A Few More Colonial Early Reeves' Families

In 2017 I wrote a post for this blog, "Early Reeves' Families of Colonial America". 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 The Reeves Project 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.

A - The primary Reeves' presence in Maine from some years prior to the Revolution until the 20th century descended from James Reeves. 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, James Reeves of Maine, provides more information about him.

B - John Reeves of Essex County, Massachusetts appears to possibly have been the individual of that name who arrived in New England from London on the ship Christian 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.

C - Thomas Reeves 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.

D - The date of Robert Reeve's 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.

E - John Reeves, 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.

F - Walter Reeve 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.

G - The records of Fenwick's Colony of New Jersey contain many mentions of Mark Reeve. He came to the colony as a servant of Edward Champneys, arriving in Salem on 23 Jun 1675 on the ship Griffin. 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.

H - Among the several Reeves' families recorded in Halifax County, Virginia was George Reaves 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 - The Rest of the Story.

I - For many years it was assumed that Hardy Reaves 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 Reliques of the Rives (Ryves). The exact member of that family from whom Hardy descends is still unknown, but DNA has established that he does belong to that family.

J - Miles Reeves (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.

K - George W. Reeves 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.

For more extensive information for the earliest docu-

mented Reeves' families in the American colonies, see 

Part 1 of "Early Reeves' Families of Colonial America" 

for the legend identifying Reeves' populations in the various locations on the map at right.

The Reeves Project also provides more extensive information on these families.

Y-DNA Needed for These Reeves Families

During 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.

Georgia

Little is known about the origins of Sidney King Reeves. 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 The Elusive Sidney King Reeves.

Maine

Jonathan Reeves' recent blog post James Reeves of Maine 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.

Massachusetts

John Reeves 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.

Thomas Reeves 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.

New Jersey

The Salem County, New Jersey Reeve clan descending from Mark Reeve 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.

North Carolina

The Benjamin Reeves 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.

One descendant of Edward Reeves 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.

George Reeves, Sr. 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.

John Reeves 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.

South Carolina

Drury Reaves 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.

Ewel Reeves of Greenville County may have descended from John Reeves 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.

John Reeves 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.

John Reeves of Union County. John's origins are currently unknown and the Y-DNA of descendants of his sons could provide answers to the mystery.

Lazarus Reeves 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.

Virginia

George Reeves 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.

George Reaves of Halifax County in later years was referred to as Sr. indicating he had a son George in addition to sons Asher Reaves, Daniel Reaves and Elijah Reaves, Sr.. 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 - The Rest of the Story.

Surprises thru DNA

Recently 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.

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.

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.

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.

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.
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.

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.

Reaves' Chapel Church

Today I happened upon this great photo of the Reaves' Chapel Church which was shared by Gene on his Facebook page Eugene's Carolina Reflections. I asked Gene if I might share it here since we try to share all things Reeves, Reaves and Rives along with other misc. variations and he graciously agreed.

Besides having his own Facebook page, Gene also shares his photos on one of my favorite FB pages Abandoned, Old & Interesting Places - North Carolina.

The chapel was built by former slaves of the Cedar Hill Plantation in Brunswick County, North Carolina after the Civil War. People from other plantations also began to worship at the chapel after the war and sometime around 1909 it was decided to move the church. Witnesses recalled seeing the congregation move the chapel with a team of oxen on logs. The chapel was then named after the man who donated the land, Edward Reaves.

The people of this community are the descendants of West African slaves and known as the Gullah-Geechee people. The Gullah-Geechee developed their own language which was a combination of at least three African languages and English, and is still spoken today.

A Few More Reeve(s) Signatures

The signatures of today's post are from various Reeves' individuals of several different surname variations and lineages. The excerpts of these pictured documents have come from collections of original documents scanned from archived records in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina. Over the last decade numerous collections of scanned original documents, not copies of pages from deed and will books that were written by county clerks, but documents written by or at the least signed by the parties executing the documents. Collections by Family Search, the Library of Virginia and other sites have put these documents online helping family researchers to make great advances in genealogy. These scans of original documents have also allowed us to see the actual signatures of our ancestors which is a tremendous help in differentiating between all the Reeves of the same given name.

