|
Children:
William Williams
Born: 15 Apr 1776
Died: 6 Mar 1872
Married: 11 Feb 1807 Sarah "Sally" Philips 8/1/1783 - 1/19/1859
Born: 06 Mar 1778 in Halifax County NC
Died: 31 January 1864
Married: Joseph John Williams, Jr.
2nd marriage Col Samuel James Alston
Joshua Williams
Born: Between 1778 and 1783
Died: ? (died young)
Elisha Williams Jr
Born: 9/21/1783 in NC
Died: 3/15/1865 in Rutherford
County TN
Married: 5/31/1814 Mary "Polly" Philips 9/30/1799 -
4/14/1844
Married: 11/10/1831 Sarah H. Ridley Nov 1788 - 9/1/1857
Born: 2 Feb 1786
Died: 29 Nov
1851
Married: 1815 Margaret "Peggy" Thomas Philips 9/30/1799
- 4/14/1844
Martha Williams
Born: After
1786
Died: ?
(Died young)
For a number of years, this family tree stopped at Elisha Williams. Based on the letters written
by Henry Philips Williams, his grandson, it was believed that his father was named William Williams. However, we have
now uncovered strong evidence that his father was Joshua Williams, son of Richard Williams. The Word document entitled
"The Family of Richard and Sarah Williams" provides much of this information. The Word document entitled "Sorting the Two Elishas" provides the rationale for our Elisha being the son of Joshua Williams of Scotland Neck NC.
 |
|
The following was written by John Maxey Williams,
son of Josiah Frederick Williams and Margaret "Peggy" Thomas Williams. He died in 1913 and the following was typed on
23 October 1935 by his daughter-in-law, Mary Elizabeth Philips Williams, who was the widow of his son, Robert Percy Williams.
Concerning the family of ELISHA WILLIAMS, Nashville, Tenn.
In 1806 my grandfather Williams came from Halifax County North Carolina bringing his wife and three
sons -- Williams about 23, Josiah about 20 and Elisha about 18.
Grandfather settled on the hill above the large spring in the rear of the house built by uncle William.
One daughter who had married remained in North Carolina, near Warrenton. She first married Mr. Williams (not related
to our family) and afterwards married Mr. Alston.
Mrs. Lucy Polk was a child by the latter marriage. Grandfather bought land and gave uncle
William the homeplace and gave uncle Josiah the "Maplewood" farm and gave uncle Elisha a farm in Rutherford County near Murfreesboro.
I think uncle William married about 1812. Josiah married about 1815 and soon afterwords commenced
getting ready to build the Maplewood brick house, as it was finished in 1819. Building in those days was a slow work
as all limber had to be sawed by hand "two men, one above and one below" and then seasoned for about two years. The
brick were made by hand near the building.
Josiah also bought a farm on the opposite side of the river in Pennington's Bend and sold it about
1837 and afterword bought a place in Arkansas at Pecan Point and it proved to be a very bad investment as it caved in very
badly and depreciated in value on that account.
All of our family were born and educated at Maplewood. Our mother died there in 1844 and father
died in 1852 and the farm was sold to Dr. Yandell and he sold it to Mr. C. W. O. Payno. Mr. Peyno sold it to a
man named Elam and it was mortgaged to Mr. Morrill and Mr. Morrill sold it to Col. Blood. Colonol Elood added 80 acres
to it and sold to Jerry Baxter, who added about 900 acres making the place about 1350 or 1400 acres and transferred it to
the present owners, who live in Minnesotto and Boston, so I have heard. The original Maplewood contained 376 acres.
When the farm was bought it was covered with fine timber and much of it with cane. The pike was built about 1840.
The first sale was to Dr. Yandell, about $23,000 375 acres
The second sale was to Mr. Payno, about $36,000 375 acres
The third sale was to Mr. Morill, about $18,000 375 acres
The fourth sale was to Col Blood about $30,000 375 acres
The fourth sale was to Jere Baxter about $40,000 435 acres
P.S.
I think I am mistaken about Aunt Betty's marriage. I think she married Mr. Williams first
and afterwards married Colonal Austin of Alabama, but they had their home in North Carolina.
The 1880 book "History of Davidson County" relates: "In 1804 he (William Williams) came to Nashville with the
view of settling, and purchased the Evans grant of six hundred and forty acres, four miles from Nashville, on
the Gallatin road. The following year he moved to the farm, bringing with him his father and mother and brothers. His
father, then in bad health, died soon after."
