Howell Research
Howell-Pankey Line
By Don Taylor

Review

What I think I know.

• • Samuel was born in 1738 in Manakin Town, Goochland County, Virginia Colony[i].
  • Samuel married Betsey Kinsey Binford in 1759 in Henrico County, Virginia Colony[ii].
  • Samuel’s son, Philip Pankie, was born on 16 February 1763 to him and Betsey (Belford). Philip was Christened at St James Northam Parish, Goochland County, Virginia Colony. The birth of Philip indicates that the family surname may be “Pankie” in some records[iii].
  • Samuel Pankey appears in the 1883 “Heads of Families—Virginia, 1783, Powhatan County[iv].
  • Samuel Pankey gave his permission for his daughter, Betsy, to marry Mordecai Warriner on 12 December 1787[v].
  • Samuel died in August 1807 in Manakin Town, Powhatan, Virginia, USA[vi].

What others think they know (and I should consider).

Family Search – Samuel Pankey (1738-1807) is ID LZJ8-NJ3 at Family Search.

• • Samuel Pankey married Martha Burton abt 1775 in Chesterfield County, Virginia Colony. The source is the International Genealogical Index. I have been unable to find sufficient evidence to accept this relationship. However, it appears that Betsey, Samuel’s wife, died about 1770, which explains why her daughter Betsey has the same name. Samuel supposedly had three more children after Betsy’s death; Samuel Hardin, Lelah, and John, and his wife for those children is still a question in my mind. Hopefully, it will become clear as I research all of Samuel’s children.

Ancestry – Samuel Pankey is found in 374 public trees. (Wow) Most are copies of other trees.

• • Several researchers indicate that Samuel Pankey had an 1854 marriage bond with Martha Morton in Richmond County, North Carolina. I have found no evidence that Samuel Pankey, born 1738 in Virginia, never lived in North Carolina. I suspect this is a different Samuel Pankey.
  • Some researchers indicate that Samuel Pankey and Polly Burton married 8 October 1798 in Chesterfield County, Virginia.[vii] This is possible, but the same researchers indicated that Samuel Hardin, Lelah, and John Pankey (born 1777, 1782, & 1786 respectively) are the children of Samuel and Polly. It is possible they lived together for 22 years before they made the marriage legal or 22 years before they reported the marriage. In either event, it is an area for further research. I, however, suspect this is the marriage of Samuel Harden Pankey, son of Samuel, who would have been 22 years old in 1798.

Historical Notes

• • 

    Manakin Town, upstream of Richmond – Source: Library of Congress, 1751 Fry-Jefferson Map

    In 1700 French Huguenot refugees settled an abandoned Monacan village and renamed it Manakin Town in Henrico Shire, Virginia Colony[viii].

  • Goochland County was created in 1728 from Henrico shire (Henrico County). Part of it became Cumberland County in 1749. Powhatan was formed from Cumberland County in 1777. Consequently, dates regarding Samuel Pankey affect the location he was in.
    • • 1634-1728 – Henrico Shire.
      • 1728-1749 – Goochland County.
      • 1748-1777 – Cumberland County.
      • 1777-Today – Powhatan County.

• • The 1790 Census for Virginia is lost. The “Heads of Families—Virginia, 1783” is used as a Census Substitute.
  • The 1800 Census for Virginia is lost.

Howell Research – Ancestor #68
Samuel Pankey (1738-1807)

List of Grandparents

• • Grandfather: James Dallas Howell (1879-1964)
  • 1^st Great-grandfather: Peter Fletcher Howell (1842-1924)
  • 2^nd Great-grandmother:  Caroline M. A Pankey, (1810 … ?)
  • 3^rd Great-grandfather: Thomas A Pankey (c. 1760 – 1829)
  • 4^th Great-grandfather: Samuel Pankey (1738-1807)
  • 5^th Great-grandfather: Stephen Pankey (1711-1789)*
  • 6^th Great-grandfather: Jean Panetier (1685-1717)*
  • 7^th Great-grandfather: Pierre Panetier (1647-____)*
  • 8^th Great-Grandfather: Estienne Panetier (1615-1691)*

* Note: I have not reviewed or researched 5^th Great-grandfather Stephen Pankey or earlier ancestors of his. As such, these ancestors are tentative/notional.

