Thomas Graves (1580 - 1636)

Born 1 Apr 1580 in Lambourne, Berkshire, England

Husband of Katherine (Unknown) Graves — married 1610 in England

Descendants

Died 5 Nov 1636 at age 56 in Accomack, Virginia

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Biography

Thomas Graves migrated from England to Virginia, Colonial America.

Thomas Graves was a Jamestown colonist.

Thomas Graves is a Qualifying Ancestor of the Jamestowne Society

This profile is part of the Graves Name Study.

Thomas Graves was born in Lamborne, Berkshire, England, and was christened on March 22, 1584, at Saint Botolph Bishopsgate in London, England. His father was James Graves. ^[1] Wikipedia.org lists his birth as: Thomas Graves (c. 1580–1635). ^[2]

Thomas Graves' date of birth can be estimated at 1580 [plus or minus 10 years], especially since only young and strong men were able to make the journey to Jamestown. ^{[3] [4] [5]}

Marriage

Thomas Graves was unmarried when he arrived in Virginia in 1608. The Packrat source for the ship, Mary and Margaret, only lists Thomas as arriving in 1608, but no wife is listed. ^[6]

Graves may have married in England in about 1610, where his sons, John Graves and Thomas Graves, were born. They stayed there in England for a few years and returned to Virginia prior to the 1617 formation of Smythe's Hundred.

His proposed wife, Katherine Croshaw (1586, Gravesend, County Kent, England–24 May 1636, Accomac County, Virginia), may have been the daughter of Raleigh Croshaw. Some of their children were born in England. ^[7]

Very little is known about Katherine, wife of Capt. Thomas Graves. Her maiden name may have been Croshaw. (There was a Raleigh Chroshaw, Gent., who arrived with the second supply with Thomas Graves.) Just when she came to Virginia is not recorded. She and her children are not included in the 1625 census of the Eastern Shore, although Capt. Thomas Graves is. The patent granted to John Graves (son of Capt. Thomas Graves) on August 9, 1637, states that the 600 acres, which were granted to him in Elizabeth City, were "due in right of descent from his father, Thomas Graves, who transported at his own cost himself, Katherine Graves his wife, John Graves the patentee, and Thomas Graves, Jr., and 8 persons" on different ships. ^{[4] [8]}

Assigning 50 acres to each person transported shows they came after 1616. It suggests that the other eight persons transported did not include any members of Capt. Graves' family, so the girls, Ann, Verlinda, and Katherine, obviously came later, and Francis was born in Virginia. The last reference to Mrs. Graves shows her living at the Old Plantation, Accomac, as of May 20, 1636.

Children

Thomas Graves and his wife Katherine had four children, as follows:

• John Graves, born c. 1611, m. ------ Perrin, c. 1624 or later, died c. April 1640.
• Thomas Graves, born c. 1616, wife unkown, died c. 1674.
• Verlinda Graves, born c. 1618, m. William Stone, died 13 July 1675.
• Ann Graves, born c. 1620, m. (1) William Cotton, before 10 July 1637, m. (2) Nathaniel Eaton, by 1642.

Immigration

Thomas Graves, Gent., contributed twenty-five pounds sterling (equivalent today to over $2,500) to the Virginia company for the expenses of the Second Expedition. ^[9] 

Thomas Graves arrived with a second supply of the fleet and sailed on the ship Mary and Margaret on August 16, 1608. ^{[6] [5]} Shortly after his settling in Jamestown, Graves was classified as an "Adventurer" of the Virginia Company line of the original Adventurers (stockholders) of the Virginia Company of London. ^[10] He was one of the very early Planters (settlers) who founded Jamestown, Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in North America. ^[5]

Thomas Graves is also listed on the Qualifying Ancestors of Jamestown Society list. ^[11]

Life in Jamestown

After his arrival in Jamestown, Thomas Graves became active in the affairs and governance of Jamestown. Graves was obviously educated, of some "social status" and financial means.

Graves returned to England, possibly in October 1609, either on the same ship with Captain John Smith (who left Virginia for England for treatment of his wounds resulting from an explosion) or on one of the other seven ships that arrived in Jamestown in August 1609. In that way, he would have missed the starving time of the winter of 1609/10, during which so few survived. ^{[5] [12]}   

Some Virginia historical records refer to Graves as "Captain." He had no such designation in the Charter of 1609, wherein all the Adventurers (stockholders) of the Virginia Company are listed. His immigration on the ship Mary and Margaret, sailed in 1608, lists him as simply "Thomas Graves, Gent."^[6] Thus, it appears that he acquired the title of captain after arriving in Virginia.

