George Mason I
Encyclopedia
George Mason I was the progenitor of the prominent American landholding and political Mason family
. Mason was the great-grandfather of George Mason IV
, a Founding Father of the United States
.
, Worcestershire
, England
on 5 June 1629. He was the third of seven children of yeoman
farmer Thomas Mason and his wife Ann French. Mason was christened
at Pershore Abbey
, Holy Cross Church, Pershore, Worcestershire, on 10 June 1629.
member of the Parliament of England
during the reign of Charles I of England
. Mason was against Charles I's execution in 1649. He became a captain, commanding a troop in Charles II
's army. When the Royalist forces were defeated at the Battle of Worcester
by Oliver Cromwell
in 1651, Mason hurriedly left England.
, Virginia
on the ship Assurance in 1652. Mason was accompanied by his cousins and neighbors from England, Thomas and Gerard Fowke of Staffordshire
. He settled in Westmoreland County
, Virginia
in the early 1650s and was associated with the naming of Stafford County
when it was formed from Westmoreland County in 1664. Mason eventually settled permanently near an Indian village along Accokeek Creek
on a hill between present-day State Routes 608 (Brooke Road) and 621 (Marlborough Point Road) in Stafford County. He named his residence Accokeek
, later rechristened Rose Hill. The property was named for the now extinct Accokeek
Native American tribe
which inhabited present-day Prince George's County
, Maryland
. Accokeek plantation
began as 650 acres (2.6 km²) and gradually increased to 1150 acres (4.7 km²) in size.
and in 1670, he served as the county's second sheriff
. Mason served as Stafford County's county lieutenant in 1675. Mason also served as a Justice of the Peace
and vestryman
. Mason also served as a colonel
in Stafford County's militia
. In the Acts of the Assembly for 1675, 1679, and 1684, Colonel Mason was actively engaged in defending his frontier county against the Indians.
Mason married secondly to Frances Norgrave in 1664 in Stafford County
, Virginia
. They had one daughter, Sarah E. Mason, born in 1672.
in Stafford County, Virginia. His gravesite is currently unmarked.
, named in honor of Mason's great-grandson
, re-established its Naming Committee to research and select names for its campus facilities and infrastructure. The committee agreed upon the name "Masonvale" for its faculty and staff housing community in the northeast section of George Mason University's Fairfax Campus. The appendage of “vale” was derived from George Mason I's birthplace, Pershore, which lies in an agricultural region known as the Vale of Evesham in Worcestershire, England. To unify the naming theme within Masonvale, the names “Pershore” and “Evesham” were then used as street names for the community. Other street names used are “Bredon Hill,” “Cotswolds Hill,” and “Staffordshire.” All are regions of Old Worcestershire where many of Mason’s ancestors once resided.
Mason family
The Mason family of Virginia is a historically significant American political family whose prominent members are known for their accomplishments in politics, business, and the military. The progenitor of the Mason family, George Mason I , arrived at Norfolk, Virginia on the ship Assurance in 1652...
. Mason was the great-grandfather of George Mason IV
George Mason
George Mason IV was an American Patriot, statesman and a delegate from Virginia to the U.S. Constitutional Convention...
, a Founding Father of the United States
Founding Fathers of the United States
The Founding Fathers of the United States of America were political leaders and statesmen who participated in the American Revolution by signing the United States Declaration of Independence, taking part in the American Revolutionary War, establishing the United States Constitution, or by some...
.
Early life
Mason was born in PershorePershore
Pershore is a market town in Worcestershire, England, on the banks of the River Avon. Pershore is in the Wychavon district and is part of the West Worcestershire parliamentary constituency. At the 2001 census the population was 7,304...
, Worcestershire
Worcestershire
Worcestershire is a non-metropolitan county, established in antiquity, located in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes it is a NUTS 3 region and is one of three counties that comprise the "Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire" NUTS 2 region...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
on 5 June 1629. He was the third of seven children of yeoman
Yeoman
Yeoman refers chiefly to a free man owning his own farm, especially from the Elizabethan era to the 17th century. Work requiring a great deal of effort or labor, such as would be done by a yeoman farmer, came to be described as "yeoman's work"...
farmer Thomas Mason and his wife Ann French. Mason was christened
Baptism
In Christianity, baptism is for the majority the rite of admission , almost invariably with the use of water, into the Christian Church generally and also membership of a particular church tradition...
at Pershore Abbey
Pershore Abbey
Pershore Abbey, at Pershore in Worcestershire, was an Anglo-Saxon abbey and is now an Anglican parish church.-Foundation:The foundation of the minster at Pershore is alluded to in a spurious charter of King Æthelred of Mercia...
