Individual Details
Thomas "the Immigrant" "" The Immigrant"" Gaines Sr
(Abt 1584 - 1640)
Immigrant
Thomas Games (Gaines) -- knownas Thomas the immigrant came fromWales about 1641 to the Virginia Colony.
--------------------
ID: I1300
Name: Thomas Henry Gaines
Sex: M
Birth: 1580 in Wales
Note:
Thomas Gaines was born about 1580 probably in Wales. According to
http://www.angelfire.com/nt/oddentree/gaines.html that has the Descendants of Llywelyn Ap Hywel Fychan the parents of Thomas were William Edward Games and Elizabeth Anne last name unknown. The site takes the Games family back another 10 generations.
There is slightly contrary information from the Descendants of Thomas Gaines of Virginia found on the web at http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Plains/7221/gachart1.html This states Thomas patented land in Virginia before 1650 and his father was Sir John Games of Brecon Wales. According to the Welch site, Sir John was Thomas’s grandfather
Thomas married Blanche Kemis about 1608 in Wales. He immigrated to Virginia about 1641 with many if not all his children. Blanche is not mentioned. .
The children of Thomas and Blanche were:
1. Edward Gaines born 1610
2. Daniel Gaines born 1614 wed Margaret Bernard Rowzee, died 1684 in VA
3. Robert Gaines born 1616
4. Thomas Gaines born 1618
5. James Gaines born 1620, his son died in Virginia
6. Samuel Gaines born 1621
7. Francis Gaines born 1622
8. Margaret Gaines born 1624
9. Richard Gaines born 1826
10. Catherine Gaines, born after 1626
_RIN: 1 1
Change Date: 27 AUG 2002 at 11:29:27
Father: William Edward Gaines b: 1567 in Nunton,Brecon,Wales
Mother: Elizabeth Anne
Marriage 1 Blanche Kemis
Married: 1608 in wales 1
Children
Daniel Gaines b: 1614
Sources:
Title: GEDCOM File : gentracker.ged
Author: Joesph Lafayette Murray
Abbrev: fate murray
Abbrev: GEDCOM File : gentracker.ged
Date: 8 JAN 2002
From: http://lynnwright.com/ThomasGaines.htm
THOMAS GAINES
The Immigrant
ca 1585 -
Thomas Gaines was born ca 1585 in Brecon, Wales. His death date is unknown but he probably died in Virginia . He married Blanch Kemis the daughter of Harry Kemis from Virginia.
Thomas came to America in about 1641, landing in Chesapeake Bay , Virginia Colony where he patented land. This was in Jamestown Colony.
The following information is from Calvin E Sutherd's book, Supplement to A Compilation of Gaines Family Data with Special Emphasis on the Lineage of William & Isabella (Pendleton) Gaines , published Ft Lauderdale, Fl, Jun 1969. This book is no longer published, but a copy was found by me at the DAR Library in Washington, DC, and the following is a quote from that publication.
Thomas Gaines (Games), the immigrant, b: ca 1885-90, and came to the Virginia Colony ca 1641 where he patented land in Old Rappahannock County, Virginia.
Cavaliers & Pioneers by Nugent, Patent Book, No 2, p 177.
"Mr. George Hardy, 500 acs., July 17, 1648, Page 147, lyeing on the E. side of Lawnes Cr., extending to the main river, along land reputed Thomas Gaynes, along the great river to a cr. dividing some land of Alice Bennet...."
His children probably included;
i. Thomas Gaines II, d. 1688, prob VA; m (1) Margaret Johnson; m (2) Katherin Morris Pettit
ii. Daniel Gaines, d. ca 1682-4
iii. Robert Gaines
iv. Catherine Gaines
v. James Gaines, d. ca 1705, prob VA
vi. Francis Gaines
Ancestor of Marlon Brando:
Francis Gaines
(1632-1656)
View Person Page
Richard Gaines
(1685-1751)
View Person Page
William Gaines
(1737-1827)
View Person Page
Mary Gaines
(1763-1830)
View Person Page
Sarah Finley
(1799-1877)
View Person Page
William Pennebaker
(1826-1868)
View Person Page
William John Pennebaker
(1868-1899)
View Person Page
Dorothy Julia Pennebaker
(1897-1954)
View Person Page
Marlon Brando
(1924-2004)
Ancestor of Pretty Boy Floyd:
James Gaines
(1620-1705)
View Person Page
Richard Gaines
(1686-1755)
View Person Page
Henry Gaines
(1731-1796)
View Person Page
Richard Gaines
(1752-1837)
View Person Page
William Gaines
(1780-1867)
View Person Page
Richard Gaines
(1810-1891)
View Person Page
Emily Elizabeth Gaines
(1852-1916)
View Person Page
Mamie Helena Echols
(1881-1968)
View Person Page
Pretty Boy Floyd
(1904-1934)
American Outlaw
American bank robber and alleged murderer, Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd robbed so many banks in the 1930s that there was a $56,000 reward on his head.
