This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: MEADOR, MEADS Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/IM0.2ACEB/65.366.2.1.1 Message Board Post: The information was acquired from Robert Lee Meador, Gloria J. Teggart, Carol Elliott Arrington and Sondra Sue Meadows Johnson. Following are biographical sketchs for Ambrose Meador and his son Thomas Meads: Ambrose Meador: Every immigrant to the colony in the 17th century was granted 50 acres as a "headright" to get them started. But often these grants were assigned to a benefactor who had paid for their passage from England to the colony. There, we find that Ambrose Meador had on 1 Jun 1636, surrendered to a Peter Johnson in Warrisquicke County. (later Isle of Wight County.) 150 acres of headright land due for the immigration of Ambrose, his wife and a servant. It should be noted that in many cases delays of several years occurred in the official recording of such documents, therefore, the actual date of Ambrose's arrival could have been a few years previous to 1636. Soon after the recording of this headright, other records show that Ambrose Meador in partnership with John White purchased 50 acres of land from Thomas Davis. Then, in 1649, he bought 300 acres from Ambrose Bennett on the south side of the Pajan River. These purchases were in what became Isle of Wight in the Virginia colony, south of the James River. It is evident that other purchases were made for when records no longer exist, on the basis of reference to land that Ambrose owned at "Ambrose Meador's Point", cited as a landmark. Adjoining these lands of Ambrose Meador on the Pajan River were grants of 300 acres and 600 acres to Richard Bennett, and 1100 acres to Ambrose Bennett. Much can be learned from these associations. All of the above mentioned men with whom Ambrose Meador dealt and whose lands adjoined his own were prominent members of the early Puritan Church. The Puritan movement had originated in England in the late 16th century as part of the Protestant reformation directed against the Catholic Church. It continued its reformation efforts against the Church of England (Anglican) which had been created when Henry VIII severed all ties with the Catholic Church. In particular, the Puritan adherents felt that Henry VIII had not gone far enough in merely separating from the Catholic Church. The designation "Puritan" derived from their determined efforts to "purify" the Church of England with regard to: 1) forms of worship and the clerical vestments; 2) the organization of the church; and 3) certain theological doctrines. The Puritan movement was not treated favorably by James I, King of England, and migration began into Holland. By 1610 the Puritans had begun to settle in Virginia on both sides of the Pajan River in Warrisquicke County (now Isle of Wight). Many settlers succumbed to hardships, disease and recurrent Indian attacks. After the Indian massacre of 1622 throughout the Virginia settlements, only 33 European persons were left in the Warrisquicke County. area. Sometime after the tragedy but certainly before the recording of his headright in 1633, Ambrose Meador came to the Virginia colony. Because the records show he was married when he arrived but had no children, the passage must have taken place before 1633, the year in which his first son, John, was born. It is not known if Ambrose Meador came to Virginia from Holland or England. Some indications point to Suffolk in agricultural East Anglia, northeast of London, as the possible origin of the Meadors. As we attempt to recreate Ambrose Meador's background, it is quite significant that in Virginia he settled near and dealt with Ambrose Bennett, a relative of Edward Bennett, who was one of the Elders of the "Ancient Church" faction of the Puritan movement. Edward owned a fleet of ships that transported and supplied many of the Puritan colonials. Edward married into the wealthy Bourne family and was granted thousands of acres for transporting hundreds of colonists and their servants. His relative Richard Bennett was overseer of his plantations and later became Governor of Virginia. A neighbor of Ambrose Meador's was Thomas Jordan, a prominent member of the Puritan movement. Perhaps as early as 1632, construction was begun on a church, just a few miles south of the lands of Ambrose Meador. Durably built of hand-fired brick, the building still stands today. The last record of Ambrose Meador in Isle of Wight County. is in 1649, when he sold land to Ralph Warrener on 9 April 1649. Ambrose soon followed the Puritan colonists to Lancaster County. on the Rappahannock River. He is first found there on a list of tithers on 24 Oct 1653. He settled on the northeast side of the river in the Totuskey Creek area. On 3 Sep 1656 he purchased from James Williamson the lower 1,000 acres at the 1800 grant on Willing Creek (Totuskey Creek). The neighbors here besides Williamson included Bryer, William Underwood, Abraham Moore, Thomas Robinson, and William Denby from the Isle of Wight colony. The 1,000 acres purchased by Ambrose Meador included Accokeek Point of the mouth of Totuskey Creek, across the river and a few miles downstream from present Tappahannock. Of this 1,000 acres, he soon sold 300 acres to Thomas Robinson and 300 acres to his son, Thomas Meador. He retained 300 acres for himself as a home plantation, probably near the present site of Wellford, which he appears to have named "Accokeek". This 400 acres was then inherited by his son, John Meador, and later traded by John to Robert Tomlin on 3 May 1663 for 500 acres of land on Peumansend Creek in what is now Caroline County. Evidently Ambrose Meador was dead by this date. His last reference in the records is 24 Dec 1661 when he shared a purchase with his son, Thomas. His wife was mentioned (but not by name) in the deed to Thomas Robinson in 1656, but may have preceded him in death. If Ambrose Meador left a will, as is likely, it has