Davis Davenport (abt. 1650 - bef. 1735)

Born about 1650 in King William County, Colony of Virginia [uncertain]

Husband of Sarah Ann Woodruff — married about 1680 in King William, Virginia [uncertain]

Descendants

Died before 1735 before about age 85 in King William County, Colony of Virginia

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Heather Brown [send private message], Bruce Danner [send private message], Anne Baker [send private message], Lynnette Letcher [send private message], Deborah King [send private message], Mary Harvey [send private message], and Albert Colbert [send private message]

Biography

Introduction

The descendants of Davis (Note 1) Davenport are known as the Pamunkey Davenports.^[1] Pumunkey Davenports trace their ancestry back to Pamunkey Neck, Old King William County, Virginia. Old King William County was created in 1700/1701.

Pamunkey Neck, originally a Native American reservation for Pamunkey, Chickahominy, and Mattaponi tribes prior to 1701, is a finger of land running northwest to southwest between the Pamunkey-North Anna River and the Mattaponi River ending at the confluence of the York River.

At that time, it was 60 miles long with an average width of 9 miles wide. In 1704, this county contained present-day King William County, as well as the south-western part of Caroline County, and the southern portion of Spotsylvania County. In the 1720s, King William County was reduced in size. Spotsylvania County and Caroline County absorbed portions of the county, reducing King William County to 32 miles long with an average width of 6 miles wide.

Historical Timeline

1619 - Charles City was established by Virginia Company as "Charles Cittie" and was one of first four Virginia boroughs ^[2]

1634 - Charles City became the royal colony of Charles City Shire, one of the five original shires of Virginia of Charles River County, Virginia

1634 - Charles City County, Virginia - Original Shire
Charles River Shire was one of eight shires of Virginia Colony.

1642 - York County, Virginia formed from Charles River County.

1654 - New Kent County, Virginia was formed from York County, a part of James City .

1660 Birth of Davis Davenport

1660
DAVIS DAVENPORT was born about 1657-1660 likely in colonial Virginia. ^[3] He is believed to have been an illegitimate son of John Davis and Ann Davenport , thus he bore the surname of his mother. ^[4](Note 2)

Due to the destruction of nearly all colonial records in the area of Virginia in which he lived, there are only two records for Davis other than he being mentioned in the will of his son, Martin Davenport. All three of these records give his name as "Davis," certainly a suggestion that there may be a Davis somewhere in the family tree, likely the surname of that individual as was the custom of the day.

1667 Arrival in Pamunkey Neck

1667 - Davis Davenport ^[5]
is said to have arrived in the Pamunkey Neck likely after 1667, as Davis Davenport was not mentioned as an adjoining landowner of Major John Waller in 1667 when Elias Downes^[6]
originally acquired the land he sold to Waller sometime between 1667 and 1696. ^[7]

After 1667 - "Davis is given as residing after 1667 near the Mattaponi River Davenport Plantation in the Pamunkey Neck, King and Queen, Virginia." (Reference unknown.) He likely resided with one of his parents if he was still under 21 years of age. He was not mentioned as an adjoining landowner of Major John Waller in 1667, when Elias Downes originally acquired the land he sold to Wallersometime between 1667 and 1696.

1680 Marriage to Ann Woodruff

1680 - It appears that Davis Davenport likely married circa 1680 to Ann Woodruff (b 1659 VA- d 1735 VA) ^[8] .

A William Davis was a neighbor of Davis Davenport, according to Taylor's survey. (Note 3) He is presently believed to have been a half-brother to Davis Davenport.

Children

1682 - Son, Martin Davenport, was born.

1688 - Son, Thomas Davenport, was born.

1691 - King & Queen County, Virginia was formed from New Kent County.

1696 - Davis Davenport likely resided within Chickahominy Reservation of King and Queen, Virginia, United States. (Reference unknown.)

1696 - Daughter, Sarah "Ann" Davenport, was born.

