About the Hamptons

The Hampton name is steeped in history. It is originally an English name that can be traced back to at least the 1100's. In the early twelfth century England began encouraging citizens to immigrate to Scotland as artisans and tradesmen and settle the country's royal borough. Many Hamptons decided to do just that concentrating in Angus and Kincardine, south and west of Aberdeen. It's presumed that's how our ancestors ended up in Scotland. While there, the Hampton Clan helped in the "Dark Days" to crush the Campbell clan. The home of the Earle of Hampton was in Northern Scotland between O Ban and Brora. Our earliest ancestor in America was John Hampton and his life has been thoroughly documented. He lived in Elphingstoun, East Lothian County Scotland and was a gardener by trade. The term gardener is somewhat misleading as this profession was radically different than what we refer to in modern times. When you view the art apparent in greenery, flower gardens and shrubbery of royal palaces, cathedrals and public buildings in Europe you will come away with a more accurate description of what a gardener was back in those days.

In 1683 John Hampton was married to Katherine Cloudsley, had five children: Janet, Elizabeth, Lydia, John and David, and was a Quaker. Hampton, along with fellow Quaker John Reid were hired by Robert Barclay who was the Governor in absentia of East Jersey, to oversee the entire province in America which was purchased in 1680 by William Penn and eleven other Quakers as a refuge from the persecution of King Charles II. Hampton, with his wife and children set sail along with John Reid on August 6th, 1683 on the ship named "Exchange" captained by James Peacock and arrived in America at Woodbridge new Amboy Perth on January 10, 1684. The New Jersey settlement at the time was known as New Aberdeen due to the influx of Scottish immigrants. John was born in 1643 so he would have been around 40 upon his arrival in America. Before his journey, Hampton was awarded a ten acre lot at Amboy Perth, NJ and was guaranteed an annual payment of 25 pounds once in America. A few months after arrival an accounting for his Scottish proprietors listed John's assets as: 9 cows, 2 horses and one mare, 2 breeding sows, 144.6.11 pounds in provisions, utensils and necessaries. John quickly became a land speculator purchasing and selling 500 acres and at the time of his last will and testament in 1686 owned 175 acres of headlands in Freehold, NJ. In 1687 he married Martha Brown as Katherine had passed away. Martha and John had three children: Andrew, Jonathan and Noah. After Martha passed away, John married one final time in 1698 to Jean (Jane) Curtis Ogbourne and they had one son, Joseph born in 1702.

Our particular lineage comes via John's namesake son (we'll call him John Hampton2 to ease confusion). He married Isabel Redford sometime before 1706 and his children were named William, Andrew, John(3), George and Thomas. After Isabel passed away sometime before 1720, John2 married again to Christian Cummings. As outlined in his father's will, John2 distributed his father's land holdings in Freehold, NJ among his brothers David, Andrew, Jonathan, Noah and Joseph in 1705 three years after his father's death in 1702. John2 bought his brother Jonathan's land holdings in 1713, sold all of his land in 1714 then dropped out of sight as far as available records are concerned for sixteen years. He pops up again in 1730 as one of the first settlers in what later became Frederick County, VA. He and his sons George, Thomas, John3 and Andrew, along with brother Noah, became leaders in the settlement of the northern Shenandoah Valley and lived on the Opequon (Opeckon) Creek. Noah had what is believed to be the first mill in the valley just north of the other three Hamptons. John2 sold most of what he still owned and deeded the rest to his sons George and Thomas, thereafter he disappeared from any records. He was into his upper sixties by then. It is believed he died in 1751.

