Resources Related to R. Bolling Batte’s Study of the Poythress Family in Virginia
This draft database of select early Virginia families is based almost entirely on the work of the late R. Bolling Batte (RBB). View the index cards at the Library of Virginia (LVA). Consult the cards for Mr. Batte’s original sources. Study focuses on Francis Poythress’s family among the first families of colonial Virginia.
Chart A – Spreadsheet Summary by Lyn P. Baird
PDF Files of R. Bolling Batte’s Poythress Charts A & B — Compiled by Diana Diamond
BATTE-CHART-A
BATTE-CHART-B
Diana Diamond’s ‘Enhanced’ Poythress Family Virginia Chart
*Includes additional family and index card reference letters.
Trial Chart of the Descendants of Francis Poythress
Transcription and notes by John M. Poythress based on trial chart prepared April 1977 by R. Bolling Batte
Francis Poythress
( – c. 1650) m. Mary_____; English immigrant to Virginia c. 1633; patented 400 acres on Bailey’s Creek in Charles City County in 1637 (PB 1, 439) and 350 additional acres adjoining (total 750) in 1648 (PB 2, 139). This land fell into Prince George County upon its formation in 1702. Was lieutenant of the militia in 1644; a captain by 1648. Was burgess for Charles City County 1644, 1645, 1647, and for Northumberland County in 1648. His name disappears from the records after that. The family name of the wife of Captain Francis Poythress has not been discovered.. After his death she became the wife of Colonel Robert Wynne. Issue of Francis and Mary___
Poythress: 1. Jane 2. John 3. Thomas 4. Francis
1 Jane Poythress
m. Thomas Rolfe, son of John Rolfe and Pocahontas. (Speculative — unproven)
2 John Poythress
m. Christian Peebles, daughter of David and Elizabeth ( ) Peebles. In 1661 Edward Hill deeded 50 acres in Charles City County, adj. Capt. Robert Wynne to John Poythress, “son of Captain Francis Poythress, dec’d”.
21 Joshua Poythress
( -1740), m. ______. The name of the wife of this Joshua has never been proved. The fact that one of his sons was named “Littlebury” suggests that she may have been an Eppes or a Hardyman. In 1725 John Hardyman, whose mother had been Mary Eppes 124, and whose grandmother had been Elizabeth Littlebury, conveyed to “Joseph” Poythress 300 acres, part of the Flowerdew Hundred Tract in Prince George. The consideration expressed was 5 shillings, which means that it was a deed of gift. John Hardyman had actually paid 600 pounds lawful money of England for 150 of the same 300 acres he was now giving away. The “Joseph” named as grantee in the deed was certainly an error in transliteration. Joshua was intended, not “Joseph”. This will be clear later when Joshua’s grandson William (211 2) sells the same land to Peachy 65 years later. Why should John Hardyman give valuable land away to Joshua Poythress? A most likely answer would be that a Joshua Poythress had married a close relative of John Hardyman, a daughter or a sister. By 1725 John and Henrietta Maria Hardyman would hardly have a daughter old enough to marry. He had sisters, however. Their names do not appear in any known record but their existance is established by the 1726 will of Littlebury Hardeman, brother of John, which leaves one shilling “to each and every one of my brothers and sisters.” These circumstances, plus the existance of a Hardyman Poythress in Prince George, bolster a growing suspicion that the wife of Joshua Poythress was a daughter of John Hardyman, Sr. and Mary Eppes, his wife, and thus a grandaughter of Francis and Elizabeth(Littlebury-Worsham) Epes. Hardyman Poythress, as yet unidentified, in 1809, may have been a grandson of Joshua Poythress. Joshua left a will dated January 17 1739 (o. s.) in which he leaves property to his wife (but inconsiderately fails to name her), and to three sons,three daughters, brothers William, Robert, and others.. The original will is
now in the archives of the Virginia State Library (Accession 23849)
211 Joshua Poythress
m. Mary Short, daughter of William and Mary ( ) Short of Surry County. William Short’s 1757 will mentions his daughter Mary Poythress, her husband Joshua Poythress, and three of their children. Joshua Poythress was captain of a packet ship that plied between London, Glasgow and Petersburg. He left a will, now lost, but referred to in a 1790 deed from his son William to Peachy. (See William 211 2).