1696 Plantation Owner

1696 - Davis Davenport first appeared as a plantation and land owner in Pamunkey Neck, Virginia. "The first evidence of Davis Davenport is a survey made for Major John Waller, laying off almost 1,000 acres on the Mattaponi River in Pamunkey Neck (then part of King & Queen County, Virginia) that Waller had bought from Elias Downes. Davenport's plantation was shown on the survey as bounding Waller's purchase on the upriver side, and "below Davis Davenport's landing on Mattaponi" was cited in the survey notes as the beginning point of the survey." (Note 4) ^[9]

1698 - Davis Davenport appears as a plantation and land owner in Pumunkey Neck, Virginia. (Reference unknown.)

1698 - Son, John Davenport, was born.

1700/1701 - King William County, Virginia was created from King & Queen County.

1704 - Davis Davenport's name appears in the King William County, Virginia Quit Rents. Davis and his son, Martin Davenport, are listed as small acreage freeholders in Pamunkey Neck.

King's Quit Rolls of 30 March 1704 lists Davis Davenport as having 200 acres of land within The Talbott-Downes Patent of 1667. Martin Davenport is listed as having 100 acres of land approximately 10-13 miles west of the Talbott-Downes Patent of 1667, at or near the head of Davenport's Path.

1704 (abt.) - Son, Richard Davenport, was born.

1712 - Son, Elias Davenport, was born.

1734 Death

1734
Davis Davenport died 24 May 1734 (aged 72–73) at White Oak Landing, King William County, Virginia, USA. ^[10]

He and his wife are given as parents of nine children. His descendants settled in the Virginia, South Carolina, and Kentucky areas. They are known as the Pamunkey Davenports.^[11]

1. Martin Davenport
Martin Davenport named his father as Davis Davenport in his will dated 24 May 1735 in Hanover County, Colony of Virginia, British Colonial America. ^[12]
2. Thomas Davenport, Sr.
3. Sarah Davenport
4. Sarah Ann Davenport married Thomas Graves.
5. John Davenport
6. Mary G. Davenport
7. Richard Davenport
8. Elias Davenport^[13]
9. William Davenport

Research Notes

• Ann Woodruff has been detached as wife as there is no contemporary evidence for her existence. See Research Notes on Ann Woodruff's profile. Donnelly-2171 07:19, 12 February 2021 (UTC)

Note 1: Davis vs. David as given name
Some researchers have insisted that "David" was the given name for the known patriarch, Davis Davenport. However, be advised that James Taylor's survey of 1696, a copy of the original notes now in my hands from the Library of Virginia, identifies Survey Point A as "The beginning swamp below Davis Davenport's Landing." (Contributor unknown.)

Further validation of Davis Davenport is found in three distinctly different documents: (1) Taylor's survey of 1696, (2) King William Quit Rent Roll of 1704, and (3) Martin Davenport's will of 1735, all of which clearly give the name as Davis Davenport. New significant data in the documents (including survey, survey notes, and the original Talbott & Downes patent of 1667) copies that I received today from the Library of Virginia. These item will be shared first with The Davis Enigma research group which now has materials in hand and will commence work after Christmas. (Date and contributor unknown.)

Note 2: Common Law Marriages, Relationships, & Bastardy
Rootsweb Discussion List: DAVENPORT^[14]

As noted earlier we have worked with documented social milieu for historical perspective while working with Colonial Virginia records. Bastards were sufficiently common, Kings as well as Subjects being given to the happenstance, that there were established rules and procedures. Masters took advantage of their female indentured servants sufficiently often in 17th Century Virginia as to require the House of Burgesses to pass an Act stipulating what was to be what when a bastard was born. (Excerpts of said Act are included in "The Further Pamunkey Chronicles" on the off chance that they might be applicable to the Davis Davenport situation.)

