General Notes

The Virginia Genealogical Society (cited below) discussed an interesting Virginia estate case that eventually involved a John Easton.  The will of a Mr. William Woffendall, recorded 10/26/1747, King George Co., VA. had stipulated that his wife Tabitha (Payne?) would receive his estate and upon her death his estate would be distributed to the following persons: Richard Drake, Benjamin Drake, Henry Drake, Mary Sims, Sarah Clayton, and Margaret Dodd.  However, Tabitha subsequently married two more times (her third husband being George Strother, 1st cousin to William Woffendall) and passed away in 1790.  50+ years after William Woffendall died, 1791, the heirs of those six individuals named above received shares in the estate.  John Easton was named as a plaintiff (on behalf of his wife "Eliza" (nee Drake - heir to Henry Drake) along with James Drake and "Richard Drake`s son". They each received a little over 3 English Ls.  I am not yet certain it is THIS John Eastin/Easton, but place and time do fit.  I have seen family trees that state that Elizabeth was married to a William Easton whose father was Richard Easton, so they may be a different couple altogether (interestingly, it was an Easton), but it is John who is named in this settlement. This may explain why I have found difficulty in tracing Mary Orchard and matters concerning birth years for Mary (see Mary`s insert.) According to the information available to me at this time, John`s youngest 4 children seemed to arrive starting in 1792 (a year after the settlement) after a 10-year "break" in children, suggesting a second marriage, possibly to Eliza Drake.   If you have information that might help me to clarify this, I would appreciate hearing from you! Interestingly,  "Count D`Estaing" is also discussed as a separate item in Virginia Genealogy (pg 49) in reference to a Mr. Joseph Martin, who apparently sailed from Brest, France under the command of D`Estaing after serving in the French military.

SOURCES:  Virginia Genealogical Society Quarterly, Volume X, Number 3 Jul 01,1972, pg. 67-69.) Other sources: Family records and sources 11, 67, and 96.