Frances Lynn (Lewis) Yancey (1771 - 1845)

Born 17 May 1771 in Virginia

Ancestors

Wife of William Layton Yancey — married 17 Dec 1788 in Augusta, Virginia, United States

Descendants

Died 30 Aug 1845 at age 74 in Virginia, USA

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Biography

Frances Lynn (Fanny) Lewis was born on May 17, 1771, in Augusta County, Virginia.^[1] She was the daughter of Thomas Lewis and Jane Strother.^[2]

She married William Lawton Yancey on December 17, 1788, in Augusta County, Virginia.^[3][4] They had ten children - Maria L., Frances Layton, Jacob Layton, John Strother, Thomas Layton, Charles Lewis, Elizabeth Clarissa, William Burbridge, Albert G., and Louisa Malvina.^[5][2]

"Layton and Fanny built their first house on land she would inherit from her father. Though proof is lacking, it appears to have been a portion of the land owned by John Yancey, which Thomas Lewis probably purchase when John and Mary Yancey returned to their home in Culpeper. In his will Thomas referred to it as 'Lower Lynnwood.'"^[5]

"As their family grew larger a new house became imperative. Looking up the river they had often talked of the magnificent view and many possibilities offered by the nearby hill, the highest point around..... When completed, they named the place 'Hill Top.' The tract of land on which 'Hill Top is built is an additional gift from Thomas Lewis, who died in 1791." In addition to the bequest to Layton and Fanny, Thomas willed the adjoining "lower" plantation to his son Charles. Layton and Fanny later purchased this land as well. "As a result of his war service Layton was granted, more than 4000 acres, much of which was in the Kentucky or Missouri or Ohio sections of Virginia."^[5]

Her husband died 1813, when their youngest child was 4 years old. In his will, he left his wife the house and surrounding acreage and servants, and offered a plan to provide his wife and family with 500 pounds annually. But the War of 1812 so upset the economy, it was impossible for this plan to be achieved, and the annual income to Fanny and children was smaller and more variable.

In 1830, Fanny was heading a household in Rockingham County which also had two white males 20-29 years old (perhaps her sons William and Albert, who were still unmarried at the time) and eleven slaves (4M, 7F). Households for her several of her sons also appear in the census.^[6]

In 1838 and again in 1843, Congress passed legislation to certain Revolutionary War widows, and Fanny received pension funds on these two occasions. 'Hill Top' was put up for auction in June 1845.^[5]

Frances died a few months later in Greene County, Virginia, at the home of her daughter Fanny Price and family, on August 30, 1845, at the age of 74.^[7] She was buried in the Yancey Family Cemetery in Elkton, Rockingham, Virginia.^[8]

Research Notes

• Yancey, Rebecca L. (1977). Ancestors and Descendants of Capt. William Layton Yancey and His Wife Frances Lynn Lewis, 1600-1900. Baltimore, MD: Gateway Press. 1977 (Link) provides a treasure trove of information on Layton Yancey's ancestors and Layton and Fanny's descendants. It is less valuable on the lineage of Fanny herself, as the chapter dealing with her ancestry is entirely drawn from the now-discredited "The Common-Place Book of me Margaret Lewis" that was promulgated in 1869 supposedly as a family memoir by the wife of John Lewis but is now recognized as a hoax written by a 19th century author. [See the profile for Margaret Lynn Lewis for more information and context.]

Sources

1. ↑ Gilmer Family Bible. Birth records. Link
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Frazier, Irvin; Cowell, Mark W. Jr.; and Fisher, Lewis F. (1985). The Family of John Lewis, Pioneer. Fisher Publications, Inc., San Antonio, TX. 1985. Pages 80-81.
3. ↑ "Virginia Marriages, 1785-1940", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XR73-5YB : 29 January 2020), Layton Yanecy, 1788. Link
4. ↑ Dodd, Jordan. Virginia, Compiled Marriages, 1660-1800 [database on-line]. Ancestry Record 3002 #103973
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3} Yancey, Rebecca L. (1977). Ancestors and descendants of Captain William Layton Yancey and his wife, Frances Lynn Lewis, 1600-1900. Baltimore, MD: Gateway Press. 1977. Pages 14-21, 44-51. Link
6. ↑ Ancestry.com. 1830 United States Federal Census. Year: 1830; Census Place: Rockingham, Virginia; Series: M19; Roll: 199; Page: 275; Family History Library Film: 0029678. Image
7. ↑ Fanny Lewis Yancey - Obituary - Richmond Enquirer - Sept 4 1845.
8. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #115296544

• SAR Application - William R. Lewis Link
• DAR Lineage - Annie Strayer Lewis. Ancestry.com. North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000 [database on-line]. Title: Lineage Book : NSDAR : Volume 158 : 1920 Link
• DAR Lineage - Minnie Strayer. Ancestry.com. North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000 [database on-line]. Title: Lineage Book of the Charter Members of the DAR Vol 039 Link
• DAR Lineage - Lottie Yancey. Ancestry.com. North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000 [database on-line]. Title: Lineage Book : NSDAR : Volume 019 : 1897 Link
• DAR Lineage - Bettie Conrad Logan. Ancestry.com. North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000 [database on-line]. Title: Lineage Book of the Charter Members of the DAR Vol 010 Link
• DAR Lineage - Mary Conrad. Ancestry.com. North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000 [database on-line]. Title: Lineage Book of the Charter Members of the DAR Vol 005 Link
• DAR Lineage - Louise Sipe Willis. Ancestry.com. North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000 [database on-line]. Title: Lineage Book of the Charter Members of the DAR Vol 041 Link
• DAR Lineage - Ethel Nichols Nichols. Ancestry.com. North America, Family Histories, 1500-2000 [database on-line]. Title: Lineage Book : NSDAR : Volume 115 : 1915 Link