Crawford Family History - Part 3
By Bob Chope
Editors Note: A couple of readers of Part II on the Crawfords expressed some confusion regarding the reference to the son of Captain David Crawford as "David Crawford II," when in fact he was the third "David Crawford" in the family line we are exploring. This was an unfortunate choice of a way to assist the reader in distinguishing father and son in this article. It would have been better to refer to David, the son of Captain David Crawford, as the III. In practice, the author has not encountered an instance where the early Crawford family used suffixes after their name to indicate their number in line of ancestors bearing the same name. Part III will explore the life of yet another Captain David Crawford and one of his daughters, Elizabeth Crawford. I could refer to him as David Crawford IV, but this could create problems for future researchers who come across this David's eldest son (yes, another David) listed in certain government documents as "David Crawford, Jr."
Captain David Crawford, not to be confused with his grandfather, Captain David Crawford of the Virginia Colonial Militia, was born on February 2, 1734 in Hanover County, Virginia, moving with his family to Amherst County where the Crawfords took up residence at the foot of Tobacco Row Mountains. There remains to this day a a passage between the mountains called "Crawford's Gap."
David married Elizabeth (Lucy) Henderson, the daughter of John Henderson and his wife, a woman with the maiden name of either Bennett or Barret). The Hendersons were residents of Albemarle County, VA.
Most of what we know about David and Elizabeth's children is derived from David's will. David's will was made on December 14, 1801 and he died in August 1802. Based on information found in his will and certain assumptions, David and Elizabeth had the following children:
1. Captain John Crawford: b ?, d. ? He married a woman named Burrus.
2. William S. Crawford, Esq,: b. January 5, 1760, d. ?. He married Sophia Penn on
November 19, 1785. For many years William served as the Clerk of Amherst County, VA
and as a lawyer he often found himself a rival of Breckinridge before the grandfather
of John C. Breckinridge moved to Kentucky. (Memoirs of the Crawford Family)
3. Nelson Crawford: b.?, d.?.
4. Reverend Charles Crawford: b. abt. 1765, d. After 1815. Charles married Sally Lewis,
believed to be his cousin. He was ordained in 1789 by Bishop Madison and received as minister
of the Amherst Parish of the Church of England. Charles inherited 396 acres near Tobacco Row
Mountains from his father, but apparently sold it soon after his father's death and removed
to a new parish in Kentucky.
5. Nathan Crawford: b.?, d ?. Nathan farmed on 1,500 acres of land that he inherited from his father
situated at the fork of Barshaw's Creek in Amherst County.
6. David Crawford (Jr.): b. ?, d. ? Never married.
7. Reuben Crawford: b. Abt. 1768. d. 1812. Despite his age, it is known that Reuben served in the
War of 1812. He did not return from the front, either dying of natural causes or as a casualty of
battle.
8. Elizabeth Crawford: b. Abt. 1771 in Amherst County, d. April 2, 1820 in Amherst County.
She married Nicholas Clayton Davies, the son of Henry Landon Davies and grandson of Nicholas
Davies (Old Nick).
9. Nancy Crawford: b. ?, d. ?. Married Rowland Jones.
10. Sally Crawford: b. ?, d. ?. Married Thomas Cocke. Thomas Cocke and Nicholas Clayton Davies
were partners in a couple of business ventures in Amherst County, VA.
Captain David Crawford did not inherit the family homestead, "Tusculum," but rather inherited other tracts of land from his father and added to it with his own purchases around Stone Creek and Buffalo Creek in Amherst County just prior to the outbreak of the American Revolution. David and his wife probably remained at Tusculum until they were able to establish their own plantation. It is believed that Tusculum was left to Captain David's brother, William Crawford.
David also ventured across the Blue Ridge by purchasing large tracts of land in the Kentucky territory. David's land in Kentucky was situated along Harrord Creek and the Brashear Creek in Shelby County, Kentucky. Although David did not take up residence on this land, he did leave sizeable tracts to his sons David, Reuben, and Nathan. Following the premature deaths of Reuben and David, all of the Kentucky land was transferred to Nathan Crawford, who by the time of his father's death had already settled on about 1,500 acres on Brashear Creek.
In 1775 David was elected by the Freeholders of Amherst County to be one of the twenty-one (21) men to form the Revolutionary Committee for the Buckingham District. (Amherst County, VA "Lost Order Book: 1773-1782) The Committee's district consisted of Amherst, Albemarle, Augusta and Buckingham Counties. In this capacity David assumed an active role in the organization of a battalion of Minutemen, who were to be called upon to protect the District, as well as perform regular service beyond the District as needed and directed by Continental forces. As a member of the Committee, David was appointed a Captain and charged with raising troops from his home county.
