SONS OF NICHOLAS GENTRY, IMMIGRANT

Part 2. Nicholas-II Gentry

by Willard Gentry

Abstract
All available information about Nicholas-II Gentry, the youngest of the sons of Nicholas Gentry, Immigrant is reviewed. Virtually all known contemporary references for Nicholas-II are summarized. A brief description of each of the children of Nicholas-II is also given along with representative references concerning them.

Introduction
The standard source reference for Nicholas-II Gentry, son of the immigrant Nicholas Gentry, has been and still is the book, "The Gentry Family in America" (GFA), published by Richard Gentry in 1909<1>. With respect to the descendants of Nicholas-II, this book is comprehensive but not authoritative. As is the case with any genealogical compilation, one needs to be aware of the possibility of errors in fact and/or interpretation.

With respect to the descendants of Joseph-II and Samuel-II Gentry, the book is neither comprehensive nor authoritative. The coverage for the latter two lines of descent is very spotty, and rarely linked together for more than a couple generations. If one is a descendant of either of these two 2nd-generation Gentrys and is lucky enough to find his or her ancestor in the "Other Gentrys" portion of the book, great caution should be taken in accepting the details presented without outside confirmation.

The following article will duplicate some of the information for Nicholas-II and his immediate family, but GFA provides very little detail and very little documentation, and there are significant discrepancies in the book. Accordingly, we will be presenting most of the known references to Nicholas and will provide a basic summary of the information known about Nicholas' children. While covering some of the same basic facts, further discussion and interpretation of these facts can by found in three articles published in "Gentry Family Gazette and Genealogy Exchange" by Denny Ellerman<2>.

Summary of Nicholas Gentry Genealogy (GFA #2, p.33)<3>

	– Born New Kent Co. (later Hanover Co.), Virginia, baptized 30 May 1699, St. Peter's Parish.
	– Married to Jane --?--.
	– Nicholas died 1779, Albemarle Co., Virginia.
		Children: (All born in the vicinity of Stone Horse Creek, Hanover Co., until 1736, thereafter in vicinity of Dirty Swamp, Hanover Co. (later Louisa Co.)).
	i	David (GFA #4) born abt 1722, Hanover Co.; died abt 1810, Madison Co., Kentucky; married probably (1?) abt.1752, Louisa Co. to --?-- Bailey(?); married (2?) abt.1757, Louisa Co. to Mary Estes.
	ii	Robert (GFA #6) born abt.1725, Hanover Co.; died 1811, Jefferson Co., Tennessee; married (1) abt. 1748 in Albemarle Co., to Judith Joyner; married (2) 13 Nov 1804, Jefferson Co., Tennessee, to Rachel West.
	iii	Nicholas (GFA #5) born abt. 1728, Hanover Co.; died 1803, Adair Co., Kentucky; married (1) abt. 1752, Louisa Co. to Elizabeth Stringer; married (2) abt.1769, Louisa Co. to Sarah Dickens<4>.
	iv	Elizabeth born 14 Aug 1731 (GFA also gives her birth as 14 Oct 1731), died 28 Jul 1820, Clark Co., Kentucky; married abt. 1752 to Nathaniel Haggard.
	v	Benajah (GFA #7) born 1733, Hanover Co.; died abt.1830 (his will was proved in January 1831), Albemarle Co.; married (1) to Elizabeth(?) Austin; married (2) abt 1781 to Ann Jones
	vi	Moses (GFA #3) born abt. 1736, Hanover Co.; died 1808, Albemarle Co., Virginia; married abt. 1758, Louisa Co. to Lucy Sims.
	vii	Nathan (GFA #8) born abt.1745, Louisa Co.; died 1784, Louisa Co.; married abt 1777 to Marianne [/Mary Ann] Black.
	viii	Martin (GFA #9) born 11 Sep 1747, Louisa Co.; died 22 Apr 1827, Madison Co., Kentucky; married 23 Jan 1766, Louisa Co. to Mary Timberlake.
	(Order of birth unknown, perhaps in the interval between Moses and Nathan):
	ix	Mary married --?-- Henson.    [GFA gives "Hinson", but "Henson" was a known neighboring family]
	x	Daughter married to --?-- Timberlake. Their daughter Jane was included in Nicholas-II's will.
	xi	Daughter married to --?-- Jenkins. Their daughter Ann was included in Nicholas-II's will.

The order of children listed here varies from that given in GFA and many other published family trees for Nicholas, and is solely the responsibility of this writer. The reasoning for placement of each child is given below in the discussion of individual children. An assumption has been made here that the two grandchildren, Jane Timberlake and Ann Jenkins, named in Nicholas' will, were children of unidentified daughters of Nicholas who married husbands with those surnames. The further presumption is that in each case, the daughter had pre-deceased Nicholas, although in either case a husband might still have been alive. An alternative, less likely, explanation is that Jane and Ann were daughters of one or two of Nicholas' sons who then married husbands with those surnames. This would require that each of these two grandchildren were of marriageable age, say about 20, and consequently had been born by the end of the 1750's. The children of the older sons of Nicholas are sufficiently well known that one has great difficulty in arguing the presence of two more children named Jane and Ann. Moreover the awarding of half-shares of Nicholas' estate argues for the fact that they were the heirs of deceased daughters.

Nicholas in Hanover County

The life of Nicholas-II Gentry can be divided into three phases. The first half of his life (almost forty years) was spent in Hanover County, half of that time at his father's plantation along Totopotomoy Creek in the eastern end of the county, and the other half at the far west end near Stone Horse Creek (see issue 7 of this Journal for maps). The second half of his life was spent in Louisa County in the neighborhood of a creek with the unprepossessing name of Dirty Swamp, not far to the west of his first home. Finally, the last couple years of his life, Nicholas moved still farther west, to Albemarle County where he died in 1779.

Nicholas-II is the only one of the sons of Nicholas, the Immigrant, to be documented by contemporary references. Nicholas' baptism, 30 May 1699, is recorded in the Register of St. Peter's Parish in New Kent County, Virginia,, along with that of two of his sisters.<5>. The first succeeding reference to him is found in the Vestry book of St. Paul's Parish, after St. Paul's was separated from St. Peter's Parish, and after Hanover County was separated from New Kent County, and is dated 1719<5a>. Thereafter, references to him occur at intervals in the vestry records until 1735<5b-f>, both in connection with "processioning" of land (see vol 1, issue #2 of this journal for a description of processioning), and in fulfilling various parish responsibilities such as the upkeep of local roads.

While living in St. Paul's Parish, Nicholas appears to have left his father's home on Totopotomoy Creek at an early age and moved west with, or to join, his brother Samuel, settling in the vicinity of Stone Horse Creek (which later became the western boundary of the parish). We don't know if he was living with Samuel in 1716 when the first reference to the latter appears in the records, but by 1719 he appears to have been living on land separate from Samuel. This leads to an interesting situation concerning Nicholas' marriage. Two possibilities present themselves.

