Myers Family Page
Welcome to The Myers Family Page, which furnishes historical detail beyond the site index, exploring six generations of Myers in the line of Johann Hans Georg Myers Sr. of Germany and the related lines of Sullivan, Humphries and Tignor.
5. Nancy Lucy Myers (Cathey) -- Nancy, or "Nannie," the mother of Levi Cathey, was born Oct.8, 1838 in Palmyra, Montgomery Co., Tennessee and died Feb.7, 1906 in Palmyra, TN. Her parents were Levi S. Myers and Margaret Dilling. Nancy first married Burrell A. Hancock (b.1832) of Montgomery Co. at around age 15. They had at least one child, David Hancock, born in 1854/5 before Hancock died ca.1858 (5 year-old David appears in the 1860 Stewart Co. TN. census living with a remarried Nancy L. Cathey). Montgomery. Will Books 1869–1906 on Familysearch shows that on Oct.7,1876 Levi Myers was appointed guardian of David L. Hancock, minor heir of Burrell Hancock, deceased. Montgomery Co. records show that Nancy L. Hancock next married Wiley Cathey on Oct.12, 1859. Levi was born the next Nov. (1860) and his father died in 1863. Nann Cathey next remarried in Montgomery Co. on July 17, 1865 to James Thomas Buckingham (1826 or 1831-1915), who was born in Stewart Co. TN and buried in the Meyers Cemetery on the South Side of the Cumberland River. They had a son named (John) Henry (b.1866), Levi’s half‑brother, a daughter named Minnie (Maggie), and several other children (Alice, Wm.Aristotle, Thomas Edgar & Sarah). Nann is listed on Rootsweb as Nannie Lucy Cathey.
6. Levi S. Myers -- The father of Nancy Cathey, Levi was born Nov.14, 1807 in Dickson Co. TN. and died Feb. 8, 1880 in Palmyra, Montgomery Co. TN. (Dickson Co. was created in 1803 out of Montgomery and Robertson Co. in TN.) His likely (but unproven) parents were: Simon Myers and Elizabeth Sullivan. Levi married Margaret Dilling (born Jan. 14, 1811 in Jackson Co, TN. and died Sept. 24, 1881 in Kentucky or Tennessee.) According to the 1850 Montgomery County census, Levi was a blacksmith and had the following 7 children with Margaret: Lindsey O. (1830-1900), John A. (1831-1900), James O. (1833-1912), Mary Elenora (1834-1880), Nancy "Nannie" (1838-1906), Henry H. (1842-1871), and Araminta "Mintie" (1849-1885). Goodspeed's History states that to create the new county of Houston, an election was ordered to be held on February 22, 1871. Several places were designated to vote including at the mill of Levi Myers, on the east fork of Yellow Creek, for the Montgomery County fraction. According to the 1860 slave schedule Levi had 4 slaves, ages 20,11,8 and 5 years old. On the 1870 Montgomery Co. census Levi was listed as a farmer; the census notes that his wife is either "blind, deaf and dumb, insane, or idiotic." It says that she keeps house so she was probably blind or deaf. That information did not show up on the 1860 census. A black 15 year old male lived with them as a farmhand per census. The Clarksville Weekly Chronicle of Feb. 21, 1880 carried this announcement of Levi's death:
"Mr. Levi Myers, an old and highly respected citizen died at his residence on East Fork Creek, of congestion of the stomach, on Sunday last. He was 72 years old. His funeral was attended by a large concourse of friends, despite bad weather."A Tribute of Respect is found below this article from the W.M., Wardens and brethren of McCulloch Lodge Clarksville, TN, the local Masonic lodge of which Levi was a member.
7. Simon Myers -- The likely but unproven father of Levi, Simon was born in North Carolina in ca.1780 and died in Dickson Co. TN in 1837. His age is estimated from his age in two censuses. The 1820 census shows Simon Myers in Dickson Co., age 26-44 (b.1776-1794); his wife is the same age. The 1830 census again shows Simon and family in Dickson Co. TN. Here Simon's age is given as 50-59 (born 1771-1780); his wife is 40-49 (born 1781-1790). 1776-1780 is the date range at which these two census dates converge. It is uncertain who Simon's parents were. Simon married Elizabeth Sullivan ca.1806 probably in Dickson Co. TN. (Their first child, Levi, was born in 1807 in Tennessee per multiple census records.) Elizabeth was born in 1788 either in Tennessee or North Carolina and died after 1850 in Graves Co. KY. The 1850 census says Elizabeth was born in Tennessee, however Tennessee only became a state in 1796 and was part of North Carolina when she was born. But by this she may have meant to indicate that she was born in territory that soon became Tennessee. Elizabeth's parents were Jeremiah Owen Sullivan (born in ca. 1750 in North Carolina and died July 8, 1817 in Dickson Co. TN) and Nancy Humphries (born in 1767 in Halifax, NC and died July 1, 1834 in Dickson Co. TN). They were married in Halifax Co., NC in 1781 and came to Tennessee sometime around 1800. The last record of Jeremiah Sullivan in Halifax Co., NC before coming to Tennessee is from Feb. 1800 when he served as a witness for his father, John Sullivan, who was selling a portion of his land.
Simon and Elizabeth likely settled in Dickson Co. TN sometime before 1806. "Simon Meirs" first appears on an 1808 Montgomery Co. TN document as a constable taking part in a bond agreement for a marriage. Simon and Elizabeth appear on the Dickson Co. TN census in 1820 and 1830, and Simon appears in the Dickson Co. tax records on April 16, 1827, and from 1831 to 1835. He also appears in the 1836 tax lists in Williamson Co. TN (Tennessee, Early Tax List Records, 1783-1895). Elizabeth's parents had also moved to Dickson Co. by 1815, at which time Simon Myers witnessed the deed of his father-in-law, Jeremiah Sullivant (Sullivan). Listed among the TN Deeds of 1804-1966 we find further evidence of relationship between Elizabeth Sullivan (Myers) and her parents, Jeremiah and Nancy Sullivan. Dickson County Deeds Book C, page 260, October 6, 1817, states: "Simon Myers and Elizabeth his wife one of the daughters of and heirs of Jeremiah Sullivant late of Dicken (sic) County deceased and State of Tennessee of the one part and Jesse Benton of the other part all of the County of Williamson...for $400 sell all right in estate of Jeremiah Sullivan lands, negroes and all other property." The document also mentions Nancy Sullivant, the widow of Jeremiah Sullivant.
