I hate it when I look at trees on ancestry.com and they are incorrect because someone took one factoid and decided it was correct without checking. I confess I was guilty of this myself when I first started out rooting my tree. All the more reasons why I hate it now in others.
I am fairly certain that Josiah Pridgen is my 2xgreat grandmother's father. However, I still put the question mark on my tree. The DNA doesn't lie but there are so many ancestors out there after you pass the first great grandfather, I rather err on the side of caution.
Still, that clue has led me to another clue. On Mary Jane Roberts' sister's death certificate, it is stated that the sister was born in Cherokee, Alabama in 1866. This makes me more certain that Grandma Jane was also born in Cherokee and closer to being 100% certain Pridgeon is the father. Even more exciting is that the informant included the maiden name of Jane's mother. It was "Spince." Eureka! I have a surname for Judie.
When I looked at Josiah Pridgen's family tree, I noticed he married Mary Lou Spence in 1842. Spence! On the 1850 slave schedule, Josiah owns one slave, a young girl around 12 years old. I think this was Judie, Jane's mother. It means she was born before the marriage took place likely on the Spence grounds
Unfortunately, the trail seems to end there. For now. I am just beginning to look for more. I'm sure something will turn up. That's what makes genealogy such a nerdy joy. The games afoot!
Showing posts with label slave schedule. Show all posts
Showing posts with label slave schedule. Show all posts
Sunday, May 1, 2016
Monday, October 27, 2014
Genealogical bread crumbs
I'm trying to see if DNA can chip away my brick walls. I was a little disappointed that I wasn't able to come up with anything new after the inspirational conference I had attended. So today I decided to concentrate on my Cotten family mysteries.
To recap, my great grandfather is Napoleon Cotten. His mother is Winnie Deer. It took me years to find them on the 1870 census mainly because I was looking for Cottens. Then on one of my searches I used only the first names and the state, Mississippi. Heritage Quest rewarded me with success. I found the whole family in 1870 in Amite County. The reason I couldn't find them before was because I wasn't looking for Andersons, the surname they were using in 1870.
I then tried to find them on various Amite county farms owned by Andersons. Moses Gordon Anderson became a person of interest in my mystery. He lived near Winnie in 1870. In 1860, he owned 40 slaves including a 100 year old woman named Sophia. On the slave schedule, following the tip I learned at the conference, I noticed a family group that corresponded to the ages of Winnie's family. There were discrepancies. There was a one year old male. On Winnie's tombstone and on the 1900 census, she is recorded with only three sons and a daughter. If this is Winnie, she is recorded on this slave schedule with four sons. Also the ages of the sons were a little off except for Napoleon's.
I then looked at the 1850 slave schedule. M. G. Anderson owns 23 slaves. They are separated into two groups. On the smaller group, there is a 15 year old female, the right age for Winnie, and possibly her oldest son Hiram at one year old.
I went back to 1840 and found Anderson with a new wife and seven slaves. I checked out his bride. Her name was Cynthia Carolyn Causey, daughter of Capt. William Causey and Susanna Jackson. The Captain had died in 1828 and left a will. He had sired many children. He also possessed many slaves. He willed only one, "negro girl named Mary" to his daughter Cynthia. Now I know Mary is a very common name and it means very little but it still gave me a glimmer of hope that this was Winnie's mother, Mary. And when I checked the 1840 census, Anderson owned only two female slaves-a child under 10 and a woman between 24 and 35 years old. Could this be Mary and Winnie?
I continued searching family trees for the Causeys on ancestry.com. I came across a familiar name. The woman who owned one of the Causey family trees was also a match to me through DNA!!!
I still have much to do to determine who was the shared ancestor. Her family tree had a surname that was also on my family tree-- Cain. We may be connected that way. Cynthia Causey's brother had married Lucretia Cain, a daughter of Isaiah Cain and sister to Mary Cain Cotten. These same surnames keep coming up. That is why I am holding out hope that this bread crumb trail will finally lead me to the ancestors of Winnie and Napoleon and knock down that brick wall.
To recap, my great grandfather is Napoleon Cotten. His mother is Winnie Deer. It took me years to find them on the 1870 census mainly because I was looking for Cottens. Then on one of my searches I used only the first names and the state, Mississippi. Heritage Quest rewarded me with success. I found the whole family in 1870 in Amite County. The reason I couldn't find them before was because I wasn't looking for Andersons, the surname they were using in 1870.
