Elizabeth (Shirley) Carter (abt. 1640 - aft. 1669)

Contents 1 Biography 1.1 Origin 1.2 Family 1.3 Death and Legacy 2 Sources

Biography

Elizabeth Shirley aka Sherley

Origin

Elizabeth was "a widow from Gloucester County," according to researcher, Stephen Carter.^[1] Her origin is unknown. Birth place Gloucester County, Virginia is a guess, based on the above statement. The birth date 1640 is a guess, based on the birth date of her child, 1669, and the information that this was her 2nd marriage.

Family

Elizabeth married, as her 2nd (unknown whether Shirley was her maiden name, or married name), and as his 5th, to John Carter of Corotoman. Their marriage agreement was executed on October 24, 1668, probably at Lancaster County, Virginia.^[1] This was not a happy marriage.^[1]

Child of John and Elizabeth Sherley:^[2]

1. Charles Carter b 1669 Lancaster Co, d 1690 England

Her son, John, removed to England as a young man and apparently never returned to Virginia. He died in London in 1690. (Is it possible that his mother joined him? Billups-130 13:24, 20 December 2014 (EST))

Death and Legacy

Elizabeth may not have outlived John Carter; he died 10 June 1669, according to the epitaph on his tomb.^[1] Elizabeth died January 3, 1669, but she is apparently not buried with John Carter.

The epitaph on the tomb of John Carter reads:

Here lyeth buried ye body of John Carter, Esq., who died ye 10th of June, Anno Domini 1669; and also Jane, ye daughter of Mr. Morgan Glyn, and George her son, and Elenor Carter, and Ann, ye daughter of Mr. Cleave Carter, and Sarah, ye daughter of Mr. Gabriel Ludlow, and Sarah her daughter, which were all his wives successively, and died before him.^[1]

Notice Elizabeth is not named on the epitaph. In fact, it says the above four were "all his wives successively."

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4} Carter, Stephen "Stephen Carters John Carter Research", Posted by John Size on July 31, 2004, Web , December 20, 2014
2. ↑ Quitt, Martin H. and the Dictionary of Virginia Biography. "John Carter (ca. 1613–1670)." Encyclopedia Virginia. Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, 15 August 2013. Web accessed 28 July 2014.