Ancestors who tend to disappear can leave interesting records that provide more information about them than we often find in the usual census or deed. Such is the case of John Royston, who ran away from his employer when he was a 19-year-old apprentice in Virginia. I discovered this record in the early stages of my research, and upon revisiting it, I utilized AI to enhance my understanding of the context and gain further insight into John.

1770 The Virginia Gazette Advertisement

John’s first episode of disappearing took place in early 1770 in Virginia. He had been apprenticed to Samuel Daniel, who put the following advertisement in The Virginia Gazette.¹

Run away from the subscriber, An apprentice lad named John Royston, he is the son of Mr. Richard Wiatt Royston, of Gloucester County, 19 years old last September, about 5 feet 6 inches high, has a frowning down look; and light brown hair tied behind, though not very long; had on a light coloured frize coat, with a small cape to it, and bound with ferreting, a new broadcloath waistcoat and breeches, I think blue or blue gray, of pretty fine cloth, and took with him sundry other clothes. He rode away a small iron gray mare, and an old saddle, which has been one of the best kind, though much worn. He may pretend to know something of the chair making and blacksmith business. I hereby forewarn all persons from employing or harboring him, on their peril. Any person that will take up the said apprentice and bring or convey him to the subscriber shall receive THIRTY SHILLINGS, reward, PAID BY Samuel Daniel N.B. I have great reason to believe he is in Bedford County, or Prince William, among his acquaintances.

Since the advertisement provided such a detailed description, I queried AI, asking for an image that matched. I gave ChatGPT the entire ad, and it provided the following image, which features the “frowning down look” and the writing in the 1770 style. ²

Next, I tried the new image creator by Gemini 2.5 flash, using the Google AI Studio website. This time, I asked AI to create an image based on just the description, so it didn’t know it was an advertisement. It generated the following image in a photorealistic style. Note the Gemini watermark in the bottom right corner.³

These two images are vastly different, but both are fun to look at!

Adding Context with AI

Wanting to learn more about the context behind this advertisement, I submitted it to Claude.ai and requested additional information. Drawing on several web searches, AI provided me with the following details, including links. ⁴

Historical Context of the Advertisement

The Virginia Gazette was Virginia’s first newspaper, established in 1736, and runaway advertisements were extremely common and profitable for the newspaper. These advertisements for “Servants or Slaves Runaway” provided important revenue for the Virginia Gazette’s various printers. Colonial Williamsburg Between 1736 and 1783, landowners advertised in the Virginia Gazette for more than 3,500 fugitive runaways, including enslaved people, indentured servants, and apprentices. Runaway Enslaved People and Indentured Servants in Colonial Virginia – Encyclopedia Virginia

The Apprentice System in Colonial Virginia

Indentured servants and bound apprentices were separate categories. Bound apprentices were typically American-born children, usually orphans or from impoverished families who could not care for them. They were under court control and bound to work as apprentices until a certain age. Indentured servitude in British America – Wikipedia In England, apprentices learning a trade typically had contracts lasting one year, after which terms were renegotiated, but colonial apprenticeships generally lasted much longer. Indentured Servants in Colonial Virginia – Encyclopedia Virginia

I was curious about the clothing and next queried Claude, “Tell me more about the clothing he was wearing.” I used Claude’s reasoning model, which shows its “thinking process.”

After searching the web, Claude responded with the following.

The “Light Coloured Frize Coat”

Frieze (sometimes spelled “frize”) was among the common colonial textiles available in America. It was a coarse woolen fabric, quite different from the fine fabrics we might associate with the name today. Cornell At Jamestown, the Virginia Company supplied suits of canvas, frieze, and broadcloth to early colonists, indicating frieze was considered suitable working-class fabric. Cornell

The coat featured “a small cape to it,” which was typical of working men’s outerwear in the period. The fact that it was “light coloured” suggests it was either undyed natural wool or a pale dye – darker colors were more expensive and showed less dirt.

“Bound with Ferreting”

This is a particularly interesting detail. Ferreting refers to “binding the edge of fabric with tape,” typically used on the bottom of petticoats or the edge of felt hat brims. Glossary of 18th Century Costume Terminology Applied to John’s coat, this meant the edges were finished with narrow tape or ribbon binding, which served both decorative and practical purposes – protecting the fabric edges from fraying and adding a modest decorative element.

