So, a 4th cousin match showed up. I noticed several of my Hardy cousins, all from my elusive ancestor Tallulah Johnson, and three had trees in common with that match, Green Brantley and Mary Solomon being their common ancestor. I checked my Aunt's DNA and she also is having matches with this pair, and none of the other Hardy's have a link to this couple (H.H. is related to descendants of a John Solomon who married into the Godbold family).
Green Brantley was a neighbor of my Johnson's, living in the same section (14) of township 6n range 11E in Conecuh County. There has always been the question how (we know we share DNA with the Johnson and Parker family) Tallulah was a Johnson, is it through her mother or her father. The one thing I know is my great grandmother said her mother in law was illegitimate. And given the facts I have found, I believe it, so how is the question.
I took a look and built a tree for Green Brantley's descendants. There is only one daughter, Lucinda, who disappears after 1860, but even then, I don't believe Tallulah is the daughter of William Johnson anymore. Because, after all these years, I am embarrassed to say, I never paid attention to his time in the Civil War and her birth. William W. Johnson enlisted in April of 1861 and was discharged in June of 1862 after being wounded. Tallulah is supposed to be born in June of 1862. It is not possible for her to be his daughter, he was not in Alabama in the late summer and early fall of 1861, he was with his unit, which was in Virginia, or headed that direction.
So then comes in the pesky curiosities we have with the census for Elizabeth Parker Johnson, In 1830, William B. Johnson has a daughter 10-15, and a daughter under 5, and in 1840, his eldest daughter is married, and he has a daughter 10-15 and a daughter 5-10. The daughter 5-10 should be Matilda Elizabeth, who married John Diamond after Mary died, though she is never in a census it seems. That leaves the daughter who was 10-15, which is the same age as Nancy P. Johnson Coker who is found in the 1850 census with three children. In 1860 Nancy is listed as a Coker, and she is either a Johnson or a Coker until her death. Though after 1870 her children are always listed as mulatto and black. Some researchers's think she is Nancy Pugh, but I don't. The information on the 1880 census doesn't match the other Pugh's birth states, but it does match the birth states of the rest of my Johnson's, and the P. can easily stand for Parker. So if Nancy is the "other" daughter, where is Matilda.
In 1860 the household has Elizabeth b 1834 with daughter Elizabeth age 2, and in 1870 it is Nancy b 1834 with daughter Elizabeth 12 and Tallulah age 7. I think that quite possibly, Nancy is Matilda, she doesn't marry John Diamond until 1871, and the fact she is a Johnson then a Diamond may explain my great grandmother's "Johnson Diamond bastard baby" statement.
Since the family never has another daughter, Tallulah's mother has to be the daughter born in 1825 time frame, or Matilda who was born in 1832 (now, the only source we have on Matilda being a Johnson comes from a grandson of John Diamond, but he would know). That means to be a Brantley, Tallulah's father is one. But who? Literally all of the sons can be the culprit except for Hilliard Brantley.
I have no idea but I compiled some information on the the locations of the Brantley, Johnson (and sorry some of my other Conecuh families, since I went page by page) from 1820-1860 to see where they were located in relation to each other. Another project is from a known match to Pyburn/Chitty via triangulationB and thought to connect Mary Brown to Elias Brown family.
Of note, the name Hilliard is one the Brantley's used, so I added Henry Hilliard's location, he may have been a minister or neighbor, but just in case I included him as well.
