William Shapard - (Chapter 2) The First Adventure Westward - Cumberland County, Virginia - 1762-1785

Chapter 2

THE FIRST ADVENTURE WESTWARD – CUMBERLAND COUNTY, VIRGINIA

1762 – 1785

 

Present-day Cumberland County is bounded on the north by the James River, above which, are the counties of Goochland and Fluvanna; bounded on the west by Buckingham County; bounded on the east by the counties of Powhatan and Amelia; and bounded on the south by Prince Edward County. The Appomattox River defines most of the eastern border and the entire southern border of Cumberland County. The county also has four main creeks: Bear Branch Creek which empties into the Willis River; Great Guinea Creek which runs 20 miles and empties into the Appomattox River; Angola Creek which runs 12 miles and empties into the Appomattox River; and Green Creek which runs 3 miles and empties into the Appomattox River.

Settlement began in the area of Cumberland County in 1723, when Mr. Thomas Randolph acquired 2,870 acres while it was still part of Goochland County. In 1745, Goochland County was partitioned into two parishes divided by the James River. The region north of the river remained Northam Parish, while the region south of the river became St. James Southam Parish. Within a few years, as the population grew, the residents of Goochland County south of the James River requested a separate county and courthouse, and in 1749, Cumberland County was formed; which included all of Southam Parish and part of King William Parish. The county was named in honor of Prince William Augustus, the Duke of Cumberland, being the second son of King George II.

In 1772, Cumberland County was further divided into two parishes when Littleton Parish was created from the western portion of Southam Parish. Cumberland County split along parish lines, in 1777, with the formation of Powhatan County. Therefore, for the time period of 1745-1772, Southam Parish had the general shape of present-day Cumberland and Powhatan Counties combined (560 square miles). For the time period of 1772-1792, Southam Parish looked like present-day Powhatan County (260 square miles) and Littleton Parish looked like Cumberland County (300 square miles).

Cumberland County is rectangular in shape, measuring about 30 miles long and ten miles wide.  During colonial times, a great portion of the county was wooded, yet, once cleared for agriculture, the soil quality was ideal for the production of tobacco. Although the Shapard’s arrived in the county as it was becoming settled, it still possessed an expanse of vast untamed lands with all types of animals. As late as 1760, the county offered a bounty paid for wolves’ heads, in an effort to exterminate them from their area.

Over the years, as settlement in Cumberland County expanded, roads developed. The natural topography greatly dictated the course of early roads, which generally followed the path of easiest travel, while avoiding the encumbrances of surrounding creeks, rivers and dense forest. In the 1760s, some of the most well traveled roads leading through southern Cumberland County were the “Main Road” (present-day Cumberland Road) and “Randolph’s Road,” leading to the towns of Lynchburg and Richmond.

Taverns were established periodically along the roads. These public houses, also known as an “ordinary,” became the center of country life, where prominent men of the area gathered to discuss matters of importance and travelers temporarily rested from their journey, sharing news from the outside world. Taverns offered its patrons food, drink, boarding, merchandise and entertainment. In southern Cumberland County one of the most well-known establishments from 1756 through 1770 was George Wright’s Ordinary on Randolph Road.  In 1766, John Lee also established a tavern near “Wright’s Ordinary.” Circa 1800, “Raine’s Tavern,” became the most recognized establishment in southern Cumberland County. It was located near the intersection of the Main Road with Randolphs Road, and there is evidence to suggest that it could have been the former Wright’s Ordinary. Over the years, Mr. Raine greatly improved the establishment, with a half-mile horse racing track, fine food and liquors and comfortable accommodations. By the early 1800s, Raines Tavern had become a customary stage stop for travelers.

                In October of 1762, William traveled to Cumberland County to visit with Mr. Thomas Wright and view the land he had for sale. The parcel was 300 acres located east of present-day Raines Tavern on the upper branches of the Green Creek, in southern Cumberland County.  Randolph’s Road and Guinea Road (later named Cook’s Road) crossed a portion of the property, which increased its desirability as plantation products could be easily accessed and shipped to market.  The land had tremendous potential and was perfect for his needs. On October 12, 1762, William purchased this land from Mr. Wright for £65 (pounds) current money of Virginia.

The transfer of the land and money was performed through the ceremony of Twig and Turf, which was a common way to transfer property during the Colonial Era in America. Basically, the property seller (Mr. Wright) and buyer (Mr. Shapard) went to the land. The seller cut a handful of turf from the ground and the buyer dropped in the hole the price of the sale or two shillings symbolically representing the full price. The seller then cut a twig and stuck it in the turf placing it in the buyer’s hand, saying, “This turf and twig I give to thee…” The seller took the money out of the hole and the buyer, now the new land owner, replaced the turf in the hole. This ceremony was an English custom of land transfer since medieval times.

