Two Cicelies of Early Virginia

Date: 1600 to 1700
Location: Virginia

Work in Progress as of 13 Aug 2020.

The purpose of this page is to detangle the two separate Cecilies of early Virginia. These are currently represented by the following profiles

1. Cecily Unknown who m1 Thomas or John Bailey; m2 Samuel Jordan; m3 William Farrar
2. Cecily Unknown who m1 Reynolds? someone else?; m2 Peter Montague; m3 Thomas Parker

Contents 1 Origin Theories 1.1 Origins of Cecily Unknown who m1 Thomas or John Bailey; m2 Samuel Jordan; m3 William Farrar 1.2 Origins of Cecily Unknown who m1 Reynolds? someone else?; m2 Peter Montague; m3 Thomas Parker 2 Marriage Theories 2.1 Marriage Theory #1 2.2 Marriage Theory #2 3 Text that needs to be appropriately applied 3.1 Cecily Unknown who m1 Thomas or John Bailey; m2 Samuel Jordan; m3 William Farrar 3.1.1 Children 3.2 Cecily Unknown who m1 William Thompason I; m2 Peter Montague; m3 Thomas Parker 4 Deleted Text 5 More text to figure out what to do with 6 Sources 6.1 Footnotes 6.2 Acknowledgments

Origin Theories

As of this time, there is no proof of who the parents of either Cecily were. Theories include:

Origins of Cecily Unknown who m1 Thomas or John Bailey; m2 Samuel Jordan; m3 William Farrar

It is not known for certain who Cecily's parents were, who brought her to Virginia, or who raised her in Virginia.

• Some researchers have assumed her name was Greene because there was a Cecily Greene listed in "Hakluyt's List of Immigrants to Virginia" before 1624.
• The most popular myth of all is that she was Cecily Reynolds, daughter of Thomas Reynolds and Cecily Phippen (Fitzpen) and sister of Christopher Reynolds, arriving in America in 1610 with her mother and brother. Amazingly the Reynolds' daughter Cecily is listed in numerous Ancestral File and IGI records in the LDS Family Search files as born in 1575, 1586, 1594, 1595, 1600, 1601 & 1605 and all with absolutely no sources to support the dates given. The problem with this theory is that the most plausable records place such a daughter's birth circa 1575-1586 with a death date as early as 1610-20, therefore she was about a generation older than our Cecily.
• Some alternately list her mother as Jane Phippen, a twin, rather than Cecily Phippen;
• Another variation speculates that Cecily was the first "Reynolds" to reach America, arriving in 1610 with "Uncle Billy Pierce" actually her cousin, but he arrived on the Seaventure 1609-10 along with Samuel Jordan, of whom there is also speculation of a family connection. Christopher Reynolds arrived on the "John & Francis" in 1622. 


• Another fascinating speculation arises- going back some 50 years before Cecily's birth- The "will of John Yerdely of Myles Grene" of Audeley, Co. Stafford, England, dated in 1558 and proved in 1559, it names "Cicilye my wife" and "John GERNETT, my son in law", and the will of Ralph Yerdley of Audeley, Co. Stafford, gentleman, dated 1587 and proved in 1588 not only states that the testator's father was "William Yerdeley, gentleman" and that his brothers are John and George Yerdley, but he was also appointed as one of the executors of a "kinsman" named "William BOULTON" (Boulding?). --The significance of these names, besides "Cicilye" Yerdley, mentioned in these wills is that there were two men with the surnames- "Bouldinge" and "Garnett" who arrived on the Swan in 1610 along with Cecily and are listed in the 1624/25 Virginia Muster.

Sir George Yeardley was the son of Ralph Yardley, citizen and merchant tailor London; and Sir George Yeardley's brother was Ralph Yardley, "citizen and Apothecarie of London". Exactly what was the link between the Yerdley's of Staffordshire and the Yardley's or Yearle's of London is not known but it is likely that there was some tie of kinship between them both and the little girl "Sislye" who sailed for Virginia in the Swan in 1610. Two of her fellow passengers on that boat were Thomas Garnett, a servant of the famous Indian fighter Captain William Powell, and one Thomas Boulding (Bouldin), who was then twenty-six years old. Neither of them could have been Sislye's father, but the name Thomas Garnett is strangely reminiscent of "Thomas Gernett" who more than fifty years before was the son-in-law of John Yerdley and his wife "Cicilye", and there is a close resemblance between Thomas Boulding's name and that of Ralphe Yerdley's "kinsman" William Bouldin. Perhaps William Bouldin (Boulding), yeoman, who, together with his wife Mary, also came to Virginia in 1610 (whether in the Swan or on another ship) was Sislye's father, but nothing more is known of this couple from the day they came ashore. Not so, however with Thomas Boulding (Bouldin, Bolding, Bolden) "of Elizabeth Cittie Co., Yeoman and Ancient Planter:, and Thomas Garnett, for both of them gradually acquired tracts of land in Virginia and were apparently living side by side as late as 1635.


• Based on naming patterns and proximity, Cecily seems to have had a close connection to Governor and Lady Yeardley - Temperance Flowerdew, who became Lady Yeardley, and arrived in Virginia in 1609 on the "Falcon" (her husband and Samuel Jordan were aboard the ill-fated Seaventure, presumed lost at sea, but joyfully to all arriving in May 1610). Temperance Flowerdew and Cecily may have been related or simply became friends. Whatever the connection, Cecily's first child Temperance Bailey was believed to be the namesake of Temperance Flowerdew.



Origins of Cecily Unknown who m1 Reynolds? someone else?; m2 Peter Montague; m3 Thomas Parker

1. For those who believe in the only-one-Cecily theory, the origin options are the same as above.

Marriage Theories

Previous versions of profiles related to one or more Cecilies of early version have made various claims about her, including believing that she was one and the same person. This page examines the theories.

1. Theory #1 is that she was one person, married at least five times.
2. Theory #2 is that she was at least two different women, each married multiple times

Marriage Theory #1

That she was the 10-year-old Cicely [surname?] on board the ?? in 1609 or 1610 and that she married:

There was ONE Cicely:

1. 1st husband At the age of 14, she married Thomas or John Bailey. They had the one daughter, Temperance. Shortly after this, her husband died. John or Thomas Bailey, who came to Virginia in 1612 sponsored by William Pierce... he was a young member of the Governor's Guard stationed at Jamestown... He and Cecily were married in the home of William Pierce in Jamestown... The young couple lived at Bailey's Point, Bermuda Hundred... and Bailey died of malaria shortly after the marriage. There are no records to support these details, only the existence ot Temperance Bailey. 


2. 2nd husband Cecily then married SAMUEL JORDAN-- and along with the PIERCE family were survivors of the Jamestown Massacre of 1622 (shortly after which Samuel died); they had the following children (there's dispute about this):
   1. one son, RICHARD,
   2. Mary
   3. Margaret / Margery (posthumous?)
3. 3rd husband Cecily "contracted herself before the Governor and Council to Captain WILLIAM FARRAR." Counselor Farrar was seven years older than his wife, Cecily. William died in 1636. As far as is known they had only two children:
   1. William Jr The numerous descendants of Counselor William and Cecily Farrar all stem from the elder son, Col. William Farrar, Jr.
   2. Some other son...
4. 4th husband PETER MONTAGUE had come to Jamestown in 1621 aboard the "Charles" at the age of 18. PETER and CICELY married about spring 1633 and had seven children. PETER MONTAGUE died in 1660.^[1]
5. 5th husband Then, CICELY REYNOLDS BAILEY JORDAN FARRAR MONTAGUE married THOMAS PARKER. There were no children from this marriage.^[2] Peter and Cicely Unknown were no doubt married some where in the vicinity of James City, for Peter Montague spent the first years of his life in the New World in and around James City county. Family tradition says she that was a daughter of Samuel Mathews, who was Governor of the Colony in 1656 but this is unproven. It is true that Peter lived on the plantation of Capt. Mathews during these early years, and that Capt. Mathews and Peter Montague were life-long associates and friends. However, no record of such a marriage has been found. All of the records of James City County were destroyed during the 1861-1865 war between the states so that no record there dates to before 1865. Peter's 2nd wife outlived him. She was the executor of his estate jointly with his eldest son, Peter Montague, Jr. No record of Cicely's death has been found."^[1]

The problem with this just-one-Cecily-with-five-husbands theory is that William Farrar did not die until 1636, by which time Peter Montague was married to (another) Cicely.