211 1 Joshua Poythress
( – 1794), m. Elizabeth Robertson, daughter of Archibald and Elizabeth (Fitzgerald) Robertson. Joshua and his wife were second cousins. They lived and died at Flowerdew Hundred and both were there buried. She died 7 September 1787.
211 11 Elizabeth Poythress
Shown as a child of Joshua and Elizabeth (Robertson) Poythress in the notes on the Robertson family made by Gov. Wyndham Robertson. Elizabeth (Robertson) Poythress
was the governor’s aunt. He certainly would have had personal knowledge of her children. Several printed accounts of the Cocke and Poythress families state that James Cocke, son of Benjamin, married Elizabeth Poythress, daughter of Joshua, without identifying the Joshua, and that they had a daughter Elizabeth Cocke who married Jacob Hoffman. As to this last couple there can be no doubt. In 1955 I ran across a monument
in the cemetery in Leesburg inscribed: “In memory of Jacob Hoffman/and his wife/ Elizabeth Cocke/and their children/erected by their grand-daughter/1928.” If the mother of this Elizabeth Cocke had indeed been the daughter of any Joshua Poythress at all she would have to have been the daughter of Joshua 211 1. She could not possibly been the daughter of Joshua 211 and Mary Short, for their daughter Elizabeth (as we shall see later) married Simon Fraser in 1775. Elizabeth Poythress who married James Cocke is said to have died in 1800. Tentatively I place her here.
211 12 Mary Poythress
Shown in the notes of Gov. Wyndham Robertson. Probably died young.
211 13 Susanna Peachy Poythress
(1785-1915), m. 1804 John Vaughn Willcox (11 Aug 1779 Charles City – 23 Nov 1863 Flowerdew Hundred, Pr. Geo.) John Vaughn Willcox was very wealthy; a very large holder of Confederate Bonds. He acquired by purchase the several parcels comprising the original Flowerdew Hundred tract, including the original 300 acres that had been given by John Hardyman in 1725 to his wife’s great grandfather Joshua Poythress 21. John Vaughn Willcox was buried in Blandford Cemetery in Petersburg. Susanna Peachy (Poythress) Willcox was buried at Flowerdew Hundred where a tombstone marked her grave until 1864 when the yankees destroyed it along with all other Poythress monuments that were then there.
211 2 William Poythress
(c. 1753 -1794 Pr. Geo.), m. Mary Gilliam, daughter of John and Jane (Henry) Gilliam of Pr. Geo. William Poythress was a captain in the Continental Army during the Revolution. He was the principle beneficiary of the 1779 will of Thomas Epes 132 32. In 1790 William Poythress deeded to William S. Peachy the same 300 acres of Flowerdew Hundred, previously mentioned, that John Hardyman had conveyed by deed of gift to the first Joshua Poythress and had by the latter been devised to the second Joshua, who had, in turn, devised the same to his son William, the present grantor. William also owned a tract of 863 acres on Simmons Branch upon which he had been living at the time he died.
It is probable that the youngest of the sons had reached legal age by that time. William Poythress may have been buried there.
211 21 Joshua Poythress
(1784 – post 1854), m. 1810 in Petersburg Jane Mills Angus, daughter of John and Lucy (Wortham) Angus, then of Petersburg but formerly of Scotland. In 1850 Joshua and his
wife Jane were living in Petersburg (census). By 1854 he was living in New Jersey when he deeded some lots in the town of Blandford to one Shanks. Jane did not join in the deed. Presumably she had previously died.
211 211 Nancy G. D. Poythress
m. (1) 1834 Robert Carter Harrison, son of Collier and Beersheeba (Bryant) Harrison of “Kittewan,” Charles City County. Nancy later m. (2) John Crane. What names her middle initials “G. D.” stood for is now anybody’s guess. My guess is that the “G” was for Gilliam, her grandmother’s family name.
211 22 Thomas Eppes Poythress
(c. 1785 – 1847), m. c. 1815 Beersheeba, nee Bryant, but then the widow of Collier Harrison who died in 1809. Beersheeba, by her first marriage, was the mother of Robert Carter Harrison who m. Nancy G. D. above. T. E. P. had but one child by Beersheeba, Caroline, who died at the age of seven. By his 1847 Will Thomas Eppes Poythress left his entire estate to wife Beersheeba for life, and after her death, to brother Joshua, niece Nancy G. D. Harrison, nephew William P. Poythress, and to Harrison step-children. The will provided for having the graveyard at Kittewan enclosed with a brick wall forty feet long on all four sides. Presumably, he, Beersheeba, Caroline, and a number of Harrisons are buried there.
