Nicholas Meriwether II (b. October 26, 1665, died December, 1744)

Nicholas was born in Surry County and died in Albemarle County. He was the son of Nicholas Meriwether, the first to emigrate from England to Virginia, and his wife, Elizabeth Woodhouse. Nicholas, II, married Elizabeth Crawford (died 1762), daughter of David Crawford, a large land owner in New Kent County. Along with his son-in-law, Robert Lewis, Nicholas “pushed out to hitherto unoccupied lands in Piedmont, Virginia. Both took out grants for themselves of thousands of acres, being good judges of fertile, well watered selections.” (Anderson, p. 62) Nicholas acquired large land grants in Hanover County (later Albemarle and Louisa Counties) from the Royal Governor and the King’s Council of Virginia totaling 17,952 acres. This grant included the “Clover Fields,” “Castle Hill” and “Belvoir” tracts. Another grant of 1,020 acres included his home “The Farm.” Nicholas and Elizabeth had nine children, four sons and five daughters and most of these offspring received large gifts of land during their father’s lifetime. The three siblings that were most connected to Lucy Meriwether Lewis Marks’ life were:

Jane (1705-1745/55), married Robert Lewis of “Belvoir” and one of their sons, William, became the first husband of Lucy Meriwether.
Nicholas (b. July 11, 1699, died 1739) married Mildred Thornton (1721 -1778). After her husband’s death, she married Dr. Thomas Walker (b. 1715, died 1794) in 1741. Through her late husband’s estate, Dr. Walker gained access to the land and house, “Castle Hill”, an estate of 1,650 acres (Walker later expanded the property to 4,300 acres). Their daughter, Mary Walker (b. 1742) married Nicholas Lewis in 1760, brother of William Lewis (husband of Lucy Meriwether Lewis) and uncle of Meriwether Lewis.
Col. David Meriwether (1690 - 1744), the fourth son of Nicholas, II and his wife, Elizabeth Crawford, was born in New Kent County. He married Ann Holmes (1695 - 1735/36), daughter of George Holmes of King and Queen County. He and his wife had eight children. Their oldest son, Thomas Meriwether, was the father of Lucy Meriwether Lewis Marks.

Patricia Zontine, April 2009