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REYNOLDS HISTORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
ALLEN COUNTY PUBLIC LIBRARY L: 3 1833 02167 801 3
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Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2016
https://archive.org/details/gleaningsofvirgi00boog
GLEANINGS
OF
VIRGINIA HISTORY.
AN HISTORICAL AND GENEALOGICAL COLLECTION, LARGELY FROM ORIGINAL SOURCES.
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COMPILED AND PUBLISHED BY
WILLIAM FLETCHER BOOGHER.
WASHINGTON, D. C. 1903.
19
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1912821
COPYRIGHT, 1903, BY WILLIAM FLETCHER BOOGHER. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
DEDICATED TO THE COLONIAL VIRGINIANS WHOSE NAMES APPEAR HEREIN, AND TO THEIR DESCENDANTS.
Walton Falk-30.00
PREFACE.
DURING the course of researches into the family history of many individuals, extending over a period of several years, there was discovered by the compiler much original material relating to two most interesting periods of Virginia's history -the French and Indian War and the War of the Revolu- tion. Little of this material has ever appeared in print, and the compiler feels it a duty to preserve to history the names of those who participated in the two wars mentioned.
The part played by the Colony and State of Virginia in both of these conflicts need not be detailed here. It is suffi- cient to say that many of her gallant sons were at Braddock's defeat and helped to save the remnant of the British regulars on their retreat; while in the Revolution they were at the front until the triumph of the American arms at Yorktown, in the siege of which there participated fully six thousand Virginia troops, both of the continental line and the militia, being over one-third of the troops engaged.
Two of the most useful documents in this book, for the student of family history, are the Poll Lists for the election of members to the House of Burgesses from Prince William county, in the year 1741, and from Fairfax county in 1744. The first of these counties, at the date named, comprised the territory embraced in the present Prince William county, to- gether with the counties of Fairfax, Loudoun, and Fauquier. It was the first halting place in the march of emigration from lower Virginia westward to the Shenandoah Valley, and thus formed the gateway to what was then the western frontier. From 1744 to 1757 Fairfax county comprised the present county of that name and also the county of Loudoun.
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GLEANINGS OF VIRGINIA HISTORY.
The Rosters of Troops in the French and Indian Wars are taken from Hening's Statutes of Virginia, a work generally well known to the legal profession, but one with which the average person in search of family history is unacquainted. For this reason it is desirable that the lists referred to should be made readily accessible.
The original Muster and Pay Rolls of officers and men of the Revolution are in possession of the compiler and furnish the names of many persons not to be found elsewhere. Where matter previously printed is inserted in this work, special reference to the source will be found.
More or less complete genealogies of various Virginia fam- ilies are also included, and it is hoped that they may be found useful to their thousands of descendants who are interested in their family histories.
Virginia has done and is still doing much to preserve the history of her people, but during his researches, the compiler has been impressed with the fact that not enough attention has been given to the rank and file of her pioneers, many of whose descendants to-day occupy the front ranks of American professional and business life. If this work shall be regarded as in any degree valuable in preserving to posterity the almost forgotten names of many of those whose loyalty and self- sacrifice made our Republic possible, the compiler shall feel repaid for his labor.
"The history of a nation is the history of its people."
WILLIAM F. BOOGHER.
Washington, D. C., April, 1903.
CONTENTS.
PART I.
HISTORICAL. FROM 1607 To 1744. PAGE
1. Early times in Virginia 1
2. Immigrant List, 1707 (Stafford county) 8
3. French and Indian War-Lord Dunmore's War 8 4. Legislative Enactments connecting the preceding historic sketch with the adjudication of the resulting accounts that follow; with the list of offi- cers, soldiers and civilians entitled to compensation for military and other services rendered 23
5. The Scotch-Irish of Augusta county, Va .. 113
6. Poll List for the Election of Burgesses for Prince William County, Va, 116 1741.
7. Poll List for the Election of Burgesses for Fairfax County, 1744 121
PART II.
REVOLUTIONARY WAR RECORDS, 1775-1791.
