Heinrich Hiestand in Virginia

Orange-Frederick-Dunmore/Shenandoah Counties
(Now Page County, Virginia)

In which county of Virginia did Henry Hiestand settle and live?

The answer to this question is not a simple one.
It all depends on what year you are talking about.

When he purchased 205 acres from Philip Long on September 21, 1743,
his land was in Orange County with the seat of government, at that time, in Raccoon Ford, VA (approximately 50 miles from the land he purchased).
In 1738 Frederick County was created from Orange County, but it took about five years (1743) for the county government to be organized in Winchester, VA (also, about 50 miles away from Henry's home). So, for about 30 years Henry's land was in Frederick County and he traveled to Winchester for official government business.
Then, in 1772, Dunmore County was created out of Frederick County and Henry's land became a part of this new county, with the county seat in Woodstock, VA (about 25 miles from Henry's home).
In 1778, Dunmore County's name was changed to Shenandoah County and Woodstock remained the county seat.
In 1831, fifty-two years after his death, the original Henry Hiestand place became a part of Page County which was formed out of Shenandoah and Rockingham Counties. The town of Luray, VA is the seat of government for Page County. The Henry Hiestand home place is just a few miles west of Luray, on the South Fork of the Shenandoah River.

So, during his life in Virginia, Henry lived in three different counties without moving (four if you count Dunmore and Shenandoah as different counties) and conducted official government business in three different county seats.

Which, by the way, makes it interesting to do historical research on the Virginia Hiestand family!

Henry (and Abraham) Hiestand Land - 1743-1783

Heastand

From pages 455-456 of Pioneers of Old Frederick County Virginia by Cecil O'Dell
(Westminster, MD: Heritage Books, Inc., 1995)

We appreciate this generally helpful work by Cecil O'Dell, but there are several errors in the book, relating to Henry Hiestand's land, that need to be corrected. The information that is inaccurate, in the following paragraphs, is highlighted and corrections appear beneath the paragraphs.

Henry Heastand/Heston/Hastings purchased 205 acres from Philip Long on 21 September 1743¹ and received a Fairfax grant for 264 acres (the 205 acres were included within the 264 acres) on 2 August 1762.² (Tract 111C, Map 14 [of O'Dell's book]) This tract, part of Stover's 5,000-acre patent land, was located west of Luray Caverns. Page County Highway 647/645 north of U.S. Highway 211 provides access to the property.

The 205 acres were NOT included within the 264 acres, they were separate tracts. And State Route 675 is the highway that runs by the property, which is now on Stage Lane, Luray, VA and northeast of Luray Caverns. See map with both tracts.

In 1756, Henry purchased 400 acres located on Passage Creek in Powell's Fort (Fort Valley, Virginia) from Peter Tear who had purchased the tract from Gervas Daugherty of Stafford County, Virginia.³ He received a Fairfax grant for the 400-acre tract on 3 June 1778.⁴ His son Abraham Heastand purchased 300 acres adjacent to this 400-acre tract from David Clem on 5 October 1763⁵ and received a Fairfax grant for the 300-acre tract dated 26 March 1777.⁶ These two tracts were located above Massanutten Path (probably present-day County Highway 675) in the south end of Fort Valley.

Only the 300 acres tract purchased by Abraham Hestant was specified to be located "above Massanutten Path."

On 24 March 1777 (two days after writing his will), Henry sold his two tracts on the South River Shenandoah to his sons John Heastand and Peter Heastand. John purchased 232 acres (part of the 264-acre Fairfax grand land) for 100 pounds and Peter purchased the remainder of the Fairfax grant land plus the 205-acre Stover land for 100 pounds.⁷

^{See the
map for Henry's 1743 and
1762 tracts compared to the land John, Peter, and Jacob inherited in
1777.}

John did purchase 232 acres for five shillings (or 100 pounds). And it was part of the 264-acres Fairfax grant. But it included some land that was not in Henry Hestant's 205 or 264 acres, IF those surveys were accurate.
Source: Pages 453 - 454 - 455 of Shenandoah County, VA Deed Book 1.