211 221 Caroline Poythress
(1817 – 1824) Obituary appears in “Southern Churchman”.
211 23 William Poythress
died unmarried.
211 24 Patrick Henry Poythress
( – 1824), m. Mary Elizabeth Eppes (1785 – 1822), daughter of Peterson Eppes of Dinwiddie County. It might be supposed that P. H. P. was named for the famous orator, it having been a popular custom in that period to name children in honor of persons prominent in the affairs of the times. Actually, this Patrick was named for his own great-grandfather, the Rev. Patrick Henry who was an uncle of the orator.
211 241 William Peterson Poythress
(1810 – 1862), m. Charlotte Reed (1825 – 1897), daughter of Elias and Sarah (Block) Reed of Richmond. After their marriage W. P. P. and Charlotte lived in Richmond where all of their children were born. Mr. Poythress died in Nassau, B. W. I., during blockade-running operations in the war between the States. Charlotte died in Richmond and was buried in Hollywood.
211 241 1 Mary Poythress
d. inf.
211 241 2 Patrick Henry Poythress
(1846 -1863) Accidentally shot while in C. S. A.
211 241 3 William Powhatan Poythress
(1847 – 1920), m. 1877 in Lunenburg Co. Louisa Campbell Mayo (1849 – 1927), daughter of John and Mary Louisa (Campbell) Mayo of Westmoreland County and Richmond. She was granddaughter of Joseph and Jane Poythress 281 9 Mayo of Richmond. W. P. P. was in the wholesale drug business and was founder and owner of W. P. Poythress & Co., of Richmond, a drug manufacturing firm still in operation under that name, although no Poythress is any longer connected with it. Both William P. and Louisa died in Richmond and are buried in Hollywood.
211 241 31 Charlotte Reed Poythress
(9 Feb 1880 – 29 May 1880), buried in Shockoe Cemetery, Richmond.
211 241 32 Charlotte Reed Poythress
(1881 -1906). She was given the same name that had been given to her deceased sister, that of their grandmother. Charlotte died in Richmond as a result of an accidental fall. She was unmarried. The marble slab marking her grave in Hollywood, like all the others in the lot bears only her name. It reads: “Charlotte Poythress” – no more.
211 241 4 Sarah Reed Poythress
(1852 – 1927) , unm. Upon her decease in Richmond, passed the last living descendant of Joshua Poythress 21 to be born with the surname “Poythress.” The name thus became extinct in the “21” branch.
211 241 5 Walter Eppes Poythress
(1861 – 1888), m. 1887 Marie Joseph Brouse, native of Pennsylvania. Walter Eppes Poythress was a musician. He died of yellow fever while in Jacksonville, Fla. In 1911
his remains were removed to Richmond and reinterred in the family lot in Hollywood. In 1893 his widow m. (2) James Chandler Dorst in Tazewell County, Virginia.
211 242 Mary Poythress
d. unm.
211 243 A. H. Poythress
d. unm. I have never been able to learn what the initials “A. H.” stood for.
211 3 Elizabeth Poythress
m. 1775 in Middlesex Co. Simon Fraser, a recent immigrant from Scotland to Petersburg where he was engaged as a merchant. It is conjectured that the marriage took place in Middlesex County because she had been at that time living with her aunt Elizabeth Poythress 215 , then the wife of James Mills of that county. James Mills and her brothers Joshua and William were sureties on the bond. After their marriage the couple settled in Petersburg. Simon Fraser died there 28 Oct 1792 and was buried in Blandford. Elizabeth was still living in 1795 when she was named in the will of the same aunt who, by that time, was the wife of Thomas Griffin Peachy. It is likely that Elizabeth was buried in Blandford but there is no record to establish that fact. The earliest record of Blandford interments now available begin in 1842.
211 4 Susan Ann Poythress
(1766 – 1799), m. 1788 in Pr. Geo. David Maitland (1759 – 1838), a native of Barcaple, Scotland, and son of David and Mary (Currie) Maitland of that place. David and Susan had two daughters born in Petersburg; Mary Currie in 1790 and Elizabeth Agnes in 1793. Tombs may be seen in Blandford churchyard today for Susan Ann, who died in Petersburg on 9 Feb 1799, and for her daughter Mary Currie Maitland, who died there in 1795. Afterward, David Maitland returned to Scotland to live, taking with him their daughter, Elizabeth Agnes. He died in Barcaple 18 May 1838. Elizabeth Agnes was still living there, unmarried, in 1865.
