Richmond City Virginia USGenWeb Archives Biographies.....Wyatt, William Henry, Jr. 1870 - ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/va/vafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher http://www.rootsweb.com/~archreg/vols/00001.html#0000031 February 28, 2008, 11:11 am Author: Leonard Wilson (1916) WILLIAM HENRY WYATT, JR. THE English family name of Wyatt is derived from the Anglo-Saxon "Wighardt" or "Wigheard," which in time became softened into "Wigard," then transformed into "Whyart," then into "Whyatt," and finally into "Wyatt." The original form of the root word was "war strong," and the history of the family shows that they lived up to the original meaning of the name very faithfully. The first authentic record that we have of this family is that they were located at South Haigh, in the west riding of Yorkshire, and they had attained to a very considerable position in the community as early as the time of Edward III. They seem to have migrated into Essex, Kent and Sussex in the early part of the sixteenth century, for Thomas Wyatt was located at Plans-ham, in Sussex, in 1523. At the same time a branch of the family was located in Kent, which became a very distinguished line, holding Allington Castle and later Boxley. There was another branch in Somersetshire in 1630, but they moved back to Sussex. The Virginia family of this name comes from the branch that was located in Kent. The line of descent has been traced from Adam, of Yorkshire, in the direct male line to William, Richard, Jeoffrey, Richard, Sir Henry, Sir Thomas, Sir Thomas (the younger), George and Rev. Hawte Wyatt, a younger son of George, who came to Virginia in 1621 as chaplain to his elder brother, Sir Francis Wyatt, who was Governor of Virginia from 1621 to 1626, and again from 1639 to 1642. Sir Francis Wyatt was one of the best of the Colonial Governors, and the struggling Colony made headway under his management. During his first period of rule occurred the Indian Massacre of 1622, which was a setback, but this was overcome. When he finally returned to England, he was accompanied by his brother, Rev. Hawte Wyatt, and both of them died in England and were buried at Boxley, in Kent, which was the seat of the family. Reference has been made to Sir Francis Wyatt as Colonial Governor. That he was a fighting man is proven by the fact that, in 1624, at the head of sixty men, he inflicted an overwhelming defeat on a force of over eight hundred Indians. The Virginia family is, however, not descended from him, but from his brother, Rev. Hawte Wyatt, who was twice married and who left sons. The names of three of these sons we know: Edward, George and John. Edward and George certainly remained in Virginia, for George purchased land from the Colonial Government, 400 acres in York, in 1642, and 250 acres in James City, in 1645, while Edward patented land in Gloucester, 370 acres on April 19, 1662, for bringing into the Colony eight persons, and 1230 on July 20, 1662, for bringing in twenty persons. In addition to these patents he acquired by purchase 850 acres in York County, on September 3, 1663, giving him a total acreage of 2450 acres. Conquest Wyatt, son of Edward, patented 530 acres on Haccades Creek, in Gloucester County, in 1672. In 1690 he was a vestryman of Petsworth Parish, and in 1705 Sheriff of the County. George's son, Henry, patented lands in Henrico, on October 7, 1679, and in New Kent County, on April 20, 1682. In 1686 Henry Wyatt was a vestryman in St. Peter's Parish, New Kent County, and from 1692 to 1703 was Warden of the Parish. He was born in 1647 and died in 1703. Reverting to the English family, they had held for several generations not only a conspicuous station in English society, but had a most interesting history. Sir Henry Wyatt, who was the sixth in descent from Adam, of Yorkshire, was a very prominent citizen of Kent, the owner of Allington Castle, and was bitterly opposed to the pretensions of Richard III. He was a very prominent man in his day, and highly esteemed by King Henry VIII, in whose reign he died, in the year 1537. Sir Thomas (the elder), son of Sir Henry, had a most checkered history. He was a college man, and a graduate of Oxford. In English biography, Sir Thomas is known as "the poet," and was considered a poet of very considerable merit in his generation. Sent on a diplomatic mission by the King, when merging into middle life, he died suddenly of a malignant fever, leaving a son, Sir Thomas (the younger). This Sir Thomas married Jane, daughter of Sir William Hawte, by whom he had ten children, three