the "George" in May 1619.

The trip across the ocean was beyond his wildest dreams. He could not believe his good fortune. While the passengers were crowded in the mid-deck, where they ate, slept and whiled away the time, unable to even stand up straight, there were times when he could go up on deck. He reveled in the feel of the sun and wind on his face and laughed at the spray that followed him. He could not believe his freedom and the vastness of the ocean. It was a hard trip, but and exciting time to feel the freedom and abandon of the sea beneath him.

Nathaniel could not remember where he started life. At an early age he had no parents and no home. He could remember his years on the streets of London scrounging for food, enough clothes to keep warm, and a warm place to sleep at night. He had resorted to begging, sleeping under stalls and running the streets, away from the law enforcement people and the thought of being confined somewhere.

There were groups of children, all waifs, who had been cast upon the streets of London to survive. The alternative would have been the work house, and the children had beocme adept at avoiding capture and being sent there. They used whatever means they had needed to survive and stay warm.

Bridewell Hospital in London received a number of these children, at one time there were "seventy-five boys and twenty-five wenches who were restrained there and slated for passage to Virginia". They were all children, ages eight to sixteen, who had been found running wild in the streets of London and committed to Bridewell which served as a house of corrections. Nathaniel's name was on that list.

Edward O'Donoghue extracted the names of the boys and girls listed at Bridwell in February 1618, and reported that they were between the ages of eight and sixteen. This is consistent with the later muster report, and with their confinement at Bridewell. There were names of seventy-five boys on the llist to come to Virginia. By February 1624, the time of the muster, there were allive in Virginia, but very few of the young men who could be identified as "Bridewell Boys" or "Bridewell Orphans". Of those, there were only two, Nicholas Granger and Nathaniel Tatum, from whom descent has been proved.

Nathaniel was living at West and Shirley Hundred on February 16,1623 and was included in the muster of Shirley Hundred, Charles Cittie, on January 23, 1624. He reported that he was aged twenty years, and had come to Virginia in the "George" in May 1619.

Charles City was one of the four great corporations set up by the Virginia Company of London in 1618. It retained its original area when it became one of the eight shires(counties) into which Virginia was divided in 1634. Charles City County extended on both sides of the James River from James City County on the east, to Henrico County on the west. Its eastern boundary was the Chikahominy River.

The pioneer settlements in Charles City County were actually plantations parishes, some of which were the earlist in Virginia history. The first of these, Charles City, was established about 1612 as a place of "retreat against any forraigne enemy" on the south bank of both the Appomatox and James rivers, several miles above its mouth. About the same period of time, the early plantation of West and Shirley Hundred, on the north side of the James River, about twenty -five miles above Jamestown, was founded by Governer Thomas Dale as a part of his New Bermudas, centered about the parent settlement of Bermuda Hundred . West and Shirley Hundred, of which Westover plantation was the nucleus, became Westover Parish. The parish extended to Charles Cittie, south of the James: by 1643, this part of the parish became Bristol Parish.

Nathaniel evidently had moved from the north side of the James to the south by 1624, and was living on the south side at Charles Citty. Nathaniel later patented land on the south side of the Appomatox River. Before May 1638, he had already established himself at the falls on the south side of river. He had married and apparently had been back to England, or he had been back to England and married.

On July 25, 1638, Nathaniel patented 100 acres on the Appomatox, south into the woods, north upon a creek parting the land from his own 500 acres, and west upon the river and the land of John Baker. Nathaniel claimed his right to the land for transporting his wife, Ann Tatum and daughter, Mary Tatum. The 500 acres had veen assigned to him the day before by Thomas Causey, and lay next to the land of Causey.

Nathaniels land also adjoined land belonging to Walter Chiles. Later Col. Francis Epps, one of the members of the Coucil of State, was to patent land adjoining Nathaniel. Also among his neighbors were Walter Brooks and Lt. John Howell; Nathaniel was well-situated among the landed gentry. Because there is no record of the amount of land Nathaniel owned before May 1638, his total land holdings cannot be determined.

Nathaniel and Ann Tatum had at least three children: Mary, Nathaniel II and Samuel Tatum. Isaac, mentioned in the Charles City County court orders ,may have been his son, and John has been said to have been his son. Mary must have been their first chid, since she was the only child named as having made the trip from England with her mother and father, before 1638. The Nathaniel Tatum, Jr., who was paid 200 pounds of tobacco for a wolf killed in 1656, would certainly have been the son of Nathaniel and Ann.