1. Virginia in the Revolution 126
2. Estimate of the Balance of Specie Due the Officers of the Virginia Line, on account of three months' specie pay in 1782 and four months in 1783. 134 3. A Partial List of Capt. Daniel Morgan's Rifle Company of Winchester, Frederick Co., Va., July 14, 1775 171
4. Petition from Fairfax County, Virginia, for Importation of Salt, Novem- ber 23, 1775 172
5. Correspondence of Washington and Gen. Gates with Col. Bedel, February 1st, 1776. 173
6. Pay roll for the travelling expense of a detachment of the 3d Virginia regiment, discharged from camp at Valley Forge to their different counties, Feb. 16, 1776 . 176
7. Roster of Capt. Thomas Buck's company, enlisted from Dunmore county (now Shenandoah ), Sept. 5, 1777 178
8. List of balance due the dead and deserted of the 1st Virginia regiment, .
commanded by Col. George Gibson, from 16th of Sept., 1777, to 1st of Jan., 1778 181
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GLEANINGS OF VIRGINIA HISTORY.
PAGE
9. Pay roll for the Field and Staff officers of the 1st regiment Light Dra- goons, commanded by Col. Theodorick Bland, for the month of Nov., 1777, and one month extraordinary pay bestowed by Congress, Dec., 1777 185
10. Loudoun county, Virginia, in the Revolution. A list of Officers with date of appointment, 1778-1782. With partial list of private soldiers - and how their families were supplied with provisions by the county .. 216
11. List of Militiamen in Captain John Given's Company, Augusta County, Virginia, from October 16, 1777, to March 15, 1782, inclusive, with transcript of the bible of Robert Givens, of Lincoln county, Ky., 1759- 1802, and his declaration of services rendered 223
12. List of American Prisoners confined on board the British ship "Torbay," in Charleston harbor, 1780-1 226
13. Officers of the Virginia Line who served at the siege of York, Oct. 30, 1781 .. 227
14. Garrison of West Point, June 21, 1784 229
15. Letter of Lieutenant Edward Antill to Paymaster-Gen. of the Army, 1784 232
16. Letter of A. Duncomb to Joseph Howell, Esq., Acting Paymaster, March 27, 1791 234
PART III.
FAMILY HISTORY AND GENEALOGY.
1. Genealogy of the Newman Family, 1618-1900 237
2. Ilistorical and Genealogical Notes of Hugh Thomas, Westmoreland Co., Virginia, 1660-1750 282
3. Birth and Death Records from the Tombstones of the Old Stone Church Graveyard in Augusta Co., Virginia. 289
4. Historical and Genealogical Notes of William Craig, of Augusta County, Virginia, and his Descendants, 1721-1900 292
5. Historical and Genealogical Notes of John Anderson and his Descend- ants, of Augusta County, Virginia 308
6. Transcript from the Bible of Hugh Davis, of Davis County, North Caro- lina, 1731-1800 324
7. Davis Family Notes ( Revolutionary ) . 325
8. Transcript from the Davis Bible, Spottsylvania Co., Virginia, 1741-1811, with Revolutionary War Record of Thomas Davis 326
9. Transcript from the Custis (Thompkins) Bible, 1732-57 328
10. Smith and Harrison Families of Angusta and Rockingham Counties, Va. 330 11. Cravens and Brown Families of Augusta and Bath Counties, Va. 379
12. Early Marriages, Orange County, Virginia, 1770-1800. 383
13. Marriages solemnized in Albemarle County, Virginia, by the Rev. John
Gibson, from 1800 to 1846, with his declaration of military services .. 384
EARLY TIMES IN VIRGINIA.
Settlement. The first settlement in Virginia was made at Jamestown, May 14th (May 24th, N. S.), 1607, by a party of 105* colonists sent out by the London Virginia Company. This company owned the territory until 1624-5, when it was dissolved, and the colony reverted to the crown.
Original Grant. In the Second Charter granted by King James, May 23, 1609, the limits and extent of the colony are pointed out. Section 6 provides : "We do also . . give, grant and confirm, unto the said treasurer and company . . all those lands, countries and territories ... in that part of America called Virginia . . from Point Comfort, all along the Sea coast to the Northward two hundred miles, and from said Cape Comfort all along the Sea coast to the Southward two hundred miles, and all that space and circuit of land . . from Sea to sea, west and northwest ; and also all the islands lying within one hundred miles along the coast of both seas."
