Abraham VENABLE II

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  General Notes:

Abraham Venables (Jody's 5th Great Grand Father), was born "22 March 1700" (O. S. or N. S.?); he married, about 1723, Martha (or Hannah) Davis, daughter of Nathaniel Davis, from Devonshire, England, a Quaker of Hanover County, Va. (She was born July 14, 1703; died February 13, 1765. She is said to have been an aunt to Dr. William Cabell's first wife. They were related, but what the relationship was, in the absence of direct evidence, I cannot say.) Abraham Venables owned a great deal of land in this section in Han­over, Louisa, and Goochland counties, and also on "Ye Byrd creek" (near the present Louisa and Fluvanna line), on Hardware River, and in the South Garden, Albemarle. In my papers the name is spelled "Venables" prior to 1750; after, the final "s" is seldom used. He had been a justice of the peace in Hanover, and was one of the first justices of the peace of Louisa, from the first County Court, December 13/24, 1742; was a vestryman of Fredericksville Parish, 1742-1761, and of Trinity Parish, 1762-1768; and probably of St. Paul's, Hanover, prior to 1742. "He was a Captain in the Colonial Militia; for a time, County Lieu­tenant of Louisa, and for some 20 years Member of the House of Burgesses from Louisa County. He was the friend, legal client, and political supporter of Patrick Henry. His son, Wm. Venable, nominated Patrick Henry in the county meeting as a candidate for the House of Burgesses of 1765. He is said to have been the most influ­ential man of his name that ever lived in Virginia, and from him all the Virginia Venables descend." His will is dated April 11, 1768. He died December 16, 1768, and his will was probated January 9 following. He appointed "my friend, Patrick Henry, trustee." The executors were­ "Mr. Waddy Thompson and my sons Abraham, Na­thaniel, Hugh Lewis, and John." [This was the John Ven­able (assistant to Capt. Christopher Irvine, commissioner of the provision law of Bedford) who impressed John Hook's steers, October 10, 1781; who was sued by Hook for the same in 1783, and defended by Patrick Henry. The case was decided "for the plaintiff, one penny damages." Venable, who removed to Georgia in 1791, married Agnes Moorman, daughter of Charles Moorman, a Quaker, who freed his slaves (See Hening, xii. 613); another of his daughters (Judith Moorman) was the first wife of Chris­topher Anthony, a Quaker preacher. The Charles Moor­man who was Venable's security, also of Quaker origin, was the husband of his sister, Mary Venable, etc.]

Abraham married Martha DAVIS in 1723 in Hanover, New Kent Co., VA. (Martha DAVIS was born on 14 Jul 1702 in Amherst County, Virginia, USA and died on 18 Feb 1765 in Louisa, VA.)