Colonial Meriwether Families - Person Sheet
Colonial Meriwether Families - Person Sheet
NameHenry Robinson 
, M
, MDeathca 1721
FlagsVolume 1
Notes for Henry Robinson
Some claim she married a John Robinson, but no proof has been found by TMSI. A more likely candidate is Henry Robinson.
Biography notes for Susanna (Spouse 1)
Susanna (?) Meriwether, Second Wife 6
© 2025 The Meriwether Society, Inc.
In his will Thomas Meriwether names his second wife, Susanna, and mentions their daughter “... that now sucks my wife, who as yet is unbaptized…”. There is no existing record of the marriage or any that indicates her maiden or former name.
There are conflicting claims that her father was either a Ralph Shelton/Skelton or a Peter Skelton. There is no evidence that her maiden name was Shelton/Skelton, however. The surname COLSTON is also a strong possibility. See TMFIA Vol 1 for an extensive analysis of her possible surnames and details on her life after the death of Thomas.
A record for when Susanna died has not been found, but she lived a long life. Like her sister-in-law, Mary Bathurst Meriwether Welch Robinson, Susanna showed that she was capable of managing her own affairs. Also, like Mary, she married three Essex County justices, but Susanna did Mary one better in out-living all three of her husbands. And, it appears that she possibly had at least one child by each husband, the last one at an advanced age.
© 2025 The Meriwether Society, Inc.
In his will Thomas Meriwether names his second wife, Susanna, and mentions their daughter “... that now sucks my wife, who as yet is unbaptized…”. There is no existing record of the marriage or any that indicates her maiden or former name.
There are conflicting claims that her father was either a Ralph Shelton/Skelton or a Peter Skelton. There is no evidence that her maiden name was Shelton/Skelton, however. The surname COLSTON is also a strong possibility. See TMFIA Vol 1 for an extensive analysis of her possible surnames and details on her life after the death of Thomas.
A record for when Susanna died has not been found, but she lived a long life. Like her sister-in-law, Mary Bathurst Meriwether Welch Robinson, Susanna showed that she was capable of managing her own affairs. Also, like Mary, she married three Essex County justices, but Susanna did Mary one better in out-living all three of her husbands. And, it appears that she possibly had at least one child by each husband, the last one at an advanced age.
Other Marriage notes for Susanna (Spouse 1)
She married Henry Robinson sometime before 1715, when a daughter, Ann, was born. Henry died in 1721 and sometime after 1729 she married Dr. Alexander Parker; he died about 1751. They may have had a son named Richard.
Reference notes for Susanna (Spouse 1)
The Meriwether Family in America: Volume i, The Colonists
The Second Wife of Thomas Meriwether.
In his will (appendix 35) Thomas Meriwether mentions his wife named Susanna and their daughter “... that now sucks my wife, who as yet is unbaptized...” This is the first mention that he had taken a second wife. There is no existing record of the marriage or any that indicates her maiden or former name.
William Griffith thought her last name was Skelton based on the mention of a Ralph Skelton in Thomas’s will and the fact that Ralph witnessed the will. Thomas bequeathed 65 acres (item 8, table 10–2) that he received by patent to Ralph Shelton. This led Griffith to believe that Ralph was a brother of Susanna. Although Griffith misspelled the name he was careful to put a question mark after the name to indicate the uncertainty. Heath Meriwether dropped the question mark and wrote “Thomas Meriwether, m. 2nd Susannah Skelton...” Further research has revealed a land certificate granted to Thomas Meriwether and recorded 10 October 1702 which includes a Ralph Sheldon as one of the headrights. Despite the difference in spelling this could be and most likely is the same person. The certificate bolsters the circumstantial case that Thomas married Susanna Shelton, a relative of Ralph Shelton.
There is no direct proof that Susanna’s last name was Shelton (or any of the other spellings) and there are many contrary indicators. Thomas always indicated the relationship of the other devisees when mentioning them in his will but he did not for Ralph, suggesting that he was not related. If Susanna was the daughter or sister of Ralph, then it is likely that she would have been transported with Ralph or at a later time. However, she does not appear on the certificate with Ralph or on any other certificate or land patent as a headright. It is unlikely that Thomas would have overlooked taking credit for her. There were only a few Shelton/Skeltons in Essex County during the early 18th century and none were a prominent family. The biggest problem with Ralph Shelton is that there is no indication that he was a person of means. Thomas Meriwether was ambitious and upwardly mobile. He seemed to be well connected based on his rapid advancement. He would most likely marry into an important family as he did with his first marriage. Ralph, though a witness to the will, did not appear on 10 February 1708 when the will was proven in court. In fact, he disappears from the Essex County record. The disposition of his 65 acres is unknown.