Will of William Reaves of Wayne County NC
also includes signature of William Reaves, Juner as witness

The document on the left is from a scanned copy of the original 1790 will of William Reaves, Sr. of Wayne County, North Carolina. The document includes the signature of William Reaves, Sr. as well as the signature of his son William, Jr. as one of the witnesses. The origins of this family who appeared in now extinct Old Dobbs County in the late 1750s have been a mystery but recent DNA tests of several descendants from this family have now established that their DNA matches that of descendants of William Reeves who died in Granville County in 1751.

Promissory Note by H. I. (Hezekiah) Reeves

On the right is a promissory note given by Hezekiah I. Reeves of Fauquier County, Virginia to William H. Tilley in 1819 which was the basis of a Chancery Case brought by Wm H. Tilley against Hezekiah Reeves, William and Daniel Thornberry. Hezekiah may have been a member of the Reeves family of Charles County, Maryland which is just across the Potomac River from Prince William County, Virginia where Hezekiah is also recorded. His signature is quite unique and should help to identify him. Sadly, there have been no participants from this lineage or other Reeves of southern Maryland in the DNA project which would greatly benefit Reeves' research.

Thomas Reeves' Signature as Witness

The witnesses to the above document include Thomas Reeves of Augusta, Virginia, previously of Spotsylvania County. The document is found in an Augusta County chancery case entitled Brewer Reeves vs. Aaron Hughes whose first pleadings are dated 1792. The witnesses signatures appear to be original as they are not similar to the body of the document which was written by a clerk or attorney with excellent penmanship - note the surname Reeves as written by the clerk is far more skillfully written than that of Tho. Reeves' signature. Brewer Reeves of this case was identified in other court documents as the brother of Thomas Reeves.

Signature by Edward Reavis on
1752 Northampton County NC Will

Edward Reavis is first found in Henrico County, Virginia, later migrating to northeastern North Carolina. He clearly wrote his name as Reavis differentiating it from the various other individuals of that area of North Carolina who used the Reeves and Reaves variations of the surname. Descendants of Edward Reavis are also totally different genetically to other inhabitants of Northampton and Halifax counties based upon DNA testing.

Signature of William Reeve, Soldier of the Revolution
on his 1833 RW Pension Application

Affidavit and Signature of James W. Reeve
son of William Reeve above

In April of 1833 William Reeve gave a statement in support of his application for a Revolutionary War pension. Appearing in court in Abbeville, South Carolina he gave a declaration regarding his service. He stated that he had entered the service in the summer of 1776 in Prince William County, Virginia as a drafted militia man serving in troops commanded by Colonel Henry Lee. That initial tour was followed by several others under different commanders.

William Reeve was originally from Prince William County, Virginia where his father, grandfather and other extended family consistently used the Reeve surname variation. However, within a few generations most of his descendants began to use the more common Reeves surname.

Access to Family Trees on Family Search

For everyone who has longed to be able to access the LDS family trees on Family Search in order to make additions or corrections - it is now possible.  If you haven't already discovered the changes at Family Search, you will be pleased to know that these seriously flawed trees, full of duplications and undocumented connections, can now be accessed.  Many of these family trees were created long before the internet with the records that are now available or DNA testing.

Family Information for William Reaves
of Wayne County, North Carolina

Family Search has entered these family pedigrees into a wiki type database which could eventually be a wonderful source of family information but it is currently a mass of conflicting family connections and duplications.  See the image inserted at left for information retrieved on a search for William Reaves of Wayne County, North Carolina.

William Reaves, born circa 1737, is shown as the child of John Reeves, born circa 1745 who obviously could not be William's father.  This lists John Reeves as marrying in North Carolina but there are countless records from Augusta and Rockingham Counties of Virginia for John Reeves and Margaret Duncanson.   A descendant of this John Reeves has tested and been placed in DNA Group 9.