1. Nicholas moved to a new location. In this case one would presume that he was married when he made this move. Yet the oldest of his children, David (see discussions below), was not born until probably about 1722. This leaves a gap of three or four years when there is no record of any children for Nicholas. Did he marry and lose his wife after a number of years of childless marriage, then marry a second time? Were there one or two early children of his marriage who died in childhood?
2. It was Samuel that moved to a new location, leaving Nicholas living on their original plantation along with whatever family members may have accompanied Samuel and Nicholas to this location. This seems to have been the more likely situation and would leave no presumption of whether or not he was married by 1719.

By 1723, Samuel Gentry had obtained grants of land farther downstream along the South Anna River near Beech Creek (see map below), and thereafter he was listed in St. Paul's processioning records in a precinct separate from Nicholas, yet close enough that both were part of a road-clearing crew appointed to duty in 1735<5e>. Nicholas continued to live in the vicinity of Stone Horse Creek until 1736, in an area bounded by that creek, the South Anna River, and Beech Creek as outlined in a later description of his precinct<5g>.

St. Paul's Parish Records for Nicholas after 1736
There is a question concerning Nicholas' movements after 1736 that cannot be definitively answered. Nicholas was granted land on Dirty Swamp in 1736, and all of the Louisa County records point to Nicholas living there during the years from 1736 to 1776. Moreover, in order to satisfy the terms of a land patent it was necessary to improve and cultivate the land. However, the St. Paul's vestry records continued to carry his name as a land owner in Precinct 6 for the years from 1739 to 1769<6>. Other land owners listed erroneously in that precinct included John Spradling who was known to have died by 1733, and George Alves who moved to Dirty Swamp and died there in 1732. It was not until 1771, when precincts were renumbered, that a new list of land owners was recorded for that area (most of the owners remained the same as earlier). It was in that year that Nicholas' name was removed from the precinct list (along with John Spradling and George Alves) and George Gentry's name suddenly appears<6g>. During that entire time, the names of the landowners varied hardly at all, even though Nicholas surely had left, and one wonders whether those responsible for the processioning were lazy in their reporting and did not update the property list. Did Nicholas continue to own that land even though he did not occupy it? The sudden appearance of George Gentry in place of Nicholas, suggests this possibility, and suggests further that George (and earlier, George's father) occupied this land beginning from the time Nicholas left. [We know for certain that George was living in the vicinity as early as 1765, based on testimony of his son George Jr.] This question will receive further attention in a later article in this journal on the family of Joseph-II Gentry.

Louisa and Hanover Counties, Virginia

Nicholas in Louisa County

Nicholas received a grant of land on Dirty Swamp in 1736 farther to the west of Stone Horse Creek in what later became Louisa County<7> where he lived until he sold the last of his land in 1776 and 1778. Nicholas' name appears in a variety of Louisa County records after his move even though many Louisa County records are fragmentary and spotty. Vestry records of Trinity Parish, of which he was not a part, have only a few brief references to any of the other Gentrys. Marriage records do not exist before 1766 (except for those few recorded by the Rev. William Douglass), and the first Gentry in the record was not until 1778. Court records, which began with the founding of the county in 1743, reflect a variety of activities in which Nicholas was involved in the day-to-day life of a Virginia plantation owner<8, 9>. These include orders to assist in clearing and maintaining roads, serving on grand juries, assisting with the appraisal and inventory of estates of deceased neighbors, and in Nicholas' case at least one court case that came to trial. The court records also confirmed many of the deeds of sale that are listed in more detail in the Louisa County Deed books, whereby the deed was acknowledged by the signer and/or one or more witnesses, and was ordered to be recorded.

Deed books have survived in relatively good condition from the earliest days of 1742 and show only very modest activity on the part of Nicholas. In 1747, he joined with his brother Samuel in selling land along Dirty Swamp that adjoined each other<10a>. Then in 1757 and 1758, he gave 100-acre portions of his land to his son David and his son Moses<10b,10c>. These were probably on the occasions of the marriage of each son.

[Note. It is necessary to use discretion in many of the court and deed records if one wants to differentiate between Nicholas-II (Nicholas Sr.) and his son Nicholas Jr., especially in the later years of Nicholas Sr.'s life. Context, geographical setting (i.e. vicinity of Dirty Swamp for Nicholas Sr., and vicinity of Gold Mine Creek for Nicholas Jr) and type of activity are helpful. In the references quoted here, we have tried to identify and include all those for Nicholas Sr. and to omit those for Nicholas Jr. unless the latter are significant for some reason. In the same way, there is difficulty on occasion in differentiating between David-III (the son of Nicholas Sr.) and David-IV (the son of Nicholas Jr). The same geography differences are helpful there. We have mentioned in a previous article the further complication of identifying the son of Samuel-II, who was also a Nicholas but who was identified as Nicholas "the Younger" in the few Louisa County deeds in which he appears.]

Lists of tithable individuals and taxable property exist only from 1768 onwards and Nicholas and his family are found only in the lists through the year 1775. [Colonial government tithes or personal property taxes were assessed on all males 16 and above; on all negro, mulatto, and Indian women 16 and above; on land; and on wheeled carriages. A separate county tax was also assessed on taxable individuals.] During the years from 1768 to 1776, Nicholas was included in the tax rolls, listing the taxable male members of his household and slaves<11>. Besides the tithables, the lists also show Nicholas being taxed for 182 acres of land. By virtue of his age, Nicholas appears to have been relieved from the necessity of paying poll taxes for the years from 1773 onwards. From 1768 through 1770, Nathan Gentry was living with his father, then presumably left to establish his own home. Martin continued to live with his father throughout this entire period, and in fact it is probable that Nicholas was living with Martin in Albemarle County at the time of his death.

Nicholas in Albemarle County

By 1776, Nicholas was close to eighty years old. Robert, Elizabeth and Benajah had moved to Albemarle County, directly west of Louisa County, a number of years earlier, and now sons David, Moses, and Martin decided to move also, taking their father with them. In 1776, Nicholas sold most of his land along Dirty Swamp<10d)>, and in 1778 he joined David in selling the remainder of Nicholas' land and the adjoining plantation that Nicholas had given to David twenty-odd years earlier<10e>. In 1777, son Moses sold his Louisa County land and in 1778 he bought land in Albemarle County<21>. The families settled in the vicinity of Brown's Cove in Albemarle County, near a group of families (children of Benjamin Brown), who may have been related to Nicholas' wife Jane. That left only Nicholas Jr, and Nathan, of the sons, still living in Louisa County. As to Nicholas' daughters, except for Elizabeth, we do not know what became of them. This direction of migration was characteristic of almost all of Nicholas' children, moving westward into Albemarle County, and then mostly moving further west to Kentucky, and a few to Tennessee. This was in contrast to Samuel's family who moved south from Louisa County to Lunenburg County, and then southward again into North and South Carolina.

