Related
Books:
The
Maryland Germans: A history
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Researching the "Southern" Willard Family in America
Though different Willard families came
to America from England, Germany, Holland, Switzerland and France, etc.,
it appears that most all branches originated in Normandy, France in some
distant past and their name was originally "Vieillard." [probably pronounced,
"vee-yar"]. Though the name was in Normandy, France in the 1100's one source
says that it can be traced back to the Roman Empire. So, since were Villards
in Italy they may have been there before France.
[Spelling variations include: Wyllard, Wielard, Wilard, Williard, Willarde,
Willardye, Willart, Willerd, Willar,
Williar, Wollard, Woolard, also Villard, Villiard, Vielliar, Vieillard,
Lilliard, and Gilliard.] The website that sells family
crests has the same English crest for Villiard as for Willard.
In the early family groups, 1700's and before, you often find these variations
of spelling (W and V) even within the same family group, or for the same
person. You will also find Willard or Williard or Wilyard used
variously for the same person.
Henry Willard, the earliest
ancestor I can locate in my line shows up about 1783 in Shenandoah County,
Virginia [settled mostly by Germans but also had some Scotch-Irish and
English] and marries a Kuntz girl from a German-speaking family. It was
common for people to marry into their own language group, and so it is
very likely that his family came from Germany. Nothing yet is known
about Henry's parents, though I am exploring the possiblity that they may
have been a part of the German Willard group in Frederick County, Maryland.
Shenandoah County, Virginia, was first settled by 70 Quaker families
who moved into the vicinity of Winchester in 1730 from the New Garden Quaker
community in Chester County, Pennsylvania. About 15 years later 64
more families moved into the same area under the sponsorship of Benjamin
Borden, a Quaker turned Baptist, from Freehold, New Jersey. As incentive,
these early homesteaders received 1,000 acres per family.
Willards in Europe:
* Some variation of this family name
was found in the English county of Sussex where they were Lords of the
Manor at Eastborne, having been granted lands by King William the Conqueror
for their assistance in the Battle of Hastings in 1066 (meaning that they
came to England from France with William). The earliest Willard listed
in the Doomsday list was: " Wihelardus
de Trophil lived in Kent, 1168". In Leeds Castle hangs a painting of
a man named "Villar".
* " Richard
Willard, father of Margery, the wife of Captain Dolar Davis, lived at
Horsmonden, East Fairleigh, Kent County, England, it being claimed that
he was a lineal descendant of Richard Willard, Baron of the Cinque Ports,
in the time of Richard II. The Willard family of Eastbourne, Sussex,
England, originally named Villiard, came from Caen, Normandy," France.
[from a history book about the Allegheny Valley.]
This Richard Willard was a descendant of Humbert, Count Bianchi Di Villard,
1240 in France. Humbert's son Othon had to flee to England where
the King gave him the title, " Henri,
Count Willard." Henri was the great-grandfather of Richard.
* There were also several Villiards in French Canada. One of these
Canadian families came from Germany: Germain
Villiard (or Villliars), b abt 1700 in Germany; his father was Henri Villiard,
b abt 1680 in Germany.
* The was also a Dutch Willard family. Jan
Cornelisse Willard (Willert) was born about 1692.
* The German Willards (Nicolaus Vieillard) appear to have settled in
the middle colonies of America; the English Willards settled in New England.
Some
Willard branches in the southern
colonies
*
1654 - Richard Willard (from England) settled in Virginia.
* There was a Benjamin
Villiard who was born in 1700 in Warsaw Co, Va (or in France) and died in
1791 in Culpepper Co, Va. He married Frances Crow and their son was
John
"Lilliard".
* There was a famous American industrialist named Henry Villard,
who was born in Bavaria, Germany in 1835; came to America in 1853.
* Royal
Willard, born about 1792 in Virginia; moved to Georgia by 1850. Another
Royal
Willard b in 1784 in Massachusetts.
Also John
Willard, b 1796, Va; moved to Georgia.
