Gloucester’s Page family has been going strong since the days before the American Revolution. And they’re still a major part of the community today.
Perhaps the most prominent of these is John Page. Virginia’s 13th governor, John Page was born at Rosewell Plantation in Gloucester in 1743.
“The first thing I’ll say is, when you read something about John Page, you’ve got to ask yourself which John Page are you talking about,” said Philip Page, vice president of the Gloucester Historical Society and a descendant of John Page of Rosewell’s uncle, John Page of North End [now Mathews County].
“There are plenty of John Pages … the Governor, or John Page of Rosewell, John Page of North End, John Page the immigrant,” and so on, he said.
Losing his mother at a young age, John Page was raised predominantly by his grandmother, Judith Carter. “Judith Carter was the daughter of Robert ‘King’ Carter, who was probably the wealthiest man in Virginia,” said Philip.
His grandmother was likely the most influential person in John Page’s life, and instilled in him a deep adherence to the scriptures. “She was very much his spiritual mentor and that became a very defining point for John Page,” Philip said.
The Page family was part of the House of Burgesses, which John Page would later become a member of, helping to found the College of William and Mary, where he attended grammar school, Philip said. This allowed for him to live in the president of the school’s home, who also was his private tutor.
During his time at grammar school, John Page was wandering through the library and came across the Deed of Gift, written by his great-great-grandfather, referred to as immigrant John Page, to son Matthew Page, explained Philip.
In the 200-page document, “there was a section, specifically a paragraph in there that talked about how you treat people,” he said. “Not just people in general, but specifically to the slaves—you treat them with respect.”
This became an integral part of John Page’s beliefs throughout his life, along with his ideology of “the American Mission,” in which he believed in the importance of caring for the poor and oppressed.
As his father was disappointed with the education in England at the time, John Page continued at William and Mary for college, where he roomed with Thomas Jefferson. Though the two sometimes had conflicted beliefs, specifically on the separation of church and state, they remained friends throughout their lives, said Philip.
Where Jefferson believed in the separation of church and state, John Page believed it was the churches’ responsibility to care for the people and without a taxing power, there would be no money in the church to do so.
In 1763, John Page graduated from William and Mary, marrying Frances Burwell not long after.
Twelve years later, the Revolutionary War began, during which John Page was an officer, holding the position of head of security, explained Philip. He gathered a militia in Gloucester, taking off for Williamsburg to join Patrick Henry in getting back stolen ammunition.
In 1776, Patrick Henry was sworn in as Governor of Virginia, but fell too ill to serve, resulting in John Page filling in as acting governor, said Philip.
During this time, a period of enlightenment took hold where people began to look towards logic and reason, rather than faith. However, the Great Awakening was still a large movement in the colonies, urging people to look to faith, over logic and reason.
“John Page embraced both of them,” said Philip. “He did not view the two as contradictory. He saw them as being a unit, because if God created the universe, he created logic and reasoning.”
In 1780, he was elected to Virginia’s House of Delegates and five years later became a delegate to the first convention of the Episcopal Church. He was elected to Congress in 1789, two years after the death of his first wife.
A year later, John Page married Margaret Lowther, an early American poet, and the two were known to write love letters and poems back and forth, Philip said.
Around this time, St. George Tucker, a judge, law professor at William and Mary, and good friend of John Page, wrote a dissertation proposing the abolition of slavery. “John Page provided a lot of input on that … They were very close friends,” Philip said.
In 1803, John Page was elected as the 13th Governor of Virginia and served three consecutive one-year terms, before accepting a position as Commissioner of Loans for the state.
After his death in 1808, Rosewell was vacated and Margaret rented what is now known as the Thomas Everard House on Palace Green Street in Williamsburg, said Philip. Eventually, Rosewell was sold and not quite 100 years later was destroyed in a fire in 1916, though some of its brick work still stands.
The Fairfield Foundation has worked to stabilize and preserve what remains of Rosewell and visitors are able to stop by and see the craftsmanship of the building.
Philip Page, a descendant in the historic Page family, has dedicated numerous hours to his research of John Page of Rosewell, at right, giving lectures and presentations of the governor’s life. Philip Page is also vice president of the Gloucester Historical Society.