Robert White (Virginia physician) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Robert White
Born	1688 Scotland
Died	1752 (1753) (aged 64) White Farm, Hayfield, Frederick County, Colony of Virginia
Buried	Old Opequon Cemetery Opequon Presbyterian Church Kernstown, Virginia, United States
Allegiance	Kingdom of Great Britain
Service/branch	Royal Navy
Years of service	early 1700s (Great Britain)
Rank	Captain
Spouse(s)	Margaret Hoge
Relations	John White (father) Alexander White (son) Robert White (grandson) Francis White (grandson) Robert White (great-great-grandson)
Other work	Physician, military officer, pioneer, planter

Robert White (born 1688 – died 1752) was an important early figure in the Colony of Virginia. He was a physician (a doctor), a military officer, a pioneer (one of the first settlers), and a planter (someone who owned a large farm).

White was born in Scotland. His father, John White, was also a doctor. Robert studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh. He later worked as a surgeon (a doctor who performs operations) and a captain in the Royal Navy of Great Britain.

Between 1720 and 1730, he moved to the Thirteen Colonies in America. He first lived in Delaware, then Pennsylvania, and finally settled in what is now Frederick County, Virginia. He was one of the first settlers there between 1732 and 1735. Robert White was one of only two doctors in Frederick County at the time. He practiced medicine from his home near Great North Mountain. Many Scottish doctors like him moved to Virginia before the American Revolutionary War.

Robert White is known as the start of the White political family in Virginia and West Virginia. His son, Alexander White (1738–1804), became a member of the United States House of Representatives. His grandsons, Robert White (1759–1831) and Francis White (1761–1826), also became important figures.

Early Life and Education

Robert White was born in Scotland in 1688. His father, John White, was a doctor in Paisley, Renfrewshire. John White passed away in 1742. Robert White's family had both Scottish and English roots. They were connected to the Covenanters, a Scottish Presbyterian group from the 1600s.

Robert studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh in Edinburgh, Scotland. He earned a Doctor of Medicine degree from the university.

Royal Navy Service

After finishing his studies, Robert White became a surgeon with the rank of captain in the Royal Navy of Great Britain. It's not fully known why he left the Navy. However, his family has a story that he resigned after fighting a duel with another officer.

Moving to America

Robert White was the first person in his family to move to America. Between 1720 and 1730, he arrived in the British Colonies. He visited his uncle, William Hoge, who lived in Delaware Colony. Robert fell in love with William Hoge's oldest daughter, Margaret, and they got married in Delaware. His marriage to Margaret might have been why he left the Royal Navy.

Robert and Margaret, along with her father William Hoge, later moved near York, Pennsylvania. There, Robert built a home he called "White Hall." He named it after his family's old home in Scotland.

Settling in Virginia

Between 1732 and 1735, Robert White moved from York to Virginia. He became a "pioneer settler" in an area that was then Orange County, near Winchester. This area later became part of Frederick County in 1738. Here, he started a large farm called a plantation.

His elderly father-in-law, William Hoge, came with him to Virginia. William Hoge settled a few miles south of Winchester. Robert White was one of the very first settlers in Frederick County. White, Hoge, and other families helped start the Opequon Meeting House. This was the oldest Presbyterian congregation (church group) formed west of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Robert White claimed his farm between 1732 and 1735. It was about 375 acres (152 hectares) along Hogue Creek, south of the area known today as Hayfield, Virginia. He built his permanent home on this land. This home became the ancestral home for the White family in Virginia and West Virginia.

Robert White was one of only two doctors practicing in Frederick County at that time. The other doctor was Daniel Hart. White treated patients from his home near Great North Mountain. One of his well-known patients was Colonel James Wood, who founded Winchester, Virginia. White's son, Alexander, later married James Wood's daughter, Elizabeth Wood. Robert White was part of a larger group of Scottish doctors who moved to Virginia before the American Revolutionary War. His university, the University of Edinburgh, was a top medical school. It trained more doctors than Scotland needed.

Later Life and Death

Robert White passed away in 1752 when he was 64 years old. He was buried in the Old Opequon Cemetery at the Opequon Presbyterian Church in Kernstown. This is about 3 miles (4.8 km) south of Winchester. By 1855, a tree marked his burial spot, and it was still there in 1891.

Robert White was survived by his three sons: Robert, Alexander, and John, and his wife. His son, Dr. Robert White, Jr., inherited the family farm after his father's death.

Marriage and Children

Robert White married Margaret Hoge. She was the oldest daughter of his uncle, William Hoge, and his wife, Barbara Hume. Robert and Margaret had at least eight children together: