davidmasonpolitical

LAWRENCE COUNTY ARKANSAS GENEALOGY TRAILS

DAVID MASON'S POLITICAL AND MILITARY LIFE

After the death of his father, David Mason, along with his brothers, Thomas, James, John, Joseph, Christopher, Daniel, Isaac and Charles, considering the vast land holdings their father had left them, stayed close to and participated with the Sussex County Vestry.
The Vestry was a group of men who saw to the needs of the community. For instance if deaths had occurred in a family which left children orphaned, it was the Vestry who saw to it that those children would be sent to good homes so they would be raised well and the Vestry would allot specific amounts of money (in the form of Pounds of Tobacco) that would pay for their upkeep. Land Sales were also recorded in the Vestry Register. In fact not much happened in the community without the Vestry having good records of the event. With this in mind the Mason Brothers stayed close to it because not only did they live in Sussex County but together, they owned a considerable amount of the land in Sussex County.
David Mason enjoyed being with this group of people but his ambitions ran a bit deeper and at the age of only 25 years old he ran for and was elected to a seat in the House of Burgesses. He sat as a Burgess from Sussex County in Sept. 1758 and from there his political ambition took off with a brilliant career in the House. His sessions as a Burgess from Sussex County are as follows: Sept. 1758, November 1758, Feb. 1759, March 1760, May 1760, Oct. 1760, March 1761, Nov. 1761, Jan. 1762, March 1762, Nov. 1762, May 1763, Jan 1764, Oct. 1764, May 1765, Nov. 1766, March 1767, March 1768, May 1769 (the year of Jane Mason’s birth), Nov. 1769, May 1770, July 1771 Feb. 1772, Mar. 1773, May 1774, and June of 1775.
He also sat in the Virginia Conventions of March 1775, 1776 and 1777. During the Convention of 1776, was when he was formally commissioned to the military rank of a “Full” Colonel and given the command of the 15th Virginia Regiment on November 12, 1776. This date incidentally is the same date he commissioned his son David as a 1st Lieutenant who also served in the 15th in one of his companies of men. Littleberry Mason also a son of Col. David Mason, served as paymaster for the 15th.
So, here he sat, a Burgess from Sussex County and working with some of the foremost Revolutionaries of the day. He knew George Washington (who he would soon know much better) and he also knew Thomas Jefferson as Thomas Jefferson was a Burgess from Albemarle Parish and used to frequent the Epps Family Plantation home of Eppington. David Mason was 1 of 4 assigned Burgesses to the very committee that would present George Mason’s Virginia Bill of Right’s document to the House of Burgesses and even though their family lines were different in America, both Col. David Mason and George Mason of Gunston Hall knew who each other were. These three Gentlemen are members of a “Short List” of the 80 Gentlemen that were members of the House of Burgesses. Finding a list of the House members is the list of names of those who knew Col. David Mason well.
Sadly however, on the 31 of July in 1778, he would resign his commission as the Commander of the 15th due in part to some problems he had at home with his family. We will discuss this in a bit. Many things will happen to this man and his family while they lived in Williamsburg where the 15th Virginia Line was headquartered.
It is further known however that after he resigned his commission, he went on to command a Volunteer or Militia Regiment in a southern army. This may have been a militia army in Georgia.

The Virginia Conventions:

    The Virginia Conventions were 5 Political Meetings held by the members of the House of Burgesses. The first of which was organized after The Royal Governor Lord Dunmore dissolved the House of Burgesses in 1774. The Burgesses moved the meeting to the Raleigh Tavern to continue their meeting. Here they declared their support for Massachusetts and called for a congress of all the colonies which became the Continental Congress. Operating as the first convention, on August 1, 1774, this body continued their meeting and elected representatives to the Second Virginia Convention. They had also resolved to ban commerce and payment of debts with Britain, and pledged supplies and support to Boston.

