Jean Jacques Flournoy was born in Switzerland to a
prominent French Huguenot family. His great-great-grandfather had fled to
Geneva after the massacre of the Protestants at Vassy. The family lived and
flourished there for over one hundred years until Jean Jacques grew restless
and decided to emigrate to Virginia.
2 He was a watchmaker by trade and decided to set up
shop at Williamsburg, the colonial capital of Virginia. There Jean Jacques
became John James, rented a room and began looking for a more suitable location
to house his business.
3 Now it happened about that time that the widow of
Orlando Jones was looking to sell her late husband’s house on Duke of
Gloucester Street as directed in his will. Her name was Mary; and she was
beautiful, charming and only twenty-three years old.
4 “The house is perfect, and its mistress is
beautiful,” John told her. He purchased the house for one hundred pounds
“current money” and one hundred pounds Sterling. He also began calling on the
Widow Jones immediately thereafter.
5 One day, John knocked on her door and presented her
with flowers as she welcomed him into her home. “They are splendid!” she
exclaimed with obvious delight. “Not as splendid as the lady who holds them,”
he replied. “Monsieur Flournoy, you are too kind, and people are beginning to
talk,” Mary giggled. “Then we must silence all of the whispering and be
married,” he blurted out.
6 They were married in June of 1720 at the Bruton
Parish Church which had been finished just five years prior to that event.
Everyone in Williamsburg seemed to be happy for the couple except for her first
husband’s family.
7 Mary was the guardian of Orlando’s two young
children by his first wife, her step-children. “We don’t want Mr. Flournoy
taking advantage of the inheritance of my brother’s children,” Orlando’s sister
protested. As a consequence, John and Mary surrendered custody of the boy and
girl to the Jones family. Many years later, the daughter (Frances) would go on
to have a daughter of her own (Martha), who would then go on to marry George
Washington.
8 Nevertheless, the unpleasantness over Mary’s
step-children did not put too much of a dent in the couple’s bliss. After all,
they had already had four children of their own by that time. And, over the
years that followed, they would produce five more children together. One of
whom (a boy named Matthews) would figure prominently in the push to settle the
lands on the other side of Virginia’s mountains.
9 Then, in March of 1640, tragedy struck the family.
John came down with a fever and was dead within days. “I won’t last the week,”
Mary predicted. She followed her husband to the grave two days later. Some of
her neighbors said that she died of the fever, others claimed that she had died
of a broken heart.
10 Now these are the generations of Jean Jacques
Flournoy of Switzerland:
11 John James Flournoy married Mary Elizabeth Williams
Jones, and they had a son named Matthews.
12 Matthews Flournoy married Patsy Pryor, and they had
a son named Samuel.
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