tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8522772497904520502024-03-13T12:03:47.652-05:00Reeves, Reaves, and More RivesA genealogy blog for researchers of the surname Reeves in all of its flavors.Carolyn in ARhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02541328486840313169noreply@blogger.comBlogger141125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-27585736221397226262023-08-02T12:38:00.001-05:002023-08-02T13:22:49.979-05:00The Rives (Ryves) of Damory Court<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo0x-o1srJmIq7w-cy9I1CeoN_lDpmclPZRC-WuzQB8U919G5aSNwSUXu2T4N3U5OA8ieuYPpxueOr7ZwKWDBLXFT_B3EQ70fPyb2yPg-470JTsFE0nTK9JiPK7AvMzjlg3jtcMbxUHr72DKaqoo_iPNTyq8OPKWWYiupM-g7fRc9ipEjY9jn2cjZXWnud/s540/Blandford%20Forum.jpg" style="clear: right; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 0.5em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="353" data-original-width="540" height="131" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjo0x-o1srJmIq7w-cy9I1CeoN_lDpmclPZRC-WuzQB8U919G5aSNwSUXu2T4N3U5OA8ieuYPpxueOr7ZwKWDBLXFT_B3EQ70fPyb2yPg-470JTsFE0nTK9JiPK7AvMzjlg3jtcMbxUHr72DKaqoo_iPNTyq8OPKWWYiupM-g7fRc9ipEjY9jn2cjZXWnud/w200-h131/Blandford%20Forum.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Blandford Forum</td></tr></tbody></table><br />In 1929, James Rives Childs of Lynchburg, Virginia published <i>Reliques of the Rives (Ryves): being historical and genealogical notes of the ancient family Ryves of County Dorset</i>. This book has been a mainstay for Reeves researchers; however, only a small portion of today’s Reeves’ families descend from this lineage. This Reeves (Rives) family is represented in Group 8 of the Reeves DNA Project which currently has twenty-five members with matching Y-DNA verifying their kinship.<br /><br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiKO9jdNjCOz1zUkcJRzMtSrr_gwGPAWUOpW0JMTp3HjfE9ZCEobl7-Jo9eA-cTy-qYz69MS9dpNH2_33j2QrfVS2Ofz_fno8In63jjqVNj3O6MfNZqNeC6CaVuXzyM9T9W5m9O8_mIGHgB0ahBah7mqsxx2eUqPkPjDSDzysn5R8ebALi-rhaRiJdJVi3/s930/Robert%20Ryves%20grave%20inscription.jpg" style="clear: left; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 1em; padding: 0.5em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="403" data-original-width="930" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiKO9jdNjCOz1zUkcJRzMtSrr_gwGPAWUOpW0JMTp3HjfE9ZCEobl7-Jo9eA-cTy-qYz69MS9dpNH2_33j2QrfVS2Ofz_fno8In63jjqVNj3O6MfNZqNeC6CaVuXzyM9T9W5m9O8_mIGHgB0ahBah7mqsxx2eUqPkPjDSDzysn5R8ebALi-rhaRiJdJVi3/s320/Robert%20Ryves%20grave%20inscription.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Gravestone Inscription of<br />Robert Ryves<br /></td></tr></tbody></table>The Dorset family of Ryves descends from one Robert Ryves of Blandford County, Dorset, England who is the first of the name in England of whom there is record. He was born about 1490 and died 11 February 1551. Although the old church of Blandford Forum was destroyed by fire in 1731, an officer in the King’s Army in 1644 made notes describing the tomb of Robert Ryves. His grandson, Sir John Ryves, born 1536, in a petition stated that King Henry VIII had granted the premises of the manor of Milton County, Dorset to Robert Ryves in 1546.<br /><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO9QrAVdVxN-paADSR_9sAxjmYHkQabHqc-IZos1y7ocYXyISeUMRoVdMAioRBUQL5Djk3jPJnwgAEUQVRZ1GcDcTqEIRNI86teBL7LRKImy5z0HSTL9UbqiYF6bOBgqkCbEifiL95GhiKRMI4oCqx1NSA0JylhAYv7ohchMjntkTYqANP4aeeNiYCaOZ5/s549/Blandford%20Oak.jpg" style="clear: right; display: block; float: right; padding: 0em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="549" data-original-width="545" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjO9QrAVdVxN-paADSR_9sAxjmYHkQabHqc-IZos1y7ocYXyISeUMRoVdMAioRBUQL5Djk3jPJnwgAEUQVRZ1GcDcTqEIRNI86teBL7LRKImy5z0HSTL9UbqiYF6bOBgqkCbEifiL95GhiKRMI4oCqx1NSA0JylhAYv7ohchMjntkTYqANP4aeeNiYCaOZ5/s200/Blandford%20Oak.jpg" /></a></div>Many family history books written and published long before the current level of access to historical documents contain abundant misinformation because they relied heavily on proximity as a source of family connections. Childs spend a great amount of time researching Reliques and the book appears to be factual except for a few errors that seem based upon data submitted by Reeves descendants, not the work of Childs himself.<br /><br />
At the time in 1929 when <i>Reliques of the Rives (Ryves)</i> was first published, Childs believed that the immigrant ancestor of this family was William Ryves who was a titheable in Surry County, Virginia in 1684 and 1695. After much further scrutiny and mounting inferential evidence in support of the theory, in 1957, James Rives Childs wrote an amendment to the book which was published in the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography.<br /><br />
During the years after the first publiation, Childs felt that based upon his subsequent research along with additions and corrections shared by others that the immigrant was more likely Timothy Ryves, born 1625, the son of Timothy and Mary Ryves of Oxford. Timothy Rieve or Rives' estate was recorded in the Charles City County Order Book for 1687-1695. He was the father of George, Robert, John, and Timothy Rives, of Virginia.<br /><br />
<a href=https://www.google.com/books/edition/_/mIRLct95aMEC?hl=en&gbpv=1></a>
Recently a Reeves colleague who descends from this family shared a link to this book that contains many interesting tidbits that may be of interest to other members of DNA Group 8 and others of the Rives or Reeves family descending from this lineage.<br /><br />
<b><i>A Genealogical and Heraldic History of the Landed Gentry of Great Britain</i></b>
By Bernard Burke · pub. 1900<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" scrolling="no" style="border:0px" src="https://books.google.com/books?id=mIRLct95aMEC&newbks=0&pg=PA1&output=embed" width=500 height=500></iframe><br /></div>
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Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-55250819943092999822023-07-12T11:40:00.003-05:002023-08-07T11:15:15.399-05:00Some Reeves Origins in Portugal or Spain?I have spent many years searching for all the details of the life of my earliest known Reeves' ancestor, William Reeves (he, his sons and grandsons spelled it Reves). He arrived in Johnston County, North Carolina and he received a McCulloch grant for 400 acres on the Neuse River in 1746. None of those early records provide any clue to his origins. That 1746 deed simply describes him as "of Johnston County" which indicates that he was living in that county when the deed was recorded.<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzN3Esnc8dUcC5Cj8u2PA6GW9O_ikil4gS1P2PJgzC9wu5Nwp1o2T-OhxpH1m3C6jhgyAeuFbAD6Gpwh6EJW_J_viR6BFtVYHYvY8DL3J8KSKS4tnvZujQ05EwaHPN1kViYu_bEFj_-lH7o1BVH48j7yqM0AsJbxjRb6wTbSi_rXBuVXSflX4OBYcqbMPI/s3400/1746_Herman_Moll_Map_of_Carolina.jpg" style="clear: left; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: 1em; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="2494" data-original-width="3400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzN3Esnc8dUcC5Cj8u2PA6GW9O_ikil4gS1P2PJgzC9wu5Nwp1o2T-OhxpH1m3C6jhgyAeuFbAD6Gpwh6EJW_J_viR6BFtVYHYvY8DL3J8KSKS4tnvZujQ05EwaHPN1kViYu_bEFj_-lH7o1BVH48j7yqM0AsJbxjRb6wTbSi_rXBuVXSflX4OBYcqbMPI/s320/1746_Herman_Moll_Map_of_Carolina.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1746 Herman Moll Map of Carolina</td></tr></tbody></table><br />This land was in Orange County in the 1750s, then back to Johnston by around 1762 and finally to Wake County at it's inception in 1771. The extant records of Orange, Johnston and Wake counties have provided all I know about my fifth great grandfather, William Reeves or Reves, Sr. I have searched court, deed, tax and probate records. He was fairly prominent in that community and served in various county positions such as tax assessor and collector as well as serving as a Justice of the County Court after the American Revolution. He has been designated by the DAR as a patriot due to his civil service during the Revolution and he also provided provisions for the American forces.<br /><br />
The Reeves DNA Project at FtDNA has identified thirteen individuals whose DNA matches that of descendants of William Reeves, Jr. and George Reeves, Sr. later of Grayson County, Virginia who appear to be his sons. It is possible there may have been one more son since he is listed with 4 white tithes on the 1755 tax list of Orange County. The names of those 3 sons are not included so the 4th tithe is unknown. Being a co-admin of that DNA project, I am always consistently watching for other genetic matches, but thus far have found none in the American colonies. However, as the project expands and more individuals participate, a theory is beginning to form regarding the abundance of matches to these thirteen members whose origins are in Portugal and Spain.<br /><br />
The prospect of his origins having been on the Iberian Peninsula had never occurred to me. My focus has always been on Great Britain. Ireland has been a primary direction of my interest due to the biography of William T. Reeves, born 1855, who migrated to Idaho circa 1885 where he served as a judge. He was a great grandson of William Reeves, Jr. and in that biography stated that his ancestor had come from Northern Ireland. However, a few years ago a new match to Group 6A at FtDNA, Seán, contacted me as he searched for his Reeves' family. His surname was not Reeves but his Y-DNA was a genetic match to the descendants of both William Reeves, Jr. and George Reeves, Sr. After some research, it became apparent that he appeared to be either an adoptee or the result of an NPE (non-paternity event) and was descended from George Reeves, Sr.'s family of Grayson, Virginia. We were unable to identify the exact male from whom Seán descended but were able to rule out the majority of that family especially those who remained in North Carolina.<div><div><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHMnSFv5MhcVuy7XuWiM-yZ_ubcsQNTVGIXvyYkwZT9JKSWiLTqehr1-06-mp4EWPPvB8Qrz6TVXpQtLyKRSSuiXOUwxCgpgLY6EkWk0TNPdp8eJXFOrRcbNuL9ECDVRF0Sm1LFrjm0G4KGUvjo2E8wPxCb4nRx3fB9Ie5d_0m_6XH1Q0eTEGMZFBbqt5y/s1280/Spanish%20Armada.jpg" style="clear: right; display: block; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: auto; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1003" data-original-width="1280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHMnSFv5MhcVuy7XuWiM-yZ_ubcsQNTVGIXvyYkwZT9JKSWiLTqehr1-06-mp4EWPPvB8Qrz6TVXpQtLyKRSSuiXOUwxCgpgLY6EkWk0TNPdp8eJXFOrRcbNuL9ECDVRF0Sm1LFrjm0G4KGUvjo2E8wPxCb4nRx3fB9Ie5d_0m_6XH1Q0eTEGMZFBbqt5y/s320/Spanish%20Armada.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Spanish Armada of 1588<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><br />In the course of Seán's search for his correct ancestor, he made contact with Frankie who was a Y-DNA match but had no known connection to the Reeves' family, instead his origins were in Portugal. </div>
I initially didn't think this connection to a Portugese match was particularly relevant but since there were no other Y-DNA matches in the entire FtDNA system to the members of our DNA Group 6A, recently I decided to go back through everyone's matches to see if there were any other anomalys. When I did, I found more matches, one at 111 markers, for individuals from Spain or Portugal. Of all the testers who match that group they are the only ones who don't descend from either George Reeves of Grayson, Virginia or his probable brother William Reeves of Wake County, North Carolina.</div><div><br /></div><div>In the course of making a detailed study of matches to this DNA Group by testers of Portugese or Spanish lineage, I have found that every member of the group has a match at some level, 111, 67, 37 or even 25 markers. The estimated timeframe per FtDNA software is somewhere around 1000-1800 CE. </div><br />
My initial thought was the proximity to the time of the defeat of the Spanish Armada by the British fleet in 1588. That might have produced a connection to someone from Spain or the Iberian Peninsula. Numerous Spanish ships wrecked along the western Irish coast in 1588 when they attempted to make their way to open sea and return to Spain after the armada's defeat. Many lives were lost in Ireland and most were captured and executed but in some areas of Ireland the inhabitants were kinder and helped the Spanish sailors return home and some even are reported as having remained in Ireland. In the course of this research, I have also learned that there was much sea trade between Spanish merchants and the Irish ports which should also be added to the possible connections to Spain and Portugal.<br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmOEQ1pdF990T72gFOf5PKLex0e_yzipPrbYoUt0LsC6CcK5FK4I19jg9dEHkNBMxIM2KIcWs_PkcVpGrhTXiCHSlHbLH5DNDREzx7TtnoRUUyBGAKMndJX5v5OCRsJDwU0J9Vdnd97QWkhcgPMi_4HmcDFF4Zq2PPoiaDdMtIq-D-3C8DmT8v0bK7Bmuf/s1600/Defeat%20of%20the%20Armada.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1145" data-original-width="1600" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmOEQ1pdF990T72gFOf5PKLex0e_yzipPrbYoUt0LsC6CcK5FK4I19jg9dEHkNBMxIM2KIcWs_PkcVpGrhTXiCHSlHbLH5DNDREzx7TtnoRUUyBGAKMndJX5v5OCRsJDwU0J9Vdnd97QWkhcgPMi_4HmcDFF4Zq2PPoiaDdMtIq-D-3C8DmT8v0bK7Bmuf/s400/Defeat%20of%20the%20Armada.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Defeat of the Spanish Armada</td></tr></tbody></table>
At this point, after a decade of searching for Y-DNA matches to the members of DNA Group 6A, it may be a solution to the mystery. Time and much research may be able to prove or disprove the theory.<br /><br />
Post Script:<br />
There has been a family legend that Elizabeth Reeves Phipps, daughter of George Reeves, Sr. of Grayson County, always said she was "Portuguese Indian"! Reeves’ paternal DNA isn't related to native Americans, but these recent Y-DNA matches tend to support the validity of this theory of Portuguese ancestors. A New River neighbor, Mary Hollifield, in 1929 said: ‘The Reeves are said to come from Portugal. They had brown eyes and black hair.<br /><br />
Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-72735320029704671982023-06-08T15:05:00.003-05:002023-06-08T15:21:47.284-05:00Reeves Origins in Chesterfield, Virginia<p>The book <i>Pioneer Settlers of Grayson County, Virginia</i> by Benjamin Floyd Nuckolls, pub. 1913 in its mention of the Reeves' family early settlers states that George Reeves and his family came to the New River area from Drewry's Bluff in Chesterfield County, Virginia. This incorrect history is also included in <i>Foot Prints on the Sands of Time: A History of Southwestern Virginia and Northwestern North Carolina</i> by Dr. A. B. Cox, pub. 1900 which states that the family came from eastern Virginia. That misinformation has been perpetually repeated in countless Reeves's pedigrees and history. A thorough search of the records of Chesterfield County produced no historical records of this family with the only Reeves found there a John Reaves who was a taxpayer in 1757. Both of these books were published more than 130 years after George Reeves is known to have settled on the Peach Bottom tract of the New River in 1767 and 100 years after his death.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKyzsWrClE7UomEp1KbOCcUG9zRst9P07k8CJ8qWJTsqhd2-Lj5u9foRmVpZKynjbxIK9AZUYLwp-1eLuJIEfPQk24krDxclETiknJ3XmnnGfx7f-qwwhOYZDN1hbr1lMPW8Ay-p-lb9FuXMT4FDXQTeDu5wTeRmLQSSlfo6cMavv0rDATzttSP8nfNQ/s1073/George%20Reeves%20mark.jpg" style="display: inline; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="183" data-original-width="1073" height="69" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhKyzsWrClE7UomEp1KbOCcUG9zRst9P07k8CJ8qWJTsqhd2-Lj5u9foRmVpZKynjbxIK9AZUYLwp-1eLuJIEfPQk24krDxclETiknJ3XmnnGfx7f-qwwhOYZDN1hbr1lMPW8Ay-p-lb9FuXMT4FDXQTeDu5wTeRmLQSSlfo6cMavv0rDATzttSP8nfNQ/w400-h69/George%20Reeves%20mark.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">George Reeves' mark registered in Orange County<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p>This Reeves' family actually first appeared in the records of Orange County, North Carolina in the 1750's. A young George Reeves' registered his mark (cattle brand) in Orange County Court in February 1761. His apparent brother based upon Y-DNA results, William Reeves, Jr., had likewise registered his mark there in August of 1760. Over the next five (5) years, George Reeves is recorded in numerous deeds which named Richard Burton and William Reeves in Johnston County in the mid 1760's as either witnesses or adjoining landowners. </p><p>Jane Burton who married George Reeves, was the daughter of Richard and Ann Burton originally of the Henrico County area and finally residents of Augusta County Virginia before their appearance in Cumberland County, North Carolina in November of 1760 when Richard Burton entered 150 acres there on the east side of Drowning Creek which separates the present day counties of Montgomery and Moore. Ann whose maiden name is unknown, was named in various Virginia deeds and is included in the deeds involving Richard Burton in Cumberland and Johnston counties of North Carolina.</p><p>A 1763 Johnston County, North Carolina deed from Richard & Ann Burton of Johnston County to Samuel Peek of Buckingham County, Virginia describes the 314 acre tract on the Neuse River as starting at William Reeves' corner.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDIq8kGqiQRQ2bYiYhWDp1gilrv_FV3QctocbJ5EjgkJ8LhgS4GwA7Ttssea_OClvnLk5Sp4OQURfUA5w3ENcbJrWBvNKezZ4keU1s2rNm9HfossMAaH-wB8Un_Z6Z8-68LyrX3Md-zzNO4_Zo5fzzK7Ekncevdw__o8O1Z-HpaBulSiRH4DyDz0Jc-w/s2585/1763%20Johnston%20Deed-Richard%20Burton_DB%20D-1%20p30.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2005" data-original-width="2585" height="310" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhDIq8kGqiQRQ2bYiYhWDp1gilrv_FV3QctocbJ5EjgkJ8LhgS4GwA7Ttssea_OClvnLk5Sp4OQURfUA5w3ENcbJrWBvNKezZ4keU1s2rNm9HfossMAaH-wB8Un_Z6Z8-68LyrX3Md-zzNO4_Zo5fzzK7Ekncevdw__o8O1Z-HpaBulSiRH4DyDz0Jc-w/w400-h310/1763%20Johnston%20Deed-Richard%20Burton_DB%20D-1%20p30.jpg" title="1763 Deed for 314 acres in Johnston County NC" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1763 Deed for 314 acres in Johnston County<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>Ann Burton died sometime prior to April 1765 when the widow of James Farmer who had died in Johnston County in January of 1761 was named as Mary Burton when the sale and inventory of the estate of James Farmer was exhibited in Johnston County Court. This record indicates that Richard Burton had married the widow of James Farmer after Ann's death.<br /><br />Oral family history connecting the family of George Reeves, Sr. of Grayson County, Virginia to Chesterfield County is undoubtedly based upon Burton family history, not Reeves. A letter written by George Reeves, Sr.'s grandson George W. Reeves before his death circa 1896 stated the following:<blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px;"><div style="text-align: left;">"My grandfather's name was George Reeves whose birthplace I am unable to give, but <b>was principally raised in eastern North Carolina</b>. He was born about the year 1704 or 1705 (sic) and came from Neuse River, N.C., to New River, Grayson County, Virginia, about the year 1725 (sic) bringing his wife with him..."</div></blockquote><p>This letter is a complete treasure even though the dates all appear to have been misread when transcribed. The letter mentions two cousins, William Reeves and Jeremiah Reeves, who had come to visit in his remembrance, and gives his grandmother's name as Jane Burton. The letter disproves recent incorrect theories that George's wife was an Epps from Halifax County, Virginia as well as the Chesterfield County, Virginia origins. A post with more information on this letter can be found at <a href="https://usreeves.blogspot.com/2017/12/new-data-on-george-reeves-of-grayson.html" target="_blank">New Data on George Reeves of Grayson County</a>.</p><p>Many thanks to excellent Burton researchers like Bob Burton and Anne Burton Washburn who shared their expertise regarding these families with me many years ago. See post from the Genealogy Forum of years ago with details for the two Richard Burtons (cousins) who settled in Orange and Johnston counties of the Neuse River basin at <a href="https://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/burton/7193/"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;">https://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/burton/7193/</span></a>.</p><p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-font-kerning: 0pt; mso-ligatures: none;"><o:p></o:p></span></p><p><br /></p><div><p><br /></p></div>Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-48539682106123734742022-11-20T12:13:00.010-06:002022-11-20T12:18:48.213-06:00Maybe John Darden, not Reeves<p></p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcOdhvlZ0f67HwXeiLkeMsH8ExvqkL5HsXrLw18gFKJMHm23Ns_lzTeHOptgFgbuC5tMBmk_YJ2k8xu-cXyltvsxfjebc-jQGk7n4pZR8rfH3aC_k83HSILptaW2aK86eodStcdK6VRVmTF8K1IZwKFo8XS8yBfiwTVtG-CLUYyvuKbXvjQ0w5qzIu6w/s2447/Excerpt-Deed%20John%20D%20Reeves%20Elwell%20et%20al.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2447" data-original-width="1291" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgcOdhvlZ0f67HwXeiLkeMsH8ExvqkL5HsXrLw18gFKJMHm23Ns_lzTeHOptgFgbuC5tMBmk_YJ2k8xu-cXyltvsxfjebc-jQGk7n4pZR8rfH3aC_k83HSILptaW2aK86eodStcdK6VRVmTF8K1IZwKFo8XS8yBfiwTVtG-CLUYyvuKbXvjQ0w5qzIu6w/s320/Excerpt-Deed%20John%20D%20Reeves%20Elwell%20et%20al.jpg" width="169" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">1791 Deed<br />Cumberland NC</span></td></tr></tbody></table><span style="color: #444444;">One of my friends who is also a Reeves' researcher has been searching for more historical information on his ancestor, John Durden Reeves, for many years without success. John D. Reeves is known to have been born in Halifax County, North Carolina on the 30th of May in 1759 based upon the statement in his Revolutionary War pension application of 1833.</span><p></p><p><span style="color: #444444;">The 1778 Halifax County Will of Micajah Rawls left bequests to his half brothers John and Jesse Reeves indicating John D.'s mother had at some point been married to a Rawls individual in addition to the Reeves after whom John & Jesse were named. Sadly, even after much research, no further information could be found to explain that connection.</span></p><p><span style="color: #444444;">After the Revolutionary War, John Durden Reeves is recorded in Cumberland County, North Carolina where he married Sarah Locke Elwell as evidenced by the 1791 deed disposing of property inherited by heirs of his father-in-law Richard Elwell. By 1800, John D. Reeves and family had migrated to Surry County, North Carolina where they were recorded in the census of that year.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: times;">Three descendants of John D. Reeves through two of his sons are found in a group at Family Tree DNA based upon their matching Y-DNA results. There is a fourth member of that DNA group whose known earliest Reeves' ancestor was born in Derbyshire, England in 1855 and immigrated to the U.S. in 1882; however, that match indicates a much more distant common ancestor. After many years, no other Reeves' matches have ever appeared to provide any clue as to John's family history although there were numerous matches to other surnames, several of which were the surname "Darden".</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: times;">Researchers from this line have even explored various possible immigration theories, one of which is that he may have been part of the Monmouth Rebellion in England and was transported but thus far nothing has been found to confirm that theory.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: times;">In an effort to learn more about any possible connections to these individuals of other surnames, my friend upgraded his Y-DNA test to the highest level of Y-111. His only match at that level is a person with the surname "Darden". He also found additional Darden matches at the 67 marker level of the Y-DNA tests. The ancestors of the individual matching at 111 markers were also found in Halifax County, North Carolina around the time of the American Revolution. Additionally, their descendants also migrated to the area west of Nashville, Tennessee where John Durdan Reeves' descendants settled in the 19th century.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: #444444; font-family: times;">The spelling of John D. Reeves middle name has been variously listed as Durden, Durdan, Dearden in addition to Darden, but it now appears that Darden is probably the correct variation and may have been the original surname of the family. Hopefully someday my friend will learn much more about his newly discovered Darden ancestors.</span></p>
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Post published with the permission of Billy Fred Reeves.Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-27829920072867075692022-09-10T14:36:00.004-05:002022-09-10T15:01:05.946-05:00Reeves or Greer?<p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibTGeq-8XUtArplP0D7glsoBAIhlYMn09xIKhuVMZxumM9ZPi4J85hawxWg9RQ4WdR60036PLgZUw_fYtZAdYWM9jVFwVMQ_IlCSieaHLm1UE2_XU9g0DLviWacPBK3kHJEhb3CJT0QpTtbsiETMZoSRNfxPN_jO_Asv38yG60OcG4iDcE2rOIP5XWEQ/s3708/1828%20%20George%20G%20Reeves%20to%20Joshua%20Cox%20DB5%20p377.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3708" data-original-width="2369" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibTGeq-8XUtArplP0D7glsoBAIhlYMn09xIKhuVMZxumM9ZPi4J85hawxWg9RQ4WdR60036PLgZUw_fYtZAdYWM9jVFwVMQ_IlCSieaHLm1UE2_XU9g0DLviWacPBK3kHJEhb3CJT0QpTtbsiETMZoSRNfxPN_jO_Asv38yG60OcG4iDcE2rOIP5XWEQ/w204-h320/1828%20%20George%20G%20Reeves%20to%20Joshua%20Cox%20DB5%20p377.jpg" width="204" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">George G. Greer<br /> to Joshua Cox</td></tr></tbody></table>A few years ago one of our new members at The Reeves Project shared that she believed her ancestor George Greer was somehow associated with the Reeves family. <p></p><p>George is named in an 1828 deed in Grayson County, Virginia as both George G. "Greer" and George G. "Rieves" in the same document. The deed styled "<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Greer_George_Reeves_4935" target="_blank">George G. Greer</a> to Joshua Cox" had conveyed the 140 tract on Fox Creek that he had purchased from Aquilla Greer the prior year. [[DB5:p377]</p><p>Recently I saw a Reeves' name I didn't recognize in the Grayson County tax lists of 1818 and 1819. The Reeves in that area are part of my extended family so I'm quite knowledgeable about the families and knew there were no "George" Reeves living in that area of the right age to be this person. The name on both lists was also followed by "son of S Toliver".</p><p>S. Toliver was Susanna, a married daughter of George Reeves, Sr. of Grayson County. Susanna obviously had a son born before her marriage to William Toliver who was previously unknown. Although there is no birth record naming George Greer as Susanna's son George Reeves, there is much inferential documentation to support that belief. Sometime after 1820, he began to use Greer as a surname. The Greer family in Grayson County is recorded owning property along Fox Creek which is the same community where the family of George Reeves, Sr. was located.</p><p></p><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh10VF0bVdhPK2mumPcZ01ldcT-f6zfV-6_jioNiPGy8UxtsaG8DSMuIJxwrrAeN8-k2hdoO8ZzUafeongEZPJ_jBME8AxZt_79rVq_fm6_Q-uuhvUP6mPa4GQBlU0JjGN1PhcxXLJpSm0Qazjc01smS0oUmngU4jDhIN-TGlmT3VxauZD-LGgSluk2gQ/s3244/1834%20Tax%20Grayson%20VA-George%20Greer.jpg" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 0em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2264" data-original-width="3244" height="223" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh10VF0bVdhPK2mumPcZ01ldcT-f6zfV-6_jioNiPGy8UxtsaG8DSMuIJxwrrAeN8-k2hdoO8ZzUafeongEZPJ_jBME8AxZt_79rVq_fm6_Q-uuhvUP6mPa4GQBlU0JjGN1PhcxXLJpSm0Qazjc01smS0oUmngU4jDhIN-TGlmT3VxauZD-LGgSluk2gQ/s320/1834%20Tax%20Grayson%20VA-George%20Greer.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="text-align: left;">1834 Grayson VA Tax List<br /></span></td></tr></tbody></table><div>As George Greer he is listed on the Grayson County tax lists until 1834 which coincides with his departure from Virginia and arrival in Indiana. George settled in Lawrence County, Indiana and is listed there in the 1840 census. </div><div><br /></div><div>It is noteworthy that Susanna Toliver's sons Allen, Andrew and James Madison Toliver also migrated to Indiana around this time. Allen Toliver also settled in Lawrence County.<p></p><p>It appears that the early tax lists of Grayson County with the notations "George Reeves son of S Toliver" may have finally solved the mystery of George Greer.</p><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4UFZx60FfSX1yyfTJNwlq8mpyE4JAaCNpm-iUdlsYZ9nPpsGQ-OT7kJrTs9iO59px9CjRuS_m--0FJbxTzvC17FWcO6E9gnBvmRFxSBInmTSzvlgVVUdSXoLIzOZDmdRxuezQ4UwpsOgYSf1sPs7ZmxlyO2vsp2GNDHLljZ5QTIzIiMd95d02rSz9kQ/s2944/1819%20Grayson%20VA%20Tax-George%20Reaves%20son%20of%20S%20Toliver.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="2944" data-original-width="2310" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4UFZx60FfSX1yyfTJNwlq8mpyE4JAaCNpm-iUdlsYZ9nPpsGQ-OT7kJrTs9iO59px9CjRuS_m--0FJbxTzvC17FWcO6E9gnBvmRFxSBInmTSzvlgVVUdSXoLIzOZDmdRxuezQ4UwpsOgYSf1sPs7ZmxlyO2vsp2GNDHLljZ5QTIzIiMd95d02rSz9kQ/w251-h320/1819%20Grayson%20VA%20Tax-George%20Reaves%20son%20of%20S%20Toliver.jpg" title="1819 Tax List of Grayson County, Virginia" width="251" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1819 Tax List of <br />Grayson County, Virginia<br /></td></tr></tbody></table><p><br /></p></div>Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0Grayson County, VA, USA36.6721195 -81.2078164000000138.3618856638211554 -116.36406640000001 64.982353336178846 -46.051566400000013tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-12139875925280216152022-07-03T12:44:00.002-05:002022-07-03T13:12:29.976-05:00The Mystery of Ameriah Reeves<p> The mystery of Ameriah Reeves begins with Burlington County, New Jersey records of the family of Walter Reeve. Jonathan Reeve and his wife, the previously widowed Mrs. Hannah Wilson Budd, had a son Ameriah Reeve, born 27 July 1738. Other recorded connections between these Reeve(s) and Budd families create some confusion due to the presence of an Azeriah Reeves in that family; however it is doubtful that he was the same individual since he had a son, John, born before 1750 indicating he must have been substantially older than Amariah born 1738.</p><br />Salem County New Jersey records list the marriage of Ameriah Reeves to Susanna Hays, on 4 October 1762.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI2SuTKXeFiTIz0Y6xh2NQqB6Q40Fifvf5UPw0SbjU0yO9JJMrK9W_ZBQo5x4Ou5tAfo4-5YPWaIC_F1T9-zOOLmDQ37IXoCYHa6-FUAS5czpiYO7QEmOUyRAh1MnTeUxWjMi-hi5M_5ySy_AtrarPTNwgjT3G1AKSS1E2Tnlj4aZy-OF0Xi6r4UTVjQ/s2181/Rev%20War%20Pay%20Voucher-Amariah%20Reeves.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 1em 0px;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1256" data-original-width="2181" height="230" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI2SuTKXeFiTIz0Y6xh2NQqB6Q40Fifvf5UPw0SbjU0yO9JJMrK9W_ZBQo5x4Ou5tAfo4-5YPWaIC_F1T9-zOOLmDQ37IXoCYHa6-FUAS5czpiYO7QEmOUyRAh1MnTeUxWjMi-hi5M_5ySy_AtrarPTNwgjT3G1AKSS1E2Tnlj4aZy-OF0Xi6r4UTVjQ/w400-h230/Rev%20War%20Pay%20Voucher-Amariah%20Reeves.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1783 Revolutionary War Voucher<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table>After his disappearance from New Jersey records, an Ameriah Reeves first appears in the records of Orange County, North Carolina in 1774. (Note - his name is listed variously as Ameriah or Amariah.) He is named among individuals recorded in a poll taken at an "Election for Delegates to represent the County of Orange" agreeable to a Resolve of Congress dated 28th of Nov 1776. Over the next twenty years, he is recorded in various court transactions until his disappearance from the county after August of 1791.<br /><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNkBRnPeJU2FNmvPqQsO8HQi0Kb_ciII-n5dj8mvVh2RsVGYl7VmM71f9mzLt475isFMnGnzr0OraUSKmvUEWMiO3YZ2J40OxCIDk-yYdxgB2YyLLSrkk8hv1pLmoipsyB8d8jqmqNPYcoRCVHdZDNZi4zKlGKyRul8DM_FGYJ49az4xu8IyAgWJJ44Q/s1711/1779%20Tax-Ameriah.jpg" style="clear: right; display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 1em;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="1711" data-original-width="751" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNkBRnPeJU2FNmvPqQsO8HQi0Kb_ciII-n5dj8mvVh2RsVGYl7VmM71f9mzLt475isFMnGnzr0OraUSKmvUEWMiO3YZ2J40OxCIDk-yYdxgB2YyLLSrkk8hv1pLmoipsyB8d8jqmqNPYcoRCVHdZDNZi4zKlGKyRul8DM_FGYJ49az4xu8IyAgWJJ44Q/s320/1779%20Tax-Ameriah.jpg" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1779 Tax<br />Orange County</td></tr></tbody></table>In 1776, he is listed on the roster of officers and private soldiers detached from the first or Southern Battalion of Militia of Orange County, North Carolina under the command of Col. Ambrose Ramsey to march against hostile indians during the American Revolution. On 20 August 1783, Amariah submitted a Revolutionary War claim and was paid £12. <br /><br />Ameriah Reeves is recorded as an Orange County taxpayer in 1779 where he was taxed on 400 acres although the record of a deed to that 400 acre tract has not been located to date. Orange County records from 1781 record that Ameriah lived on Stagg's Creek at that time. In August of 1783 Amariah Reeves was granted a license to keep an ordinary at his dwelling house.