Another Episode of the Epps Wife Fantasy

Over the course of the last few years several sources have been promoting a cockamamie theory that the wife of George Reeves (Reves) of Grayson County, Virginia was not from the Burton family, but instead a daughter of Joshua Epps of Halifax County, Virginia. Without proper research, the fact that there is a 1793 deed involving the heirs of John Epps, father of Joshua, and in that deed a George Reaves of Wilkes County, North Carolina is named among the legatees, the wife of George Reeves of Grayson County is now purported to be this Epps granddaughter. Out of this one lone deed an entire alternate theory of George Reeves of Grayson County's family has been disseminated across the internet.

George Rives (Reaves) Warrant No. 638
Wilkes County, North Carolina

A post to this blog in May of 2014 concerning this family details the research of several Reeves family researchers and lists all of the known facts concerning George Reaves who married Martha "Patty" Epps. Since Family Search has been adding more documents to their online offerings which include Virginia data, new information has recently come to light so it seemed a good time to share them and add to the accurate information regarding George and Martha Epps Reaves.

It was previously known that in October of 1778 George Reaves purchased a 100 acre tract on Court House Branch in Halifax County, Virginia from Luke Williams, but a recently found deed from October of 1779 finds the same 100 acres being sold back to Luke Williams by George Reaves and Martha, his wife. This transaction coincides with the issuance in 1780 of Warrant No. 638 for 200 acres on Little Cub Creek in Wilkes County, North Carolina.

It is noteworthy that the survey below of this 200 acres on Little Cub Creek shows that Moses Epps, son of Joshua Epps and brother of Martha Epps Reeves was listed as a chain carrier.

Hopefully at some point this premise will no longer be promoted as a viable family connection to the Reeves family of Grayson, Virginia and Ashe, North Carolina.

Other posts in this blog on the Epps wife theory:
The rest of the story...( of the Epps wife theory)
Wilkes County's George Reeves Mystery
New Data on George Reeves of Grayson

The rest of the story...

Since the previous posting regarding the mysterious George Reaves referred to in a Halifax County deed of September 1793 by the heirs of John Epps, much new information about his identity has been discovered.

Revolutionary war soldier Asher Reaves' pension statement recounts that he was born in Prince William County, Virginia and joined the revolutionary forces from Halifax County, Virginia in 1778. He states that he lived in Halifax County, Virginia prior to the Revolution from where he originally enlisted, then his father relocated to Wilkes County, North Carolina, from there he was recruited for subsequent tours of service. Asher stated that he moved with his father to Wilkes County in the State of North Carolina about 2 miles from Wilkes Court House on the Yadkin River where he lived until the fall of 1789.

Asher's parents have previously been unidentified, however the following appear to be some of the earliest references to Reeves or Reaves in Halifax, Virginia:

On 27 Dec 1771, George Reeves witnessed (signed with his mark) a deed from Luke Williams, carpenter, and Catherine his wife of Halifax County to James Ingram, gentlemen of Accomac County for 500 acres near Sandy Creek. Halifax County Deed Book 8, p. 295.

On 18 Jun 1773, Luke Williams of Halifax County executed a deed of trust to John Lewis, Jr. of Halifax County for 986 acres adjoining William McDaniel, James Henry, Charles Wormack, George Reaves, Joseph Morrosson, George Curry. Halifax County, Virginia Deed Book 9, p. 202

On 15 Oct 1778, Luke Williams of Halifax County deeded 100 acres on Court house branch to George Reaves of same county. Halifax County, Virginia Deed Book 11, p. 128-129.

Wilkes County, North Carolina

The only older Reeves' individual living in Wilkes County, North Carolina during the Revolution was an Isaac Reeves with wife Margery. Isaac Reeves did not name any of his children in his 1807 will, but they have been identified through tax and deed records of Wilkes County and do not include Asher. Although at times George Reeves of Grayson County, Virginia was listed in the records of Wilkes NC, it should be noted that the state line between Virginia and North Carolina was in dispute for approximately 20 years. Areas along that boundary were constantly being shifted back and forth between the two states. The area where George Reeves lived along the New River was along that boundary so the state and county changed repeatedly. From 1767 when he arrived on the Peach Bottom Tract until his death in 1811, George Reeves lived on the north side of the New River. The Peach Bottom Tract on the New River is approximately 40 miles from the Wilkes County Courthouse and the Yadkin River as described by Asher Reaves in his RW pension statement and Little Cub Creek adjacent to the Moravian line mentioned in George Reaves' Wilkes County deed of 1794. (See above map with the New River at the top and the Wilkes Courthouse "CH" much further south.) This George Reaves is the only individual who was both a resident of Halifax County, Virginia and Wilkes, North Carolina who could be the father to which Asher referred.

