Phebe Crumley was born on March 24, 1818, according to her tombstone, to William Crumley and his wife, Lydia Brown.

Ok, her mother is probably Lydia Brown.  And there is no solid proof her father was William, except geography and oral history.

We have, ahem, a bit of a problem here.  Welcome to The Crumley Curse.

Doggone these men with the same names.

We know, for sure that William Crumley Jr. (the third), the best candidate for Phebe’s father, married Lydia Brown on October 1, 1807 in Greene Co., TN.

We also know that William Crumley, Senior, and that word “senior” is important, married Elizabeth “Betsy” Johnston in October 1817 in Greene County, TN.  At that time, William Crumley (the second,) born circa 1767, would have been known as Senior and William Crumley (the third,) his son born circa 1785, would have been known as Jr.  If William Crumley (the third) had a son, William, he would have been age 10 or under, born since the 1807 marriage, and would not yet be referred to as Jr. or Sr. in legal documents.  He was not of age, so he would never be referred to in a legal document, unless he was an orphan.  There were no other William Crumley’s old enough to marry or to sign a document in Greene County, TN at that time.

Do you notice anything about these two documents?

William Crumley’s signature looks almost identical.  Ok, it looks exactly identical, except the second one is a bit shakey, like an older person.  But if William (the second, about age 50 in 1817) taught William (the third, about age 30 in 1817) how to write, then it’s not unexpected that their signatures would be very similar.  Or am I just trying to justify this??

Or, did William the second sign for William the third in 1807 because he was underage?  The signature itself does not say Jr. or Sr.  In the 1850 census, William (the third) is shown as being a carpenter born in Virginia in 1789, so in 1807, at age 18, he would have needed someone to sign on his behalf.

And look who else signed both.  Jotham Brown.  Why is he important?  Jotham Brown was the father of William Crumley (the third’s) wife that he married in 1807, Lydia Brown.  Lydia’s father died in 1799, but her brother was also named Jotham Brown and he apparently signed both of these documents with his X.  Jotham could not sign his name.

So let’s do some math here.

If my ancestor, Phebe, was born on March 24, 1818, then her mother got pregnant in about June of 1817, which was 4 months before William Crumley married Elizabeth “Betsy” Johnson.

Certainly, that could have had something to do with why he married, if the groom was in fact William (the third), widower of Lydia Brown, who married Betsy Johnson.

But why would William Jr. style himself was William Sr. when William Sr. was clearly still living, and living in the same county?  That doesn’t make any sense.  And that’s not just a little error, it’s a huge legal faux pas when dealing with bonds, money and several people.

So we have one piece of evidence, meaning the nearly identical signatures that strongly argues FOR the groom being William (the third) and three pieces arguing against it, meaning Phebe’s birth four months after the marriage, the fact that the document says William Sr., and DNA evidence that is compelling but inconclusive.  We also have the possibility that the signature are the same, because William (the second) is signing for William (the third), his son, because he is underage.  I personally think this last option is the most likely explanation.

Ok, enough worrying about the Williams, let’s go back to Phebe.

Phebe had a sister, Clarissa, or at least Clarissa is believed to be Phebe’s sister, born in April of 1817.  So, if Clarissa was born in April and her mother, Lydia, died, William (the third) would have had a newborn and no wife.  So he might have been very inclined to marry quickly.  In this scenario, he would have gotten Betsy Johnson pregnant in June and married her in October of 1817.  No moss growing under that boys feet, if this is the case.

If this is the situation, it means that the mitochondrial DNA of Clarissa and Phebe’s descendants (through all females) would be different, because they had different mothers.

If this is not the situation, then it means that Lydia got pregnant for Phebe two months after Clarissa’s birth – certainly possible but unlikely with a nursing child.

Turning to DNA – Answers and More Questions

It took two years, or more, to find a direct descendant of Clarissa through all females – and we’re just darned lucky to have been able to do that.  It took another year to collect her DNA.

The DNA held a surprise – the DNA of Phebe’s descendant and Clarissa’s descendant matched.  Given the signatures, I really didn’t expect a match.  That means either they had the same mother or their mothers shared a common ancestor.

If this is beginning to sound like Peyton Place to you, it does to me too.  Did I mention that this used to be called the Crumley Conundrum, but it has since graduated to The Crumley Curse???

The most logical explanation, which may not be the correct one, is that Lydia did not die in 1817 and William (the third) was not the William who married Betsey Johnson.  Instead, William (the second,) his father, who would have been William Sr., just like the document says, is the William who married Elizabeth “Betsy” Johnston.  Given that scenario, then Lydia got pregnant for Phebe when Clarissa was just 2 months old, which is rather unusual with a nursing baby but certainly not impossible.

Looking at the women’s pedigree charts, we know that Jotham Brown’s wife was named Phebe – and that is the name of the child born in 1818 to William Crumley and his wife.  We know that Elizabeth “Betsey” Johnson’s father was probably Zopher Johnson, or maybe his brother Moses Johnson if not Zopher, and we don’t even know Elizabeth’s mother’s first or last name – regardless of whether her father was Zopher or Moses.

The good news is that we also managed to find a mitochondrial DNA candidate for Phebe, the wife of Jotham Brown.  Phebe Crumley and Phebe, the wife of Jotham Brown and Clarissa Crumley are exact matches.

Now, there is a rumor afoot, or maybe better stated, a strong suspicion, that Phebe, Jotham Brown’s wife, is Zopher Johnson (the Elder’s) daughter – and she could be – they did live in the same place.  These families were heavily intermarried.

So let’s add the mitochondrial DNA path to the Zopher chart, in yellow, passed from mother to daughter, assuming that Phebe, wife of Jotham is the daughter of Zopher and that Clarissa and Phebe are the daughters of Lydia Brown and William Crumley (the third.)  This is the most likely scenario, but it’s not the only possible one.

Note that on the charts above and below, Zopher’s wife gave her DNA to daughter Phebe (who married Jotham Brown) and her sons Zopher and Moses, whichever was the father to Betsey Johnson – but Zopher’s wife’s mtDNA does not pass on through son Zopher to Betsy.  It stops with son Zopher (or son Moses) because the wife’s mtDNA gets passed to the children.

This also means that if we could find someone who descends from Zopher (the elder) and his wife, name unknown, through all females to the current generation (which can be a male,) we could confirm or refute the theory that Phebe (Jotham’s wife) is the daughter of Zopher (the elder) and his wife.  Actually, if their DNA matches, it would confirm that they share a common female ancestor in a relatively close timeframe.  It can’t confirm that we have a mother daughter relationship – meaning it could also be first cousins, etc.  But still, it would make a compelling case AND it could positively refute the entire thing.  In this case, yes means probably or possibly and no means no.

We do have one more fly in the ointment with Clarissa who married in Greene County (in 1834), as did her brother William (in 1840), also attributed to William (the third) and Lydia Brown.  If she was the child of William (the third) and Lydia Brown, why was she living in Greene County?  Maybe she was visiting and decided to stay, fell in love, married there and the rest is the history we know.

Or, maybe she wasn’t the child of William Crumley (the third) and his wife.  But if not, whose daughter could she be? All candidates in Greene County are eliminated by virtue of knowing who their children are.

William Crumley (the second) had a son, Isaac, who married in 1816, who also moved with the family to the Lee County/Claiborne County area.  It’s possible that Clarissa or Phebe could have been Isaac’s daughter.  Keep in mind that Clarissa’s DNA matches that of Phebe, thought to be William (the third’s) daughter, so we have to find a way to explain that.  Plus, there is still the question of why Clarissa was living in Greene County and how Phebe and Clarissa could both match the DNA of Jotham Brown’s wife, Phebe.  Isaac’s oldest proven daughter, Lydia, also went back to Greene County to marry, so these families kept in touch.

Isaac’s wife was Rachel Brown, daughter of Sylvanus Brown and Ruth Johnson.  See the chart above and below.

Ruth was the daughter of Moses Johnson and an unknown wife.  Moses Johnson was the son of Zopher Johnson (the Elder) and if in fact Clarissa was the child of Rachel and Isaac, that would mean that Zopher (the elder’s) wife was from the same maternal line as his son, Moses’s wife, because in the chart below, Moses does NOT pass on the mtDNA to Ruth, his wife does.  If Ruth’s mtDNA matches that of Zopher’s wife, it means that those two women share a common ancestor.  While it’s possible, it’s also a huge leap of logic.  Again, the most likely scenario is the one where William (the third) has both Clarissa and Phebe by wife Lydia Brown.

Unfortunately, Clarissa did not name any of her children Jotham, Zopher, Isaac, Sylvanus, Rachel, Ruth, Moses or Lydia, so we don’t have any clues?  What was she thinking???

For that matter, Phebe didn’t name a child Lydia either although Mary’s middle initial was L.  However, given that her name was Phebe, it certainly infers that she was named for Jotham Brown’s wife, Lydia Brown’s mother, Phebe.  If a second wife was going to honor a first wife, her cousin, you would have thought she would have named the child Lydia, not Phebe.

It would be wonderful if we could find a mitochondrial candidate for the wife of Moses Johnson and Zopher Johnson (Jr. and Sr.) too – and we could positively confirm whether or not Lydia Brown and Elizabeth Johnson came from a common female – or not.  Worst case, we could eliminate some possibilities.

Unfortunately, I think that all of the research and steps we’ve taken so far have simply created more confusion and made things more complex – if that was possible.

Bottom line to this problem – I think the parents of both girls, Phebe and Clarissa were William (the third) and Lydia Brown.  And even if Clarissa wasn’t, Phebe lived in the Lee County VA/Claiborne Co., TN area, was raised there and the only other person who could have been her father was Isaac.  He was not present in 1820 in Lee County and the Greene Co., TN 1820 census does not exist.  He is in Lee County in 1830 with two females 10-15, but he reportedly had a daughter, Rachel, in that age category as well.  Phebe named a son William, not Isaac.  No grandchildren named Isaac, Rachel or Lydia either.  Phebe’s father’s name as William is handed down orally in the family, but unfortunately, her mother’s name wasn’t.  Makes me want to pull my hair out!!!

Phebe’s Early Life

Since Phebe Crumley was born in 1818, and her parents did not move to Claiborne County until about 1819, it is likely that she was actually born in Greene Co., TN.  She probably has no memory of living there as she was unquestionably raised on the Lee County/Hawkins County borders.  However, there seems to be a lot of interaction between those families, even though they do live about 60 miles apart.

By 1820, William Crumley (the third) was living in Lee County, Virginia with one male under age 10, 1 male age 10-16, one male 26-46 (himself), 3 females under 10, one female 16-26 and one female 26-45.

