John
Thomas
Sr.
Born about in Carmarthenshire, Wales
Son of Ieuan Thomas
[uncertain]
and Elen (John) Thomas
[uncertain]
[sibling(s) unknown]
[spouse(s) unknown]
Descendants 
Died before
before about age 68
in Queen's Creek, York, Colony of Virginia
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| Created 9 May 2011
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Contents |
Biography
John Thomas Sr. was born in Carmarthenshire, Wales.
John Thomas Sr. was a Virginia colonist.
John Thomas is estimated to have been born about 1585 in Wales, the possible son of Thomas ap Harpway leuan and Ann Basset (although these names do not match the linked parental profiles).
John Is reputed to have been the first of his line to arrive in Virginia Colony. The exact date of his arrival is in dispute. Most researchers make the claim that he sailed as one of the passengers who left London in June 1609 aboard the Sea Venture, flagship of the Third Supply under the command of Admiral Sir George Somers. See Research Notes for more information on the Sea Venture hypothesis and see Immigration below for possible date/dates of arrival.
John was probably not the John Thomas, age 18, who arrived in the Southampton, in 1622. He would have been about 20 years younger than his estimated birth date on this profile indicates.[1] [2]
The most likely record of John's transport to Virginia is the record of headrights by Elizabeth Packer, (or Parker), Widdowe, in right of her late husband Serjeant William Sharpe in 1636 (See Research Notes). Headrights for transport of persons to Virginia were often sold, exchanged, or reused by different people. They were seldom recorded soon after the arrival of the person and recording of the patent for transport headrights could be delayed by as much as 10-15 years. It is not possible to determine the arrival date based on the recording of a land patent by the the transporter.
John apparently owned land by 1637 in Charles River County (later York) although no record of it has yet been found. He is mentioned in a grant record by John Clarkson in 1637. John did record a grant for 350 acres, 300 of which he purchased and 50 in right of his wife Dorothy, in October 1649.
In June 1646, York County, Virginia, John Thomas, Nicholas Jurneur, Wm Sawyer, Martin Westerlincke, and John Perrin were "arrested... to answer suit of Richard Malborne..." Malborne did not appear and was ordered to pay 50 lb tobo to each.[3] In October 1647, York County, Virginia, John Thomas received an attachment against the estate of Thos Privitt to secure a debt of 600 lb tobo.[4] In 1647 "Edward Hughes by bill stands indebted to John Thomas 465 lb tobo and 1 lb of candles. He has pd 80 lb tobo. Odered to pay bal."[4]
Immigration to Virginia
Most likely record of transport to Virginia:
- Elizabeth Packer, (or Parker), Widdowe, 500 acs. Henrico Co., 12 July 1636, p. 373. Betweene Curles & Varinaes, ... Due in right of her late husband Serjeant William Sharpe, whoe, as by certificate from the Ct. of Henrico dated 25 Apr. 1636, transported 9 servants & 2 Negroes: Rich. Vase, John Thomas, Lewis Jones, Leon. Laughton, Willi. Cooke, Peter Whadsey, Edward Jones, Jon. Ward, Wm. Wooley. [Note: This patent was recorded again with the additon of 450 acres in right of her second husband, Thomas Packer, on 17 August 1637.][5]
Land & Other Transactions
- John Clarkson, 100 acs. Chas. Riv., 23 Oct. 1637, p. 488. References land of John Thomas, which would indicate John owned land in Virginia by 1637.[5] Note: Charles River County became York County in 1643.
- Capt. Christopher Wormeley, 1420 acs. Chas. Riv. Co., 27 Jan. 1638, p. 607. ... Due by right of trans. of 16 pers. the 1st yeare: Henry Marshall, John Thomas,...[5]
- Georg Higgins, 100 acs. Chas. Riv. Co., 25 Feb. 1638, p. 619. ... Due by right of trans. of William English the first yeare, &John Thomas & Henry Marshall the 2nd yeare to Chas. River.[5]
- Marke Thomas, 350 acs. on S. side of Horne Harbour Cr., marked trees dividing this & land of Mrs. Morrison, S.W. by Mr. Armstead's trees, over the creek to Mr. Hulls land, N.W. to trees of Henry Shingleton to cor. tree of John Teage & Edward Morgan, P. 66 (528). (John Bannister, Tho. Foote & John Borham, 25 Nov. 1653. Bannister & Borham wholly assigned to sd. Foot, who sold to John Thomas & due sd. Marke as sonne & heire.)[5] This transaction seems to indicate Marke Thomas was eldest son and that John Thomas was deceased by 1653. Note: Horne Harbour Creek is now in Mathews Co., formed from Gloucestor Co. in 1790, formed from York Co. in 1651.
