General Notes

[jblewis.FTW]

See KENMORE AND THE LEWISES, pp. 4 - 6, "The recent findings of three Lewis tombstones . . . has made it seem extremely likely that John Lewis, born in Monmouthshire, England, in 1594, was the first of the Lewis family of Warner Hall to arrive in this country."

According to "Genealogies of VA Families", p. 201, this John Lewis received a patent dated July 01, 1653, for 250 acres of land at the head of a branch belonging to Poropotank Creek, called Lewis Creek, formerly Totopotomo Creek, in Gloucester County, VA, due by and for importation of 5 persons into the colony. The names on the patent are: Jon. (John) Lewis, Lidia Lewis, Wm. Lewis, Edwd. Lewis and Jon. (John) Lewis, Junr. Also, on p. 224 there is a diagram of "The Lewis Family of Poropotank Creek, King & Queen County, VA" which includes a note that John Lewis (1594-1657) immigrated to VA circa 1650 with his wife and three sons.

Note: I believe that the preceeding reference may be incorrect in identifying the female on the patent. She may have been Lydia, the daughter of John Lewis (1594-1657) by his first marriage, and the three sons were by his second marriage. (Why? cnw)
Ancestry/Steve Watson
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"the Welsh Lineage of John Lewis (1592-1657) Emigrant to Gloucester, VA by Grace McLean Moses, p 4, "Here lieth interred the body of John Lewis (borne in Munmoth shire) died the 21st of August 1657 aged 63 years. The anagram of his name I shew no ill"- lying on the exact tract of land patent to Mr Jon Lewis, 250 acres at the head of a branch belonging to Poroptanke Creek, called Lewis Creek-Gloucester Co, VA-1 July 1653
Ancestry/christie
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There is a tombstone on the Lewis property adjacent to Isabella Miller Lewis Yard's tombstone of a John Lewis who was born in England and "died 21th of August 1657 aged 63 years; the anagram of his name: I shew no ill". This is probably a brother of Robert. He patented 250 acres of land close to Robert Lewis in 1653 in Gloucester County. He received 50 acres for each of the persons whose emigration he financed: himself, his wife Lydia, sons William, Edward, and John Lewis, Jr. This land was along Poropotank Creek, opposite the land Robert owned.
http://www.kenmore.org/LewisFamilyInfo/robert_lewis.html  (Excerpted from Lewis of Warner Hall by Morrow Egerton Sorley)
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from _Genealogies of VA Families_, from The  William  &  Mary  Quar
terly, vol. III,  Heale-Muscoe, pages 369-375:
    
     [Specific author of this sketch is not given.)  Tradition is
Robert Lewis d. before 30 SEP 1656, York Co., is father  of  daus
Mary and Alice and a son John.  (p370)  "I find no evidence  that
this Robert Lewis had a son John ..."
     (p370)  Maj. John Lewis, probably the LEWES who was aged  25
in 1635 "entered himself for VA in  the  Globe  of  London."   He
received  numerous  land  grants  in  New  Kent  and  surrounding
counties.
     A patent to Maj. William Lewis was in  hands  of  Maj.  John
Lewis of Warner Hall in 1717; he deeded it  to  his  son  Charles
found in Hening's Statutes, vol II, page 377.   This  Maj.  Lewis
held the title as early as 1653.
http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~lksstarr/reports/misclews.txt
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from _Southside VA  Families_,  by  John  Bennett  Boddie,  vol.  1
(1955), page 314-317:
     John Lewis rec'd land 1653 in Gloucester on Poropotank Creek
for transporting his probable sons -- Jon, Edd,  Jon  jr.  (sic).
According to his tombstone found west of the creek:
     John Lewis b. Munmoth Shire d. 21 AUG 1657, aged 63 yrs
     Children:  John Jr m. Isabella Miller, parents of the Warner
                             Hall Lewises
                William left no desc
                Edward of Old Rappah. Co. m. Mary.  Their pr
                       chn:  John, Edward, Benj,, Thomas, Edmund
                             James

 
from  "John  Lewis  (1594-1657)  of   Monmouthshire,   Eng.   and
Gloucester and New Kent Co., VA" by Malcolm H. Harris,  reprinted
in _Genealogies of VA Families_, from VA Magazine  History  &  Biog
raphy, vol. IV

     Poropotanke Creek is dividing line between Gloucester &  New
Kent Co.  It repeats the patent names transported, citing Nugent:
John, Lidia, William, Edward and John Jr.  Harris then goes  into
detail for the tombstones found at what is thought the  homeplace
for John Lewis the emigrant.
http://homepages.rootsweb.com~lksstarr/reports/misclews.txt
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Lewis Family of Warner Hall

   William and Mary College Quarterly Historical Magazine, Vol. 9, No. 4.
   (Apr., 1901), pp. 259 - 265.

