Family History Writing Challenge Day 2- 1812- Fort Sinquefield on the Tombigbee River

         

 

Sarah was torn from her tenuous sleep by the soft hoot of an owl. She startled awake, wide-eyed. She didn’t dare light a candle to search the inky blackness of her room for intruders. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness she quickly glanced around. She was alone, only the little body of her daughter snuggled beside her, warm and innocent. Sarah put her arms around the child, hugging her close, and glanced over at her three year old son, sleeping in the little trundle bed nearby. Satisfied they were safe, she rested her head back on the pillow, listening, waiting... Sure enough, another owl call pierced the air. She held her breath. The Indians used owl calls to communicate to each other, to coordinate their savage attacks. They had mastered every bird call, sounds she used to enjoy as she wandered about the countryside. Now when she heard birds her heart stopped. Even that small joy had been stolen from her, along with her freedom. No longer could she wander the countryside, her small children at her side, gathering wild flowers and sweet berries, or digging into the warm earth as she planted seeds in her garden.

She should not, she knew, complain. Her husband, Uriah, was the commander of Fort Sinquefield, and due to his position they had the finest accommodation available- a small cabin of their own with a stone chimney and fireplace where she could keep a cooking fire. There was a simple wooden table and a few chairs. A ladder led to the sleeping loft above. She had a bed, with a feather mattress brought from home, big enough for her and her husband and children. But it felt lonely, without his big body beside her, to warm her and comfort her. He would assure her. “Hush, Sarah. I am with you. The men are on guard outside. You are safe.” And sometimes, she would believe him. But deep in her heart she knew the truth. They were only a few hundred whites, mostly helpless women and children, amidst tens of thousands of Creek Indians, most of them hostile and bent on exterminating the whites who had recently settled on their lands.

She lay awake, the events of the last few weeks pummeling her brain. As the danger of Indian unrest became apparent, as rumors flew about which terrified the  small population of settlers and then reports came of unimaginable atrocities, stockades sprang up across the very land that had once held so much promise. Hastily constructed, a barrier of pointed wood stakes with a few blockhouses was raised around an acre of land. Inside, cabins and huts were being constructed providing minimal shelter from the elements and minimal safety from any outside onslaught. Still, even before the stockade walls were completed, Sarah watched families flood through the gates. They came on wagons, on foot or by horseback, a few meager belongings hastily thrown into burlap sacks. Sarah rushed out to meet her neighbors, welcoming them, helping direct them to the few shelters that had been constructed. Some put up canvas tents, sure this would not last for long. Sarah prayed they were right.

There were far too many people, but this was their only hope. In no time the small space was terribly overcrowded. The men were quickly absorbed into the militia, or assisting with constructing the stockade and rude shelters. The women, half of them pregnant or nursing hungry infants, held onto crying toddlers or looked worriedly after youngsters who ran about in blessed ignorance, enthusiastically playing with friends they rarely saw except on Sundays at church. But the only way this enclave resembled a church was in the magnitude of prayers that were offered up to the heavens.

Family History Writing Challenge 2025- Day 1- Finding Sarah

 

Cato, Mississippi

I  traveled nearly a thousand miles to reach this place, searching for my ancestors. But the pretty headstone I found in the little country cemetery did not belong to an ancestor. It belonged to a woman who was very dear to me for another reason. 

The little country cemetery at Cato is not far from the Baptist church, a red brick building with a white steeple pointing skyward and broad double doors welcoming worshipers inside.  Down the road, tall trees surround the small plot of land, a well-kept space which is illuminated by bright Southern sunlight. A number of white and gray headstones rise from the grass, marking the resting place of about 200 souls.

 

The memorial stone I found is simple and peaceful. But it was a tribute to a woman whose life was anything but simple and peace often eluded her existence. She surely cherished those peaceful moments, among the years of strife. The fact that she survived for 98 years tells of her strength of character.

The headstone itself is cracked in half, caused by a lightning strike according to family stories. But it survived even that assault, and presents a sweet memorial with a flourish at the top, followed by a faded inscription. 

                                                       Sarah Womack

                                             Died November 30,1882, Aged 98 years.

