Reader, be forewarned! This is going to get complicated!
Although neither John Constant or Thomas Brashier left much of a paper trail in Maryland, William Grafton’s name appears in many county records.
While I don’t currently believe that William Grafton was a blood relative of Sarah (Constant) Brashier, he doesn’t appear to be well documented in online trees so perhaps this exercise will help Grafton descendants.
Brashier Records:
Thomas and Sarah (Constant) Brashier appear in land deeds receiving 50 acres of Grafton’s Gift in 1723 and selling 40 acres of the land to William Grafton on 4 August 1742.
Births of Thomas’s and Sarah’s children are recorded in St. George Parish, Baltimore County, Maryland between 18 November 1727 and 12 June 1744. They have not been found between 1744 and 1762, when Thomas Brazier receives a land grant for 259 acres on Terrell Creek, issued 2 November 1762, in Orange County, North Carolina.
Constant Records:
11 July 1720 – The inventory of the estate of William Smith, deceased, Prince George’s County, indicates that John Constant paid £3.15.2, his debt owed to the estate.
30 March 1722 – 22 May 1727 – Family of John and Susannah (Grafton?) Constant recorded in St. George Parish, Baltimore County, Maryland. Their marriage date is NOT recorded.
2 November 1726 – John and Susannah Constant received Graftons Gift from William Grafton (100 acres), in the deed presented at the courthouse.
6 January 1741 – Inventory of the estate of William Bond, deceased, Baltimore County, indicated £1.0.0 “in the hands of John Constant.”
5 June 1745 – William and Susannah Donohoe sold 50.5 acres of Graftons Gift to William Grafton, Baltimore County.
3 March 1730 – The inventory of Jacob Jones, deceased, was filed with the court by Elizabeth Jones, administrator. Appraisers: William Grafton and Robert Clark [who married Selina Smith, 1718, St. George Parish]. Kindred: Benjamin Jones [who married Elizabeth Pickett] and John Constant. NOTE: Maryland probate records in this time period often include names of two close family members and the signatures of the two largest creditors, as all four must formally accept the inventory presented to be recorded.
The only new kinship to be gleaned from these few entries is that John Constant and Benjamin Jones were near relatives of Jacob Jones, deceased by 1730.
Benjamin was the brother of the deceased. Interestingly, the young family of Jacob and Elizabeth Jones is entered in the St. George Parish records immediately following that of John Constant’s family.
Since William Grafton was an appraiser and John Constant a close relative, my theory is that widow Elizabeth Jones is perhaps the sister of Susannah (Grafton) Constant. That would account for the appearance of both William Grafton and John Constant in the estate administration.
It is thought that Jacob Jones was born c1698 and Elizabeth would probably be a year or two younger than her husband, so born c1700. William being the Jones’ first born child might be another tie to William Grafton.
This ends the Constant family’s appearance in Maryland records.
Next, we will build out the family of and assemble further clues about William Grafton.