Nicholas Sr. died soon after moving to Albemarle County. His will was dated 20 Apr 1777, written at the time he was in the midst of moving. It was received for probate in April 1779 so the assumption is that he died in early 1779. The text of his will is given in GFA, a brief summary is included here<12>. The text of this will has generated controversy, first voiced by Richard Gentry in GFA, concerning whether the will indicates that Nicholas' children were the result of two separate wives.

The Wife (Wives) of Nicholas Gentry

Whether Nicholas had more than one wife, and the maiden name of Jane, his wife at the time of his death, are both subjects of considerable debate. Unfortunately, unless some obscure reference turns up that has been overlooked during the close to one hundred years since GFA was published, we will never know. The argument with respect to the number of wives revolves around the wording in his will by which he "disinherited" four of his children, Moses, David, Nicholas, and Mary. It has been suggested that this was because they were children of an earlier wife than Jane. One can also argue that the failure to bequeath equal amounts of his estate to these four, may be because Nicholas-II had already given 100 acres of land in Louisa Co. to Moses and David, and son Nicholas had obtained 70 acres from his father-in-law Edward Stringer. In similar fashion, Mary may have received help earlier from her father about which we know nothing, or she may have been sufficiently well taken care of by her husband to not need a further bequest. The fact that David was chosen as one of the executors does not suggest ill will between Nicholas and these four children. A more compelling argument against different wives being the reason for this wording is that chronologically, Robert, Elizabeth, and Benajah were undoubtedly older in age than Moses or Mary yet they were given full shares of the estate. To this writer, any cause for the wording of the will is not because of the possibility of the children being borne by different wives but rather lies elsewhere.

Controversy relating to wife Jane of Nicholas' later years has to do with her name. Various maiden names have been suggested: Brown, Benajah, Braxton, Martin, Austill and others about which we can only argue and guess since there is no way of proving the correct choice. The one very frequent suggestion that can be most emphatically refuted is that Nicholas married Mary Brooks, daughter of Richard Brooks. This has been discussed in previous articles, and it can be shown without question that Mary was the wife of Nicholas' nephew, known as Nicholas the Younger, son of Samuel-II Gentry. The origins of the names Jane Martin and Jane Austill are a mystery. The name Jane Benajah has apparently been suggested to account for giving the name Benajah to a son (and a grandson) of Nicholas. This suggestion is not attractive because there appear to be no contemporary families by the name of Benajah living in Hanover or Louisa County at the time. In addition one can much more logically argue that this son of Nicholas was named for Benajah Brown, as suggested below, or at least was prompted by another source for whom both Benajah Brown and Benajah Gentry were named. Similarly, Jane Braxton apparently originates as a source for the name of Nicholas Jr's son Blackston (sometimes spelled Braxton).

The name Jane Brown has been more commonly accepted for a couple reasons. Denny Ellerman writes in one of his articles on Nicholas Gentry<2c>:

"The backward "B" by which Nicholas Gentry's wife Jane signs one of the deeds suggests that her maiden name may have begun with a B. Assuming this to be so, I have always considered Brown the leading candidate for the following reason. When Nicholas and his wife moved to Brown's Cove in Albemarle County, they settled among a whole group of Browns with whom they had many and close dealings for the ten years or so that they remained there. One of those Browns was named Benajah, from whence perhaps the name of one of Nicholas and Jane's sons. As was typical of so many moves west, family connections tended to guide the path. In this case, Nicholas and Jane and sons David, [Moses] and Martin did not move close to where their sons, Robert and Benajah had settled earlier in Albemarle County but in an area of the county where there were no other Gentrys at that time. I think it possible that it was her [Jane's] family that determined the direction of that particular move."

[Note. In early September of this year, a search of the Ancestry.Com WorldTree website for Nicholas Gentrys born in 1697-1699 brought up 77 separate families. The discouraging summary for spouses of Nicholas showed:
Blank = 14; Mary Brooks = 49; Jane Aubert = 1; Jane Benajah = 6; Jane Brown = 4; Jane Martin = 4; Jane with Brown/Benajah/Braxton/Austill in various combinations = 8; Sarah Dickens = 1. (Totals add up to more than 77 because of multiple spouses).]

Partial Selection of Counties with Gentrys, 1810, especially Nicholas-II Family

The Children of Nicholas - David Gentry

Several factors argue for David being the oldest of the children of Nicholas, but they leave troubling questions about the date of David's marriage to Mary Estes. These arguments are:

1. If David was about 88 years old when he died in Madison County, Kentucky as quoted by GFA, then a birth date of about 1722 follows, which predates estimates of the date of birth of Robert as discussed below.
    
2. In the tax lists for Trinity Parish, Louisa County, for the years 1769 to 1772, there is a Bailey Gentry present in David's household who was liable for a poll tax (thus sixteen or more years old). Bailey is missing from the 1768 list. From this we can argue, assuming that Bailey was living with David in 1768, he was born in 1753 and reached age sixteen in 1769. This Bailey is missing from the Trinity Parish list for 1773 and 1774 but appears in both years in St. Martins Parish (in Hanover County). Thereafter he disappears and is found no more and is assumed to have died.
    
3. By far the most logical explanation of the Bailey references is that he was a son of David (his oldest), and since he was born about 1753, David must have married about 1752. A birth date for David of 1722 would place him at age 30 in 1752, and one wonders if perhaps he married earlier than this.

This earlier date for a marriage and birth of a son for David suggests that this was a first marriage, and that after the death of this wife, David married Mary Estes as a second wife. The naming of a son, "Bailey", raises the possibility that this hypothetical first wife of David was a Bailey. Supporting this suggestion is the existence of a family by this name as shown by the fact that a John Bailey (or Bayley) served with Nicholas Sr on a panel appointed to appraise the estate of, coincidentally, a Mary Estes (perhaps David's mother-in-law)<9c>. [Note added 11/5/13: Gentry references discovered in Kentucky have led to a proposal that David and his first wife had an additional son named James born about 1756, who had a wife named Ann. This is discussed in JGG, issue 2011(C).]

The date for David's marriage to Mary Estes was probably about 1757 when David's father gave him 100 acres of land that was a part of the family plantation on Dirty Swamp in Louisa County<10c>. In support of this, is the fact that the surviving children of David were born in years much more appropriate to this date than earlier. David Jr. for example, is identified with a birthdate of 1761, while son Richard was born in 1763. Other children of David and Mary were daughters Onie and Winifred ("Winnie").