212 Littlebury Poythress
d. w/o issue. Mentioned in his father’s 1739/1740 will with an inference that he was incapacitated, either physically or mentally. No further record of him.
213 William Poythress
214 Ann Poythress
m. John Wall. Numerous decendants are given in the trial chart of the Eppes Society.
215 Elizabeth Poythress
(1725 – 1795). She was married three times; (1) to Walter Boyd, who died in the town of Blandford in 1779; (2) to James Mills (1718 -1782) of Middlesex County; and (3) to Thomas Griffin Peachy (1734 – 1810) of Williamsburg, but then the Clerk of the Court in
Amelia County. Elizabeth had no children by any of her three husbands. She died in Petersburg leaving a will on record there. In it she named as beneficiaries her husband, nephews, nieces, and others. The will has been very helpful in establishing with certainty a number of relationships within this branch of the Poythress family. Elizabeth (Poythress-Boyd-Mills) Peachy was buried by her second husband in the churchyard of Christ Church, Middlesex. Thomas G. Peachy died 6 March 1810 in Williamsburg and was buried in the garden of his home where all three of his children by his first marriage, and whom he had outlived, had been buried. In 1911 expansion of Eastern State Hospital necessitated the removal of the remains in the former Peachy garden to nearby Cedar Grove Cemetery. A single large, granite block was then erected as a monument on the lot. It bears ten names, one below the other, with associated years. The first three lines read:
“Col. Thomas G. Peachy 1734-1810
Elizabeth Gilliam Peachy 1741-1781
Elizabeth Beverley Peachy – 1795
* * * * * “
The second line, of course, refers to TGP’s first wife. The third line apparently was intended to refer to his second wife who is not even buried there. While the year of death shown is correct for Elizabeth Poythress, the second wife, the name “Beverley” is an error. The great-grandchildren of TGP who caused the monument to be erected more than 100 years after his death probably had very scant information as to the second wife.
They had her confused with the first wife of James Mills who was Elizabeth Beverley. After all, TGP’s second wife was only a step-grandmother to these 20th century Peachys.
The late John McGill, in his very excellent The Beverley Family of Virginia was also confused as to the respective marriages of James Mills and Thomas G. Peachy. On page 616 he has Elizabeth Beverley married in 1743 to James Mills, which is correct. Then he shows her as marrying (2) in 1783 to Thomas Griffin Peachy. Actually Elizabeth (Beverley) Mills, who died in 1770, was married but once. It was her husband who married twice as is clearly shown in The Virginia Gazette for Sept. 4, 1771. It was this second wife of James Mills; I. e, his widow, Elizabeth (Poythress) Mills, who married Thomas G. Peachy in 1783, thirteen years after Elizabeth (Beverley) Mills had been buried.
216 Mary Poythress
m. Peter Epes (1730 – 1807), son of Francis and Sarah (Hamlin) Epes of “Causons”, Prince George County. They lived at “High Peak” in Pr. Geo. and for this reason he was known as “Peter Epes of High Peak”. She died there 25 Jan 1792. Numerous descendants are listed on the Epes chart.
22 Elizabeth Poythress
m. (1) John Fitzgerald, who died around 1736. Among her Fitzgerald children were: A- Francis Fitzgerald who married (1) Mary Epes 122 125, and B-Elizabeth Fitzgerald who m. Archibald Robertson and was the mother of the wife of Joshua Poythress 211 1. Elizabeth (Poythress) Fitzgerald m. (2) Thomas Epes 132 3, who died in Pr. Geo. in 1743.
There are many descendants of this second marriage, especially through Mary Epes 132 31, who m. Col. David Mason of Sussex.
23 Christian Poythress
The only knowledge we have of her existence was her appearance as a witness on the 1740 will of Joshua Poythress 21. Presumably she was his sister. 1740 seems much too late for the signature to be that of Christian (Peebles) Poythress, their mother.
