General Notes

Ancestral File Number:<AFN> N095-55
Major William Henderson Witt is descended from the French Huguenot, Guillaume (William) Witt, who was born in France in 1675. When religious freedom in France came to an end by the revocation of the Edict of Nantes by Louis XIV of France, Guillaume Witt, in company with other protestants, emigrated to England in search of religious freedom. Guillaume and others left South Hampton, England in the year 1699 and settled in Manikin [sic], Colony of Virginia.
The Huguenots who settled Manikin, Va. formed themselves into an organization known as the Huguenot Founders of Manikin Town Virginia. The record does not state that Guillaume Witt married before coming to America, but it is the belief that he married after arrival in Virginia. The record does not state to whom he was married, or when, only that he married "Elizabeth." The book, "Virginia Soldiers of 1776," by Louis A. Burgess of Richmond, Va. states in Vol. II that Guillaume (William) Witt dies in Albemarle County, Va. in 1741. Other records state that he died in 1754 and that his wife preceded him in death by seven years, having died in 1747. "Virginia Soldiers of 1776" also states that Guillaume (William) Witt was the father of nine children, the list following: (Note: William's will was dated 1754.)
John, Benjamin, Sarah, Agnes, Lewis, Abner, David, William, and Charles.