Peter did not purchase the remainder of the Fairfax grant, nor did he purchase all of the 205 acres tract. But the 230 acres that he did procure for five shillings (or 100 pounds) did include portions of Henry's 205 and 264 tracts, as well as some additional land that does seem to extend beyond (to the southeast of) Henry's original 264 acres, IF the 1762 survey of 264 acres was accurate.
Source: Pages 456 - 457 - 458 - 459 of Shenandoah County, VA Deed Book 1.

Apparently, O'Dell did not understand that Jacob, Henry's oldest son, inherited 330 acres that are not mentioned in the John and Peter deed surveys. Henry specified in his will that: "It is my will and ordaining that my son Jacob inherit my place, where I now should still reside, for [one] hundred and eighty pounds of money as it is current in Virginia after my demise." Jacob's land included most of the river frontage on the point of Bixler Ferry Bend, as well as a strip of land extending all the way back to Route 654, running between land inherited by John and Peter.

All total, these three sons seem to have inherited 792 acres, from Henry, on the South Fork Shenandoah River property in Bixler Ferry Bend.

See the map.

Henry Heastand (b. 1710 c.) was deceased by 28 August 1783 when his will (dated 22 March 1777) was proved in Shenandoah County Court. He listed five sons, naming only two: Jacob (the eldest) and Daniel; daughters: Barbara (the eldest), Magdalene (the youngest) and another daughter unnamed.⁸

Henry and his son Jacob affirmed in a 27 February 1773 affidavit that Henry was the father-in-law of Chrisley (Christian) Harness, son of Chrisley Harness, deceased.⁹ Christian Harness and his wife Mary (perhaps the unnamed daughter in Henry's will) sold 303 acres near the Heastand land on the South River Shenandoah to Joseph Strickler on 27 May 1777.¹⁰

John Heastand and his wife Elizabeth sold the 232-acre tract (purchased from his father) and 220 acres (purchased from James and Elizabeth Campbell on 23 June 1777) to Edwin Young for 500 pounds on 26 May 1783.¹¹

Abram (Abraham) Heastand and his wife Molley sold the 300-acre Fairfax grant land located in Fort Valley to James Breeding for 115 pounds on 22 August 1783.¹²

Jacob Heastand was deceased by 1795 when the Shenandoah County Court appointed Abraham Heastand as administrator of his estate.¹³ Peter Heastand was deceased by 9 March 1812 when his will (dated 30 December 1811) was proved in Shenandoah County Court. He listed his oldest daughter Elizabeth Ruffner (a widow); daughters Mary Huffman and Barbara Judd, wife of Person Judd. He bequeathed the 230 acres (purchased from his father in 1777) to his daughter Anna, wife of Michael Bixler. Peter appointed his son Peter Heastand and Daniel Strickler to serve as executors. In a codicil to his will, he bequeathed one horse, one cow and two sheep to his wife Barbara.¹⁴

¹ Orange County, Virginia Deed Book 7, p. 417.
² Gray, Northern Neck Grants, M-6.
³ Joyner, Northern Neck Warrants and Surveys, Shenandoah County, Vol. III, p. 31.
⁴ Gray, Northern Neck Grants, Q-294.
⁵ Joyner, Northern Neck Warrants and Surveys, Shenandoah County, Vol. III, p. 31; Dunmore County, p. 11.
⁶ Gray, Northern Neck Grants, Q-99.
⁷ Shenandoah County, Virginia Deed Book B, pp. 453, 456.
⁸ Shenandoah County, Virginia Will Book H, p. 154.
⁹ Joyner, Northern Neck Warrants and Surveys, Dunmore County, Vol. III, p. 10
¹⁰ Shenandoah County, Virginia Deed Book B, p. 521,
¹¹ Ibid., Book B, p. 529; Book D, p. 186.
¹² Ibid., Book D, p. 266.
¹³ Shenandoah County, Virginia Will Book D, p. 464.
¹⁴ Shenandoah County, Virginia Will Book H, p. 154.