This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Author: waroper Surnames: Roper, Rosser Classification: queries Message Board URL: http://boards.rootsweb.com/surnames.roper/1939.8/mb.ashx Message Board Post: The fourth volume of Dr. Stephen BRADLEY's abstracts of Brunswick, Virginia, Deed records is titled: "Brunswick County, Virginia, Deed Books, Volume 4, 1755-1770", Abstracted by Dr. Stephen E. BRADLEY, Jr. (Lawrenceville, VA: Stephen E. Bradley, Jr., 1998). At the North Carolina State Library, this book was shown to have Library of Congress call number "GR 929.3 V8br B811bd v.4". This Volume abstracts Brunswick Deed Books 8 and 9. Within this Volume we learn of the appearance of Richard ROPER in Brunswick, as well as the purchase of property in Brunswick by Charles and Ann ROPER, of Dinwiddie: "John HUNT of Brunswick Co to Richard ROPER of same. 28 Jan 1765. £16 VA. 140 acres on the north side of Rocky Run, joining Tarkill Branch, Adam SIMMS. Wit: Stephen SISSON, Thomas SISSON, Nehemiah (x) NOLLY. Proved 25 Feb 1765. N. EDWARD Jr. DCC." Brunswick, VA, Deed Book 8, Page 6 [BRADLEY's Page 1] * "John HUNT of Brunswick Co. to Henry COCKE of same. 8 Jun 1765. £25. A mortgage for 114 acres on the north side of Mehrrin River joining Stephen SISSON, John JACKSON, Adam SIMS, Richard ROPER, John ROBINSON. Wit: John HAMILTON, John TUELL, Wm. HAMILTON. Proved 28 Oct 1765. N. EDWARDS Jr. DCC" Brunswick, VA, Deed Book 8, Page 286 [BRADLEY's Page 21] * James (B) BENNET of Meherrin Parish in Brunswick Co to William SAUNDERS of Sussex Co. 2 Aug 1766. £10 VA. 100 acres on the east side of Cooks Road, joining James JUDKIN's former line. Wit: Thomas VINSON, John (x) ROSSER, John (mark) SHURLAND. Proved 22 Sep 1766. N EDWARDS Jr. DCC." Brunswick, VA, Deed Book 8, Page 365 [BRADLEY's Page 27] * "Hugh WILLIAMS & his wife Elizabeth of St. Andrew Parish in Brunswick Co. to Charles ROPER of Bath Parish in Dinwiddie Co. 28 Sep 1767. £150 VA. 200 acres in St. Andrew Parish, on the south side of Nottoway River, joining John DAVIS, Cabbin Branch. Wit: Joseph DAMERON, Moses QUARLES, Richard DOBYNS." Brunswick, VA, Deed Book 9, Page 46 [BRADLEY's Page 27] "John GRESHAM & his wife Christian (x) of St. Andrews Parish in Brunswick Co to Wm GWYNNE of sd. parish. 11 Aug 1764. £100 VA. 200 acres which was part of a patent to John ROSSER [sic] who conveyed it to Thomas TWITTY who conveyed it to sd John GRESHAM, joining HAGOOD, the head of Bryery Creek, John JOHNSON, SIMMONS. Wit: John MACLIN Jr., John RUSSELL, Benjamin SEAWALL Jr. Proved 22 Oct. 1764. John Robinson CC." Brunswick, VA, Deed Book 9, Page 293 [BRADLEY's Page 68] * * * * * THE BRUNSWICK POLL LIST OF 02 DEC 1768 Possibly as almost as significant to genealogists as what these records show is what is NOT SHOWN in another sequence of records in this same volume. On pages 61-68 of BRADLEY's transcription are recorded POLL LISTS of the votes taken in an election for Burgess on 02 Dec 1768. These lists show which citizens of Brunswick County voted for each of three candidates for Burgess -- Nathaniel EDWARDS Jr. (pp. 61-3), Frederick MACLIN (pp. 63-5) and Thomas STITH (pp. 65-8).