<br /><br />On the 19th of August 1791 Henry Jacobs was accused of making an assault upon Susannah, wife of Amariah Reeves. He pled not guilty. John Lynch was accused of assaulting Amariah on the same day. [[C.R. 073.326.1]. An extensive search of the court records of Orange County has thus far failed to produce more details in regard to this altercation.<br /><br />In Claims of British Merchants after the Revolutionary War arranged by Counties, abstracted by Ransom McBride (from: British Records Collection appearing in the NC Genealogical Society Journal February 1985 31, Volume XI, No 1), William Cummings of Hillsboro made a statement concerning Amariah that he removed to Tennessee, 16 or 17 years prior, and is now dead. while he lived in Orange he had some property, was an honest man industrious and lived well.<br /><br />Amariah is known to have migrated from North Carolina to Tennessee. The appearance of an Ameriah Reeves on the 1796 tax lists of Grayson County, Virginia may suggest that he paused his migration westward by spending a brief time in the New River area. However, there is nothing to document a connection between the Amariah Reaves of Orange County in the 1770s and Amariah Reeves found in Grayson County in 1796 beyond his removal from Orange County and later residence in Tennessee.<br /><br />Currently the only record located for him in Tennessee is an advertisement dated 15 October 1807 in “The Impartial Review and Cumberland Repository”. In that, J. Dorris of Robertson Co., TN, advertised that he had lost a note on Amariah Reaves that had been given to Elijah Ferguson and assigned to Dorris by Benjamin Ferguson.<br /><br />At the risk of repeating myself, once again, I'm thinking how wonderful it would be if a descendant of Ameriah Reeves of Orange County, North Carolina came forward to participate in Y-DNA testing and solve this riddle.<br />Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-85112536195281048902022-01-02T19:42:00.011-06:002022-02-11T11:36:50.520-06:00Heirs of Obedience "Biddie" Terrell Reeves<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhNkhIUxRdbuYOeJxIhHCoxCGqOi5o8oslTliqaE8ixgDgq9qVV9856OEuTNZ95TAsYg_ZMnxDgC7JAh7kUZrNPn64qgi3oRL3DyKu_LuKUJqCy3ozpPALxdBtkPpyRa0SkPa2oD99_-5asVWZ-QskJUCBTFzJXVDeaFgwfNIuF2g38krZyiJnV9GFhtA=s933" style="clear: right; display: block; float: right; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="736" data-original-width="933" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEhNkhIUxRdbuYOeJxIhHCoxCGqOi5o8oslTliqaE8ixgDgq9qVV9856OEuTNZ95TAsYg_ZMnxDgC7JAh7kUZrNPn64qgi3oRL3DyKu_LuKUJqCy3ozpPALxdBtkPpyRa0SkPa2oD99_-5asVWZ-QskJUCBTFzJXVDeaFgwfNIuF2g38krZyiJnV9GFhtA=w320-h252" title="Receipt by Terrell Heirs" width="320" /></a></div> The children of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Jesse_3053" target="_blank">Jesse Reeves</a> (spelled as Reves by he and his male relatives) and Elizabeth Obedience Terrell of Grayson County, Virginia and later Ashe County, North Carolina have up until now been undocumented. Jesse Reeves names most of his older sons in his <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=18330915_WB_A_Pg3-4" target="_blank">1833 will</a> but only two of his daughters by Biddie Terrell. None of his children with his second wife, Mary Bowers, were named. There has been much misinformation promoted about Jesse's children. The identity of the correct mother of each group of children was also questionable.<br /> <br />
Several years ago in the course of transcribing Ashe County NC deeds by various members of the Reeves' family, I came upon an 1833 Power of Attorney by Jesse's son John Reves. In that POA, John requested that his cousin Enoch Reves appear on his behalf at a court in Wythe District, State of Virginia, where a case by he and the rest of the heirs of Biddy Reves was to be presented in court. When I read this POA, I realized that those court records would provide details of the heirs of Jesse Reves born during his marriage to Obedience Terrell Reves. At that point, I began to search for the records of that case.<br /> <br />
The Library of Virginia had been diligently adding Chancery Cases to their online site but at the time they had not scanned either Wythe or Grayson county cases and put them online. Over the next few years I checked back periodically and was pleasantly surprised sometime during the last year, when I found they had been added. This case involves a suit filed by Jesse Reves' son George to recover legacies due the heirs of Timothy Terrell from his father John Terrell.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh_F5HTYJBIYfuqLB1ZAbddKu04jVp3TOSPspMQhRYpnCaPKpG3C-A4EreF_TMUWdLFDMS9emJvcp0OIEQMBYFgQM85Fe1KH0xMQH-4-J2HdoakNPlIqmY6ghA7tH8_XXEnZRtJbjnowrcA16uR4yfULzoVPHH0T4MlZ5zjHKL6MboxNTvfNZrCdNvJUg=s1417" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" width="400" data-original-height="783" data-original-width="1417" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEh_F5HTYJBIYfuqLB1ZAbddKu04jVp3TOSPspMQhRYpnCaPKpG3C-A4EreF_TMUWdLFDMS9emJvcp0OIEQMBYFgQM85Fe1KH0xMQH-4-J2HdoakNPlIqmY6ghA7tH8_XXEnZRtJbjnowrcA16uR4yfULzoVPHH0T4MlZ5zjHKL6MboxNTvfNZrCdNvJUg=s400"/></a></div>
This Chancery Case revealed a previously unknown son of Jesse Reves, William, along with two daughters. There had been much speculation regarding the gravestone for Nancy Reeves in the Jesse Reeves cemetery in Ashe County. A theory had circulated that this was an early wife of Jesse but these documents found her to be Nancy who married Terrell Bledsoe and both are mentioned in numerous family documents and court records. Another daughter Hannah Reeves, speculated as another daughter of Jesse's brother William was revealed to be Jesse's daughter who had married John Burton and eventually migrated to Indiana where other Burton and Reeves' family members had settled.<br /> <br />
A record dated 26 May 1829 discovered in Grayson County Court Orders Vol. 2 (1820-1829) on page 596 in a case styled George Reeves, Plts, Against William Terrell, Defts, names Hannah Reeves, wife of John Burton, Betsy Reeves, wife of William Cox and Nancy Reeves, who was deceased after having intermarried with Terel (sic) Bledsoe.<br /> <br />
Several years of research of the various extant records of Grayson and Ashe counties have documented that the children of Jesse Reeves and Elizabeth Obedience Terrell were: Nancy who married Terrell Bledsoe, William, George who married Elizabeth Doughton, Hannah who married John M. Burton, Jane who married Robert Baker, Elizabeth who married William Cox, John Reeves who married Cynthia Baker and Eli Reeves.<br /> <br />
This <a href="https://www.lva.virginia.gov/chancery/case_detail.asp?CFN=077-1838-008" target="_blank">61 page Chancery Case</a> and the supporting records in Grayson County's court orders have been a great bonus to research of this family and served to rectify several incorrect theories that have become prevalent on the internet. The Library of Virginia is doing a great service in making these Chancery Cases available to Virginia researchers.<br />
<br />
A complete listing of the currently documented descendants of George Reeves, Sr. of Grayson County, Virginia can be found at <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=FamilyOf_Reeves_George_Sr_3168" target="_blank">The Reeves Project</a>.
<br />
Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-45211482211006895212021-04-07T15:47:00.020-05:002023-05-10T08:39:12.702-05:00The Fish Dam Road<p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yOM2MS2oTOE/YG33Mt4PsGI/AAAAAAAAGAo/9IGD89hyL0kYE_6kX1Edqnno0Yoi_jeTQCLcBGAsYHQ/s729/Fish%2BDam%2Bin%2BFendol%2BBevers%2BExcerpt.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="605" data-original-width="729" height="266" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-yOM2MS2oTOE/YG33Mt4PsGI/AAAAAAAAGAo/9IGD89hyL0kYE_6kX1Edqnno0Yoi_jeTQCLcBGAsYHQ/w320-h266/Fish%2BDam%2Bin%2BFendol%2BBevers%2BExcerpt.jpg" title="1870 Fendol Bevers Map" width="320" /></a></div>A few years ago I became aware of the research in Orange County, North Carolina to locate what remains of the Fish Dam Road, a foot trail that began in the 1600's connecting two Indian villages, one on the Neuse and one on the Eno River. The Indian village on the Neuse used the shallow water of the river to make a giant fish trap causing the road to it to be known as the Fish Dam Road. The Fish Dam itself no longer exists since the creation of the Falls of the Neuse Lake.<p></p><p>I found the project really interesting and even more so when I discovered that one section of the road appears to have crossed land owned by my ancestor William Reeves. </p><p>My ancestor, <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_William_602" target="_blank">William Reves</a> (later generations used the more common Reeves surname) had settled in 1746 on land along the Neuse River in what was at that time, Johnston County, North Carolina. By the 1750's the land was part of Orange County, then back to Johnston, eventually to Wake County at its inception in 1771 and now part of Durham.</p><p>When I recently discovered that the website telling the story of the Fish Dam Road, previously part of the Eno River Association's site, was no longer easily accessible, I made a point to find what was left of that information and save it. I then decided to share it here so it won't ever be completely lost.</p><p>The following information is contained in the Eno River Associations' Fish Dam Road sites: </p><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p style="text-align: left;">Section 5: Ellerbee Creek to Fish Dam Ford on Neuse River</p><p style="margin-bottom: 20px; text-align: left;">By David Southern</p><p style="margin-bottom: 20px; text-align: left;">THOMAS HOLLOWAY, JOHN ALSTON, <b>WILLIAM REEVES</b>, SAMUEL PEAKE, THOMAS HINES, BENJAMIN ALLEN, REUBEN ALLEN, THOMAS TOMLINSON, JUDITH MATTHEWS, HENRY McCULLOH and possibly JOHN SHERRON as well.</p></blockquote><blockquote style="border: none; margin: 0px 0px 0px 40px; padding: 0px; text-align: left;"><p style="margin-bottom: 20px; text-align: left;">The above grants are conjectural for having the Fish Dam Road within their boundaries. See Markham’s land grant map for Wake county... </p></blockquote><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9tfgaW-Yppw/YG8H-PQY_bI/AAAAAAAAGBk/woL2FmKq7pcOHN0VnfU64PW6VnvdBfndgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1443/fishdam%2Broad%2Bmap.jpg" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="536" data-original-width="1443" height="209" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-9tfgaW-Yppw/YG8H-PQY_bI/AAAAAAAAGBk/woL2FmKq7pcOHN0VnfU64PW6VnvdBfndgCLcBGAsYHQ/w546-h209/fishdam%2Broad%2Bmap.jpg" title="Map of the Fish Dam Road" width="546" /></a></div><p>In the early part of the 20th century, Allan Byron Markham, a Durham County native born in 1896, out of an interest in the history of his family and related families was inspired to plot the metes and bounds of their neighboring lands in the area where his family had settled. In the 1940's, this work involved frequent trips to the Office of the Secretary of State in Raleigh and recording notes in long hand in that office and deed vaults all over that area. By the 1970's his research included more than 1800 grants. His two plats of early grants in Orange and Wake counties were still available a decade ago when on a trip to Durham searching for my Reeves' family history, I purchased a copy of each map from Mr. Markham's son. These maps are invaluable when researching families in Orange, Wake, Durham and Chatham counties and I am forever grateful that I stopped by Mr. Markham's son's house that day. On the map below I have noted a red star on the grant of each landowner whose property is mentioned in Section 5 of the Fish Dam Road.</p><p><br /></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pl0td-0ocE0/YG8L1j80byI/AAAAAAAAGBs/_OMuq394Su8XZbMbBl6rnEaY_qPTTmpqQCLcBGAsYHQ/s2712/Markham%2BMap-Fish%2BDam%2BRd.JPG" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1160" data-original-width="2712" height="274" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pl0td-0ocE0/YG8L1j80byI/AAAAAAAAGBs/_OMuq394Su8XZbMbBl6rnEaY_qPTTmpqQCLcBGAsYHQ/w569-h274/Markham%2BMap-Fish%2BDam%2BRd.JPG" title="Markham Map showing Section 5" width="569" /></a></div><br /><p></p><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: inherit;"><div>Orange County was formed in 1752 and the seat of Hillsborough was founded in 1754 on land where the Great Indian Trading Path crossed the Eno River. It was first owned, surveyed and mapped by William Churton, a surveyor for Earl Granville.</div><div><br /></div><div>Hillsborough was an earlier Piedmont colonial town where court was held, and was the scene of some pre-Revolutionary War tensions. The War of the Regulation had its epicenter there. Hillsborough was also used as the home of the North Carolina state legislature during the American Revolution.</div><div><br /></div><div>Orange County played an important role in the settling of early North Carolina and was one of the most populous areas by the 1750's. In researching the area, I am always amazed at how many families moved through this area as they made their way to other areas of the country.</div>
<br />Sources:<br /><a href="https://www.enoriver.org/features/fish-dam-road/" target="_blank">History of the Fish Dam Road</a></span></div><div><a href="https://dc.lib.unc.edu/cdm/ref/collection/ncmaps/id/241" style="font-family: inherit;" target="_blank">1870 Fendol Bevers Map of Wake County</a></div><div><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.enoriver.org" target="_blank">Eno River Association</a> Map of the Fish Dam Road by Joe Liles</span></div><br />Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-33220914026507964382021-02-03T12:05:00.000-06:002021-02-03T12:05:33.478-06:00Reeves Rancher Dies of Covid-19This morning I came across an article in the Texas Tribune about Raymond Reeves who recently died at the age of 91 in the Texas Panhandle. Whenever I happen upon a gravestone, photo or other interesting information about a previously unknown Reeves' individual, I usually look to see if we have recorded them or their family in <a href="thereevesproject.org">The Reeves Project</a>. Finding no Raymond Reeves born in 1929 in Texas, I decided to do a little research to learn more about his ancestry.<div><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ENc6y2u5seA/YBrh2ulK7HI/AAAAAAAAF-s/wZOj2rdis1Ux7UBpUXTq8RMGTVcBdfrJACLcBGAsYHQ/s490/Raymond%2BReeves.jpg" style="clear: right; display: block; margin-left: 0.5em; margin-right: auto; padding: 0em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="460" data-original-width="490" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ENc6y2u5seA/YBrh2ulK7HI/AAAAAAAAF-s/wZOj2rdis1Ux7UBpUXTq8RMGTVcBdfrJACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Raymond%2BReeves.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Raymond Reeves</td></tr></tbody></table>
