What evidence that Jesse Dodson existed, married, had children?

Question

The narrative of this profile suggests that there is no evidence that this man existed. However, he has a wife and children attached, and apparently there are a ton of online trees claiming his existence.  There are also rumors that he was half-Native American.

Can we get a "history" of this legend and determine if he existed at all? If not, I think he needs a disputed existence template.

Thanks.

Comments

Copied from earlier G2G post by Carol Wilder: 

I know from my research and the records I've found there is no indication that Jane Dods, wife of John Dods was a native American. The Muster of the Inhabitant's of the neck-of-Land in the Corporation of Charles Cittie in Virginia taken the 24th of January 1624, found at: “The original lists of persons of quality; emigrants; religious exiles; political rebels; serving men sold for a term of years; apprentices; children stolen; maidens pressed; and others who went from Great Britain to the American Plantations, 1600-1700 : with their ages and the names of the ships in which they embarked, and other interesting particulars; from mss. preserved in the State Paper Department of Her Majesty’s Public Record Office, England” Edited by John Camden Hotten shows that a Jane Dods, age 40 years, is listed as the wife of John Dods who is listed as being 36 years.  There is no notation "Native" beside her name indicating that she was a native, meaning Indian, and there are others listed with the "Native" notation beside their name.  There are no children listed in the household of John and Jane Dods, and there are other households listed with children.  There are no other Dods, Dodds, and no Dodson's listed in this 1624 muster.  This is the first Muster List of inhibatants taken after starving time (winter 1609-1610) and the Indian massacre of 1622.  

John Dods was still living in 1627, when his name is given as John Dodds in records:   "Minutes of the Council and General Court, A Court at James City 9th Ffebruary 1627, Capt ffrancis West Esq Gouano & c, Capt Mathewes, Doctor Pott, Mr. Claybourne, Capt Tucker . . . There was a controversy in Court betweene Will'm Vincent of the Upper Necke of land Planter & John Dodds of the same place . . . " Minutes of the Council and General Court, 1622-1629, pages 298 and 199, The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography Vol. 29, No. 3 (July 1921), online at JSTOR: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4243826.

There is no mention of John Dods/Dodds wife Jane in the court and land records.

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And links to DNA analysis and explanation refuting the claims:  https://dna-explained.com/2017/06/04/the-parents-of-charles-dodson-jamestown-unraveled-52-ancestors-163/ for an explanation of why Jesse Dodson cannot be son of John Dods and his wife Jane (and why Jane was probably NOT a Native American)

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Thanks, Kathie. I'm aware of the info about John Dods and Jane and them not being Jesse's parents. But I'm wondering if there is any evidence that Jesse Dodson existed at all, much less married and had children.

David Martin has said there is a 1645 marriage record and that there is record of Jesse being in Jamestown. Something more specific than this is what I'm seeking.

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Jillaine, You and possibly thousands of other people would like to see proof that Jesse Dodson existed so if David Martin has such a document he should certainly produce it and end the controversy.  Many people claim you can't prove Jesse Dodson existed because the records for Jamestown were destroyed, but not all records were destroyed.  Copies of many Virginia and Jamestown government records were sent to England.  Jamestown ceased to be the center of government in 1698 when Williamsburg became the capital of Virginia.

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There are many marriage records from colonial Virginia, but the  only "marriage record" that exists for Jesse is in an unsourced Ancestry database, "These records, which include information on over 500 years of marriages, were extracted from family group sheets, electronic databases, biographies, wills, and other sources."  

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Kathie, These sources do not list a valid documented source of where their information was obtained.  No one in the past or the present has provided copies of government documents such as tax records, land records, jury list, wills, intestate estate records,parish records, or any record where he was a party to the record or a witness to the record that shows Jesse Dodson existed in Virginia at the appropriate time period.

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I agree completely.  There is not one single document that lists anyone named Jesse Dodson in Virginia in the 1600's.  He is a myth.

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Thank you, Carol and Kathie.  That's what I thought.  So he and his wife are myths.  Did the children current,y attached exist?