of whom married and left issue. Sir Thomas was a very capable soldier, brave to the point of recklessness, and yet possessed of a due share of caution in the handling of soldiers. He was bitterly opposed to the Spanish marriage of Queen Mary, and leagued himself with Courtenay, Earl of Devonshire, and other noblemen in opposition to it. When the announcement of the marriage was promulgated, they rose in rebellion. All the conspirators were easily overcome or captured by the Government except Wyatt, who won some little successes, and then at the head of four thousand men marched upon London. The Court was in consternation and the Queen fled, but gaining a few days' delay, they rallied, got the citizens of London to take the part of the Government, and Wyatt, after a struggle in the streets of London, was overcome, captured, tried and executed. After the death of Sir Thomas Wyatt, the estate of Boxley, which had been confiscated, was later returned to his son George by the Government. This George was the father of Sir Francis Wyatt and Rev. Hawte Wyatt, the founder of the Virginia family. The Wyatts were stout churchmen as well as stout soldiers. Bishop Meade, in his work, "Old Churches and Families of Virginia," mentions that Conquest Wyatt (or Colquitt, as he has it) was a vestryman in Petsworth Parish, Gloucester—Francis, Edward, Peter and John Wyatt also serving as vestrymen in this old Parish. Henry was a vestryman in St. Peter's Parish, New Kent County. At a later date John Wyatt was a vestryman in Amherst Parish, and F. J. Wyatt in St. George's Parish of Spottsylvania. In the Revolutionary period, having by that time largely multiplied, the Wyatt families lived up to their record as fighting men, furnishing eighteen soldiers to the Revolutionary Army. Of these, Carey, Pittman and Hubbard were captains—the other fifteen apparently were privates. They were Edward, Elisha, Francis, George, Henry, John, Lewis, Peter, Peterson, Richard, Spivey, Stephen, Theophilis, Thomas and William Wyatt. Of this list, William Wyatt was the great-great-grandfather, and Stephen Wyatt the great-uncle of William Henry Wyatt, Jr., the subject of this sketch, who was born in Richmond, Virginia, April 29, 1870, son of William Henry and Martha E. (Gibson) Wyatt. Mr. Wyatt is the fifth William Henry Wyatt in his family and his son is the sixth. It will be noticed in the foregoing that, while there are many names outside of these few, the names of William, Henry, Francis, George, Thomas, Edward and Richard have been preferred names in the Wyatt family for very many generations. Mr. Wyatt's father, grandfather and great-grandfather were cabinet makers. His grandfather, Edward Branch Wyatt, served his apprenticeship with John Turpin in old Manchester, now South Richmond. His father, William Henry Wyatt, who recently retired from business, was later in life a coach builder. The Virginia records show, between 1641 and 1831, forty-five land patents issued to members of this family in Virginia, ranging from James City County, in the extreme east, to Tyler and Randolph Counties, now in West Virginia. The area of the land embraced in these patents amounts to over thirty-two thousand acres; and at one time the family settled in New Kent owned over ten square miles of land. It is of some interest to look over these old grants and see why they were made. The first one to Henry Wyatt, in 1641, was granted for the betterment of the Colony." The next, in 1642, to George Wyatt, was by purchase. In 1643, two thousand acres were granted to Sir Francis, the Governor, for bringing forty persons into the Colony. It will be remembered that, at that time, fifty acres were granted to every person who would bring in one immigrant. From these old records we see that different Wyatts brought in one hundred and forty-six persons, and received therefore seventy-three hundred acres of land. In 1720 we come upon Edward, who bought two hundred acres in Isle of Wight County for twenty shillings; and in 1743 Francis bought three hundred and seventy-seven acres in Prince George for forty shillings, and another hundred acres for ten shillings, and yet another two hundred acres in Amelia for twenty shillings. It is quite likely that William Henry Wyatt, Jr., would like to buy some of these Virginia lands to-day at the same prices that the older generations paid. William Henry Wyatt, Jr., was educated in the Richmond public schools, and as a youth learned the trade of printer, becoming a member of the Richmond Typographical Union, No. 90, in which he still holds membership. Possessed