We don’t know much about Phebe before her marriage to Joel Vannoy on January 18, 1845, in Claiborne County.  This was just before that part of the county became Hancock County.

We know that Phebe’s father, William (the third) may have been a miller, and her grandfather William likely was a miller, and his mill was very near the now Hancock County/Lee County, Virginia line on Blackwater Creek.  In fact, his property straddled the state line.  Blackwater was dead center in the middle of the Melungeon community where William (the third) is living, noted as a carpenter, two doors from the miller, in 1850.

The last child known to be born to William and his wife, presumably Lydia, Aaron,was born about 1821, just three years after Phebe was born.  He did not name a child Lydia (or Elizabeth or Betsey,) but he did name a child Jotham.

When Phebe was about 10 years old, about 1828, her oldest brother, John, married a woman named Mahala.  The first child to marry must have resulted in quite a celebration.  The next child, Jotham, didn’t marry for another 6 years.

In the 1830 census, William (the third) is living in Pulaski County, KY, about 100 miles west of Lee County, VA.  Why?  Darned if I know.

By 1840, the family is back in Claiborne County.  They could have lived in Pulaski County just briefly, or for as long as nearly 20 years – although it would have been unusual for William not to have taken his sons with him.  Keep in mind that John married in 1828.

In 1834, in Lee County, Phebe’s brother, Jotham Crumley married Ann Robinette, so the family may have been back in the area by that time.  Both families probably celebrated the happy event and Phebe, then age 16, may have dreamed of when she would have her own wedding.

In August 1841, Phebe’s brother, Jotham died in Lee County, VA.  We don’t know the cause of death, but he was married and had 3 children. It must have been a very sad day.

In 1845, Phebe married Joel Vannoy and in the 1850 census, we find Joel and Phebe living in Hancock County.  Phebe is listed as having been born in Virginia, so her parents may have been living in Lee County by 1818.

By 1850, Joel and Phebe already had three children, Sarah Jane, Elizabeth and William G.  They lived next door to John Gilbert, a well-known Baptist preacher in Hancock County.  John was the pastor at Mulberry Gap Church, which is not far from the land that Joel Vannoy owned, so we can probably extrapolate that this is the church they attended.  This was also the closest church to where they lived at that time.

This photo, taken by Phillip Walker taken from Mulberry Gap shows the Mulberry Gap Church nestled into the hills on the far right side of the photo.

The Mulberry Gap church minutes are not known to be in existence, but given that their neighbor was the preacher, Phebe’s membership here is a good bet.

Update:  Well, it seemed like Phebe would have been a member of the Mulberry Gap Church, but she wasn’t.  The minutes have been discovered beginning in 1852, including a list of members, although earlier church minutes and records have been lost.  Between 1852 and 1860, neither Phebe Vannoy, nor any of her family except for her brother John Crumley and her sister Belinda “Melinda” Crumley Davis are members of this church.  Brother John was reported by the family to be a minister, but in the church notes, he was a member excluded for “profane swearing.”

We don’t really know when Phebe’s mother, probably Lydia Brown, died.  We know that in 1840, William is shown living with a woman about his own age, along with two unmarried adult daughters.  Phebe would, of course, have been one of those.

Phebe’s brother, John, was reportedly a Baptist minister, although the above information from the Mulberry Gap Church casts doubt on that.

Did John preach his mother’s funeral or did his uncle Isaac Crumley, who was also a preacher, do those honors?  Did they stand at the graveside in the heat of the summer or the snow in winter and sing Amazing Grace?  Did they each throw a handful of dirt onto the coffin, hearing the hollow thunk that one comes to recognize as a sadly unique sound.

What we do know is that Phebe’s father, William, is shown in the 1850 census as having been married within the last year to a woman named Paa or Pqa, also later noted as Pequa, born in 1797.  Unfortunately, Hancock County records have burned, so we have no way of knowing anything more.  Given this information, it would appear that Phebe’s mother passed away sometime between 1840 and 1849 when her father remarried.

Finding the Land

On the map below, you can see with the bottom left arrow where Joel and Phebe Crumley Vannoy lived, where the church is located in the center, and where Phebe’s father owned land, at the far right.

Phebe lived about 10 or 12 miles from her parents, so she probably didn’t get to see them often.  Maybe on Sundays at church if they both attended the same church.

Phebe’s sister, Sarah “Sallie” married Edward Walker in 1848.  They lived just a mile or so down the road, in a log cabin that still stands today.

The exact locations of the homesteads are shown on Mulberry Gap Road, also called Brown Town Road.  Sallie Crumley Walker lived at the arrow on the left and Phebe at the arrow on the right.

Sally married and lived with Edward Walker in this cabin.  Certainly, Phebe was here many times to visit.  Edward Walker died in 1860 and Phebe and Joel likely tried to help her sister Sally who had 4 small children to raise.

As luck would have it, on the day we were looking for the Vannoy land, we stumbled on the Walker cabin.  We turned in the driveway to ask directions and for information, and the very gracious owners told us about the cabin, the original owner, and offered to show us around inside.  Against every lick of my better judgement I ever had, and despite teaching my kids about “stranger danger,” my friend and I took them up on their offer.  No murderous crazy people would have taken the time or money to restore an old and very dilapidated log cabin.  (Don’t tell my kids…OK???)

So, while we can’t visit Phebe’s cabin, we can surely visit sister Sallie’s, where Phebe visited, which was surely much like Phebe and Joel’s cabin in that same timeframe.

There is a cemetery above the Walker cabin, and it’s likely where Sallie is buried, but there are no marked graves and no one really knows for sure.

Update:  Phillip Walker discovered that Sallie is not buried at the Walker homestead, but lived beyond 1880, moved to Tazewell (in Claiborne County) then on to Cocke County where she died on January 11, 1898 and is buried in a marked grave in Union Cemetery.

Here is the view of Powell Mountain from the cemetery above the house.  This land is breathtakingly beautiful.

Below is the current front of the Walker house.  By the way, the front used to be the back when the road ran between the house and the Creek. Years ago, they changed the location of the road, so the back is now the front.

The original house ended half way through the upper windows and the at one point, a few feet in height was added all around..

Inside, the cabin is mostly original.

A type of well basin exists and the water one of several springs springing from the hillside behind the house would be diverted into the basin inside the house.  It also drained out, so this was the earliest form of running water.  Rather ingenuous and Sally probably considered herself very lucky indeed.

You can see the basin at the left with a basket and bowl sitting inside.  It’s quite large, maybe 2 by 4 feet.  The original inhabitants would have used it to keep things like butter and milk cool.  They call it the “spring box.”

There are bullet holes in the upper part of the cabin, and a place for guns to be leveled and shot.  There is even a secret room, or secret compartment, also with gunshot holes.  Wouldn’t you love to know that story!!!

Update:  Phillip Walker, a descendant of Edward Walker, tells us that the secret room was accessibly only through the attic and was actually the space between the two walls and the chimney dividing them.  Ironically, Edward’s great-granddaughter told Phillip about the secret room, and that they hid valuables in that room during the Civil War, but she knew nothing of the house still standing today.  There are bullet holes into that room as well, and holes to shoot, but they might have had pegs at that time as to not give away the location of the shooter.

The original fireplace still exists as well with the original masonry, logs and beams.

What you can’t see here is that the fireplace is actually a double chimney.  If you walk around to the other side, down that hallway, there is another fireplace on the opposite side of the first.  This was a deluxe cabin in its day.

Mulberry Creek, the lifegiving creek that ran behind the Walker homestead and then on down to the Vannoy lands.

The Vannoy family lived on land on Mulberry Road in Hancock County that had been patented by Joel Vannoy and adjoined his father, Elijah Vannoy’s land.

After leaving the Walker homestead, about a mile further down the road, to the northeast, you come to an area where the creek crosses back under the road to the right.  Originally, the road simply followed the creek, but when they paved the road, they straightened it out a bit.

First, you’ll notice a house with a bridge and a barn very close to the road.

As you pass that first house, Mulberry Creek loops very close to the road and you’ll see that you are between two old houses, the one with the bridge is to the right and the second older home is immediately to the left, on that loop.

Turn around.  Across the road, immediately, you’ll see farm lane and a gate and that is the Vannoy land.  I don’t know if they owned any on the flat side of the road.  This Google maps link should take you right there.

https://www.google.com/maps/@36.550103,-83.333346,3a,75y,339.57h,88.14t/data=!3m4!1e1!3m2!1sOK54QBbbJMeh0De-JistCQ!2e0

I wish their home still stood, but nothing remains today.  I suspect there is a graveyard back in there as well, but if so, no one knows the location and it has been committed back to the hands of nature.  We know that Joel’s parents died while living here, so they certainly had to be buried someplace and in these parts, everyone had their own family cemetery.  People were just buried on their own land, generally behind the house on high ground.

This picture of cousin Harold was taken while discovering and visiting this land some years back.  Finding this land, again, was no small feat.  None of the people currently living knew where it was.  We lose so much with each generation that passes.

It must have been a devastating blow to Phebe when her mother died, sometime between 1840 and 1849.  Phebe may have still been living at home, as she married in 1845.  But her grief was not to end there.  In 1851, William Crumley, then between the ages of 61 and 66, sold out, pulled up stakes and moved to Appanoose County, Iowa with his new wife.

I suspect that there were discussions among all of the children, all then married, about who would go and who would stay. It appears that only one child, Aaron, married and with a large family, accompanied his father.  So in addition to losing her mother to death and burying a brother in 1841, Phebe also lost her father and a second brother to the frontier.  Brother William and sister Clarissa, assuming they were siblings, lived back in Greene County, so that left only Phebe with siblings Sallie, Belinda and John.

William didn’t live long after the trip to Iowa.  He died sometime between 1852 and the 1860 census.  Phebe must have received notice of his death by letter.  The 1850 and 1860 census tell us that she could not read and write, but according to the 1870 census, Phebe could read but could not write.  Someone may have had to read that letter to her.  If reading was difficult for her, she surely would have had a second person read it to make sure she understood correctly. What a horribly sad letter to receive.  I can see her hands shaking as she read those devastating words.  It would make you hesitant to open letters in the future, uncertain of what they might hold.

By 1860, Joel and Phebe have 6 children.  The original 3 children shown in the 1850 census are all still living.  Mary is age 9 and was born in 1851, but there is a gap between Mary and the next child, K. M., age 4.  It looks like Joel and Phebe lost at least 2 children, whose names we’ll never know.  The last child, only a few months old, Nancy, would be their last child.  It also looks like they lost a child between K.M. and Nancy.  So by 1860, Phebe buried at least one and maybe as many as 3 children, probably in the same lost cemetery, someplace on the Vannoy land.

