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Facts and Events
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Sources
- Descendants of Henry Willens
Notes
In 1764, after selling his share of his deceased father's land to Henry, John left York County for western Virginia. This can be stated with certainty because it is documented in the Quaker records (Warrington Meeting Minutes) for August 11, 1764 that John and Phebe Willis were disowned from the Quakers for "removing without Certificate." (Whenever a Quaker moved from one place to another, he was supposed to obtain a "Certificate" which introduced him (or her) to the Quakers in the new location that he was moving to.) Henry and Susanna apparently did not go with them (e.g. the 1765 land sale record above). As stated above, Henry and Susanna remained in York County for several years longer. From:Ancestry Family Trees, 11 Jan 2013
Those searching this line attach the John Willis who married Phoebe Bennet to the line of Henry Willis of Long Island 1628-1714. Some of his descendants moved south into Pennsyvania, settling near the Newberry Meetinghouse in what is now York County PA. Henry of Long Island is identified as coming from WIltshire England.
Descendants of either John Willis or Henry Willis of Franklin County VA do not have results in the FTDNA data base as of 11 Jan 2013. However, other descendants of their putative ancestor Henry have been YDNA tested, and have been assigned to the Wiltshire group.
Ancestry citing Newberry Township The Beginning 1700 - 1900.
Newberry Twp. tax list 1765 a Henry Willis owning 50 acres of land and 2 horses and 1 cow. Newberry Twp. census for 1790 a Jno Willis with l male over 16 and 3 males under 16 and 3 females. John Willis as a mason in Newberry in 1783. From Quaker MM "John Willis became a member of Newberry meeting in 1756. Joseph and Rebecca (Fincher) Bennet, who are the parents of Phebe Bennet Willis.
Ancestry
The immigrant ancestors of the John Willis, who married Phebe Bennett in York County, PA, in 1757, (i.e. Henry Willis and Mary Peace Willis) settled on Long Island, originally. Henry Willis was a Quaker preacher so his movements are fairly well documented. Most of his children settled in the Province of New York and their descendants spread out from there. So long as Henry's descendants remained members of the Religious Society of Friends, they are reasonably easy to track. However, once they leave Meeting, the work of tracing them gets considerably harder.
Child List
| ELIZABETH WILLIS, | b. Abt. 1765; | | | | m. ALEXANDER WATTSON, 08/07/1785, Henry County, Virginia.
| | LYDIA WILLIS, | b. Abt. 1770; | | | | m. JAMES WATSON, 07/02/1789, Franklin County, VA.
| | BENNETT WILLIS, | b. Abt. 1774, | Pennsylvania; | d. 01/18/1814, | Norfolk, Virginia.
| | NANCY WILLIS, | b. Abt. 1774; | | | | m. ROBERT LAVINDER, 02/27/1794, Franklin County, VA.
| | MARK WILLIS, | b. Abt. 1775. | | |
| | PARMELIA WILLIS, | b. Abt. 1775. | | |
| | HUGH WILLIS, | b. 1778, | Virginia. | | |
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Land Grants
- Pg. 115 - John Willis, Oct. 20, 1779, 174 acres on the waters of Hatchett Run, adjoining Henry Jones' land. [Franklin County, Virginia: A History, by Marshall Wingfield, pg. 186]
- Pg. 135 - John Willis, Oct. 20, 1779, 384 acres on the waters of Hatchett Run, adjoining Turpin's land. [Franklin County, Virginia: A History, by Marshall Wingfield, pg. 187]
- Pg. 18 - John Willis, 10 Nov. 1779, 391 acres on the waters of Hatchett Run. [Franklin County, Virginia: A History, by Marshall Wingfield, pg. 189]
- Book 13, Page 392 - John Willis, 31 July 1787, 628 acres on Cole's Creek, a branch of Blackwater River. [Franklin County, Virginia: A History, by Marshall Wingfield, pg. 202]
Map
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