          Not lost, blest thought, but gone before, where we shall meet to part no more.”

In death she was indeed surrounded by many of those she loved. These stone memorials tell the story of much love, but also tragedy. Sarah’s memorial is next to her son’s, who stood by her side throughout her life.

Ferdinand Hayes Claiborne Dent survived her by only two years, dying in 1884 at age 75. Next to him is a broken but pretty stone, carved with a rose and faded inscription. This  belongs to his wife, Mary A. Campbell, who lived another decade, dying in 1899 at age 82.

A grandson, too, lays close by. This memorial pulled at my heart. Thomas Beasley Dent was only 17 years old when he died in February, 1863. The year, of course, was a clue. Thomas was one of far too many young men who died during the Civil War. I learned later that he was lost defending Vicksburg, and two of his brothers who were also there, carried his body home.

One other grandchild lies in the cemetery Martha Dent Kennedy- who lived to age 84. But the others Sarah loved had scattered to the winds- some close by in other Rankin County resting places, others who followed the westward migration as far as Louisiana and Texas.

One of those she loved was the reason I was here.

Sarah was the woman who raised my great-great grandfather, Abraham James Womack, as her own child. Her remarkable life story is a part of his own, and so a part of mine as well. 

Resources:

Cato Cemetery, Rankin County, Miss- Find-a-Grave

Sarah Walker Dent Womack find-a-grave

Ferdinand Hayes Claiborne Dent Find-a-Grave

Mary Adeline Campbell Dent- Find-a-Grave

Thomas Beasley Dent- Find-a-Grave

Richard Womack I from Robert Burke's research

 Robert Burke- Womack Gen

1764-1771- John Henry Pryor and the Regulators

John Henry Pryor was the son of Robert Pryor (b 1663 England d 29 Oct 1757 Gloucester, Va) and Elizabeth Virginia Greene (b 1667 Gloucester Va d 1761 Gloucester Va) It is thought that Robert Pryor was in Virginia by 1674.

In 1775, John Henry Pryor was 60 years old and living in Orange County, NC.
His wife was Margaret Gaines. In 1777 they were in Caswell County NC.

We know a great deal about John Pryor from the will he wrote in  September 1771 in Orange County, NC.  He was a wealthy man. Besides lands beyond his plantation, totaling over 1,000 acres,  he leaves at least 26 slaves to his children and grandchildren. He lists furniture including numerous feather beds, and extensive livestock including horses and cows. To his wife Margaret he leaves the plantation, 12 slaves, two stills, and his stock. David Womack and William Stone (his son in laws) were named executors of his will.

The Womacks and Pryors lived in the frontier of western NC. There was friction between these frontiersmen and the eastern colonial government in NC led by Gov. Wm. Tryon. The western settlers felt they were excessively taxed and ruled by dishonest officials. They rebelled against the taxes and fees. Tryon, who had built himself an exhorbitant palace, and was seen as corrupt by the settlers, sent out over 1000 men in 1768 to meet a force of Regulators numbering nearly 4,000. Several leaders of the Regulators were arrested but released without bloodshed.

Herman Husbands (who was considered the chief agitator of the Regulators)  and John Pryor both represented Orange County in the NC House of Burgesses.https://docsouth.unc.edu/csr/index.php/document/csr08-0068
http://www.sonsofdewittcolony.org/mckstmerreg2.htm


In 1769, John Pryor was a county representative in the colonial assembly in NC as well as a prominent Regulator. In September 1770, the court met at Hillsborough, and was disrupted by the Regulators which drove the crown's attorney, Edmund Fanning, out of town. Governor Tryon sent out a military expedition with 1000 men and met the Regulators at Alamance, where they fought. 15 Regulators were taken prisoner and 7 of these were executed at Hillsborough.

 Many of the frontiersmen fled from NC after this battle and would become patriots in the American Revolution several years later.
Herman Husbands and John Pryor were leaders of the movement, but Herman Husbands was expelled from the House of Burgesses in 1770 while John Pryor was allowed to remain.
John Pryor died while serving in the House of Burgesses in New Bern in 1771.




