Chapter 3

Jonathan Denty

            The minimum legal age in Colonial Virginia was fourteen.  Since Jonathan, the only known son of John Wybert and Selby Ramsey Denty, witnessed a deed from Richard to William Rogers on 24 Jul 1761, we must assume that he was born before 1747.  Although there are many more extant records for Jonathan than for his father, there are still many frustrating unknowns.  Where his birth took place, for instance, might have been Virginia, or Maryland, or even England.   The identity of his first wife, the matriarch of two major Denty lines, remains undiscovered.  His military record is unclear; even how he earned his living is in question.  But one aspect of his life is unmistakable: like his father John and so many of his fellow Virginians, Jonathan suffered from debt his entire life, especially since tobacco was becoming less and less profitable in the last decades of the eighteenth century.  From 1763 until 1799 Jonathan was sued for debt at least eight times, perhaps not excessive in litigious Virginia, but indicative.

            It began on 20 Jul 1763 when  "Jonathan Dainty" was the defendant in a suit for debt brought by John Posey.  Jonathan failed to appear and was ordered to pay £3.6.9 plus costs.  On 17 Jul 1769 he was sued by constable Daniel McCarty; this time being ordered to pay £3 to the Church Wardens plus costs.  In 1771 Edward Doyle sued to recover 430 pounds of transfer tobacco.  There was an interim of thirteen years before  Moses Barker sued him for debt in 1784.  The parties evidently reached an agreement during the trial; but the next year he was sued once again by Barker, and lost.  On 16 May 1786 he was ordered to pay 585 pounds of tobacco and £5 plus costs to William Fitzhugh.  His luck changed briefly on 20 Dec 1791 when, as the defendant in an action brought by Lewis Weston, Jonathan actually won.  This same Lewis Weston was co-defendant with "Dainty" (first name not given) in a suit brought by Richard Chicester on 25 Aug 1792.  The dispute apparently involved land because the court ordered a survey.  On 10 Jan 1793 the court record mentions Jonathan's "dwelling house where ejectment was served in the suit of Richard Chicester versus Lewis Weston".[1]  Could the family have been evicted from land they were renting from Lewis Weston?  Jonathan was still listed on the Fairfax County Tax List that April, and continued to be listed in the coming years.  On 16 Jul 1793 a Denty whose first name was not given was sued by Thompson, Mitchell, and Gill.  This was most probably Jonathan since his oldest son John had only just turned seventeen on that date.  On 16 Jul 1799 he was successfully sued by William Barker.

            Happily, the court minutes aren't the only records to mention Jonathan.  We read of him witnessing deeds and wills, buying and selling land, and other mundane happenings of everyday life.   On 19 Aug 1766 he purchased a bed for £3.6.9 at the estate sale of James King.  On 5 Aug 1772 he, along with Samuel Clark and William Lloyd, witnessed the will of Benoni Kent.  He served as a witness for William Skinner for two days in 1785 and gave a deposition regarding Ravensworth, the 21,996 acre patent belonging to William Fitzhugh, in 1787.  On 3 Nov 1789 he signed a petition to move the courthouse from Alexandria to a more convenient central location.  In 1792 he was among those landowners questioned yet again in what was evidently a survey of the boundaries of Ravensworth.  He also appeared as a witness for Kent for two days in June and four days in August of that year.  On 19 Dec 1797 Jonathan witnessed a deed from William Barker to Leonard Barker.  Continuing his association with the Kents, he was a witness for Daniel Kent in 1799.  On 20 May 1800 he witnessed a survey of 200 acres for Zebedee Compton.[2]

            One of these seemingly trivial actions could actually be described as historic.  In 1770 Jonathan was one of the Fairfax County signatories to the Virginia Non-Importation Association Broadside.  Originating in the House of Burgesses in response to what were seen as escalating and unreasonable import duties on British goods, the Broadside was an agreement by the undersigned not to import or purchase products from Great Britain; and it was thus a harbinger of more radical protests that would culminate in the Declaration of Independence.    It was brought back to Fairfax County by George Washington, posted, and signed by 333 county residents.  Only seven of these posted copies survive, one of them signed by Jonathan Denty.

