Double Gant Line and Lollar Family

The double line because our paternal 5-time great-grandfather, John Spencer Gant and our maternal 6-time great-grandfather, William Gant were brothers.

I have written quite a few posts about John Spencer's father John and his descendants, our ancestors but somehow, I missed William's side. Time to make it up!

Both William and John were sons of John Gant and Anna Brantley. William was their oldest child who was born on 2 May 1732 in Isle of Wight, Virginia. About 1756, when he was 24, William married Miss Ann Wood, the daughter of John Wood and Martha Anna Britain. William's bride was born on 12 August 1736 in Lincolnshire County, North Carolina. The marriage took place in Granville County, North Carolina.

William and Ann had eleven children. Their oldest son was Giles (b. 2 August 1756 in Granville, NC), their third child and second daughter was Elizabeth (b. circa 1757 in Granville, NC as well). The two, Giles and Elizabeth are our direct ancestors (which actually makes a triple Gant line).

How come?

Giles married six years younger Elizabeth Armstrong on 17 January 1783. She was born on 4 Feb. 1762 in Mecklenburg, NC to William Armstrong and Margaret Woods.

Elizabeth, Giles' sister married Mr. Jacob Lollar (born about 1750 in Burke, NC) to Isaac K Lollar and Elizabeth Hellums. Jacob was a Revolutionary War soldier - he served in North Carolina.

And then, one of Elizabeth and Jacob Lollar's sons, Hugh Gant Lollar (b. about 1786 in Lincoln County, NC) married one of Giles and Elizabeth Gant's daughters, Margaret Gant (b. 1791, NC).

Hugh Gant Lollar and Margaret Gant are our 4-time great-grandparents.

The posters show clearly that both Hugh Gant Lollar and Margaret Gant Lollar had the same grandparent (William Gant) and great-grandfather (John Gant).

Hugh Gant Lollar Jr. was Hugh Sr. and Margaret Lollar's sixth child, the fourth son.

Hugh Gant Jr. married at the age of 23, on 6 Jan. 1840 in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. His spouse was Nancy Bagwell.

Nancy Bagwell
mentioned in the record of Hugh G. Loller and Nancy Bagwell
Name: Hugh G. Loller
Spouse's Name: Nancy Bagwell
Event Date: 06 Jan 1840
Event Place: Tuscaloosa County, Alabama

Record Source:
"Alabama Marriages, 1816-1957," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F315-Q5P : 9 February 2018), Hugh G. Loller and Nancy Bagwell, 06 Jan 1840; citing reference ; FHL microfilm 1,290,745.

Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Gant Lollar Jr. had five daughters and five sons. Their fourth child and second son, our great-great-grandfather James Wiley Lollar, was born circa 1846 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Lake Tuscaloosa

His first wife was Malvina Donoretta (Dunreath) Bradley (b. 1845 in Panola, Texas), the daughter of John Mortimer Bradley and Elizabeth McFadden.

Hawthorn-Clabaugh-Patterson House is now the location of the Carthage Chamber of Commerce, Panola, TX

Melvina D Bradly
mentioned in the record of James W Loller and Melvina D Bradly
Name: James W Loller
Event Type: Marriage
Event Date: 18 Jul 1867
Event Place: Hopkins, Texas, United States
Spouse's Name: Melvina D Bradly

Record Source:
"Texas, County Marriage Index, 1837-1977," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:VXGD-FH2 : 22 December 2016), James W Loller and Melvina D Bradly, 18 Jul 1867; citing Hopkins, Texas, United States, county courthouses, Texas; FHL microfilm 1,298,848.

Three years later, the couple lived in Texas with two children.

Wiley Lollar
United States Census, 1870
Name: Wiley Lollar
Event Type: Census
Event Year: 1870
Event Place: Texas, United States
Gender: Male
Age: 24
Race: White
Race: (Original) W
Birth Year: (Estimated) 1845-1846
Birthplace: Alabama
Page Number: 57

Household
Wiley Lollar Male, age 24, born Alabama
Donaretta Lollar, F, age 22, born Texas
Joseph Lollar, M, 2, born Texas
Sarah Lollar, F, 0, born Texas

Record Source:
"United States Census, 1870," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MXGM-X2P : 12 April 2016), Wiley Lollar, Texas, United States; citing p. 57, family 396, NARA microfilm publication M593 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.); FHL microfilm 553,091.

