Note: Much of the research presented here is based on: John Frederick Dorman, Ancestors and Descendants of Francis Epes I of Virginia (Epes-Eppes-Epps), Volume I (Society of the Descendants of Francis Epes I of Virginia, 1992), pages 38-40 (“K1127 JOHNA EPES [1550-1627]”). Researcher Jared Nathan provided important explanations of 8208John's time in Sellindge.

8208John Epes was born about 1550 (On 22 September 1619, he deposed that he was 69 years old.1) to his parents 16416Alen Epes2,3 and Agnes ___.* His father died when he was just a baby, sometime between 30 July and 22 September 1551.3

8208John went on to become a barrister. On 2 August 1572, "[8208]John Eppes, late of New Inn, gent., third son and one of the heirs of [16416]Alan [Eppes], late of Lydde, Kent, gent." was admitted to the Middle Temple.2 A few notes about this record:

8208John married 8209Thomazine Fisher on 16 June 1579 in Detling, Kent, England.5 (Most researchers state that the marriage occurred on 15 June, but the bishop's transcript, a copy of which is shown below, looks like it says "xvj," i.e. 16.) The ceremony may have occurred in St. Martin of Tours church, which is Detling's parish church.

1579: The church's record of 8208John Eps' and 8209Thomazine Fisher's marriage. Full page.5
The year (1579) is written on the preceding page and therefore isn't shown in this image.

St. Martin of Tours church,6 where 8208John may have married 8209Thomazine

Some years later, 8209Thomazine's uncle George Maplisden appointed 8208John to oversee his will, dated 1 October of 32 Elizabeth (1590). The will describes 8208John as "of Detling," so he and 8209Thomazine still must have been living in Detling at that time.7

"[8208]John Eppes of Detling" mentioned in the will of George Maplisden, uncle of 8208John's wife 8209Thomazine7

He eventually settled in Ashford, Kent, however, and seems to have lived out much of the rest of his life there (as suggested by court records dated 2 May of 42 Elizabeth [1595],8 8 February 1599/1600,9 22 September 1619,1 and by his will, dated 10 August 162510), except for a few years when he temporarily relocated a few miles southeast to Sellindge (as suggested by court records dated 1 July 160211 and June 160512). Intriguingly, while at Sellindge 8208John became involved in a scandal sparked by his son John. Dorman's description of the court record reads:13

3 Jas. 1 (1606-07). Plaintiffs Sir John Scott of Nettlestead, Kent, and Dame Katherine his wife, late wife of Sir Rowland Heyward, alderman of London, deceased. Sir Rowland Heyward made his will 14 years ago leaving good fortunes to his children, and particularly to his daughter Anne Heyward. John Epps (son of John Epps of Sellinge, Kent, yeoman) “a person of very dissolute and badde conversacion, a common drunkard, quarreler and jabber, a haunter of loud and vitious company and places, a companyon only of riotous and disordered persons, and thereby grown soe infamous and hated of all men that noe man of creditte or reputacion will converse with him, and withall a man of noe estate or lykelyhood," understanding that Anne Heyward had a good portion but knowing himself to be unfit for her nevertheless was "greedily thirsting" for her fortune. In December last he laid a plot with his father, Katherine Epps his sister, Elizabeth Hatche and Thomasyn Hall his kinswomen whereby he might secure the hand of Anne Heywarde, then aged 11.

Being experienced in such things John Epps Sr. first contrived to draw up a contract of marriage between his daughter Katherine, "a woman having no portion or livelyhood" and in no way a fit match, and Warham St. Leger, "a young gent of great lyvinge” and then a ward of the King. Since Katherine Epps was then in service with the plaintiffs, her brother John Epps now had an excuse to visit her frequently, much against the wishes of plaintiffs.

On 24 March last, after divine service at the parish church of Sellinge, Anne Heyward, now aged 12, was enticed to walk to Epps’ house in company with Lady Smith’s serving woman. There, the plaintiff allege, she was violently assaulted and locked in while John Epps jr. took her hand and made the following declaration: "Before God and this company I will take thee to be my wife, forsaking all others, soe long as wee live." Anne was then asked to make a similar declaration and finally did so but only under duress, The plaintiffs claim that the parties could not, in these circumstances, be lawfully contracted.

The defendants claim that Anne Heyward entered voluntarily into the contract of marriage and exchanged rings with John Epps.

Depositions were made on 22 June 3 Jas. I. John Epps the elder of Sellinge, gent. (signature) declared that he had threatened his son, because of his disobedience and evil courses of life, to send him away to the Low Countries to provide for himself. But John Epps Jr. had reformed his ways before contracting himself to Anne Heyward who was, as he believed, then aged 14. He often told St. Leger that his daughter Katherine was no fit match for him by birth and by dowry and St. Leger was then persuaded to disclaim his former affection for her. Deponent had not been content for his son to marry Anne Heyward unless it might be lawfully done.