not survived the loss of Lancaster County. records, nor is hi! s last resting place known. It appears probable that Ambrose Meador's son, Thomas Meador, met with an early death. He left no property of record to be divided and no deeds or wills have been found. Source: Our Meador Families in Colonial America - as found in the records of Isle of Wight, Lancaster (old) Rappahannock, Richmond, Essex and Caroline Counties, Virginia; 1983; Victor Paul Meador & Bernal M. Meador Thomas Meads: Arrived in Virginia prior to 1636 with his Father Ambrose Meador. At present nothing is known of the early years of Thomas Meads. The first records of this name are in the head right grants by the Governor of the Jamestown Colony; a Thomas Meades surrendered his head right grant of 50 acres of land in 1636 to John Gater of Elizabeth City. This grant was reconfirmed two years later when it was combined and reissued with two others, and Thomas Meads is again shown as surrendering his 50 acres. While there is no proof that this Thomas was our ancestor, no other suitable immigration record has been found. While the date shown is possibly several years behind the actual entry of the transaction, due to the usual delay in confirming and recording grants, certainly the available evidence points to this as the approximate time of his arrival. The name of Thomas Meads is next found in the records of Lancaster County, Virginia, in 1653, at which time he purchased 700 acres of land from William Underwood. Underwood was granted 1400 acres on the northeast shore of the Rappahannock River, between Milleck Creek (sometimes known as Willimson's Creek, but now known as Ball's Creek) and Bushwood Creek (now known as Little Carter Creek). The portion purchased by Thomas Meads appears to have been the lower half of this grant, which was the portion falling next to Milleck Creek. Here Thomas established his home on higher ground behind an excellent river landing. This place still appears on modern maps as "Islington Landing", but this name does not seem to have been applied to the area until a hundred years later, for it does not appear in early records. It is important to note that Thomas, the son of Ambrose Meador could not have made the above purchase, as that son was no more than 16 to 18 years old, too young for such a deed. This transaction is of such magnitude as would indicate a man of moderate wealth, a status hardly to be expected of a younger son. This distinction becomes more apparent later in the will of Thomas Meads the elder. But because they lived less than two miles apart, it is rather difficult to separate the records of these two Thomas Meadors, as well as those of the son of the elder Thomas. Nevertheless, it would appear likely that the following entries are for the elder Thomas Meads. An entry in Lancaster records in 1653 concerns an indentured servant of Thomas Meads named Bour Harrison, who ran away and was returned, for which he was sentenced by the court to serve an additional nine months at the expiration of his term of indenture. It should be noted that many children were bound out to earn their support of to learn a trade, particularly orphan children. When the age of 17 years was reached they were discharged, with a suit of new clothes and provisions, or to keep the results of their labors if they chose to stay. Many fared far better under this arrangement than they would have otherwise. Another entry concerns two cows sold by Thomas Meads in 1653 to Minor Doeders. As all cattle had been imported originally from England, they were quite valuable at this time and were often mentioned in wills. Thomas Meads was appointed constable on April 6, 1654, with the oath administered by James Williamson. As a reflection of his standing in the community, the plantation of Thomas Meads was chosen in February 1654, as the rallying point for a small army of volunteers who marched from his grounds overland to the village of the Rappahannock Indians to obtain a peace treaty. Undoubtedly the excellent landing at Thomas's plantation and the proximity of the Indian village, which was perhaps near the site of the present town of Warsaw, had some influence in this choice. In September/October 1654 Thomas Meads tithed for 3 male adults. The levy (tax) was 60 pounds of tobacco per poll. The remaining records of Thomas Meads (Meades, Meader) in Lancaster County concern his will and the court deliberations over the distribution of his estate. The will was written March 5, 1654; but it should be noted that under the Julian calendar then in effect the year was not changed until March 25th, so that in modern terms the year would actually be 1655. The will was entered for probate 3 months later on June 6, 1655; it also bears the date June 12, 1655, perhaps added by the copyist. It reads as follows: The Will of Thomas Meads/Meador The last will and testament of Thomas Meads made the 5th day of March (1654). I do bequeath my body to the Earth and my soul to God that gave it. I do make my wife my sole and absolute Executor. I do give to my wife and daughter Mary this plantation that I now live upon and all the land on this side of the Creek, and the said plantation not to be my daughter's until after my wife's decease. I do give to my two sons Thomas Meador and John Meads all the land that is on the west side of the Creek provided that they pay unto my two daughters Margaret and Joyce two thousand pounds of tobacco and cask at their day of marriage, and in case either of them die that the said tobacco to belong to the survivor. I do give unto my wife and sons and daughters above mentioned all my goods and chattels after my debts are paid and that they shall equally divided amongst them. I do give to my daughter Anne all the cattle that belongeth to her which is about five head of cattle, likewise ! I do give unto her one shilling in money. This is my last will and testament as witness my hand the day and year