George Reaves origins are undocumented but the statement of Asher Reaves in his Revolutionary War pension that he was born in Prince William County, Virginia suggests that George came from Virginia's northern neck. In Northumberland County, Virginia, Margaret and William Scurlock administered the estate of a Thomas Reeves who died about 1729. This suggests that Margaret was Reeves's widow and that she married William Scurlock as her second husband. One Margaret Scurlock later married Joseph Morrison in North Farnham Parish, Richmond County, Virginia, on 9 December 1739. This Margaret appears to have been the widow of both William Scurlock and Thomas Reeves.

Joseph and Margaret Scurlock Morrison were taxed in Dettingen Parish, Prince William County, Virginia in 1747 with Joseph Scurlock and George Reves as tithables in their household, indicating that they were young men aged 16-21 years (and thus born between 10 June 1726 and 10 June 1731). This appears to suggest that Margaret (MNU) married first Thomas Reeves, second William Scurlock, and third Joseph Morrison, and that George Reves and Joseph Scurlock were her sons.

The following appears in Prince William County, VA, Order Book 1759-1761, 25 March 1760, p. 69: Nathaniel Chapman vs. Joseph Morrison, Fortunatus Legg and George Reeves. In debt. the defendants filed their plea to which the plaintiff demurred generally and time is allowed the defendants untill next Court to consider the same. (Published in The Virginia Genealogist, Vol. 20, p. 38.)

Margaret and Joseph Morrison were both still alive on 4 December 1762, when they were dismissed from Broad Run Baptist Church in Fauquier County to join Birch Creek Baptist Church in Halifax County, Virginia. Joshua Scurlock, a proven son of William Scurlock, was dismissed from Broad Run "to Halifax" on 10 June 1763. Joseph Morrison and Joshua Scurlock are found in Halifax County during the 1760s. A 1778 Halifax County deed identifies Joseph Morrison as a neighbor of George Reeves. Additionally, he is recorded in the Halifax tax lists through 1788.

1780 Joshua Scurlock Survey
Wilkes County, North Carolina

Other members of the extended Scurlock/Morrison family also migrated to Wilkes County, North Carolina about the time that George Reaves did. The following excerpt from Michael Scurlock of the Northern Neck and Some of His Descendants refers to Joshua Scurlock who is very likely the half brother of George Reaves:

"Sometime after 1762, like so many Virginians of the era, Joshua (Scurlock) and his family migrated from their home state, going first to Wilkes Co., N.C., where he received a North Carolina land grant of 300 acres on both sides of Moravian Creek on 1 March 1780. On 27 October 1788, Joshua, now, 'of the State of Georgia,' sold this land and the deed was recorded in Wilkes Co., N.C."

George Reaves described as "of Wilkes County, North Carolina" is named in a Halifax deed dated September 6, 1793 as one of the legatees of John Epps, deceased. The deed refers to the heirs of a deceased son Joshua, as being: Nathaniel Epps, Moses Epps, David Powell, Sr., John Comer, Edy Epps, and Temperance Epps of Halifax County, Virginia; Ambrose Gresham of Lunenburg County, Virginia; and George Reaves of Wilkes County, North Carolina. According to Joshua Epps' Will of 1778 (Halifax Co. Will Bk. 1, 1773-83, p 216) his children were: John, Nathaniel, William, Isham, Moses, Mary (m. David Powell, Sr. before 1767), Elizabeth “Betty” (m. Ambrose Gresham on 24 Mar 1787 in Halifax VA), Millison (m. John Clay), Dicy (m. Elisha Lacy), Amey (m. John Comer before 10 Sept. 1775), Temperance (unmarried in 1793), Edy (unmarried in 1793) and Patty (a nickname for Martha) who must then be the daughter who married George Reaves. This is further confirmed by the appearance of a widowed Martha Reaves listed as head of household beginning on the 1816 tax lists and in the 1830 Halifax census after the death of George Reaves around 1815.

