Family of Douglas

[Henry Barraud Hunt, Jr.]

I shall continue with the children of Lt Edward Douglas and Isabell Gaynor.

Sarah Douglas was born in 1646 and married Edward Littleton at the age of twelve in the year 1658 in Northampton County. This date is provided by the 'famous brief' of Colonel Edmund Scarburgh in the Gething case.28 Jan 1662. Scarburgh states " Consider what I have said and take the consequences with you, and wherein I appeal to physicians, knowing men and motherly women whether this early match with a child of about twelve years of age  might not be reasonably so disposed the untimely occasion of her death; let us look back to Sarah Douglas (Littleton) a child of the same years who expired in haste because she was matched too soon."

It is difficult for us to imagine how life would be like without television, radio, computer, newspapers, etc. All the people had were churches and courts for socialization. One can imagine how the tragic death of Sarah and her unborn child affected the population of the entire Commonwealth of Virginia. When I first read Colonel Edmond Scarburgh's comments I thought how different society was during this period. Scarburgh made no ethical comments regarding the marriage of children. I gave this more thought and came to realize that the question of ethics as a discussion topic was taboo and society had no way of discussing ethical issues.

This cloud on the Douglas family, along with other considerations, led to the departing of Elizabeth (Douglas) Willett and Edward Douglas Jr., We can begin to understand the vast disparity in the ages of Isabell and her second husband Rev. Thomas Teackle.

Elizabeth Douglas, daughter of Lt Edward Douglas and Isabell Gaynor, was born in 1656, shortly before the untimely death of Lt Col Edward Douglas. She married John Willett 5 Mar 1669 in Northampton Co. See Orders X, #10, 1664-1694, pages 83, 86, 102.

Elizabeth was thirteen years of age when she married John Willett. We can only imagine what disposed Elizabth to marry John Willett at such an early age. There is a deposition by Elizabeth now widow of John Willett, dated 29 Jan 1684 directed to Hancock Lee, one of the Commissioners  of Northampton County. (Hancock Lee was a son of Richard Lee of Northumberland Co, home Ditchly. Hancock mar a daughter of Colonel William Kendall, and returned to live the remainder of his life in Northumberland County) Deposion of Elizabeth WillettElizabeth accomplished this when she left Northampton County in 1680. The deposition reads as follows; " Age twenty-eight or thereabouts-"I did leave my daughter Martha Willett with Mary Coor for one year to teach her to read and sew-Elizabeth Willett".

I shall continue this on a new blog as this one is filling up.