Simon and Elizabeth had the following 7 known children: Levi (1807-1880), Thomas (1810-1880), Sarah (b.1815), Henry (b.1817), Louvisa Carter (1819-1910), Christopher Columbus Myers (b.1821), and Jacob (1826-1857). Simon died in Dickson Co., TN in 1837. Familysearch records, Deeds Dickson. Deeds 1823–1839, tell us that Elizabeth Myers, as the administrator of Simon Myers' estate, fulfilled a bond to transfer land in Dickson County, TN. to Elijah W. Humphreys for $300, as originally agreed upon by Simon Myers before his death. On Dec.26, 1836, Simon Myers, former owner of a tract of land, had executed a bond to transfer the land to Elijah W. Humphreys for $1,200. Elizabeth Myers, as administrator, is fulfilling this bond and selling the land to Elijah. (Elijah W.Humphreys is not Elizabeth's maternal grandfather named Elijah Humphreys, who died in 1797, but a younger man, perhaps his grandchild.) Elizabeth Myers moved to Graves Co. KY shortly after Simon's death in 1837 to stay with a son living there. She appears on the 1840 and 1850 Graves Co. KY census (she is 62 in 1850). In 1850 she is living with her son, Jacob Myers (age 20; b.1830) and his wife, Martha (Ann Edder) Myers (age 22; b. 1828) as well as several others in the household including 1 year old John Myers.
Evidence of relation to Levi Myers: On Ancestry.com I have 14 autosomal DNA matches to the children of Jeremiah and Nancy Sullivan, (7 of the tree-verified matches range between 21 and 32 cMs on 1 segment) and I show 1 match to Simon's daughter, Louvisa Myers, 3 to son, Hugh Myers and 2 to likely son, Thomas Myers. The 1820 census shows Simon Myers with 2 males and 2 females under 10 and one male 11-15 (5 under 15). (It is questionable whether Thomas Myers is one of the children of Simon and Elizabeth and what his date of birth was. ) According to the 1850 census Thomas was born in 1810 and in the 1860 census the birth is given as 1808. If Thomas was one of their sons and was born in 1810, then Thomas and Henry (b.1817) might be the two males 10 or younger and Levi may be the 11-15 male in the 1820 census, along with Sarah (1815) and Louvisa, listed as 2 females under 10 years old. It is also noteworthy that Simon named his youngest son Jacob, perhaps after his father.
Also of interest is Hugh Myers (1815-1870) who lived in Montgomery Co. TN and on the 1850 and 1860 census appears living near Levi. Hugh married Sallie Breeden (or Braden) and they named one of their children Levi (b.1854). Hugh's parents are unproven but one Ancestry.com tree suggests his parents were Nicholas Myers (ca.1775-ca,1840) and Elizabeth Baiter, who married in 1813 in Wilson Co. TN. I do not show any DNA matches to Nicholas or Elizabeth but show 3 DNA matches to Hugh, one of them at 28 cM DNA. The DNA match, along with proximity and naming a son Levi, suggests that Hugh Myers may be Levi’s brother or son--possibly a cousin. Hugh's age makes him young enough to be Levi's son. His age is given as 28 (born 1822) in the 1850 census while in the 1860 census he is shown to have been born at an earlier date at age 45 (born 1815). Hugh doesn’t appear in the 1840 Tennessee census (not yet 18?). He marries in Aug. 1846 and appears on a 1836 tax list with Levi, which suggests he was probably an adult in 1836. This would agree with the 1860 census that he was born in 1815 (making him 21 in 1836). Due to DNA matches, proximity, age and a son named Levi, it is reasonable to hypothesize that Hugh is likely Simon's son.
8. John Jacob Myers-- The likely but unproven father of Simon Myers, was Jacob Myers, born Nov.17, 1752 in York, Pennsylvania (York County, Pennsylvania, 1733-1800: Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church records). His baptism was on Dec.3, 1752 and he died in Rowan Co., NC in 1817. Jacob was the son of German immigrants Johann George Myers and his wife Catarina who first came to Pennsylvania in 1740 and settled in Rowan County, NC by 1780. A Book by Lucy Clodfelder entitled The Family of John Jacob Myers states that Jacob was the third son of John George Myer and died on Feb.18, 1817 (in Rowan Co. NC) and "was buried in Immanuel Cemetery, married Dorothy (last name unknown), who was born in 1755 and died in 1816." Further research of German records has shown Dorothy's name to be Theodora Derode Fouts. Find-a-grave gives her birth date as Sept. 21, 1755 in Rowan, Bladen County, North Carolina and death in Oct. 1816, buried in Thomasville, Davidson County, North Carolina. Her parents were Theobald Dewald Fouts (born in 1722 in Rheinland-Pfalz, Germany and died in North Carolina in 1787) and Catarina Spengel (born in 1725 in Lancaster, PA and died in 1792 in Randolph Co., NC) who were married in Pennsylvania in 1743 (U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900). Jacob and Derode were probably married in Rowan/Davidson Co. NC ca. 1773. A reconstructed 1780 North Carolina census shows Jacob Myers in Rowan Co. NC in "Cap. D. Smith's District." Jacob also appears in the 1790, 1800 and 1810 Rowan Co. NC censuses along with his wife and family. Jacob Myers also appears in a 1814 census in Rowan County a few years before his death. An 1817 Rowan Co. NC record from Estate Records Rowan. Probate Estate Case Files 1663–1978 on Familysearch refers to "Jacob Myers, blacksmith," who is recently deceased. If this is our Jacob Myers, who died in Rowan Co. in 1817, then we have evidence of his livelihood as a blacksmith. (His likely grandson Levi Myers was also a blacksmith.)