--------------------
To date the information on Thomas Gaynes/Games(Gaines), known as "The Immigrant" is based mostly on tradition as there is only one item of documentary evidence concerning him in the Virginia Colony upon which to base his lineage:
"Mr. George Hardy (Harding) , 500 acres., July 17, 1648. page 147. Lyeing on the E.side of Lawnes Creek, extending to the main river, along land reputed Thomas Gaynes, along the main river to a creek dividing same land of Alice Bennet...."
This land patent of George Hardy (Harding) names Thomas Gaynes as a reputed land owner in Isle of Wright County in 1648 on the east side of Lawnes Creek which flows into
the James River. Lawnes creek was the eastern boundary line and Chippokes Creek was the western boundary line of Surrey
County, Virginia formed in 1652. To the east of Lawnes Creek where the land of Thomas Gaynes/Gaines was located was Isle of Wright Co, formed in 1634. In this neighborhood were other land owners besides Gaynes/Gaines, Hardy and Bennet. They were William Lawson, Robert
Lawrence, J.Cooper, William Butler, William Spence, William Barnard, and William Pilkington. To the East, across the James River, was William Games/Gaines, who in 1626 became the tenant of Capt. William Tucker in Elizabeth City.
No doubt other records of Thomas Gaynes/Games(Gaines) existed at one time but were destroyed either by the ravages of the Civil war or carelessness. There are statements on
record in books wherein Thomas first appeared in 1641 in Accomack County, Virginia-without verification. From several sources there have emanated many statements and conjectures as to the identity of the parentage and issue of
this Thomas Gaynes/Games(Gaines). Without any authentic proof the parentage of this Thomas Gaynes/Games(Gaines) has been said to be the grandson of Sir John Games of Newton, Wales or a brother to said Sir John Games. However, recent research has found the will of Sir John Games and his children are listed and a Thomas was not included. Additionally, being the brother of Sir John Games has been discounted due to the age difference his generation
would have been too old to survive the rigors of emigrating to the
colonies, since he would have had to have been born before 1564.
Recent research and strong evidence puts Thomas Gaines(b ca 1606) and
Daniel Gaines of Old Rappanhannock as sons of William Gaines, tenant of
Capt. William Tucker in Elizabeth City, Virginia.
This William Gaines is the son of John Games of Aberbran, Wales, a
contempory of Sir John
Games of Becon, Wales. William Gaines was tied to John Games of Aberbran,
Wales by the circumstantial evidence in the will of John Games of
Aberbran, Wales.
Strong evidence and tradition continues that the Thomas
Gaynes/Games(Gaines) THE IMMIGRANT,
is the father of Robert, James, Francis, and Catherine. Data exists for
Robert and James.
It may be possible for future genealogists to come across strong evidence
which will either prove or
disprove the lineage and tradtion of this Thomas Gaynes/Games(Gaines).
It is not known who this
Thomas married or when he died.
There is a strong possibility that this Thomas Games/Gaines is the son of
Thomas Games, younger
brother of Sir John Games of Brecon, Wales, therefore unless and until
further information is developed
definitely linking this so-called THOMAS GAMES/GAINES, THE IMMIGRANT, to
a specific lineage,
I will list him as a son of Thomas Games/Gaines, brother to Sir John
Games of Brecon, Wales.
Married 1608 in Wales: children Catherine, Francis, Thomas, James, Robert
THE DESCENDANTS OF THOMAS GAINES OF VIRGINIA by The Virginia Ancestor Series Hauk Data Series, Anderson, IN
Thomas Gaines: Thomas came to the Virginia colony prior to 1650 and patented land there. He is said to be a descendant of Sir David Gam of Wales.
2, 2033 says born 1584 in Brecon, Wales, married to Blanch Kemis (b. 1590 in Wales) in abt. 1608 However, this is unproven.
===================================
From Curt Gaines (rcgtkg@voicenet.com):
Most Gaines (except the the Connecticut branch) in this country descend from Thomas of Virginia who arrived from Wales right around the time of Cromwells
revolution against King Charles I. If you have southern Gaines
ancestry you can be sure that this is your line. They lived in King
and Queen County near Jamestown and then moved inland to Culpepper.
They all had 10 or 12 children and named them similar names, William,
James, Richard, etc. They married into Prominent Virgina Families
such as Strother, Pendleton, Botts, Early, Taylor etc ; you will see
those repeated as middle names again and again in the descendants. The
study of the descendants of Thomas of Virginia was advanced in 1969 by
Calvin Sutherd whose work is published and avaiable at the Library of
Congress. This is one of the best sources for American Gaines
descendants. I have been working to extend his study to include the
ancestry of Thomas back in Wales. The link between Thomas and Sir
John Games needs to be strengthened. Thomas Gaines is speculated to be
the son or grandson of Sir John Games of Newton in Brecon, Wales.
