Submitted by Descendants: Heather Danielle, Paula Townsend, and Tara Lynn MARCZYNSKI
John Light Townsend was the son of Gilchrist County Pioneer, John Hill Townsend (certificate C757). He was born in 9 Sep 1856 in the Willeford District of Alachua County, Florida, which later became part of Gilchrist County, and lived there all of his life.
According to his nephew, William T. Townsend (who wrote the booklet Townsend History), John Light was “large of stature…handsome in appearance…and sociable in disposition…He was jovial by nature and a great favorite with children and young people.”
John Light gave the land on which Wayfair Primitive Baptist Church stands and was largely instrumental in its construction. He and his wife Nancy and many of their family members were buried in the Wayfair Cemetery.
John Light Townsend was first established as a Florida Pioneer in 2004