Person Page 291

NOTE: The early genealogical literature concerning Walter Chiles mistakenly concluded that Walter Chiles I (1608-1653) and his son, Walter Chiles, Jr. [aka II] (1630-1671), were a single entity (1608-1671) which has led to much confusion in the genealogical literature. This has been proven to be incorrect and is confirmed by several accepted sources including, "A Timeline for Structures at Jamestown Related to the Chiles Family" by Lee Pelham Cotton, 2006. (Lee Pelham Cotton was a Park Ranger for the National Park Service when he wrote this article.)

Walter Chiles II was born about 1630 in England and as a youngster accompanied his parents, Walter and Elizabeth (__?__) Chiles I, when they emigrated to Jamestown, Virginia between the dates, 24 July 1637 and 01 March 1638. (See FAG memorial of Walter Chiles I for an explanation of these dates.) It is reported that the family emigrated to Virginia aboard a ship owned and outfitted by Walter Chiles I. The name of this ship is uncertain but has been purported to have been the "Fame of Virginia" (See FAG memorial of Walter Chiles I for a discussion of this ship.) William Chiles, the younger brother of Walter Chiles II, also accompanied his parents on the voyage to Virginia and both sons were listed as head rights in 1638 for their father (Ref: Nugent, Nell M., "Cavaliers and Pioneers", 1934, pp103-4). No further record is found of William Chiles. He probably either died shortly after arriving in Virginia or returned to England.

In the genealogical literature there is confusion as to whether Walter Chiles I or his son, Walter Chiles II, was referred to as Lieutenant Colonel. Which ever case, it was probably an honorary title. Walter Chiles II inherited his father's estate in 1653. The estate included the "Kemp House" in Jamestown (the first brick dwelling in America) which Walter Chiles I purchased from Governor Sir William Berkeley in 1649 for 26,000 pounds of tobacco. Elizabeth Chiles, Walter Chiles II's mother who retained her dower interest, continued to live in the "Kemp House" after the death of her husband. Walter Chiles I also owned 70 acres of land at Black Point, located near the easternmost tip of Jamestown Island which also was inherited by his son, Walter II. (Cavaliers and Pioneers, by Nugent, Vol. 2, p. 112). "Black Point" was the first part of Jamestown Island viewed when sailing up the James River. The more than 1600 acres owned by Walter Chiles I located along the Appomattox River in Charles City County were included in the estate as well. In November 1855, Walter II of James City sold 813 acres in Charles City Co., VA along the Appomattox River for a valuable sum of tobacco. This is the same land patented by Walter Chiles I and re-patented by his son, Walter Chiles II (Beverly Fleet "Virginia Colonial Abstracts", Vol. 10, p24).

Walter Chiles II married first, Mary Page, daughter of wealthy York Co., VA merchant, Colonel John Page, the Councillor (Ref: "Virginia Carolorum, The Colony Under the Rule of Charles the First and Second A. D. 1625 — A. D. 1685" by Edward Duffield Neill, 1886, p232). The couple lived in the "Kemp House" with Elizabeth Chiles, the widow of Walter Chiles I who retained her dower interest, for a while before building their own 38 X 24 foot house sometime in the 1650s. While living in the "Kemp House", after his marriage to Mary Page, Walter II added on to the house, increasing its size by 37 feet (Ambler Manuscripts, #24, Library of Congress, Personal Papers, V.S.L., Acc. No.33142). Their own house was also of brick construction and was located directly in front of "Kemp House" on Jamestown Island. This new house most probably consisted of two rooms, heated by a fireplace in the west gable (Ref: "A Timeline for Structures at Jamestown Related to the Chiles Family" by Lee Pelham Cotton, 2006. (Lee Pelham Cotton was a Park Ranger for the National Park Service when he wrote this article.)