The IGI database at the Family History Library does show a Shelton family that lived in neighboring Middlesex County, including a Ralph Shelton.133 Two records in the vestry book of Christ Church in Middlesex County shows a Ralph Shelton who carried out processioning orders in the parish in 1727 and 1728. The area processioned was in the upper part of the county and parish and probably near the 65 acres that Thomas bequeathed a Ralph Shelton.134 It seems likely that this is the same Ralph Shelton. The parish vestry book also shows a payment in 1733 to “...Her: Rhods for keeping & burying Susanna Shelton 400.” This may be the mother or sister of Ralph Shelton that is mentioned in the IGI database. If so, she was not well taken care of by her family.
There is also a will filed in Middlesex County, Virginia for a Ralph Shelton. It is badly damaged, but is dated 10 Mar__ and proved __Jan 1733. Wife’s name is Mary and sons Thomas, Ralph and Crispin are named. The fact that the oldest son is named Thomas might mean it was in memory of the Thomas that gave him the 65-acre patent 25 years before (if this is the same Ralph Shelton). No Susanna is mentioned, which would be expected if she was a relative, since Thomas Meriwether’s widow was still alive.
If Shelton was not Susanna’s last name, then, what are the other possibilities? Browsing through the records of Essex, Middlesex or other counties or England reveals many women of marriageable age with the name Susanna (or variant). Thomas Meriwether even transported a Susannah Dickinson according to a 1704 land certificate.137 It was a very popular name and it seems most families had a Susanna. For example, it is mentioned in section “Lancelot’s Family,” chapter 13, page 369 that Mary Bathurst (M13a) had a sister named Susanna Bathurst who married Drury Stith. Consideration has also been made as to whether Susanna’s previous name was Hill or Robinson, but no connection could be made. The most likely candidate found was Colston.
As mentioned in section “Genealogical Summary” chapter 9, page 266, Mary (M132), daughter of Francis Meriwether (M13) married William Colston (M132a) of Richmond County by 1712. William’s father was also named William. In the father’s will dated 27 October 1701 and probated 3 December 1701, the father gives “...to daughter Susanna...£150 current money, and her mother’s clothing in full of all claime part share and portion.” He also mentions son, William, not yet 21; son, Charles; son-in-law, Thomas Beale; and deceased wife, Ann (daughter of Capt. Thomas Beale). Charles got 640 acres and William got the rest of the land. Susanna, his daughter, did not receive any land.139 The North Farnham Parish Register shows that Susanna was born 8 December 1686. Susanna was parentless after 1701 and certainly not rich since her brothers got all of the land. There is no further mention of her, even in her brother William’s 1721 will. Her oldest brother Charles died in 1726 without a will. However, Charles’s estate does mention daughter, Susannah. Perhaps his sister, Susanna, who was only 15 when her father died, went to live with her brother, Charles. Thomas Meriwether could have remarried any time between 1700 and 1707, so the daughter of William Colston Sr., Susanna, was the right age.
While Susanna Colston was not wealthy, her family must have been “suitable” since Thomas’s niece, Mary, married into the Colstons and Susanna’s father was a burgess representing Rappahannock County in 1692 and Richmond County in 1692/93 and 1693. Unfortunately, there is no direct proof that Thomas married Susanna Colston, but she is as good of a guess as any other candidate.
However, the possibility that Susanna, Thomas's widow, may have given birth in her third marriage to Richard Parker about 1730 (see the next section), when Susanna Colston would be about 44 years old, casts serious doubt that she could be the unknown Susanna.
Susanna (née ———) (M15b), the Mother.
While the origins of Thomas Meriwether’s second wife are not known, what happened to her after Thomas Meriwether died in 1708/09 can be established. A few years after her husband’s death, her name changed. From a Middlesex County deed, dated 5 June 1714:
Rice Jones of Middlesex County, planter, to Susanna Robinson late widow of Thos. Meriwether of Essex County...
Presumably she had remarried—but to whom? Some say that she married a John Robinson. In section “The Honorable John Robinson, Esquire...,” chapter 9, page 262, the John Robinson who married Mary Bathurst Meriwether Welch and his son, John Robinson were mentioned. The latter did marry a Susanna, but that was Susanna (Sukey) Chriswell in 1759 who was his fourth wife. No “available” John Robinson has been found, but it appears that Henry Robinson of Essex County is a strong possibility.
Henry was an Essex County justice from 1710 until his death in 1721. Henry’s will was written 9 June 1721 and proved 20 February 1721/22, by the oaths of Lewis Latane and Wm. Mountague.146 In the will he names his “...Loving wife Susanna...,” a son Thomas, daughters Ann and Sarah, and his brother Thomas Robinson. He appoints his wife and his friend Charles Barber of Richmond County as executors. Since Thomas was not appointed an executor, that might imply he was not yet 21. Also, the records do not show Susanna had any interest in Thomas and Sarah in the future as she did for her other descendants, implying they were children of an earlier marriage. Twenty-one slaves are apportioned among the four devisees. There is no mention of land but since Thomas was the only son, it would go to him anyway as heir-at-law. Daughter Ann also gets Henry’s “Spaid mare colts,” presumably more than one, while daughter Sarah is not given a horse.