            One frequently asked question is: Did Jonathan fight for the cause of revolution in addition to simply signing the Non-Importation Broadside?   Although he was listed as a member of the Fairfax Militia on 22 Jun 1770, no official record has ever been found documenting any active Revolutionary service.   In Lloyd House in Alexandria, however, there is a pension application for Thomas Arrington dated 2 May 1836, in which the aged applicant, then residing in Prince William County, declared that he'd served with a company of militia under Captain Dennis Ramsay for three months from 1 Sep 1776.  According to Arrington, Jonathan Dainty was in the same company, "but returned", either before or after the unit marched to Chestnut Hill in Pennsylvania.[3]  In addition to Jonathan, Arrington also mentioned Jeremiah Hardin, Rhodam Rogers, and William Steel.  Richard Arrington of Stafford County later stated that his brother Thomas had actually served in the Revolution on several occasions, and that with him on his second tour, to Germantown in the winter and spring of 1777, were John Dainty, Rhodam Rogers, and a man named Harley.[4]  There may be slight discrepancies in the Arrington brothers' dates.  Chestnut Hill and Germantown both occurred in the autumn of 1777.  In mid-December of 1777, Washington settled in at Valley Forge, to remain until the following May, i.e. 1778.  But such discrepancies are understandable from elderly men so many years after the events.  And in any case, Richard Arrington was illiterate and would have related his version only orally, leaving ample opportunity for misinterpretation.     Various colonial militia units did arrive and depart all that winter from Valley Forge.  And since Thomas Arrington possessed a certificate of service dated 20 May 1778, he would hardly have needed to fabricate earlier events in order to obtain his pension.  We must therefore tentatively conclude that Jonathan did serve, however briefly.

While no deed or patent has been found for Jonathan prior to 1799, there are many indications that he did in fact own land before that date.   He appeared on the Personal Property Tax List from 1782.  On 22 Sep 1789 land belonging to him was described as lying on the road from "the Ponds" to Pohick Church between James Rattle and John Harley.  On 18 Jul 1791 what must have been the same parcel lying from "the Ponds on Pohick Road" to Pohick Church adjoining Jacob Hall and Mary Rogers was once again identified as belonging to Jonathan Denty.  Whatever parcel he may have owned previously, perhaps through inheritance or marriage, on 13 Dec 1799 he purchased sixty-one acres on Pohick Run from Francis and Mary Keene for £70.    A flurry of transactions followed.  On 28 May 1800 he had forty acres adjacent to Ravensworth and the Pohick Rolling Road surveyed.  On 15 Sep 1800 he sold property to William Green.  On 3 May 1802, he bought forty acres "beginning about two poles[5] on the east side of the Pohick Rooling".[6]  He and his second wife Sibby (nee Compton) sold property to and purchased property from Leonard Barker on 10 Apr 1809.  The land sold that day may actually have come to Jonathan through Sibby, not only because she signed the deed, but because the transaction was witnessed by Zebedee Compton, John Compton, and J.H. Barker.[7]  On 18 Apr 1809 he purchased property from Samuel and Mary Bailey.  And finally, in his last land transaction, Jonathan sold property to Dennis Barker about 1811.

            Did Jonathan supplement his farm income?  After his death his estate inventory included a "plow and gear", but also a "pair of wedges", a "parcel of old iron", seven casks, and money scales.   Of the sons from his first marriage, John may have "engaged in manufacture or trade" and William apparently didn't farm until after 1831 in Ohio.  And when Jonathan was writing to John in Georgia, he mentioned that "William and Thomas left this county last August and is living at the Sugarlands[8] gitting timber for the Navi" without explanation, as though "gitting timber" needed none.

Jonathan was married twice.  The identity of his first wife is unknown, but the Dentys were certainly associated with the Gladdens, the Barkers, and the Kents, with the latter being the most likely.  Seven children resulted from that first marriage: Sarah, Nancy, Mary, John, William, Elizabeth, and Thomas.  John would become the founder of the "Southern Dentys"; William the patriarch of the "Ohio Dentys"; and Nancy may herself have been the matriarch of another Denty line.  Between 1795 and 1800, Jonathan married his second wife, Sibel Compton.  She was often called "Sibby", the latter the nickname ascribed by Samuel Lunt Hannon to Selby Ramsey, wife of John Wybert Denty.  Did Hannon confuse the two women or are the similar nicknames merely a coincidence?  By Sibby, Jonathan had four children: Rebecca, James Compton, Samuel, and Jonathan Wilson Denty.  It was James and Samuel who would continue the line of the "Fairfax Dentys".