It is known through a convoluted process that Samuel was also the son of Nathaniel and Ann Tatum. Nathaniel II did not have any sons named Nathaniel, at least that lived beyond childhood. His will listed sons: Henry, Christopher, Peter and Edward Tatum. Nathaniel I made a deed of gift of a parcel of land to his grandson, Nathaniel. Nathaniel was the son of Samuel, as indicated in the will of Mary Tatum, Samuel's widow. Thus Nathaniel I had a son Samuel, who in turn, had a son named Nathaniel, for his grandfather.

The information that conclusively links Samuel to Nathaniel was found in the Henrico County records in which the proceedings of Bristol parish court had been preserved. They were entered in the record on October 13, 1690, but the particular entry above was dated January 27, 1675. The deed of gift of Nathaniel Tatum to his grandson was the last entry of the Bristol Parish court.

Nathaniel lived to be quite an old man, especially considering the hardships he had endured not only from his early childhood, but of establishing himself and his family in the frontier of a new country. He was living in January of 1675, and must have been in his seventy- first year.

It is not known when Nathaniel died, nor when Ann Tatum died. She outlived her husband, but died before April 26, 1684. A land patent of that date, for 150 acres in Isle of Wight County to Mr. Thomas Pitt described the land as that which "Ann Tatum died seized of"

Children of NATHANIEL TATUM and ANN ? are:

 		i. 	  	MARY TATUM, born Bef. 1638.

	Notes for MARY TATUM:

See Tidewater Virginia Families by Virginia Lee Hutcheson Davis. Published by Genealogical Publishing Co. Inc.

Pages 690-695 for Tatum family history

Issue: Mary Tatum the Daughter of Nathaniel and Ann Tayum, born before 1638, and brought from England.

 		ii. 	  	NATHANIEL TATUM, born 1640 in VIRGINIA; died Aft. 1714 in VIRGINIA.

	Notes for NATHANIEL TATUM:

See Tidewater Virginia Families by Virginia Lee Hutcheson Davis. Published by Genealogical Publishing Co. Inc.

Pages 690-695 for Tatum family history

Nathaniel Tatum was the son of Nathaniel and Ann Tatum. He grew up in Charles City County in that area that became Prince George County and probably continued to live there. He did not patent any additional land until 1716, when he acquired 321 acres adjacent to his nephew, Nathaniel Jr., on the southside of Joseph's Swamp in Prince George County. He was credited with 500 acres of land in 1704. It is not known whom Nathaniel married, but he had sons, named in his will: Henry, Christopher, Peter, and Edward Tatum. He made his will on August 24, 1714 and it was presented in Prince George County court, on November 10, 1719. He did not mention his wife, so it is probable that she had died earlier.

 	5376 	iii. 	  	SAMUEL TATUM, born 1642 in VIRGINIA; died 1715 in VIRGINIA; married MARY ?.

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From: http://www.worldfamilies.net/forum/index.php?topic=9388.0

Over the years there has been alot written about Nathaniel Tatum, and still I'm amazed at what we have uncovered yet about him. In my correspondence with others over the years, I have been enlightened to the material that is gleamed from the past.

Here on this thread I would like to have a place where when you find material about Nathaniel the immigrant or find things related to the history of the period. Also material that would help us to understand the situation that he found himself in this new world. There have been a few emails that I have received lately that have sparked this thread.

The first is from member T-24 midvale " "Nathaniel was definitely on the Feb 1619 Bridewell list of children slated for passage to Virginia, and of course he stated that he arrived in May 1619 on the George, so that much is a safe bet. As to whether he was an indentured servant, who knows? But this book (starting at about the bottom of page 162) does suggest a lot of the Bridewell boys were indentured:" " Masterless men: the vagrancy problem in England 1560-1640 By A. L. Beier " http://books.google.com/books?id=N6M9AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA164&dq=bridewell...

The next is from T-14: ("www.shirleyplantation.com under "Timeline") "The first record of servants at Shirley Plantation dates to 1616 when John Rolfe documented that Captain Isaac Madison commanded 25 men in planting and curing tobacco. These men were all white and indentured servants, also called indentures. Indentured servants were the original labor force at Shirley as well as in the rest of the English colonies. Indentured servants were people of various races who were contractually obligated to become laborers for a specified period of time in exchange for debt repayment, food, lodging, transportation to the colonies, and the teaching of a trade. Indentured servants were brought from Africa, the Caribbean islands, Scotland, Ireland, and England."

