William
Lee
Born about [location unknown]
Son of [father unknown] and [mother unknown]
[sibling(s) unknown]
Husband of
Dorothy (Taylor) Croucher
— married
1700 in Richmond, Virginia
Descendants 
Died about
at about age 38
in North Farnham Parish, Richmond County, Virginia, British Colonial America [uncertain]
[uncertain]
Profile managers:
Jim Miller 
[send private message], US Presidents Project WikiTree [send private message], Lydia Key [send private message], Carol Molmen [send private message], and Mona Johnson [send private message]
[send private message], US Presidents Project WikiTree [send private message], Lydia Key [send private message], Carol Molmen [send private message], and Mona Johnson [send private message]Profile last modified
| Created 3 Dec 2011
This page has been accessed 6,731 times.
| William Lee was a direct ancestor of US President Abraham Lincoln. Join: US Presidents Project Discuss: presidents |
Contents |
Cautionary Note
There are many printed sources that state that the William Lee who married Dorothy Taylor is the grandson of Col. Richard Lee and kin to General Robert E. Lee. As William and Dorothy (Taylor) Lee are ancestors of President Abraham Lincoln, this would make President Lincoln and General Lee cousins through Lincoln's Hanks-Lee ancestors. However, this has been proven to be false (see sources provided for William and Dorothy Lee) and there is no connection possible through the Lee family.
Biography
He was born about 1679.
In 1692 part of Rappahannock County went into the formation of Richmond County, Virginia.
William Lee and Dorothy Taylor married about 1702 in Richmond County, Virginia.
He died about 1717 in Virginia and his widow Dorothy provided an affidavit on 04 Dec 1717 that he died intestate and that she was the administratrix of his estate. [1] No children or parents were named. His widow Dorothy and her brother Thomas Taylor were the administrators of his estate. [2] His estate inventory was taken on 05 Feb 1717/18. [3]
Children
- William Lee, Jr., b: 14 May 1704 [4]
- Charles Lee, Sr., b: 18 Sep 1706 [5]
- Richard Lee, b: 09 Apr 1711 [6]
- John Lee, b: 11 Oct 1713 [7]
- Joseph Lee, b: 1714/15
- Elizabeth "Betsey" Lee, b: c1715
- Sarah Lee, b: c1716.
His children were christened in North Farnham Parish, Richmond County, Virginia.
Research Notes
[Do NOT merge William Lee with parents until you have read all the documents on this page and done the hard research of identifying who in fact his parents were. SAME NAMES DO NOT MEAN SAME PEOPLE. The identity distinguishing this William Lee has been developed based on documentary and DNA evidence, painstakingly analyzed and correlated. He is a different man from William Lee of Cumberland County, Virginia. Please respect the research done on this man and refrain from combining him with other men of the same name with different identities, descendants, and pedigrees.]
William Lee is a common name in eighteenth-century colonial Virginia. There are characteristics that distinguish this man from all others of the same name. Some were discovered through genealogical research, some through Y-DNA testing of descendants.
Five public records provide information on the family of William Lee who died in 1717 in Richmond County, Virginia: the birth records of four children and his estate papers, which were created after his death. All records were created in North Farnham Parish, Richmond County.
What can be said about him is that when he was fathering children and when he died, probably in middle age, he lived in Richmond County, Virginia. His church was in North Farnham parish, an Anglican church. His wife was Dorothy, and other records, analyzed and correlated, suggest that her maiden name may have been Taylor. William appears to have owned no land, as there are no deeds for him in North Farnham Parish. Possibly he farmed a small parcel as a tenant or leaseholder, enough land to provide for his family. Some of his descendants were slave overseers on plantations, so perhaps that was his occupation as well.
Family trees published on the Internet attempt to provide parents for this William Lee, particularly in England. His dates of birth and marriage are unknown. It is not known if he was born in America or elsewhere. It is not known if he was an immigrant and if so, when he immigrated. Much research remains to be done in unpublished records of Virginia to determine the parentage and ancestry of this William Lee. Further Y-DNA testing, particularly of men in Britain, may eventually suggest a place of origin for William.
Y-DNA testing combined with genealogical research effectively identifies several lines of descent for William. For a detailed description of how his identity DNA haplotype were determined, see Judy Kellar Fox, "Documents and DNA Identify a Little-Known Lee Family in Virginia" National Genealogical Society Quarterly 99 (June 2011) p85-96.
For purposes of comparison, here is the Y-DNA haplotype of this William Lee of Richmond County, Virginia. Testers who match this haplotype are certainly descendants of this William LEE.
- Location (DYS) 19a 19b 385a 385b 388 389I 389II 390 391 392 393 426
- Value (alleles) 14 - 11 13 12 13 29 24 10 13 13 12
- Location 437 438 439 441 442 444 445 446 447 448 449 452
- Value 15 12 12 14 17 12 12 13 25 19 30 30
- Location 454 455 456 458 459a 459b 460 461 462 463 464a 464b
- Value 11 11 17 19 9 10 11 11 11 25 15 15
- Location 464c 464d 464e 464f GGAAT1B07
- YCAIIa YCAIIb Y-GATA-A10 635 Y-GATA-H4.1
- Value 17 17 - - 10 19 23 14 23 22
Y-DNA research shows haplogroup R-M269 for this William LEE who married Dorothy Taylor. [8] [9]
Col. Richard LEE and his Virginia descendants have haplogroup type I-M253.
Sources
- ↑ Richmond County Wills for Estate of William LEE citing ...