            We're fortunate in having a letter written by Jonathan on 8 May 1808 to his eldest son John, then residing on the Georgia frontier: [9]  

Dear Son John   

I once more take my pen in hand to Rite to let you know that I have recivd your letters a few days past and that by accdent as they came to Alexandria office and your other to the office at the Courthous.  I am happy to here that you and all your Famley are in good helth and dowind well.  I and my Famley are in helth but verry porly other ways as I have never a hors nor horskind.  I sold a likely mare last fall and Saddel for Sixty Six dollars to pay a debt of Williams.   I have know way of rasing money as times is precarious.  William and Thomas left this county last August and is living at  the Suger lands gitting timber for  the Navi.  Thomas was down in Jenuar  and William in November.  I have not sen them sence as thay never com a near as I am pore. Nancy is living in Alexandria sence last November.  I have seen hir but once sence and that in town.  Hir son James is with me, a fine brisk boy.  Walter Ward and Molley[10] is well but in a pour case. Where William lived I have rented it out for thirty seven Dollars.   Sarah has allmost lost her reson by hir haven fits and is very trobelsom.  I wish much to see you all but fear I never shall as I am not abel to get out where you are.  I desire to hear from you as often as posebel and derect your letters for the futer to be loged in the office in Alexandria.  You desired in you former letter to know my Mothers maden Name.  Hir Name was Ramsey.  Sibel had a son born the thirteenth of last September, a helthy well child we call him James.  I have nothing to Wright at present but let me know in your next letter what you are dowing with your land.  Sibel and Rebeckak desires to be Rememberd to you all and may God Allmighty keep you all in helth and safety which is the prayers of your ever loving Father.

Jonahan Denty

                May the 8th day 1808

We can only hope that John did write to his aging father, but it's unlikely that Jonathan wrote again, for if he did, his letter would almost certainly have been preserved, as we shall see.

            Only three years after this letter was written, Jonathan signed his will:  

In the name of God Amen, I Jonathan Denty of the County of Fairfax in the State of Virginia being of sound and disposing perfect mind and memory thanks be to Almighty God for his mercy, and knowing and considering the uncertainty of life, I the said Jonathan Denty do make, ordain, and appoint this my last Will & Testament in manner and form following.  Revoking and absolutely annuling all and every Will or Wills heretofore by me made either by words or writing and this only to be my Last Will & Testament and none other.  Impremis, I give my soul to God who gave it my body to the earth from whence it came, to be buried in such decent and Christian manner as my Executrix hereafter named shall see convenient trusting through the merits of my blessed Savior Jesus Christ to find free pardon for all my sins.  Item.  I give, bequeathe, and devise unto my wife Sibbey Denty the Land whereon I now live with everything thereon to her during her natural life and after her decease to be my four childrens' equally to wit: Rebecca Denty, Jonathan Wilson Denty, James Denty, and Samuel Denty, to them and their heirs forever.   I also give, bequeathe and devise unto my wife Sibbey Denty during her natural life all that land I bought of Samuel Bayly lying on the road leading to Occoquan, and after her decease to be my four children's above mentioned and their heirs forever and if they should choose to sell the said Lands it is my desire that the money be equally divided among my four children above named or as many of them as may then be living.  I also give and bequeathe unto my wife  Sibbey Denty during her life all my  stock and furniture  together with  all  the remainder of my Estate be it of what nature soever and after her decease to be equally divided  among my four  children above  named.  Unto my  son John Denty  I give  and bequeathe one shilling sterling to him and his heirs.  Unto my son William Denty, I give and bequeathe one  shilling sterling to him and his heirs.  Unto my son Thomas Denty I give and bequeathe an shilling sterling to him and his heirs.  Unto my daughter Elizabeth Warner's heirs I give and bequeathe one shilling sterling.  Unto my daughter Mary Ward I give and bequeathe one shilling sterling to her and her heirs.  Unto my daughter Nancy Denty I bequeathe one shilling sterling to her and her heirs.  Unto my daughter Sarah Denty I bequeathe one shilling sterling to her and her heirs.  I give and bequeathe unto my wife Sibbey Denty all money and rents due unto me that with such money she may be enabled to pay all my just Debts.  And lastly, I make, ordain, constitute, and appoint my wife Sibbey Denty sole Executrix of this my last Will & Testament.  In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal this fifteenth day of May in the year One Thousand Eight Hundred & Eleven.

