Gideon (or Gedeon) Macon (c. 1648–1702) was an early American settler.Cabell, James Branch. "The Majors and Their Marriages 1915" The W.C. Hill Printing Co., 1915 There are conflicting theories regarding Gideon Macon's lineage. The one which has been commonly set forth is that his parents were from Loire, France, but Gideon had to have either been born in England or have become an English citizen to have been permitted to come to Virginia because only English citizens could live in the colony at the time. Because his family was believed to have been of

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a religious group of French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, the Genevan burgomaster Be ...

descent,Kennedy, Mary Selden. "Seldens of Virginia and Allied Families 1911" Frank Allaben Genealogical Company, 1911 they may have lived for a time in England. Many Huguenots fled France during the

French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion is the term which is used in reference to a period of civil war between French Catholic Church, Catholics and Protestantism, Protestants, commonly called Huguenots, which lasted from 1562 to 1598. According to estim ...

. A second theory is that Gideon Macon is the son of William Macon and Ann Garland. William was born in Nottingham, England, in 1615 and sailed to Virginia Colony aboard the Merchant Ship "Bonaventure" in 1634. There, William held a Royal Patent for 400 acres in the Powhatan County (Land Office of Patents and Grants of Virginia). William also owned a tavern house in James City. Following

Bacon's Rebellion Bacon's Rebellion was an armed rebellion held by Colony of Virginia, Virginia settlers that took place from 1676 to 1677. It was led by Nathaniel Bacon (Virginia colonist), Nathaniel Bacon against List of colonial governors of Virginia, Colon ...

, he leased the tavern house to the Colonial Government of Virginia because its office buildings had been burned down during the rebellion. Upon William Macon's death, income from the building was paid to his widow, Ann (Garland) Macon. Upon her death in 1699, her will left items to Gideon Macon and his children. This will provides additional evidence as proof that Ann (Garland) Macon was the mother of Gideon Macon. Similar evidence is unavailable to prove that Gideon Macon is of Huguenot descent. Gideon Macon moved to Virginia sometime before 1672.

York County

The first records showing that Gideon Macon lived in Virginia come from the Court Records of York County in 1671 when he was an attorney at law.

Secretary to Governor William Berkeley

Gideon Macon's father, William Macon of James City, Virginia, (formerly of Nottinghamshire, England) owned a Tavern House. Following Nathanial Bacon's rebellion which burned down the Virginia government offices, William rented his Tavern House to the Colonial Government of Virginia. It is possible that Gideon Macon met the governor of Virginia in this building. Following William's death in 1684, the government continued leasing the property from William's widow, Ann Macon, for "...an allowance of 12,000 pounds of Tobacco for the use of her Tavern House as committee chambers, assembly roome, clk's office, and council chamber, etc.", until her death in 1699. Macon was secretary to Sir William Berkeley, who was appointed Governor of Virginia by King Charles I for two nonconsecutive terms. Macon's tenure came at the end of Governor Berkeley's second administration (1660–1677), and Macon served as his secretary in 1677.

Additional roles

From 1671 to 1681, Macon was also an attorney in York County, Virginia. He was a sub-sheriff of the county in 1672, under Daniel Wild, who was by some accounts his brother-in-law. He had land patents in the counties of New Kent, for , Henrico for , and two grants in King and Queen county for 172 and . He also served as a

vestryman A vestryman is a member of his local church's vestry, or leading body.Anstice, Henry (1914). ''What Every Warden and Vestryman Should Know.'' Church literature press He is not a member of the clergy.Potter, Henry Codman (1890). ''The Offices of Wa ...

Bruton Parish Bruton Parish Church is located in the restored area of Colonial Williamsburg in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. It was established in 1674 by the consolidation of two previous parishes in the Virginia Colony, and remains an active Epis ...

church (which is located in the restored area of

Colonial Williamsburg Colonial Williamsburg is a living-history museum and private foundation presenting a part of the historic district in the city of Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation has 7300 employees at this location and ...

in Williamsburg, Virginia) in 1678.

Move to New Kent County

New Residence at Mount Prospect

In 1680, Macon married Martha Woodward, daughter of William Woodward,Fleet, Beverley. "King and Queen County Records Concerning 18th Century Persons, 4th Collection 1961" Baltimore: Genealogical Pub. Co. 1961 interpreter to the

Pamunkey The Pamunkey Indian Tribe is one of 11 Virginia Indian tribal governments recognized by the Commonwealth of Virginia, and the state's first federally recognized tribe, receiving its status in January 2016. Six other Virginia tribal governments, t ...

tribe. Gideon Macon built a home in New Kent County (established in 1654 from York County) on Macon's Island along the Pamunkey River on land Marth Woodward inherited from her parents. He named the estate Prospect Hill or "Mount Prospect". That same year, Gideon was given the title of colonel as the commander-in-chief of the New Kent County Military. Martha's father, William Woodward, owned a large tract of land along the

Pamunkey River The Pamunkey River is a tributary of the York River, about long,U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed April 1, 2011 in eastern Virginia in the United States. Via the York Rive ...

above Johns Creek. Martha and her sister inherited the land.

