By: Ronald B.

Dear Joe,

Just a quick note. I have found some interesting information on the daughters of Robert I (Parson) Bracewell. It concerns the Bacon's Rebellion and the part played by the husbands of Jane and Rebecca. (Copy enclosed) You will see from this that one of the Janes in what I sent to you will have to be deleted because she is one and the same person apparently.

I also believe that Robert I was not allowed to serve in the House of Burgesses because he was a Minister. This reference comes from Henning Statutes at Large, Vol l, 1629 60, page 378. The note next to the bit about him being suspended says "Minister of Gospel suspended and declared ineligible to a seat in the house of Burgesses".

It looks as though I will have an evening class in Dublin next quarter and I will be over there two days each week. I hope to be able to go over early on those days and go to their Library and the Courthouse to gather information. Maybe will make some big break throughs.

Keep in touch and I will try to keep you up to date on what I find.

Yours truly,
Ronald B.

BACON'S REBELLION

The, decade after Robert (Parsen) Bracewell's death was a critical time for the Colony of Virginia. The Colony depended on one crop, tobacco, for its livelihood. Tobacco prices were low and most Virginians were poor. Due to the Navigation Acts of 1660 and 1665, the Virginians could sell their tobacco only to England.

The Governor of Virginia, Sir William Berkley, objected to the Navigation Acts, but his protest brought no relief. Further discord among the colonists was caused by the special favors granted by the government to members of the Governor's Council and his friends which enabled them to stave off the depression while the rest of the people suffered. The House of Burgesses, supposed to represent the people of every county, had been allowed to sit without a new election from 1661 to 1676.

In 1675 resentment against the government grew to the breaking point due to an uprising by the Indians. The colonists wanted action and a self-appointed army of frontiersmen met in Charles City county and asked Nathaniel Bacon to lead them against the Indians. Bacon lead the men against the Occaneechee Indians, considered to be friendly, and killed most of them. When Bacon returned to Jamestown in June 1676 to claim his seat in the newly elected House of Burgesses, Berkeley had him arrested but later pardoned him. Bacon retreated to the upcountry, gathered his forces and returned to Jamestown. He burned the city of Jamestown on September 19, 1676. Governor Berkeley had fled and while Bacon was attempting to consolidate his position in Jamestown he (Bacon) died of fever on October 26, 1676. By the end of that year Berkeley had restored his authority.

With his power restored, the Governor exacted a ruthless revenge. Ignoring a pardon to all rebels granted by royal commissioners, he had 23 men executed. One of the rebels sentenced to death by hanging was Robert Stokes, husband of Jane Bracewell. The sentence was apparently carried out in March 1676. (Henning Statute At Large, Vol. 2, 1660-82, page 550.) The husband of Rebecca Bracewell, William West, was also sentenced to death but before the execution he escaped and fled. His property was taken as security. It is believed however, that he received a pardon and had his property returned.

Early in this research on Robert (Parson) Bracewell and his children, one of the problems encountered was the apparent existence of two daughters named Jane. One .Jane married Robert Stoikes in 1667 and the other married John Roberts in 1680. This conflict existed before information on Bacon's Rebellion was found. In light of the execution of Robert Stokes it appears that rather than two Janes, there was only one Jane Bracewell who after losing her first husband was remarried to John Roberts in 1680.

The following is pure speculation but Bacon's Rebellion may, help explain another bit of verbal history), that has beer, handed down through generations of Bracewells. That is: The Bracewells moved south to Georgia (ca. 1780) fleeing from the British Governor of Virginia. The account of the move, and the reason, fleeing from the Governor of the Colony of Virginia, are most probably correct but the date and destination may have been confused with the passage of time.

Although, at present, no evidence has been found to suggest the involvement of any Bracewell in Bacon's Rebellion, they may have been supporters if not participates. This seems even more probable in light of the fact that two of the men sentenced to death for the Rebellion were husbands of Bracewell daughters.

The move from Virginia may have occurred in 1680's and the destination may have been North Carolina along the Tar River.