James and Melvina had only two children - a boy Joesph W (b. 19 April 1868 in Hopkins, Texas) and a girl Sarah (b. 1870). Melvina passed on 3 Nov. 1873 in Hopkins, TX).

Joseph W, our great-grandfather, married at the age of 21. His wife was Emma Pierce, the daughter of Jesse Pierce and Florence Edwards. It was in Marion County, TX on 26 Sept. 1889.

Record Source:
"Texas, County Marriage Records, 1837-1965," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QV1H-W36N : accessed 27 July 2018), Joseph Lollar and Emma W Pierce, 29 Sep 1889, Marriage; citing Marion, Texas, United States, various county clerk offices, Texas State Library and Archives Commission, Texas Dept. of State Health Services and Golightly-Payne-Coon Co.; FHL microfilm 1,481,608.

An interesting thing is that on Emma's gravestone the date of her birthday shows 15 March 1879.

If Emma had been born in 1879, on the day of her marriage she would have been 10 years old. It seems like a mistake, especially that Census records say Emma Pierce, daughter of Florence was born in 1876. 14-year-old bride makes more sense.

Emma Pierce
United States Census, 1880
Name: Emma Pierce
Event Type: Census
Event Date: 1880
Event Place: Precinct 6, Harrison, Texas, United States
Gender: Female
Age: 4
Marital Status: Single
Race: White
Race (Original): W
Relationship to Head of Household: Granddaughter
Relationship to Head of Household (Original): GDau
Birth Year (Estimated): 1876
Birthplace: Texas, United States
Father's Birthplace: Georgia, United States
Mother's Birthplace: Mississippi, United States
Sheet Letter: B
Sheet Number: 539
Person Number: 3
Volume 1
 
Household
Danl Brown, Male, age 76, North Carolina, United StatesNaomi Brown,  Wife, F, 60, North Carolina, United States
Florrence Pierce, Daughter, F, 23. Mississippi, United States
Emma Pierce, Granddaughter, F, 4, Texas, United States

Record Source:
"United States Census, 1880," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:MFNV-42Y : 15 July 2017), Emma Pierce in household of Danl Brown, Precinct 6, Harrison, Texas, United States; citing enumeration district ED 51, sheet 539B, NARA microfilm publication T9 (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 1310; FHL microfilm 1,255,310.

Daniel and Naomi Brown were Emma's mother's (Florence's) parents. Emma's father Jesse died before the 1880 Census.

Harrison County Courthouse, Texas

 The Census from 1900 confirms that Emma, Joseph's wife was born in February 1876, not in 1879.

Joseph Lollar
United States Census, 1900
Name: Joseph Lollar
Event Type: Census
Event Year: 1900
Event Place: Commissioner's Precinct 3 (south of T.& P. R.R.), Bowie, Texas, United States
Gender: Male
Age: 32
Marital Status: Married
Race: White
Race (Original) W
Relationship to Head of Household: Head
Relationship to Head of Household (Original): Head
Years Married: 10
Birth Date: Apr 1868
Birthplace: Texas
Marriage: Year (Estimated) 1890
Father's Birthplace: Alabama
Mother's Birthplace: Texas

Household
Joseph Lollar Head, Male, age 32, born Texas
Emma Lollar, Wife, F, age 24, b. Texas
Jesse Lollar, Son, M, age 10, b. Texas
Ethel Lollar, Daughter, F, age 5, b. Texas
Ivy Lollar, Daughter, F, age 3, Texas
Infant Lollar, Son, M, age 0, Texas

Record Source:
"United States Census, 1900," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:M32B-7LR : accessed 27 July 2018), Joseph Lollar, Commissioner's Precinct 3 (south of T.& P. R.R.), Bowie, Texas, United States; citing enumeration district (ED) 10, sheet 20A, family 221, NARA microfilm publication T623 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1972.); FHL microfilm 1,241,613.

