Virginia focused genealogy and history
Category: Amelia County Connections
A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to join my cousin, John David Morris, on a visit to the home where our 2x great‑grandmother Ann Octavia Vaughan (1844–1942) and her sister Mary Spencer Vaughan (1846–1881) lived after the deaths of their parents. The house—known today as the Farmer House—stands quietly along Little Creek in … Continue reading A Field Trip to Amelia County: Walking Through the Farmer House and the Lives of Our Ancestors
On the Chesterfield–Amelia borderlands, where the Appomattox River bends through tobacco fields and ferries cut across the James, a young militiaman named Ezekiel Dance spent the Revolutionary War marching from alarm to alarm. Never famous, never decorated, but always present when danger pressed closest to home, Ezekiel’s service reflects the lived reality of thousands of … Continue reading Ezekiel Dance – A Chesterfield County Militiaman in the Revolutionary War
In Part 4 of this series, we untangled one of the most persistent genealogical knots in the Blanton family: the identity of Richard³ Blanton (Richard², Thomas¹), born around 1723, who married Johanna “Hannah,” probably Anderson, and later moved to Cumberland County, Virginia. For decades, genealogists have mistakenly linked him to a different man—one who married … Continue reading My Blanton Family Roots Part 5 – Sorting out Richard Blantons continued
As we approach the 250th anniversary of American Independence, I am profiling each of my Revolutionary War ancestors and the many different ways they experienced that era. One of the most documentable is Ambrose Jeter of Caroline and Amelia Counties, Virginia, who rose from a frontier Huguenot community to become a militia officer, landowner, and local official … Continue reading From Caroline to Amelia: The Life and Legacy of Ambrose Jeter
If you missed my earlier posts about My Blanton Family Roots check them out here: My 7x great grandfather Thomas Blanton I of Old Rappahannock County and Essex County, Virginia: https://asonofvirginia.blog/2024/01/22/my-blanton-family-roots/ Thomas Blanton II and John Blanton see My Blanton Family Roots - Part 2 – The Second Generation here: https://asonofvirginia.blog/2025/04/07/my-blanton-family-root-part-2-the-second-generation/. Richard Blanton I of … Continue reading My Blanton Family Roots Part 4: Sorting out Richard Blantons
Virginia Chancery Court records are an invaluable resource for genealogists. But once in a while, they do more than confirm dates — they unlock secrets. That’s exactly what happened when I stumbled upon an 1805 court case involving the family of my 7x great-grandfather Richard Gray of Lawnes Creek Parish in Surry County, Virginia. A … Continue reading An Aunt with a Conscience Leads to a New Branch on My Family Tree: Richard Gray of Surry County
On 1 April 1685, my 7x great grandfather John Hatchett entered the Virginia record when he appeared before a Henrico County Court: “John Hatchett a servant boy belonging to Jno Farley being by him brought before the Wor[shipful] Court is adjudged ten years of age.”[1] Henrico County court record dated 1 April 1685 where John … Continue reading The Life of my 7x great grandfather John Hatchett: An Indentured Servant in Virginia
If you missed my earlier post My Blanton Family Roots, which is about my 7x great grandfather Thomas Blanton I of Old Rappahannock County and Essex County, Virginia, you can check it out here: https://asonofvirginia.blog/2024/01/22/my-blanton-family-roots/ For sons Thomas Blanton II and John Blanton see My Blanton Family Roots - Part 2 – The Second Generation … Continue reading My Blanton Family Roots – Part 3 – The Second Generation (2nd installment): Richard Blanton I of Spotsylvania County, Virginia (c.1688-c.1734) – my 6x great grandfather
If you missed my earlier post My Blanton Family Roots, which is about my 7x great grandfather Thomas Blanton of Old Rappahannock County and Essex County, Virginia, you can check it out here: https://asonofvirginia.blog/2024/01/22/my-blanton-family-roots/ Thomas1 Blanton left a widow and six children when he died in 1697/8, none of whom had reached adulthood thus all … Continue reading My Blanton Family Roots – Part 2 – The Second Generation
On 1 October 1803, the Virginia Argus newspaper ran the following communication sent by my 5x great grandfather Rodophil Jeter of Amelia County which began, “An attempt having been made by Nancy Ford to injure the reputation of my daughter Elizabeth, by a false and slanderous report, it became my duty to have recourse of … Continue reading Defending a Daughter’s Honor: Rodophil Jeter of Amelia County, Virginia – my 5x great grandfather (with a surprise ending for Jeter, Ligon and Ford researchers)
