Thomas Savage (abt. 1595 - bef. 1633)

Born about 1595 in England

Husband of Hannah (Unknown) Cugley — married 1623 (to 1627) in Virginia

Descendants

Died before 24 Sep 1633 before about age 38 in Savage Neck, Accomack County, Virginia Colony

Sometimes referred to as "The Ensign," and/or "Ancient Planter"

Disputed wife and family

Biography

Thomas Savage is a Qualifying Ancestor of the Jamestowne Society

Thomas Savage was a Jamestown colonist.

Thomas Savage^[1] was born about 1594-95 in England, the son of unknown parents.

He may have been born in Cheshire, England, or Worcestershire, England.

Research Notes

• First name(s) Thomas
• Last name Savage
• Gender Male
• Birth year 1591
• Baptism year 1591
• Baptism date 25 Mar 1591
• Place Davenham
• County Cheshire
• Country England
• Father's first name(s) Simonis
• Father's last name Savage
• Record set Cheshire Diocese Of Chester Parish Baptisms 1538-1911
• Category Birth, Marriage, Death & Parish Records
• Subcategory Parish Baptisms
• Collections from England, Great Britain ^[2]
• Original Document^[3]

Thomas Savage has been disconnected from unproven parents, Sir Arthur Savage and Jane Stafford Savage. Please contact me and/or the profile manager if you have reliable evidence for parentage. Thank you. (Patricia Prickett Hickin, 14 April 2019.)

Known as "Ancient Thomas Savage", he arrived in Jamestown Virginia, with the "First Supply" on the ship known as "The John and Francis", in January 1607/08.^[4]

He was 13 years old and listed as a "Laborer" on the passenger list."^[5]

Indian negotiator

"Savage may have been present when Captain Samuel Argall kidnapped Pocahontas in 1613, and he played a critical role in negotiating an end to the fighting between the English and the Pamunkey tribe in March 1614. That May—after the marriage of Pocahontas to John Rolfe effectively ended the First Anglo-Powhatan War—Savage returned to the Indian capital with Ralph Hamor, secretary of the colony. Their mission was to arrange a marriage between Powhatan's youngest daughter and Sir Thomas Dale, the governor of Jamestown. According to Hamor, the paramount chief greeted Savage warmly, but scolded him for escaping: "My childe you are welcome, you have bin a straunger to me these foure yeeres, at what time I gave you leave to goe to Paspahae [Jamestown] … to see your friends, and till now you never returned." Despite the warm reception, Hamor and Savage's attempt to arrange the marriage was unsuccessful." from EncyclopediaVirginia.

Thomas Savage stands (left center) gesturing as he negotiates peace with the Indians,

Marriage and family

About 1623, when he was in his later twenties, he married Hannah 'Ann' Elkington.

The Encyclopedia Virginia has this to say about Thomas's wife:

"In or around 1621, Savage had received . . . a large tract of land on the Eastern Shore containing an estimated 9,000 acres. (This tract of land would become known as Savage's Neck.) About two years later, he married a woman named Hannah (sometimes Ann), who had come to Virginia at her own expense in 1621 on the Seaflower. The two had a son, John, around 1624. Savage's prosperity in the fur trade is reflected in the records of the day: by early 1625, Savage was recorded as possessing a house, a barn, a boat, and two servants; two years later, he was the owner of a 150-acre plantation, Savages Choice.^[6]

Other sources add another son and a daughter:

1. Thomas Savage
2. Sarah Savage

Death

He died between 12 Aug 1631 and 24 Sep 1633. (At that time, the widow Hannah Savage went on a bond of £500 for her neighbor Daniel Cugley.)^[7]

Thomas died of unknown causes on 24 September 1633 in Savage Neck, Accomack County, Virginia, while he was still in his thirties.

Alternate death information: Died 1631 or 1635 in http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Cherrystone_VA Cherrystone, Northampton County], Virginia], or 1627 at Savage Neck, Accomack County, Virginia].

He was survived by his son, John, who inherited his land, and his wife, who by 1638 had married a planter named Daniel Cugley.

For a larger view of the image below, click here.

Plaque for Thomas Savage

Research Notes

Disputed Claims of Native Spouse

The following claims are based on unreliable sources. There is no solid evidence or documentation of the origins-- Native or otherwise-- of Thomas Savage's wife Hannah.

Click here for a family website, SAVAGE ANCESTRY, by R. Blair Savage, which argues that Thomas's first wife was a Native American and that Hannah was Thomas's second wife and the step-mother of his son:

"It is documented that an Ann/Hannah was a wife of Ensign Thomas Savage and that they had at least one child, John Savage, later called, Capt. John Savage. I believe that Ann/Hannah was the Ensign's second wife and the step-mother of the "Belson" boy. I believe this boy was actually Thomas Savage the Carpenter, the son of the Ensign and a native girl. I believe "Belson" was a family name given to the boy to distinguish him from his father, Ensign Thomas Savage. I believe this young fellow may have been called, Thomas "Belson" Savage. This is a theory which is yet to be proven."