His daughter, Mildred, was married to David Womack, son of Richard Womack III. In 1777 and 1780 they were living in Caswell County, NC. where David's name was on a petition to the House of Burgesses in 1779., In 1800 they were living in Hillsborough, NC.

David migrated to Burke County Georgia, where in 1792 he had 100 acres and in 1793 he added an additional 200 acres of land. He and his brother John were chain carriers (surveyors.)

Mildred may have died in Beaufort, SC in 1804.

By 1804 the family had moved to Greensburg in St. Helena Parish, La., where David died.

Their children, born between 1764 and 1785 were Richard Mansel, Dorothy Pryor, David II, Abner, Abraham, Jacob Green and William Washington Womack. The children of David Womack II would migrate to Trinity County Texas.

Early Womack and Puckett settlers in ChesterfieldCounty and Swift Creek

Eastern part of Chesterfield County- tidewater

1622 massacre in the area include John Rolfe, former husband of Pocahontas and father of the tobacco industry

1673 plague and severe winter which killed 50,000 cattle in Virginia

Cattle were more common than horses, and hogs the most common farm animal of all. Wolves were numerous and ravaged the livestock. Negroes and Indians commonly stole hogs for food. In 1669 the Indian tribes were required by law to deliver 145 wolf heads

The settlers depended heavily on imports from England; yarn and thread and material for clothing, table linens and napkins, blankets, shoes, stockings, metal items such as razors, scissors, candlesticks, pots and pans,lanterns and lamps, fishing hooks and lines, farming implements, nails, gunpowder.

1656- Orphans and the sons of poor men were apprenticed by the parishes to be trained until the age of 21. Spinning wheels were used to make home spun cloth. William Byrd had a millstone at Falling Creek

For the wealthy, English laws of primogeniture held in England, but younger sons could be sent to Virginia to get land patents. Once established, however, primogeniture again took hold.

There were two classes; gentlemen (often planters or merchants) and servants or laborers.

1679-Richard Kennon marked himself as a merchant, Martin Elam and John Bowman called themselves planters.

Drinking was done heavily, card playing and betting a universal pastime, 

Horse racing was the most popular diversion and social gathering event and breeding for sport encouraged as early as 1643. By 1663 importing horses was prohibited although export was allowed. There was a track at Bermuda Hundred. Racing disputes were common. In 1688 Abram Womack and Richard Ligon held a race  with Womack's horse ridden by Thomas Cocke and Ligon's by Joseph Tanner, a servant of Thomas Chamberlaine, who was the starter. Abram Childres was the judge. Womack's  horse shied from the track and Ligon's horse won the race, resulting in a dispute. Heavy betting was common at such events, and disputes went to the court.

1680- John Piggot (puckett) won 300 pounds of tobacco while playing cards with Martin Elam and claimed he was owed more

Thomas Cocke kept a tavern in 1685, but was also a planter. Hospitality at good inns and taverns were matched by the residences of wealthy landowners, who lived as if on an English estate. The landed gentry ruled the county and the state.

 People traveled from one plantation to another on boats or sloops along the rivers and streams; even bridle paths were basic in those times. The settlements were limited to the rivers and creeks. The lands beyond the fall line of the James River were heavily forested and inhabited by savages.

 William Farrar settled in 1656

John Puckett and John Burton settled in 1665

Abraham and William Womack (Womecke) about the same time as John Puckett

Richard Kennon settled in 1665 at Conjurer's Neck- at the junction of Swift Creek and the Appomattox river

By the 1680's land patents began gradually going westward  along Swift Creek.

In 1682 William Puckett and Thomas Puckett received 750 acres in Bristol parish, north of the Appomattox river.

In 1683, Joseph Tanner and Richard Womack received a patent for 260 acres on the north side of the Appomattox river. James Baugh got a patent for 119 acres on the north of the Appomattox.

In 1690 Henry Walthall got a patent for 320 acres on the north side of swift creek in Bristol Parish. A few years later Richard Kennon, Francis Epes, Joseph Royal and George Archer got patents on the north side of the Appomatox at Winterpock Creek. In 1703 more families moved there.