The interesting thing in the will is that his wife, Susanna, gets “...her riding horse and Sadle & furniture.” The estate inventory includes “Japaned chest of drawers and holland sheets.” In Thomas Meriwether’s will he leaves his wife “...the whole sute of Japan, two pairs of sheets & two pairs of pillow cases of Holland,... her [underline added] ridding horse named Sorrell & her new & old side saddle...” These specifics in the two wills ties Susanna Meriwether with the Susanna who was the wife of Henry Robinson. But there is more:
KNOW ALL MEN by these presents that we Susanna Robinson Widow, and John Armistead Gent. are held and firmly bound unto Salvator Muscoe, Robert Brooke Nicholas Smith & Thos. Sthreshly Junr. Gentl Justices of the County of Essex in the sum of one thousand pounds Sterl. this 20th day of May 1729.
THE CONDITION of the above obligation is such that if the above bound Susanna Robinson Guardian of Ann Robinson Spinster her heirs & Admrs. do truly pay unto the sd Orphan all Estates that now are or hereafter shall come to the hands of the sd Susanna Robinson as soon as said Orphan shall attain to lawfull age or when required by the Justices for the County of Essex as also keep harmless the said Justices from all trouble that may arise about the said Estate, that then this obliga- tion to be void else to remain in full power.
Susan Robinson
Jno. Armistead
At a Court held for Essex County on the 20th day of May 1729
Susanna Robinson and John Armistead Gent acknowledged this bond to be their act and deed which is order’d to be record’d.148
And, in an order book entry of the same date:
Ann Robinson spinster chose her mother [underline added] Susanna Robinson widow for her guard- ian and the sd Susanna with her security acknowledged a bond for the same.
The above shows that Susanna Robinson had a daughter who was at least 14 years old in order to name her guardian and less than 21 in order to need one. Ann therefore was born before 20 May 1715. Since Henry Robinson named a daughter Ann in his will, and a wife named Susanna, it is certainly possible that Ann and Susanna in the above documents were the same people that Henry named in his will. It has been shown that Thomas Meriwether’s widow had assumed the name Susanna Robinson before 1715, so she could be the mother of this Ann. The thing that ties the above document to Thomas Meriwether’s widow is the bond co-holder, John Armistead. As shown later (page 297), the unbaptized child of Thomas Meriwether and his wife, married a John Armistead (M152a). The date of their marriage is unknown, but the daughter named Susanna (M152) would have been about twenty when the above guardian document was recorded and therefore old enough to be married. Based on the above discussion, there is a strong circumstantial case that the widow of Thomas Meriwether married the Essex County justice, Henry Robinson, with whom she had at least one child named Ann.
Susanna kept busy after her accepted marriage to Henry Robinson. The 1714 Middlesex County deed mentioned above, transferred ownership of a mill and two and one-half acres of land (item 13, table 10–2), that Thomas Meriwether bartered with Rice Jones, one-third to herself and two- thirds to the daughter of Thomas Meriwether in accordance with Thomas’s will. Even though she was married and her husband was not involved, she was protecting her rights and those of her daughter.
In 1719, Susanna bought from Richard Cawthorne a lot with buildings in the town of Tappahannock near the spring (item 14, table 10–2) paying more than ten times what Cawthorne paid.150 However there is a fly in the ointment here, since the name on the deed and the acknowledgment by her attorney Robert Beverley is Susanna Meriwether, not Robinson. Did she do this to protect the rights of her daughter Susanna (who was eleven at the time), or was it just an error by the clerk?
In her next land transaction, it appears that the clerk did make such an error. In July 1722, John Bryant and wife Frances of St. Stephens, King and Queen County sold to Susanna Robinson widow of South Farnham Parish by deeds of lease and release, 210 acres in South Farnham Parish, being part of a patent to Henry Williamson for 420 acres dated 20 September 1683 (item 15, table 10– 2). The price was £40 sterling. On 17 July 1722 John and Frances Bryant acknowledged the sale to Susanna Robinson. However, the recording in the order book has Susanna Meriwether for the bond acknowledgment (according to the Sparacio abstract). This deed is also interesting since the land was once owned by her first husband’s father-in-law, Henry Williamson.152 Frances Bryant was the daughter of Henry Williamson and the 210 acres was her share of the 420 acres that came to his daughters, Katherine and Frances due to the death of their sister Elizabeth.
A Susanna Robinson also appears from 1722 to 1724 eight times in the Essex County Order Book in a matter of debt involving a Jacob Amrose D’Keyser. Despite a jury judgment that she owed D’Keyser £3 current money, she refused to settle the debt and even to come to court. Perhaps she learned this behavior from her first husband. It is not clear what happened to the case which dragged on for 18 months.153 In 1734 she was also fined 10 shillings by a grand jury for “stopping the road with fences and gates.”
It is not clear where Susanna lived after the death of her second husband, but this last problem could indicate that she was living in the country. In his will. Thomas had given her right to live on his plantation for her natural life (after her decease it was to go to their daughter). Perhaps her marriage to Henry Robinson affected this. Or, perhaps she lived on the 210 acres she bought from John and Frances Bryant in 1722. After the death of her third husband (see below) she lived in Tappahannock, perhaps on the lot she bought from Richard Cawthorne or one of the lots she received from her first husband, Thomas Meriwether.
