Christian FamilySource: The William and Mary Quarterly, Vol. 8, No. 1 (Jul., 1899), pp. 70-74Published by: Omohundro Institute of Early American History and CultureStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1915808 .

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70 WILLIAM AND MARY COLLEGE QUARTERLY.

Particulars.-Date 1617. Conveyance by Edward Armyt- stead, of Sicklinghall, Co. York, yeoman, of land in Burley in Wharfdale. No Armystead signatures or seals.

Mr. Bailton adds that the deed is of considerable length and would be expensive to have copied, but as he bought it for the sake of some other documents in the lot he would sell it for ?5. He gives me the following items from his notes:

1. Edward Armytstead and Francis Pulleyne were concerned in the purchase of lands in Burley and neighborhood in 1617 (Feet of Fines, Yorks, Mich., 15 James I., part 3.)

2. Richard Armistead and others were concerned in the pur- chase of lands in Pathorne and Ellingthorpe in 1619 (Feet of Fines, Yorks, Easter, 17 James I., part 1.)

3. Thomas Armestead and others were concerned in the pur- chase of lands in Rothwell in 1642 (Feet of Fines, Yorks, Eas- ter, 18 Charles I.) -Kate Mason Rowland.

CHRISTIAN FAMILY.* (Continued from Vol. V., page 261.)

In the article in the QUARTERLY for April, 1897, (of which this article is a continuation), at page 263, we have seen that 4 JAMES2 CHRISTIAN, called (in the Goochland County records) "of the Parish of St. Peter's, New Kent County," married Amy

and had issue (naming them, for convenience, in the order in which they are named at page 263):

53 Judith, baptised May 21, 1711; 54 Gideon, born Feby. 5, 1727-28; 55 Richard, of Charles City County; 56 Joel, of Charles City County; 57 William, formerly of Goochland; 58 James, also "of St. Peter's Parish."

All these, of course, were in the third generation from the

Tfhis article (and those which are to follow it, tracing the descen- dants of 57 William Christian,) was prepared for the most part by Judge James Christian Lamb, of Richmond (a descendant of 58 James Christian, supra), assisted by Judge George L. Christian, of Richmond, and Dr. Samuel Pleasants Christian, of Roanoke. It is suggested that, for convenience, all corrections and additions be sent directly to Judge Lamb.-Editor.

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Sales per Christum.

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WILLIAM AND MARY COLLEGE QUARTERLY. TT

original Thomas Christian. Their father, 4 James2, died before 1452. *

In this and the succeeding articles it is proposed to trace the descendants of 57 WILLIAM CHRISTIAN, so far as they have been ascertained, beginning, for convenience, with him as propositus. In future issues of the QUARTERLY the descendants of 54 GIDEON

and 58 JAMES may be given more fully than has been done in the preceding article at page 263.

In the article in the QUARTERLY for April, 1897, it is said that, owing to the destruction of the records in New Kent and Charles City Counties, "it is difficult to connect this family with any of the English families of the same name in the Isle of Man and other places"; and it is remarked that investigation in British wills and other records on the other side of the ocean may some day supply this loss. It is not pretended that the missing link in this matter has been discovered, but there are certain facts in that connection which are both interesting and valuable.

It has always been firmly believed in the Virginia family of Christians that they are descended from the family of that name in the Isle of Man, who, as is well known, were for centuries the dempsters or Judges of that Island. (See preface and Appendix No. 1 to Peveril of the Peak). Perhaps this belief, until a few years ago, had no more substantial basis than tradition, but it seems now to have the support of evidence at least a little more satisfactory-especially to those who, very naturally, are not un- willing to be convinced.

A cut of the coat of arms of the Isle of Man Christians, with the family motto, is prefixed to this article. The following de- scription is taken from Burke's General Armory:

* The following deeds for lands in Goochland are recorded at the courthouse there: William Christian, son of James Christian, deceased, s3ells 250 acres whereon said William Christian lately lived, on east side 9f Beaverdam Creek, for 150 pounds current money, 1752; Richard and Joel Christian, of Charles City county, to Rev. Wmi. Douglas, of Gooch- land, 270 acres left to them by their deceased father, James Christian. Witnesses Thomas and John Bolling, Drury Christian, and James Scruggs, dated July 16, 1754.

Gideon Christian, of Charles City county, sells for 30 pounds current money 100 acres, part of 368 surveyed for James Christian, now de- teased, ov Beaverdam Creek, as by certificate March 1I, 1711, and de- -ised by Wben to said Gideon, 21 July, 1756.

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72 WILLIAM AND MARY COLLEGE QUARTERLY.

CHRISTIAN (Unerigg* Hall, County Cumberland, descended from the ancient family of M'Christen, of the Isle of Man, who for several generations have been Dempsters or Judges of that Island; the name appears to have been first written Christian about the year 1600 * * *). Azure; a chevron humett6e be- tween three covered cups, gold. Crest-a unicorn's head erased, silver, collared and armed, gold.