The Infant Lollar recorded in the Census was most probably George Isabell Lollar, born 16 June 1900.

Joseph and Emma had thirteen surviving children. Ethel B. Lollar was our grandmother.

Joseph W Lollar (Joe) passed on 28 September 1931 in Harrison, Texas.

His wife Emma died three months later from heart failure, on 9 December 1931.

Their daughter Ethel contracted TB at the age of 58. She was sick for six months and passed away in McKnight State Sanatorium on 5 July 1954 at 12:40 pm. The Sanatorium was situated at 110 Pecos Street in Terrel, Tom Green County, Texas. Ethel and her parents were buried in Harleton, Texas at Smyrna Cemetary.

I wrote more about Ethel B Lollar, her husband Samuel Hollie McIntosh and their children in that post.

Credits
Posters made with MyHeritage software,
Photos of gravemarkers: 
Emma Lollar Pierce - gabby
 Hugh Gant Lollar Jr. and Nancy Bagwell: Craig Burton
Lake Tuscaloosa: By RollTide13 - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=14580632,
Carthage Chamber of Commerce: By Michael Barera, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61253412
Harrison County Courthouse: By Renelibrary - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=59746190

Ethel Howard and Her Society Life

Ethel Howard, our 1st cousin once removed, was mentioned in the post related to her parents, Robert Lee Howard and Dora Elizabeth Angel.

The Howards were part of the early Collin County prominent society. Their daily activities and family matters were announced in the social columns of the local newspapers. Studying those old papers you can learn what certain persons did, where they went or whom they met on a given day.

When Ethel grew up, her whereabouts and major life events also became "public", known to the citizens of Plano and McKinney, the readers of The Plano Star Courier and The Weekly Democrat-Gazette.

25 May 1912 - Saturday, Ethel was 19 then. A day in Frisco.

Clipping source: Perkins, Tom W. & Wilson, Walter B. The Weekly Democrat-Gazette (McKinney, Tex.), Vol. 30, No. 17, Ed. 1 Thursday, May 30, 1912, newspaper, May 30, 1912; McKinney, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth292099/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society. 

24 June 1912, Monday

She had her cousins for dinner. Ina was Ethel's relation via her mother's side. Victoria and Viola were Ethel's first cousins.

Clipping source:  Logsdon, Ernest. The Plano Star-Courier. (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 24, No. 7, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 27, 1912, newspaper, June 27, 1912; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth570549/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society. 

1/2 February 1913, a day with friends in Sherman

Miss Ethel Cothes was Mary Ethel Cothes, daughter of Herman Cothes and George Anna Brown of Kentucky. She was three years older than our Ethel (Mary Ethel Cothes was born on 17 January 1889).

Clipping source:  Logsdon, Ernest. The Plano Star-Courier. (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 24, No. 37, Ed. 1 Thursday, February 6, 1913, newspaper, February 6, 1913; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth570342/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

23 May 1913 - Ethel Howard was 20 years old, she graduated from Plano High School.

Ethel is mentioned in the second place regarding the list of graduates. Since the names are not given in the alphabetical order, I assume her final results might have been the second best in the class.

Note that Ethel's class colors were purple and gold and the class flower was the sweet pea.
The class motto: "If I am not for myself who is? If for myself only what am I? If not now, when?" seems to be a paraphrase of the thought by Hillel, Jewish scholar and philosopher: "If I am not for myself, who will be for me? But if I am only for myself, who am I? If not now, when?" Ethics of the Fathers, 1:14

Clipping source:  Perkins, Tom W. & Wilson, Walter B. The Weekly Democrat-Gazette (McKinney, Tex.), Vol. 30, No. 17, Ed. 1 Thursday, May 29, 1913, newspaper, May 29, 1913; McKinney, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth992654/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society. 

12 June 1913, Thursday

Ethel played the game of 42 at her cousins'.
 

