Captain William Whittington of Virginia
Judith Taylor
I live near to where "Cappeteyn Willem Wittinton uyt de Verginjes" (d. 28
September 1659) is buried here in the Netherlands. I have tied him to
Captain William Whittington who fl. 1641-1659 as a commissioner of the court
and militia captain in Accomack County, Virginia, but I have not been able
to tie him to his English ancestors. It is plausible that he is connected
with the Pauntley Whittingtons, but so far I have only discovered secondary
sources and there is a break of several generations. His will, referring to
his impending voyage to Holland, unfortunately makes no reference to English
relatives.
William Whittington's year of birth is given in some (secondary) sources as
1616, but this seems to be speculative. I have come across a baptism entry
for a Wylliam Whyttington, son of a John Whyttington, in Alterton, GLS, in
1610, but have not been able to rule this in/out.
I saw that there had been some discussions about the Pauntley Whittingtons
on this list and I would be very grateful for any pointers. And of course I
would be very happy to exchange what information I have if it is of
interest.
Judith (in Holland)
WJho...@aol.com
In a message dated 4/9/2006 9:29:21 AM Pacific Standard Time,
judith...@planet.nl writes:
live near to where "Cappeteyn Willem Wittinton uyt de Verginjes" (d. 28
September 1659) is buried here in the Netherlands. I have tied him to
Captain William Whittington who fl. 1641-1659 as a commissioner of the court
and militia captain in Accomack County, Virginia, but I have not been able
to tie him to his English ancestors
How exactly have you done this? If you could post the proof text that would
be great.
Thanks
Will Johnson
Claud...@aol.com
This may be of interest:
William Whittington of Ackamack in Virginia, merchant, aged 40, William
Melling of the same, merchant, aged 49, and James Cade of London, merchant, aged
52, depose 1 Sept., 1659, that in July last, at Amsterdam, they bought the
ship called the Christina Regina, now the Northampton, on behalf of the
aforesaid William Whittington, Lieut.-Col. William Randall and John Michell of
Ackamack
William Whittington of Northampton county in Virginia, mariner, master of
the ship formerly called the Shepherd, now the Northampton, deposes 19 Aug.,
1657, aged 40.
Best regards,
MichaelAnne
Judith Taylor
> If you could post the proof text that would be great.
Gladly. This is not exactly medieval, and I should stress that I'm more
interested in tracing this William's origins than anything else, but here is
the text you ask for.
The memorial stone to "Cappeteyn Willem Wittinton" in Graft, Holland reads
as follows: "Hier leyt Begrave Cappeteyn Willem Wittinton uyt de Verginjes
sterf den 28 september 1659" (Here lies buried W.W. from Virginia who died
28 September 1659).
From burial records we know the grave's owners in the period 1652-1693 to be
an Abraham Janszoon "Bestevaer" and his son Jacob, and there are several
family members buried there. Other records in Holland, which I have not
consulted personally, show this same Abraham Janszoon Bestevaer to be a
prominent local merchant and link him with the tobacco trade. This led local
historians to suppose that "Wittinton" was perhaps a ship's captain who
transported tobacco from Virginia to Holland and that he died here after
such a voyage.
Captain William Whittington of Virginia was not a ship's captain though.
According to Northampton, VA county records he was a captain in the militia,
as well as a landowner, tobacco planter, attorney, and commissioner.
Evidence for the fact that this is one and the same person comes in a will
made in 1659 in which he refers to his upcoming voyage to Holland. This is
in Northampton County records.
"In the Name of God Amen Whereas I Capt Wm Whittington of ye County of
Northampton in Virginia am intended by Gods Assistance to take a Voyage very
shortly for Holland & not Knowing how it Shall please God to dispose of me I
do therefore make & ordain this my last Will & Testment ... All my Land I
have in Virginia I give unto my loving son Wm Whittington excepting three
hundred Acres of Land upon ye Branch lying where Mr Edw: Gunter liveth ... &
all ye Land yt I have lying & being in ye province of Maryland I give &
bequeath unto ye Child [torn] Wife now goeth wthall be it Boy or Girl and as
for the three hundred before excepted.I give & bequeath unto my loving
Daughter Ursula Whittington...Also I give unto ye Use of a free School If it
go forward in Northampton Cunty two thousand pounds of Tobacco & as for all
ye rest of my Estate wheresoever it is or Shall be found I give & bequeath
it unto my welbeloved Wife Mrs Ursulie Whittington & ye Child that my Wife
now goetheth with ...Witness my hand & Seal this 4th day of May 1659 Wm
Whittington" (Mackay, H. and Perry, C.M., Northampton County Virginia
Record Book - Deeds, Wills &C Volume 7 1657-1666, Picton Press, Maine)
There is no burial record for Captain William Whittington in Northampton
County records. There is, though a record of the marriage of his widow, Mrs
Eliza Whittington, to a Mr William Spencer, on 14 June 1660, and there is a
notarised statement by "Elizabeth Spencer ye former Wife of Capn William
Whittington deceased" dated 31 December 1660.
