This article details proof that Walter Chiles II is a qualifying ancestor for the Society of Colonial Wars, and details proof of the lineage of Walter Chiles II to the Mullins family.
Qualifying Military Service
Walter Chiles II represented James City County in the House of Burgesses in 1658, and again in 1663-1664 [1]. He probably did not serve as a Burgess before 1658 [2], as some earlier histories had suggested.
A deed was recorded May 20, 1670, for Mr. Walter Chiles for 70 acres “in James Citty Island called Black Poynt.” The deed states that this land was granted to his father, Walter Chiles, and was due Walter Chiles II “as sonne & her” [3]. This deed proves that Walter Chiles II owned Black Point on Jamestown Island.
Walter Chiles II satisfies the criteria as a qualifying ancestor for the Society of Colonial Wars based on his service as a Burgess. He satisfies the criteria as a qualifying ancestor for the Jamestown Society based on his service as a Burgess and based on his ownership of land on Jamestown Island before 1700, specifically Black Point.
Walter’s First Marriage
Walter Chiles II first married Mary Page, daughter of Colonel John Page, before July 5, 1653, when Walter Chiles was identified as the son-in-law of Col. Page in testimony before the Virginia Assembly [4]. The year of Mary Page’s death is not known, but Walter Chiles had married Susannah and had a son by her before April 4, 1671 [5].
The will of Col. John Page mentioned two grandchildren by his daughter, John and Elizabeth [6]. The fact that Walter III was not mentioned as a grandchild of Col. Page is presumptive evidence that he was not a son of Mary Page, and therefore that he was the son of Walter and Susanna.
Susannah Chiles – Land Owner On Jamestown Island
After Walter Chiles II’s death, the Council of Virginia granted Susannah Chiles 200 acres of land in James City, in an order dated May 15 1672 [7]. Susannah is referred to in the order as the “relict and executrix” of Walter Chiles.
The above citations show that Henry Chiles was the son of Susanna Chiles, and that Susannah owned land in James City, which was granted her after the death of her husband, Walter Chiles. Susannah Chiles satisfies the criteria as a qualifying ancestor for the Jamestown Society based on her land ownership on Jamestown Island before 1700.
Chiles Lineage
Surviving records for colonial Virginia are sparse, but there is convincing evidence that Henry Chiles was the son of Walter Chiles and Susannah, as noted above, and as follows.
Birth Record Of Henry Chiles
The names of 2 of Walter Chiles’ sons, John and Henry, are recorded the Council Journal, Jamestown. On April 4, 1671, Walter Chiles II appeared on behalf of his sons John and Henry relative to a land patent in Westmoreland County [8,9].
Geographical Proximity
Henry Chiles first appears as an adult in land records in Kent County in 1696 [10]. Kent County was adjacent to, and due west of, James City, where Walter Chiles lived with his family at Kemp house. The proximity of the homestead of the adult Henry Chiles to the homestead of Walter Chiles in James City is supporting evidence that this Henry Chiles was Walter’s son.
Proximity Of Brother John
Walter Chiles’s other documented son, John Chiles, also first appears as an adult in land records in New Kent County. Specifically, he patented 345 acres of land in New Kent on Crump’s Creek on October 23, 1690 [11]. The land owned by Henry Chiles in 1696, referenced in the previous paragraph was also on Crump’s Creek.
The fact that Henry and John Chiles first appear in adulthood owning land in such close proximity, on Crump’s Creek in New Kent County, is supporting evidence that this Henry Chiles of New Kent County was John’s brother, and was the son of Walter Chiles and Susannah [maiden name unknown).
Family Traditions
There are many sources that state that Henry Chiles of New Kent County, later Hanover County, was the son of Walter Chiles of James City. The lineage traditions cited in the references below are from 3 separate, distant branches of the Chiles family. The fact that these 3 distant families maintain a tradition of lineage through Henry Chiles to Walter Chiles the Immigrant, increases the probability both that the claims of lineage are independent (rather than from a single source), and that the claims date back in time from individuals who had personal, first-hand knowledge of the correct lineage.
Family A
Tradition in the Caroline County family of Richard Wyatt (1720-1803), and in Caroline County oral history, held that Richard Wyatt’s wife Amy Chiles was descended from Walter Chiles the Immigrant, through Walter Chiles II, Henry Chiles, and Henry’s son Walter [12].
Family B
A biography [13] of Nathaniel Burruss (1844-1905) traces his ancestry back through Agatha Chiles, daughter of Manoah Chiles, granddaughter of Henry Chiles, and great-granddaughter of Walter Chiles, member of the House of Burgesses in 1658. Further, this family has preserved the coat of arms of Walter Chiles.
The fact that the Burruss family preserves the family crest of Walter Chiles increases the probability that these family members are in fact descended from Walter Chiles, through Henry Chiles, as the family tradition claims.
Family C
The family of President John Tyler preserves the tradition that President John Tyler was a great-great-grandson of Elizabeth Tyler [14], sister of Henry Chiles of New Kent County and that Henry and Elizabeth were descended from Walter the Immigrant.
The 3 family traditions referenced above were carried along in branches of the Chiles family descended respectively from Henry Chiles’s son Walter, his son Manoah, and his sister Elizabeth. These 3 branches of the Chiles family split more than 350 years ago. The fact that all 3 branches preserve the tradition of lineage back through Henry Chiles to Walter Chiles II and Walter Chiles I tends to suggest that the traditions originated contemporaneously with the common ancestors, and therefore supports the veracity of the traditions.