Asher Reaves was Surety on a Halifax County, Virginia marriage bond dated 25 November 1785 for the marriage of Joseph Morrison to Margaret Raney establishing another connection between Asher and George Reaves. Joseph Morrison was the probable step-father of George Reaves and therefore step-grandfather of Asher.

George Reaves reappears on the Halifax County, Virginia tax lists in 1796 after selling his property in Wilkes County in 1794:

9 Dec 1794 Deed - George Reeves deed to William Petty, Sr. for 200 acres on Little Lick Creek adjacent to the Moravian line. Wilkes County, North Carolina Deed Book B-1, p. 416

Excerpt from 1796 Halifax County Personal Tax List

At the time George Reaves returned to Halifax County, he was apparently over 65 years of age for he was listed as exempt on the 1796 personal property tax list which coincides with the birth date of George Reeves, probable son of Thomas in the Dettingen Parish tax listing of 1747. George and his sons Elijah and George, Jr. are listed in the tax records of Halifax through 1815 when George appears to have died. The following year, a widowed Martha Reaves is listed as head of household in the place of George on the tax list.

This extensive additional information regarding George Reaves of Halifax County, Virginia and Wilkes County, North Carolina was located as part of an effort to learn more about the Reeve(s) families of Virginia's northern neck. The collaboration of several Reeves' researchers, especially Dan Knight, has helped to link George and Asher Reaves to each other as well as their roots in northern Virginia. Hopefully more information will be found and possibly a descendant will someday participate in the Reeves DNA Project adding further to our knowledge of George Reaves.

---

Other posts in this blog on the Epps wife theory:
Wilkes County's George Reeves Mystery
New Data on George Reeves of Grayson
Another Episode of the Epps Wife Fantasy

Wilkes County's George Reeves Mystery

There has recently been much speculation on the web regarding the identity of the "George Reeves of Wilkes County, North Carolina" who is named as a legatee in the probate records of John Epps in Halifax County, Virginia. There is a conveyance dated 6 Sep 1793 (Recorded 24 Feb 1794) in Halifax County wherein Nathaniel Epps, Moses Epps, David Powell, Sr. (m. Mary Epps), John Comer (m. Amey Epps), Edy Epps, Temperance Epps, of Halifax County; Ambrose Gresham (m. Elizabeth “Bettie” Epps) of Lunenburg County; and George Reaves of Wilkes County in North Carolina, legatees of John Epps, sell to William Epps of Halifax a 40 acre tract of land on the south side of Banister River in Halifax County. These were the grandchildren of John Epps, children of his son Joshua who predeceased him, dying in 1778. One of the three remaining daughters, Patty, Millison or Dicey, named in Joshua Epps' will had apparently married George Reeves.

Grayson County Overlook

It has been theorized that this George Reeves must then be George Reeves of Grayson County, Virginia who is listed on several occasions in the tax and deed records of Wilkes County, North Carolina. In George Reeves deposition for ''Beavins (Blevins) vs. Newell'', 27th September, 1805, he stated that he was present in the New River area as early as 1767. George Reeves' home was located on Peach Bottom Creek just north of the New River and there is no record that he made his home at any time on any of the other properties he was granted or purchased. This New River area was for approximately 20 years claimed by both Virginia and North Carolina with the state line repeatedly moving as many as 20 miles either side of the present state line. The land that George Reeves owned in Wilkes County and ultimately sold to his son William became part of Ashe County when it was formed from Wilkes in 1799.

The following deed recently found in the Wilkes County records may help to identify the correct George Reeves or at least put to rest any lingering speculation that the Epps' legatee must be George Reeves of Grayson. This George Reeves is located much further south than the Peach Bottom tract and is in the area where Isaac Reeves had settled in the early 1780's. Isaac Reeves had previously been located in the area of Lunenburg and Mecklenburg counties of Virginia as was the Epps family.