Susanna, the Mother Marries Dr. Alexander Parker.
Sometime after 1729, Susanna married Dr. Alexander Parker of Essex County, a surgeon formerly from Bristol, England. In October, 1765 Susanna entered into a tripartite indenture in Essex County (appendix 39) as “...Susanna Parker of the Town of Tappahannock in the County of Essex Widow...” This agreement was between herself; Richard Parker (son of Alexander Parker), of the County of Westmoreland, gent. of the second part; and Robinson Daingerfield and John Fauntleroy, an infant son of Moore Fauntleroy late of the County of Richmond, gent., deceased of the third part. Robinson Daingerfield is described as her grandson and John Fauntleroy as her great-grandson. Henry Armistead “...an infant son of William Armistead late of the County of — —— , deced....” is also mentioned as her grandson. Moore Fauntleroy, brother of John, is another great-grandson that is mentioned. Susanna sells to Richard Parker all of her lands, Negroes in Essex County, and all other estate, real and personal, to be held in trust for John Fauntleroy and Robinson Daingerfield, or under certain conditions to Moore Fauntleroy (brother of John) and/or Henry Armistead.
How does this tie Susanna Parker to Susanna Meriwether Robinson? As shown below, the unbaptized daughter of Thomas and Susanna married an Armistead and had a daughter who married Moore Fauntleroy. No proof has been found, but Susanna’s other daughter, Ann Robinson, may have married a Daingerfield. Certainly, the first name of Susanna Parker’s grandson, Robinson Daingerfield, is a clue.
In 1762 Susanna Parker sold the 210 acres that she bought, as Susanna Robinson, widow, from John and Frances Bryant in 1722 (item 15, table 10–2). This conclusively proves that Susanna Parker and Susanna Robinson were the same person. In 1767, William Montague sold some land “...which the sd William Montague purch of Mrs. Susanna Parker & John Armistead gent decd....” This is further circumstantial evidence that Susanna Parker and Susanna Meriwether were the same person. This might also indicate that Susanna was still alive in 1767, as it does not say deceased as it did for Armistead.
Dr. Alexander Parker, a widower, first appears in the Essex County record in 1722 as a witness to a deed to Reuben Welch. He was an Essex County justice by 1729, a sheriff by 1733, a trustee of the town of Tappahannock in 1746, and held the post of “Gunner and Storekeeper of the Battery at Hobbs Hole.” Parker’s will (appendix 40) was dated 2 December 1750 and recorded in the Essex County Court 19 November 1751. In it he gives his wife, Susanna, two named slaves for her natural life and the household goods, slaves and livestock that she possessed before their marriage, per an agreement with John Robinson, Esqr. Nothing is said about her lands. He also mentions sons Alexander, to whom he gave his medical supplies and equipment, William, and Richard, a minor, and grandsons Alexander and William, sons of his son Alexander. Sons Alexander and William were certainly from an earlier marriage.
The fact that Richard Parker was a minor raises the possibility that his mother was Susanna. By his father’s will Richard was to receive, after Susanna’s death, the named slaves that Susanna got from her husband, Alexander Parker, which supports this possibility. In 1764 Richard released his rights to these slaves and (underlining added) the slaves that Susanna had before her marriage to his father. The latter action would not be necessary unless Richard was Susanna’s son. Therefore, this suggests that Richard Parker was the son of Dr. Alexander Parker and Susanna (née ———) Meriwether Robinson Parker.
Susanna lived in Tappahannock with her husband, Alexander Parker, at the time he died. In his will (appendix 40) Dr. Parker transferred his Tappahannock lots and land near the town to a trust for sale, the proceeds going to his son, Richard. But perhaps Susanna also still had possession of Thomas Meriwether’s home plantation, the tract she bought from the Bryants, her own lot in Tappahannock, and maybe other lots from Thomas Meriwether (M15). In the 1765 tripartite agreement (appendix 39), she sold Richard Parker “...all the lands the said Susanna holds in fee in the said county of Essex...” and other property to be held in trust for Robinson Daingerfield and John Fauntleroy. So she still held land after the sale of the Bryant tract. At the time of the agreement, Susanna was living in Tappahannock, probably on her lot and she probably lived there until she died after 1765.
A record for when Susanna died has not been found, but she lived a long life. Like her sister-in-law, Mary Bathurst Meriwether Welch Robinson, Susanna showed that she was capable of managing her own affairs. Also, like Mary, she married three Essex County justices, but Susanna did Mary one better in out-living all three of her husbands. And, it appears that she possibly had at least one child by each husband, the last one at an advanced age.
The Second Wife of Thomas Meriwether.
In his will (appendix 35) Thomas Meriwether mentions his wife named Susanna and their daughter “... that now sucks my wife, who as yet is unbaptized...” This is the first mention that he had taken a second wife. There is no existing record of the marriage or any that indicates her maiden or former name.