Early Chesterfield county settlers

continue p. 63

Baugh family and marriage of Elizabeth Womack

 

(see Womack to far left)

Baugh Plantation- Ashton Creek, a branch of the Appomattox River

William Baugh Sr. arrived in Virginia from London in 1638. He was a widower and married Elizabeth Sharpe Parker about 1639 in Henrico County. 

Elizabeth had arrived in Virginia on the "Francis Bonaventure" in August 1620.  She married Sgt. William Sharpe (an "ancient planter in the time of Thomas Dale" and in 1624 they were living on the Bermuda Hundred with their sons Isaac and Samuel. William had 40 acres of land and was elected Burgess for Bermuda Hundred. 

After his death Elizabeth married Thomas Parker, who was living with Thomas Baugh at the West and Sherley Hundred. Thomas was thought to be the son of John Baugh, and nephew of William Baugh, Sr.  Thomas Baugh emigrated from Bristol, England on the "Supply" which arrived in Virginia on 29 Feb. 1621. By January 1625 he had relocated to the "College Lands." The 1624 muster recorded Thomas Parker there as well, under Thomas Osborne's command. Thomas Parker arrived in Virginia on the "Neptune" in 1618, along with William Farrar. After his marriage to Elizabeth, he died prior to July 1836.

Elizabeth was now a wealthy widow, and in July 1636 she patented 500 acres in Henrico between the Curles and Varina, part of a total of 950 acres patented in August 1637 from headrights due to transportations of 13 servants for Sharpe. This land was in Varina, east of Henricus.

Elizabeth married William Baugh Sr. in about 1639 and died before Feb 1, 1650, when her will was recorded.

William Baugh Sr.

William Baugh Sr. arrived in Virginia from London in 1638. He was a widower and married Elizabeth Sharpe Parker about 1639 in Henrico County. He lived at Kingsland and Proctor's Creek prior to 1668, when he received a land grant for 577 acres near his brother, John Baugh. He received 600 acres for transportation of 12 persons to Virginia, including his son, William Baugh, Jr. , who arrived in Jamestown about 1660. This land was on the south side of the James River, and the north side of Appomattox river near Ashton Creek.  His brother, John Baugh, had a 1638 land patent near Johnson Creek.

William Baugh Jr. married Jane Hatcher Branch in 1661 but died prior to 1678 and she remarried. One of her daughters, Priscilla Baugh, married William Farrar III, and William Baugh Sr. left her a tract of land.

William Baugh Sr. married a third time after the death of Elizabeth,  to Elizabeth Womack. Their children were Katherine Baugh born 1653 who married a Jones and James Baugh I born 1655 who married Elizabeth Ashbrook and Mary Baugh. Mary Baugh married 1- Thomas Howlett and 2- Thomas Byrd, the brother of William Byrd I of Westover. Thomas Byrd died in March 1710 and Mary died on May 16, 1710 and her son Thomas Howlett Jr. administered her estate with Capt. Thomas Jefferson giving security.

William Baugh Sr. was buried at the Baugh family cemetery near Ashton Creek.

Read further

http://arslanmb.org/baugh/baugh.html

https://www.jstor.org/stable/1914683?seq=1

https://www.jstor.org/stable/1914991?seq=1

http://files.usgwarchives.net/va/henrico/bios/earlyfam2.txt

Source:

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/119190420/william-baugh by Gresham Farrar

1) "Virginia Immigrants and Adventurers, 1607-1635" by Martha W. McCartney, 2007, pp. 120, 528, 529, 631 ,632.
2) "The Farrar's Island Family" by Alvahn Holmes, 1972, p. 145.
3) "Virginia Magazine of History & Biography" Vol. 13, p58.
4) "Virginia Gleanings in England Abstracts of 17th and 18th Century English Wills and Administrations Relating to Virginia and Virginians" by Lothrop Withington, 2007, p113.
5) "Adventurers of Purse and Person, Virginia, 1607-1624/5" by John Frederick Dorman, 4th Ed., Vol. I, 2004, pp8,12,367,930.
6) "Adventurers of Purse and Person, Virginia, 1607-1624/5" by John Frederick Dorman, 4th Ed., Vol. 3, 2007, p153.
7) "Cavaliers and Pioneers. Abstracts of Virginia Land Patents and Grants" Vol. I by Nell Marion Nugent, 1983, p549.
8) "Virginia Vital Records" Indexed by Judith McGhan, 1984, p9.