                                                                                                                             Jonahan Denty

Signed, sealed, and delivered in presence of         

Jas Compton...Henry Martin...Zebedee Compton

            Jonathan had died by 16 Dec 1811 when his will was proved in court by the three witnesses.  The estate was appraised and inventoried by James Burk, William Barker, Josiah Keene, and James Keene on 11 July 1812 and consisted of the following worldly goods: a horse, a cow, a sow and two stoats, a heifer, a feather bed and furniture[11], a second feather bed and stead, two chests, an arm chair, a "parcel of old pewter", five "old" jugs, earthenware, a "parcel of old iron", six "old" knives and forks, a "parcel of woodenware", two "old" hoes, an "old" kettle, a pair of wedges, a looking glass, a plow and gear, one wheel, seven "old" casks, an "old" bridle, a pot, oven, skillet and gridiron, one pair of money scales, five "old" books, and a table.  The lot was appraised at $136.80.

            Although these belongings may seem painfully few to modern eyes and although he described himself as "pore" in his old age, there are hints of at least some comforts and luxuries in the two feather beds, the looking glass, and the books.  One wonders if the latter came to Jonathan from his father, and must surely have included a Bible and the Book of Common Prayer.   However poor he might have been in his old age, the family was not destitute. 

            Jonathan would have been over sixty-eight years old in 1811, but just how old can't be determined with our present knowledge.  What did he die of?  What indeed, did any of his children or grandchildren die of?  We'll only rarely learn the causes of death in the coming pages.  Those most familiar to us in the twentieth century were seldom the case in the eighteenth and nineteenth when people usually didn't live long enough to develop heart disease and cancer.  Malaria was rife throughout Virginia and the South, as was yellow fever the further south one moved.  Worms, tuberculosis, venereal disease, cancer of the mouth caused from the popularity of chewing tobacco in the first half of the nineteenth century, complications of childbirth for women, gangrene, appendicitis, all could prove fatal to our ancestors.  If Jonathan lived long enough to die of heart failure, he was quite fortunate.   How widow Sibby fared after his death is also unknown.  With such young children to support, she presumably moved in with relatives or remarried, but little has been unearthed of her later life.

            We know varying amounts about Jonathan's eleven children by his two wives.  Some will be the subject of entire chapters; others will be dealt with only briefly below.

             Children of Jonathan Denty and First Wife:

Sarah Denty

Nancy Denty 

Mary Denty  (m. Walter Ward)

John Denty  (8 Jul 1776 - 20 Jul 1848; m. Susannah _______) 

William Denty  (1780 - 7 Apr 1850; m. Elizabeth Heniken) 

Elizabeth Denty  (     - Oct 1797; m. William Warner)

Thomas Denty

Of Sarah we know very little except that she'd "almost lost her reson by hir haven fits", and was therefore very "trobelsom" to her father in 1808.  Was she an epileptic, or did the "fits" merely take the form of tantrums?  She was still alive but not married when Jonathan wrote his will on 15 May 1811.

Mary Denty probably married Walter Ward before 13 Dec 1799 when he witnessed a deed from Francis and Mary Keene to Jonathan; and the couple was still residing close to Jonathan on 8 May 1808, for Jonathan knew enough about their circumstances to describe them as being "well but in a pour case".  But Molly’s subsequent life remains an mystery.

Elizabeth married William Warner, the son of Joseph and Ruth Trott Warner in 1792.  Mary Grether, a Warner descendant, believes that Elizabeth died in 1797.  This is supported by Jonathan having made no mention of Elizabeth in his letter; and she was most definitely deceased by 1811 when he bequeathed one shilling to "my daughter Elizabeth Warner's heirs".  By 1810 William Warner had moved to Ohio, taking their six children: William, John, Mary (born 1793, married Patrick McClene on 18 Jul 1814, died 5 Mar 1841), twins Elizabeth and Henry (married Keturah Humphrey Gosslee on 22 Feb 1822), and Joseph Warner.  He died there in 1855.[12]

Thomas, who was felling trees in the Sugarlands with William in 1808, may have resided with his older brothers at various times before and after that date.  In the 1804 Fairfax Tax List, for instance, both John and William Denty are shown with two white males over sixteen in their households.  Both Thomas and William are missing from the 1810 Census in Fairfax County.  He was obviously still alive on 15 May 1811 when Jonathan signed his will, but what happened to Thomas after that date hasn't been discovered.

