BRADSHAW
 
BRADSHAW
 
      William Bradshaw was transported to Virginia in 1633, probably from London, with Edward Kingswell, Jr. He settled as one of the headrights in the Kingswell Colony, which was 2,300 acres on the south side of the York River - the same area where our Bradshaw family was located. John Bradshaw (1664 - ?) of Henrico County is believed to be his son.

       In the third generation was William Bradshaw (c. 1690-bef. 1747) of the same county. He married Judith Scruggs (1694-1749), the daughter of Charles Scruggs (1666-1718) and his wife, the widow Mary FieldsJones (c.1664-bef. 1718). Their children were Field, William, Charles, Josiah, John, and Obedience.

       Their son William Bradshaw (1725\7-1817) was married first to Susannah Robinson(1730-1801\5). Their married life would have many moves as this pioneer family migrated to the newly available lands to the west. Their children were born in Cumberland and Goochland Counties, but by 1762, he had purchased land in Bedford County. When he came to North Carolina with his family in 1778, William bought tracts of land situated on both sides of Long Creek and on the Catawba River in Mecklenburg and Tryon counties; his brother Field purchased land nearby. William was a Revolutionary War patriot , having provided provisions for the Army. His Public Service Claim of September 4, 1780 states:

Received of Mr. William Bradshaw, one bullock for Publick Use. Agreeable to an Act for providing a supply of provision & other necessities for the use of the Army. S'd Bullock was appraised to £250.

       In 1790, in the first U.S. census, William is listed as living in Lincoln County with three females and nine slaves. He was a member of the 11th Militia Company.

      The family moved on to Burke County, North Carolina, where Susanna died before 1805. William then married Elizabeth Harper, the mother of a daughter, Prudence. Some of the unhappy details of this second marriage are found are found in 1823 abstracts of a Tennessee Supreme Court lawsuit. It was filed by ten of his children against the grandson of the eleventh, Judith. These depositions give us a rare opportunity to read the actual words, to almost hear the voices, of our ancestors who died so long ago. William died at Wolf River, Overton County, TN. He and Susannah had the following children: Obediah, William, Josiah, Seth, Isaiah, Charles, Elijah, Ursula, Judith, Anna and Rhoda.[We thank Alene Bradshaw of Indianapolis, Indiana for the many Bradshaw family documents she provided.]

       The son Isaiah Bradshaw (bef. 1755-1812) married Elizabeth Thompson, daughter of Gideon Thompson (?-1796) and his wife, Jeanette Reid (?-1794) of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina.

       Their daughter, Jeanette Reid Bradshaw, married John Blackwood.