A request for David Crawford's Revolutionary War military records from the National Archives produced no results. The only evidence of Captain David Crawford's military experience found to date is a sworn statement from Mr. Moses Waters made on December 10, 1832 in support of his claim for a government war pension. In 1832 Mr. Waters was a resident of Rutherford County, North Carolina, but in 1779 he resided in Amherst County, Virginia. In order to qualify for a soldier's pension veterans had to provide evidence that they served in the Revolutionary War. The recounting of participation in military campaigns was one way a claimant could prove that he served.
According to Mr. Waters recollection, in 1779 he enlisted for a nine month term of service under Captain David Crawford of Amherst County. Mr. Waters recounted how Captain Crawford lead his troops to the area of Lexington, Kentucky to engage Indians in the pay of the British. Unfortunately, Mr. Waters provides no specific details about this campaign. What tribe or tribes, if any, that Captain Crawford's troops engaged is for now a matter of speculation. It is possible that Crawford's unit were among troops sent by then Governor Thomas Jefferson to assist Colonel Clark in the Kentucky and Ohio territories. If this was the case, it is most likely that the Virginians engaged the Chilicothes who were under orders of the British to ravage the area around Harrodsburg. (The American Revolution, p. 731)
It was the practice of the British to hire certain Native American tribes who were hostile toward the American Colonists to harass settlers living on the frontier. These tribes saw allying themselves with the British as being in their best interest because the Colonists, especially those from Pennsylvania, Virginia, and the Carolinas were expanding their settlements beyond the Allegheny Mountains in violation of several treaties entered into between the tribes and the British government. A victory by the Colonists would spell doom for the tribes. History has proven that this is exactly what happened.
Future research may discover Captain Crawford's military records. It is possible that his records may exist in the archives of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Research will continue and anything new that is learned will be reported in a future article.
David's public service was not limited to the local militia and his service on the Revolutionary Committee of the Buckingham District. At Court held in Amherst County in July 1776, David Crawford together with other prominent gentlemen of the County took the oath as a Justice of Peace. The record of the proceedings states the following:
"In obedience to an Order of the last Convention to Enable the Present Magistrates and Officers to Continue the Administration of Justice, and for settling General Mode of proceedings in Criminal & other cases till the same can be more amply provided for, William Cabell, Esq. the first nominated Gentleman in the Commission of the Peace for the County having first taken the Oath prescribed by Ordinance which was administered to him by Zacharias Taliaferro and Ambrose Rucker, Gent., whereupon the said William Cabell, Gent., proceeded to administer the same Oath to the said Zacharias Taliaferro, Ambrose Rucker, Alexander Reid, Jr., Roderick McCalloch, James Nevil, Daniel Gaines, David Crawford, John Rose, and James Dillard, Gentlemen." (Sweeny, Amherst County Lost Order Books, 1773-1782, p.2)
Captain David Crawford's will is dated December 14, 1801. Amherst County, VA, Deed Book A 1761-1765, p. 91) It is estimated that David died about eight months after drafting his will in August 1802. His will makes generous distributions of land and cash to his wife, Elizabeth, and each of his children, except William S. Crawford who died before him. We know this from a codicil to the will that David filed early in 1802. Therefore, we can assume that William died some time between December 1801 and April 1802.
David's daughter Elizabeth Crawford married Nicholas Clayton Davies on October 13, 1789. (Wm. Sweeny, Marriage Bonds and Other Marriage Records of Amherst Co. VA - 1763-1800) Since both Elizabeth and Nicholas were under age at the time of their marriage, they required written permission from their respective parents. Based on the estimate of Elizabeth's birth date, she was about 18 years old at the time of her marriage, but there are sources that state she was 16 when married. If we calculate the date of her birth based on her obituary, however, we come up with her age being 25 at the time of her wedding. Such conflicts are not uncommon in genealogical research and we cannot always rely on the accuracy of primary source information, such as an obituary printed in a local newspaper. It is possible that the person providing the information made an error in Elizabeth's age or that her age at the time of her death was misprinted in the obituary. There is ample evidence that Elizabeth was underage at the time of her marriage to Nicholas to believe that she married between the ages of 16 and 18. Nicholas Clayton Davies was 20 years old in 1789, also requiring the permission of his parents. The legal age for marriage without parental permission in Colonial Virginia was 21.
Close ties often developed between families joined by marriage. Elizabeth's sister, Sally, married Mr. Thomas Cocke. Thomas Cocke and Nicholas C. Davies pursued several business ventures together. In 1800 Nicholas and Thomas again took up the idea of establishing the town of Bethel, which was initiated without too much success by Nicholas' father and grandfather. Nicholas and Thomas Cocke built and operated a flour mill with a dam located above the town on Salt Creek. ( McLeRoy & McLeRoy, More Passages, p. 59) Nicholas and Thomas also took over the Davies ferry that transported people across the James River at the site of Bethel. With his father, Henry Landon Davies, he built and operated the second largest tobacco warehouse in the region. The largest was located in Madison.
