THOMAS RICE....The Emigrant, Our first known ancestor in America

Lord Rhys of Wales

Thomas Rice was an Englishman by birth, of Welsh extraction. He came to America aboard the Bristol Merchant in 1679/80 assigned as an apprentice to John Stephens.

From The Rice Family 1680 to 1793 compiled by William Gunn Calhoun, 1973, p. 3.
"Stephen Rice, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, had sons Thomas, Hezekial and Ibjan who migrated to Hanover County, Virginia when it was a colony."

From The Thomas Rice Family Home Page: Family Tree Maker. com. Internet site.
In the later part of his life, he owned a small plantation in the lower part of what is now called Hanover County, Virginia. He received this land from King George II by deed, dated April 29, 1693, for 1, 200 acres of land in Hanover County, on both sides of Cub Creek and Dirty Swamp, bounded by the lands of Col. Davis Meriwether, James Goodall and Richard Brooks.
Tragedy overtook Thomas Rice when he let his wife, with nine sons and three daughters, and went to England to receive a considerable estate which had been left to him. He did not return. The sailors reported that he died at sea. It is supposed that he was assassinated. Nothing was ever heard regarding the inherited English estate.

"His family was left destitute in a strange land....." "The family being left without an earthly father, were distressed, but they were, in the good providence of 'God, provided for." Memoirs of the Reverend David Rice, published by Thomas T. Skillman, Lexington, Kentucky. 1824, pg. 420. (B.R. 55K 46, rare Book Division, Congressional Library, Washington, D,C.

From the World Connect Project at Roots Web. Barnes - Rice Family by. Sharon Barnes.
"Thomas Rice, the emigrant 1680 had nine sons and three daughters. His son David married Susannah Searcy and had David, "The Apostle to Kentucky" who married Mary Blair 1762." Based upon this we know that the line of descent is direct. "A Thomas Rice was in Kingston Parish, Gloucester County, VA April 29, 1693. One record states he came to America the latter part of the 17th century. His people were from Wales and bore the Coat-of-arms with the motto: FIDES NON TIMET. In old Welsh the name is spelled "RHYS." a copy of the old Coat-of-arms once belonged to the widow of John Holt Rice D.D., son of Benjamin Rice and Catherine Holt. "The Vestry Book of St. Paul's Parish, Hanover County, VA 1706-1786 on page 213 gives the returns made March 14th 1708-09 from the surveyor of the 39 precincts. "The lands of David Crawford, Thomas Rice, John Sims and Thomas Crenshaw lying adjacent to each other being made one precinct of which the said Thomas Rice and John Sims were appointed overseers." p.4

Again, the William and Mary Quarterly (Vol. 21) gives the record of Hanover County 1734-35 as follows: "12/3/1734-- Thomas Rice (St. Martin's) to David Crenshaw 400 acres both sides north branch of Cubb's Creek in St. Martin's. wife Joyce to Thos. Jackson." (page60)

"The Dictionary of American Biography (Vol. XV, page 537) tells us that Thomas Rice, an Englishman of Welsh extraction emigrated to Virginia at an early date. Upon a return trip to England, possibly to settle an inheritance, he was either lost at sea or murdered. In any event he was never heard from again."

From Genesis in Virginia: Exodus to Illinois compiled by Christine Rogers rice, 1995. pp. 2-3
"Thomas Rice first appeared in county records of New Kent in colonial Virginia in 1686, and by the start of the 18th Century he can be found in land records of both Hanover and Gloucester Counties of that state. He is thought to have come from Shirementon Bristol in the British Isles and to be of the Welsh family known as Thys, descendants of chieftain kings of the 7th and 8th centuries.
"Tradition says that Thomas Rice and a brother, Hezekiah, fled to Virginia about 1685 as a result of the rebellion against King James. One story that concerns Thomas is that earlier in England an old man named Rice died with only a daughter to survive him. He left his estate to her providing that she promised never to change her name. Later upon marriage, her spouse took the name Rice. It was this mother's property that Thomas Rice, then of Virginia, returned to claim upon his mother's death.
"Thomas was never heard from again and several very early documents attest to Thomas' disappearance if not the rest of the story. His brother Hezekiah was said to have been murdered when returning from Jamestown, Virginia, where he had gone to sell his tobacco crop. Each man left several children and was an ancestor of many residents of the South. "

"The Sarver Collection of genealogical material in the State Archives of Tennessee contains a document which states that Thomas Rice was a physician, but his famous grandson, David Rice, does not mention that Thomas was of that profession. Thomas' wife was named March, some say her maiden name was Hewes. Her given name is sometimes written Marie or Mary, varied interpretations of ancient manuscripts. The family has carried down Marcy through family nomenclature which seems to indicate that it is correct. Baptismal records dating from 1685 to 1702 can be found fro some of Thomas Rice's children. These parish records are from St. Peter's of New Kent." p.4

The Virginia rent rolls of 1704 list a Thomas Rice in Parish of St. Peters and St. Paul.