I don't know how many acres the Williams owned along Gallatin Pike, but when Elisha
arrived in Nashville he purchased the Evans grant of 640 acres, shown in aqua below. According to Robert Ewing,
Josiah Frederick Williams grandson, Maplewood was 1,000 acres. John Maxey Williams above, who was Josiah's son, says
that Maplewood was about 375 acres when his dad owned it. He says Elisha gave Maplewood to his dad and a farm nearby
to his son William Williams. I have read that Maplewood extended from the Cumberland river to Dickerson Road, which
would encompass the areas shown in blue in the map below.
Below is a map made in 1871 by Wilber F. Foster showing the
location of Dr. William Williams home.
The book "History of Davidson County
Tennessee" contains the following about this son of William Williams: "His
son, William Williams, graduated at the Nashville University in 1839; taught a male academy three years; graduated at the
Louisville Medical College in 1845; settled in Hendersonville, Sumner Co., and married Lizzie B., eldest daughter of Daniel
S. Donelson and Margaret Branch, May, 1849. Moving to the old homestead in 1865, he discontinued the practice of medicine,
and has since devoted his time to the improvement of his farm, to the rearing and educating of his children, to the cause
of public schools, and to the Church."
Dr.
Williams and his family are all buried in the Spring Hll Cemetery located a few miles north on Gallatin Pike.
The
X marks the location of the Maplewood home. I have attempted to show the same three land grants in this map as shown
in the above map.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Jason Statum in 1998 contributed the following
to the Sumner Family - Part Four in WWW.Rootsweb.com:
"Note: From information compiled by Christine (Paradise)
Sumner, wife of William Parks Sumner Jr. and mother of Ann Elizabeth (Sumner) Shook and John William Sumner.
..........."Sylvan
Hall" the home of Captain Joseph Philips, Revolutionary soldier. The farm is located on Dickerson Pike, 6 miles north of Nashville,
Tennessee............Other inscriptions found in this old cemetery are:
Elisha Williams died August 17, 1811, age 72
years, married March 25, 17?5 and had 6 children, William, Betsey, Joshua, Elisha, Josiah, Martha
|
|
|
|
Following is an excerpt from a letter
written to Will Williams in Osceola, AR by Henry Philips Williams, February 17, 1892 or 1893, at ‘Greenleaf,’
his farm at Guthrie, Ky., about 15 miles north of the Tennessee border. Henry Williams was in his 64th year when he wrote
this account, and he lived for another 10 years. He died at Greenleaf on Feb. 22, 1902
Henry Philips Williams wrote two letters concerning his ancestry that have survived through the
years. Some of the details contained in the letters have turned out to be different from what he was told and remembered about
the family. His grandfather was not named William Williams, he didn't marry a Miss Thomas, and he didn't live on Shocco Creek
or in Caldwell County NC.
His name was Joshua Williams, and he was married to Sarah. They lived in Scottland Neck NC in a
bend in the Roanoke River in Edgecomb County. Henry's grandfather, Elisha Williams, did live fairly close to Shocco Creek
in Franklin County prior to moving to TN.
It's understandable that he might confuse the history of his family going back several generations.
Few people know much about their ancestors. .
Sometime
about the year 1700 there came from Wales a man who was the father of your great-great-Grandfather. I don't know his name
but he settled in Pennsylvania and his son William Williams, in course of time moved to Caldwell County, North Carolina where
he married a Miss Thomas. This was in or about 1742. Several children were born of this marriage, his son Elisha being the
second child. Now this Elisha Williams was the father of your Grandpa Josiah Williams. He was married in 1772 to Miss Josey
and had three sons and one daughter.
Will Williams, born 1776 (father of cousin Jack);
Aunt Betsey born in 1778,
Elisha born in 1782
and your Grandpa born 1786.
The family moved to Tennessee in 1804 I think, and your Grandpa
Josiah Williams married Margaretta Phillips in 1815 and had twelve children; James Williams, your father was one of the twelve.
Following is an excerpt
from a "A Williams Family History/The First Generations" written by Henry Philips Williams above. I believe it was the enclosure
he referred in the above letter.
"Your
Great Grandfather, Elisha Williams, was highly educated himself, and insisted that his children should have every advantage
extended to them in getting a collegiate education, which was something unusual at an early day.
