"Ensign" Charles Yancey

Early Hanover County records show that Charles & (Mary Bartlett?) Yancey had a son also named Charles. Various genealogical reports concerning the Yancey family have identified him as one "Ensign" Charles Yancey recording his wife as a Miss Dumas of the Jeremiah Dumas family of French Huguenot descent. (Other early family reports erroneously recorded "Ensign" Charles as the son of an "Immigrant" John Yancey). By any means, It has been widely accepted by Yancey historians over the years that the sons of this "Ensign" Charles were: Charles, Robert, Jeremiah, and some recorded a fourth son: Archelaus Yancey (all brothers of Louisa County, Virginia). This information has been accepted as true for many years by family historians - not discovering anything to prove to the contrary, but not finding anything to confirm it either. It was not until recently that this information began to be questioned and now a re-evaluation of the facts would seem to cast much doubt on this information which for years had been accepted as true. It has been known for quite some time that early Virginia documents, do indeed, prove that a "Captain" Charles, "Reverend" Robert and Jeremiah Yancey were brothers of early Louisa County. But upon doing extensive research in Hanover and Louisa counties of Virginia, no records have been found documenting the relationship between "Ensign" Charles and these three Louisa county brothers. It seems rather unusual, even in view of the fact that many early Virginia records have been destroyed, that there exist no deeds, wills, court records, or any documents proving, or even implying, the relationship between the three brothers and the Ensign Charles Yancey. More recent research has shed some light on the matter. Among the earliest of Louisa County, Virginia wills is that of one Robert Yancey whose will was probated in 1746. The will, although not totally legible, is known to refer to a wife named Temperance, and children: Martha, Charles, & Robert. This was Robert - the son of Charles & (Mary Bartlett?) Yancey. Extensive research done on the Dumas families of Virginia has shown that the wife of this Robert was a Miss Temperance Dumas - a daughter of Jeremiah Dumas and they seemed to have been married in the late 1730's. Contrary to most all genealogical reports concerning the Yancey family that have been published over the years, in view of bits of evidence that have been recently uncovered after extensive research, it would seem in all probability that these three brothers: Charles, Robert & Jeremiah, were not sons of the "Ensign" Charles, but sons of Robert & Temperance (Dumas) Yancey (for more details concerning this matter see the information concerning Robert Yancey on page six). Concerning the Archelaus Yancey that is sometimes cited as one of the Louisa County brothers; it would seem that there was no fourth brother. The confusion seems to have arisen from the fact that there was an Archelaus Yancey - the son of Charles & (Mary Bartlett?) Yancey and the two Charles' were mistakenly assumed to be the same person. "Ensign" Charles seems to have received his title from service performed in the French and Indian Wars, but military records refer to him as being from Culpeper County. Indeed, it would seem that the "Ensign" Charles Yancey of Culpeper County referred to in early Virginia records was most probably the son of Lewis Davis Yancey. It would now seem doubtful if Charles, the son of Charles & Mary Yancey, ever carried the title "Ensign". No extant records have been discovered indicating the fate of this Charles Yancey and it would seem he could very well have died without leaving behind any descendants.