I then tried to find them on various Amite county farms owned by Andersons. Moses Gordon Anderson became a person of interest in my mystery. He lived near Winnie in 1870. In 1860, he owned 40 slaves including a 100 year old woman named Sophia. On the slave schedule, following the tip I learned at the conference, I noticed a family group that corresponded to the ages of Winnie's family. There were discrepancies. There was a one year old male. On Winnie's tombstone and on the 1900 census, she is recorded with only three sons and a daughter. If this is Winnie, she is recorded on this slave schedule with four sons. Also the ages of the sons were a little off except for Napoleon's.
I then looked at the 1850 slave schedule. M. G. Anderson owns 23 slaves. They are separated into two groups. On the smaller group, there is a 15 year old female, the right age for Winnie, and possibly her oldest son Hiram at one year old.
I went back to 1840 and found Anderson with a new wife and seven slaves. I checked out his bride. Her name was Cynthia Carolyn Causey, daughter of Capt. William Causey and Susanna Jackson. The Captain had died in 1828 and left a will. He had sired many children. He also possessed many slaves. He willed only one, "negro girl named Mary" to his daughter Cynthia. Now I know Mary is a very common name and it means very little but it still gave me a glimmer of hope that this was Winnie's mother, Mary. And when I checked the 1840 census, Anderson owned only two female slaves-a child under 10 and a woman between 24 and 35 years old. Could this be Mary and Winnie?
I continued searching family trees for the Causeys on ancestry.com. I came across a familiar name. The woman who owned one of the Causey family trees was also a match to me through DNA!!!
I still have much to do to determine who was the shared ancestor. Her family tree had a surname that was also on my family tree-- Cain. We may be connected that way. Cynthia Causey's brother had married Lucretia Cain, a daughter of Isaiah Cain and sister to Mary Cain Cotten. These same surnames keep coming up. That is why I am holding out hope that this bread crumb trail will finally lead me to the ancestors of Winnie and Napoleon and knock down that brick wall.
Friday, March 16, 2012
Chasing Ancestors
I've been researching now for 15 years. Sometimes I get so frustrated with the lack of results that I take a break. I take a break but I never quit and one of the things that keeps me going is that when I end up on a dead-end street for one line, another line still has many avenues I can explore. Finding even the most minute detail that had been hitherto hidden is enough to keep my genealogy juices pumping.
This is what has got me going right now. I always knew that I descended from Brassfields but very little else. My grandmother's mother, whose portrait hangs in my mother's home, is Lizzie Brassfield. Her father was D. Brassfield. Whenever I would try to find more about him I would get stymied by bad transcription. He had an unusual name. Now you would think that would make it easier to find him. Unfortunately not. When 20th century transcribers look at his name written in that archaic handwriting, they come up with modern names and that makes him hard to find in a search. I have looked at the original documents and see Domic or Danic. The transcribers on ancestry.com see David. This is the name picked up by familysearch.com. But I digress.
Since watching Who Do You Think You Are and its episode about Reba McEntire, I have been more curious about Grandpa D. Using information from tngenweb.org I think George Simpson Brassfield of Gibson County, Tennessee was his last slave owner. Looking at the slave census for 1860, there is a male slave who is the right age for D living on George's farm. I have also found out that George's step-father had a larger farm with three times more slaves during 1850 and 1860 than George. And the trail doesn't end there. I'm finding a trove of information about George that may eventually lead me to Grandpa D's origin.
So now I am energized once more. I feel like I'm one of those celebrities on WDYTYA except I am the one doing all the hard work and making the wonderful discoveries. And that feels good.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
A Little Detective Work
I didn't make any real resolutions for this year but in my mind I vowed to figure out more of my ancestry. The year is nearly half over and I'm still chipping away at that brick wall.
I'm so glad I have this blog to remind me--to remind me of those silent vows, of promises to keep, of avenues to follow. I was rereading some of my entries and found this from a couple of years back.
"Negro boy, Ben, age 14, sold to John Koonce by Abner Green - Jones Co, North Carolina , January 1814
Negro woman, Betty age 20 from George Mitchell to John Koonce - March 1808, North Carolina
Gorge and Hanah from John Koonce to son Isaac Koonce, Jones Co, NC December 1822
Elijah, age 20, sold to Isaac Koonce in Haywood Co TN (not Transcribed) 1829
Mariah, age 12 – to Isaac Koonce from Alfred Kennedy, Haywood Co, TN - August 1832."