Others say he descends from John Games of Aberbran, a cousin of Sir
John. It is said that we used 'Games' in Wales and 'Gaines' in
England. To sum up: We know a lot about the Thomas Gaines descendants
and alot about the Games ancestors but we need to have some more
documentation on this link between Wales and America.
I believe that the timing of Thomas Gaines arrival in America has to
do with the fact that he was a man from a traditionally loyalist
family leaving a country that was being run by revolutionaries, but
this is only a guess.
Working backwards in time, here is some info on some of the people you
mentioned:
(I will leave out the Herberst and Vaughans; they are a whole study
themselves)
===========================================================
Sir John Games
He was the g-g-g- grandson of the famous David Gam.
Sir John built, in 1582, and lived in the manor fortress called Newton
on a piece of land that had been in his family for hundreds of years.
This farm, Newton, is still in existence; I visited there last
summer. This was all the info my wife and I had to go on when we
scheduled 3 days in a B and B in Brecon. It is beautiful pastoral
mountainous country. Our first day there we located Newton at the
confluence of two rivers. We met the current tenants, they had lived
there as tenant farmers for over 60 years. They live in only 3 rooms
of the huge four story home, the rest is very medievel with tall
ceilings and massive windows and doors. The focal point is the mantle
above the fireplace in the great hall. It was installed by Sir John
Gaines and traces his lineage, in welch, back 6 generations to David
Gam. Above the fireplace is the family coat of arms, said to have been
deliberatley defaced by Cromwells revolutionary troops.
The Games family was prominent in Brecon and there are other notable
estates with Gaines connections. One of them is called PenPont. It was
built around 1666 on land that belonged to David Gams greatgrandfather
Einion Sais. A great castle there was destroyed in 1400 by Owain
Glendower the revolutionary Welchman who was an enemy to the royalist
Gams. Anyway, the grandaughter of Sir John, was the first inhabitant
of this fine mansion which we visited. It is now a B and B and is run
by descendants of Sir John Gaines. I read in a book that many old
family portraits were housed there including on of Sir John himself. I
asked the owner to see it, she informed me that it had been auctioned
off in 1992! They don't know where it is now. I would like to track
this down somehow.
==============================================================
David Gam:
Gam, David d. 1415, Welsh warrior, is more properly styled Davydd ab
Llewelyn. ‘Gam’ is a nickname meaning ‘squinting,’ which, like other
Welsh nicknames, became equivalent to a surname. David's father was
Llewelyn, the son of Hywel, the son of Eineon Sais. Llewelyn possessed
fair estates in the parishes of Garthbrengy and Llanddew, which lay
within the honour or lordship of Brecon, a dependency of the earldom
of Hereford, and after 1399 lapsed to the crown by the accession of
Henry IV, who had long enjoyed that earldom. Peytyn was the name of
Llewelyn's chief residence. David is described in a verse attributed
to Owain Glyndwr as a short red-haired man with a squint. He was
faithful to his lord, Henry IV, even during the revolt of Owain [see
Glendower, Owen]. He was rewarded for his services by a large share in
the South Welsh lands confiscated from rebels in 1401 (Wylie, Hist. of
Henry IV, p. 245). There is a story that David plotted against the
life of Owain when attending the Welsh parliament at Machynlleth. But
it rests on no early authority, misdates the year of the Machynlleth
parliament, and wrongly makes David a brother-in-law of Owain. There
seems nothing to show that David ever wavered in his allegiance.
David was taken prisoner by Owain, probably at a time when Owain's
successes were very few. On 14 June 1412 David's father, Llewelyn ab
Hywel, and the seneschal and receiver of Brecon were empowered to
treat with Owain, and by ransom or by capturing rebel prisoners to
extricate David from his rigorous imprisonment (Federa, viii. 753).
It is said that David soon after got into trouble by killing a kinsman
in an affray in Brecon town. In 1415 David, accompanied by three foot
archers only, followed Henry V on his invasion of France (Nicolas,
Battle of Agincourt, p. 379). It is reported that when, on the eve of
the battle of Agincourt, he was questioned by the king as to the
number of the enemy, he replied ‘that there were enough to be slain,
enough to be taken prisoners, and enough to run away.’ The story,
however, first appears in Sir Walter Raleigh's ‘History of the World’
(p. 451). David was slain at the battle of Agincourt, which was fought
on 25 Oct. 1415. The contemporary chroniclers who notice his death
simply describe him as an esquire (Walsingham, ii. 313; cf.
‘Chronicles of London,’ quoted in Nicolas, pp. 279-80). There is a
tradition that he was knighted for his valour when dying on the field
of battle, and the fact that one chronicler says that two recently
dubbed knights were slain (Gesta Henrici Quinti, p. 58, Engl. Hist.
