"THOMAS PEERY - One of the first settlers of that name in America.  Planter:
Resided in Augusta Co., Va. near Staunton, Va. on one of the branches of the
Middle River of Shenandoah.  Parentage and date and place of birth unknown.



He died in 1762 and his will was probated in Augusta Co.  He wife's name was
Mary _______, birth and parentage unknown.  After her husband's death, she
remarried William McFeeters. 
 
Children by Thomas were:
   
   John, married Sarah Jamison
   James, married Jane Farris
   George, married Martha Davidson
   William, married Sarah Evans, he died in Aug. 1830
   Robert
   Thomas, who married Margaret Dennis, he died in June 1820
   Elizabeth
   Margaret
   Agnes
   Mary, married David Logan



The name of this Thomas Peery first appears in the records on the list of
Captain John Wilson's Company of Augusta County Militia, raised for the 
defense of the frontier in the late summer or early fall of 1742.  This was 
only about 10 years after the first settlement of white people in the county, 
which at the time comprised all of Virginia lying west of the Blue Ridge 
Mountains southerly of the County of Frederick.  This Company was one of 
twelve raised at about the same time, the rolls of only nine of which have 
been found.  These rolls are supposed to have born the names of practically 
all the arms bearing population at that time, from youth to extreme old 
age. 



The fact that no other Peery name appears upon any of these nine rolls, which
have been preserved, would indicate that Thomas was the only one in the 
settlement.  On these rolls appear the names of many families to that section 
and to Southwest Virginia.  Thomas Gillespie was a member of Captain John 
Smith's Company.  John Buchanan was Captain of a Company, and Will Evans, was 
his Lieutenant.  David Logan was a member of Captain J---- Cathey Company.  
John Christian was Captain of a Company, and William Christian was his 
Lieutenant.  Alex Morris and John Thompson, and George, Alex, Robert and 
James Breckenridge belonged to this Company.  In Captain John Wilson's 
Company, with Thomas Peery were George Davidson, John William and James 
Hunter.  Alexander and Robert Crockett, John and James Trimble, Robert, John, 
James and Hugh Young.  Jacob Lockhart, Thomas Kirkpatrick, David and William 
Campbell, William Legerwood and others more or less familiar. 



On August 20, 1746, the County Court of Augusta Co. appointed John Brown to
be oversear of a road from Kings to the Courthouse, with certain "tithables"
to work it, among them Thomas Peery.  Order Book No. 1, page 20. 



On November 21, 1752, The Court appointed Thomas Peery, James Peery and
others, to work the road from the top of North Mountain to the Courthouse,
under Samuel Wallace.  Order Book, No. 3, page 406. 



March 21st, 1753, George Peery, Thomas Peery and James Peery with others,
were appointed to keep the road formerly layed off from James Young's Mill to
Buchanan Mill.  Then some of their fellow workers were much the same as those
found upon the rolls of Captain John Smith's Company.  Order Book No. 3, page
414. 



In 1753, we also find Thomas Peery mentioned in connection with James, George
and John Peery, as one of the persons appointed to keep a certain road in
repair. 



On Feb. 27th, 1749, William Beverly of Plainfield, Essex County, Va. the
owner of Beverly Manor a tract of 120,000 acres surrounding Staunton, Va. ,
conveyed to Thomas Peerie, of the County of Augusta, Planter, a tract of 375
acres in the County of Augusta, Shenadore, part of the tract called and known
as "Beverly Manor."  This land was joined on the east by a tract conveyed on
the same date by said Beverly to James Peery.  It was bounded on the North by
lands of Robert Young, on the northwest by William McClintock and on the
south by John Campbell.  On this same date, Beverly conveyed lands to George
Peery and Thomas Kirkpatrick, and on the 26th of the same month, conveyed
lands to William McClintock. 



On March 20th, 1762, Thomas Peery made his will which was produced in the
Court, November 16, 1762.  Order Book No. 7, page 101, so that he died 
between these two dates.  His widow Mary Peery, qualified as Executrix at the 
Augusta County Court, Feb. 15, 1763.  All the children mentioned above were 
named in the will, except James, whose relationship appears on later Deeds. 
The Will gave his wife, all the movable effects on the plantation, and to 
his son, John, 100 acres "of the nearest end of my plantation."  The rest of 
his estate he directed to be put on sale and divided equally amongst his 
children named except Elizabeth, as sufficiently provided for, or possibly 
for some reason not meriting special provision. 



His son, Thomas was a minor at the time of his death, as on August 20, 1765,
he came to Court and chose John Peery to be his guardian, being 16 years of
age.  Order Book No. 9, page 439 



Descendents of all male children can be traced, except Robert, about whom I
have found nothing.  I find no records of the families of his daughters,
except Mary, who married David Logan and moved to Kentucky, where she raised
a family. 



The widow of Thomas Peery married William McFeeters after the death of her
former husband, and she, with her husband, on August 20, 1765 conveyed to
John Peery a tract of land in pursuance of the power contained in the Will of
Thomas Peery, and also, on the same date, she and her husband conveyed the 
balance of the original tract sold by Beverly to Thomas Peery, to Samuel 
McNabb, John Peery wife, Sarah Peery, released to his brother James, 150 
acres of the original tract of 375 acres, deeded to his father Thomas, 
described as "on a branch of the Shenadore".  On March 1, 1770, James Peery 
conveyed this land to John Archenbright. 



The members of the family seemed to have left the local city about this time,
which corresponds very nearly with the date when George, William and Thomas
together with John, settled in what is now Tazewell Co., Va.  It is probable
that they stopped for a while in the present limits of Botetourt County, 
where John seems to have invested in land, for we find him and his wife, 
selling land located in the forks of the James River in said County, under 
date of Oct. 7, 1777.  James, first settler, seems also to have settled about 
this time in Botetourt County." 


  

Source:  Submitted by S. Paul Peery (Orlando, Florida). < On my last trip
to Tazewell, Va., I stopped in at the library and
found a  book called "Colonial America and Pioneer Days 1742-1973: A Saga
of the Peery Family," by T.L. Peery. 



I made some copies of various pages in it and when I returned, filed them
away with my other research.  Today, while looking through some of my papers,
I came upon them and having studied them, found them to be most interesting.
The papers are a long account of the First Generation of Peerys, beginning
with Thomas.  The author did a lot of research and I would like to pass this 
information on to the members of PCO that are following Generations, to be 
put with their material. 

  

Submitted by:  S. Paul Peery (Orlando, Florida) - Thu, 23 Jan 1997. 

  
  




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