Wilkes County, North Carolina
Deed Book B-1, p. 416
9 Dec 1794

THIS INDENTURE made this ninth day of December one thousand seven hundred and ninety four Between George Reeves of Wilkes County and State of North Carolina of the one part and William Petty Senior of the same state and county of the other part, Witnesseth that for and in consideration of the sum of one hundred pounds Current money to him in hand paid by the said William Petty before the Sealing and Delivery hereof the receipt whereof the said George Reeves doth hereby acknowledge and himself therewith to be fully satisfied and paid and for which Sum he hath granted Bargained sold conveyed and confirmed by these presents doth fully clearly freely and absolutely sell convey and confirm to the said William Petty his heirs and assigns for ever a tract or parcel of Land containing two hundred Acres of Land lying and being in our county of Wilkes lying on little Cub Creek BEGINNING on a pine in Thomas Rogers line adjacent to the Moravian line and running South two hundred and four poles to a maple near a branch in John Greers line thence East with said line one hundred and twenty four poles to the corner thence North twenty Degrees East seventy two poles to a pine thence North Sixty East seventy six poles to a red oak sapling in William Gilreaths line being conditional line between James Chaney and said Reeves Thence North with said Gilreaths line forty two poles to the corner Thence North seventy Eight Degrees West two hundred and sixty poles to the first Station &c - Together with all woods waters mines Minerals Hereditaments and appurtenances to the said Land Belonging or appertaining and all the whole right title and Intrust of him the said George Reeves to the said Bargained premises to have and to hold to the said William Petty his heirs and assigns for ever And the Intent and meaning of these presents are that the said William Petty his heirs and assigns may at all times forever hereafter lawfully and peaceable possess hold and enjoy the said Bargained premises with all the rights and privileges thereunto belonging free and clear of all Incumbrances and the said George Reeves doth covenant and agree well and truly to warrant and defend the same In witness whereof the said George Reeves hath hereunto set his hand and seal the day and date above written ~
James Hardgraves  }
Joshua Greer             }                          George Reeves (Seal)

(Wrote on the Back)
S. N. Carolina       }      May Term 1795 -
Wilkes County     }     The within Deed was duly
proven in open court by the oath of Joshua Greer and
ordered to be Registered.
                   Test
                        C. Gordon C.C.

The 1788 and 1789 tax lists of Wilkes County record a George Reeves along with William Petty, John Greer, Joshua Greer and the adjoining property owners listed in the above deed, Hardgraves, William Gilreath and James Chaney, in Capt. Tribbles District. Also, James and John Reeves, sons of Isaac Reeves, Sr. and Alexander Holton whose daughter married James Reeves had been listed in Tribbles' district in 1787. These individuals all lived just south of Wilkesboro in an area joining the Moravian settlement along the Yadkin River.

The George Reeves of the Wilkesboro area is no longer found in Wilkes County after the recording of this deed and may have returned to Halifax County in Virginia where he appears to be the individual listed on the tax lists there in 1798. It should be noted that Asher Reaves had also returned to Halifax, Virginia after the Revolution. A George Reaves is listed repeatedly in the tax lists there until before 1830. The 1830 census records a widowed Martha Reeves around 80 years old as head of a Halifax County household. Since Patty is a nickname for Martha, this may likely be Patty Epps, granddaughter of John.

Hopefully someday descendants of Asher and George Reeves/Reaves of Halifax will participate in the Reeves DNA Project. And with the popular new autosomal DNA projects by Ancestry and Family Finder, there may be hope of one day unraveling this mystery.

UPDATE - For the latest developments in the research of George Reaves of Halifax County, Virginia and Wilkes County, North Carolina see the following posts:
The rest of the story...
Another Episode of the Epps Wife Fantasy
New Data on George Reeves of Grayson County

More Curious Things

In a previous post from February of 2012, I reprinted the biography of John Reeves who was born in Mason County, Kentucky in 1802 and died in Brown County, Ohio. There were several curious statements in his biography published in a history of Brown County in 1884. That biography names an Isaac and Margaret Reeves as the parents of John's father, James Reeves which introduced the possibility that James Reeves might have been the son of Isaac Reeves and his wife Margery of Wilkes County, North Carolina.

1798 Marriage Bond for
Sarah Reeves and William Holton

James Reeves was listed in the 1790 census of Wilkes County, North Carolina with 1 male over 16, 1 male under 16 and 3 females which would indicate that had married around 1780 in North Carolina. Sarah Holton's father is believed to have been Alexander Holton and there was an Alex Holton recorded in the 1790 census of Wilkes County but in no subsequent census there.

