Abraham Salle (1670–ca. 1719) was a French

Huguenot The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

who emigrated to Colonial Virginia. He was the progenitor of the Salle family in the United States. He was a successful merchant and served in the militia and was a justice of

Henrico County, Virginia Henrico County , officially the County of Henrico, is a County (United States), county located in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population wa ...

Early life

Salle was born in 1670 in

Saint-Martin-de-Ré Saint-Martin-de-Ré (, "St Martin of Île de Ré, Ré"; Saintongeais dialect, Saintongeais: ''Sént-Martin-de-Ré'', before 1962: ''Saint-Martin'') is a Communes of France, commune in the western French Departments of France, department of Char ...

, Aunis, France. His parents, Marie and Jean Salle, were from

Picardy Picardy (; Picard language, Picard and , , ) is a historical and cultural territory and a former regions of France, administrative region located in northern France. The first mentions of this province date back to the Middle Ages: it gained it ...

, France. Salle was raised in the religion of

John Calvin John Calvin (; ; ; 10 July 150927 May 1564) was a French Christian theology, theologian, pastor and Protestant Reformers, reformer in Geneva during the Protestant Reformation. He was a principal figure in the development of the system of C ...

Reformed Church Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Christian, Presbyterian, ...

Emigration to Virginia

In 1685,

Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...

revoked the

Edict of Nantes The Edict of Nantes () was an edict signed in April 1598 by Henry IV of France, King Henry IV and granted the minority Calvinism, Calvinist Protestants of France, also known as Huguenots, substantial rights in the nation, which was predominantl ...

, making it illegal for French citizens to practice the Protestant faith. Huguenots were persecuted and as a result there was a "mass exodus" from France to England, the Netherlands, Africa, Germany, and Colonial America. Some Huguenots immigrated to the

colony of Virginia The Colony of Virginia was a British Empire, British colonial settlement in North America from 1606 to 1776. The first effort to create an English settlement in the area was chartered in 1584 and established in 1585; the resulting Roanoke Colo ...

where they were assured political freedom by the governor.

Manakintown

Abraham Salle was first in New York in 1700, when he petitioned for privileges of citizenship of the governor and council. He moved to

Manakintown Powhatan County () is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 30,033. Its county seat is Powhatan. Powhatan County is included in the Greater Richmond Region. The James River forms the coun ...

in what was then

, where Huguenots settled, many of them sailing on four ships to Virginia in 1700. Manakintown was established at the site of an old Monacan village west of

Richmond, Virginia Richmond ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the Commonwealth (U.S. state), U.S. commonwealth of Virginia. Incorporated in 1742, Richmond has been an independent city (United States), independent city since 1871. ...

. Monacans lived in the area until about 1722. William Byrd II of Tuckahoe issued land patents totally 10,000 acres for Manakintown in 1711 and 1757. A church was established in the center of town. The emigrants were noblemen, professional people, artisans, and craftsmen. The artisans brought weaving, lace-making, and silk-work to the colony. Because they were not farmers, the initial year was difficult. They soon learned how to clear and farm the land.

Salle became a clerk of the parish, a captain of the militia, and justice of Henrico County, specifically chosen to handle cases of French Huguenots. Salle was a member of the vestry in 1714, 1715 and 1718. He was an "important merchant" and a "leading citizen". He petitioned

William Byrd II William Byrd II (March 28, 1674August 26, 1744) was an American planter, lawyer, surveyor and writer. Born in the English colony of Virginia, Byrd was educated in London, where he practiced law. Upon his father's death, Byrd returned to Virginia ...

for more land as a spokesman for the community. He said, "our families which are pretty numerous and the place we occupy quite limited, we find ourselves in the impossibility of procuring any situation for our children or even to have them instructed or give them any education." He asked King William of England to "withdraw us from a place where we suffer", due in large part to the lack of fertile soil. He asked that they be given land in Ireland. But land was not made available per that request. Salle obtained about 230 acres by Lower Manakin Creek and on the south side of

James River The James River is a river in Virginia that begins in the Appalachian Mountains and flows from the confluence of the Cowpasture and Jackson Rivers in Botetourt County U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowli ...

in Henrico County in 1711. In 1715, he acquired an additional 190 acres on the south side of the James River; It was a tract on the first 5,000 acres established for French refugees. Over the course of his life in Manakintown, he amassed sizeable property, including slaves and land. He was the first of the French refugees in Henrico County to own enslaved people.

Marriage and children

Abraham Salle married Olive Perrault. She may have been the daughter of Daniel Perrault, captain of the ship ''Peter and Anthony'' that sailed to Virginia with Huguenots. They had one daughter and five sons. Before Salle moved to Manakintown, two sons were baptized in the French Church (''L'Église française à la Nouvelle-Amsterdam'') in New York. Abraham was born October 31, 1700, and Jacob was born July 28, 1701. Jacob was Baptized on August 6, 1701, with Jacob Baillergeau and Magdelene Peiret as godparents. His son, Abraham Salle Jr., appeared on the list of tithables along with his father in 1718. Salle died in 1719. His estate was left to his children.

Descendants

Abraham Salle, Justice of the Peace of Chesterfield County, and his cousin Jacob Salle, a yeoman, were descendants of immigrants Abraham and Olive Salle. Abraham Salle was a Sheriff in Chesterfield County from 1768 to 1769. Salle's descendants have moved west to Kentucky and other states. The surnames are spelled Sallee, Salle, and Salley.

Early life

Emigration to Virginia

Manakintown

Marriage and children

Descendants

Notes

References

Further reading