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John Edwardes  b. ca 1450 England
    Robert Edwardes b. ca 1475 England
        William Edwardes  b. ca 1500 England  m. Agnes
            Richard Edwardes b. 1525  England m. Margaret Babb
                Richard Edwards b. 1581  m. Ann
                    William Edwards b. 1618  London m.
                         Thomas Edwards b. 1639 Wales  m. Elizabeth Hall
                              Robert Edwards  m. Margaret Cuelin
                                  Sir Thomas Nathanial Edwards b. 1690 m. Elizabeth Downing
                                       Thomas Edwards b. Coventry Eng m. Margaret Nichols
                                            Judge Thomas Edwards b. 1762 m. Mary McClanahan
                                                Peter Edwards b. 1788 m. Mary Polly Salmon
                                                    Mary Ann Edwards b. 1822 m. Mathew S. Mullens
                                                        Susan B. Mullens b.1857 m. Francis Marion Thomas
                                                             Susan Cornelia Thomas b.1897 m. Lee H. Sandel
                                                                 Charles Edward Sandel and Ella Frances Hutt
                                                                      Charlotte Elainae Sandel and Robert W Beck
18th Generation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ... . . Sandra S, Michael R, Wendy L,Randall J Beck
19th Generation....................................................Cory Thomas Porter, Jessica Nicole Porter

Before coming to Colonial American, the Edwards name was spelled EDWARDES.
Widely believed, the earliest Edward in our family line is JOHN EDWARDES, born circa
1450 in England.  His wife is unknown and his only child was ROBERT, born circa 1475.

*ROBERT EDWARDES, son of John, was born in England circa 1475.  His wife is
unknown.  Robert had two sons, *WILLIAM and John.

*WILLIAM EDWARDES, son of Robert, was born circa 1500 and died in 1547.  His wife
was Agnes who died in 1575.  They had four known children, William, who died 29 June
1563, Henry, Christopher and *RICHARD.  It was whispered among some Tudor
researchers that Agnes was mistress to King Henry VIII of England and that the son
RICHARD was fathered by King Henry and not by William.

*RICHARD EDWARDES, son of William, was born March 1525.  Richard married
*MARGARET BABB in 1560 and they had a son, William, born 09 Nov 1561.
RICHARD remarried to Helen Griffith in 1663 and from their union came *RICHARD,
born 1581; John born 15 March 1565, died 06 Dec 1604, his wife was Ellenor Pursloe;
Elizabeth, born 1584; Thomas, born 1599; Abigail; Judith; Gwyn; Marie.

*RICHARD EDWARDS, son of Richard, was born in England on 01 April 1581 and died
31 August 1625.  He married Ann whose last name is unknown about 1614 and she died 20
Feb 1679 or 1680 in Hartford, Connecticut.  Richard and Ann had four children:  Ann, born
and died the same day, 30 July 1615;  *WILLIAM, born 01 Nov 1618 in London, England,
died circa 1680 in Hartford, Connecticut;  John;  Sarah.

*WILLIAM EDWARDS, son of Richard was born 01 Nov 1618 in London.  The Edwards
at that time were residents of Edwards Hall, near Cardiff, Glamorganshire, Wales.
WILLIAM had at least four sons, William (who settled in Jamestown, Virginia), John,
*THOMAS and Robert.  Some accounts say the brothers came to the colonies together and
settled on land granted to them by the King of England.  There was a William Edwards, son
of Reverend Richard Edwards of Wales, who came to Boston, Mass. with his stepfather,
William Coles in 1630 and settled in Hartford Connecticut about 1636.  This information,
and the fact that WILLIAM, son of RICHARD, died in Hartford, Connecticut, make it
extremely likely that it was our ancestor WILLIAM who was the original immigrant from
Wales.

*THOMAS EDWARDS, 1639-1711, was born at Edwards Hall, Glamorganshire, Wales.
He married Elizabeth Hall 1640-1699, daughter of Thomas Hall or Hael.  Thomas Hall
was granted 77 2/3 acres of land on Manhattan Island in New York by the dutch in 1642.
The property will be detailed in this chapter as THE EDWARDS FORTUNE.  Thomas and
Elizabeth had a son, *ROBERT.

*ROBERT EDWARDS, son of THOMAS, was born in 1666.  He married *MARGARET
CUELIN in 1685.  Robert and Margaret had a son, *THOMAS NATHANIEL.