Even after limits were more clearly defined, Virginia in- cluded all the territory now embraced within Virginia proper, West Virginia, a portion of Pennsylvania, all of Kentucky, Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, Illinois, Wisconsin, and a portion of Minnesota.
From this vast realm were detached in 1784 the Northwest
* Authorities differ as to this number. Howe, in Historical Collections of Va., says: " In the whole company there were but four carpenters, twelve laborers and fifty-four gentlemen," or 70 in all. Tyler, in "The Cradle of the Republic," copies names from Captain John Smith's History, viz: 6 members of council, 48 gentlemen, 4 carpenters, and 24 laborers ; total, 82, with the remark, "with divers others to the number of one hundred." He says further : "The total number left at the Island on June 22, 1607, was 104." Howe says : "Newport sailed on the 15th of June [1607], leaving one hundred men in Virginia." We leave these disagreements to the doctors to harmonize.
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GLEANINGS OF VIRGINIA HISTORY.
territory ; in 1792, Kentucky, and in 1863 what is now West Virginia, leaving but 42,450 square miles as the present area of the State.
Original Subdivisions into Shires or Counties. In 1634 the country was divided into eight shires, which were to be gov- erned as the shires in England. Names: James City, Hen-". .. rico, Charles City, Elizabeth City, Warwick River, Warros- quyoake, Charles River, and Accawmack.
Of this number the names James City, Henrico, Charles City, Elizabeth City, Warwick, and Accomack have been re- tained. In 1642-3, by Act 13 of the Assembly, the name Accawmack was changed to Northampton. In 1672 the limits were reduced by the formation of Accomack county of the present time. By the same act the name of Charles River was changed to York and Warwick River to county of Warwick. Warrosquyoake was changed to Isle of Wight in 1637.
Original Officers. In 1634 it was decreed that Lieutenants were to be appointed the same as in England, who were to take care in special manner of the war against the Indians. Sheriffs were elected with same powers as in England ; and where need was, sergeants and bailiffs were chosen.
First Assembly. The first assembly held in Virginia con- vened on July 30, 1619, under orders from Sir George Yeard- ley, then governor, at Jamestown, called "James City." No definite acts were made.
Early Records. Perhaps the most authentic record of these early acts of legislation is the compilation known as " Hen- ing's Statutes at Large," published from original sources in 1823. This compilation is a mine of legal and historic infor- mation respecting those early days. The orthography, com- position and subject-matter reveal fully the body and spirit of the times. We give a few specimens :
Primitive Acts and Regulations. The following extracts are taken from laws passed at different times during colonial days :
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EARLY TIMES IN VIRGINIA.
1. There shall be in every plantation, where the people use to meete for the worship of God, a house or roome sequestered for that purpose, and not to be for any temporal use whatso- ever, and a place empaled in, sequested only to the buryal of the dead.
2. Whosoever shall absent himself from divine service any Sunday without an allowable excuse shall forfeite a pound of tobacco, and he that absenteth himself a month shall forfeit 50 lbs. of tobacco. .
3. That there be an uniformity in our Church as neere as may be to the canons in England, both in substance and circumstance, and that all persons yield redie obedience unto them under paine of Censure.
23. Every dwelling house shall be pallizaded in for defence against the Indians. [This act and the subsequent ones grew out of the condition of the country from the terrible massacre of March 22, 1622,* in which 347 men, women and children were slaughtered. The Indians came unarmed, " with fruits, fish, turkeys and venison to sell." But for the friendly act of a converted Indian, the slaughter would have been more extensive. . . . ]
24. That no man go or send abroad without a sufficient party woll armed.
25. That men go not to work in the ground without their arms (and a centinell upon them).
26. That the inhabitants go not aboard ships or upon any other occasions in such numbers as thereby to weaken and endanger the plantation.