William Griffith thought her last name was Skelton based on the mention of a Ralph Skelton in Thomas’s will and the fact that Ralph witnessed the will. Thomas bequeathed 65 acres (item 8, table 10–2) that he received by patent to Ralph Shelton. This led Griffith to believe that Ralph was a brother of Susanna. Although Griffith misspelled the name he was careful to put a question mark after the name to indicate the uncertainty. Heath Meriwether dropped the question mark and wrote “Thomas Meriwether, m. 2nd Susannah Skelton...” Further research has revealed a land certificate granted to Thomas Meriwether and recorded 10 October 1702 which includes a Ralph Sheldon as one of the headrights. Despite the difference in spelling this could be and most likely is the same person. The certificate bolsters the circumstantial case that Thomas married Susanna Shelton, a relative of Ralph Shelton.
There is no direct proof that Susanna’s last name was Shelton (or any of the other spellings) and there are many contrary indicators. Thomas always indicated the relationship of the other devisees when mentioning them in his will but he did not for Ralph, suggesting that he was not related. If Susanna was the daughter or sister of Ralph, then it is likely that she would have been transported with Ralph or at a later time. However, she does not appear on the certificate with Ralph or on any other certificate or land patent as a headright. It is unlikely that Thomas would have overlooked taking credit for her. There were only a few Shelton/Skeltons in Essex County during the early 18th century and none were a prominent family. The biggest problem with Ralph Shelton is that there is no indication that he was a person of means. Thomas Meriwether was ambitious and upwardly mobile. He seemed to be well connected based on his rapid advancement. He would most likely marry into an important family as he did with his first marriage. Ralph, though a witness to the will, did not appear on 10 February 1708 when the will was proven in court. In fact, he disappears from the Essex County record. The disposition of his 65 acres is unknown.
The IGI database at the Family History Library does show a Shelton family that lived in neighboring Middlesex County, including a Ralph Shelton.133 Two records in the vestry book of Christ Church in Middlesex County shows a Ralph Shelton who carried out processioning orders in the parish in 1727 and 1728. The area processioned was in the upper part of the county and parish and probably near the 65 acres that Thomas bequeathed a Ralph Shelton.134 It seems likely that this is the same Ralph Shelton. The parish vestry book also shows a payment in 1733 to “...Her: Rhods for keeping & burying Susanna Shelton 400.” This may be the mother or sister of Ralph Shelton that is mentioned in the IGI database. If so, she was not well taken care of by her family.
There is also a will filed in Middlesex County, Virginia for a Ralph Shelton. It is badly damaged, but is dated 10 Mar__ and proved __Jan 1733. Wife’s name is Mary and sons Thomas, Ralph and Crispin are named. The fact that the oldest son is named Thomas might mean it was in memory of the Thomas that gave him the 65-acre patent 25 years before (if this is the same Ralph Shelton). No Susanna is mentioned, which would be expected if she was a relative, since Thomas Meriwether’s widow was still alive.
If Shelton was not Susanna’s last name, then, what are the other possibilities? Browsing through the records of Essex, Middlesex or other counties or England reveals many women of marriageable age with the name Susanna (or variant). Thomas Meriwether even transported a Susannah Dickinson according to a 1704 land certificate.137 It was a very popular name and it seems most families had a Susanna. For example, it is mentioned in section “Lancelot’s Family,” chapter 13, page 369 that Mary Bathurst (M13a) had a sister named Susanna Bathurst who married Drury Stith. Consideration has also been made as to whether Susanna’s previous name was Hill or Robinson, but no connection could be made. The most likely candidate found was Colston.
As mentioned in section “Genealogical Summary” chapter 9, page 266, Mary (M132), daughter of Francis Meriwether (M13) married William Colston (M132a) of Richmond County by 1712. William’s father was also named William. In the father’s will dated 27 October 1701 and probated 3 December 1701, the father gives “...to daughter Susanna...£150 current money, and her mother’s clothing in full of all claime part share and portion.” He also mentions son, William, not yet 21; son, Charles; son-in-law, Thomas Beale; and deceased wife, Ann (daughter of Capt. Thomas Beale). Charles got 640 acres and William got the rest of the land. Susanna, his daughter, did not receive any land.139 The North Farnham Parish Register shows that Susanna was born 8 December 1686. Susanna was parentless after 1701 and certainly not rich since her brothers got all of the land. There is no further mention of her, even in her brother William’s 1721 will. Her oldest brother Charles died in 1726 without a will. However, Charles’s estate does mention daughter, Susannah. Perhaps his sister, Susanna, who was only 15 when her father died, went to live with her brother, Charles. Thomas Meriwether could have remarried any time between 1700 and 1707, so the daughter of William Colston Sr., Susanna, was the right age.
While Susanna Colston was not wealthy, her family must have been “suitable” since Thomas’s niece, Mary, married into the Colstons and Susanna’s father was a burgess representing Rappahannock County in 1692 and Richmond County in 1692/93 and 1693. Unfortunately, there is no direct proof that Thomas married Susanna Colston, but she is as good of a guess as any other candidate.
