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From the President’s Quill 1N E W S L E T T E RPNS T H E P A G E - N E L S O N S O C I E T Y O F V I R G I N I AP . O . B O X 2 9 9 | W H I T E M A R S H , V A 2 3 1 8 3S U M M E R 2 0 2 6 All links are clickable! During a recent walk through Gloucester and Williamsburg, I was struck by how little mention there was of John Page of Rosewell. Aside from Gloucester Middle School bearing his name, his presence seemed to have faded from public memory. Yet, Page stood shoulder-to-shoulder with the architects of our nation – Nelson, Wythe, Hancock, Jefferson – forming the quiet, stabilizing force within that revolutionary circle. He was the silent partner who helped bind them into a working coalition. VA250 gave us the chance to bring him back into the light. My wife, Anne, and I participated in the reading of the Declaration many times this year (on page 9); each occasion meant not only to honor the document but to honor Page himself. On July 8, 1776, while serving as acting governor of Virginia during Patrick Henry’s illness, Page received the Declaration directly from Hancock. To stand in Gloucester and realize that Page once held one of the original documents – the very one signed by Nelson, Jefferson, Wythe, and Hancock – elevates his role in the founding of our country. Until we highlighted this moment through VA250 events and local opinion pieces, few in Gloucester knew it had happened. You’ll find those reflections in this newsletter. Seeing Page finally recognized brings me joy – not only for Gloucester County, but for the Page-Nelson Society. Moments like these remind us why our mission matters. We are preserving a legacy that deserves to be carried forward for generations. In Dr. Ted McCord’s doctoral thesis, I came across a passage that should endear all of us. On page 406. he quotes St. George Tucker, who recalled that Continued on next page
among his Revolutionary-era friends were “several characters whose conduct both in public and private life were models of human perfection and excellence.” Two of those men were General Thomas Nelson and Governor John Page, whom Tucker described as possessing “the most exalted and immaculate virtues.” In their time, virtue meant the willingness to surrender everything – life, fortune, and comfort – for God, family, and nation. Tucker’s words honored them in 1813, after their deaths, and remind us of the depth of their sacrifice. Though much of what they accomplished was built leveraging slave labor and indentured servants, Tucker worked closely with Gov. Page to enact an emancipation plan that was not approved by the state legislature. More on that in a later issue. We have also been in communication with our Argentine cousins, who have shared more than forty additional names for our mailing list. Welcoming these cousins expands our community and deepens their connection to the ancestors whose stories we safeguard. You’ll find a featured article (on page 7) from them in this issue. Please share this newsletter with your family, so they too can appreciate their Page-Nelson legacy. Philip J. Page President PNS philpage396@gmail.com Shelly, Gloucester, Virginia 2
3 OFFICERS2 0 2 4 D I R E C T O R S2 0 2 5 D I R E C T O R SC O M M I T T E E C H A I R M E NPresidentVice PresidentName :Su11582229216923303171024314181125519122662013277211428MoTuWeThFrSaRecording SecretaryTreasurerCorresponding SecretaryP H I L I P P A G EC O U R T N E Y P A G E F E R R E L LB R I T T N E Y K E A NA N N E C . P A G EJ O H N P A G E A L D R I C HThomas P. Nelson, Jr.Brittney KeanGene PageThe Page-Nelson Society of VirginiaJohn Page AldrichCourtney Page FerrellPhilip PageAnne C. PageCemetery Preservation: Tom Nelson & David K. Nelson (as a non-member)Document Preservation: VACANTGenealogy: Brittney Kean
$25 DESCRIPTION Dues TOTAL Donation PNS Projects* Nº 1 1 1 Instagram: @pagenelsonsociety THE PAGE-NELSON SOCIETY OF VIRGINIA TIME FOR RENEWALS!TIME FOR RENEWALS! $ $ 4 *See the following page for “Donations.” Please note on your check where you would like your donation to go! The Society is a 501(c)(3) organization with specific missions in education and preservation and is committed to ongoing programs that enable it to maintain its nonprofit status. All donations to the Society’s Funds and all gifts are tax- deductible as allowed by law. Please consider making your contribution to the Society’s programs. Please use the following link or QR Code to the right to pay your dues online: https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment /JF6HCLHHGGNY8 P.O. Box 299 | White Marsh, VA 23183
Donations 5 Education Fund: The Page-Nelson Scholarship is awarded annually to an exemplary student of American history selected by the George Mason University Department of History and Art History. Cemetery Fund: Funds the upkeep of the Belvoir Cemetery. The Page-Nelson Society of Virginia Projects: Funds PNS special projects at the discretion of the board. Projects may include: Research projects into our history Signage at PNS sites Restoration of PNS memorials, including tombstones Support of structures, including Rosewell Other projects that are deemed worthy by the board Please use the following link or QR code to donate! https://www.paypal.com/ncp/payment/FE95D45X5ZCUC
When: October 18 Where: Shelly Time: TBD NEXT MEETING 6
7 Page Ancestors Honored in Buenos Aires FROM Buenos Aires: General Phil Ryan, Commanding Officers of US Southern Command & the US Embassy in Buenos Aires paid tribute to Commodore Thomas Jefferson Page and his son, John Page. John Page was killed on the Brasilian-Argentine border on August 2, 1890. George (Jorge) Page and the Buenos Aires Page family are grateful to the US Army for their thoughtfulness to pay tribute to Page ancestors. General Ryan (far left) and others pay tribute to Thomas Jefferson Page and John Page
William Nelson TOMB RESTORATION https://x.com/VaDHR_SHPO/status/2079999692511817874 8 made it to the VA Department of Historic Resources X page!