                After the sale, William began the hundred mile trip back home. While on his way, in the town of Rocky Ridge (now Manchester) across the river from Richmond, William met with Mr. John Harvey, who was either a merchant or a wagon master. Mr. Harvey, owned numerous wagons and being engaged in the business of transportation, agreed to move William, Mary, their slave and their household goods from King and Queen County to Cumberland County for the sum of 10 shillings per day. In addition, Mr. Harvey anticipated that he would travel 25 miles per day and the trip would take about four days. The terms were for Mr. Harvey to return to his home in Charlotte County and get horses, drivers, wagons and provisions, as well as, a bottle of brandy for each day he would be employed, and then meet Mr. Shapard at his home in lower King and Queen County.

Mr. Harvey reached the Shapard home in November of 1762, and William and Mary loaded the wagons with everything he thought necessary and proper. Due to the lateness of the season, and the approach of winter, the weather was a concern. However, for the duration of the trip it remained pleasant during the day and only became cold at night, with one day and night of rain. On the second day of the trip, Mr. Harvey refused to further carry in the wagon Mr. Shapard’s male slave, named Phil, claiming that his weight was straining the horses. Apparently, the slave walked next to the wagon for the duration of the hundred mile trip. The wagons traveled an average of 10 to 15 miles per day along the rutted dirt roads. At the Mattaponi River, the wagon was ferried across and unloaded on the opposite side in King William County. Here the Shapard wagon joined up to caravan with the Routon family, also traveling to Cumberland County. John and Catherine Routon had also employed Mr. Harvey for the use of his services and one of his wagons in reaching Cumberland County. Shortly after joining up with the Routon family, while still in King William County, the wagons were crossing a creek when a mill dam broke upstream, rushing a tidal wave of water downstream that overwhelmed them. The surge of water nearly drowned the horses and pilots, yet they escaped in the nick of time. However, it was late in the day and by the time they reached dry land, the men were soaked and the temperature had become frigid. The party sought refuge at the first house they encountered and were able to warm themselves by the hearth and recover from the near fatal incident. Unfortunately, the next day they realized the road they wanted to travel was now flooded and they had to detour a considerable distance out of their way to regain the road. The party crossed the Pamunkey River by way of a wooden bridge and then had a stretch of about 30 miles of easy travel with few obstacles. Feeling the joy of the day and having a straight flat road, Mr. Harvey engaged in a race with the Routon wagon reaching a speed of 5 or 6 miles per hour for a considerable distance. No doubt the men were hollering and waving their hats over their heads with excitement, while the wagons tried to overtake each other. The party had the good fortune of finding two bushels of corn that had fallen along the roadside off of a wagon from an earlier traveler. The corn was divided among the members of the group. The party finally reached the James River, near Richmond, where the wagons were carefully loaded onto a ferry, upon which they traversed the large waterway, unloading at the opposite bank. Once across the river, they had entered into Cumberland County and it was just a matter of following the desolate rough roads and locating the Shapard homestead. The Shapard and Routon wagons eventually parted ways as they each traveled to their final destinations. Near the end of their journey, Mr. Shapard, became confused on which road led to his new property and ventured his wagon down the wrong path, having to backtrack a few miles upon discovery of the error. Nevertheless, in November of 1762, the worn, wearied and exhausted Shapard’s finally reached their new home in Cumberland County, after seven days of hard travel.

Here a disagreement arose between Mr. Shapard and Mr. Harvey over the fee for the trip. Mr. Harvey billed 5 pounds, 2 shillings and 6 pence for the journey; however, Mr. Shapard informed him that he had not traveled at 25 miles per day, as was agreed upon, and thus the trip took 7 days instead of the 4 days estimated. Mr. Shapard offered him £4 (pounds) total for his services, of which Mr. Harvey refused and brought suit against Mr. Shapard in Cumberland County Court to recover his full fee. The case was finally settled in favor of Mr. Harvey nine years later, on October 28, 1771, after numerous delays due to the traveling habits of Mr. Harvey. Unfortunately, however, this would not be the last time Mr. Shapard and Mr. Harvey would encounter conflict with one another.

      

          William and Mary Shapard’s new home was on 300 acres of partially wooded and partially cleared land that bordered the upper branches of the Green Creek and crossed Randolph’s Road and Guinea Road. It contained a small house and numerous utility buildings, a slave quarter, fences for livestock, a good source of water, a garden and a fruit orchard. The property was perfect for he and his young bride to establish themselves and build their future. The Shapard land was initially neighbored on the north by Thomas Johns, on the north and east by John Lee, on the south and east by John Woodson, On the south and west by Ambrose Wright, on the west by George Wright, Jr., and on the west and north by Thomas Wright; however, over the next 23 years, as land was bought and sold around them, other neighbors included: John Holman, Sr., Stark Bowler, Flamstead Ransone, Ann Price, John Price and Richard Price.