27. That the commander of every plantation take care that there be sufficient of powder and ammunition within the plantation under his command, and their pieces fixt and their arms compleate.
28. That there be dew watch kept by night.
29. That no commander of any plantation do either himself
* Honing's Statutes give the date of this massacro as 1621 instead of 1622.
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GLEANINGS OF VIRGINIA HISTORY.
or suffer others to spend powder unnecessarily in drinking or entertainments, &c. (Passed March 1623-4.) ยท
A very wise regulation looking to the good of posterity was that contained in-
Act. 10. In every parrish Church within this colony shall be kept by the mynister a booke wherein shall be written the day and yeare of every christeninge, weddings and buriall. [Had this prudent and far-seeing enactment been observed by the churches of Virginia and the books preserved, the records of the State would to-day be the envy of the nation. They would, in fact, be a mine of inexpressible value.]
Act 11. Mynisters shall not give themselves to excesse in drinkinge, or riott, spendinge theire tyme idellye by day or night, playinge at dice, cards, or any other unlawfull game, but at all tymes convenient they shall heare or reade somewhat of the holy scriptures, or shall occupie themselves with some other honest study or exercise, alwayes doinge the things which shall apperteyne to honesty, and endeavour to profitt the church of God, alwayes havinge in mynd that they ought to excell all others in puritie of life, and should be examples to the people to live well and christianlie.
["Speak thou the things which become sound doctrine."- Paul to Titus. This act of the legislature of Virginia, while not so orthodox, perhaps, as the advice of the Apostle, contains much food for reflection. Portions of it might, with propriety, be commended to the churches of the present day. For this reason it is well, perhaps, to stir up their pure minds by way of remembrance.]
Act. 51. All men that are fittinge to beare armes shall bring their pieces to the church ; uppon payne of every offence, yf the mayster allow not thereof, to pay 2 lb. of tobacco, to be disposed by the church-wardens, who shall levy it by dis- tresse, and the servants to be punished. . .
Act. 67. It is ordered, That the 22d. day of March be yourelio kopt Holyday in commemoration of our deliverance
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EARLY TIMES IN VIRGINIA.
from the Indians at the bloodie massaker which happened uppon the 22d. of March, 1621. [Passed February, 1631-2.]
Under laws passed in 1666, a fine of one hundred pounds of tobacco was imposed upon any person who, without lawful reason, neglected or refused to appear " upon the days of exer- cise and other times when required to attend upon the public service." These "days of exercise" were occasions known later as " muster days."
In 1682, the forts having been dismantled in the counties of Henrico, New Kent, Rappahannock and Stafford, Com- panies of militia of 20 men each were organized under the command of a captain and a corporal, whose duties were " to command, lead, traine, conduct and exercise the said twenty soldiers." The captain furnished his own supplies and was allowed an annual salary of 8,000 pounds of tobacco, and the corporal 3,000. Each soldier under similar conditions was allowed 2,000 pounds.
The fine for neglect of an officer to attend muster was 500 pounds of tobacco; to go out on "range or scout," 1,000 pounds. The soldier was fined 100 pounds for not attending muster, and 2,000 pounds for not going out on a scouting ex- pedition.
Early Governors. As a matter of reference and a means of fixing events, a list of the various governors to the close of the 18th century is appended :
1ST. UNDER THE VIRGINIA COMPANY.
Edw. M. Wingfield, President, 1607.
John Ratcliffe, 66
1607-8.
Capt. John Smith,
1608-09.
Sir George Percy, 1609.
Thomas West, Lord de la Warr, Gov., 1609-11.
Thomas Dale, High Marshall, 1611-16.
George Yeardley, Lieut .- Gov., 1616-17.
Capt. Saml. Argall, Lieut .- Gov., 1617-19.
Sir George Yeardley, Governor, 1619-21.
Francis Wyatt, 1621-25.
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GLEANINGS OF VIRGINIA HISTORY.
1ST. UNDER THE CROWN.
Sir George Yeardley, Governor, 1626-27.
Francis West,
1627-28.
John Potts,
1628-29.
John Hervey,
66
1629-35.
John West,
1635.