- > 1717/Dec/04 Order book#7 p226 - Dorothy Lee, relict of William Lee deceased, came into Court and made oath that said William Lee departed this life without making a Will so far as she knows or believes and on her petition and giving security for her just and faithful administration of the said decedent's estate, certificate is granted her for obtaining letters of administration in due form.
- > 1717/Dec/04 Order book#7 p227 - Dorothy Lee and Thomas Taylor in open Court acknowledge themselves indebted to the worshipful, his Majesty's Justices of the said County, in the sum of one hundred pounds sterling, to be paid to the said Justices, their Executors or Administrators, in case the said Dorothy Lee does not duly administer on all and singlar, the Estate of William LEE, deceased, and render a true account thereof when thereunto lawfully called Robert Tomlin, David Verrick, Stanley Gower and Charles Lee or any three of them sometime between this and the next Court are appointed to appraise all and singular the Estate of William Lee, deceased, in money, which shall be presented to their view and make report thereof to the said next Court. Charles Barber, Gent. or any other Justice of the Peace, for the County, is requred to administer on oath to the appraisers for their true appraisement of the said deceased estate, as also to Dorothy Lee, the administator for her true discovery thereof.
- > 1717\18/Feb/05 Order book#7 p228 - The appraisement of the estate of William Lee, deceased being this day released, it is ordered that the same be recorded.
- ↑ Amelia County, Virginia Order book#7 p226 Letters of Administration for Estate of William LEE to Dorothy LEE, relict of William LEE, d: 04 Dec 1717
- ↑ "Wills of Richmond County, Virginia 1699-1800" p38 on ancestry.com with image attached here; citing Will book#4 (1717-1725) about page 12; inventory 05 Feb 1717/18.
- ↑ "Virginia Births and Christenings 1584-1917" database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VRR4-DK4 : 10 Feb 2018) citing FHL#975.523 V2K; for William Lee
- ↑ "Virginia Births and Christenings 1584-1917" database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VRR4-6YM : 10 Feb 2018) citing FHL#975.523 V2K; for Charles Lee
- ↑ "Virginia Births and Christenings 1584-1917" database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VRR4-1QN : 10 Feb 2018) citing FHL#975.523; V2K; for Richard Lee
- ↑ "Virginia Births and Christenings 1584-1917" database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VRR8-WB4 : 10 Feb 2018) citing FHL#975.523 V2K; for John Lee
- ↑ Lee Surname DNA Research Project at FamilyTree DNA
- ↑ Lee Y-DNA Surname Project Results
- American Ancestors Magazine 2016 v17 #3 p56 by New England Historic Genealogical Society (with online database)
- "Documents and DNA Identify a Little-Known Lee Family in Virginia" by Judy Kellar Fox & published in National Genealogical Society Quarterly v99 (June 2011) #2 p85-96 by National Genealogical Society of Arlington, Virginia.
- "Barton and the Lineage of Lincoln" by Lyon Gardiner Tyler of Holdcroft, Virginia in 1930
- FamilySearch "Family Tree" database; entry for William Lee (PID https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/4:1:G9H2-GZM : modified 22 Mar 2019) contributed by various users.
- FamilySearch "Family Tree" database; entry for William Lee (PID https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/4:1:L159-72S : modified 23 Apr 2019) contributed by various users.
- Lees of Virginia for William LEE research
- Was Abraham Lincoln related to General Robert E. Lee?" by Rich Hall on 31 Mar 2017; answer: no; with sources & dna info & family charts for Dorothy and William LEE
- Unsourced family tree handed down to Lydia (Burroughs) Key.
Acknowledgments
Sponsored Search by Ancestry.com
DNA Connections
It may be possible to confirm family relationships with William by comparing test results with other carriers of his Y-chromosome or his mother's mitochondrial DNA. However, there are no known yDNA or mtDNA test-takers in his direct paternal or maternal line. It is likely that these autosomal DNA test-takers will share some percentage of DNA with William:
It may be possible to confirm family relationships with William by comparing test results with other carriers of his Y-chromosome or his mother's mitochondrial DNA. However, there are no known yDNA or mtDNA test-takers in his direct paternal or maternal line. It is likely that these autosomal DNA test-takers will share some percentage of DNA with William:
-
~0.39%
Rick Elliott
:
AncestryDNA
-
~0.39%
John Hanks :
AncestryDNA, GEDmatch A502564 [compare], Ancestry member Haguyman9
Have you taken a DNA test? If so, login to add it. If not, see our friends at Ancestry DNA.
Rejected matches › William Kendall Lee (1682-1706)
Featured National Park champion connections: William is 14 degrees from Theodore Roosevelt, 17 degrees from Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger, 15 degrees from George Catlin, 14 degrees from Marjory Douglas, 23 degrees from Sueko Embrey, 16 degrees from George Grinnell, 26 degrees from Anton Kröller, 15 degrees from Stephen Mather, 24 degrees from Kara McKean, 14 degrees from John Muir, 17 degrees from Victoria Hanover and 23 degrees from Charles Young on our single family tree. Login to find your connection.
Categories: US President Direct Ancestor
(Sorry, I added to the mixup because the "II" in his name threw me. I'm used to seeing William Lee "II" as the William of the next generation.
I do wish to maintain my contention that William of William and Dorothy is not of Stratford Hall Lees, though, i.e. that the parents here are incorrect.)
Does anyone have any hard proof of this very dubious relationship? Otherwise, I think they should be detached.