Our specific lineage apparently continues with John2's son Andrew Hampton who was born in 1716 in Orange County (this county encompassed areas later to be called Frederick and Augusta Counties),Virginia. The earliest record for him shows a joint land record, most likely for speculation, with Benjamin Borden and David Griffith for a grant of 1122 acres west of the Shenandoah River just north of what is today Berryville, VA. Part of that tract of land became property of George Washington of King George Co. by sundry conveyances. Andrew's wife was named Sarah (there is dispute over her last name). They had seven children: Ephraim, Ezekiel, John(4), Daughter??? (married to Joseph King), Zachariah, David and Joseph. Andrew became a Constable in 1737. In 1741 he bought land in Brunswick county from George King on the Roanoke River where the Great Occaneechee Trading Path crossed the river. There was a mill crossing Indian Fields Creek on the land which was apparently run by Joseph King. Andrew operated a tavern, and seems to have supplied other tavern keepers. At one point he had enough food an hand to feed 146 Indians for a week. It's possible he had a ferry on the property because it was there in 1746 when Andrew sold 150 acres to Field Jefferson, the uncle of Thomas Jefferson. He was living on the Mill Creek (VA.) 370 acres when it was surveyed for him in 1750, also the year Indian Fields Creek was renamed Hampton's Mill Creek. Andrew bought 400 acres on both sides of Indian Fields Creek in March of 1752. Andrew apparently moved to Granville, NC around 1753. In 1754 the Granville Militia Regiment under Colonel William Eaton shows eight companies with Captain Andrew Hampton commanding the 60 members of Company #8 with his son Ephraim as Ensign. In 1758 Andrew was selected, along with Robert Harris as one of twelve vestrymen for the new Parish of Granville, which included all of the present Granville and Vance counties. Before the Revolution, when the Church of England was the state church, vestrymen were the authority for many of what today are considered civil matters. Andrew Hampton and 36 other settlers from Granville, with 19 settlers from Edgecomb, petitioned for the repeal of the tax on free Negroes in1763. Andrew eventually bought a total of about 2000 acres of Granville land, mostly for speculation. He gave property to his sons Ephraim and Ezekiel, but sold the rest. Andrew lived in Granville through 1764, and in 1765 he migrated with his son-in-law Joseph King to Georgia. He died in 1769??

The lineage continues with Andrew's son Ezekiel Hampton who was born in 1734, in Orange County, Virginia, British Colonial America. His father, Andrew Hampton, was 19 and his mother, Sarah Kuykendall (last name is disputed), was 17. He married Sarah Jane Griggs in 1757, in Granville, North Carolina. They were the parents of at least 5 sons, one of which was named Andrew, and 10 daughters. Andrew Hampton gave Ezekiel 200 acres of land. The land was part of a larger tract on the north side of Indian Field Creek that had been granted to John Adcock on April 29, 1754. He died in 1811, in Buncombe, North Carolina at the age of 77, and was buried in Burnsville, Yancey, North Carolina.

Another Andrew Hampton continues the lineage: Captain Andrew Hampton was born in 1765 to Ezekiel and Jane Hampton and died on August 26, 1861 in Grayson County Virginia and is buried in the Old Duffey Farm family cemetery on New River. Andrew was married in North Carolina to Sally Mina, a young widow who had one daughter named Tilitha, by her first husband John Griggs. Andrew married against his parent's wishes and owing to this feeling he saddled his horse and took his wife and little stepdaughter, together with his gun and a few cooking utensils, and came up through North Carolina; across the Blue Ridge through the wilderness and settled on New River, on a farm now known as the Old Duffey farm or Archie Boyer place on the highway between Galax and Independence. Being of a high-strung nature and on account of his parents opposing his marriage to the young widow, he never visited his relatives in North Carolina, consequently, the connecting link of the history was broken to some extent. Andrew Hampton was a strong, energetic man; He reared a large family and lived to be in his nineties and was active until his death. He had told Littrel Hampton that his death would be like an old tree that stood the storms for years and some quiet fall day would fall over. This quotation proved to be a fact, for one morning when he arose to dress, he called to his old darkey slave Louis Hampton, who was building him a fire and said, "Catch me Louis or I shall fall." Louis caught him and laid him on his bed and he was gone. The children of Andrew Hampton and Sally Mina are as follows: Lenmie "Sena" was born 1785, Wade was born on the 29th of October, 1786, Griggs was born on the 22nd of November, 1788, Jane "Jennie" was born in 1791, Catherine "Kate" was born in 1793, Sarah (Sally) was born in 1796 in Grayson County, Virginia and married James Carson. They had a son named Griggs who was killed in battle during the Civil War, Polly was born in 1799, Patsy was born in 1802, and Drucy Hampton.