To further support this connection, there are a number of references to an
Abraham and John Johnson "bestevare" and to other traders from Graft,
Holland in the Northampton County records. I'm still going through these,
but include a couple here:
"Teste Wm Whittington, Cornelius Corneliuson Be it known unto all men by
these presents that I Skipper Abrham Johnson of Graft in Holland have made
ordained, deputed, and in my stead and place and constituted my truly friend
Skipper John Johnson bestevare, to be my lawful attorney for me..In witness
whereof I have here unto set my hand and seal dated in Amsterdam the seventh
of September anno dem 1651[snip]"
"Teste Wm Whittington, Cornelius Coreliuson Recorded vicesimo secundo
December 1652 per me Edm. Mathews cur clk. Be it known unto all men by these
presents that I Syvert Derrickson of Graft in Holland late steersman in the
good ship called the "Honey Barrell" have mae, ordained, deputed and in my
stead and place put and constituted Skipper John Johnson bestevar of Graft
to be my true and lawful attorney.[snip]"
These records clearly support the belief that Captain William Whittington of
the Virginia militia, and Cappeteyn Willem Wittinton who is buried in Graft,
are one and the same, although we can do no more than speculate why he was
visiting Graft and how he came to be buried there.
Now, is anyone researching the Whittingtons of Pauntley, Groucestershire and
can you point me in the direction of any sources that might prove/disprove a
connection?
Thanks,
Judith (in Holland)
Judith Taylor
> William Whittington of Ackamack in Virginia, merchant, aged 40, William
> Melling of the same, merchant, aged 49, and James Cade of London,
> merchant, aged 52, depose 1 Sept., 1659, that in July last, at Amsterdam,
> they bought the ship called the Christina Regina, now the Northampton, on
> behalf of the aforesaid William Whittington, Lieut.-Col. William Randall
> and John Michell of Ackamack
> William Whittington of Northampton county in Virginia, mariner, master of
> the ship formerly called the Shepherd, now the Northampton, deposes 19
> Aug., 1657, aged 40.
Thanks - yes I do have these. They are abstracted in a work entitled
English Origins of American Colonists and I am hoping to get an opportunity
to look up the original source when I'm next in London.
Judith
John Townsend
>It is plausible that he is connected with the Pauntley Whittingtons, but so
far I have only discovered secondary
sources and there is a break of several generations.
Yes, Judith, but is there any reason to suspect this Pauntley family in
favour of the many other Whittington families in England at the desired
time?
His origins may have been quite humble. In Nottinghamshire Whittington
seems quite well represented. For example in Webster's "Protestation
Returns 1641/2 - Notts. Derbs." the index contains 16 references to adult
male Whittingtons. There were four in the town of Nottingham, including a
William.
It seems to me some clue is needed to narrow down the search, without which
the possibilities for the origin of your William Whittington are pretty
wide.
Best wishes,
John Townsend
Genealogist/Antiquarian Bookseller
http://www.johntownsend.demon.co.uk
Judith Taylor
>... is there any reason to suspect this Pauntley family in
> favour of the many other Whittington families in England at the desired
> time?
> His origins may have been quite humble. In Nottinghamshire Whittington
> seems quite well represented. For example in Webster's "Protestation
> Returns 1641/2 - Notts. Derbs." the index contains 16 references to adult
> male Whittingtons. There were four in the town of Nottingham, including a
> William...<snip>
John, define "humble". The Governor of Virginia, Sir William Berkeley,
created a ruling class by recruiting younger sons of leading English
families (Virginia Historical Society). William first appears in Virginia
county records in 1841 at the age of 22-24 (based on conflicting statements
in Admiralty records) and immediately makes his mark as an attorney and
advocate whose word is respected, is rapidly appointed as a commissioner of
the county court, goes on to fill c. 100 pages in county court records
between then and 1959 (which I am still distilling down to a more manageable
level), captain in the militia, landowner, benefactor (in his will leaves
2000 pounds of tobacco to found a Free School) all before the age of c.