First and foremost, it was English Common Law (most Common Law was unwritten but practiced consistently) that a child always had a family name--it being that of the father when born in wedlock, it being that of the mother when born without benefit of clergy. There were/are six Davenport lines, mulatto and white, that began illegitimate in Colonial Virginia records. Those children and their mother are identified by name and circumstance in the records. So, we have documentary evidence of the English practice was employed in Colonial Virginia. When a father acknowledged a "natural child," the euphemism applied, the father's surname could be given to the child as a surname or as a given name, according to the father's stipulation. Woe unto the mother of a bastard who gave the father's name to the child as a surname or given name without either the father's permission or a Court Order. Hence, the fact that Davis Davenport had a surname as a given name signals that there was a Davis somewhere having some association with the Davenport, male or female, who provided the surname, and that said Davis approved of the name usage. If Davis Davenport obtained his surname from his mother, then the fact that he had Davis for a given name was prima facie evidence that his father was possibly a Davis. Not a fact, but indicative. Opportunity for fornication being limited by the hardships and limitations of travel in those days, social historians tell us that a radius of two miles was the most probable zone for illicit assignations, but in Colonial Virginia Masters dalliances with servant girls most likely occurred within their own households. Whatever, there is a wealth of literature on the subject, all of which supports the manner and form in which we have addressed Davis Davenport's parentage. We made no capricious determination but went with what we found and what Colonial Virginia social milieu indicated our findings meant. We are comfortable that our research can withstand the most rigorous scrutiny and is historically correct in its interpretation of social mores. Our conclusions and arguments are open to challenge, but consideration of those conclusions and arguments before challenging them would be appreciated.

As to bastards begot upon the bodies of servant girls by Masters, the servant girl was required to serve an additional year for so burdening her master, the Master was to raise the child, providing proper food, shelter, and clothing, and the child was required to serve the Master in payment thereof until his 31st birthday, if a male, until her 21st birthday if a female. When there was no Master-Servant relationship governing the bastardy, the father did what he agreed to do or what the Court made him do. As anyone who has done research in the Colonial records of Southern States knows, it is easier to find bastards than legitimate children, for most of the bastards are documented in Court minutes.

Bastardy among the Pamunkey Davenports was not rare. Off hand, sixteen instances of surnamed Davenport illegitimates are known, and a dozen Davenport-fathered "wrong sides of the blanket" of other surnames are suspected in Virginia and North Carolina from the Revolution until 1840. Given the demonstrated Virginia and North Carolina propensities, we suspect that there were instances in South Carolina, Georgia, and points West also. One Davenport, of subsequent high public profile, obtained a Bastardy Bond relative to one lady on the same day that he obtained a Marriage Bond to another lady, with his maternal grandfather and the Colonel commanding the County Militia serving as his bondsmen in both instances. That, we suggest, required acumen of some sort and likely explained his later high achievements, and we are not referring to Congressman Thomas Davenport of Halifax.

Note 3:
William Davis was a neighbor of Davis Davenport according to Taylor's survey, which certainly suggests the possibility of Davis' mother or father having been of that neighboring family.

Note 4
For those of you interested in exact locations, I think that we can say with 95+% certainty that Davenport Landing in Pamunkey Neck in 1696 (now King William County, Virginia) was on the south side of Mattaponi River about a mile to a mile-and-a-half downriver (southeast) from present-day Walkerton, Virginia, which is on the north side of Mattaponi in King & Queen County. Taylor's survey describes the Davenport land as being "over against John Walker's Quarter," meaning across the river in this instance. Walkerton, of course, was platted by John Walker. Davenport Landing, now called Horse Landing, is a mile-and-a-half due north of King William Court House at the end Secondary Road 619, off of Virginia Route 30. Waller Landing, now White Oak Landing, is just below Davis Davenport's Landing, and is reached by a spur road off of 619. Both landings show in the same relative locations on Taylor's 1696 survey and the Virginia Department of Transportation of the King William County map, updated to 1995. ^[15]

Wrong+Side+Of+Blanket+Son,+Maybe+Of+A+Davis+Maybe+Richard To Ann Davenport, Servant Abt 1660, Virginia, United States

1696 Descendants of William Davenport II The first evidence of Davis Davenport is a survey made for Major John Waller, laying off almost 1,000 acres on the Mattaponi River in Pamunkey Neck (then part of King & Queen County) that Waller had bought from Elias Downes. “Davenport's plantation” was shown on the survey as bounding Waller's purchase on the upriver side, and "below Davis Davenport's landing on Mattaponi" was cited in the survey notes as the beginning point of the survey.[1]