He employed a private
tutor for his boys, and when they were sufficiently advanced in their studies, he sent the oldest (Uncle William) to Harvard
University, Mass., and your Grand Uncle Elisha and your Grand Pa to Chapel Hill, N.C. All three got their diplomas, and I
know myself that your Grand Pa Williams could read Latin fluently and wrote a beautiful fluent hand.
Afterwards the
head of the house, William Williams (my father’s grandfather) moved up to a place called Shoco or Shoeco, in Caldwell
or Halifax, County, N.C., where he bought a large and fine property and lived the life of a country gentleman, having his
farm on the river, his Negro quarters and his overseers. He had, I think, three sons and several daughters.
One of
these sons was my grandfather, Elisha Williams, born in 1746, and afterwards owning the homestead, besides several farms in
Franklin County, where I am told they kept Negro quarters managed by overseers.
He married a Miss Josey in 1774 and
his children were
William, born 1776,
Elizabeth, 1778, Elisha, 1782,
and your grandpa, Josiah F. Williams,
born 1786.
In 1808 or thereabouts the family moved to Tennessee, leaving their married daughter, Elizabeth Alston,
in North Carolina, where her descendants are now living, her only daughter having married a man by the name of Williams."
Click on this link and select "Open" to view a map of what may be the location of Elisha's home in North Calolina prior to
moving to Louisburg NC and then on to Nashville, TN.
|
|
EDGEFIELD DISTRICT
(Edgefield
is where Williams Williams lived next door to Maplewood where his brother Josiah Frederick Williams lived, also in Edgefield.)
I copied the
following from the 1850 US Census records. You must be a member to view the following link.
Ancestry.com - 1850 United States Federal Census
#1206 Sarah Williams 92 North Carolina
LFB
note: According to the 1850 census Sarah was 92 and 18 years older than her
son Williams Williams who is 74. So, Sarah would be born in 1758 and quite a
bit younger than her husband Elisha who the evidence below suggests was born in 1749.
However, her son's bilble record lists her death as 36 Feb 1851 at age 95, making her born about 1755.
By the different census number than William’s it would appear that she was living alone near him and his brother
Josiah.
#1207 William Williams
74 North Carolina
LFB note: According to the 1850 census William was 74 and thus born in 1776 which agrees with
his Sylvan Hall cemetery monument which says he was born 15 March 1776.
Sally Williams 67 Tennessee
LFB note: Sally is the wife of William and born in 1783 as confirmed by her tombstone in the
Sylvan Hall Cemetery which shows she was born 1 August 1783.
Char P. Williams (female) 21 Tennessee (Charlotte Phillips Williams, born in 1829 per the 1850 census)
Maria G. Williams 23 (Maria Graham Williams, born in 1827 per the 1850 census)
Evander Williams 21 (Evander
McIver Williams 1829 – 1855, born in 1829 per the 1850 census. Evander is mentioned several times
in the old Sumner letters)
#1208 Josiah F. Williams 66 North Carolina LFB
note: (born 2 February 1786 according to his tombstone in Sylvan Hall Cemetery,
born in 1784 per the 1850 census )
Henry C. Williams 22 Tennessee (Henry Philips Williams born 25 August 1828 according to my records, born in 1828 per the 1850 census)
Sarah E. Williams 20 (Sarah Elizabeth
Williams Whitaker born 29 October, 1830 according to my records, born 1830 per the 1850 census.)
Mary
T. Williams 19 (Mary "Munie" Thomas Williams Warner, born August 1831 according to my
records, born in 1831 per the 1850 census.)
Other inscriptions found in the Sylvan Hall cemetery are:
Elisha Williams died August 17, 1811, age 72 years, married
March 25, 17?5 and had 6 children, William, Betsey, Joshua, Elisha, Josiah, Martha
(Note age is shown as 72 rather than
62. This is probably a typo as the tombstone in Sylvan Hall Cemetery clearly shows he died at age 62. Most of the others reading this tombstone record the age as 62. If he was 62 when he died in 1811, he
was born in the year 1749. Records in Winston, NC show he married Sarah Josey
on 25 March 1775 when he would have been 26 if born in 1749 and she would would have been 17 if born in 1758.
|
|
|
|
Link to a really good map of Davidson County 1900 showing the location of property owners. Compare this map to the modern
day map below.
|