"The Correspondence of the Three Byrds of Westover

Richard Womack 1655-1684 Mindmap of Relationships in Henrico

Bristol Parish Virginia

 

Bristol Parish was established in 1643. It included the parts of the Westover and Weynoake Parishes on the south side of the James River. A new chapel was erected in Bristol Parish. In 1752, it became the parish for Dinwiddie County as well.

Westover Parish on the north side of the James was established in 1613. The current church was built in 1730, before that the church was on Westover Plantation; built between 1630 and 1637. The church was destroyed during the Civil war when it was used as a stable for federal troops, who used the gravestones as tent floors.

Charles City County was one of the four corporations set up by the London Company in 1618. When the Virginia Colony was divided in 1634, the county included land both to the north and south of the James River, from James City to Henrico County. In 1703, the territory south of the river was formed into Prince George County.

The first colony was Charles City, established in 1612 as a fortification from the Indians on the south bank of the Appomattox. About the same time, on the north side of the James, about 12 miles from Jamestown, Governor Dale founded the plantations of West and Shirley Hundred, as part of his New Bermudas, around the main settlement of Bermuda Hundred. In 1617, Weyanoke was given to Sir George Yeardley by Opechancanough, with 2200 acres on the north bank of the James between Mapsico and Queen's Creeks. In 1618, Smith's Hundred was established- 100,000 acres between the Weyanoke and Chichahominy river on the north side of the James, but this plantation was anihiliated in the Indian massacre of 1622. Weyanoke plantation also extended south of the James River from Westover plantation on the east to Kennon's Creek on the north and Upper Chippokes Creek on the south.

Westover plantation was originally on land granted to Thomas West (Lord de la Warr) and his brothers on the West and Shirley Hundred, which was united by marriage of Thomas West to Cecily Shirley. This lay on both sides of the James River from Henrico County (Gunn's Run) on the north to Flowerdew Hundred on the south. 

On the south side of the river, Martin's Brandon plantation and Merchants Hope were established by Captain John Martin in 1618 and 1620 and later passed on to John Sadler, Thomas Quiney and associates in 1643.

The earliest church was St. Mary's in Smith's Hundred (later Southampton Hundred) by 1619, but most parishioners were affected by the massacre of 1622.

Wallingford Parish church, a brick building on Chickahominy Creek  near Kennon's Creek was likely built around 1648 but the parish was added to Westover in 1720.

Blandford church also had outlying wood frame chapels; the Ferry Chapel, near the home of Mrs. Elizabeth Kennon's brick house at Conjurers Neck, and another at Sapponey.

William and Martha Womack

Wm born Sept 10, 1723  bapt Jan 19, 1724

Laurana dtr of Eliz Womack b 20 March 1728

Ephaim son of Womack and Mable Pucket born 24 Jan bap 10 April 1721

Isham son of Womack and Mable Pucket  born 14 Oct 1723 bap 23 April 1724

Richard son of Richard and Martha Pucket born 17 March 1718

Phebe dau of John and Judith Pucket b 11 Jan bap March 5 1720

Wm son of John and Judith Puckett b 15 Sept bap 17 Dec 1720

Sources:

Vestry Book and Register of Bristol Parish 1720-1789

Chamberlain's Colonial Churches- Blandford Church

Meade's History of Bristol Parish

Births from Bristol Parish Register- Chamberlayne (Ancestry.com)

The Colonial Churches of Charles City County Virginia

Excitement at St. Stephens- the Capture of Aaron Burr

People of Old Saint Stephens

 

Ephram Kirby, first Alabama judge, appointed in 1804 to St. Stephens, Washington County, died soon after appointment of yellow fever

George Strother Gaines, appointed federal trader to the Choctaw Trading House at St. Stephens, Washington County in 1804. Lived in the old Spanish commandant's residence and ran a store and land office. Built the first brick building in 1811.