Katherine Epps deposes (signature) that, during a conversation with Anne Heyward she coaxed from her a declaration that she loved John Epps and meant to marry him. As to deponent’s relationship to St. Leger, her father had instructed her not to proceed in any match as St. Leger had promised to be ruled by the Lord Treasurer in the matter of his marriage. Subsequently St. Leger had written a letter to deponent telling her that whatever she heard about his forsaking her, she was not to believe it.

Other depositions by Elizabeth Hatch, wife of Steven Hatch of Sellinge, yeoman, and Thomasin Hall, single woman, servant to John Epps Sr.13

Back in Ashford, 8208John's will describes his house as being "in North Lane in the town of Ashford." Although I haven't seen historic evidence to prove where his house was, a plaque on the outer wall of the "Hopewell House" on North Street in Ashford claims to mark the house in question. Photos of the house,14 the plaque,15 and a view down North Street are below:

8208John's will, dated 10 August 1625 and proved 16 December 1627, is copied below and followed by an abstract written by Frank Wyatt Tyler.10

8208John was buried in Ashford on 19 November 1627.16

1627: 8208John's burial record. Full page.16

An inventory of 8208John's estate taken about two weeks later includes (among many other items) a silver plate, a drawing table, stools, numerous brass kitchenware, a feather bed, napkins, towels, "all his books," and a desk.17 (If you want to see a copy of the inventory, refer to the source notes below.)

The Society of the Descendants of Francis Epes the First of Virginia placed a memorial marker in the church yard of St. Mary the Virgin church in Ashford. A photo of the marker is below,18 followed by a transcription:

Footnote:

Sources Cited:

1: UK National Archives record E134/17Jas1/Mich9 (Exchequer Records / King's Remembrancer Records / Depositions taken by Commission), deposition of John Epes of Ashford, Kent, Gent., 22 September 1619. Cited in: John Frederick Dorman, Ancestors and Descendants of Francis Epes I of Virginia (Epes-Eppes-Epps), Volume I (Society of the Descendants of Francis Epes I of Virginia, 1992), page 39, footnote 6. Dorman reports, “On 22 Sept. 1619 John Epes of Ashford, Kent, Gent., deposed at Rye, Sussex, that he, being aged 69, had known Sir Norton Knatchbull for forty years, and knew his father, Richard Knatchbull, and his brother Richard Knatchbull, and deposed about the extents and rights of the Manor of Cheyne Court which he had known for fifty years.”

2: H. A. C. Sturgess. Register of Admissions to the Honourable Society of the Middle Temple, From the Fifteenth Century to the Year 1944, Volume I (Butterworth & Co. Ltd., London, 1949), page 37. The entry in Sturgess' book reads, "Aug. 2 [1572] JOHN EPPES, late of New Inn, gent., third son and one of the heirs of Alan E., late of Lydde, Kent, gent."

3: 16416Alen Eps' will. UK National Archives record CCA-DCb/PRC/32/24/2 (Canterbury Cathedral Archives / Diocese of Canterbury / Consistory Court Wills [Registers]). FamilySearch (FHL microfilm 188843, images 387, 388, and 389 of 597). FamilySearch restricts access to these images, so see copies here: 387, 388, 389. The will is abstracted in: Frank Wyatt Tyler, The Tyler Collection (The Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies, Canterbury, Kent, England), wills index, Elles-Verrier notebook, abstract of will CCA-DCb/PRC/32/24/2; Ancestry.com (“Kent, England, Tyler Index to Wills, 1460-1882” / Elles-Verrier notebook / images 18-20 of 94), accessed 26 November 2013.

4: Wikimedia user Cmglee, "Cmglee London Middle Temple hall" (online image, photographed September 2013). Wikimedia, <https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cmglee_London_Middle_Temple_hall.jpg>. Cmglee has shared this image under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

5: UK National Archives record CCA-DCb/BT1/74/7 (Canterbury Cathedral Archives / Diocese of Canterbury / Bishop's Transcripts of Parish Registers). FamilySearch (FHL microfilm 1736692 item 3, "Bishop's Transcripts for Debtling, 1571-1904," images 412 and 413 of 1203). FamilySearch restricts access to these images, so see copies here: 412, 413. The marriage record itself is on image 413, but the year is shown on image 412. This is 8208John Epes' and 8209Thomazine Fisher's marriage record.

