University of Virginia Library

THE WYATT FAMILY

The Wyatt family of Virginia descends from the distinguished
English line of Sir Thomas Wyatt, courtier and poet. Just
preceding the Revolution, Richard Wyatt, (1720-1803), at his
home in Caroline county, becoming incensed at the Mother
Country, tore the family Coat of Arms from the wall, and, hacking
it from the frame with his sword, threw it on the blazing logs in
the fireplace. It was rescued by his daughter, Nancy, who later
became the second wife of Colonel Anthony New. When they
removed to Kentucky, the treasured painting went with them.
In the year 1830, a descendant seeing the old relic in their
Kentucky home made a little sketch of the design. Though
blackened by fire and smoke, there were still to be plainly seen
bands of boar's heads on the shield similar to the Arms of Sir
Thomas Wyatt, of England. The painting was later totally
destroyed by fire, but the little sketch is still in the family.

The first of the Wyatt name on record in Caroline is John
Wyatt, called in Bible records "Captain John Wyatt." Born
in 1684, he was m. in 1711 to Jane Pamplin. He is mentioned as
Church Warden of St. Margaret's Parish in 1737. On August
30, 1740, John Wyatt took the oath as Member of Commission of
the Peace. His will was proved in November 1750, and his
wife, Jane, was also deceased at that time.

The earliest known Wyatt home in Caroline county, called
"Plain Dealing," was on the North Anna River, five or six
miles from its junction with the South Anna, and in old papers
and letters is spoken of as the ancestral seat. No doubt earlier
members of this branch lived in this locality before Caroline
county was formed.

John and Jane (Pamplin) Wyatt had issue:

(1) William, b. 1713, m. Elizabeth, dau. of Joseph and
Ann (Pettus) Eggleston. The will of William Wyatt was proved
April, 1772.

(2) John, d. aged seventeen.

(3) Anne, m. John Starke on May 25, 1735. They had thirteen
children.

(4) Richard, b. May 20, 1720, d. at "Plain Dealing" in
November, 1803. His first wife was Elizabeth Streshley, who died
at the birth of her first child. The child was born in 1744, m.
John Starke, of Hanover and died in 1830. Mr. Wyatt then
married on November 17, 1752, Amy, dau. of Walter Chiles,

a descendant of the immigrant, Walter Chiles, who respresented
Charles City county in the General Assembly, was Speaker and
member of the James City Council.

(5) Mary, m. Captain Henry Gilbert.

(6 and 7) Thomas and Henry, died unmarried.

(8) Lucy, m. Captain Mills of Greene county.

(9) John, m. 1st, Elizabeth, dau. of Thomas Ballard Smith,
of Louisa and had issue, Francis, John and Thomas Ballard
Wyatt. His second wife was Anne Stark.

Richard and Amy (Chiles) Wyatt lived at "Plain Dealing"
and there the following children were born to them:

(1) Mary, m. William Peatross, great-uncle of the late Major
R. O. Peatross, of Bowling Green. Ten children were born to
them.

(2) Sarah, m. 1st, Mathew Thompson, and 2d, Austin McGhee.
She died in Washington county, Va.

(3) Lucy, m. James Hawkins, of Kentucky.

(4) Nancy. On August 3, 1782, became the 2d wife of Colonet
Anthony New. She died in 1833.

(5) Joseph, died in his seventh year.

(6) Richard, b. January 1, 1763, d. June 12, 1845. He m.
Nancy, dau. of Captain John and Ann (Harrison) Ware, of
Goochland county in 1796. He served with credit in the Revolution,
leaving an Academy in Caroline to enter. He took the
oath as Ensign in Caroline county, on January 8, 1778. Later
he settled in Louisa county.

(7) Walter, m. Elizabeth Brame and 2d, Mrs. Bliss. He
removed to Kentucky and later to Illinois where he died.

(8) Major John, b. 1769, d. September 11, 1846. He m.
Lucy Richardson and 2d, Mrs. Patsy Harris, widow of Overton
Harris, of "Cedar Hill," Hanover county. He served with
Harrison in the Indian Wars.

(9) Barbara, (1773-1804), m. Overton Harris, of "Cedar Hill,"
Hanover county.

(10) William Streshley, b. August 29, 1775, d. January 24,
1839. Little can be learned of his life, though what can be gleaned
from a few old letters goes to show he was a man of affairs. On
November 12, 1801 he m. Polly, dau. of Colonel Anthony New
and 1st wife, Ann Anderson, dau. of Robert Anderson, III, of
"Goldmine," Hanover county, whose wife was Elizabeth Clough.
Anthony New was prominent in Caroline county affairs. He

Silhouette of Colonel Anthony New.

was Colonel in the Revolution, served in the Virginia Legislature,
was appointed as Trustee to clear and improve the Mattaponi
River, was Congressman from Virginia, 1793-1805, and member
of Congress from Kentucky, 1811, 1823. He died at "Dunheath,"
his home in Kentucky, in 1833. Anthony New was born in
Gloucester county, but when an infant his mother, the widow
New, m. Dr. John Baynham and came to Caroline county to
live. The quaint little house, one of the first to be built in the
county, is standing today on the place now owned by Mr. Doggett,
near White Chimneys. Here Anthony New was raised and
here his half-brother, Dr. William Baynham, the eminent surgeon,
was born.

William Streshley Wyatt and wife, Polly New, had one daughter
and two sons:

(1) Virginia Anderson, b. September 25, 1805 and m. Hugh
Chandler, September 25, 1827.