Soc.) is thought to bear out the story. But one writer at least
mentions both the two knights and David Gam (Nicolas, p. 280). Lewis
Glyn Cothi, a Welsh poet of the next generation, who celebrated the
praises of David's children and grandchildren, regularly speaks of
him, however, as ‘Syr Davydd Gam’ (Gwaith, pp. 1, 8). It has been
suggested that David is the original of Shakespeare's Fluellen. This
is not at all an improbable conjecture, as Fluellen is plainly a
corruption of Llewelyn, and David was generally called David Llewelyn,
or ab Llewelyn. The reference to him in Raleigh shows also that his
name was familiar to the age of Elizabeth.
David is said to have married Gwenllian, daughter of Gwilym, son of
Hywel Grach. He left a family. His son Morgan became the ancestor of
the Games of Breconshire. His daughter Gwladus was by her second
husband, Sir William ab Thomas of Raglan, the mother of William, the
first Herbert Earl of Pembroke.
Sources Besides authorities quoted in the text the biography of Gam in
Theophilus Jones's Hist. of Breconshire, i. 160-1, ii. 156-69, with
pedigrees; the pedigrees in Lewys Dwnn's Heraldic Visitation of Wales
(Welsh MSS. Society); Gwaith Lewis Glyn Cothi; Sir Harris Nicolas's
Battle of Agincourt; Tyler's Hist. of Henry V. published 1889
===============================================================
Llewelyn Ap Howel (David Gams Father)
Llewelyn possessed fair estates in the parishes of Garthbrengy and
Llanddew, which lay within the honour or lordship of Brecon, a
dependency of the earldom of Hereford, and after 1399 lapsed to the
crown by the accession of Henry IV, who had long enjoyed that earldom.
Peytyn was the name of Llewelyn's chief residence.
On 14 June 1412 Llewelyn ab Hywel, and the seneschal and receiver of
Brecon were empowered to treat with Owain Glendower, and by ransom or
by capturing rebel prisoners to extricate David from his rigorous
imprisonment (Federa, viii. 753).
==============================================================
Einion Sais: (David Gams Greatgrandfather)
His residence was near Bettwa Chapel in Brocknockshire, Wales though
"not a stone remains". Source: Dwnn's visitations of Wales, Vol III
page 36 footnote 12.
Sennybridge Castle
aka Castell Rhyd-Y-Briw & Castell Du
Powys, mid Wales
Location map link for Sennybridge Castle
Only fragments of the south wall of a courtyard with a projecting
round tower about 7.8m in diameter now survive of a 13th century
castle, alternately known as Castell Rhyd-Y-Briw. This may have been
the castle begun by Llywelyn ap Gruffydd in 1262, and in 1271 was
occupied by his ally Einion Sais, who is traditionally said to have
had a second castle at Penpont where a tributary stream flows into the
River Usk halfway between Castell Du and Brecon.
>From History of the County of Brecknock by Theophilus Jones (1898),
volume 2:
page 77: [1321] The younger [Hugh] D'Espencer was now constituted
governor of Brecknock castle; and afterwards obtained a grant of the
lordship, together with Penkelly, Cantreff-Selyff, Blanllyfni and
Dinas, late the property of the earl of Hereford and Roger Mortimer,
[John] Giffard and Rhys ap Hywel, who had been attainted for the late
rebellion. [The Earl of Lancaster's rebellion, which ended at
Boroughbridge in 1321]. This last was the lineal descendant of Bleddyn
ap Maenarch and grandson of that Trahearn fychan who was so inhumanly
murdered by William de Breos of Brecknock
page 80: Einion the second son of Rhys ap Hywel, whose attainder has
been noticed, embraced a military life and served our third Edward in
the memorable battles of Cressy and Poictiers; after a long residence
in England he returned to his native country with considerable
opulence and married the rich heiress of Howel, lord of Miscin in
Glamorganshire; he became possessed by purchase of nearly the whole of
what is now called the hundred of Devynnock, from Llywel on the
borders of Carmarthenshire to the river Tarell near Brecon. He built a
castellated mansion for his residence in the parish of Llandspyddid, lately called the castle field, now the property of Penry Williams of Penpont,
esquire: it is described to have been situated on the fall of a small
brook into the Usk, near Bettws or Penpont chapel: there is still an
unevenness in the surface of the ground, though there are not now the
smallest vestiges of buildings remaining; Hugh Thomas, who wrote in
1698, recollects to have seen the ruins, and there are others living
who remember the rubbish being removed and the soil cleared of the
stones and materials of the walls: it was called from the owner,
Castell Einion Sais, or Einion the Englishman's castle, an appellation
by which the Welsh to this day sometimes distinguish not only the
English settlers among them, but also their own countrymen who have
been brought up and educated in England.
- Curt Gaines
======================================
Thomas Games (Gaines) -- knownas Thomas the immigrant came fromWales about 1641 to the Virginia Colony.