Children of Jonathan and Sibby Compton Denty:

Rebecca Denty  (c. 1804 -     ; m. John Williamson)

James Compton Denty  (10 Jun 1808 - 21 Sep 1870; m. Sophia Barker 10 Jul 1830)  (Chapter 20)

Samuel Denty  (c. 1809 - m    ; m. Nancy Bayliss 6 Nov 1830)  (Chapter 22)

Jonathan Wilson Denty (c. 1810 -     )

Rebecca, born to second wife Sibby about 1804, married John Williamson, a Fairfax County blacksmith.  The Williamsons were included with Rebecca's three siblings in a 15 Nov 1854 deed selling 51¼ acres to William Williamson.[13]  Husband John apparently died before 19 Nov 1860 when fifty-seven year old Rebecca was enumerated in the household of her son Thomas.  By the 1870 Census, she was residing in the household of her still unmarried son John.  In reality, both may well have been the same residence, i.e. the family farm, with the census taker merely identifying the oldest male still at home as the head of household.  But it may have instead signified an actual move since according to brother James Compton Denty’s 1870 will, he had purchased their "Mother's old place" from his "sister".    Although Rebecca’s date of death has not been found, she had very likely died by the 1880 Census.  John and Rebecca Denty Williamson had the following children:

One daughter, Christian name not known, married Mr. Dove and had a daughter, Rebecca Dove.

Thomas Williamson was enumerated in the 1880 Census with wife Roxana and children Mary E. age twenty, John eighteen, sixteen year old Alice, fourteen year old Ruth, twelve year old Joseph, Emma ten, Eben seven, Sarah five, Nelly three, and eleven month old Frank.  That year Thomas was employed as a farm laborer.

Daniel Williamson was listed as a laborer in the 1850 Census and a boatman in 1860.  When he married his second wife Mary Regan, a native of Ireland, on 21 Nov 1868 in Alexandria, he described himself as a farmer.  He's probably the Daniel Williamson who sued Alexander Denty at least twice in the mid 1870s, losing both cases.[14]  In the 1880 Census "farmer" Daniel and Mary Williamson were listed with their children: Charles, Eva, Rebecca, Adelaide, Albert, and Napoleon.   Daughter Mary Rebecca, age six that year, would later wed cousin George Washington Denty.  They are profiled in Chapter 23.

Martha Ann Williamson, born in May 1836, is believed to be the Martha Ann Williamson who married Thomas Denty, the son of Jonathan's son Samuel Denty.  That couple is also examined in Chapter 23.

James Williamson became a "sailor on the river".   His wife was Elizabeth.

Like his brother Daniel, John Williamson described himself as a boatman in 1860, but was working as a blacksmith, his deceased father's profession, by 1870.  He had married by the 1880 Census, when the self-described blacksmith and wheelwright was enumerated in Mt. Vernon District, Fairfax County, with wife Mary F. age twenty-seven, daughters Anna R. and Florence, and son James E. Williamson.

Albert Williamson

            Intriguingly, John and Rebecca had a forty-four year old male named William Dainty enumerated with them in the 1850 Census.  His identity has not been determined. 

     Jonathan Wilson Denty was the last child born to Jonathan, arriving about 1810.  In the 1850 Census, "Wilson Dainty", a laborer not able to read or write, was residing in the household of Richard and Mary Bayliss in Fairfax County. That he was illiterate would seem unusual in light of the literacy of both of Sibby's older sons.  Was he developmentally disabled; or did the census taker simply make an error?  Perhaps significantly, there's no indication that he ever married.  On 15 Nov 1854, Wilson was one of the four Denty siblings selling 51¼ acres to W. H. Williamson in Fairfax County; but his mark didn't appear on the deed along with the other grantors, nor was he among the signatories appearing before the clerk to testify to his agreement to the sale.  This researcher has never learned Wilson's fate. 