Recent DNA testing by descendants of William Reaves of Wayne County have placed this family in DNA Group 3 which connects them to William Reeves who died in Granville County in 1751.  Also included among the proposed siblings in this listing are members of the family of Isaac Reeves of Wilkes County, North Carolina (DNA Group 6), William Rives of Prince George County, Virginia (DNA Group 8) and even one individual with the surname Rapp who was born in Germany.

This image is included simply to call attention to the errors in the information at present. In spite of all the errors, this is a tremendous step forward for online genealogy and if those of us who love genealogy all perservere in helping to correct the incorrect data and merge the duplications, it could eventually be a wonderful resource.

One of the exciting features the Family Search software provides is the ability to link a scanned copy of original documents, i.e. wills and probate documents, marriage certificates, etc., to the individual's page.  This excellent feature allows a scanned document from Family Search's collections to be added to the person's page and provide documentation with sources for the data.  Their software will also allow the addition of pictures.

There are countless "legacy issues" recorded in these records where individuals have noted errors and requested corrections in the past.  If you've always wanted to correct the information in the LDS files for your ancestors, now's your chance.

Interesting New Developments

In the earliest days of this blog, I added a post regarding the Reaves family of Wayne County, North Carolina whose origins prior to their arrival in Old Dobbs County have been a mystery. Thanks to DNA, that mystery may finally be solved. Two participants in the Reeves DNA Project who descend from William Reaves of Wayne County have now matched DNA Group 3. DNA Group 3 includes the descendants of William Reeves who died in Granville County, North Carolina in 1751.

Wayne County, North Carolina Area

The fact that their origins have previously been unknown probably stems from the 1878 courthouse fire at Kinston in Lenoir County which destroyed all the records housed there. Dobbs County had been formed from the eastern portion of Johnston County in 1758 and in 1791, Wayne County from the western portion of Dobbs. The records of early Johnston and other counties formed from Johnston - Wayne, Greene and Lenoir Counties, were placed at the courthouse there and all were lost in that fire. The only exception was the original grantee deed index from Old Dobbs County.

With this new DNA evidence, we are presented with the question of how the Reaves of Wayne County are related to the family of William Reeves who died in Granville County in 1751. Previously William Reeves, Jr. of that family was believed to have been the individual by that name who died in 1821 in York County, South Carolina. However, the William Reeves who died in South Carolina would have been well past 100 years old if that were the case since he must have been born about 1710. It is far more likely that a generation has been missed and the William Reeves with wife Elizabeth who died in York, South Carolina was the son or nephew of William Reeves, Jr. Recent research of the probate, tax and deed records of Granville County has established that the William Reeves who was present in the records of Granville County from around 1755 as a tithe of Malachi Reeves was undoubtedly Malachi's son. From 1755 when he is first listed, until November of 1796 when he is recorded in a deed transaction wherein he sold 257 acres on Tabbs Creek to John Hall (Deed Book P, p.342) before leaving for South Carolina, he is the only William Reeves in the records of Granville County.

William Reeves, Jr. along with his wife Hardy was often recorded in the deed records of Edgecombe County from at least 1740 and continued to be found in deeds there until the 1750's. As William Reeves of Edgecombe County, he was last found in the records of Granville County in May of 1753 when he sold 525 acres on Fishing Creek (Deed Book B, p.243-244) to his brother Malachi. His absence in the Granville and Edgecombe County records coincides with the appearance of William Reaves in the records of Old Dobbs County around 1758 based upon the extant deed indexes of Old Dobbs.

1790 Will of William Reaves of Wayne County

 These recent DNA results may indicate that some of the Reaves' individuals found in Old Dobbs and later in Wayne County were descendants of William Reeves, Jr., previously of Edgecombe County and that William Reaves may even have been his son. Hopefully records in the surrounding counties that were not destroyed in the Lenoir courthouse fire can be found to provide more documentation for this family.