*SIR THOMAS NATHANIEL EDWARDS, 1690-1781, son of ROBERT, married Isabella
or ELIZABETH DOWNING on her twentieth birthday, 12 March 1714.  She died in 1783
at Edwards Hall.  Lady Elizabeth's father was *SIR GEORGE THOMAS DOWNING
M.P., who was keeper of the Palace at Whitehall and the first resident of Number 10
Downing Street in London, the present-day home of the British Prime Ministers.  At the
beginning of the Revolutionary War, SIR THOMAS, although very old, was active in
supporting the English government and became personally responsible for goods bought in
New York for the British Army.  At about that time he died, and Robert Edwards II
administered the estate.  SIR THOMAS and LADY ELIZABETH had eight children:
Robert II, Joshua, William, *THOMAS, Leonard, Jonathan, and Martha.  (Note:  each of
these children had many generations of descendants but they shall not be identified in this
family history except for the descendants of our own ancestor)

Robert Edwards II, son of SIR THOMAS, was born 14 Feb 1716.  As the eldest son, he
inherited the land granted to Thomas Hall/Hael.  Robert was a Captain in the British Navy.
He leased the Hall property out for 99 years.  In 1778, Robert was returning to Wales to
claim Edwards Hall after the death of his father, and during the voyage, the ship he was on
sank and all aboard were killed.  Robert died a bachelor and therefore his property was
divided by his heirs - his six brothers and one sister.  Their descendants would have
shared the division of his Manhattan Island property when the lease expired.

Joshua Edwards, 1718-1823, son of SIR THOMAS, lived to be 105 years old.  His wife
was Rebecca Ward and they had 11 children born between 1755 and 1783.

William Edwards, 1720-1801, son of SIR THOMAS, married first, Polly Chermer, and
second, an unknown woman.  William had 17 children between the two wives.  He died in
Long Island, New York.

Leonard Edwards, son of SIR THOMAS, was born in 1725.  He married Alice Nightingale
in 1744 and they had seven children.

Jonathan Edwards, 1727-1816, had eleven children with his first wife, Susan Ann Collins
and eight children with his second wife, Mary Walker.  Another published history says that
Jonathan also married a woman named Elizabeth and they had a son named Samuel.
Elizabeth died, and Jonathan and Samuel returned to Wales.  When Jonathan died, his son
Samuel returned to Northampton, North Carolina to claim his inheritance of his father's
land.

Jacob Edwards, 1729-1799, son of SIR THOMAS, had twelve children with his wife,
Effie Spears.  Jacob was one of the three brothers who came to colonial America circa
1750 and settled in Tidewaters, Virginia but later returned to Wales where he died.

Martha Edwards, 1731-1799, had seven children with her first husband, Thomas Nathan
Wilson whom she married in 1752.  Her second husband was a man named White.

        In 1785, twelve families including Joseph Edwards and two Bridwell families left
       Culpepper County, Virginia and followed the trail of Cornwallis' army to Charlotte,
       North Carolina.  When they arrived there in September, they heard the Indians had
       left South Carolina and came on to Chick's Springs.

*PETER EDWARDS, 1788-1877, son of JUDGE THOMAS EDWARDS and MARY
ANN McCLANAHAN, was born in Greenville District, South Carolina.  In 1809 PETER
married *MARY POLLY SALMON, daughter of *GEORGE SALMON and *ELIZABETH
YOUNG.  Peter's children were born in Greenville, South Carolina and then Peter moved
his family to Cass County, Texas where he received a land grant.  Peter's children were:
       Sarah                 b. 1812    m. Isaac Kirksey      d. 1879 Sewanee, Texas
       *MARY ANN   b. 1822    m. *MATTHEW MULLEN    d. 1892 Shiro, Texas
       Harriet S.
       Frances W.                         m. Oran Milo Roberts, 17th Texas Governor
       Eliza A.

*MARY ANN McCLANAHAN EDWARDS was born 29 Aug 1822 in Greenville, South
Carolina.  Her family appears briefly in Alabama and then her father, PETER, received
several  grants of land in Cass County, Texas, near the Arkansas border.  Mary married her
neighbor, *MATTHEW SIMPSON MULLEN.  They had five daughters, all born in Texas.
Mathew had children from a previous marriage. After Matthew died on 18 March 1866,
Mary moved to Walker County, Texas with three of her daughters, joining the two that
were already married and living there.  Her daughters were:
       Cornelia       b. 1847     m. William Coleman         d.  Mustang Prarie, Texas
       Mary Ann     b. 1852    m. James Avery Wheeler
       Rebecca       b. 1853    m. James R. McAdams     d. 1948 Bedias, Grimes Co., Texas
     *SUSAN BARBARA  b. 29 Feb 1857  m. *FRANCIS MARION THOMAS  d. 1928
       Alice            b. 1861    m. Jim Randolph               d. 1889

Additional information about this family appears in the MULLEN and McCLANAHAN
chapters.