                             LEWIS FAMILY OF WARNER HALL*

                               (Continued from page 91.)

   It has been seen that there is nothing from the records to show the existence of any
"General Robert Lewis" as the propositus of the "Lewis family of Warner Hall".  The Robert
Lewis who lived in York County and owned land on Poropotank Creek had only two daughters,
Mary and Alice.  He was, doubtless, a kinsman of the Lewises of Warner Hall.  Major William
Lewis, who lived about the same time had a plantation in New Kent called "Chemokins", or
"Chemohocans", which afterwards was in possession of Col. John Lewis, of Warner Hall.  He
Was also a kinsman beyond reasonable question.


   Now there was a John Lewis who has better claims than either Robert or Major William
Lewis to be considered the propositus of the family of Warner Hall.  This was John Lewis,
Who patented 100 acres in Warwick County at the head of Deep Creek, and in 1653 patented
250 acres on a branch of Poropotank Creek, in Gloucester County, which branch was then
Called Lewis' Creek,
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   *This installment, as far as 24 Warner Lewis, is based entirely upon original evidence,
viz.: Land grants, Abingdon Parish Register, tombstones at Warner Hall, MSS. chancery suits,
and Hening's Statutes.  From 24 Warner Lewis the chief authority is The Marshall Family, by
William Paxton.  Where the matter varies, the new version is due to the superior authority
of the parish records and other documents.

Page 260.

But formerly Totopotomoy's Creek.  At the foot of the latter patent are given the names
of those on account of whose importation he was entitled to the land (i.e., 50 acres for
each), viz., John Lewis, probably himself; Lydia Lewis, probably his wife; William Lewis,
Edward Lewis and John Lewis, Jr. (probably his sons).  William Lewis may have been Major
William Lewis (eldest son) already mentioned, Edward Lewis, patented lands on the Rappa-
hannock and King and Queen, and "John Lewis, Jr.", had a grant in 1655 for 250 acres at the
main swamp of Poropotank Creek.  As "Mr. John Lewis", he patented April 22, 1668, 100
acres in New Kent, northeast side of Cainhow's Swamp, and in 1667, 2600 acres in New Kent
and Gloucester on both sides of the Poropotank Creek, "next below the plantation of said
John Lewis", 600 acres of which was granted to said John Lewis by patent dated November 23,
1663.  His residence in 1676 being near Major Thomas Pate's, where Bacon encamped, he
suffered severely from the depredations of his troops.  In 1680, he was captain of horse in
the militia of New Kent, and one of its justices.  New Kent then took in King and Queen
County as far down as Poropotank Creek.  In 1675 he was termed major (in the foot service)
and patented in New Kent 10,000 acres with Lieut. Col. John Smith, Capt. Philip Lightfoot,
Mr. Thomas Royston and Mr. John Buckner (General Court Records).

   According to the tombstone of his son Col. John Lewis (QUARTERLY, II. p. 227), he
married Isabella -----, and had issue, John Lewis, of Warner Hall*.
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   *It is not known how many sons John Lewis and Isabella his wife had.  Another son may
have been Zachary Lewis, who patented land in King and Queen in 1694, and in King William
in 1703, and was ancestor of the Lewis family of Spotsylvania.  (Hayden's Virginia
Genealogies, p. 379.)  Edward Lewis, named above, may have left descendants.  In the Middle-
sex Parish Register are also these entries:  John Lewis, of New Kent county, and Eliza O.
Brissell, of this parish, were married 24 October, 1681.  Thomas, born July 26, 1691,
Eusebius, Mary, Elizabeth and Susan were children of this marriage.  In St. Peter's
Parish, New Kent county, "John Lewis, son of John Lewis, was baptized February 27, 1686-7;"
David, baptized 1695; Abraham, baptized 1698, and William, baptized 1701 - all sons of
John Lewis.  There was in New Kent a Nicholas Lewis, who had Mary, baptized Jan. 16,
1708-9; Angelica, William, John, James, Forrester.  Then in New Kent, Elizabeth, wife of
Owen Lewis, died March 27, 1719; Elizabeth, daughter of Owen Lewis, born December 10, 1719,
died April 4, 1720.

Page 261.