Marriage & Children
John Thomas married about 1625 in Virginia Colony. No record has been found that gives the name of his wife. Suggested children include:
- Marke Thomas, possibly eldest son based on land recorded 25 Nov. 1653.
- John Thomas, Jr.
- Philip Thomas
- Richard Thomas
- William Thomas
Death
An exact death date for John Thomas is unknown. No death, burial record or will has yet been found. It appears possible John died before 25 November 1653. On that date, Marke Thomas recorded 350 acres "as sonne & heire" of John Thomas.[5]
Research Notes
Uncertain Parents
Profiles linked to as parents, Jevan Thomas and Elen John, are unsourced and unconfirmed. Names of parents given in biography, Thomas ap Harpway leuan and Ann Basset, do not appear to match names on the linked profiles. More research is needed to confirm/reject parents. (Strutton-11 15:59, 9 May 2023 (UTC))
Arrival in Virginia Colony on Sea Venture
The first THOMAS to arrive in Virginia and settle was John. In the year 1609 he embarked on the Sea Venture in England, bound for the new colony over seas, with Sir Thomas Gates. The ship foundered in a storm off the coast of Bermuda, but nothing daunted, the victims of this disaster they rallied and built two pinances capable of withstanding the rough seas and in 1610 came sailing up the James River to the headquarters of the new colony, with all safe on board, save Lt. E Watters and one other, who had elected to remain in the Bermudas.[6]
There is no documentation confirming this sailing on the Sea Venture. See Comments below for more information. (Strutton-11 15:59, 9 May 2023 (UTC))
No complete list of the passengers of the Sea Venture exists. One of those appearing on extant lists is Serjeant Samuel Sharpe. Samuel has been conflated with Serjeant William Sharp who immigrated to Virginia in 1611 aboard the Starr and married Elizabeth (see land grants under Immigration above).
Sergeant William Sharpe
The Thomas and Bridges Story includes the statement that Sergeant William Sharpe, who sailed on the Sea Venture in 1609, also paid the transport for John Thomas, Richard Vase, Lewis Jones, Leon Laughton, William Cooke, Peter Whadsey, Edward Jones, Jon. Ward, and Wm. Wooley to also travel on the Sea Venture.[7] William Sharpe's widow, Elizabeth (Unknown) Baugh, did claim headrights for these men in a land grant filing on 12 July 1636. However, Serjeant William Sharp immigrated to Virginia in May 1611 (not 1609) aboard the Starr in a fleet commanded by Sir Thomas Gates.[8] One of his servants, Richard Vase/Vause, was transported aboard the Jonathan in February 1620.[9] It is possible the other men claimed as headrights by William's widow arrived in the early 1620s on other ships.
Sources
- ↑ Hotten, John Camden, Editor. The Original Lists of Persons of Quality; Emigrants' Religious Exiles; … and others who went from Great Britain to the American Plantations, 1600-1700. John Camden Hotten: London, 1874. Reprinted Empire State Book Co., New York. Pages 179, 233
- ↑ Jester, Annie. Adventurers of Purse and Person, Virginia, 1607-1625' (Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey, 1956) Page 38
- ↑ Fleet, Beverly. Virginia Colonial Abstracts. 34 Volumes. Salt Lake City, Utah : Digitized by FamilySearch International, 2011. Vol 24, Page 94
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Fleet, Beverly. Virginia Colonial Abstracts. 34 Volumes. Salt Lake City, Utah : Digitized by FamilySearch International, 2011. Vol 25, Pages 56, 69
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 Nugent, Nell Marion, Abstracted and Indexed by. Cavaliers and Pioneers: Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants, 1623-1800. In Five Volumes. Richmond, VA.: Press of the Dietz Printing Co., 1935. Pages 45, 65, 73, 99, 102, 144, 185-6, 416
- ↑ Ray, Worth S. The Lost Tribes of North Carolina. Austin, Texas: Published by the Author, 1947 Page 607,623
- ↑ Thomas, Edison H., The Thomas and Bridges Story: 1540- 1840, T & E Publishers, Louisville KY, 1972, pp 50-60. Available online at The Thomas and Bridges Story: 1540-1840 Page 50/Image 51
- ↑ Starr 1611
- ↑ Jonathan
See also:
- BIOGRAPHIES PROJECT Jamestown Biographies of the Early Settlers
- Thomas Coat of Arms
- John Thomas - A starting Point in Virginia Pt 1
Acknowledgments
- WikiTree profile Thomas-3517 created through the import of Talbott Gedcom.ged on Jul 23, 2011 by Lisa Talbott.
Memories: 1
Enter a personal reminiscence or story.