Clipping source: Logsdon, Ernest. The Plano Star-Courier. (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 25, No. 3, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 12, 1913, newspaper, June 12, 1913; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth570558/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

Lula, Viola and Ethel were cousins. Thanks to a marriage in the family, Tessie also was Ethel's relative. She was a cousin of Georgia Lou Mayes who had married Ethel's cousin Leffel.

22 June 1913, Sunday

Ethel spent the day with the Dillehays in Plano.

Clipping source: Logsdon, Ernest. The Plano Star-Courier. (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 25, No. 5, Ed. 1 Thursday, June 26, 1913, newspaper, June 26, 1913; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth570504/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society. 

Jim Dillehay was Mr. James Allen "Jimme" Dillehay. His children Cassie (b. 1890), John (b. 1894) and Allie (b. 1896) were around Ethel's age.

12 April 1914, Sunday. Ethel is 21. She meets Leona Mathews.

Clipping source: Logsdon, Ernest. The Plano Star-Courier. (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 25, No. 47, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 16, 1914, newspaper, April 16, 1914; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601809/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

9 July 1914, Ethel's father Robert Lee is sick.

Clipping source: Logsdon, Ernest. The Plano Star-Courier. (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 26, No. 7, Ed. 1 Thursday, July 9, 1914, newspaper, July 9, 1914; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601693/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

1 November 1914, Sunday in McKinney.

Clipping source: Wankan, Fred E. & Bagwill, Arthur A. The Plano Star-Courier. (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 26, No. 24, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 5, 1914, newspaper, November 5, 1914; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601684/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

28 March 1915, Sunday

22-year-old Ethel spent the day with friends and her two years younger brother Claudie (b. 1894).

Clipping source: Wankan, Fred E. The Plano Star-Courier (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 26, No. 44, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 1, 1915, newspaper, April 1, 1915; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601628/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society. 

26 Sept. 1915, Sunday

Ethel gives a luncheon which was a "family only" event. Ethel (1897) and Florence (1898) Richards were sisters of Ethel's future husband Cecil. The latter one married Claudie (Ethel's brother) two years later.

Clipping source: The Plano Star-Courier (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 27, No. 18, Ed. 1 Thursday, September 30, 1915, newspaper, September 30, 1915; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601621/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

7 November 1915, Sunday

A month after the family luncheon at Ethel's, she was hosted by Florence and Ethel Richards - her future sisters-in-law. Forrest Richards present at the dinner was her future brother-in-law.

There is a mistake in the surname Gant (not Grant). What's more? Clark Sexton became Viola Gant's husband in December 1915, Fred Lunsford married Ethel Richards (one of the hostesses) two years later.

Clipping source: The Plano Star-Courier (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 27, No. 23, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 11, 1915, newspaper, November 11, 1915; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601770/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society. 

Another piece of information about the same Sunday dinner and more mistakes - Claudie Howard, not Claudia. Misses Richards, not Miss Richard.

Clipping source: The Plano Star-Courier (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 27, No. 23, Ed. 1 Thursday, November 11, 1915, newspaper, November 11, 1915; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601770/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

December 1915, Ethel and friends attend a dinner hosted by her cousin Victoria Gant

The marriage of Viola Gant and Clark Sexton announced at dinner, took place on 15 Dec. 1915.

Other marriages which took place some time later (considering the guests mentioned in the clipping):
Ethel Howard + Cecil Richards
Florence Richards + Claudie Howard
Ethel Richards + Fred Lunsford
Marion Bourn + Leslie Yarbrough.

Clipping source: The Plano Star-Courier (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 27, No. 29, Ed. 1 Friday, December 24, 1915, newspaper, December 24, 1915; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601597/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

2 March 1916, Thursday - Ethel and Cecil got married

Clipping source: The Plano Star-Courier (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 27, No. 40, Ed. 1 Friday, March 10, 1916, newspaper, March 10, 1916; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601631/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

The wedding colors (including the cake) were pink and white. Cecil Richard's (the groom's) mother's grandfather was Salathiel Coffey, a Collin County pioneer.

Ethel Richards who found a ring in a piece of cake married Fred Lunsford in 1917.