William quickly made a connection with his nearby neighbor, John Holman, Sr. Their friendship was made easy by the fact that they were about the same age, John being a few years older, and their wives were in the early stages of raising a family. The Holman name was well known in Cumberland County, being a large family of landowners spread throughout the county. Beginning in the 1780s, John Holman, Sr., became a Judge for Cumberland County. John, like William, was also a slave owner and in 1782, he had three slaves. John married Susanna Yancy, and between them they raised about 10 children: John Holman, Jr., born about 1757 and married Ann Wright; Mary Holman married Thomas Lowe; Yancy Holman was born about 1760 and married Mary___, he was apprenticed as a bricklayer/maker and fought in the Revolutionary War; Nancy Holman; Susanna Holman was born about 1767 and married William’s son Samuel B. Shapard in 1788; James Holman was born 1769 and was apprenticed as a bricklayer/maker; George Holman; Thomas Holman; Elizabeth Holman and Katy Holman.

Another neighbor whom had a close connection to the Shapard family was Mr. John Woodson, Jr., who was the son of John Woodson, Sr. (b. 1696) and Mary Miller of Cumberland County. John Jr., was born circa 1747, being a few years younger than William and lived on a property neighboring the Shapard land to the southeast. He was known as “Poplar Foot John” due to the largeness of his feet. Despite his nickname, he was considered a man of splendid stature and a very elegant speaker. John served in the army during the Revolutionary War and in 1800 represented Cumberland County in the legislature. John married Joanna Booker, the sister of Mary (Booker) Shapard, and had five sons and one daughter: Booker Woodson (B.1768), Peter Woodson (b.1770), Benjamin Woodson (b. 1772), Joseph Nathaniel Woodson (b. 1774), James Woodson (b. 1776) and Elizabeth Woodson (b. 1779) who married William Wright in Cumberland County, Va. After Joanna’s death circa 1780, John married Elizabeth (Raine) Venable, widow of John Venable and daughter of Capt. John Raine. Mr. Woodson and his new wife had five daughters and one son. It appears that John had a lasting relationship with his nephew, Samuel B. Shapard, as they had personal and business interactions with each other up through 1806.

The Shapard family flourished while in Cumberland County. On November 12, 1763, Mary and William had their first child, a baby boy they named “Samuel,” in honor of William’s father. The baby’s middle name was “Booker,” in honor of his mother’s maiden name. Over the years, William and Mary had numerous other children in Cumberland County: Circa 1765, William and Mary had a daughter they named Mildred, in honor of William’s mother. Circa 1767, they had a daughter named Elizabeth, in honor of Mary’s mother. Circa 1769, they had a son named James, in honor of Mary’s father. Approximately 1771, they had a son, William, Jr., named in honor of his father. Circa 1773, their son Booker was born and named in honor of Mary’s maiden name. Lewis was born circa 1775, and was named in honor of Mary’s brother Lewis Booker. Thomas was born on August 6, 1778, followed by the birth of a daughter named Mary, nicknamed “Polly”, circa 1780. It appears that John S. Shapard was born circa 1782; and Ann Shapard was born circa 1784. Their last child, Robert Shapard, born circa 1786, was the only child not born in Cumberland County, Virginia, as the family moved to Granville County, North Carolina, around the time of his birth. In all, William and Mary were blessed with twelve children whom would all survive to adulthood.

By the mid 1760s, Mr. Shapard was fully engaged in agriculture as a Virginia planter. He most likely planted tobacco, as this was an important cash crop of Virginia during this era of Colonial America. Other crops produced on the Shapard plantation were wheat, oats and corn. In addition, he also raised cattle, pigs and other livestock. As Mr. Shapard prospered, he invested a great amount of his wealth into slaves, growing his estate from one slave in 1762, to three slaves by 1773, to ten slaves by 1782. William utilized the services offered by Robert Hastie & Company and Neil Buchannon, Jr., and Company, being local merchants, to purchase the supplies and goods for his plantation.

In addition to his agricultural endeavors, William Shapard ventured into the shipping business by means of his slaves, horse teams and wagons. This business not only proved to be lucrative, it also provided Mr. Shapard with a great deal of adventure as he traveled from one county to another within Virginia, and perhaps beyond. During this era, roads were unpaved, encumbered with tree stumps, rocks and ruts; often proving hazardous to travelers. Conditions only worsened with the addition of snowmelt or rain which made sludge of the roads, caking mud onto the wagon wheels and providing questionable footing for the horses. Mr. Shapard always traveled with at least one of his male slaves, not only as a safety precaution, but also utilizing them as labor, to load and unload the cargo. Interestingly, Mr. Shapard’s expertise in waggonage and the conveyance of goods would prove to be highly beneficial in supplying food and provisions to the American soldiers during the Revolutionary War.