* In SC there was a John
Willard (b abt 1805)
* There was a William Willard (b 1765) who married Sally Gaulding
(25 Aug 1790 in Prince Edward Co., VA). Their daughter, Rhoda married
Nicholas Fisher. William was about the same age as my Henry and he also
named a son Henry.
* 1746 - DeWalt Theobald Willard & Johann Peter Willard, Hans Caspar,
brothers (Jacob-2,
Nicholas-1),
DeWalt Willard was b 1711 in Germany; d 1782 in Middletown, Frederick
Co, MD.
Johan
Peter Williard, b 1714 Erlenbach, Germany, d 1794 Frederick Co., MD.
DeWalt, Peter & Caspar were sons of Jacob Williard who was from
Upper Mallingea, Paltz, Germany. Jacob's sons first settled in Pennsylvania
in the 1740's.
Right
now I am interested in this German family in Maryland as possibly
connected to my Henry/Harry Willard--though I may be wrong. . . .
The earliest Villiard to be found in
this German line
is Nicolaus
Vieillard (grandfather of DeWalt & Peter), b 1635 in Sdan, France;
d 1680 Palatinate, Germany. He had a brother named Pierre and
a cousin named Pierre. Sometime around 1660, the 3 of them had to
flee from France to Germany because they were Huguenots. The 3 Vieillards
settled in the Pfalz region of Germany, near Kaiserslautern, where there
was already a good sized community of the French Reformed Church. About
80 years later, Nicholas' grandsons came to America.
Historical
note: In 1660 there were
1,800,000 Huguenots in France; 40 years later by 1700 there were only 400,000.
Persecution of the Huguenots in France was going on by 1520s. There
were 8 civil wars over this issue with varying degrees of peace and conflict.
In 1685, Louis XIV finally revoked the Edict of Nantes (of 1598), which
had given equal rights to Huguenots. This revocation meant that Protestantism
was forbidden under threat of death. This led to the emigration of at least
300,000 Huguenots. About 100,000 went to the Netherlands, another 100,000
went to America, England, Ireland, and about 100,000 went to Germany and
Switzerland. Some (maybe from Holland) eventually went to South Africa.
Germany was actually happy to receive the Protestants, not only because
of their common beliefs but because they needed to repopulate some areas
that had been depleted after the Thirty Years War.
In 1663 Nicolaus married Katherine Grosjean, who was also born in France
and was a part of the same Protestant community in Germany.
Nicholas & Katherine had 7 children. Their oldest son was
Jakob
Williard, b 1667, Otterberg,
Pflaz, Germany. It is thought that he was a surgeon and died in 1717
(age 50), leaving his wife, Mary Elizabeth (Gordier/Cordier, b France,
was 35 when Jakob died), and 3 sons: Caspar, Dewalt Theobald, and Johann
Peter. During the 1740's Jacob's wife and sons emigrated to America,
along with a relative, Catherine. They spoke German and joined the
German community here. They didn't all come at the same time.
Caspar came first and settled in York Co, Pa., as did his cousin's family
(Anna, daughter of Pierre, who married Abraham Cherdron).
Then Mary Elizabeth came with son Peter and his family in 1744.
They entered through the port at Philadelphia and joined Caspar in York
Co.
Finally DeWalt came the same route in 1750 (possibly leaving some of
his older children in Germany).
Eventually everyone except Caspar left York County and moved a little
south into Maryland to the Monacacy region around Frederick, where there
was another large population of Germans.
Peter and his mother settled north of Frederick near Thurmont, where
they joined the Graceham Moravian Church and were buried in the church cemetery.
Mary Elizabeth died in 1770 (age 88).
Peter's first American-born son, Johann George moved to Salem, Carolina
(now Winston-Salem, NC) where he became a Moravian pioneer and left many
descendants, who began to spell their name "Willyard" and other variations.
Peter
also had 2 daughters: Catherina (1767) & Maria Elizabeth (b 1760, Graceham,
Frederick Co, MD). Maria Elizabeth married Christian Thomas Harbaugh
in 1780 in Graceham, Frederick Co, MD. Maria named one of her sons
Henry.
