GAINES-L Archives

From: Brenda GAINES - Monroe< >
Subject: 1st pg. Sutherd's research
Date: Tue, 22 Sep 1998 19:10:36 -0700 (PDT)

1st page of Calvin Sutherds research on the GAINES family of Virginia and
their descendants.

FORETHOUGHT
You as a descendant of the GAINES families of colonial Virginia,
will find in this book that your heritage is one of great pride in the
development of our nation ever since it's earliest times. You will find in
this family many land owners, teachers, judges, congressmen, admirals,
generals, doctors, ministers, professors, attorneys, diplomats, senators,
college presidents, governors, U.S. Presidents, and a host of hard working,
god fearing, law abiding men and women.
Today when family, church, educational, moral, and political
heritages are being attacked so vigorously by those of foreign beliefs,
whether from the Devil or some nation of strange ideology, we the older
members of the family seek to establish a bridge for the younger
generations on order that they might have a documented link with their
progenitors. Perhaps, someday that bridge will be a light in their path
when seeking to learn of their true identity and heritage in a pioneer
family that possessed great integrity and purpose throughout many
generations, The following poem, "The Bridge builder" of unknown origin
propitiously fits the occasion.

An old man, going on a lone highway
Came at evening, cold and gray
To a chasm, vast, deep and wide,
Through which was flowing a sullen tide.
The old man crossed in the twilight dim
That sullen stream had no fear for him
But he turned when he reached the other side,
And built a bridge to span the tide.
"Old man," said a fellow pilgrim near,
"You are wasting your strength in building here,
Your journey will end with the ending day
You never again must pass this way.
You have crossed the chasm deep and wide,
Why build you the bridge at eventide?"
The builder lifted his old gray head
"Good friend, in the path I have come", he said.
"There followeth after me today
A youth whose feet must pass this way.
This chasm that has been naught to me
To that fairhaired youth may a pitfall be.
He, too, must cross in the twilight dim,
Good friend, I am building the bridge for him."

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EARLY HISTORY OF THE GAINES FAMILY IN VIRGINIA
_________________________________________________________________
Capt. (Wm>) TUCKER
William GAMES / GAINES tenant

Capt. Smyth
Chris Lawson, tenant

Mr. Pursey (Abra Persey)
Wm. Pinkington, tenant.

Two sources have published the records of this document, one by the
Virginia State Library in which they have transcribed the Tenant as William
GAINES; the other, in the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, vol
27, pps. 147-`49 wherein they have transcribed the Tenant of Capt Tucker as
William GAMES. Thus 2 transcriptions from the original document have 2
different interpretations for the name GAINES /GAMES.
This usage of GAMES or GAINES is found also in many other documents in
the Virginia Colony as well as in England and Wales.
Thus William GAINES / GAMES of 1626/7, James City, becomes the
earliest documented GAINES family member in the Virginia Colony. No other
recorded document, either before or after this date, has been found of this
William GAMES / GAINES. On the other hand, both of the other 2 tenants,
Chris Lawson and Wm. Pilkington appear with wives in the musters of 1623
and 1624 /5 (ref. I. p. 177, 232, 235 and ref. II, 58, 59, 26, 33.) Many
of the early records of the Virginia Colony have been lost and it appears
those concerning William GAINES / GAMES were among them. It is however,
apparent that for him to become a tenant, it was necessary to have been in
the Virginia Colony at least 5 to 7 years learning how to till the land,
and withstand the rigors of frontier life. No inexperienced freshly arrived
immigrant on a ship could have become a success of it much less survive.
In 1626 Capt. Wm Tucker was in possession of 2 land patents, one of
150 acres, not planted, in the Corporation of Elizabeth Cittie and the
other of 650 acres on the South side of the James River across from
Elizabeth Cittie.(ref. I, p.273 and 274 ) It is not known on which track
of land William GAMES / GAINES became a tenant of Capt. Tucker.
The only other member of the GAINES / GAMES family to have
occupied land in the James River Area was the Thomas GAYNES (as spelled in
ref II) who is recorded in the Land grant of George Hardy (ref II, p 177 ).
In describing the land grant, "Lyeing on the E. side of Lawnes Creek,
extending to the main river, (James) along land repute Thomas GAYNES, along
the great river to a creek dividing said land from Alice Bennet". Many
sources have placed Lawnes Creek in the Rappahannock River area which is in
error as it empties into the James River and was the boundary line first
for the James City County and later for the Isle of Wight county. Many
land grants refer to the James River as " the great river". No date exists
as to the arrival of this Thomas GAYNES to the Virginia Colony.
Old tradition has him born ca. 1606, at that date he was born in Wales or
England, not in the Virginia Colony, besides the 2 GAINES families in the
James River area, there were the Bennet, Lawson, Pilkington, Lewis,
Slaughter, Underwood and Hardy families all associated more or less with
the GAINES families.


Swamp Creek Garden
93706 Swamp Creek Road
Blachly, OR 97412
phone / fax 541-927-3092
http://www.pioneer.net/~brendad/
GAINES, MALCOME, PAYNE, SMITH, HOLDERBY, HARVEY, LEWIS, LAMB, MCDANIEL, WARD

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