Mary (Page) Chiles' death date is unknown but she died before her parents and did not live to see her children grown. Her widower husband, Walter Chiles II, married secondly Susanna (__?__) whose maiden name is in question. It has been suggested to have been "Brooks" in the genealogical literature without supporting documentation (Ref: Joanne Webb Chiles Eakin, "Walter Chiles of Jamestown", 1983, p.10 [Out of print]). The "Jamestowne Society" presently does not recognize nor accept a maiden name for Susanna Chiles, second wife of Walter Chiles II. Walter Chiles II died on 15 Nov 1671 (date accepted by the "Jamestowne Society") and like his father, there is speculation that Walter II's short life was related to the very unhealthy conditions he experience from residing on Jamestown Island. Susanna Chiles wed secondly about August 1672 to Reverend James Wadding, the rector of the church at Jamestown. They sold the lot containing the "Kemp House" and the house built adjacent to it by Walter Chiles II and his 1st wife, Mary Page, on 20 Nov 1673 for seven thousand pounds of tobacco, a surprisingly small sum (Ambler Manuscript, #24, Library of Congress, Personal Papers, V.S.L., Acc. No.33142). Following the sale, they moved to Gloucester Co., VA where James Wadding was rector of Petsworth Parish until 1677. The purchaser of the houses from the Rev. James and Susanna (Chiles) Waddings was Col. John Page, the father of Walter Chiles II's first wife, Mary Page. As mentioned above, he was a York Co., VA merchant and resident of Bruton Parish at Middle Plantation (the site of present-day Williamsburg), where he dwelt in a brick house he had built in 1662. Sometime before September 1676, Col. John Page razed the "Kemp House" and built a new structure.

NOTE: As noted above, the Rev. James Wadding and his wife, Susanna Chiles Wadding, moved to Gloucester County, where he was the minister of Petsworth Parish. This was the time of Bacon's Rebellion. Wadding was a loyalist and refused to take the oath of allegiance exacted by Bacon, and encouraged others to refuse. Thereupon, Bacon "committed him to the Guarde, telling him that it was his place to preach in the church, not in the camp. In the first, he may say what he pleased, but in the last, he (Wadding) was to say no more than what should please him (Bacon): unless he could fight to better purpose than he could preach." Not long after this, Bacon was taken very sick with the fever and Rev. Wadding was the minister who attended him in his last illness. Bacon died October 26, 1676 at Major Pate's house on Poropotank Creek in Gloucester County.

Walter Chiles II served as churchwarden of James City Parish [Church of England] (Ref. "Old Churches, Ministers and Families of Virginia" by William Meade, 1910) and served as a justice of James City County in 1664. He also served in the House of Burgesses, sessions 1658, 1659, 1660 and 1663. (Hening, William Waller, "Statutes at Large: being a collection of all the laws of Virginia from the first session of the legislature in the year 1619", Vol. I, 1969, pp258, 322)

On Apr. 4, 1671, the Council Journal records a General Court meeting at James City. Walter Chiles II appeared on behalf of his sons, John and Henry Chiles, patenting 1500 acres in Westmoreland County, VA. (Ref: McIlwaine, H.R., "Minutes of the Council and General Court of Colonial Virginia", 1622-1632 (Richmond, Virginia, 1924), p245.

The will of Walter Chiles I has not been found, but it is known that he made a will from a 20 Nov 1673 deed drawn up by Susanna Chiles Wadding, the widow of Walter Chiles II, to sell the "Kemp House", as noted above, to Col. John Page, the father of Walter Chiles II's first wife, Mary Page. To identify the "Kemp House" that had been bought by her father-in-law, Walter Chiles I, and passed down to her husband, Walter Chiles II, now deceased, the deed identified Walter Chiles I, the father, as having died "in the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred fifty three". This also confirms that it was Walter Chiles I who originally purchased the house in Jamestown (Ref. Amblar Manuscript No. 24, Library of Congress, Personal Papers, V.S.L., Acc. No.33142).

