Posts
From everything I have read so far about the Jefferson family, they came from Wales and specifically Mount Snowden area, north west Wales, near Gynned. I found some beautiful pictures of the area that you will see in the below links. It's hard to believe that someone would leave this wonderful place. Mt. Snowden written in Welsh is Yr Wyddfa which means Tumulus or tomb. It is said that King Arthur killed the giant Rith Gawr on the summit of the mountain. Rith Gawr was a slayer of men and kings that used the beard of his vanquished for his coats. Water monsters and faeries also live in the mystical Welsh mountains.
Although Wales is a lovely place, men were looking to expand their fortunes and were seeking religious freedom in the seventeenth and eighteenth century. I do not know the reason why this family of Jefferson's immigrated to America, but I can imagine the stories of fortunes and freedom were a great lure. They first traveled to the Virgin Islands as you will see below.
The First Thomas Jefferson was born on St Christopher's Island in the British Virgin Islands in 1656 and there are some sources that say he was born in Gynned, Wales in 1653. He is said to be the son of Samuel Jeafferson, but his mother's name is unknown. They had a Tobacco Plantation at St. Christophers, but they moved to Antiqua in 1669. St Chrisptopher or St. Kitts was colonized by the English in 1623/1628. I have posted a map below. So in all probability Samuel Jeafferson was one of the first settlers of St. Christophers. You will also see Antiqua on the map below. Later during First Thomas Jefferson's young adult life he would move to Henrico County, Virginia.
http://www.worldatlas.com/webimage/countrys/namerica/caribb/kn.htm
Below is a excerpt from the book "Thomas Jefferson: A Life" by Willard Sterne Randall page 3
The first particular information I have of any ancestor was of my grandfather, Jefferson wrote in his memoirs. Jefferson seems to have known nothing of his great-grandfather, Thomas Jefferson I, a yeoman farmer who was also the first of his family to move to the western frontier of Virginia. Thomas I was married to Mary Branch, the granddaughter of Christopher Branch, who had been a member of the House of Burgesses and had amassed at least 1,380 acres. In April 1682, Thomas Jefferson I purchased 167 acres in Henrico County near the falls of the James. A skilled hunter, he collected bounties for killing wolves. He also learned surveying, thus establishing a family tradition. Accumulating a modest fortune, he was nevertheless referred to as "mister," rather than "esquire," indicating he was less than prominent in the colony. Trusted by his neighbors, he was frequently asked to serve on juries and several times was executor of his neighbors' estates. The Henrico County Court appointed him surveyor of the public highways. His marriage to Mary Branch brought him a son, Thomas, a daughter, Martha, and one-fifth of his wife's father's property. By the time he died in 1697, Thomas I owned several slaves, enough to produce nearly two tons of tobacco a year. He estate included such hints of luxury as "an old silver dram cup, buttons and shoe buckles.
Thomas Jefferson by John Torrey Morris page 2
Thomas Jefferson by Henry Childs Merwin page 1
Thomas Jefferson by David Saville Muzzey, PHD page 2
http://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Jefferson-17
http://www.co.henrico.va.us/about-henrico/history/four-faces-of-pocahontas/
Information about Mt. Snowden
http://ezinearticles.com/?Interesting-facts-about-Mount-Snowdon,-Wales&id=176332
http://www.jameswiseman.com/snowdon.php
http://www.google.com/search?q=mt+snowdon+wales&hl=en&newwindow=1&safe=off&prmd=ivnsm&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=ix3uTabmEafZ0QGYl7iZCA&ved=0CDAQsAQ&biw=1680&bih=959
http://www.bbc.co.uk/wales/history/sites/themes/society/migration_northamerica.shtml
Memoir, Correspondence, and Miscellanies, From the Papers of Thomas Jefferson
Thomas Jefferson: A Film by Ken Burns [VHS]
No comments:
Post a Comment