It had previously been believed that the James Reeves who settled in Wayne County, Tennessee was the son of Isaac Reeves of Wilkes County because a few years after James arrived there, Isaac's son Peter migrated to Wayne County. But based upon the data from the 1790 census, it is unlikely that the James Reeves of Wayne County, with wife Rachel was the son of Isaac and Margery Reeves. James Reeves of Wayne County would have been born after 1776 according to the 1820 census and far too young to have been the father of the 1790 Wilkes County household. That Wayne County census lists James Reeves' household as 1 male ‹10, 1 male 26-44, 2 females ‹10, 1 female 10-15 and 1 female 26-44. In the 1830 census Rachel's age is given as 40-49 or born 1781 to 1790 indicating she could not have been the mother of the children listed in the 1790 census when she would have been approximately 9 years old. Rachel's household in the 1830 census of 1 male ‹5, 2 males 5-9, 1 male 10-15, 1 female 10-14, 1 female 15-19, 1 female 40-49 and 2 slaves is far more consistent with the household of the younger James Reeves of the 1820 census.

No marriage record has been found for James Reeves and Sarah Holton, but recently in the Kentucky County Marriage records at Family Search, I found a 1798 Madison County marriage bond for Sarah Reeves and William Holton with James Reeves as bondsman. When I initially found the document, my first thought was that it pertained to the marriage of James Reeves and Sarah Holton, but then realized that James Reeves was bondsman, not the groom. In comparing the signature of the James Reeves from this marriage bond to that of James of Wilkes County on the marriage bond of his sister, Bettie, to John Wilson in 1784 for which he was bondsman, the signatures are very similar. The signature from the Wilkes County document is not as clear as that of the Kentucky document because the pen or quill was making large ink smudges which makes a comparison of the name "Reeves" more difficult, but the given name "James" is very much like the Madison County signature. There were several unidentified daughters listed in Isaac Reeves, Sr.'s household in the 1790 census of Wilkes County. Could this Sarah Reeves who married William Holton be James' sister? And William Holton possibly be the brother of Sarah Holton?

Another curious bit of information found regarding this family pertains to Lazarus Reeve, son of Isaac B. Reeve, who left Wilkes County around 1815 and by 1820 had settled in Morgan County, Illinois. In every census from 1850 to 1880, Lazarus Reeve gives his place of birth as Kentucky, yet his father is recorded in the 1800 census of Wilkes County, North Carolina. One undocumented reference to Lazarus Reeve online gave his place of birth as Madison County, Kentucky. This raises a question as to whether Isaac B. Reeve may have moved to Kentucky in the late 1790's when his brother James did but returned to Wilkes County before 1800 and did not permanently leave there until after 1815 when he migrated to Morgan County, Illinois.

These bits of information provide more questions than answers to the mystery of the origins of James Reeves of Mason County, Kentucky. As we continue to search the extant records of Wilkes County, North Carolina in addition to Kentucky and Illinois, hopefully we will eventually find answers.

Hannah Smith's Husband - William Rives

Countless family trees list the wife of William Reeves who died in Wilkes County, Georgia in 1816 as Hannah Smith, most of them using the Reeves Review II as a source. In an effort to prove or disprove this connection, I found the marriage license of Hannah Smith to William RIVES in Mecklenburg County recorded on 14 Dec 1820 which I mentioned as Myth #7 in a previous post about the numerous myths circulating in Reeves' genealogy especially in regard to the Reeves' family of Granville County, North Carolina. Since this marriage took place four years after the 1816 death of William Reeves, it is obviously incorrect. This data was apparently submitted to the Reeves Review by someone who did not properly research the individuals involved.

A search of the deed records of Mecklenburg County produced a quit claim deed by the heirs of Daniel Smith of that county assigning their rights to any legacies from his estate to their mother Elizabeth (Deed Book 24, page 133). Additionally that 1822 Quit Claim Deed named William "Reaves" as the husband of Hannah Reaves, daughter of Daniel Smith. From that quit claim deed, the parents of Hannah Smith were confirmed as Daniel Smith and Elizabeth Darnall, but even though William Rives appeared many more times over the course of the next 25 years in the deed records of Mecklenburg County, there was no clue to his origins.