Our next direct ancestor is Griggs Hampton who was born on the 22nd of November in 1788 in Tennessee to Captain Andrew Hampton and Sally Mina (Griggs) Hampton. He married Phyllis Sutherland of Elk Creek Valley in Grayson County, Virginia on May 20th,1811. Phyllis was born on September 14th,1794 to Alexander and Margaret "Peggy" Elizabeth (Bryan) Sutherland. They reared a family of fourteen children, nine boys: Andrew, Alexander, Wade, Littrel, Thomas, Joseph, John and William and five girls: Sarah "Sally", Peggy, Jennie "Jane", Mina and Polly. The family first lived at Island Fork and later moved to Round Meadows and owned a valley known as the "Hampton Valley" about 1830. "It has been said that six families in this family were so located in the valley circle that one morning call from "Granny" Phyllis would arouse the whole valley. Griggs died on the 24th of January in1860 in Grayson County, Virginia. Phyllis died on the 29th of October in 1879. They are buried in the Griggs Hampton Cemetery in Grayson, County, Virginia.

Next in line is another Andrew Hampton...Dr. Andy, the first son and second child of Griggs and Phyllis (Sutherland) Hampton was born on October 24th, 1813 in Grayson County, Virginia. He first married Polly Isom on July 7th, 1833 in Grayson County ,Virginia. Polly was born on March 23rd,1809 to Spencer Isom and they raised a family of eight. Andy was a self-made doctor, but eventually got his license issued in Grayson County. Polly died in 1876 and is buried in the Hampton Cemetery, near Independence,Virginia. Their children were: Ephriam Hampton the eldest son was born on June 17th, 1836 in Grayson County, Virginia. He married Sarah Jane Jennings on July 23rd,1854 in Alleghany County, Virginia the daughter of Thornton and Charity (Fender) Jennings. Sarah was born on October 18th, 1835. Ephriam was killed while serving in the civil war on August 3Ist,1864. His body was never returned and is supposedly buried at Jonesboro, Georgia, Susannah "Susan" Hampton was born on the 18th of February 1838, Phyllis Hampton was born on May 18th, 1840, Isom Hampton was born on July 16, 1842. He died of a fever in camp during the Civil War in July of 1862. After procuring a wagon, his brother, Ephriam took his body home to Grayson County, Margaret "Peggy" Hampton was born on the 9th of January 1844, Adeline Hampton was born on April 27th, 1849, Rebecca Hampton was born on May 4th, 1847, Griggs Hampton was born on January 4th, 1852.

Andrew married Polly Andrews after his first wife died. They were married 6 August 1877. She was born 19 June 1843 in North Carolina. Polly died 20 February 1940 and is buried in the Amity Cemetery, Amity, Ohio. Dr. Andy died 17 October 1889 und is buried in the Hampton Cemetery near lndcpendence, Virginia. Dr. Andy and Polly had five children: Bryan (Alex) Alexander, William Litrell (Will), John, Cora Jane "Jennie", and Sarah "Sally".

The final ancestor prior to Isom Hampton is Ephriam Hampton. Ephriam was born on June 17th, 1836 in Grayson County, Virginia to Dr. Andrew (Andy) and Mary Polly Isom Hampton. He married Sarah Jane (Sallie) Jennings on July 23rd, 1854 in Alleghany County, Virginia. Sarah was born 18 October 1835 to Thornton and Charity (Fender) Jennings. Ephriam joined the army in the Civil War and served with many other family and friends and was killed at the age of 29 on the battlefield in Georgia. His body was never returned to Grayson, County. He is buried at Jonesburo, Georgia. Sarah never remarried and stayed in Virginia until she came to Nebraska to live with her youngest son Isom in her later years. She made them promise when she died they would ship her body back to Virginia but with times being hard they could not afford to send her back. She died on June 20th, 1921 and is buried at Dry Valley Cemetery in Cherry County, north of Mullen, Nebraska. Their children are: John Andrew, born on June 30, 1855, William "Bud", bon on February 10th, 1857 and Isom Solomon, born on May 30, 1860.

Story of Ephraim Hampton