Thank you very, very much !  Great input !
    Carole
 
 
In a message dated 5/17/2011 11:17:29 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
[log in to unmask] writes:

I know of two  18th-century Virginia cases where illegitimate children took
the name of  their biological father.

Rawleigh Chinn was married to Easter Ball, but  he had three sons by her
widowed cousin Margaret (Ball) Downman. They were  Charles (b. 1723),
Christopher (b. 1728), and Elijah (b. 1731) Chinn. As  far as I know they
were never called Ball or Downman--if anyone has  evidence to the contrary,
please post it.

From Richmond Co Order  Books 9 and 10, we see:
4 July 1728 - Margaret Downman was cited by the  grand jury for bearing a
bastard child.
1 Oct 1729 - Living in adultery  with Rawleigh Chinn
4 Nov 1730 - Living in adultery with Rawleigh  Chinn
2 Mar 1731 - Bearing a bastard child within 6 months

In  another case, Hannah Ludwell (Lee) Corbin, widow of Gawin Corbin,  lived
with Dr Richard Lingan Hall until his death and bore him two  children.
Elisha Hall Corbin and Martha Hall Corbin were so called as  children, but
later in life they used their father's name, Hall.

I'm  not near my reference books, but I remember other cases when someone  
was
baptized "for Mr X", presumably because he acknowledged paternity,  although
he was not married to the mother. Nevertheless, the general rule  was for 
the
child to take the mother's surname. Rules were often  broken.

Practice in the colonies may have been different, but in  England, 
foundlings
were sometimes given the name of the parish church as a  surname. I imagine
it was harder to hide an illegitimate birth in Virginia,  so I wouldn't
expect many cases here.

Kathleen

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