David spent the early and mid-years of his life in Louisa County. He joined with his father in selling their adjoining land in 1778 preparatory to leaving Louisa County<10e>. David bought 500 acres in Albemarle County the same year, then sold part of this land to his brother Martin<14a,14b>, with whom their father Nicholas undoubtedly lived for the brief remainder of his life. David left Albemarle County in 1787<14c,14d>, moving to Madison County, Kentucky, where he appears in the 1800 tax list for that county. David is believed to have died in about 1810 in Madison County. David Sr.'s family, which included sons David and Richard, and daughters Winifred (Winnie) and Onie all accompanied him to Kentucky. A will dated 1813 by a David Gentry in Madison County is easily confused with David Sr., but this was the will of his son David Jr. who died only three years after his father. They can be distinguished in this case by the identification of the children named in the will. David Sr.'s son Richard was the direct ancestor of the "General" Richard Gentry who died in the Florida Seminole Indian Wars, and of the Richard Gentry who compiled GFA. Not surprisingly, these families are described in great detail in the book.

It should be noted that GFA's description of David confuses this David-III with his uncle, the David-II who was a son of Nicholas-I. Comments on a first marriage (to a wife whom GFA did not identify but whom other family listings frequently give as Sarah Brooks), and the listing of a son, William Gentry, by this first wife all arise from the failure of Richard Gentry and other family historians to realize that there were two separate Davids living briefly in Louisa County until 1748.

Robert Gentry

This writer considers it probable that Robert was the second of the children of Nicholas based on the following facts. In 1761, Robert's father-in-law, Phillip Joyner made bequests in his will to five of Robert's children: Charles, Jesse, Elizabeth, Sarah, and Mary<15>. Unless two of the daughters were twins, for Robert to have this many children, he must have been married for say ten to twelve years. That places his date of marriage in the vicinity of 1750, apparently earlier than any of his siblings. Then for Robert to be of normal marriageable age by that time, he most likely was born a few years before 1730. I have arbitrarily estimated a birth date of about 1725.

We will not discuss Robert Gentry further in this article since his life and that of his children have been described in a previous article of this Journal (volume 1, issue #6). As a reminder, however, Robert's children, named in his will, included sons Charles, Jesse, Bartlett and Martin, and daughters Elizabeth, Sarah and Mary, all of whom moved from Virginia to Tennessee in the very earliest years of the settlement of that state.

Nicholas Gentry Jr

The argument for the placement of Nicholas Jr in the order of Nicholas Sr.'s children is a little more tenuous. Nicholas Jr. received a gift of land from his father-in-law, Edward Stringer in 1752<16a>. This was probably on the occasion of the marriage of Nicholas to Elizabeth Stringer. This date of marriage argues for Nicholas being younger than Robert and older than the two children, Elizabeth and Benajah whose dates of birth in GFA appear to be reasonably correct.

The children of Nicholas and his first wife were Mildred, David, Nicholas-IV, John, Nancy, Sally, Fannie, Martin, and Blackston (Blaxton). They are named in a court document dated 1782, which appears to involve some controversy between Nicholas and his older group of children, probably on the disposal of property that may have belonged to or was owing to his wife Elizabeth<17b>.

(Nicholas-IV, who was missing from that document, is thought to be the Nicholas Gentry who is assumed by GFA to have committed suicide in 1787. This Nicholas is the subject of an unusual court order in 1772 when his father was relieved of the need to pay county taxes [but not Crown taxes] for his son for the next two years<17a>. Three years later, Nicholas-IV was excused from Crown taxes as well. What the circumstances or reason for this action are completely unknown but may have involved some physical or mental disability.)

Nicholas' second wife was Sarah Dickens, (see e.g. deeds dated 1783 and 1787) by whom he had another ten children: Mary, Henry, Elizabeth, Zachariah (Zachary), (James) Richard, Sarah Perrine, Robert, Benajah, Jane and Wesley. (Nicholas' daughter Sarah Perrine who married William Goudge, is frequently confused with Sarah or Sally, the daughter of Nicholas and his first wife Elizabeth. The latter Sarah married James Smith.)

Nicholas spent most of his life in Louisa County, being the exception in the Nicholas-II family in not moving to Albemarle County. In later life, he moved to Kentucky where his name can be found, along with the name of his son Zachary, in the 1800 tax lists for Green County, the precursor to Adair County, Kentucky. Nicholas died in 1803 in Adair County. Some of his children remained in Virginia, but most of them moved to Kentucky before or after their father. These included John, Martin, Blackston and Henry in Bullitt County, and Zachary/Zachariah, Richard, and Robert in Adair County.

Nicholas' son David-IV is worth noting separately. GFA lists a David among the children of Nicholas but gives the wrong family description for this David. Nicholas' son married Elizabeth Whitlock and his daughter, Mildred, married William Whitlock. and moved from Louisa to Caroline County. David's wife, Elizabeth, is named as a beneficiary in the 1777 will of Thomas Whitlock, sister of Elizabeth and William, and David was a witness. David is further identified in a deed of sale of land to his brother Nicholas<18b>. David's four sons, John N., Elias, Thomas, and Jesse moved to Buncombe County, North Carolina, and were among the early settlers there. Their parents followed them to Buncombe County in later years where they were eventually buried.

Elizabeth Gentry

GFA as well as various Haggard sources, gives conflicting dates for Elizabeth's birth: 14 August and 14 October, 1731. Except for the date of her marriage to Nathaniel Haggard, the chronology of her family is quite specifically quoted in various Haggard family records, and there seems to be no reason to question the year of her birth, 1731. This places her as being probably the fourth of the children of Nicholas-II.

Elizabeth's husband, Nathaniel Haggard is said to have married Mary Hazelrigg first, by whom he had two children: Henry Hazelrigg, and Martin. The children of Elizabeth and Nathaniel included: Elizabeth, John, Mary, James, Jane, Bartlett, David and Nathaniel. The Haggards and Gentrys intermixed freely in the next generation as James Haggard married Betsie Gentry (daughter of Moses Gentry), and Jane Haggard married David Gentry (son of David-III).

Elizabeth and Nathaniel moved to Albemarle County and lived for a time there on land adjoining Jesse Gentry (son of Robert). They sold this land in 1788<19> and bought land the same year in Lincoln County, Kentucky<20>, from part of which Clark County was formed in 1790. Nathaniel died in 1806 leaving a will which left everything to his widow Elizabeth. On her death in 1820, the estate passed to all of their children except Martin who had been killed by Indians at an earlier date.

A Digression Concerning the Haggards

There are frequent references in genealogical listings of the presumed founder of the Haggard family of Virginia, as a James Haggard who landed in Norfolk County, Virginia shortly after 1700. There is an interesting story about James being hired as an indentured school teacher. James and a young lady connected with the school were said to have been attracted to each other and ran away to North Carolina in 1706 because as an indentured servant James supposedly could not marry in Virginia. James and his wife then returned to Virginia at a later time. The original source of this story, a book "The History of the Haggard Family in England and America, 1433 - 1899", published by David Dawson Haggard in 1899, quotes this story and other colorful information about James but does not name his schoolgirl wife. Since the publishing of that book, some members of the Haggard family have provided the name of Elizabeth Gentry, oldest daughter of Nicholas-I, as this wife, while others have claimed the youngest daughter of Nicholas, Mabel Gentry was the wife. Still others have reported that first Elizabeth and then Mabel were wives of James.