of an unusual degree of capacity and a most pleasing personality, he ventured in other directions, and became recognized as one of the honorable business men of the city, and was Anally elected to the position in which he is now serving—that of High Constable of Richmond. In his present responsible position, Mr. Wyatt is discharging with fidelity the duties of the office with which he has been entrusted, and is held in the highest esteem by every class of citizens. He is a strong fraternalist; a thirty-second degree Mason, and holds membership in the Royal Arcanum, the Red Men, the Eagles, the Junior Order of United American Mechanics; is an active member of the Y. M. C. A. and of the Richmond Chamber of Commerce. Religiously, he is associated with the Grace Street Baptist Church; and a work to which he is peculiarly devoted, and to which he is splendidly adapted, that of Bible study, appeals to him so strongly that he has been made President of the Business Men's Bible Class. He is heartily in line with the present sentiment against the liquor traffic in our country, and believes that abstinence from the use of alcoholic drinks and of cigarettes will promote most highly the welfare of our people. In his reading he puts the Bible first of all. From every standpoint his political affiliation is with the Democratic party, but as a holder of public office, he exercises no favoritism on account of political opinion. Mr. Wyatt has been twice married. First, to Minnie Louise Neisz, daughter of Charles and Helena Neisz, of Richmond. This marriage was contracted December 22, 1892, and three children were born of the union—Grace, Helena and William Henry Wyatt. After the death of the first wife, he married her sister, Ida Mary Neisz, on May 1, 1906. The issue of this marriage is one son, Edward Branch Wyatt. William Henry Wyatt, Jr., is son of William Henry Wyatt, Sr., born April 30, 1840, and still living. He is son of Edward Branch Wyatt, born 1809, died 1854. He was son of William Wyatt, Jr., born about 1770, died December, 1857. He was son of William Wyatt, born, about 1728, died March 16, 1808. He was son of Thomas Wyatt, born about 1G99, died in February, 1759, in Chesterfield County. Thomas Wyatt's personal estate was ordered appraised March 2, 1759, in the thirty-third year of the reign of George II. Mention was made in the appraisement of seventy pounds sterling being left to him by Henry Wyatt, who evidently had died only a short time earlier. His widow, Elizabeth, later transferred the land to the son William. This, William's will, was probated March 16, 1808. The line from William H. Wyatt, Jr., back to Thomas, is entirely clear. Thomas Wyatt was born about 1G99. It will be remembered that George and his brother Edward were the founders of the Virginia family. Investigation made by Dr. Lyon Tyler, of William and Mary College, through Mr. William Henry Wyatt, of England, shows that Thomas Wyatt was the grandson of Edward, and therefore the son of Conquest Wyatt. Enough has been said here, drawn from authentic sources, to show that for six hundred years this ancient English family has borne an honorable part in the world's work. Quite a few of them have been men of unusual parts and distinction in their day; and the generations of the family settled in Virginia in the early days of the Colony did men's work in wresting from the wilderness and the savage that noble territory which has come to be known as the "Mother of States and of Statesmen." William Henry Wyatt, Jr., can look back with pardonable pride on the work of his forbears, and is entitled to credit himself for the part which he is playing in his own generation as a good citizen. The Wyatt Coat of Arms is thus described: "Per fesse azure and gules a barnacle argent ringed or. "Crest: An ostrich proper holding in the beak a horseshoe argent." Motto: Honor et Veritas (Honor and Truth). Additional Comments: Extracted from: MAKERS OF AMERICA BIOGRAPHIES OF LEADING MEN OF THOUGHT AND ACTION THE MEN WHO CONSTITUTE THE BONE AND SINEW OF AMERICAN PROSPERITY AND LIFE VOLUME II By LEONARD WILSON, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ASSISTED BY PROMINENT HISTORICAL AND BIOGRAPHICAL WRITERS Illustrated with many full page engravings B. F. JOHNSON, INC. CITY OF WASHINGTON, U. S. A. 1916 Copyright, 1916 by B. F. Johnson, Inc. Photo: http://www.usgwarchives.net/va/richcity/photos/bios/wyatt78gbs.jpg File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/va/richmondcity/bios/wyatt78gbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/vafiles/ File size: 14.0 Kb