However, the possibility that Susanna, Thomas's widow, may have given birth in her third marriage to Richard Parker about 1730 (see the next section), when Susanna Colston would be about 44 years old, casts serious doubt that she could be the unknown Susanna.
Susanna (née ———) (M15b), the Mother.
While the origins of Thomas Meriwether’s second wife are not known, what happened to her after Thomas Meriwether died in 1708/09 can be established. A few years after her husband’s death, her name changed. From a Middlesex County deed, dated 5 June 1714:
Rice Jones of Middlesex County, planter, to Susanna Robinson late widow of Thos. Meriwether of Essex County...
Presumably she had remarried—but to whom? Some say that she married a John Robinson. In section “The Honorable John Robinson, Esquire...,” chapter 9, page 262, the John Robinson who married Mary Bathurst Meriwether Welch and his son, John Robinson were mentioned. The latter did marry a Susanna, but that was Susanna (Sukey) Chriswell in 1759 who was his fourth wife. No “available” John Robinson has been found, but it appears that Henry Robinson of Essex County is a strong possibility.
Henry was an Essex County justice from 1710 until his death in 1721. Henry’s will was written 9 June 1721 and proved 20 February 1721/22, by the oaths of Lewis Latane and Wm. Mountague.146 In the will he names his “...Loving wife Susanna...,” a son Thomas, daughters Ann and Sarah, and his brother Thomas Robinson. He appoints his wife and his friend Charles Barber of Richmond County as executors. Since Thomas was not appointed an executor, that might imply he was not yet 21. Also, the records do not show Susanna had any interest in Thomas and Sarah in the future as she did for her other descendants, implying they were children of an earlier marriage. Twenty-one slaves are apportioned among the four devisees. There is no mention of land but since Thomas was the only son, it would go to him anyway as heir-at-law. Daughter Ann also gets Henry’s “Spaid mare colts,” presumably more than one, while daughter Sarah is not given a horse.
The interesting thing in the will is that his wife, Susanna, gets “...her riding horse and Sadle & furniture.” The estate inventory includes “Japaned chest of drawers and holland sheets.” In Thomas Meriwether’s will he leaves his wife “...the whole sute of Japan, two pairs of sheets & two pairs of pillow cases of Holland,... her [underline added] ridding horse named Sorrell & her new & old side saddle...” These specifics in the two wills ties Susanna Meriwether with the Susanna who was the wife of Henry Robinson. But there is more:
KNOW ALL MEN by these presents that we Susanna Robinson Widow, and John Armistead Gent. are held and firmly bound unto Salvator Muscoe, Robert Brooke Nicholas Smith & Thos. Sthreshly Junr. Gentl Justices of the County of Essex in the sum of one thousand pounds Sterl. this 20th day of May 1729.
THE CONDITION of the above obligation is such that if the above bound Susanna Robinson Guardian of Ann Robinson Spinster her heirs & Admrs. do truly pay unto the sd Orphan all Estates that now are or hereafter shall come to the hands of the sd Susanna Robinson as soon as said Orphan shall attain to lawfull age or when required by the Justices for the County of Essex as also keep harmless the said Justices from all trouble that may arise about the said Estate, that then this obliga- tion to be void else to remain in full power.
Susan Robinson
Jno. Armistead
At a Court held for Essex County on the 20th day of May 1729
Susanna Robinson and John Armistead Gent acknowledged this bond to be their act and deed which is order’d to be record’d.148
And, in an order book entry of the same date:
Ann Robinson spinster chose her mother [underline added] Susanna Robinson widow for her guard- ian and the sd Susanna with her security acknowledged a bond for the same.
The above shows that Susanna Robinson had a daughter who was at least 14 years old in order to name her guardian and less than 21 in order to need one. Ann therefore was born before 20 May 1715. Since Henry Robinson named a daughter Ann in his will, and a wife named Susanna, it is certainly possible that Ann and Susanna in the above documents were the same people that Henry named in his will. It has been shown that Thomas Meriwether’s widow had assumed the name Susanna Robinson before 1715, so she could be the mother of this Ann. The thing that ties the above document to Thomas Meriwether’s widow is the bond co-holder, John Armistead. As shown later (page 297), the unbaptized child of Thomas Meriwether and his wife, married a John Armistead (M152a). The date of their marriage is unknown, but the daughter named Susanna (M152) would have been about twenty when the above guardian document was recorded and therefore old enough to be married. Based on the above discussion, there is a strong circumstantial case that the widow of Thomas Meriwether married the Essex County justice, Henry Robinson, with whom she had at least one child named Ann.
Susanna kept busy after her accepted marriage to Henry Robinson. The 1714 Middlesex County deed mentioned above, transferred ownership of a mill and two and one-half acres of land (item 13, table 10–2), that Thomas Meriwether bartered with Rice Jones, one-third to herself and two- thirds to the daughter of Thomas Meriwether in accordance with Thomas’s will. Even though she was married and her husband was not involved, she was protecting her rights and those of her daughter.
