(Continuing with the Rector discussion.)
Uriah Rector had, until recently, not been placed in any family. He had been assigned to the family of Harmon, the son of the 1714 immigrant John Jacob Rector, but there was no evidence to support this; it was a default. Other individuals have a better claim than Uriah. Harmon Rector's will mentioned one son by name and referred to my three sons. The question was whether the named son was one of the three sons. By a strict reading, the named son would be one of the three sons. But if the named son were not one of three, there would be room for Uriah.
Tommie Brittain studied the history of Uriah and found that he was often associated with another Rector, a Maximillian, who would seem to be a brother. It would be impossible to fit two men into the family of Harmon whether there were three or four children. So Tommie's research cast doubt on the placement of Uriah in the family of Harmon, though it provided no information about where he should be placed.
Uriah Rector was born about 1756 according to his later pension application (W7135) and Maximillian was born a couple of years later according to his pension application (W2002). Uriah joined the company of Capt. John Ashby in the regiment of Col. Thomas Marshall in the line of the State of Virginia in the Continental Establishment in 1776. He suffered by getting his left knee joint out of place and was discharged at the end of two years. Maximillian joined the same company as did Uriah. He served at Brandywine, Germantown, and Monmouth. Later he was taken prisoner at the siege of Charleston and marched to Greenville, SC, where he remained until the war was over.
According to an unconfirmed report, Uriah married Elizabeth Hill on 9 April 1777. That his wife was an Elizabeth is noted in two deeds recorded 22 June 1778. In both, Uriah and Elizabeth sold property on Goose Creek which had been purchased by John Rector, deceased, from Burgess Ball of Lancaster Co., VA. Neighbors to the parcels included George Glasscock, William Turley, John Kincheloe, and John Peyson Harrison. There were no witnesses to either deed. There are no Land Records in Fauquier for Maximillian.
In 1778, Uriah Rector is on the personal property tax list of Hezekiah Turner in the Northeast District of Fauquier Co. In the next year, Uriah is indicted for gambling. From 1781 to 1786, Uriah appears each year as a tithable in Botetourt Co., VA. T. B. Kegley lists Uriah in page 465 of " Virginia’s Frontier, 1745-1783 " with one horse, no cattle, no tithables, and an uncertain slave ownership status. In 1786, Maximillian appears in Botetourt Co. as witness to the marriage of John Rector and Chloe McPherson on 29 September.
(To be continued.)
(16 Sep 05)
We gratefully acknowledge the work of John Blankenbaker who published over 2,500 Germanna History Notes via the Germanna-L@rootsweb.com email list from 1997 to 2008. We are equally thankful to George Durman (Sgt. George) for hosting the list and republishing the notes via rootsweb.com.