John Hervey,
1635-39.
Francis Wyatt,
66
1639 41.
Sir Wm. Berkeley,
1641-45.
Richard Kemp, Lieut .- Gov., 1645.
Sir Wm. Berkeley, Governor, 1645 52.
3D. UNDER COMMONWEALTH.
Richard Bennett, Governor, 1652-56.
Edward Digges, 66 1656-58.
Samuel Matthews 66 1658-60.
4TH. UNDER THE CROWN.
Sir Wm. Berkeley, Governor, 1660-77.
Herbert Jeffries, Lieut .- Gov., 1677.
Herbert Jeffries, Governor, 1677-78.
Henry Chicheloy, 1678-79.
Lord Culpeper, 66 1679-80.
Henry Chicheley, 66 1680-84.
Lord Howard, Governor, 1684-89.
Nathaniel Bacon, Lieut .- Gov., 1689 90.
Francis Nicholson, Lieut .- Gov., 1690-92.
Sir Edmond Andros, Governor, 1692-98. Fran. Nicholson, 1698-1704.
The Earl of Orkney, 1704-05.
Edward Nott, Lieut .- Gov., 1705-06. Edward Jennings, Lieut .- Gov., 1706-10.
Robert Hunter, 1710. Alex. Spotswood,
1710-22.
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EARLY TIMES IN VIRGINIA.
Hugh Drysdale, Lieut .- Governor, 1722-26.
Robert Carter, 66
1726-27.
William Gooch, 66
1727-49.
John Robinson, Sr.,
66
1749.
Lord Albemarle, Governor, 1749-50.
Louis Burwell, Lieut .- Governor, 1750-52.
Robert Dinwiddie,
1752-58.
John Blair, 66
1758.
Francis Fauquier, Governor, 1758-68.
John Blair, Lieut .- Governor, 1768.
Norborne Berkeley, Governor,
1768-70.
William Nelson, Lieut .- Governor, 1770-72.
Lord Dunmore, Governor,
1772-76.
5TH. IN THE REVOLUTION.
Patrick Henry, Governor, 1776-79.
Thomas Jefferson,
"
1779-81.
Thomas Nelson,
66
1781.
Benjamin Harrison, 1781-84.
Patrick Henry,
Under articles of
1784-86.
Edmund Randolph,
Confederation. 1786-88.
6TH. UNDER THE U. S. CONSTITUTION.
Beverly Randolph, Governor, 1788-91.
Henry Lee,
1791-94.
Robert Brooke, 1794-96. James Wood, 1796-99. 66
James Munroe, 66 1799 1802.
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GLEANINGS OF VIRGINIA HISTORY.
IMMIGRANT LIST, 1707.
THE following persons shipped at Bristol, England, with James Gaugh, captain and owner of the ship Joseph and Thomas, and received their wages as boat hands (Liber Z, folio 422, Aug. 2, 1707, Stafford County) :
Abraham Loyd,
John Wall,
James Ginning,
Arthor Marly,
Thomas Jones,
Thomas Calmers,
Robert Goalfold,
William Johnson,
William Shough,
Ellis Giles,
David Vaughn,
William Roach,
William Harmous,
William Adams,
William Price,
Thomas Parris,
Lewis Johns,
George Paines.
From the records it is not certain that any of these persons remained in Virginia, but from the similarity of names found in the western portion of Stafford county, and after 1730 in Prince William, it is believed a good portion of them settled in Virginia, whose descendants are now scattered throughout the South and West.
FRENCH AND INDIAN WAR-LORD DUNMORE'S WAR.
Interesting Study in American History. One of the subjects of thrilling interest in American history is the struggle be- tween the French and the English for possession of the great valley connecting the Great Lakes and the mouth of the Mississippi river.
English Claims. The English discoveries and occupations embraced bolts of territory along the Atlantic coast, and were
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FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS.
supposed to include all territory between certain parallels from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
French Settlements and Claims. The French had not been successful in securing footholds along the Atlantic, within the bounds of the present United States, but had. secured posses- sions farther north around the mouth of the St. Lawrence. French Catholics, too, had discovered the mouth of the Mis- sissippi river, and ascended that stream, laying claim, under the law of nations, to all the territory drained by it and its tributaries.