The known children of Jacob and Derode Myers are: Christian (1763-1812), Elizabeth H. Hepler (1776-1830), Margaret Elizabeth Bowers (1777-1827), George W. (1778-1870), Jacob Jr. (1779-1841), (Simon, ca.1780-1837), John (1781-1848), Michael (1782-1853), Peter (b. 1783), Eve M. Gordon (1784-1870), Maria Barbara Seachrist (1785-1875), Catherine Long (1786-1846), Susannah Snow (1789-1867) and Dorothy "Dollie" Myers (1790-1809). (Susannah moved to Morgan Co. TN where she died in 1867.)
Evidence of relationship: I have 41 atDNA matches between my line of Levi Myers and the family of John Jacob Myers, providing strong supporting evidence that Simon is probably a son of John Jacob Myers. The Rowan Co. NC 1800 census shows Jacob Myers and his wife (both over 45--born before 1756), along with 4 Males 16-25, 3 females under 10, 1 female 10-15 and 1 female 16-25. Simon Myers, born in North Carolina in 1780, is probably one of the 4 males, age 16-25 born 1775-1784). Of the known children, there are 6 brothers (including Simon) born between 1775-1784. The two oldest of these, William and Jacob Jr. are heads of household in Rowan Co. in 1800, leaving Simon, John, Michael and Peter potentially at home. This would explain why Simon never appears as a head of household in a North Carolina census, for he moved from North Carolina to Dickson Co. TN between 1801 and 1805 (age 24) and was married to Elizabeth Sullivan in Tennessee by 1806.
9. Johann George Myers-- The father of Jacob Myers, Johann (John) was born in Dec. 18, 1727 in Oberacker, Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, Germany and immigrated to Pennsylvania in 1740 (U.S. and Canada, Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s). He was baptized as an adult on April 9, 1749 (York County, Pennsylvania, 1733-1800: Christ Evangelical Lutheran Church) and married to Catarina Zerwe in a Lutheran Church in Tulpehocken, Berks Co.,PA on Dec. 22, 1746 (Pennsylvania, U.S., Lutheran Baptisms and Marriages, 1730-1799). He subsequently moved his family to Rowan Co. NC, dying there in 1806. Lucy Clodfelder's The Family of John Jacob Myers relates how, in the early 18th century, the Myers families in Germany were in a "destitute situation" and therefore left their homes and journeyed north to Amsterdam, Holland to book passage to America, arriving at the port city of Philadelphia, PA after a long ocean voyage.
By 1740, the best land in Eastern Pennsylvania, in Bucks, Lancaster and York Counties had been taken and the steady stream of Germans coming to a "new life" turned their faces west and south. In the early 1740's into the 1770's many of these Germans made their way on the arduous trip into the wilderness of Central North Carolina. The usual route taken was through Lancaster, Pennsylvania to York, Pennsylvania, where they forded the Susquehana River, down to Frederick, Maryland, down the Shenandoah Valley, crossing the river at Looney's Ford, on down the Stauton River through the Blue Ridge to Roanoke, Virginia, southward to a crossing on the Dan River below the mouth of the May River, and on the Salem, and into the heart of Piedmont, North Carolina, This trip took from ten days to two weeks, with the constant danger of Indians, floods, and animals.
Johann (or John) George Myers was among those who brought his family to the area of Rowan
County, NC in the mid 1770s. Lutheran Church records list Johann George Myers as a Philadelphia resident in 1760 in St. Michael's congregation (Pennsylvania and New Jersey, U.S., Church and Town Records, 1669-2013). A 1772 census shows Johann is still in Philadelphia, but by the 1780 reconstructed census George Moires is listed in Rowan Co. NC in Capt. Lopp's district. Johann's wife, Catarina Zerwe, is thought to have been born in 1733 in Hohenacker, Esslingen, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany. Her father, who immigrated to Pennsylvania, was Johannes Jacob Zerwe (1698-1776). Her mother was Maria Catharina Leick (1705-1792), born in Livingston Manor, Albany, New York. An undated marriage index on Ancestry.com records the marriage of Maria Catha Leik and Johannes J Zerbe. (U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900). Catarina Zerwe died around 1800, having given birth to at least 11 children. The 1800 census shows George Myers in Salisbury, Rowan Co. NC, age over 45, with several family members, the oldest female being 26-44 (born 1766-1774), who could be either an older daughter or a second wife. George left a will dated Aug.28,1799, which names 10 children and calls his wife Catarina, who is still living. It appears she may have died shortly after this since she doesn't appear in George's household in the 1800 Rowan County census. Their known children are: Maria Margaret (1747-1797), George (1748-1810), Sybilla Magdalena (1751-1821), Johann Jacob (1752-1817), Susanna (1754-1843), Peter (1756-1822), Catherine Bowers (1758-1817), Elisabeth Margaretha (1760-1850), Christian (1763-1812), Charles David (b. 1767), and Sarah (1770-1839). The parents of Johann George Myers were the German immigrants to Pennsylvania, Johann Hans Georg Moyer and Sybilla Magdalena Miller.
10. Johann Hans Georg Meyer -- The father of Johann George Myers, Johann Sr. was born in 1696 in Kirchardt, Heidelberg, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany and died in York Co., Pennsylvania in 1770. German records list the birth date of Johannes Mayer in Kirchardt, Preusen, Baden on May 6, 1696 to parents Hans Jacob Mayer and Anna Maria Mayer (Baden and Hesse Germany, Lutheran Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1502-1985). Marriage records list the 1720 marriage of Johann Georg Meyer to Sibylla Magdalena Meyer (Germany, Lutheran Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1500-1971). Johann's mother's maiden name was Anna Maria Schafhauser (1664-1714) of Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany. Johann's father, Hans Jacob, was born in Kirchardt, Heidelberg, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany in 1660 and died in Germay in 1728. German records list the baptism of Johann's wife, Sibylla Cath Müller (Sybilla Catherine-Magdelena Miller) on Oct. 21, 1701 in Baden-Württemberg, Germany to parents Johann Paul Müller and Maria Jacobina Müller (Germany, Lutheran Baptisms, Marriages, and Burials, 1500-1971). Records show that Johann and Sibylla did not immigrate to America, while their son Johann George Myers did immigrate to Pennsylvania around 1740. Johann and Sibylla's generation is as far back as available records reliably document this German Myers lineage.