The census is extremely faint and K. M. it appears becomes James Hurvey Vannoy in later records. It’s also not unheard of in this region for someone to simply change a child’s name.

The UnCivil War

The Civil War was a very difficult time for these families.  Family oral history tells us that Joel Vannoy was a Confederate sympathizer, which means it’s likely Phebe was too – or she was quiet about it if she wasn’t.

There are Confederate records for both William and John Crumley, but it’s impossible to tell from the records currently available online if they are Phebe’s brothers.  There is a William who served out of Greene County and John Crumley, Phebe’s brother, is in the 1860 census in Hancock County, but he is not found thereafter.  Phebe’s daughter, Sarah Jane Vannoy married John Nunn in 1864 and he fought for the Confederacy.

In the 1940s or 1950s, a descendant wrote the story of how the family survived the Civil War, in a letter, telling about when the family took a picnic and went back and visited the old homestead in Hancock County. That was about 1910. She recounts that during the war, they hid everything of value in the caves above their home.

The following photo shows James Hurvey Vannoy and Nancy Vannoy Venable in front of the old Vannoy homestead.  Nancy died in August of 1940 so this photo had to have been taken before that time.  The flowers in their hands make me wonder if they were visiting the cemetery that day.

The family survived the war intact, as Phebe’s children were all too young to serve.  She must have been exceedingly grateful for that turn of events.  She married a bit late, about age 27.  Had she married and began having children earlier, they would likely have been old enough to serve.  Regardless of how she felt about the war, as a mother, she would have been greatly relieved to have her children home safe with her and not someplace on the battlefield.

The danger wasn’t always from the soldiers either.  Phebe’s niece, Mary Polly Crumly was born in 1829, the daughter of Rev. John Crumley.  Mary Polly married Calvin Ramsey in 1846 and lived in Hancock County.  Calvin was a northern sympathizer, in the midst, it seems, of southern sympathizers.  One night, Calvin, Mary Polly and their baby, also named Calvin were taken out in the middle of the night, disappeared and were never seen again.  One version of this story, told by descendants, indicates that it was southern sympathizing family members who “did the deed.”  Their 8 surviving children were then placed as wards of the court with a guardian being assigned.

The Lawsuit

One of the great things about publishing articles like this is that people get in touch with you, and sometimes have knowledge of new information.

In 1860, Joel Vannoy’s wife’s sister’s husband, Edward Walker, died.  In 1862 an estate sale was held and two items of value were auctioned – a young female slave and Edward’s land, except for his wife’s dower rights.

The Walker family was beginning what would be a very long legal process in which everyone pretty much sued everyone else – and it lasted for decades, including through the Civil War.  For those interested in Edward Walker and his wives, Mahala Tussey and Sarah (Sallie) Crumley, Philip Walker has written a wonderful summary of events.

Phillip was also kind enough to share a chancery suit with me.  In that suit, I discovered that Joel Vannoy, in April 1862, signed as surety, meaning bond, for Robert Woodson who purchased the slave at Edward Walker’s estate sale.  Woodson bid $800 and a note was taken for a period of 2 years, at which time he was to pay the balance.  Obviously, during this time, the Civil War interfered and clearly, Woodson no longer owned Tilda, the slave, because she would have been freed.  Either he couldn’t or wouldn’t pay the debt, but the court ruled that a debt is a debt, regardless.  These court notes are from 1865 after the Union is in control of the government.  The Civil War ended in April of 1865 and for much of this time, the local governments in this region were virtually nonfunctional.  Furthermore, everyone had an allegiance and Hancock County in particular was severely split between the north and south – and everyone felt very strongly about their position.  To make matters worse, marauding bands of soldiers were problematic throughout the county and lawlessness was rampant – as was hunger.  By the end of 1865, these families were only beginning to recover.

In December of 1865, the court ordered the sheriff of both Hancock and Claiborne Counties to confiscate the assets of both Robert Woodson and Joel Vanoy (sic) since Joel was Woodson’s security on the note for Tilda in 1862.  The total owed at that point was $982.94, including costs.

It is unclear in subsequent court proceedings how much they confiscated, if anything, and what happened.

I suspect, strongly, that the reason the Claiborne County sheriff was involved is because Joel Vannoy had already sold his land and was living in Claiborne County.

This also sheds more light on the possible reason that Joel’s land in Claiborne in 1872 was deeded to his wife and children, not to Joel directly.

The documents pertaining to just this lawsuit, excluding subsequent suits, totaled about 220 pages.  There were many depositions, but never was Joel Vannoy deposed in this process, which I found odd.  To serve as the bond for Woodson, Joel was most likely at the sale itself and he clearly signed subsequent documents.

This is highly suggestive that by this time, Joel Vannoy’s mental condition had deteriorated to the point that both sides knew his testimony would be useless if it could even be obtained.

From Phebe’s perspective, this additional drama must have been both troublesome and weighed heavily upon her heart.  Her brother John, and his daughter were both dead, along with the daughter’s husband and child, and her sister was embroiled in what could be termed a life-long feud between her children and their half-siblings.  Eventually, it appears that one of Sarah’s children turned against her as well.  And Phebe’s own family assets were being sought and perhaps confiscated for the Woodson debt – on top of which her husband wasn’t doing well.

We don’t know why Joel was involved in the sale of Tilda to Woodson.  Was he making a political statement within the family, supporting someone’s position – or was he simply trying to help facilitate a sale?

Was the anxiety produced by knowing that note would come due and likely be unpaid part of what made Joel snap?  With the social and economic changes produced by the Civil War, Woodson was likely to default – meaning Joel would be on the hook.  Was this, combined with the wartime generated necessary paranoia part of the equation that would lead to the decline in Joel’s mental health?

Joel seemed to be well enough to sign as a surety in 1862, although there were allegations that adequate security was not taken on the Woodson note.  By the end of the Civil War, Joel is no longer in any court documents until the 1886 record of his commitment to the hospital in Knoxville.

Movin’ On Up

By 1870, the Phebe Crumley and Joel Vannoy family had moved from Hancock County, down little Sycamore Road into the Little Sycamore community.  They bought land and built a house in what is today known as Vannoy Hollow, pronounced Vannoy Holler in Claiborne County.

If their house in Hancock County was a log cabin, this new, bigger, house was an upgrade.

The 1870 census tells us that Phebe was born in Tennessee, although the earlier census schedules said Virginia.  Their children are starting to marry.

Elizabeth Vannoy married Lazarus Estes in 1867, son of confederate soldier, John Y. Estes, and they lived next door to Joel and Phebe Vannoy.  Elizabeth has two daughters in1870 and the oldest is named after her mother, Phebe, although she wouldn’t live to adulthood.  One of the “old widows” in Claiborne County once told me that it’s extra difficult when the child you name after one of your parents dies.

Just a few months after the census, Phebe’s son, George Vannoy would marry Elizabeth Estes, daughter of John Y. Estes.

The family seems to be doing well, as they purchased a significant amount of land in 1872 – 465 acres – far more than they could ever farm themselves, assuming at least some of it was flat.

Estes and Vannoy Hollers are separated by a smaller ridge called both Middle Ridge and Little Ridge, depending on who you are talking to.  In this photo, taken on the Estes Holler side, which looks amazing like the Vannoy Holler side, you can see Middle Ridge on the right.  As you can see, almost nothing is flat.  It doesn’t have to be flat, just flat enough to plow a little or graze something.

In 1877, Phebe’s daughter, Mary, died at age 26, having never married.  I wonder if Mary had a life-long medical condition.  She was buried in the Venable Cemetery, now called the Pleasant View Cemetery, located behind the Pleasant View Baptist Church.

The 1880 census again tells us that Phebe was born in Virginia and that she can read but not write. Phebe tells us that her father was born in Tennessee, but that her mother was born in Virginia.  This is interesting because William Crumley was definitely born in Virginia in about 1785 and Lydia was born in Virginia as well in about 1787.  Isaac Crumley, however, was born in Tennessee and his wife Rachel Brown, was born in Virginia.  Unfortunately, the census is an unreliable source, but still…

Phebe had two living sisters, or at least we believe them to be sisters, Clarissa and Melinda (Belinda) and both of them reported that their parents were born in Tennessee.  Melinda, by the way, was born in 1820 and did name a child Lydia.

We also know that Phebe had the flux, which is a historic term for severe diarrhea.  Generally, it means bloody flux which was dysentery and often fatal – but if this is what she had, she recovered and survived, but likely had one miserable summer.

Phebe’s children are all married by 1880 except for Nancy who is still living at home and wouldn’t marry for another 4 years.   William George Vannoy and his wife, Elizabeth Estes live next door.  James H. is living with Phebe and Joel along with his wife and children.  I’m sure the original reason for James living in the household was to help his parents, but as it turns out, Phebe helped raise James’ children from his first marriage since his first wife, Matilda Venable, died in 1885.

The Storm Clouds Burst

There had been a storm brewing for some time.  It’s nothing we can see from the census records, and we only get hints that something is “odd” from the Claiborne County land transactions.  However, an 1886 court records spells it out in black and white.

On Oct. 4, 1886, Lazarus Estes was granted $26 by the court for “conveying Joel Vannoy to the hospital for the insane.”  I had to read that entry several times before I fully grasped the magnitude what it said – and what it didn’t.  That hospital was opened in Knoxville in May of that year.

Joel would have been 74 and Phebe would have been 68 and caring for her grandchildren.

Joel’s condition may well have had something to do with why he did not serve in the Civil War, perhaps why they moved to Little Sycamore and certainly why the land was not in his name, but in his wife and children’s names.  These mental health issues do not tend to simply appear overnight – but build up over time, gradually worsening.  His diagnosis was “preachin’, swearin’ and threatin’ to fight.”  Based on descriptions of his behavior, he was clearly deranged, at least part of the time, and aggressive towards other people.  Today, he would likely have been diagnosed as manic depressive (bi-polar) and possibly schizophrenic.

And yes, mental illness has been known to occur in that family line.  The Vannoy side claims it’s from the McNiel line, Joel’s mother’s family, and the McNiel’s of course claim it’s from the Vannoy side.  Some people just look at you, shake their heads and say, “I’m not going to get involved in THAT.”  It’s obviously not an unfamiliar subject.

Per Lakeshore Mental Health Institute, formerly Eastern State Mental Hospital, Joel Vannoy, age 74, was admitted July 22, 1886.  He had 5 living children and 2 dead.  He was a Baptist and was a farmer.  He was discharged May 16, 1888.

