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Chapter 6
Son ~ James Ware III
Just one month prior to her
18th birthday, Caty Todd Ware gave birth to her second son.
He was born on what was probably a cold, wintery day on
January 13, 1771.
This baby was named after both his father and grandfather; hence,
James Ware III.
Page taken from Ware family bible
Transcription of the above bible page - -
First Column
James Ware Born 13th
January 1771
Second Column
Marshall W. McGuire
March 21st, 1884
James III came into a world
bristling with anticipation of future events.
His grandparents, James & Agnes Ware, had sold off most of their land
holdings in the Ware Lottery just one year earlier in 1770, his parents had
moved from Caroline County to Frederick County, and the American colonists
everywhere were feeling more and more estranged from Great Britain. Just two short months after his
birth, five Massachusetts colonists were killed by British soldiers in an
incident that would later be known as “The Boston Massacre.” The hostile encounter was actually
the result of tensions that had been growing since 1768 when English troops
first appeared in the colonies to enforce heavy tax burdens.
Bitterness was
rampant, and the shootings that took place in March were a pivotal event that
would bring the two factions one step closer to all out war.
As Thompson
mentioned in one of his letters, he and James “were raised and educated together”
in the family home in
Winchester. The brothers probably
spent many childhood hours together “playing soldier” while parents spoke in
hushed voices about real battles taking place not far down the road. It was an exciting time to be a young
boy and also a time when young boys matured quickly. The two brothers were obviously very
close, and it must have been quite an adventure when they first went with their
father to see Kentucky in 1789.
Once in
Kentucky, Thompson wrote, “we got separated; James located at Louisville and I in the
neighborhood of Lexington, when my age was 20 and his about 18 months younger.
We would sometimes accidentally see one another in the course of a year or two
for several years until he entered into marriage to your mother in Virginia.”
(Ref. 35E) James had “engaged with Mr. Johnson,
the Clerk of Jefferson County, writing in his office until he became fully
acquainted with the work.”
(Ref. 6, 35G)
Then
“through the friendship of Daniel Morgan, James obtained an introduction to
General Samuel Smith (a member of the U.S. Congress) of Baltimore.
With Smith’s influence, James then commenced merchandizing in Louisville and
continued in this business until 1795; laying the groundwork for the beginning
of his large fortune.”
(Ref. 2, 6,
35G, & 334)
James traveled back to Virginia
to help his family prepare for the big move to Kentucky. According to a letter written in 1831
by his brother Charles Ware, James
“returned to Virginia in the spring of the year that my father moved here, and
accompanied us some days and then returned [to Virginia].” (Ref. 35)
Since he was
familiar with the area and had lived there for nearly two years, he was able to
assist in making the transition easier.
Needless to say, it was also highly beneficial to have him along for
protection.
After his parents and siblings
were safely in route to their new homes, James III did, indeed, return to
Virginia. Josiah later wrote that “suffering from chills and fever
undermined his health, so my father sold out his business and returned to
Virginia where he farmed but never recovered his health.”
(Ref. 299) His health may not have been
fully restored, but James III did
manage to marry twice, have many children, and live another thirty years.
We now know
that the symptoms James was suffering were probably the early stages of chronic
tuberculosis, a disease which would ultimately kill him.
Once the leading cause of death in the country, the disease was known as
“consumption” in the 1700s and early 1800s due to its’ ability to “consume” the
body with illness.
Also called “white death or white plague,” this
terrifying and very contagious malady often claimed the lives of entire
families.
With limited medical knowledge at the time, people were not
aware of how easy it was to become infected by simply having close contact with
a person already contaminated. The constant,
and sometimes uncontrollable, coughing would emit water droplets in the air that
were unknowingly breathed in by anyone in close proximity.
As late as 1900, Louisville, Kentucky, had one of the highest tuberculosis death
rates in America.
Built on low swampland, the area was the perfect
breeding ground for the bacteria. The disease
could be fast attacking or slowly progressive and chronic.
The classic symptoms of fatigue, fever, chills, and coughing were what James was
experiencing while working in Louisville. With no known
cure at the time, the end result of tuberculosis was always death and eventually
it would claim not only the life of James, but also his wife and several of his
children. (Ref. 2277))
In the fall of 1795, James III married Elizabeth Taliaferro Alexander, the only child of Colonel Morgan Alexander, an officer in the Revolutionary War.