"The parish records of Hanover County mention Thomas Rice as late as 1711/12 as a processioner. In 1716 the bounds of his land were placed in the hands of an overseer, indicating some problem, likely his death."
"David Rice in his memoirs stated that the family of Thomas Rice was left in poor circumstances and part of the family, including his father, the elder David, moved 40 miles upcountry in Hanover to a smaller plantation on a branch of Cub Creek. David, Thomas, and Edward Rice all were known to live in this general vicinity. Old Thomas' widow Marcy last called "widow Rice" and in 1722 when a child was indentured to her. Recounting the struggles of the Rice family, preacher Rice characterized David Rice, his father, as a poor farmer, with no slaves, who thought they were more trouble than worth. His mother, Susannah Searcy, was depicted as a most religious woman who opposed slavery on principle. The memoirs state that 4 or 5 of old Thomas' children became preachers.
[Thomas Rice.ged]

ID: I3048
Name: Thomas Rice
Sex: M
Birth: in New Kent/Hanover County, VA
Death: ABT. 1716, died at sea while returning to UK for inheritance
Note:
Thomas came to America aboard the Bristol Merchant in 1679/80 assigned as
an apprentice to John Stephens. Thomas died at sea when he returned to UK
for his inheritance.
Rice Families of Caswell County, North Carolina -
http://www.ficom.net/members/wolfslayer/rice.html
Thomas and Marcey Rice were Welsh immigrants.
-----------------------
From The Rice Family 1680 to 1793 compiled by William Gunn Calhoun 1973
p. 3
Thomas Rice
"Stephen Rice, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, had sons Thomas, Hezekial and Ibjan who migrated to Hanover County, Virginia when it was a colony." We are inclined to believe that the above Thomas is our first known ancestor. Another source tells us, "Thomas Rice, the emigrant 1680 had nine sons and three daughters. His son David Married Susannah Searcy and had David, 'The Apostle to Kentucky' who married Mary Blair in 1762."
Based upon this we know that the line of descent is direct.
"A Thomas Rice was in Kingston Parish, Gloucester County, VA April 29, 1693. One record states he came to America the latter part of the 17thcentury. His people were from Wales and bore the Coat-of-arms with the motto: FIDES NON TIMET. In old Welsh the name is spelled "RHYS." A copy of the old Coat-of-arms once belonged to the widow of John Holt Rice D.D., son of Benjamin Rice and Catherine Holt.
"The Vestry Book of St. Paul's Parish, Hanover County, VA 1706-1786 on page 213 gives the returns made March 14th, 1708-09 from the surveyor of the 39 precincts. "The lands of David Crawford, Thomas Rice, John Sims and Thomas Crenshaw lying adjacent to each other being made one precinct of which the said Thomas Rice and John Sims were appointed overseers." p. 4
"Again, the William and Mary Quarterly (Vol. 21) gives the record of
Hanover County 1734-35 as follows: "I2-3 1734--Thomas Rice (St. Martin's) to David Crenshaw 400 acres both sides north branch of Cubb's Creek in St. Martin's, wife Joyce to Thos. Jackson." (page 60) "The Dictionary of American Biography (Vol. XV, page 537) tells us that Thomas Rice, an Englishman of Welsh extraction emigrated to Virginia at an early date. Upon a return trip to England, possibly to settle an inheritance, he was either lost at sea or murdered. In any event he was never heard from again."
------------------
From Genesis in Virginia: Exodus to Illinois compiled by Christine Rogers
Rice, 1995.
pp. 2-3
"Thomas Rice first appeared in county records of New Kent in Colonial Virginia in 1686, and by the start of the 18th Century he can be found in land records of both Hanover and Gloucester Counties of that state. He is thought to have come from Shirementon Bristol in the British Isles and to be of the Welsh family known as Rhys, descendants of chieftain kings of the 7th and 8th centuries.
"Tradition says that Thomas Rice and a brother, Hezekiah, fled to
Virginia about 1685 as a result of the rebellion against King James. One story that concerns Thomas is that earlier in England an old man named Rice died with only a daughter to survive him. He left his estate to her providing that she promised never to change her name. Later upon marriage, her spouse took the name Rice. It was this mother's property that Thomas Rice, then of Virginia, returned to claim upon his mother's