It is difficult to determine where Elizabeth and Nicholas resided based on the information discovered so far. The evidence points to their construction of a home on Davies property near the family cemetery know as "Vault Hill." Several references have been found that either state that Nicholas and Elizabeth lived near Vault Hill and that their home-place was know as Vault Hill.
Nicholas Clayton Davies died about the year 1811, as evidenced by an "Administer's Bond" being posted on June 17, 1811 in the amount of $20,000. This would have made Nicholas about 42 years old at the time of his death and Elizabeth became a widow between the age of 38 and 40. She still had several young children at home to take care of, including the youngest one who may have been born about the time of Nicholas' death. Elizabeth and Nicholas had the following issue:
1. Francis * Kempis Davies, b. C. 1790
2. Arthur Beverly Davies, b. 1792
3. Captain Mayo Davies, b. 1794
4. Henry Landon Davies, b. c. 1796
5. John Davies, b. c. 1799
6. Beverly Davies, b. c. 1802
7. Roderick Davies, b. 1805
8. Whiting Davies, b. 1809
9. Nicholas Clayton Davies, Jr., b. c. 1810
10. Henry Ann Davies, b. b. c. 1810 (Believed to be a twin to 9 above)
11. Editha Davies, b. 1811
In his will, Nicholas divided up his rather large landholdings among his children. For those who had not reached legal age at the time of his death, the land was placed in trust with Elizabeth until they reached age. Elizabeth received the "Mansion House" and 800 acres surrounding it and other remaining land that was not given to his children. The Court records state that the 800 acres that Elizabeth received was a tract next to land owned by Arthur Davies, one of Nicholas Clayton's brothers.
Following Nicholas Clayton's death Elizabeth received help from her oldest children: Francis, Arthur and Mayo. The help came as assistance in managing her estate. Unfortunately, especially for the youngest children in the family, Elizabeth passed away only nine years following her husband. Elizabeth passed away in 1820.
Guardianship of Elizabeth's children who had not yet reached legal age to take up their inheritance was shared among what we suspect were all family members, either through bloodline or marriage. Nathaniel Manson was appointed guardian of John Davies. It is suspected that this Nathaniel Manson was the son of the Nathaniel Manson who married Lucy Whiting Clayton. Lucy (nee Clayton) Manosn was Henry Landon Davies' second wife and the sister of his first wife, Anne Clayton.
Young Henry Davies had joint guardians. His brother, Arthur, and John Penn were appointed his guardians. This is a strange arrangement in that the closest Penn relative to little Henry was his aunt by marriage, Sophia Penn, who was married to his mother's brother, William Crawford. The familial relationship between John Penn and the Davies and Crawford families is not known. He could have been Sophia's brother or son. The Penn family owned large tracts of land in Bedford County not far from Davies property and the two families did have business dealings together. It is equally odd that Arthur did not assume sole custody of his younger brother. He certainly had the means to do so. What is even more intriguing about this situation is Henry's probable age at the time of his mother's death. He could have been 24 years old, well beyond the legal age when he could manage his own affairs. This leads to speculation that Henry may have been suffering from an illness that required care beyond his age of majority. On the other hand, he was named as a guardian for his younger siblings and appears to have taken over this responsibility within a few years following his mother's death. The story here is unclear.
The guardianships of Beverly, Roderick, Whiting, Henry Ann, Nicholas and Editha were divided among the Crawfords and older Davies children. Francis and later Henry Davies were responsible for all of their younger siblings, except for Editha who was raised by Nathan Crawford. Records have been found that show that the Crawfords periodically provided funds for the education of the Davies orphans.
Eventually all of the Davies children went on to manage their own affairs and became successful in their own right, with the exception of Nicholas Clayton Davies, Jr. On October 17, 1836 Beverly and Arthur Davies were granted a "Lunatic Bond" by the Amherst County Court to administer the estate of their brother Nicholas Clayton Davies. The Court found Nicholas to be of "unsound mind."
Sources:
Virginia Soldiers of 1776, Volume I, p. 466.
Memorial of the Branch of the Crawford Family which comprises the *Descendants of John Crawford of Virginia 1660-1883, Privately printed, *New York, New York, 1883.
Davis, Bailey Futon, Amherst County, Virginia, Deed Book A, (1761-1765). **Amherst, VA c. 1970.
Sweeny, Lenora Higginbotham, Amherst County, Virginia in the Revolution **"LOST ORDER BOOK" 1773-1748, Amherst, Virginia, c. 1982.
Winsor, Justin, The American Revolution, A Narrative, Critical and Bibliographical History, Land's End Press, Sons of Liberty Publication, New York, New York, c.1972.
In addition to the above listed sources, research donated by several family members was used.