It must have been terribly difficult for Phebe to watch her husband decline in to the abyss of mental illness.  At first, she would have simply thought, “that’s odd” when he did something borderline inappropriate or abnormal.  As time went on, she wouldn’t have “thought” it was odd, but known it was.  However, one just accepted things, chalked them up to the hand of Providence, and went on.  What choice did she have?

Eventually, everyone else would have known that Joel had a problem – to the point that when land was purchased, there was no question about putting it in his name.

At some point, Joel was given the room on one side of the house with a fireplace and family members took turns supervising him all of the time to prevent him from burning the house down and hurting himself or someone else.  I don’t know if this was before he was committed, or after his release.  For the family to place him in Eastern State Mental Hospital, he must have been extremely, exceedingly difficult to manage.

For Phebe, this must have been a living hell.  Without knowing her, we don’t know if she was the kind of person that welcomed the relief that his 2 years at Eastern State provided her, or if she was the kind of person that wanted him home no matter what.  Phebe spent the entire time that Joel was at Eastern State caring for her grandchildren.  James Hurvey remarried in April of 1888, just a month before Joel returned home.

People thought differently at that time than we do today.  I have seen many death records from the early 1900s when death records were first kept where parents refused a doctor’s treatment for children or refused to take the child to the hospital because “they did not want the family split up.”  And the child died – and I don’t mean families living miles away or in another area – but in this very holler.  For this decision to be made, the parent’s feelings had to be very strong and that decision had to be socially accepted, supported and considered “normal” in their environment.  These mountain people were very, VERY resistant to outside influence or “interference” of any kind and were suspicious for the most part of anyone not a member of their community.

So for a family member to be sent to Knoxville to be committed for a period of years was an extremely dire circumstance and likely simply could not have been handled in any other way.

Two years later, Joel would return home.  Without the medication we have today, it’s unlikely that there was much change, except that Phebe had fewer people to help.  Joel was a little older and maybe not quite so physically strong.  Fortunately, Phebe’s children still lived nearby and James Hurvey may have continued to live with Phebe after his second marriage.  The family reported that he eventually inherited the “home place,” so it is likely he lived there.

There is no 1890 census, so that window into the past is closed.

In the fall of 1893, Phebe’s son, William “George” Vannoy who had married Elizabeth Estes, would join his father-in-law, John Y. Estes, in Montague County, Texas.  George wouldn’t survive long.  He died on September 12, 1895.  This clearly was not expected, and this would have been the second “death letter” that Phebe received in her lifetime.

Joel also died in January of 1895.  It had to be a relief to Phebe in some sense.  There was obviously more afoot, because I found a subsequent newspaper article that said Phebe had Joel dug up and his remains moved to the cemetery where she wanted him to be buried.  Clearly, she cared about him no matter what his condition had been.  He was ultimately buried in the Venable Cemetery and Phebe is buried beside him.  I surely wish I knew the story of why Joel was buried in that first location (wherever it was), and clearly where Phebe did not want.  You know it’s a juicy tale!

In the photo above, Joel and Phebe’s stones are both clearly visible from the road, having a front row seat to see who is passing by.

Phebe, the consummate caregiver, the glue who held everything together, the woman who was supposed to be an Indian, but wasn’t, died on January 17, 1900.  Of the 7 children we know of for sure, and the more likely 9 or 10 she bore, only 4 were living to attend her funeral.  She had a total of 46 grandchildren, some of whom she never knew because they had not yet been born and some of whom were Texans.  Surprisingly, the female grandchild born 10 days after Phebe’s death was not named for her.  The only grandchild named for her died in her teens.  Phebe’s name, now spelled as Phoebe, does still exist in our family today.  Phebe Crumley is the 4 times great-grandmother of the current Phoebe.  Such a beautiful name.

Phebe was an amazing woman, surviving the slow dissipation of her family, followed by the Civil War, including the brutal murder of her niece, her niece’s husband and baby, and then facing a personal war even more devastating, one that could never be won – only outlasted.  I hope she was the kind of person to find peace, comfort and happiness where she could, perhaps in her 5 grandchildren, ages newborn to 8, who she raised when their mother died less than a month after the birth of the youngest.  Hats off to you Phebe.  I think the phrase “true grit” applies to you.

Phebe Crumley and Joel Vannoy had the following known children.  In addition, we know there was at least one additional child whose name we don’t have, probably born between 1851 and 1856, and possibly more.

• Sarah Jane Vannoy born Dec. 1, 1845, died Aril 24, 1926 and married John Nunn.  They had 12 children.
• Elizabeth “Betty” Ann Vannoy born June 23, 1847 and died October 25, 1918, married Lazarus Estes.  They had 10 children.
• William George Vannoy born March 31, 1849 and died on September 12, 1895 in Nocona, Texas.  Married Elizabeth Ann Estes and had 7 children.
• Mary L. Vannoy born May 4, 1851, died May 18, 1877 and is buried in the Pleasant View Cemetery with her parents.  She never married.  Was her middle name Lydia?
• James Hurvey Vannoy born February 4, 1856 and died November 11, 1948.  Married three times.  First to Matilda Venable having 5 children.  Second to Martha Lewis having 4 children.  Third to Minnie Sanders having 3 children.
• Nancy E. Vannoy born September 5, 1859, died August 1940, married James Nelson “Net” Venable and had 5 children.

This article appeared in the Claiborne Progress newspaper and was found in an old scrapbook in the 1980s in the Tazewell library.

“Death rides on every passing breeze and lurks in every flower.” In the evening of life the angel of death has visited earth an plucked another flower to transplant in the kingdom of our Lord.

Sister Phoebe Vannoy was born March 24, 1818, married January 19, 1845, died January 13, 1900. She was a devoted member of the Baptist church about 45 years.

Though Mrs. Vannoy had numbered 4 score and two years, she was, until recently, very active. Seldom missing attending her church meetings.  She rejoiced in doing good and seeing the cause of God prosper.  It was her delight to talk of the great love God has for His children and of the home prepared for all who love Him.  Often during her recent illness she called her relatives and friends to her bedside and asked them to meet her in heaven.

Her husband, Joel Vannoy, preceded her 5 years and 5 days. He also had numbered his 4 score and two years and was a member of the Baptist church about 60 years and a deacon of his church 45 years.

Seven children composed this family. Four are living and were with their mother during her last illness.  We would say to them: Follow the example of your father and mother.

Mrs. Vannoy, not being satisfied with where her husband was buried requested that at her death his remains should be removed to what is known as the Venable graveyard and the funeral services of both be conducted by Rev. D. L. Manis.

Bereaved ones, you will miss that dear old face, her chair is vacant, but weep not for her, your loss is her eternal gain. It will be sweet to meet her in that better land –

“Beyond that vale of tears,
There is a life above:
Unmarred by the flight of years
And that life is love.”

______________________________________________________________

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Francis Lamb, Virginia and Maryland, in The Theatre of the Empire of Great Britain, 1676. Huntingfield Collection, MSA SC 1399-1-197.

Barbara was at least the second wife of Abraham Estes who was born about 1647 in Kent, England and immigrated to Virginia in October of 1673, a recent widower.  Abraham’s first wife, the widow Ann Burton, whom he married in December of 1672 had apparently died by the time he immigrated less than a year after his marriage.

Abraham probably settled in New Kent County, which, in 1691, part became King and Queen County, Virginia, where we first find records of Abraham.  You can see New Kent, above, between the N and I in Virginia, and in the closeup below.

On the map above, you can also see the three Indian towns and Dragon Swamp, which is today in both Essex and King and Queen Counties.  This is the area where Abraham Estes lived.

Both New Kent and King and Queen Counties are burned counties, meaning the county records went up in flames at one point or another.  The New Kent records were intentionally burned, set afire in 1787 by one John Price Posey who was hanged for his dastardly deed.  Certainly, Barbara and Abraham’s marriage license was among those records that burned.

Sadly, few early records of any type remain for this part of early Virginia since New Kent was the founding county for much of this region.

What we do know about Barbara, Abraham’s (at least) second wife, is mostly due to Abraham’s will which was revealed in a 1769 chancery suite from the Amelia County, filed by Moses Estes, the youngest son of Abraham and Barbara, against his brother Elisha as executor, regarding the distribution of their father’s estate some 40 years earlier.  One can’t say that Moses was not a patient man.

Sometimes it’s just hard to grasp how early these people settled in the colonies.  Jamestown was settled in 1609 and wasn’t stable until after 1622.  Jamestown became the capital until it was burned for the third time during Bacon’s Rebellion, really our first Civil War, in 1674.  Barbara would have lived through this insurgency and her father likely fought for one side or the other – and maybe not by choice.  She may have been too young to remember.

1687 marked the 100 year anniversary of the first experimental colony established on Roanoke Island by Sir Walter Raleigh, which eventually came to be known as the Lost Colony.

In 1699, the capital was Jamestown and burned for the 4^th time.  Williamsburg was then established as the capital.  George Washington wouldn’t be born for another 33 years nor the infamous Patrick Henry for another 37.  This nation was still in its infancy.  All of the colonies had a total population in 1660 of 75,000 people, in 1670 of 112,000 and by 1700, just slightly over a quarter million European people lived in what would become America.

In 1700, King and Queen County had a population of 4,206 people, was the most populous and based on its tobacco production, also the wealthiest.  Barbara’s parents had selected a good place to settle.

Most Virginians loved their horses and rode them proudly to church, court and horse races where much business as well as gambling, was transacted.  Drinking was also a part of that culture.  In another generation, gambling, horse racing and drinking would be the undoing of more than one Estes man.

Early agriculture in Virginia was primarily tobacco farming, with the tobacco being shipped back to England.

Slavery in Virginia was not yet institutionalized.  It wasn’t until 1720, about the time Abraham and Barbara died, that Virginia passed a law relegating slaves to “personal property” status, meaning they could be bought and sold and were never free.

Abraham died on November 21, 1720 or 1721.  There is a discrepancy in the year within the documents themselves.  At that time, Abraham’s wife, Barbara, was living, and made her will as well, apparently 4 days later.  We don’t know if she made her will at that time because she too was ill, which was the typical reason or if other forces were at play.  For example, she could have made her will simply because there was a lawyer available and she was already involved in settling her husband’s estate, or she could have made her will because someone was afraid if she didn’t, they wouldn’t get their fair share.  She could also have made her will because she wanted to be positive that her youngest children would be taken care of, especially Barbara who was clearly a very dependent “special needs” child. The only clue we have is that Abraham’s wife, Barbara, apparently died very shortly thereafter.  This must have been exceedingly difficult for their children, especially those who were still at home, Moses and Barbara (the daughter) who may not have had the capacity to understand – to lose both parents, possibly in a matter of days.