The story of James and his proposed marriage with Elizabeth Gentry may have some elements of truth, such as James being a schoolteacher, but most of the story is undoubtedly false considering the following facts:

1. The only town in Virginia in 1706 was Jamestown, so any school in which James may have taught must have been operated informally, probably by the parish, either in a local church building or in a private home on one of the plantations. At that time only boys would have received education and no girls would have been among James' students, certainly none sent from a distant location.
    
2. It is very difficult to imagine how a seventeen-year-old daughter of a small tobacco plantation owner on the western fringes of Virginia settlement, would have travelled to the coast and met James in Norfolk County.
    
3. The story of fleeing to North Carolina is particularly questionable, that state not being divided from South Carolina until 1712. The first town in North Carolina was not settled until 1705 when the Bath was founded in Pamlico Sound. The closest church where a marriage could have been performed was undoubtedly Charleston, now South Carolina. Unlike present conditions where it is just a short distance from Norfolk across the state boundary to North Carolina, in 1706 it would obviously have been impossible to travel there by land, and equally impossible by sea given the lack of coastal shipping.

Since the proposed relationship did not originate with the Haggard family book but was added afterwards, it appears to me that some Haggard/Gentry genealogist in filling out a pedigree chart, skipped a couple generations by mistake, and confused the original James Haggard with the James Haggard who was a son of Elizabeth and Nathaniel, who did indeed marry an Elizabeth Gentry.

Benajah Gentry

GFA gives the date of 1733 for the birth of Benajah, based on his age at the time of his death. There does not seem to be any reason to question this. Benajah and Robert were the first of the family to move from Louisa County to Albemarle, Robert apparently several years ahead of Benajah. The latter bought land near Robert in 1764<21> on Biscuit Run near present day Charlottesville. GFA briefly describes Benajah thus: "He was a successful planter and had a number of negro slaves. He was a leading member of the Baptist church and was very active in religious work. In 1817, he transferred all his property to his son Robert, although Benajah did not die until 1831 at the age of 98. His will was proved in Albemarle Co. in January 1831, and named 8 of his children as legatees. His daughter Kate, married Benajah's nephew, John P. Gentry, son of Moses-III." Benajah's name occurs frequently in Albemarle County records in orders for the development and maintenance of roads and as a witness to deeds or as being an adjoining land owner.

Benajah married twice, his first wife was Elizabeth(?) Austin, his second was Ann Jones whom he married in about 1780. His children by his first wife were Mary, Elizabeth, Sally, Annie, Jane, and William. His children by his second wife were Thomas, James, Robert, John, Katherine (Kate), Patsey Frances, and Susan. William and Thomas moved to Dickson County, Tennessee while James settled in Monroe County, Kentucky. His youngest sons, Robert and John, remained in Virginia. His daughter, Kate, who married her cousin, John P. Gentry, moved to Madison County, Kentucky.

Moses Gentry

Like David, Moses' chronology can be argued on the basis the date of his marriage to Lucy Sims, probably in 1758, when his father Nicholas gave him 100 acres of the family plantation<10c>. Moses did not move to Albemarle County until 1778<23>, at the same time as his father, and his brothers David and Martin. GFA describes Moses: "Moses Gentry bought land ... on the old Lynchburg road, north of Garland's Store, on the south side of Ragged Mountain, and made it his permanent home. He was a Ruling Elder in the Cove Presbyterian Church (situated about 6 miles from his home). His wife, Lucy Sims, was noted for her religious zeal and church work. She lived to be nearly 100 years old, surviving her husband by many years. After his death, she kept an inn, or tavern, her home being suitably located on the main road from Lynchburg to Richmond. Moses Gentry's will was probated in 1808, and final settlement was not made by the administrator, Edward Garland, until 1825."

Like his brother Benajah, Moses' name appears frequently in Albemarle County court documents, road orders, and the like, and was accompanied in later years by the names of some of his children. These children included James, Frances, Moses Jr., Jane, Claybourn, John, Benajah, Nicholas, Polly, David, Elizabeth, and Joanna. Many of his family moved to Kentucky to join other Gentrys. James, Claybourn, John and Benajah went to Madison County, while Moses Jr. went to Green County. Nicholas and David both died at a relatively young age in Albemarle County. Two of Moses' children married cousins, John married Kate Gentry, daughter of Benajah-III, and Mary ("Polly") married John Gentry, son of Martin-III.

There are reports that John P Gentry had a twin brother named Marle Lee Gentry who was put in the care of neighbors who had him wet-nursed by a houseslave who had recently given birth (perhaps Lucy Sims did not have enough milk for both twins?). His name is said to have derived from Albemarle County and Lee Creek which bordered the family farm. He ended up staying with the neighbors until he was 14, when he was taken to Henderson County, Kentucky. A job application by his son James in 1825 gives his age at that time as 47, indicating a birth date of 1777/8.

Nathan Gentry

Very little is known about Nathan Gentry. GFA estimates the date of birth of Nathan as 1741, but he was probably born a little later than that. There is nothing to indicate whether or not this is right other than the fact that tax list records suggest that he was older than his brother Martin, and thus born before 1747. This argument arises from the taxables listing for Louisa County between 1768 and 1774<11>. This shows Nathan and Martin living with their father at the time of the earliest available tax listings, but Nathan leaving in 1771 to live independently. Martin continued to live with his father through the date of the last listings in 1775. The fact that Nathan was provided with an allowance by his father's will over a three-year period is curious, but the short-term nature of it probably does not mean the allowance was due to any suggestion that mentally or physically he was not able to live entirely independently.

The name of Nathan's wife and the birth of one of his children was recorded by the Rev. William Douglass in his church register of births and christenings in Louisa County:
"April 8, 1781, Nathan Gentry and Marianne Black, a son named Wyat, born March 15, 1781."
GFA estimates the date of birth of a first child, Patrick, as 1780. The marriage in 1802 of an Eleanor Gentry, daughter of Mary Gentry<25>, is strongly suggestive of a child of Nathan and Mary Ann, born before Wyatt, and if Patrick's date of birth is approximately correct, then Eleanor was probably born before Patrick also. This would mean Nathan was married in the mid- to late-1770's, but the fact that Nathan left his father's home in 1771 might mean he was married as early as that year. Parenthetically, there is a record of Mary Ann Gentry, we must assume the same Mary Ann, "living in adultery" according to a 1783 court judgment<26>. There is no record of other children. Nathan died at a relatively early age in 1784 in Louisa County<24>. His wife seems to have lived for many years after his death without remarrying. Her name appears as a buyer in at least two sales of estate property, and she appears to be the same Mary Ann Gentry as is found in the 1810 Hanover County census records and probably the Mary Gentry in the 1820 Louisa County census.