If you missed parts 1 & 2 you can check them out here: https://asonofvirginia.blog/2024/11/20/the-jones-family-of-slate-river-buckingham-county-virginia-part-1/ https://asonofvirginia.blog/2024/12/11/jones-family-of-slate-river-buckingham-county-virginia-part-2/ In parts 1 & 2, we built the Slate River Joneses family tree above, which begins with my 7x great grandfather Thomas Jones (c.1690-c.1768) by using land grants, deeds, property tax records and a lawsuit. We also established Thomas Jones … Continue reading Jones Family of Slate River, Buckingham County, Virginia – Part 3 (the Falling River Joneses)
If you missed part 1 you can check it out here: https://asonofvirginia.blog/2024/11/20/the-jones-family-of-slate-river-buckingham-county-virginia-part-1/ In Part 1 , we examined an 1803 Buckingham County deed and a 1793-1799 Prince Edward County District Court case file that provided proof of kinship and a significant amount of family history for the Joneses of Slate River in Buckingham County, Virginia. … Continue reading Jones Family of Slate River, Buckingham County, Virginia – Part 2
My connection to the Joneses is through my 5x great grandmother Martha (Jones) Walker Holland (c.1755-c.1821). She married (1) Capt. Henry Walker who was killed in 1779 at the Battle of Stono Ferry in South Carolina during the Revolutionary War and (2) Capt. Richard “Dick” Holland (c.1750-c.1803). By her first husband she had two children … Continue reading The Jones Family of Slate River, Buckingham County, Virginia – Part 1
In 1757, my 6x great-grandfather Robert Vaughan I (c.1710-c.1779) and his brother Abraham Vaughan (1721-c.1795) served as interpreters and guides during the French & Indian War (1754-1763). Both men were sons of Nicholas and Ann (----------) Vaughan of Prince George County, Virginia. In 1757, Robert Vaughan was living in Amelia County having settled there by … Continue reading Brothers Robert Vaughan and Abraham Vaughan – French and Indian War Interpreters and Guides
Robert Vaughan III (c.1770-c.1819) was born in Nottoway Parish, Amelia County, Virginia [1] to Robert II and Elsie (Motley) Vaughan. You can read about Robert Vaughan II here: https://asonofvirginia.blog/2024/08/11/robert-vaughan-ii-c-1736-c-1805-of-amelia-and-nottoway-counties-virginia/ In 1800, Robert Vaughan II bequeathed Robert Vaughan III a 484 acre tract in Henrico County, which Robert III sold in 1802 never having lived there.[2] … Continue reading Robert III (c. 1770 – c. 1819) and Sarah (Truly) Craddock Vaughan (c.1770-1839) of Amelia County, Virginia
![Robert Vaughan II [c.1736-c.1805] of Amelia and Nottoway Counties, Virginia](https://asonofvirginia.blog/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/june1780.jpg?w=624&h=172&crop=1)
On 22 April 1756, Robert & Martha (----------) Vaughan gifted their son Robert Vaughan, Jr., 200 acres of land on the lower side of Flat Creek for the “natural love and affection they bear unto thee the said son.” The deed mentions that the tract crossed Vaughan’s Creek [formerly Frank’s Creek] below Robert Vaughan’s plantation … Continue reading Robert Vaughan II [c.1736-c.1805] of Amelia and Nottoway Counties, Virginia
On 24 March 1740, for £4 of “good and lawful money” my 6x great grandfather Robert Vaughan I received a grant for 800 acres described as “lying and being in the County of Amelia on the lower side of Flatt Creek.” The bounds are given as “Beginning at his lower corner Poplar on said Creek … Continue reading Robert Vaughan I (c. 1710-c.1779) of Amelia County, Virginia – my 6x great grandfather
Several weeks ago I met Claude Morris when he accompanied a group of my Morris cousins to two Morris cemeteries in Buckingham County. See my earlier blog post A Field Trip to Buckingham County – meeting cousins and making new friends: https://asonofvirginia.blog/2024/05/11/a-field-trip-to-buckingham-county-meeting-cousins-and-making-new-friends/ Claude descends from Nicholas Hudson Morris (c.1770-c.1846) called “Hudson” while I descend from … Continue reading A Field Trip to Buckingham and Prince Edward Counties – Finding Morris’s Mill: John Morris, Esquire (1779-c.1862) of Buckingham County – my 4x great grandfather
When someone finds out I am a genealogist, the first question I am usually asked is “How far back can you go?” As someone who focuses on their Virginia genealogy, I usually tell them that I have identified more than 100 ancestors who arrived in Virginia before the American Revolution including seven (so far) that … Continue reading How Far back can You Go?
Descendants of Nathaniel “Natt” & Ann “Nancy” (Jeffries) Morris at the Morris family cemetery at Vassars. Pictured from left to right: Mardi (Morris) Deluhery, Russell Harper, Jennie (Morris) Gundy, Mary (Morris) Becker, Andrea Morris, Betsy (Morris) Sinnott and Steve Craig. I had the pleasure of spending a couple of days in Buckingham County in late … Continue reading A Field Trip to Buckingham County – meeting my Morris cousins and making new friends: (Nathaniel Morris c.1745-1813) my 5x great grandfather
A Son of Virginia 