Richard Gist (abt. 1683 - 1740)

Born about 1683 in Baltimore County, Province of Maryland

Ancestors

Husband of Zipporah (Murray) Gist — married 7 Dec 1704 in Baltimore, MD

Descendants

Died 28 Dec 1740 at about age 57 in Baltimore County, Province of Maryland

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Biography

Richard Gist was a Maryland colonist.

Richard was a Friend (Quaker)

Origin

No birth record for Richard Gist has been found. He was the son of Christopher Gist and Edith Cromwell. The proof of Richard's parentage is found in a deed dated 21 FEB 1693 in which Thomas & Rebecca Hammond convey two tracts of land to Richard Gist, the son and heir of Christopher Gist, deceased. This deed, which transfers 225 acres located on the south side of the Patapsco River, also mentions a John Beecher who married the widow of Christopher Gist and was currently occupying one of the two tracts. ^[1]

Marriage & Family

Richard married Zipporah Murray, a close neighbor, on 7 DEC 1704 in a Quaker Meeting House.^[2] Shortly after the marriage her brother, Josephus Murray convey a tract of land to her for brotherly love. The deed is unusual because Richard's name is not part of the deed. ^[3] They had the following known children:^[4]

1. Christopher Gist (1705-1759) m Sarah Howard
2. Nathaniel Gist (1707-1780) m Mary Howard
3. Edith Gist (1709- ? ) m Abraham Vaughan
4. William Gist 1711–1794) m Violetta Howard
5. Thomas Gist (1712-1787) m Susannah Cockey
6. Jemima Gist (1714- ? ) m William Seabrook
7. Ruth Gist (1716- ? ) m William Lewis
8. John Gist (1722- ?) m Mary (UMN)
9. Sarah Gist (1724- ? ) m John Kennedy

Property

Richard began regularly buying & selling property in Baltimore County in 1718 and a survey of the deeds shows he was usually listed as a merchant instead of a planter in most of the deeds. In the Baltimore County tax list of 1737 he is listed with 3 different plantations which were called quarters in different hundreds of the county:

Back River Upper Hundred - Capt. Rich'd Gist Qtr. 3 slaves

Patapsco Upper Hundred - Capt. Richard Gist, Joseph Dean, Thomas Cubberly, John Morgan, 1 slave

Patapsco Lower Hundred - Capt. Rich'd Gist qtr. - Wm. Seabrooks, 2 slaves.^[5]

Richard was a Baltimore County Justice & Commissioner, 1727-1741, militia captain; and sheriff. ^[6]

Death and Legacy

Richard died on 28 DEC 1740 at his plantation in Baltimore County. He did not leave a will. The estate was administered by his son, Christopher.^[2]

Capt Richard Gist gives, 5 Sept. 1728, to his " son Christopher Gist," 350 acres in Baltimore County (I. S. no. I., 196) ; to his " son Nathaniel Gist" he gives, 6 March 1731, the tract Gist's Search, 284 acres, in Baltimore County (I. S. no. L, 201) ; and to his "son Thomas Gist" he gives The Addition, 216 Acres, in Baltimore County (H. W. S. no. I. A., 189). There appears to be no deed of gift to his son William, but there cannot be the slightest doubt that William was the son of Capt. Richard, GIST (page 507) and he doubtless received from his father an equal share with his brothers. Edith Gist, Richard's daughter, is named in the will of her great uncle, Richard Cromwell cited above, while another daughter is known through a deed of her brother. 26 March 1742, Christopher Gist of Baltimore County, merchant, and Sarah his wife, convey to his sister Jemima Seabrooke and William Seabrooke her husband, tract Pleasant Green, 100 acres, in Baltimore County (Balto. Co., T. B. no. A, 132).

Sources

1. ↑ Baltimore County Deeds Liber RM HS 417
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Barnes, Robert W. “Baltimore County Families, 1659-1759” Baltimore, MD: Clearfield 1989
3. ↑ Baltimore County Deeds Liber TR A folio 140
4. ↑ "Biography of Richard Gist (1683-1741)": p 354; Papenfuse, Edward C. et. al. A Biographical Dictionary of the Maryland Legislature, 1635-1789. (Johns Hopkins University Press: Baltimore, 1979) Maryland Archives Online pdf
5. ↑ Wright, F. Edward. Inhabitants of Baltimore County 1692-1763. Westminster, MD: Willow Bend Books 1999
6. ↑ Dorsey, Jean M., Christopher Gist of Maryland and some of his descendants, 1679-1957, Chicago: J.S. Swift Co., 1958, Web accessed July 9, 2014. Listed in the book of same title on page 29.