   Accordingly 3 JOHN3 LEWIS, of Warner Hall, son of 2 Major John2 Lewis and Isabella his
wife, who was probably son of 1 John1 Lewis and Lydia his wife, who first settled on Poropo-
tank Creek in 1653, was born November 30, 1669, and departed this life November 14, 1725.
He married Elizabeth Warner, daughter of Col. Augustine Warner and Mildred Read his wife
(daughter of Col. George Read and Elizabeth Martin).  She was born at "Chesake" * November
24, 1672, and died at Warner Hall February 5, 1719-'20.  In 1715 Col. Lewis became a member
of the council.  His residence was at Warner Hall, which probably came to him from his wife.
(See Note I.)  They had fourteen children, of whom the following eight names are preserved
(Hening's Stats. and Abingdon Parish Register):  4 Catherine, baptized November, 1702; 5
Elizabeth, baptized November 26, 1702; 6 John4, born March 22, 1702; 7 Charles4, 8 Robert4,
baptized May 4, 1704; 9 Elizabeth, baptized May 7, 1706; 10 Isabella, baptized Dec. 18, 1707,
married Dr. Thomas Clayton on July 14, 1720, and had one child, Juliana, who died in infancy;
11 Anne, baptized February 14, 1712.

   6 JOHN4 LEWIS, son of Col. John Lewis and Elizabeth Warner, married Frances, daughter of
Henry Fielding, of King and Queen County (Note 2).  He was major in 1731, colonel in 1734,
And member of the council in 1751 and during other years, and had issue, 12 Warner5, born
October 10, 1720; 13 -----, son, baptized September 15, 1723; 14 Fielding, born July 7, 1725;
15 Mildred, born December 12, 1726, died July 5, 1729; 16 John, born November 20, 1728;
17 Charles, born February 25, 1729-'30; 18 Frances.  "Mrs. Frances, the wife of Major John
Lewis died October 27, 1731."  Colonel John Lewis married, second, Priscilla Churchill,
widow of Robert Carter, of Nominy, and daughter of Col. William Churchill.  He died January
17, 1754.
http://www.angelfire.com/ky3/lewisfamily/WarnerHall.html
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John "the Immigrant" Lewis (Conjecture)

John "the Immigrant" Lewis and his progeny are the Warner Hall family of Lewises. Cited on his tombstone as "John Lewis bourne in Munmouthshire," John was believed to be descended from the Lewis Family of Wales. However, DNA evidence proves that John is not related to Richard "the Immigrant" Lewis of Middlesex Co VA. Probably, John is descended from the Lewis Family of England.

John Lewis was born 1594 in Monmouthshire, Wales. He grew up on one of this Lewis family's holdings in Monmouthshire, the easternmost county of Wales. On 11/21/1630 in Monmouthshire, Wales, John married Lydia Lewis b. c. 1610 in Wales. John and family lived in Wales until about 1653 when they immigrated to York Co VA. The first record of John is found in the 7/1/1653 York Co VA land patent where he received 250 acres as headright for transportation of five persons--himself, wife Lydia, William, Edward, and John, Jr.

John lived a good life and sired an enormously successful line which married into the most powerful families of Virginia--Washington, Marshall, Fielding, Meriwether, Daingerfield, Taliaferro. Descendants of John would sire presidents. But, perhaps, the most remarkable thing about John of Monmouthshire is his almost three-hundred-year anonymity. Most historians know of Councilor John Lewis, and some know of his father, Maj. John Lewis of Chemkins. But until the 1948 discovery of John "the Immigrant's" tombstone on the original family plantation, no one knew of this John Lewis.

Virginia Magazine of History & Biography, Apr 48 & Aug 54:
John Lewis, b. 1594 Monmouthshire, d. 1657. . .his grave found in 1948

John died 8/21/1657 on the family plantation. The cemetery is now located in New Kent Co VA.

Land Patent Book No. 3 p. 4:
1 July, 1653, land granted to John Lewis, 250 acres, head of a branch of Poropotanke Creek called Lewis Creek (formerly Totopotomoye Creek) in Gloucester Co. Adjoining lands of Capt. Francis Morgan and Samuel Sally. Transported 5 persons: John Lewis, Lidia Lewps, Wm. Lewis, Edward Lewis, John Lewis Jr.

Epitaphs of Gloucester and Mathews Counties in Tidewater Virginia through 1865, pp. 95-99:
The dividing line between Gloucester County and King and Queen County is Poropotank Creek. On the King and Queen side of this creek JOHN LEWIS in 1653 received a patent for a tract of land; this land was not far from paradise in Gloucester. . . .
Old New Kent County History, Vol. 1, pp. 268-271:
On the left of the road which passes up a slight hill on the King and Queen side of the creek lies the Lewis Plantation. This was the seat of the first JOHN LEWIS who had his first patent to 250 acres of land in 1653, and added more land. JOHN LEWIS lived here several years before his death in 1657.

Buried at Old Lewis Cemetery, King and Queen Co VA
Here lieth interred the body
of JOHN LEWIS (borne in Munmouth-
shire) died the 21th of August
1657 aged 63 years. The anagram
of his name, "I shew no ill."

http://lewis187.home.mchsi.com/Lewis/Councilor-98.htm
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