Below we analyze Abraham Myers as an alternative father of Simon Myers, and below that we take up the line of Simon's wife, Elizabeth Sullivan.
Alternative Simon Myers parents: Abraham Myers -- Abraham, or Abram Myers is another candidate to be the father of Simon Myers, although DNA matches are far less plentiful than with Johann Jacob Myers. Abraham Myers was born in Pennsylvania ca. 1760 and died in Jackson Co. TN before 1840. The identity of his wife is uncertain and researchers are divided whether she was Mary Charity Schell (1765-1855) or Sarah Ann Roberson (1772-1850), who both married a different Abraham Myers, each born about 1760, and each thought to be born in Pennsylvania. Ancestry.com shows a number of atDNA matches between Abraham Myers and the line of Nancy Myers, and her father Levi Myers (although at the 5th cousin level, DNA results are smaller and less reliable than the larger cM matches typical of relatives who are closer in time).
A document posted to Ancestry.com entitled "A short History of a Group of the Myers Family," written in 1942 by John H. Myers (a great-great-grandson of the Abraham Myers who settled in Alabama) narrates an account of his ancestor that was passed down in his family (but is otherwise undocumented). He gives one account which states that Abraham Myers was born in Germany and at age 15 (around the time of the American Revolution) took a ship to Pennsylvania, unaccompanied by any other family members. A second account, which the author deems more reliable, states that Abraham's parents immigrated from Germany to Pennsylvania in 1760 along with 75-100 other German immigrants and that Abraham was the first child born to any of them in America. The name of Abraham's father is given as Jacob Myers (so of Henry Myers of Germany) while his mother's name was not passed down, but it is noted that she was Jacob's second wife and that Abraham had a brother named Isaac. The author states that he verified in Pennsylvania records that Abraham had a brother named Isaac and that Isaac's descendants migrated West and Southwest. Below I quote from his account, which was probably based on his own further research:
About 1784 Abraham Myers. left his home in Pennsylvania and came down to Virginia. Soon after coming to Virginia he married a young lady by the name of Sarah Roberson. Miss Roberson belonged to a family that had come from England to America several years before this time. She was a sister of Capt. James Roberson. This James Roberson was a captain in the Revolutionary War under George Washington. He died in Virginia not many years after the war closed. Not long after Abraham Myers and Sarah Roberson married, they left the State of Virginia and came down into the Carolinas and Georgia. ... Abraham Myers, his wife and most of his children and grandchildren came from Georgia to Alabama about 1825. They settled in the eastern part of Walker County.
He goes on to say that Abraham and his wife died not long after they settled in Alabama. He identifies three children of Abraham and Sarah as: John, Jacob and Mary (who he says married a lawyer named Thomas Wilson). He concludes by saying he is the great grandson of the above mentioned John Myers (who married Nancy Mullins).
Currently there is more information available on this family and their many children. There is also an Alabama, U.S., Marriage Index, 1800-1969 which shows a marriage between a Sarah Ann Roberson and Jason B Williamson in 1825 in Wilcox Co. AL which doesn't seem to fit with the above story (perhaps this is a different Sarah Roberson). Census records show Abraham and his father, Jacob, in South Carolina in 1790 and land records show Abraham sold land that he owned in the region of Chester Co. South Carolina from 1785-1793. The couple's first child, Alcy, was born in SC in 1789. By the end of 1790, tax records show Jacob, Abraham (and their families) had moved on to Wilkes Co., Georgia. Given John Myers' narrative of the family, there is not much in their path of travels that fits compellingly with a son named Simon, who was born in 1784 in NC and settled in Dickson Co. TN by 1806. The strongest contrary evidence is that Sarah Roberson was born in 1772 which would make her 12 years old when Simon was born in 1784.
Turning to the other oft-cited set of parents for Simon, we see that "Abram Myers" is documented as marrying Mary Charity Schell in Pennsylvania (the record also states that she was born in Pennsylvania), although the year is not given on the marriage index (U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900). The 1820 census shows an "Abram Mires" in Hall Co. Georgia and an Abraham Myers in Jackson Co. TN. The 1830 census again shows Abraham Myers in Hall, GA and Abraham Meirs in Jackson Co. TN. (The Abraham in Georgia is the husband of Sarah Roberson, while the Jackson Co. TN Abraham Myers is married to Mary Charity Schell.) The 1830 Jackson Co. TN census shows Abraham as age 70-79 and Charity as 60-69. Living near them is their son, David Myers. The 1840 Jackson Co. TN census does not show Abraham (implying his death) but shows a female 70-79 living in David's household. On the 1850 census she is named as his mother, Charity, age 85, living in David's household (David is age 61 and married to 43 year old Elizabeth). David is of interest because the censuses from 1850 to 1870 state that he was born in North Carolina (most researchers list his birthplace as Rowan Co. NC). David was born March 19, 1790 (and died in 1872) which places his parents in North Carolina before they moved to Tennessee. I also have several DNA matches to David which suggests that this might be the correct line and that David could possibly be a brother (or cousin) of Simon Myers. The other children of Abraham and Charity Myers are all thought to be born in Rowan Co. NC: Jonas (b. 1795), Mary (b.ca.1796), Abram (b. 1797), and John (b. ca. 1807). Simon Myers is also thought to have been born in North Carolina ca. 1780 which could conceivably fit with the family's residency in NC around that time. Levi, Simon's son, married Margaret "Peggy" Dilling, who was from Jackson Co. TN. If Levi visited his grandparents in Jackson Co. TN in the 1820s it would explain where he met her. Levi and Peggy married ca. 1828, and her parents, Joshua and Mary Dilling, moved from Jackson Co. to Montogomery Co. TN by the 1830 census. (The distance between Montgomery Co. TN and Jackson Co. TN is about 130 miles.) To conclude, Sarah Roberson Myers can be ruled out as Simon's mother (as she is only 12 years older than Simon) while the evidence for Abraham and Charity Myers as Simon's parents is moderately compelling, but at this point, records are insufficient to determine Simon's parents with certainty. Several DNA matches to Abram Myers' son, David, who was born in Rowan County, suggest that Abram might have been a brother of John Jacob Myers, with whom I have by far the most DNA matches and find to be the strongest candidate for Simon's father.