William's name was recorded as Rives, Reaves and at times Reeves over those 25 years but since he was the only William with any variation of the Reeves name in Mecklenburg County during those years, it can be assumed that all of these references refer to the husband of Hannah Smith. It appears that Hannah died before the 20th of July 1824 for on that date, William Rives married Jane Cunningham in Mecklenburg County. He apparently continued to have a relationship with the Smith family for he was the witness in further documents filed by the heirs of Daniel Reeves regarding his estate in 1835.

There were no deeds in the Mecklenburg records listing William Rives as either a grantor or grantee after 1847 which created the impression that he was deceased before 1850. Estate Settlement Book 6 on page 358-359 lists the inventory of the estate of William Rives decd and a continuation on Page 451 of that book makes a reference to the estate of William & Mary Rives deceased, formerly residents of the state of North Carolina. There was nothing to indicate the nature of the connection, just their names.

Because the surname "Rives" had been the most consistently used in the Mecklenburg records for William's transactions, I began to research other Rives' families of North Carolina in hopes of finding a missing child, William. For once, I found the answer to the mystery in the first place I looked - the estate file of William McGuffey Rives of Warren County, North Carolina. In his 39 page estate file there were documents from the executors of the Mecklenburg, North Carolina estate of William Rives, deceased, regarding distributions from the estates of William McGuffey Rives and his deceased wife, Mary Catherine Turner Rives. William, the son of Mary C. Turner and William McGuffey Rives was previously believed to have died in South Carolina circa 1845, but then that's not too far off since Mecklenburg County is on the border between North and South Carolina.

It's a shame that all genealogical mysteries can't be solved this quickly and painlessly.

Bennett Reeves of Wilkes County, Georgia

It wasn’t my intention to write another post about the Maryland Reeves family but in the course of researching Reeves in Georgia, I have recently found several interesting items in regard to Bennett Reeves who left Charles County, Maryland after 1790 and relocated to Wilkes County, Georgia. On 2 Nov 1791, Joshua Hill and his wife Amey sold 300 acres on the waters of Newford creek in Wilkes County to Bennett Reeves. One of the testators to that deed was John Dyson, Bennett's cousin who was also from Charles County, Maryland.

Previously, Thomas Reeves who married Bethany Stinson in Wilkes County, Georgia in 1808 was believed to have been the son of Thomas Reeves the son of Malachi and Fortune Reeves of Guilford County, North Carolina, but the statements by three of his children who lived until the 1880 census contradict that theory. This supposition appears to have been based upon proximity due to the fact that other members of the family of Malachi Reeves had relocated to Wilkes County.

In the 1880 census, Hickerson Reeves, Thomas Reeves and Caroline Reeves Yeager, children of Thomas Reeves and Bethany Stinson, as well as Bennett F. Reeves and John D. Reeves, Jr., sons of John D. Reeves, each gave information that their father was born in Maryland. This confirms that they were grandchildren of Bennett Reeves, son of Thomas Reeves and Mary Murphy of Charles County, Maryland and identifies both Thomas Reeves and John D. Reeves as his sons. Bennett Reeves also had at least two daughters according to the census of 1820, but neither has been identified.

Additionally an 1816 deed for 33-3/4 acres in Guilford County on Mairs Fork of the Haw River from Thomas Reeves to Leven Covey describes Thomas Reeves as "of the State of North Carolina & County of Guilford". This indicates that as late as 1816, Thomas Reeves was still living in Guilford County on Mairs Fork of Haw River. This was undoubtably the same land willed to him by his grandfather Richard Burton in his 1799 will.

Following Bennett Reeves death sometime after 1820, both of his sons left the Wilkes County area. John D. Reeves is next found in the western portion of Georgia in Meriwether County where his descendants eventually migrated further southwest into Stewart County. Thomas and Bethany Stinson Reeves along with their children were found in Morgan County, Alabama after leaving Wilkes County.

Again, this is another instance of the “perils of proximity”. In the course of Reeves research, we repeatedly find two or even three different Reeves families and lineages living in the same county so it should never been assumed that all the families in a particular county are related.


(Gravestone photos by Barbara Parks of the Herring Cemetery in Morgan County, Alabama and Christine Thacker of Red Hill Christian Church Cemetery in Stewart County, Georgia for Find a Grave.)

The Curious Biography of John Reeves

I recently came across a biography published in 1884 in a history of Morgan, Monroe and Brown counties of Indiana for a John Reeves of Mason County, Kentucky. The biography contains some worthwhile genealogical information but also raises numerous questions.