Her mother was Sarah Snickers Alexander and her maternal grandparents were Edward and Elizabeth Taliaferro Snickers. Grandpa Edward was a very wealthy planter and landowner in Frederick County. (Ref. 292) In fact, he was such a prominent figure in the area that Snickers Gap (in the Blue Ridge Mountains) and Snicker’s Ferry were named for him. In addition, “the village which grew up on the site of (Edward Snickers) farm was known as Snickers Gap until 1824 when the State Assembly established it as a town and changed its’ name to Snickersville. The name was later discarded in favor of Bluemont in 1900.” (Ref. 28) James was obviously marrying into a wealthy and prestigious Virginia family.
Map showing the area when it was still called
Snickersville
Elizabeth’s father, Morgan
Alexander, came from a family who had also relocated to Frederick County from
the Tidewater region. He and Sarah
Snickers were married on February 12, 1773.
By 1774, the young couple had taken over management of a tavern,
sometimes called an Ordinary, owned by Edward Snickers, Elizabeth’s grandfather. In November 1774, George Washington
wrote in his diary: “Set out for Frederick
in order to sell Col. Mercer’s estate in that county. Dined at Morgan Alexander’s Ordinary.”
(Ref. 177, 493)
This notation from
Washington shows that Mr. Snickers had probably turned over the operation of the
tavern to his son-in-law at this point. There were several other entries in
Washington’s diary that mentioned lodging and dining there.
(Ref. 177)
Morgan Alexander was “appointed Captain by the Committee of
Safety of Frederick County in the latter part of 1775,” and in the next few
years, he played a significant role in the Revolutionary War.
(Ref. 2287)
“The 2nd Virginia Regiment was
authorized by the Virginia Convention of 1775 as a force of regular troops for
the Commonwealth’s defense. It
consisted of seven companies and Capt. Morgan Alexander was listed as head of
the 7th Company, Rifleman that was raised in Frederick County on November 27,
1775.””
(Ref. 180, 468)
Morgan “received his commission in the regular
army on February 1, 1776, and General John Smith, a witness, knew him to be in
service in 1777.”
(Ref. 2287) He “.”
(Ref. 492, 2153)
He then “served in both 1781 and 1782 as Colonel
of the Virginia Militia.” (Ref. 1098)
What could have
been a brilliant military career ended abruptly with Colonel Morgan’s death in
1783. According to General Smith,
“he died in service.”
(Ref. 2287) Colonel Alexander left Sarah a
widow at the age of 27 with one child, Elizabeth. (Ref. 492)
James Ware III met Elizabeth
Alexander while in Virginia. They
were married on November 10, 1796.
James was 25 and Elizabeth, born on October 26, 1774, was 22 years old at the
time.
Bible birth entry for Elizabeth
Transcription of bible page for marriages:: James Ware & Elizabeth T. Alexander November 10th, 1796 James Ware & Harriet M. Taylor March 17th, 1808 Josiah Wm. Ware & Frances T. Glassell - daughter of John Glassell Sigismund Stribling & Sarah E.T. Ware - daughter of James & Elizabeth Ware November 7th, 1820 Josiah Wm. Ware & Edmonia Jaqueline Smith - daughter of Edward Jaqueline Smith January 30th, 1845 Edward P.C. Lewis & Lucy B. Ware Elizabeth was already “well off” before her marriage to James. Her grandmother, Elizabeth Taliaferro Snickers, had predeceased Edward. Edward passed away in 1791, leaving extensive land holdings to his four children who consequently passed them on to his grandchildren. To Snicker’s daughter, Sarah Alexander (James’ future mother-in-law), “Edward willed a tract of land containing 411 acres known by the name of Springfield Farm. Edward had bought this property from the estate of Bartholemew Anderson who was granted it by Lord Fairfax and it was here that he had lived and died.” (Ref. 7, 28, 491,492,709) Sarah and Morgan lived on this property and it was then bequeathed to their daughter, Elizabeth. She and James also lived on Springfield land while their new home (to be called Riverside) was being built, and it was here that Elizabeth gave birth to her son, Josiah William Ware, who would one day inherit the land he was born on and build a large plantation, appropriately named “Springfield.” (Ref. 492, 725)
Edward’s other children were left large tracts of land as well. His daughter, Catherine, who had married a doctor in Winchester named Robert Mackey, inherited “the 306 acre farm called Buck Marsh from her father.” (Ref. 492) Another daughter, Elizabeth, married Thomas Stribling and became the owner “of the 303 acre property called Norwood.” (Ref. 671)
Edward’s only son, William Snickers, married Frances Washington, the daughter of Warner and Mary (Whiting) Washington, first cousin of General George Washington. “William inherited the family home called Clermont and also a mill on the Shenandoah River.” (Ref. 7, 494) Whenever Washington was visiting or traveling through the area, “Clermont was a frequent stopping place for him.” (Ref. 111
It was not just land that was inherited either.