While exploring the wilderness with Captain Smith, Thomas was captured by the Indians and taken to Opechancanough, the paramount chief of the Powhatan Confederacy. Ensign Thomas Savage, who had sailed on the ship John and Francis and arrived in 1608 at Jamestown with the first supply of the fleet on October 18, 1607, successfully rescued Graves. ^{[5] [7] [13] [14]}

1617: Graves took 100 men with him into the wilds to explore and then formed a settlement called Smythe's Hundred. This was on the north shore of the James River (ten miles from Jamestown). The Virginia Company organized the Society of Smith's (Smythe's) Hundred for the reason of stimulating the formation of more private or voluntary associations on a joint-stock basis to bring more settlers and more settlements to the Virginia Company's patent area. ^{[5] [15]} Thus, the Society of Smith's (Smythe's) Hundred began. Some Adventurers were Captain Thomas Graves, Sir Thomas Smith, Sir Edwin Sandy's, and the Earl of Southampton.

May 30, 1618: After the death of a man involved in a fight, Governor Yeardley assigned Graves to be in command of Smythe's Hundred.

1619: He led the Society of Smith's (or Smythe's) Hundred (later called Southampton Hundred), which was organized. ^{[4] [12]}

1619 Graves was a member of the first House of Burgesses in Jamestown. (This was the Virginia early legislative branch.) ^{[2] [5] [16] [17] [18]}

After August 1619: He moved to the Eastern Shore before February 16, 1623. ^[4]

November 20, 1622: As a member of the Virginia Company, Capt. Graves had agreed to transport 100 people from Ireland to Virginia and, accordingly, was allowed a patent for land on November 20, 1622. His grant for 200 acres "on the Easterne side of the Shoare of the bay of Chesepeacke (Eastern Shore) and abutting southerly on the land of Capt. Henry Fleete" is of record, 14 Mar 1628/29, and recites that the land was due him "by virtue of an Adventure" of £25 paid to "Sir Thomas Smith, late Treasurer of the Company of Virginia." A tract of 100 acres, due to Capt. Thomas Grayes "for his personal evident as being an "Ancient Planter," was assigned to Capt. Thomas Purifye on February 29, 1631. ^[7]

February 16, 1623/24: The 1623/1624 Jamestown Muster shows Thomas Graves living at Eastern Shore, Virginia.^[19] He moved to the Eastern Shore after August 1619 and before February 16, 1623. ^{[4] [19]}

February 8, 1627/28: The Accomack-Northampton County court records show that he was known as Thomas Graves, Esquire. The General Court appointed him as commander of the "Plantation of Accawmacke" on February 8, 1627/28, and he headed the list of commissioners at the first extant court of record held for Accawmack on January 7, 1633/4. ^[7]

1630: Graves was living at Accawmacke (Accomac, Va.). ^[2]

1631: Graves was a Justice of Accomac County. ^[20]

1630 and 1632: Graves is listed by Jamestowne.org as "Burgess and Ancient Planters of Virginia." ^{[7] [21]}

January 1635: Thomas was designated “Esquire” and named to the intimate Governor’s Council.

September 29, 1635: The first church vestry meeting was held, where Graves was a vestryman at the old Hungars Episcopal Church (situated seven miles north of Eastville, on the north side of Hungars Creek). ^{[22] [23]} The old Hungars Episcopal Church's first minister was Rev. Francis Bolton, who was succeeded by Rev. William Cotton. Thomas Graves headed the list of members present at the first vestry meeting. Hungers Church's first church edifice was built in 1690–95 and was still standing in 1900 as one of the country's oldest churches. ^{[7] [23]}

Thomas Graves was an ancient planter, which was awarded to those who arrived in Jamestown before 1616. ^[24] This would have qualified Graves to receive a patent of land for 200 acres on the Eastern Shore, and it was recorded on March 14, 1628. (Patent Book No. 1, p. 72, Land Registrar's Office, Richmond, Va.) This land was in what was then known as Accomack, Virginia. This is now part of Northampton County. He paid a "quit rent" of one shilling for fifty acres, payable at the feast of St. Michael the Archangel (September 29) each year on a part of his land. ^{[2] [4]}

Assigning the 50 acres to each person transported shows they came after 1616. It suggests the other eight persons transported did not include any members of Capt. Graves' family, so the girls, Ann, Verlinda, and Katherine obviously came later, and Francis was born in Virginia. The last reference to Mrs. Graves shows her living at the Old Plantation, Accomac, as of May 20, 1636. ^{[7] [25]}

Land Patent

Land Patent to Thomas Graves, 1628, (provided by Michael Graves). See patent HERE for the lengthy patent, by John Potts, Esquire, Governor, and Captain-General.