From: History of Morgan, Monroe & Brown County, 1884
by Charles Blanchard, Pg 333

"JOHN REEVES is a native of Mason County, Ky., and was born February 20, 1802, and is a son of James and Sarah (Holton) Reeves, the former a native of Ireland, and the latter of Maryland. John Reeve, Sr., emigrated with his parents, Isaac and Margaret Reeves, to America previous to the Revolutionary war, and when sixteen years of age entered the army under Gen. Washington, serving the seven years. He then married and settled in Mason County, Ky., where he and wife ended their days. John Reeves, our subject, is the only child of his father living. In 1823, he moved to Monroe County, Ind., and in 1824 to Owen County, where he married, in 1828, Mrs. Eleanor Hayward. In 1829, he removed to this county, where Mrs. Reeves died in 1861, the mother of eight children - James, Nancy, Abigail, Austin S., Sarah, Samantha, Benjamin and Julia A. In 1863, he married Mrs. Ann Edwards. Mr. Reeves is an excellent gentleman, and he and wife are members of the Christian Church, of which Mr. Reeves has been an active worker for fifty years."

The first, and most obvious question, is in regard to the statement "John Reeve, Sr., emigrated with his parents, Isaac and Margaret Reeves, to America". Does the author mean James Reeves, Sr., simply James Reeves or John Reeves? There is no John Reeves, Sr. referenced anywhere else in the biography.

There is no mention in the information regarding John Reeves' parents of a connection to the other Reeves' families of Mason County, Kentucky who were in large part descendants of George Reeves and Ann Doggett of Prince William County, Virginia. Yet, among the names of his children are Austin S. (Smith?) and Benjamin - names used repeatedly by descendants of the Prince William, Virginia Reeves' family.

Finally and most intriquing of all is the inclusion of an Isaac and Margaret Reeves in his ancestry. Is it possible that this family could be connected to Isaac Reeves and his wife Margery of Wilkes County, North Carolina?

See a follow-up post regarding James Reeves and the family of Isaac Reeves of Wilkes County, North Carolina.

(Photo by Bill Mason for Find A Grave.)

Hanging of a Loyalist Named Reeves

The History of Watauga County, North Carolina contains a story of a Reeves who was associated with the Tory band led by Captain William Riddle in the New River area of North Carolina and Virginia. Since the Reeves family of Grayson County, Virginia/Ashe County, North Carolina are closely related to my own Reeves based upon DNA evidence, whenever I happen upon this story, I have to wonder whether this Reeves belongs to my family. 

Perkins House

The story goes as follows - Col. Benjamin Cleveland of the Wilkes County Militia was captured on the 22nd of April, 1781, while on a visit to his tenant, Jesse Duncan, at the lower end of the Old Fields by Captain William Riddle's Tories. They had stolen horses from Duncan's barn the night before and led them up the south fork of New River into a laurel thicket just above a house about a mile away. Cleveland was ambushed and captured, then taken up New River to the mouth of Elk Creek, and then to "what has since been known as Riddle's Knob", some fourteen miles from Old Fields and in Watauga County. 

There they camped for the night but had been followed by young Daniel Cutbirth and a youth named Walters along with Jesse Duncan, John Shirley, William Calloway, Samuel McQueen and Benjamin Greer. Joseph Calloway mounted a horse and rode to notify Benjamin Cleveland's brother, Captain Robert Cleveland, on Lewis' Fork of the Yadkin. Five of these in advance of Robert's party fired on Riddle's gang at the Wolf's Den early the next morning. With the arrival of Capt. Cleveland, one of the Tories was wounded and the rest escaped, including Riddle's wife Happy. There is still a tradition in the neighborhood of the Wolf's Den that Ben Greer killed or wounded Riddle at that place soon after Cleveland's rescue, one version saying that Riddle was only wounded and then taken to Wilkes and hanged.

The Wolf's Den

 

Soon after Cleveland's rescue, Riddle and his men made a night raid into the Yadkin Valley, where, on King's Creek, they captured two of Cleveland's soldiers, David and John Witherspoon taking them into the mountain region on the Watauga River in what is now Watauga County, There both were sentenced to be shot, when it was proposed that if they would take the oath of allegiance to the king, go to their home and return with "the O'Neal mare — a noble animal" and join Riddle's band, their lives would be spared. The Witherspoons agreed to this and returned with not only the mare, but with Col. Ben Herndon and a party also, when they captured Riddle, Reeves and Goss, "killing and dispersing the others." 