A William Davis was shown on the survey as an adjoining landowner diagonally across Waller's land from Davis Notes for Davis "David" Davenport: General Notes: Davis Davenport was named as the father of Martin Davenport in Martin’s will. Due to the destruction of nearly all colonial records in the area of Virginia in which he lived, there are only two records for him other than Martin Davenport’s will. All three of these records give his name as "Davis", certainly a suggestion that there may be a Davis somewhere in the family tree. (it is curious, though, that the name was not passed on to any succeeding generation.) The first evidence of Davis Davenport is a survey made in 1696 for Major John Waller, laying off almost 1,000 acres on the Mattaponi River in Pamunkey Neck (then part of King & Queen County) that Waller had bought from Elias Downes. “Davenport's plantation” was shown on the survey as bounding Waller's purchase on the upriver side, and "below Davis Davenport's landing on Mattaponi" was cited in the survey notes as the beginning point of the survey.[1] A William Davis was shown on the survey as an adjoining landowner diagonally across Waller's land from Davis Davenport. (Apparently the same William Davis and his son John Davis later owned land in Spotsylvania County in the same neighborhood as did John Waller, who moved there in 1722.)

Quit Rent Roll of King William County listed as Freeholder of 200 acres; his son Martin Davenport was listed with 100 acres 1704 Pamunkey Neck, King William County, Colony of Virginia, British Colonial America. (Patent of 1667 within Talbot Downes -- Modified | History 31 July 2016 by W. T)

Sources

1. ↑ The Pamunkey Davenports of Colonial Virginia [1]
2. ↑ "Charles Cittie" [2]
3. ↑ Davis Davenport of Pamunkey Neck [3]
4. ↑ The Pamunkey Davenports of Colonial Virginia [4]
5. ↑ THE EARLY YEARS—BEFORE 1700, Virginia as It Began [5]
6. ↑ THE EARLY YEARS—BEFORE 1700, Virginia as It Began [6]
7. ↑ Bob's Genealogy Filing Cabinet: Virginia Patent Book 6, p. 97 [7] :
8. ↑ FindaGrave.com Memorial |https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/139683380/ann-davenport
9. ↑ THE EARLY YEARS—BEFORE 1700, Virginia as It Began [8]
10. ↑ FindaGrave.com Memorial|https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/13822089/davis-davenport
11. ↑ Pamunkey Davenport Surname DNA Project [9]
12. ↑ Modified History, 28 November 2015 by rral for Descendants of William Davenport II
13. ↑ THE EARLY YEARS—BEFORE 1700, Virginia as It Began [10]
14. ↑ Re: [DAVENPORT] Father of Davis Davenport--Social Mores of Colonial Virginia; Date: Wed, 16 Jul 2003 08:58:33 EDT
15. ↑ Davenport, Ph.D, John Scott "Doc" of Holmdel, New Jersey (1925-2013) - The Leader of the Pamunkey Davenports and Author of the Pamunkey Davenport Paper

Likely Defunct Previously Referenced Websites

http://www.genealogy.com/users/j/e/f/Lora-Jeffries/WEBSITE-0001/UHP-0275.html (Not found, likely defunct 11/8/2019)
Davenport Tree [http://wehmeyergenealogyplus.com/davenporttree.htm (Not found, likely defunct 11/8/2019)
Rootsweb: https://wc.rootsweb.com/trees/144469/I000407/-/individual (Not found, likely defunct 11/8/2019)

• Fact: Residence Davis Davenport landing on Mantaponni River King William, Virginia, United States

http://familysearch.org/v1/LifeSketch He had a plantation in Pamunkey Neck. Pamunkey+Neck+Davenports.

Acknowledgements

• Davenport-1956 was created by Linda Weishahn through the import of Kruger Family Tree_2014-08-15.ged on Aug 15, 2014.
• Davenport-2015 was created by Mary Harvey through the import of Mary Giesler Harvey family tree (1).ged on Aug 16, 2014.
• Davenport, Ph.D, John Scott "Doc" of Holmdel, New Jersey (1925-2013) - The Leader of the Pamunkey Davenports and Author of the Pamunkey Davenport Papers: Landing+On+Property 1676 Virginia, United States (James Taylor mapped it. Library of Virginia)
• Unsourced "Family Tree," database, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : modified 15 July 2018, 00:30), entry for Davis Davenport Sr. (PID https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/4:1:L6PC-BM8); contributed by various users.