The Little Sloop Molly, American Revolution and Gunpowder

 15 Jan 26:

Captain John Pasteur and the little sloop MOLLY are on our minds...Pasteur was a Patriot Privateer and later a "Virginia Boats" Captain...

From the minutes of the Virginia Navy Board in Williamsburg... January 3rd, 1777:
"Capt John Pasteur appeared and agreed for the Sum of four hundred and twenty five pounds, to deliver unto the Naval Board of Commissioners a Schooner Boat called the MOLLY, together with the Rigging Tackle and Apparel belonging to her - The money to be paid him upon his giving a Bill of Sale for the said Vessel."
"Ordered that Capt John Pasteur take the Command of the Schooner Boat Molly this day Purchased of him by the Board."

John Pasteur was close friends with John Sinclair, both mariners and residents of Church Street, and both who eventually took commissions in the Virginia Navy. And both married to Wilson women, Honour and Ann. Also in the mix is Sinclair's sister Margaret, who married Edward Lattimer, who later became Pasteur's First Lieutenant. There is more to learn about all of them, and their ties to other Isle of Wight County Mariners.

But enough about people, let's talk about boats! The little sloop MOLLY was built in Baltimore in 1770 and her original registered owner was Josiah Parker. MOLLY had a crew of four men and her first Master was Charles Fulgham of Smithfield, and before March of 1774 MOLLY was sold to a syndicate headed by John Pasteur. In early 1776 she cast off with John Pasteur as Master and was sent "to southward," returning with 7500 pounds of powder....and we're not talking flour, although flour was a prized cargo as well.

Gunpowder was essential to the Patriot's cause, and it is mind boggling to picture MOLLY and her crew braving the hazards of the coastal Atlantic, the vagaries of the West Indies and evading British warships during her round trip voyage from the Tidewater. MOLLY's service continues until 1794, there is much more to her record, and Pasteur's, that we will get into this Spring. So stand fast!
(Reference and Image Credit: Lanciano, Claude O.. "Captain John Sinclair of Virginia." 1975.

January 13, 1775 - Proceedings from the First Committee Meeting

Isle of Wight Committee Proceedings

"At a Committee held for Isle of Wight County on Friday, the thirteenth

day of January, in the fifteenth year of the reign of our Sovereign Lord

George, the third King of Great Britain, France and Ireland, Defender of the

Faith etc. and in the year of our Lord Christ one thousand seven hundred

antl seventy five.

Present: John Scarsbrook Wills, Josiah Parker, Brewer Godwin, Arthur

Smith, the Reverend Henry John Burgess, John Mallory, Tristram Nors-

worthy, Jun., William Davis, Goodrich Wilson, and Nathaniel Burwell Gent.

Resolved: That John Scarsbrook Wills Gent., be appointed Chairman to

the Committee, and William Francis Young be appointed Clerk to the said

Committee.

Resolved: That notice be given to the several members of this committee

and that they do meet in the town of Smithfield, on Tuesday, the seventeenth

day of this Instant-January for the purpose of holding a Committee for 

the said County.

The minutes of these proceedings were signed.

John Scarsbrook Wills, Chairman."

We can still visit the 1750 Courthouse on Main Street, Smithfield!

Isle of Wight County VA Board of Supervisors' Meeting Room

02 Dec 24:

A few of the objects in the Isle of Wight County VA Board of Supervisors' Meeting Room, specifically a nice mural by Hannah Wise (Holland).

A Peace/Wampum belt presented by the Cheroenhaka Nottoway Indian Nation.

The mural by Hannah represents scenes from Isle of Wight County, VA.

Smithfield - A Pictorial History

17 Sep 24:

Smithfield - A Pictorial History by Segar Cofer Dashiel is an excellent resource. Well told personal stories.

We are trying to track down more info on the sailors and the boat, shown here on the Pagan River.

Coastal Algonquin Culture by Dr. Helen Rountree

 Rountree, Helen:

* ”The Powhatan Indians of Virginia: Their Traditional Culture” 1989. University of Oklahoma Press.

* ”Pocahontas’s People: The Powhatan Indians of Virginia Through Four Centuries.” University of Oklahoma Press.

* ”Powhatan Foreign Relations, 1500-1722” 1989. University Press of Virginia.

* ”Young Pocahontas and the Indian World.” J&R; Graphics of Yorktown.

* Plus many more

Books available through Jamestown Settlement, Amazon or find them at a local library through WorldCat.

Pagan River Art Pig

24 Jun 23:

Another one of our local celebrities.

Suffolk Waterfront - Major Signs

 01 May 23:

We passed by a sign business in downton Suffolk that has an interesting mural painted on a sidewall, depicting the waterfront scene in Suffolk from days past. We spoke to Charlie, the owner of Major Signs and he let us know that a former employee named Glen did the painting 12-15 years ago, but was unsure what resources Glen drew from. Steam power continued into the early 1900s, and hybrid sail-steam craft came 15 miles up the Nansemond River into the mid 1900s. The seaport burned several times and eventually dwindled in size as Newport News and Norfolk shipping grew.

Major Signs, Virginia’s oldest sign company, evolved from Major Bentons small studio that produced display cards for the Chadwick Theater productions in the 1930’s. In 1943 the business moved to its current location at 801 N. Main St. in Suffolk, Va.

Tucked away behind the sign company is the Nansemond River. This would be a fun spot for a boat business to be located next to, we think we saw a dock back there. 

Shipyard on the Nansemond. Suffolk was the next major trading town down south of Smithfield, and as colonial expansion continued the town overtook Smithfield in size. The rivers in both towns flow to the James River (formerly Powhatan River).

Pine hoops, barrel staves, poles and shiploads of lumber were major exports from Virginia ports.

Ballast stone from who knows where?

Skipper scared a bear...

...then we found her a stage for her premier Suffolk performance. 

The Visitor's Center resides in the old Courthouse on Main Street, a few hundred yards from the riverfront and Constant's Wharf. Skipper had 2 branches of her family trading on the river from the late 1600s - early 1700s, with the Driver's operating businesses along the waterfront and the Jordan's running a ferry to nearby farms.