Clipping source: The Plano Star-Courier (Plano, Tex.), Vol. 27, No. 41, Ed. 1 Friday, March 17, 1916, newspaper, March 17, 1916; Plano, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601592/: accessed July 23, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

Robert Washington Carpenter

Robert Washington Carpenter was born on 29 May 1831, in Madison Virginia, to William Joel Carpenter and Mary Snyder. Robert's great-great-grandfather Christian Zimmerman emigrated to Virginia from Germany in 1717. In America, the surname was changed to Carpenter.

Robert's parents married in 1805.

Joel Carpenter
mentioned in the record of Joel Carpenter and Polly Snyder
Name: Joel Carpenter
Spouse's Name: Polly Snyder
Event Date: 14 Dec 1805
Event Place: Madison, Virginia
Spouse's Father's Name: Adam Snyder

Record Source: 
“Virginia Marriages, 1785-1940,” database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XRD9-BWT : 11 February 2018), Joel Carpenter and Polly Snyder, 14 Dec 1805; citing Madison, Virginia, reference p255; FHL microfilm 32,595.

On 18 Dec. 1851 in Oldham, Kentucky, Robert married Elizabeth Ann Mathews, daughter of Walter B Mathews and Catherine Pottof Schrader.

Robert Washington came to Texas in 1852. He rented a horse and rode out northwest Texas along Spring Creek. Since he liked what he found there, with the $900 inherited from his father, he bought some land in the Collin County area, nowadays Rowlett, (50c/ acre). He also obtained 30 acres of a timber tract ($3/acre).

Afterward, he brought his young wife Elizabeth to Texas. They had eight children, seven sons — William Joel, Gipson Edgar, John Henry, Jefferson Davis, Robert Elzie, Benjamin Owen and Robert Edwards — and one daughter Mary Katie who did not survive (1877-1878).

During the Civil War, Robert formed a cavalry company in McKinney and was chosen its Captain.

In 1873 the town of Plano came into being.

Three years later, Robert together with Cpt. W N Bush started the Bethany Christian Church in Plano. He was also the founder of the Bethany Church Cemetery (4 Jan. 1877) which was situated not far from the First Christian Church of Bethany.

The Carpenters and other local families supported the establishment of Add-Ran College (later transformed into Texas Christian University). Robert Washington Carpenter was the director of the college.

Robert W. Carpenter passed on Sunday, 24 April 1898, in the result of the road accident of his buggy.

Clipping Source:

Thompson, F. C. The Democrat. (McKinney, Tex.), Vol. 15, No. 13, Ed. 1 Thursday, April 28, 1898, newspaper, April 28, 1898; McKinney, Texas. (texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth192012/: accessed July 18, 2018), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Collin County Genealogical Society.

One of Robert's sons William Joel came to Plano in 1901 and built a house which you can still admire at 708 E. 16th Street.

W J Carpenter House - 2015

Edward Albert, the youngest son of Robert and Lizzie's, born in 1871, graduated from the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy. He ran a drugstore in Plano till 1908, when he sold his establishment to the Allen brothers.

In 1922 Gipson Edward, the second son of Mr. and Mrs. Carpenter's was elected the mayor of Plano. He served at the position for two years.

Many years later, in 1978, one of Plano middle schools was named after Robert Washington Carpenter.

Where is R. W. Carpenter in our family tree?

The connection goes via the Angel and Brown families*

Rachel Clementine Howard our grandmother
⇛ her brother Robert Lee Howard
⇛ his wife Dora Elizabeth Howard (nee Angel)
⇛ her brother James Lafayette Anglea (b. 25 Feb. 1863, Tennessee/d. 27 June 1949, Allen, Collin Co., Texas)
⇛ his wife Eliza Catherine Anglea nee Brown (b. 5 May 1869, Collin County, Texas/ d. 27 June 1964, Allen, Collin, Texas)
⇛ her father John Liter Brown (b. 8 June 1834, Oldham, Kentucky/d. 14 April 1913, Allen, Texas)
⇛ his mother Eliza Ann Brown nee Carpenter (b. 24 Sept. 1808, Madison, Virginia/d. 1 Nov. 1849, Oldham, Kentucky)
⇛ her brother Robert Washington Carpenter


 *according to my MyHeritage research


Credits:
Information Source:
Find A Grave
Carpenter Plano Middle School Website
Historic Downtown Plano by Janice Craze Cline
 

Photograph
Michael Barera [CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0), CC BY-SA 3.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0) or GFDL (http://www.gnu.org/copyleft/fdl.html)], from Wikimedia Commons 

Rippy, McCracken and Browning families

How is it that Jonathan Browning and his son John Moses, the famous gunsmiths, inventors and gun makers are also in our family tree?

