I realize this particular message is mostly outside the limits of Fauquier County, but I think it's worth sending to the list because some of those mentioned are 'said' to have lived in Fauquier County and at least two of their sons did move there. Previously I sent information on the children of William and Martha (Brumfield); this message discusses their parents. Again, most of my information comes from Margaret Kinsey's _Ball Cousins_, 1981, Gateway Press. Contrary to the suggestion of the title, she discusses ONLY the Ball line related to Joseph Ball who died 1821 in Philadelphia. He died intestate and the court decided heirs of Joseph's aunts and uncles would share in his estate -- after his wife's portion was distributed. Kinsey cites many sources for specific statements (and I'll try to type those in as I go), but her main resource was the paper trail left by those who actually received money. Not all heirs did (in Kentucky one brother did and another didn't) -- my guess --some didn't bother with the hassle of proving their line back to one of Joseph's relatives. This William Ball's parents were John Ball and Sarah Road(e)s who married in Burlington Co., New Jersey 12 Feb 1711 per copy of their marriage bond, taken from microfilm at the NJ State Library. It remains a mystery why they married in New Jersey when she was living in Pennsylvania with her parents prior to and they near the parents after this date? That it is the same couple is proven by minutes of the Radnor Monthly Meeting in 1714 showing John Ball's apology for marrying Jno Road' daughter contrary to her father and mother's will. [Radnor (Mens) Monthly Minutes 1712-1718, p. 19. ] The births of only two children of John and Sarah (Roads) Ball appear in the surviving Gwynedd Monthly Meeting records: [Briths 1690-1805 p. 6] 1712 Sarah, dau of Jno & Sarah Ball 30, 10 mo 1715 Hannah, dau of Jno. & Sarah Ball 23, 4 mo. [p 26 Kinsey] John and Sarah were still in the area of Plymouth township in 1730 when he served as executor of his bro-in-law's will. But they had moved to Douglas township before 29 Aug 1741, where he died. Items in his inventory suggests John was involved in the making of charcoal for early iron furnaces. Is this the reason two of his grandsons moved to Fauquier Co. VA? The seven known children of John and Sarah (Roads) -- at least these are the only ones whose names appears as aunts / uncles of Joseph Ball -- were: Sarah b. 30 Dec 1712 d. 10 Dec 1779. She married Paul Custer abt 1735 Hannah b. 23 Jun 1715 PA married Joseph Holloway John b. abt 1718 married Mary Richards. [These are the parents of Joseph d. 1821] William b. abt 1720 d. before April 1774 in Pennsylvania (or so Margaret Kinsey believes). He married Martha Brumfield by 1742. Abigail married first Peter Gilbert 16 June 1749 and second George Tompkins Mary married George Smith abt 1750s Anna married John Campbell 4 April 1744 Martha Brumfield was the daughter of Thomas Brumfield and Susannah. According to Ray C. Brumfield and research of Blackman O. Brumfield in _Descendants of Thomas Brumfield of Berks County, Pennsylvania: Genealogy and Family History 1720-1960_ , [1962 Woolman Press, Indianapolis] they lived in Amity Township, Berks Co. and attended the Exeter Friend's Meeting House along with the families of George and Squire Boone, Mordecai Lincoln and John Ball. Although birth dates for most / all of the children aren't known, the authors think Martha is the eldest child and born abt 1725. These authors differ from Kinsey (who was beginning her research about the time they were setting theirs into type for publication) for has them moving to Culpeper County, VA before 1752 when son Thomas was born and then has them in Fauquier County, VA for birth of daughter Martha in 1760. Page 139 _Ball Cousins_ Kinsey makes this statement as to why she believes Virkus et al errs on this couple -- beginning with quote from will of Thomas Brumfield dated April 1774 / probated 1783: "'my will is that my said son Solomon shall pay and lay out for necessaries for my said daughter Martha Ball yearly what her necessity should require during her natural life.' The fact that Thomas Brumfield asked Solomon to provide for Martha indicated that her husband, William Ball, probably died before April 1774. It also showed that Martha was living in that area." From now on, I'll limit myself to the ones who actually lived in Fauquier County. Linda Linda Sparks Starr lsstarr@pilgrimage.us http://homepages.rootsweb.com/~lksstarr