*THOMAS EDWARDS was born 1762 in Virginia, the son of *THOMAS EDWARDS
and *ELIZABETH NICHOLLS. As an adolescent, he served in the American Revolution
and was present at the Battle of Yorktown (October 1781). He was living in South
Carolina by the mid 1790's.  Writing his will 8 July 1825, he mentioned four tracts of land
in Greenville District and fifteen slaves. According to an inventory of his estate, he
posessed twelve slaves at death.  Public service for Edwards began with his appointment
as a county court judge for Greenville (1796).  Elected to the House, he represented
Greenville in the Thirteenth (1798-1799), Fourteenth (1800-1801), Fifteenth (1802-1804),
Seventeenth (1806-1808), Eighteenth (1808-1809), and Twentieth (1812-1813) General
Assemblies.  While in the House, he was a member of the following committees:
privileges and elections (1798-1799, 1802-1804), religion (1800-1804, 1808-1809,
1812-1813), judiciary (1802-1804, 1808-1809), pensions (1802-1804), ways and means
(1806-1809), reform (1806-1809), claims (1806-1808), public buildings (1806-1808),
grievances (1806-1808), and schools (1812).  On December 12, 1799, he was elected
ordinary for Greenville, and he evidently held this post (despite his legislative service)
through 1808.  His House service was not without controversy. In 1802 he was cited by the
state Senate for breach of privilege; in response to a disparaging poem about himself,
Edwards had posted a derogatory paper about Elias Earle in the Senate chamber.  A few
year later, his election to the Seventeenth General Assembly was challenged, but the
committee on privileges and elections decided on 29 Nov 1806 that his election was valid.
Other offices he held included captain and/or major in the state militia.

Thomas Edwards' home served as the first Post Office in a town now called Traveler's
Rest, South Carolina, located just north of Greenville.  His first home still stands and is
occupied.  His second home is also still in use.

Thomas Edwards married *MARY ANN McCLANAHAN, daughter of *PETER
McCLANAHAN. The marriage took place in Virginia. They were the parents of at least
eight children who were:

*PETER EDWARDS, was born 04 Oct 1788 and died 02 Mar 1877 in Cass County Texas.
He was married to  *MARY 'POLLY' SALMON on 27 Aug 1809.  Polly was the daughter
of *GEORGE SALMON and *ELIZABETH YOUNG of Greenville, South Carolina.  Peter
received a land grant in Cass County and near his property were the propertiies of
*MATTHEW MULLENS, his son-in-law who married Peter's daughter MARY ANN and
many McAdams properties, McAdams having married Peter's daughter Rebecca.   Polly
died on 30 Nov 1851 in Courtland, Cass County, Texas.  At least two of their children
were born in Greenville County, South Carolina.  Peter and Polly's children were:

     Sarah          b. 1812  m. Isaac Kirksey
   *MARY ANN  b. 1822  d. 1892 Shiro, Walker Co, TX  m. *MATTHEW S.  MULLEN
     Harriet S.
     Eliza A.
     Francis       m. Oran Milo Roberts, 17th Texas Governor

     More on this family is entered in the MULLEN chapter.

". . . Basically, the story is this: Robert Edwards acquired two large tracts of land on
Manhattan Island, one of 66 acres, another of 77 acres (from Queen Ann of England). He
leased them in June 1778 to John and George Cruger (for 99 years). Immediately thereafter
he embarked for England and the ship and passengers were lost in a terrible storm at sea.
The lease expired in 1877 and title to the land and buildings on it, then extremely valuable,
reverted to his heirs that he named in the lease (his brothers and sister).  It was only
necessary to identify the heirs, take possession of the properties and divide the wealth
among those living."

Another story says that in about 1762, Thomas Hael, who later changed his name to Hall,
jumped from a British warship in the harbor at New York, swam ashore and warned the
Dutch that the Redcoats were coming.  As a reward for his service the Director General for
the United Netherlands, who then owned New York, gave him a grant of land.  Hall's
daughter Elizabeth had married Thomas Edwards. Hall's title was subsequently confirmed
when it became British territory and title passed to Thomas Edwards, who died in 1703
and then to his eldest son Robert Edwards who moved to Wales in 1704 with his family
and died in 1738.  His son Thomas Edwards III took title and died in 1781, passing it on to
his son Robert.

An article in the Raleigh News & Observer on Feb. 21, 1924 said that the area included
City Hall, Federal Building, Metropolitan Life Insurance Building, the Singer building, the
New York Stock Exchange, Trinity Church and Wall Street, and adds "which is without a
doubt one of the most valuable estates in the United States of America without an owner
and which the heirs are now fighting to regain."  The 1924 article stated "now said to be
valued at $400,000,000."  It's present value would be in the billions of dollars.