Battle of Burnt Corn- July 27, 1813

Burnt Corn, Monroe County, Alabama- July 27, 1813

Mississippi Territory Militia
Colonel James Caller commanding-Washington County Alabama
Capt. B. Heard's Volunteer Company- Fort St. Stephens
Capt. B. Smoot's Volunteer Company- Fort St. Stephens
Capt. P. Cartwright's Militia Company - Washington County Alabama
Capt. S. Dale's Volunteer Company
Capt. Dixon Bailey's Native American Company- Tensaw/Little River
William McGrew's, Robert Caller's, William Bradberry's Company-Fort Glass

Total force 180 men.
Casualties 2 killed, 15 wounded

Creek Warriors "Red Sticks"*
Peter McQueen commanding- Ikana chaka (Holy Ground)

Tallassees
Atossees
Alibamos

Total force about 100 warriors- est.
Casualties 10 killed, 8 wounded- est.

http://alabamatrailswar1812.com/muster.htm- has information on other nearby battles and massacres

http://encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-3081

Patriots from Georgia and the Carolinas- the Overmountain Trail and our Womack family

 https://www.nps.gov/ovvi/planyourvisit/park-brochure-part-1.htmNPS Overmountain Trail and History

James C. Womack- Farms in Apple Springs in 1880

In June, 1880, fifteen years after the civil war had ended, they took an Agricultural Census in Trinity County, Texas. James C. Womack, lived in Beat #4. His closest neighbors included his brothers, George Franklin Womack, and Thomas Womack, and two of his brothers-in-law, William Taylor and James Taylor. The census shows the dollar value of different components of each local farm.

Source Citation

Census Year: 1880; Census Place: Beat 4, Trinity, Texas; Archive Collection Number: T1134; Roll: 41; Page: 3; Line: 6; Schedule Type: Agriculture

The first section shows that JC Womack owned his land. James had tilled land, wooded land, and a large section of "old fields." The total dollar value of his farm, including land, fences, and buildings, was about $500. He owned two horses and a mule- typical in 1880 for most families in the community His livestock was valued at $425.  He paid $75 for farm labor- more than most of his neighbors. He sold about $535 worth of farm products that year.

James (#6) owned 8 milk cows. The record shows that Fannie had made about 300 pounds of butter that year. She kept about 20 chickens which had provided them with about 135 eggs. (Only about 11 dozen!) James also owned 10 pigs and 27 head of cattle and slaughtered 2 for meat that year.  

James was a farmer as well as a rancher. He planted 12 acres in corn, which resulted in 200 bushels of the crop, and 4 acres in cotton, which resulted in only 3 bales. He planted 10 acres in cow peas, and Fannie had a small garden with Irish and Sweet potatoes and an orchard with apple and peach trees.

The family cut about 15 cords of wood from their woodlands.

James C. Womack- Apple Springs Community in 1880

It was June, 1880, fifteen years after the end of the civil war. James C. Womack and Nancy Frances, "Fannie," Taylor were 30 years old, living on their farm in Trinity County, Texas. They had been married for ten years, and had three daughters; nine-year-old Emma, six-year-old Dona, and three-year-old Leona. Fannie was pregnant with my grandmother, Mattie, who would be born six months later on January 6, 1881.

The small community of Apple Springs was mostly inhabited by close knit relatives. James had several family members on adjoining farms;

James' mother, 63 year old widow Rebecca Franklin Womack, lived next door to the family with his youngest brother, 22 year old Thomas.

James' brother, George and Fannie's sister Mary Jane, "Mollie" had married and lived next door with their three children; nine-year-old Leon, seven-year-old Oda, five-year old-Edna, and three-year-old Jennie.

His eldest sister, 39 year old Matilda Womack West, had lost her husband in the war, and lived with her two children, Robert 19 and Annie 17.

Fannie also had siblings on nearby farms;

Fannie's 59 year old mother, Jennie Ainsworth Taylor, had also been widowed and was living with her son 20 year old son William and a farm worker, Benjamin Rasberry.