I don't even remember receiving this information let alone writing about it. This was given to me by a relative of Isaac Koonce along with the receipt of the sale of Solomon. It is possible that this holds important clues to Amy, my great-great-great grandmother. Here is how I break it down.
Isaac Koonce came to Haywood County, Tennessee in 1828 with brother-in-law David Augustus Nunn. Along with David's brother John (Jack) Nunn and uncle Francis (Frank) Nunn, they settled into western Tennessee. All of the North Carolina natives came with slaves. Isaac only had a few. Two of them, George and Hannah, were gifts from his father John Koonce.
On the 1830 Haywood census, Isaac claimed six slaves--three males and three females. The three males were between the ages 10 to 23. Two of the females were of those ages with one being younger than 10. Looking at the information given me, I deduce that the two adult slaves were George and Hannah and that the child was probably their daughter. Also, Elijah was one of the male slaves.
On the 1840 census,Isaac Koonce still has 6 slaves, but only two males. One male is under 24 to 10. I thinks this is Solomon who he just bought in 1839. The other male is between 24 and 35. This is either Elijah or George. I speculate that it is George because he was a gift but I know this is just speculation. Something may have happened to one of the men and that is why he bought Solomon. Of the four female slaves, two are under 10, one is between 10 and 24, and one is between 24 and 35. Isaac bought 12-year old Mariah in 1832. Is she the one between 10 and 24? I deduce that the one between 24 and 35 is Hannah. The two under 10 are possibly her daughters.
Jumping to the 1850 census slave schedule, Isaac now owns eight slaves. One was a male, 23 years old. That would be the right age for Solomon. There was also a 38 year old male (George?), a 40 year old female(Hannah?), a 28 year old female(Mariah?), and an 18 year old female. I think that the 18-year old may be the elusive Amy, mother to Solomon’s first set of children. There were also a twelve, a nine and a two year old female slave. If the 18 year old female is Amy, then she could have been one of the slaves under 10 on the 1840 census. I don't think she is the 28 year old female because Amy's oldest daughter was born around 1849. Twenty-eight is kind of old during this time to bear your first child. The 2 year old female is probably Mosella.
On the 1860 slave schedule, Isaac now has twelve slaves. There is now only one male who has to be Solomon at 35 years old. The 48 year old woman is probably Hannah. Here comes the tricky part. There is a 32 yr. old female and a 22 yr. old female who is designated a mulatto, the only one of the slaves that is so. I know that the ages are usually inaccurate and change from census to census. Amy is definitely there. She has born at least two more children--James, my great great grandfather that correlates with one of the nine year old males on the census, and Solomon Jr. who correlates with the 6 year old male. The 12 year old female has to be Mosella. So which one is Amy? Is Mariah still there? Is she the 32 year old? Is Amy the 22 year old? One oral legend says she is part Cherokee. Could she be called mulatto because of this?
I do plan on going to Tennessee this summer. Haywood County is a must see stop now to see if there are any records that corroborate any of my conclusions.
I'm so glad I have this blog to remind me--to remind me of those silent vows, of promises to keep, of avenues to follow. I was rereading some of my entries and found this from a couple of years back.
"Negro boy, Ben, age 14, sold to John Koonce by Abner Green - Jones Co, North Carolina , January 1814
Negro woman, Betty age 20 from George Mitchell to John Koonce - March 1808, North Carolina
Gorge and Hanah from John Koonce to son Isaac Koonce, Jones Co, NC December 1822
Elijah, age 20, sold to Isaac Koonce in Haywood Co TN (not Transcribed) 1829
Mariah, age 12 – to Isaac Koonce from Alfred Kennedy, Haywood Co, TN - August 1832."
I don't even remember receiving this information let alone writing about it. This was given to me by a relative of Isaac Koonce along with the receipt of the sale of Solomon. It is possible that this holds important clues to Amy, my great-great-great grandmother. Here is how I break it down.
Isaac Koonce came to Haywood County, Tennessee in 1828 with brother-in-law David Augustus Nunn. Along with David's brother John (Jack) Nunn and uncle Francis (Frank) Nunn, they settled into western Tennessee. All of the North Carolina natives came with slaves. Isaac only had a few. Two of them, George and Hannah, were gifts from his father John Koonce.