From the chancery suit:

Your orator Moses Eastis that in the year of our lord 1721 on the 21^st day of Nov your orator’s late father Abraham Eastes departed this life after making and constituting in writing his last will and testament and thereby after specifically leaving? part of his estate did give or further lend his who personal estate to his wife Barbara during her natural life and to be disposed of amongst his children then living as she might think proper.

Note that it says two things.  First, “his children” and second, “as she might think proper.”

Here’s what Barbara’s will said, again, from the chancery suit:

He further stated? that the said Barbara Eastes agreeable to the trust and in the presence aforesaid reposed in her by your orator’s father on the 25^th day of Nov. 1720 she made in writing her last will and testament in writing and surety? after giving an inconsiderable part of her aforesaid husband’s estate to several of her children therein mentioned directly that the remainder should remain in the hands of her executor Elisha Eastes, Thomas Poor and Susana his wife for the sole benefit of your orator and Barbara Eastes your orator’s sister whom she concluded were incapable of getting their living. But with a precise that they should become an ? in their leave? or either of them should die then the same to be equally divided amongst Sylvester, Thomas, Elisha, Robert, Richard, John, Moses Eastes, Martha Watkins, Susana Poor and Sarah Eastes or the survivors of them as by the said last will and testament will more fully appear reference being that there to and to which your orator for greater certainty refer and on the day of <blank> departed this life without altering or revoking the will.

It’s hard to know why Barbara made her will, but what we do know is that Moses and Barbara, her two youngest children began living with Thomas Poor and his wife, Susanna, in 1721, per the depositions in the chancery suit.

This tells us that Barbara died not long after Abraham, perhaps within a few days.  She was only about 50.  She may have had the same illness as Abraham.  We do know that there was a severe smallpox epidemic in Boston in 1721, killing upwards of 6000 and causing the entire population of the city to flee, bringing smallpox to the rest of the thirteen colonies.

This lawsuit also gives us hints as to Barbara’s age.  Her youngest child was Barbara who was born about 1713.  She was disabled and epileptic – perhaps a Downs child – very commonly found in the youngest child to older mothers.  Barbara was the last child born, so if we presume Barbara, the mother, was about age 43, that puts her birth at about 1670, and her marriage to Abraham about 1690, give or take a couple of years.

Several children were mentioned in Barbara’s will, which is referenced in the lawsuit.  Unfortunately, her will is missing and has been for years, along with Abraham’s from the Amelia County lawsuit.  It was referenced in the 1940s by researchers, and fortunately, the pleadings in the suit summarize the contents of the will.

Barbara lists the following 11 children in her will.  I’ve included a summary of what we know about each one.

• Sylvester – wife unknown, by 1722 owned land in King and Queen County, moved to Bertie Co., NC by 1734 and was in Granville Co., NC by 1744, Northampton Co., NC by 1754.
• Thomas – married Ann Rogers, died in Caroline County, VA in1745.
• Elisha – married Mary Ann Mumford, was the executor of his father’s estate in 1720, lived in Amelia County as late as 1770, died in Henry County, VA in 1782.
• Robert – married Mary “Millie” Smith, moved to Lunenburg County where he died in 1775.
• Richard – married Mary Yancy, died in 1741/1742 in Hanover County.
• John – married Elizabeth “Nutty” Pickett, died in 1765/1770 in Louisa County, VA.
• Moses – born 1711, was one of two minor children upon the death of Abraham, married Elizabeth, surname unknown by whom he had children, and died in 1787 in Halifax County, VA.
• Sarah – married James Young sometime after her mother’s death in 1721 – no further information.
• Barbara – died as a child.
• Martha Watkins – Also noted as Mary by some, husband Thomas Watkins. No further information.
• Susana Poor – husband Thomas Poore, had daughter Elizabeth, born about 1710, who married a Harris and Mary who married Zachariah Williams

The bolded children are females who may have had daughters that could have descendants today, through all females, who would be candidates for mitochondrial DNA testing.

The Estes family was very fortunate.  According to the Virginia History series, if a child lived past 20, their life expectancy was about 40 years, but half of the children didn’t survive.  This is one reason why the colonies were so dependent on immigration.

If Barbara married Abraham in 1690 and had a child every other year, this would be just about perfect, although the only two children appearing to be underage in 1721 were Moses and Barbara, which suggest the other 9 were age 18 by 1721, or born before 1703.  Nine children born every two years suggests births beginning about 1785.

There are two other children believed to be Abraham’s, a son, Abraham, and a son Samuel.  Evidence for Samuel being a son is somewhat sketchy, but evidence that Abraham was Abraham’s son is rather convincing, including the same first name and the fact that it appears that Abraham may have wound up with Abraham Sr.’s land. It was not unusual in that time and place for the eldest son to inherit all of the land, sometimes by conveyance prior to the parent’s death, and then not be mentioned in the will.

Regardless of why, neither Abraham nor Samuel were mentioned in Barbara’s will.

If Abraham and Samuel were Barbara’s children, they were probably the oldest males.

Given that Abraham immigrated in 1673, and was not married to Barbara until about 1690, it’s certainly possible that he was married in Virginia prior to marrying Barbara.  In fact, it would be unlikely that Abraham remained single this entire time, even if he did serve an indentured servitude for 7 years, a possibility that has been debated within the Estes family for years.

What we don’t know from the lawsuit or any other documentation of any kind about Barbara, the wife who died in 1721 and the mother of most of Abraham’s children, is her surname.

Given that New Kent and  King and Queen are burned counties, and there is absolutely no evidence that Abraham and Barbara ever lived in any other location, there is nothing, absolutely nothing, indicating Barbara’s surname or parents.

However, when you look on Ancestry.com, her surname is listed in all the trees as Brock, and that is absolutely incorrect.  Or maybe better stated, there is not one shred of evidence anyplace that her surname is Brock.  Nada – not one.  If you find one, please, PLEASE send it to me!  By the way, evidence is not someone else’s tree or contributed family information.  Evidence is a Bible, a tax list, a deed, a will, a lawsuit – something of that nature.  Personally, I’m still hoping for that Bible on e-bay:)

The Brock surname seems to have attached itself to Barbara in the 1980s when a historical fiction book that included the Estes family was published and assigned Brock as Barbara’s surname.  It also doesn’t help any that Abraham’s probable son, Abraham, had a daughter, Barbara, who married Henry Brock, so indeed there was a Barbara Brock in the family, although she was Barbara Estes Brock, not Barbara Brock Estes – and two generations later.  Those pesky details!!!

DNA evidence isn’t going to help us find Barbara’s surname, unfortunately.

However, there is one other possible DNA avenue to learn more about Barbara Not Brock Estes.  She did have daughters, although we have no information about two of those daughters after they married. If they survived, they surely had children – and possibly daughters.

Anyone who descends through all females from Barbara carries her mitochondrial DNA.  Her mitochondrial DNA will tell us about her heritage – where her people came from – England perhaps?  Native American?  If we can find  her mitochondrial DNA, we will have that answer.  Barbara had three daughters.  Of those, we know little about 2, but the third daughter had at least 2 daughters, so there is hope that some descendant today descends from Barbara through all females.  I have a DNA testing scholarship for the first person with proof of their descent from Barbara through all females!!!

______________________________________________________________

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Luremia Combs was born about 1740, probably in Amelia County, to John Combes and his first wife whose identity is unknown.  John’s wife at the time of his death was Frances Elam who he married in Amelia County on Sept. 11, 1750.

Francis would become embattled with her step-children after John’s death, although she assuredly raised at least some of those children.  Luremia would have been about 10 or 12 when her father remarried, which means, of course, that Luremia lost her mother when she was a young child.  Based on a subsequent lawsuit, and the fact that Luremia did not name a child Frances, I would hypothesize that Luremia did not enjoy a positive relationship with Frances, at least not as an adult.

Luremia was married to Moses Estes, probably in 1762, because their first child, George, was born in Amelia County on February 3, 1763 according to his Revolutionary War pension application..

In February 1767 in Lunenburg County, VA, we find a transaction where George Combs sells land to Moses Estis for £25, 300A adjoining John Combs.  Pheby, wife of George, relinquishes her dower.

It was from this land sale that previous researchers had surmised that Moses’s wife was the daughter of George Combes and Phebe, last name unknown.

On March 30, 1768, this tract of land is processioned and described as lying between “Reedy Creek, Reedy Creek old road, Coxes road and the North Meherrin River.”

Processioning of land is when, in colonial America, you got together with your neighbors once a year and everyone walked the boundaries, agreeing between themselves where the property boundaries lie.  The results of that event, and who was present, was recorded in the church vestry book.  I’d guess this became a social event of sorts as well – including spirits to stay warm of course.  Fortunately, the processioning of this area was very specific, as are some of the deeds, which allowed me to pinpoint the location of Moses’s land.

On the map below, relevant landmarks pertaining to the Estes family in Lunenburg County are shown.

X identifies the location of Moses Estes land in Lunenburg County – between the North Meherrin and Reedy Creek.  According to the local farmers, this area is where the old Meherrin Indian village stood.  They find artifacts and relics regularly.

Given that I could find this specific location, I had to visit.  My ancestral lands call to me like a moth to the flame.  And in this case, 5 of my ancestors lived here, both Moses Sr. and Moses Jr., along with their wives.  This would also have been where George Estes was born in 1763, probably on this same land when still owned by Luremia’s family.

Trinity Road appears to have been the original road through that area, forms a loop, and both begins and ends at Courthouse Road, where, of course, you find the courthouse.

The courthouse, which does not have a town around it, is shown by the upper purple arrow, on land originally owned by Robert Estes, brother of Moses Estes Sr.

The old church is also on Trinity Road, and the Estes land is just off Trinity Road.  When they lived here, they were right on the main drag, although that’s certainly not apparent today.

There is only one possible location for Moses Estes land in Lunenburg County, given the geography in question, and during my 2004 trip, I found the land.  To this day, there is only one cleared area on both sides of the road, and a very old house in the clearing.  The land is beautiful.

This house, above, is located on the east side of Reedy Creek Road.

This is the older house on the west side of Reedy Creek Road on the land that Moses Estes owned in Lunenburg County.  This could well be the house where Moses lived.  A newer house is located to the rear of the property.

This photo is of both the older house and the newer home in the background.

So this area, and maybe even this house, is where Luremia set up housekeeping and welcomed her first babies into the world.  The first of those babies, George, would one day take his father’s place in the Revolutionary War so his father didn’t have to serve.  Instead, Moses gave food, fodder and other goods to the cause.