Research Notes: Jonathan Denty

24 Jul 1761: Along with Samuel Connell and John Stephen, witnessed deed from Richard Rogers to son William Rogers.  [Book D1, p. 588-590: Copy provided by Dent Gitchel]

20 Jul 1763: "Jonathan Dainty" defendant in suit for debt brought by John Posey.  Failed to appear, ordered to pay £3.6.9 plus costs.  [Court Record Fiche #6330177/Orig: Pg 896]

19 Aug 1766: "Jonathan Dainty" was one of the buyers at estate sale of James King, purchasing bed for £3.5.6.  [Will Book C, p. 39: Copy provided by Dent Gitchel]

17 Jul 1769: "Jonathan Dainty" defendant in action brought by Constable Daniel McCarty.  Jonathan ordered to pay £3 to Church Wardens, plus costs.  [Dent Gitchel/Orig: Court Order Book, p. 142]

In 1770, he signed Virginia Non-Importation Association Broadside.  (Jonathan's List #1 apparently circulated in area around Colchester.  Actual signatures, not just a list of names.)  [Fairfax Historical Society, Prologue to Revolution; Sweig in Virginia Magazine, v. 87, n. 3, Jul 1979]

22 Jun 1770: Listed as member of Fairfax Militia.  [Clark, Colonial Soldiers of the Old South 1732-1774, p. 583]

12 March 1771: Edward Doyle sued to recover 430 lbs of transfer tobacco, plus costs.  [Court Order Book 1770-1772, p. 182]

5 Aug 1772: "Jonathan Denty" witnessed will of Benoni Kent.  Other wits: Samuel Clark, Wm Lloyd.  [Book C1, p. 195]   (King, Abstracts of Wills and Inventories, Fairfax County, Virginia, p. 31, lists name as "Denby" and date as 2 Aug.)

Pension Application of Thomas Arrington, dated 2 May 1836, stated that he was called into service on 1 Sep 1776 under Capt. Dennis Ramsay of Alexandria and served three months.  He returned home before Christmas . . . marched to Chestnut Hill in Pennsylvania, was in a scouting party on the Schulkill River with 800 men, but was in no battle.  Jeremiah Hardin . . . Rhodam Rogers . . . "Jonathan Dainty went from the same company with the troops but returned" . . . William Steel."  This was verified by Richard Arrington on 1 Jun 1838; stating that "His brother Thomas Arrington  . . . was called into service several times.  In the winter of 1777 he went to the north about Germantown and returned in the Spring.  John Dainty, Rhodam Rogers, and _____ Harley, all of Fairfax County, were on the tour and returned at the same time.  [Lloyd House, Alexandria Library, Vol. III, p. 6: Copy provided by Mike Denty]

1782 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 white male over 21, 0 blacks, 2 horses or mules, 4 cattle.  (Genealogical Publishing Company, Heads of Families, p. 17 claims 7 whites.)

1783 Fairfax Co Tax List (List of Richard Chicester): 1 white over 21, 1 slave under 16, 3 horses or mules, 4 cattle.

Emeline Denty Talbott, in letter dated 28 Sep 1931 to Elizabeth Denty Abernathy claimed Jonathan was a Vestryman of Pohick Church after the Revolution.  [Copy provided by Rebecca Denty Abernathy]

1784 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 white male over 21, 1 16-21, 0 slaves, 3 horses or mules, 3 cattle. 

20 Aug 1784: Co-defendant in suit for debt brought by Moses Barker.  They apparently reached an amicable agreement during trial.  ("Agreed")  [Court Record Fiche #6330038]

22 Feb 1785: Account of debts due the estate of John Mills listed "Jonathan Dainty, Fairfax".  [Sparaccio, Fairfax County, Virginia Will Book E, p. 11/Orig: Book E, p. 58-62]

1785 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 white male over 21, 3 horses or mules.

20 Aug 1785: Served as witness two days for William Skinner.  [Court Record Fiche #6330038]

21 Sep 1785: "John Denty" defendant in action brought by Moses Barker once again.  Also again, Jonathan ordered to pay, this time £1.13.0, plus costs.  [Court Order Book, p. 168]

15 May 1786: "Jonathan Dainty" defendant in suit brought by William Fitzhugh.  Dainty ordered to pay 585 lbs of transfer tobacco, 5 shillings, plus costs.  [Court Order Book, p. 214]

1787 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 white male over 21, 0 blacks above 16, 0 blacks under 16, 2 horses or mules, 0 cattle.  (Original is very faint.)

