Page:Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography volume 1.djvu/152

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VIRGINIA BIOGRAPHY

Wood, Abraham, was for many years one of the leading men of the colony. He came to Virginia as a little boy of ten years in 1620 in the "Margaret and John." commanded by Capt. Chester. This was the vessel that fought the famous sea f^ght with two Spanish men-of-war. Little .Abraham escaped un- harmed, and in 1625 was living at Jamestown i-i the employment of Capt. Samuel Mathews. He represented Henrico county in the house of burgesses from 1644 to 1646. He was placed in charge of Fort Henry at the falls of Appomatox. where, dwelling on the frontier wood, he became well acc|uainted with the In- dians and their country. On Aug. 24. 1650, Wood, lulward I'.land and a number of others set forth from 1-ort Henry, now the site of Petersburg, and made an exploration to the southwest, where they discovered a new river running west. P.land published an account of this journey in 1652. About the time of this trip. Wood changed his residence to the south side of the Appomatox river, in Charles City, and. as Major Abraham Wood, was burgess of that county from 1652 to 1656. In 1655, he was a justice of Charles City and the follow- ing year was made colonel of the regiment of Henrico and Charles City, in place of Col. Hill. susi)ended. In the same year, he was appointed on a committee to review the laws of Virginia. On March 13. 1657-58. he was elected to the council and remained a member of that body for many years, being present at the session of Sept.. 1671. He appears to have held the office of major general until after Bacon's Rebellion, when, perhaps on account of opposition to the policy of the government. he seems to have lost his position and been re- duced to the rank of colonel. In 1676, Gov. Berkeley wrote that Maj. Gen. Wood of the council kept to his house through infirmity, but

he seems to have recovered as, in March. 1678- 79. he was carrying on negotiations with the Indians and arranging for the chief men of the hostile tribes to meet in Jamestown. He died sometime between 1681 and 1686.

Carter, John Sr., was the first of the well known \'irginia family of that name to come from England. He settled in Upper Norfolk wdiich he represented in the house of burgesses in March, 1642-43. He was a burgess for Nansemond in Oct., 1649 and for Lancaster from 1654 to 1660. He was justice in Lan- caster in 1653 and. at the division of the county on Dec. 13. 1656. he was appointed pre- siding justice and colonel commandant of Lan- caster. In Nov.. 1654. the assembly directed that an attack be made upon the Rappahanock Indians and that Maj. John Carter be ap- pointed commander-in-chief. He was elected to the council on March 13, 1657-58. but w^as not sworn until the assembly adjourned. On March 8, 1659, Gov. Matthews issued an order to the sherifif of Lancaster to arrest Col. John Carter "for contempt of the late commission of Government sent out by his Highness (Cromwell) and the lords of the Council, to appear before the Governor and Council at lamestown." He was one of the commission- ers appointed in 1663. by the governor of Vir- ginia to confer with the commissioners from Maryland as to a restriction of tobacco plant- ing. He was a vestryman of Christ Church Parish in Lancaster and the original church there was built under his direction. The pres- ent edifice, one of the finest specimens of colo- nial architecture standing, was built by the councillor's son, Robert Carter. He died on the 10 of June, 1669, as stated on his tomb in Christ Church.

Horsmanden, Warham, was the son of the