--------------------
ID: I1300
Name: Thomas Henry Gaines
Sex: M
Birth: 1580 in Wales
Note:
Thomas Gaines was born about 1580 probably in Wales. According to
http://www.angelfire.com/nt/oddentree/gaines.html that has the Descendants of Llywelyn Ap Hywel Fychan the parents of Thomas were William Edward Games and Elizabeth Anne last name unknown. The site takes the Games family back another 10 generations.
There is slightly contrary information from the Descendants of Thomas Gaines of Virginia found on the web at http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Plains/7221/gachart1.html This states Thomas patented land in Virginia before 1650 and his father was Sir John Games of Brecon Wales. According to the Welch site, Sir John was Thomas’s grandfather
Thomas married Blanche Kemis about 1608 in Wales. He immigrated to Virginia about 1641 with many if not all his children. Blanche is not mentioned. .
The children of Thomas and Blanche were:
1. Edward Gaines born 1610
2. Daniel Gaines born 1614 wed Margaret Bernard Rowzee, died 1684 in VA
3. Robert Gaines born 1616
4. Thomas Gaines born 1618
5. James Gaines born 1620, his son died in Virginia
6. Samuel Gaines born 1621
7. Francis Gaines born 1622
8. Margaret Gaines born 1624
9. Richard Gaines born 1826
10. Catherine Gaines, born after 1626
_RIN: 1 1
Change Date: 27 AUG 2002 at 11:29:27
Father: William Edward Gaines b: 1567 in Nunton,Brecon,Wales
Mother: Elizabeth Anne
Marriage 1 Blanche Kemis
Married: 1608 in wales 1
Children
Daniel Gaines b: 1614
Sources:
Title: GEDCOM File : gentracker.ged
Author: Joesph Lafayette Murray
Abbrev: fate murray
Abbrev: GEDCOM File : gentracker.ged
Date: 8 JAN 2002
From: http://lynnwright.com/ThomasGaines.htm
THOMAS GAINES
The Immigrant
ca 1585 -
Thomas Gaines was born ca 1585 in Brecon, Wales. His death date is unknown but he probably died in Virginia . He married Blanch Kemis the daughter of Harry Kemis from Virginia.
Thomas came to America in about 1641, landing in Chesapeake Bay , Virginia Colony where he patented land. This was in Jamestown Colony.
The following information is from Calvin E Sutherd's book, Supplement to A Compilation of Gaines Family Data with Special Emphasis on the Lineage of William & Isabella (Pendleton) Gaines , published Ft Lauderdale, Fl, Jun 1969. This book is no longer published, but a copy was found by me at the DAR Library in Washington, DC, and the following is a quote from that publication.
Thomas Gaines (Games), the immigrant, b: ca 1885-90, and came to the Virginia Colony ca 1641 where he patented land in Old Rappahannock County, Virginia.
Cavaliers & Pioneers by Nugent, Patent Book, No 2, p 177.
"Mr. George Hardy, 500 acs., July 17, 1648, Page 147, lyeing on the E. side of Lawnes Cr., extending to the main river, along land reputed Thomas Gaynes, along the great river to a cr. dividing some land of Alice Bennet...."
His children probably included;
i. Thomas Gaines II, d. 1688, prob VA; m (1) Margaret Johnson; m (2) Katherin Morris Pettit
ii. Daniel Gaines, d. ca 1682-4
iii. Robert Gaines
iv. Catherine Gaines
v. James Gaines, d. ca 1705, prob VA
vi. Francis Gaines
Ancestor of Marlon Brando:
Francis Gaines
(1632-1656)
View Person Page
Richard Gaines
(1685-1751)
View Person Page
William Gaines
(1737-1827)
View Person Page
Mary Gaines
(1763-1830)
View Person Page
Sarah Finley
(1799-1877)
View Person Page
William Pennebaker
(1826-1868)
View Person Page
William John Pennebaker
(1868-1899)
View Person Page
Dorothy Julia Pennebaker
(1897-1954)
View Person Page
Marlon Brando
(1924-2004)
Ancestor of Pretty Boy Floyd:
James Gaines
(1620-1705)
View Person Page
Richard Gaines
(1686-1755)
View Person Page
Henry Gaines
(1731-1796)
View Person Page
Richard Gaines
(1752-1837)
View Person Page
William Gaines
(1780-1867)
View Person Page
Richard Gaines
(1810-1891)
View Person Page
Emily Elizabeth Gaines
(1852-1916)
View Person Page
Mamie Helena Echols
(1881-1968)
View Person Page
Pretty Boy Floyd
(1904-1934)
American Outlaw
American bank robber and alleged murderer, Charles "Pretty Boy" Floyd robbed so many banks in the 1930s that there was a $56,000 reward on his head.
