William LANGLEY

- 1676

• Name	William LANGLEY
  Gender	Male
  FSME	15 Feb 1644/45	Lower Norfolk Co, Virginia Colony   [1]
  	The first mention of William Langley in the Virginia Colony is in the Lower Norfolk County Court Records of 15 February 1644/5 when the Court ordered that he be paid for the keeping and maintenance of a ferry at "Daniell Tanner's Creeke" for the convenience of the inhabitants of the county. The Court made mention of this agreement at the 15 October 1645 session and again at the 15 December 1645 session.
  OFFH	26 Apr 1647	Elizabeth River Parish, Lower Norfolk Co, Virginia Colony   [2]
  	On 26 April 1647 William and Thomas Sparrowe were appointed as constables for Elizabeth River Parish in Lower Norfolk County. The oath of office was administered to them that same day.
  land patent	16 Apr 1653	Lower Norfolk Co, Virginia Colony   [3]
  	William patented 200 acres of land in Lower Norfolk County on 16 April 1653. The land was located "in the head of a Branch called the Indian Town branch [torn] of Daniel Taners Creeke". The land was due William for the transportation of four persons into the colony.
  appointment	17 Oct 1659	Elizabeth River Parish, Lower Norfolk Co, Virginia Colony
  	On 17 Oct 1659, the Lower Norfolk County Court appointed William and three other men to oversee "the building of a Church in Daniell Tanner's Creeke"."
  land patent	9 Oct 1675	Lower Norfolk Co, Virginia Colony   [4]
  	William patented 829 acres of land on Tanner's Creek in Lower Norfolk County on 9 October 1675. He received 629 acres as due him for the transportation of 13 persons into the colony and re-patented "two hundred acres of wch Land was formerly granted unto the sd Wm Langley by patent bearing date the 21st of 9ber 1625". The 21 November 1625 patent date referenced in the 1675 patent would seem to be incorrect when considered within the context of our current knowledge of William Langley's existence in the Virginia Colony. There are no extant Virginia land patents between 3 September 1624 and 2 February 1626/7, and, therefore, no way to verify the ownership of the cited 1625 patent. Neither the 1623/4 List of Those Living in Virginia, nor the 1624/5 Muster of the Inhabitants in Virginia enumerates anyone with the surname Langley. This absence strongly supports the supposition of an error concerning the 1625 date cited in the 1675 patent. One possible reason for the error is that the Lower Norfolk County Court clerk noted the date for the 200 acres previously patented by William incorrectly when he added the information to the 1675 patent. Another possibility is that William Langley purchased the 200 acres from the individual who originally received the patent on 21 November 1625, and that the clerk failed to make this distinction when citing it in the 1675 patent.
  Death	1676	Virginia Colony   [5]
  	William died intestate in 1676. His death date has been established from a deposition given by his widow, Joyce, in 1676.
  Person ID	I10011	mason
  Last Modified	22 Jul 2026

  
  

  Family	Joyce (UNKNOWN),   b. c.1621   d. Before 12 Apr 1680, Virginia Colony
  Children	1. Elizabeth LANGLEY,   b. Virginia Colony d. Before 1 Oct 1674, Virginia Colony   2. William LANGLEY,   b. Before 1650   d. c. 1718 (Age 68 years)   3. Lemuel LANGLEY,   b. Before 1 Aug 1651, Virginia Colony   4. Thomas LANGLEY,   b. Dec 1654   d. 5 Oct 1747 (Age 92 years)
  Family ID	F534	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart
  Last Modified	22 Jul 2026

  
  

• Sources

  [S74] Alice Granbery Walter, abstractor & compiler, Walter, Lower Norfolk County Virginia Court Records Book "A" 1637 - 1646 & Book "B" 1646 - 1651/2, ((Baltimore: GPC, 1994)). Book A, p. 162 [ff. 5a-6], p. 191 [f. 28a], p. 206 [f. 40]. [S74] Alice Granbery Walter, abstractor & compiler, Walter, Lower Norfolk County Virginia Court Records Book "A" 1637 - 1646 & Book "B" 1646 - 1651/2, ((Baltimore: GPC, 1994)). Book B, p. 36 [f. 36a]. [S1813] William Langly, Virginia land patent, 16 April 1653. [S1814] William Langley, Virginia land patent, 9 October 1675. [S2003] Rogers Dey Whichard, Ph.D. (author & editor), Whichard, The History Of Lower Tidewater Virginia, ((New York: Lewis Historical Publishing Co, 1959) ). Vol. I, p. 269.