Joshua Westcott

Whitelaw, in his land books, states that Joshua "dies without issue" however, this compiler believes that to be in error. Other genealogies, including the well-documented "Miles Files" at the Eastern Shore Public Library, show this Joshua as marrying Mary Pitts and having sons Edmund P. and Hezekiah P. and this fits well circumstantially as Mary Pitts had brothers Edmund and Hezekiah Pitts. It should be noted that there is some uncertainty here, however. Whitelaw does a yeoman's effort sorting out the early Eastern Shore of Virginia land but, this compiler has found quite a few errors in his genealogical information of the people who owned the land.

In this case, he is tracing tract N89 and, in 1770, Jonathan Stott sells 80a of the tract to John Wescote who adds to it a contiguous segment of land making 150a in total. Wescote in turn left this land to a son Joshua in 1786 who was living on the parcel at the time. Whitelaw then makes the statement that Joshua died without issue and then some inter-family transactions happened to divide the land which eventually ends up in the hands of Hezekiah P. Wescott in 1829. This compiler believes that Hezekiah P. Westcott in short for Hezekiah Pitts Westcott who is son, along with Edmund P. Westcott, of Joshua and Mary (Pitts) Westcott. The original owner John Wescote only had two surviving sons that are mentioned in his will - Littleton and Joshua - and we know Littleton is not a candidate as husband of Mary Pitts as he has a large family with wife Jemima when John Wescote died c1786.

It seems that John Westcott also also a son named John as mentioned in the will of John Wesctcott's father John in 1728 but he must not have survived till the younger John leaves his will in 1786. All this leaves Joshua as the only possible husband for Mary Pitts and this is corraborated in the Virginia marriage records that Joshua married Mary Pitts in 1771. So, there is a very high level of proof that Joshua/Mary Pitts had a family that carried on into the 19th century with at least two sons Edmind P. and Hezekiah P. Westcott, named for brothers of Mary Pitts.

Joshua Westcoat's estate was administered on Jan 14 1795 by Hezekiah Pitts with appraisers John Elliott, James Heath, Thomas Elliott and Covington Stott (NoVAW-XXXVIII-O-32:400).

In a Jun 30 1820, a land cause for Northapton Co., VA states, "That a certain Joshua Wescoat, late of this County, being in his lifetime and at the time of his death, seized in fee of and in a tract of land in this County near Franktown, adjoining the land of William Wescoat and others, and containing 180 acres, more or less, and being so seized the said Joshua Wescoat departed this life in the year 1798(sic), leaving your oratrix, Polly Wescoat, his widow, and nine children, to wit: Edmund, John, Major, George, Hezekiah, Rosey, who intermarried with John Wescoat, deceased, Vianna, who intermarried with Samuel Matthews, Polly, the wife of William Underhill and Jemima Mears, the widow of Shadrack Mears, to all of whom the said land descended equally to be divided, subject to the dower of the said Polly, the widow; That John, by deed of record in this Court, sold and conveyed his one ninth of said land to your orator Hezekiah Wescoat; that Vianna, who intermarried as aforesaid with Samuel Matthews, departed this life in the year 1817, of full age, intestate and without issue, leaving as her next of kin her mother and the aforesaid brothers and sisters, to all of whom her undivided one ninth of said land descended; that Rosey, one of the aforesaid children, departed this life in the year 1818, intestate, leaving two children, to-wit: Ann and Rosey Wescoat, infants, to whom her interest in said land descended, equally to be divided between them."

Joshua married Mary Pitts, daughter of Major Pitts and Jemima Gray, on 17 Sep 1771 in Northampton Co., VA.¹ (Mary Pitts was born about 1745 in Northampton Co., VA and died about 1820 in Northampton Co., VA.)