Early Goodmans of America
Early Goodmans and Related Families of New Kent County, Virginia
County Formation and History
1634 Virginia was divided into 8 shires. Five of them, Elizabeth City, Warwick, James City, Charles City and Henrico were along north bank of James River. One, Charles River, was along the Charles River and was soon after called York. This is the origin of New Kent Co..
In 1654, New Kent County was formed from the part of York County north of James City. It originally contained the counties of King William, King and Queen, all formed from New Kent. The Pamumkey River was the north border and the Chickahominy was the southern border. New Kent also contained the village of Powhattan. It was later further divided, and its progeny counties included King William, King and Queen, Hanover (of St. Paul’s Parish), Goochland, and Louisa Counties. Albemarle County was just to the west of these, and part of Albemarle was included in Louisa County for a time.
In 1691 King and Queen County was formed from New Kent. The original county of King and Queen later was cut into King William, Caroline and much of Spotsylvania and Essex Counties.
1720 Hanover County was established from New Kent, which had been part of York until 1654, and York was part of Charles River, one of the 8 original Shires established in 1634.
St. Peter’s Parish, New Kent Co., VA, was on the eastern shore of the James River, and just north and west of James City County.
New Kent is a "Burned" county, so very few New Kent records have survived. However, a few of the State of VA land grant images found on the Library of Virginia's web site are interesting:
 | 8 Oct 1672, to Rowland Horsley and Robert Lancaster, 473 ac on the south side of Mattadequin Creek. VA Patents, 6, p.412. The Horsley family, and the Rowland given name, are thereby established as among the earliest inhabitants of this county, and later records in Louisa and Albemarle County associate this same Horsley family with the Goodmans. |
Goodman Road in New Kent County
Goodman Road is in New Kent County, just south of the Hanover County line. See map below. Given its name, it is likely that this road led to some of the ancestral Goodman lands in New Kent County. In 1782 New Kent County Tax List, a Benjamin Goodman owned 80 acres of land, which may have been in this vicinity.
Directions: From Richmond, take I-64 east to exit 205, New Kent Hwy. Go north on New Kent Hwy, and turn left onto Dispatch Road. Where Dispatch Road T's at Hwy 613 (Quaker Rd), turn right, then right again onto Goodman Rd.
St Peter's Parish Vestry - Goodman or Goodwin?
The following two Vestry records are intriguing, and could reflect inaccurate transcription of the names. There is at least one other example of a similar transcription difference, where John Goodwin is named as being kept by a member in one vestry entry, and John Goodwin in another entry, being kept by the same member. John Goodwin/Goodman was a ward of the parish, possibly because he was either seriously infirm, aged, or mentally incompetent.
Some Prominent Goodman and Related Families
In 1695, in the estate of Capt. John Goodman, two slaves were valued at 60 pounds sterling together (Land Records of York County, vol. 1694-1702, Microfilm Reel #5, part 2, p. 410, VA State Library). More York County records at VASL.
The Lewis family, which later intermarried with Terrell and Goodman families, was in New Kent County and in St. Peter's and St Paul's Parish records before 1700. About 1650, John and William Lewis, whose family were French Huguenots who had fled France for England and Wales, left Wales for America. John Lewis settled in New Kent / Hanover Co., where he died. David Lewis, b. ca. 1685, was the fifth son of John Lewis. He moved from Hanover Co., VA to Albemarle Co., VA about 1750, where he d. in 1779. His first wife was a Miss Terrill. William Terrill Lewis, eldest son of David Lewis and Miss Terrill, b. 1718, moved from Hanover Co. to Albemarle Co., and was the third settler in that county. (Some Prominent Virginia Families). He later moved to Dobbs Co., NC. Also from the Albemarle branch of this family came Col. Andrew Lewis of Botetort Co., commander at the Battle at Point Pleasant in 1774, Merrweather Lewis, the famous explorer, Col. Fielding Lewis, and many other Generals, Colonels and other officers of the Colonial militia and Rev. War. This family also intermarried with the Talliaferro and Conway families of VA, who also provided many high ranking Colonial Militia and Rev. War officers.
