Sunday, January 17, 2016

Is DNA leading us to a clue on George Washington Adams?

Among the DNA matches two of my mom's Adam's cousins have is a family that descends from Robert Warson Adams and Rebecca Wylie through their son James Robert Adams born 1769 and his wife Annie Blankenship.

Though the family doesn't reside in a county adjacent to Hamilton County, they do live in Tennessee. Thus far we  have only a few connections to this family, but it is a common match for descendants that only share Jason Arthur Adams in common.

Our elusive ancestor, George Washington Adams, the father of Jason seems to be the best place to look for the match. The Rogers DNA is showing clear direction to the relatives of Henry Rogers, and none of the members of these matches trees relate to those families (Anderson, Wallen and Blevins). Given that the only other member of the family who could relate to this family would be Mahala, the wife of Henry, we know that one of those two would have to be the connection.

If in fact we can identify further matches to the cousins (mom, her second cousin and her first cousin once removed) to this Adams family, I think we may finally have the break we need.

We know that the family resided in Monroe county, Tennessee. Descendants end up in St. Clair, Alabama and in Pulaski county, Missouri. For those other Adams descendants out there, I wanted to share this possible link as a place to look.

DNA gleanings on the Hardy family - a working theory

Five members of the family, all descendants of Gardner and Harriet Hardy are among the people I have access to the DNA results. I have also contacted and messaged other relatives who have tested. What we know is that every member has DNA linking them to the Bobo family. Additional data shows that everyone also has DNA matches to the descendants of Ephraim King.

My father has some of the larger matches to the Bobo family. All of his matches are direct descendants of Spencer Bobo and his wife Beulah Yarborough. The other four folks have matches to descendants of several Bobo's, with Spencer prevalent among them. What this means to me is that any connection we have is from the Bobo family directly.

Because all of the descendants are from Gardner and Harriet (through Shep Sr, Ephraim and Robert Hardy), the connection has to come from either Gardner Hardy's mother or Harriet. I suspect that the connection is through the mother of Gardner. Like the Hardy or Hardee family, the Bobo's are in nearby South Carolina around this time. Descendants of Thomas Edward Hardee are also showing matches to the Bobo's, but I can't prove this isn't just a coincidence. I can't yet figure out where this connection is, but it is certainly a starting point.

As for Ephraim King, we know he was born in North Carolina, moved to Georgia and died in Coffee County, Alabama in 1855. In 1850 he does have a child Harriet in his home, but the 1840 census does not include a child her age, and I think she is not a child but a grandchild, contrary to the researchers of this family. We know that Ephraim and his family lived about 5 miles from Gardner Hardy based on the land records for everyone. We know that in 1850 Gardner Hardy and Harriet are living with a John S. King in Santa Rosa county, Florida. We know that Gardner Hardy and Harriet name their youngest son Ephraim.

I think that Harriet is definitely a relative of Ephraim King, and I wish I could find them in 1830 to prove my theory that she is his daughter.

The Quakers of Loudon - descendants of William Trahern

I spent some time a few weeks ago reading through the minutes of the Quaker meetings of Loudon county. I wish the ones from Calvert were available, because I learned a lot. If you were a Quaker you are really easy to track. If you married, whether another Quaker or a non Quaker, it was recorded. If you moved away from the area, it was recorded. The comings and goings of the Quaker's was so well recorded, I wish all my ancestors were Quakers.

Tax lists of 1786 show that both William Trahern and James Trahern, sons of William Trahern and Rebecca were over the age of 21. That means that both Rebecca and William had at least two children prior to the death of a William Trahern, cabinet maker, in 1760 in Calvert County. I had thought that this William was the father of Nehemiah, but now I am not so sure. I think that this William is in fact the brother of Nehemiah whose listed as a relative along with Robert Glover. The transcription gives the widow name as Robert, but I have to wonder if it was an abbreviated for of Rebecca that was transcribed as Robert in error.

We know Rebecca was a Quaker. Her arrival to the Loudon area is recorded as are the acceptance of her children into the Quaker church in 1785. Her meeting changed because a new meeting was formed where she lived, but in the older meetings her children are among witnesses on some of the marriage certificates available.

There is no mention of William Trahern ever marrying. He is on the Tax lists of Loudon through 1804. I think  that the Sarah Trahern who is in the 1810 and 1820 census is the sister of James and William Trahern and that the children are her nieces and nephews, as there is also no mention of the marriage of Sarah. Nor did James remarry. It isn't until after the death of his wife that we see Sarah appear in the Quaker minutes. A spinster, she wasn't involved until her sister in law died.

James Trahern and Dianna Gregg were very active members of the church, as was Rebecca.

Answers at last, but then more questions- John Sanders Barnes

A Barnes cousin that I contacted several years ago messaged me a few weeks ago. He payed a researcher to do some research for him in North Carolina. The researcher found a goldmine among the deeds of Gates County, North Carolina.

A deed from Frances Smith to John Sanders Barnes, for her love of him, and one dollar gives all her possessions, land and slaves, to John S. Barnes of Russell County, Alabama. John S. Barnes agreed to care for Frances and her daughter Jane Horton. Since both of these ladies are in my ancestor John Sanders Barnes home in 1850 in Russell county, AL there is no doubt that this does prove there is a relationship between the two.

The most logical relationship would be that John S. Barnes is a son of Frances. A will dated 1824 and put to court in 1831 for Robert Smith in Gates County, North Carolina leaves most all of his property to his widow Frances Smith and to his "daughter in law" (step daughter), Jane Parker he leaves some furniture. He also leaves some furniture to David Parker and his children.  Robert Smith's home in 1820 in Gates county has a male the age of John S. Barnes in his home, as well as female the age of Jane. David Parker if I have found him, was the age of  Jane Parker, about a decade older than John.

So it would appear that John is Frances' son. The only other relationship I could think possible is that Frances is his Aunt.

Gates county, North Carolina, and the surrounding counties in North Carolina and Nansemond county, Virginia are riddled with Barnes and Sanders. I think we found the right place. Unfortunately, none of the estates in probate have thus far yielded a father for John. We know that the land that Frances gave John, and they later sold comes from an Estate from 1814. However, this is not an estate John or Frances are involved in. Was this Barnes (Thomas Barnes) a relative of John's father? It's a good question. It may be that deeds will be the avenue that we discover this truth.

As for Frances, is she a Sanders? It is difficult to tell. Unfortunately Nansemond is a burned county. We may never find the information about her in a paper trail.