After a little sleuthing, I traced Raymond's family from Texas back to Alabama, then Georgia and found his earliest known ancestor to be John Reeves who died in Craven County, North Carolina in 1790.</div><div><br /></div><div>Raymond descends from John Reeves' son Jesse Tinion Reeves of Hancock County, Georgia. A lot of research has been done to find John Reeves' origins and his father appears to be John Reeves of St. Mary's County, Maryland who migrated to North Carolina circa 1760. Although there is currently no documentation of the relationship, the Y-DNA of a descendant of John Reeves matches that of other descendants of that Reeves' family.</div><div><br /></div><div>Read the article which tells much about this Texas rancher's interesting life at <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2021/01/26/texas-rancher-coronavirus-death/?utm_campaign=trib-social&utm_content=1612036807&utm_medium=social&utm_source=facebook&fbclid=IwAR3HWfHotsS65RtxXUuzwQ0yIl_9F_wocNwZWmlVeMp5WO0eRlsjTt9gCCk">The Texas Tribune</a></div><div><br /></div><div><i>Thanks to the Texas Tribune for the photo above.</i></div>Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-12688003454985852002020-11-15T13:57:00.117-06:002022-04-21T09:42:46.410-05:00A Few More Colonial Early Reeves' FamiliesIn 2017 I wrote a post for this blog, "<a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2017/05/early-reeves-families-in-colonial.html">Early Reeves' Families of Colonial America</a>". That post was a detailed list of known Reeves' families of completely different lineages who were present in the U.S. before the Revolution when it was under British rule. At <a href="www.thereevesproject.org">The Reeves Project</a> over the course of the last few years, we've identified a few more families who were present in those days of colonial rule so this post is to identify them and pinpoint their initial locations.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kOIYFWdQ75M/YGtX5Wi0MbI/AAAAAAAAGAY/__ovJuyLvzEVgJkqjj5J1o076uIpzk1FQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1417/1743%2Bmap%2BN%2BAmer%2BRev%2B3.jpg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1073" data-original-width="1417" height="303" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-kOIYFWdQ75M/YGtX5Wi0MbI/AAAAAAAAGAY/__ovJuyLvzEVgJkqjj5J1o076uIpzk1FQCLcBGAsYHQ/w400-h303/1743%2Bmap%2BN%2BAmer%2BRev%2B3.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<b>A</b> - The primary Reeves' presence in Maine from some years prior to the Revolution until the 20th century descended from <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_James_Sr_1746" target="_blank">James Reeves</a>. After his marriage in 1767 James settled in Jefferson, Maine and is recorded as serving in the Revolutionary army a few years later. Descendants of James Reeves are recorded as living in the area of Jefferson, Maine as late as the twentieth century. The post, <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2020/02/james-reeves-of-maine.html" target="_blank"><i>James Reeves of Maine</i></a>, provides more information about him.<br /><br />
<b>B</b> - <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_John_3857">John Reeves</a> of Essex County, Massachusetts appears to possibly have been the individual of that name who arrived in New England from London on the ship <i>Christian</i> in 1635. John's son William left numerous heirs in the Salem, Massachusetts area but currently none from that lineage have participated in the Reeves DNA Project at Family Tree DNA so there are no known links to other Reeves' families.<br /><br />
<b>C</b> - <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Thomas_4738">Thomas Reeves</a> of Roxbury, Massachusetts came from Salisbury, Wiltshire, Great Britain. He sailed from Southampton, England, in the "Beves" (sic Bevis) in 1638 and died in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1650. His son Thomas Reeves later migrated to Southampton, Long Island, where his descendants are recorded.<br /><br />
<b>D</b> - The date of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeve_Robert_3948">Robert Reeve's</a> arrival in the American colonies is currently unknown but he married here circa 1660 and his estate was probated in Hartford County, Connecticut in 1681.<br /><br />
<b>E</b> - <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_John_3817">John Reeves</a>, son of Azeriah Reeves, was born about 1750 in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. He married Mrs. Rebecca Gaskill Huber in Burlington, New Jersey in 1770 and by around 1800, they and most of their children migrated to Mason County, Kentucky. This is another large Reeves' family with many descendants but for whom there is no evidence that any members of this family have participated in Y-DNA testing to help identify the exact Reeves' extended family to whom they belong.<br /><br />
<b>F</b> - <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeve_Walter_4745" target="_blank">Walter Reeve</a> came to West Jersey sometime prior to 1682. His origins are unknown although much has been published about Walter and his family. Walter prospered in the Burlington area of New Jersey owning two plantations at his death and left many descendants there.<br /><br />
<b>G</b> - The records of Fenwick's Colony of New Jersey contain many mentions of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeve_Mark_0301">Mark Reeve</a>. He came to the colony as a servant of Edward Champneys, arriving in Salem on 23 Jun 1675 on the ship <i>Griffin</i>. Although both Mark Reeve and Walter Reeve (F above) arrived in New Jersey around the same time, there appears to be no family connection between them.<br /><br />
<b>H</b> - Among the several Reeves' families recorded in Halifax County, Virginia was <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reaves_George_Sr_3192">George Reaves</a> who extensive research has determined was born circa 1727 in Virginia's Northern Neck and is first found in the records of Prince William County along with his mother and step-father. George Reaves and family moved from Halifax to Wilkes County, North Carolina during the Revolution but returned to Halifax County around 1794 where George died circa 1816. No one from this family has taken part in Y-DNA testing so any relationship to other established Reeves' families is unknown. One of several posts in this blog concerning this George Reaves can be found in this post detailing the in-depth research of George and his family - <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-rest-of-story.html"><i>The Rest of the Story</i></a>.<br /><br />
<b>I</b> - For many years it was assumed that <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reaves_Hardy_3046">Hardy Reaves</a> who is first recorded in Duplin County, North Carolina around 1770 was surely a member of the Reaves family of Wayne County, North Carolina. Although William Reaves of Wayne County named no son Hardy in his 1793 will, based upon proximity alone, it was believed that Hardy was part of that family. However, recent Y-DNA testing has completely disproven that theory. When descendants of Hardy Reaves participated in Y-DNA testing, it was discovered that they match the Rives family of southern Virginia as identified in the book <i>Reliques of the Rives (Ryves)</i>. The exact member of that family from whom Hardy descends is still unknown, but DNA has established that he does belong to that family.<br /><br />
<b>J</b> - <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Miles_8127">Miles Reeves</a> (Reves) is first documented in Lancaster County, South Carolina when on 8 Mar 1788 he collected a bounty for killing a wolf, although it is believed that he had originally come from North Carolina. In later census records, several of his children are recorded as having been born in North Carolina. He and his family migrated from South Carolina to Christian County, Kentucky where Miles died after which several of his children migrated further westward into Arkansas. Several descendants of Miles Reeves have participated in Y-DNA testing but it has not solved the mystery of his origins, instead adding more to the conundrum. Rather than matching any known Reeves' lineages, they match members of the Hatcher-Burton family. The DNA has shown a close relationship to a man who is descended from Reuben Hatcher, born 1770 in South Carolina. Hopefully at some future time, this mystery can be resolved by finding the place these families intersect.<br /><br />
<b>K</b> - <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_George_3146">George W. Reeves</a> who died in Ballard County, Kentucky is believed to have come from Chester County, South Carolina although various other records such as census and children's death records give other locations, i.e. Tennessee or Georgia. He arrived in the area of Kentucky's Jackson Purchase by 1840 where he is recorded in the census of Hickman County. There are currently no records indicating what extended Reeves family George was related to and none of his descendants have participated in Y-DNA testing, but hopefully at some point someone will test and provide some clarity. UPDATE - Additional research indicates that George W. Reeves is very probably the son of Jordan Reeves, Sr. son of George Reeves of Brunswick County, Virginia who migrated first into northern North Carolina, then South Carolina, and died in Davidson County, Tennessee in 1803.<br /><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qNx80nYm-p8/X7GCtHlmSkI/AAAAAAAAF7Y/p2leLKkI6D8OGCP0nblWqKgnFPQYj54DwCLcBGAsYHQ/s734/1733%2BColonial%2BAmerica.jpg" style="clear: right; display: block; float: right; padding: 0em 0px; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="734" data-original-width="698" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qNx80nYm-p8/X7GCtHlmSkI/AAAAAAAAF7Y/p2leLKkI6D8OGCP0nblWqKgnFPQYj54DwCLcBGAsYHQ/w186-h200/1733%2BColonial%2BAmerica.jpg" width="186" /></a></div><br /><br />For more extensive information for the earliest docu-<div>mented Reeves' families in the American colonies, see </div><div>Part 1 of "<a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2017/05/early-reeves-families-in-colonial.html">Early Reeves' Families of Colonial America</a>" </div><div>for the legend identifying Reeves' populations in the various locations on the map at right.<br /><br />
The Reeves Project also provides more extensive information on these families.
<br /><br />
</div>Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-76781101014742026652020-08-23T13:40:00.008-05:002020-08-24T23:50:08.924-05:00William Reeves & Mahala GossAccording to the 1860 census of Lee County, Virginia, William Reeves was born in
Ashe County, North Carolina in 1824. The Reeves' family of Ashe County as well as
Grayson County, Virginia are well documented and with one or two exceptions of individuals found there briefly in marriage records, appear to all descend from
George Reeves, Sr. who settled on the Peach Bottom Tract of Grayson County in
1767. Much research of Grayson and Ashe has failed to locate any Reeves' family
descending from George Reeves, Sr. to which this William Reeves might belong. His
parentage is currently a complete mystery.<div><br /><div><div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ct9TEwTYQZg/X0GHijBvTjI/AAAAAAAAF3w/f7-sbGh5--Uji-XBOeKShegWPs3CmCeYACLcBGAsYHQ/s911/Map%2Bof%2BAshe%2BCounty%2Barea.jpg" style="display: block; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: right;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="555" data-original-width="911" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ct9TEwTYQZg/X0GHijBvTjI/AAAAAAAAF3w/f7-sbGh5--Uji-XBOeKShegWPs3CmCeYACLcBGAsYHQ/s320/Map%2Bof%2BAshe%2BCounty%2Barea.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Ashe County, North Carolina<br /></td></tr></tbody></table>William married Mahala Goss shortly before 1850 for they were recorded in the 1850 census of Bennett Bayou, Fulton County, Arkansas with one year old Mary Ann. On the previous page in that census, the next residence in Bennett Bayou is a Jesse Reeves born 1822 but there is nothing to connect the two families other than a child with the surname Murphy in each household.<br /><br />Census records record the birth of Mahala, at times called Hallie, in 1831 in Lee County, Virginia and that is where the family is next recorded in the 1860 census. In the 1860 census of the Western District of Lee County, William, Mahala, Mary, another daughter listed only as M. S., Andrew Johnson "Jonce" and William Shelby Reeves are listed.</div><div><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-71CLDrjS-AE/X0KhMF5ntNI/AAAAAAAAF38/7TZpeBPUc48oqJ8gLEvjCfQeBJhjACDcwCLcBGAsYHQ/s485/Andrew%2BJohnson%2BJonce%2BReeves.jpg" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 0em; margin-left: 0.5em; margin-right: 0.5em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="485" data-original-width="311" height="248" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-71CLDrjS-AE/X0KhMF5ntNI/AAAAAAAAF38/7TZpeBPUc48oqJ8gLEvjCfQeBJhjACDcwCLcBGAsYHQ/w159-h248/Andrew%2BJohnson%2BJonce%2BReeves.jpg" width="159" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Andrew Johnson<br />"Jonce" Reeves<br /><br /></td></tr></tbody></table></div><div>The last record of William and Mahala Reeves is in Cumberland County, Tennessee in the 1870 census and by then Julia Ann, Rebecca Jane and Lucinda Reeves have been added to the family. The last records of William Reeves are two entries for land dated 7 Mar 1873. One entry for 400 acres is located on Devil Creek and the other for 650 acres is on Meadow Creek, both are in Cumberland County. </div><div><br /></div><div>Several <span style="color: #444444;"><u>undocumented</u></span> theories are that Mahala died by 1878, possibly in an institution, but there is nothing to support that theory. Whether William Reeves was also deceased is unknown but he disappears from Cumberland County and the lives of his children before 1880. </div><div><br /></div><div>By 1880 the children had disbursed and were living in various homes where they appear to have been working for the families with whom they are listed. In the 1880 census, Mary Ann "Polly" had married John Washington Welch and Andrew J. "Jonce" was living in their household and working for his brother-in-law in Cumberland County. William Shelby Reeves (listed as Shelby) was living in a boarding house in Union County, Kentucky along with other young men listed as laborers. 12 year old Lucinda was listed as a servant in the household of farmer J. H. Officer in Putnam County; 16 year old Rebecca Jane is listed as Jane Reeves keeping house in the household of Henry Watson in Overton, Tennessee; and 18 year old Julia is listed as house keeping in the residence of a Benjamin Watson also in Overton County. </div><div><br /></div><div>Much research has been done on this family in North Carolina, Virginia and Tennessee but at this point, there are no viable theories as to William Reeves' family origins. However, Mahala is believed to be the daughter of John Goss and Abigail Osborne of Ashe County. John Goss was the son of Zachariah Goss who is recorded as being hung as a tory by Colonel Benjamin Cleveland in Wilkes County, North Carolina in 1781.</div><div><br /></div><div>The history of the New River area of North Carolina and southern Virginia records the tale of at least 3 Tory loyalists who were hung by Colonel Benjamin Cleveland in 1781. There are numerous variations of the story online although none seem to have detailed documented information. The 2011 post <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2011/12/hanging-of-loyalist-named-reeves.html">Hanging of a Loyalist named Reeves</a> can be found on this blog where I provided all the information I was able to find about this story. The 3 loyalists who were hung were Capt. William Riddle, Zachariah Goss and an as yet unidentified Reeves individual. </div><div><br /></div><div>For some time I have been puzzled as to whether this Reeves was a member of my own family who are connected with the Reeves family of George Reeves, Sr. of Grayson County as proven by Y-DNA, but to date, nothing has been found to document a connection. Since there appear to be so many connections between William Reeves and Mahala Goss to the Goss and Reeves' families of Ashe and Grayson counties it seems a plausible theory that there is a connection to their family.</div><div><br /></div><div>Anyone reading this post who descends from William and Mahala Goss Reeves and would like to help unravel the mystery, please consider taking a Y-DNA test at Family Tree DNA and joining the Reeves DNA Project. Y-DNA testing requires a male with the Reeves surname since Y-DNA is passed through the male line unchanged for countless generations with the exception of an occasional random mutation. Y-DNA is far more accurate for this purpose and provides results within about 6 weeks to accurately identify the Reeves lineage from which you descend. </div><div><br />
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Thanks to William & Hallie's descendant Heather for the use of the above photo of her ancestor Andrew Johnson "Jonce" Reeves.
