Administrative Information

Access Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Use Restrictions

There are no restrictions.

Preferred Citation

Rochester family. Papers, 1778-1821. Accession 27231, Personal papers collection, The Library of Virginia, Richmond, Virginia.

Acquisition Information

Lent for copying by Madeline J. Osgood, through Ralph C. Jones, 28 October 1969.

Biographical/Historical Information

Nicholas Rochester was born in England and died in Westmoreland County, Virginia. John Rochester, son of Nicholas, married Hester Thrift, daughter of William Thrift of Richmond, Virginia, and died in Westmoreland County, Virginia in 1754. Hester Rochester (d. 1784) married Thomas Critchen (d. 1778) in 1756 and moved to Granville, North Carolina in 1763. John Rochester, son of John and Hester, moved to Kentucky. Nathaniel, son of John and Hester, was born in Westmoreland County, Virginia, 21 Feb. 1752 and died in Rochester, New York on 17 May 1831. He married Sophia Beatty of Frederick County, Maryland (1768- 1845) on 20 April 1788.

Scope and Content Information

Papers, 1778-1821, of the Rochester family of Westmoreland County, Virginia, Missouri, and New York. Includes correspondence, deeds, receipts, genealogical notes, and Bible records. Includes numerous receipts for slaves bought and sold, 1781-1809, in Maryland. Also includes a note to let William Rochester and his slaves pass through Pennsylvania "unmolested" to New York, dated 9 Sept. 1809. Correspondents include Andrew Dunn, John Rochester, Nathaniel Rochester, and C. Carroll. Topics include family, health, travels, slaves, description of New Orleans (La.) and Missouri. Of note are two letters regarding the War of 1812 and the burning of Washington (D.C.) in 1814.

The second folder includes Bible records of the Rochester and related families of Westmoreland County, Virginia; and California, Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Vermont, and Washington, D.C.; and Switzerland. Other surnames include: Atwater, Backus, Balestier, Bannam, Bear, Beatty, Bishop, Bragg, Brown, Bull, Cary, Child, Coleman, Critchen, Cumming, Delancey, Ellis, Elton, Everett, Fullman, Garnsey, Gates, Gibbons, Haydon, Hopkins, Irwin, Jeffrey, Jones, Kelly, Macy, Martin, Mills, Milne, Montgomery, Moore, Mosby, Nichols, Phillips, Pitcher, Pitkin, Powers, Prince, Pruyn, Rogers, Sawyer, Sayles, Shepard, Shoaff, Smith, Spencer, Stone, Thrift, Vail, Van Emery, Whitehouse, Whitney, Wilde, Wilkins, Willard, Williams, Williston, and Young.

Arrangement

Folder 1 contains family papers. Folder 2 contains genealogical notes and Bible records of the Rochester and related families.