Sullivan, Humphries and Tignor:
7. Elizabeth Sullivan -- the wife of Simon Myers, Elizabeth was born in 1788 probably in Davidson Co., Tennessee; she died after 1850 in Graves Co. KY. She married Simon Myers probably in Dickson Co. TN in 1806; the couple had 7 children (listed above). She last appears at age 62 in the 1850 KY census in the household of her son Jacob Myers, her husband having died in Dickson, TN in 1837. Her parents were Jeremiah Sullivan and Nancy Humphries.
8. Jeremiah Sullivan-- The father of Elizabeth Sullivan Myers, Jeremiah was born ca.1748-1750 in North Carolina. His parents were John Sullivan Sr. (born in Halifax, NC in 1718 and died in Halifax, NC ca. 1804) and Lucy Dameron (born ca.1734 in Halifax, NC and died in 1768 in NC.). Jeremiah was married ca.1781 in Halifax, North Carolina to Nancy Humphries, who was born in 1767 in Halifax, NC and died July 1, 1834 in Dickson Co. TN. Together they had 15 children (see list under her Nancy's entry below). Deed Book 12 of Halifax County 65-(101) shows Jeremiah's father, John Sullivent of Halifax Co. transferring to Jeremiah Sullivent on Feb.19, 1772 12 pounds of Virginia (tobacco) and 120 acres which had been a Granville Grant to John Sullivent (176) March 1760 on north side of Great Branch of Rocky Swam. Jeremiah Sullivan joined the 1st North Carolina Regiment of Militia which fought in the Little Lynches Creek battle in South Carolina on August 11, 1780 and the Battle of Camden on August 16, 1780 under the command of Col. Samuel Jarvis and Capt. William Brinkley. As soon as it's ranks were filled, the 1st North Carolina Regiment of Militia was sent south to join Major General Horatio Gates as part of the larger North Carolina Revolutionary Army which was under his command. The militia was a hastily convened and poorly trained military group which faced the well-trained British forces of General Cornwallis. First the Virginia militia and then the North Carolina militia, once their flank had been exposed by the breaking of the Virginia militia's line, wavered and fled into the surrounding swamps. As the 1st North Carolina Regiment of Militia was only authorized for a service period of three months, the unit returned north after their defeat at the Battle of Camden and those serving in it were released from their service. As a result of his service Jeremiah's heirs were granted a military land warrant (#371) in 1820. Land records show a land purchase issued Mar 1, 1780 in Halifax County, NC for 100 acres (Grant 32 Entry 194 Book 31 Page 134) as well as a 100 acres land grant in Halifax County, NC on Oct.28, 1782.
Documents show "Jerry Sullivant" in the 1790 census in Edgecombe, Halifax, North Carolina and by 1798 he appears in the tax records of Davidson Co. TN. Land records show a Dec. 22, 1815 purchase of land at Turnbull Creek, Dickson County, TN, obtained from William White. The last document in which Jeremiah appears is a land purchase in Williamson Co. TN (Warrant # 10496) on Aug 19, 1817. He apparently died soon after this, as his wife Nancy appears as a widow in the 1820 Dickson Co. TN census. His will was probated in 1819, which could be inferred to be the year he died. Per Find-a-grave, Jeremiah died in 1817 in Davidson Co., Tennessee and was buried in the Sullivan Cemetery Old in Williamson County, Tennessee.
9. John Sullivan-- The father of Jeremiah Sullivan, John was born in 1718 either in Halifax, NC or Cork, Munster, Ireland. His father, Daniel Sullivan, was born in Cork, Ireland and immigrated to North Carolina so John could have been born in either locale. He should not be confused with Gen. John Owen Sullivan of New Hampshire (b.1740), the well-known but controversial Revolutionary War general, nor his brother James, a governor of Massachusetts, who were sons of Philip O'Sullivan of Ireland (though they may share an earlier common ancestor). About 1741, John Sullivan married Lucy Dameron (ca.1720-after 1775). Although a maiden name for Lucy Dameron can not be confirmed with documentation, land transactions of John Sullivan indicate his wife's name was Lucy. Additional land transactions between John Dameron and John Sullivan are documented. Tignal Dameron was a neighbor of the Sullivan's as seen on the 1784 Tithables List. Some sources cite John Dameron as Lucy's father, while others give her parents as Thomas Dameron (1683-1750) of Wicomico Church, Northumberland County, Virginia and Ann Ball (Pope) who he married in Virginia ca. 1730. (Ann Ball's father, Capt. George Ball, was a cousin of Mary Ball Washington, the mother of President George Washington). While Northumberland Co., VA is relatively near Halifax Co. NC, there are no documents that would link Lucy Dameron Sullivan of North Carolina to Thomas Dameron who lived and died in Virginia. In the absence of clear evidence, speculation would seem to favor John Dameron as Lucy's possible father, since he engaged in land deals with Lucy's husband, John Sullivan in Halifax Co., or possibly Tignal Dameron, John and Lucy's neighbor in Halifax Co. NC.