The following description of the crest is from Fairbain's Crests of England and Ireland, page 108:

CHRISTIAN, John, Esq., M. A., of Ewanrigg Hall, Cumb., and Milntown, Isle of Man, a unicorn's head, erased, ar., armed, and gorged with a collar, invecked, or. Salus per Christum.t

Fairbain's Crests of England and Ireland shows no less than seven different crests belonging to the Christian families. Of these, only three have the unicorn's head, only two have the head erased, and only one, the Isle of Man family, has a collar on the

* This word is spelled Ewanrigg in every instance except this and in Appendix No. 1 to Peveril of the Peak, where it is spelled Enrigg. Ewan- rigg is believed to be the correct spelling-obviously from Ewan, the name of the first of the family to settle in Cumberland, and the favorite given-name for males in the Isle of Man. The following is from Burke's Landed Gentry:

"CHRISTIAN OF EWANRIGG HALL.-Tbe first ancestor of the family on record was a member of the House of Keys, in the Isle of Man, at the Tyndwall Court, held in that Island 1422. The first who settled at Ewanrigg was Ewan Christian, Esq., of Milntown, Barrister-at-law, eldest son of Edward Christian, Esq., of Milntown, Demster of the Isle of Man * * * and grandson * * * of John Christian, Esq., of Miln- town, living 1643, who was son of Ewan Christian, Esq., of Milntown, made Demster of the Isle of Man 1605, arid grandson of William M'Christen, of Milntown, 7th in lineal descent from William M'Christen, a member of the House of Keys, 1422."

t As this matter will be of interest to many persons who are unac- quainted with the terms used in heraldry, it is thought to be not inap- propriate to add an explanation of those terms. Erased means having uneven or jagged edges, as if torn from the body by violence. Ar. (argent) means that the head is of the color of silver. Armed means that the horn is of different color from the head, and or. indicates that it (the horn) is of gold. Gorged with a collar, invecked, or., means that the neck is encircled with a collar whose edges do not lie flat against the neck, but are arched or rolled outwards and over, and that the color of the collar is gold. The field of the shield is blue, the chevron and the cups gold; the head and neck silver, the horn and collar gold.

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WILLIAM AND MARY COLLEGE QUARTERLY. 73

neck. The significance of this statement will be seen a little later.

It seems to be beyond question that "Mr. Thomas Christian" was the progenitor of the Virginia family. Independently of the records, tradition has affirmed for more than a century that "all the Christians trace back to Mr. Thomas Christian, who owned all the land on both sides of the Chickahominy river from Windsor Shades to Squirrel Park." The domains of Thomas may not have been as extensive as thus indicated, but it is known that in the region referred to there were at one time twelve con- necting plantations owned and occupied by the Christians.

As has been stated in the article in the QUARTERLY for April, 1897, this Mr. Thomas Christian patented, Octo. 21, 1687, 1080 acres of land in Charles City county.* A considerable part of that land has been from that day to this continuously in the f am- ily; and a farm called "Cherry Bottom," in Charles City, on the Chickahominy, a part of the original grant, is now owned and occupied by Mrs. Louisa Christian and her husband Capt. Thomas L. Christian, both referred to in the following pages under 18 Thomas3 Christian. This farm was the home of 18 Thomias3, and of his father 1 William2, (who devised it as "my home place" to Thomas), and most probably of his father 57 Wil- liam'. The dwelling house, though evidently of very great age, is still in good preservation. A few years ago, in repairing one of the rooms, an old silver teaspoon was found in a rat's nest in the ceiling. On the handle of this spoon is stamped a unicorn's head, which, although indistinct in some of its details, plainly shows the collar around the neck. This spoon is now in the pos- session of Judge George L. Christian, of Richmond.

It is too much to expect, of course, that the following outline of the family is free from errors and omissions, although no labor nor pains have been spared to make it so. The destruction

* The following are the patents in the Christian name: 1. Thomas Christian, 100 acres north side of James River and east

side of Chickahominy, January 15, 1657; and another patent December 9, 1662.

2. "Mr. Thomas Christian" 1080 acres in Charles City, Octo. 21, 1687. 3. Mr. Thomas Christian, Sen., 193 acres in Charles City, Octo.

26, 1694. 4. Charles Christian, 75 acres in Charles City, Nov. 2, 1705.

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74 WILLIAM AND MARY COLLEGE QUARTERLY.

of the public records, which has been referred to, the fragmentary character of such of them as remain, the extraordinary number of names, the constant recurrence of the same names (especially, in the earlier years, James and William), and the confusion aris- ing from the persistent habit of intermarrying, have made the task extremely onerous. It is hoped that the result will proved to be at least fairly satisfactory to those who are most interested in it.

(To be Continued.)

FACTS FROM "SOUTHERN SIDE LIGHTS."1

BY EDWARD W. JAMES.

"Southern Side Lights" show that "in 1850 the South had one pauper for every 303 free inhabitants, and the North one for every 118. Massachusetts had one for every 63; Maine, one for 112; New York, one for 52; Virginia, one for 185; Maryland, one for 109; Arkansas, one for 54. In the free States were more than five times as many paupers as in the South, and eight times as many criminals. Ten years later the South had 25,181 pau- pers, one for every 332 inhabitants, and 7,398 criminals, one for 1,130, while in the North there was one pauper for every 64 of the inhabitants, the total number being 296,484, and one crimi- nal for every 208 inhabitants, the total being 91,438." The in- crease in the population of the North from 1850 to 1860 was 41 per cent. and the increase of paupers 160 per cent. The popula- tion of the South advanced 29 per cent. and the paupers increased 18 per cent. In Massachusetts in 1860 there were 18,010 native and 33,870 foreign-born paupers. In 1860 48 per cent. of the criminals in the South were foreigners, and in the North 68 per cent. were foreigners.

' Southern Side Lights, edited by Edward Ingle, page 114, in the WILLIAM AND MARY COLLEGE QUARTERLY for October, 1898, should be Southern Side Lights, by Edward Ingle.

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