On the 1830 Haywood census, Isaac claimed six slaves--three males and three females. The three males were between the ages 10 to 23. Two of the females were of those ages with one being younger than 10. Looking at the information given me, I deduce that the two adult slaves were George and Hannah and that the child was probably their daughter. Also, Elijah was one of the male slaves.
On the 1840 census,Isaac Koonce still has 6 slaves, but only two males. One male is under 24 to 10. I thinks this is Solomon who he just bought in 1839. The other male is between 24 and 35. This is either Elijah or George. I speculate that it is George because he was a gift but I know this is just speculation. Something may have happened to one of the men and that is why he bought Solomon. Of the four female slaves, two are under 10, one is between 10 and 24, and one is between 24 and 35. Isaac bought 12-year old Mariah in 1832. Is she the one between 10 and 24? I deduce that the one between 24 and 35 is Hannah. The two under 10 are possibly her daughters.
Jumping to the 1850 census slave schedule, Isaac now owns eight slaves. One was a male, 23 years old. That would be the right age for Solomon. There was also a 38 year old male (George?), a 40 year old female(Hannah?), a 28 year old female(Mariah?), and an 18 year old female. I think that the 18-year old may be the elusive Amy, mother to Solomon’s first set of children. There were also a twelve, a nine and a two year old female slave. If the 18 year old female is Amy, then she could have been one of the slaves under 10 on the 1840 census. I don't think she is the 28 year old female because Amy's oldest daughter was born around 1849. Twenty-eight is kind of old during this time to bear your first child. The 2 year old female is probably Mosella.
On the 1860 slave schedule, Isaac now has twelve slaves. There is now only one male who has to be Solomon at 35 years old. The 48 year old woman is probably Hannah. Here comes the tricky part. There is a 32 yr. old female and a 22 yr. old female who is designated a mulatto, the only one of the slaves that is so. I know that the ages are usually inaccurate and change from census to census. Amy is definitely there. She has born at least two more children--James, my great great grandfather that correlates with one of the nine year old males on the census, and Solomon Jr. who correlates with the 6 year old male. The 12 year old female has to be Mosella. So which one is Amy? Is Mariah still there? Is she the 32 year old? Is Amy the 22 year old? One oral legend says she is part Cherokee. Could she be called mulatto because of this?
I do plan on going to Tennessee this summer. Haywood County is a must see stop now to see if there are any records that corroborate any of my conclusions.
Friday, November 13, 2009
On the trail again
It has been two weeks since the International Black Genealogy Summit ended. I came back with renewed fervor. Then I went back to my job. But I am endeavoring not to let all that good information and zeal go to waste.
Working on a tip written in my previous blog, I looked up H.S. Anderson on the 1850 slave census for Franklin County in Mississippi. The "H" stands for Henry. I was pleasantly pleased to find that Henry was living next to Joseph R. Cotten in 1850. This is the same Cotten that I once thought was Winney's slave owner. There is a female slave and male slave listed under both Joseph's and Henry's name that correspond with the ages of Winney and her oldest son Hiram.
I googled Henry's name and found some minutes for Mt. Zion Baptist Church, Franklin County, Mississippi. Henry, Joseph and a few Cain's were members of the church in 1852. Now I'm getting excited.
Could this be the smoking gun for my ancestors? Of course, I don't know the answer to that yet. I have looked up several Andersons that I thought may be the slave owners. However, the coincidence of Joseph and Henry being neighbors is making me think this may be the right trail to follow.
Working on a tip written in my previous blog, I looked up H.S. Anderson on the 1850 slave census for Franklin County in Mississippi. The "H" stands for Henry. I was pleasantly pleased to find that Henry was living next to Joseph R. Cotten in 1850. This is the same Cotten that I once thought was Winney's slave owner. There is a female slave and male slave listed under both Joseph's and Henry's name that correspond with the ages of Winney and her oldest son Hiram.
I googled Henry's name and found some minutes for Mt. Zion Baptist Church, Franklin County, Mississippi. Henry, Joseph and a few Cain's were members of the church in 1852. Now I'm getting excited.
Could this be the smoking gun for my ancestors? Of course, I don't know the answer to that yet. I have looked up several Andersons that I thought may be the slave owners. However, the coincidence of Joseph and Henry being neighbors is making me think this may be the right trail to follow.
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