North Carolina, U.S., Land Grant Files, 1693-1960 (book 14, p.165) shows John Sullivant with land in Halifax Co., NC on March 16, 1761 next to the Francis Jones property line. The 610 acres of land were deeded in 1761 from the Honorable John Earl Granville. The deed states he was "John Sullivant, son and heir to Daniel Sullivant of Halifax County, Province of North Carolina," establishing his father's name (Halifax Co., North Carolina, Deed Book 8, page 234). The land was located in the Parish of Edgecombe, Halifax County bordering Francis Jones, David Chapman, Smith and Joyner. It was witnessed by W. Lucas and J. Montford. He sold 100 Acres of this land in 1763 to John Dameron, witnessed by Elijah Humphries and James Simmonds. The land was on Rocky Swamp and Watery Branch and was part of the land John received in 1761. (Halifax Co., North Carolina, Deed Book 8, page 234). A Feb.19, 1772 land transfer to his son Jeremiah in Halifax Co. has been cited above. John sold 88 acres of his Granville land to his son William in 1775. It was registered in 1775 and John Sullivant and Lucy Sullivant signed the deed. Lucy relinquished her dower rights (Halifax Co., North Carolina, Deed Book 13 page 283). The 1790 and 1800 censuses shows John Sullivant in Edgecombe, Halifax Co., NC. Several online sources list John's death as occurring in Davidson Co., TN on June 3, 1807, however I have not been able to find documentation to verify this except an extract from the New York post citing the death of a John Sullivan on June 3, 1807 (no further details) which seems likely to refer to someone else of the same name in the New York area. John's estate was settled in 1817 so his death occurred prior to that date. Find-a-grave lists John as buried in the Old Sullivan Cemetery in Williamson Co. TN but offers no photo of the grave as confirming evidence.
10. Daniel Sullivan-- The father of John Sullivan, Daniel was born in County Cork, Ireland ca.1684 and died before 1761 in Halifax County, North Carolina. His wife's name is thought to be Alice. The North Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register contains reports that may refer to this Daniel Sullivan: "In August 1702, Richard Prince came before Court at Edenton, and 'proved rights of importation for himself twice, and for Daniel Sullivant and his wife Alice, and Eliza Lucas and Jeremy Sullivant'". (p.300) This indicates that Daniel and his wife Alice arrived in Edenton, North Carolina about 1702 accompanied by Jeremy Sullivant and Eliza Lucas. On p.425 a list of Freeholders in the Hyde District in 1715 includes a Daniel (Dav.?) Sullivant and a John Sullivant (who apparently is not Daniel's immediate relative). The Hyde District is later renamed as part of Halifax Co. NC when that county was established in 1758. Both documents are thought to refer to Daniel Sullivan, who is mentioned above in a land records which identifies him as the father of John Sullivan of Halifax Co. NC. Nothing further is known for certain about the Sullivan line.
Below we take up the Humphries line, beginning with Nancy Humphries, the wife of Jeremiah Sullivan.
Humphries
8. Nancy Humphries-- The wife of Jeremiah Sullivan and mother of Elizabeth Sullivan Myers, Nancy was born in North Carolina in 1769. Her parents were Elijah Humphries (born March 19, 1724 in St Stephens Parish, Northumberland Co., Virginia and died in 1796 in Halifax, NC) and Judith Smith (born in 1721 in St Stephens Parish, Northumberland Co., VA and died in 1801 in Halifax, NC).
Find-a-Grave provides the following bio for Nancy Humphries Sullivan:
"Nancy Humphries was born about 1769 in Orange County, North Carolina. She was the daughter of Elijah Humphries and Judith Smith. She married Jeremiah Sullivan ca. 1781 in Halifax County, North Carolina. With Jeremiah, Nancy had at least the 16 children listed below. Jeremiah died in Dickson County, Tennessee after Aug 10, 1817 (date on which Jeremiah purchased 20 acres from William Brumley that Brumley had earned for his military service). Nancy was thereafter censused under her name, as Nancy or Nancy H Sullivan. She appears in the 1820 and 1830 Dickson Co. TN censuses and in Dickson Co. tax records from 1833 (Tennessee, Early Tax List Records, 1783-1895). She died on July 1, 1834 in Dickson County, Tennessee.
Known children:
1. Sarah (Sallie) Sullivan 1782-Before 1830 married Epps Sullivan (3 children possible)
2. Jeremiah Sullivan 1783 24-Nov 1869 married Lucinda Catherine Hooper (3 known children)
3. William Sullivan 1784-Apr 1808
4. Thomas H Sullivan 1786-1855 married Ruth Worley (12 known children)
5. Elizabeth Sullivan 1788-Aft.1850 married Simon Myers (5 known children [including Levi Myers])
6. Elisha (Elley) Sullivan 1789 Before 1860 married Sarah M Phillips
7. Rhoda Sullivan 1785-1790 Before 1850 married Joshua Mullen (9 known children)
8. George Sullivan ca. 1792-Before 1860
9. Emily (Or Amelia) (Millie) Sullivan 16 May 1792-2 Mar 1865 married Jacob J Sanderson (12 known children)
10. Mary Sullivan ca. 1793-After 1850 married Isaiah Brown (5 known children)
11. Uriah (Edward Uriah?) Sullivan About 1794-After 1880 married Martha Ann "Patsy" Campbell (9 known children)
12. John Sullivan 15 Jan 1798-31 Mar 1867; Married Cyntha Gibson (10 known children)
13. Daniel Sullivan ca. 1799-After 1860 married Rhoda Morris (5 known children)
14. Ode (Oni?) Sullivan b.ca. 1800 married Paralee Tidwell
15. Owen Sullivan 10 Mar 1802-28 Dec 1878
16. Joseph Sullivan b.ca. 1808"
9. Elijah Humphries-- Nancy's father, Elijah Humphries, was born in 1724 and christened March 19, 1725 in St. Stephens Parish, Northumberland County, Virginia. Elijah was the son of Joseph Humphries II, and was named in his father's probate record in Northumberland Co., VA on June 12, 1769 (Record Book 7, 1766-70, p. 354): "In the name of God Amen, I Joseph Humphries of Northumberland Co. being sick & weak in body but of perfect memory thanks be to God for the same,"Item, I give unto my son Elijah Humphries one shilling of my estate and no more." Virginia marriage index records show that Elijah married Judith Smith, daughter of William (d.1752 in NC) and Hannah Smith (d.1762 in NC), before 1750. (Virginia, U.S., Marriages of the Northern Neck of Virginia, U.S., 1649-1800). U.S., Revolutionary War Rolls, 1775-1783 show that Elijah was a private in the Virginia Continental Army. Elijah and Judith moved to North Carolina before 1767 where their daughter, Nancy, was born. The 1786 and 1790 censuses show Elijah (and family) in Edgecombe, Halifax Co., NC. Elijah died in 1796 and his probate was filed in Halifax Co. NC. His wife Judith (729-1801) is listed in the 1800 census in Halifax Co., NC.