death. "Thomas was never heard from again and several very early documents attest to Thomas' disappearance if not the rest of the story. His brother Hezekiah was said to have been murdered when returning from Jamestown, Virginia, where he had gone to sell his tobacco crop. Each man left several children and was an ancestor of many residents of the South. "The Sarver Collection of genealogical material in the State Archives of Tennessee contains a document which states that Thomas Rice was a physician, but his famous grandson, David Rice, does not mention that Thomas was of that profession. Thomas' wife was named Marcy, some say her
maiden name was Hewes. Her given name is sometimes written Marie or Mary, varied interpretations of ancient manuscripts. The family has carried down Marcy through family nomenclature which seems to indicate that it is correct. Baptismal records dating from 1685 to 1702 can be found for some of Thomas Rice's children. These parish records are from St. Peter's of New Kent."p. 4
"The parish records of Hanover County mention Thomas Rice as late as
1711/12 as a processioner. In 1716 the bounds of his land were placed in the hands of an overseer, indicating some problem, likely his death. The vestry book of St. Paul's Parish, which was the parish created from a portion of the old St. Peter's, gave a return on 14 March 1708/9 for its 39 precincts, "The lands of David Crawford, Thomas Rice, John Sims (sic), and Thomas Crenshaw laying adjacent to each other being made one precinct of which the said Thomas Rice and John Sims were appointed overseers." Of
interest in this early record is the mention of neighboring lands of
Symes and Crenshaw, both of whom figure in later Rice marriages.
"David Rice in his memoirs stated that the family of Thomas Rice was left in poor circumstances and part of the family, including his father, the elder David, moved 40 miles upcountry in Hanover to a smaller plantation on a branch of Cub Creek. David, Thomas, and Edward Rice all were known to live in this general vicinity. Old Thomas' widow Marcy last called "widow Rice" and in 1722 when a child was indentured to her. Recounting the struggles of the Rice family, preacher Rice characterized David Rice, his father, as a poor farmer, with no slaves, who thought they were more trouble than worth. His mother, Susannah Searcy, was depicted as a most
religious woman who opposed slavery on principle. The memoirs state that 4 or 5 of old Thomas' children became preachers.
From Genesis in Virginia: Exodus to Illinois compiled by Christine Rogers
Rice, 1995.p. 5
"Another descendant of old Thomas Rice of Hanover was Nathan L. Rice, born in 1808, who also would become the national moderator of the Presbyterians. Born and reared in Mercer County, Kentucky, he went on to serve as pastor of churches in our largest cities including Chicago and New York City. In the last years of his life following the Civil War he became …p. 40
The property of the Rices actually lay in both counties although the
homeplace of Thomas Rice was actually in Caswell on Cabin Creek. Most of his records are entered in that jurisdiction. Thomas Rice arrived in 1775. [Note, I believe this is a descendant of the old Thomas.]
p. 41
Records of the Superior Court of equity for District of Mero, 11 August 1808, transcribed in part by WPA Historical Record Project, Davidson County TN, the case was pursued for over 30 years in Tennessee courts; Caswell Deed Book O, pg. 221, indicates heirs of John Rice names William H. Rice, Williamson Rice and John Windsor filed powers of attorney to sue in behalf of rights to land of John Rice as early as 26 May 1804. Wilson County, TN. Probate Settlements, Book 5, pg 27, property sale by Patterson Miles and Frances Underwood. note due estate from George
Underwood; book 6, p. 6, administrator's settlement, Thomas Miles, Jr., recorded 27 May 1830; pg 234, Thomas Miles, guardian for Joshua, Clary, Betsy, Polly, Patsy and Newton, reports in June 1831, expenses for bonnet and shoes for Betsy, Polly, and Patsy.
p. 45
. . . "A record in Gloucester, Virginia, home of the early Gwynns,
indicates that a Thomas Rice owned 30 plus acres in that county.
[Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, Vol. 32, pg 259.]
p. 46
. . . "The Hanover Rices claim a coat of arms said to be the same as that of the Rice and Thomas families which stem from Sir Rhys ap Thomas, a natural son of George Plantagenet. This line had a peerage granted by Bloody Mary in 1555. Earlier figures of interest in the lines are Sir Griffith Rice, Catherine Howard, who descended from William, the Conqueror, and Vryan Reged, lord, of South Wales. [Coat-of-arms data; for genealogy of Welsh Rice family, see A History of Wales by Sir John Edward Lloyd, condensed in Rice and McGhee Families History.]"