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Jillaine, Benjamin Dodson-253 was a real person but is not known to be the son of Jesse Dodson.  Benjamin Dodson-253, was imported into Virginia on the 22nd June 1635, by Captain William Pierce.  Captain Pierce received 2000 acres for importing 40 persons. Benjamin Dodson's name and importation by Captain Pierce can be found in the Virginia records: Nugent, Nell M., https://archive.org/stream/cavalierspioneer00nuge#page/28/mode/2up Cavaliers and pioneers: abstracts of Virginia land patents and grants, 1623-1800.] Vol I, Page 29 [1st ed.] Richmond: Dietz Print Co., 1934, Open Library accessed October 6, 2014/14

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Mary Ann appears to be a myth.  Thomas Ball 1661-1702 was a real person, lived in Northumberland County, VA. but his wives were named Hannah (unknown) and Elizabeth Heath (married several times, had children but not with Thomas). Hannah is named in a lawsuit, Elizabeth in estate inventory as widow and administratrix.  Thomas and Hannah had a daughter named Catherine/Katherine. She was named in a lawsuit as "Abraham Bletsoe & Kath his wife late Kath Ball."    No other wives or children mentioned in documents.

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Okay, I'm slowly detaching the children of Jesse Dodson.

Remaining is William https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Dodson-257

Completely unsourced. Any suggestions?

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There is a William Dodson, of North Farnham Parish, VA,  born c.1685, son of Charles and Anne Dodson, will probated 1753.  He’s the only William I can find in that area at that approximate time....  he’s Dodson-224 in Wikitree but that profile needs some help, too.

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If that's the earliest WIlliam Dobson, perhaps we should merge Dodson-257 into him?

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Unless someone suddenly finds  documents for an earlier William I think that makes sense.  My local history library not open today, but I can do a little more checking in books on  Monday.

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Kathie,  I have both volumes of The Dodson (Dotson) Family of North Farnham Parish, Richmond County, Virginia: A History and Genealogy of Their Descendants by Mrs.Sherman Williams and Rev. Silas Emmett Lucas, Jr. and Charles Dodson Sr.'s son William is listed on pages 5 and 6 and no where is will listed for him.  The text states that William's birth, death, or marriage is not recorded in the North Farnham Parish Register.  The Dodson books does state that he may be the William Dodson who is found in the records of Henrico Co. but that the records of Henrico Co., on the surface, appear to be for an immigrant William Dodson and goes on to state that a William Dodson, along with five others, was on the importation list of Maj. Wm. Ferrer and Lt. Col. Thos. Ligon when they received a patent of 300 acres in Henrico county on the south side of James River on 29 Sept. 1668 with this being recorded in VA Patents, Book 6, page 88.  This William Dodson left a will in Henrico Co. in 1746/7.

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I have not looked at the abstract/will book myself, but the reference is Richmond County WillBook 6, p. 722, 3 August 1753.

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Kathie,

The 1753 Will is for William Dodson who was the son of Charles Dodson Jr. and grandson of Charles Dodson Sr. This William Dodson married the widow Hannah Goad Phillips.  This William apparently had no children as his will leaves items to his brother James, nephew Samuel Dodson, Niece's Ann and Alice Dodson and wife Hannah Dodson the use of his estate during her widowhood and after her death the estate was to be equally divided between Samuel Dodson, Ann Dodson, and Alice Dodson.  The will is extracted in Volume Two on pages 1440 and 1441 of The Dodson (Dotson) Family of North Farnham Parish, Richmond County, Virginia: A History and Genealogy of Their Descendants by Mrs.Sherman Williams and Rev. Silas Emmett Lucas, Jr.

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All good to know, still leaves the supposed son-of-Jesse William hanging out there.  It makes sense to me to merge him away into one of the real Williams, perhaps with a research note saying why the merge was done.

Answer 1

There are actually many early Virginia records still in existence including land and  church records.   The earliest Dodsons I can locate in early Virginia are Gervase, Thomas, and Charles Dodson.  Charles and wife Anne lived in North Farnham Parish in the second half of the 17th century.  They appear in parish records beginning with the baptism of their son, Thomas in 1681.  Charles made his will in 1703 and listed his wife Anne, six sons and two daughters.  Anne made her will in 1718.  No one was named Jesse.  

No one named Jesse Dodson appears in Jamestown records.  

The other two men named Dodson appear in pre-1666 Virginia land records.  These records include not only people who actually owned land, but also the names of hundreds of people whose passage to the colonies was paid for by others.

Gervase Dodson first appears in 1650, receiving a large grant for the transport of 32 persons.  He appears in many subsequent land records.

Thomas Dodson received a grant in 1658 for the transport of 24 persons, including himself.