Mary (Gaines) Catlett (abt. 1652 - 1730)

Born about 1652 in Old Rappahannock County, Colony and Dominion of Virginia

Wife of John Catlett V — married [date unknown] (to 18 Nov 1724) in Old Rappahannock County, Colony and Dominion of Virginia [uncertain]

Descendants

Died 1730 at about age 78 in Port Royal, Caroline County, Colony and Dominion of Virginia

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Biography

GrGrandmother of James Madison 4th US President

Mary married John Catlett as his second wife. Their children were: ^[1]

1. John III, b. 1677/80, m1. Elizabeth Taliaferro (dau. of John "The Ranger" Taliaferro and Sarah Smith), m2. Mary Grayson
2. Thomas, m. Martha ____ (some claim Thornton), d. 1739
3. Mary, b. 1692, m. 12/22/1708 Lt. Col. John Taliaferro, Jr. (1687-1744), their daughter Margaret is mentioned in John II's will.
4. Rebecca, b. 12/27/1702, m1. Francis Conway, m2. John Moore, d. 1760.
5. Margaret, m. Jonathan Gibson of Essex and inherited Green Hill.

John's second child Elizabeth (1689-1751) was possibly the daughter of his first wife, but other sources show her as the daughter of Mary Gaines.

1. Elizabeth Catlett, b. Sept 6, 1689, m. Rowland Thornton

Mother's Maiden Name

Most researchers of the lineage of James Madison 4th US President have agreed that the mother of Mary Gaines was Margaret Bernard, the daughter of Francis Bernard of Kingsthorpe, Nottinghamshire, England through evidence explained. The evidence is based on the research done on William Bernard who lived in the same area and appears to have some relationship with Mary. Her maiden name is further thought to be Bernard due to the naming of their first son, Bernard.^[2][3][4][5]

The Southern Colonies Project has determined that as there are no primary sources for the mother's maiden name, it was changed to Unknown.

Elizabeth or Mary

There is some disagreement as to whether John Catlett's wife was named Elizabeth or Mary. Older sources point to Elizabeth^[6][7][8][1] while more contemporary sources believe it is Mary. Genealogist Margaret Amundsen offers a compelling argument supporting the idea that Elizabeth Gaines' Christian name was not Elizabeth but Mary. See her essay here: http://www.frenchfamilyassoc.com/FFA/CHARTS/Chart036/DanielGaines.pdf

Research Notes

"Some researchers have interpreted this wording (of Daniel's will) to mean Daniel’s daughters married Ralph Rouzee and John Smith. Daniel stopped short of saying his children Bernard and Mary were underage but he makes provision regarding their property should their mother die or remarry before they come of age. The wording of the will implies none of his children had issue when he signed it in 1682. Daniel further directs should his wife remarry his children Mary and Bernard were to have their estate even if they were not of age. From this clause a reasonable conclusion is that his children although not yet of age, were old enough to take care of their property should his wife remarry. This was a technique frequently found in the early Virginia records whereby fathers protected their children’s estates from being looted by stepfathers. This age determination is also consistent with a marriage date of 1662 for Daniel and his wife Margaret (?) Rouzee Gaines.

"The provision regarding the cherry gardens in the will of John (Catlett II) is important because John Catlett sold this land and his wife at that time, whose name was Mary, released her dower interest.18 The year was 1706 and the record is recorded in Essex County and is the only record giving a first name of a wife for John Catlett. Daniel Gaines did have a daughter named Mary and it is more than likely she who was the Gaines wife of John Catlett.

"His (Daniel Gaines's) daughter’s Margaret and Mary did not marry Ralph Rouzee or John Smith as some have concluded. Ralph Rouzee was his stepson and John Smith married Sarah Rouzee his stepdaughter. This couple had a son John Smith who became Daniel’s residual heir should all of his children die without issue. When the dates for Margaret (?) Prosser, Miller, French and later Sommerville are compared with Margaret the daughter of Daniel Gaines the answer is obvious. They were not the same Margaret. Daniel’s will combined with the 1706 record for the cherry gardens owned by John Catlett lays to rest the question of a fourth child for Daniel and wife Margaret. There was no Elizabeth Gaines in this family." ^[9]

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} A history of two Virginia families transplanted from county Kent, England: Thomas Baytop, Tenterden, 1638, and John Catlett, Sittingbourne, 1622, by William Carter Stubbs and Elizabeth Saunders (Blair) Stubbs, Published 1918
2. ↑ The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 4, No. 2 (Oct., 1896), p207
3. ↑ Marks-Barnett families and their kin, by Pettigrew, Marion Dewoody, page 147
4. ↑ Armstrong, Zella, comp. , Notable Southern Families: Volume 1 , Chattanooga, Tennessee: The Lookout Publishing Company (1918) , 77, Google Books (Digital Library).
5. ↑ Wilson, York Lowry , A Carolina-Virginia Genealogy , Aldershot, England: Gale and Polden (1962) , 210
6. ↑ The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography , Virginia Historical Society , JAN 1932, Vol. 40, No. 1, Page 94, JSTOR (Digital Library).
7. ↑ Brogan, Hugh and Charles Mosley , American P residential Families , New York: Macmillan Publishing Company (1993) , 257.
8. ↑ Hayden, Rev. Horace Edwin , Virginia Genealogies: A Genealogy of the Glassell Family of Scotland and Virginia , Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania: E. B. Yordy, Printer (1891) , 244, Google Books (Digital Library). (available at Ancestry.com)
9. ↑ Daniel Gaines of Colonial Virginia, By Margaret Amundson

See also:

• PRESTON'S PAGE, well organized, but totally unsourced tree
• Meade, Bishop , Old Churches, Ministers and Families of Virginia, Vol. II , Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott & Co. (1857) , 96, Google Books (Digital Library).
• Tyler, Lyon Gardiner, editor , Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography: Vol I , New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Company (1915) , 206, Google Books (Digital Library).
• Watson, Annah Robinson , Of Sceptred Race , Memphis, TN: Early Printing and Publishing Company (1910) , 164, Google Books (Digital Library).