Marriage Theory #2

There were TWO Cecilies.

Supporting this:

• "The Muster Roll of 1624 contains the names of but two persons of the name of Cicily.
  • One was Cicily Greene at the plantation of Capt. Ralph Hamor at James City. Was this a third Cicily?
  • The other was Mrs. Cicily Jordan, of Jordan's Journey at Charles City. She was a young widow, age 24 years, who came in the ship "Swan," in August, 1610, when she was but ten years of age. She owned the plantation at Jordans Journey, and William Farrar was the manager. Her [Jordan] husband had recently died (1624). She had two children, Mary aged three years, and Margaret aged one year, both born in Va. Robert Manuell and John Hely, who came with Peter Montague in 1621, were both located on Mrs. Jordan's plantation. Their names appear in both lists, that of Feb'y, 1623, and Jan'y, 1624.^[3]

---

Text that needs to be appropriately applied

Cecily Unknown who m1 Thomas or John Bailey; m2 Samuel Jordan; m3 William Farrar

Cecily was born 1600 in England, and died after 1625 [check this] in Charles City, Henrico Co. Virginia.

In June 1610, at age ten, Cecily sailed from the port of London aboard the "Swan" arriving at the Jamestown Colony in late August 1610. The "Swan" was one of a fleet of three ships belonging to Sir Thomas Gates, which along with the "Tryall" and the "Noah" carried 250 passengers and a years worth of provisions for 400 men. The only surviving record of the passengers on the "Swan" are Cecily "Sisley Jordan" and ten other persons named in the Virginia Muster of early 1624/25 taken 14 years after the voyage. 



Fortunately for Cecily she arrived well supplied because the previous year 1609 had been known as that dreadful "starving time" when the infant colony was reduced from about 500 souls to "a haggard remnant of 60 all told, men, women and children scarcely able to totter about the ruined village".

Passengers from the Port of London on the Swan to Virginia, June - August 1610:



Biggs, Richard . . . . . . .Age 41 in Virginia Muster, January 22, 1624/5.


Bouldinge, Thomas . . . Age 40 in Virginia Muster, February 7, 1624/5


Fludd, John . . . . . . . . . See name in Virginia Muster, January 21, 1624/5


Garnett, Thomas . . . . . Age 40 in Virginia Muster, February 7, 1624/5


Jordan, Sisley . . . . . . . Age 24 in Virginia Muster, January 21, 1624/5. 


Lupo, Albiano (Lt.) . . . .Age 40 in Virginia Muster, February 7, 1624/5


Stepney, Thomas . . . . .Age 35 in Virginia Muster, February 7, 1624/5


Taylor, John . . . . . . . . Age 34 in Virginia Muster, February 7, 1624/5


Waine, Amyte . . . . . . Age 30 in Virginia Muster, February 7, 1624/5


Gates, Thomas (not Sir)..Age ? in Virginia Muster, January 21, 1624/5, arrived 1610, not 1609. 


Wright, Robart . . . . . . . Age 45 in Virginia Muster, February 4, 1624/5, arrived 1610, 1608.



Summary: She married (1) Unknown (John or Thomas?) Bailey on Abt. 1616 in Henrico Co. Virginia. She married (2) Samuel Jordan on Bef. December 01, 1620 in Henrico Co. Virginia. She married (3) William Farrar on Bet. January 03, 1624/25 - May 02, 1625 in Charles City, Henrico, Co. Virginia, son of John Farrer and Cecily Kelke.

Cecily and first husband ____ Bailey:

Cecily and 2nd Husband Samuel Jordan

In the Massacre of 1622 the Indians slaughtered 14 men, women and children, including six members of the Royal Council. Capt. Samuel Jordan fortified Beggars' Bush, known later as Jordan's Journey, and he lived there "despite the enemy. Jordan died a year later, and there was a rush for the hand of his beautiful young wife, led by the Rev. Greville Pooley. Jordan had been in his grave only a day when Pooley sent Capt. Isaac Madison to plead his suit. Cecily replied that she would as soon take Pooley as any other, but as she was pregnant, she would not engage herself she said, "until she was delivered." But the amorous Reverend could not wait, and came a few days later with Madison, telling her "he should contract himself to her" and spake these words: "I, Greville Pooley, take thee Sysley, to be my wedded wife, to have and to hold till death do us part and herto I plight thee my troth." Then, holding her by the hand he spake these words, "I, Sysley, take thee Greveille, to my wedded husband, to have and to hold till death do us part." Cicily said nothing, but they drank to each other and kissed. Then, showing some delicacy about her condition and the situation she found herself in, she asked that it might not be revealed that she did so soon bestow her love after her husband's death. Pooley promised, but was soon boasting of his conquest, very impetuously for "Sysley" now engaged herself to William Farrar, one of the Deputy Treasurer's younger brothers, and member of the Council. Enraged, Pooley brought suit for breach of promise. The case too much for the the authorities at Jamestown, who referred it to London. The jilted Pooley soon found solace in a bride, it appears, but met a tragic death in 1629, when Indians attacked his house, and slew him, his wife and all his family. ^[4]

As was the custom of the time it was an absolute necessity for the safety of the early female settlers to have a male protector. For this reason we frequently find widows marrying within a few weeks or months following the death of their husbands. Cecily 20, promptly married her much older neighbor Samuel Jordan 42, shortly before December 1620. Cecily was about a year younger than Samuel Jordan's eldest son. Samuel had been previously married in England with four known children, but after his first wife died he immigrated to America in 1609 aboard the "Seaventure" which was shipwrecked off Bermuda, not arriving in Virginia till May 1610. He was a member of the initial House of Burgesses of the Colony in 1619 where the first specific instance of genuine self-government emerged in the British Colonial Empire. 

Samuel and Cecily settled at "Beggar's Bush" later renamed "Jordans Journey" near the confluence of the Appomattox and James Rivers southside. One of Sir George Yeardley's first acts was to grant a patent of land at James City on Dec. 10, 1620 to Samuel Jordan of Charles City in Virginia. Gent. an ancient planter "who hath abode ten years Compleat in the Colony" and to "Cecily his wife an ancient planter also of nine years continuance." The land grants for being "Ancient Planters" were the rewards they had earned by their perseverance in establishing the first permanent beachhead of English colonization on American soil.

Samuel Jordan later added large holdings on the south bank of the James at Jordan's Point. On the point jutting out into the James River, Samuel and Cecily developed a large home plantation later renamed "Jordan's Journey," consisting of a palisaded fort enclosing 11 buildings. They were soon expanding their family too with the arrival of daughter Mary Jordan, born in 1621 or early 1622. 