The children of Walter and Mary (Page) Chiles II were (Walter's 1st marriage):
1) Elizabeth Chiles - She was probably named after her paternal grandmother, Elizabeth (__?__) Chiles, wife of Walter Chiles I. She married Henry Tyler before 1683 and was the great-grandmother of John Tyler, the 10th President of the United States (POTUS).
2) John Chiles- He was probably named after his maternal grandfather, Col. John Page, father of Mary (Page) Chiles. John was a wealthy man by the standards of the time, and he was closely connected to leaders of the colony. In 1700-02 he was part owner, with William Byrd II (1674-1744) and William Randolph II (1681-1742), of the sloop "Westover". In 1702 he was mace bearer of the House of Burgesses. He moved to what is now King William County and owned substantial land, securing patents to 1245 acres there in 1690-91. John was a Justice in King William Co., VA in 1714 and was dead by 1724, since Eleanor, his second wife, d/o Henry Webber, had married Edward Hickman by that date.
NOTE: In his will of March 5, 1687, Col. John Page mentions his grandson John Chiles, as well as his "grandsonne John Tyler, sonne of my grand-daughter Elizabeth Tyler." Elizabeth Chiles had married Henry Tyler of Middle Plantation, and thus became the ancestress of President John Tyler. (Ref: See source #1 below).

The child of Walter and Susanna (__?__) Chiles II (Walter's 2nd marriage) was Henry Chiles. There is no evidence as to his exact birth date but it was before 1671 and probably in the "Kemp House" at James Cittie (Jamestown). Henry spent at least part of his youth in Gloucester Co., VA as his mother, Susanna Chiles Wadding, and his stepfather, Reverend James Wadding, moved there in 1673. Rev. Waddling remained rector of Petsworth Parish until 1677. Henry Chiles married twice and had a daughter named Anne Chiles by his second wife, Mary (__?__). Anne Chiles married Henry Terrell on 08 Nov 1734 at Caroline Co., VA (References. "The Colonial Genealogist", Vol XI, Nos. 1&2, 39-40 Issue, 1982, p8; "Richmond, William and Timothy Terrell, Colonial Virginians", Compiled by Celeste Jane Terrell Barnhill, 1934, pp128/29.). Henry and Anne (Chiles) Terrell's daughter, Elizabeth "Betty" Ann Terrell (1738-1773) married Zachariah Moorman (1732-1787) on 12 Jan 1755 at Caroline Co., VA. Zachariah Moorman is recognized by both the SAR and DAR as a patriot of the American Revolutionary War. NOTE: This scenario is accepted by the "Jamestowne Society".

Henry Chiles died before 27 Feb 1719 in Hanover Co., VA.

Like his father, Walter Chiles I, both Walter Chiles II and his second wife, Susanna (__?__) Chiles, are qualifying ancestors for membership in the "Jamestowne Society". The explanation for Susanna Chiles being a qualifying ancestor for membership is her documented ownership of land on Jamestown Island.

Sources:
1) "A Timeline for Structures at Jamestown Related to the Chiles Family" by Lee Pelham Cotton, 2006. (Lee Pelham Cotton was a Park Ranger for the National Park Service when he wrote this article.)
2) "Genealogies of Virginia Families from the William and Mary College Quarterly Historical Magazine", Vol. I (Adams-Clopton), 1982, pp734-736, 742, 745.

Bio by Gresham Farrar.

Walter Chiles I's (1608-1653) English family was from Crowle, Worcestershire and Bristol, England.

1) Great-Grandparents: His great-grandfather was likely Richard Childe who was buried at Crowle, Worcestershire on the 6th of May 1540. His great-grandmother was possibly Isabel Childes who was buried on the 10th day of February 1545/6 or Margaret Childes listed as deceased in October 1547 in Crowle.

2) Grandparents: William Childes married at Crowle on 21 January 1543/4 to Alice (__?__). William Childes was buried the 24th of May 1563 at Crowle and Ales Chiles, "widdow was buried ye 7th day of January 1598/9 at Crowle". The above includes all of the known instances of the Childes/Childs/Child family of Crowle, Worcestershire in the Crowle Parish Registers.

3) Parents: John Childs, a textile merchant, one of three siblings, was baptized at Crowle, Worcestershire on 20 October 1555. John Childe and Katherine Johnes were married on 12 Jan 1582 at Temple Parish (Bristol). Katherine Childe died of the plague about 1602. John Childe married secondly Alice Wellstedd on 06 Feb 1603 at Temple Parish (Bristol). She was the mother of Walter Chiles I (1608-1653) who was baptized in the church of Saint Mary Redcliffe in Bristol, England on 20 March 1609. The last record of John Childes alive was 1628. It appears significant that the last three records of John Chiles in 1605, 1628 and 1632/3 spelled his name "Chiles", without the "d" as is the spelling of Walter Chiles I, his son. In 1632/3, in his High Court of Admiralty (HCA) deposition (see below) of 24 July 1637 and in almost all of the records of Virginia his name is spelled "Chiles". (Reference: "A complete Revision of the Ancestry of Walter Chiles (1608-1653) of Bristol, England and Jamestowne, Virginia" by Arden H. Brame, Jr., 2014, pp110, 111, 114 ("The English Genealogist of The Augustan Society").

