G.H.S King, _Marriages of Richmond County, VA, 1668-1853_ (Easley, SC: Southern Historical Press, 1986), p. 8: "BALL, THOMAS and Mildred Downman, bond 3 April 1766. Raleigh Downman (b). [She was born in North Farnham Parish, 6 March 1749, the daughter of Captain Robert Downman and his wife nee Elizabeth Porteus. Thomas and Mildred Ball moved to Amelia County, Virginia, and appear frequently on those records. AB#2, P. 4; WB#7, P. 40, 48.]" Margaret Lester Hill, _Ball Families of Virginia's Northern Neck, An Outline_ (Mary Ball Washington Museum, 1990), p. 39: "Thomas Ball (George, George, William, Wm.), d. May 1814-Feb 1816 [Northumberland Co., VA, _Record Book 20_: 353-355]. Mbnd 3 Apr 1766, Richmond Co., VA, Mildred Downman (b. 1749), daughter of Elizabeth Porteus and Capt. Robert Downman." If Hill is right, Thomas was the son of Capt George Ball d 1770 and Anna Taylor d 1782. That makes him the grandson of Grace Haynie. Calling him "junior" doesn't mean he's the son of another Thomas, just that there was an elder Thomas somewhere in the neighborhood. The Balls were prolific, so that's not out of the question. Horace Edwin Hayden, _Virginia Genealogies_ (Wilkes-Barre, PA, 1891), p. 67: "55. iii. Capt. George, d. 1770; will dat. June 29, 1770; pro. North'd Co. Oct 8, 1770 (Bk 8, 73). Names father, Capt. George Ball, and mother, Grace Ball, brothers Joseph, Richard, and David, wife Ann, sister Grace Downman, grandson David Ball Jr., and children as given. 'George Ball Jr., m. June 14, 1736, Ann Taylor, Lanc'r Co., dau. of Elizabeth, with the mother's consent. Witnessed by Merriatt Taylor (L). Mr. B. was Justice and mem. North'd Co. Court 1753, and Sheriff July 1757, with David Ball as his Deputy. Vestryman of Wicomico Par. 1770. "Children (will): 1. David. ii. Thomas. iii. Sarah. iv. Martha. v. Mary Taylor." I have no information about Harris Ball, called Harris Downman in her mother's will. I've wondered whether she was Harris Downman Ball or Harris (Ball) Downman; i.e., was Downman her middle or her married name? Kathleen On Mon, Sep 12, 2011 David Brown wrote: > > Thanks Kathleen for the information on the Downman family. ? I understand > that William Downman & Ann Ball (whom you mentioned in your post below) are > the parents of Traverse Downman who married Grace Ball, daughter of George > Ball & Grace Haynie. ?Grace Ball had a sister named Sarah Ball who married > Christopher Dameron (they are my ancestors -- Christopher Dameron was son of > Bartholomew Dameron & Elizabeth Garlington). ? Additionally, there was a > sister named Harris Ball who also married a Downman. ? Do you or anyone on > this List know who Harris Ball married (see record transcription below > mentioning "Harris Downman")? > > > I believe Traverse Downman who married Grace Ball had a niece named Mildred > Downman (daughter, I think of Robert Downman & Elizabeth Porteus) who > married Thomas Ball, son of George Ball, Jr., (son of George Ball, Sr. & > Grace Haynie). ? Can you or anyone else confirm this is true? ?A record > below identifies Thomas Ball as "junior" thereby meaning there must have > been an older Thomas Ball. ? However, I'm not sure who that would be as I > don't show any sons named Thomas for George Ball, Sr. & Grace Haynie. ? Any > ideas? > >

Kathleen, As I wrote earlier, I am in the process of vetting at least the first three generations of the Ball Family. Believe me, if it comes down to trusting Peggy Hill's book or Horace Hayden's book, Peggy's book wins hands down. That is not to say that Hayden was not a source for some of her research. His is only place where specific dates are given (with no source, usually.) And this is not to say Peggy's book is without errors or, some very vague lines. Perhaps it is just coincidence that it was just about the time he wrote his book 1885 that Richmond County Will Book went missing. So, all we left is his word for things attributed to that source. Aggravating, but such is life. On a side note, a gentleman from New Jersey is much interested in all things Ball. He has relatives in England and will be going there next July and is donating one day of time at PRO in Kew [though we may send him to Northamtonshire instead]. We (MBW) are diligently working with him to collect anything and everything we know of written about Balls in England. It is a mass of material but Peter Walne's 1959 article remains the best source for clues, along with the first part of Heck's booklet written in the 1920s. Nancy McBride's book, *Gordon Kinship* has a lengthy section on records in England that she identified but did not examine. If you have any suggestions for this project, please send them to me at [email protected] Many thanks, Craig Kilby On Sep 12, 2011, at 2:09 PM, Kathleen Much wrote: > > > Margaret Lester Hill, _Ball Families of Virginia's Northern Neck, An > Outline_ (Mary Ball Washington Museum, 1990), p. 39: "Thomas Ball (George, > George, William, Wm.), d. May 1814-Feb 1816 [Northumberland Co., VA, _Record > Book 20_: 353-355]. Mbnd 3 Apr 1766, Richmond Co., VA, Mildred Downman (b. > 1749), daughter of Elizabeth Porteus and Capt. Robert Downman." > > If Hill is right, Thomas was the son of Capt George Ball d 1770 and Anna > Taylor d 1782. That makes him the grandson of Grace Haynie. Calling him > "junior" doesn't mean he's the son of another Thomas, just that there was an > elder Thomas somewhere in the neighborhood. The Balls were prolific, so > that's not out of the question. > > Horace Edwin Hayden, _Virginia Genealogies_ (Wilkes-Barre, PA, 1891), p. 67: > "55. iii. Capt. George, d. 1770; will dat. June 29, 1770; pro. North'd Co. > Oct 8, 1770 (Bk 8, 73). Names father, Capt. George Ball, and mother, Grace > Ball, brothers Joseph, Richard, and David, wife Ann, sister Grace Downman, > grandson David Ball Jr., and children as given. 'George Ball Jr., m. June > 14, 1736, Ann Taylor, Lanc'r Co., dau. of Elizabeth, with the mother's > consent. Witnessed by Merriatt Taylor (L). Mr. B. was Justice and mem. > North'd Co. Court 1753, and Sheriff July 1757, with David Ball as his > Deputy. Vestryman of Wicomico Par. 1770. > "Children (will): 1. David. ii. Thomas. iii. Sarah. iv. Martha. v. Mary > Taylor." >