Odds and Ends: |
(formerly "Finds of the Week") |
This is a collection of -- well, "odds and ends"! They are bits of information about Nance family genealogy that I ran across and featured here for the amusement and edification of my readers. They are in no particular order.
Please note, that the e-mail addresses reflected in some of the entries
below have been altered so that an in-line image is used in place of the 
symbol. I have done this in an attempt to prevent these e-mail addresses from
being "harvested" by spammers. Because of this, you will not be able
to "cut and paste" these into your e-mail program; you will have
to "hand-key" them in.
April 22, 2000 - Papers of
Washington Pickens Nance (1824-1865) of Franklin Co., AL
September 26, 1999 - Mayhem by Hood
Nance, 1803
November 17, 1998 - Letters of James
Nance, Pickens Co AL, 1832-36
November 8, 1998 - North to Alaska -
Nances in the Yukon Gold Rush, 1896
August 24, 1998 - Unknown NANCEs of the late
1600s
July 13, 1998 - Some Confederate Nances...
June 6, 1998 - Will of Zachariah Nance, 1835
March 30, 1998 - Bible record - line of
James Nance, b. 25 Oct 1783
February 27, 1998 - The Murder Trial of
Montgomery Bell Nance, 1877
January 24, 1998 - Peter Nance of SC
January 15, 1998 - Benjamin (m. Mary
Lewis) and Thomas Nance
November 10, 1997 - Notes regarding
Martha (Nance) Smith
September 22, 1997 - Middle Tennessee
Orators
September 7, 1997 - Rowland Nance - a
"dead end"?
August 12, 1997 - The Murder of David
Nance
July 31,1997 - Dr. Nance and the Cholera of
1851
July 17,1997 -- Where did LISANBY Nance get
his name?
June 29,1997 -- Zachariah Nance Power of
Attorney to John M. Bingley
June 13, 1997 - Partial transcription of
Reuben S. Nance's Notebook
June 8, 1997 - Old Nance Houses
May 29, 1997 - Some echos from Noxubee
County...
May 9, 1997 - The Notebook of Reuben Saunders
Nance (b.1808)
May 3, 1997 - Benjamin A. Nance, of Charles
City Co., VA
April 29, 1997 -- Tennessee Governor Jim
Nance McCord
April 19, 1997 -- Cow puncher
"Gid" Nance
April 12, 1997 -- John Nance and children,
in the Keesee Family Bible
April 5, 1997 -- Dinner with the John Nance
family
March 29, 1997 -- Nances in Kentucky
Biographies
March 22, 1997 -- Will of Reuben Nance
March 15, 1997 -- Nances in Old New
England?
March 8, 1997 -- Colonel J.D. Nance, South
Carolinian, Confederate officer at Gettysburg
March 1, 1997 -- L.M. Nance,Commonwealth
Attorney for Charles City County, VA
April 22, 2000 - Papers of Washington Pickens Nance (1824-1865) of Franklin Co., AL
The following information was provided to me by George Needham.
Washington Pickens Nance (1824-1865) of Russelville, Franklin Co., Alabama was a Confederate soldier. He died while a prisoner of war at Camp Chase, Prison 3, Barracks 21, cot 5, Ohio. The Alabama State Archive contain letters to his wife, Mrs. Louisa Nance (c/o Jno Baxter, Tuscumbia, Al.), misc. transaction papers and his diary. As you can imagine after several years of war the diary is rather hard to read, but interesting. I copied a letter to his wife, he wrote while in Selma as the troops rested up from a 30 day march and the last entry in the diary. A very close childhood friend (William S. Hawkins) ended the diary with the circumstances of his death and his last thoughts. These records bring us a sense of closeness to these kinfolk. There is also a W. H. Nance letter in the file.
The records are described as:
Nance, Washington Pickens
1824-1865
Papers and Civil War Diary
Location: 7N, Range F, Sec.1, Shelf C, Box 23
There was little genealogical information in the file and even though I have seen
reference to Russelville Nances, I have no idea how he connects to the family. If any one
who reads this wants a copy of the file they need to contact me. George Needham
(KathiNeedmaol.com)
[NOTE: The Nances of Russelville, Franklin Co. AL were in the line of GILES Nance, b. 1735. Giles Nance's sons JAMES Nance (b.abt.1760?) and GILES Nance JR. (b. 1780) both ended up moving to Madison Co. AL. James' son James Nance Jr. (a grandson of Giles Nance) then settled in Russelville, Franklin Co. AL by 1830, and died and was buried there in 1855. James Nance Jr. married Elizabeth P., probably by at least 1813, as in 1850, there was a William Nance, age 37, living in the household of James and Elizabeth P. Nance in Franklin Co. -- William being probably a son of James and Elizabeth P.
In the 1850 census for Franklin Co AL, addition to James and Elizabeth P. Nance (aged 64 and 56, respectively) and the other in their houshold (including the 37-year-old William Nance referred to above, and a 37-year-old Mildred Nance who was probably his wife), there were other Nance households: there was a Ruphus P. Nance, 33, with household of Elizabeth, 33, William, 6, and Lucus, 2. (The relatively uncommon given name "Rufus" is found in the Giles Nance family; in 1850, there is another Rufus Nance, age 26, living in the household of Giles Nance Jr. in madison Co., AL). In addition, there was also a W. P. Nance, age 26, along with a Louisa Nance, 21, living in the household of Clark and Martha Bobo. This is clearly the Washington Perkins Nance whose diary and other papers are referred to here. - DBN]
September 26, 1999 - An ear for an...? Mayhem by Hood Nance, 1803
Do you know the literal, legal meaning of "mayhem"? William Slaughter did. On July 4, 1803, he came to court in Charlotte County, Virginia to make sure everyone knew what kind of fellow HOOD NANCE was: "On the motion of William Slaughter, to have the cause of his crop of the ear recorded. On hearing the testimony of Levy Blankenship, who on oath, saith before the court, that the right ear of the sd William Slaughter was bit off as appears to him, in a fight between the sd Slaughter and HOOD NANCE. Ordered that the same be made a matter of record." Charlotte Co. VA Court Orders, Book Fourteen, 1803 - 1805, p. 47.
Who was this HOOD NANCE? He is listed in the "Broken Lineages" in "Nance Register", with limited information. Here its is, with a few other details I've managed to dig up:
HOOD NANCE (b. ?, d. abt 1818). The earliest record relating to Hood Nance is his listing as an "overseer" on Gustavus Hendrick's list of tithables in Lunenburg Co., VA in 1776. From this, it may be inferred that he was b. by around 1755, and possibly in Lunenburg Co. It is certainly possible, that he is a grandchild of John and Jane Nance, possibly through their son Richard or their son William, but this is far from confirmed.
Next records are in Charlotte Co VA, in 1787, when Hood Nance appears on the taxpayer's list. Charlotte Co. VA Court Orders, Book Seven, 1786 - 1789, p. 171, 5 May 1788, Hood Nance is among those mentioned in a court record "for not giving his vote for Representative in the last election".
In Charlotte Co. VA Court Orders, Book Eleven 1797 - 1799, there is an entry, at p. 243, December 1798, "Richard Stone is appointed Surveyor of the Road whereof Levy Blankenship was late Surveyor, and it is ordered that he, with the male laboring tithables belonging to Thomas Hays, Rubuen Hays, HOOD NANCE, Nickolas Brown, Grixon Brown, Thomas Brown, Alexander Brown & Scrimshaw Brown, David Dunn and Duke Haley . . . do forthwith clear and keep the same in repair." This is some evidence of who his neighbors on his road were. Hood Nance was listed as a head of houshold in Charlotte Co as late as the 1800 census.