Captain Thomas Graves (Ancient Planter), Land Patent 200 Acres, Recorded 14 March 1628, Book Number One, Page 72, Land Registrars Office, Richmond Virginia.

Death

Captain Thomas Graves died in Accomack, Virginia, between November 1635, when he was witness to a deed, and January 5, 1636, when suit was entered against a servant to Mrs. Graves. ^[7] The undocumented birth date (ca. 1580) would make him the age of 55 at death.

He was buried at Smythes Hundred Burying Ground in Accomack County, Virginia. His burial plot is 12712071.^[3]

Research Notes

• According to the Graves Family Association, no record of the marriage of Captain Thomas Graves has been found. He married Katherine, whose last name may have been Croshaw. ^[26]

• After 29 April 1619, an undated letter from Governor Yeardley to Sir Edwin Sandys concerning Smythe's (Southampton) Hundred, written after 29 April 1619, recites the circumstances of the affair between Capt. William Epes, Commander, and Capt. Stallings, in which the latter was slain and the former placed under arrest, and states, "I have entreated Capt. Graves, an Antient officer of this Company to take charge of the people and the workes." Capt. Graves was sent as one of two representatives from Smythe's Hundred to the first Representative Legislative Assembly, which convened at Jamestown on July 30, 1619. ^{[2] [7]}