The Second Virginia Convention:
    This was David Mason’s 1st showing at the Conventions and what a showing it was. This Second Convention was held at St. John’s Church in Richmond, Virginia and started on March 20, 1775. At this Convention, it was Patrick Henry, on the 23rd of March, who proposed arming a Virginia Militia and that every Freeholder Virginian should arm themselves against any intruder to the peace of tranquility of the Colony.
“Gentleman may cry Peace, Peace but there is no peace. The War is actually begun! The next Gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms. Our brethren are already in the field, why stand we here Idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear or peace so sweet as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God. I know not what course others may take but as for me, give me Liberty or give me death.”

Patrick Henry, March 23, 1775

Patrick Henry’s Treason by Peter F. Rothermel

The third convention met in July 1775 after Lord Dunmore had fled the capital and taken refuge on a British warship. The convention created a Committee of Safety to take over governance in the absence of Dunmore. The convention also divided Virginia into 16 military districts and resolved to raise regular regiments in each.
The fourth convention denounced Dunmore and declared that Virginians were ready to defend themselves "against every species of despotism."
The fifth convention began May 6, 1776 and met in Williamsburg. This convention was attended by Col. Mason as well and By May 15, 1776, the convention declared Independence from Britain and instructed its delegates to the Continental Congress in Philadelphia to propose Independence. On June 7, Richard Henry Lee, one of four of Virginia’s delegates to Congress, carried out these instructions which paved the way for Our Declaration of Independence. Then on June 12, the convention adopted George Mason’s Document of The Virginia Bill of Rights which served as a model document for the United States Bill of Rights. On June 29th, the convention approved the first Constitution of Virginia. At this convention, Patrick Henry was chosen as the first Governor of the new Commonwealth of Virginia.

This is an article posted in the Virginia Gazette dated May 10, 1776

David Mason was stirred by his first encounter with the 2nd Convention at St. John’s Church. What could he contribute to this cause as a Burgess from Sussex County? Well, we certainly know from the Records of the House of Burgesses that on 12 November 1776, David Mason was commissioned the Military Rank of Colonel by the House of Burgesses and was also given Command of what he would make the 15th Virginia Regiment of Foot. He would serve directly under the command of General George Washington. The Virginia Gazette from Williamsburg, as shown above, calls him out as a Colonel in this article Dated April 12, 1776 and the one above it that was posted in their paper of May 10th, 1776 both of which show that David Mason was known as a “Colonel” prior to his being given Command of the 15th Virginia Line Regiment. With all due respect to his rank, this Honor bestowed upon him was somewhat typical of how Colonel’s during the Revolutionary War received their Military Rank. It was given to them by a Governing body of the Commonwealth indicating that they were members of that governing body given a task to fulfill for the general population, thus the moniker assigned to him personally was; “Col. David Mason, Soldier and Statesman”.
The 15th Virginia Line Regiment would be headquartered in Williamsburg with the troops located in and around Alexandria. Col. David Mason moved his family to Williamsburg to live including Jane Mason who was 7 years of age at the time. The 15th was a fine Regiment though and all of the men who served their country in this Regiment did well and served with distinction from South Carolina to White Plaines. Col. Mason served most of his time as a recruitment officer with the 15th and filled 5 companies with men. Lt. Col. James Innes ran the Regiment in the field.
The Engagements of the 15th:
The 15th Virginia Regiment was raised on December 28, 1775 in Sussex and surrounding Counties south of the James River in Virginia for service with the Continental Army. The regiment would see action at the Battle of Brandywine, Battle of Germantown, Battle of Monmouth and the Siege of Charleston. Most of the regiment was captured at Charlestown, South Carolina on May 12, 1780 by the British and the regiment was formally disbanded on November 15, 1783.
As mentioned earlier in the beginning of this essay, George Washington was very suspicious of the Small Pox epidemic that was so virulent throughout the Revolutionary War years. In this letter to Col. David Mason, who spent much of his time recruiting new soldiers, Washington’s concerns are shown. This letter (presented on the following page) was written on the 4th of April 1778.