Fannie's brother 31-year-old James Taylor and his wife Sarah were also neighbors with their four children; Thomas 9, Eugene 5, William 4, and Annie 1.

Her 34 year old brother Lee Taylor and his wife Lenora lived nearby with their three children William 7, Lula 6, and Edgar 1.

Extended family also lived  in Apple Springs;

Rebecca's Franklin Womack's sister, 65 year old Jemima Franklin McClendon, had lost her husband in 1861, and was living with her sons 29 year old Robert, who worked as a mail carrier, and 23 year old Frank, who worked the farm. Jemima was caring for a 2 year old grandchild, Walter McClendon.

Rebecca Franklin Womack's cousin, 50 year old Lucy Campbell, whom she had grown up with in Mississippi, was married to 62 year old Abram Womack, a distant relative of our Womacks. The couple never had children of their own, but had raised many orphans over the years.

There were two school teachers living in the community; 28 year old Homer Hunston and 20 year old Henrietta Hunston. Like most schoolteachers of the day, they boarded with a local family, the Craigs.

Source Citation

Year: 1880; Census Place: Precinct 4, Trinity, Texas; Roll: 1329; Page: 328A; Enumeration District: 110

Franklin, Thomas- South Carolina records

http://www.archivesindex.sc.gov/


1802-

Franklin, Thomas, Plat For 843 Acres On Crane Creek, Richland District, Surveyed By Alexander Kennedy. Date: 10/4/1802

People in this record:

Beasley, Jesse; Beasly, Jessy; Busby, Isaac; Franklin, Thomas; Kennedy, Alexander

Places in this record:

Broad River; Crane Creek; Richland District

Topics in this record:

Record details:

Date: 10/4/1802

Series: State Plat Books (Columbia Series) (S213192)

Document Type: Plat

Images: Available at SCDAH building or by order. See How to search menu.

Identifiers:

Archives ID: Series: S213192 Volume: 0039 Page: 00094 Item: 000

Thomas Franklin's Estate- Richland County SC 1808- Jemima Franklin and Henry Franklin Administrators

July 2, 1808- Order for Jemima and Henry Franklin to appear in Court at Columbia, Richland District, SC for letters of administration on goods of Thomas Franklin

July 1808 Bond for Appraisal of Goods

Appraisers- Robert Duke, John Thornton, James Phillips, Samuel Wadkins and Aaron Wooton

Appraisement

August 8, 1808/9- Account of Thomas Franklin Estate by Henry Franklin- articles to Jemima Franklin

October 1809- Jemima and Henry appear in court with record of expenditures

Record of debts paid- Christian Lightner was paid for a 1807 note and for 30 bushels of corn

Ancestry.com. South Carolina, Wills and Probate Records, 1670-1980 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.
Richland County, South Carolina Miscellaneous Estate Records, 1799-1955; Author: South Carolina. County Court (Richland County); Probate Place: Richland, South Carolina

Richard's Story- 1798-1802- The Trip from Georgia to the Tombigbee Settlement

After the revolution, many Tories who had their lands confiscated moved south and west, to British East and West Florida, sparking interest in that area. Then the same men that had lead patriot soldiers in the Revolution led the movement to acquire lands to the west. They had little sympathy for the resident Creeks who had fought with the British to attack Georgia patriot settlements during the revolution. Elijah Clarke even tried to begin an independent republic to the west on Creek lands, a move which the U.S. Government quickly stopped, sending his old friend John Twiggs to put an end to it. Twiggs, Jesse Womack's old commander, was deeply involved in western land schemes. He and William Few were members of the Georgia Union Company, which tried to buy 35 million acres in land that was to become the Mississippi Territory. This was part of the Yazoo land fraud of 1802- which again, the Georgia government stopped- buying the land from the investors, and burning the papers at the courthouse in Louisville. Some who had "bought" the land moved anyway. Others picked up the fever to move westward, and began to make plans to head to these enticing and inexpensive lands in the west- lands that were said to be rich with black, fertile soil and a climate that was perfect for growing cotton.

