John Dandridge
Encyclopedia
Colonel John Dandridge of Chestnut Grove
(13/14 July 1700 – 31 August 1756) was a distinguished colonel
, planter, and Clerk of the Courts of New Kent County
, Virginia
from 1730 to 1756. Dandridge is best known as the father of the first First Lady of the United States
Martha Washington
, wife of George Washington
, the first president of the United States
.
, probably in London
, Dandridge was the youngest son of John Dandridge (Oxford
, Oxfordshire
, April 29, 1655 - Oxford, Oxfordshire, 1731), and wife (m. St. Mary Magdalen, London, 1676) Bridget Dugdale (Oxford, Oxfordshire, c. 1656 - 1731), paternal grandson of William Dandridge (Drayton St. Leonard
, Oxfordshire, England, 30 January 1612 - Dorchester Abbey
, On Thames, England, July 1693) and wife, and great-grandson of Bartholomew Dandridge (England, c. 1580 - Drayton St. Leonard, Oxfordshire, England, 21 September 1638) and wife (m. England, 10 May 1604) Agnes Wilder (c. 1585 - c. 1650). He immigrated to Virginia
at the age of 14 in 1715.
, daughter of Orlando Jones and Martha West Macon, on 22 July 1730 in New Kent County
, Virginia. John and Frances had eight children:
in New Kent County, Virginia, Chestnut Grove
. John became Clerk of Courts
in New Kent County and kept that position for the next 26 years. He was also vestryman
and churchwarden
for St. Peter's Church
. John was a prominent planter, and a colonel in his military district.
John's older brother, William Dandridge (1689–1743), lived on the opposite bank of the river with his wife Unity West Dandridge, daughter of Nathaniel West
and wife Martha Woodard Macon, at their estate, Elsing Green
, in King William County
. Chestnut Grove burned down in 1926, but its former site was only four miles from the location of the current county court house for New Kent.
Along with Chestnut Grove in New Kent, John and Frances also owned a house in Williamsburg
and visited there frequently.
, Virginia
. Dandridge is interred at St. George's Episcopal Church burial ground in Fredericksburg.
Chestnut Grove (plantation)
Chestnut Grove was an 18th-century plantation on the Pamunkey River near New Kent Court House in New Kent County, Virginia, United States. Chestnut Grove is best known as the birthplace of Martha Washington, wife of George Washington, and the first First Lady of the United States...
(13/14 July 1700 – 31 August 1756) was a distinguished colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
, planter, and Clerk of the Courts of New Kent County
New Kent County, Virginia
At the 2000 census, there were 13,462 people, 4,925 households and 3,895 families residing in the county. The population density was 64 per square mile . There were 5,203 housing units at an average density of 25 per square mile...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
from 1730 to 1756. Dandridge is best known as the father of the first First Lady of the United States
First Lady of the United States
First Lady of the United States is the title of the hostess of the White House. Because this position is traditionally filled by the wife of the president of the United States, the title is most often applied to the wife of a sitting president. The current first lady is Michelle Obama.-Current:The...
Martha Washington
Martha Washington
Martha Dandridge Custis Washington was the wife of George Washington, the first president of the United States. Although the title was not coined until after her death, Martha Washington is considered to be the first First Lady of the United States...
, wife of George Washington
George Washington
George Washington was the dominant military and political leader of the new United States of America from 1775 to 1799. He led the American victory over Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army from 1775 to 1783, and presided over the writing of...
, the first president of the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Early life
Born on 13 July 1700 in EnglandEngland
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, probably in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, Dandridge was the youngest son of John Dandridge (Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
, Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
, April 29, 1655 - Oxford, Oxfordshire, 1731), and wife (m. St. Mary Magdalen, London, 1676) Bridget Dugdale (Oxford, Oxfordshire, c. 1656 - 1731), paternal grandson of William Dandridge (Drayton St. Leonard
Drayton St. Leonard
Drayton St. Leonard is a village and civil parish on the River Thame in Oxfordshire, about southeast of Oxford.-Manor:The Domesday Book of 1086 does not list Drayton separately. At that time the land was part of the Bishop of Lincoln's estate of Dorchester. The village developed as a subsidiary of...
, Oxfordshire, England, 30 January 1612 - Dorchester Abbey
Dorchester Abbey
Dorchester Abbey is a Church of England parish church in Dorchester on Thames, Oxfordshire, about southeast of Oxford. It was formerly a Norman abbey church and was built on the site of a Saxon cathedral.-History:...
, On Thames, England, July 1693) and wife, and great-grandson of Bartholomew Dandridge (England, c. 1580 - Drayton St. Leonard, Oxfordshire, England, 21 September 1638) and wife (m. England, 10 May 1604) Agnes Wilder (c. 1585 - c. 1650). He immigrated to Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
at the age of 14 in 1715.