24 David Poythress
In a 1735 deed David Poythress conveyed 350 acres in Pr. Geo. to Robert Poythress (his brother), stating that the land had been devised to him by the will of his father John Poythress. The name of the wife of David Poythress is unknown. In 1739 his son Edmund Poythress came into court and stated that his father had died without a will. William Poythress, brother of David, was William’s surety.
241 Edmund Poythress
His qualification as administrator of his father’s estate (above) is the only record we have of him.
25 William Poythress
(1694 – 1763), m. c. 1725 Sarah Epes 121 7 (1702 -1750), daughter of Francis and Anne (Isham) Epes of Henrico. William Poythress served as a colonel in the militia, a vestryman of Bristol Parish, and a sheriff of Prince George County. Upon the formation of Dinwiddie County in 1752 his lands fell within that county. Sarah’s tomb in Blandford churchyard is perhaps the earliest in Virginia still in existence for either the Epes or the Poythress families. William’s is next to it.
251 Anne Isham Poythress
(1726 – 1790), m. Thomas S. Gordon. Anne Isham survived her husband and left a will naming nephews, nieces, and others.
252 William Poythress
(1728 – c. 1768), m. (1) Mary Eppes (1731 – 1750). The only knowledge of her existence comes from her tomb in Bothwell graveyard in Dinwiddie County. This recites that she was “daughter of Capt. William Eppes and wife to William Poythress, Jr.” Which of the
several William Eppes was her father has not been definitely settled. There were no known children of this marriage. William’s second, but unidentified, wife was the mother of his six known children whose names come to light by a division of the slaves of William’s estate, decreed in 1775. William Poythress was elected to the vestry of Bristol Parish on 5 Aug 1760 to succeed his father, recently deceased. He was County Lieutenant for Prince George County in 1761.
252 1 William Poythress
was party to division of father’s slaves in 1775. No further record.
252 2 Anne Isham Poythress
(1760 – 1784), m. 1777 in Middlesex County William Yates, son of William and Elizabeth (Randolph) Yates.
252 3 Mary Poythress
m. Francis Muir of Dinwiddie County
252 4 Benjamin Poythress
see note for William Poythress 252 1 above.
252 5 Sally Poythress
same
252 6 Lucy Poythress
m. John Gordon.
253 Sarah Poythress
(1731 – ), d. s. p.
254 Elizabeth Poythress
(1741 – ), m. 1760 in Dinwiddie Patrick Ramsay, a native of Glasgow, Scotland. Patrick Ramsay was a merchant in Petersburg until shortly before the Revolution when he
removed with his family to Scotland. In 1791 Elizabeth (Poythress) Ramsay, then a widow, returned to Virginia with her children and settled in Alexandria.
26 John Poythress
m. Mary Batte, daughter of Henry and Mary (Lound) Batte. To avoid confusion with his first cousin John Poythress 43 (whose wife was also named Mary), this John was usually designated as “Sen.” or “Sr.” while cousin John was designated as “Jun.” or “Jr.”. In 1720 John Poythress, Sr. and Mary, his wife, together with four other couples, the five wives all being daughters of Henry Batte, dce’d., join in deed of partition whereby they divide 1200 acres in Prince George left by the will of Henry Batte to his daughters. John Poythress, Sr. was a captain in the militia and he represented Pr. Geo. in the House of Burgesses in 1723 and 1726. In 1727 as Capt. John Poythress he was granted 225 acres on the south side of the Meherrin, which land later fell into Brunswick County. The identical land was sold in 1773 by one Thomas Poythress who may have been a son or grandson of John Sr.
27 Peter Poythress
m. 1711 in Charles City Anne_____, a widow, whose own maiden name and the name of her first husband are unknown. He was sometimes referred to as “Peter Poythress of Flowerdew Hundred” to distinguish him from his nephew (and son-in-law) Peter Poythress “of Branchester”.
271 Anne Poythress
(1712 – 1758), m. Richard Bland (1710 – 1776) “of Jordans”, son of Richard and Elizabeth (Randolph) Bland. Their daughter Elizabeth was the wife of Peter Poythress 281 “of Branchester”.
28 Robert Poythress
(1690 – c. 1747), m. Elizabeth, last name unknown. Robert left a will dated 24 May 1743, now lost, but quoted from in a deed given by his daughter Tabitha in 1793.