In 1719, Susanna bought from Richard Cawthorne a lot with buildings in the town of Tappahannock near the spring (item 14, table 10–2) paying more than ten times what Cawthorne paid.150 However there is a fly in the ointment here, since the name on the deed and the acknowledgment by her attorney Robert Beverley is Susanna Meriwether, not Robinson. Did she do this to protect the rights of her daughter Susanna (who was eleven at the time), or was it just an error by the clerk?
In her next land transaction, it appears that the clerk did make such an error. In July 1722, John Bryant and wife Frances of St. Stephens, King and Queen County sold to Susanna Robinson widow of South Farnham Parish by deeds of lease and release, 210 acres in South Farnham Parish, being part of a patent to Henry Williamson for 420 acres dated 20 September 1683 (item 15, table 10– 2). The price was £40 sterling. On 17 July 1722 John and Frances Bryant acknowledged the sale to Susanna Robinson. However, the recording in the order book has Susanna Meriwether for the bond acknowledgment (according to the Sparacio abstract). This deed is also interesting since the land was once owned by her first husband’s father-in-law, Henry Williamson.152 Frances Bryant was the daughter of Henry Williamson and the 210 acres was her share of the 420 acres that came to his daughters, Katherine and Frances due to the death of their sister Elizabeth.
A Susanna Robinson also appears from 1722 to 1724 eight times in the Essex County Order Book in a matter of debt involving a Jacob Amrose D’Keyser. Despite a jury judgment that she owed D’Keyser £3 current money, she refused to settle the debt and even to come to court. Perhaps she learned this behavior from her first husband. It is not clear what happened to the case which dragged on for 18 months.153 In 1734 she was also fined 10 shillings by a grand jury for “stopping the road with fences and gates.”
It is not clear where Susanna lived after the death of her second husband, but this last problem could indicate that she was living in the country. In his will. Thomas had given her right to live on his plantation for her natural life (after her decease it was to go to their daughter). Perhaps her marriage to Henry Robinson affected this. Or, perhaps she lived on the 210 acres she bought from John and Frances Bryant in 1722. After the death of her third husband (see below) she lived in Tappahannock, perhaps on the lot she bought from Richard Cawthorne or one of the lots she received from her first husband, Thomas Meriwether.
Susanna, the Mother Marries Dr. Alexander Parker.
Sometime after 1729, Susanna married Dr. Alexander Parker of Essex County, a surgeon formerly from Bristol, England. In October, 1765 Susanna entered into a tripartite indenture in Essex County (appendix 39) as “...Susanna Parker of the Town of Tappahannock in the County of Essex Widow...” This agreement was between herself; Richard Parker (son of Alexander Parker), of the County of Westmoreland, gent. of the second part; and Robinson Daingerfield and John Fauntleroy, an infant son of Moore Fauntleroy late of the County of Richmond, gent., deceased of the third part. Robinson Daingerfield is described as her grandson and John Fauntleroy as her great-grandson. Henry Armistead “...an infant son of William Armistead late of the County of — —— , deced....” is also mentioned as her grandson. Moore Fauntleroy, brother of John, is another great-grandson that is mentioned. Susanna sells to Richard Parker all of her lands, Negroes in Essex County, and all other estate, real and personal, to be held in trust for John Fauntleroy and Robinson Daingerfield, or under certain conditions to Moore Fauntleroy (brother of John) and/or Henry Armistead.
How does this tie Susanna Parker to Susanna Meriwether Robinson? As shown below, the unbaptized daughter of Thomas and Susanna married an Armistead and had a daughter who married Moore Fauntleroy. No proof has been found, but Susanna’s other daughter, Ann Robinson, may have married a Daingerfield. Certainly, the first name of Susanna Parker’s grandson, Robinson Daingerfield, is a clue.
In 1762 Susanna Parker sold the 210 acres that she bought, as Susanna Robinson, widow, from John and Frances Bryant in 1722 (item 15, table 10–2). This conclusively proves that Susanna Parker and Susanna Robinson were the same person. In 1767, William Montague sold some land “...which the sd William Montague purch of Mrs. Susanna Parker & John Armistead gent decd....” This is further circumstantial evidence that Susanna Parker and Susanna Meriwether were the same person. This might also indicate that Susanna was still alive in 1767, as it does not say deceased as it did for Armistead.
Dr. Alexander Parker, a widower, first appears in the Essex County record in 1722 as a witness to a deed to Reuben Welch. He was an Essex County justice by 1729, a sheriff by 1733, a trustee of the town of Tappahannock in 1746, and held the post of “Gunner and Storekeeper of the Battery at Hobbs Hole.” Parker’s will (appendix 40) was dated 2 December 1750 and recorded in the Essex County Court 19 November 1751. In it he gives his wife, Susanna, two named slaves for her natural life and the household goods, slaves and livestock that she possessed before their marriage, per an agreement with John Robinson, Esqr. Nothing is said about her lands. He also mentions sons Alexander, to whom he gave his medical supplies and equipment, William, and Richard, a minor, and grandsons Alexander and William, sons of his son Alexander. Sons Alexander and William were certainly from an earlier marriage.
