Frances Jones

Frances Jones Dandridge was born on August 6, 1710, in New Kent County, Virginia. She was the daughter of Orlando Jones and Martha Macon. Her father, Orlando Jones, served as a Burgess for New Kent County in 1718 and was a landowner with 21 enslaved individuals. Her maternal grandfather, Colonel Gideon Macon, was also involved in colonial governance. Frances had an older brother named Lane Jones, born in 1707.

Her mother, Martha Macon Jones, died in 1716 when Frances was six years old. Following her mother's death, her father remarried, and her stepmother was Mary Elizabeth Williams Jones. Orlando Jones died in 1719, when Frances was nine years old. Her stepmother, Mary Elizabeth, later married John James Flourney, and the household in Williamsburg included additional children from that union.

In 1726, at the age of sixteen, Frances filed for emancipation, and at around the same time, she lived with a planter in New Kent County, possibly with Unity West Dandridge, her mother's half-sister, who was married to William Dandridge in 1719.

On July 22, 1730, Frances Jones married John Dandridge, a prominent planter, militia colonel, and Clerk of Courts. She brought into the marriage land and ten enslaved individuals inherited from her father. The Dandridge family resided at Chestnut Grove, located on the Pamunkey River in New Kent County, Virginia. John Dandridge immigrated to Virginia around 1714 or 1715 from England, where he was born to John and Ann Dandridge. He was related to William Dandridge and lived at Elsing Green estate in King William County.

John Dandridge served as Deputy Clerk and then as Clerk of Courts in New Kent County, a position he held for 26 years starting in 1730. He managed a 500-acre tobacco plantation employing 15 to 20 enslaved workers. He was also a vestryman for St. Peter's Church in Virginia and served as a colonel in the local militia.

Together, Frances and John Dandridge had eight children:

1. Martha Dandridge (1731–1802), who married Daniel Parke Custis and later George Washington.

2. John Dandridge (1733–1749).

3. William Dandridge (1734–1776).

4. Bartholomew Dandridge (1737–1785).

5. Anna Maria "Fanny" Dandridge Bassett (1739–1777).

6. Frances Dandridge (1744–1757).

7. Elizabeth Dandridge Aylett Henley (1749–1800).

8. Mary Dandridge (1756–1763).

During her life, Frances experienced the loss of several children through miscarriages and stillbirths, including multiple stillborn daughters and sons. Her children were typically educated at home, receiving religious instruction, music, and dance training.

Her daughter Martha married Daniel Parke Custis and, upon his death in 1757, inherited a large estate. Martha later married George Washington, becoming the first First Lady of the United States.

Her husband, Colonel John Dandridge, died in Fredericksburg on August 31, 1756, and was buried at St. George's Episcopal Church. After his death, Frances continued to live at Chestnut Grove with her children William, Mary, and Elizabeth. Her son William took over the management of Chestnut Grove in 1756. In 1768, Chestnut Grove was listed for sale, and Frances moved to Pamocra.

Frances Jones Dandridge died in April 1785 in Pamosa (Pamocra), Virginia. Her son Bartholomew died within days of her, and they were interred in a local graveyard.