Reliques of the Rives tree on ancestry.com

Sharland, Carolyn, and Gerald, Reeves DNA Group 8 cousins and collaborators have launched a new tree on ancestry.com. The Reliques of the Rives Group 8 DNA tree contains the lines of all Reeves males who have tested as members of Group 8 in the Reeves DNA project.

There are two ways you can approach the tree:

1. You can start at the top with Robert Ryves, the earliest documented ancestor of this line, and click a son. Each Ryves/Rives/Reeves who is in the direct line of one of the Group 8 Reeves will have this picture of the Ryves crest attached to his profile.


As you navigate through the tree, clicking on sons with that picture will lead you to someone who has tested as Reeves DNA Group 8 through his YDNA.

2. Another approach is to start with the pedigree of someone at the bottom of the tree. Here is an example using the line of K M Reaves. In the pedigree, you will see the Reeves crest displayed for each male in his direct line.

Although there are currently eight members of Group 8 DNA, only seven lines are included in this tree as the line of the eighth person remains unknown. We have included wives and siblings whenever they are available.

We have added citations and comments to many people in the tree and will add more as time permits. We have also used the inferred DNA feature available on ancestry.com to display the Haplogroup, E1b1b1a1, on each Reeves male profile page.

Another Mystery: William C Reeves of Independence County Arkansas

The family of Jordan Reeves Jr appeared in Independence County in 1825. William C Reeves first appears there in 1834, so I would naturally want to determine whether he is of the Jordan Reeves clan. I have found little to nothing to connect him -- his origins remain unknown.

Records for William C Reeves in Independence County are sparse. This much is known:

He first appears in an 1834 Arkansas tax list in Black River Township, Independence County.

The next record of him is his marriage to Martha Ann Tucker on 31 July 1836 in Independence County, Arkansas. Entries in marriage records are variously spelled as Rives, Reeves, and Reves. The marriage was announced in the Arkansas Gazette on August 23, 1836, per arkansasties.com:

MARRIED,
In Independence county, on the 31st ult. by Hon. Wm. Arnold, Capt. Wm. C. Reans [sic], to Miss Martha Ann Tucker, daughter of Peyton Tucker, Esq.

The title "Capt" would seem to imply military service.

William had died by the April 1840 term of the Independence County probate court when the administrator of his estate, Peyton Tucker, petitioned the court to discharge his duties as executor, having found assets totaling $84. The same petition states that William C Reaves left a widow and one child.

His widow Martha Reeves appears in the 1840 census age 20-29 with one male < 5, one male 15-19, one female 10-14. The two older children are not likely to be Martha's. Their parents are unknown.

Oddly, the 1850 census records identify a daughter Sarah A Reeves, born about 1838, and living with her mother who is remarried to William Hooper. No male child has been found. Sarah A Reeves, born about 1838 in Arkansas, married Adam Allen on 23 Feb 1860.

While William Reeves and Jordan Reeves both lived in Black River Township at the same time, it was a large area and we know that proximity is no indicator of a relationship. William Reeves mother-in-law (step-mother of Martha Tucker) was a Magness and Jordan Reeves was married to a Magness. However, in that period, it would have hard not to have a Magness connection, especially in that sparsely populated area.

Reeves/Reaves Research Project

In the past, a fellow Reeves’ researcher, Richard Reeves, and I have consolidated our efforts in searching the records of York County, South Carolina for Reeves information and were able to resolve many mysteries in addition to identifying several misconceptions and fallacies in the previously held theories of the Reeves family who migrated there from Granville County, North Carolina. We’ve also searched all of the available records of Granville County for more information on that family.

There actually are many original documents that contain previously undiscovered information in the tax records, deed and will books when a detailed search of the available records is conducted. And if there are also estate files such as we found to be available in the York, South Carolina files now online at www.familysearch.org, they are a goldmine.

We are now planning to start systematically reviewing and researching the extant records of the southeastern portion of North Carolina, primarily Wayne, Green and Duplin counties as well as any surviving records from Old Dobbs County in an attempt to learn more about the Reaves family who settled there around 1750. That Reaves family’s origins are a mystery that we would like to attempt to resolve. We may not find all the answers but you never know what great new discoveries are hiding in the reels of microfilm. Once we learn more about the Reaves of the Wayne County area, we plan to move on to those in Brunswick County who are similarly a puzzle.