NOTE: The early genealogical literature concerning Walter Chiles mistakenly concluded that Walter Chiles I and his son, Walter Chiles II, were a single entity (1608-1671) which has led to much confusion in the genealogical literature. This has been proven to be incorrect and is confirmed by several accepted sources including, "A Timeline for Structures at Jamestown Related to the Chiles Family" by Lee Pelham Cotton, 2006. (Lee Pelham Cotton was a Park Ranger for the National Park Service when he wrote this article.)

The first mention of the original Chiles emigrant to Virginia is found in the records of the High Court of Admiralty Examinations in England, in record No. 301, Vol. 53 which stated: "Case of Phillip Luxon (Luxton) versus William Harris dated 24 July 1637. Deposition of Walter Chiles of Bristol, clothworker, aged 29 or thereabouts, examined on behalf of William Harris and Nicholas Jollye." (Significantly, Walter Chiles I signed his own name to the document.)

This deponent (Walter Chiles I) stated that he was a passenger on the ship "Blessing" out of Falmouth at James Town, Virginia for fourteen weeks and was employed by William Harris and Nicholas Jollye (merchants) to be the assistant to the witness, HENRY TUTTON, then chief purser of the said ship, to help sell and dispose of their goods in Virginia. Walter was employed to serve 12 months." [Walter Chiles gave evidence in his deposition about the cargo including the gin and whiskey that the Master of the "Blessing", Phillip Luxon, was accused of drinking during the voyage]. The "Blessing" returned from Virginia to England via Kinsale in Ireland and Falmouth in Cornwall. Chiles served on her from 26 Sep 1636 to 24 Jun 1637 and the ship stayed 14 weeks in Jamestown, Virginia. Note: This record confirms that Walter Chiles I was born about 1608 in England and that he was the same Walter Chiles who emigrated to Virginia in 1637/8 as he lists as one of his headrights in his first grant of land (01 Mar 1638) one HENRY TUTTON, his former boss, the chief purser on the "Blessing".

Walter Chiles must have been very impressed with the future possibilities of this new land after his brief visit to Jamestown aboard the "Blessing". Shortly after his return to England in 1637, he and family emigrated to Virginia, reportedly in his own ship (which could possibly have been the "Fame of Virginia" mentioned later in this narrative) sometime between 24 July 1637 when he gave his HCA deposition in England and 01 March 1638 when his and his family's headrights were recorded. The first record we have of Chiles actually living in Virginia was recorded in Nugent, Nell M., "Cavaliers and Pioneers", 1934, pp103-4 as: "Walter Chiles, 400 acres, Charles Citty Co. (now Prince George County), 01 Mar 1638, West upon Apomattuck [sic] River, North upon the land of Edward Tunstall and South toward the falls. 200 acres for the personal adventure of himself, his wife, Elizabeth Chiles, his sons: Walter and William, and 200 acres for transportation of 4 persons (headrights), namely: HENRY TUTTON, Jonathan Gerry, Jonathan Shaw and Sarah Cole." (One wonders if Walter's former boss, Henry Tutton, worked off his indenture or paid him.) NOTE: Elizabeth Chiles maiden name has yet to be proven although "Maury" and "Sanders" are suggested without documentation in the genealogical literature. Their son, William Chiles, does not appear again in Virginia records (He may have died shortly after arriving in Virginia or perhaps he may have returned to England).

Other land owned by Walter I included:

1) On 02 May 1638 he received a further grant of 250 acres on the Appomattox River (Land Book I, 551 and 625) This grant was described as "westerly from ye river and easterly, &c, upon the land of Edward Tunstall; 50 acres for his own personal adventure and two hundred for the transportation of four other persons, viz: William Webb, Stephen Gorris, John Kimberlin and Ann Polory".