6: Tony Grist, "St Martin, Detling" (online image, photographed 27 February 2007). Wikimedia, <http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:St_Martin,_Detling.JPG>. Mr. Grist has released this image into the public domain.

7: UK National Archives record PROB 11/77/53 (Prerogative Court of Canterbury / Wills and Letters of Administration / Will Registers / Sainberbe Quire 2 / Will of George Maplisden, Alderman of Rochester, Kent). This is George Maplisden's will. I purchased an image of the will from the UK National Archives' website on 27 November 2011; you can download a copy. The will is abstracted in: Henry F. Waters, Genealogical Gleanings in England, Volume II (New-England Historic Genealogical Society, Boston, 1901), pages 1291-1292.

8: UK National Archives records STAC 5/W2/16 and STAC 5/W46/5 (Records of the Court of Star Chamber and of other courts / Court of Star Chamber: Proceedings, Elizabeth I). Cited in: Dorman, op. cit., page 39, footnote 4. Dorman's partial transcription of the two records in question is copied in this PDF file.

9: UK National Archives record C 54/1675 (Chancery Records / Records of the Enrolment Office / Close Rolls). Cited in: Dorman, op. cit., page 39, footnote 5. Dorman's partial transcription of the record in question reads, "8 Feb. 1599/1600. Recognizance of £70 from John Eppes of Ashford, Kent, gent., and John Banckes of the same, draper, to James Pennington and Thomas Wood, citizen of London, dated 8 February 1599/1600, in compliance with a decree in Chancery of 9 February 1599/1600 in the case of Pennington and Wood plaintiffs vs. Epps and Banckes and one Margaret Banckes, widow, defendants. Marginal note that the decree was vacated because Pennington and Wood were satisfied on 12 November 42 Eliz. (1600)."

10: UK National Archives record CCA-DCb/PRC/17/67/340 (Canterbury Cathedral Archives / Diocese of Canterbury / Archdeacon's Court Wills [Registers]). FamilySearch, <https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1942-23164-16385-79?cc=1949814&wc=M68K-R68:250713701,250719201,251325001>, accessed 25 August 2014. This is 8208John Epes' will. The will is summarized in: Frank Wyatt Tyler, The Tyler Collection (The Institute of Heraldic and Genealogical Studies, Canterbury, Kent, England), wills index, Elles-Verrier notebook, abstract of will CCA-DCb/PRC/17/67/340; Ancestry.com (“Kent, England, Tyler Index to Wills, 1460-1882,” Elles-Verrier notebook, image 56 of 94), accessed 26 November 2013.

11: Kent History & Library Centre archive reference QM/SRc/1602/114 (Kent Quarter Sessions / Court in Session / Recognizances), a record dated 1 July 1602 pertaining to Luke Padnola, William Halle, and Mary Whithead, for which John Epps of Sellindge, gentleman and John Bankes of Ashford were sureties. I have not seen the original record and merely used the abstract at the link provided. Notice that John Bankes is later named in 8208John Epes' will, so we can be confident that this is our 8208John.

12: UK National Archives record STAC 8/268/22 (Records of the Court of Star Chamber and of other courts / Proceedings, James I), a June 1605 court record whose short title is Scotte v. Eppes.

13: John Frederick Dorman, Ancestors and Descendants of Francis Epes I of Virginia (Epes-Eppes-Epps), Volume I (Society of the Descendants of Francis Epes I of Virginia, 1992), pages 63-64.

15: Plaque on the Hopewell House. Photograph taken by 1Bryant Knight, 16 May 2017.

16: Kent History & Library Centre archive reference P10/1/A/1 (composite register of baptisms, marriages and burials for the parish of St Mary the Virgin, Ashford), an unnumbered page that is essentially the very last content page of the book, an entry for the burial of Mr. John Epps, Gent. on 19 November 1627. FindMyPast, <https://search.findmypast.com/record?id=GBPRS%2FKENT%2FP10_1_A_1%2F68&parentid=GBPRS%2FKENT%2FP10_1_A_1%2F68>, accessed 26 February 2022. FindMyPast restricts access to this image, so see a copy here.

17: UK National Archives record CCA-DCb/PRC/10/61/73 (Canterbury Cathedral Archives / Diocese of Canterbury / Archdeacon's Court Inventories [Registers]), an inventory of the estate of John Epes of ye pishe of Ashford, dated 1 December 1627. FamilySearch (FHL microfilm 189070, images 149, 150, and 151 of 532). FamilySearch restricts access to these images, so see copies here: 149, 150, 151.

18: Photograph of 8208John Epes' memorial marker in front of St. Mary the Virgin Church, Ashford, Kent, England, approximate coordinates N51.1486 E0.8731. Photograph taken by 1Bryant Knight, 16 May 2017.