This claim, if acknowledged, would cut the vast continent into two unequal divisions, giving to the English the string of a bow along the Atlantic, while the French took the bow from one end, at the mouth of the Mississippi, up that stream to the mouth of the Ohio, and thence up that stream, with its tributaries, the Alleghany and French creeks, to Lake Erie, and finally across the lakes to the mouth of the St. Lawrence, the other end of the bow.
If this theory of national rights could be maintained, it would plainly secure, as subsequent events have developed, not only the great bow already described, but the rich game in front, together with all the wealth to be developed in the path along which civilization has since spread.
Line of Forts between the Lakes and the Mississippi. The manifest policy of the French, then, was to secure possession of these rich territorial tracts by a line of forts and other means of protection from the Great Lakes to the Mississippi. Accordingly, these preliminary steps were taken, and then began the game of chess between two mighty European rival nations for the rich prize at stake. Of Napoleon, at a later date, Byron wrote-
" Whose game was empires and whose stakes were thrones;
Whose table earth; whose dice were human bones."
We repeat, this problem is one of the most interesting studies to the intelligent reader, and presents the key-note to the proper and easy understanding of those gigantic struggles
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GLEANINGS OF VIRGINIA HISTORY.
which, for a time, involved the stability and supremacy of European governments, as well as the growth and prosper- ity of American settlements.
Origin of the War. As a result of three years' controversy between commissioners appointed under the Treaty of Aix-la- Chapelle (1748) to settle the question of boundaries in America between France and England, what is known in America as the "French and Indian War"-in Europe as the "Seven Years' War"-was waged.
Conflicting Territorial Claims. From 1750 to 1753 these commissioners at Paris wrangled over the matter. By the Treaty of Utrecht (April 11, 1713) Acadia was an English possession. But what did Acadia embrace ? According to the English commissioners, it included not only the peninsula of Nova Scotia, but the entire tract between the St. Lawrence river on the north, the gulf of the same name on the east, the Atlantic on the south, and New England on the west.
The French conceded only about one-twentieth of this terri- tory, viz., not even all the Acadian peninsula, but only a part of its southern coast and an adjacent belt of barren wilderness. Formerly the French claim was quite as extensive as that now made by the English ; but conditions having changed, their contention was changed.
Bienville's Expedition in 1749. Nor was Acadia the only ground of contention. In the prosecution of the deep-laid scheme of the French, Celeron de Bienville had been sent in 1749 by Galissoniere, the governor of Canada, into the Ohio valley with "a suitable escort of whites and savages to take formal possession of the valley in the name of the King of France, to propitiate the Indians, and in all ways short of actual warfare to thwart the English plans." Bienville made a detailed report at Montreal, whither he had returned, but it was not favorable to his lordship. The English were swarming in the valley and had succeeded in securing the Indians as allies.
Marquis Duquesne Succeeds Galissoniere. Within a few years
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FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS.
Galissoniere was succeeded by the Marquis Duquesne. The latter, discovering the trend of events and being a man of action, decided to take immediate steps. Early in 1753 he sent a strong force by Lake Ontario and Niagara to seize and hold the northeastern branches of the Ohio river. Passing over the portage between Presque Isle and French creek, it constructed Forts Le Boeuf and Venango.
Washington's Mission under Gov. Dinwiddie in 1753. Late in the same year (11th of December) a messenger from Gov- ernor Dinwiddie * arrived. This messenger was Major George Washington, Adjutant-General of the Virginia militia, then in the 22d year of his age. His guide was Christopher Gist, who was well acquainted with the route and thoroughly com- petent to perform his task. The burden of this embassy was to inform the French commander at Le Boeuf that he was building his fort on English territory and to suggest that he would do well to depart. After three days, which Washington employed usefully in making observations, he received a reply. This he returned to Gov. Dinwiddie, reaching Williamsburg on the 16th of January, 1754, after a journey of nearly 600 miles over "lofty and rugged mountains and through the heart of a wilderness."
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