By 1809, Hood had moved to Cumberland Co KY (wonder if it had to do with his problems w. William Slaughter!); in that year, he appointed Levi Nance to sell lands in Charlotte Co, VA, on the reaches of Twitty Creek, and in 1810 he was a head of household in the Cumberland Co KY census. His estate was divided in 1818, refelcting his death at or around that time.
There was also a James Nance in Cumberland Co KY at this time, who also gave Levi Nance a power of attorney to collect unsettled accounts he had left in Halifax Co, VA. Both James Nance and James Nance Sr. were listed as heads of households in the 1810 census for Cumberland Co. It seems possible that James Sr. and Hood were brothers, since (as is noted below) Hood does not seem to have had a son James, and since James Sr. was presumably an older man.
Various records establish that Hood Nance had these children:
1) CAMPBELL. (b. abt. 1780?, d. aft. 1825)
2) POLLY (m. John Dismukes Feb 4 1804 in Halifax Co VA)
3) REBECCA (m. Absalom Comer Sep 15, 1801 in Halifax Co VA. Campbell Nance
was security.)
4) ELIZABETH (m. Horatio Mitchell Wingo, Oct. 3 1809, Charlotte Co VA)
5) NANCY (m. Wm. Green, prob. 1808)
6) FRANCES (m. __ Lawton)
7) SALLY (m. __ Comer)
8) LEVY (m. Judith Ligon, dau. of Thomas Ligon, Dec. 3 1808, Charlotte Co VA; d.
bef. 1821)
9) SUSANNAH (m. __ Stigall)
10) LUCY
Anybody have any more information about this evidently short-tempered fellow?
November 17, 1998 - Letters of James Nance, Pickens Co AL, 1832-36
Update! Now available at this website: a complete transcription of the Letters of James Nance !
November 8, 1998 -- North to Alaska - Nances in the Yukon Gold Rush, 1896
Gold was discovered in the Yukon on August 17, 1896. Soon after "Discovery Day," Dawson City sprung up at the confluence of the Klondike and Yukon Rivers. It quickly became the most populous place west of Winnipeg and north of San Francisco, with a population of 40,000. The natives who used the area as a summer fishing camp moved downstream to Moosehide. With the stream of people coming into Dawson City came the construction of hotels, theatres, and dance halls. Almost as quickly as it grew, however, Dawson City dwindled. By 1899 the gold rush was over and people left in large groups, leaving the town with a population of less than 1,000. (Today about 2,000 people live in Dawson City, which attracts 60,000 tourists a year).
The Family Chronicle website has a list of participants in the Yukon Gold Rush. It includes:
Source: Family Chronicle website, Alaska-Yukon Goldrush Participants
( http://www.familychronicle.com/klond_s.htm )
August 24, 1998 -- Unknown NANCEs of the late 1600s
"At a Court Holden at Westover 4th February 1688. Present: Maj. Jno. Stith, Capt. Lewellin, Capt. Pr. Perry, Capt. Batte, Mr. Braine, Mr. Bolling, Justices. Order for attachment granted Hon. Wm. Byrd, Esq. on return of non est inventus on estate of Rebecca Hinton, Exec., in the hands of one NANCE, who marryed the said Rebecca, for 2855 pds of tobo." ("Charles City Co, VA Court Records 1687-1695", B. B. Weisiger).
[NOTE: The "Order For Attachment" allowed a party to claim any assets which might be found belonging to a person in debt to them, to satisfy that debt. The "return of non est inventus" meant that no assets of the person could be found at that point.]
Other records in this work, and in "Virginia Colonial Abstracts, Charles City Co Court Orders 1664-1665, Fragments 1650-1696", by Bev. Fleet, show that Rebecca Hinton was the widow and executrix of of Christopher Hinton, who d. aft. 1685 and bef. 1688. Thus, some male NANCE of that era married this Rebecca Hinton, at around this time. But who was it? Could this have been a first marriage for the JOHN Nance who died in 1716, then married to Sarah? Or could it have been the WILLIAM Nance who appears in records of Surry County from as early as 1668 to as late as 1688 -- or an earlier marriage for the William Nance who married to a woman named Tinsley sometime prior to 1692 -- or possibly these were the same?
The other "mystery" Nance is even more mysterious, because he cannot be identified with any known Nance:
"At a Court Holden at Westover 3rd February 1692. . . RICHARD NANCE petitions that Abraham Garth, who hath the estate of his in Garth's possession, bring surety for same. Garth summoned to next court to bring surety". ("Charles City Co, VA Court Records 1687-1695", B. B. Weisiger) . . . "At a Court held April 13, 1693, Abraham Garth and William Gardner his surety enter themselves as security for Rich'd Nance, an orphan in hands of Garth". ("Charles City Co, VA Court Records 1687-1695", B. B. Weisiger)
This Richard Nance was obviously an orphan who had been bound out to Abraham Garth. But whose child was he? There are no known Nances who seem to fit the bill, except perhaps the WILLIAM NANCE of Surry County records 1668-1688. It could be speculated, that this Surry County William Nance was a son of Richard and Alice Nance, and that he died before February, 1692. This would mean, that the William Nance who in April 1692 patented 520 a. in James City county, "due as marryinge the daughter & one of the coheires of Grace Tinsley", was someone else -- possibly the elder William's son.
There is an interesting possibility of a connection here between these two "mystery Nances". At an Oct 3 1693 Court at Westover, it was ordered that one CHRISTOPHER HINTON, "an orphan 12 years old", be bound apprentice to an Abraham GOFF (sic). ("Charles City Co, VA Court Records 1687-1695", B. B. Weisiger). It seems likely that this 12-year-old orphan Christopher Hinton was the son of the Christopher Hinton who d. 1685-1688 and whose widow (Rebecca) had married to a Nance by 1688. What is interesting, is that there are many references to Abraham GOFF in these records, but the only references to Abraham GARTH are the 2 involving the orphan Richard Nance. Considering the phonetic approach to spelling of names at this time, and the errors that no doubt crept in from pronunciations given to names in open court and the rush of the attending clerks to record the information, it is possible that these Abrahams (Garth/Goff) are the same. If so, this suggests that perhaps the Nance who married Widow Hinton had himself died by 1693, leaving an orphan of his own (Richard) and that Garth/Goff took both of the boys.
July 13, 1998
-- Some Confederate NancesThis profile on the 3rd South Carolina Volunteer Infantry Regiment contains a number of references to JAMES DRAYTON NANCE, and also mentions his brother-in-law William D. Rutherford. It also mentions a JONATHAN KING GRIFFIN NANCE, in this same unit. It also mentions the letters of James Drayton Nance at the South Caroliniana (sic) Library at the University of South Carolina.
According to "NEWBERRY COUNTY, SOUTH CAROLINA (HISTORICAL AND GENEALOGICAL ANNALS)", George Leland Summer, Sr., Baltimore, Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1980. Page 263, James Drayton Nance's brother was "James K. G. Nance" who was elected Captain in the unit.
These Nances are in the "Newberry Nances" line covered in Book Five ("Broken Lineages"), Division Three of the "Nance Register".
And here is some information, from a site on the 20th Tennessee Cavalry, CSA, on one PATRICK H. NANCE, abstracted from Confederate service records. "Company E. Records give name as Patrick Nance, P.H. Nance, and P. Yates Nance. Enlisted November 24, 1863 at Mansfield, by Capt. Bomer for 3 years. Bay horse valued at $900. Present on roll for Mar/April 1864. On roll for May/June 1864, "Deserted May 23, 64". Oath of allegiance at Nashville, TN, May 26, 1865; described as resident of Henry Co., TN, fair complexion, light hair, grey eyes, 5 ft. 9 in.; surrendered at Johnsonville, TN, May 25, 1865.
