Per the late Mrs. Pat B. Curry's research -- the Benjamin Blanchard that died in 1719 in Nansmond Co - Will Record filed in Chowan Co ---- Benjamin had 2 other brothers that lived in North Carolina: Ephraim and Aaron Blanchard: Verification of Sibling relationship: Court Records: 1716, 31 July: Chowan Co, NC - Benjamin, of Nansmond Co., VA, sold ("for affection") to his "loving brother" Ephraim Blanchard, of Albemarle Co, NC, 2 parcels (80 ac on Meherrin Neck & 5 ac on Meherrin Neck & in fork of Beaver Dam Swamp - patented to Benj. in 1714 & 1701. Wit: Luten: Thos & Thos Jr. 1736, 10 Nov: Sold to Amos Blanchard, eldest son of "cousin" Robert Blanchard (nephew); "Aaron being great uncle to said Amos," water mill, dam & house built by Aaron, located on east side of stream. - Chowan Co , NC deeds. Question: Did this John Blanchard of Mass. have two other sons named Aaron and Ephraim Blanchard? Mrs. Curry's hypothesis: Benj., Aaron and Ephraim's father may have been a Robert Blanchard of Upper Parish of Nansmond Co, VA. 1683, 16 Apr: Robert Blanshard was granted 100 ac in Upper Parish of Nansmond Co, VA at a place called Jerico "Theory regarding Robert Blanshard as the father based mostly on his presence in early records of Nansmond Co, VA as well as the fact that "son" Benjamin Blanchard named one of his son's "Robert." Regards, Renee Blanchard Haynes -----Original Message----- From: John F. Chandler [SMTP:JCHBN@CUVMB.CC.COLUMBIA.EDU] Sent: Monday, May 17, 1999 2:39 PM To: BLANCHARD-L@rootsweb.com Subject: Re: Unidentified subject! Bill, Glad to have you with us. I am particularly interested to see the connection between your #2 and #3, and I am wondering what documentation you have for that. > 1 Thomas Blanshard - Born 1590 in France > 2 John Blanshard - Born 1625 in London, England died 1687 in Dunstable, > Mass, married to Elizabeth 1649 in Charlestown, Mass. This John sounds like a match for "Deacon" John Blanchard, a founder of Dunstable, but with a variety of discrepancies: Deacon John died in 1693, rather than 1687; there is no evidence he was married as early as 1649 (and certainly no children known to have been born before 1659); and, most importantly, he was definitely not the son of Thomas Blanchard the immigrant ancestor who happens to be the most "popular" among our list members. The evidence of probate records shows that John was the brother of William Blanchard of Boston and the son of Ann Blanchard of Salem and Chelmsford. The name of Ann's husband is often said to be Joseph, but we unfortunately have no proof of that. John's will of 1693 mentions a son Benjamin (who was born in Chelmsford 1664/5 Mar 15) as well as three other sons. The other three sons are known to have raised families in Massachusetts, but Benjamin is a complete blank, other than his birth record and his father's will. This is where your #3 comes in... > 3 Benjamin Blanshard - Died June 05, 1719 in Nansemond County, > Virginia. He was married to Catherine. Children Robert, > Catherine, Benjamin, Absalom. It is conceivable that John's son Benjamin went off to Virginia to make his fortune, and the description of this Benjamin in Nansemond County is (so far) consistant with the idea that he came from Massachusetts in the hope of getting rich. Since John's Benjamin was presumably still in Massachusetts in 1693 and somewhat past the typical age of "youthful indiscretions", and because there are no records of any such, we can assume that he was not forced to flee for a romantic reason. If Benjamin had left for religious reasons (such as becoming a Quaker), he would undoubtedly have gone no further than Rhode Island, or possibly Pennsylvania or New Jersey. Given continual state of war with the French and Indians, the most likely fate of Benjamin is an unrecorded death in Massachusetts or vicinity, without issue, but it is also possible that he went out into the wide world and never came back. The question is: how do we know where Benjamin of Nansemond came from? The names of his children do not suggest a link to the Massachusetts family -- they might be from his wife's family, of course. Is there a tradition among this Benjamin's descendants that their family was founded by a man from Massachusetts? Or is this link something that was put forward by a modern genealogist as an interesting hypothesis? John Chandler ==== BLANCHARD Mailing List ==== Check our BLANCHARD Genealogy Databases at: http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~blanch-l/blpref.html