Baby Mary Jordan probably had no memory of that fateful day of the vernal equinox, 22 March 1622, when the Great Indian Massacre fell on the colony like a thunderbolt from the sky. Powhattan's tribe tried to wipe out the entire English Colony in a concerted uprising on Good Friday. Fortunately for the Jordans they received a forewarning of the plot in sufficient time to fortify "Beggar's Bush" against attack. Early that morning Richard Pace had rowed with might and main three miles across the river from Paces Paines to Beggars Bush to warn Samuel Jordan of the impending blow. Without losing an instant, Samuel Jordan summoned his neighbours from far and near and gathered them all, men, women and children, within his home at Beggar's Bush, "where he fortified and lived in despight of the enemy." So resolutely was the place defended, that not a single life was lost there on that bloody day. They were also able to save their buildings and most of the livestock. The agony and terror of the women and children huddled together in the farthest corner of the little stronghold can only be imagined. The next day their neighbor Mr. William Farrar reached "Beggar's Bush" a few miles journey from his plantation on the Appomattox River. Ten victims had been slaughtered at his home and he himself had barely escaped to safety at the Jordan's where circumstances would force him and other survivors to remain for some time. About one third of Virginia colonists died during the Indian Massacre including Samuel's son Robert Jordan at Berkley Hundred in Charles City while trying to warn neighbors across the water of the impending Indian attack. In those days most people got around by boat and freely went from one side of the river to the other. 

Less than a year later in early 1623 Samuel Jordan passed away at the home he built later known as Jordan's Journey. Cecily was soon due to give birth to their second child. Samuel Jordan is known to have died prior to the February 16, 1623 census of Virginia colonists because his name is conspicuously missing from the list of inhabitants at Jordan's Journey and his and Cecily's second daughter Margaret had recently been born: 



From Persons of Quality: "A List of Names; of the Living in Virginia, February the 16, 1623"

Living
At Jordan's Jorney
:

Sislye Jordan


Temperance Baylife


Mary Jordan


Margery Jordan


William Farrar


(37 more names follow the above listed.)

Cecily is said by some researchers to have had three children with second husband Samuel Jordan. Two daughters- Mary and Margaret, and a son Richard Jordan who married his first cousin Elizabeth Reynolds, daughter of Christopher Reynolds (presuming Cecily was a Reynolds). 
There are no records showing that Cecily and Samuel Jordan had a son Richard. If he existed he must have died before the 1623 and 1624/25 musters of Jordan's Journey on which he is not listed. Cecily was widowed while in the late stages of her pregnancy with youngest daughter Margaret Jordan who would have been a newborn at the time of the 1623 census, and in the 1624/25 muster Margaret Jordan is shown to be "aged 1 years" as would be expected. There was no Richard Jordan, son of Cecily. 



Cecily and her third husband William Farrar

THE MUSTER OF THE INHABITANTS
OF JORDAN'S JOURNEY AND CHAPLAIN CHOICE
 TAKEN THE 21TH OF JANUARY 1624



THE MUSTER OF Mr WILLIAM FERRAR & Mrs JORDAN



WILLIAM FERRAR aged 31 yeares in the Neptune in August 1618. 


SISLEY JORDAN aged 24 yeres in the Swan in August 1610. 


MARY JORDAN her daughter aged 3 yeares }

MARGARETT JORDAN aged 1 yeare }borne heare


TEMPERANCE BALEY aged 7 yeares }



(There is a single bracket three lines high to the right of the three daughters names, then the words "borne heare" indicating all three girls born in Virginia. William Farrar's age listed as 31 is incorrect. He was ten years older.)

 Below the family listing is a section listing "SERVANTS" followed by the names of ten males ages ranging from 16 to 26 years.


After Samuel Jordan died Cecily 23, was left with daughter Mary 2, her eldest daughter Temperance Bailey 6, and another child soon to be delivered. Reverend Greville Pooley, age 46, who had conducted Samuel Jordan's funeral service, proposed to Cecily only four days afterwards. She apparently consented, feeling the need for a protector, but subject to the engagement being kept secret due to the timeliness of Samuel's death and her pregnancy. However, Rev. Pooley "spread the word" of the engagement, and this so ired the young widow that she refused to go through with the wedding. Soon afterwards Cecily accepted another proposal of marriage and became engaged to William Farrar who had been living at Jordan's Journey since the massacre. Undaunted, the enraged Rev. Pooley brought suit for breach of promise to compel Cecily to marry him. When the Parson sued on June 14, 1623, he accused the lady of having jilted him and alleged that it was nothing short of "Skandelous" for Mr. Farrar, his rival, to be "in ordinary dyett in Mrs. Jordan's house and to frequent her Company alone." This was the celebrated case of its day. William Farrar, trained for the law in England and the executor of Samuel Jordan's estate, was enlisted by Cecily to represent her.

The Governor and Council could not bring themselves to decide the questions and continued the matter until November 27, 1623, then referred the case to the Council for Virginia in London, "desiring the resolution of the civil lawyers thereon and a speedy return thereof." But they declined to make a decision and returned it, saying they "knew not how to decide so nice a difference." Reverend Pooley was finally persuaded by the Reverend Samuel Purchase to drop the case. As a result on January 3, 1624/25, the Reverend Pooley signed an agreement freely acquitting Mrs. Jordan from her promises. Cecily then formally "contracted herself before the Governor and Council to Captain William Farrar." 

The Governor and Council of the Colony were so stirred by the extraordinary incident that they issued a solemn proclamation against a woman engaging herself to more than one man at a time. Passage of this law for the protection of Virginia bachelors gave Cecily a place in history. And there is not in Virginia any known record that this edict has ever been revoked.

That the first breach of promise case in this country was filed by a parson is commentary on the times. Although ministers were carefully selected, the salary was very small and Pooley can hardly be blamed for being alert to a chance to feather his nest. The small poplulation afforded little choice of a desirable mate, and insecurity and terror following the Great Massacre the year before would have led any widow to feel need for protection. Due to insecurity of plantation life throughout colonial times, widows often remarried soon after their husband's death, sometimes before settlement of his estate.

William Farrar 42, and Mrs. Cecily Jordan 25, were married shortly before May 2, 1625. Cecily's third husband was the son of John Farrer the elder of Croxton, Ewood, and London, Esquire and Cecily Kelke. He was born into the wealthy landed gentry of Elizabethan England in 1583. The Farrar ancestral estate Ewood had been handed down in the distinguished Farrar family since 1471. William Farrar had arrived in Virginia in August 1618 aboard the "Neptune" and settled a few miles up the Appomattox River from Jordan's Journey. It isn't know if he'd been previously married. William Farrar acquired a ready-made family of females when he married the young, attractive, and wealthy widow Cecily; Mary Jordan 4, Margaret Jordan 2, and Temperance Bailey 8, were thereafter his step-daughters.

 Since William Farrar and Cecily Jordan had married, his bond to administer Samuel Jordan's estate was ordered canceled: "At a Court, 2 May 1625, 'Yt is ordered yt Mr. William Farrar's bonde shall be cancelled as overseer of the Estate of Samuel Jordan dec'd."

Within the first year of their marriage William Farrar was given a position of great responsibility when on March 4, 1625/6, Charles I appointed him a member of the King's Council, a position he probably held until just prior to his death in 1636. William and Cecily Farrar continued to reside at Jordan's Journey after their marriage. Records from the Minutes of the Council and General Court of Colonial Virginia 1622-1632 show that William Farrrar was living at Jordan's Journey as late as September 1626, and possibly until 1631/32. William and Cecily Farrar had three children together; the first two born prior to 1631. Their first was a girl named for her mother, Cecily, born about 1625/6. After becoming the mother of four girls there must have been excitement at the birth of Cecily's first son- William Farrar II in 1627. William II, as the first boy, was no doubt the long awaited little prince of the family. His godfather was Captain Thomas Pawlett, who had sailed to Virginia in the "Neptune" in 1618 with William Farrar. Son John was born about 1632 and may have been the only one of Cecily and William Farrar's children to be born at Farrar's Island. 

