Reeves, George

Summary

Father: Thomas Reeves, Sr.
Mother: Unknown

Birth: abt 1730, Virginia
Birth Source: Legatee in Will of George Reeves, brother of Thomas Reeves

Death: Unknown
Death Source:

Spouse1:

Narrative

Other than his mention in the 1753 will of his uncle George Reeves, there is no extant record of this George Reeves, son of Thomas Reeves, Sr. currently known to exist in Spotsylvania or Essex Counties.

Later documents in the court records of Augusta and Rockingham Counties where Thomas Reeves, Jr. resided prior to migrating to Woodford County, Kentucky, make numerous mentions of a brother "Brewer" who appears to have been much younger and was at one time living in the home of his brother Thomas and sister-in-law Sarah. It is possible that this George and Brewer may have been the same person. Brewer appears to be a family name in that Henry Reeves, brother to Thomas Reeves, Sr. and George Reeves, also named a son Brewer.

At one time there was also rampant speculation that George Reeves of Grayson County, Virginia was the son of Thomas Reeves, Sr. but the availability of Y-DNA results confirming the Grayson County family's DNA does not match that of descendants of Henry Reeves who have participated in the tests. Descendants of George Reeves of Grayson VA are part of DNA Group 6A of the Reeves FtDNA Project while descendants of Henry Reeves are found in Group 9.

Research Notes

Two of the members of DNA Group 9 descend from John Reeves of Taylor County, Kentucky who was born circa 1770 in North Carolina, but the three other members of that DNA group are descendants of Henry Reeves of Essex County, Virginia with documented paper trails. Although this John Reeves doesn't appear to have any link to Essex County or Henry Reeves, Sr., his descendants' Y-DNA appears to document that he does. George Reeves, the son of Thomas Reeves, Sr. is one of the few descendants of Henry Reeves of Essex County, Virginia who is yet to be accounted for after leaving Essex County.

In the course of researching possible individuals who might have been the ancestor of John Reeves of Taylor County, Kentucky, one George Reeves with a son John born circa 1770 should be considered a possibility. A 1778 Wake County NC court order apprenticed the children, Mary and John, of a George Reeves deceased to residents in the county. George Reeves who died in Wake County NC in 1778 was initially believed to belong to the family of William Reeves who lived in that area from around 1746; however, research of that family and well as Y-DNA matches within DNA Group 6A appears to prove that it was George Reeves of Grayson County, Virginia who was a member of that family.

The major obstacle to the theory that this George Reeves could be a member of the Henry Reeves family was the question of what would prompt George Reeves to leave the Rappahannock area and migrate to North Carolina when his siblings had all settled in the Shenandoah Valley's Augusta and Rockingham counties. However, his first cousin Elizabeth Gatewood had married Peter Copeland who was believed to have been born in North Carolina, and Elizabeth and Peter are known to have moved back to North Carolina a few years after their marriage. Recent research has found Peter Copeland owned a tract of land in Orange County NC in close proximity to the individuals that were appointed by the Wake County Court for these orphans of George Reeves to be apprenticed to. Peter Copeland sold this land in 1779, the deed for which is recorded in Orange County NC DB:B p:70 in which he was identified as "Peter Copeland of Henry County, Virginia".

This does not constitute proof that the George Reeves who died in Wake County in 1778 was the son of Thomas Reeves, Sr. of Essex and Spotsylvania counties in Virginia but it does add to the inferential data that suggests this connection and requires continued research to add to the accumulation of evidence.

Sources

1753 Will of George Reeves
Orange County NC DB:B p:70