</div><div><br /></div></div></div>Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-4578629185509517332020-02-22T13:12:00.002-06:002022-01-24T08:50:50.662-06:00The Mystery of Jane ReavesA deed from page 185 of Deed Book 6 (April 1758 to April 1765) is recorded in the index of that book from Dobbs County, North Carolina. The index lists the grantor as Jane Reaves and grantee Charles Miller. The female name Jane has been questioned in transcriptions of this index and it has been theorized that the name may have actually been James.<br />
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In 1779 Wayne County was formed from the western portion of Dobbs and in 1791, most of the remainder of Dobbs was divided into Glasgow which is now Greene, and Lenoir Counties. Dobbs County then ceased to exist and its records along with those of early Johnston and other counties formed from Johnston - Wayne, Greene and Lenoir were placed at the Courthouse in Lenoir County. In 1878, a Courthouse fire in Kinston destroyed the Lenoir County Courthouse and almost all of these records. The only record that survived for Dobbs County was the original deed Grantee Index. Due to the loss of the deeds themselves, there has been no way to study the original deed to determine whether the name of the grantor was Jane, James or some other variation.<br /><br />
However, a recently discovered deed dated the 8th of November 1763 which is excerpted above, was found in the early unindexed deed books of Duplin County in Deed Book 1 at pages 359 and 360. This deed is from William Richeson to Jane Reaves for a tract of 200 acres. Sadly, no watercourses are named and the only landmark listed is by "John Young's path". The deed does mention that the property was originally granted to Patrick Stewart by patton (sic patent) dated the 29th of September, 1750.<br /><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gFQ-gm4Q4xg/XlFy4hJ_YQI/AAAAAAAAFrI/e9yuxySb9ZwXg4jpj7dtkpnFRc1371onwCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/John%2BYoungs%2BPath%2Brev.jpg" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="737" data-original-width="1033" height="228" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-gFQ-gm4Q4xg/XlFy4hJ_YQI/AAAAAAAAFrI/e9yuxySb9ZwXg4jpj7dtkpnFRc1371onwCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/John%2BYoungs%2BPath%2Brev.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
A published history discovered for the Stewart family who came to North Carolina from Perthshire in Scotland better describes the location of the tract Jane Reaves bought from later owner William Richeson. This history states "On Sep. 29, 1750, Patrick (Stewart) was granted 200 acres on John Young's path between Six Runs and Goshen swamp in Sampson [then in Duplin] County." This information places the property between the Black River and the Northeast Cape Fear River. It also decreases the possibility that Jane was part of the family of William Reaves who was initially recorded in Dobbs County but in the part that became Wayne County and his tracts of land were just to the south of Seven Springs.<br />
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We still can't positively identify Jane Reaves, but this deed has certainly added much more information than just the brief mention in the Old Dobbs County deed index. Jane may have been a spinster or she could have been the widowed mother of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reaves_Hardy_3045">Hardy Reaves</a> who was a resident of Duplin County by 1770. Descendants of Hardy Reaves are still found in the Mt. Olive area close to the location of Jane's 200 acres. If Jane had a family connection to the Richeson family it is also of interest that a Hardy Richeson was found in a deed in this same area of Duplin County. We can only hope that sometime soon more extant records come to light in Duplin County that will resolve the mystery of Jane Reaves.<br />
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Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-80515402219638272332020-02-20T12:31:00.000-06:002020-02-24T17:09:19.526-06:00Y-DNA Needed for These Reeves FamiliesDuring the years since the inception of the Reeves Y-DNA Project countless mysteries have been solved. As rewarding as that is, we still have many Reeves families for whom we have no clue as their origins and to which other Reeves' populations they may be related. Y-DNA testing by the following families would make additional great strides forward in Reeves' genealogical research.<br />
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<b>Georgia</b><br /><br />
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Little is known about the origins of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Sidney_King_4171">Sidney King Reeves</a>. It was recently discovered that in 1824 he was a young apprentice to tailor Charles Fowler in Raleigh. The Reeves and Reavis families of Wake County, North Carolina are fairly well documented and Sidney does not belong to either of them so he was presumably from the surrounding area. After settling in Pike County, Georgia, he had several sons and we hope left sufficient male descendants to provide Y-DNA for testing. A recent blog post concerning Sidney can provide more information, see <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2019/01/the-elusive-sidney-king-reeves.html">The Elusive Sidney King Reeves</a>.
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<b>Maine</b><br />
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Jonathan Reeves' recent blog post <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2020/02/james-reeves-of-maine.html">James Reeves of Maine</a> summarizes the details currently known of James Reeves' life. At this time, there are no participants in the Reeves Y-DNA Project descending from this Reeves' lineage.<br />
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<b>Massachusetts</b><br />
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<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_John_3857">John Reeves</a> of Essex and Middlesex counties in Massachusetts. John may be the John Reeves who is recorded as coming to New England from London on the Christian in 1635 however, there is a small discrepancy in dates of birth of the two individuals. John is documented as having one son, William, who may have left descendants who could provide Y-DNA testing and information on his origins and related Reeves. <br /><br />
<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Thomas_4738">Thomas Reeves</a> originally settled in Massachusetts but by the next generation his son Thomas had relocated to Southampton, Long Island, New York with descendants later settling in Salem, New Jersey. Much research was done by a descendant, Mrs. Emma M. Reeves (not to be confused with Emma Barrett Reeves of the Reeves Review), who self published a great amount of information for this clan. Y-DNA from members of this family would be invaluable in separating all the disparate Reeve or Reeves lineages in Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey.<br />
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<b>New Jersey</b><br />
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The Salem County, New Jersey Reeve clan descending from <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeve_Mark_0301">Mark Reeve</a> is also not represented in the Reeves Y-DNA Project. Branches of this family will be found in Camden/Gloucester Counties and in Arkansas. Y-DNA testing by male Reeve descendants would provide needed information as to their origins and any connections to other Reeve family who also migrated to the American colonies. <br />
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<b>North Carolina</b><br />
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The <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Benjamin_3345">Benjamin Reeves</a> recorded in early Rowan County is the individual most likely to be the son Benjamin named in the 1751 will of William Reeves in Granville County, North Carolina. This Benjamin Reeves is recorded on the 1762 and 1766 tax lists of Rowan County around the time William's son James and his family were listed there. He was a soldier of the Revolution and received a grant of 1000 acres in Davidson County, Tennessee which he assigned to James Cole in 1789. By the 1800 census, the Benjamin Reeves in Rowan County appears to be a different individual for he was age 26-44 and too young to be the son of William Reeves of Granville although he may have been the earlier Benjamin's son. The younger Benjamin is found later in Montgomery County. DNA from descendants of either Benjamin Reeves of Rowan or Montgomery counties would be extremely valuable to Reeves genealogy.<br />
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One descendant of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Edward_3056">Edward Reeves</a> of Bladen County has tested but the DNA does not match any of the other Reeves' clans. Additional testers from this line would be a great benefit to Reeves' research besides to the descendant who has already tested. <br /><br />
<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_George_Sr_3019">George Reeves, Sr.</a> of Orange County was first documented in that area in 1772 when he was the grantee in a deed from Ruffin McNair for 200 acres on New Hope Creek. Most of George Reeves' sons remained in the Orange County area although one, James, migrated to Hancock County, Indiana. DNA from male members of this lineage would be helpful in identifying all the different Reeves' lineages found in the Orange County area prior to 1800.
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<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_John_3015">John Reeves</a> also of Orange County is another mystery. Although John is only documented as having one son Thomas who had several sons and hopefully left many Reeves' male heirs. Their DNA would be helpful in understanding the diverse Reeves' lineages of early Orange County. After John's death, Thomas migrated to Ray County, Missouri where he died.<br /><br />
<b>South Carolina</b><br />
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<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reaves_Drury_3153">Drury Reaves</a> who died in Darlington in 1792 may be the Drury Reaves recorded in the deed indexes of Old Dobbs County, North Carolina throughout the 1760's. There are no further clues to his origins and Y-DNA testing of any male descendants could prove extremely rewarding.<br /><br />
<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Ewel_2958">Ewel Reeves</a> of Greenville County may have descended from <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_John_3761">John Reeves</a> who migrated to Christian County, Kentucky before 1800 since the name Ewel was common in that family who has close family connections to Greenville SC. There is currently no information that provides clues to Ewel's origins other than his given name and proximity. It would be a great benefit to have someone from Ewel's family test.<br /><br />
<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_John_4367">John Reeves</a> of the Colleten/Dorchester area. John was born in London in 1745 and died in Reevesville, Dorchester, South Carolina in 1798. His 3 sons left numerous descendants in South Carolina and Mississippi who can hopefully provide ample DNA testers to learn more about this lineage. <br /><br />
<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_John_1400">John Reeves</a> of Union County. John's origins are currently unknown and the Y-DNA of descendants of his sons could provide answers to the mystery.<br /><br />
<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Lazarus_3948">Lazarus Reeves</a> served as a Revolutionary soldier in a South Carolina regiment however his RW pension statement provides no biographical information that can identify his origins. He later moved to Pike County, Mississippi where he was mentioned in a history of Pike County pioneer families. Lazarus had several sons who may have left enough male Reeves descendants to test and furnish more information on this lineage.<br />
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<b>Virginia</b><br />
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<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_George_3892">George Reeves</a> originally of Henry and Patrick Counties in Virginia left there around 1816 and after migrating to Wilson County, Tennessee died in 1817. His descendants were found in Wilson and Campbell counties of Tennessee, in Missouri initially settling along the Missouri River and in Madison County, Arkansas. George's origins and family lineage are unknown which Y-DNA testing by his descendants could resolve as well as prove his connections to his probable sons who migrated further west.<br />
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<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reaves_George_Sr_3192">George Reaves</a> of Halifax County in later years was referred to as Sr. indicating he had a son George in addition to sons <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reaves_Asher_3150">Asher Reaves</a>, <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Daniel_3132">Daniel Reaves</a> and <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reaves_Elijah_Sr_3128">Elijah Reaves, Sr.</a>. George Reaves, Jr. was born about 1790 but disappeared from the Halifax County, Virginia records after becoming an adult. George Reaves, Sr.'s other sons had several sons and presumably left enough male Reaves descendants to provide ample candidates to test in order to identify this family line and others related to it. Asher left Virginia a few years after the American Revolution and migrated to Greene County, Ohio. Daniel remained in Virginia and his children were found in Halifax and Pittsylvania counties after his death. Elijah and his two sons continued to live in Halifax County, Virginia. Y-DNA testing by descendants of George Reaves, Sr. would be invaluable to Reeves research. Another detailed post about George Reaves, Sr. and his wife Martha "Patsy" Epps is available at this blog - <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2014/05/the-rest-of-story.html">The Rest of the Story</a>.<br />
<br />Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-71032201362176187882020-02-13T20:14:00.000-06:002020-02-13T20:14:32.355-06:00James Reeves of Maine<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Njm4RcWX35k/XkXzUMGo2lI/AAAAAAAAFqA/9tswdgkCmr86hLaCJVXXCd_PUt_kk5F0ACLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/James_Reeves_Headstone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 0em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="238" data-original-width="242" height="196" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-Njm4RcWX35k/XkXzUMGo2lI/AAAAAAAAFqA/9tswdgkCmr86hLaCJVXXCd_PUt_kk5F0ACLcBGAsYHQ/s200/James_Reeves_Headstone.jpg" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">James Reeves Headstone</td></tr>
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Most of the Reeves who lived in Maine during the 19th century can claim descent from <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_James_Sr_1746">James Reeves</a> of Balltown and Jefferson in Lincoln County who died in 1813. He and his wife Lettice Rogers were married in 1767 at Woolwich, located about 25 miles south-west of Balltown and Jefferson. They are both buried in the Trask Lawn Cemetery in Jefferson. Although it is claimed that they had nine children, the names of seven, including sons James, William and Isaac, have been deduced based on proximity and extant records.<br />
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Lincoln County today contains part of the coast of Maine to the north-east of Portland. Before Cumberland and Lincoln counties were formed in 1760, the entirety of what would become Maine was designated as York County of Massachusetts Bay. Maine would not be given statehood until 1820.<br />
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In 1778, James Reeves was deeded one lot of land on Dyers Pond, located about a mile from what later became Jefferson, and another 220 acres in Balltown.<br />
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The book “Centennial Celebration of the Town of Jefferson, Lincoln County, Maine” reveals that Jefferson was incorporated into a separate town from the eastern part of the plantation area known as Balltown. The first town meeting was called at the house of James Reeves on 11 May 1807.<br />
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Up until this point, the information available online concerning this family could not provide evidence for identifying the parents or origins of James Reeves. However, deeds and other court records have revealed his father’s name to be James, and his grandfather’s to be James as well.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UfF7KipqKhw/XkXtI2z5AWI/AAAAAAAAAF4/OTOzo9LnR8Q9vzlHZsxatpq3amp9chM3gCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/1708%2BMaine%2Bmap.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 0em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="868" data-original-width="1087" height="255" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-UfF7KipqKhw/XkXtI2z5AWI/AAAAAAAAAF4/OTOzo9LnR8Q9vzlHZsxatpq3amp9chM3gCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/1708%2BMaine%2Bmap.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1708 Map of New England</td></tr>
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In 1736, a committee of men all of Boston, Massachusetts chosen by the proprietors of a large tract of land in York County (later Maine), "desirous to bring forward regular settlements on the aforesaid tract," agreed to give away forty hundred acres of land unto forty individuals. The agreement stipulated that the settlers were to settle and build a suitable dwelling on the land for a term of seven years. James “Reves” of Damariscotta within the County of York, laborer, was admitted as one of these settlers. The deed noted that James had built his house and inhabited it for the last six months so the committee drawing up the condition of the deed for his land, known as lot no. 11, went ahead and deeded the land to him. The date was 3 Jun 1736, "in the ninth year of the Reign of our Sovereign Lord George the Second." The deed was recorded much later on 5 Nov 1787 in Lincoln County. Damariscotta, where the deed places James Reves, is located about ten miles south of Jefferson. Two deeds were made and recorded that same day in 1787 in which the heirs of James “Rives” sold this same land. The heirs were James “Revis” of Balltown, Anna Brookins wife of Josiah Brookins, and Mary Norton, wife of Lemuel Norton. The deeds state that James and both of these women were the children of James “Revis.” This shows that the father of James Reeves of Balltown was a <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reves_James_3872">James Reves</a> who had lived or had dealings in the area since at least 1736.<br />
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Records from York County Court of Common Pleas shows three cases involving a James “Rives,” all from the 1740s. In the first, from April 1740, a James Rives and James Rives Jr. were the defendants, described as “both of a place called Whichcapick within no Township & within the County of York Labourers.” Neither men showed in court and so the plaintiff received a total of 21 pounds and one shilling. The next case, from October 1740, was described as “James Rives of Boston in the County of Suffolk Fisherman Plat vs John Pumroy of a place called Witchassett in the County of York husbandman.” It appears this suit was dropped. This particular case included a slip which read: “James Rives of Boston in our County of Suffolk Fisherman alias Dictus James Rives of Wiscassett in the County of York in the Province of the Massachusetts Bay Husbandman.” And finally, in April 1749, “James Rives of Kittery in said County of York mariner” recovered some money against Royal Tyler, who did not show in court. “Whichcapick” and “Witchassett” are misspellings of the town Wiscasset, located some miles to the south-west of Jefferson and Balltown, but between them and Woolwich. Kittery is located on the coast at the southern tip of Maine. It would appear from the date of these cases that James Rives Jr. referred to here is none other than the James referred to in the deeds as deceased by 1787, father of James of Balltown. James of Balltown was born c. 1746 according to the age on his headstone, so it would make sense that his father James is the one identified as James Jr. in the Common Pleas case from 1740. Thus we have a line of three James’s: <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_James_Sr_1746">James</a> of Balltown (III) who died in 1813, <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reves_James_3872">James</a> (II) of Wiscassett who died by late 1787, and his father James (I) who was also of Wiscassett in 1740.