Martin Gentry

As has been indicated in various places earlier in this article, Martin Gentry, as the youngest son, seems to have lived with his father up through the time they moved from Louisa County in 1777 or 1778 to Albemarle County. Thereafter, for the last couple years of Nicholas' life, the roles were reversed, and the plantation where they lived became the property of Martin<14b> and Nicholas was the guest in his son's home. Martin sold a parcel of land in Albemarle County in 1789<28a>, but this was obviously not the last of his land since in 1792, Martin and two of his sons were assigned road gang duty in the county<28b>. By 1800, Martin's name appeared on the tax list for 1800 in Madison County, Kentucky, along with his two oldest sons, Josiah and Bartlett. Martin and members of his family continued to appear in Madison County census records for many years afterwards. His will was received for probate there in 1827. His children included Elizabeth, Josiah, Bartlett, Patsie, Richard, Susanna, John, Polly, Nancy, Joel, and Martin Jr. His sons Josiah, Bartlett, John and Martin Jr all moved to Madison County and were living at the time of their father's will. A grandson, Thomas J. Gentry, mentioned in the will, appears to have been the surviving heir of either Richard or Joel.

Summary
The goal of this article has been to flesh out and fill in the gaps in the brief descriptions found in GFA of the life of Nicholas-II Gentry and his children. Further information on the lines of descent from these children can be found in varying degrees of detail in Richard Gentry's book. Corrections and interpretations of controversial issues relating to Nicholas are shared in some respects by other Gentry historians but some are solely the responsibility of this author. With this article, we have completed a summary of the lives of two of the sons of Nicholas Gentry, the immigrant. A summary of the life of the oldest son, Joseph, will be presented in the next issue of this Journal, along with an outline of a number of Gentry families whose connections to Nicholas-I are not known but are assumed to be descendants of Joseph.

Nicholas-II Notes

Nicholas-II, and his descendants through some half-dozen generations, are described in considerable detail in "The Gentry Family in America". The entire first half to three-fifths of Richard Gentry's book is devoted to this family line. The remainder of the book is made up of family groupings that may be connected for two or three generations, but in general make up a collection of Gentry families which Richard was not able to tie to the original Nicholas Gentry. The latter series of family descriptions contain more errors than the first part of the book, but even in the Nicholas-II family tree there are mistakes. The book frequently does not list the children in a family in birth order, even when the birthdates listed are obviously out of order. In addition, occasionally the name of a child in a family may be right (presumably), but the description of that child applies to another individual by the same name.

1. vol 4, p.94-107 (Apr 1983),    "Nicholas Gentry, I and II"
2. vol 5, p.35-48 (Nov 1985),    "The David and Nicholas Gentrys of Louisa, Lunenburg and Albemarle Counties, Virginia"
3. vol 5, p.83-100 (Aug 1986),    Exchange of correspondence between Ellerman, Robert Harrison Whitlock of Bay Village, Ohio and Lucy Atkins of Louisa, Virginia concerning the relationship of Nicholas' children (particularly Nicholas-III) to the Whitlock family of Louisa County.
   [Robert H. Whitlock, and Lucy Whitlock Atkins are descendants of Mildred Gentry Whitlock.]

" Eliz.        dau't to Nich. Gentry",     bap't 29 day of August 1689
[Same date in previous edition of Register. Note GFA has "1687" for this date].
"nicholas   Son of nicholas Gentrey     baptiz the 30 may 1699 "
"mabell     daut'r of nicho. Gentry     baptiz the 13 Dec'r 1702."

1. 1719    8br [Oct] 10     p.265 [205]:     Processioning return.
   [Precinct 31]: "The lands of Mr. Geo. Alves, Nich'o Gentry, Chris. Cawthorn, Mr. John Sym, & Will. Harris, Sam'l Gentry, of which Mr. Geo. Alves & Nich'o Gentry were Overs'rs; who made this return, the within Order comply'd with, by the persons Within nam'd, or their Ordered [signed] Geo. Alves, Nich'o Gentry."
    
2. 1723    7'br [Sep] 2     p.105 [95]:     Vestry meeting.
   "To Nich'o Gentry's Acc't, 150 [pounds tobacco] C[redit]"
    
3. 1731    Oct 29     p.272 [211]:     Vestry meeting.
   [Precinct 1: Ordered . . . processioning . . . Nich'o Gentry ...]
    
4. 1734    May 19     p.141 [119]:     Vestry meeting.
   "Orderd that . . . the Tithables of . . . Nich'o Gentry . . . assist . . . in Clearing the road"
    
5. 1735    Oct 18     p.143 [120]:     Vestry meeting.
   "Ordered that Sam'l Gentry have the Tithables of . . .Nich'o Gentry, . . . Assist him in Clearing the road, whereof he is Surveyor."
    
6. 1735    Oct 18     p.286 [220]:     Vestry meeting.
   [Precinct 6: Orderd . . . processioning . . .Nich'o Gentry, ...]
    
7. 1756    Mar 31     p.343 [271]:
   [Description of Precinct 6]: "In compliance with the within Order, we have procession'd all the Lands beginning at the Mouth of Beech Creek, and up the River to the mouth of Stonehorse Creek, and up the Creek to the main Road, and down the road to the head of Beech Creek, and down the Said Creek to the mouth . . ."

1. 1739    Sep 11     p.294 [227]:   Vestry meeting, lands divided for processioning.
   [Precinct 6: The lands of Christopher Cawthon, George Alvis, John Spraddling, Nich'o Gentry, Samuel Pryor, Wm. Cawthon, James Philips, William Harris . . .]
    
2. 1743    Nov 18     p.304 [235]:   Vestry meeting, lands divided for processioning.
   [Precinct 6: The Lands of Christoph'r Cawthon, George Alvis, John Spraddling, Nich'o Gentry, Sam'l Pryor, Wm. Cawthon, James Philips, William Harris . . .]
    
3. 1755    Nov 17     p.343 [271]:   Vestry meeting, lands divided for processioning.
   [Precinct 6: The Lands of James Cawthon, James Crenshaw, John Spraddling, Nicholas Gentry, Samuel Pryor, William Berry's Orphans, William Cawthon, James Philips and William Harris . . .]
    
4. 1759    Nov 19     p.380 [303]:   Vestry meeting, lands divided for processioning.
   [Precinct 6: The Lands of James Cawthon, James Crenshaw, John Spraddling, Nicholas Gentry, Samuel Pryor, William Berry's Orphans, William Cawthon, James Whilips, and William Harris . . .]
    
5. 1763    Nov 30     p.416 [332]:   Vestry meeting, lands divided for processioning.
   [Precinct 6]: "The Lands of James Cawthon, James Crenshaw, John Spraddling, Nicholas Gentry, Samuel Pryor, Wm. Berry's Orphans, William Cawthon, James Philips, William Harris . . .]
    
