Page:Encyclopedia of Virginia Biography volume 5.djvu/598

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VIRGINIA BIOGRAPHY

citv of Lynchburg, called "Chestnut Hill," and there he and his wife are buried. He took up large tracts of land, thousands of acres, both on the James and Staunton rivers and many other parts of Virginia. He represented the county of Albemarle in the house of burgesses in 1748 and was elected to this honorable office without his knowl- edge. He was also justice of Goochland county, later justice of Albemarle county, and in 1749-51 served as sheriff of Albe- marle. In 1745 he was appointed captain. Sarah, his wife, commenced the meeting of Friends at South River (Lynchburg), by sitting alone with her children for Divine worship, which afterward grew into a large Quarterly Meeting; but she was disowned for "marrying out," when she became the second wife of Major John Ward, on De- cember 17, 1766. She was, however, re- ceived back into membership in 1773. She had no children by her second marriage. Children of Charles and Sarah (Clark) Lynch: i. Penelope, born about 1734; mar- ried, about 1750, Captain Robert Adams. 2. Charles, see forward. 3. Sarah, born 1738, died 1773; married, 1754. Micajah Terrell, one of the first justices of Campbell county. 4. John, born 1740, died 1820; married, 1768, Mary Bowles ; he was a member of the So- ciety of Friends and was the founder of the city of Lynchburg. 5. Christopher, born about 1742; married, 1765, Anne Ward, daughter of Major John Ward. 6. Edward, born about 1744, died young, unmarried.

Colonel Charles Lynch, son of Charles and Sarah (Clark) Lynch, was born in 1736. He married, January 12, 1755, Anna Ter- rell, daughter of Henry Terrell and his wife, Anna (Chilesj Terrell, he being nineteen and she sixteen years of age. Colonel Lynch served in the house of burgesses for Bedford county in 1769-74-75. He was one of the signers of the Non-Importation Agreement, and advocated that the taxation of the colony, trials for treason, felony, etc., should be in the hands of the burgesses ; and he was one of those noble patriots who formed the convention that met in St. John's Church, Richmond, in .\ugust, 1775, when the eloquence of Patrick Henry inmiortal- ized himself, and incited his associates to "Liberty or to Death." During the war of the revolution Colonel Lynch was promi- nent in the defense of his country, serving on the staf? of General Green in his south-

ern campaign. At the battle of Guilford Court House he held a position on Green's right flank, and according to Howe "behav- ed with much gallantry." Lee also extols the "noble conduct" of this command. When at one time during the war a combination of Tories and outlaws infested the moun- tain region of Virginia, Colonel Lynch with other prominent Whigs resorted to sum- mary methods of repression. These gentle- men seized objectionable persons of this class, and after a speedy trial at which Colo- nel Lynch acted as judge — a title attached to him during the remainder of his life — swung up the malefactors, if found guilty, to the limb of a walnut tree of Colonel Lynch's, administered nine and thirty stripes and compelled them to give three cheers for "Liberty." The refrain of the ballard sung by Captain Lynch's men was:

Hurrah for Colonel Lynch, Captain Bob, and Cal- loway!

They never let a Tory rest, 'till he cries out for "Liberty."

Thus it was that a term, "lynching" had its origin in acts necessary to preserve the country in its struggle for liberty, and as justifiable as any battle fought during the war. To protect Colonel Lynch and his as- sociates from prosecution or annoyance, an act was passed by the general assembly at its October session in 1782. He retained his command of militia until peace with Great Britain was fully established, and did not assume his duties as justice of the county court until February 5, 1784, on which date he took the oath of office. Not far from the walnut tree on which the Tor- ies were whipped, and which is still flour- ishing. Colonel Lynch lies in the family graveyard of his "Avoca" estate. A simple granite stone marks his resting place with these lines inscribed :

In Memory of

Colonel Charles Lynch

A zealous and active patriot of the Revolution

Died Octo. 29th 1796. Aged sixty years.

Children of Colonel Charles Lynch and his wife. Anna (Terrell) Lynch: i. Charles, married his first cousin, Sally Adams, and moved to Kentucky ; his son, Charles, be- came governor of Mississippi. 2. Anselm, see forward. 3. John (called "Staunton John" to distinguish him from his uncle,