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wL32dX-tIps/XkX2RxH7NvI/AAAAAAAAFqM/W42DtkX8kfkHWrH02VbPReC1mMFyCXcJQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/James%2BReeves%2Bsummons.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 0em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1370" data-original-width="1600" height="274" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wL32dX-tIps/XkX2RxH7NvI/AAAAAAAAFqM/W42DtkX8kfkHWrH02VbPReC1mMFyCXcJQCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/James%2BReeves%2Bsummons.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1740 Common Pleas Case</td></tr>
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Given that James (I) or James (II) is described as “of Boston” in the second case, we should be looking to Massachusetts in the early-mid 1700s to find this Reeves family. There were a number of Reeves families who came through or lived in Massachusetts in colonial days. There was <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Thomas_4738">Thomas Reeves</a> who sailed to Massachusetts on the ship Bevis in 1638 and died in Springfield in 1650. His only known son to survive to manhood, <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Thomas_4739">Thomas</a>, moved to Long Island (New York) by 1672, so he is unlikely to be connected to James. There was the family of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_John_3857">John Reeves</a> of Salem who may have come to New England in 1635 on the ship Christian. His will names one son, William. There are wills or other records which trace most of this family, but without any mention of a James during this time-frame.<br />
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There are few references found to date concerning a James Rives/Revis/Reves in early Massachusetts. (Note that most of the records both from Maine and Massachusetts concerning this family from before the 1800s tend to have a single vowel instead of the double vowel “ee”, and often use “i”) There was a James “Rives” baptized 17 May 1749, as an adult, listed in the records of the Old North Church in Boston. This could conceivably be either James (I) or James (II). A James “Reeves” from Boston published a marriage intention with Elizabeth Merritt 23 Dec 1758. They were married on the 28th of the next month. Given that James (III) of Balltown was born c. 1746, this may have been a second marriage of James (II) or a different James.<br />
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Although Boston is mentioned in the York County Common Pleas cases, there is a case from Plymouth Massachusetts Common Pleas records from 1739 about some money owed to Thomas Howland by James “Revess,” denoted as a “Witchcasset Labourer.” This positively shows either James (I) or James (II) had connections to Plymouth.<br />
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Looking to Plymouth records, we find that a <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reves_James_4857">James Reves</a> was married to Deliverance Abrahams at Plymouth on 20 Nov 1703. If <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_James_Sr_1746">James</a> (III) of Balltown was born c1747, then <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reves_James_3872">James</a> (II) was likely born 1700-1725 range, so this is a good match for James (I) and the parents of James (II).<br />
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Very little has been found to date about this James Reves. Plymouth court records include a case from 1723 where a James “Revis” of Plymouth was dismissed from fines for failing to attend worship. He pleaded that “he is a poor infirm Man and lives Eight Miles from Meeting and that he has been at Meeting when there was one at Monument Ponds.” Although this is likely the same individual, it presents a possible problem given that James (I) appears to have still been active in business in 1740 with his son as described in one of the cases from York County Common Pleas.<br />
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There are marriage records for three Revis girls in that area of Massachusetts: Sarah Revis in Barnstable in 1724, Thankful Revis in Barnstable in 1730, and Ann Revis in Plymouth in 1734. It’s likely that these were daughters of James and Deliverance Reves.<br />
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More research is needed to prove the identities and relationships of the earliest James’s appearing in the Massachusetts records and the Revis girls. In addition, The Reeves Project would greatly benefit from a YDNA test from a descendant of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_James_Sr_1746">James Reeves</a> of Balltown to determine if that family is in any way connected to other early Reeves in the US.Jonathan Reeveshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07600611372350900442noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-45580319490011139902020-02-11T16:54:00.001-06:002020-02-17T16:18:31.914-06:00What became of William Reeves, Jr. of Granville?For many years it was believed that <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_William_Jr_3344">William</a>, son of William Reeves who died in Granville County in 1751 and patriarch of the Reeves of DNA Group 3, was the same individual who migrated to York, South Carolina around 1790 dying there in 1821. The idea that he lived to 1821 in itself is questionable since Bertie County NC records establish that he would have been born before about 1714 since he witnessed a deed in 1728/29. A 1728/29 deed from Ralph Mason to his father William Reeves was witnessed by William Jr. and since the age requirement to witness a deed was age 14 for a male (12 for a female) he must have been born before 1714/15. Additionally, he disappeared from the records of Granville County after, as William Reeves of Edgecombe, conveying 522 acres in Granville County to his brother Malachi on 29 May 1753.<br />
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The William Reeves who appears in subsequent records of Granville County would have been his nephew William, son of Malachi. Malachi's son <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_William_3361">William</a> appears as his tithe on the 1755 tax lists of Granville County and again in 1762. In subsequent years William is listed in his own right as an adult in Granville records. Y-DNA of numerous descendants of this William Reeves and wife Elizabeth who later migrated to York, SC establish that he was from the Reeves lineage found in DNA Group 3.<br />
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Over the last few years several descendants of William Reaves of Wayne County, North Carolina have also proven to be descended from the Granville Reeves family based upon their Y-DNA results. Accordingly it can be assumed that they descend from William Reeves, Jr. The only other sons of William Reeves of Granville whose descendants, if any, are unaccounted for are sons Benjamin and Isaac. Benjamin may be the Benjamin Reeves who settled in Rowan County at about the same time his brother James Reeves and sons are listed on the tax lists of Rowan County. James' family was in a part of Rowan County that became Guilford where they are found subsequent to the 1770s and Benjamin continued to live in Rowan in the area that became Montgomery County. Isaac, once believed to be the Isaac Reeves who settled in Wilkes County, North Carolina in the 1770s, has proven to be from a completely different Reeves' lineage thanks to the Y-DNA of some of his descendants who are found in DNA Group 6C. Isaac, son of William Reeves of Granville, lived in a portion of Orange County adjoining Granville which was separated from Orange and became Caswell County. He appears to have left that area settling in Randolph County based upon a 1781 deed filed in Caswell County. This leaves William Reeves, Jr. as the most likely individual to be the patriarch of the Reaves family of Wayne County.<br />
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The loss of the records of extinct Dobbs County, North Carolina has been a great impediment to North Carolina genealogy. After Dobbs County ceased to exist in 1791, its records along with the early records of Johnston, Wayne, Greene, and Lenoir Counties were lost in a courthouse fire. In 1878, a Courthouse fire in Kinston destroyed almost all these records except the original Dobbs County grantee index. For some time it has been believed that William Reeves, Jr. is the individual of that name listed in the index of Deed Book 5 at page 638 in a deed from Andrew Bass to William Reeves dated between April 1757 and April 1758. The Andrew Bass family continued to be involved with William Reeves in area deeds as evidenced by a deed listed in the Dobbs deed index for Book 8, April 1769 to April 1771, where on page 241 William Reaves conveyed property to Andrew Bass, Jr and on page 247 Andrew Bass, Jr in turn conveyed land to William Reaves. The location of the property involved in these transactions is unknown since the only record is the index. Again on 2 Mar 1771 William Reeves witnessed an Andrew Bass "of Dobbs County" deed recorded in Duplin County Deed Book 3 at page 382-383.<br />
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Based on the loss of those Dobbs County records, it is beneficial that the earliest records of Duplin County are extant and contain many deeds by these same individuals recorded in Dobbs County. In many cases they are even identified as "of Dobbs County" in the deeds. These earliest deed books Volumes 1 through 4 are unindexed and require some extra effort to search but can be worth the time spent perusing them page by page on a rainy day.<br />
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On the 28th of February 1757 in Duplin County, a William Reaves who is possibly this individual witnessed a deed from Richard Odom to Nicholas Major [DB 2 p398-399]. He is also most likely the William "Reives" to whom Matthew Pridgen conveyed 100 acres on Jumping Run Creek in Duplin County on the 18th of August 1760 [DB 3 p80-81]. On 27 Jan 1764 a William Reeves signed as the seller on an ambiguous deed that is written as Thomas Carrell to Jesse Carrell with the notation "signer William Reeves". The deed conveys 100 acres on Jumping Run in Duplin County and is probably the tract purchased from Matthew Pridgen in 1760 [DB 1 p391-382]. Note: according to North Carolina records, Jumping Run Creek is located due south of Seven Springs on the north side of the NE Cape Fear River. <br />
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This is possibly the William Reeves recorded in the 1790 census of Dobbs County. The household only included one male and one female appearing to be an older couple although they could have been a young couple, newly married; however, there is no one in the area who fits that description based upon age. In 1791 the county was divided to make Glasgow (later named Greene) and Lenoir counties and Dobbs County ceased to exist.<br />
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Previous research has produced a reasonable belief that <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2016/05/hardy-wife-of-william-reeves-jr.html">Hardy, the wife of William Reeves, Jr.</a>, was the daughter "Hardy" named in Charles Merritt's 1718 Chowan County will. Charles Merritt was a neighbor and associate of the William Reeves' family in Chowan County. Hardy is listed as the wife of William Reeves, Jr. in numerous deeds of Bertie and Edgecombe counties where they were residents until the 1740's when they were found in Granville County. It is noteworthy that members of this Merritt family also moved into Dublin County in the 1750s and 60s.<br /><br />
No records have yet been located that give the names of the children of William Reeves, Jr. William and Hardy surely had children after their marriage which took place around 1730 based on deed records that name Hardy as his wife. The William Reaves who appeared in Dobbs County in the 1760s and died in Wayne County in 1793 is probably their son. It seems unlikely that this younger William Reaves who died in 1793 is William Jr. Most of the children named in his 1790 will were born in the 1770s and would have been far too young for children born to Hardy although it does not definitely rule out a second wife.
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There are still numerous questions to be answered regarding this family but little by little we learn more about William Reeves, Jr.
Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-85770483722173214652019-09-28T14:27:00.001-05:002020-02-23T08:02:21.329-06:00Surprises thru DNARecently several descendants of Hardy Reaves of Duplin County, North Carolina have completed Y-DNA tests. It had always been supposed that Hardy was in some way related to the family of William Reaves who died in Wayne County in 1793 since they were in close proximity and both lineages used the spelling "Reaves". Although William named no son Hardy in his 1790 will, there was always the chance that Hardy could have been a brother or nephew.<br />
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When the results of the first descendant to test were posted at Family Tree DNA, they came as a complete shock. Rather than matching DNA Group 3 members where the descendants of William Reaves of Wayne County are found, they matched DNA Group 8. Group 8 is comprised of descendants of Timothy Rives an early resident of Virginia. That family is covered in the book ''Reliques of the Rives'' by James Rives Childs in which the author traces Timothy's lineage back to Robert Ryves of Randleston and Damory Court in Blandford Forum, England. <br />
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The earliest residents of this area of North Carolina appear to have been recorded in Dobbs County which was formed in 1758 from Johnston County. In 1779 the western part of Dobbs County became Wayne County. In 1791 Dobbs County was divided by the North Carolina legislature into Glasgow County which was later renamed Greene County and Lenoir County, after which Dobbs County ceased to exist. Sadly, the records of these counties were destroyed by fire on 15 October 1873 after having been moved to the Lenoir County Courthouse. This loss of records has adversely impacted research of the Reaves families of both Wayne and Duplin Counties. The only Dobbs County records that survived the fire were an original grantee deed index and some early tax records.<br />
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Thanks to those extant records we do know that there were several Reeves/Reaves living in Dobbs County by sometime between April 1757 and April 1758 when a William Reaves and a Thomas Reaves were recorded in that index. In the index of April 1765 to April 1769 a Drury Reaves and Timothy Reaves are recorded. Timothy Reaves is currently unidentified but Drury may have been from the DNA Group 8 family since the name Drury is used repeatedly in that lineage. Drury Reeves/Reaves migrated further south to Darlington, South Carolina where he died intestate in 1792.<br />
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Duplin County was formed in 1750 from New Hanover County and is located just to the south of Wayne County and adjacent to Dobbs County on it's southwestern side. Hardy Reaves is first recorded in Duplin County on the 17th of October, 1770 when a summons was issued by the sheriff of Duplin County to value a horse which was the property of Hardy Reaves. The document states this was in the course of a sute (sic suit) by Stephen Herring. The horse was valued at twenty pounds and the reverse side of the summons has been signed with Hardy Reaves mark on that same date. The document was the only thing found in what was recorded as an estate file for Hardy Reaves.<br />
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It is unclear exactly which Hardy Reaves this document pertains to and there appear to be two different individuals by that name in early Duplin County. In the 1790 census, there are two Hardy Reaves recorded in Duplin County. One Hardy Reaves is listed with a household consisting of 4 Males over 16, 4 Males under 16 and 5 Females on page 44 of the census listing of James Kenan. Another Hardy Reeves is listed on page 40 of that same census listing with a household containing 2 Males over 16, 3 Males under 16 and 5 females. Since the total persons in the households differ, presumably there were two Hardy Reaves living in fairly close proximity in Duplin County but this could also be the result of errors by census enumerators. One of these Hardy Reaves is undoubtedly the parent of the next generation Hardy Reaves born 1785. <br />
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Hardy Reaves who is the documented ancestor of the individuals who have tested matching DNA Group 8 was born circa 1785 and died before January 1862 in Duplin County where probate records record the identities of his nine (9) children. Hopefully current research of this family will eventually be able to establish a connection to the Rives family of the southside of Virginia and document that relationship. <br />
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Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-59157034337272302582019-01-23T10:18:00.001-06:002022-04-21T09:46:24.435-05:00Curtis F. Reeves' Missing Children<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Confluence of the Ohio & Tennessee Rivers at Paducah, Kentucky</td></tr>
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My 2nd great grandfather's brother, Curtis F. Reeves was born on the 24th of January, 1807 in Madison County, Kentucky to George Reeves and Elizabeth Wilkerson. Curtis died in 1845 at the young age of 38. For many years Eliza Bryant who he married in McCracken County, Kentucky in 1841 was believed to be his only wife and their sons Benjamin F., born about 1843 and William H. born a year later were thought to be his only children. A few years ago I became aware of a prior marriage to Delilah Doolin of Butler County which was adjacent to Warren County where his family had moved around 1820. <br />
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Although there is no marriage recorded between Curtis F. Reeves and Delilah Doolin, in April of 1833 after the death of her father, Delilah, her mother Nancy and her siblings conveyed a tract of land on the banks of the Green River in Butler County, Kentucky to Jesse Lee. Curtis Reeves signed that deed as the husband of Delilah Doolin which establishes that they had married at some time prior to early 1833. Within the next couple of years following the death of their mother, Curtis along with his younger brothers William H. and Sidney Preston Reeves left Warren County and migrated to the westernmost area of Kentucky where they were recorded in McCracken County by 1840. A biography of his brother William Harrison Reeves states that he left Warren County as a teenager after the death of his mother and lived in the household of an older brother in the Jackson Purchase area.<br />
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Throughout the later part of the decade 1830-1840, Curtis is found in various records of McCracken County. In January of 1839 he was appointed to the county court as a Justice of the Peace. The 1840 census of McCracken County shows that Curtis and Delilah had seven children by 1840. The census of that year lists their household as including 2 males 0-5, 1 male 5-9, 1 male 10-15, 1 male 30-39, 2 females 5-9, 1 female 10-15 and 1 female 30-39. Delilah apparently died sometime shortly after that census was recorded in 1840 for in March of 1841, Curtis was remarried to Eliza Bryant in McCracken County. <br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">14 January 1839<br />
Court Order Book A, pg 370</td></tr>
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By July of 1840, Curtis resigned his position as a Justice of the Peace. The court order book where it is logged gives no explanation or reason for the resignation. The two sons born during his marriage to Eliza Bryant were born in Kentucky in 1843 and 1844 after which he moved to Mississippi County, Missouri. The Goodspeed's biography of his son William H. states that "owing to the overflow of that year", he became disgusted with the country (Missouri) and returned to his native State. However, he later returned to Missouri where he died in Wayne County in 1845. By 1850 his widow with their two sons had returned to Missouri where she had remarried to an Edward Fleece and was living in Mississippi County as recorded in that census. None of Curtis' children from his marriage to Delilah Doolin are listed in the household and their whereabouts are unknown.<br />