William Farrar's father died in 1628 and William returned to London in the summer of 1631 and sold his sizable inheritance to his brother, Henry Farrar of Berkshire, for £200 in a document dated September 6, 1631. Cecily and their children, Cecily and William, appear in the deed and relinquished their rights to his inheritance. It isn't known whether Cecily or the children accompanied William on the trip to England. 


FROM SALE OF WILLIAM FARRAR'S INHERITANCE: "September 6, 1631, indenture between William Farrar of London gent of the one part and Henry Farrer of Reading, Berkshire, Esquire, of the other part. Whereas John Farrer the elder of London Esquire, deceased, bequeathed to William Farrar and Cecily his wife and Cicely and William his children.."

The achievement for which Cecily's husband William Farrar is most remembered is the establishment of Farrar's Island, an estate their descendants would own for 100 years. It was located in what is now Henrico Co. Virginia on a bend in the James River at the former site of the city of Henricus, the second settlement of the colony. The estate consisted of 2000 acres, very large for its day, granted to William Farrar for the transportation of 40 settlers. It was not until after William Farrar's death in 1636, at the age of 54, that the patent for Farrar's Island was granted posthumously by King Charles I to his and Cecily's son William Farrar II on June 11, 1637. Presumedly thrice widowed Cecily Farrar continued to raise her six children at Farrar's Island. Daughter Temperance Bailey married Thomas Cocke in 1637. There are no known records of the fates of Mary and Margaret Jordan.

REVEREND POOLEY'S FATE:
 Pooley continued as minister for Fleur-Dieu Hundred until his death in 1629, but he does not seem to have been a very peaceful parson, for he was brought into court twice, ironically by William Farrar, for trouble with settlers. At the March 1628 Court "Yt is thought fitt the Mr. ffarrar (then Councilor) at the next meeting of the Court do bring down Mr. Pooley and Edward Auborne to aunswer to such things as shall be objected against them." And on another occasion, after a disagreement with Captain Pawlett, he was brought into court to answer charges against him; however in this case Pawlett was required to apologize. Pooley married and had a family but they are said to have met a tragic death at the hands of the Indians. 

During the course of the lawsuit in which he successfully defended Cecily, William Farrar performed the duties of executor of Samuel Jordan's estate in 1623 (Jordan's will does not survive). At a Court held on November 19, 1623, and presided over by Sir Francis Wyatt, Governor, and Christopher Davison, Secretary, records indicate that a warrant was issued "to Mr. Farrar to bring in the account of Mr. Jordan his estate by the last day of December." Another warrant was issued to "Mrs. Jordan, that Mr. Farrer put in security for the performance of her husbands' will." An abstract of the orders were to be delivered to Sir George Yeardley. 



By all accounts Cecily is estimated to have died years before 1683. 

It is thought Cecily Farrar died prior to 1676, probably about 1662, but she may have died much earlier. There is no conclusive proof. Perhaps because her son, Col. William Farrar II, wrote his will in 1676 and doesn't mention his mother in it may be the reason she is presumed deceased before 1676.



Cecily's name survives today on the historical marker in Smithfield, Virginia at the location of "Jordan's Journey," where she lived circa 1620-1631 on the estate of her second husband Samuel Jordan. The marker reads:


"SAMUEL JORDAN OF JORDAN'S JOURNEY. Prior to 1619, Native Americans occupied this prominent peninsula along the upper James River, now called Jordan's Point. Arriving in Jamestown by 1610, Samuel Jordan served in July 1619 in Jamestown as a burgess for Charles City in the New Word's oldest legislative assembly. A year later, he patented a 450 acre-tract here known first as Beggar's Bush and later as Jordan's Journey. He survived the massive Powhatan Indian attack of March 1622 here at his plantation, a palisaded fort that enclosed 11 buildings. He remained at Jordan's Journey with his wife, Cicely, and their daughters until his death in 1623."



Today there are impressive brick entrance gates to "Jordan On The James," a high-end residential development. On the pillar is a small insert "c. 1619." In the development there is a road called "Beggars Bush" and outside is "Jordan's Point Road." Nearby one can play golf at Jordan's Point Country Club. The location of Samuel and Cecily Jordan's house, which has perished, was where the base of the Benjamin Harrison Bridge is now that connects both sides of the river. The Jordan Point Yacht Haven is now located at their former home site.

^[5]

Children

Children of Cecily and Unknown Bailey are: Temperance Bailey, b. Abt. 1617, Jordan's Journey, Henrico Co. Virginia, d. Abt. 1651, Bremo, Henrico, Co. Virginia.


Children of Cecily and Samuel Jordan are: Mary Jordan, b. Abt. 1621, Jordan's Journey, Henrico Co. Virginia. Margaret Jordan, b. Bef. February 16, 1622/23, Jordan's Journey, Henrico Co. Virginia.


Children of Cecily and William Farrar are: Cecily Farrar, b. Abt. 1625, Jordan's Journey, Henrico Co. Virginia, d. April 1703, Henrico Co. Virginia. William Farrar, b. Abt. 1627, Jordan's Journey, Henrico Co. Virginia, d. February 01, 1677/78, Charles City, Henrico Co. Virginia. John Farrar, b. Aft. 1632, Farrar's Island, Henrico Co. Virginia, d. March 1683/84, Henrico Co. Virginia.

Cecily Unknown who m1 William Thompason I; m2 Peter Montague; m3 Thomas Parker

There is speculation that Cecily, widowed again by 1637 (at age 37), married a fourth and fifth time. There has, so far, been no proof of any later marriages for Cecily Bailey Jordan Farrar. She disappears from the records after 1637 and other women named "Cecily", of whom there were several in the colony, have been confused with her. 



From Elizabeth Tissot:

Many have said, with no proof, that Cecily also married Peter Montague and Thomas Parker. This is FALSE. Cecily Montague was the relict of William Thompson I and had one son William Thompson II who married Ellen Montague, his step sister.

Cecily Montague returned to England following the deaths of Peter Montague (in 1659) and her son, William Thompson II.

Peter Montague's first wife was Elizabeth and she was mother of all his children. 
^[6]

From Mrs. Louise Boone:

Her papers state Peter Montague, 1st married in 1633 Cecily Watkins -not Matthews, -not Farrar. Her lineage in Vol. 15 also says Peter Montague, 2nd married Elizabeth.^[7]

Note: Additionally the marriage of Peter Montague to his Cecily was said to be in 1629 or 1633, both these dates predating the 1636 death of William Farrar, therefore making it impossible for Cecily Bailey Jordan Farrar to be the Cecily that Peter Montague married.

Peter Montague, born 1603 in England, had come to Jamestown in 1618 aboard the "Charles" at the age of 18 as a headright of Billy Pierce. Peter Montague had six children - Peter, Margaret, William, Ellen, Elizabeth, and Ann with his first wife Elizabeth. He died in 1659 and named his wife Cecily (widow of Thompson) Montague in his will.

Evidence shows she was not our Cecily Bailey Jordan Farrar.



Thomas Parker, the immigrant, died in 1663 in Isle of Wight, Virginia. Parker family researchers are not sure which Thomas Parker of Isle of Wight, Virginia "is said to have married" the widow of a Peter Montague.