Family Search hasn’t been able to upload all of the copies of original records to their site as yet, but they microfilmed them in the past and those films can be rented for a small fee and viewed at their LDS Family History Centers.

Richard has developed a list of the documents available on microfilm and online from Family Search, such as:

Dobbs County, crown patents, 1759-1775 – Microfiche 1997. 3 microfiche.

Duplin County, Court 1Minutes 1784-1793 FHL US/CAN Film 18804

Wayne County, Minutes, 1787-1868, (1 unlabeled volume) 1787-1794 FHL US/CAN Film 1730559

Wayne County, Wills, accounts, inventories, and sales of estates, 1807-1957; indexes, 1782-1965, 1782-1965

We’re going to upload the list of microfilm reels and share it on Google Documents while we work together to rent the films, then copy and transcribe any and all Reeves documents we find. Any other Reeves/Reaves/Rives/Reavis researchers who would like to participate as we search the surviving records of North Carolina for more Reeves’ information may contact Richard or Beverly and we can share the file with you on Google or make other arrangements to share it if you don’t have a Google account.

Teressa Jane Reeves Henderson

Long ago, in Little Rock, I had the not so common privilege of actually knowing my great-grandmother. I called her Gambau; my mother and her siblings called her Mamau Henderson. She was born Teressa Jane Reeves in 1879 in Newark, Independence County, Arkansas, a great-granddaughter of Jordan Reeves Jr and Mary Magness, early settlers of that location.

Physically, Tressie was a tiny person. I surpassed her in height by the time I was ten years old. I was fascinated by her pierced earlobes, which hung nearly to her shoulders (or so I thought) from decades of wearing heavy earrings. She swept her long white hair up in a bun that she wore on top of her head. In every picture I've ever seen of her, starting with this one as a young mother, until she died at age 79, her hairstyle was the same, her hair color being the indicator of time passing. A sturdy farm woman, she wore throughout her life the same calico cotton dresses made of feedsacks with button front, inset midriff or belt, and flared skirt ending just above her ankles. I have no doubt that she made those dresses herself, the sewing gene being deeply ingrained in me and my maternal line.

In 1896, Tressie married Johnny C Henderson, a man of diminutive stature, only slightly taller than she was. and had five children, four of whom survived to adulthood. Breaking with tradition, none of her children bore family names: Eula, Opal (a boy), Maudie (my grandmother), Beuna, and Rene (a boy), all names not used (thankfully) before or since in the family.

In this five generation picture taken in 1939, Tressie is second from the left. Tressie died in Little Rock in 1959. The child is my cousin Johnny.

The Assorted Reeves of Halifax County, Virginia

In the course of researching my own Reeves family, I found that between 1790 and 1860 there were at least three different Reeves’ family lines and possibly a fourth in Halifax County, Virginia .

The spelling of the surname of the earliest Reeves' family found in Halifax County is usually "Reaves". According to the pension statement of Ashur Reaves (also spelled Asher), taken in Greene County, Ohio on 23 Nov 1832, he was born in Prince William County, Virginia in 1757. He moved from there to Halifax County, Virginia with his family (parents were unnamed) and it was from there he entered the service around 1778. When he returned from that tour of duty, his father had moved to Wilkes County, North Carolina so he then moved there to join his family. From there he served several more tours of duty and after being finally discharged, he returned to Halifax County, Virginia where he married Diana Miller and lived for approximately 16 years.

Before 1800, a George Reaves, Sr. was also recorded in the tax lists of Halifax. His wife is unknown, but George Reaves, Jr., Elijah Reaves (married Elizabeth Wilson) and Polly Reaves (married William Wilson) appear to be some of his children.