Churchwarden

In 1684 William Macon (likely Gideon's father) died, and on November 14, 1684 Gideon Macon left "a large sum" of money to the church. In the same year, he was named

Churchwarden A churchwarden is a lay official in a parish or congregation of the Anglican Communion or Catholic Church, usually working as a part-time volunteer. In the Anglican tradition, holders of these positions are ''ex officio'' members of the parish b ...

in St. Peter's Parish and was actively involved in managing affairs in that post until the time of his death. He was also commander-in-chief of the military in New Kent County. The vestry had the duties of appointing the clergymen, investigating cases of suspected moral delinquency, and setting and collecting the parish levy to cover expenses. The members of the vestry would rotate in the position of the churchwarden. The two churchwardens would be the representatives of the vestry. They would ensure that the church was properly maintained, collect and pay the minister's dues, and keep all the church accounts. It was also their responsibility to ensure that illegitimate children were provided for, that indigent orphans were indentured, and that the sick and elderly were lodged and boarded at the parish's expense.

House of Burgesses

Gideon Macon quickly became prominent in the affairs of New Kent County. In 1693, and from 1696 to 1702 he was elected to the General Assembly and served in the

House of Burgesses The House of Burgesses was the elected representative element of the Virginia General Assembly, the legislative body of the Colony of Virginia. With the creation of the House of Burgesses in 1642, the General Assembly, which had been established ...

Death

There are conflicting reports regarding Gideon Macon's burial. One report says he is buried at the foot of the chancel in

Bruton Parish Church Bruton Parish Church is located in the restored area of Colonial Williamsburg in Williamsburg, Virginia, United States. It was established in 1674 by the consolidation of two previous parishes in the Virginia Colony, and remains an active Epis ...

in Williamsburg. Another report says he was buried in the family plot on Macon's Island, and that the gravestone was destroyed by the

Federal Army The Mexican Federal Army ( es, Ejército Federal), also known as the Federales in popular culture, was the military of Mexico from 1876 to 1914 during the Porfiriato, the long rule of President Porfirio Díaz, and during the presidencies of Franci ...

in 1862 during the

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861 – May 26, 1865; also known by other names) was a civil war in the United States. It was fought between the Union ("the North") and the Confederacy ("the South"), the latter formed by states th ...

160 years after his death. Macon was an early Vestryman at Bruton Parish Church, and a brass tablet in the church in Colonial Williasburg marks a pew in his name.

Other notable facts

Gideon Macon was the father of Martha Macon, who was the mother of Frances Jones. Frances was, in turn, the mother of Martha Dandridge Washington (wife of

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

). He was also the great-grandfather of

Nathaniel Macon Nathaniel Macon (December 17, 1757June 29, 1837) was an American politician who represented North Carolina in both houses of Congress. He was the fifth speaker of the House, serving from 1801 to 1807. He was a member of the United States House of ...

, who was Speaker of the House of Representatives from 1801–1808 and senator from North Carolina from 1815-1828. Upon Gideon Macon's death in 1702, his widow, Martha Woodward Macon, married Captain Nathaniel West of West Point (named for his family), who was also a representative in the

. They had two children, and their daughter, Unity West, married Frances Jones's brother-in-law, William Dandridge.

Family

Gideon Macon married Martha Woodward in 1680. They had eight children: * Elizabeth Macon * Gideon Macon (1682–1704) * Ann Macon (1684–1728)Virginia, "Vestry Book of Saint Peter's Parish - New Kent County, VA,1682-1758.", (The National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in the State of Virginia, Richmond, 1904. Clearfield Co. Inc., Baltimore, MD 1989, 1996.), p. 25(married James Christian) * Martha Macon Jones (1687–1716), wife of Orlando Jones, mother of Frances Jones and grandmother of Martha Dandridge(wife of

). Martha Macon Jones's tomb is on Prospect Hill. * William Macon (1690–1693) * William Macon (1693–1773) * John Macon (1695–1752) (married Ann Hunt and was grandfather of

) * James Macon (1701–1768)

Notes

References

* Warren, Charles. ''A History of the American Bar''. New York: Cosimo, 2006. Print. "Thus in York County Records, of the names of thirteen men who appeared on the docket as attorneys between 1640 and 1675, with the exception of William Sherwood (who was a trained lawyer) and John Holdcraft and William Swinnerton, all were either planters or merchants prominent in the community: Francis Willis, James Bray, Thomas Bullard, John Page and Daniel Parke becoming members of the Virginia Council; William Hockady, Thomas Bushrod, Dr. Robert Hllyson, Gideon Macon being at different times members of the House of Burgessess and Karby Kiggars. (See William and Mary College Quarterly, Vol. VIII.) * ''The Edward Pleasants Valentine Papers''. Richmond, Va.: Published by the Valentine Museum, 1927. Print. "Capt. John Lydall and Mr. John Parke succeeded as Church Wardens by Mr. Gideon Macon and Mr. Wm. Clopton Apr 10, 1696." P. 25. * Cabell, James Branch. ''The Majors and Their Marriages'',. Richmond, Va: W.C. Hill Printing, 1915. 50-52. ''Google Books''. Web. 10 July 2010 * Hatcher, William E., and Virginia D. Cox. ''The Sneads of Fluvanna''. Fork Union, Va.: Sneads of Fluvanna, 1959. Print. 99, 101 * Harris, Malcolm Hart. ''Old New Kent County: Some Account of the Planters, Plantations, and Places.'' Vol 1. Baltimore, Md.: Reprinted for Clearfield by Genealogical, 2006. Print.

External links

Macon's Island

{{DEFAULTSORT:Macon, Gideon House of Burgesses members Virginia colonial people 1640s births 1702 deaths Year of birth uncertain