In 1811, the year President James Madison appointed James Monroe as Secretary of State, Lucy married Reuben Conway.
Reuben Conway, a son of Catlett Conway, was descended from Francis Conway, one of the first settlers of Orange County, Virginia. His grandaunt, Nelly Conway, married James Madison, Sr. (Reuben and his bride Lucy were therefore cousins.)
It is not clear where Reuben and Lucy lived in the first years of their marriage, as Reuben held no land, but by 1820 they were living at Greenwood Plantation in Orange County, Virginia.
They had no children.
Reuben was close to James Madison. This fact is evidenced by his serving as a pallbearer at Madison's funeral in 1836. Indeed, he was buried in the Madison family cemetery when he died in 1838.
Reuben Conway left his estate to his "beloved wife Lucy." The inventory taken after his death shows Reuben to have been a relatively well-to-do farmer, having a well furnished household, a large amount of farm equipment, a carriage, many livestock, and twenty-nine slaves. The inventory also shows that the wing addition of Greenwood had not yet been built.
When the 1840 census was taken, Lucy lived alone. At this time, she owned twenty-nine slaves and had sold Reuben's Conway River acreage. In 1843, she had extended her household to include Mary Roberta Macon, age 9, who was a daughter of her brother Catlett Conway Macon. The child died in that year, and is buried at Greenwood.
In 1850, Lucy Conway owned forty slaves, twenty of which were children, and her personal property was valued at $15,600. In 1860, Lucy appeared to be at her most prosperous. Her real estate was valued at $2,800 and her personal estate at $15,637. She owned fifty-two slaves, of which only eight males and nine females were of working age; the rest were children. Comparatively, one of the very richest folks in the county at the time was Benjamin Barbour, whose real estate was valued at $140,000 and personal property at $112,300.
The 1870 census records show that Lucy's nephew Thomas Macon, her nephew Edgar's widow Jane and their nine-year-old son, Edgar, and three African-American servants lived with her. Her property was valued at $16,000 and personal property at $900.
In 1811, the year President James Madison appointed James Monroe as Secretary of State, Lucy married Reuben Conway.
Reuben Conway, a son of Catlett Conway, was descended from Francis Conway, one of the first settlers of Orange County, Virginia. His grandaunt, Nelly Conway, married James Madison, Sr. (Reuben and his bride Lucy were therefore cousins.)
It is not clear where Reuben and Lucy lived in the first years of their marriage, as Reuben held no land, but by 1820 they were living at Greenwood Plantation in Orange County, Virginia.
They had no children.
Reuben was close to James Madison. This fact is evidenced by his serving as a pallbearer at Madison's funeral in 1836. Indeed, he was buried in the Madison family cemetery when he died in 1838.
Reuben Conway left his estate to his "beloved wife Lucy." The inventory taken after his death shows Reuben to have been a relatively well-to-do farmer, having a well furnished household, a large amount of farm equipment, a carriage, many livestock, and twenty-nine slaves. The inventory also shows that the wing addition of Greenwood had not yet been built.
When the 1840 census was taken, Lucy lived alone. At this time, she owned twenty-nine slaves and had sold Reuben's Conway River acreage. In 1843, she had extended her household to include Mary Roberta Macon, age 9, who was a daughter of her brother Catlett Conway Macon. The child died in that year, and is buried at Greenwood.
In 1850, Lucy Conway owned forty slaves, twenty of which were children, and her personal property was valued at $15,600. In 1860, Lucy appeared to be at her most prosperous. Her real estate was valued at $2,800 and her personal estate at $15,637. She owned fifty-two slaves, of which only eight males and nine females were of working age; the rest were children. Comparatively, one of the very richest folks in the county at the time was Benjamin Barbour, whose real estate was valued at $140,000 and personal property at $112,300.
The 1870 census records show that Lucy's nephew Thomas Macon, her nephew Edgar's widow Jane and their nine-year-old son, Edgar, and three African-American servants lived with her. Her property was valued at $16,000 and personal property at $900.
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