6. 1767    Sep 30     p.457 [363]:   Vestry meeting, lands divided for processioning.
   [Precinct 6: The Lands of James Cawthon, James Crenshaw, John Spraddling, Nicholas Gentry, Sam'l Pryor Dec'd, William Berrys Orphans, Wm. Cawthon, James Phillips, William Harris . . .]
    
7. 1771    Nov 12     p.494 [394]:
   [A new precinct #26 replaces #6]: "The Lands of James Cawthon, James Crenshaw, John Pendleton formerly Pryors, Wm. Berry's Orphans, William Cawthon, William Morris, Andrew Christian, William Johnson, Richard Gilman, William Howard, William Gunter, Robert Lee, George Gentry, Daniel Camron, Joseph Crenshaw, David Crenshaw, William Tompkins, William Davis (Constable), John Gosling and John Hughes . . ."

1736    Dec 28     Vol IV p.125 (Patent Bk 17, p.222):
[Grant to] "Nicholas Gentry 400 acs Hanover co., both sides Dirty Sw; adj Richard Brookes/Brooks, Capt. Overton, Mr. Charles Barret & Thomas Rice".

1. Orders, 1742-1744
   1742/3    Mar 14     p.11 [18]
   Tithables of Nicholas Gentry and others to clear a road.
    
2. 1743    Apr 11     p.17 [27]
   John Gentry apptd Overseer of the Road in the stead of James Nuckols and French Haggard and John Saxon are added to his Company to assist in repairing the Road in the stead of John Estes and Nicholas Gentry who are discharged from that road.
    
3. 1743/4    Feb 13     p.61 [94]
   Ordered Thomas Paulet, Nicholas Gentry and Samuel Gentry to appraise estate of Richard Ellis, decd and report to next court.
    
4. Orders 1744-1747
   1744/5    Feb 26     p.9 [134]
   Upon Petition of Nicholas Gentry and Samuel Gentry asking that a new road they have cleared between their Plantations and thence to the Road about three-quarters of a mile below, replace the present road below Dirty Swamp which is very prejudicial to them. Ordered that the new Road by deemed and taken as a public Road.
    
5. 1745    May 28     p.28 [152]
   John Gath and negroes under his care, French Haggard and Nicholas Gentry Senr added to road whereof John Ellis is Surveyor.
    
6. 1747    May 26     p.95 [225]
   Indenture between Samuel Gentry and Nicholas Gentry of one part, and Richard Walker of other part. Ack by sd Samuel and Nicholas; admitted to record.
    
7. Orders, 1747-1748/1766/1772
   1766    Sep 8     p.57     (Bk 3-17)
   Abraham Venable, Nicholas Gentry, and David Gentry to "view the way" by Edmund Massey and report to Court.
    
8. 1772    Apr 13     p.70     (Bk 3x-2)
   Nicholas Gentry, Plt vs Dumas Laine, Deft. Petition
   Judgment is granted the Plt for 30/- and also his other costs in this suit.

1. 1762    May 11     p.121 [34]
   Nicholas Gentry sworn in to grand jury.
    
2. 1763    Mar 12     p.136 [51]
   Ordered that Jeduthan Harper, Nicholas Gentry, Wm Philips and David Gentry or any 3 being first sworn do appraise the estete of Thos. Mason dec. and report to the next court.
    
3. 1764    Apr 10     p.157 [77]
   Ordered that Anth'y Thomson, Nicholas Gentry, John Bayley and Jno Estes or any 3 of them do appraise Mary Estes Estate and report accordingly.

10.     Louisa County Deed Books

1. 1747    Mar 26     Bk(A-276)
   Samuel Gentry and Nicholas Gentry to Richard Walker, for 30 pounds, sold 125 acres, being part of 400 acres granted 28 Dec 1736 to Nicholas Gentry and the residue being 110 acres, being part of 700 acres granted 30 Jul 1742 to Samuel Gentry on both sides of Dirty Swamp, adj. to Samuel Gentry and Mathew Jouette's line. Signed: Samuel Gentry, Nicholas Gentry; Witnessed: Danl. Burford, Junr., William Rice, Richard Haggard.
2. 1757    Aug 23     Bk(B-214)
   Nicholas Gentry gave to "loving son David Gentry" 100 acres in Dirty Swamp.
3. 1758    Jan 24     Bk(B-228)
   Nicholas Gentry gave to Moses Gentry "for natural affection" 103 acres in Dirty Swamp.
4. 1776     Nov 28     Bk(E-124)
   Nicholas Gentry and wife Jane of Trinity Parish and Louisa County, deed to Robert Barretts, 166 1/2 acres.
5. 1778    May 15     Bk(E-269)
   Nicholas Gentry and David Gentry of Fredericksville Parish and Albemarle County, deed to Robert Barrett, 133 1/2 acres, 100 being the same given to David in 1757.

	Year	Hd of House	Other Members	Negroes	Tithes/Acres
	1768	Nicholas Gentry	Nathan Gentrey Martin Gentry		3/182
		[Therefore Nathan and Martin born bef. 1752]
	1769	Nicholas Gentry	Martin Gentry Nathan Gentry	George, Milley	5/182
	1770	Nicholas Gentry	Martin Gentry Nathan Gentry	George, Milley	5/150
	1771	Nicholas Gentory Sr	Martain Gentry	"Gage" [George], Milley	4/182
	1773	Nicholas Gentry	Martin Gentry	Jessy, Thomas, George, Milley	5
		[Nicholas not taxed?]
	1774	Martain Gentry	"Jessy Thomason" Nicholas Gentry	[Jessy & Thomas?], Milly	4/182
	1775	Nichs Gentory	"Jessy Thomason" Martin Gentory	[Jessy & Thomas?], Milley	4/182
	[In 1774 and 1775 it is not clear if "Jessy Thomason" is a white occupant of Nicholas' household, and a member of the Thomason family present in Louisa County at the time, or if the entry was in the wrong location on the form and was a miswriting of the two slaves Jessy and Thomas found earlier in Nicholas' household. If the latter, Nicholas appears not to have been taxed for the years 1773 to 1775 (see also refr. 17a.).]

• Wife Jane, to remain in possession of entire real and personal estate during her life. Thereafter:
• To son Martin, negro girl Milly and future children, negro boy Charles, plus personal items on condition he pays son Nathan as follows:
• To son Nathan, 15 pounds, paid at rate of 5 pounds yearly by Martin.
• To grandson Bartlett Gentry, son of Martin, negro boy Patrick;
• To granddaughter Patty Gentry, daughter of Martin, negro girl Minnie;
• In case either grandchild dies without issue, Patrick and Minnie to revert to Martin Gentry,
• To sons Moses, David, and Nicholas, and daughter Mary, twenty shillings apiece paid out of estate, unless the law requires a greater sum in which case, as much as would be entitled to disinherited children.
• To sons Robert, Benajah, Nathan, Martin, one equal share each of remaining estate;
• To daughter Elizabeth Haggard, one equal share of remaining estate;
• To granddaughters Jane Timberlake and Ann Jenkins, one-half share each of remaining estate.
  Wife Jane, sons David and Martin appointed as executors of will.
  Witnessed by Bezaleel Brown and Benajah Brown.
  Received for probate, April 1779.