--------------------
To date the information on Thomas Gaynes/Games(Gaines), known as "The Immigrant" is based mostly on tradition as there is only one item of documentary evidence concerning him in the Virginia Colony upon which to base his lineage:
"Mr. George Hardy (Harding) , 500 acres., July 17, 1648. page 147. Lyeing on the E.side of Lawnes Creek, extending to the main river, along land reputed Thomas Gaynes, along the main river to a creek dividing same land of Alice Bennet...."
This land patent of George Hardy (Harding) names Thomas Gaynes as a reputed land owner in Isle of Wright County in 1648 on the east side of Lawnes Creek which flows into
the James River. Lawnes creek was the eastern boundary line and Chippokes Creek was the western boundary line of Surrey
County, Virginia formed in 1652. To the east of Lawnes Creek where the land of Thomas Gaynes/Gaines was located was Isle of Wright Co, formed in 1634. In this neighborhood were other land owners besides Gaynes/Gaines, Hardy and Bennet. They were William Lawson, Robert
Lawrence, J.Cooper, William Butler, William Spence, William Barnard, and William Pilkington. To the East, across the James River, was William Games/Gaines, who in 1626 became the tenant of Capt. William Tucker in Elizabeth City.
No doubt other records of Thomas Gaynes/Games(Gaines) existed at one time but were destroyed either by the ravages of the Civil war or carelessness. There are statements on
record in books wherein Thomas first appeared in 1641 in Accomack County, Virginia-without verification. From several sources there have emanated many statements and conjectures as to the identity of the parentage and issue of
this Thomas Gaynes/Games(Gaines). Without any authentic proof the parentage of this Thomas Gaynes/Games(Gaines) has been said to be the grandson of Sir John Games of Newton, Wales or a brother to said Sir John Games. However, recent research has found the will of Sir John Games and his children are listed and a Thomas was not included. Additionally, being the brother of Sir John Games has been discounted due to the age difference his generation
would have been too old to survive the rigors of emigrating to the
colonies, since he would have had to have been born before 1564.
Recent research and strong evidence puts Thomas Gaines(b ca 1606) and
Daniel Gaines of Old Rappanhannock as sons of William Gaines, tenant of
Capt. William Tucker in Elizabeth City, Virginia.
This William Gaines is the son of John Games of Aberbran, Wales, a
contempory of Sir John
Games of Becon, Wales. William Gaines was tied to John Games of Aberbran,
Wales by the circumstantial evidence in the will of John Games of
Aberbran, Wales.
Strong evidence and tradition continues that the Thomas
Gaynes/Games(Gaines) THE IMMIGRANT,
is the father of Robert, James, Francis, and Catherine. Data exists for
Robert and James.
It may be possible for future genealogists to come across strong evidence
which will either prove or
disprove the lineage and tradtion of this Thomas Gaynes/Games(Gaines).
It is not known who this
Thomas married or when he died.
There is a strong possibility that this Thomas Games/Gaines is the son of
Thomas Games, younger
brother of Sir John Games of Brecon, Wales, therefore unless and until
further information is developed
definitely linking this so-called THOMAS GAMES/GAINES, THE IMMIGRANT, to
a specific lineage,
I will list him as a son of Thomas Games/Gaines, brother to Sir John
Games of Brecon, Wales.
Married 1608 in Wales: children Catherine, Francis, Thomas, James, Robert
THE DESCENDANTS OF THOMAS GAINES OF VIRGINIA by The Virginia Ancestor Series Hauk Data Series, Anderson, IN
Thomas Gaines: Thomas came to the Virginia colony prior to 1650 and patented land there. He is said to be a descendant of Sir David Gam of Wales.
2, 2033 says born 1584 in Brecon, Wales, married to Blanch Kemis (b. 1590 in Wales) in abt. 1608 However, this is unproven.
===================================
From Curt Gaines (rcgtkg@voicenet.com):
Most Gaines (except the the Connecticut branch) in this country descend from Thomas of Virginia who arrived from Wales right around the time of Cromwells
revolution against King Charles I. If you have southern Gaines
ancestry you can be sure that this is your line. They lived in King
and Queen County near Jamestown and then moved inland to Culpepper.
They all had 10 or 12 children and named them similar names, William,
James, Richard, etc. They married into Prominent Virgina Families
such as Strother, Pendleton, Botts, Early, Taylor etc ; you will see
those repeated as middle names again and again in the descendants. The
study of the descendants of Thomas of Virginia was advanced in 1969 by
Calvin Sutherd whose work is published and avaiable at the Library of
Congress. This is one of the best sources for American Gaines
descendants. I have been working to extend his study to include the
ancestry of Thomas back in Wales. The link between Thomas and Sir
John Games needs to be strengthened. Thomas Gaines is speculated to be
the son or grandson of Sir John Games of Newton in Brecon, Wales.
Others say he descends from John Games of Aberbran, a cousin of Sir
John. It is said that we used 'Games' in Wales and 'Gaines' in
England. To sum up: We know a lot about the Thomas Gaines descendants
and alot about the Games ancestors but we need to have some more
documentation on this link between Wales and America.
