There have been several early Guthrie family traditions published. Two of these traditions in particular, the letter of Henry Pigg Guthrie to his daughter, and the pension application papers of Elizabeth Hutchenson Guthrie. Yes, pension application papers are merely family tradition. Think about this, suppose you are a widow intending to apply for a war pension. The time of service for your former husband is years past and the government reguires documention from several sources. While gathering this documention from these diverse sources there are bound to be differences in memory as to how things actually happened. There is probably no written documentation for dates and lineage. If these differences are submitted then there will be no pension. So the differences are reconciled. Any pension application that had documentation from several sources was probably fudged. An example: Five people witness a robbery in a resturant. If these five people tell exactly the same story to the police then they have gotten together and made up a composite of what actually happened.
I have two brothers, and we can't even agree on what happened in our own childhood. In my family there is a tradition that Belle Starr and her male companions visited one of my great uncle's homes for supper one evening. The story is very specific with names, written in the first person, states that another family recieved money from the Starr's and when to Wilburton to pay their taxes. The story even states the person who cooked the supper served that night. The major problem with the story is that it absolutely could not have happened. Belle Starr died prior to statehood when taxes were due, and prior to the birth of the cook. Also prior to my family moving to the Indian Territory. No truth at all, someone made it up. My uncle who was an educated man and family researcher passed the story along without checking it out first.
Also, I think the words, "from Scotland, of Scotland, and Scottish" have all come to mean that the person emigrated from Scotland. I believe the writers wanted their ancester to have been from Scotland. And secondly, I think the situation today is very similar; researchers want their ancester to have Indian ancestry. There are many reasons this is stated for the truth. From "grandpa looked Indian to gt-grandma said she was 1/16th. Cherokee".
As to Henry P. Guthrie's letter to his daughter. That letter was written in 1867, when Henry was 74 years old and one or two years prior to his death. Henry might have been very keen of mind, but he was still relying on family tradition and memory. Family tradition is just a story told from memory and then changed a little each time it is retold.
Henry Pigg Guthrie states in a letter to his daughter that his great-grandfather gave 60 acres of land to each of three sons, and the balance to his grandfather. One of these 60 acre tracts was in the possession of a John Guthrie who died in 1761 and whose will was probated on October 17, 1761. This will mentions three sons, James, Richard and John, Jr. John, Jr. was bequeathed on a shilling and James and Richard were to receive the land. John Guthrie, Sr. had a brother, William, to whom John, Sr. was heir-at-law. James, the oldest son of John, Sr. was to have his choice of John's land or Williams's land and the other portion was to go to Richard. (Call, Daniel. Cases in the Court of Appeals of Va. Quoted in the William and Mary College Quarterly, Series 2, Volume II, page 113.
Since John, Sr., and William were brothers and not cousins, these two had to have been two of the brothers originally given the land. John, Sr. had three sons, James, Richard and John, Jr. Henry Pigg's father (James) had only one brother according to the pension records of James Pollard Guthrie's wife Elizabeth Hutchenson Guthrie. Therefore we have James, Richard and John, Jr. sons of John, and we also have James the father of Henry and James' brother John Pollard. We also have the names of three of the brothers who were originally given the land. James who received the remainder, John who received 60 acres, and William who received 60 acres and died without an heir.
If Henry P. grandfather was named either James or John he would have had to have been James since the John that received 60 acres had three sons not two.
James, Richard and John, Jr., were granted pews in the "new church" in Stratton Major Parish on December 11, 1767. They therefore would have been born prior to 1746. William, died prior to the death of his brother John in 1761. Looking at the birthdates of the grandsons of the original John Guthrie, it is hard to believe that this John is the same as the John of York Co., and born in 1636. Since Henry Pigg Guthrie is specific when he states that his great-grandfather emigrated during Cromwell's rebellion; however, I think that perhaps John of York Co., is indeed his ancestor. Perhaps John of York Co., is the emigrant and his son John was granted the land.
Now who is the last of the four brothers left the land. Edward died September 28, 1739, according to the register of the Christ Church Parish in Middlesex Co. The John Guthrie, who married Elizabeth Baskett in 1689, died about 1706. That only leaves two known possibilities, Samuel who married Elizabeth Hoole and Daniel. Daniel is closely associated with Edward and the ferry on the York River. Also, from the vestry book of Stratton-Major Parish. Samuel guthry now refufing to hav Dorothy Holliday bound to him the church Wardens are hereby empowered to bind her to John Pigg. Perhaps Samuel is the last of the four brothers.
I would certainly like to know about the John Guthrie was who was sentenced to death on 4 May 1739, for house breaking and stealing. Looking at the above chart he would appear to have been a descendant of Samuel, Daniel or Thomas.
A close examination of the families of the wives of the above Guthrie's would perhaps shed more light on the unknown associations.
Please do not take any of the above as proof of anything. This paper is simply an attempt to place the Guthrie's of early Middlesex and King and Queen Co., Virginia in a logical order. I believe the evidence presented for the son's of John (who had the land) are solid. Edward and his descendants are harder to place and the father of John (who married Elizabeth Baskett) is merely a guess. Please do not distribute this paper without my name, mailing addres and email address. Also please ask any that you do distribute it to to contact me. I may have corrections or additions I want to add.
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