On December 2, 1768, Moses Estes of Lunenburg County sells to Francis Combes of Amelia County, for £75, the tract that Moses Estes purchased of George Combes on February 12, 1767.  Witnesses to this transaction were Moses Estes, Sr., Elizabeth Estes and Thomas Munford.

Moses’s wife, “Susanna” Estes relinquishes dower, per one source.  June Banks Evans in her Lunenburg County Deed Books transcribed and interprets her name as Lurania.

July 13, 1769 – Susanna (or Lurania), wife of Moses Estis, came into court and relinquished dower in land conveyed to Richard Jones.  Relinquishing dower meant that the wife indicated that she understood that her husband sold that property and she gave up her right to her one third interest by law, were he to die.

It was from this record that Luremia’s name was ordained to be Susannah and is still shown that way in many trees.  Some trees have merged the two and given her two names, Susanna Luremia or vice versa.  And some have given Moses two wives, Susannah Combes and Luremia Combes, and a nice story that they were sisters to go along with the two wives.  For the record, this isn’t true.

How do we know it isn’t true?  Because there is juicy gossip – in the form of a chancery suit filed in Amelia County, VA.  I just love chancery suits.  They focus on divisions of equity, not on a determination of guilt or innocence and for the most part, in Virginia, unless the courthouse has burned, the depositions, complaints and responses in the case still exist.

Amelia Co. Va. Chancery Causes 1764 – 001

Estis et us vs Combs

Agreeable to the order here unto annexed we the subscribers have laid off and do assign unto the said Frances Combs widow of John Combs decd her dower in the lands and slaves one third part of the personal estate of said John Combs decd and have also divided the residue of the estate of the said John Combs decd in equal portions among the children of the said John Combs decd and do lay off and assign each their part in manner following viz”

To Frances Combs for her dower in the lands of the said John one hundred and fifety acres beginning in William Eggleston line on the upper side of the same Combs plantation thence down the said Eggleston’s line to his corner at the branch and from thence along Joseph Eggeleston’s line to a new dividing line and then with the said line to the beginning in William Eggleston’s line which includes the houses and plantation whereon the said Frances Combs now lives and for the said Frances dower in the slaves of the said John decd assign unto her one negro fellow named Harry and we do further assign unto the said Frances for her third part of the personal estate the sum of 52 pounds ten shillings 9 pence three farthings.

To Moses Eastis and Lurany his wife for his part of the personal estate of the said John Coombs decd the sum of 14 pounds and 17 shillings and 7 pence farthing. 

To James Bowls (could be a slightly different name) and Martha his wife for his part of the personal estate of the said John Combs decd also the sum of 14 pounds 17 and 7 pence parthing.

To George Combs for his part of the personal estate of the said John Combs decd the sum of 14 pounds 17 shillings and 7 pence farthing and being his part equal with the other children.

We also assign and allot unto Samuel Combs, Mary Combs, Clarissa Combs, John Combs each of them the sum of 14 pounds and 17 shillings and 7 pence farthing current money for their part of the personal estate of the said John Combs, decd given under our hand this 25th day of ? 1762.

Next document

Amelia court held July 22, 1762

Moses Estes, Lorana his wife vs Frances Combs wife of John Combs decd

This cause heard and answered this day and ordered that John Booker, William Eggleston and John Cooke do assign to the defendant her dower in the lands and slaves of one third part of the estate of her late husband John Combs and that they divide the residue of the estate of the said John Combs among the complainant, children of the said John in equal proportions and assign unto each of them his or her share according to law.

Next document – the legal complaint.

Humble complaining Moses Estes and Luranna his wife, James Bowlen and Martha his wife, Samuel, George, Mary, Clarissa and John Combs that one John Combs, your orators father, being in his lifetime seized and possessed of a considerable estate and on the (blank) day departed this life intestate.  Soon after the deceased on the motion of Frances Combs, the widow and relict of the said John admin. of all singular the goods and chattels rights and credits which were of the said John Combs at the time of his death.  And that said Frances then took into her possession all the estate, that by a certain act of assembly made in the year of our Lord 1705? and in the 4th year of the reign of her ?.   The orators have appealed to the said Frances Combs for their proportional part aforesaid but the said Frances refuses unless she may be ordered by the court.  Your orators show that they are in some distress in being detained form their rights above contrary to equity… beg for consideration…ask that she be compelled to deliver (writing very faint).

Last document is a summons

Summon Frances Combs, admin of John Combs decd, Samuel, Mary, Clarissa and John Combs children of the said John Combs decd to appear… to answer a bill in chancery filed by Moses Estis and Loranna his wife.

The last record of the Moses Estes family in Lunenburg County is Luremia relinquishing her dower in 1769.  Maybe the family is cleaning up loose ends before they leave.  Moses is not on the Lunenburg tax list that year, but is on a list of road hands in Halifax County, although we can’t tell which Moses, father or son.

On June 20, 1771 in Halifax County, Moses Estes Jr. buys 256 acres from John and Elizabeth Owen that abuts the William Younger land.  The transaction does not say Junior, but Moses Sr. never shows this land on the tax records and Moses Jr. still owns this land after Moses Sr. dies.  Moses Jr.’s estate shows this land after his death as well.  This is the land on present day Estes Street in South Boston, VA.  This is where Luremia would spend the rest of her life – the next 40 years.

Today, Moses and Luremia’s land is the landfill, but I was able to obtain some images from the back side of land that had not yet been disturbed – thanks to the magic of Google maps street view.

Part of the old Estes land is now the Oak Ridge Cemetery, where it’s likely that Luremia is buried.

The Estes family land lay on the main road in South Boston.  The world passed by on their way north or south, on their way to the courthouse, on their way to Boyd’s or Irwin’s Ferry, the only way to cross the Dan River.  In fact, the city of South Boston was formed at and as a result of Boyd’s Ferry.  If the Estes family had anything to sell, they certainly had a captive audience, living on the main road.  Judging from the family stories, I’m betting they sold fruit brandy.

By this time, in 1771, Luremia is about 30 and probably has 3 or 4 small children.  Before their family was complete, Luremia would have about 11 living children.

For the next decade, in Halifax County, life hummed along normally.  Men worked on the roads, went to court for the drama of court day and farmed.  Women tended to the kids, preserved food, made clothes and cooked.  And everybody went to church.  It was required and you were fined for not attending.

But life as they knew it would change in 1780 with the beginning of the Revolutionary War.  Halifax County was in the wrong place, and the war came to them.

To make matters worse, Luremia’s oldest son, George, was gone – serving in that War.  He would serve one term for his father, a second one for himself, and a third as a volunteer.  This family clearly believed in independence.

In the winter of 1780, it looked like the Americans were losing in the South after a severe defeat at Camden, SC.  General Nathaniel Greene, George Washington’s right hand man, was sent to NC to see what could be salvaged.  What greeted him was bleak.  His troops were severely outnumbered and what was left of his army was starving, poorly clothed and barely equipped.

Greene managed through what have been framed as “Hurclean efforts” to rebuild the army, and then undertook a brilliant military strategy.  Knowing he was outnumbered, he divided his army in half and sent half south as a decoy.  General Daniel Morgan allowed himself to be pursued by the British, specifically Cornwallis’s Lt. Col. Banastre Tarleton, known as “Bloody Ban” because he massacred surrendering American soldiers.

On January 17, 1781, Morgan turned on Tarleton and engaged at the Battle of Cowpens, decisively winning the battle, taking prisoners, weapons and supplies, and headed back for North Carolina.  The race to Carolina was on, with Cornwallis’s troops furious and in hot pursuit in an event that would become known as the “Race to the Dan,” meaning the Dan River which divided NC and VA.  Greene knew if he could cross the Dan, that he could defend that position and keep Cornwallis from crossing.  So did Cornwallis – and he was behind – but determined to recover.

Morgan advanced northward through North Carolina, pushing his prisoners as fast as possible and burning bridges, boats and ferries behind him in an attempt to slow Cornwallis.  Cornwallis was so desperate that he burned his own supply train to increase the speed of his chase.  Cornwallis was close, very close, within hours of Morgan’s men, with Morgan’s unit often just barely avoiding his clutches.  Morgan fell ill and was relieved by Col. Williams.  The two halves of the Army attempted to rendezvous for strength.  They skirmished with Cornwallis, but Greene knew that to turn and fight would be a sure loss, so he continued to race for the Dan, a location that formed a natural barrier that he could take and hold.  Cornwallis surely knew that too.

Greene’s re-united army only numbered two thousand and thirty-six men, including fourteen hundred and twenty-six regulars. Col. Edward Carrington joined the command, with the report that boats had been secured, and secreted along the Dan River in Virginia, so as to be collected on a few hours’ warning. The British army was at Salem, only twenty-five miles from Guilford. This was on the tenth of February.  The next 4 days were brutal.

To guard against Cornwallis making a detour and getting between the light troops and Greene’s army, as well as to protect his own force from surprise, Williams had to send out such numerous patrols and establish such strong pickets that half of his force was always on night duty. He halted for only six hours each night; each man got only six hours rest in every forty-eight. They never set up a tent. “The heat of the fires was the only protection from rain and sometimes snow.” They started each day at three in the morning and hastened forward to gain a distance ahead of their pursuers that would give them time for breakfast.  Breakfast, dinner, and supper in one, because this was their only meal for the day. Cornwallis came on with equal speed.  Both sides knew this was a critical juncture – a turning point – and both were desperate.

Four days later, Greene reached Boyd’s Ferry in South Boston, VA.  On this map from 1884 when South Boston was actually formed, you can see Ferry street (upper left corner) still descends to the river where Boyd’s ferry was originally located.  On this map, a railroad bridge has replaced Boyd’s ferry.

On Valentine’s Day, 1781, Greene’s troops built defensive works, and used every possible vessel to move his men and equipment, including cannons, across the Dan River at Boyd’s ferry, located at present day South Boston, and Irvine’s ferriy located just three or four miles west of Boyd’s ferry.  Boats had been gathered from Boyd’s and Dix’s ferries (In Pittsylvania County), and represented all of the boats on the river.

Cornwallis received the news in the course of the evening. The river was too high to cross without boats, and every boat for miles in either direction was on the farther shore. Greene had won the race.  Cornwallis was stuck.  An exceptional detailed and breath-holding description of this event can be found here.

Not only did Greene hold Virginia, and therefore the north, a month later he would regroup and recross the Dan to face Cornwallis again at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse, and the British of course would march on to ultimate defeat at the Battle of Yorktown.  However, had the race to the Dan not been won by Greene and his men, we might well be British citizens today.

Oh, did I mention that the Estes home was between a mile and two miles from Boyd’s Ferry, on that main road, now called Main Street, where the Estes land and homestead was found?  On the south end of Main Street, the name changes and this same street is called…Ferry Street.  In fact, two of Luremia’s children would marry spouses from the Boyd family.