From the above you can start to get a picture of the life that Nathaniel Tatum had to contend.

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Nathaniel2 Tatum (William1) was born 18 Nov 1599 in LONDON, MIDDLESEX, ENGLAND, and died 27 Jan 1675 in CHARLES CITY CO, VA. He married Ann in HOLY TRINITY, LONDON, MIDDLESEX, ENGLAND. She was born in ENGLAND, and died 1744 in NORFOLK CO, VA.

http://listsearches.rootsweb.com/th/read/TATUM/2006-12/1166053909

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Nathaniel Tatum, baptized 18 Nov. 1599 at Holy Trinity the Less, London, son of William Tatum and his wife Ellen Kirk who were married 3 Aug. 1589 at St. Benet Grace Church, London, was among the 75 boys and 25 wenches listed in the Bridewell Royal Hospital records, 27 Feb. 1618/9, to go to Virginia. These were children aged 8 to 16 found "running wild in the streets " of London, "sleeping under stalls", and begging and had been committed to Bridewell, which served as a house of correction. They were mainly homeless waifs, although some were probably petty pilferers. One of the ships that brought them to Virginia was the George, 150 tons , William Ewens, master, which left England in March 1618/9 and arrived in Virginia in May 1619. By Feb . 1624/5 there were alive in Virginia but very few young men who can be identified as "Bridewell Boys" and of these there are but two, Nathaniel Tatum and Nicholas Granger , from whom descent can be proved.

Nathaniel Tatum was living at West and Shirley Hundred 16 Feb. 1623/4 and at Shirley Hundred, Charles City, in the muster, 22 Jan 1624/5, he was listed as 20 years old, having come in the George, 1619. He patented 100 acres of land in Charles City County on Appomattox River, 25 July 1638, for the transportation of his wife Ann and his daughter Mary Tatum. This land adjoined a 500 acre patent to him which he repatented 4 Dec. 1641. An Act of Assembly of 6 Jan. 1639/40 named him as a tobacco viewer for the north side of Appomattox River. He was living as late as 27 Jan.1675/6 when a deed of gift from Nathaniel Tatum the Elder to his grandson Nathaniel Tatum was recorded in Bristol Parish court.

Nathaniel Tatum SR. on deeds with JOHN HOWELL in Charles city Co. Va. Early Virginia Immigrants, by George Cabell Greer, Clerk Virginia State land Office, Genealogical Pub. Inc The family name may have been originally Tatham (meaning 'from' the place) from Lancashire

Nathaniel was christened on 18 Nov 1599 at Holy Trinity the Less Church, the son of William Tatum and Ellen Kirk who married on 3 Aug 1587 at St. Benet Grace Church in London. [Holy Trinity the Less Church was an Anglican Church in the center of London, near St. Paul's Cathedral. It was started in 1540 and destroyed by fire in 1666 in the Great Fire of London and was not rebuilt. St. Benet Grace Church on Gracechurch St. was also destroyed by the 1666 fire.] His parents must have died when he was young because he was on a list at Bridewell Royal Hospital records, 27 Feb. 1618/19 of 75 boys and 25 girls who were to go to Virginia. These children were 8-16 years old and had been found "running wild in the streets" of London, "sleeping under stalls", and begging and had been committed to Bridewell, which served as a house of correction. They were mainly homeless waifs though some were probably petty pilferers. One of the ships that brought these children to Virginia was the "George" which left London March 1619 and arrived in Virginia in May. [In March 1617/18, Pocahontas and her husband and family were scheduled to sail on the "George" back to Virginia, but she became ill from tuberculosis, was taken off the ship at Gravesend and died there. In May her father, Powhatan died--perhaps when he heard the news of his daughter's death--leaving his cruel brother in charge of the tribe.]

One account says that 3 brothers, Augustine, Lawrence, and Nathaneill Tatham sailed from Southhampton, England, on the Good Ship George in 1619 for America via Bermuda. In 1620 this ship landed in New Jersey where Augustine remained and Nathaniell traveled on to Virginia. Nothing is known of Lawrence except that descendants of Nathaniel sometimes gave their children the name Lawrence. [from Meadia Research]

From the Virginia Colonial Record: "So far as can be definitely ascertained, the first in America, Nathaniell Tatham, who immigrated to Virginia and settled in Charles City County." Nathaniel left England in March 1619 and after a 2-month voyage arrived in Jamestown, Va. in May.