Sources

1. ↑ "England Births and Christenings, 1538-1975", database, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:V5LR-52F : 3 February 2023), Thomas Graves, 1584.
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4} Wikipedia contributors. "Thomas Graves (burgess)." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 11 Sep. 2023. Web. 25 Nov. 2023.
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/12712071/thomas-graves: accessed 24 November 2023), memorial page for Capt Thomas Graves (1 Apr 1580–1642), Find a Grave Memorial ID 12712071, citing Smythes Hundred Burying Ground, Accomack County, Virginia, USA; Maintained by Mike Graves (contributor 46614924).
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 4.5} Sweeny, William Montgomery. “Captain Thomas Graves and Some of His Descendants.” The William and Mary Quarterly, vol. 15, no. 4, 1935, pp. 385–94. JSTOR, https://doi.org/10.2307/1919783. Accessed 25 Nov. 2023.
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6} Martin, Rod. “Captain Thomas Graves: Investor, Settler, Soldier, Statesman Whose Vision Helped Create the New World.” The Martin Organization, 2021, https://martinorganization.com/purpose-vision/heritage/captain-thomas-graves/.
6. ↑ ^{6.0 6.1 6.2} Stevens, Sharry Anne. “Mary Margaret 1607, 1608 .” Pilgrim Ship Lists Early 1600’s; Over 7100 Families and 290 Ships, 2022, https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/marymargaret.htm.
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8} Dorman, John Frederick. Adventurers of Purse and Person, Virginia, 1607-1624/5: Families G-P. United States, Genealogical Publishing Company, 2004, pp. 131-132, https://www.google.com/books/edition/Adventurers_of_Purse_and_Person_Virginia/tcM40zgdAZgC?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PA131&printsec=frontcover.
8. ↑ Nugent, Nell Marion. Cavaliers and Pioneers: 1666-1695. United States, Press of the Dietz Print Company, 1934.
9. ↑ Jamestown Rediscovery Foundation. “The Second Supply.” Historic Jamestowne, Howell Creative Group, 2021, https://www.historicjamestowne.org/history/history-of-jamestown/the-second-supply/.
10. ↑ Records of the Virginia Company of London, Vol. IV.
11. ↑ Jamestowne Society, Inc. “Seventeenth Century Qualifying Ancestors.” Jamestowne Society, Jamestowne Society, 2021, https://www.jamestowne.org/qualifying-ancestors.html.
12. ↑ ^{12.0 12.1} Graves, Michael. “Captain Thomas Graves.” Ghotes of Virginia, Ghotes, Inc., 2018, http://www.ghotes.net/descendants/captain_thomas_graves.htm.
13. ↑ Captain Thomas Graves, 1608 Settler of Jamestown.
14. ↑ Records of the Virginia Company of London, Vol. IV, p. 364.
15. ↑ Wikipedia contributors. "Smith's Hundred." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 21 Mar. 2022. Web. 25 Nov. 2023.
16. ↑ Wikipedia contributors. "List of members of the Virginia House of Burgesses." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 21 Nov. 2023. Web. 25 Nov. 2023.
17. ↑ “The First Legislative Assembly.” National Parks Service, U.S. Department of the Interior, 4 Sept. 2022, https://www.nps.gov/jame/learn/historyculture/the-first-legislative-assembly.htm.
18. ↑ [History.com Editors. “First Legislative Assembly in America Convenes in Jamestown.” History.Com, A&E Television Networks, 28 July 2020, www.history.com/this-day-in-history/first-legislative-assembly-in-america.
19. ↑ ^{19.0 19.1} “American Plantations and Colonies.” Genealogy.Com, Insticator, www.genealogy.com/ftm/s/e/e/Sylvia-See-AB/FILE/0052page.html. Accessed 24 Nov. 2023.
20. ↑ Colonial Records of Virginia. R. F. Walker, Superintendent Public Printing, 1874, Internet Archives, https://archive.org/details/colonialrecordso00virg/page/n7/mode/2up, Accessed 24 Nov. 2023.
21. ↑ Jamestowne Society, Inc. “Goulding - Greville.” Jamestowne Society, Jamestowne Society, 2021, https://www.jamestowne.org/goulding---greville.html. Text: "Graves, Thomas - A3202; born ca. 1570, died 1635-35, Accomack Co.; (Member of Virginia Company); Smythe's Hundred: 1619, Accawmacke: 1630, 1632 (Burgess); (Ancient Planter)."
22. ↑ Graves, Michael. “The Descendants of Thomas Sims Graves.” The Descendants of Thomas Sims Graves, StoutLabs, 2023, https://www.tsgraves.com/.
23. ↑ ^{23.0 23.1} Howard, M. C. “History of Hungars Church in Northampton County Virginia.” Northampton County, Virginia Genealogy and History, Genealogy Trails, https://genealogytrails.com/vir/northampton/hungars_church.html. Accessed 24 Nov. 2023.
24. ↑ Ancient Planters Officers. “Ancestors.” Order of Descendants of Ancient Planters, Ancient-Planters.org, 1991, https://www.ancient-planters.org/ancestors.html.
25. ↑ Graves, Ken. “Research Projects and Results.” Graves Family Association, https://graves-fa.org/info/Capt.html. Accessed 24 Nov. 2023.
26. ↑ Yates Publishing. U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004. Source number: 908.001; Source type: Pedigree chart; Number of Pages: 1, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/487788:7836. Note: Marriage information on his wife, Katherine Croshaw. No citation provided. (Secondary source.)

• Family Search: Thomas Graves.

• Ancestry.com. Virginia, U.S., Compiled Census and Census Substitutes Index, 1800-1890 [database on-line]. Lehi, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1999. Original data: Jackson, Ron V., Accelerated Indexing Systems, comp.. Virginia Census, 1607-1890.

• Nugent, Nell Marion. Cavaliers and Pioneers: Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants, 1623-1666. United Kingdom, Genealogical Publishing Company, 1963, pp. 221-222. Text: "William Parry, 550 acs. Northumberland Co., 11 Nov. 1651, p. 349. Abutting upon Potomeck Riv., & Wly. upon land of George Fauster, Gent. Trans. of 11 pers: Thomas Graves, Katherine his wife, John Graves, Thomas Edge, Thomas Graves, Junr., Henry Singleton, Robert Philips, Ailce Grinder, John Peck, Francis White, William Onesby (or Onesly)."

• Greer, George Cabell. Early Virginia Immigrants, 1623-1666 (1912). United States, W. C. Hill Printing Co., pp. 133-4.

• Nelson, Alan H. compiler. St Leonard Shoreditch Parish Registers 1558-1640: London Guildhall Library MSS 7493 (baptisms and marriages) and 7499/1 (burials): approx. 11,000 baptisms, 4,500 marriages, 17,000 burials, https://www.leadbetter.cc/nelson/PARISH/Leonard.html.