"The childhood home of Sarah Rice Gwynn would have been in Hanover as proved by her brother William H. Rice's pension papers. She, born in the early 1750's, was likely a great-granddaughter of Thomas, the immigrant. Her father, Thomas Rice's own birth would be in the 1720's, to make him
of the generation of the immigrant Thomas Rice's grandsons."
------------------------------
On 1704/05 Rent Roll of Virginia from Wertenbaker, Thomas J., The
Planters of Colonial Virginia, Russell & Russell New York, New York
Rice, Tho Parish of St Peters and St. Paul, 1704
Rice, Thomas Glocester, Kinston Parish
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The Welsh Rices of Dynevor Castle - from Shelby Rice Sutton of St.
Georges, Delaware.
This goes back to the 11th century to give the background of those
ancient Welsh princes whose given name was Rhys (Rice). There were times in the pre-Norman period when the Deheubarth kings were
unable to maintain their hold on all parts of the kingdom. Rhys ap
Tewdwr, the last independent Deheubarth king to rule the whole kingdom, was killed in a 1093 skirmish with Normah forces. His death marked the end of an era. By the early years of the 12th Century The three provinces of Deheubarth became part of a territory of lordships ruled by Normans who enjoyed a power derived by conquest from the Welsh kings they displaced.
Rhys ap Tewdr left a son, Gruffudd ap Rhys, brought up in exile in
Ireland, Gruffudd returned to try and regain his father's kingdom. He managed to secure a foothold in Ystrad Tywi from which he launched a powerful Welsh campaign after the 1135 death of Henry I. Gruffudd fell during early stages of the struggle and his three elder sons were in due course eliminated. A fourth son, Rhys ap Gruffudd, survived. By 1171 he had secured control not only of the greater part of Ystrad Tywi, but the whole of Credigion and parts of Dyfed. The same year Henry II, anxious to secure settlement of the Welsh problem, recognized the position Rhys had won for himself. Rhys, from his chief castle at Dinefwr, ruled a
Deheubarth which - though less extensive than the pre-Norman kingdom - was still a major political entity.
The earliest surviving redaction of Welsh law emanates from Deheubarth and is very probably to be attributed to the years of Rhys' supremacy. …
At this gathering - proclaimed the previous year throughout Wales,
England, Scotland and Ireland - Rhys set two contests, one for the poetry and another for "the harpers and the crowders and the pipers and various classes of music" and chairs were awarded to the winner of each contest. It was after the 1189 death of Henry II and Rhys's failure to secure rapport with Richard I that major conflict broke out. Rhys turned first to those lordships on the perimeter of his principality and then to the frontier central sections, but the ageing warrior's vigorous campaigns did not solve these issues. Before Rhys ap Gruffudd's 1197 death, Deheubarth itself was rent by the conflict which arose between his sons.It seems likely Rhys intended his eldest son, Gruffudd, should succeed him as ruler of the entire kingdom, which he had ruled from Dinefwr, but
within a few weeks of the Lord Rhys's death Gruffudd's position was
challenged by three of his brothers, Maelgwyn, Rhys Gryg and Maredudd.Maredudd and Rhys Gryg were the first to gain possession of Dinefwr, but on July 2, 1201, Maredudd was killed fighting against the Normans. Rhys Gryg managed to hold on to Dinefwr, but Gruffudd seized Cantref Bychan and its main castle at Llandovery. Then on July 21 Gruffudd died at Trate Florida, leaving two young sons, Rhys Ieunac and Owain. IN spite of their
youth, the two sons continued the struggle against their uncles to hold on to at least some of their father's territory. During the next few years Dinefwr changed hands often but Rhys Gryg gradually asserted a hold on Ystrad Tywi.
There were no surnames in the days of the Welsh "Rice" princes. The name "Rhys ap Tewdwr" means Rice, son of Tewdwr, with Rhys (or Rice) and Tewdwr both being first names. Thus Gruffudd ap Rhys is Gruffudd, son of Rhys, and his son, in turn, is Rhys ap Gruffudd. All their descendants could just as legitimately claim as a surname Tudor (Tedwdwr) or Griffith (Gruffudd), instead of Rice (Rhys). Later, when surnames became obligatory, some descendants adopted the Rice surname.