On the map below, you can see Estes Street, marked with the red balloon, Oak Ridge Cemetery in green, and Boyd’s Ferry is marked with the red arrow.  At that time, the main road was current day 129, also called Main Street.  As luck would have it, Moses Estes had been appointed surveyor of the road from Boyd’s ferry to the Banister River – so he was responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of that dirt road – which of course meant keeping it passable.  The notes from the commanders of the army talk about how the roads turned to icy cold rivers of mud with the passing of the troops, horses, wagons and supplies.  Keep in mind that the city of South Boston, nor the town of Halifax, existed at that time.

I’d say that Moses Estes had his hands full in more ways than one.

So, whichever Army won the race and crossed the Dan River, they were headed straight for the Estes land.  Hungry, maybe bent on destruction, depending on which side crossed first.  By this time, Luremia was about 40 years old and probably had most of her children.  She could easily have been pregnant or had a newborn at the time.  She surely had a houseful of children to worry about.  What was she going to do?  Would anyplace have been safe?  A war was coming, one way or another – and there was nothing to assure it wouldn’t be fought right there, on her doorstep, literally.

It’s no wonder that her husband, Moses, after the war, submitted a receipt for supplies for the troops.  They contributed 6 bushels of Indian corn, 100 sheaves of oats, 100 pounds of fodder and 11 pounds of bacon.  This makes me wonder if they quartered some of the men at their home or on their land.  I’m sure they were EXTREMELY glad to see Greene and not Cornwallis.

We know, positively, that the entire army passed right by the Estes land, because they lived on the only road north.  On February 17^th, Greene’s troops crossed the Banister River, which would be just north of the town of Halifax today.  The only road from the Dan River to the Banister was straight through the Estes land.  Additional troops were called into Halifax County to help and reinforce Greene, including Virginia militia, North Carolina militia and a number of Catawba Indians.  Pleas for food, hundreds of cloth sacks for horse feed, 1000 of the best stallions and other supplies were sent out to local residents who provided Greene’s army with what they needed to continue to fight and ultimately win the war.  I envision the women of Halifax County, Luremia included, gathered together making sacks and clothes for soldiers. Luremia probably prayed that someone was taking care of her son, George, who was serving elsewhere, as she was taking care of these men.

There was other wartime activity in Halifax County as well, but nothing quite so stressful as Valentine’s Day in 1781.  I can see Luremia’s children clustered around her, the younger ones perhaps hiding behind her skirts, watching in awe as the soldiers  marched past and perhaps stopping to camp at the Estes plantation.  Little did they know they were seeing history unfold at a pivotal juncture in a conflict, the outcome of which formed the foundation of the country we live in today.

In 1786, three of Luremia’s children would marry, beginning the exodus of her children, leaving the nest for lives of their own.  Her first child to marry, Clarissa, married Francis Boyd in August, followed by both George marrying Mary Younger and Bartlett marrying Rachel Pounds on the same day in December.  In that time and place, married children often didn’t go far, like next door – unless they left the area entirely.  So at least initially, both George and Bartlett were living on the same land with Luremia and Moses, and Clarissa was certainly living close by, as the Boyd’s lived just down the road in South Boston.

The next we know of Luremia, she was paid to testify in a suit in 1791, Moody vs Armstrong.  Her name is in the court records, but we know nothing more than that.

Luremia’s husband, Moses, seems to get a bit rowdy as his name appears several times in the court records in the 1790s.  He was presented for a misdemeanor in 1791, seemed to be feuding with the Douglas family, and wound up in jail in 1796, although probably not for long.

In 1799, Moses Estes wrote his will and in it names Luremia as his wife and as his executor:

I, Moses Estes of the county of Halifax in the Commonwealth of Virginia being of perfect sense and memory and in good health thanks to God for the same but calling to mind the mortality of my body and knowing that it is appropriate for all men once to die and not knowing when that period will arrive to me have thought it necessary and expedient to make and publish my last will and testament in manner to wit:…to George Estes my oldest son I have given a horse, saddle, bed and furniture and a cow value 40 pounds, to my daughter Clarissa who intermarried with Francis Boyd – to Bartlett Estes my son one mare and saddle, a bed and furniture and a cow value 40 pounds, – to my daughter Patience who intermarried with Peter Holt one bed and furniture value 8 pounds – to my son Laban property to the value of 30 pounds, to Winston Estis my son property to the same value, 30 pounds, – it is my will that whatsoever I may die possessed of that at the death of my beloved wife Luremia Estis and not before be equally divided amongst all my children viz George, Bartlet, Patience, Laban, Winstone, Judith, Josiah, Moses and Patsey (the said Patsey now intermarried with Robert Jackson) equally and fairly counting in the sums respectively advanced as part of their shares so that in the end the share shall be equal…Luremia Estes remain in possession of my land and plantation.  Executor Luremia, son George and friend Berryman Green, signed by Moses Estes (his mark) – pronounced by Moses to be his last will and testament in the presence of Arm. Watlington Jr, John Barksdale and H. David Greene.

I have often wondered if Moses became ill in 1799, even though his will says he is in good health, because in earlier (and later) documents he could very clearly sign his name, yet his will bears his mark.

Moses didn’t die until 1813, more than a dozen years later.  Luremia would have been about 70 at that time, maybe a bit older.  Her last child would likely have married a decade or so before.

Luremia did not accept executorship of his estate, and neither did Berryman Green.  Moses’s estate would be contested and would not be settled until 1834 and then not divided for another several years.

We know Luremia was alive in both 1815 and 1816 because there were supplies set aside for her from the estate in 1815 and she was at Moses’s estate sale in 1816.

We believe Luremia was still living in 1820, because George Estes, living on the family land, has a female in that age bracket living with him.  We know she is gone by the 1830s when she is not present in any census and George is living alone.

Luremia is either buried in the Oak Ridge Cemetery, which is on the original Estes land, or she was buried in the second cemetery on the Estes land between two of the houses, and was later reburied in the Oak Ridge Cemetery on the Estes plot, shown below, when the city took the land for a landfill.  So, one way or another, all or part of her remains are, today, in the Oak Ridge Cemetery.

The Estes family graves that were moved are probably reburied in this area of unmarked graves.

Graves moved would include Moses Jr., Luremia, their son George and probably his wife, Mary Younger – in addition to any children they had that died.  And you know they probably had children that died – everyone then did.  It seems the death of children was a very sad rite of passage.

This small fieldstone and clump of flowers is all that remain in this area today.  Surely those flowers were planted by someone to mark the grave of someone they loved.

How can we learn more about Luremia?

Luremia did have several daughters, and through those daughters, if they had daughters to the current generation, we could test their DNA and in doing so, find Luremia’s mitochondrial DNA.

Mitochondrial DNA is passed from mothers to all of their children, but only females pass it on.  So in the current generation, testing males is fine, but they have to descend through all females back to Luremia.

Luremia’s DNA will tell us something really important – what part of the world were her matrilineal ancestors from.  We do have Native American ancestry someplace in this family line – and it’s not from any of the lines we have already tested.  Remember, Moses and Luremia bought land that the Meherrin Indians had lived on and that the Combs family owned.  Is there a connection?  We don’t know – and I’d surely like to.

Luremia’s daughters were:

• Patience Estes born before 1780, married Peter Holt, died before 1837, lived in Smith County, TN, and had at least one daughter, Cointhiana (or Cintha) Holt who married Johnson Moorefield.
• Clarissa Combs Estes born in the 1760s, married Frances Boyd in Halifax County in 1786, lived in Georgia in 1837, and had daughters May Isabel Irving Boyd, Lorany Combs Boyd, Clarice Combs Boyd and Nancy Lawson Boyd.
• Judith Estes born before 1787, married Andrew Juniel in Halifax County in 1806, died before 1837 in Henderson County, KY.  She had daughters Sally, Nancy, Luraney and Jane.
• Patsy Martha Estes, married before 1799 to Robert Jackson (also spelled Hackson) and was married in 1837 to a Lax, children unknown.
• Maga Estes married in 1792 in Halifax County to William Patrick Boyd, children unknown.  Not mentioned as a child in 1837 suit.  Either she was dead with no heirs, or perhaps she was not a child of Moses and Luremia.

If you descend from any of these daughters, please get in touch.  There is a DNA scholarship for the first person from this line willing to test.  You may be the key to solving one last mystery about Luremia.

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Mary Younger was born about 1766, give or take a few years, to Marcus Younger and his wife, probably Susanne, whose last name is believed to be Hart, but is not confirmed.  Mary was probably born in Essex or King and Queen County, VA where Marcus lived before arriving in Halifax County, VA, where he is listed on the tax list for the first time in 1785.

It wasn’t long before Mary Younger married George Estes, in 1786.  There has been some suspicion for years that there is an earlier connection between these two families in King and Queen and Essex Counties, because they were near neighbors there.  At the least, they would have known each other.  They also could have been related, because we have unknown ancestors in both family lines and a seeming familiarity with each other upon arrival in Halifax County.  Or, a really big coincidence.

In Halifax County, George Estes lived next door to a William Younger who owned the land adjacent George’s father, Moses’s, land.  Did Marcus come to visit William Younger and maybe stay with that family long enough for his daughter, Mary Younger, to meet George Estes?  Perhaps.  We’ll likely never know.  We do know that the land that Marcus purchased is not close to the Estes land, roughly ten miles distant.

William Younger had no male children, so there is no Y DNA to test to see if that line connects with the Marcus or Thomas Younger line.

The first time we actually find Mary Younger in a record is when she married George Estes on December 19, 1786, six days before Christmas.  She married George on the same day his brother, Bartlett Estes married Rachel Pounds, so that Christmas at the Estes household was one full of celebration and the richness and hope of new love.  Maybe they received gifts to help them set up housekeeping.

Like couples of that timeframe, the first baby arrived the next year and then every couple years thereafter, like clockwork.

Given that Mary’s father, Marcus Younger didn’t buy land until 1788, it’s very likely that Mary and George spent their first few years of married life on Moses Estes’s land in what is now South Boston, across from the Oak Ridge Cemetery, shown below.

In the google image above, Estes Street is the street to the left that runs beside the water plant and today, down to the landfill, behind those trees.

Below, the Estes land from the east at the recycling center today.

Below, overlooking the Estes land from the back side.

