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6 unusual facts about William Byrd II


Ridgeway, Virginia

Approximately three miles south of Ridgeway in Henry County on U.S. Route 220 is a Virginia State historic marker noting the passing of the surveying party of William Byrd II, who moved through the area in 1728 on his expedition to survey the dividing line between Virginia and North Carolina.

Tutelo language

Previously, the only recorded information on the language had been a short list of words and phrases collected by Lt. John Fontaine at Fort Christanna in 1716, and a few assorted terms recorded by colonial sources such as John Lederer, Abraham Wood, Hugh Jones, and William Byrd II.

William Byrd II

William Byrd II died on August 26, 1744 and was buried at Westover Plantation, Virginia, British America.

He returned to the Colony following his schooling in England, lived in lordly estate on his plantation, Westover Plantation, and gathered the most valuable library in the Virginia Colony, numbering some 4000 books.

Byrd's son, William Byrd III, inherited his family land but chose to fight in the French and Indian War rather than spend much time in Richmond.

William Byrd III

William Byrd III (September 6, 1728 – January 1 or January 2, 1777) was the son of William Byrd II and the grandson of William Byrd I.


John Bolling

William Byrd II of Westover Plantation is said to have remarked that Major Bolling enjoyed "all the profits of an immense trade with his countrymen, and of one still greater with the Indian."

Patteson-Schutte House

It was built sometime between 1725 and 1750 by James Patteson, the overseer of a south side plantation owned by William Byrd III, son of William Byrd II, the founder of Richmond.


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