First, there was William Gant (1764-1824), our great-great-great-great-grandfather. On 7 July 1704, he married Miss Frances Rippy (born 18 Oct. 1760), the daughter of Mathew Rippy and Frances Anne Holliday.

Frances' brother was Edward Rippey (b. 23 March 1764, Hillsborough, Orange, North Carolina) Edward married Miss Nancy McCracken on 17 November 1774. The marriage took place in Orange County. Nancy's parents were John McCracken and Abigail McMinn.

North Carolina Marriages:
Name: Edward Rippey
Spouse's Name: Nancy Mccracken
Event Date: 17 Nov 1790
Event Place: Orange, North Carolina

Record source:
"North Carolina Marriages, 1759-1979," database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F8YT-3JS : 10 February 2018), Edward Rippey and Nancy Mccracken, 17 Nov 1790; citing Orange, North Carolina, reference ; FHL microfilm 6,330,317.

Nancy and Edward's daughter Abigail was born circa 1800 in Sumner County, Tennessee.

And here we get to the Browning family.

On 10 September 1823, Abigail married Mr. John M Browning, the son of Edmund Lloyd Browning and Sarah Barbara Allen.

Record source:
“Tennessee, County Marriages, 1790-1950,” database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QKH3-GD2F : 22 December 2016), John Browning and Abigail Rippey, 10 Sep 1823; citing Sumner, Tennessee, United States, Marriage, p. , Tennessee State Library and Archives, Nashville and county clerk offices from various counties; FHL microfilm 969,844.

John M's brother was Jonathan Browning (1805-1879) who had 24 children (with three wives).

Jonathan Browning

One of his sons was John Moses Browning, the creator of several firearms.

There is also another link to the Brownings in that family tree branch. In 1774, William Gant's brother Zachariah was born in Orange County, North Carolina. When Zack was thirty years old, on 24 Nov. 1804, he married Miss Sarah Sally McCracken. Sarah was a sister of Nancy, the one who married Edward Rippey.

The family tree branches which connect us to the Brownings:

1. William Gant - our g-g-g-g-grandfather
⇒ his wife Frances Rippy
⇒ her brother Edward Rippey + his wife Nancy Rippy nee McCracken
⇒ their daughter Abigail Rippy
⇒ her husband John M Browning (born circa 1800, Brushy Fork, Davidson, Tennessee/d. 24 July 1860, Centerville, Appanoose, Iowa)
⇒ his brother Jonathan Browning (b. 22 Oct. 1805, Brushy Fork of Bledsoe Creek, Sumner, Tennessee/d. 21 June 1879, Ogden, Weber, Utah Territory)
⇒ his son John Moses Browning (b. 23 Jan. 1855/d. 26 Nov. 1926)

2. William Gant
⇒ his brother Zachariah Gant (b. 1774/d. Jan. 1858, Sharon Grove, Todd, Kentucky)
⇒ his wife Sarah Sally McCracken (b. circa 1780, North Carolina/d. 1850, Subdivision 53, Marshall, Tennessee)
⇒ her sister Nancy Rippy nee McCracken (b. 1765, Ireland/d. 1850, Sumner County, Tennessee)
⇒ her daughter Abigail Rippy (b. 1800, Sumner, Tennessee/d. 4 March 1834, Iowa City, Wright, Iowa)
⇒ her husband John M Browning
⇒ his brother Jonathan Browning
⇒ his son John Moses Browning

In my next post I am going to come back to Collin County, Texas.

