A Genealogical Odyssey
Martha Ledford
June 6, 1850
July 4, 1920
Gone but not forgotten
Martha Ledford was the daughter of David and Sarah Matilda (Ballew) Carpenter and the wife of James Wesley Ledford. She was buried in the Coweeta Baptist Church Cemetery, Macon Co., NC, near her parents and husband.
Last week, I briefly discussed documentation for John Ledford’s date of death. The conflicts between the information presented in various records pertaining to John’s death were fairly easy to resolve. His wife’s date of birth presents a much stickier situation.
Today is the 120th anniversary of the death of my great-great-great grandfather, John Ledford.
John Ledford
Mar 1 1822
Apr 1 18941
Given the date on his tombstone, y’all probably think I’ve gone ’round the bend, but no, I haven’t. (Not yet, anyway.)
In last year’s lecture on researching the poor, I included a somewhat lengthy discussion of bastardy records. One question someone posed, either during the lecture or afterwards (I cannot remember which), was whether or not a man who had been singled out as the father of an illegitimate child had recourse if he was not, in fact, the father.
Why, yes, he did, and here’s a great example of that from the 25 December 1861 minutes of the county court for Macon County, North Carolina.1
A while back, I posted the joyful news that I’d found Margaret (McConnell) Carpenter’s year of death among her late husband’s estate records. Margaret has always been a bit of a mystery. Like many women of her era, her history remains hidden by a society that considered her to be an extension of her husband and not necessarily a person in her own right. Parts of her life can be pieced together from land, court, and census records, but parts remain unknown, and may always remain so.
One aspect of her life that I’ve always been curious about is her appearance in the 1850 U. S. census with, in addition to several of her younger children, a girl named Margaret Carpenter, who was born about 1840 in Macon Co., NC, where the family lived.1 Many researchers believe the younger Margaret was the youngest child of William and Margaret (McConnell) Carpenter, but court records may paint a different story.
I’m afraid I got a little carried away this week, but there were so many good posts and news articles!
Judi Scott writes about her week-long adventure at the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy as a student in the Advanced Genealogical Methods track, led by Thomas W. Jones. I’m so jealous. But someday, I shall be that student. Oh, yes, I shall.
Trouble with the genealogical terminology in Judi’s post? Elizabeth Shown Mills’ QuickLessons can help sort that out.
Randy Seaver writes about Pinball Genealogy using an example of how he handles Ancestry.com hints. Randy’s inspiration for the post was DearMYRTLE’s post, The pinball approach to genealogical research, which was itself inspired by her time in Tom Jones’ Advanced Genealogical Methods track at SLIG. (Did I mention my envy?) The two debated this subject back and forth for several days after the initial posts. Be sure to read the follow-ups.
Sardis Methodist Church and Cemetery, located in the Buckhead community of Atlanta, have been listed in the National Registry of Historic Places.
For those following budgetary issues with the Georgia Archives, you may be interested in reading Vivian Price Saffold’s post Governor’s recommendation indicates small cut at Georgia Archives Matters. Judy G. Russell also discusses this on her blog, The Legal Genealogist. Sounds like we still have our work cut out for us!
Family History through the Alphabet is a new genealogy blogging meme for genealogists to share topics, heirlooms, stories, and so forth beginning with that week’s letter. Julie Tarr’s post on GenBlog for this week is Family History through the Alphabet – Books, an excellent listing of books available to genealogists both through the library or on the Internet, including a few less well-known resources.
But what happened to Marthy? by Michelle G. Taggart of A Southern Sleuth details a search for a distant relative, and the unexpected places the search led.
Michael Hait answers the question of When you find a document that may be about one of your ancestors, what do you do with it? His answer may surprise you!
New Hope Cemetery, an African American burial ground located near Franklin (in Macon Co., NC), was rediscovered by one of my son’s fellow Boy Scouts, Andrew Baldwin, who is in the process of cleaning it up. Way to go, Drew!
Ok, ok, just one more. (I know I’m running a little long this week.) On The Migration of Jacob Wiley Eudy over at Job’s Children, all I can say is, Wow! Look at those pictures!
Happy hunting!
Harrison Darnell was my great-great-great-great grandfather. He was born by his own statement on 15 April 1815 in Wilkes County, North Carolina.1 His mother was Catherine Darnell,2 a somewhat mysterious woman who moved her small family from Wilkes County, North Carolina, to first Spartanburg District and then Pickens District, South Carolina, before settling finally in Rabun County, Georgia.
