Page 6 | February 28, 2020
Richard Bennett
At top, the Bennett’s Creek Park sign. Above, the signature of Richard Bennett. (Courtesy “Peninsula in Passage”). On opposite page, a Bennetts Creek Park Road sign; docks on Benett’s Creek; a historical marker for the home of Richard Bennett. (courtesy “Suffolk: A Pictorial History”) Background image: Bennett’s Creek.
Suffolk News-Herald | Strides 2020
BY ALEX PERRY Staff Writer
The impact of Richard Bennett has been far reaching and helped many in Suffolk through the Richard Bennett Trust. Richard Bennett was an English governor of the Colony of Virginia, and he also served in the House of Burgesses and on the Governor’s Council. “Bennett’s Creek, Bennett’s Harbor, and Bennetts Pasture Road are all namesakes of Richard Bennett, who established the Trust that bears his name,” according to the “History of the Richard Bennett Trust” document, in an email submitted by Richard Bennett Trust Secretary and Treasurer Thomas Hazelwood. According to History of the Richard Bennett Trust, Bennett was born in Somerset County, England, and was a member of a very wealthy and aristocratic family. He came to Virginia in 1628 to look after his family’s plantation Isle of Wight County, then moved to Nansemond County within a few years. In 1637, he was granted a patent for 2,000 acres of land between the Nansemond County River and what was to become known as Bennett’s Creek, according to History of the Richard Bennett Trust. He became a member of the Governor’s Council in 1637, and in 1651 was elected by the Grand Assembly to be Governor of the Colony under Oliver Cromwell, according to History of the Richard Bennett Trust. He served until 1655, and when Charles II returned to the English throne, Bennett once again became a member of the Governor’s Council, under Gov. William Berkeley. “According to Trust historian, Judge William W. Jones, Bennett was a for-
ward-looking resident of the Lower Parish of Nansemond County,” “History of the Richard Bennett Trust” states. “He had progressive views both in his political and religious attitudes and was a great humanitarian.” Bennett wrote his will creating the Trust in 1674, and later died in 1676, according to “History of the Richard Bennett Trust.” The Richard Bennett Trust was established in 1676 after his death and is considered the oldest continual charitable trust in the U.S., according to the Internal Revenue Service. According to a 2005 Suffolk NewsHerald story, Bennett left instructions in his will that his wealth be used to improve life for residents in what is now the Chuckatuck and Sleepy Hole boroughs of Suffolk. Records dating back as far as 1854 showed how the organization helped residents in various ways, “including buying coffins for paupers and providing monthly assistance for indigent residents.” Hazelwood said that the Trust continues to assist people by funding scholarships that are handled through the Access College Foundation, and by making students and contributions for local youth and service organizations. The list of more than two dozen organizations that benefit from these contributions includes the Boys and Girls Clubs of Southeast Virginia, Nansemond Indian Nation and the Suffolk Athletic Youth Athletic Association, according to an email from Hazelwood. “The Richard Bennett Trust has weathered three centuries of providing aid and comfort for countless people, and it will continue in this role,” “History of the Richard Bennett Trust” states.