DeWalt's family
lived in Burkittsville, a little west of Frederick, MD. He and his
family stayed in Frederick Co, MD. DeWalt died when he was 75 and was
buried on his farm. DeWalt's sons were Elias Willard & DeWalt Jr.
Elias was 12 years old in 1852 when his father bought land in Burkittsville.
Elias & DeWalt Jr. fought in the French and Indian War and also in the
Revolutionary War in the Maryland militia.
Frederick Co, MD has many early Willards.
The "History of Frederick Co., MD" lists a George
Willard (1770-1849, m Susannah Culler; son of Elias, who was a Huguenot, driven from France to Germany,
then came to the US); also a John and John Henry and William
H. & William K. (no dates), also a Martin O. (1828-1883).
Willards in Virginia:
1790 census - none (there should be a Henry Willard in Halifax Co)
1800 census - none
1810 census - Frederick Co: Jacob Williard
Prince Edward Co: William (p493:
11010-20110) Abner, Henry (p493: 00010-00111) & Huriah? Willard
Campbell Co: John Willard
Monongalia Co: George (00100-00100),
Henry (30111-12011) & Jac (20010-0010) Willard (all on p851)
1820 census - Campbell Co: John & Richd Willard
Caroline Co: James Willard
Halifax Co: Agness & Susannah
Willard (both in Marseilles)
Lunenburg Co: Uriah Willard
Prince Edward Co: Henry (000010-00020
hh 26-45) & William Willard (110101-00201 hh ov 45 b bef 1755)
Rhoda Willard m Nicholas Fisher 1822, Prince Edward Co. She was prob one
of the 2 girls in Wm's house. Nicholas Fisher was in Orange Co, Va
in 1830 then moved to Fairfield Co, OH.
Evidently there was a Joseph Willard in Shenandoah Co, Va. (might be the
same Joseph Wollard from Loudoun Co, Va)
Willards in Maryland:
1790 census -
Frederick Co, p214: Andrew
(1-3-4), John (1-6-1), Peter (1-0-2), Philip (1-3-2) Williard
Frederick Co, p225: Davolt
(or David?, 2-?-3) (or maybe Dewalt, but it looks like "Dav" for sure)
Frederick Co, p226: Elias
Wilyard (3-5-6), Philip Wilyard (3-2-5) (more on fam of Elias)
1800 census - Frederick Co, 2nd Dist: George Willard (00010-21100)
Frederick Co, 3rd Dist, p785: Jacob
Wilyard (10010-40010)
1810 census - Frederick Co: A, A, D, E, E, E Jr, G, J, J, J, J, J Wilyard
1820 census - Baltimore Co: Fredk (5-wd), Salem (1-wd) Williard?
Catherine Willard married Henry Jacobs in Sept 1970, Frederick Co, MD
There was a William Willard who married in Shenandoah Co, Va. abt 1855,
and there was a William Willard who was involved in a land transaction in
Russell Co, Va. while Henry lived there. So in searching for William
Willard, this is what I've found:
> William H. Willard who married Catherine, b July 18, 1833; she
was buried
at St. Marys Pine Church Cem, Mt. Jackson, Shenandoah Co, VA.
> Henry Willard, married Jane
Ann Liggett, July 7, 1826, Shenandoah Co, VA.
> William Willard born
in Loudoun County, Virginia, in 1755; he entered the service in July, 1778,
serving under Capt. James Ratekin and Col. Abraham Shepherd. Later he served
with Capt. William Douglass and Col. William Russell; was discharged after
the surrender of Cornwallis. He first resided in Morgan County, Illinois,
but died in Emmet Township, McDonough County, near Colchester, Nov 9, 1846.
> William
Willard - The parents of William WILLARD, are suspected of coming from Augusta
Co. Va., sometime previous to 1755. Siblings of William are: Isaac, Joseph,
Ann, Jean, Elendar, John & Mary WILLARD
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