10. Joseph Humphries II-- The father of Elijah, Joseph was born in 1702 in Saint Stephens Parish, Northumberland Co., VA and died Feb.19, 1769 in Northumberland Co., VA. In about 1723, in Saint Stephens Parish, Northumberland Co., VA, Joseph was married to Elizabeth Tignor (1708-1747), daughter of Phillip Tignor (1674- 1716) and Mary Sarah Dennis of Northumberland County, Virginia. (Go to bottom of page for more on this family.) The 1748 and 1759 Virginia censuses show Joseph in St.Ephen Parish in Northumberland, VA. After Elizabeth died in 1747, Joseph married Hannah Bearcroft. No marriage record has been found but she was still living when Joseph died as he named his wife, Hannah, in his will. Find-a-grave furnishes a transcription of Joseph's will: From the book Genealogical Anecdotes of Our Ancestral Families, by JoAnn Rork Williams, published July 1896:"Transcription of Will of Joseph Humphries (b. 1702; d. 1769). This will was written February 19, 1769 and was probated in Northumberland Co., VA on June 12, 1769 (Record Book 7, 1766-70, p. 354)" The will indicates the following heirs: his wife, Hannah, his sons, George, John, Elijah, Uriah, Joseph (III), Spencer, and daughters Susanna Humphries, Sarah Dameron, Elizabeth Johnson, Dianna Edwards, and Sinar Haynie. Geni.com shows Joseph Humphries' family extending back into the Middle Ages.
11. Joseph Humphries I-- Joseph's parents were Joseph Humphries II (1680-1725) and Mary Elizabeth Haney (ca.1680-1705). Joseph Humphries was born in Northumberland, Middlesex, Virginia and died there in 1725. Records from Christ Church Parish in Virginia shows the christening of Joseph Humphries on May 1680 to parents John and Ann Humphries (Christ Church Parish, Virginia Births, 1653-1812). Joseph's birth is given as May 9, 1680. He died in 1731 at about age 50 in St Stephen's Parish, Northumberland, Colony of Virginia. Mary Elizabeth Haney was born in Middlesex, Virginia ca. 1680 and died ca 1705. Although not proven, her parents are thought to be John Haney (1658-1746) and Sarah Jane Waddy (1670-1706), both of Saint Stephens, Northumberland Co., Virginia. (St. Stephens Parish became Northumberland County after 1785.) The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography by William Glover Stanard of the Virginia Historical Society contains the following historical anecdote:
There is in 1700 mention in the Northumberland county records of a place called Coan Race, and in 1704-5, a suit in which it is stated that Thomas Pinkard was attached to answer Joseph Humphreys. Whereupon the plaintiff answers that about October 16, 1703, at a place called Fairfield Race in St. Stephen's parish, Northumberland county, said Pinkard challenged to run a horse belonging to the Lower parish of Lancaster county, with any horse in this (Northumberland) county, except Major Kenner's horse, whereupon Humphreys, the plaintiff, accepted said challenge, and said Pinkard and Humphreys mutually contracted that some horse of Lancaster and some horse of this county procured by the plaintiff should run at Scotland Race ground in this county, the last Thursday in October, for ten pounds, said Pinkard to allow 20 shillings to said plaintiff for coming to Scotland race ground, it was agreed by both parties that the horses intended to be run should be on the ground (whether fair or foul weather) by twelve o'clock and if either party should fail to be there at twelve o'clock he should lose the wager. According to agreement, plaintiff came with the horse he intended to run and was there at twelve, and there stayed some hours, but said Pinkard did not meet the plaintiff nor bring a horse to run. Whereupon the said plaintiff caused the horse he brought to be rode over the ground and departed. The jury gave a verdict for the plaintiff from which Pinkard appealed to the General Court. It appears from this that there were at the time at least three race tracks in Northumberland, Coan, Fairfield and Scotland.
12. John Humphries-- The father of Joseph Humphries I, John was born May 2, 1657 in Northumberland, Middlesex, Virginia and died there in 1725. His wife is thought to be Ann North (1655-1630) of Middlesex, VA, whose family is conjectured to contain a number of prominent barons of the North line, including John Dudley North, 3rd North Baron of England (1582-1666). However I have not found any evidence that would definitely establish Ann North as part of this line. The parentage of John and Ann Humphries is confirmed from the christening records of their son Joseph, cited above. John's parents are thought to be Thomas Humphries of Grin Merioneth, Wales (1628-1684) and Mary Kensey of Virginia (1632-1677) but there is inadequate documentation to definitively establish their relationship. England & Wales, Christening Index, 1530-1980 shows a Joseph Humphries, son of Thomas and Mary Humphries and there are immigration lists indicating the 1635 arrival of a 23 year old John Humphey in Virginia. Yet there is no proof that these lists actually refer to our John Humphries or his parents and a number of researchers believe the evidence favors a Virginia birth for John. Beyond this point, little of certainty is known of the Humphries or Ann North line. Below we take up the Tignor line, beginning with Elizabeth Tignor, the wife of Joseph Humphries II.