The reader here will also note in this particular letter on the last page, specific reference is made to Mrs. Mason. While Col. Mason was in Alexandria training his regiment, he had written a letter to George Washington in March asking him if he could go home and attend to “His Lady” Mary (Epps) Mason who had complaints of the Rhumatic. This condition of Mary’s hit her with sever pain whenever she was carrying a child within her and would leave her bed ridden for the term of the pregnancy. Mary had given birth to William in 1776 after birthing 12 other children before him. She just couldn’t deal with the pains left in her body after William’s birth and we believe this is what eventually claimed her life. During this period when she was bed ridden, she had 5 young children around the house that she couldn’t care for alone. Of course her young daughters Jane and Rebecca were helping as much as they knew how and this is how they would receive their Mid-Wife training at home. Their mother must have explained to them how to care for the young and both of these young girls were old enough to be with Mary for the births of William, Littleton and Henry Mason. I wouldn’t be half surprised to hear that Col. Mason sent one of his Military Doctors around every now and again to look in on her. This may have been a mistake on his part as far as the Wellness Directory of Minnesota tells us that when the doctors arrived they pretty much helped speed up a person’s lifecycle into death.
Anyway, David Mason had asked George Washington to allow him to go to Williamsburg and look after his family while Mary was making her way through this difficult time. As you can see in the next letter, Washington refused to give David the time he had requested and ordered Col. Mason to rejoin his command and help the Baron Von Stuben train his soldiers. In the following letter Washington would send to David Mason on May 16, 1778, he would ask for David’s resignation.