The American Revolution in North Carolina also recounts another version of the rescue of Col. Cleveland as recorded in the 1832 pension statement of Ishmael Titus. The captured Tories were taken to Wilkesboro, court-martialed and executed on the hill adjoining the village on an oak which was said to still be standing in 1881. Other reports indicate that the oak was behind the Wilkes County Courthouse. 

There are various stories recorded of those executed but most agree that it was Capt. Riddle, Reeves and Goss with some versions also including either one or two sons of Riddle. I have yet to find any documentation of the identity of the Reeves individual who was hung with Capt. Riddle at Wilkesboro. If any records of the court martial held at Wilkesboro are extant it might be possible to someday know exactly to which Reeves' family he belongs.

Source: The History of Watauga County, North Carolina by John Preston Author, pub. 1915. Photos from New River Notes

The Misty Origins of Sidney James Reeves

There are various theories regarding James Reeves with wife Elizabeth Wells who appeared in Buncombe County, North Carolina by around 1810 and are recorded there in the 1820 census.

He has been purported to be the son of Samuel Reeves of Rowan County, North Carolina. However, research of that Reeves’ family indicates that Samuel’s son James appears to be at least 10 to 15 years younger. He married Deborah Winright in Rowan County in 1800 and in the 1810 census all of their 4 children are listed as having been born after 1800 which would be consistent with their marriage date of 1800. In 1810 when James Reeves, the son of Samuel of Rowan County, is listed in the census there, Sidney James Reeves is already recorded in the deed records of Buncombe County.

Another theory seems to be an amalgamation of Isaac Reeves of Wilkes County, North Carolina or Isaac Reeves the son of William Reeves who died in Granville in 1751 and Samuel Reeves of Rowan. This composite is listed in various websites as “Isaac Samuel Reeves”. There is no evidence to support that there was such a person. There are even copies of the Rowan County will of Samuel Reeves online which have had the name “Isaac” added. This is unsubstantiated by any historical record. In neither the deed nor probate records of Rowan County, is Samuel Reeves referred to as Isaac Samuel Reeves.

A thorough search of the tax, deed and probate records of Rowan County produced no record of an Isaac Reeves in that county. Isaac, the son of William Reeves of Granville, is recorded living in Caswell County from around 1771 when he signed the petition to divide Orange County to a certain line in Granville County and a certain line in Guilford County. This is apparently the same person named as Isaac Reeves of Randolph County, North Carolina in a deed dated 3 Oct 1781 and recorded in Caswell County Deed Book A, at Page 31. That deed conveyed a 150 acre tract of land to Martha Wisdom of Caswell County which appears to be the same 150 acres Isaac Reeves purchased from Peter Bankston on 1 Jan 1779. The Isaac Reeves theory seems to be based upon incorrect information on Page 19 of the Reeves Review II.

Oddly, no one seems to have considered the most reasonable choice of family origin - the Reeves family who were living in Guilford County at the time of Sidney James Reeves’ marriage to Elizabeth Wells. James Reeves named a grandson James as a legatee in his 1781 Guilford County will. A 1788 Rockingham County deed by the heirs of Malachi Reeves to Nathaniel Tatum names James, Thomas and Jesse Reeves as those heirs. Undoubtably this son of Malachi Reeves is the same Sidney James Reeves who married Elizabeth Wells on 11 Jan 1785 in Guilford County, North Carolina.

The fact that James Reeves and Elizabeth Wells were married in Guilford County as well as naming one son Malachi lends further credence to the belief that he was of the family of Malachi Reeves of Guilford County.

A descendant of James Reeves' son Jesse Jefferson Reeves is a participant in the Reeves DNA Project and has been placed in DNA Group 3 confirming that James Reeves was descended from the family of William Reeves who died in Granville County in 1751.



UPDATE:
Newly discovered information on the origins of Samuel Reeves of Rowan County, North Carolina are discussed in the following later posts: The Maryland Connection and an Update on Samuel Reeves of Rowan County.


(Photo by James Archer for Find A Grave.)

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.)