Email from Paula Grimes Kenney

to Patricia Prickett Hickin, 18 Feb 2016 12:07am

" Hello Patricia, I just wanted to mention in case it might be helpful to you that I have done a great deal of research on Thomas Savage as he is my 9th great grandfather. He and his children are listed through many sources as being descendants of Chief Powhatan. As you know he was married to Hannah Tyng. In the National Archives there is a note that Hannah Tyng was the English name for Indian Princess Hannaniting though they aren't clear about what tribe she is from. Since Thomas Savage is listed as having been married to an "Unknown" daughter of Powhatan I have come to believe that Hannah Tyng could only have been Princess Hanniniting Powhatan, the apparently forgotten daughter of Chief Powhatan. I think she is often confused with the Hannah Tyng who married a Thomas Savage at a later date in Boston. So I think most people who are doing the genealogy of Thomas Savage of Jamestown have his wife's genealogy all wrong because she has been confused with the other Hannah Tyng who is from a completely different family. Paula Grimes Kenney."

He was probably the first permanent white settler on the Eastern Shore].

Having added the role of planter to his resume, Savage continued to serve as an interpreter until his death.

Disputed child

May have had a son earlier, by a woman of either Powhatan's or Debedeavon's people: http://www.geni.com/people/Thomas-the-carpenter-Savage/6000000007233615493

About Debedeavon: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Debedeavon

Looks more likely to me that it would be Debedeavon's people. Powhatan sent young Thomas away to live with them.

Sources

1. ↑ Savage, Thomas - A6905; born 1592, died ca. 1633, Accomack Co.: (Musters of 1623/4 and 1624/5). accessed 24 October 2021
2. ↑ https://www.findmypast.com/transcript?id=GBPRS/B/766576897/1
3. ↑ https://search.findmypast.com/record?id=GBPRS%2FCHS%2F4019832%2F00771&parentid=GBPRS%2FB%2F766576897%2F1
4. ↑ Passenger List of the John and Francis 1607 Research and compilation by Anne Stevens, packrat-pro.com.
5. ↑ Timeline History of Jamestown, Virginia
6. ↑ URL: https://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/Savage_Thomas_ca_1595-before_September_1633#start_entry Accessed 6 Dec 2019.
7. ↑ Adventureres of Purse and Person, p. 534 and N'hamp Orders, Wills, Deeds, etc., 1632-40, f. 11).

See also:

• Ancestry.com. Ye kingdome of Accawmacke, or, The Eastern Shore of Virginia in the seventeenth century Includes bibliographical references (p. 379-381) and index. Original data - Wise, Jennings C.. Ye kingdome of Accawmacke, or, The Eastern Shore of Virginia in the seventeenth century. Richmond, Va.: Bell Book and Stationery Co., 1911.

• Jemima Kendall, 1760-1809 URL: http://records.ancestry.com.au/Jemima_Kendall_records.ashx?pid=16888525 Ancestry.com Accessed 14 Nov.

• Unveiling of Tablet in Honor of Thomas Savage, retrieved via Wayback Machine 18 Apr 2021

• Genealogy of Savage Family, retrieved via Wayback Machine 18 Apr 2021

• Ralph T. Whitelaw, Virginia's Eastern Shore (A History of Northampton and Accomack Counties).

• Jester, Annie Lash., Hiden, Martha Woodruff. 1883. Adventurers of Purse and Person and Their Families, P. 290, Adventurers of Purse and Person Virginia 1607-1625: FamilySearch International, Title No. 2058494.

• Virginia M. Meyer & John Frederick Dorman, Adventurers of Purse and Person, Virginia, 1607-1624/5.

• Northampton Co, VA, Orders, Wills, Deeds, 1632-1640, f. 11.

• Carl Savage's Genealogy WFT #4976 Source Media Type: Electronic Links

• http://www.historyisfun.org/chronicles/tom_more.html

• http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~rhio/JnSavage.htm

• https://nockfamilyheritage.files.wordpress.com/2011/04/john_savage_info.pdf

• McCartney, Martha, "Thomas Savage (ca. 1595–before September 1633)," Encyclopedia Virginia, URL: https://www.encyclopediavirginia.org/Savage_Thomas_ca_1595-before_September_1633#start_entry Accessed 6 Dec 2019.

• NUGENT, NELL MARION. Cavaliers and Pioneers: Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants, 1623-1666. Vol. 1. Richmond [VA]: Dietz Printing Co., 1934. 767p. Reprinted by Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, 1983. Page: 29.

• Nugent, Nell Marion; Virginia State Library; Virginia Genealogical Society. 'Cavaliers and pioneers; abstracts of Virginia land patents and grants, 1623-1800, page 30. Richmond, Press of the Dietz Print Co. archive.org.

• McCartney, Martha W. Virginia Immigrants and Adventurers 1607-1635: A Biographical Dictionary; Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, MD, 2007, pp. 624, 625