Harrison was supposedly the son of Catharine’s first husband, whose name is unknown. She married second to a Darnell, whose name Harrison took, and then a third time to Benjamin Grist, a veteran of the Revolutionary War who was himself a widower. Of these suppositions, the only one that has thus far been documented is Catherine’s marriage to Benjamin Grist, which took place on 2 April 1834 in Pickens District, South Carolina.3
Source: Macon County, North Carolina, Deed Book E: 66; Register of Deeds, Franklin.
This indenture made the 27th February 1837 between William McConnell
Deceased of the one part Heirs of the state of North Carolina Macon County
and David McConnell one of the said heirs of the county and state
aforesaid of the other part Witnesseth that we the heirs of the above
bounden Wm McConnell for and in consideration of the sum of
two hundred and fifty Dollars to them in hand paid by the said
David McConnell the receipt whereof his heirs doth hereby acknowlege [sic]
hath given Granted bargained sold and delivered and confirmed by these
presents doth give grant bargain and sell alien and confirm
unto the said David McConnell his heirs and assigns forever
a part of the tract of No 30 in the 15th District lying and being
in the county of Macon Beginning on a Black Oak on the
West side of the Tennessee River running West to a white Oak
corner thence South to the branch thence down the meanders of the
Branch to the Tennessee River thence down the Tennessee River to
the Beginning containing forty acres more or less and the said David
McConnell is to have hold and enjoy all the woods [illegible] waters watercourses
mines minerals and appurtenances thereunto belonging or in any
wise appertaining his heirs and assigns forever and the said
heirs of the said William McConnell Dec. do bind themselves
their heirs administrators and assigns Jointly and severally to
warrant and forever defend the said right and title unto the
said David McConnell and his heirs against the claims of them
selves their heirs administrators and assigns and against the
lawful claims of all other persons whatsoever as witness our hand
and seals the day and date above mentioned
Test Milas his mark M,sup>cConnell Jurat
Milas his x mark McConnell Elizabeth Cabe Sanford Carpenter Martha her x mark McConnell J. D. Dryman Patience her x mark Carpenter Enos Scroggs Rachel her x mark Dryman John McConnell Jane Scroggs Sarah her x mark McConnell Mary her x mark McConnell John Scroggs Margaret her x mark Carpenter William McConnell Mary her x mark Scroggs Jonathan Denton Sarah her x mark McConnell Wm Cabe Agnes her x mark Denton Charles Stiles Kesiah her x mark Stiles State of North Carolina } Court of Pleas & Quarter Sessions
Macon County } March Sessions 1846
The within Deed was duly proven in open court by the oath of Milas McConnel a
subscribing witness therto and is recorded in Book D Page 150 for registrationWitness J K Gray clk
While compiling Rabun County’s earliest writs and petitions for publication (available soon), I came across an 1843 court case between the heirs of the estate of William Hamby and the administrator of the estate, James Hamby. Naturally, the petition named all the heirs “to the second degree”: Ezekiel Hamby; Jonothan Roach and his wife, Huldah (Hamby) Roach; Benjamin Shelton and his wife, Keziah (Hamby) Shelton; Daniel Inman and his wife, Rebecca (Hamby) Inman; Martha Hamby; Sophia Hamby; Martha Hamby, the mother of William Hamby, the decedent; Amos Forrister and his wife Elizabeth (Hamby) Forester; James Hamby, the estate’s administrator; and Thomas K. Forrister and his wife, Polly (Hamby) Forrister.
The initial petition provides excellent information on the dynamics of this Hamby family, but there are many other documents attached to this suit, including an inventory of the estate, the sale of personal property from the estate, and the deceased’s account books,1 all of which were written into the record.2 The latter two items should be of particular interest to area researchers, even those uninterested in the Hamby family per se, because they can be used to reconstruct William Hamby’s neighborhood.
An interesting item recorded in the County Court minutes for Macon County, North Carolina. Why was Powell giving Elizabeth a mare? Was he perhaps a relative? If this is your family, don’t forget to check Macon County’s property records for the actual deed of gift.
When Powell Stover[?] came into court and
acknowledgedthesigning the deed of Gift to Elizabeth Cunningham
Daughter of James & Lucinda Cunningham a certain mare pony[?]
two years old a boy with two particular white spots one on the
left side of the left arm and the other on the left side of the right
arm dated 8th day of November 1841 ordered to be recorded[?]
for registration
Source: Macon County, North Carolina, County Court Minutes Book 3, 1833 – 1855: 161; North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh; NCSA micropublication C.061 30001.
Digging in the Roots 