(2) William Richard Baynham Wyatt, b. January 16, 1809
and d. May 29, 1878. He m. Martha Frances Scott, September

5, 1832, and after her death m. her sister, Isabelle Adelaide,
August 22, 1848.

(3) Joseph Anthony New, died in infancy.

Polly (New) Wyatt, d. December 3, 1812 and William
Streshley Wyatt, m. Susan Minor, dau. of Vivian and Elizabeth
Minor.

William S. and Susan (Minor) Wyatt had:

(1) John Vivian, (1816-1889), who m. Emma Burton Doggett
in 1859 and lived at "Sunnyside" in Hanover county. Their
children were: Mattie Susan, m. Douglass Doswell and lives in
Ashland, Va.; John and Barton (a daughter), both unmarried
and living in Washington, D. C.

(2) Mary Elizabeth, b. in 1814, m. John G. Coleman and
resided at "Pebble Hill."

William Streshley Wyatt, died suddenly on January 24, 1839
at his home, "Plain Dealing," and is buried in the old Wyatt
graveyard there.

William Richard Baynham Wyatt, after an education in the
county schools, studied law. He was a man of fine intellect
and a great student. Books and candles were always put beside
his bed that he might work in the early hours. Though urged
by friends, he never became a licensed lawyer, but he practiced
law repeatedly throughout the county, and it was often said he
knew more law than many lawyers. He was an authority on
land titles and claims, and administrator of many estates. Mr.
Wyatt was Notary Public, Justice of the Peace, and chosen presiding
Justice of his Court. He was presiding when the news
came that Stonewall Jackson had been killed, and immediately
adjourned. Mr. Wyatt served in the Legislature 1865-66,
1866-67.

William Richard Baynham Wyatt and his wife, Martha Frances,
dau. of Robert and Ann (Coleman) Scott, lived at "Edgewood,"
on the North Anna River, where the following children were born:
Richard Watson, Joseph Marion, Ann Eliza and Thomas Barton.

Richard Watson, b. June 27, 1833, and d. at his home in
Middlesex county, April 30, 1881. He m. November 14, 1865,
Elizabeth Eubank, of Middlesex county. They had two children,
a son and a daughter, both born in Caroline, but removed to
Middlesex county when quite small. They were:

(1) Charles Russell Wyatt, who after graduating in law at the
University of Virginia, practiced his profession very successfully

in Huntington, W. Va., where he located. His tragic death,
which occurred there August 7, 1913, cast a gloom of sorrow
over the whole city. His wife was Sarah Paisley Sloan, dau.
of Colonel John and Morton (Wortham) Sloan. Their three
children were: (a) Charles Russell, Jr., (b) Morton, who m. September
19, 1923; Lieut. Ransom Kirby Davis, of San Diego,
Cal.; (c) Joseph Willard, a student at Harvard.

Edgewood

(2) Belle Leighton, m. September 16, 1891 to Joseph E. Willard,
recent Ambassador to Spain. They now reside in New York
City. Their children are: (1) Belle Wyatt, m. June 10, 1914, to
Kermit, second son of President Theodore Roosevelt. The
children are: Kermit, Jr., Willard and Belle; (2) Elizabeth, m.
Merwyn Herbert, of England, a brother of the Earl of Carnarvon,
who died before completing his Egyptian explorations.

Joseph Marion, son of William R. B. Wyatt, and wife,
Martha Frances, was b. April 24, 1838 at "Edgewood." He
attended Emory and Henry College. Enlisting in the Confederate
service, he went through the entire war. He was in Pickett's
Division, but luckily was held in reserve during the Gettysburg
attack. He m. his third cousin, Ida May Wyatt, of Albemarle
county. His high traits of character and genuine, cordial manner
made everyone his friend. His sudden death occurred August
20, 1891. Their four children, all born at "Edgewood," were:

(1) Harriet James, who m. Henry St. Clair Washington, of
Richmond, Va. They have a daughter, Harriet Wyatt Washington
and reside in Huntington, W. Va.

(2) Martha Isabelle, m. William Edwin Williams, Shop Engineer
of the American Car and Foundry Company, Berwick,
Penn., where they reside. They have one son, Wyatt Edwin,
b. November 19, 1906, a Senior in the Berwick High School.

(3) Ida Marion, Assistant to the Superintendent in Huntington
Public Schools.

(4) William R. B. Wyatt, Jr., m. Geneva Niles. They have one
son (Joseph Marion, Jr., b. in 1916) and reside at Vidalia, Ga.,
where Mr. Wyatt is in the lumber business.

Ann Eliza, dau. of William R. B. Wyatt, died unmarried
at her home in Huntington, W. Va., after a long and painful
illness which she bore with great fortitude.

Thomas Barton, b. 1846, m. Anna Leake, of North Carolina,
where he is now living. Their children are: Dr. James
Augustus Leake, Ann Eliza (Mrs. Dibble), Dr. Wortham and
Junius Pembroke.

William Richard Baynham Wyatt and his second wife, Isabelle
Scott, beloved throughout her entire life by all with whom she
came in contact, had three daughters:

Virginia Ellen, who died unmarried in April, 1916, at
Huntington, W. Va., where she had endeared herself to all by
her life of sweet unselfishness.

Wilhemina, died aged four years.

Margaret Baynham, living in Huntington, W. Va., where
she has been prominently identified with the educational life
of the city.