He arrived in time to hear about the first representative assembly in the New World which was convened in the Jamestown church on July 30, 1619. In 1619 a Dutch trader stopped at the Jamestown port and exchanged his cargo of Africans for food in 1619. At the time these first Africans were only indentured servants, similar to poor white Englishmen. (The race-based system of slavery didn't fully develop until the 1680's.) Though there was peace for a while between the colonists and the Indians because of the marriage of Pocahontas, daughter of the Algonquian chief Powhatan. Pocahontas died in 1617 in England. Her son, Thomas was raised in England but came to Virginia after he was grown. John Rolfe married again to Jane Pierce in 1619 and they had a baby girl in 1620.

By 1622 the Indians had become disenchanted with the English settlers and, in 1622, attacked the out plantations in the Good Friday Massacre, killing 347 settlers, setting off a war that lasted a decade. A last-minute warning by Chanco, an Indian who was living with a white family and had become a Christian, spared Jamestown, but John Rolfe was killed in the attack, possibly by Powhatan's successor and brother, Opechancanough, the uncle of Pocahontas.

In May 1623 Captain William Tucker concludes peace negotiations with a Powhatan village by proposing a toast with a drink laced with poison prepared by Dr. John Potts; 200 Powhatans die instantly and another 50 are slaughtered.

According to the records 7,289 people migrated to Virginia between 1609 and 1624, mostly as indentured servants. 6,040 of those died of disease, starvation or infections acquired onboard the ships in passage. Until the 1660's only 20% of the arrivals in a given year survived. From 1625-1640: An estimated 1,000 or more indentured servants arrived each year, some orphans and condemned criminals but mostly the unemployed seeking economic opportunity.

<>In Feb 1623/24 Nathaniel was living in the West and Shirley Hundred and at Shirley Hundred, Charles City (on the north side of the James River), and was in the muster, 22 Jan 1624/5. He was listed as 20 years old and having come to Virginia in 1619 on the "George." In 1624 when he was 25 years old, Nathaniel moved from the north side of the James River to the south side. Charles City was one of the four great corporations set up by the Virginia Company of London in 1618. In 1634 Virginia was divided into 8 counties with Charles City County being one with its original area intact. Charles City County lay on both sides of the James River.

When he was 39 years old, Nathaniel patented 100 acres of land in Charles City County on Appomattox River, 25 July 1638, for transporting his wife Ann and his daughter Mary Tatum. This would lead us to believe that he went back to England, married, had a child, and brought them to Virginia, giving him claim to a 100-acre tract of land. This land adjoined a 500-acre patent to him which he re-patented 4 Dec. 1641.

<>An Act of Assembly of 6 Jan. 1639/40 named Nathaniel Tatum, Cheney Boyce, and Anthony Wyatt as a "Viewers of Tobacco" for Charles City for the north side of Appomattox River.

1644, April 18: Chief Opechancanough leads Indians in an attack, killing nearly 500 colonists. 1644, October: A resident in Jamestown shoots Chief Opechancanough, a prisoner, in the back. 1651: First Indian Reservation is created near Richmond, Virginia. 1660, March 3: The Virginia Assembly elects Berkeley to Governorship. 1661: Virginia institutionalizes slavery with a law that makes the status of the mother determine slave or free status of the child. 1669: South Carolina founded <> Considering the hardships and dangers of the times, Nathaniel lived to be an old man of about 76 years old. Nathaniel was living as late as 27 Jan. 1675/6 when a deed of gift from Nathaniel Tatum the Elder to his grandson Nathaniel Tatum was recorded in Bristol Parish court.

Ann died before April 26, 1684 because a land patent of that date, for 150 acres in Isle of Wright County to Mr. Thomas Pitt, described the land as that which "Ann Tatum died seized of". 1. MARY TATUM, must be the oldest since she is the only one mentioned as having made the trip from England with her parents before 1638.

2. NATHANIEL TATUM II, b abt 1635, Charles City, Va. He married Elizabeth Turner. Died bef 1719, Prince George County, VA Children: Nathaniel III, maybe also Edward, Christopher, Peter and Henry.

3. SAMUEL TATUM, born abt 1630 in Charles City Co, Va. He married Mary Elizabeth Moore. Children: Nathaniel (1727, m Elizabeth), Ann, Rebecca, Mary, Barbara, Samuel (m Phoebe)

<>There may also have been a son named Isaac Tatum (there is mention of an Isaac Tatum in Charles City county court records), and also John Tatum has also been mentioned as a son of Nathaniel's.