William SPENCER

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Arrived with the first expedition and landed at what was to become Jamestown, VA on 13 May 1607 with 105 settlers. Was oneof 38 to survive. Was known as "Ancient Planter." In the book,"History of Surry County," John Rolfe, husband of Pocahontas,writes on his character as industrious, valiant and has great integrity. William Spencer, yeoman and ancient planter, came toVirginia in the"First Supply" in 1608, was an honest, valiant and industrious workman, and first to choose land. He was an Ensign; Burgess for Jamestown in the first Assembly in 1619;Burgess for Mulberry Island in 1624; patented 12acres onJamestown Island in 1624, at which time he had a wife Alice and a daughter Alice, b 1620. In 163203 he was Burgess of MulberryIsland. (Quotedby Holtz, p 370, from Tyler's Encyclopedia ofVirginia Biography, Vol I, p 329)

That title was an official designation for inhabitants of Virginia who came over before 1616. As Ancient Planters they were entitled to have 100 acres of free land. Another benefit enacted in 1623/24 provided that "they and their posterity shall be exempted from persnal service to the wars and any public charge (church duties excepted)".William Spencer, ancestor of the Surry Harts, was especially notable in that he was a member of the first expedition which arrived at Jamestown, for he came over on the "Sarah Constant" with Captain Christopher Newport in 1607. He helped to establish the first permanent English colony in America. Others say he came aboard the "Susan constant".Captain John Smith, in speaking of the men who had been alloted farms for the raising of corn, said in 1614, "From all those Farmers whereof the first was William Spencer, an honest, valiant, and industrious man, from those is expected such a contribution to the store, as we shall neither want for ourselves, nor entertain our supplies." John Rolfe said, "William Spencer and Thomas Barret a sergeant, with some others of the Ancient Planters being set free, were the first farmers that went forth; and have chosen places to their content; so that knowing their own land they strive who should exceed in building and planting." William Spencer eventually patented several thousand acres of land, and finally settled in Surry County. He served as Burgess for Mulberry Island in 1624 and 1632-33. "Colonial Surry", by John B. Boddie, 1959, pp. 45-48 During the Colonial period, Virginia was governed by a Governor, the Governor's Council, and the House of Burgesses. The House of Burgesses was the forerunner of the Virginia General Assembly. The Governor's Council were appointed and acted as the upper house of the legislature as well as the highest court in Virginia. The elected Senate is now the upper house. The lower house was composed of the Burgesses, elected representatives from the shires or counties, roughly equivalent to the Delegates of today. He later owned 1,900 acres of land south of Hog Island in Lawnes Creek Parish Surry. He served as a Burgess of Mulberry Island 1624-32-33. He transported 27 people from England to Va. He transported his nephew Nicholas Spencer to Jamestown in 1635, for which William received land.Most researchers think that William Spencer died about 1652. However, Surry County Records show that a Thos. Peirce, of Mulberry Island, in Virgina, gives his son Wm Peirce a 'cowe' which Capt. Wm Peirce and Mr. Wm. Spencer shall make choice of.... It is dated 21 Jan. 1655 and recorded 30 May 1658. (Julia W. Trainor notes).A reference to the death of William Spencer: 1685/6, January 4 - Indenture, Wm. Cockerham to Wm. Harris, 150 acres in Hog Island granted to Wm. Spencer, late of the County, dec'd February 1, 1637/8.Additional sources: Adventurers of Purse and Person, Annie L Jester, 1956. Cavaliers and Pioneers, Nugent. Vol I. Guide to the Buildings of Surry and The American Revolution, James D. Kernwolf, 1976. Genealogical Gleanings in England, Vol. 1, General Publishing Co., Baltimore, 1981, p. 491-492Sources: Early Spencers of Virginia, Henry W. Rigby, 1986, p. 10 & 11 Surry County Records, Surry County, Virginia, 1562-1684, p. 116."Jamestown (Virginia), former village of Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in America. It is located in present-day James City County, on an island in the James River, southeast of Richmond, part of the 3816-hectare (9430-acre) Colonial National Historical Park.Jamestown was founded on May 14, 1607, by a small group led by Captain Christopher Newport, who was hired by the London Company to transport colonists. Many settlers died from famine and disease in the winter of 1609-10. The survivors were encouraged to stay in Jamestown by the arrival of new settlers and supplies the following June. In 1612 tobacco growing was started. The colony prospered and became the capital of Virginia.In 1619 the first representative assembly in America was held here. In the same year, at Jamestown, the first blac
k slaves were introduced into the original 13 colonies. The village was often attacked by Native Americans. In 1622, 350 colonists were killed; 500 in 1644. Colonists rebelling against the rule of Governor William Berkeley burned Jamestown in 1676 (see Bacon's Rebellion). The seat of government was moved to the Middle Plantation (now Williamsburg) in 1699, and Jamestown was deserted.The National Park Service and the Association for the Preservation of Virginia Antiquities (which owns 9 hectares/23 acres of the island), have excavated and restored the area. The Jamestown Archaeological Laboratory contains relics unearthed by National Park Service excavations. Jamestown Festival Park, adjacent to the national park, has full-scale replicas of early ships and a re-creation of James Fort (1607). Pavilions depict Native American and English cultures." Microsoft(R) Encarta(R) 98 Encyclopedia. (c) 1993-1997