The unnamed widow of a Peter Montague is mentioned in an Isle of Wight County deed transaction: On May 29, 1683 a patent was issued to Thomas Parker and James "Bagnall" for 470 acres, of which 50 acres granted to Peter Montague, and 40 acres for tranportation of a Negro Francisco. The patent stated that Thomas had married the widow of Peter Montague who had left two daughters Dorothy and Sarah and that Sarah had married James "Bageall." 


Our Cecily Bailey Jordan Farrar would have been 83 years old at the time of this patent, and it has been proven she could not have been the surviving wife of immigrant Peter Montague. Therefore this record does not pertain to the generation of our Cecily or the immigrant Peter Montague who had a widow named Cecily, or to the immigrant Thomas Parker who died in 1663 long before the land patent mentioning the widow of Peter Montague.

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We recommend the following be removed entirely.



She was said to have introduced the art of flirting in Virginia... she was the original southern belle, and no doubt beautiful for she won the hearts of some of the colony's outstanding citizens. The fascinating Cecily earned her reputation as a heartbreaker and a place in history when she became the object of the first breach of promise suit in America. There is much myth and speculation, but few facts truly known about this often married elusive lady of whom so many today claim to be descendants. There has long been a mystery surrounding the little girl who arrived in Jamestown at the tender age of ten, and received the distinction of "Ancient Planter." Genealogists have long pondered the question, "Who was Cecily"? 





A rather dramatic version of events is recounted in the book "The Farrars" by William B. & Ethyl Farrar: 
CICILY FARRAR: Interesting accounts of Cicily Jordan Farrar are found whenever the genealogy of the Farrar family is given. Below are portions of two stories: 
(After the death of Samuel Jordan)... there was a rush for the hand of his beautiful young wife, led by the Rev. Greville Pooley. Jordan had been in his grave only a day when Pooley sent Capt. Isaac Madison to plead his suit. Cecily replied that she would as soon take Pooley as any other, but as she was pregnant, she would not engage herself she said, "until she was delivered." But the amorous Reverend could not wait, and came a few days later with Madison, telling her "he should contract himself to her" and spake these words: "I, Greville Pooley, take thee Sysley, to be my wedded wife, to have and to hold till death do us part and herto I plight thee my troth." Then, holding her by the hand he spake these words, "I, Sysley, take thee Greville, to my wedded husband, to have and to hold till death do us part." Cicily said nothing, but they drank to each other and kissed. Then, showing some delicacy about her condition and the situation she found herself in, she asked that it might not be revealed that she did so soon bestow her love after her husband's death. Pooley promised, but was soon boasting of his conquest, very impetuously for "Sysley" now engaged herself to William Farrar, a member of the Governor's Council. Enraged, Pooley brought suit for breach of promise. The case too much for the the authorities at Jamestown, who referred it to London. The jilted Pooley soon found solace in a bride, it appears, but met a tragic death in 1629, when Indians attacked his house, and slew him, his wife and all his family. (From "Behold Virginia" by G.F. Willison--1951)



More text to figure out what to do with

Reynolds History Annotated (1475-1977)
; Compiled by William Glasgow Reynolds
; Copyright 1978 by W.G. Reynolds, 
Rockville MD: Mercury Press, 1978 Except where noted, the following is verbatim from book except for "..." (material which has no value as a source of proof) with reference at end of sentence or paragraph to which it pertains, and W.G. Reynolds' annotation. Roman numerals after a person's name supplied by W.G.R. to differentiate between individuals with same name.

The first Reynolds to reach the New World was an 11 year old girl named Cecily. Cecily arrived at the VA Colony in Jamestown Aug 1610 aboard the Swan.^[8][9] She came without her parents but under the auspices of several near relatives of Dorsetshire England.

The name "Cecily" was an hereditary one ^[10]

Her mother's maiden name had been Cecily Phippen before she was married around 1594 to Thomas Reynolds (II) ^[11]

Her [Cecily's] father, Robert Phippen, sprang from grandfather Joseph Phippen whose wife was Cecily's great-grandmother Alice Pierce. Alice Pierce's forebears have been traced to 1475, which means that this line of Reynolds is now documented on the distaff side back half a millennium to the times of Christopher Columbus. ^[12]

A grandson of Alice Pierce's brother was a Capt William Pierce (III) who, with his wife Joan, served as chaperon to young Cecily Reynolds after her voyage to VA ^[13]

"She lived in their home where she met and married the first of her several husbands, Thomas Bailey." Thomas Bailey was a member of the Governor's Guard at Jamestown.... Young Bailey became a victim of malaria. He left his widow with a young daughter, Temperance Bailey, who had been born in 1616 </ref> Ibid. </ref> "It is believed that Thomas Bailey's father was Samuel Bailey."

In accordance with the custom of the Colony, Cecily promptly remarried ^[14]

Her 2d husband was Samuel Jordan (I), a cousin of her mother, who had been previously married in England, and after the death of his first wife migrated to America. He came to VA on the 1610 voyage of the "Sea Venture" ^[15]

"The 'Sea Venture' left England in 1609. Sir Thomas Gates and Captain William Pierce (III) were fellow passengers with Samuel Jordan (I). The ship ran aground in West Indies and did not arrive at Jamestown until 1610." ^[16]

He settled first at "Jordan's Journey" near the confluence of the Appomattox and James Rivers; later added large holdings on the south bank of the James at Jordan's Point, where he built a house called "Beggar's Bush" named after a popular London theatrical performance at the time.^[17]

As the 'Mayflower' was unloading in New England back in 1620 ... Cecily and Samuel Jordan, along with the surviving stockholders of the first Virginia Company were honored with the label of "Ancient Planters," given legal title to their lands and various immunities and privileges in connection with their use, as rewards earned by their perseverance in establishing the first permanent beachhead of English colonization on American soil...

To all to whom these presents shall come etc Greeting in our Lord God Everlasting. Know yee that I George Yardley Knight, Governor and Capt. Genll. of Virginia etc. by verture of the great Charter of orders and lawes concluded on in a great and Genll. Quarter Court by the Treasurer Councill and Company of Adventurers and planters for this first Southern Colony of Virginia (according) to the authority granted them by his Majtie under the great Seal) and by them dated at London the Sixteenth of November 1618 and directed to myself and the Councill of Estate here resident, do with the appraobation and consent of the same Councill who are joined in Condicion with mee Give and grant to Samuel Jourdan of Charles Citty in Virga. Gent, an ancient planter who hath abode ten years Compleat in this Colony and performed all services to the Colony that might any way concern him etc and to his heirs and assignes for ever for part of his first genll. dividend to be augmented &c, 450 acs. on his personal right, etc. and out of the rules of Justice, equity and reason and because the Company themselves have given us president in the like kind of the personall claim of Cecily his wife an ancient planter also of nine years continuance, one hundred acres more and the other 250 acs. in recompence of his trans. out of England at his own charges of five servants, namely John Davies, who arrived in 1617 for whose passage the sd. Samuel hath paid to the Cape. Mercht., Thomas Matterdy bound apprentice to sd. Samuel by indenture in England dated 8 Oct 1617; Robert Marshall brought out of England by Capt. Burgrave in May 1619, at the costs of sd. Samuel; Alice Wade the same year in the George, etc., & Thomas Steed in the Faulcon in July 1620; and maketh choice in 3 several places: one house & 50 acs. called --ilies Point [Bailies Point] in Charles hundred, bordering E. upon the gr. river, W. upon the main land, S. upon John Rolfe and N. upon the land of Capt. John Wardeefe; 2ndly, 1 tenement containing 12 acs., etc., encompassed on the W. by Martins Hope, now in tenure of Capt. John Martin, Master of the Ordinance; & 388 acs. in or near upon Sandys his hundred, towards land of Temperance Baley, W. upon Capt. Woodlief, etc. To have etc. Yielding & paying to the sd. Treasurer & Company & Provided, & c.
Given at James City 10 December 1620 and Signed
George Yardley
Fr. Pory, Secr.
This patent certifeid to the Treasurer. Lawr. Hulett. At a Genll. Ct. held at James Citty Oct. 20, 1690, Present: The Right Honble. Francis Nicholso, their Maj. Lt. Richard Bland, the patent being for 450 acs. in Chas. Citty Co. granted to Mr. Samuel Jordan in 1620, which is truly recorded. Test: R. Beverley, by W. Soward,^[18]

Footnote 13:

"The story of the massacres at the lower plantations on the James is recounted in Boddie, Seventeenth Century Isle of Wight County, Virginia, pages 35 and 36."