I believe that the timing of Thomas Gaines arrival in America has to
do with the fact that he was a man from a traditionally loyalist
family leaving a country that was being run by revolutionaries, but
this is only a guess.
Working backwards in time, here is some info on some of the people you
mentioned:
(I will leave out the Herberst and Vaughans; they are a whole study
themselves)
===========================================================
Sir John Games
He was the g-g-g- grandson of the famous David Gam.
Sir John built, in 1582, and lived in the manor fortress called Newton
on a piece of land that had been in his family for hundreds of years.
This farm, Newton, is still in existence; I visited there last
summer. This was all the info my wife and I had to go on when we
scheduled 3 days in a B and B in Brecon. It is beautiful pastoral
mountainous country. Our first day there we located Newton at the
confluence of two rivers. We met the current tenants, they had lived
there as tenant farmers for over 60 years. They live in only 3 rooms
of the huge four story home, the rest is very medievel with tall
ceilings and massive windows and doors. The focal point is the mantle
above the fireplace in the great hall. It was installed by Sir John
Gaines and traces his lineage, in welch, back 6 generations to David
Gam. Above the fireplace is the family coat of arms, said to have been
deliberatley defaced by Cromwells revolutionary troops.
The Games family was prominent in Brecon and there are other notable
estates with Gaines connections. One of them is called PenPont. It was
built around 1666 on land that belonged to David Gams greatgrandfather
Einion Sais. A great castle there was destroyed in 1400 by Owain
Glendower the revolutionary Welchman who was an enemy to the royalist
Gams. Anyway, the grandaughter of Sir John, was the first inhabitant
of this fine mansion which we visited. It is now a B and B and is run
by descendants of Sir John Gaines. I read in a book that many old
family portraits were housed there including on of Sir John himself. I
asked the owner to see it, she informed me that it had been auctioned
off in 1992! They don't know where it is now. I would like to track
this down somehow.
==============================================================
David Gam:
Gam, David d. 1415, Welsh warrior, is more properly styled Davydd ab
Llewelyn. ‘Gam’ is a nickname meaning ‘squinting,’ which, like other
Welsh nicknames, became equivalent to a surname. David's father was
Llewelyn, the son of Hywel, the son of Eineon Sais. Llewelyn possessed
fair estates in the parishes of Garthbrengy and Llanddew, which lay
within the honour or lordship of Brecon, a dependency of the earldom
of Hereford, and after 1399 lapsed to the crown by the accession of
Henry IV, who had long enjoyed that earldom. Peytyn was the name of
Llewelyn's chief residence. David is described in a verse attributed
to Owain Glyndwr as a short red-haired man with a squint. He was
faithful to his lord, Henry IV, even during the revolt of Owain [see
Glendower, Owen]. He was rewarded for his services by a large share in
the South Welsh lands confiscated from rebels in 1401 (Wylie, Hist. of
Henry IV, p. 245). There is a story that David plotted against the
life of Owain when attending the Welsh parliament at Machynlleth. But
it rests on no early authority, misdates the year of the Machynlleth
parliament, and wrongly makes David a brother-in-law of Owain. There
seems nothing to show that David ever wavered in his allegiance.
David was taken prisoner by Owain, probably at a time when Owain's
successes were very few. On 14 June 1412 David's father, Llewelyn ab
Hywel, and the seneschal and receiver of Brecon were empowered to
treat with Owain, and by ransom or by capturing rebel prisoners to
extricate David from his rigorous imprisonment (Federa, viii. 753).
It is said that David soon after got into trouble by killing a kinsman
in an affray in Brecon town. In 1415 David, accompanied by three foot
archers only, followed Henry V on his invasion of France (Nicolas,
Battle of Agincourt, p. 379). It is reported that when, on the eve of
the battle of Agincourt, he was questioned by the king as to the
number of the enemy, he replied ‘that there were enough to be slain,
enough to be taken prisoners, and enough to run away.’ The story,
however, first appears in Sir Walter Raleigh's ‘History of the World’
(p. 451). David was slain at the battle of Agincourt, which was fought
on 25 Oct. 1415. The contemporary chroniclers who notice his death
simply describe him as an esquire (Walsingham, ii. 313; cf.
‘Chronicles of London,’ quoted in Nicolas, pp. 279-80). There is a
tradition that he was knighted for his valour when dying on the field
of battle, and the fact that one chronicler says that two recently
dubbed knights were slain (Gesta Henrici Quinti, p. 58, Engl. Hist.