The fact that Richard Parker was a minor raises the possibility that his mother was Susanna. By his father’s will Richard was to receive, after Susanna’s death, the named slaves that Susanna got from her husband, Alexander Parker, which supports this possibility. In 1764 Richard released his rights to these slaves and (underlining added) the slaves that Susanna had before her marriage to his father. The latter action would not be necessary unless Richard was Susanna’s son. Therefore, this suggests that Richard Parker was the son of Dr. Alexander Parker and Susanna (née ———) Meriwether Robinson Parker.
Susanna lived in Tappahannock with her husband, Alexander Parker, at the time he died. In his will (appendix 40) Dr. Parker transferred his Tappahannock lots and land near the town to a trust for sale, the proceeds going to his son, Richard. But perhaps Susanna also still had possession of Thomas Meriwether’s home plantation, the tract she bought from the Bryants, her own lot in Tappahannock, and maybe other lots from Thomas Meriwether (M15). In the 1765 tripartite agreement (appendix 39), she sold Richard Parker “...all the lands the said Susanna holds in fee in the said county of Essex...” and other property to be held in trust for Robinson Daingerfield and John Fauntleroy. So she still held land after the sale of the Bryant tract. At the time of the agreement, Susanna was living in Tappahannock, probably on her lot and she probably lived there until she died after 1765.
A record for when Susanna died has not been found, but she lived a long life. Like her sister-in-law, Mary Bathurst Meriwether Welch Robinson, Susanna showed that she was capable of managing her own affairs. Also, like Mary, she married three Essex County justices, but Susanna did Mary one better in out-living all three of her husbands. And, it appears that she possibly had at least one child by each husband, the last one at an advanced age.
Correspondence notes for Susanna (Spouse 1)
---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: Thornton Parker <tipparker@lumos.net>
Date: Aug 12, 2023 at 13:40:08
Subject: Re: Susannah (?) Meriwether Robinson Parker
To: Joe Oglesby <meriwethersociety@gmail.com>
Joe,
We have to revise what we wrote about Dr. Alexander and Susanna Parker, partly based on what you provided and partly on some more digging and thinking.
For one thing, I made a strong point to you about his agreement with the John Robinson who later became the lieutenant governor of the colony. But that was wrong. There were two Johns. His agreement was with the older who died in 1749, and it was his son who became the lt. gov. We will try to learn how they were related to the Henry Robinson who was Susanna’s second husband.
Another tidbit is that the court records indicate that Alexander’s rapid rise in stature really began in May, 1733. That was shortly after his marriage to Susanna. Some, but surely not all of his rise was surely helped by her. I like to think of him as a genial cuss that most people liked and trusted.
A final tidbit for now. Alexander’s son, also Alexander was a dentist, who family lore said lived in the “Old Customs House”. The history of the house said that it had been an inn or tavern, but not a private residence. Once when we were in Tappahannock we went to look at it. A woman who was working in the garden asked if she could help us. We explained what we thought we knew and she burst out, “That’s why I keep finding teeth!” So which history does one believe?
I’ll send you our revised writeup.
Tip
On Fri, Aug 11, 2023 at 13:04 Thornton Parker <tipparker@lumos.net> wrote:
Hi Joe,
The pages you sent are a big help. They are likely to be right that our Susanna’s maiden name was probably Colston—a name we had not heard before. We have to do more detailed comparing of your pages with what we have but at first glance, there are reinforcements and no inconsistencies. Like your description of Thomas Meriwether, Dr. Alexander Parker was also ambitious, upwardly mobile, and well connected. What he achieved during his no more than thirty years in this country convinced us that his wives must have made major contributions to his advancement. Not everyone could have entered into an agreement with John Robinson, who later became lieutenant governor and perhaps acting governor of the colony. Nor for that matter, would many women other than Susanna have had Robinson as a protector. There was a time when if you wanted to do anything in Tappahannock, Old Doc. Parker was the one you needed to see, but when we were doing our searching down there, no one in the historical society even knew he existed. So flits fame.
Attached is a PDF of what my wife and I put together about ten years ago. Our sources are indicated, but most of our findings are based on the photo copies of hand posted entries at the Essex County courthouse in Tappahannock, and tabulations that were done of them. We wrote our piece for our children and grandchildren not for publication. We were more interested in learning about Alexander’s and Susanna’s lives, what they did, and history of the period than the genealogy aspects.
Your pages indicated a bit of uncertainty about whether Susanna married Henry Robinson. I think our chart of the Indenture Tripartite, based on the document itself, shows that she must have married Henry in order to have Robinson Daingerfield as her grandson. After I organize the various pieces from what you and we have done, I’ll send you a copy.
Many thanks for your assistance.
Tip Parker
TMSI Enquiry:
I am trying to find information about the family of Susanna, the last wife of Thomas Meriwether who died in 1707. They probably married in 1705 or 6 and had one child who was also named Susanna Meriwether. The first Susanna eventually married Alexander Parker who was my 6th great grandfather.