Footnote 14:

Hale, Virginia Venturer, pages 81-82: "Far up the James at Jordan's Point, stalwart old Samuel Jordan, one of the original Burgesses of the first Assembly, having escaped an early attack and being warned of what was happening by a colonist who rowed over the river to his plantation, gathered together a few stragglers, fortified... 'Beggar's Bush' and lived on there without loss of live despite assaults on the enemy and carnage among his neighbors."

Footnote 15:

Ray, Index and Digest to Hathaway's North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register, page 135: "But not long after that (the 1622 massacre) Samuel Jordan died... Cecily's third husband was William Farrar (I); they had two sons: John and William (II), the last of whom became the sire of the famous Farrar clan of Virginia." ^[19].

She next married Peter Montague; they had 7 children during their 23 years of marriage. When Peter Montague died in 1659, Cecily married, Thomas Parker by whom there were no heirs." ^[20]

Beyond this point, the history of 'Aunt Cecily' becomes obscured by the ascendancy of the Independents or Puritans. In that transition, the old plantation aristocracy of which she was a part lost power in the affairs of the Colony. But her original chaperon in America, Captain William Pierce (II) wound up on the winning team in that shuffle. So did her brother, Christopher Reynolds (III)." ^[21]

Thus, Aunt Cecily Reynolds-Baily-Jordan-Farrar-Montague-Parker was able to end out her days in calm assurance that her title "Number One Wife and Mother of America" was abundantly secure." ^[22]

_____________________________________

See also:

• The Generall Historie of the Bermudas by Captain John Smith 1624, reprint 1966; Royal Naval Dockyard Museum, Somerset, Bermuda;
• Bermuda - unintended destination by Terry Tucker, 1982;
• Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents & Grants, Cavaliers and Pioneers by Nell Marion Nugent 1963)

• Virginia Historical Index by Swem: 4V344 "As a results of the efforts, Sir Thomas Gates as sole and absolute Governor, with Sir George Summers, Admiral, and Capt. Newport, Vice Admiral of Virginia, and divers and other persons of ran four cke and quality in seven ships and two pinnaces, left Falmouth on the 8 of June 1609, and on the 24 day of July, 1609 they encountered a terrible storm that prevailed from Tuesday noone till Friday noone; that scattered the fleet and wrecked The Sea Venture(on July 28 1609) upon the island of Bermuda" 24V248 Francis Michell lived at Elizabeth Citty February 1623 and Josuah Chard, aged 36, who came in the Sea Venture, May 1607. 29V299 Josuah Chard came in the SV

_________________________________

The story unfolds on the pages of three series of books -- The Records of the Virginia Company of London as edited by Susan Kingsbury, The Journals of the House of Burgess of Virginia and the Minutes of the Council and General Court of Colonial Virginia both series edited by H. R. McIlwaine. Our first piece of our story dated 20 September 1620 records an event of 16 November 1618. When "George Yardley, Knight, Governor and Captain General of Virginia with the consent of the Council gave to Samuel Jordn of Charles City in Virginia, ancient planter who hath abode here in the Colony for 10 years .... 450 acres and to Cecily his wife an ancient planter also of nine years continuance ... 100 acres more ...." This is not recorded until 1690. On 16 February 1623 in a list of the living and dead since April 1622 was made by the Virginia Company of London. We find the first five settlers listed at Jordan's Journey are Siscly ( Cecily ) Jordan, Temperance Baylise, Mary Jordan and William Farrar. On 16 June 1623 there appears in the Council of Virginia Records an examination of Captain Issac and Mary Maddison and the Serjeant John Harris taken before the Council of Virginia regarding thg a supposed contract of marriage between Mr. Greville Pooley and Mrs. Cecily Jordan a few days afetr the death of her husband. Cecily Jordan has since contracted herself to William Farrar. Details of this examination will be given later. On 21 January 1625 another list was made of the settlers in Virginia. We find the first five settlers at Jordan's Journey as follows: "Mr. William Ferrer, 31 by Neptune August 1618, Sisley Jordan 24 by Swan August 1610 , Mary Jordan, her daughter 3 born here; Margrett Jordan 1 born here; Temperance Baley 7 born here. A list of servants follows. From these four entries, we know Cecily/ Sisley arrived on the Swan in August 1610 at 9 or 10 years of age, and that she probably married a Bayley and was married to Samuel Jordan who dies before 16 February 1623. Also that at the age of 17 or 18 she is an ancient planter and has land in her own name. In addition she has now contracted to marry William Farrer, the lawyer. Some researchers say that Cecily was a Reynolds, the daughter of Thomas and Cecily Phippen Reynolds of Dorsetshire. The name Cecily was hereditary. Cecily's mother was a first cousin ( called a near relative by many researchers) of Samuel Jordan. Samuel had at least 3 sons by a previous marriage all of whom were much older than Cecily. It is felt that Cecily had a brother Christopher Reynolds who followed her to Virginia aboard the John and Francis in 1622. There is no documentation for this theory yet. Why she came alone is still a mystery. It appears she had near relatives living in Virginia. It is thought that she met her first husband, Thomas Bailey while she lived with Captain William Pierce (perhaps a near relative) and his wife Joan. Thomas was a member of the Governor's Guard stationed at Jamestown. Young Bailey became the victim of malaria and left his widow and a young daughter, Temperance, who was born in 1617. His daughter inherited this land. Many believe Thomas was the son of of Samuel Bailey and that Temperance was named in honor of Temperance West Lady Yardley , wife of Governor George Yardley. Records show that few lives were lost at Jordan's Journey during the Indian Massacre of 1622 and it was one of the four fortified plantations not abandoned after the massacre. Records indicate that Cecily had married Samuel Jordan by September 1620. At the time of the massacre, William Farrer had sought refuge at Jordan's Journey. In the dawn's darkness, he rowed as rapidly as he could from Farrer's Island. He was to stay at Jordan's Journey for the next 6 years.

___________________________________

Cicely Reynolds, born betw 1593 and 1604 in Dorset, England; died 1677 in Farrar's Island, Henrico Co., VA. She was also known as Sisley or Cesley Greene, Reynolds, Farrar, Jordan, Bayley, and Montague. She was awarded with the title of "Ancient Planter" of the Jamestown Colony in 1620.

She was on her own from the age of 11, and grew into the much-courted and many times married "Glamour Girl" of the Jamestown Colony. She had good friendships with women as well as men; and by the time she was 24 years old, due to the death of her husband Samuel Jordan, she owned outright a successful plantation, Jordan's Landing, one of only four to continue operation after the Indian Massacre of 1622. Both Samuel and Cicely earned the designation "Ancient Planter" by the London Company of Virginia.