In Oct of 1787 "Jonathan Dainty" gave deposition regarding the William Fitzhugh patent.  [Prince William Land Causes #1, p. 72-74]

7 Mar 1788 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 white tithable, 2 horses or mules; tax due of £0.4.0.

18 Jun 1789 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 white tithable, 2 horses or mules; tax due of £0.4.0.

22 Sep 1789: Land belonging to Jonathan Denty described as lying on the road from "the Ponds to Pohick Church" between James Rattle and John Harley.  [Court Record Fiche #6330055/Orig: Pg 33]

3 Nov 1789: Jonathan among signatories on petition to move county courthouse from Alexandria to a more central location.  [Copy provided by Dent Gitchel]

9 Jun 1790 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 white tithable, 3 horses or mules; tax due of £0.6.0.

13 May 1791 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 white tithable, 2 horses or mules; tax due of £0.1.0.

18 Jul 1791: Land belonging to "Jonothan Denty" was described as from "the Ponds on Pohick Road to Pohick Church in Truro Parish".  The parcel adjoined Jacob Hall and Mary Rogers.  [Court Record Fiche #6330055/Orig: Pg 252]

20 Dec 1791: Defendant in action brought by Lewis Weston.  Petitioner Weston ordered to pay £2.13.5, plus costs.  [Court Record Fiche #6330055/ Orig: Pg 507]

3 May 1792 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 white tithable, 1 horse or mule; tax due of £0.0.6.

Also in May 1792 Jonathan was among landowners questioned in what was apparently a survey of the boundaries of Ravensworth.  [Prince William Land Causes, p. 53, 69, 376, 404]

21 Jun 1792: "Jonathan Dainty" was witness for Kent two days.  Called to testify again for Kent for four days 24 Aug 1792.  [Court Record Fiche #6330072/Orig: Book J, Book O]

25 Aug 1792: Co-defendant "Dainty", first name not given, named in suit brought by Chicester.  Co-defendant: Lewis Weston.  Court ordered a survey, two dates being given: 23 Mar 1793 and 20 Jun 1793. The resulting survey mentioned his fields.  Yet on 10 Jan 1793, record mentions Dainty's "dwelling house where ejectment was served in the suit of Richard Chicester vs Lewis Weston".  [Court Record Fiche #6330072/Orig: Book T]

4 Apr 1793 Fairfax Co Tax List: 2 white tithables, 2 horses or mules; tax due of £0.0.8.

16 Jul 1793: Defendant Denty, first name not given, was named in suit brought by Thompson, Mitchel, and Gill.  Outcome not detailed, simply says "suit to pay".  (Believe this unnamed Denty was Jonathan although son John was turning 21 about that time and thus might be a candidate.)  [Court Record Fiche #6330072/Orig: Book H]

29 Apr 1794 Fairfax Co Tax List: 2 white tithables, 3 horses or mules; tax due of £ 0.1.0.

30 Mar 1795 Fairfax Co Tax List: 2 white tithables, 2 horses or mules; tax due of £ 0.0.8.

28 Apr 1796 Fairfax Co Tax List: 2 males over 16, 2 horses or mules.

19 Jul 1797 Fairfax Co Tax List: 2 males over 16, 3 horses or mules.

19 Dec 1797: "Jonothan Dainty" witnessed deed from William Barker to Leonard Barker.  [Josette Baker/Orig: Book G]

17 July 1799 "Jonathan Dainty" was a witness for Daniel Kent one day. [Court Record Fiche #6330093/Orig: Pg 149]

17 Jul 1799: "Jonathan Dainty" sued by William Barker.  Dainty ordered to pay £3.10.1 1/4, plus costs of $9.90, plus 53 cents to Daniel Kent for one day attendance as his witness.  [Court Record Book, p. 146]

24 Jul 1799 Fairfax Co Tax List: 2 males over 16, 3 horses or mules; tax due of $ .36.

13 Dec 1799: Purchased 61 acres on Pohick Run from Francis and Mary Keene for £70. The tract included the "plantation whereon Mary Rogers lately lives".   Wits: John Denty, Walter Ward, Zebeedee Compton.  [Deed Book B2, p. 383]

