Smithsonian Institution - United States National Museum - Bulletin 249: Contributions from the Museum of History and Technology; Papers 52-54 on Archeology — David Hume — John Shaqi
Smithsonian Institution - United States National Museum - Bulletin 249: Contributions from the Museum of History and Technology; Papers 52-54 on Archeology
David Hume · en
Thus we know that Frederick Jones had owned a 300-acre tract known
as Tutties Neck. Consequently, the discovery of bottle seals bearing
the initials "F I" in the vicinity of a "messuage" at the mouth of
Tutter's Neck Creek was not without significance. Further corroboration
was provided by a letter of 1721 from Frederick Jones to his
brother Thomas, in Williamsburg, regarding the incorrect marking of
merchandise on the former's account "marked by mistake F I."[60] It
was common practice for plantation owners to use the same shipping
marks that they used for their wine-bottle seals, and therefore it may
be assumed that Jones also owned bottles bearing the initials "F I."
Having established with reasonable certainty that the site in question
was the "Tutties Neck" that had been purchased by Judith Bray from
Frederick Jones, the next step was to attempt to piece together
the history of the site both before and after that transaction.
Unfortunately, during the Civil War the James City County records were
removed for safekeeping to Richmond where they were destroyed. This
loss makes any research into the early documentary history of the
county extremely difficult, and in many cases well nigh impossible.
Source material must be drawn from family papers and from passing
references in the records of other counties. Although the history of
Tutter's Neck has many significant facts missing, it is surprising that
the record is as full as it is.
The first reference occurs in 1632 (or 1642) when mention is made of
"great neck at the barren neck, next adjoining to Tutties neck, a
branch of Archers hope creek."[61] Similar references to "Tutteys" neck
and "lutteyes" neck occurred in 1637[62] and in 1646.[63] Later, in
1679, a deed of sale from Edward Gray to William South of Gloucester
County refers to a parcel of land at "Tuttis Neck."[64] The same
spelling was used in 1682 in the will of Otho Thorpe, of the Parish
of All Hallows at the Wall in London, who left to his cousin John
Grice and Grice's two elder children his plantation in Virginia called
"Tuttis Neck."[65] John Grice is recorded as having been a justice in
James City County in 1685 and 1694.[66]