2) In March 1638, 613 acres in Charles City (Land Book I, p859).

3) 813 acres purchased from William Thomas located upon the southerly side the Appomattox River in Charles City County (Land Book II, pp193 & 203); "Cavaliers and Pioneers", by Nugent, Vol. 1, pp186-187, Patent Book, No. 2).

4) Walter Chiles I also acquired 70 acres of land at Black Point, located near the easternmost tip of Jamestown Island. "Black Poynt" is the long tip of Jamestown Island and was the first point of the island seen by the settlers when they sailed up the James River. Very early there was a road to the Point which wound two and one half miles from James City (later called Jamestown) at the other end of the island. Today, the National Park Service has built a road which circles the island, with a path to Black Point. The land of Walter Chiles encompassed the end of the island, between Pitch and Tar Swamp and Goose Hill, both identified on the island road today. As one looks at a map of Jamestown, the land can be identified as being between Passmore Creek and Kingsmill Creek. (Cavaliers and Pioneers, by Nugent, Vol. 2, p. 112).

In June 1641, in hope of expanding his business, Chiles joined three other men, Walter Austin, Richard Hoe and Joseph Johnson and "such others as they shall see fit to join them, in petitioning the General Assembly for permission to "undertake the discovery of a new river or unknowne land bearing west, southerly from Appomattake [sic] river." The assembly granted them a license in January 1642 and renewed it in 1643, but the Anglo-Powhatan War of 1644– 1646 temporarily halted exploration and closed trading opportunities in the west. They did not attempt to obtain another license. (Ref: "A History of the Settlement Virginia 1400-1800" by Danny Dixon, 2002)

In the genealogical literature there is confusion as to whether Walter Chiles I or his son, Walter Chiles II, was referred to as Lieutenant Colonel. Which ever case, it was probably an honorary title. Through hard work and dedication to the colony, Walter I became a wealthy man and was held in high esteem by his fellow colonists. Walter excelled in business and took an active part in the affairs of the Virginia Colony by becoming very politically active. He was elected to the House of Burgesses from Charles City County for the assembly that met on January 12, 1642, and signed a declaration against a revival of the Virginia Company of London. He represented the county again in 1643 and took part in the last meetings of the General Assembly as a unicameral body and the first sessions of the House of Burgesses as a separate branch of the assembly. Further, he subsequently moved to James City County, which he represented in the assemblies of the House of Burgesses that began on November 20, 1645; October 5, 1646 ; and October 10, 1649 (See attached record of his serving as Burgess in 1645/46 and 1649 from James City) . It is possible that his absence from some of the intervening legislative sessions was a consequence of trips to England. He was a member of the Council (Assembly), the upper house, in 1651 where he was elected speaker in 1652 but didn't serve (see explanation below). ["Northumberland Records and Virginia Historical Magazine", Vol. VIII, p197].

Walter was also a ship owner who regularly traveled between Virginia and England transporting merchandise and immigrants and may have carried messages between the governor and the Crown. After the future king, Charles II, fled England for the Netherlands, Walter probably carried messages between the government in Virginia and the court in exile. On the 24 Jan 1651, Walter I sailed for Rotterdam in his ship, the "Fame of Virginia". On returning from Rotterdam in 1652 and upon reaching Chesapeake Bay, he first put into port in Accomack County, VA. After being for a time in Accomack waters, the ship sailed bound for James City, VA (Jamestown) but was pursued and captured by Capt. Robert Henfield, who held a commission from the "Protectors of the Liberties of England" (Read: Oliver Cromwell). A second English ship, the "Hopeful Adventure", commanded by Captain Richard Husband arrived about 3 hours later and seized the "Fame of Virginia" under the pretext that Chiles had no license from Oliver Cromwell's English Parliament to trade with the Netherlands.