20 May 1800: "Jonathan Denty" and Leonard Barker witnessed survey of 200 acres for Zebedee Compton, part of Land Ofc Treasury Warrant #2552 in the name of William Payne dated 18 Oct 1798.  [Surveys 1787-1856, p. 96]

28 May 1800: "Jonathan Denty" had 40 acres adjacent to Ravensworth and Pohick Rolling Road adjoining John Ward, Grimsley, and Edward Washington surveyed.  Jonathan described therein as assignee of William Payne.  Treasury Warrant #2552 was apparently for Payne, dated 18 Oct 1790 or 1798.  Wits: Charles Kent and Wm Riley. [Surveys, p. 234, 96]

27 Jun 1800 Fairfax Co Tax List (District of Thomas Pollard): 1 white adult male, 3 horses or mules.  (John and William Denty also listed.)

15 Sep 1800: Sold property to William Green in Fairfax.  Wits: William Millan and William Baylis, but also proved by L. Barker on 16 Sep 1800. [Court Record Fiche #6330101/Orig: Book C2, p. 251]

11 Apr 1801 Fairfax Tax List: 2 males over 16, 2 horses or mules; tax due of $ .24  (Also listed John Denty.)

3 May 1802: Purchased 40 acres "beginning about two poles on the east side of the Pohick Rooling".  [Index/Orig: Book Z, p. 170]

3 May 1802: Jonathan's 40 acres is shown on Mitchell's map.  Was situated mainly on the west side of Rolling Road, undoubtedly the "Pohick Rooling" mentioned in deed of purchase from Samuel Bailey on that date.  (This land adjoins present-day Fort Belvoir.  Richfield Court and Chancellor Way are two of the streets currently winding through this tract.)  [Mitchell, Beginning at a White Oak; Dent Gitchel; Book Z, p. 170]

23 Jun 1802 Fairfax Co Tax List: 2 males over 16, 2 horses or mules.  (Also listed John Denty.)

19 Apr 1803 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 male over 16, 0 horses.  (Also listed were John and William Denty.)

18 Apr 1804 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 male over 16, 0 horses.  (Also listed were John and William Denty.)

3 Jun 1805 Fairfax Co Tax List: 1 male over 16, 0 horses.  (Also listed was "William Dainty".)

27 Mar 1809: Jonathan and "wife Sibey" Denty sold 61 acres to Leonard Barker for $275.  This parcel was bordered by John Roberts Sr, Pohick Run, Roger's Spring Branch, and had one corner near the schoolhouse.  It included "the plantation whereon Mary Rogers lately lived".  Wits: Zebedee Compton, John A. Barker, John Compton.  He also purchased property from Leonard Barker.  [Book J2, p. 167]

18 Apr 1809: Purchased property from Samuel and Mary Bayly.  Wits: L. Barker, J.H. Barker, John Compton.    [J. Baker 3x5/Orig: Book J2, p. 169]

1810 CENSUS, Fairfax Co, VA: "Jonathan Dainty" = 3 males under 10, 1 over 45; 1 female under 10, 1 26-45.  [Pg 193]

About 1811 Jonathan sold property to Dennis Barker in Fairfax.  [Index/Orig: Book 12, p. 428]

Will written 15 May 1811, proved 16 Dec 1811 by witnesses Henry Martin, James and Zebedee Compton.  [Book J, p. 401-402]

The estate was inventoried and appraised by James Burk, William Barker, Josiah and James Keene on 11 Jul 1812.  It consisted of: 1 horse, 1 cow, 1 feather bed and furniture, a second feather bed and stead, 2 chests, 1 arm chair, a "parcel of old pewter", 5 "old" jugs, earthenware, a "parcel of old iron", 6 "old" knives and forks, a "parcel of woodenware", 2 "old" hoes, 1 "old" kettle, 1 pair of wedges, 1 looking glass, 1 plow and gear, 1 wheel, 7 "old" casks', 1 "old" bridle, 1 pot, oven, skillet and gridiron, 1 pair of money scales, 5 "old" books, 1 table, 1 sow, 2 stoats, 1 heifer. Total appraised at $136.80.  [Book K, p. 31-33]

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