Of Tax Records and Federal Censuses: Roberts Men in Jackson Co., GA, 1849 – 1851

James R. Roberts (1828 – 1891) was my great-great-great-grandfather. His ancestry is a brick wall I’ve been chipping away at for several years. So far, I’ve identified at least two and possibly three siblings, but I still don’t know who his parents were.

One of the first records sets used to research 19th century ancestors in the US is the federal decennial censuses. James was married in 1853 in Jackson Co., GA, and all indications point to him living there for the remainder of his life. His brother, William, was enumerated in Jackson County from 1850 through 1880, and James was enumerated there in 1860, 1870, and 1880, but I have never been able to find him in the 1850 free population schedule. This bothers me quite a bit. If only I could find him in 1850, I often think, then perhaps I would find the evidence I need to link him to his parents. But there he is not, no matter how often I look or how thoroughly I search.

Fortunately, Georgia researchers have other records to draw from, including the many extant county tax records. Jackson County has a rich set of tax digests extending from the county’s earliest days through most of the 19th century with very few gaps. I had a little time last week, so I hopped on down to the courthouse in Jefferson, Jackson County’s county seat, and spent the afternoon reading those digests. I focused on the years 1849, 1850, and 1851, because those years’ tax records act as a substitute and supplement for the 1850 federal census.

More, Please!

Last year, a potential client approached me to perform research in a nearby county on an ancestral family. This client had never performed research before, instead relying on the work of others, but was interested in moving this particular family back in time a generation. After consulting with me and the others who had performed previous research, the client decided not to hire me because all the records had already been searched. The belief was, amongst that group, that there was no further information to be found pertinent to that family or the research problem because they had already gathered all documents created by or for the ancestor in question.

I strongly disagreed and explained why, but still lost a client over a common misconception, that all there is to research is extracting information from records about a particular ancestor.

The Estate of James M. Peek, Macon Co., NC

I have recently had the privilege of sorting through the loose estate records for Macon County, as held by the North Carolina State Archives in Raleigh, for an indexing project sponsored by the North Carolina Genealogical Society. Along the way, I’ve found several interesting items on my own family that I hope to share here over the coming months with other area researchers.

One of my more recent finds was located in the file folder for James M. Peek. According to Elizabeth Peek Crutchfield in the article “David Peek”, James was the son of David Peek and Mary Henderson.¹ They had the following children, including James:

1. Eda Peek, born about 1880 [sic] in Laurens Co., SC, married John Jackson Ammons
2. Phoebe Peek, born about 1804 in Laurens County, married James Holland
3. William M. Peek, born 12 January 1809 in Laurens County, married Polly Avaline Mull
4. James Peek, born before 1820 in Laurens County, “[...] with wife unknown. He migrated to Alabama.”
5. Ruth Peek, born in 1815 in Laurens County, married Milton Moss
6. Judy Elizabeth Peek, born in 1819 in Laurens County, married Milton McCoy
7. Jane Caroline Peek, born 10 February 1820 in Macon Co., NC, married Andrew Madison Bryson
8. Mary “Polly” Peek, born in 1821 in Macon County, married Martin McCoy
9. Louisa, born in 1822 in Macon County, never married
10. David Lee Peek, born in 1828, married Jane Moss

Step by Step #7: Roy S. Teague’s Parents, Part 2

In Roy S. Teague’s Parents, Part 1, we began to explore census records in the hopes of determining the names of Roy’s parents. Today’s post is a continuation of that discussion.