Birth

Samuel Pankey was born in 1738 in Manakin Town, Goochland County (Now Powhatan County), Virginia Colony. He was the second of five children of Stephen and Judith (Chastain) Pankey.

He had one older brother, John, and two younger sisters, Mary Ann and Judith, and a younger brother Stephen Pankey, Jr.

Marriage

1^st marriage. Samuel Pankey married Betsy Kinsey Binford in 1759. They married in “Henrico County.” However, the county name may have been somewhat flexible as Henrico County became Goochland County, then Cumberland County.

Samuel and Betsy had five children

I believe his wife Betsy died in 1770, possibly in childbirth.

It appears that Samuel remarried and had three more children

Samuel and (???) had three children

In 1883, Samuel was enumerated as the head of household. His family consisted of four whites and seven blacks. The four whites must have consisted of:

•             Samuel
•             Samuel’s wife (her name is still unclear)
•             Betsy Kinsey Pankey was only 13-years-old in 1783.
•             Samuel Harden was about six years old.

John’s wife may have passed, and Lila was the fourth white person in the household.

In 1787, Samuel gave permission for his 17-year-old daughter, Betsy, to marry Mordecai Warriner.

Death

Samuel died in August 1807 in Manakin Town, Powhatan County, Virginia.

Events by Location

• • Virginia Colony, Goochland County, Manakin Town – Birth (1738)
  • Virginia Colony, Henrico County, – Marriage (1759)
  • Virginia, Powhatan County – 1783, 1787
  • Virginia, Powhatan County, Manakin Town – Death (1807)
  • Further Actions / Follow-up

Future Actions

• Get a copy of John Pankey of Manakin Town, Virginia, and his descendants, by George Edward Pankey. (I’ve requested through interlibrary loan, alternately it is available at NEHGS.) See: https://www.worldcat.org/title/john-pankey-of-manakin-town-virginia-and-his-descendants/oclc/72322
• Find Vital Records for each of the children, particularly paying attention to the mother’s name.
• Look for Samuel in Revolutionary War Records.
• Look for property records for Samuel.
• Look for probate records for Samuel.
• Look for burial records for Samuel.
• Review Church Records for Samuel, his wives, and his children. (Philip was Christened at St James Northam Parish.)

Endnotes

[i] Edmund West, Compiler, Family Data Collection – Individual Records, Ancestry, Samuel Pankey – No Image. Birth year: 1738; Birth city: Manakin Town; Birth state: VA.

[ii] Edmund West, comp., Family Data Collection – Marriages (Provo, UT, USA, Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2001), Ancestry, Samuel Pankey – Betsey Kinsey Binford – 1759.

[iii] Virginia Births and Christenings, 1584-1917, Family Search, Philip Pankie – 29 May 1763. “Virginia Births and Christenings, 1584-1917”, database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VRRC-2KF : 28 January 2020), Philip Pankie, 1763.

[iv] Virginia, U.S., Compiled Census and Census Substitutes Index, 1607-1890, Ancestry, Samuel Pankey – Tax List – 1783. Original data: Jackson, Ron V., Accelerated Indexing Systems, comp.. Virginia Census, 1607-1890. Compiled and digitized by Mr. Jackson and AIS from microfilmed schedules of the U.S. Federal Decennial Census, territorial/state censuses, and/or census substitutes.

[v] Pollack, Michael E, Marriage Bonds of Henrico County, Virginia, 1782-1853 (Baltimore, Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1984), Ancestry, Page 173 – Warriner, Mordecai to Betsey Kinsey Pankey.

[vi] Edmund West, comp., Family Data Collection – Deaths (Provo, UT, USA, Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2001), Ancestry, Samuel Pankey – No Image. Edmund West, comp.. Family Data Collection – Deaths [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2001.

[vii] Dodd, Jordan. Virginia, U.S., Compiled Marriages, 1660-1800 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1997. | Original data: Dodd, Jordan, comp.. Virginia Marriages to 1800. Electronic transcription of marriage records held by the individual counties in Virginia.

[viii] Wikipedia – Powhatan County, Virginia – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Powhatan_County%2C_Virginia