There is no 1790, 1800 or 1810 census for Halifax County, so we can’t tell anything about Mary and George’s children until the 1820 census.  By this time, Mary and George have been married 34 years and several of their children would have been born, grown up and left the nest, with families of their own.  Mary probably stopped having children about 1810 or so, when she would have been about 44 years old.  We’ve had to piece their family together from other documents.  Mary Younger and George Estes had the following children:

• John R. Estes born in 1787 who married Ann Moore in 1812 and removed to Claiborne County, TN. about 1820.
• Marcus Estes born about 1788, died 1815, married Quintenny, surname unknown, and may have had one child, Marcus.
• William Y. Estes born 1785/1786 and died 1860/1870, married Rebecca Miller in 1815.
• Susannah Y. Estes born in 1800, died in 1870, never married but had 5 children.
• Polly Estes born 1801/1808, died after 1880, married James Smith.
• Sally Estes married Thomas Estes, her first cousin, about 1819.

There may have been other children, but based on the 1842 estate settlement of Mary Younger’s sister, Susannah, to Mary’s heirs, these are the children who survive or had died but had heirs.

In 1805, Mary’s father, Marcus must have become quite ill, because he wrote his will.  That’s not something people did in that place and time in advance, which is why so many people actually died without wills.

However, Marcus Younger recovered from whatever ailed him and did not die until ten years later, in 1815.  Marcus’s wife, whose name we think was Susannah, was not mentioned in his 1805 will, which tells us that she had already died.  So, in 1815, when Marcus died, that would have been the last of Mary’s parents.  She would have been just about age 50.

Given that Mary Younger married George Estes in 1786, and Marcus Younger didn’t purchase his land on the Banister River until 1788, we don’t know if Mary actually ever lived on this land before she married.  Marcus could have been renting it before he purchased the land.

However, in the 1790s, we find George Estes along with John Younger, Mary’s brother, who owned land adjacent Marcus, assigned as road hands together among the Younger family group – so at one time it appears that George and Mary lived on Marcus’s lands, or nearby.

Given that George Estes is not individually taxed as late at 1810, and Marcus Younger is taxed with two white males, it’s certainly likely that George and Mary lived on the Younger land for several years.  This means that their children born from about 1788 through about 1815 were likely born on the Younger land on the Banister River, and not in South Boston.

We know that there were several houses on Marcus’s land.  One house would have stood by the original well, near Yellow Bank Creek.  All that is left today, are some daffodils, a stone that was either the cornerstone or the step, and the well, both shown below.

Another house on the property still stands today, or did a few years ago.

Mary’s life was probably pretty rough about that time.  In 1813, Mary’s father-in-law, Moses Estes, died and it’s very likely that the care of Luremia, her mother-in-law fell to Mary and George which may ultimately have been part of the reason they moved back to South Boston – that plus they would be inheriting part of George’s father’s land there.  In 1814, Mary’s 14 year old daughter had a baby without being married, and in 1815, Mary’s father died. Mary probably wondered what would strike next.  Sadly, it would be her son, Marcus’s, death as well.

Mary’s mother and father would be buried in the Younger Cemetery, on Marcus Younger’s land.  All of the graves are in a wooded area on private land that Marcus owned at the time, and all marked only by fieldstones.  If you didn’t know where this cemetery was, you would never, ever, find it.  It took 3 tries and I nearly didn’t – and I never would have found it had it not been for the generosity of the current landowner.

Mary may also have some children buried in this cemetery as well, including son Marcus who died in 1814 or 1815 who may be buried near his grandfather, for whom he was named.  This land may well have been very close to Mary’s heart.  In fact, it may have been Mary who lovingly planted the flowers that bloom in the spring here, in the heart of the forest wilderness, today.  The periwinkle, below, wasn’t in bloom a the time, but it covered the entire cemetery – obviously planted intentionally by someone.

By the 1820 census, the Mary Younger/George Estes household is back in South Boston and is shown with 1 male over 45 and one male under 10, which would be Mary’s grandson, Ezekiel through daughter Susannah.  There is one female under 10, 2 females 16-26 and 2 over the age of 45.  One of those older women would be Mary.  The female under 10 would be Sarah, Susannah’s second child born in 1818.  Susannah herself would be one of the females age 16-26 (although she was age 30) and the second would likely be her sister, Polly.

The other woman over the age of 45 is likely George’s mother, Luremia.  If so, that would mean 4 generations under one roof.  Depending on how well people got along, that could be a very good thing…or not.  I’m guessing that the events of 1813, 1814 and 1815 were extremely stressful for this family, and for Mary, in particular.

After Mary’s father’s death, the family moved from her father’s land to South Boston, among the Estes family.  Things didn’t calm down much either, because Susannah continued to remain unmarried and have children – a second child born in 1818.  Mary’s son, John R. Estes and Marcus would marry and then in 1814, march off to serve in the War of 1812.  John R. Estes came back.  Marcus died either during that time, or shortly thereafter, as his estate was probated in 1815.

By 1820, Mary was saying goodbye to John R. Estes, forever, as he and Ann Moore packed a wagon with what belongings they could and set out with their young family for the frontier.  I wonder if Mary’s grandchildren waved to her from the back of the wagon until they were out sight.  Did they know they would never see their grandmother again?Mary surely knew.

John R. and Ann’s house on the Estes land would have been vacant, at least for awhile, a silent reminder of the family Mary would never see again.  Perhaps it was their house that Susannah moved into before the 1830 census.

John R. wasn’t the only child who left.  Sally who married Thomas Estes moved to Tennessee as well about the same time.  Another wagon to wave goodbye to…and cry.

And then there is the mystery child – the one we know was dead by 1842 and left a son named Mark.  Given that there is only one heir mentioned, one child, Mark, it’s likely that the Estes parent died young and Mary would have buried that child as well.  Mary’s son, Marcus’s estate mentions nothing about a child, but the 1842 documents suggest that perhaps Marcus, the grandson, was the son of Marcus Estes who died in 1814/1815 after all.  I wonder if Mary raised grandson Mark after her child died.

By 1830, George Estes is shown as living alone, and Susannah is shown living in her own household, so it’s very likely that Mary and Luremia have both died.  I wonder if George is enjoying the silence or if he is lonely.  Maybe it depends on when you ask him.

There is a bit of confusion about when Mary Younger Estes actually died.  Mary’s sister, Susannah Younger had a will dated 1831; Halifax Co., Va. pg. 25–Will Bk. 15, pg. 422, which, among other things, states that she leaves her clothes to her sister, Mary Estes.  Another version says to Susannah Estes, which would be Mary’s daughter.  If Mary was dead by 1831, these clothes would not have helped her and might explain the second version, mentioning Susannah. Of course, we don’t actually know when this will was physically written, but it suggests that Mary died closer to 1830 than 1820 and perhaps not until after 1831 – although she is not accounted for in the 1830 census.  Mary is assuredly dead by 1833 when George deeds land to daughter Susannah without Mary’s signature to release her dower rights.

We don’t know if Mary Younger Estes is buried in the Younger Cemetery on her father’s land, then owned by her brother John’s heirs, or if she is buried in the Estes Cemetery in South Boston.  If she is buried in the Estes Cemetery, she could have been originally buried in what is believed to be the Estes family cemetery,  now Oak Ridge Cemetery which was originally part of the Estes land, shown below.

Or, depending on who was feuding with whom at the time, Mary could have been buried in the “new” Estes cemetery in what is now under the landfill.  If Mary was buried there, the graves were moved to the Estes plot in the Oak Ridge Cemetery.  So, you could say she might have a migrating grave.

I know that there were some terribly stressful times in Mary’s life, and that once they began, never ended.  Her daughter Susannah had to be a constant, lifelong concern for Mary.  How would Susannah ever support those children?  It became evident that Susannah was going to continue having children and wasn’t going to marry.  There is more to this story that we’ll never know.  Many women had their first child out of wedlock and went on to marry and have a family.  Why didn’t Susannah?

I hope that the difficult times did not overshadow the good times for Mary.  And surely, there were good times.  Mary did have 5 grandchildren through Susannah, 11 through William Y., at least 4 through Polly, plus the mystery grandchild Mark who may have lived in close proximity.  That’s 21 grandchildren that she got to love and interact with, at least the ones born before her passing.  She lived with some of these grandkids for many years so you know she had a special bond with them.

Mary’s other 17 or 18 grandchildren lived in Tennessee, but she did get to be with John R’s oldest children for the first few years of their lives.  The older children likely carried warm and loving memories of their grandmother, Mary, in their hearts forever.  There is just no one like a grandmother to make you feel loved and special.

Thankfully, Mary had some daughters who had some daughters.  If we can find someone who descends from Mary Younger Estes through all daughters today, we will be able to test them for Mary’s mitochondrial DNA.  From that, we may be able to tell where in the world, in a general sense, her mother’s family originated.

Women contribute their mitochondrial DNA to both genders of their children, but only females pass it on.  So, we’re looking for someone, male or female, who descends from Mary through all females to the current generation.

Mary’s daughters and their daughters who had daughters were:

1. Susannah Y. Estes born about 1800 who had two daughters who had daughters:

• Sarah Estes born in 1818 who married John Mountcastle and had at least 4 daughters, Sally, Martha, Harriett and Sallie Mountcastle

Sarah Estes Mountcastle, at left, with daughter Sarah.

• Mary Mildred Estes born in 1828 who married William Greenwood and had daughters Nannie Elizabeth and Mary Jane Greenwood.  After William Greenwood died, she remarried to Jessie Jacobs and had daughter Susan E. Jacobs.  Nannie married John Thomas Murray, Mary married James Nathaniel Murray and Susan married Samuel Carroll Miller.  All 3 daughters had daughters.

Back of photo: Mother Mary Mildred Estes Greenwood after she remarried to a Jacobs with daughters Mary Jane Greenwood Murray and Nannie Elizabeth Greenwood Murray.

2. Polly Estes born between 1801-1808 who married James Smith in 1824 and had 2 daughters:

• Elizabeth Y. Smith born 1824
• Sarah Smith born about 1839

3. Sally Estes married Thomas Estes and moved to Giles and Montgomery County, TN, having 4 daughters:

• Rachel W. Estes born about 1825
• Eliza A. Estes born about 1830
• Julia A. Estes born about 1842
• Sarah W. Estes born about 1847

If you descend from this family, please get in touch.  We’re kin.  If you descend from all women, maybe we can unravel a bit more of Mary’s life.

The lives of these pioneer women were difficult, which probably meant they appreciated their brief respites of beauty more profoundly than we do today.  You can always tell where a homestead stood, and the cemetery, by the spring wildflowers growing nearby.  This daffodil was growing in the Younger cemetery in Halifax County, and I like to think it symbolizes my family buried there – never entirely gone – not as long as we remember them.  For all we know, Mary may have planted this herself on her parents’ or her child’s grave.

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