The Terrell Family was also in York and later New Kent, Hanover and Albemarle Counties. Miss Terrill, first wife of David Lewis, was descended from either William, James or Thomas Terrill, who were brothers, and who were descended from Sir Walter Tyrell, a Norman knight who came to England with William the Conqueror, AD 1066. They came to America about 1650, as huntsmen for King James II. They were rewarded with 1500 ac., of their own choice, and settled in Gloucester Co., VA, just across the York River from New Kent Co. Tyrell Co., NC is apparently named for the members of this family, who were probably among its first settlers. Many Goodman families were also among the first settlers of Tyrell Co. A William Terrill pat. 27 Sept 1756, lands northeast of the Peedee river in Anson Co., NC, as referenced in other land transactions since. This is probably a descendant of one of the previously mentioned Terrill brothers, who removed from Gloucester Co., VA to NC, perhaps with the Henderson, Williams and Goodman families of New Kent / Hanover / Louisa Counties of VA, about 1750-56.
Robert Henderson settled in New Kent Co. before 1650, about the same time as his brother, Alexander Henderson. They may also have had a brother William Henderson, who was also in New Kent Co. about 1650, according to land records. Robert Henderson had sons Thomas and James. James Henderson owned lands in Hanover Co. in 1715. Also in New Kent Co., Capt. George Keeling, a vestryman of St. Peter’s Parish, married Ursula Fleming, and about 1676, their daughter Ursula Keeling, aged 15-16 at the time, married Thomas Henderson, son of Robert Henderson, the emigrant. Thomas Henderson was parish collector for St. Paul’s Parish, and their neighbor.
Mary Keeling, sister of Ursula, married John Williams, who was either son or grandson of Humphrey Williams, who had been in New Kent Co. as early as 1638. Ursula Henderson was daughter of Thomas Henderson and Ursula Keeling, and sister of Richard Henderson of Hanover and Goochland, VA. Ursula Henderson married Daniel Williams (1710-1758) about 1730. Their daughter Marya (Maria), b. about 1732, married about 1753, Benjamin Goodman, who was b. about 1730, the son of Samuel Goodman of New Kent / Hanover, and grandson of Benjamin Goodman of St. Peter’s Parish, New Kent Co. VA.
Many wills, court records and land transactions in later Hanover and Louisa Co., some described in their respective web pages on this site, clearly establish the close proximity and friendly relations of the Goodman, Anderson, Overton, Terrill, Clarkson, Richardson, Hart, Williams, Gentry, Rhodes, Carr, Horsley, and other families of early New Kent, Hanover and Louisa Counties, whose descendants often intermarried as they moved westward through Virginia and into Tennessee, Kentucky and other western states, and passed each others surnames on to their descendants. For example, the later names of Anderson Goodman, Overton Goodman, Bartellot Goodman, Fielding Goodman, Horsley Goodman, Ansel Goodman, and others in Barren / Hart Co., KY, IN, and IL, were clearly derived from these closely related Virginia families. The will of Rosa Gaskill, dated 4 May 1914, proved and recorded in Galesburg, Knox Co., IL, identifies her sister Matilda as the wife of Anderson Goodman, and their issue as Anderson Goodman, Jr. and Kitty Goodman. This adds further evidence that the Goodman families of Knox Co., IL, probably including that of my ancestor Socrates Goodman, were descended from these early Goodmans of VA, some of whom later resided in Barren , Hart and other nearby counties of KY.
The Clarkson family, at least one of which later inter-married with Goodmans of later Louisa County and its progeny Albemarle County, and which included an Anselm Clarkson, b ca 1730, and a soldier in the French and Indian War, was in New Kent and St. Peter's Parish records before 1700.
Please see the other Virginia County pages on this site for additional details and supporting documentation.
Anselm Bayley / Bailey of New Kent
20 Oct 1689: land patent exists for New Kent Co. for Henry Waring. 500 acres. Stratton Major Par., upon Pianketank Sw. 20 Oct 1689, p. 23. Adj. David Bram's land, &c. Granted to Mr. George Burge, 16 Apr 1683. deserted, & granted sd. Waring by order, &c. Imp. of 10 pers: James Nicholson, Jno. Richards, Israel Sheppard, James Welch, Andrew Neech (or Welch) James Rogers, Sarah Ellis, An. Jordan, Moses Roper, Anselm Bayly.
This patent appears to be the second and younger Anselm Bayley/Bailey emigrant, the first being into Surry County VA about 1661.
More on this Anselm Bailey/Bayley of New Kent and his descendants in Rootsweb archives.
