I had a day off from work and decided to take the time to go to the Library of Virginia and do some more research. I needed Gloucester County records, and the library has them on film. I started searching what was available, but it wasn’t much and it doesn’t seem to go back any farther than 1820, and even then, no deeds or wills. The 1820 records are clerk’s minute books, and not the actual deed and will books. I started with the first one, which blessedly had an index. I saw several Davis records listed, so began checking them one by one. The first one was pay dirt. It was a chancery cause, pitting the children of John Davis (as well as those of his son, Williams E. Davis) against John Cully and his wife, Elizabeth, who was the widow of John Davis. Here is a scanned copy of the record. If you prefer a typed transcription, here is one of those.
There were several discoveries there. The most significant is the additional proof of John and Elizabeth Davis’s existence. While it doesn’t establish her maiden name as being Edwards, it goes a long way to validating some of the other information passed on to us by previous generations. Among other interesting bits of information provided are the names of John Davis’s children – John A. Davis, Elizabeth Ann, Emeline B., Caroline and Mary W. Davis, listed as “infant children of John Davis,” which I take to mean that they are not yet old enough to file complaints or represent themselves in court.
Also, due to the nature and content of the pleading, we must assume that John Davis died sometime before 1821, the date this is recorded. As Elizabeth had remarried already, perhaps several years had elapsed since his death. It will be hard to know, given the lack of records for Gloucester County. Despite that, I am glad to have tracked down something of record relating directly to John Davis. If he lived in Isle of Wight County, he certainly left mighty faint footprints there.