Marriage and children
Dandridge married Frances Orlando JonesFrances Jones (mother of Martha Dandridge Washington)
Frances Orlando Jones was born in New Kent County, Virginia, where she also died.Frances married John Dandridge on July 22, 1730 in New Kent County, Virginia...
, daughter of Orlando Jones and Martha West Macon, on 22 July 1730 in New Kent County
New Kent County, Virginia
At the 2000 census, there were 13,462 people, 4,925 households and 3,895 families residing in the county. The population density was 64 per square mile . There were 5,203 housing units at an average density of 25 per square mile...
, Virginia. John and Frances had eight children:
- Martha Dandridge Custis WashingtonMartha WashingtonMartha Dandridge Custis Washington was the wife of George Washington, the first president of the United States. Although the title was not coined until after her death, Martha Washington is considered to be the first First Lady of the United States...
(1731–1802) - John Dandridge (1733–1749)
- William Dandridge (1734–1776)
- Bartholomew DandridgeBartholomew DandridgeBartholomew Dandridge was an early American lawyer, jurist, and planter.-Early life:Dandridge was born in 1737 at Chestnut Grove in New Kent County, Virginia. He was the fourth child and third eldest son of John Dandridge and his wife Frances Jones...
(1737–1785) - Anna Marie "Fanny" Dandridge Bassett (1739–1777)
- Frances Dandridge (1744–1757)
- Elizabeth Dandridge Aylett Henley (1749–1800)
- Mary Dandridge (1756–1763)
Career and residences
Upon their marriage in 1730, John and Frances moved to their new home on the banks of the Pamunkey RiverPamunkey River
The Pamunkey River is a tributary of the York River, about long, in eastern Virginia in the United States. Via the York River it is part of the watershed of Chesapeake Bay.-Course:...
in New Kent County, Virginia, Chestnut Grove
Chestnut Grove (plantation)
Chestnut Grove was an 18th-century plantation on the Pamunkey River near New Kent Court House in New Kent County, Virginia, United States. Chestnut Grove is best known as the birthplace of Martha Washington, wife of George Washington, and the first First Lady of the United States...
. John became Clerk of Courts
Supreme Court of Virginia
The Supreme Court of Virginia is the highest court in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It primarily hears appeals from the trial-level city and county Circuit Courts, as well as the criminal law, family law and administrative law cases that go through the Court of Appeals of Virginia. It is one of...
in New Kent County and kept that position for the next 26 years. He was also vestryman
Vestryman
A vestryman is a member of his local church's vestry, or leading body. He is not a member of the clergy.In England especially, but also in other parts of The United Kingdom, Parish Councils have long been a level of local government rather than being solely ecclesiastical in nature...
and churchwarden
Churchwarden
A churchwarden is a lay official in a parish church or congregation of the Anglican Communion, usually working as a part-time volunteer. Holders of these positions are ex officio members of the parish board, usually called a vestry, parish council, parochial church council, or in the case of a...
for St. Peter's Church
St. Peter's Church (New Kent, Virginia)
St. Peter's Church is an Episcopal church in New Kent, Virginia, United States. Built in 1703, the church was designated as "The First Church of the First First-Lady" by the Virginia General Assembly in 1960 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1969.-History:St. Peter's Church...
. John was a prominent planter, and a colonel in his military district.
John's older brother, William Dandridge (1689–1743), lived on the opposite bank of the river with his wife Unity West Dandridge, daughter of Nathaniel West
Nathaniel West (captain)
Captain and Lieutenant-Colonel Nathaniel West of Poplar Neck was a resident and the member for King William County in the House of Burgesses of the US Colony and Dominion of Virginia...
and wife Martha Woodard Macon, at their estate, Elsing Green
Elsing Green
Elsing Green Plantation, a National Historic Landmark and wildlife refuge, rests upon nearly along the Pamunkey River in King William County, Virginia, a rural county on the western end of the state’s middle peninsula, approximately northeast of the City of Richmond. The 18th-century plantation,...
, in King William County
King William County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 13,146 people, 4,846 households, and 3,784 families residing in the county. The population density was 48 people per square mile . There were 5,189 housing units at an average density of 19 per square mile...
. Chestnut Grove burned down in 1926, but its former site was only four miles from the location of the current county court house for New Kent.
Along with Chestnut Grove in New Kent, John and Frances also owned a house in Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg
Colonial Williamsburg is the private foundation representing the historic district of the city of Williamsburg, Virginia, USA. The district includes buildings dating from 1699 to 1780 which made colonial Virginia's capital. The capital straddled the boundary of the original shires of Virginia —...
and visited there frequently.
Later life
Dandridge died on 31 August 1756 at the age of 56 in FredericksburgFredericksburg, Virginia
Fredericksburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia located south of Washington, D.C., and north of Richmond. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 24,286...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. Dandridge is interred at St. George's Episcopal Church burial ground in Fredericksburg.