Chiles immediately applied to the Northampton Co., Virginia authorities for assistance, maintaining that the seizure was illegal. The Court of Northampton concurred and ordered an immediate release of the ship but Capt. Husband ignored the order and sailed away with the vessel (William and Mary Quarterly, Vol. I, pp16,152,153). The economic damage to Chiles was estimated as 2000 pounds sterling, a very large sum. Governor Bennett, on July 5, 1652, sent a note to the House of Burgesses, which happened to be convening the same day, advising them not to vote Lt. Col. Walter Chiles as Speaker of the Assembly due to the incident of his ship being seized because of his involvement in illegal trading with the Netherlands. The Burgesses did not accept the advice of the Governor and the next day by a plurality voted him Speaker of the Assembly. To the honor of Col. Chiles, he at once declined to serve. The House of Burgesses then granted him the ship "Leopoldus of Dunkirk" as a replacement for his seized ship, with all of its equipment, guns, etc. for 400 pounds sterling. The larger "Leopoldus of Dunkirk" had been confiscated for violation of the Navigation Laws. ("William and Mary Quarterly, Vol. I No.17, Hening, Vol. I, pp377-78)

An interesting aside concerning Lt. Col. Walter Chiles I relates to his residence, "Kemp House", on Jamestown Island. In 1638-9, Richard Kemp, who served as Governor's Councilor and Secretary of the Virginia Colony built his "brick house" on 3 1/2 acres of land. At the time, Governor Sir John Harvey identified Kemp's house as the first brick dwelling at Jamestown and thus "THE FIRST BRICK HOUSE IN AMERICA". Governor Harvey described the house as "the fairest that ever was knowen [sic] in this countrye [sic] for substance and uniformity". Richard Kemp fell on hard times and sold his house to Governor Wyatt in 1641. Around 1644, Governor Sir William Berkeley purchased the property and in March 1649 sold it and its acreage to merchant and Burgess Walter Chiles I for the sum of 26,000 pounds of tobacco. NOTE: See attached transcription of the 1649 deed transferring ownership of "Kempe House" from Governor Sir William Berkeley to Walter Chiles I. Sometime prior to his death in 1653, Walter Chiles I, as noted above, also acquired 70 acres of land at Black Point, located near the easternmost tip of Jamestown Island. When Walter Chiles I died, his widow, Elizabeth, retained a dower interest and remained in the "Kemp House". It isn't known when and where Elizabeth Chiles died. Their son, Walter Chiles II, inherited the estate including the 70 acres of land at Black Point on Jamestown Island from his father. The more than 1600 acres of land that Walter Chiles I owned along the Appomattox River in Charles City County were also part of his estate. There is speculation that Walter's short life was somewhat related to the very unhealthy conditions he experience from residing on Jamestown Island.

The will of Walter Chiles I has not been found, but it is known that he made a will from a 20 Nov 1673 deed drawn up by Susanna Chiles Wadding, the widow of Walter Chiles II, to sell the "Kemp House" to Col. John Page, the father of Walter Chiles II's first wife, Mary Page. To identify the "Kemp House" that had been bought by her father-in-law, Walter Chiles I, and passed down to her husband, Walter Chiles II, the deed identified Walter Chiles I, the father, as having died "in the year of our Lord one thousand six hundred fifty three". This also confirms that it was Walter Chiles I who originally purchased the house in Jamestown (Ref. Amblar Manuscript No. 24, Library of Congress, Personal Papers, V.S.L., Acc. No.33142).

The children of Walter and Elizabeth (__?__) Chiles I were:
1) Walter Chiles II b. Abt. 1630 England, d. 1671 Jamestown, Virginia.
2) William Chiles b. England, d. Unknown

Walter Chiles I is a qualifying ancestor for membership in the "Jamestowne Society".

Sources:
1) "The Chiles Family in Virginia" by W. B. Cridlin, "The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography", Vol. 19, No. 1 (Jan. 1911), pp104-106.
2) "A Timeline for Structures at Jamestown Related to the Chiles Family" by Lee Pelham Cotton, 2006. (Lee Pelham Cotton was a Park Ranger for the National Park Service when he wrote this article.)
3) "Genealogies of Virginia Families from the William and Mary College Quarterly Historical Magazine", Vol. I (Adams-Clopton), 1982, pp734-736
4) Kukla, Jon, "Speakers and Clerks of the Virginia House of Burgesses", 1643– 1776. Richmond: Virginia State Library, 1981.