Col. David Mason, realizing the difficulty of the situation he and Mary were facing with their family in Williamsburg lead him to resign his commission on 31 July 1778. Being asked to resign his commission by His Excellency, General George Washington must have been difficult to take. This was only the first blow that lead Col. David Mason to think his fortunes were changing in the world.
This Research Essay has not been able to place a date of death next to the name of Mary (Epps) Mason. However, we feel that it had occurred after 31 July 1778, the date of Washington’s last letter. We are inclined to believe that Mary Epps had passed only a few years after the birth of William. I will tell you why.
You have to think of the life of Col. David Mason and where he was during this period of time. Of course we know that he was actively involved in Commanding the 15th Regiment for the Continental Army. On April 4, 1778 as noted above, he wrote a letter to George Washington asking him to be released for a period of time so he could go home and care for his wife. That very same week, Washington sent him a letter back telling him that he couldn’t allow David to leave Alexandria and go back to Williamsburg just to see after his wife. Washington said that if he allowed him to do so that every officer in the same circumstance would have to be released and that David had already had more than his share of time at home or close to home. He ordered David to go and take Command of his troops and help the Barron Von Stuben train his troops and instill in them the spirit of discipline for the 15th.
After this letter David must have sent another to Washington asking again to see after his wife who was bed ridden and had 4 very young children at home that needed him to be there. Mary could do little to raise these kids if she were bed ridden the way she was in 1769 when she was pregnant with Jane. Even though William had been born in 1776, Mary was still suffering from enough pain to keep her in bed and off of her feet.
Well, Washington in his letter to David Mason dated April 19, 1778, again ordered David back to the 15th and if his situation at home prevented him from serving in the Army, that he would expect David to tender his resignation so the his Command could be filled by another officer. Then of Course David realizing the situation he had at home did as Washington suggested and resigned his Commission on July 31, 1778.
David did go home to Williamsburg to care for his Wife and family. So Mary must have passed sometime after July 31, 1778. I think the burden placed on her during William’s birth (or her Doctor’s administration of Healthfull Medicine) stayed with her and eventually took her life.
Col. David Mason, after relinquishing his command to General Washington, went home to Williamsburg to a family in crisis. He too would suffer the loss of his “Lady” and after Mary’s death and the end of the Revolutionary War; David Mason would move his family back to Sussex County, Virginia.
In 1789, he would become a Vestryman of Sussex County and was eventually elected to a term as the Sheriff (Justice) of Sussex County. Then it is said that on 9 February 1792, he had passed away and was survived by a very large family of descendants.
During this families period of living in Williamsburg, I am sure that Rebecca and Jane Mason both, young as they were at the time, learned allot about the care of very young babies and children, having to care for their younger brothers in their mother’s stead. We shouldn’t be half surprised to find out that David sent the Military doctors to his home in Williamsburg to look in on Mary and every time the doctors would pop in, Rebecca and Jane were right there to do as the doctor told them not only to care for the kids but to see after Mary who must have been in a terrible state.
So when it is said of Jane Mason that she was a “Trained” Mid-wife, as Jane’s Family and historians lay claim to, this history of caring for Jane’s younger brothers and mother is what people need to allude to. Jane got a real lesson in the care of her mother and her younger brothers and I’ll bet you she also was witness to her mother sinking deeper and deeper into the very sad condition of health that took her life. Jane must have been with Mary Epps when she passed. This episode in the young life of 9 year old Jane Mason was the driving force and the reason why she grew up to have such a desire to help other women not only to be with them as they birthed their children but to care for the mothers afterward.
Maybe she blamed herself, from this young age, for her Mother’s death and vowed that she would care for other women that were in a similar circumstance and that the same situation that happened to her mother wouldn’t happen to no one else as long as she had anything to do with it.
1789 is also the year that 20 year old Jane Mason would be married to James Jeffery in Alexandria, Virginia. We didn’t find any Court or Vestry documentation of this event but we do have the story of J. J. Sams who knew from his grandmother that this is where she and James were married. Afterward they went back to Rutherford County, N. C. where their first born son, Jehoiada Jeffery was born a year later in 1790.
J. J. Sams, the son of Lavina (Jeffery) (Sams) Culp, Jane Mason’s grandson, writes to us that the reason that Jane’s father, David Mason, didn’t want her to marry James Jeffery was because James couldn’t read or write, which is probably true to a certain extent but we tend to believe that Col. David Mason didn’t like the idea that his daughter would marry to an Englishman and into an English Family. After all of the years he had spent in the House of Burgesses hearing others talk of hate to the English and the Crown and all he did to defend the Patriot cause by building the 15th Regiment, I think that David Mason learned to despise the English at every opportunity, especially after the Battles his 15th Virginia Line Regiment had been party to. To see his own daughter marry an Englishman was unthinkable and this is perhaps the reason why Jane Mason is not specifically found any longer in the Mason Family Records and by the time she was growing into her adult years, she and her husband were well on their way, eventually pioneering themselves to the Missouri Territory, arriving there in 1816. She may have been banished from the family for this treason of getting married to an Englishman. The only real record that exists of her is a single letter, written during the Civil War from her Great Grandson, Ambrose Jeffery to his father Miles, telling us all that Thomas Jefferson Mason of Loudon, Tennessee was nephew to old Grandmother Jeffery. I wanted to write this story about the life of Jane Mason before all documentation of her is lost forever.
So, Jane Mason and her husband would leave this area of Plantation Society behind them and seek happiness elsewhere. Perhaps this is what they were looking for when they pioneered their way to Fort Southwest Point in 1798 and then later to the Missouri Territory.
Jane would quickly gain the reputation of being a country doctor of sorts. People use to seek her out from miles around when they were in need of a good doctor.
Then of course, as the Jeffery Family of Batesville, Arkansas knows all to well, Jane Mason stayed true to her childhood vow all of her life and looked after anyone who needed her care; Indian, Slave and White Folk alike, people in this part of the Territory knew they could count on Jane’s ability to heal their sick and help them birth their young. Color, Race or Creed didn’t matter to Jane. She cared for everyone down to the last.
Even her husband, James Jeffery couldn’t stop this amazing woman from keeping her away from her childhood vow. When Jane was called out that night in the rainstorm to help an Indian woman birth her child against the wishes of Ol James Jeffery, she knew that if she left the house that James would be angry enough to cast her from their home and family as he wanted them both to come to an understanding about who and when Jane could call on and help those in need. But she stayed true to herself and went to help this woman anyway. Some have said that Jane was stubborn and pigheaded but I simply must protest this. She was only remaining true to her heart. A real mid-wife in every sense of the word; Jane would sacrifice everything in her life to defend and uphold her own beliefs for the benefit of those she cared for and nurtured back to health. It is a sad state to see that Ol Jim couldn’t see this in his wife after all the trails they had traveled together. He didn’t even want Jane buried in the Jeffery Family Cemetery at the end of her days. Instead she was buried on a small piece of ground that was owned by her son Daniel Mason Jeffery that was far removed from the rest of the Jeffery graves that are so finely laid out in the Jeffery cemetery north of Batesville, Arkansas.
Some years after Jane’s passing, which took place in 1853 in Izard County, Arkansas, it is said that some new born children who had died during birth, were also buried next to Jane’s grave. These children, reportedly born into the Hanks Family, couldn’t have been given a better resting place then being buried next to Jane Mason of Sussex County, Virginia.
Jane Mason was and still is a Very Great Woman.