In April of 1767, Mr. Shapard was appointed as the Surveyor of the road leading from George Wright’s land up the Sandy Ford with the “usual gang.” As the population of Cumberland County grew, it was necessary for new roads to be established and for old roads to be maintained and widened as horseback travel gave way to greater wagon traffic. During this era, colonial roads were governed by the County Courts as they saw fit. The courts enforced legislation that required every male tithable in the county between the age of 16 to 60, slave or free, to work the roads in their area a certain number of days each year during the months of April and September.  This work entailed the maintenance of existing roads by clearing away debris, brush and roots, the widening of established roads and the construction of new roads. In 1764, the law required roads to be 20 feet wide (previously was 12 feet wide) with a 14 foot height clearance from overhanging tree limbs. Directional road sign posts with mile markers to towns were required to be maintained by the road overseer throughout the year. For new roads, the County Court appointed 12 local landowners to convene and determine its course. Once approved, road gangs, of approximately ten local men, were appointed by the court to work a given section of road; and Surveyors were appointed to ensure that whatever construction or maintenance was required of the road was accomplished by the gang. Mr. Shapard’s appointment as Surveyor illustrates that his peers considered him a responsible gentleman, capable of effectively commanding a team of men.  

After his appointment as a Surveyor, Mr. Shapard continued to foster a reputation as being an honest and educated man. These attributes led to him being elected by the vestry of Southam Parish, on July 29, 1771, as a Processioner of land. Specifically the vestry ordered that, “Joseph Michaux, William Sheppard and John Chambers or any two of them between the last day of March and the last day of September next begin and procession all the lands and renew and mark the several lines between Appomattox River, Green Creek and Randdolphs Road and make their return according to law.”

The Laws of Virginia for 1710 discussed procession of land; in which, every four years, between June and September, the parish would be divided into precincts, and then, between September and March, every landowner within those precincts would confirm the boundaries of their land by walking and marking their borders with their neighbors. The vestry appointed “at least two intelligent honest freeholders [landowners] of every precinct to see such processing is preformed, and take and return to the vestry an account of every person’s land they shall procession, and of the persons present at the same, and of what lands in their precinct they shall fail to procession, and of the particular reasons of such failure.” Interestingly, William’s father had been elected as a Processioner of land for Stratton Major Parish, in King and Queen County, during the years 1739, 1743, 1747 and 1751. The fact that William was also appointed by the vestry to this position in Southam Parish confirms that he, like his father, was an educated man, being able to read and write, had good communicative skills and was young enough and healthy enough to travel the appointed precinct.

Interestingly, from the processioner’s returns of Southam Parish, for the years 1763 and 1771, we find that William Shapard’s plantation is listed in a multitude of precincts. In 1763, he is listed as owning land “between Randolphs Road, the Clover Forrest Road and the County Line” (Precinct #1); he is also listed as owning land “between Angola Creek, Appomattox River, Green Creek and Randolphs Road” (Precinct #5). In 1771, he is listed as owning land “between Appomattox River, Green Creek and Randolphs Road” (Precinct #3); he is also listed as owning land “between Col. William Macon’s upper lines, Angola Creek, Randolphs Road, Glenn’s Path to Great Guinea Creek, to the said Macon’s line” (Precinct #7). From the above returns, it becomes evident that the Shapard plantation was located where Precincts 1, 3, 5 and 7 converge (see map).    

In late 1771 or early 1772, William’s stepfather, John Townley died in King and Queen County, Virginia. Mr. Townley became William’s stepfather circa 1754, when William was about twelve years of age.  Mr. Townley ensured that William received a proper education during his youth, allowing him to read and write, and acquire all the benefits of a scholar, as well as, teaching him agriculture and plantation management. After Mr. Townley’s death, his sons, James and John, Jr., inherited his estate in Essex and King and Queen County. His widow, Mildred (Crockford) (Shapard) Townley eventually left Essex County and resided near her old estate in the vicinity of the town of Cologne in King and Queen County. She remained in this neighborhood, most likely living with one of her daughters (Francis Crittenden, Sarah Vass or Mildred Burch) until her own death in October or November of 1781.

 In 1772, Littleton Parish was created from the western portion of Southam Parish. Littleton Parish assumed the general shape of present-day Cumberland County, encompassing approximately 300 square miles. The William Shapard plantation, due to its location, was assimilated into the boundaries of the new parish, and on August 23, 1773, William Shapard and three of his slaves, Phill, Nancy and Esther, were officially added to the annual taxes of Littleton Parish. William was required to pay taxes (tithes) to the parish for all white men over the age of 16 and all slaves, male and female, over the age of 16.