I don't know who this fellow is!
June 6, 1998
-- Will of Zachariah Nance, 1835Here is the Will of Zachariah (II) Nance (1760-1835), son of Zachariah (I) Nance, who is generally thought to have been a son of James and Ann Nance. Thanks to Walter Lech for this contribution!
| LAST WILL and TESTAMENT of ZACHARIAH NANCE Sangamon Probate Court Thomas J. Nance and Cary Nance exhibited in court a paper purporting to be the last will and testament of Zachariah Nance deceased and proved that Zachariah Nance died on or about the 22nd day of December 1835 and also took and subscribed the following oath. "We do solemnly swear that this writing contains the true last will and testament of the within named Zachariah Nance deceased so far as we know or believe and that we will well and truely (sic) execute the same by paying first the debts and then the legacies mentioned therein as far as his goods and chattels will thereunto extend and the law us and that we will make a true and perfect inventory of all such goods and chattels rights and credits as may come to our hands or knowledge belonging to the estate of the said deceased and render a fair and Just account of our executorship when thereunto required by law to the best of my knowledge and abilities so help us God /s/ Thomas J. Nance Sworn this 16th day of January 1836 J. Adams Judge of Probate which said will is in the words following "In the name of God Amen I Zachariah Nance of Sangamon county and State of Illinois being weak in body but of Sound mind and memory do make ordain and establish this to be my last will and testament hereby revoking all others, and I hereby do appoint Thomas J. Nance and Cary Nance to be the executors of this my last will and testament. 1st it is my will that all my Just debts to be paid out of moneys due to me from diferent (sic) Individuals. 2nd After the payment of all my Just debts and funeral expenses, I do hereby devise and bequeath to my beloved Wife Elizabeth Nance all my property boath (sic) real and personal of all and every description whatever also the use and benefit of all money due or to become due from rents of land or otherwise and that she have a right to appropriate money or personal property to her comfort or advantage in any way she may think proper during her natural life. 3rd And to my son Thomas J. Nance I also bequeath and devise a certain tract of land situate (sic) in Sangamon county and state of Illinois Known as hear (sic) described the East half of S.W. qr. of section 12 in T.Ship. 17 N. Range 7 W. in the 3rd principal Meridian containing eighty acres also thirty eight acres taken off of the west side of the west half of the N. W. qr. of section no. 17 in Township 17 N. Range 6 W. of the 3rd principal Meridian. I give and bequeath the above described lots of land to my son Thomas J. Nance as his portion in full of my estate and furthermore as a consideration given him for his services in attending to the business of his mother (my wife) and in providing for her in a comfortable situation and taking care of her during her natural life provided however that he pays one hundred and fifty dollars to my daughter Parthena W. Hill at the death of my wife, at which time it is my wish for him (said T. J. Nance) to take into his possession the above lots of lands and not before that time but after the death of my wife takes place it is my will that sd Thos. J. Nance should take to himself all my right title and estate of said above named land and to his heirs and and (sic) assigns forever provided that he pays the above named sum of one hundred and fifty dollars as above stated to my daughter Parthena W. Hill. 4th It is my will that after the death of my wife that Thomas J. Nance and Cary Nance executors of this my will and testament sell all of my other lands Known as here described towit. The East half of the south east corner of section no. 11 Township No. 17 N. Range 7 W. of the 3rd principal meridian and sixty acres off of the south end of the East half of the North West quarter of section No. 18 in Township No. 17 N. Range six West of the 3rd principal meridian and all of my personal estate and property of every description and out of the money arising from said sale I give and bequeath one hundred and fifty dollars to my son Allen Q. Nance and the balance of the money arising from said sale it is my will should be divided among my other children towit Robert Nance, James Nance, Sally Hash, Eaton Nance, George W. Nance, Henry Nance, Otway B. Nance, Joshua Nance, Cary Nance. Provided, however that each share of the last named nine children does not exceed one hundred and fifty dollars but in case there should be more money after they Robert Nance, James Nance, Sally Hash, Eaton Nance, George W. Nance, Henry Nance, Otway B. Nance, Joshua Nance, Cary Nance have received one hundred and fifty dollars each it is my will that the surplus then remaining should be equally divided between them and my other two children towit Allen Q. Nance and Parthena W. Hill. 5th And whereas I bought some years ago a millitary (sic) claim of Thomas Dozier for three hundred and twenty acres of land lying and situate (sic) in the tract appropriated by Congress for military bounties. Known as the north half of section no. 36. Township no. 7 north Range 1 west in the state of Illinois. Now therefore if upon examination made by the executors of this my last will and testament it shall be found that that land can be obtained it is my will that they shall obtain a title for it and sell it and after they shall receive a reasonable compensation for their services it is my will that the rest of the money arising from the sale of that land shall be equaly (sic) divided among all my children. In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and affixed my seal this seventh day of December in the year of our lord one thousand eight hundred and thirty five. /s/ Zachariah Nance N.B. the words "to my son Allen Q. Nance were intended in the fourth line from the bottom on page 2nd before assigned. |
More information relating to the line of Zachariah can be found at the June 29, 1997 entry in "Odds and Ends", at this page, and at the reproduction of the Nance Family Genealogical Notes of Parthena W. (Nance) Hill, a daughter of Zachariah Nance who is mentioned in the will above.
March 30, 1998
-- Bible record - line of James Nance, b. 25 Oct 1783Here is a wonderful find, sent my way by Ebaiseaol.com. These are entries from Nance
family bible that was in the possession of Mrs. Elizabeth Swann Fitzgerald (Mrs Benj. R.)
of Pelham, NC (as of 1969).
| William M Nance was born on the 7th April,1820 Caroline M Howard was born on the 27th February, 1821 Emily Caroline Isabella (Garland), daughter of Wm M & Caroline M Nance was born on the 18th Dec, 1844 Adeline Smith, daughter of Wm M & Caroline M Nance was born on the 17th Jan, 1849 Capt James Nance was born 25th Oct, 1783 Robert H Nance, son of James & Charlotte Nance, was born on the 16th March, 1818 Keturiah Jane Nance was born on th 24th June, 1824 Marriages: William M Nance & Caroline M Howard was married on Jan 30, 1844 by Rev. N H Harding, in Milton NC. Robert J Baise & Isabella G Nance was married on 7th June, 1866 Deaths: Adeline Smith, Dau of Wm M & Caroline M Nance, died 29 Nov 1849, aged 10 months and 12 days. William M Nance died on the 26th day of October, 1864 Mrs Charlotte Nance died on June the 9th, 1848 James Nance died on the 5th day of May, 1855 |
Thus, this Bible reflects this line:
JAMES NANCE--------Charlotte ?
b. 25 Oct 1783 d.1855 | d.1848
____________________________|_________________________
| | | | |
Robert H. William M. Keturiah J. Lellialea S. James L.
b.1818 b.1820 d.1864 b.1824 b.1829 b.1834
m. Caroline M Howard
______________|_______________
| |
Emily C. Isabella Adeline
b.18 Dec 1844 b.1849
m. Robert J Baise
Judging from the correlation of the birthdate, I think that chances are good that the head of this line is the James Nance shown in the "Nance Register" as the oldest son of William Malone Nance (who was a son of Giles Nance, who was a son of John and Martha Nance):
William Malone Nance (b. 18 Jan. 1760 - d. 8 Nov. 1843) m. 9 Nov. 1782, Pittsylvania
Co, VA, Elizabeth Thornton. He was Rev. Veteran.Children:
1) JAMES (bn. 25 Oct. 1783) in War of 1812.