above written. Thomas Mead Rawleigh Travers John Richardson Edward Bradshaw His mark It should be pointed out here that the will presently exists only as a third-hand copy. Of course, the actual will itself was not filed in the record book --the clerk copied the will. That original record book no longer exists. In the early 1700s many of the badly deteriorated volumes were laboriously hand-copied for preservation, this book among them. So what we have today is a copy of a copy, and copying errors are to be expected. Certainly the signature to the will is not that of Thomas Meads, and the spelling may well be questioned. Early day penmanship (as anyone attempting to read these early documents will testify) was such that it was often impossible to distinguish between and "o" or "e", or a terminal "s" or "r". That the signature of Thomas Meads was written out, perhaps even the entire will, and those of the witnesses (except for Edward Bradshaw) (and Rawleigh Travers who was the county sheriff), indicates a degree of literacy for Thomas and his witnesses. Probate of the will was granted to George Bryer, a neighbor, and as was the custom, the court ordered an appraisal of the estate. This appraisal was done by four men, including Ambrose Meador and Francis Gower, and was returned to the court December 10, 1655. The value was established as 17,502 pounds of tobacco, equivalent at the time to about 109 pounds sterling, a respectable, though not huge, sum for the time. Because "hard" money was scarce in the colonies, everything was valued in terms of its worth in tobacco, on a sort of barter system. As testified by the will, Thomas Meads left a widow, two sons, and four daughters. Quite possibly all these children were under legal age, since at the time when Thomas had entered the country some nineteen years or so before, he had been single. His son Thomas Meador Jr. seems to have been the oldest, but was still under the legal age, as in the court session of August 6, 1655 Thomas Meador Meads, orphan, petitioned the court that William Underwood be appointed his guardian. Further, it was ordered that the estate of Thomas Meades, deceased, then in the hands of George Bryer, be delivered to Underwood. In January 1655 (actually 1656 by modern dating), the Lancaster Court found that the estate was still undivided and in the hands of George Bryer. The court then ordered four men, again including Ambrose Meador and Francis Gower, to divide the estate according to the will of the deceased. It will be seen from the above records that not only did Ambrose and Thomas Meads (Meader) live less than two miles apart, but that there was considerable participation by Ambrose in the affairs of Thomas. Yet we find no statement in the records of their relationship, though many opportunities for such a simple expression as "brother" or "cousin" were passed by, leaving the question unresolved. Nor are the records clear about the fate of the unnamed widow of her children. There is only one reference that daughter Joyce was in the custody of William Underwood; that is all. The land mentioned in the will of Thomas Meads appears to have been the 700 acres that had been purchased from William Underwood. The creek mentioned in the will is not identified there, but a plot of this tract reveals that it would have been divided roughly in half by the lower section and first branch of what is called "Juggs Creek" today. This would imply that approximately 350 acres west of "Juggs Creek would have been intended for sons Thomas Meador (Jr.) and John, while the remaining 350 acres east of the creek was to go to daughter Mary, after the death of her mother. The tract was still undivided in December 1658, when Thomas Meador Meades (the orphan) contracted to sell 25 acres of his portion to James Haire, "that was given to me by my father, Thomas Meades, deceased, and to my brother (name missing) in case that part of the land...shall fall to my lott at the dividing of the said land." In actuality, it is found through later deeds that Mary obtained possession of the entire 700-acre tract, but in what manner is unknown. Perhaps the portion allotted to Thomas Meador was exchanged for rights to the grant on Hoskins Creek. Nor does the will of Thomas Meads make mention of grant lands on Hoskins Creek, south of the Rappahannock River, possibly because these grants had not been finalized. Yet, a grant in 1664 applying to the 450 acres on Hoskins Creek indicates that the grant had been left to Thomas Meador Meader, orphan, by the will of his father, Thomas Meader, deceased. Thus, we have evidence that the elder Thomas Meads Meader (Meads, Meades) bought from John Cooke this 450 acre tract, which descended after his death to his son, Thomas Meader, orphan. While this series of transactions was recorded in 1664 (long after Thomas Meads had made his will and died), it would appear possible that the actions were started about the time Thomas Meads died, and were carried to completion later by Thomas Meador Meader, orphan. The fact that he did not yet possess the land on Hoskins Creek may explain why Thomas Meads (the elder) did not include mention of it in his will. Of course, one could conclude ! that there was yet another Thomas Meades who was the recipient of the grant. But this would require that there be a second pair of Thomas Meader's father and son, with the further coincidence that the son would be known as Thomas Meader, orphan. A review of the lineage of Ambrose Meador reveals that such a father/son combination did not exist among the descendants. This is a vital link in determining our lineage, for subsequent deeds for this 450 acre tract make clear that, after the land was inherited by John Meador from his father, Thomas Meador, orphan, the lineage is unmistakable. In summary, it has been found that Thomas Meads left only two surviving heirs to his property, son Thomas Meador Meader and daughter Mary Meads Hobbs.