Several more people have contributed to the discussion about naming patterns. In order not to lumber up our in-boxes with repetitions of the original messages and replies that came with some of the most recent contributions, I append the recent messages below. BT -------------------------- This is FASCINATING ! I'm a direct descendant of Robert and Mourning Adams, but I don't have all those children on my list. I only have Elijah, Absolem, Thomas, Milly, Sukey, and Molly. Elijah is my line. If you would share your information, I'd be grateful !! Thank you ! Carole Dodson Bryant Prince Frederick, Maryland [log in to unmask] ---------------------------- Thank you for that information; I will pass it on. I got the information through some members of the Ferguson DNA list. Agnes "Aggy" Adams married James Ferguson, Jr., grandson of Ann Stubbleson and John Ferguson of Essex Co., VA. My distant cousin's DNA matches several of Ann and John Ferguson's descendants. Sharon Clark Fort Worth, TX [log in to unmask] -------------------------------- Ah, this is GOOD ! Now we have a friendly "controversy" ! If each would produce her " evidence," perhap we'll all be the wiser ! And, Al and I might learn from who our real ancestors actually are. Thanks, Carole Dodson Bryant Prince Frederick, Maryland [log in to unmask] ------------------------------ Hi all, Actually no one has successfully documented the parents for either Robert or Mourning. For almost 100 years (query in DAR magazine dated early 1920s) researchers have searched the Lewis line for a "hole" to put Mourning in -- no one has successfully found a place for her, short of coming up with "an undocumented first wife who died" or "unnamed child who just wasn't picked up" anywhere. Some researchers think Mourning was "the widow Lewis" when she married Robert, and the older Ann/Anna in the Robert Adams household was actually his step-daughter. Again, there isn't a "dead Lewis male" who can reasonably be Mourning's husband. It's true, Robert Adams named only one daughter Ann -- "Anne ye younger" -- in his will; but he called the older Ann "daughter" in the deed when he gave land to her and her husband. Some abstracts of the deed mistakenly show the name as "Ame." Mourning refers to two daughter's "Ann" in her will. That said, Lewis as Mourning's surname is a long-standing tradition, but I haven't located just where it started. For those who have seen the middle name of Judith Adams Clark -- Lewis -- used as "documentation" for Lewis as Mourning's surname, I personally have never seen a record showing Judith (Adams) Clark (born c1716 died aft Sept 1800 - before 1802) having a middle name. Most people born this early in their social class, didn't have middle names. Al, as to when / where / if the Adamses were Quakers -- at the time of his death (1740) Robert was a vestryman of the St. James Parish. I'm told the only time Mourning's name appears in Quaker records is when someone was asked to enquire if she approved of the pending marriage of her daughter. Does that "prove" she was a Quaker, or was that just a good gesture to the mother? The two daughters I'm most familiar with -- Judith (Adams) Clark and Elizabeth (Adams) Moorman -- and their families weren't as active Quakers as some of their siblings. I haven't followed the other children to know about them. The families of Judith and Elizabeth are found in Quaker meetings from about 1743 on. This is the time when Christopher Clark joined (although some of his children appear in records previous to this date) so I'd guess the Adams weren't Quaker until this period. Robert's parentage is another mystery. I personally think my 1995 theory isn't as off base as others may think. I'm not saying it's correct and I haven't looked at it in several years. I just think there's a good possibility of some kind of kinship between he and the James Adams mentioned therein. http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lksstarr/reports/ptradms.txt <http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lksstarr/reports/ptradms.txt> Two other files on Robert & Mourning are located here: http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lksstarr/html/adams.html <http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~lksstarr/html/adams.html> Linda Sparks Starr [log in to unmask] To subscribe, change options, or unsubscribe, please see the instructions at http://listlva.lib.va.us/archives/va-roots.html