Each child received stock and slaves as well. The number of
slaves that Edward Snickers bequeathed to his family is somewhat staggering and
a true indication (in those times) of the wealth that this man accrued in his
lifetime:
To his son,
William Snickers: (1) Jery (2) Sall (3) Peg (4) Harry (5) Tom, the ferryman (6) Flora (7) Dick (8) Babe (9) Manuel (10) Robin (11) Tom, the waggoner (12) Will (13) Samson (14) Simon (15) Juliet (16) Jack (17) Walker (18) Jack, house servant (19) Peter (20) Nate (21) Ned (22) Jerry (23) Sarah (24) Cupid (25) Moses
To his
daughter, Sarah Snickers Alexander:
(1) Sy
To his
daughter, Catherine Snickers Macky:
(1)
Tim
To his
daughter, Elizabeth Snickers Stribling:
(1) Ag
To his
granddaughter, Elizabeth Alexander:
(1) Ag,
daughter of Ag, deceased
To his
granddaughter, Polly Macky:
(1) Kitty
To his
grandson, Edward Macky:
(1) Sam
(Ref. 494) In November 1803, James and Elizabeth expanded their holdings and “bought 401 acres in the heart of the Snicker’s tract from Elizabeth’s Uncle William for $14,011.00. The acreage included Snicker’s Ferry, Snicker’s Tavern, the blacksmith shop, and at least one mill.” (Ref. 28, 195, 200) With the acquisition of so much new property from her uncle, Elizabeth and James Ware suddenly became one of the largest land owners in the area.
Two years later, in 1805, “William Snickers sold the rest of his
Shenandoah River frontage property, a 749-acre tract, to his brother-in-law,
Thomas Stribling. The Ware and
Stribling properties were separated by what was then the main road from
Snicker’s Gap to Winchester. The
tavern was close to this road and close to the river on Ware’s land.”
(Ref. 200) In later
years, Elizabeth’s second cousin, Sigismund Stribling (grandson of her Uncle
Thomas Stribling), would marry her oldest daughter, Sally Ware; thus combining
these two properties into an immense holding.
It was on this property, bought from William Snickers, that James Ware III built his home. “The name of a home or plantation was as much of a ‘hallmark’ as those found on silver. It was the means whereby various branches of a family might be identified.”(Ref. 52) With its' close proximity to the beautiful Shenandoah River, what more appropriate name could there be for James to choose for his home but that of Riverside. As described in a newspaper article in 1954:
“Built
before 1800, the old gray stone house commands a superb view of the Shenandoah
River, winding through the Blue Ridge.
The original house with beautiful stairway, paneling, and wood carving
has been little changed. It was
built by James Ware and inherited by his daughter.”
(Ref. 507)
Far off view of Riverside from the road – photo
taken by Judy Ware 2009
Photo taken by James & Judy Ware - 2009 Directly across the road from Riverside was the mill that James ran as well. It was appropriately renamed “Ware’s Mill.” Both landmarks are still in existence today.
View from Riverside looking down the hill to the Shenandoah River Photos taken by James and Judy Ware 2009
Ware’s Mill across the road from Riverside
Above photo courtesy of owners of Riverside in 2007
(Ref. 507)
Combining the inherited wealth that Elizabeth Alexander brought into the marriage with the “fortune” James was reported to have accrued during his early years working in Louisville, the newlyweds were now in a position to be one of the more affluent members of Frederick County. “The most striking fact about the society of old Frederick was that most of the wealthy lived in the eastern region. The county’s small farmers sensed a profound difference between themselves and the wealthy farmers along the Shenandoah as they customarily described the well-connected sons of Tidewater planters and their prosperous neighbors in east Frederick.” (Ref. 48) Although high land prices had encouraged many, like James’s family, to move from Old Frederick, “tax records clearly demonstrate that from 1782 to 1830 the men who stayed behind did well too.” (Ref. 48) Shortly after their marriage in 1796, the Wares closed out what was probably their last financial tie in Kentucky. In an indenture record, it states that “On November 5, 1798, James Ware of Louisville, Kentucky (but now of Frederick County, Virginia) and Elizabeth T. (Alexander) Ware; his wife, to Buckner Thurston of Fayette County, Kentucky for 500 Pounds, 204 ¾ acres in Jefferson County on Bear Grass Creek, being a part of a tract and part of the aforesaid survey, thence along a line of James Sullivan’s land, bounded by land of Elias Neale & Bazil Prather.” (Ref. 830) They were now investing their future in Virginia and their new home at Riverside. Nestled at the foot of the Blue Ridge Mountains, “it was considered a show place for miles around.”(Ref. 2) Riverside was “built out of gray stone, was about a story and a half with dormer windows, and it was held in the Ware family for six generations.” (Ref. 507)
It stands to this day, a beautiful home resting on a hill
along the Shenandoah River.