                                Thomas L. Milligan

There are some very important people we need to Thank for their cooperation in the production research of this Essay.

First of all, we would be amiss if we didn’t extend our sincere Thanks to the people of The Wellness Directory of Minnesota that gave us their permission to use a few paragraphs from their work, “The History of Medicine 1800 – 1850” and “The History of Medicine: The Revolutionary War”. The history that they have posted describing the uses of midwivery in the early years of American Medicine is truly an excellent work. Thank You all for your research.

We would like to extend our gratitude to the Library of Congress for posting the George Washington Papers Collection for we American’s to read and use at our Leisure for research and study. Everyone in our country knows what a fine institution your Library is and the good work everyone in the Library does to keep us American’s up to date with our National Past. Thank You.

In the same vein, I would also like to extend my Thanks and gratitude to the Library of Virginia. It was very nice to find such valuable information of Colonel David Mason’s Life posted on your own website for the Research and use of many who need this information for educational study. It was wonderful to discover and be able to use the R. Bolling Batte Biographical Card Index. For this Family, the Index is a Treasure; Thank You.

I want to extend a special Thank You to Jimmy Blankenship of the United States National Park Service who was instrumental in explaining some of the details of Appomattox Manor and the early history of this Epps Family Plantation Home. He also helped us understand about the Epps Plantation Home of “Eppington” which was the Famous haunt of our President Thomas Jefferson. Thank You Jimmy for helping with our Study and Research. I’ll send a copy of this document for you to use at Eppington and to place into your Archive. Please distribute this Essay freely.

We would also like to send our sincere Thanks to all of the County Courthouses in Southern Virginia for helping us retrieve records of this Mason Families Real Estate holdings in Virginia. There are actually too many of you to list everyone. If we were to list you all it would create a very lengthy list indeed. You know who you are. Humbly, We Thank You.

We, of course would never leave out the good folks at the Colonial Village of Williamsburg for allowing us the use of the newspaper clippings of the Virginia Gazette during the Revolutionary War Period for this study and Essay. Thank You Everyone.

I want to thank my research partner, Pat Sproat of Houston, Texas for the fine work she has contributed to this Essay. Her Genealogical and Historical Research is and always has been of excellent quality. Thank You Pat for your fine contributions.

Finally, we want to send our Sincere Thanks to Bertie Dipietro and Helen Luke for their contributions to this research. Thank You for up-dating the where-abouts of the portrait of T. J. Mason and of one of Ambrose’s Letters and sharing this recent history with us. Save your tape recording or write it down for future generations. Thanks

DISCLAIMER:
This essay was researched and written for the sole use and purpose to study the Life Of Jane Mason Jeffery of the Early Mt. Olive Community north of Batesville, Arkansas, as well as her Ascendants and Descendants. It is offered free of charge to those who wish to continue in this direction of study and research of this dynamic Virginia born woman and her early years of life and growth in Revolutionary America and into her later history as a mid-wife in the Missouri Territory beginning in 1816. This research is based on the Civil War Letters of Ambrose Jeffery as a link to her past and no “Birth Certificate” documentation other than the 1860 Census of her Nephew, Thomas Jefferson Mason of Loudon, Tennessee, was ever found linking her legally to the Col. David Mason Family. The Ambrose Jeffery Letter written in the Cumberland Gap of Tennessee in 1862 is the basis for what we feel is “Factual Evidence” by association to those who knew her the best during their own lifetimes in Early Arkansas and Civil War History. Once again, the evidence is such that we can not say any longer that Jane Mason did “Not” come from this family.

Grand Mother Jane, we have written you well. Tlm