281 Peter Poythress
(1715 – 1785), m. c. 1756 Elizabeth Bland (1733-1792), daughter of Richard and Anne (Poythress 271) Bland of “Jordans”, Prince George County. Peter Poythress resided at
“Branchester” in Prince George. He represented that county in all sessions of the House of Burgesses from 1768 through the last in 1776. He was also a member of both the 1775 and 1776 conventions. Peter and Elizabeth (Bland) Poythress had one son and eight daughters, through whom they have many descendants.
281 1 Ann Poythress
(1757 – 1804), m. 1777 in Pr. Geo. John Randolph (1743-1803), son of Henry and Tabitha (Poythress 285) Randolph of Chesterfield.
281 2 Elizabeth Poythress
(1759 – 1806), m. 1776 in Pr. Geo. William Mayo (1757-1837) of “Powhatan Seat”, Henrico County, son of John and Mary (Tabb) Mayo. Her husband was educated at William and Mary College, served in the Revolution, represented Henrico in the House of Delagates, and was a member of the first Board of Trustees for the Virginia Theological Seminary. Both died at “Powhatan Seat” and were buried there. In 1894 all remains at the Powhatan graveyard were reinterred in Hollywood Cemetery and all tombstones thither removed. In 1807 William Mayo m. (2) Lucy Fitzhugh in Petersburg.
281 3 Mary Poythress
(1762 – 1815), m. 1780 at “Branchester”, Pr. Geo. Co., John Batte (1757-1816) of “Mancelle”, Prince George County, son of Robert and Martha (Peterson) Batte of that county. John and Mary (Poythress) Battle resided at “Mancelle” which was part of the
original grant made to Henry Battle in 1668. John Batte was a captain in the militia and one of the justices of the Prince George court. Mary died at “Mancelle” 17 Dec 1815 and was buried in the Batte graveyard on the place. John died 19 Sept of the following year while on a visit to the White Sulphur Springs in Greenbrier County. He was buried in the churchyard of the Old Stone Church in Lewisburg, (now) West Virginia. His tombstone is still standing.
281 4 Lucy Bland Poythress
(1764 – ante 1823), m. 1806 in Prince George John Eppes ( – 1832), son of John and Susanna (Epes)Eppes of “Hopewell”. No issue. John Eppes later married Hannah Roane.
281 5 William Poythress
(1765 – 1811), m. 1787 in Prince George Elizabeth Blair Bland (1770 – ), daughter of Richard and Mary (Bolling) Bland and granddaughter of Richard and Anne (Poythress 271) Bland of “Jordans”. Issue: one daughter, Elizabeth Bland Poythress. William Poythress m. (2) Rebecca Williams. No issue. As William left no male issue the Poythress
name became extinct as to his branch with the death of his only daughter.
281 51 Elizabeth Bland Poythress
m. 1817 Richard Marks of Prince George. She survived her husband, who died before 1834. According to a statement in 10V106 [Swem index?] she was buried at “Branchester”. With her decease, whenever that was, passed the last person born with the surname Poythress among the descendants of Robert Poythress 28, and possibly also among the descendants of John and Christian (Peebles) Poythress 2. Since John and Mary
(Batte) Poythress 26 are not known to have had issue, it is likely that the name Poythress
exists today only among the descendants of Francis Poythress 4.
281 6 Sally Bland Poythress
(1768 – 1828), m. (1) at “Branchester”, Prince George County, Richard Lee (1726-1795) of Westmoreland County, sone of Henry and Mary (Bland) Lee of that county. Four Lee children were born of this marriage. In 1796 Sally m. (2) in Westmoreland County Willoughby Newton, son of John and Elizabeth (Vaulx) Newton of that county.There were five children by this marriage. “Squire” Richard Lee was buried at “Burnt House Field” in Westmoreland. Sally Bland (Poythress-Lee) Newton was buried at “Lee Hall” in that county.
281 7 Susanna Poythress
(1769 – 1839), m. 1787 at “Branchester” Richard Bland (1762-1806), son of Richard and Mary (Bolling) Bland of “Jordans”. Richard Bland was a grandson of Richard and Anne (Poythress 271) Bland, and brother of Elizabeth Blair Bland who married William Poythress 281 5 . They both died at “Jordans” and were buried there, leaving issue.
281 8 Agnes Poythress
(1779 – 1821), m. 1788 at “Branchester” Roger Atkinson (1764 – 1829) of “Olive(?) Hill”, Chesterfield County, son of Roger and Anne (Pleasants) Atkinson. There were ten children. She died 28 Nov 1821 in Halifax County while visiting a married daughter. Roger Atkinson later married Sarah Spotswood in Petersburg. He died 23 April 1829.
