Hello, everyone.
I am a descendant of the Robert Cates, Quaker shoemaker of Henrico and
Prince George (d. 1729/1730), through his probable grandson Bernard Cate
of Orange Co., NC (d. 1821).
I have been giving some thought to the English origins of Robert and
wonder if anyone else has been pursuing this particular tack? It is usual
to look at the given names in an early Virginia family in order to help
narrow down the options for origins in England. Virginians were very
faithful in preserving the names of grandfathers, fathers and uncles in
the names of their children. We also know that most Virginians came from
the West Country in England per David Hackett Fisher's wonderful
study--ALBION's SEED. Many of their customs were preserved from that
region including the famous southern drawl.
Now Robert's known children were Robert, Richard, William, Thomas,
Benjamin and John. Richard may have been the eldest since he remained in
Virginia. But otherwise, the birth order is unknown.
Has anyone looked at the Keate/Keates Family of Berkshire and Oxfordshire
in England. The names I've listed above were very popular among that set.
Here, for example, are some parish records from Stonesfield in Oxfordshire:
Children of Robert Keats
Richard christened 2 Feb 1586
Robert christened 3 Sep 1592
James christened 7 Jul 1599
Susannah christened 3 Aug 1662
Andrew christened 20 Jan 1606
Children of Richard Keates and Alice Coats
Richard christened 24 Feb 1612
Margaret christened 8 Jun 1620
John christened 23 Oct 1623
Robert christened 1 Jul 1621
Children of John Keate
Richard christened 18 Jun 1652
Robert christened 3 Nov 1654
Thomas christened 28 Sep 1660
Timothy christened 8 Jul 1669
John christened 30 Nov 1670
I am not saying this is our family, but you can see the perpetuation of
several names that our Robert favored across quite a few generations. You
must recognize that there are big gaps in these records, but I think a
close examination of the original record would yield more detail. (This
info is drawn from the IGI.)
Does anyone know if I am correct in equating the name Keate (Keates) which
is still common in England with Cate/Cates? Is that the way the name is
pronounced in England? Has anyone tried to find a reference to Robert
Keates/Cates in the Quaker records of England?
Larry W. Cates