Photos:
Jonathan Browning:

author unknown [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons 

John M Browning

author unknown [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Catherine Carey and Mary Boleyn - Total Surprise

It is always surprising when I happen to find a famous person in our family tree. One of the greatest surprises was Catherine Carey and her mother Mary Boleyn. Yes, the Mary Boleyn.

First it was Catherine Carey whom I came across in our direct maternal family line and learned that she was our 12 times great-grandmother*. I read about Catherine and further studies led me to Catherine parents. She was born circa 19 May 1524 in England to William Carey and yes, Mary Boleyn. What a stunning discovery it was!

Catherine Knollys (Carey)

As you probably know, Mary was a mistress of king Henry VIII (some historians say Catherine was his illegitimate daughter).

Mary Boleyn

And what you probably also know, Mary's sister Anne became Henry VIII's wife.

Catherine Carey was Maid of Honor to Anne of Cleves and Catherine Howard, wives of Henry VIII. She married Lord Francis Knollys on 26 April 1540. Catherine was also the chief Lady of the Bedchamber to her first cousin and Anne's daughter, Queen Elizabeth I.

Lord and Lady Knollys had 14 children. Their daughter Anne Knollys, Baroness de La Warr is our direct family line*.

This is how the line goes:

Jurita Elizabeth McIntosh (Ledbetter) - our great-grandmother
⇒ her mother Hannah E Ledbetter nee Hagood (b. 1839, Georgia)
⇒ her father Lemuel Davis Hagood (b. 20 July 1820, South Carolina/ d. 15 August 1909, Fulton, Georgia)
⇒ his father James J Hagood (b. 1780, South Carolina/ d. about 1874, Forsyth County, Georgia)

⇒ his mother Martha Hagood nee West (b. circa 1755, Virginia/d. 16 Nov. 1829, Pickens, South Carolina)

Hagood mill - built by James Hagood in 1845, near Pickens, South Carolina

⇒ her father William West (b. 1704, King William, King William, Virginia/d. 28 June 1796, King William, Virginia)

⇒ his father Col. Francis West:

king William County Sheriff (1741), member of the House of Burgesses (1748-1758), fought in the French and Indian War (Colonial defense forces)

⇒ his father Capt. Thomas West (b. 1670, West Point, Virginia/d. 1720, West Point, Virginia):

Captain of King William County Militia, county representative in the House of Burgesses (1702-1706)

⇒ his father Col. John West II (born 6 June 1632, Chicksack Bellfield Plantation York River, New Kent, Virginia/d. circa 1689, West Point, New Kent/King William County, Virginia):

he was the New Kent County Militia commander in chief in the Colony of Virginia.

The Flag of Colony of Virginia, Colony of England

⇒ his father Governor John West I (born 14 Dec. 1590, Wherwell, Hampshire, England/d. 1 March 1659, West Point, King William, Virginia):

in 1613, he graduated from Magdalen College, Oxford, England (Bachelor of Arts). In 1618, at the age of 27, he sailed from England to Virginia on the "Bonnie Bess" ship. Later, he settled in West Point, Virginia. John West II was a member of the Virginia Company of London, and a member of the House of Burgesses (1628-1630), Captain-general, Governor of Virginia (1635-1637).

⇒ his mother Anne Knollys West (b. 19 July 1555, Rotherfield Greys, Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, England/ d. 30 August 1608, Lansium, Hampshire, England)

⇒ her mother Catherine Carey Knollys (b. 19 May 1524, Chilton Folist, Wiltshire, England/ d. 15 Jan. 1569, Hampton Palace, East Molesey, Surrey, England).

Hampton Court Palace

*My MyHeritage research

Credits
Pictures
Mary Boleyn: 
By Unknown - http://tudorhistory.org/people/mboleyn/, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=213847By Unknown - http://tudorhistory.org/people/mboleyn/, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=213847

Catherine Knollys:

By Yale Center for British Art B1974.3.22, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=7803507

Hagood Mill: By Bill Fitzpatrick - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=21040173

the Flag: CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=422339

Hampton Court: By Andreas Tille - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=136095