Fonda (McConnell) Pusatero
John Thomas Sr. was the first Thomas (of the Trigg County line) to come to America from Wales. He sailed from England on the Sea Venture in June 1609 but was shipwrecked on Burmuda. The ship was rebuilt and headed out again the following year for Virginia, arriving in 1610 where he settled, married Dorothy, also of Wales, and started his family.
posted 4 Jan 2012 by Fonda (McConnell) Pusatero
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I would like to start a discussion about John Thomas and his much reported arrival to Jamestown in 1610 and his part in the tragedy of the Sea Venture. I have serious doubts that he was on that ship or was in Jamestown prior to 1625. I am using this comments section rather than put it in the profile because many have come before me and I do not want to change what they have written. I will post this here and the reader can decide how to interpret the facts for themselves. Here are the facts as I see them.
I can find no civil record that shows his name as John David Thomas, only John Thomas. David appears on many Ancestry trees and his Find a Grave memorial. There are no sources shown for this middle name of David. The names sources that they do show only have John Thomas. I do not support the middle name David.
I cannot find John Thomas on any passenger ship list except for one, Southampton, shown in the above profile for 1622, age 18, as a servant of Capt Matthews who had a plantation with many servants in some books of early Jamestown. This record can be found at the Virtual Jamestown web site by doing a search for John Thomas. See: http://www.virtualjamestown.org/Muster/muster24.html . This John Thomas can also be seen in John Hotten's book of passenger lists: The Original Lists of Persons of Quality, page 179. This is the only John Thomas found before 1625 in any work on Jamestown that i can find, and I looked at a lot of them. I do believe that this is another John Thomas. The passenger list for the Sea Venture that exists on line does not have a John Thomas on them. The original list was most likely lost during the storm, and no boarding list in England has been found. See these two websites: http://sites.rootsweb.com/~bmuwgw/seaventure.htm and https://www.packrat-pro.com/ships/seaventure.htm There is a memorial on Bermuda Island with a passenger list inscription. John Thomas is not on that list. See: https://nutfieldgenealogy.blogspot.com/2014/09/is-your-ancestor-on-sea-venture.html But this web site is the really convincing one for me: "The Jamestown Qualifying Ancestors list", http://www.jamestowne.org/qualifying-ancestors.html , and John Thomas is not on it. The list is updated very regularly and John Thomas' name has NOT been added.
Having said all that, here is the great qualifier: William Strachey's (a Sea Venture survivor) book, "A true reportory of the wracke, and redemption of Sir THOMAS GATES Knight", contains a list of names by his recollection of the survivors of the Seaventure including Samuel Jordan and his children. Strachey's accounts stated that 146 passengers and crew set sail, but his list consists of only 99 names. The original passenger list did not survive and only a few of the Seaventure's passengers were later listed in the 1624/25 Virginia Muster.
Where does this story of John Thomas originate? I am not sure, but there is an excellent account of it by Edison Thomas in his work shown as a source above. But if you dig a little deeper into his source for naming John Thomas as a passenger on the Sea Venture you will find it is circumstantial evidence. He quotes Nugent, also one of the sources above. as being a headright of Wlliam Sharpe. John Thomas, along with Richard Vase, Lewis Jones, Leon Laughton, William Cooke, Peter Whadsey, Edward Jones, Jon Ward, and Wm Wooley are named. I have seen John Thomas associated with Samuel Sharpe also. Both were on the Sea Venture if you look at the passenger lists. My complaint is that this headright is not claimed until 1637 by William Sharpe's widow. And Nugent's record is probably an exerpt and the original date of the headright might be shown on the original, but it is not shown here. I question this because I checked all the same sources for these men that I checked for John Thomas above, and none of them are on a single one. Not one. I find that really strange that 9 men who supposedly came to Jamestown in 1610 are never seen again before 1625.
Therefore, I have to doubt that John Thomas was in route to Jamestown on the Sea Venture or that he even arrived before 1625. For sure he was in the area some years later, and even Edison Thomas says he cannot find a land patent issued to John Thomas prior to 1649. If anyone can enlighten me with contrary evidence that would refute this, please post it, and I will remove this. I am not an expert, I just look for the facts and try to logically interpret them. I see no evidence that John Thomas was on the Sea Venture.
I was gong through Ancestry.com and apparently there is a marriage record for a John Thomas and Dorthy for 1618 in VA. John Thomas' birth year is listed as 1585 and birthplace Wales. So, it does appear there may have been a John Thomas in VA pre 1622. I wish ancestry.com would give better citing info, but it seems some record exists.
I also cannot find him on the Sea venture Survivor passenger list, but I am only finding around 50 names out of 150? Has anyone found more? He may have been an indentured servant and listed as property and his name not recorded, but I am not sure if that was typical.
Thanks Gretchen for this. Would you post a link to the record so others can see it also. I would like to look it over. I agree that sometimes Ancestry is very weak in giving details in its records, and other times is much better.