9 Last Sunday, my wife and I had the blessing of reading the Declaration of Independence at Abingdon Church. As we stood there, we remembered that 250 years ago, our own ancestors read those same words aloud. On July 8, 1776, John Page of Rosewell received the Declaration from John Hancock, read it at Rosewell, and sent copies throughout Virginia. Gloucester County was entrusted with one of those precious originals – a reminder that God placed this community in the very story of our nation’s birth. We know this because July 20 markes 250 years since John Page wrote two letters – one to Hancock, one to Jefferson. In both, he lifted his eyes to God. To Hancock, he wrote that our new nation must “firmly rely on the Protection ... of the Being, whose Power no Creature is able to resist.” Even in the excitement of independence, Page’s first instinct was worship. And in his letter to Jefferson, after discussing the Virginia seal, he added a postscript that has echoed through the centuries: “We know the race is not to the Swift, nor the battle to the Strong. Do you not think an Angel rides on the whirlwind and directs this Storm?” President George W. Bush quoted those same words in his inaugural address, reminding us that God’s hand still guides us through the torms of history. Our Constitution reflects the same spirit found in scripture – leaders called to serve the people, not the people bound tos erve a king. And across centuries of trials and triumphs, through war and peace, disaster and renewal, we have seen God preserve our freedom to worship, our freedom to gather, and our freedom to hope. Our Founding Fathers would be both surprised and grateful to witness a nation where government is accountable to its citizens, and where liberty remains a trust handed down from generation to generation. John Page of Rosewell READING THE DECLARATION
Genealogist’s Report1. No new members 2. No new inquiries 10A genealogist’s job never stops. Even though we have no inquiries to be handled or new members to welcome, rest assured that things are always happening behind the scenes!
The Page-Nelson Family Tree Having your genealogy updated helps the next generation to keep in touch with their roots! **Your info is secure with the Page-Nelson Society. Only a few trusted individuals have access to the database and they will NEVER share your information!** Please reach out to Brittney Kean at bandbgenealogy@gmail.com.J o h n Pa g eT h o m a s N e l s on 11
12 Announcement DRUMROLL PLEASE...
13 Certificates have arrived! Please keep an eye on your email for more information!
PODCASTS FIRST FAMILIESTHE PAGES:THE NELSONS:THE SERIES: https://vahistorypodcast.com /2022/02/28/first-families-of- virginia-the-nelsons/https://vahistorypodcast.com/ first-family-series/ https://vahistorypodcast.com/ 2020/04/27/first-families-of- virginia-the-pages/ 14 New member Harry Croyder shared these excellent podcasts, which are well- researched. We recommend them.
P A G E - N E L S O N S O C I E T YHelp WantedT H E P A G E - N E L S O N S O C I E T Y H A S A D O C U M E N T P R E S E R V A T I O N C O M M I T T E E , B U T W E N E E D Y O U T O H E L P W I T H I T !P A G E - N E L S O N S O C I E T Y 15
Belvoir Family CemeteryT h e c e m e t e r y i s l o c a t e d o n M o n t a n o v a F a r m . T o m N e l s o n & D a v i d N e l s o n h a v e f o s t e r e d a g o o d w o r k i n g r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h t h e p r e v i o u s a n d c u r r e n t f a r m m a n a g e r s . P l e a s e c l i c k t h e f o l l o w i n g l i n k t o g o t o t h e F - A - G p a g e f o r t h e c e m e t e r y a n d s e e w h o i s b u r i e d t h e r e : h t t p s : / / w w w . f i n d a g r a v e . c o m / c e m e t e r y / 2 1 3 4 8 1 6 16F I N D A G R A V E
Belvoir Family Cemetery Cleanup 17 Several times a year, Tom Nelson and Doug Valentine do cleanup work at the cemetery. If you would ever like to help, please let Tom Nelson know. June
Belvoir Family Cemetery Cleanup Several times a year, Tom Nelson and Doug Valentine do cleanup work at the cemetery. If you would ever like to help, please let Tom Nelson know. 18 July
General George Washington & Martha Washington cut the cake Martha Washington, Brittney Kean, and General George Washington Rochambeau & Washington routes 19 Rochambeau 301 Birthday Celebration & completion of the VA W3R/WARO route-redesignation project st Back (l-r): Philip Page, Anne Page, Betty Kean, Brittney Kean, Mike Kean Front: Nina Page Waltzer & Dr. Robert Waltzer, visiting from Jackson, MS