“New Broadcloath Waistcoat and Breeches”

This represents the most significant piece of John’s wardrobe. Broadcloth was a heavily fulled or napped wool fabric with a simple, tight weave and smooth, flat surface that was durable and easy to sew. It became the “everyday” fabric across colonial America and could be made of materials found in the colonies such as flax or wool. Colonial WilliamsburgSilhouettescostumes

Broadcloth was common for men’s clothing and came in various weights, with superfine broadcloth being extremely tightly-woven and dense, used for uniforms and outerwear. Fabrics for the 18th Century and Beyond – American Duchess Blog The fact that these garments were “new” and made of “pretty fine cloth” suggests they were of good quality – likely a significant investment for an apprentice.

The “blue or blue gray” color is notable. Blue dyes were available but more expensive than natural colors. When serge de Nimes was made of cotton in blue or black by 1770, it became what we know as denim. Cornell This color choice suggests these were not everyday work clothes but rather John’s best garments.

What This Clothing Reveals About John Royston’s Status

The combination of garments tells us several important things:

1. Mixed Social Status: John wore a working-class frieze coat alongside fine broadcloth garments, suggesting he occupied a middle position – above common laborers but below the gentry.
2. Investment in Appearance: Men’s waistcoats and breeches continued to be fashionable throughout this period, and working-class people often wore the same garments as fashionable people, though they owned fewer clothes made of cheaper fabrics. 1750–1775 in Western fashion – Wikipedia John’s “new” and “pretty fine” broadcloth garments suggest either his master provided quality clothing or John (or his family) invested significantly in his appearance.
3. Skilled Tradesman’s Attire: Colonial men’s formal attire included suits made of woolen broadcloth, and waistcoats were standard. These styles indicated respectability and skill level. A Brief Look at Colonial Attire. – the thread As an apprentice chair maker and blacksmith, John would need to present himself respectably to potential customers.
4. Flight Preparations: The fact that John “took with him sundry other clothes” suggests he planned his escape carefully and intended to maintain a respectable appearance to avoid suspicion while traveling.

The 30-shilling reward offered by Samuel Daniel reflects not just John’s skills as an apprentice, but also the significant value of the clothing he wore – quality broadcloth garments represented a substantial investment in 1770 colonial Virginia.

Analysis of AI’s Context

I was pleased with the quality of the photos and Claude.ai’s research on the clothing, as well as the historical information about apprenticeships in Colonial Virginia. The assessment that John likely came from the middle class meshes with what I know about the family. His immigrant ancestor, Thomas Royston, acquired a substantial amount of land in Gloucester County, Virginia, in the 1600s. John was either the grandson or great-grandson of Thomas. We’re unsure because Gloucester County is a severely burned county with no probate, marriage, or other typical county records surviving from the 17th or 18th centuries.

An alternative set of records, the Petsworth Parish books and the land grants, has provided us with enough information to piece together the lineage, but many questions remain unanswered. This 1770 advertisement is key in naming John’s father as Richard Wyatt Royston of Gloucester, which connects him to the Royston family.

AI took the basic advertisement and helped me develop a better picture (literally) of this ancestor. In writing his story, I now have some good sources and ideas for adding that all-important context to his life.

Best of luck in all your genealogical research!

1. “Middlesex, February 9, 1770,” John Royston, run away from the subscriber, The Virginia Gazette (Rind), No. 021, Thursday, 9 March 1770, p. 4. col. 2, para.; imaged Colonial Williamsburg (https://teacherresources.colonialwilliamsburg.org/API/Download/v1_0/GetOriginalLimited?Identifier=CW11851S&SourceAction=API_VIEW_DETAILS_TRX&UsePreviewPdf=False : accessed 27 September 2025).
2. “Image Request Description,” ChatGPT 5.0, chat with user Diana Elder, 28 September 2025, OpenAI (https://chatgpt.com/ : 27 September 2025).
3. “Lost Apprentice and Mare,” Gemini 2.5 Flash via Google AI Studio , chat with user Diana Elder, 27 September 2025, Google (https://aistudio.google.com/ : accessed 27 September 2025).
4. “Runaway apprentice John Royston, Claude, Version 4.0 Sonnet, chat with user Diana Elder, 27 September 2025, Anthropic (https://claude.ai/chat/ : accessed 27 September 2025).