It is unknown whether he was related to Ashur or not but there is a George Reaves described as "of Wilkes County, North Carolina" in a Halifax deed dated September 6, 1793 and named as one of the legatees of John Epps, deceased. The connection to Wilkes County, NC for both Ashur and George may indicate that they were of the same Reaves family.

The second Reeves family located in Halifax before 1800 is that of Daniel Reeves who bought land in Halifax County on Deep Bottom Creek in 1797 and sold it in 1799. In Pittsylvania County on 10 Oct 1799, he married Nancy Dodson, but was back in Halifax County in 1807 when he bought 72 acres on Deep Bottom Creek. He is recorded there in the census records from 1820 until his death in 1846.

Daniel Reeves was also listed as Rives repeatedly in the records of Halifax and Pittsylania Counties. His family origins are unknown, but due to the repeated use of the Rives variation of the surname, he may have descended from the Rives in nearby Franklin, Dinwiddie or Brunswick counties of Virginia.

The third known Reeves lineage is that of my own line where three descendants have been placed in DNA Group 6 of the Reeves DNA Project. Within a few years after Peter Reves, the brother of my ggg grandfather George Reves, married Ann “Nancy” Tucker of Lunenburg County, he relocated from Wake County, North Carolina to Halifax where by 1800 he is recorded in the tax lists of that year. By 1801, his brother Charles who had also married into the Tucker family, moved from Wake County to Halifax.

There are countless records in Halifax County of the descendants of these three Reeves' lineages with their surnames constantly mispelled. Unlike many other counties, genealogists are fortunate in that most Halifax marriage records are extant from around 1790 and usually include the parents' names which has been a great benefit in differentiating between these families.

Halifax County is just one of many examples of the pitfalls of assuming that all Reeves in a particular area must be related.


(Photo by Mark Cottrell for Findagrave.)

Reeves' Mysteries - the Reaves of Southeastern North Carolina

There are far more Reeves' family lineages of unknown origin than those whose immigrant ancestor has been established. The Reeves DNA Project has identified many families who share a common ancestor, even though that ancestor is currently unknown. That is not the case for the Reaves families of Duplin, Wayne, Brunswick and Columbus counties of southeastern North Carolina, no records have been found of them before their arrival in this area around 1750 or to positively confirm their relationship to each other.


The first record of several of these Reaves families is in the now extinct North Carolina county of Dobbs where the deed indexes record both William Reaves and Thomas Reaves owning property in 1757. Sadly, only the deed indexes remain of the Dobbs County records. Other Reaves listed in those indexes over the span of the next 20 years include Jane (or James?), Joseph, Drury, Timothy and Reuben.

Dobbs County was formed from the eastern portion of Johnston County in 1758 and in 1791, Wayne County from the western portion of Dobbs. The records of early Johnston and other counties formed from Johnston - Wayne, Greene and Lenoir Counties, were placed at the courthouse in Lenoir County. In 1878, a courthouse fire in Kinston destroyed almost all of these records except the original grantee index. The loss of these records is undoubtably the reason this family's origins remain an enigma.

There is a deed dated April of 1757 and recorded in the index of Book 5 (Page 638) from Andrew Bass to William Reaves. The 1790 Wayne County will of William Reaves contains a reference to land he purchased from Andrew Bass which confirms his identity as the same William Reaves recorded in this Dobbs County index. Sons of William Reaves named in that 1790 will are found in Wayne County as well as Duplin where a Hardy Reaves who appears to be related was recorded in the census of 1790 and 1800.

The families of Brunswick and Columbus counties descend from brothers Joel and Solomon Reaves whose parents are believed to be William Reaves and Prudence Harralson. Prudence Harralson was the daughter of Paul Harralson II, a resident of Edgecombe County circa 1730-50, who was associated in deeds with William Reeves, Jr. the son of William Reeves who died in Granville County in 1751. Whether that has any significance in establishing their ancestry is unknown.

There are currently no participants from these families in the Reeves DNA Project. Hopefully someday that will change providing clues to their origins and possibly help solve this Reeves' mystery.

(Photo by Mark Stanley for Findagrave.)