Capt. William (1) Epes

Bef 1595 - Bef 1643  (< 47 years)

• Name	William (1) Epes  [1]
  Prefix	Capt.
  Birth	Bef 7 Mar 1594/95	Ashford, County Kent, England   [1]
  	It was on this date that he was baptized.
  Gender	Male
  Anecdote	1616	France   [1]
  	He was in France and the Low Countires in 1616 and late in 1617 was living with his cousin Thomas Godfrey at Selling, Co Kent, England.
  Anecdote	29 Aug 1618	Jamestown, Virginia   [1]
  	He sailed for Virginia in the William and Thomas, arriving 29 Aug 1618.
  Anecdote	1619	Newport News, Virginia   [1]
  	He was employed as agent by Sir Nicholas Tufton (afterwards Earl of Thanet) and was in command of Smith's Hundred Company in 1619 when he engaged in a shipboard quarrel near Newport News with Capt. Edward Roecroft alias Stallenge and, striking him with his scabarded sword, "cleft" his skull. Rosecroft died the next day. Epes, tried, was found guilty of manslaughter, but after a short while was restored to his command.
  Anecdote	1623	Eastern Shore, Virginia   [1]
  	By 1623 he was commander of the Eastern Shore. In the census, 16 Feb 1623/4, he, Mrs. Epes and "Petter Epps" are listed on the Eastern Shore. Here in 1624 William Epes accused Ensign Savage of libelling him and "did lay the said Ensign Savage neck and heels"; small wonder he was called a "mad, ranting fellow."
  Muster	Feb 1624/25	Eastern Shore, Virginia   [2]
  	He was shown as Capt William Epes, his Muster, who came in the William and Thomas. Listed with him was Margrett Epes and servants Niccholas Raynbred, William Burditt, Thomas Cornish, Peeter Porter, John Baker, Edward Rogers, Thomas Warden, Benjamine Knight, Niccolas Granger, William Munnes, Henrie Wilson, James Blackborne & Nicholas Sumerfild.
  Land patented	3 Feb 1626	Eastern Shore, Virginia   [3]
  	It contained 450 acres for transporting 9 men.
  Anecdote	1627  [3]
  	During 1625, 1626 and 1627 Eppes made several appearances before the General Court, sometimes in an official capacity and sometime as a litigant. He served as Mrs. Katherine Bennett's attorney, and he also testified that he had seen Luke Eden shortly before his death and that Eden's trunk had been broken open and emptied of it contents. Eppes bought a shallop from shipwright Thomas Nunn but failed to pay for it, and he also was identified as one of Luke Boyse's debtors. He was ordered to give John Darker a replacement tobacco bill. In July 1626 William Eppes testified that the Indians on the Eastern Shore were friendly to the colonists, and three months later Eppes was authorized to talk with the Natives about some hogs they allegedly killed. He was given permission to take a captured Weyanoke Indian to the Eastern Shore and then to England. During the later part of 1626 Capt. William Eppes' scandalous social behavior resulted in his being brought before the General Court. Sometime after late June 1626, but before 19 Feb 1627, Eppes who was visiting James Slight at Martin's Brandon, became quite drunk and had sex with the widowed Alice Boyse, who crept into his bed. Several people who were present at the time testified about this affront to public morality, but ultimately the charges against Eppes, a married man, were dismissed. Despite this lapse in decorum, in March 1629 he was made a commissioner of the monthly court for the "Upper Parts." His landholdings on the Eastern Shore were mentioned in patents secured in 1628 and 1629.
  Anecdote	Bef 3 May 1630	St. Christopher's, Saint Christopher & Nevis   [4]
  	By 3 May 1630 William Epes was a member of the Council of St. Christopher's. On 18 July 1633 he made a power of attorney to William Stone concerning his land in Virginia. By the later 1630's he had returned to Ashford, Co Kent, England.
  Reference Identifer	Muster
  Record ID	25734
  Will	13 Jan 1640/41	County Kent, England   [4]
  	He named a wife Margaret, son William and daughter Frances. Margaret, who came to Virginia in the George, 1621, married him by 1623.
  Death	Bef 3 Mar 1642/43	County Kent, England   [4]
  	It was on this date that his will was probated.
  Person ID	I25734	MilesFiles23
  Last Modified	14 Mar 2023

  
  

  Father	John Epes,   b. 1560, Ashford, County Kent, England d. Bef 16 Dec 1627, Ashford, County Kent, England (Age < 67 years)
  Mother	Thomazine Fisher,   b. Abt 1563, England d. Yes, date unknown
  Marriage	16 Jan 1579	Detling, County Kent, England   [1]
  	John Epes and his wife Thomazine Fisher had 9 sons (15 children). William, Francis & Peter Epes were the 5th, 6th & 8th sons (10th, 11th & 14th children).
  Family ID	F8208	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

  Family	Margaret (--?--),   b. Abt 1600, England d. Bef 19 Jan 1673/74, England (Age < 74 years)
  Marriage	Bef 1623  [4]
  Children	1. William (4) Epes,   b. Abt 1625   d. Yes, date unknown   2. Frances (5) Epes,   b. Abt 1630   d. Bef 4 Aug 1643, St. Mary the Virgin, Ashford, County Kent, England (Age < 13 years)
  Last Modified	13 Mar 2023
  Family ID	F24708	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Sources

  [S887] John Frederick Dorman, Dorman, Adv of Purse & Person, 4th Ed, Vol 1, (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2004), p. 854 (Epes family), 887. [S887] John Frederick Dorman, Dorman, Adv of Purse & Person, 4th Ed, Vol 1, (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2004), p. 68 (Muster of the Eastern Shore), 887. [S2330] Martha W. McCartney, McCartney, VA Immigrants & Adventurers, 1607-163, (Genealogical Publishing Company, Balitmore, MD 2007), p. 283 (William Eppes), 2330. [S887] John Frederick Dorman, Dorman, Adv of Purse & Person, 4th Ed, Vol 1, (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 2004), p. 855 (Epes family), 887.