L-R: Dr. Ryan Corlett, MD (Carter’s husband); Owen Page; Natalee Waters (Owen’s mom); Maisie Page; Dr. Roby Page, PhD, D.Sc (Owen’s dad); Kim Bauldree (Carter’s mom); Gene Page IV (Carter’s dad); Dr. Carter Page Corlett, DPT20 Carter and Owen participated Chattanooga, TN: 70.3 "half" Ironman
Machicomoco State Park Kean Family Vacation – America250! Edition 21Christ ChurchTimberneckRosewell
22Poplar Forest Marine Corps Museum Kean Family Vacation – America250! Edition Natural Bridge Monticello
Lineage of Thomas Mann Randolph, Jr. & His Siblings Thomas Mann Randolph, Sr. and Anne Cary had quite a few children: *Mary Randolph (married David Meade Randolph) *Henry Cary Randolph *Elizabeth Randolph (married Robert Pleasants, Jr.) *Thomas Mann Randolph, Jr. (married Martha “Patsy” Jefferson) [Brittney’s 4 great grandparents]th *William Randolph (married Lucy Bolling Randolph) *Archibald Cary Randolph *Judith Randolph (married Richard Randolph of Bizarre) *Anne Cary “Nancy” Randolph (married Gouverneur Morris) *Jane Cary Randolph (married Thomas Eston Randolph) *John Randolph (married Judith Archer Lewis) *George Washington Randolph *Harriet Randolph (married Richard S. Hackley) *Virginia Randolph (married Wilson Jefferson Cary) Their line is as follows: Colonel John Page married Alice Lukin Matthew Page married Mary Mann Mann Page married (1) Judith Wormeley & (2) Judith Carter Maria Judith Page (from wife #1) married William Randolph Thomas Mann Randolph, Sr. married Anne Cary Thomas Mann Randolph, Jr. and his siblings Thomas Mann Randolph, Jr. was named for his grandfathers – Thomas Randolph and Mann Page. His aunt was Mary Cary, wife of Carter Page, and his cousin was John Marshall. Through his mother, he was a descendant of Pocahontas. Through his wife, his children descend from Thomas Jefferson. 23
Mary Cary, who brought Pocahontas into a strain of the Page lineage when she married Major Carter Page in 1787, played an inauspicious role in a notorius murder case from 1793, a case that featured such notable names as Patrick Henry and future Supreme Court Chief Justice John Marshall as defense attorneys. Anne Cary Randolph, known as Nancy, was accused at age 17 of murdering her child while visiting the aptly named Bizarre Plantation in Virginia. Her brother-in-law, Richard Randolph, was the alleged father of the child and husband of Nancy’s sister, Judith. Witnesses at the time stated that one night they heard Nancy screaming, heard someone go down the stairs and return, and later saw bloodstains on her pillow and on the stairs. A slave told the owner of Bizarre that the fetus of a white child had been placed outside on a woodpile. In those days, slaves could not testify, so the evidence was mostly speculative, but murder chargers were brought against Richard. Carter Page testified to seeing Richard and Nancy canoodling. But it was Mary Cary Page who painted the most indelible picture, claiming that she had peeked through the keyhole to Nancy’s door and saw a naked and obviously pregnant Nancy. Patrick Henry pounced on cross-examination, during which Mary claimed that she was “not accustomed to pry” and that only “duty” as Nancy’s concerned aunt compelled her to look through the keyhole. When Henry asked which which eye she had peeped with, courtroom laughter drowned out her answer. A ‘Bizarre’ Scandal 24
A ‘Bizarre’ Scandal The case was weak enough, but when Patsy Jefferson (daughter of Thomas Jefferson) and Judith Randolph testified as friendly witnesses for the accused, the case collapsed altogether. Judith no doubt desired to protect her family name, but exacted her revenge on her sister by essentially rendering her a prisoner and slave at Bizarre for the next 15 years. Richard died several years after the trial. Nancy was eventually rescued by marriage to Gouverneur Morris, of U.S. Constitution fame. As for Mary Cary Page, who had a reputation as a gossip and busybody, she died at age 30 in 1797, but not before bearing a number of children, including Henry Page, the third great grandfather of this writer. Her grandson, Richard Channing Moore Page, M.D., wrote the authoritative Genealogy of the Page Family in Virginia (which also contains “a condensed account of the Nelson, Walker, Pendleton, and Randolph families, with references to the Bland, Burwell, Byrd, Carter, Cary, Duke, Gilmer, Harrison, Rives, Thornton, Welford, Washington, and other distinguished families in Virginia.”) For a fuller rendition of the scandal, see “Scandal at Bizarre” by former U.S. Attorney General Francis Biddle, American Heritage Magazine, Volume 12, Issue 5, August 1961. *This was written by Page, the sister of new member, Harry Croyder.* 25