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Duplicate of letter “Uncle J. W. Womack” wrote to “Cousin Rebecca Hinds”
From papers of L. J. Womack II
Eutaw, Alabama
April 29, 1850
Cousin Rebecca
When I had the pleasure to see you in November last, I promised that I would at no distant day after my return home, give you some account of the genealogy of the “Womack family.”
I proceed now with great pleasure to redeem that promise, and I must ask that you will not set down the delay which has occurred, to any motive or indifference for I am free to confess (and those who are in the habit of intimate intercourse with me know the fact) that Uncle Sherwood’s family stand first with me among all my relations. Of the several members of that family, you occupy a high place in my regard.
The many events which occurred at Powelton in 1824 and 1825 and my frequent visits out to the old residence, and the tender and sisterly manner in which you treated me, are as fresh in my mind as the occurrences of yesterday, and will never be forgotten by me.
In this connection, I must mention the name of Aunt Nancy, and I beg you to express to her, the lively recollection which I entertain for her kindness, and motherly attentions to me during the same period. And Cousin Martha and Cousin Nancy were in those days my school mates and my sisters. Nor can I omit here the name of Cousin Sarah. She married and left soon after my arrival, but if opportunities had offered, I know know she would have been equally kind to me,
Those scenes, and those days were pleasant to me, and they will never fade from my remembrance.
I come now to the subject I promised to furnish you information, and I must say I am indebted to Joseph L Womack, a distant relative of ours, living in Prince Edward County, Va., for most of the information I possess, which goes back beyond our great grandfather Richard.
Our ancestors who came over from England (in 1702) first settled in Prince Edward County, Virginia, and the records of the family as far back as Lawrence Bishop of Suffolk (who was the second son of Charles Augustus, Duke of Albemarle) are there kept and preserved by our relatives. ----
Joseph L Womack writes me that reference has been had copies obtained from the family register in England.
You will find in Lempriere’s Biographical Dictionary, (a work in almost every library) that Lawrence Womack was Bishop of St. David’s (afterwards Suffolk) and died in 1685. He was an eminent Theological writer, and his words are frequently quoted from by Watson in his Religious Institutes, a work highly prized in this country by the Methodist Clergymen.
Our great grandfather Richard Womack, you know was buried near your old family residence in Hancock County in 1791. He lived in Burk County, Georgia and was on a visit to see his son Abraham (our grandfather) and died soon after his arrival, no doubt from the fatigues of his journey, in his 83rd year.
You have observed that the names Richard, John, David, Abraham, Lawrence, Sherod, Augustus, Jesse and Joseph have been favorites with the family. There are many of those names now in Prince Edward County, Virginia. I do not concur with you all in the mode of spelling your father’s name. It should be spelled Sherod.
Now these matters in relation to our family should be kept within our own family circles. They are matters which it is proper for us to know, and indeed it is our duty to our children to keep and preserve a record of these things, but you know we must be particular how we relate them to our neighbors, otherwise they will intimate that we claim to be of the aristocracy. You see, I am a plain Democrat myself, and with the exception of my near relatives, no one knows a word from me in relation to my ancestors.
Give my by best love to Aunt Nancy, also to Cousin Sarah, Martha and Nancy, and to Mr. Hinds and your children, and to Cousin Otis and the children; also to Cousin Nancy’s children. Remember me also to Aunt Patsy Alford and Uncle Wiley,
Very truly yours, ec,
John W. Womack
Commentary
Large parts of this supposed ancestry are fraudulent. See John Warburton Womack Ancestry Fraud for more information.
A few notes on mistakes and fallacies on this letter, other than the obvious fallacy of a link to Bishop Lawrence Womack:
The reference to Lempriere's Biographical Dictionary was in fact a reference to Lempriere's Universal Biography
There was no Joseph L Womack living in Prince Edward Co, VA. In fact, the only Joseph Womacks alive in 1850 in Virginia were Joseph Kyle Womack in Botetourt Co, VA, and Joseph P Womack in Campbell Co, VA,
The notion that Womacks came to Prince Edward Co, VA in 1702 is ridiculous; Prince Edward Co was not formed until 1754, and in 1702, the area which would become Prince Edward, was not yet settled by Europeans.
This letter states that Richard Womack III died in 1791 at the age of 83, thus born circa 1708, which does not agree with the dates in John Warburton Womack's 1889 biography.
While John Warbuton Womack was correct that certain male names ran in the Womack family, Lawrence, Sherod and Augustus certainly were not common.
The old family residence in Hancock Co, GA where Richard Womack III was supposedly buried was, in fact, in Taliaferro Co, GA, formed in 1825 from Hancock and other counties. Abraham Womack had two GA land grants, and both fell into Taliaffero when it was formed.