Identifying Gerrard Edwards of Fauquier County, Virginia

Until very recently, I believed Gerrard (bef.1738 - 1810) and John Edwards (c.1725 - c.1801) of Fauquier County, Virginia were sons of John Edwards Sr. and Jane Arrington. Gerrard's son, Elijah's estate was administered by a "Thompson Edwards" in 1838, and since Ignatius, son of John Sr., had a proven grandson named "Thomson Edwards" in the 1787 tithables of Stafford County, I figured that was enough of a connection. John Edwards of Prince William/Fauquier was called "orphan boy" in an order of 1744, which made sense if his father died in 1743.

But alas, I was working with erroneous assumptions. The evidence suggests that Gerrard and John Edwards, though probably related, actually belong to a different family.

Firstly, it seems clear these men are likely brothers. Gerrard Edwards appears in the Fauquier County tithables list of June 1759, with John Edwards appearing just four households away. Living with John Edwards are two tithables, James and Samuel Edwards. A third Edwards, no first name recorded, lives next door to Gerrard; given that John and Benjamin Edwards were listed among soldiers of the French and Indian War from Prince William County in 1756, this mystery man may be Benjamin.

According to tax laws, both James and Samuel Edwards would be born between 1739 and 1743, while Gerrard and John would be born no later than 1738. Given that John was an indentured servant referred to as "an orphan boy" in the will of Thomas Deakers on April 23, 1744, he was almost certainly not the father of his tithables. Typically an indenture would take place when one was in his teens, and no marriage or children could happen until the indenture ended, usually around the servant's twenty-first birthday. This suggests John was probably born around 1724 to 1728, and that Gerrard, James and Samuel were his younger brothers.

The John Edwards family of Westmoreland/King George/Stafford doesn't have the room for all four of these men, and there appear to be no common associations between the two families in records of Fauquier, Prince William, or any other county. Importantly, the Fauquier County Edwardses do show some consistent family associations, which may hint at their origin.

On Dec. 5, 1758, Charles Morgan Sr. of Prince William County, Virginia sealed his will in the presence of Gerrard, James and John Edwards. The three Edwards men appeared in court again on Sep. 26, 1766 to prove the will. Interestingly, Charles Morgan owned property adjacent to Thomas Ayers, who in April 1770 gifted a substantial amount of land to John Edwards, suggesting he may have been an in-law. Also adjoining the Morgan property was that of Isaac Settle, and the Settles are another family that pop up with this Edwards clan periodically; John Edwards witnesses a deed between John Arnold Jr. and William Settle in Fauquier County court in March 1764; John Edwards, William and Edward Settle also witnessed the will of John Arnold in Fauquier in 1771.

So is it possible to track these families back to their origin? It's clear the Morgan and Settle families were from Richmond County, Virginia. Charles Morgan Sr. is believed to be the same Charles Morgan who was born in North Farnham Parish in 1680. The Settles of Virginia also seem to have come from Richmond/Old Rappahannock, descending from Francis Settle who immigrated around 1650.

Thomas Ayers is called the son of "Thomas Acres Ayers" in a Prince William County deed of 1754; The senior Thomas appears in King George County as far back as 1729:

1729, King George County, Virginia: Deed Book 1:635 - Deed of Lease 5 Dec 1729. William Thornton of King George County to Thomas Acres AYRES of same. For the yearly rent hereafter mentioned to lease 150 A[cres] including two small houses lately built. To have and to hold during the natural lives of the said Thomas Acres AYRES, his wife Elizabeth, and his daughter Henneretta. Between the first day of November and the twenty-fifth day of December and to be delivered to Thornton's dwelling for the first five years five (5) swine shoats clear of scabs and manage; for the next five years succeeding to pay ten (10) of such like shoats. Signed William Thornton, Thomas Akers [sic] AYRES. Delivered in the presence of John Gilbert, Willilam Hackney, Thos. Turner. Recorded 5 Dec 1729 T. Turner. Source: Land Records of King George County, Virginia 1721-1743 by Sue Ann Damon.

Worth mentioning, the above Henrietta Ayers, daughter of Thomas Acres, may be the same Henrietta mentioned in the will of John Edwards in Greenville County, South Carolina in 1799. Thomas Acres Ayers was transported to Virginia as a criminal in bondage from Middlesex, England in October 1726, listed as "Thomas Akres alias Aires." (Coldham, Peter Wilson. The Complete Book of Emigrants in Bondage, 1614-1775. Baltimore, MD, USA: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1988.)

Thomas Acres Ayers notwithstanding, the other two families suggest John, Gerrard, James and Samuel Edwards may have been from Richmond County. There is a marriage record there for William Edwards and Mary Peace (Pearce or Pierce) in North Farnham Parish on Dec. 16, 1725. They may also have a connection to William Edwards of Westmoreland County, who died in 1755, and mentions he had a daughter married to a Settle in his will. His sons, George and Joseph, are known to have migrated into King George County. The will also names a son, Arnold Edwards, and a man by that name appears in Fauquier County along with Gerrard, James and John Edwards in a religious petition in December 1801. Gerrard ("Jarod Edwards Sr.") and James signed right next to each other, and Arnold signed the same page. While the Arnold Edwards of Westmoreland and the Arnold of Fauquier may not be the same man (given the fifty-six year difference), the unusual name does suggest a familial link.

In any case, what seems clear at this point that the Gerrard Edwards group have relations that lead back to King George and Richmond County; this is bolstered by the fact that the names George and Samuel Edwards appear in Richmond County records from the 1720s through the 1780s. Having gone through the will, deed and order books of Westmoreland, Stafford, King George and adjacent counties extensively, I have concluded that this Gerrard Edwards family have never interacted with anyone of the Meredith Edwards line in any way, shape or form while in Virginia, and do not appear to be related.

This would explain why John Edwards of Fauquier, when writing his will in Greenville County, South Carolina, named Thomas Edwards (of the Meredith line) simply as his "friend." They were not kin. Since this is not my line I will probably not research further, but I do hope this can help someone from the Gerrard/John Edwards line in some way. Richmond County research may hold more answers.