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Over the years I have searched the households of other Reeves' family members for these children but have never found any likely candidates, other than a 16 year old George Reeves living in the household of Curtis' brother William Harrison Reeves in 1850. However, since he had another nephew of that name and age, there is no way to determine whether this was one of Curtis' orphans. I continue to search for Curtis' children and hopefully someday I'll have some success.<br /><br />
In the meantime, I have found one possibility in Y-DNA matches. A few years ago I found a male third cousin who was willing to do a Y-DNA test for which I paid so we would have genetic evidence of any family connections. Among those DNA matches is an individual with the surname Davis. I have written to this individual but he appears to now be deceased. Besides having Y-DNA that matches all the members of DNA Group 6A where descendants of this family are found, his earliest known ancestor is recorded as having been born in McCracken County, Kentucky in 1839. To add to the inferential evidence that this could have been one of Curtis' orphans, there are several connections with the Davis family in this area. Delilah Doolin's sister Sarah also married into the Davis family in Kentucky. Although this by no means proves that this Davis DNA match is one of Curtis Reeves' children, so far nothing has been found to rule it out. I'll just keep looking for these children in hopes of eventually finding them. <br /><br />
Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-19908166451576826102019-01-18T11:26:00.001-06:002019-01-19T09:27:20.675-06:00The Elusive Sidney King ReevesOne of the many Reeves' mysteries is to which family <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Sidney_King_4171">Sidney King Reeves</a> belongs. He appeared in Pike County, Georgia on the 1830 census after marrying Sarah Caroline Nicholson in Walton County in 1829. Numerous incorrect theories have circulated regarding his lineage, one of which places him among the children of William Reeves of Guilford County, North Carolina who died in Wilkes County, Georgia in 1816. The will of William Reeves disproves that theory since he is not listed among the children named in William's 1816 will. His descendants and other Reeves' researchers have tried unsuccessfully to find his origins, but the only clue to his life before his appearance in Georgia is the fact that in every census, his place of birth is recorded as North Carolina.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Raleigh Register pub. 25 Jun 1824</td></tr>
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Jonathan Reeves, one of my colleagues at The Reeves Project, recently happened upon the pictured newspaper ad when searching historical papers. Although <i>The Raleigh Register</i> published articles pertaining to news and individuals throughout North Carolina, a Charles Fowler was a resident of Wake County at this time which indicates the location was undoubtedly Raleigh. On 6 Jan 1826 and again on 13 Jan 1826, another related newspaper, the <i>Weekly Raleigh Register</i> published a listing of letters remaining in the post office at Raleigh on the 1st of January 1826 and in both editions Sidney Reeves was listed.<br />
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After finding the probable location of Sidney King Reeves home and presumably his family as well, I've spent much of the last week searching the records of Wake County as well as the adjacent counties. My own Reeves family had been there and in the counties from which it was formed since at least 1746. Being familiar with Wake County and families with a variation of the Reeves/Reaves/Reavis surname I knew that after the migration of my 4th great grandfather, William Reeves, and all but one of his sons by 1803 Sidney was not a descendant of that family. The only son remaining in Wake was John Reeves who died in 1824 and all of his children are recorded in probate documents and property divisions. That left the Reavis family who descend from Isaac and Samuel Reavis, sons of William Reavis who died in Northampton County. The sons of both Isaac and Samuel are well documented so we can be sure that Sidney K. Reeves was not part of that lineage.<br /><br />
The only other Reeves family residing in Wake County in the early part of the 19th century descends from Revolutionary Soldier <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Rives_Frederick_3004">Frederick Reeves</a> (originally Rives) and his wife Elizabeth. An 1843 statement made by their son Hartwell Reeves, born 1 March 1783, when he petitioned to draw pension benefits of his father's service after the death of his mother in 1837 gives some limited information regarding this family. The only surviving son of Frederick Reeves, Hartwell, appears to have been a lifelong resident of Wake County and purchased a lot in Raleigh in 1809. Hartwell and his sons Henderson and Alpheus were all tradesmen. The 1850 census of Wake County lists each of them as shoe makers. This might be significant in that Sidney K. Reeves was apprenticed to a tailor to learn a trade.<br /><br />
Hartwell Reeves is known to have had at least three wives beginning with a marriage in Wake County to Christian Sugg in 1811. However, he would have been an adult in 1804 and could have married around that time, possibly fathering a child in 1806. No marriage record has been found prior to 1811, but sadly the 1810 and 1820 census of Wake County are not extant to verify whether he did in fact have a male child born circa 1806.<br /><br />
To date, no Reeves male descending from the lineage of Sidney King Reeves has participated in the Reeves Y-DNA Project which could provide verification of the Reeves family to which Sidney King Reeves belonged. The above mentioned family of Frederick Reeves as well as that of his brother Richard Reaves who lived in Franklin County adjacent to Wake are the most likely candidates for the family to which Sidney belongs. Richard Reeves (Reaves) and his second wife Mary had 3 male children born 1800-1810 per the 1810 census but only two of them have currently been identified.<br /><br />
Frederick and Richard Reeves were sons of William Rives of Surry County, Virginia who died 1778 in Bute County, North Carolina. That lineage is documented among the participants of the Reeves Y-DNA Project found in DNA Group 8 who appear to descend from the Ryves family of Dorset in England.<br /><br />
Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-16533929330015681622018-10-31T12:13:00.001-05:002022-04-21T09:49:17.410-05:001777 Tavern MenuIn the course of searching an Orange County, North Carolina book of unindexed court minutes page by page, I happened upon this menu. In 1777 the court orders are full of countless entries that were a product of the colonies' Declaration of Independence and the resulting Revolution. New county officials had to be appointed, lists of individuals who had failed to take an oath of allegiance to the new country documented and countless other orders which resulted from the change in the colonies' government affiliation.<br />
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Amongst all the very serious entries pertaining to our separation from Great Britain, the court order book also included this menu and price list that had been approved by the Orange County Court which I thought should be shared.<br />
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Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-53387921901207245282018-10-30T10:34:00.000-05:002019-01-18T08:35:57.781-06:00Just Supposin' AgainSince I wrote the post <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2018/08/just-supposin.html">Just Supposin'</a> several months ago, I found a little more documentation that serves to support my theory that the <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_George_601">George Reeves</a> who died in Wake County in 1778 could have been the missing member by that name of the family of Henry Reeves of Essex County, Virginia. In that post I shared my recent thoughts that he could be the link that connects John Reeves of Taylor County, Kentucky whose descendants are Y-DNA matches to known descendants of Henry Reeves through John Reeves of Augusta County, Virginia. John was a son of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Thomas_Sr_3254">Thomas Reeves, Sr.</a> initially of Essex County who died in Spotsylvania County in 1760. Thomas was a son of Henry Reeves, Jr. and grandson of Henry Reeves in addition to being the father of the missing <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_George_3368">George Reeves</a> detailed in this post.<br />
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I became aware of this George Reeves in Wake County when I happened upon a 1778 court order apprenticing his children Mary and John to residents in the county. Based upon proximity, the surname Reeves and the fact that the individuals his children were apprenticed to, Woodson Daniel and Reuben Allen, were both close associates of my ancestor William Reeves, I wrongly assumed he must have belonged to that family.
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<blockquote>
September 1778 Court<br />
[213]-75<br />
Ordered that Mary Reeves orphan of George Reeves deced. be bound unto Reuben Allen unto She come to age at this time being Eight Years of Age.<br />
Ordered that John Reeves orphan of George Reeves deced. be bound an Apprentice unto Woodson Daniel untill he come to the Age of twenty one Years being about this time the Age of three Years.</blockquote>
Although at the time it did seem strange that these children would have been apprenticed to neighbors rather than cared for by family members and that no tidbits of information linking John and Mary Reeves, orphans of this George, to the family of William Reeves of Wake County had ever been found. It also became increasingly more apparent that it was George Reeves of Grayson County, due to both genetic and documentary evidence in Orange and Johnston counties who was a member of the William Reeves' family, not the George Reeves who died in 1778.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EvfuZOUub58/W9hqY8P5W6I/AAAAAAAAFcc/AaBU5Mra0OMqZwyZ1fL6Bxe9MIakn2cBQCLcBGAs/s1600/Peter%2BCopeland%2Bin%2BOrange%2BNC%2BREV%2B2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 0em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="952" data-original-width="1600" height="238" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-EvfuZOUub58/W9hqY8P5W6I/AAAAAAAAFcc/AaBU5Mra0OMqZwyZ1fL6Bxe9MIakn2cBQCLcBGAs/s400/Peter%2BCopeland%2Bin%2BOrange%2BNC%2BREV%2B2.JPG" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-size: 12.8px;">Excerpt from Markam Map of Early Orange County Grants</span></td></tr>
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The primary impediment to my suppositions that this George Reeves could be the missing son of Thomas Reeves, Sr. from Spotsylvania County, Virginia was the fact that there seemed to be no reason for his sudden appearance in north central North Carolina. However, remembering that his first cousin <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Gatewood_Elizabeth_4637">Elizabeth Gatewood</a> had married Peter Copeland who was believed to have been born in North Carolina, I felt that could have been a factor in George Reeves' appearance there after his father's death since Elizabeth and Peter were said to have moved back to North Carolina a few years after their marriage. After writing the first post and sharing this theory, I decided to do more research in the area of Wake County.<br />
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In the course of that new effort to research this theory, I happened to notice that Peter Copeland was listed as one of the early property owners in Orange County, North Carolina. This area of the upper Neuse River basin had initially been part of Craven County, then Orange County from around 1752 until the early 1760's when it became part of Johnston County and then back to Wake County at its inception in 1771. See excerpt of the Markham Map of eastern Orange County above with Peter Copland's land along the Eno River noted. This is the immediate area where William Reeves settled in 1746 and both of the individuals with whom George Reeves' orphans were apprenticed were located. Reuben Allen's tract is located a little to the south of Peter Copeland's tract while Woodson Daniel's property was on the north side of the Neuse River which is not included in this map but was also in close proximity.<br />
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Peter Copeland had been living in Henry County, Virginia for several years when he sold this property in 1779 based upon an Orange County deed of 25 March 1779 which is one of three deeds by Peter Copeland recorded in Deed Book B, pages 65-70.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Orange County NC, Deed Book B, pg. 70</td></tr>
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As valuable as this information is, it still does not constitute proof that the George Reeves who died in Wake County in 1778 was the son of Thomas Reeves, Sr. of Essex and Spotsylvania counties in Virginia but it does add to the inferential data that suggests this connection. Surely with continued research, further tidbits can be found to add to the accumulation of additional evidence.<br />
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Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-42642365341912515802018-09-04T12:10:00.000-05:002018-09-04T12:17:17.446-05:00The Gatewood Girls<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Patience_3258">Patience Reeves</a> was a daughter of Henry Reeves, Jr. of Essex County, Virginia and is named as a legatee in his 1728 will. By the time Henry wrote his will, Patience was married to Richard Gatewood for Henry mentions a debt of £14 owed him by his son-in-law Richard Gatewood in that will. Richard and Patience Reeves Gatewood had four daughters as documented in the probate records of Essex County - Elizabeth, Sarah, Patience and Ann.<br /> <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G8m9jZX1NoY/W46anAN5S-I/AAAAAAAAFbI/VExTmnvsER8AdJN-jM4N6R320UPKS7SnACLcBGAs/s1600/Richard%2BGatewood%2BEstate.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-G8m9jZX1NoY/W46anAN5S-I/AAAAAAAAFbI/VExTmnvsER8AdJN-jM4N6R320UPKS7SnACLcBGAs/s320/Richard%2BGatewood%2BEstate.jpg" width="320" height="158" data-original-width="713" data-original-height="352" /></a></div>By November of 1745 both Richard and Patience Gatewood were deceased. Their daughter Ann Gatewood was also deceased and her portion of their estates was divided among the three surviving daughters.<br /> <br />
Elizabeth and Sarah appear to have not reached age 21 by the time Patience Reeves Gatewood died for both were appointed guardians to oversee their estates. No guardian was appointed for daughter Patience who was either age 21 by this time or possibly married.<br /> <br />
Over the course of the next decade as the daughters of Patience Reeves Gatewood married, they and their families all left the Essex County area and by 1767 sons-in-laws Peter Copeland, husband of Elizabeth Gatewood, and Waters Dunn, husband of Sarah Gatewood, are listed on the tithables list of Pittsylvania County. Joseph Farguson who married Patience Gatewood also settled in Pittsylvania County where he is recorded as a juror in June Court 1767 [Court Records Book 1 p55] and having taken the Oath for Constable in Pittsylvania County at the same court in 1767.<br /> <br />
When <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=17531120_WB_B_Pg183-184">the 1753 will</a> of Patience's brother George Reeves was written, her daughter Elizabeth was named as Elizabeth Copeland, one of the legatees, and her husband Peter Copeland was appointed as one of the executors of the will. Elizabeth and Peter Copeland reportedly lived for a time in Caroline County, Virginia after their marriage, then moved to North Carolina for a brief time where Peter is listed on the 1767 tax lists of Cumberland County. That same year, they returned to Virginia where by July Peter Copeland was listed as a tithable in Pittsylvania County. Peter was one of the first Justices of the Peace for Pittsylvania County and lived in that portion of the county which later became Henry. Peter and Elizabeth Copeland are recorded repeatedly in the deed records of Henry County over the subsequent years with the last mention of Elizabeth Copeland in 1780. In a deed dated the 20th of April, 1780 Elizabeth is mentioned as being unable to travel to and from the court to sign a dower release. The deed records statements by witnesses that Elizabeth did relinquish her right of dower to the one thousand acre tract being conveyed by Peter Copeland in that deed. Elizabeth and Peter Copeland both appear to have been deceased by 1790 when Charles Copland of Richmond City, Virginia as executor of Peter Copland was settling his estate.<br /> <br />
Patience Gatewood was also a legatee in her uncle George Reeves 1753 Spotsylvania County will. In that will she is named as Patience Gatewood and it is believed that she was first married to an unknown Gatewood who was the father of daughter Ann Frazier Gatewood. <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=17790421_DB_1_p258">A 1779 agreement</a> recorded in Henry County documents that Patience Gatewood Farguson was the mother of Ann Frazier Gatewood. There is currently no documentation as to whether any children were born to Joseph Farguson and Patience Gatewood which indicates that much more research is needed of the records of Pittsylvania and Henry counties in Virginia.<br /> <br />
The marriage of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Gatewood_Sarah_4638">Sarah Gatewood</a> to Waters Dunn apparently did not take place prior to the death of her mother, Patience, for she is named Gatewood in Patience's will; however, the marriage must have taken place shortly thereafter since their oldest child was born around 1746. Waters Dunn was also associated with the family by the time Patience's will was being probated for he gave a security bond for the guardian appointed to represent Elizabeth Gatewood. Within the next decade Sarah and Waters Dunn moved their family to Pittsylvania county along with her sisters Elizabeth and Patience and their families. Each of these families were located in the area of Pittsylvania County that became Henry County after it's formation. Waters Dunn, Waters Dunn, Jr. William Dunn and Richard Dunn are each listed on the 1778 tax lists of Henry County. Sarah Gatewood Dunn appears to have died around 1785 for Waters Dunn remarried to Ann Farguson in 1786. Waters Dunn along with all of their children migrated to Georgia after Sarah's death. Waters Dunn, Sr. died in Columbia County, Georgia in 1803 and the children of Sarah and Waters Dunn are documented in his will.<br /> <br />
Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-55034092361957106342018-08-14T09:11:00.001-05:002022-04-21T09:51:04.344-05:00Just Supposin'Lately I've been working on background stories for some of the different DNA Groups in The Reeves Project. DNA Group 9 is made up up five individuals, three of whom are descendants of Henry Reeves of Essex County, Virginia with documented paper trails while the two other participants descend from John Reeves of Taylor County, Kentucky who was born circa 1770 in North Carolina. John Reeves doesn't appear to have any link to Essex County or Henry Reeves, Sr., but his descendants' Y-DNA says he does!<br />
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Over the course of the last six months I've spent time weekly at my local Family History Center searching Virginia records to find more information in the extant records of Essex and Spotsylvania counties in Virginia to fill in all the gaps in the family of Henry Reeves. I've found that some of Henry's descendants did migrate to Kentucky, but not to Taylor County nor did any of them appear to have made a detour through North Carolina on their way west.<br />
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After a thorough search of all the available records in Essex County, it is clear that there are only a very few male descendants with the Reeves' surname who could be the ancestor of John Reeves of North Carolina and Taylor, Kentucky. By 1800 there were no male Reeves' individuals left in either Essex or Spotsylvania so we have to widen the search.<br />
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Jackson Reeves born around 1690-1700 was a son of Joseph Reeves, son of Henry Reeves, Sr. He has never been located after he left Essex County. He left no trail and there are no records of a Jackson Reeves of that generation who could be the son of Joseph Reeves of Essex. He was also probably too old to be the father of a child born circa 1770 although it would not have been impossible. The next possibility is Henry Reeves, son of the third Henry Reeves and probably born before 1740. When his father died in 1745 he didn't require a guardian so he may have been an adult by that time. He may have died young or simply migrated elsewhere, but he has currently not been located. Finally, Thomas Reeves, grandson of Thomas Reeves, Sr., born in 1753, was serving an apprenticeship in Spotsylvania County that began in 1768 and was only about 15 years old at the time. He was obviously not married or living in North Carolina by 1770.<br />