2) Amelia (b. 2 Nov. 1787)
3) John (b. 23 Mar. 1790)
4) Frederick (b. 2 Aug. 1792)
5) Polly m. (b. 17 Mar. 1790) m. Sam Gauldin
6) Ginsey Jane (b. 2 Sept. 1800) m. Pleasant Stephens 7) Robert
8) Patsy B. (b. 1805)
February 27, 1998
-- The Murder Trial of Montgomery Bell Nance, 1877In the book, "Annals of Murder - A Bibliography of Books & Pamphlets on American Murders from Colonial Times to 1900", I found an entry for a small pamphlet:
| "The State of Tennessee vs. Montgomery Bell Nance". Indictment for murder. Trial at Nashville, lasting from June 25th, 1877, to the 9th of July following. Speech of A. S. Colyar for the defence. Nashville, Tenn., Economical Book and Job Office, 1877. 16 p. 22 cm. |
The book also contained this abstract of the facts:
| "Nance's father was attacked by the deceased, a Mr. Hooper, while the Nances were protecting a fence. The elder Nance was hit on the head with an ax by Hooper, and the defendant shot and killed him. The jury could not agree." |
Apparently, the trial ended in a hung jury. There is no information as to whether the defendant was re-tried.
I speculate that this Montgomery Bell Nance was probably the son of CLEMENT W. NANCE and the grandson of WILLIAM HOWE NANCE. The "Nance Register" describes the following lineage:
Gen. W.E. VI - WILLIAM HOWE NANCE (d. 5 Oct. 1837, age 58)
m. 1801, Pittsylvania Co, VA, Elizabeth Venable Morton. Later
moved to Davidson Co, TN, became a well known judge. Children:
1) Mary A. m. Mr. Bush, had several children.
2) Josiah C. m. Bethenia H. Sneed (see J.B. VII)
3) Samuel, died young.
4) John, died young.
5) CLEMENT W. m. 11 Feb. 1836, Ann Avant.
Children: a) Lucile S. m. B.F. Woodward (9 children)
b) Narsissa M. Saltsman (7 children)
c) Ann m. D. Smith (8 children)
d) MONTGOMERY m. ?.
Children: 1. Annie,
2. Maud Bell,
3. Maggie,
4. Benjamin,
5. Milton.
e) Mary m. Spillars Hall (7 children)
6) William L., m. 1st Martha Wilson, 2nd Martha Castleman,
3rd Martha Pickard.
7) Frederick W., m. 1st Margaret Shacklit,
2nd Elizabeth Whitsett
8) Martha m. Phillip Mallory
9) Susan m. Isaac Paul
10) Elizabeth m. Samuel Kimbro
11) Sicily m. James Murrel
12) America Lucinda m. J.S. Billings
13) Antoinette m. James Matlock
|
I am guessing that this "Montgomery Nance" is the same person as the "Montgomery Bell Nance" referred to in 1877 pamphlet, for a number of reasons. First, the given name "Montgomery" is very rare; this is the only "Montgomery Nance" I have found anywhere. Second, the county (Davidson Co TN is where Nashville is located) and time are right. Third, although the "Nance Register" does not have information on Montgomery Nance's middle name, the fact that he had a daughter who was given the middle name "Bell" is very suggestive.
It is interesting to note that murder had intruded in this line before. Montgomery's great-grandfather, DAVID NANCE, was murdered in Pittsylvania Co, VA in early 1780.
January 24, 1998
-- Peter Nance of SCA bit of information I stumbled across this week turned out to be the earliest reference I had ever found to PETER NANCE in South Carolina. The information was in "Citizens & Immigrants - SC, 1768", by M. B. Warren (1980), reflecting that petitions filed on Nov. 1, 1768 for warrants of survey, to prolong warrants, and certifying platts, included one from Peter Nance regarding 400a. on Rocky Cr.
I already had some records on Peter Nance from SC (see the Archive data for SC); in addition, the "Nance Register" contains an abstract of a will of Peter Nance dated 1780 and probated 1783 in Camden District SC. The significance of this new piece of information, is that it establishes a connection between a Peter Nance in SC who was obviously of age in 1768, and the Peter Nance who owned land on "Rockey" Cr. in Chester Co., SC in 1789. Using all of this information, it is possible to do a partial reconstruction of the Peter Nance line in SC:
Peter Nance m. Elizabeth
(b.abt.1740?)
|
____________|______________________
| | | |
William John Peter Richard
b.1762 SC,
m.bef.1790 Ursula
So who was this Peter Nance of SC?
The earliest Peter Nance I have found a record of appears in Dinwiddie Co in VA in 1765, when he and his wife Elizabeth deeded (to Alex Gibbs) 100 a. "whereon Peter Nance now dwells". Following that, I have found no more records of a Peter Nance in Virginia.
However, a Peter Nance family is definitely present in South Carolina from 1768 until 1793. One critical link is the 1780 will (probated 1783) of Peter Nance in Camden District SC, naming a wife Elizabeth and sons including Peter; in addition, a Peter Nance and his wife Ursula deed away 100a. of land in 1793. After 1793, I have found no more records of a Peter Nance in South Carolina.
BUT -- there was a Peter Nance living in Rockingham Co NC at the 1790 census with a family of 1 white male over age 16,1 white male under 16, and 5 white females -- probably a man with a wife and 5 children (1 boy and 4 girls). Apart from a Peter Nance who witnessed a deed in Lincoln Co NC in 1770, this is the earliest we find a Peter Nance in NC.
Did Peter and Elizabeth Nance move to South Carolina after they sold their land in Virginia in 1765? Did the younger Peter Nance (wife Ursula) then move from SC to NC in about 1790? Certainly, the fact that there was a wife Elizabeth in both the land sale in Virginia and the later SC will, suggest the former connection.
Update - February 27, 1998 - Recently, Rita Nance
In addition, I ran across a reference in the Thomas Sumter Papers (part of the Draper Collection), to a Capt. Peter Nance who served in the militia in the Revolutionary War. According to the 2/11/1833 pension application of one Robert Lard, he entered the war in 1775 (?) and served in the militia under Capt. Peter Nance and Col. Michael Dickson. But would this have been the Peter born in 1762? Would he have been a little young to have attained that rank?
January 15, 1998
-- Benjamin (m. Mary Lewis) and Thomas NanceThis week's (hah! this month's is more like it!) find reflects a Benjamin Nance who, as of 1834, was married to one Mary Lewis, daughter of John (then deceased) and Lavinia Lewis. In this petition relative to the estate of John, a Thomas Nance, Senr. was one of the persons appointed by the court to decide on division of John's slaves between his heirs. Who were they? Well, the will of a Thomas Nance in Randolph Co in 1808 named a son Thomas, and a Thomas Nance was a resident there in both 1815 and 1850 -- when a Benjamin was also a resident. Was Benjamin the younger Thomas' son?
| Petition of Lavinia Lewis & others, Exparte, for Division of
Negroes. Randolph County ) Court of Pleas & Quarter Sessions The Petition of Lavinia Lewis, Senr., Williamson Arnold & wife Elizabeth, Susan Lewis, Elijah Godwin & wife Nancy, Abner Lewis, Benjamin Nance, Lavinia Lewis, Frances Lewis all of full age, & Clayton Lewis, a minor, by his Guardian Lavinia Lewis. Sheweth to the worship, the Justices of the Court aforesaid, that JOHN LEWIS, Senr. late of the County aforesaid departed this life some time in the month of November AD 1830 intestate leaving besides other personal property (in his) possession the fellowing Negro Slaves, VIZ: Anny, Hagar, Sally, Simon, Stephen, Nathan, Martin,Caroline -Daniel - and another small boy. Your petitioner Lavinia Lewis, Senr. is the widow & relict of the said John decd. - and is entitled to a destributur portion of his estate: & your petitioners Susan, Abner, Lavinia Jr., Frances & Clayton Lewis are the Children & heirs of the said John dece. Your Petitioners Williamson Arnold intermarried with Elizabeth Lewis - Elijah Godwin with Nancy Lewis and Benjamin Nance with Mary Lewis daughters of the said John decd. and are therefore entitled to distribution share of his estate. Your Petitioners therefore pray your Worship to appoint five desenter(erees) ted and unconnected freeholders to make an equal & fair division & make report therof to the next Term of ---- Worship Court & your Petitioners as in duty bound will ever pray &c. (signed) H. B. Elliott Lavinia Lewis, Senr., is appointed Guardian femdente lete of the Minor Clayton Lewis. (signed) H.B. Elliot (The five appointed were:) |
From the documents found on page 45 of the miscellaneous papers in the North Carolina
Archives, 109 East Jones St., Raleigh, NC. Submitted by Ann (AnieGranyaol.com). (Thanks,
Ann!)