* These lists span pages 279 to 290 within Brunswick Deed Book 9. These Poll Lists give the very best equivalent to a Census (or Personal Property Tax List) of Brunswick, VA, citizens at the 02 Dec 1768 date of this election, though admittedly the list would necessarily be INCOMPLETE since it would NOT reflect the names of those who chose NOT to participate. In this instance, NO ROPER NAMES are shown on any of these three poll lists, despite some other indications of the presence of both David ROPER and Richard ROPER in Brunswick County. We wouldn't have expected Charles ROPER to appear since he is shown to be a non-resident land owner, actually residing in Dinwiddie. Even so, the list gives us some admittedly weak assurance that there were not likely to be other ROPER families resident in Brunswick in 1768 NOT previously shown in the deed records. THIS LIST ALSO GIVES A MEANS TO ASCERTAIN THE PRESENCE OF OTHER FAMILIES IN BRUNSWICK AT THE DATE OF THIS ELECTION. * I seem to have NEGLECTED to copy one page and this seems likely to have the name of a fourth candidate. I DOUBT that I neglected to copy a page containing ROPER voter names. * * I noted the following possibly interesting names on the three Poll Lists: Voting for Nathaniel EDWARDS - Isaac ADAMS James ADAMS James ADAMS Peter ADAMS James ALLEN Joseph BROWDER Joseph CARTER Daniel COLEMAN John COLEMAN John FLETCHER Paul HARTWELL Ismael HARWELL Thomas HARVEY William HOLLOWAY John LAMBERT Charles LEDBETTER Drury LEDBETTER Henry LEDBETTER Isaac LEDBETTER Richard LEDBETTER Drury MOORE Garrett MOORE John MOORE John PETERSON Jr. John PETERSON Sr. Wm. PETERSON John ROSSER Drury STITH Jr. James WALL Jr. James WALL Sr. Benjamin WILLIAMS Daniel WILLIAMS John WILLIAMS Jonathan WILLIAMS Jonathan WILLIAMS Peter WILLIAMS Roland WILLIAMS Thomas WILSON Voting for Frederick MACLIN - John ABERNATHY Wm. ABERnATHY Isaac ADAMS James ADAMS Peter ADAMS James ALLEN John ALLEM Joseph CARTER Mason HARWELL Paul HARTWELL Frederick HARWELL Ishmael HARWELL Henry LEDBETTER Isaac LEDBETTER Richard LEDBETTER Burwell LUCY Drury MOORE John MOORE John PETERSON, Jr. Wm. PETERSON Michael SULLIVANT James WALL Banjamin WILLIAMS Daniel WILLIAMS Geo WILLIAMS Voting for Thoams STITH - John ABERNATHY John ABERNATHY William ABERNATHY Joseph BROWDER John COLEMAN Frekd HARWELL Samuel HARWELL William HOLLOWAY Hugh LAMBERT John LAMBERT Charles LEDBETTER David MEREDITH James MOORE John ROSSER John SISSON Drury STITH, Jr. Charles SULLIVANT Burgess WALL James WALL, Jr. Henry WILLIAMS Jonathan WILLIAMS Jonathan WILLIAMS Rowland WILLIAMS 4th Candidate - John SISSON Burgess WALL George WILLIAMS Henry WILLIAMS John WILLIAMS Peter WILLIAMS Thomas WILSON * * * * * NOTE 1: The grantee of the HUNT deed of 28 Jan 1765 seems likely to be the Richard ROPER who later married Ann LEWIS. It seems most likely that Richard ROPER was at least age 21 by the date of this purchase and therefore was born before 1745. NOTE 2: Once Richard ROPER appears within the Brunswick records by purchase he then again appears the very same year within mention of the boundary of another property also conveyed by HUNT. I mention this solely by way of explanation that mere presence in a county has a tendency to create at least a few random mentions in the records whether or not the person is conveying property as grantor or grantee. NOTE 3: The John ROSSER mentions continue to reflect presence in Meherrin Parish (South of the Meherrin River) rather than St. Andrew Parish (North of the Meherrin River). NOTE 4: In 1767, David ROPER (b 29 Jun 1742 - VA) was age 25. Charles and Ann ROPER seem to have purchased a parcel on the Nottoway River where David ROPER seems to have resided for a short time. David then seems to have moved slightly to the South to a location on Hickory Run adjacent to his brother William ROPER and sister Laura Roper MOORE. NOTE 5: The mention of an adacent John DAVIS is interesting given the intermarriage of the ROPERs with the DAVIS family in Anne Arundel, Maryland. NOTE 6: I included voters of the ABERNATHY