References to David

Year	Hd of House	Other Members	Negroes	Tithes/Acres
1768	David Gentry			1/100
1769	David Gentry	Bailey Gentry		2/100
1770	David Gentry	Bailey Gentry		2/100
1771	David Gentry	Bailey Gentry		2/253
1773	David Gentry			1
1774	David Gentry			1/201
1775	David Gentry			1
Tithables of St. Martin's Parish:
1773	Benjamin Cook	Bailey Gentry	James, Punch, Cate, Venus, Bett	7/193
1774	Gentry, Bailey			1

1. 1778    May 14     Bk(8-53)
   Rev. Thomas Hall of Goochland county to David Gentry of county of Albemarle, 500 ac formerly belonging to Capt. William O. Winston. Signed Thos. Hall.
   Ack at Alb. Sep court, 1778 and recorded.
2. 1778    Nov 10    
   David Gentry of Albemarle Co. deeds to Martin Gentry of same, 178 acres on Doyls River.
3. 1787    Aug 7     Bk(9-347)
   David Gentry to Benajah Brown, 140 ac land where David Gentry Junr now lives. Signed David (his mark) Gentry; witness Bernis Brown, James Harris, Martin Gentry, John Mullins, Bezaleel Brown. Proved by Martin Gentry [and 2 others] at Alb. Sep 13 court 1787 and recorded.
4. 1787    Aug 27     Bk(9-351)
   David Gentry to Bezaleel Brown, 150 ac .. NE side of Doyles River . . . wheron said Gentry now lives. Signed David (his mark) Gentry; witness Bernis Brown, John Mullins, James Harris, Martin Gentry, Benajah Brown. Proved by Martin Gentry [and 2 others] at Alb. Sep 13 court 1787, and recorded.

References to Robert

• To . . . Wife Elizabeth Joyner, all lands [etc]. . . during her natural life and after her decease the said lands to be equally divided between my two Grans [sic] Sons, viz. Charles Gentry and Jesee [sic] Gentry giving Charles Gentry two hundred acres with plantation wheron I now live and the remaining two hundred acres to fall to the said Jesee Gentry.
• [To] . . . Grand Daughter Elizabeth Gentry . . .
• [To] . . . Grand Daughter Mary Gentry . . .
• [To]. . . Grand Daughter Sarah Gentry . . .
  . . . according to the discretion of . . . my wife Elizabeth Joyner and Charles Winkfield whom I appoint Executor and Executrix of this my Last Will and Testament.
  Witnessed: Alexander Mackenzie, Robert Gentry, Joyn Waples.

References to Nicholas Jr and Family

16.    Louisa County Deed Books

1. 1752    May 26     Bk(A-462)
   Edward Stringer deeds to Nicholas Gentry Jr. and wife Elizabeth [daughter of Edward Stringer], 70 acres of land on which Nicholas Gentry now lives on Gold Mine Creek.
2. 1761    Oct 27     Bk(C-116)
   David Via and wife Frances deed to Nicholas Gentry Jr., 124 acres on Gold Mine Creek on which Edmund Stringer now lives.

17.   Sparacio, "Louisa County Virginia Orders 1766-1774"

1. 1772    Dec 14     p.16 [3-72]
   On the motion of Nicholas Gentry, he is exempted from paying County Levies for his son Nicholas Gentry, for two ensuing years.
   [This reference which is ambiguous with respect to the identification of Nicholases has been quoted with different wording which implies that Nicholas Sr was exempted from all poll taxes (presumably by reason of age). However, the wording above with the limitation of a two-year time period, and the fact that the petitioner has been paying taxes on behalf of his son in the past certainly suggests that the order applies to Nicholas Jr and his son Nicholas-IV.]
2. 1782    Jul 18     Order Bk p.44
   David Gentry, William Whitlock and Milly his wife, Fanny, Nancy, Sally, Martin, John, and Blackston Gentry vs. Nicholas Gentry. Suit dismissed as to David, continued as to the others. [All children of Nicholas' first wife Elizabeth, with the exception of Nicholas-IV missing.]

18.    Louisa County Deed Books

1. 1783    Nov 6     Bk(H-289)
   Nicholas Gentry and wife Sarah [Dickens] sell to Samuel Thompson 42 acres.
2. 1783    Aug 11     Bk(H-322)
   David Gentry and wife Elizabeth of Caroline County, deed 70 acres on Gold Mine Creek to Nicholas Gentry of Louisa County.
   [This reference among others, establishes that the David Gentry of Caroline County was the son of Nicholas-III, not the David who is listed in GFA.]
3. 1787    Apr 10     Bk(H-266)
   Nicholas Gentry and wife Sarah sell to James Beadles, 152 acres bounded by Samuel Thompson, William Whitlock, William Paulett, Phillip Timberlake, Gravitt Edwards in Trinity Parish.

References to Elizabeth

References to Benajah

 

References to Moses

23.    Sparacio, Op. cit. (Albemarle)

1. 1777   Dec 8
   Moses Gentry and Lucy his wife conveys to Lewis Barrett 150 acres of land in Louisa Co.
2. 1778    Mar 13     p.91 Bk(7-188)
   Samuel Gay of Albemarle county to Moses Gentry of county of Louisa, 199 1/2 ac on s. side of Ragged Mtn on waters of Hardware R, land part of 690 ac obtained by decree of General Court dated 23 Apr 1774. Signed Saml Gay, Senr; witness Jno Henderson Junr, Alexander Blane Junr, Mark Leak, Nathaniel Haggard. Ack at Alb Apr court, 1778 and recorded.

References to Nathan and Martin

	Date	Groom	Bride
	1802   Aug 14	William Anthony	Elenor B Gentry	/sur/Stanley Alvis
			over 21 years of age	/w/ William Perkins
			dau of Mary Gentry	David Kersey
				J L Walton

[Is this Mary Gentry, the widow of Nathan? If so it would mean Elenor (Eleanor) was born before August 1781 and thus before Nathan's son Wyatt and probably before Patrick also.]
 

28.    Sparacio, Op. cit. (Albemarle)

1. 1789    Oct 8     p.98 Bk(10-10)
   Martin Gentry and Mary his wife to Bezaleel Brown, 150 ac on Dowell's River. Signed Martin Gentry and Mary (her mark) Gentry; (no witnesses recorded). Ack at Alb. Oct court 1789 (Mary relinquished right of Dower) and recorded.
2. 1792    Oct 11     p.26 Bk(1791-1793, p.253)
   Report by Bernard Brown on certain assigned roads within a "hundred". Gang appointed which included Martin Gentry, Josiah Gentry, "Bartotte" Gentry [Bartlett?].
3. See also reference 22.

Scattered revisions, November 2013

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