NOTE: (March 30, 1998) Thanks to Robert Nance (bobnanceiname.com), who pointed out to
me that this Benjamin Nance is a son of Marshall and Elizabeth (Ivey) Nance and a grandson
of Thomas (b.c.1740 - d. 1808) and Ann (Hudson) Nance. The details on this line are pretty
well worked out. The children of Benjamin and Mary (Lewis) Nance were Henry (b. 1830),
Samila F. (b. 1833), Kinchen (b. 1835 - d. 17 June 1857), John L. (b. 1837), Martha (b.
1838), Nancy (b. 1839), Marshall (b. 1840), and William (b. 1844).
November 10, 1997
-- Notes regarding MARTHA (NANCE) SMITH -- I stumbled across this posting on the internet while idly searching the name "Nance" to see if anything new "popped up". These are Notes regarding MARTHA (NANCE) SMITH from "Genealogy of the Smith Family of Rockingham Co. NC" By J. Fletcher Smith which were copied and shared by Ann Mellard in May, 1984.You can visit the website directly, but I have also reproduced the substance here:
| COMMENT BY ANN MELLARD: I have tried for years to find Martha's
family, but I do not know either parent's name (given) name or age. The only one who is
listed in Caswell Co. N.C. is THOMAS NANCE, and Martha named her second son for some
THOMAS. I should have been looking in Guilford Co. N.C. I think. Page 8 "While SAMUEL SMITH was still in the war, he met MARTHA NANCE, and said that 'if he lived to get out of the war he would marry her, if he could get her.' They were married April 3, 1783. From her (his grandmother) the writer of this book learned much of the family history, but has forgotten much that she told him. The writer was about nine years old when SAMUEL SMITH (his grandfather) died, but his (Samuel's) wife survived him about fourteen years... Martha (Nance) Smith was living with the writer's uncle when the 1850 census was taken and was given as 87 years old then and J. Fletcher was listed nearby in his father's home at 20) but he did not leave home until he was 22. So he should have remembered much that she told him: He remembers that she told him that - her ancestors came from the "old County" Martha (Nance) Smith died at the home of her son, Clement Smith, the father of the author of this book, in 1853. He helped her get her husband's Revolutionary War pension." |
September 22, 1997
-- Middle Tennessee Orators -- Last week, while researching my own particular Nance line (from William Howe Nance, b. 1779 Pittsylvania Co VA, d. 1837 Davidson Co TN), in sources covering the Middle Tennessee area of Davidson/Rutherford/Williamson County where he and his family lived, I found lots of references to them -- among which were several, involving different family members, showing a definite bent towards oration, either ministerial or otherwise:In an article about the history of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church in the Middle Tennessee area, I found the following notation about a "revival" meeting held in the area near the juncture of Davidson, Rutherford, and Williamson Counties: "In July 1849, James Marshall commenced a protracted meeting which was held in the grove in the daytine and in William McKay's House at night. He was assisted in this meeting by the Reverends James M. Hunter, F. Nance, John L. Smith, and J. P. Campbell"."McKay's Cumberland Presbyterian Church", by Rev. Nathan F. Gill, Williamson Co. Hist. Journal No 3, 1971-72. (The "F. Nance" mentioned here is my great-grandfather, Frederick Washington Nance, son of William Howe Nance).
In an article originally published in a Middle Tennessee newspaper, "Western Weekly Review", on June 22, 1832, a report on the death of a beloved Williamson County physician, Dr. William McGee, mentioned a community meeting which was held at which Dr. McGee was remembered and mourned, and at which, the paper reported, "Mr. Clemmont (sic) Nance rose and addressed his weeping friends in eloquent, appropriate and forcible oration". Misc. records, Williamson Co TN", Vol. I, by Louise Gillespie Lynch(1973) (This is almost certainly Clement W. Nance, brother to Frederick Washington Nance, and another son of William Howe Nance).
William Howe Nance himself, as well as another of his sons, Josiah Crenshaw Nance, were themselves preachers and "Messengers" of the Concord Primitive Baptist Church on Mill Creek in Davidson County (see, "Rural Vale" (Home of William Howe Nance) Found?) -- that is, until they were kicked out of the church in 1835. But that, as they say, is another story...
September 7, 1997
-- Rowland Nance - a "dead end"? The landmark Nance genealogy, the "Nance Register", reports:"ROULAND Nance - Baltimore County, Maryland - Will 20 November 1682 -- As his entire estate was willed to Henry Constable, it is assumed that he was single and had no children".
I recently ran across a little more information about him.
"Colonial Maryland Naturalizations", Wyand, Jeffrey & Florence (1975), recites at p.8. that ROWLD NANS was an immigrant to Maryland in 1682. This apparently does not mean, however, that 1682 was when he arrived, but only that he was an immigrant and that he was there in that year.
"Baltimore Co (MD) Families, 1659-1759", R. W. Barnes (1989), states that "Rowland Nance was in Baltimore Co by May 1681 when he purchased 300 a. . . . from Thomas Lightfoot; was naturalized in 1692 [mistake? prob. 1682]; d. by Dec 8 1688 when his estate was administered by Henry Constable". That source also indicates that George Yate, w. Rowland Nance and John Larkin, posted an administrators bond 21 Nov 1768 re the estate of Robert Wilson, so it appears he was there some time before the 1681 purchase.
"Baltimore Co MD deed records", John Davis (1996), also reports the purchase of the 300 a. parcel mentioned above: "Rowland Nance, a planter. Pd 13,000 pounds tobacco. Land on the s. s. Patapsco R. Line of John Hawkins. Witnesses were John Dunston, Thomas Rissel, David Jones".
However, he din't last long. "Maryland Calendar of Wills" reports the probate of the estate of Rauland Nance, Balto. Co. 20 Nov 1682, 30 May 1682 [mistake in dates?]. Henry Constable, executor, was also "sole legatee of estate, real & personal, include. 300 a."
Of course, there are some unanswered questions here, due in no small part to the obvious discrepabcies in some dates. However, the overall picture seems clear. It does indeed appear almost certain that Rowland Nance left no progeny. But -- with a name like Rowland -- where did he come from?
