• General Notes

  [elizabeth stone.FTW]
  
            WILLIAM STONE AND VERLINDA COTTON
       WILLIAM STONE, #5632 on my lineage, son of John and Joan Stone was born in Parish Twiston, Lanshire Co.,England on October 7, 1603, the year that Good Queen Bess died.
       Queen Bess was succeeded by her cousin, James I, son of Mary, Queen of Scots.  James I believed that as a king he received the rule directly from God and not from his people.  Even his son, Charles I refused to let Parliament meet for a number of years.  The people who supported Parliament were mostly Puritans.
       William was from a stable English family.  He married VERLINDA COTTON, # 5633 on my lineage.  She was the daughter of Andrew  and Joan Cotton,  staunch Puritans.  William and Verlinda had two or three children  in 1628 when  they emigrated to America with his father, John Stone,I  and brothers, John,II and Matthew Stone.   William and Verlinda settled on Hunger Creek in Accomac County in Virginia.
       Virginia had its own House of Burgess that was organized in 1619 comprised of 2 representatives chosen from each of the 11 plantations in the colony--the first democratically elected legislative body in the New World.  The governor was appointed by the King of England.  Also, the first Negroes arrived from Africa on a Dutch ship as indentured servants who were to be free after their time of service.  This grew into black slave labor.  There had been severe Indian uprisings in Virginia.  Virginia was a royal colony of England but there was a growing independence in the colony.
       On June 4, 1635 William Stone was granted 1800 acres of land in Accomac County by the Virginia Authority for services rendered to the colonies.  He was designated as "Captain William Stone" in the land warrant.
       William Stone became known as a "non-conformist" in Virginia.  He was the head of the Puritans  whose conditions were becoming very uncomfortable, especially in Nansmond County.  The attitude of the Episcopalians was extremely harsh towards them.  William Stone arranged with Cecilius Calvert, 2nd Lord Baltimore and a Roman Catholic, who had been given a charter from King Charles I to settle Maryland to take 500 settlers to Maryland.  The settlers were promised religious freedom.  William Clayborn, an agent of a London Company set up a trading-post on Kent Island in 1631.
       These Puritans from Virginia settled on Severn River which they called "Providence"  and which is now "Annapolis".   Cecilius Calvert's brother, Leonard  Calvert hadbrought over 200 settlers, both Protestants and Catholics to Maryland from England in 2 ships in 1632.  The English charter  gave authority to  the Calverts to make the laws in the new colony as long as the people agreed.  William Clayborn and Richard Bennet, Parliament Commissioners, instigated rebellion amongst the settlers over religious differences.  Lord Baltimore hoping to appease the settlers appointed a Protestant, William Stone as the Colonial Governor of Maryland in 1648.  The Maryland assembly approved a religious toleration act .  Stone was  removed from governor by Clayborn and Bennet when he was defeated on the River Severn, imprisoned and sentenced to death.  However, some Puritans managed to obtain his freedom.
       After their arrival,both the settlers from England and Virginia began to farm.  Soon, plantations grew up.  At first, the plantation owners managed  their plantations and manors with the labor of white indentured servants but they were later replaced by black slave labor.
       William and Verlinda Stone established their own manor (Poynter Manor) and Plantation  of Avon on Nanjemoy River in Charles County.  William Stone had been granted as much land that he could ride around in one day in consideration of his faithful services to the proprietorship.  Here William and Verlinda put down their roots and raised their large family which started in England and Virginia.  Their daughter, Elizabeth Stone married William Calvert, son of Leonard Calvert in 1661.
       This noted "Stone" character with his wife, Verlinda are the ancestors of at least 5 governors in America and Barton Stone ( co-founder  with Alexander Campbell of the Christian churches).  They are also the progenitors of most of the "Stones" in southern United States.   Their son, THOMAS STONE who married MARY  ? is my 9th great grandfather.
       (Written by Mildred R. Jenkins, Williamstown, KY on March 14, 2000)
  
  Facts about this person:
  
  Ancestral #   
  5632
  
  Name (Facts Pg)    
  William Stone, II
  

Details of William's family with Verlinda Spring Cotton