, Holy Cross Church, Pershore, Worcestershire, on 10 June 1629.
Political involvement in England
Mason was a CavalierCavalier
Cavalier was the name used by Parliamentarians for a Royalist supporter of King Charles I and son Charles II during the English Civil War, the Interregnum, and the Restoration...
member of the Parliament of England
Parliament of England
The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England. In 1066, William of Normandy introduced a feudal system, by which he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics before making laws...
during the reign of Charles I of England
Charles I of England
Charles I was King of England, King of Scotland, and King of Ireland from 27 March 1625 until his execution in 1649. Charles engaged in a struggle for power with the Parliament of England, attempting to obtain royal revenue whilst Parliament sought to curb his Royal prerogative which Charles...
. Mason was against Charles I's execution in 1649. He became a captain, commanding a troop in Charles II
Charles II of England
Charles II was monarch of the three kingdoms of England, Scotland, and Ireland.Charles II's father, King Charles I, was executed at Whitehall on 30 January 1649, at the climax of the English Civil War...
's army. When the Royalist forces were defeated at the Battle of Worcester
Battle of Worcester
The Battle of Worcester took place on 3 September 1651 at Worcester, England and was the final battle of the English Civil War. Oliver Cromwell and the Parliamentarians defeated the Royalist, predominantly Scottish, forces of King Charles II...
by Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell
Oliver Cromwell was an English military and political leader who overthrew the English monarchy and temporarily turned England into a republican Commonwealth, and served as Lord Protector of England, Scotland, and Ireland....
in 1651, Mason hurriedly left England.
Arrival in Virginia
Mason probably arrived at NorfolkNorfolk, Virginia
Norfolk is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. With a population of 242,803 as of the 2010 Census, it is Virginia's second-largest city behind neighboring Virginia Beach....
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
on the ship Assurance in 1652. Mason was accompanied by his cousins and neighbors from England, Thomas and Gerard Fowke of Staffordshire
Staffordshire
Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. For Eurostat purposes, the county is a NUTS 3 region and is one of four counties or unitary districts that comprise the "Shropshire and Staffordshire" NUTS 2 region. Part of the National Forest lies within its borders...
. He settled in Westmoreland County
Westmoreland County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 16,718 people, 6,846 households, and 4,689 families residing in the county. The population density was . There were 9,286 housing units at an average density of...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
in the early 1650s and was associated with the naming of Stafford County
Stafford County, Virginia
Stafford County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a U.S. state, and just across the Rappahannock River from the City of Fredericksburg. As of the 2000 census, the population was 92,446, increasing to 128,961 in 2010.. Its county seat is Stafford. In 2006, and again in 2009,...
when it was formed from Westmoreland County in 1664. Mason eventually settled permanently near an Indian village along Accokeek Creek
Accokeek Creek
Accokeek Creek is a tidal tributary of Potomac Creek, itself a tributary of the Potomac River, in Stafford County, Virginia, United States. From it headwaters to its mouth, Accokeek Creek is in total length.-Nomenclature:...
on a hill between present-day State Routes 608 (Brooke Road) and 621 (Marlborough Point Road) in Stafford County. He named his residence Accokeek
Accokeek (plantation)
Accokeek was a 17th-century plantation on Accokeek Creek in Stafford County, Virginia, United States. Accokeek was the first seat of the prominent Mason political family in Virginia.-History:...
, later rechristened Rose Hill. The property was named for the now extinct Accokeek
Accokeek
Accokeek was the name of a tribe of Native Americans in the United States. The tribe is now extinct.Accokeek may also refer to:*Accokeek Creek Site, an archeological site in Maryland...
