TWO NEW BOOKS FOR EASTERN VIRGINIA RESEARCHERS
                        by JACK SANDERS

Researchers of families of eastern Virginia will want to look into
Virginia Lee Hutcheson Davis's monumental new work, ``Tidewater
Virginia Families,'' recently published by Genealogical Publishing
Company.

This heavyweight tome Ä it has 750, 8«-by-11 inch pages Ä  covers 375
years of the history and genealogy of about 40 families rooted in
Tidewater Virginia, a region covering 29 counties from the Washington,
D.C., area south to Norfolk.

Families covered extensively are BELL, BINFORD, BONNER, BUTLER,
CAMPBELL, CHEADLE, CHILES, CLEMENTS, COTTON, DEJARNETTE(ATT), DUMAS,
ELLYSON, FISHBACK, FLEMING, HAMLIN, HAMPTON, HARNISON, HARRIS, HAYNIE,
HURT, HUTCHESON, LEE, MOSBY, MUNDY, NELSON, PEATROSS, PETTYJOHN,
RUFFIN, SHORT, SPENCER, TARLTETON, TATUM, TAYLOR, TERRILL, WATKINS,
WINSTON, and WOODSON.

This is not simply a collection of short, register-style genealogies.
There are hundreds of finely researched, exceedingly literate
biographies of members of these founding families, any of which would
fascinate anyone -- related or not -- interested in the history of
this region and the lives of people who lived in 17th, 18th, and 19th
Century Virginia. The book tells not only who lived in these families,
but how they lived, how they influenced the history of early Virginia,
and how they were affected by their times and environment. There is
much Virginia and local history and lore in this volume, all nicely
keyed to individuals who were a part of it.

There are also extensive genealogies of these families, as well as
ties to others. And it's all fully indexed. Illustrations are limited
to line drawings of churches and other notable sites in the area; some
maps would have been helpful in pinpointing localities.

The publisher rightly calls this ``a landmark publication: so powerful
a contribution to Virginia genealogy that it will be numbered among
the handful of genealogical compendia that command the respect and
admiration of all serious genealogists...For those with Tidewater
Virginia ancestry, in particular, it will mark the natural beginning
of their search.''

Quite frankly, it's the kind of book everyone wishes had been written
about their own ancestors Ä a genealogy and family history to be
treasured if you are lucky enough to have roots among the families
cited.

``Tidewater Virginia Families'' will probably be available in most
Virginia libraries and many good genealogical libraries. Clothbound
copies may be purchased from Genealogical Publishing Company, 1001
North Calvert Street, Baltimore, Md. 21202 (1-800-727-6687) at $75
plus $2.50 postage and handling.

                             *   *   *

   Those researching early Virginia ancestors from James City County
and Surry County will find a wealth of data to pore over in Louise
Pledge Heath Foley's latest volume in her series, Early Virginia
Families Along the James River.

   Volume III contains hundreds of land patent extracts from
1623 to 1732. These not only tell who got how much land, and where,
but also indicate neighboring property owners.

   What may be of even more interest are the lists of headrights. When
Virginia was being settled, every shareholder in the Virginia Company
was offered 50 acres for every emigrant he brought over, whether free
or bound. Thus, the land grants often reflected these ``headrights,''
as the emigrants themselves were called, and lists of their names were
included. A single land grant might have more than two dozen
transported persons listed, useful in pinpointing ancestral arrivals
and the nature of them -- and possibly, the area they settled in.
Thousands of names are listed in the book.

   Needless to say, to be valuable, a book like this needs a
comprehensive index. Mrs. Foley gives new meaning to comprehensive.
For 112 pages of grants, there are more than 40 pages of index. And
the index does not deal simply in human names, but also geographical;
such features as bays, creeks, fields, forts, hills, islands, marshes,
necks, parishes, paths, points, rivers, and swamps are indexed as
subsets of the main index. It is a genuinely amazing compilation that
will help researchers track down not only ancestors, but homesteads
and neighbors -- be they related or not. This is how historical
indexes should be done!

   The book also contains two valuable maps, including a large
tipped-in map of the James River area ``towns, plantations,
settlements and communities.'' The other shows Virginia's ``river
corridors'' and the counties that grew up along them, with details and
citations on when they were established. Both will be valuable
resources to the researcher.

   Early Virginia Families Along the James River -- James City
County-Surry County, 170 pages clothbound, is published by
Genealogical Publishing Company (Dept. SM, 1001 North Calvert Street,
Baltimore, Md., 21202-3897, 1-800-727-6687) at $25 plus $2.50 postage
and handling. The second volume in the series, covering Charles City
and Prince Goerge Counties, has just been re-issued at the same
price. The first volume, covering Henrico and Goochland Counties, is
out of print, but may be found in good genealogical libraries.

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