The  U.S. had formed the Mississippi Territory in April 1798, opening the possibility of growth in that area. In May 1799, the Treaty of San Lorenzo allowed the U.S. to take possession of Fort. St. Stephen, creating an American presence on the Tombigbee. In July, Fort Stoddart was established at the fork of the Tombigbee and Alabama rivers, six miles above the boundary line that marked West Florida's boundary. The area was just waiting for American settlement.

Young Richard Womack must have been listening excitedly as his father Jesse, and his father's  friend Francis Coleman discussed the possibilities of moving to the western lands. Other male neighbors were also full of discussions of the promises of life in lands to the west. Other Womack relatives also were making plans to move- Richard's uncles-David Womack and Jonathan Kemp had plans to move to West Florida, even beyond the Tombigbee settlement, halfway to Natchez.

Then the actual land purchases began. We have a record of Francis Coleman's purchase:

"Joel Walker for $3,000 cash, sold to Francis Coleman, a plantation of 500 acres of land in West Florida to a point immediately above the Black Rock of the River Tombeckby about 112 miles above the town of Mobile bounded by the river on North, east, south, and southwest, granted to Charles Walker by the Province of West Florida January 27, 1777."  (American State Papers- Public Lands- Vol. 1 p 683)

This is followed by a letter requesting passage through the Creek Nation:

Letter to Executive Dept of Ga., August 14, 1799

Colonel Benjamin Hawkins, superintendant of Indian affairs

Sir,

At the request of Mr. Francis Coleman the bearer hereof I address to you to present to inform you of his wish to remove his property to the Don or Tombigby River, through the Creek Nation. I have informed him that this liberty can only be granted by you, who know the feelings and sentiment of the Indians on such occasion. I will therefore only further add that Mr. Coleman seems to be a peculiar case- he sometimes since sold out his land here, and purchased land in exchange on that river. He is a citizen of repute, and I believe, if indulged, would give no trouble to the United States or offense to the Indians. (signed James Jackson)

P 396 minutes of the executive dept. of the state of ga. for 2/6/1799-11/7/1799

Then on November 19, 1799, 29 year old William and 23 year old John Coleman were granted passports to travel through the Creek Nation to the Tombigbee and return. These two brave young men would pave the way for the migration of the Coleman and Womack families. They were heading into a wilderness, on Indian paths marked only with hatchet marks on the trees. They would have to hunt for their food along the way, find water, cross rivers, meet up with Indians on the trail. It was a dangerous journey that would take at least two months. But while Margaret Coleman likely fretted, the Coleman boys were surely excited about this expedition. Richard and the younger boys must have envied them, as they watched them pack and gathered to say their farewells. But the remaining family members probably already knew that they would soon be making the journey too. William and John were paving the way for a migration of families. The Coleman's had bought a plantation on the Tombigbee.

Richard's grandmother, Ann "Nancy" Childers Womack, could probably never have survived the trip. She may have been planning on staying with Uncle Abraham's family. But it is thought that she passed away about 1800, before Richard's family moved.

In 1801, Jonathan Kemp got a land grant in Spanish West Florida. It was to West Florida, in an area that became St. Helena Parish, Louisiana, that Jonathan's family moved to. It was also to St. Helena that David Womack and his family moved. One wonders why David chose a different area than Jesse, but by 1810 his family was established at St. Helena. Jesse's family chose a closer settlement at the Tombigbee, with the Colemans.

In the spring of 1802, it was Richard's turn. His father and older brother John were granted passports through the Creek Nation to settle in the Western Country. In the spring of 1803, Francis Coleman Jr. (husband of Mary Womack) and Benjamin Coleman (husband of Elizabeth Womack) were granted passports.


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Land Deed Book A,'Washington County, Alabama, Pages 3-8. 1799.

Joel Walker for $3,000 cash sold to Francis Coleman a plantation of 500 acres 

of Land in West Florida on a point immediately above the Black Rock

 on the River Tombeckby about 112 miles above the Town of Mobile, 

bounded by the river on the north, east, south, and southwest, 

granted to Charles Walker by the Province of West Florida January 27, 1777.