Since then, there have been variations in the story and many different claims were filed to
recover the property, the most popular being that Trinity Church has hidden the deed in it's
vault and took possession illegally.  All over the country Edwards claimants appeared.
Trinity once said there were 5,000.  Associations were formed to lend organization and
raise money and the groups consolidated in 1930 from Canada, Wales, Mississippi,
Oregon, Alabama, Texas, Tennessee, Ohio, Oklahoma, Indiana, Louisiana, South Carolina
and a few other places.  Some legitimately filed and argued cases in court but there was a
great misuse of the funds collected and people were taken advantage of by unscrupulous
con artists. In the 1930's. federal court ruled that the statute of limitations had expired on
the case and no further claims would be heard.  As recently as 1967 scams to collect
money from Edwards "heirs" were still being conducted.

This and similar "estate" schemes flourish from time to time, fade away and resurrect
again, perhaps under a new family name. The only benefit to the Edwards is that much of
the family genealogy was preserved and research documented by family members trying to
prove a connection to the fortune.

The Edwards Family Of Northampton

FALSE HEIRS by Delbert Hahn, Ancestry Magazine

EARLY SETTLERS OF ALABAMA by Col. James Edmond Saunders, New Orleans, L.
Gresham & Sons, Ltd.

WOOD WORKS, Vol. I, 1971, compiled by Mrs. J. M. Wood, Jr., Lubbock, Texas

COLONIAL AND REVOLUTIONARY HISTORY OF UPPER SOUTH CAROLINA,
published 1897 by Dr. J. B. O. Landrum

ALMANACS, 1801, 1802, 1804, 1805, 1807, 1808

ANDREAS FILES, film roll 15, #263, page 3.

1790 VIRGINIA HEADS OF HOUSEHOLD CENSUS pages 64, 84.

1800 SOUTH CAROLINA CENSUS, Greenville District.
page 243 - Thomas Edwards, Greenville Dist,    42210-00010-08
page 287 - Listed 6 names below Thomas Edwards is Henry Sandel.  20110-20010-01

1830 SOUTH CAROLINA CENSUS, Greenville District, page 294.

1850 TEXAS CENSUS, Cass County, page 781

SC LAND GRANTS    Vol 8, 1786;      Vol 10, 1786.

SC GENERAL ASSEMBLY PETITIONS,  #1255; 1795  #12; 1806 #31.

SC GENERAL ASSEMBLY REPORTS,  #197, #441; 1798 #14; 1802 #54, 181; 1806
#45.

SC GENERAL ASSEMBLY RESOLUTIONS, 1817 #54

GREENVILLE COUNTY PROBATE RECORDS, APT. 3, FILE 150

GREENVILLE COUNTY (WPA) WILLS I (1787-1855), Book B, pages 147-149

SOUTH CAROLINA, HOUSE COMMITTEE BOOK, 1812

SOUTH CAROLINA, HOUSE JOURNALS, 1798 PAGES 10-11; 1800 PAGE 5; 1806
PAGES 5, 6, 14; 1808 PAGES 9, 17, 18.

SOUTH CAROLINA MISCELLANEOUS RECORDS, HHH:2; schm, 50:102.

GREENVILLE MOUNTAINEER 8-11-1832:   Captain Thomas Edwards departed this life
on the 7th ins., at his residence, very suddenly, Capt. Thomas Edwards, aged about 70
years.  The deceased entered the army at the age of 16 and served as a soldier of the
Revolution during the whole war.  He engaged in several battles in N. Carolina, Virginia
and this state.  He was also a member of out State Legislature for 14 years.

D.A.R. PATRIOT INDEX:  Edwards, Thomas: b. 1741 d. 8-x-1832 m. Mary Ann
McClanahan  Pvt SC      (Note:  The date of birth should be 1761 or 1762.  He was a youth
during the Revolutionary War, died 1832 At age 70)

DAUGHTERS OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION, N.S.D.A.R., 1776 D Street,
Washington, D.C. 20006.  Members joined under Thomas Edwards line:  388960;  98683;
78718;  167625;  78720;  78719;  614507;  191067;  76150;  73128;

ABSTRACTS OF SOME GREENVILLE CO. SC RECORDS CONCERNING BLACK
PEOPLE FREE AND SLAVE, 1791-1865 by Anne K. McCuen.
John McClanahan's will lists Thomas Edwards as Trustee, witnessed by John Young,
Richard McClanahan, William Edwards, Mary Ann Edwards, dated 03 Mar 1804.
Thomas Edwards executed a deed of trust for two slaves to Franky Wickliffe (Thomas'
sister)

HISTORY OF UPPER GREENVILLE COUNTY by Mann Batson.  Articles published in
newspapers of early SC, includes a photograph of Judge Thomas' first home that served as
a post office, and his second home where he lived at the time of his death in 1832.  Mann
Batson is the mayor (1995) of Traveler's Rest, SC where Thomas Edwards lived.

VIRGINIA COUNTY RECORDS, NEW SERIES, Vol I, Westmoreland County, by
William Armstrong Crozier, Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, 1971.

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