Documentation Of Birth, Marriage, And Death Places/Dates
Walter Chiles II was baptized on March 20, 1608 [15,16] establishing his birth year as c. 1608. Walter died in 1671 shortly after making his will [17]. The birth and death years of Susannah Chiles are unknown.
Henry Chiles served as a lieutenant in the New Kent County Militia. He was documented on the militia list on March 7, 1701/2 [18]. The original reference is from records relating to Virginia in the Public Records Office in London C.O.5/1312
Henry Chiles And His First Wife (Name Unknown): Parents Of Walter Chiles
The St. Peter’s Parish (Virginia) Register recorded the birth of Henry Chiles’ children, including Walter [19]:
“The first concrete knowledge of the marriage of Henry Chiles, and his residence in New Kent County, is found in the St. Peter’s Parish Register [20]. With the characteristic brevity of the entries, the births of the sons of Henry Childes were recorded. Everyone in the parish knew who the mother was, so her name was not mentioned…”
“Eight entries after the last 169 – entry (all of these were surnames beginning with the letter C) was the entry noting the birth of ‘Walter son of Hen Childes bapt. the 5 of January…’ This could be interpreted as 1700. ‘James son of Hen Childes, Gent bapt. the 4… ….’ This entry appeared just five lines after Walter and three lines before one dated 1703. It could probably be taken to be 1702 [21].”
Henry Chiles became part of the new St. Paul’s Parish starting in 1705 [22]. Hanover County was formed in 1720 from part of St. Paul’s Parish, New Kent County. Therefore Henry Chiles’s children would have grown up in St. Paul’s Parish, New Kent County until 1720, and then in Hanover County after 1720.
There is an extensive record of Walter Chiles as an adult in Caroline County, VA. The question is whether the adult Walter Chiles of Caroline County was the same person as Walter Chiles, son of Henry Chiles of Hanover. Davis states:
“There is every reason to believe that the Walter Chiles, who lived in the Reedy Creek-Reedy Church area of Caroline County, was the son of Henry Chiles of Hanover County” [23].
This presumption is based on facts that Davis presents in her chapter on Walter Chiles [24], in her chapter on Henry Chiles [25], and on facts presented by Campbell [26], T.E. (1954). Colonial Caroline. Richmond: The Dietz Press, Inc. (title page G8, see pages G9-12). The following is a summary of the evidence:
- Birth record. Henry Chiles of Hanover County is known to have had a son named Walter (St. Peter’s Parish Registry, cited above).
- Geographical proximity. Walter Chiles of Caroline County lived near the border of Caroline and Hanover Counties, showing geographical proximity between the homestead of the family of Henry Chiles, and the adult Walter Chiles of Caroline County.
Specifically, in 1728, Governor Gooch appointed 18 prominent citizens as justices of the newly-formed Caroline County, including Walter Chiles [27]. Caroline County was formed (and is situated) along the northeast border of Hanover County. Walter Chiles’s precinct was in the southwest corner of Caroline, bordering Hanover County [28].
Walter Chiles of Caroline County appears many times in historical records, spanning his entire adult life. A few examples: He received extensive land grants of 3,800 acres in 1730, was appointed sheriff in 1734 [29], executed a deed in 1737 in which his wife “Mary” was noted [30], and died in 1766 when his estate administration was recorded [31].
- Association with 2 other sons of Henry Chiles. Walter Chiles’s brother, Micajah Chiles, was also a prominent citizen of Caroline County. Davis documents that Micajah’s father was Henry Chiles [32], that he received a share of his father’s land in Hanover County [33], and that he had moved to Caroline County by 1730 [34]. Micajah is recorded extensively in Caroline County records for the remainder of his life [35].
Another brother of Walter’s, William Chiles, also moved to Caroline County and is found several times in that county’s records [36].
The fact that 2 of Henry Chiles’s sons, Micajah and William, lived their adult lives in Caroline County, provides supporting evidence that the Walter Chiles of Caroline was a third son of Henry Chiles of Hanover County.
There is only one other Walter Chiles in the records who could have been Henry Chiles’ son Walter as an adult, in the geographical vicinity of Hanover County: A Walter Wyatt of Amelia County. A chancery suit proves that the Walter Wyatt of Amelia County was in fact the son of John and Mary Chiles, not the son of Henry Chiles [37]. The suit is cited in (see yellow highlight, page G16). The details of the chancery suit are discussed in Davis [38].
Therefore, there is only one Walter Chiles in the records, namely the Walter Chiles of Caroline, who could be the son of Henry Chiles of Hanover County.
It is possible that Henry’s son Walter died in childhood, or that he did not happen to appear in any surviving historical records. However, when a man owned large tracts of land in colonial Virginia, his sons tended also to own land, and therefore tended to appear in historical records. Similarly, a man who owned large tracts of land tended to be from a family (father) who also owned large tracts of land, and therefore who also tended to appear in historical records.
In other words, it is unlikely, but not impossible, that Walter Wyatt of Caroline would have had a father who appears in none of the surviving records; and it is unlikely, but not impossible, that Henry Wyatt’s son, Walter, would appear in none of the surviving records unless he died in childhood.
In Summary
- Henry Chiles had a documented son named Walter.
- Walter Chiles of Caroline County spent his adult life in close proximity to the Hanover County homestead of Henry Chiles’s children.
- Two other sons of Henry Chiles also spent their adult lives in Caroline County.
- There are no records of any other men in the vicinity named Walter Chiles who might have been Henry Chiles’s son Walter.
Documentation Of Birth, Marriage, And Death Places/Dates
Henry Chiles was born before 1671 [39]. Davis also cites proof that he died between March 30, 1719, and February 27, 1719/20 [40].
© 2013 W. Mullins