August 12,1997
-- The Murder of David Nance -- Here is the text of a record found in Pittsylvania Co Records Book 4, p. 285, relating to the murder of DAVID NANCE in 1780. As the author of "The Nance Memorial" remarked, "There are some strange things about the murder of this man". I have retained the original spelling and capitalization, and indicated with brackets and question mark the one word I am unsure of:| At a Court held at the courthouse of Pittsylvania on the 22d day of
January Anno Dom. 1780 for the examination of Robert Bullington on Suspicion of his having
feloniously Stabed & Killed one David Nance of the County aforesaid ~ Present Abraham Shelton Reubin Payne } Gent. The said Robert Bullington was led to the Barr in Custody of Peter Perkins Gentleman Sheriff of this County to Whose Custody for the Cause Aforesaid he was Committed and it Being demanded of him Whether he is Guilty or not Guilty of the [fact?] wherewith he Stands Charged, Answered that he is in no Wise Guilty, Whereupon the Court Proceeding to Examine divers Witnesses as well on behalf of the Commonwealth as the Prisoner at the Barr who was fully heard in his own defence, On Consideration it is the opinion of the Court that the Said Robert Bullington is Guilty, and that he Ought to receive a further Tryal in the Honourable the General Court on the first day thereof, wherefore he is remanded to Prison again. |
By the way, this record does NOT show that Robert Bullington was "convicted" of killing David Nance. Rather, it reflects what would be referred to, in our present system, as his arraignment and preliminary hearing. While the presiding justices pronounced him "Guilty", this was the equivalent of a contemporary court deciding after a preliminary hearing that there was probable cause to believe that the accused was guilty, such that the matter should proceed to trial.
So what happened at the actual murder trial? I don't know, but there is evidence that Robert Bullington lived and prospered in Pittsylvania County for years after 1780. This suggests that he was acquitted -- or perhaps, that the prosecution was dropped for some reason. Did this have anything to do with the political tenor of the times? David Nance had been accused of Tory leanings just a few years before, and he was forced to post a £1,000 "loyalty bond" to ensure his good behavior. Feelings about politics were very hard at this time.
The sons of the murdered DAVID NANCE included WILLIAM HOWE NANCE, two of whose sons were JOSIAH CRENSHAW NANCE (1804-1865) and FREDERICK WASHINGTON NANCE (1821-1881). Josiah C. Nance's sons included Constantine Perkins Nance (1836-aft.1922). Frederick W. Nance's sons included JAMES FLEMING NANCE (1869-1943), my grandfather. For more information, see, "The Children of David Nance".
July 31,1997
-- Dr. Nance and the Cholera of 1851 -- In my genealogical wanderings, I hadn't run into any medical Nances, until I spotted this:THE CHOLERA OF 1851 About the first of June, 1851, Esq. Jechoniah Langston went from [Fulton Co IL] to St Louis on business. Soon after his return he was taken ill. Not knowing the disease to be cholera, the people attended to him as was the custom. He died on the 7th of June. The remains were taken to the church of which he was a member, and a funeral preached, the coffin opened, and the body viewed by those present. The weather was very warm, with southeasterly winds and frequent rains. John McHenry and several of his family were taken down the day after Langston's death. There not being room in his house for all of them, he was taken to the Christian church, where he received all the care and attention that was possible, but he died shortly after. Four of his children died--Samuel on the 8th, Enos on the 10th, Thomas B on the 12th, and Mary A on the 17th of June. On the 12th a young man named Thomas Kent Woodward died at the AMERICAN HOUSE, and on the same day another young man, a stranger, died at Nathan Searl's. On the 20th a young man by the name of Wm Haney, employed as clerk for Dr. John Hughes, died. Mrs. Elizabeth Hughes, wife of the Doctor, died on the 19th. Mrs. Mary E Blanton, a friend of the Doctor and his family, was taken ill about this time and died on the 23rd. Two colored boys also died at this house, one on the 21st and one on the 23rd. Wm Boswell, a saddler, also died on the 21st. Dr Isaac B Bacon, who had recently come to the place, and who had gained quite a reputation for his close attention to the sick, came home from the country with the disease about dark on the evening of the 27th, and died about daylight the next morning. James B Fowler and a Mr. Frankenbury lost two children each about this time. Wm P and Rebecca J Edie died on the 23rd and 24th respectively. Grandfather Euclid Mercer was buried about this time. As the friends returned from his burial, the man who made his coffin(a Mr. Murphy) came for Dr. NANCE to go and see his motherinlaw. The Doctor with IB Witchell went out there. The man met them at the door, and showed clear symptoms of cholera. They were both buried before 12 o'clock that night . . . [NOTE: It is evident from context, including further parts of the article I do not reproduce, that these last 2 deaths did not include Dr. Nance, but were the man who had contacted him and the man's mother-in-law]. |
Who was this Dr. Nance? Here's a possibility:
According to the census, there was a DR. LEROY NANCE living in Union Dist., SC in 1820, with a small family (from the census count, it appears to have been the Doctor, a wife and 2 young daughters, and a female servant). Dr. Leroy Nance was still there 10 years later, according to the 1830 census. However, there was no Leroy Nance in SC in 1840. Could he have removed to Illinois by the time of the 1851 Cholera epidemic?
Sources:History of Fulton Co [IL], pub. in the Lewistown Democrat 6/5/1879 (IL GenWeb Archives); 1820 and 1830 Federal Population Schedule (Census) for Union District, SC (SC GenWeb Archives)
July 17,1997
-- Where did LISANBY Nance get his name? -- My "find" this week is only half a find -- pertaining to the question, "Where did the name "Lisanby"/"Lessonby"/etc. come from?". I have not found a definitive answer -- but I have turned up a tantalizing set of clues.The given name "Lisanby" (or "Lessonby", or some other variant) is not merely unusual -- it is extremely rare. In extensive searching through various databases, genealogical and otherwise, I have found only a handful of occurrences of "Lisanby" as a surname, and I have never found occurrences of it as a given name -- except in the Nance family. Its occurrence there, and in particular in one line of Nances, seems to me to be a very good clue that the Nances "intersected" with the Lisanby family at some point.
Here's the Nance family background:
LISANBY NANCE, born about 1801 in VA to Reuben and Nancy (Brown) Nance, is the earliest "Lisanby/Lessonby/etc" Nance I have located. He moved to Trigg Co KY, and married(1) Onie Sims, with whom he had Jane Nance. Jane was borm June, 1827 in Trigg Co KY, married J.W. Hayes (b. 1824) on 21 Oct 1848, and died on 29 July, 1851. Lisanby Nance m.(2) to Mary (b. 1817, last name unknown), with whom he had the second Nance to bear this name, LISANBY JR.(b.1839), as well as Peyton C. (b. 1846), Reuben L. (b. 1848 -- was his middle name Lisanby?), and Harriet (b. 1849).
The name appeared again in WILLIAM LESSONBY NANCE, born 25 Dec 1844 to REUBEN SAUNDERS NANCE (born 28 May 1808 to Reuben and Nancy (Brown) Nance), the younger brother of LISANBY NANCE. William Lessonby Nance was presumably named for his uncle and cousin.
Finally, an entry in the 1850 Tennessee census reflects a STEPHEN NANCE living in Stewart Co Tennessee, age 55 and thus born about 1795, whose household included a 25-year old person with the name rendered as LESSON. The elder LISANBY NANCE and his brother REUBEN SAUNDERS NANCE had an older brother, STEPHEN NANCE, born to Reuben and Nancy (Brown) Nance on 11 June 1793. It seems not unlikely to me, that this is that Stephen, with a son who he named LESSON(BY) after his brother.
But where did this name come from? That is a mystery -- but there are some clues. In the databases I searched in, I found a "Lisonbee" born in 1951 in Salt Lake City, and a "Lisonbee" starting a family in1847 in "Winter Quarters", Nebraska -- the staging area of the Mormons on their way west. Evidently, one member of the Lisanby family had converted and went west with the Saints. The Utah Lisonbee is probably a descendant.
But where were the rest of the Lisanbys? The clue I found was records of a "Dynasty" of "legal Lisanbys", in Caldwell Co, KY. -- Fred, J. Gordon, Alvin, C. A., and R. W. Lisanby were all attorneys, practicing in that area Kentucky from the 1940's into the 1970's. There was also a trace of a Howard Lisanby whose land in Caldwell Co KY had been owned by his father in 1956, as well as a couple of court cases from Kentucky involving Lisanbys from the 1920's and 1930's.
