One of my major family lines is the Pope family. My maternal grandmother was Mary Evelyn Pope. Mary was a fourth-generation resident of East Armuchee. However, the earlier Pope generations–back to Colonial times–are subject to dispute. Two different lineages have been identified by genealogists over the years. So far, no documentation has emerged to support one lineage over the other, so therefore I did not go into details for either line in the Jordan’s Journey book. This post will explore some of the connections in the theory laid forth by John David Humphries in his book Georgia Descendants of Nathaniel Pope of Virginia.

Humphries’s theory describes the colonial Pope line as follows:

Nathaniel [I] (b.1603) > Nathaniel [II] (b.1640)> Nathaniel [III, alias Bridges] (b.1660) > John (b.1692)

This lineage contains several interesting connections, the first of which allies this particular Pope line with the most American colonial figure of all. Nathaniel [I] and Lucy Pope’s oldest daughter was Anne Pope. Anne married Col. John Washington and would become the great-grandmother of George Washington, the first president of the United States (Humphries).

Another connection comes through Anne’s brother Nathaniel Pope (b.1640). Nathaniel married Mary Sisson. Mary was the sister of Daniel Sisson, an interpreter for the Indians (Humphries).

The third interesting point comes into play with the great-grandchildren of Nathaniel [I] and Lucy. Two of Nathaniel and Lucy’s sons are Nathaniel [II] and Thomas. Nathaniel [II] had a grandson named John, while Thomas had a granddaughter named Elizabeth. These great-grandchildren of Nathaniel [I] and Lucy, John, and Elizabeth, are second cousins. But they were also husband and wife!

Click the graphic above to see an illustration of these relationships.

These sorts of connections are always fascinating–even if I can’t be 100% sure that my Pope family descends from this line. Exploring the various theories makes for an interesting way to spend some time. You can read more about the Pope line in the Jordan’s Journey book.

If you enjoyed this post, pass it along to someone else who might be interested (and leave a comment here too).

UPDATE: The original graphic on this post contained an error. It showed that Lawrence Washington died in 1690 (4 years before his son was born)! When creating the chart, I made an error. Lawrence was married in 1690, had his son Augustine in 1694, and died in 1698. The graphic has been corrected. (Many thanks to Brian Centrone for bringing this to my attention.)

SOURCES

Humphries, John D. Georgia Descendants of Nathaniel Pope of Virginia, John Humphries of South Carolina, and Allen Gay of North Carolina. Atlanta, GA: J.D. Humphries, 1934. Print. See WorldCat.

Guthrey, William M. Genealogical Chart of the Known Descendants of Micajah Pope 1808-1867: With an Outline of His American Ancestors, 1634-1844. Collinsville, OK: 1972. Print. See WorldCat.

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