281 9 Jane Poythress
(1773 – 1837), m. 1792 Joseph Mayo (1771 – 1820) son of Joseph and Martha (Tabb) Mayo of Richmond. There were nine children. Joseph Mayo died in Richmond 1 Oct 1820 leaving a will on record. Jane (Poythress) Mayo died 20 Mar 1837 in Faquier County at the home of her daughter Elizabeth Bland Mayo who had married Charles James Stovin.
282 Robert Poythress
He was a soldier in the Revolution. I was told by a lady of Memphis, now deceased, that Robert Poythress died in January 1782 in Charleston, S. C. without issue. No record was cited.
283 William Poythress
His existence would not have been known except for a statement made in a 1793 Chesterfield deed given by Tabitha (Poythress 285) Randolph to the effect that her father Robert Poythress 28 had by his will left property to his sons Robert, Peter, and William Poythress.
284 Jane Poythress
Supposedly married John Baird. He came from Scotland c. 1750 and settled at City Point.
285 Tabitha Poythress
(1725 – 1805), m. 1742 Henry Randolph (1721 – 1771) of Chesterfield County, son of Henry and Elizabeth (Epes 121 5) Randolph. There were eight children. In 1793 Tabitha made a deed conveying her interest in some slaves to Henry Archer. The deed recited that her father Robert Poythress 28 had by his will dated 24 May 1743 left some slaves to his wife (Tabitha’s mother) and after his wife’s death the slaves were to go in (sic) his (Robert’s) three sons, Robert, Peter, and William, and to such of his daughters that were at that time unmarried.
286 Elizabeth Poythress
m. John Gilliam
Notes & Comments:
1. I have used Mr. Batte’s text throughout….i. e. his abbreviations, punctuations, spellings, etc., saving comments and/or observations and/or questions for this separate section.
2. While Mr. Batte’s generational numbering system is not difficult to figure out, this text is still best read with the chart at hand for illustration.
3. Mr. Batte uses italics whenever he is introducing a new spouse to the line. He also uses italics for emphasis in places.
4. Of Francis Poythress’ four children this traces the line of only one, first son John. Daughter Jane married out of the surname line. Thomas returned to England and there is no further record of him. Francis2’s line was to have been “Section B”. Mrs. Batte informed me personally that Mr. Batte had never done Section B.
5. It is worth only a slight mention that for a family that used the same Christian names over and over again, the name Francis does not appear in John’s line.
6. Batte refers to Wyndham Robertson as “Governor”. I expect we may assume that this Wyndham Robertson (or one of his descendants) is the author of “Pocahontas and her
Descendants”.
7. Projection: William Poythress # 211 2 is the one of whom we have the line drawing. William 252 would not seem to be a likely candidate.
8. The “Peterson” name appears at # 211 24 and # 211 241. This name is one of many suggested for the surname of the wife of Francis1.
9. This probably doesn’t need saying but just to be sure, the “Hollywood” referred to is a cemetery in Richmond.
10. The raised tomb of William Poythress 25 is directly in front of the front door of Blandford Church, about 20 feet away.
11. The name Peachy has been assigned (without documentation) to the mother of Francis1. The name Peachy has appeared in the Poythress line lending some presumed credibility to the assignment. However, as this document shows, for the purpose of this line Peachy is introduced at 211 3 and 215, and in both instances is “brought in” by an “outside” spouse. The mother of Francis may or may not have been named Peachy but
these later appearances of the name would seem to be immaterial to that issue.
12. Note John Poythress 26 comments with respect to a son or grandson Thomas! Is this our man?
13. Spouse of Mary Poythress # 281 6, “Squire Lee” is brother of Harry Lee and uncle of General Robert E. Lee.
14. Observation with respect to the supposedly “legendary” nine Misses Poythress, all daughters of Peter Poythress of Branchester and all married: Three of the daughters
(Sally, Agnes, and Jane) had 28 children between them. Only one daughter (Lucy) is shown with “no issue” and Mr. Batte’s document is silent on five other daughters. If the five unmentioned only had half as many children as the three mentioned….we should not be surprised that “Poythress” shows up for a long time all over Virginia as an
“honorary” middle name.