"20 Nov., 1656.
"Whereas, Articles were Exhibited against Wm. H—— by Mr. David Lindsaye (Minister) upon suspicion of witchcraft, sorcery, etc. And an able jury of Twenty-four men were empanelled to try the matter by verdict of which jury they found part of the Articles proved by several depositions. The Court doth therefore order yet ye said Wm. H—— shall forthwith receave ten stripes upon his bare back and forever to be Banished this County and yet hee depart within the space of two moneths. And also to pay all the charges of Court."
SEAHORSE OF LONDON
On a cold day in the late winter of 1657 some men were busily working in the Potomac near the mouth of Mattox Creek. They were trying to lift a foundered ketch, the Seahorse of London. Among the men was young John Washington, son of an English clergyman.
John had sailed for Virginia in the winter of 1656, as mate and voyage partner in the Seahorse. After arriving in the Potomac the ketch was loaded with a cargo of tobacco. On her way out of the river she ran aground. Before she could be floated a storm hit and sank her. The entire cargo of tobacco was ruined.
During the delay John made friends with a wealthy planter named Nathaniel Pope, who lived in the neighborhood.
The Seahorse was finally raised but by that time John did not wish to return to England. Perhaps Nathaniel's daughter, Anne, was the attraction in Virginia.
John prevailed on Edward Prescott, the master and part owner of the Seahorse, to release him from further service in order that he might remain in the Northern Neck of Virginia. He also demanded payment of his wages. Prescott countered that Washington owed him money and was partly responsible for the damage done to the vessel. He threatened to have John arrested and imprisoned.
John's new friend, Pope, offered to go his bond in beaver skins. If there was a suit the outcome is unknown. Prescott finally sailed away in the Seahorse and Washington remained in Virginia, but they parted on bad terms and this was not the last of their quarrel—but that is another story.
John soon married Anne Pope. As a wedding gift Nathaniel gave them a seven-hundred-acre tract of land near Mattox Creek, in Westmoreland County. In 1664 John and Anne moved to a new home four miles eastward on Bridges Creek.
John Washington was the first of that name to settle in the Northern Neck. In Westmoreland he led an active life as a planter and as a leader in county affairs. He had received "decent schooling" before he left England. John and Anne were the great-grandparents of that most famous Washington—George.