The earliest person in this line was evidently an immigrant to Virginia named Francis Hester.   

First, let’s examine the claims of a purported family Bible which appears to contain more theory than fact.

The first four generations of this family in the colonies were:

• Francis Hester (c1660? – aft1719)

  • A brief look at the origins of Francis Hester.
  • Exploring the myth that his wife was Elizabeth Garland
  • A paper on the Garlands of New Kent and Hanover County
• Robert Hester (1686 – c1741)
• William Hester (c1717 – 1774)
• Francis Hester (c1760 – 1812)

MIldred Hester, a daughter of Francis Hester, married Solomon Hayes in Granville County, North Carolina and migrated first to Tennessee and in the late 1840s to Titus County, Texas.  They were among my paternal great-great-great-great-grandparents.