Home built by James Ware III
Unfortunately, all the financial security that blessed James and Elizabeth could not stave off tragedy in their marriage. They were destined to share only seven short years together before Elizabeth died of complications from tuberculosis, a disease she probably, unknowingly, caught from James. Her death occurred on August 29, 1803, and she was only 29 years old at the time.
The distraught husband would marry a second time,
but the incurable illness plagued the family.
James III and his second wife, Harriet M. Taylor Ware, lost five
children to tuberculosis and James died of it himself on a Thursday night,
September 13, 1821. Harriet followed
him the next year on Friday night, November 1, 1822.
(Ref. 1)
In their few brief years together, James and
Elizabeth had three children. The
first baby was born just a year after their marriage, on October 1, 1797. The proud parents named their
daughter Sarah Elizabeth Taliaferro Ware.
Birth date taken
from family bible Although her paternal grandparents, James and Caty, and all her aunts and uncles were far away in Kentucky, young Sarah often received letters from them over the years. She married Sigismund Stribling on November 7, 1820. Sarah became pregnant very shortly after their marriage, but tragically, her husband died before they could even celebrate their first anniversary. Sigismund died on October 24, 1821, never getting to know the daughter that would bear a feminine version of his name, Sigismunda. Sarah lived many more years, dying on April 16, 1878.
Death date for Sigismund
James and Elizabeth soon had a baby brother for
Sarah, or Sally as she liked to be called.
On July 3, 1800, Charles Alexander Ware was born. Elizabeth was 26
years old at his birth, and James was 29.
Charles lived to adulthood, but he died on December 3, 1823, at the young
age of 23.
Birth date for Charles Alexander Ware
Death date for
Charles Alexander Ware
The last child for James and Elizabeth was
another son, this one named Josiah
William Ware. He was born on
August 19, 1802. Young Josiah never
really got a chance to know his mother, however, because she died just days
after his first birthday, on August 29, 1803.
Birth date for Josiah Ware
Josiah inherited his mother’s property of
Springfield and when he married Frances Toy Glassell in 1827, he built a mansion
on the land. Fittingly called
“Springfield Plantation,” it was considered a show place in the area.
Josiah Ware
Springfield
After Frances died in 1842, Josiah married
Edmonia Jaquelin Smith in 1845. It
was predominately through the line of Josiah and his children that the Ware name
continued on in Virginia. Elizabeth Alexander Ware, so young at her death, left James III with three children to raise, all under the age of seven. He probably felt very gratified to have one member of his immediate family living close by when she died. His younger brother, Charles, had left his new home in Kentucky in the fall of 1793 and gone to live with James in Virginia for a period of time. He later wrote to his niece, “your father and I continued together almost until I married in 1803 and sometime after your amiable and affectionate Mother had quit this world for a more blessed abroad.” (Ref. 35G) Charles was probably a big comfort to his big brother at this sad time. Five years after becoming a widower, James III married again in 1808; this time to his cousin, Harriet M. Taylor. They had six children together: James W. (1809), Bushrod (1810), Thomas (1812), Lucy (1814), Harriet (1816), and Elizabeth Alexander Ware (1818), who was named for James’ first wife. Tragically, tuberculosis loomed like a cloud over the family and eventually took the lives of all but one child who lived long enough to marry. James W. died at 18, Bushrod at 7, Thomas Marshall at 20, Harriet at 12, and baby Mary only lived 14 months. The dreaded disease also killed both James and his wife; James in 1821 and Harriet in 1822.