40-42. It is unlikely therefore that William was a plain colonist or that
his father was an ag lab. He probably had some legal and possibly military
training before going out there. His son, another William Whittington,
became High Sheriff of Somerset County, Maryland, and was elected to the
first General Assembly of Maryland is referred to in a secondary but
nevertheless well documented secondary source as "scion of a distinguished
family" (Torrence, 1966) which I would read as referring to his forefathers
and not to his father alone.
A Pauntley connection is referred to in a number of somewhat questionable
secondary sources, but it may be wishful thinking - although not
implausible, extrapolating from the history of William himself. That is why
I am trying to find out more about the English Whittingtons, to help support
or rule out that theory. I would be glad to hear from anyone who can
provide me with information or lead me to sources about early English
Whittingtons.
Judith (in Holland)
Chris Dickinson
>>John Townsend wrote:
>>
>>... is there any reason to suspect this Pauntley family in
>> favour of the many other Whittington families in England at the desired
>> time?
>
>> His origins may have been quite humble.
><snip>
>John, define "humble".
Though I expect in this case your man does come from a well-established
family, there is nothing in the evidence you present which would be
inconsistent with a 'humble' background.
>The Governor of Virginia, Sir William Berkeley,
>created a ruling class by recruiting younger sons of leading English
>families (Virginia Historical Society).
Which doesn't mean that he didn't recruit from elsewhere.
>William first appears in Virginia
>county records in 1841 at the age of 22-24 (based on conflicting statements
>in Admiralty records) and immediately makes his mark as an attorney and
>advocate
OK, my ancestor William Dickinson (born 1604) was an 'attorney'. His social
status - yeoman. He could write but most of his relatives couldn't.
>whose word is respected, is rapidly appointed as a commissioner of
>the county court,
So? WD above had cousins who were apparitors in the local ecclesiastical
court - all 'humble' yeomen.
>goes on to fill c. 100 pages in county court records
>between then and 1959 (which I am still distilling down to a more
>manageable
>level),
>
>
>captain in the militia, landowner
WD was captain of the regiment raised by his Lord of the Manor; and
landowner.
>benefactor (in his will leaves
>2000 pounds of tobacco to found a Free School)
The local school that WD may have attended was founded by a local guy in the
1590s. He became rich as a goldsmith in London, and so described himself in
his will as Citizen of London, but his family were still 'humble' yeomen.
>all before the age of c. 40-42. It is unlikely therefore that William was
>a plain colonist or that
>his father was an ag lab.
I don't think that you can assume that.
The educational system could shoot clever people up the social rankings very
very quickly. The best 17th century example (that I've quoted here before)
was Sir Joseph Williamson - his father was a fairly poor vicar and his
mother the daughter of a yeoman, so ancestry not especially distinguished -
but he was very bright, got scholarships and patronage, education at Oxford,
became Secretary of State, married a Stuart and became very rich.
>He probably had some legal and possibly military
>training before going out there.
>His son, another William Whittington, became High Sheriff of Somerset
>County, Maryland, and was elected to the
first General Assembly of Maryland
WD had a son who was High Constable - still a 'humble' yeoman.
However, I would accept that an English (don't know whether this applies in
the Colonies) High Sheriff had a status and role far above that of a High
Constable!!!
The High Sheriff in the English area I study was usually then a member of
one of the old county families; but tobacco and other new fortunes soon
pushed their way in.
>is referred to in a secondary but nevertheless well documented secondary
>source as "scion of a distinguished
>family" (Torrence, 1966) which I would read as referring to his forefathers
>and not to his father alone.
'scion of a distinguished family' in a secondary source means nothing
Chris
WJho...@aol.com
judith...@planet.nl writes:
<< I would be glad to hear from anyone who can
provide me with information or lead me to sources about early English
Whittingtons. >>
It's a very broad request. I've done work on the families and most of my
notes derive from the a2a collection.
Will