Soc.) is thought to bear out the story. But one writer at least
mentions both the two knights and David Gam (Nicolas, p. 280). Lewis
Glyn Cothi, a Welsh poet of the next generation, who celebrated the
praises of David's children and grandchildren, regularly speaks of
him, however, as ‘Syr Davydd Gam’ (Gwaith, pp. 1, 8). It has been
suggested that David is the original of Shakespeare's Fluellen. This
is not at all an improbable conjecture, as Fluellen is plainly a
corruption of Llewelyn, and David was generally called David Llewelyn,
or ab Llewelyn. The reference to him in Raleigh shows also that his
name was familiar to the age of Elizabeth.
David is said to have married Gwenllian, daughter of Gwilym, son of
Hywel Grach. He left a family. His son Morgan became the ancestor of
the Games of Breconshire. His daughter Gwladus was by her second
husband, Sir William ab Thomas of Raglan, the mother of William, the
first Herbert Earl of Pembroke.
Sources Besides authorities quoted in the text the biography of Gam in
Theophilus Jones's Hist. of Breconshire, i. 160-1, ii. 156-69, with
pedigrees; the pedigrees in Lewys Dwnn's Heraldic Visitation of Wales
(Welsh MSS. Society); Gwaith Lewis Glyn Cothi; Sir Harris Nicolas's
Battle of Agincourt; Tyler's Hist. of Henry V. published 1889
===============================================================
Llewelyn Ap Howel (David Gams Father)
Llewelyn possessed fair estates in the parishes of Garthbrengy and
Llanddew, which lay within the honour or lordship of Brecon, a
dependency of the earldom of Hereford, and after 1399 lapsed to the
crown by the accession of Henry IV, who had long enjoyed that earldom.
Peytyn was the name of Llewelyn's chief residence.
On 14 June 1412 Llewelyn ab Hywel, and the seneschal and receiver of
Brecon were empowered to treat with Owain Glendower, and by ransom or
by capturing rebel prisoners to extricate David from his rigorous
imprisonment (Federa, viii. 753).
==============================================================
Einion Sais: (David Gams Greatgrandfather)
His residence was near Bettwa Chapel in Brocknockshire, Wales though
"not a stone remains". Source: Dwnn's visitations of Wales, Vol III
page 36 footnote 12.
Sennybridge Castle
aka Castell Rhyd-Y-Briw & Castell Du
Powys, mid Wales
Location map link for Sennybridge Castle
Only fragments of the south wall of a courtyard with a projecting
round tower about 7.8m in diameter now survive of a 13th century
castle, alternately known as Castell Rhyd-Y-Briw. This may have been
the castle begun by Llywelyn ap Gruffydd in 1262, and in 1271 was
occupied by his ally Einion Sais, who is traditionally said to have
had a second castle at Penpont where a tributary stream flows into the
River Usk halfway between Castell Du and Brecon.
>From History of the County of Brecknock by Theophilus Jones (1898),
volume 2:
page 77: [1321] The younger [Hugh] D'Espencer was now constituted
governor of Brecknock castle; and afterwards obtained a grant of the
lordship, together with Penkelly, Cantreff-Selyff, Blanllyfni and
Dinas, late the property of the earl of Hereford and Roger Mortimer,
[John] Giffard and Rhys ap Hywel, who had been attainted for the late
rebellion. [The Earl of Lancaster's rebellion, which ended at
Boroughbridge in 1321]. This last was the lineal descendant of Bleddyn
ap Maenarch and grandson of that Trahearn fychan who was so inhumanly
murdered by William de Breos of Brecknock
page 80: Einion the second son of Rhys ap Hywel, whose attainder has
been noticed, embraced a military life and served our third Edward in
the memorable battles of Cressy and Poictiers; after a long residence
in England he returned to his native country with considerable
opulence and married the rich heiress of Howel, lord of Miscin in
Glamorganshire; he became possessed by purchase of nearly the whole of
what is now called the hundred of Devynnock, from Llywel on the
borders of Carmarthenshire to the river Tarell near Brecon. He built a
castellated mansion for his residence in the parish of Llandspyddid, lately called the castle field, now the property of Penry Williams of Penpont,
esquire: it is described to have been situated on the fall of a small
brook into the Usk, near Bettws or Penpont chapel: there is still an
unevenness in the surface of the ground, though there are not now the
smallest vestiges of buildings remaining; Hugh Thomas, who wrote in
1698, recollects to have seen the ruins, and there are others living
who remember the rubbish being removed and the soil cleared of the
stones and materials of the walls: it was called from the owner,
Castell Einion Sais, or Einion the Englishman's castle, an appellation
by which the Welsh to this day sometimes distinguish not only the
English settlers among them, but also their own countrymen who have
been brought up and educated in England.
- Curt Gaines
======================================
Events
| Birth | Abt 1584 | ||||
| Marriage | 1608 | Blanche Kemis | |||
| Death | 1640 |
Families
| Spouse | Blanche Kemis (1587 - 1634) |
| Child | Daniel Gaines (1614 - 1682) |
| Father | Sir John Edward Gaines Sir (1559 - 1606) |
| Mother | Elizabeth Ann Games (1560 - 1640) |