1820 Census Conecuh
Henry Hilliard p 5
James Chitty p 6
William Johnson p 6 one male one female and one daughter
Joel Brown p 3 3 males over 21 5 under 21
John Brantley p 3 4 males under 21
Daniel Brown p 2
John Etheridge p 2
Pressley and John Brown p 7
William Johnson p 7 parents, one son and 2 daughters
Samuel Parker p 7
Elias Brown p 11 (2 sons one daughter)
William Johnson p 21 one son
Washington Johnson p 21 2 sons three daughters
Wesley Young p 21 2 sons 2 daughters’=
1830 Census Conecuh
John R. Brantley p 3
Green Brantley p 13
Elihu Brown (female) and Joel Brown p 11
Pressley and Sterling Brown p 9
Allen Chitty p 9
John Etheridge p 9
Stephen, William and John Brown p 7
Mallick and Millard Brown p 19
John and Samuel Parker p 19
William B. Johnson p 21
Henry Hilliard p 23
Francis Brantley and John Brantley p 23
John Chitty p 25 (two adult males)
William Johnson p 25
Zachariah Brown p 27
Washington Johnson p 29
Wesley Young p 29
Stephen Brown p 39
Monroe
John Brown p 5
William Brown p 7
Thomas A Brown p 15
Randall Brown p 17
Jane Brown p 23 (is this mary jane brown)
Samuel Parker p 23
Parshall and Elias Brown p 37
1840 Census
Conecuh
Butler County
(Conecuh folks listed, Finklea, Dean and Coker)
James Chitty p 56
Conecuh County
John and Peter Parker p 6
Joseph V. Brantley p 8
Samuel and George Parker p 10
Leonard Nelson p 10
John Brantley p 17 (no male children)
Mallikiah and Millard Brown p 21
Allen Chitty p 31
James Brown p 33
William and Washington Johnson p 35
Isaac Brown p 35
Green Brantley p 35
Stephen and John Brown p 41
John Brown p 45
Joel W., Sterling and
Ruckus Brown p 47
John Chitty p 47
John Etheridge p 47
Monroe
R. Brown and John Brown p 23
Thomas H and R. A. Brown p 27
Paschall, Elias and Jackson Brown p 35
Stephen Brown p 67
1850 Census
Conecuh (no post
office listed, hard to read)
Mary Brown Chitty (47 SC) p 115 (Robert Brown age 24 b GA)
Stephen Brown (48 GA) wife Sarah Chitty p 115
Allen Chitty p 114
Joel Brown 77 SC p 112
Tabitha Brantley 75 SC p 109
Samuel Parker 43 GA p 106
Isaac Brown 35 Ga p 96
Willis Brown 48 GA p 88
John Brown 60 SC p 86
Wm Parker 47 SC p 80
Augustus? Brantley 21 Ala p 71
James C Brantley 18 ALA p 63
L.W. Brantley 43 SC p 63
Mary Parker 76 MD p 61
Multiple Parkers p 60 and 59
James Brown 49 SC p 55
Wash Johnson p 52
Hilliard Brantley p 47
Millard Brown 45 SC p 39
Mallick (Malachai?) Brown 47 SC p 39
Dick Brantley 50 mulatto GA p 35
Elizabeth and William Johnson p 32
Thomas Brown 42 sc p 31
Manly Brantley 15 AL p 30
John Chitty p 23
John Etheridge and Jane Chitty p 22
Green Brantley p 19 (Elizabeth age 18)
Harris Brantley p 12
Joseph V. Brantley 37 SC (has Elizabeth age 16) p 10 ** has
Floyd’s as neighbors ***
Russell Brown 39 SC p 10
Monroe (no post
office listed)
Oren Brantley p 19 (John Hawkins age 14 next door neighbor)
Paschall Brown 50 VA p 14
Elias Brown Sr 57 SC p 3
Rufus Brown 38 GA p 3
1860 Census
Conecuh
** Missing Lazarus
Solomon Brantley** Hilliard in Texas
Belleview post office
Boykin Brantley is living with brother Lott page 82
Lott Brantley p 81
Ct Brantley page 94
Susan Brantley p 95
Nancy P. Johnson Coker p 74 (Family not listed as colored)
Nancy Bryant age 10 p 72
Parker’s p 68 Samuel and two John’s
More parkers p 67 and 66
Francis Brantley (sc) p. 64
Beady Brantley Hines
p 105
Samuel Brantley p 102
what will be Escambia
county (nathansville po)
James Brantley p 60
Rural Hill post
office
H. H. Brantley (Harris) p. 140
W.W. Johnson p. 140
Lucinda Bryant p 111
Sepulga
Samuel C. Johnson p 145
Mary Brown Chitty p 13
Margaret Chitty p 13
Lucinda Chitty Shell p 13
Elizabeth Chitty Hammond p 13
Benjamin Jacob Pyburn
p 13
Daniel Brown p 13
Jack Chitty p 8
Allen Chitty p 8
Evergreen
Smith Johnson p 3
Washington Johnson p 3
Richard Brantley (SC) p 43
Monroe
Burnt Corn post
office
Oren Brantley p 74
Walton Brantley p. 72
Mary Salter age 14 p. 67
Betsy Brantley Deese p 154
Elias Brown p 171
Civil War enlistments
William W. Johnson enlisted April 1861 and was discharged
June 1862.
Oren Brantley enlisted Aug 1864
J.S. Brantley enlisted Aug 1862
Walton Brantley enlisted Mar 1862
Charnic T. Brantley enlisted May 1862
Lazarus Solomon Brantley enlisted May 1863
Hilliard Brantley in Texas in 1860
Harris H. Brantley enlisted April 1862
Lott Whitten Brantley enlisted March 1862
Boykin Brantley enlisted March 1862