Taken from family bible
The children James had with his
first wife (Sarah, Charles, and Josiah) were adults and on their own by the time
their father and stepmother died, but that still left four orphans (James,
Bushrod, Thomas, and Harriet) from the second marriage who needed raising. Josiah and Charles were unmarried
bachelors at the time, and Sally Ware Stribling had just recently given birth
and become a widow, all in a very short span of time. Fortunately, before her death,
Harriet Ware had already asked if her brother Bushrod and his wife, Betsey
Stribling Taylor, would be willing to raise her children if anything happened to
her. Harriet must have lived with a
great sense of impending sorrows.
Betsey had no children of her own and lovingly adopted these four little ones. She “petted, loved, protected, and laughed with the children, striving to lessen their sense of loss.” (Ref. 900) In every sense of the word, she became a mother to these Ware siblings and it must have broken her heart to have to bury most of them. “Marshall was the third of the Ware orphans to die and his loss was the most difficult for Betsey to accept.” (Ref. 900) Lucy Catherine Ware was the only child who lived long enough to marry. She wed Dr. William McGuire and they lived at Riverside, the home her father built in his youth. (Ref 590, 899, 900) It was held in the family for six generations and still stands to this day. Deaths recorded in Ware Family Bible
Elizabeth T. Ware August 29th, 1803 Bushrod T. Ware June 14, 1817 Elizabeth Alexander Ware January 6th, 1820 12:O'Clock James Ware died on Thursday night the 13th September 1821 Harriet M. Ware died on Friday the first day of November 1822 11O'Clock Harriet Mary Todd Ware departed this life on Tuesday the 5th day of February, 1828 James W. Ware departed this life on the 7th April 1827 on board the ship Herald bound to CharlesTown S. C. Thomas Marshall Ware on the 12th of October 1832
James and Caty Todd Ware never
got to see their grandchildren in Virginia very often. Letters helped bridge the gap, but
illness and distance made it next to impossible for frequent visits. None the less, family ties remained
strong. The generation of cousins
made a concerted effort to stay in touch and they got together as often as they
could. The family closeness is
reflected in a portion of a letter sent from Lucy Ware Webb to her brother
James’ daughter, Sally Ware Stribling.
“I now find no room to write
Josiah, but give my warmest love and affection to him and his wife. I want much to see you all and
Sigismunda [Sally’s daughter]. Tell him [Josiah] I often look at my breast pin and think of him. I
can consciously say, though I write seldom, you will ever be remembered by me as
wonderful, beloved relations. Tell Josiah that if my life and health is spared,
I will write him in a month or two.
Farewell, my dear relations. May God
forever bless, protect, and direct you through life will ever by my prayer.”
Lucy Webb
~~~~~~~~~~~~
The branches of the Ware tree were now fully growing strong in both Kentucky and
Virginia - - - forever bound together by aunts, uncles, cousins, and love.
Supporting Documentation for Chapter 3
CHILDREN OF:
JAMES WARE III
and ELIZABETH
ALEXANDER WARE
B. January
13, 1771
B. Oct. 26, 1774
D. Sept. 13,
1821
D.
Aug. 29, 1803
James was the son of Dr. James Ware II and his wife, Caty Todd Ware. He was also the grandson of James
Ware I and his wife, Agnes Todd Ware.
He traveled to Kentucky but ultimately settled back in Virginia where he
married Elizabeth Alexander Ware on Nov. 10, 1796
(1) Sarah Elizabeth Taliaferro Ware –
Married Sigismund Stribling
Nov. 7, 1820
(2) Charles Alexander Ware –
(3) Josiah William Ware –
Married Frances Toy Glassell on Feb. 22, 1827 and
CHILDREN OF:
JAMES WARE III
and Harriet
M. Taylor (2nd wife)
B. January
13, 1771
B. April 26, 1790
D. Sept. 13,
1821
D.
Nov. 1, 1822 When his 1st wife, Elizabeth Alexander Ware, died at a young age, James remarried – this time to Harriet M. Taylor on March 17, 1808
(1)
James W. Ware “on board the ship Herald bound to CharlesTown, South Carolina” (2) Bushrod Thomas Ware born Sept. 10, 1810 died June 14, 1817 age 7
(3)
Thomas Marshall Ware
(4) Lucy Catherine Ware
Married Dr. William
D. McGuire
(5) Harriet Mary Todd Ware
(6) Elizabeth Alexander Ware |
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