Continuation of my reply to Mike Marshall's question. Probably the most comprehensive treatment of John Carter's wives is in Clifford Dowdey, _The Virginia Dynasties_: "During the years of his rise and power at Corotoman, John Carter's personal life was made turbulent by deaths and remarriages. When he built his house about one hundred yards back from the riverfront, his family consisted of his wife, formerly Jane Glyn, his sons John II and George, and his daughter Elizabeth. His wife soon died, and he married a widow, Eleanor Brocas, from Lancastershire [sic; s/b Lancashire], England. She did not live long and died without having borne any children. Then he married Ann Carter, the daughter of Cleave (Cleve) Carter, thought to be an English cousin of her husband. She also died soon, leaving no children. Then came the wife who produced Robert: Sarah Ludlow was her name, and all known about her was that she was the daughter of Mr. Gabriel Ludlow: the 'Mr.' was carved on her tomb, and that designation was not used loosely. She was also the mother of Robert's sister Sarah. This fourth wife lasted a little longer than her immediate predecessors. She died in early 1668, when Robert was five. "Later in the year 1668 Colonel Carter took his fifth wife, Elizabeth Shirley (?), a widow from Gloucester County. This last, late venture - for he was near his own end then - seemed to be his first sour marriage. He died June 10, 1669, leaving his new wife about eight months pregnant. Carter's will showed what he thought of the mother of his unborn child and of his progeny by her. "She was to have £500 (which was part of the marriage contract), a Negro boy, 'her' necklace of diamond and pearls and 'her own books,' and share with Carter's sons John and Robert in the residual personal estate. To these bequests he pointedly added two books from the library (which otherwise went to John and Robert): Byfield's treatise _The Whole Duty of Man_ and _David's Tears_, an 'appropriate legacy for a mourning widow.' "Assuming that her child would be a boy, 'whose name is intended Charles,' and never referring to this future Carter exept as 'her son,' he provided for this heir as meagerly as decency would permit. His executors were to allow the widow £12 a year for his education and '[my] son John is to allow my wife's son necessary clothes.' . . . He provided for the contingency of the widow putting 'her son out [to] apprentice.' . . . "The widow's child was a boy whom she dutifully named Charles, after which he disappeared from the records. He was presumably alive at twenty-one, for John Carter II made provision for him in his will--one-third of the personal estate--though nothing indicated that he claimed his share." There is no mention of a Carter sister or sister-in-law who might have married Edwin Conway. Mike, please let us know if you identify the elusive Mary -- Conway. Kathleen Much

  ________________________________ From: Kathleen Much <[email protected]> To: [email protected] Sent: Thu, April 14, 2011 2:59:27 PM Subject: [VA-NORTHERN-NECK] Edwin Conway's 2nd wife, Part 2 Continuation of my reply to Mike Marshall's question. Probably the most comprehensive treatment of John Carter's wives is in Clifford Dowdey, _The Virginia Dynasties_: "During the years of his rise and power at Corotoman, John Carter's personal life was made turbulent by deaths and remarriages. When he built his house about one hundred yards back from the riverfront, his family consisted of his wife, formerly Jane Glyn, his sons John II and George, and his daughter Elizabeth. His wife soon died, and he married a widow, Eleanor Brocas, from Lancastershire [sic; s/b Lancashire], England. She did not live long and died without having borne any children. Then he married Ann Carter, the daughter of Cleave (Cleve) Carter, thought to be an English cousin of her husband. She also died soon, leaving no children. Then came the wife who produced Robert: Sarah Ludlow was her name, and all known about her was that she was the daughter of Mr. Gabriel Ludlow: the 'Mr.' was carved on her tomb, and that designation was not used loosely. She was also the mother of Robert's sister Sarah. This fourth wife lasted a little longer than her immediate predecessors. She died in early 1668, when Robert was five. "Later in the year 1668 Colonel Carter took his fifth wife, Elizabeth Shirley (?), a widow from Gloucester County. This last, late venture - for he was near his own end then - seemed to be his first sour marriage. He died June 10, 1669, leaving his new wife about eight months pregnant. Carter's will showed what he thought of the mother of his unborn child and of his progeny by her. "She was to have £500 (which was part of the marriage contract), a Negro boy, 'her' necklace of diamond and pearls and 'her own books,' and share with Carter's sons John and Robert in the residual personal estate. To these bequests he pointedly added two books from the library (which otherwise went to John and Robert): Byfield's treatise _The Whole Duty of Man_ and _David's Tears_, an 'appropriate legacy for a mourning widow.' "Assuming that her child would be a boy, 'whose name is intended Charles,' and never referring to this future Carter exept as 'her son,' he provided for this heir as meagerly as decency would permit. His executors were to allow the widow £12 a year for his education and '[my] son John is to allow my wife's son necessary clothes.' . . . He provided for the contingency of the widow putting 'her son out [to] apprentice.' . . . "The widow's child was a boy whom she dutifully named Charles, after which he disappeared from the records. He was presumably alive at twenty-one, for John Carter II made provision for him in his will--one-third of the personal estate--though nothing indicated that he claimed his share." There is no mention of a Carter sister or sister-in-law who might have married Edwin Conway. Mike, please let us know if you identify the elusive Mary -- Conway. Kathleen Much ------------------------------- To unsubscribe from the list, please send an email to [email protected] with the word 'unsubscribe' without the quotes in the subject and the body of the message