Parents: Thomas Reynolds and Cicely Pippen (1593-?) . Note: "There is no proof whatsoever anywhere that Cecily Baley Jordan Farrar, Ancient Planter, was a Reynolds or connected to the Phippin family at all. I am descended from her through both her daughter, Temperance Cocke and her son, William Farrar. I have studied these families over 50 years. I am a Founder of Order of Descendants of Ancient Planters and it is very important to us to have the lines correct based on documentary evidence." Temperance Bailey and her ancestors Posted 15 February 2011.

married:

1618 to Thomas Bayley or Bailey, thought to be the son of Samuel Bailey; Thomas was a member of the Governor's Guard stationed at Jamestown. He died of illness and in accordance with the custom of the Colony, Cecily promptly remarried. abt 1621 to Samuel Jordan (1590-1623) as his second wife. on May 02, 1625 in Jamestown, VA to Commissioner William Farrar. marriages sometimes listed to Peter Montague and Thomas Parker were discussed and not shown in the Geni tree. See below.

Children of Cicely Reynolds and Thomas Bailey:

Temperance Bailey, born 1617 in Charles City County, VA; died 1647 in Charles City County, VA. married Lieutenant Colonel Richard Cocke, Sr., born Bef. September 05, 1602 in Stottesdon, Shropshire, England; died October 04, 1665 in Bremo, Henrico, VA. He was the son of John Cocke and Elizabeth. It is thought that Temperance was named in honor of Temperance West, Lady Yardley, wife of Governor George Yardley. Children of Cicely Reynolds and Samuel Jordan:

Mary Jordan, born 1621 in Jordan's Journey, VA; died Abt. 1670 in Henrico County, VA; married (1) Arthur Bailey 1654 in Henrico County, VA; married (2) Christopher Foster Aft. 1658 in Virginia. Margaret Jordon, born 1623 in Jordan's Journey, VA, after her father's death. Children of William Farrar and Cicely Reynolds are:

Col. William Farrar II, born 1626 in Jamestown, VA; died February 11, 1677/78 in Henrico Co., VA; married Mary Williams 1656. Cicely Farrar, born 1627 in Farrar's Island, Henrico Co., VA; died 1703; married Henry Sherman, Sr. Lt. Col. John Farrar, born 1631 in Farrar's Island, Henrico Co., VA; died March 1684/85 in Henrico Co., VA. the quotable Miss Reynolds

Mr. Pooley maught thank himself for he might fared the better but for his own words." - Cecely Reynolds Baley Jordan Farrar, 1623

the invention of flirting in America

from http://www.burningsettlerscabin.com/?tag=cicely-reynolds: Cicely survived the Jamestown Massacre in 1622 by, as the story goes, standing firmly at her front door and refusing to move. The Powhatan Indians were impressed with her fortitude and beauty and let her live. That story seems a little far-fetched, but who knows?

Note: Records show that few lives were lost at Jordan's Journey during the Indian Massacre of 1622 -- Samuel Jordan's son was killed trying to warn neighbors -- and it was one of the four fortified plantations not abandoned after the massacre. In the dawn's darkness, William Farrer rowed as rapidly as he could from Farrer's Island to take refuge at Jordan's Journey. He was to stay at there for the next 6 years.

Within three or four days of Samuel Jordan’s death, Cicely agreed to become the wife of Rev. Greville Pooley. She was pregnant with Samuel Jordan’s child, so she asked that the engagement be kept secret. However, Rev. Pooley was so impressed that he had won Cicely’s hand that he spread the word. Not a good move, now a furious Cicely refused to go through with the wedding, causing the first "breach of contract" lawsuit in the Colonies. n.b. Quite wisely the Virginia House of Burgesses kicked the case over to London, and Cecily won.

Finally, at 59, Cicely Reynolds Bailey Jordan Farrar Montague married husband five, Thomas Parker. There were no children from this marriage, and Parker died three years later. Unfortunately, as was the case with many women, after this we lose records on Cicely. As a member of my mother’s family, I can surmise that, at this point, she had thick wavy white hair, a wry and dark sense of humor, and perfect grace.

Family Notes

from: The Sister of Christopher Reynolds of Isle of Wight VA?, by Susan E. Clement and Sybil R. Taylor © 1992 Reynolds Family Association From the evidence examined to date, it appears that the first American genealogical writer of Cecily and Christopher was J.R.B. Ray in 1901. (The North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register, Vol II, No 4, Oct 1901. Repr Balto: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1979, pp135-136.) Unfortunately, Ray gave little in the way of sources for his information.

Ray appears to have found Cecily entrancing, and he wrote of the "Mysterious Cicely Jordan"

At or about the same time, if not on the same vessel, in the year 1611, a ten year old girl named Cicely Reynolds, and a comparatively young widower, who had left his small sons behind him in England, arrived at Jamestown in the Colony of Virginia.

The young widower was Samuel Jordan, who afterwards established a seat on the James River near its confluence with the Appomattox, which he called 'Jourdan's Jorney'. Almost contemporaneously with the coming of these two, but perhaps a year earlier, Sir Thomas Gates and his companions of the ill fated 'Sea Venture' had landed, among them being Capt. William Pierce."

"This was followed by Joane Pierce, the Captain's wife on the 'Blessing.' Capt. Pierce was a relative in some degree of the young girl Cicely Reynolds, and doubtless the advance arrival of Cicely was known to both Captain Pierce and his wife.

Besides, Samuel Jordan was a near-relative of Cicely and her mother's cousin, and still another cousin (of her mother) Silvester Jordan, came about the same time, so there was no lack of relatives to look after the ten year old child, whose mother, still living in Dorsetshire, for some reason had consented to her coming."

These sudden and swift transitions in the life of Cicely Reynolds were characteristic of one of such adventurous spirit as to undertake a long sea voyage into strange lands, even though accompanied by near relatives. She was ten years of age in 1611, and must have married her first husband ___ Bailey when but about 14 years old, as in 1623-4 her daughter Temperance was seven years of age. The Christian name of her first husband has not been found, but it is safe to say he was of the same family as the Samuel Bailey who is known to have married a grand-daughter of Capt. William Pierce, her relative.

The grandfather of Cicely Reynolds was Thomas Jordan, of Dorsetshire, England, grand daughter, the mother of Cicely married a Reynolds [sic]. Her mother's maiden name was Cicely Fitzpen or Phippen, and she was the daughter of Robert Phippen and his wife Cicely or Cicellie Jordan. Robert Phippen was the son of one Joseph Phippen, whose mother was Alice Pierce, and thus Ciceley Reynolds was related to Capt. William Pierce and his wife Joane. This last couple were the parents of Jane Pierce who married as his third wife another celebrated Virginia character -John Rolfe.

But to continue the story:

Samuel Jordan of Jordan's Jorney, became the second husband of this adventurous daughter of his first cousin Cicely Phippen.

"Twelve years later, her brother, Christopher Reynolds, arrived on the 'John and Francis' and may have discovered for the first time that his sister was then married to her second husband Samuel Jordan and the mistress of Jordan's Jorney, with a six year old daughter by her first husband, named Temperance Bailey..."

At their home on the James [River] he and his wife and their household survived the Indian uprising that occurred in 1622-23. But not long after that Samuel Jordan died.

Very shortly after the death of Samuel Jordan, of Jordan's Jorney, one of the legatees in the will of Abraham Persey, a certain Rev. Greville Pooly, vociferously "woed" the widow Cecily Jordan, who rejected his early advances on the ground that she was with child; but thereafter she married Capt. William Farrar, a prominent man of the Virginia Council. Thereupon the parson brought what has been called by Alexander Brown "the first breach of promise suit in America". The astute third husband, being a lawyer, succeeded in quashing the proceedings, and Parson Pooly went on his way. But the child was born.