What is fascinating here, is that Caldwell Co KY is immediately to the north of Trigg Co KY -- which is where Lisanby Nance Sr. lived. Stewart Co TN, where Stephen and Lesson Nance lived in 1850, is immediately to the south of Trigg Co KY. So did the "Lisanby" name get attached to the Nances in that area? It doesn't appear so -- since the earliest "Lisanby" was born in 1801, in Virginia. What is more likely, is that the Lisanbys were in Virginia, and that they went to the Trigg Co KY area with the Nance (and probably other familes).
Sources: 1850 Census of Trigg Co KY; History of Trigg County, Historical and Biographical, ed. W.H. Perrin, F.A. Battey Pub. Co., Chicago, 1884. p. 238; "Henry Co. VA Will Abstracts", Lela C. Adams (Southern Historical Press, 1985); "1850 TN Census, Vol. 5 (Murph-Rudd)", B. Sistler (1975)
June 29,1997
-- Zachariah Nance Power of Attorney to John M. Bingley -- This was provided by Walter Lech (Thanks, Walter!) :| To all it may concern Be it Known that we Zachariah Nance and
Elizabeth his wife of the county cf Green in the state of Kentucky which Elizabeth is the
widow and administratrix of Lewis Bingley late of the county of James City in the state of
Virginia dec'd and Thomas Wynne in the right of his wife Dolly and James Goldsby in right
of his wife Eiizabeth which said Dolly and Elizabeth are daughters of the aforesaid Lewis
Bingley also of the said county of Green in the State of Kentucky have constituted and
appointed and by these presence do constitute and appoint our Trusty friend John M.
Bingley our attorney for us and in our name and in our behalf and to our use to demand
recover and receive all such sums of money debts and other claims due the estate of said
Lewis Bingley in the State of Virginia as may be claimed by the said admin(istratrix) or
by her and the said Dolly and Elizabeth as the only children of the said Lewis Bingley.
Particularly we give to him our attorney power to demand all rents due for Lands and Lives
of any slave or slaves belonging to the said estate and to give receipts and proper
discharges for all which he may receive. We also give him power to demand. recover and
take possession of a negro named Mack and when received into possession to give receipts
and acquittances therefore giving our said attorney Authority to sue in our name or any of
them if necessary in any court for the recovery of any thing due and owing said estate.
More over we give to our said attorney power to sell the aforesaid named slave for the
best price to be had and to act in all aspects respecting our affairs in Virginia as if we
were personally present. Hereby agreeing to confirm make valid all lawful acts by our said
attorney in Virtue hereof . In testimony whereof we have hereunto we have set our hands
and seals this --day 181- Sealed and delivered in the presence John Barret James C.
Simpson Zachariah Nance, Elizabeth Nance, Thomas Wynne, James Goldsby In addition to the power herein given to John M. Bingley we whose names are aleady subscribed to the foregoing Power give to the said John M. Bingley power to settle and adjust with the Representative of John Brown of James City County in the said state of Virginia who was Security for the said Elizabeth Nance on her obtaining administration on her former husband's estate or with any person authorized in behalf of said Browns estate. Particularly with Hendly Taylor of the aforesaid county and State whatever sums of money or property remained due from the said John Brown after reimbursing and secioning(?) him for his Security Ship as aforesaid and to give receipts and releases for whatever may be received from the representative of said John Brown or from the said Hendly Taylor in behalf of said Browns estate hereby agreeing to confirm and make valid whatever our said attorney may do herein giving him authority to act in the behalf as it we were present acting for ourselves. In testimony whereof we have set our hands and seals this _ day of 181- Zachariah Nance Elizabeth Nance Thomas Wynne James Goldsby At a County Court held for Green County at the Courthouse in Greensburgh the 25th day of March 1816. The written power of attorney from Zachariah Nance, Elizabeth Nance, Thomas Wynne, James Goldsby dr. to John M. Bingley was this day produced in Court and proven by the oath of John Garret. James C. Simpson to be the act and deed of the above named parties and the same together with the certificate as truly recorded in my office. In testimony of which I have hereunto set my hand and affixed the seal of the office this 25th day of March 1816 and the 24t.h year of the Commonwealth. /s/ John Barret Source: Green County Kentucky Court Records; Vol. 7, p. 248 |
June 13,1997
-- Partial transcription of Reuben S. Nance's Notebook -- Remember the "Odds and Ends" entry for May 9,1997, about the Notebook kept by Reuben Saunders Nance? Thanks to Joni Mueller, who sent me a copy of that document, I can now include more detail about it.Some of the Notebook is difficult to read, and some of it is fairly uninformative (genealogically speaking) listings of expenditures, receipts, and other matters -- some apparently personal, some connected to Reuben S. Nance's textile business. Some of it, however, is fascinating.
Here are some entries, reproduced verbatim. The "Family Record" notes are self-explanatory, and potentially of interest to those trying to get a fix on Nance lines. The remedies are just plain interesting.
"FAMILY RECORD"
Reuben Saunders Nance was born May 28th 1808
and was married to his wife Sarah Woodson Clardy July 16th 1831
Sarah Woodson Clardy was born April 2 1812
Mary Jane Nance was born January 12 1833
Sarah Brown Nance was born November 15th 1835
James Saunders Nance was born April 4th 1837
Benjamin Franklin Nance was born Nov 29th 1841
William Lessonby Nance was born Dec 25th 1844
Amanda Ellen Nance was born March 19th 1848
Edmund Lewis Nance was born 8th August 1851
John Woodson Nance was born June 29 1855
(Feb 8 1891) "For sick horse - Take Ticture(sic) ( ?) 6 drops on tongue. in one hour give Belladonna 6 drops. W. L. Nance" -- NOTE: Like a number of later entries, this entry appears to have been made by William Lessonby Nance, Reuben's son
(undated) "Cure for Whooping cough - 2 oz. ( ?) beat fine and mix with 1 pint good whisky, 2 oz tincture of spanish flies, 2 oz tincture of assafoetidae. For a grown person 60 or 70 drops 3 times per day. & for children 20 or 30 drops 3 times per day. All the above remedies should be mixed together".
(undated) "A receipt for the Dropsy. Take 2 gallons of good apple vinegar put it in a pot put ( ?) ( ?) in simmer down to one quart take one handful of camomile and one handful of (swee modly?) each must be tops and roots as mutch as a ma can grip cut them both fine and put them in an earthen pitcher poar the liqeur on it keep warm twenty four hours strain it threw a cloth ad one pound of brown shoogar bottle it up take a large table spoonful three times a day"
(undated) "The 25 day of October, for the present situation of Mr. Nance make the dogwood bark tea strong by Seeping in cold water and let it be half of the quantity tak one handful of tanzy and take four sprigs of hoarhound beet or squeez and steep in cold water til strong"
(undated) "A ( ?) for the lungs Take one handful of hoarhound and one half handful of dogwood bark and nearly one handful of (Essecampaign) and half as much (crimphoy) as (Essecampaign) and ( ?) it take ( ?) galls of honey ( ?) "
June 8,1997
-- Old Nance Houses -- The publication "Names In South Carolina" contains a couple of entries about homes built by members of the Nance family in early Newberry, SC that were in existence at least until recently -- and may still be standing.MAJ. FREDERICK NANCE was one of the first settlers of Newberry, SC. In 1814 a tract of land was granted to him there by then Gov. Jos. Aston. WILLIAM NANCE, a grandson of Frederick, built a house there in 1857, which he called "Gildercrest". When he first built it, there were three slave houses behind it; at the time of the "Names Of South Carolina" article, in 1973, one of them was also still standing, as was the main house. "Names In South Carolina", Vol.XX, p. 38 (1973).