surname because a ROPER later intermarried with an ABERNATHY in Giles County, TN. NOTE 7: I included the voters of the ADAMS surname due to the later intermarriage of ROPERs with the family of Drury ADAMS in Edgefield, SC. NOTE 8: I included voters of the ALLEN surname given Charles ROPER's naming of a son "Allen". NOTE 9: I included voters of the BROWDER surname because of the purported marriage of Charles ROPER's daughter Jane to a BROWDER. NOTE 10: I included voters of the CARTER surname because of the intermarriage of the ROPER and CARTER family in Anne Arundel, MD. NOTE 11: I included voters of the COLEMAN name because of the intermarriage of Charles ROPER's daughter Emily with Isham COLEMAN. NOTE 12: I included voters of the FLETCHER surname because of the intermarriage of John ROPER with the FLETCHERs in Mecklenburg, NC. NOTE 13: I included voters of the HARTWELL and HARWELL surname due to the appearance of the given name "Hartwell", a son of Benjamin ROPER (b abt 1767, d 23 Oct 1845 - Edgefield, SC) and grandson of David ROPER (b 29 Jun 1742 - VA). NOTE 14: I included voters of the HARVEY surname because (a) HARVEYs are shown to be adjacent to the ROPERs at Hickory Run and Red Oak Creek, and (b) this family is intermarried with the ROPERs in Edgefield, SC. NOTE 15: I included voters of the HOLLOWAY surname because HOLLOWAYs are intermarried with ROPERs in several places in the South, including in Lincoln, Tennessee. NOTE 16: I included voters of the LAMBERT surname because ROPERs are shown to be connected to LAMBERTs in Charles County, Maryland (deposition of John ROPER) and Charles City County, VA (John ROPER's Patent of 1714). NOTE 17: I included voters of the LEDBETTER surname because Charles ROPER's daughter married into the LEDBETTER family a generation later. NOTE 18: I included Burwell LUCY because this Burwell LUCY sold land to ROPERs in Northampton County, NC. NOTE 19: I included voters of the MOORE surname because David ROPER's twin sister Laura married William MOORE and lived adjacent to David ROPER and William ROPER near Red Oak Creek in Brunswick County, VA. NOTE 20: I included voters of the PETERSON surname because James ROPER married Mary PETERSON, daughter of John PETERSON. NOTE 21: I included voters of the SISSON surname because of its similarity to the SASSEEN name. Joseph ROPER's daughter married a SASSEEN and moved to Jefferson, TN. NOTE 22: I included voters of the STITH surname because Drury STITH was also a neighbor of the ROPERs in Charles City County, VA. NOTE 23: I included voters of the SULLIVANT surname because SULLIVANT was a servant of Thomas ROPER in Chowan County, NC. NOTE 24: I included voters of the WALL surname because Richard ROPERs descendents intermarried with the WALL family immediately across the North Carolina State line in Norhtampton County in later generations. NOTE 25: I included voters of the WILLIAMS surname because Charles ROPER purchased the first parcel of land in Brunswick County from Hugh WILLIAMS. NOTE 26: I included voters of the WILLSON surname because Jeremiah ROPER married a WILSON in Brunswick County. NOTE 27: The 11 Aug 1764 GRESHAM deed to William GWYNNE erroneously identifies the original patentee as John ROSSER rather than John ROPER. It is UNCLEAR whether this is a transcription error by Dr. BRADLEY or whether by 1764 GRESHAM had become confused about the identity of the original patentee. Important Note: The author of this message may not be subscribed to this list. If you would like to reply to them, please click on the Message Board URL link above and respond on the board. <br>