Native American tribe
Indian tribe
In the United States, a Native American tribe is any extant or historical tribe, band, nation, or other group or community of Indigenous peoples in the United States...
which inhabited present-day Prince George's County
Prince George's County, Maryland
Prince George's County is a county located in the U.S. state of Maryland, immediately north, east, and south of Washington, DC. As of 2010, it has a population of 863,420 and is the wealthiest African-American majority county in the nation....
, Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. Accokeek plantation
Plantation
A plantation is a long artificially established forest, farm or estate, where crops are grown for sale, often in distant markets rather than for local on-site consumption...
began as 650 acres (2.6 km²) and gradually increased to 1150 acres (4.7 km²) in size.
Political involvement in Virginia
Mason represented Stafford County in the House of BurgessesHouse of Burgesses
The House of Burgesses was the first assembly of elected representatives of English colonists in North America. The House was established by the Virginia Company, who created the body as part of an effort to encourage English craftsmen to settle in North America...
and in 1670, he served as the county's second sheriff
Sheriff
A sheriff is in principle a legal official with responsibility for a county. In practice, the specific combination of legal, political, and ceremonial duties of a sheriff varies greatly from country to country....
. Mason served as Stafford County's county lieutenant in 1675. Mason also served as a Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
and vestryman
Vestryman
A vestryman is a member of his local church's vestry, or leading body. He is not a member of the clergy.In England especially, but also in other parts of The United Kingdom, Parish Councils have long been a level of local government rather than being solely ecclesiastical in nature...
. Mason also served as a colonel
Colonel
Colonel , abbreviated Col or COL, is a military rank of a senior commissioned officer. It or a corresponding rank exists in most armies and in many air forces; the naval equivalent rank is generally "Captain". It is also used in some police forces and other paramilitary rank structures...
in Stafford County's militia
Militia
The term militia is commonly used today to refer to a military force composed of ordinary citizens to provide defense, emergency law enforcement, or paramilitary service, in times of emergency without being paid a regular salary or committed to a fixed term of service. It is a polyseme with...
. In the Acts of the Assembly for 1675, 1679, and 1684, Colonel Mason was actively engaged in defending his frontier county against the Indians.
Marriage and children
Mason married Mary French in 1658. He and Mary had one son:- George Mason IIGeorge Mason IIGeorge Mason II was an early American planter and statesman. Mason was the grandfather of George Mason IV, a Founding Father of the United States.-Early life:...
(1660–1716)
Mason married secondly to Frances Norgrave in 1664 in Stafford County
Stafford County, Virginia
Stafford County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Virginia, a U.S. state, and just across the Rappahannock River from the City of Fredericksburg. As of the 2000 census, the population was 92,446, increasing to 128,961 in 2010.. Its county seat is Stafford. In 2006, and again in 2009,...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
. They had one daughter, Sarah E. Mason, born in 1672.
Later life
Mason died in 1686. His body was interred in 1686 on a hillside at AccokeekAccokeek (plantation)
Accokeek was a 17th-century plantation on Accokeek Creek in Stafford County, Virginia, United States. Accokeek was the first seat of the prominent Mason political family in Virginia.-History:...
in Stafford County, Virginia. His gravesite is currently unmarked.
Masonvale
George Mason UniversityGeorge Mason University
George Mason University is a public university based in unincorporated Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, south of and adjacent to the city of Fairfax. Additional campuses are located nearby in Arlington County, Prince William County, and Loudoun County...
, named in honor of Mason's great-grandson
George Mason
George Mason IV was an American Patriot, statesman and a delegate from Virginia to the U.S. Constitutional Convention...
, re-established its Naming Committee to research and select names for its campus facilities and infrastructure. The committee agreed upon the name "Masonvale" for its faculty and staff housing community in the northeast section of George Mason University's Fairfax Campus. The appendage of “vale” was derived from George Mason I's birthplace, Pershore, which lies in an agricultural region known as the Vale of Evesham in Worcestershire, England. To unify the naming theme within Masonvale, the names “Pershore” and “Evesham” were then used as street names for the community. Other street names used are “Bredon Hill,” “Cotswolds Hill,” and “Staffordshire.” All are regions of Old Worcestershire where many of Mason’s ancestors once resided.