Step by Step #6: Roy S. Teague’s Parents, Part 1

After a long break to make ready for the FGS 2010 conference in Knoxville, and then to recover from the trip and catch up on other work, it’s time to resume our study of the ancestry of Roy S. Teague and Hattie (James) Teague Watkins. We’ll begin with Roy’s parents. To summarize what we know about Roy’s parents and siblings to date:

• Roy was enumerated in the 1930 US census, Clayton, Rabun Co., GA, next to Lina S. Teague (a widow, born about 1875), and four of her children, namely Faye C. Teague, Lucy Teague, Louie Teague (who was divorced), and Reba Teague.¹
• Roy was buried in the same plot as Lina H. Teague, C. C. and Faye T. Barron, Paul C. Teague (Roy’s known son), and Louie and Fannie Q. Teague.²
• Roy’s obituary does not name his parents, but it does give his brothers as Louie Teague of Clayton and Grady Teague of Pontiac, Michigan; his half-brothers as Ulyus Teague of Rabun Gap and Melvin Teague of Canton, North Carolina; and his sisters as Mrs. Faye Barron and Mrs. Lucy P. Ramey of Clayton, and Mrs. Felton Sullivan of Tallulah Falls.³

Step by Step #5: Hattie (James) Teague Watkins

Our previous research on the Roy and Hattie (James) Teague family revealed very little about the female half of this couple. To date, we know the following:

1. Hattie James was born about 1906 in Georgia; both of her parents were also born in Georgia¹
2. She married Roy S. Teague in 1924 in Rabun Co., GA; the marriage was performed by M. H. James, a Justice of the Peace²
3. She and Roy were living in Clayton, Rabun Co., GA, with three children in 1930³
4. They had probably seven children during the late 1920s through the 1930s⁴
5. Between 1937 and 1967, Hattie remarried to a Watkins; she was still living as of the latter date⁵

What we haven’t found in our research is any record connecting her to her parents and possible siblings. While she and Roy were married by M. H. James, we have no clue who that person was or how he might otherwise be connected to Hattie. We don’t know when she died, or who her second husband might have been, nor can we even say for certain that she was the mother of all of Roy’s children. With so little to go on, how can we learn more about Hattie, and in the process extend her lineage backwards?

Step by Step #4: Roy and Hattie’s Children

The first three posts in this series focused primarily on our target couple, Roy and Hattie (James) Teague. Today, we’re going to try to reconstruct their family with the records available to us.

First, let’s summarize what we know about Roy’s children.

1. The 1930 US census gives us the names of three children, who we know to be Roy’s because they are named as such, and who Hattie was probably the mother of, given Roy and Hattie’s marriage date.¹ In order of birth, they are:
   • Susie J. Teague
   • Clifford J. Teague
   • Claud R. Teague
2. Roy’s obituary gave the names and residences of six children:²
   • Jack Teague of Clarkston, Michigan
   • Ray Teague of Pontiac, Michigan
   • Dewey Teague of Titusville, Florida
   • Mrs. Roosevelt Coffey of Clayton, GA
   • Mrs. Red Dixon of Clayton, GA
   • Mrs. Sherman Martindale of Van Buren, Arkansas
3. Additionally, a Paul C. Teague was buried between Roy and his brother Louie at Pickett Cemetery.³ Paul died in 1967, and so if he were Roy’s son, he would not have been mentioned in Roy’s 1969 obituary, which mentioned only surviving relatives.⁴ However, it is also possible that he was Louie’s son, or in some other way related to the family.

Step by Step #3: Pickett Cemetery, Clayton, GA

In our first two looks at the Roy and Hattie (James) Teague family, we examined their 1930 US census enumeration, their marriage certificate, and Roy’s obituary. In today’s post, we will visit Pickett Cemetery, where Roy was buried¹.

Step by Step #2: Hattie’s Maiden Name and Roy’s Obituary

Our previous discussion of the Roy and Hattie [--?--] Teague family centered upon their entry in the 1930 US census. Today, we’re going to follow up on two items from our to-do list: Find a marriage record for this couple, and check the Vital Statistics register for their deaths. We’re looking first in the records created and maintained within Rabun Co., GA, where the couple lived in 1930.

Step by Step #1: Roy and Hattie Teague in 1930

Here is the record that begins our odyssey. Be sure to read the footnotes, as they contain additional and important information.

This is an abbreviated version, of course, but let’s see what an initial read gives us. The first thing we should note is the particulars of the record; we may need these later on to construct a citation.¹ Bear with me here; doing this might seem a little boring and tedious, but it’s absolutely necessary for a number of reasons, which we will discuss at various times during the entire case study.