Thus Cicely Reynolds had been married twice and was the mother of one child by each of her first two husbands. By Captain William Farrar, she became the mother of two sons Capt. William Farrar Jr and Lieut. Colonel John Farrar, of Henrico Co. [VA] who left no children and never married, so that the girl-emigrant thus became the ancestress of the numerous Farrars of VA, through her son William Farrar, Jr. Her third husband, Capt. (or Colonel) William Farrar died about 1635-6.

The history of 'Aunt Cecily' becomes obscured by the ascendancy of the Independents or Puritans. In that transition, the old plantation aristocracy of which she was a part lost power in the affairs of the Colony. But her original chaperon in America, Captain William Pierce (II) wound up on the winning team in that shuffle. So did her brother, Christopher Reynolds (III)." [23]

Discussion

Researchers have Cecily marrying for a fourth time to Peter Montague. Peter left a wife, Cecily , in his will proved 1 July 1659 in Lancaster county, Virginia. It is felt that Peter's first wife was Cecily Mathews, the daughter of Anthony Matthews. Many researchers state that Cecily Farrar had five children by Peter Montague. After Peter's death, researchers say she married in 1660 Thomas Parker, who also left a wife Cecily. Thomas came in the Neptune with William Farrar in 1618 and on 23 January 1625 was at "College Land." Said to have given birth to Samuel Jordan's posthumous son named Richard Jordan. This seems unlikely as the Jamestown Muster of 1624 reports her with three children (in a household of 37): Temperance Bailey, Mary Jordan and Margaret Jordan (b. 1623). Therefore Margaret is most likely the child born after Samuel Jordan's death. There is no further record of Margaret so presume died young. Said to be the younger sister of Christopher Reynolds of Isle of Wight. She is variously listed as a Fludd, a Greene, and most interestingly, as a street orphan swept up and sent to the Jamestown Colony. However the name "Cecily" runs in the Phippen family, and the connections to the Bailey and Jordan families, carried over in Jamestown, seem firmly rooted in Dorset. The real question is why a mother allows / sends her 11 year old child on such an adventure to Jamestown. That Cecily prospered materially -- she was a wealthy woman in her own name by age 24 -- seems an unlikely motivation, even for a family of merchant / adventurers.

Sources

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1} Montague, George William, 1894 History and genealogy of Peter Montague, of Nansemond and Lancaster Counties, Virginia, and his descendants, 1621-1894 (Pages 15, 52, 56) Amherst, MA: Press of Carpenter & Morehouse, Archive.org accessed 8 February 2016.
2. ↑ DESCENDANTS OF TOBIAS "TOBY" SMITH AND PHOEBE FAUNTLEROY
3. ↑ Montague, "History and genealogy of Peter Montague, of Nansemond ---" p. 56. footnote
4. ↑ Behold Virginia! The fifth Crown George Findlay Willison, 1951. Harcourt, Brace
5. ↑ THE FARRAR'S ISLAND FAMILY AND ITS ENGLISH ANCESTRY by Alvahn Holmes 1972.


6. ↑ "A Place in Time, Middlesex Co. VA 1650-1750", by Rutman, pp. 50, 96-98. This is a history of the County of Middlesex which relies on court records.
7. ↑ 

From- Daughters of The American Colonists, Member #14341 -Mrs.Louise Boone Ratliff
8. ↑ Hotten, Lists of Emigrants to American 1600-1700, p 209;
9. ↑ Nugent Cavaliers and Pioneers, p XXX: "Her arrival was a year before 1611, the year that gave birth to the King James Version of the Holy Bible..."
10. ↑ Ray, Index and Digest to Ray's NC Historical & Genealogical Register, p 135.
11. ↑ "Thomas Reynolds (II) had a near relative, William Reynolds (I) who attained distinction from a bequest in William Shakespeare's will, whereby he bequeathed 25 shillings 'to William Reynolds, Gent. to buy him a ring.' This will was dated Mar 1616 and was proved at Stratford-on-Avon England Jun 1616." See Bentley, A Handbook of Shakespeare, p 59
12. ↑ The lineage of this Pierce family is set forth in Ray, Index & Digests to Hathaway's NC Historical & Genealogical Register, p 135. See also Appendix E, Pierce Lineage Chart, which see later in this article.
13. ↑ Ray, Index & Digest to Hathaway's NC Historical & Genealogical Register, p 135.
14. ↑ "A male protector was an absolute necessity for the safety of the early female settlers in VA. For this reason we frequently find widows marrying within a few weeks or months after the death of their husbands, their newly acquired mate joining with the widow in the administration upon her deceased husband's estate...We find many 'much married persons' among these early immigrants." Hathaway, NC Historical & Genealogical Register, Vol I, No 2, p 310.
15. ↑ "The detailed history of this Jordan migration will be found in Ray, Index & Digest to Hathaway's NC Historical & Genealogical Register, p 135.
16. ↑ See Boddie Colonial Surry, p 21-22.
17. ↑ Samuel Jordan's home on the south bank of the James "he had named 'Beggar's Bush' after a popular play at the time..." in London. Hale Virginia Venturer, p 81
18. ↑ Cl. Genll. Ct. P.B. No.8, p125. Nugent, p 226
19. ↑ Ibid. Ray, Index and Digest to Hathaway's North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register, page 135
20. ↑ Ray, Index and Digest to Hathaway's North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register, page 135.
21. ↑ For a capsule description of the transition that cast the parliament and the King of England at loggerheads during this period, see White, Concise History of England, pages 93-97.
22. ↑ Ray, Index and Digest to Hathaway's North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register, page 135

See also:

• The Reynolds Family History Association Cisely Reynolds and brother Christopher.
• The Order of Descendants of Ancient Planters
• Jstor The Parkers of Macclesfield, Isle of Wight Co., Virginia, Page 600
• Colonial Families of the United States of America, Volume II
• Early Immigrants to Virginia from the 1500s and 1600s
• The Original Lists of Persons of Quality, By John Camden Hotten, A google book
• The Complete Book of Emigrants 1607-1660, by Peter Coldham, pages 1 & 2
• Cecily listed as Sesily Jordan

http://www.geni.com/people/Cecily-Reynolds/6000000005923529529

http://www.reynoldsfamily.org/line17/chris_3.html

http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/s/o/l/John-O-Solis/GENE2-0047.html

http://www.poetsvisions.com/genealogy/farrar.htm

http://biographiks.com/pleasant/cecely.htm

• WikiTree profile Reynolds-2865 created through the import of Thompson Family Tree.ged on Sep 1, 2012 by Wilson Thompson. See the Changes page for the details of edits by Wilson and others.

Coldham, Peter Wilson, "The Complete Book of Emigrants" Baltimore, MD Genealogial Publishing Company 1988. Holmes, Alvahn, "The Farrar's Island Family and its English Ancestry", Baltimore, MD , Gateway Press Inc. 1977 Nugent, Neil Marion, "Cavaliers and Pioneers" Baltimore, MD , Genealogical Publishing Company, 1983

Footnotes

[23] For a capsule description of the transition that cast the parliament and the King of England at loggerheads during this period, see White, Concise History of England, pages 93-97. [497] According to the muster of the inhabdaitants of "Jorns Journey" Plantation taken the 21st of January 1624, Cecily Jordan was then aged 24 -- William Farrar (I) was 31, her daughter Temperance Baily was 7, Mary was 3 and Margaret was 1 -- so Richard apparently arrived late in the year 1624. Hotten, List of Emigrants to America - 1600-1700, pp209-210. -- Worth S. Ray

Acknowledgments

Thank you to Lilia Merryman for creating Unknown-219893 on 4 Dec 13. Click the Changes tab for the details on contributions by Lilia and others.