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That leaves only one Reeves' male outstanding from the Essex Reeves' family and he brings us full circle back to George, the son of Thomas Reeves, Sr. who was named as a legatee in the will of his uncle George Reeves in 1754. For many years Reeves' family researchers believed that this George Reeves was the individual of that name who arrived in the New River area along the border of Grayson County, Virginia and Ashe County, North Carolina in 1767, until the theory was proven incorrect by Y-DNA. Three descendants of George Reeves of Grayson, Virginia have matching Y-DNA to descendants of William Reeves of Wake County, North Carolina in addition to an abundance of documentation of their connections in the Neuse River basin before George Reeves migrated to the New River area. These descendants of George Reeves and William Reeves of Wake County are participants in DNA Group 6A of the Reeves DNA Project. Two other descendants of George Reeves of Grayson County do not match these six individuals, but neither do they match DNA Group 9 where the documented descendants of Henry Reeves are located.<br />
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Oddly, I recently realized that there is one more George Reeves who is a possibility as the father of John Reeves of Taylor County, Kentucky. When I initially became aware of this George Reeves, based upon proximity and the fact that the individuals his children were apprenticed to, Woodson Daniel and Reuben Allen, were both close associates of William Reeves, I assumed he was a member of that family of Wake County.<br />
<blockquote>
September 1778 Court<br />
[213]-75<br />
Ordered that Mary Reeves orphan of George Reeves deced. be bound unto Reuben Allen unto She come to age at this time being Eight Years of Age.<br />
Ordered that John Reeves orphan of George Reeves deced. be bound an Apprentice unto Woodson Daniel untill he come to the Age of twenty one Years being about this time the Age of three Years.</blockquote>
The only other information to be found in this area of the Neuse basin is from the records of the 1778 Granville County Militia. A George Reaves served in Captain James Langston's Company No. 7. He was described as 29 years old (born circa 1749), 6 feet high, thick made; of a ruddy complexion & dark hair; a Planter.<br />
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Although at the time it did seem strange that these children would have been apprenticed to neighbors rather than cared for by family members and that no tidbits of information linking John and Mary Reeves, orphans of this George, to the family of William Reeves of Wake County had ever been found. It also became increasingly more apparent that it was George Reeves of Grayson County, due to both genetic and documentary evidence in Orange and Johnston counties who was a member of the William Reeves' family, not the George Reeves who died in 1778.<br />
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Once the theory that this individual could possibly have been George Reeves, son of Thomas Reeves, Sr. of Essex and Spotsylvania counties began to develop, the one major obstacle to this line of thinking was why. I was plagued by the question of what would prompt George Reeves to leave the Rappahannock area and migrate to North Carolina when his siblings had all settled in the Shenandoah Valley's Augusta and Rockingham counties until I recalled that his Gatewood cousins had settled in Pittsylvania County, Virginia along the border just north of this area of North Carolina. Peter and Elizabeth Gatewood Copeland are said to have even settled in North Carolina for a brief time and Peter is listed on the 1767 tax lists of Cumberland County. This was apparently the same year they returned to Virginia where they are found in Pittsylvania County by 1767 and Peter Copeland is documented as one of the first justices of the county. Elizabeth's sisters Sarah Gatewood Dunn and Patience Gatewood Farguson with their families also settled in Pittsylvania County around this time. Elizabeth Copeland, like George, was also named as a legatee in the 1754 will of their uncle George Reeves. These Gatewood daughters were first cousins to George and have helped to resolve doubts as to whether George might have found his way to this locale.<br />
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Obviously, this theory still needs much more research before John Reeves of Taylor County, Kentucky could be declared a child of George Reeves, son of Thomas Reeves, Sr. of Essex and Spotsylvania counties in Virginia. For now, it's just something to ponder while we dig deeper into the historical records to solve this puzzle.<br />
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The most current listing of the <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=FamilyOf_Reeves_Henry_Sr_3240&structure=FamilyOf_Reeves_Henry_Sr_3240&page_ref_id=7603">descendants of Henry Reeves of Essex County, Virginia</a> can be found at The Reeves Project.<br />
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See recent post <a href="https://usreeves.blogspot.com/2018/10/just-supposin-again.html">Just Supposin' Again</a> with some newly discovered information regarding this theory.<br />
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Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-26114775447759033432018-07-14T09:54:00.020-05:002021-06-24T16:23:09.631-05:00Settlers in Kansas TerritoryAfter the death of their father, Terrell and Gaston Reves settled in the new Kansas Territory as soon as it was opened for settlement. Their father <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_William_3054">William</a> was one of the sons of George Reeves (Reves) of Grayson County, Virginia. William and his extended family had left Ashe County, North Carolina around 1822 and after a time in Indiana, eventually settled in Carroll County, Arkansas by about 1840. There William and these sons along with their brothers Lenoir and John were recorded in census and tax records. After William's death sometime between 1840 and 1850, various members of the family are recorded on the tax lists of Independence County, Arkansas throughout the 1850's along with another brother, William H. Reves, who was a Baptist minister.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Excerpt from 1866 Map of Kansas</td></tr>
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Gaston Reves along with his oldest sons Albert and Moses (Mack) were listed on the tax lists of Independence County in 1854 which was the final record for members of Gaston's family in Arkansas. The History of Verdigris Township in <i>Historical Atlas of Wilson County Kansas</i> records that "Gaston Reeves and his son Max (sic Mack) took claims in the spring of 1857".<br />
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Terrell Reeves was recorded on the 1856 tax lists of Independence County which apparently preceded his migration to Kansas for the history of Greenwood County, Kansas lists the Pleasant Grove township as being established in 1856 by Terrill Reeves. <br />
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In those early years of Kansas' history, besides indian attacks, there was also great political unrest involving guerrilla warfare as the debate over the expansion of slavery led to violence in Kansas. The bad weather, bad crops and destruction of crops and property by the opposing forces often offset the sense of prosperity that had fueled the rush of settlers to the newly opened territory. A large number of settlers left the territory after the bitter winter of 1856 and many experienced starvation effecting themselves and their animals caused by a severe drought in 1860.
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Bill for coffin of Gaston Reves son of Terrell</td></tr>
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The records do not reveal the causes of their deaths, but over the next five years, Terrell and three of his sons as well as his brother Gaston and his oldest son Albert were deceased. Terrell and his 21 year old son Gaston both died on the 4th of May, 1859 but the probate documents give no clue as to the cause. Although no probate documents have been discovered for his brother Gaston, all of his children were orphans living in the home of A. Venard, a probate court judge in Greenwood County in the 1860 census. Over the next decade the majority of the rest of the children from both families had also died.<br />
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Although I never doubted that pioneer life was hard and extremely dangerous, researching the story of these young families and their westward migration which ended so soon after their arrival in southeastern Kansas Territory has both surprised and saddened me. Even as my various families migrated out of Virginia and North Carolina into the wilderness that existed in early Kentucky, Tennessee and other newly formed states, I had just never discovered such hardship and death.
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See post in this blog about <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2012/11/the-wayfarer-william-reeves-of-ashe.html">William Reeves</a> of Grayson County, Virginia and Ashe County, North Carolina
Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-72128103486198345192018-06-04T17:04:00.000-05:002018-11-07T08:09:59.765-06:00Essex County's Henry Reeves FamilyBack in November of 2011 in the early days of this blog, I wrote a post titled <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2011/11/who-really-are-descendants-of-henry.html">Who really are the descendants of Henry Reeves?</a> In that post, I addressed the issue of misinformation regarding the lineage of George Reeves of Grayson County, Virginia who had been believed to be descended from Henry Reeves. A George Reeves, son of Thomas Reeves (Sr.) of Spotsylvania County who was a grandson of Henry Reeves, was named as a legatee in <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=17531120_WB_B_Pg183-184&structure=US_State_VA&page_ref_id=3518">the will of Thomas' brother George Reeves</a> who died in 1754 and the internet was full of the theory that George Reeves who settled in Grayson County's New River area in 1767 was that individual. Y-DNA tests of individuals in the Reeves DNA Project established that participants who were documented as descending from Henry Reeves were found in DNA Group 9 of the project while three descendants of George Reeves of Grayson County were in DNA Group 6 (now Group 6A) matching descendants of William Reeves of North Carolina's Neuse Basin.<br />
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With the recent addition of images of scanned historical documents to Family Search's online catalog, it is now possible to do indepth research without traveling to a courthouse in Virginia. Over the last six months I have spent an afternoon each week at my local Family History Center browsing the deed, will, court and tax records of Essex County in an attempt to find all of the extant information regarding Henry Reeves heirs. Amazingly, there is an abundance of early records for Essex County that are available.
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The family of Henry Reeves becomes more and more complete as the records are searched with numerous tidbits of information found to solve what have previously been mysteries. The surname and family of Sarah, the wife of Thomas Reeves, Jr. of Spotsylvania County can be found on an Essex Deed. Sarah was found to be Sarah Attwood, daughter of Ann Reeves and Francis Attwood, who was a cousin to Thomas. The 1766 deed states that the land being sold was devised to Sarah by her mother Ann Reeves Attwood who inherited it from her deceased brother John Reeves. <br />
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Essex County Court Minutes of 1708 provided proof that Elizabeth Reeves, the daughter of Henry Reeves, Sr. was the wife of Thomas Sthreshly. Although Sthreshly descendants had believed that to be the case, most Reeves' researchers had never included that marriage in their family records. A court record from April of 1708 concerns a case where Thomas Sthreshly and his wife Elizabeth had brought suit against the administrators of the estate of James Reeves seeking to have the court order a division of the estate with the legatees. The court minutes clearly state that the petitioner Elizabeth was a sister of the said James Reeves deceased. <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZNOFE2HcV4I/WxWQRxcqqFI/AAAAAAAAFXg/dYTfqECpxb0-5ejLiPqlbpVMcZ_nOWKbACLcBGAs/s1600/1729%2Bcourthouse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="391" data-original-width="300" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-ZNOFE2HcV4I/WxWQRxcqqFI/AAAAAAAAFXg/dYTfqECpxb0-5ejLiPqlbpVMcZ_nOWKbACLcBGAs/s200/1729%2Bcourthouse.jpg" width="153" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1729 Essex County Courthouse</td></tr>
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Currently most of the male descendants with the Reeves' surname have been found, with a few exceptions. Henry, the son of Henry Reeves III, son of Henry Reeves, Jr., and his wife Jochebed has never been located after he reached maturity. Two of the other male children of Henry and Jochebed died as infants, which simply means that they did not live to adulthood, but their son Henry, born after 1727, apparently left Essex County as a young adult and has not been located elsewhere. Jackson Reeves, born circa 1690, was named in the 1717 will of Joseph Reeves, Sr. but there is no further record of him in Essex County. Likewise, George Reeves son of Thomas Reeves, Sr., apparently left the area and has not been identified. This is the same George who had previously been believed to be the George Reeves of Grayson County, but DNA has now established that is not possible.<br />
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There is still much research to be done in Essex County, particularly as it pertains to the daughters of Henry Reeves, Sr. Their spouses have all been identified but not their children. I'll be heading back to the Family History Center later this week to see what else I can find. In the meantime, The Reeves Project has created this <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=FamilyOf_Reeves_Henry_Sr_3240&structure=FamilyOf_Reeves_Henry_Sr_3240">listing of the descendants of Henry Reeves, Sr.</a> of Essex County which links to each individual's page in the wiki.<br />
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(Photo from the website of Essex County Museum & Historical Society at Tappahannock)
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Other posts in this blog about the Henry Reeves family of Essex County<br />
<a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2011/11/who-really-are-descendants-of-henry.html">Who really are the descendants of Henry Reeves?</a>
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<a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2018/03/thomas-reeves-of-woodford-county.html">Thomas Reeves of Woodford County, Kentucky</a><br />
<a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2018/09/the-gatewood-girls.html">The Gatewood Girls</a><br />
<a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2018/08/just-supposin.html">Just Supposin'</a> and <a href="http://usreeves.blogspot.com/2018/10/just-supposin-again.html">Just Supposin' Again</a><br />
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Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-852277249790452050.post-2393657536087879832018-03-19T13:58:00.000-05:002018-05-03T16:56:47.059-05:00Thomas Reeves of Woodford County, KentuckyThe family of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Henry_Sr_3240">Henry Reeves</a> who settled in Old Rappahannock County, Virginia by 1666 when he was granted 600 acres on Tignor's Creek has been the subject of much interest and speculation. Thankfully the early records of Essex County, Virginia are extant for the most part. Some of the earliest record books are fragmented, but there is still a wealth of information there regarding this family.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">North Central Kentucky in 1827</td></tr>
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As Henry Reeves' descendants, beginning with his grandchildren, began to leave Essex County for other parts of Virginia and beyond, much less is known of the family. His grandson <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_George_3255">George</a> left a Spotsylvania County will in 1754 naming as legatees the children of his brother <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Thomas_Sr_3254">Thomas Reeves, Sr.</a> in addition to his siblings and other family members. That will has been an extremely beneficial document insofar as identifying many members of the family of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Henry_Jr_3241">Henry Reeves, Jr.</a>
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After leaving Spotsylvania, the sons of Thomas Reeves, Sr. were recorded in Augusta and Rockingham counties in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley. Another son, unlisted in George Reeves' will, is <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Brewer_3381">Brewer</a> who is named as a brother to <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Thomas_Jr_3367">Thomas, Jr.</a> in Augusta County court documents. Other than in the will of George Reeves, there is no mention of Thomas, Sr.'s son George and it may be that he and Brewer are the same individual. This George was previously believed to be George Reeves of Grayson County, Virginia but DNA has proven that to be incorrect.
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<a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_John_3369">John Reeves</a> remained in Augusta County but his brothers Brewer and Thomas, Jr. migrated to Kentucky. Their brother <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Henry_3366">Henry</a> died in Spotsylvania County in 1760 and his estate was recorded at the same time as that of their father Thomas Reeves, Sr. Brewer Reeves is documented as one of the earliest residents of Christian County, Kentucky where he was one of the first justices of the court. Until recently there was very little record of Thomas Reeves, Jr. once he disappeared from the records of Augusta and Rockingham counties but a posting to an online forum provided a clue to Thomas, Jr.'s presence in Woodford County, Kentucky.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1792 Survey for Thomas Reeves in Woodford County</td></tr>
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It wasn't until the Woodford County records were discovered that the children of Thomas Reeves, Jr. were identified. His wife Sarah was named in numerous Spotsylvania County deeds and court records of Augusta County, but their children were a mystery. The appraisal of the Estate of Thomas Reeves is recorded in February 1799 in Woodford County Will Book B on pages 83-86. On the 4th of June in 1803, the heirs of Thomas Reeves executed a deed to James Reeves of Henry County, Kentucky for all lands belonging to Thomas Reeves in the state of Virginia and all lots in the town of Versailles in Woodford County which were taken off the land of Thomas Reeves when the town was being laid off. This deed was for compensation to James for his services in transacting and closing the business relative to the estate of Thomas Reeves decd.<br />
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Reeves Heirs to James Reeves</div>
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Those heirs of Thomas Reeves named in addition to James, were his widow Sarah, David Willson who had married daughter Milley, Elizabeth Reeves, John Samonie who married Delilah Reeves, George Cotter husband of Mary Reeves, Joseph Reeves and son Thomas Reeves.<br />
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Over the following ten years there are numerous deeds by these heirs disposing of the property they had inherited from Thomas and by around 1810 most of the family members, Joseph, Thomas and their brother-in-law David Wilson, were recorded in neighboring Gallatin County.
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Newly discovered identity of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Attwood_Sarah_4623">Sarah</a>, the wife of <a href="https://thereevesproject.org/data/tiki-index.php?page=Reeves_Thomas_Jr_3367">Thomas Reeves, Jr.</a>
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Beverly Watsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05651072473717710158noreply@blogger.com0