Hopefully this link will work, but it is in the Ancestry.com Marriage records search. It's not showing the original document though, which seems to be common with birth and marriage certificates, but its in their main database. I wish someone in the Queens Creek area could figure out where those marriage records are held so we could see the actual document. https://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?_phsrc=GtX1623&_phstart=successSource&usePUBJs=true&indiv=1&dbid=7836&gsfn=Dorothy&gsln=Thomas&_83004003-n_xcl=m&mssng=John&mssns=Thomas&msbdy=1585&msbpn__ftp=carmarthenshire,%20wales,%20united%20kingdom&msbpn=5362&ssrc=pt_t153261810_p202168113054&_81018011__date=1585&new=1&rank=1&uidh=al3&redir=false&msT=1&gss=angs-d&pcat=34&fh=0&h=1209235&recoff=&ml_rpos=1&queryId=97da9b145ab8c3d2ed312a1a688fc436
Thanks again. This database is NOT made of original records. Look at the source information. It's basically family tree data. Read the Source Information below the record:
"Original data: This unique collection of records was extracted from a variety of sources including family group sheets and electronic databases. Originally, the information was derived from an array of materials including pedigree charts, family history articles, queries.
Click on "Learn More" at the end of the description of who Yates Publishing is. Also if you look on that web page, there is a comment from a lady from Thomas Genealogy (??) that says this is unreliable. I tend to agree.
There are also "Suggested Records" for Dorothy on the right side of the record page. Click on those and you get a lot records for Dorothy that is very inconsistent. One "in the U.S. and Canada, Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s" shows John Thomas and wife Dorothy arriving in America 1649. This is the John Thomas that I discuss in my post. It comes from Nugent in Cavaliers and Pioneers, very well respected. This is good source material for me.
I have determined that there is just too much inconsistency in the records so early in VA to be conclusive. I really believe that there was a John Thomas at Queens Creek in 1650s, but all we can say is that there was a John Thomas who arrived in 1622 VA. At least not with the records that I have available to me online. This requires some heavy duty genealogist in the local area to sort out and I cannot do that. Other problem is that this name is just too common to differentiate the individuals.
Let me know what you think. Mike
I have to disagree that just because something is from an unofficial source does not mean it is not accurate. From my research into Jamestown genealogy, it appears that the majority of sources from those early years is all from things like family bibles and pedigree charts. The "official" list of Jamestown residents is all from families researching their ancestors with alternate resources, and not from an official list like a passenger list or church records. Like you pointed out It doesn't appear there are many official contemporary sources until around the 1650s, which is really frustrating. I was looking into other Thomas' trees, and I honestly think there are at least two John Thomas' in the early Virginia colony that are being mixed together. It makes it really muddy at that point! I am not sure if there was a John Thomas on the sea venture, but it's also not impossible considering that I can only find around 60 people actually named out of the apparent 150! I wish the author of that Thomas book was clearer on his sources, because I would like to dig deeper!
Thomas-3517 and Thomas-2365 appear to represent the same person because: Same birth year.
In the year 1609 he embarked on the Sea Venture in England, bound for the new colony over seas, was shipwrecked off Bermuda in 1610. STRACHEY sent a copy of his journal back to England to his friend WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE, who wrote a play titled The Tempest, using much of the journal in the play's dialogue.
Duplicated by Thomas-14255, should be merged
Duplicated by Thomas-2365, should be merged
oh - and parents are different (Thomas-6089 is son of William Thomas, while Thomas-14255 appears to be the one to adopt the English-style surname Thomas (for his father Thomas ap Harpway Ieuan, according to the profile).
Thomas-6089 and Thomas-14255 do not represent the same person because: same name "John Thomas" not enough & locations are not the same... about 100 miles apart rough measure on Google map. Caernarvonshire shows above Snowdonia National Park & Carmarthenshire is to the south, by Brecon Beacons National Park - not sure link will have same sized map I was looking at, but see this link.
Thomas-15012 and Thomas-14255 appear to represent the same person because: Same wife
Thomas-25926 and Thomas-14255 appear to represent the same person because: Clear duplicate
Rejected matches › David Thomas (1585-) › Unknown Thomas (abt.1620-) › John Thomas Jr (abt.1628-aft.1660) › John Thomas (1585-1643)
Featured National Park champion connections: John is 14 degrees from Theodore Roosevelt, 23 degrees from Stephanus Johannes Paulus Kruger, 18 degrees from George Catlin, 15 degrees from Marjory Douglas, 23 degrees from Sueko Embrey, 16 degrees from George Grinnell, 26 degrees from Anton Kröller, 18 degrees from Stephen Mather, 24 degrees from Kara McKean, 15 degrees from John Muir, 18 degrees from Victoria Hanover and 22 degrees from Charles Young on our single family tree. Login to find your connection.
Categories: Uncertain Parents | Virginia Colonists