A Mystery: Rebecca Braden who married Henry Long

As I've researched the Braden family in Loudoun Co., Virginia, I have come across a couple of individuals that I have so far not been able to place in one of the known Braden families.  One of these people is Rebecca Braden who married Henry Long in Loudoun Co. on 26 March 1803.  They were married by the Rev. John Littlejohn.

My search to discover Rebecca's parentage has turned up only a little about this couple.

The Long family notes by Charles Blair Tavenner show no parentage for Henry or Rebecca.  He notes their 1803 marriage and seems to believe that Henry remarried before about 1811 to Rachel Sands, daughter of Isaac Sands.  I have not found this second marriage.

The 1810 census for Loudoun Co. shows a Henry Long with a household of seven people:  2 males aged 16-25, 1 male 26-44, 3 females under 10, 1 female 16-25.  The older male is probably Henry and the older female probably his wife.  The 3 females under 10 could be their children.  The 2 males aged 16-25 are probably not their sons, IF this is the correct Henry Long.

From Apprentices, Poor Children and Bastards, Loudoun County, Virginia 1757-1850 by Louisa Skinner Hutchison, I found that Ralph Gray was apprenticed to Henry Long on 9 January 1804.  Then on 8 October 1804, Ralph Gray, apprentice of Henry Long was discharged from his apprenticeship.  On 9 April 1805, Henry Goodheart, 10 years old on 18 December 1804, was bound to Henry Long to learn to be a blacksmith.   On 8 October 1810, Elizabeth Mock, 8 years old on 20 January 1810, was bound to Henry Long.  And on 9 April 1811, Elizabeth Mock, 8 years old on 20 January 1811, who had formerly been bound to Henry Long, was bound to Samuel Orrison.  From this, I believe that the two young men and at least one of the females under 10 found on the 1810 census in Henry's household may actually be his apprentices.

A Henry Long is found on the Loudoun County tax lists from 1798 to 1812.  He is shown in the First Battalion, which was generally the northwest area of the county.  The 1804 list shows Henry's apprentice, Ralph Gray.   The 1809 list shows Henry Long and his apprentice.  The 1810 and 1811 lists show Henry Long with Henry Goodheart, his other apprentice.

The Loudoun deed books show Henry Long purchasing a lot in Waterford in April 1808 from William and Eleanor Hough (whose daughter-in-law was Jane (Braden) Hough mentioned below) and Asa Moore.  They also show Henry Long and wife Rebekah selling a lot in Waterford to Mortho Sullivan in April 1808.  Then in November 1811, Abijah and Elizabeth Sands and Henry and Rachel Long sold six acres to Thomas and Elias Hughes.

That is all I've found on Henry and Rebecca so far.

To me it appears that Henry Long and Rebecca Braden married in 1803.  They bought a lot in Waterford in 1808.  Sometime between 1808 and 1811, Rebecca died.  Henry remarried before November 1811 to Rachel Sands.  He sold land in 1811.  Also in 1811, Elizabeth Mock was no longer apprenticed to Henry.  Henry is not on the tax lists after 1812.  Sometime around 1812, Henry and Rachel either died or left Loudoun Co.  I've found no cemetery records for Rebecca, Rachel or Henry. If they died in Loudoun, I would expect to find some estate or probate records of some kind, but have not found any.

If Rebecca and Henry were 18 to 25 years old at the time of their marriage, then they would have been born about 1778 to about 1785.  This makes her the correct age to be a child of Joseph Braden and his wife, Sarah Wright, however, neither she nor Henry are mentioned in any of the documents I have found involving Joseph and Sarah and their children.  She is not mentioned in either of their wills.  Joseph's was written in February 1810 and Sarah's was written March 1816.  Sarah gives legacies to several grandchildren in her will, but none that seem to be Rebecca (Braden) Long's children. It is possible that Rebecca was their daughter and that she died before Joseph made his will in February 1810.  However, so far I have nothing to convince me that this is true.

There is another possibility.  She might be a child of the other Joseph Braden that was in Loudoun at the time, though he was in the Third Battalion, not the First.  This Joseph was married to Phoebe Bartleson and was probably a cousin of Joseph who married Sarah Wright.  He disappears from the tax lists after 1804.  Most of what I know about Joseph and Phoebe comes from a descendant of theirs, David Negus.

Rebecca is a name that appears in this Braden family.  Joseph Braden had a sister, Rebecca.  His daughter, Jane Hough, named a daughter, Rebecca.  It would seem logical that Joseph and Phoebe might name one of their daughters, Rebecca.

We don't know all of Joseph and Phoebe's children, but we do know that one was daughter, Jane Braden, who married John Hough (son of William and Eleanor mentioned above) in 1788 and lived in Waterford.  If Rebecca was her younger sister, it might be understandable that Rebecca and Henry settled there.  And the fact that Henry purchased land in Waterford from Jane (Braden) Hough's in-laws makes me think there might be a family connection.

At this point, my guess is that the Rebecca Braden who married Henry Long was the daughter of Joseph and Phoebe (Bartleson) Braden.  I will keep looking for clues to help me determine what is correct.

Many thanks to Pat Duncan for her help with my research for this posting.