Tignor
10. Elizabeth Tignor, the wife of Joseph Humphries II and mother of Elijah Humphries, was born in 1708 in Northumberland Co. VA and died there in 1747 and was buried at Upper Saint Stephens Cemetery at Glebe Manse. (Her baptism on April 11, 1708 is recorded in Virginia Colonial Abstracts, Northumberland County, Record of Births, 1661-1810, p.94, headed "T".) Elizabeth's parents were Phillip Tignor and Sarah Dennis. When both of them died in 1716, their nine year old daughter, Elizabeth, became an orphan and her aunt Mary (Tignor) and her husband, Thomas Hughlett, were appointed guardians to raise her (Northumberland Order Book 1713-1719, p 154).
11. Phillip Tignor-- The father of Elizabeth Tignor Humphries, was born Feburary 26, 1674 in Northumberland Co., VA to William Tignor and Katherine Hill. He married Sarah Dennis on Sept.25, 1699 in Northumberland Co., VA and six children were born of this marriage. The marriage record (Virginia, U.S., Marriages of the Northern Neck of Virginia, U.S., 1649-1800) states that Sarah was the daughter and sole heir to John and Elizabeth Dennis. Phillip Tignor was appointed Constable for lower St. Stephen's county on May 18, 1698. He died before April, 1716 in Northumberland County, Virginia. Both of Phillip's parents, William Tignor III (1640-ca 1702) and Katherine (Dorothy?) Hill (1644-1720) were born and died in Northumberland Co., VA.
The father of Sarah Dennis, Phillip Tignor's wife, was John Dennis Jr. (son of John Dennis, Sr. and his wife, Barbary) who was born ca. 1651 in the Chickacoan Indian District of Northumberland Co., Virginia and died there before March 19, 1679. He was described as "youngest sonne" in the will of his step-father, David Spiller, on Oct. 21, 1658. After the death of his father John Dennis, Sr., in 1652, John Dennis was placed in the guardianship of his mother's third husband, David Spiller. He was also named in the will of David Spiller in 1658. After John Dennis Jr.'s death, his wife, Elizabeth (1666-1725), remarried George Dameron in 1680 and the couple raised her infant daughter, Sarah Dennis, who later married Phillip Tignor. John's father, John Dennis Sr., was born in England about 1587 and died in 1652 in Wicocomoco, Northumberland County, VA. He is known to have immigrated to Virginia by 1633 and records indicate that he traveled more than once between Virginia and England. In 1644 he married Barbary, widow of Robert Swanson, and together they had three children: Richard, Pascall and John Dennis Jr. Barbary (maiden name unknown) was born about 1610-13 in England. Most likely she and her future husband were both from the London area where they met during the business travels of John who was a shareholder in The Virginia Company. (Note: There is another John Dennis of the same time period who immigrated to Virginia in 1635 and who may have been related to John Dennis Sr., possibly through an earlier marriage? This John Dennis, who never married nor had children, was born ca. 1608 in England and died in Northumberland Co.VA in 1652.)
12. William Tignor III-- The father of Phillip Tignor, William was born in 1640 in Fairfield Parish, Northumberland Co., Virginia. It is unclear from contemporary records whether William's wife was named Katherine Hill or Dorothy Hill, or if both names may refer to the same wife. Christ Church Parish, Virginia Marriages, 1653-1812 record the July 18, 1682 marriage of William Tignor II. to Dorothy Hill in Fairfield Parish. Virginia Colonial Abstracts, Northumbria Collectanea, 1645-1720 lists "Tignall, Wm. His wife Katherine: 24 Oct 1668. Tignall, Wm. Churchwarden of Fairfield par. 4 June 1684." This is followed by his will, dated Nov. 28, 1698, which mentions his son, Phillip Tignor, as well as his "eldest dau. Mary Hughlett wife of Tho Hughlett" (the couple who raised Phillip's orphaned daughter, Elizabeth Tignor Humphries). Also mentioned in the will is "Wife Anne Tignor she solle extrx." (Anne is a further marriage from 1684; it is thought that Katherine died prior to that date.)
Known children of William Tignor are Mary Hughlett (b.1666), Mebel Hill (b.1670), and Phillip (b. 1674). Further children by Anne include: Elizabeth (b.1685), James, Anne (b.1689), and William IV (b. 1693). A document from June 8, 1684, states that Mr. John Downing and William Tignal (Tignor) were churchwardens of Fairfields Parish. The parents of William were William Tignor II and Mabel Barbery.
13. William Tignor II-- The father of William Tignor III, William was born ca.1610 possibly in Sussex, England. U.S. and Canada, Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s show the arrival in New England of William Ticknor between the years of 1620-1650, which might be him. He died in 1657 in Middlesex Co. VA. His wife, Mabel Barbery, was born in Yorkshire, England ca. 1615, married William ca. 1640, and died in 1685 in Wiccocomico, Lancaster, Virginia. After William's death in 1657, Mabel remarried William Leech. Mabel's parents are thought to be Michael Speke Barbery (1582-1652) and Phillipa Rosewell (1560-1630) of England, however this is not definitely proven. Virginia Colonial Abstracts, Lancaster County, Record Book No. 2, 1637-1640 record several mentions of William Tignor, including (p 121) an inventory of "the late decd Mr. Wm. Tignor". It continues: "exhibit in curt primo die Aprl 1657 a/c Mabell the relict [widow] of the sd Willm Tignor & now wife of Willm Leech XXX. Rec. 16 Apl. 1657." Virginia Tax Records, Tithables of Lancaster County, VA states that William Leech lived in Lancaster on the north side of the Rappahannock in 1657, and was appointed a justice of that county in 1659. It appears from a deed in Middlesex, dated 1686, that he died without issue, and left his property to his wife's grandchildren, William Tignor, Jr., son of William Tignor of Wickomico, and William Poole, Jr., son of William Poole, of Middlesex. The transfer of William Leech's land to the grandchildren of his wife, Mabel, implies with near certainty that William Tignor of Wickomico (father of William, who inherited Leech's land, and Phillip) was the son of William and Mabel Tignor (whose second husband was Leech). William Tignor I's parents are not known with any certainty; therefore William may be considered the end of the line in America.