Martin Davenport

  Noted events in his life were:

• Fact 1.
Davis was first found with his son, Martin, in King William County Quit Rent Rolls of 1704, but a Davenport Plantation and Landing existed on the Mattaponi River in Pamunkey Neck in 1696.

• Fact 2. ² Martin Davenport is the only provable child of Davis Davenport. His will (see below) mentions land left to him by his father Davis Davenport. He and Davis Davenport both appear in the 1704 Quit Rent roll of King William County, Davis with 200 acres and Martin with 100 acres. How Martin Davenport acquired this land is unknown, but it was apparently located several miles up the Mattaponi River from Davis Davenport's. A 1703 patent in the area refers to "the path from Yarbrough's Ferry to Davenport's." [1] A 1705 patent mentions "Davenport's Path" in the same area.[2] Both appear to refer to the land of Martin Davenport rather than that of his father. Given the existence of a path named for him by 1703, I have assumed Martin to have been a mature adult by then.

The destruction of early King William County records in the courthouse fire of 1885 leaves us with little information on Martin's early life. However, a partially preserved deed dated 8 and 9 November 1721 shows Martin Davenport of St. Margaret's Parish, King William County, selling 50 acres which was either part of the land he owned in 1704 or next to it.[3] The deed describes the land as part of the 1705 patent mentioned above. Martin Davenport proved the deed himself in court on 18 January 1722.

About this time, he moved about 40 miles northwest into Hanover County. A patent by Capt. Thomas Carr dated 24 March 1725 for land on the south side of the North Anna River in Hanover adjoined "the land of Martin Davenport".[4] Although he was apparently living on it by early 1725, Martin Davenport did not patent this land, 400 acres on the south bank of the North Anna River, until 7 February 1727.[5] The tract included the mouth of Little Rocky Creek; seventeen years when Louisa County was formed from Hanover, the county line ran through the western portion of this tract.

Unfortunately for us, the early records of Hanover County were also destroyed. The only remaining records are two of the six vestry books and a single book of Hanover County court records for the years 1734-5. By sheer good luck, we find Martin Davenport mentioned in that record book twice, one of these being his will.

On 7 June 1734 Richard Phillips sold John Searcy 400 acres of land in St. Martin's Parish adjoining Martin Davenport, Captain Carr, Thomas Wilson, and Paul Harralson.[6] William Davenport, his son, was a witness. It would appear from this record that Martin was still living on his 1727 patent.

Between the surviving mentions in Hanover County, Martin Davenport also appears once in the records of Spotsylvania County (across the river), witnessing a deed on 28 July 1731 for the sale of land held in trust for Ann Arnold, the wife of his son William Davenport.[7] Martin signed with his mark.

The second and final mention of Martin Davenport in surviving Hanover County records is his will. It is dated 24 May 1735 and recorded 2 October 1735, naming his wife Dorothy and sons William, David, James, Martin Jr., and John.[8] The will divides his home place equally between David and James: "to David, I give the plantation whereon I now live and seventy-five acres adjoining, and the remaining part to my son James Davenport." If David died without issue, his portion would revert to Martin Davenport Jr. If James died without issue, his portion reverted to John Davenport. Son William Davenport was given "…20 acres of land in King William County, it being part of 100 acres left me by my father, Davis Deavenport." Dorothy and William Davenport were named executors, and Martin signed with his mark.

Dorothy Davenport, the widow, filed an administrator's bond on 2 October 1735, signing with her mark.[9] She continued to live on the home place for at least the next thirty-two years, as witness David Davenport's mortgage of 1767 in which he mortgaged 150 acres "whereon Dorothy Davenport, mother of sd. David Davenport resides, being the same tract of land which Martin Davenport deceased, father of sd. David Davenport by his last will and testament devised to sd. Dorothy for life and then to sd. David Davenport"[10] (Note that David was claiming the entire tract, though the will left him only half of it.)

Note also that Martin Davenport had patented 400 acres in Hanover County in 1727, but devised only 150 acres of it in his will seven years later. Whatever sales there may have been were destroyed with the rest of the Hanover records. However, it appears that the portion of the missing 250 acres that lay in what became Louisa County was partly in the hands of Richard Davenport, surely another son, and partly owned by Charles Kennedy, apparently a son-in-law.

The maiden name of Martin Davenport's wife, Dorothy, is unknown. She may have been a Glover, since that name occurs both among Martin's sons and in the children of his younger sons. The fact that the widow Dorothy outlived Martin Davenport by more than three decades leads to speculation that she may have been a second wife, although his children were born within a time span short enough for a single mother. If there was an earlier wife, many think she may have been named "Crotia", to explain the daughter of that name. Mary, Crotia, and Dorothy all had daughters named Crotia. The name "Crotia" is also repeated among the elder children of Martin. It is equally possible, however, that Crotia was the name of his mother, the wife of Davis Davenport.

He evidently married Dorothy as a second wife about 1715. Dorothy may have been the daughter of William and Mary Glover, one explanation for the prevalence of the name "Glover" among his descendants. This connection is entirely circumstantial, but all known Davenports named Glover are descendants of Martin Davenport's younger children, so it seems plausible that Dorothy was a Glover. Research among the few extant records remaining of King William County identify a William Glover as a freeholder located relatively near Martin Davenport's land listed for Quit Rents in 1704. It is a toss up as to whether Martin's son Glover or son William was the eldest of his children by Dorothy. I lean toward Glover being the eldest because all the children of the second wife were named in Martin Davenports will except Glover. That suggests he had already settled with both Glover and the children of his first wife.

[1] Virginia Patent Book 9, p599. To Harry Beverley, 23 October 1703.
[2] Virginia Patent Book 9, p649. To Samuel Williams and William Lea, 2 May 1705
[3] King William County Abstracts 1705-1721, Ruth & Sam Sparacio (The Antient Press), p24. This is a lease and release form of transfer, with the release more fully preserved.
[4] Virginia Patent Book 12, p419. To Captain Thomas Carr, 24 March 1725.
[5] Virginia Patent Book 13, p190.
[6] Hanover County Court Record Book 1733-35, p74.
[7] Spotsylvania County Deed Book B, p214.
[8] Hanover County Court Record Book 1733-35, pp339-340.
[9] Ibid., p340.
[10] Cumberland County Deed Book 4, pp210.
[11] Louisa County Deed Book A, pp445.
[12] The daughter was apparently a spinster, explaining the late date. Both mother and daughter appear in this record as "Crosha".

Martin married someone.