In the West Boundary Street Historic District in Newberry, there is the "Nance House" -- this building dates from 1840, and was erected by ERASMUS NANCE, a nephew of Maj. Frederick Nance. A Nance Family cemetery lies nearby. This house was still standing in 1981. "Names In South Carolina", Vol.XXIII, p. 51 (1981).
May 29,1997
-- NOXUBEE COUNTY is located in eastern Mississippi, on the Alabama state line. Some NANCE names I found there while trolling the 'net caught my interest, as I began to wonder about the story they might tell.Now, as they say, for the rest of the story.
According to the 1860 Noxubee County Slave Census, we know that the JAMES NANCE who lived there at that time owned 50 slaves. CEPHUS NANCE owned 8 slaves.
In addition to information about name, age at time of death, month of death, cause of death, and state of birth, the 1860 Noxubee County, Mississippi Mortality Schedule also contained information about occupation. For most women and children, no occupation was listed, but for one group, neither sex nor age was a factor. It is because of this that we know, that the 9-month-old Joseph Nance who died in Noxubee County in 1860 had an "occupation" when he died: he was a slave.
While there were no more slaves in Noxubee in1870, the 1870 Noxubee County, Mississippi Mortality Schedule noted information about race, and it is because of this that we know, that LEAH (a "farm laborer") and FELIX NANCE were Black.
We also know that the JAMES NANCE who died in 1897, and the ALLEN NANCE who died in 1916, were Black man, whose deaths were the result of lynchings. See, A Partial Listing of Negroes Lynched in the United States Since 1859.
I think it is probable, that JOSEPH, LEAH and FELIX Nance were all slaves, former slaves, or descendants of slaves owned by JAMES or CEPHUS Nance. It is certainly in the realm of possibility, that the same is true for the JAMES and ALLEN Nance who were lynched in the same general area some years later. Research into the NANCE surname in Mississippi could obviously provide more interesting insights into the relationships of these persons and other Mississippi Nances.
May 9,1997
-- REUBEN SAUNDERS NANCE (b. 1808) was a son of Reuben Nance (b.1745, Brunsick, VA d.1812, Henry Co., VA) and Nancy Brown (b.1767, d.1825). Reuben Saunders married Sarah Woodson Clardy (b. 1812). They lived in Saint Clair Co, MO.Joni Mueller
The "Western Historical Manuscript Collection" site contains only an "Index Card" and an "Information Sheet" for this notebook, but Joni has obtained a copy from the collection and, when she can send me a copy, I will try to transcribe and post it here.
Thanks to Joni for this contribution to "Odds and Ends"!
May 3,1997
-- Benjamin A. Nance of Charles City Co., VA -- This past week I discovered, in "Virginia Genealogist", Vol No.18 (at p. 211), a list of C.S.A. soldiers who deserted and took the Oath of Allegience to the Union. The list includes a B. A. Nance, Charles City Co., VA, who deserted the Army of the C.S.A. and took the oath of Allegience 10 Nov. 1864.Who was he, I wondered ? Then I noticed some notes in my miscellaneous files that seem to be the same man. I had earlier found entries in the 1850 Charles City, Virginia Census, Part 1 and the Charles City County, Virginia 1860 Census Slave Schedule that appear to be him. Thus, in the 1850 record, there was a Benjamin A. Nance, age 27, a Wheelright, apparently a man of some means, as the value of his property was shown as $1,000. His wife was Susan E., age 27. They had a child, Julia A., age 1, and there was also a man named Fulton Smith, age 50, living in their household. He was described as a Mulatto. In the 1860 record, B. A. Nance of Charles City Co., VA was shown as owning 16 slaves; there is also the notation, "emp. by. B. A. Nance, 5".
Who else was this B. A. Nance? Well, he was the father of L. M. Nance, who was the first entry in the "Nance Genealogy Odds and Ends"! According to the information summarized at the entry for L. M. Nance, Benjamin A. Nance's father was ZACHARIAH Nance, his grandfather was EATON Nance, and his great-grandfather was JAMES Nance.
April 29, 1997
-- Tennessee Governor Jim Nance McCord -- Jim Nance McCord, (Democratic) Governor of Tennessee from 1945 to 1949, was born in Tennessee in 1879. A self-taught man and editor of the Marshall County Gazette, he served thirteen terms as mayor of Lewisburg and one term in Congress, 1943-1945, before he was elected governor. Taking on Edward H. Crump's powerful political machine, McCord successfully pushed the first state sales tax, using the funds to improve the educational system and provide for retirement for teachers. Despite its benefits, the unpopularity of the tax and McCord's "open shop" labor policies lost him his bid for re-election to a third term. McCord served as a member of the 1953 Constitutional Convention and as conservation commissioner under Frank Clement. He died in 1967. (Taken from an article at http://www.state.tn.us/sos/govs/mccord.htm).April 19, 1997
-- Cow puncher "Gid" Nance -- This is an excerpt from a "life history" given by J.M. Brown, part of the WPA Life Histories Collection. These "life histories" were collected by the Federal Writers' Project for the U.S. Works Progress (later Work Projects) Administration (WPA), during 1936-1940. The collection is accessible on line, and there is a search engine that allows keyword searching -- which is how I found this Nance reference.Brown, from the Ft. Worth, Texas area, worked as a bronc buster in Texas, and one of his employers was a rancher named Daggett. Here is his recollection about a wild cow puncher he ran into at the Daggett place, by the name of "Gid" (Gideon?) NANCE. Time period is unknown, but it probably would have been sometime between in the early 1900's:
| "There was one cow puncher that worked on the Daggett place off and on, that was the worst at starting these fights of anybody I ever heard of. He was one of these picture show kind of cow punchers. The swaggering, showy type. He'd wear his chaps to town, and swagger around like a rooster on parade. The trouble about his swaggering was, that he was able to about call any of his bluffs. He was as good a rider as I ever saw, and a dead shot. He was so good, and careless with it, that he was always getting into hot water with the law here and having to go to Oklahoma. Then, the next time he showed up, he was running from the law in Oklahoma. He was always either running from the law here or the law there. Oh yes, his name was Gid Nance. All the old timers here knew him." |
NOTE: According to the Texas census of 1880, a GID A. NANCE was living in Stephens Co TX in that year. This was almost certainly either Gideon Allen Nance Sr. (b. 22 Aug. 1816, N.C. - d. 1896, Ft. Worth, TX), or his son, Gideon Allen Nance, Jr. Gideon Allen Nance Sr. was the son of Frederick Woodson Nance (Richard,John,John,Richard). It seems likely that one of these men was the "Gid" Nance remembered in this excerpt.
April 12, 1997
-- John Nance and children, in the Keesee Family Bible -- The Library of Virginia is one of the pioneers in making large quantities of significant archival material available directly on the internet. If you haven't visited its website, do so! I can't recommend it highly enough. One of its resources is imaged versions of contributed Bible records. All of the surnames mentioned in these records have been Index to Odds and Endsed in a searchable database, and many of the scanned pages themselves can then be directly viewed (with a .tiff vieiwng software that can be downloaded at the site). While some of these old records simply did not scan well enough to be readable, many did. In the family bible of the Keese family of Henrico County, VA, covering 1764-1945, I found records of a John Nance, who had some connection with that family:John NANCE (b.?, d. 1807) m. 1796 Nancy (Spraggins) Austin (b.?, d.181?)
Their children:
(Nancy Spraggins had married first to William Austin on 6 Mar. 178?, and they had 5 children: Eliz. (b. 6 Aug 1784), Frances (b.3 Oct 1786), Agnes (b. 21 Nov 1788), Lucy W. (b. 15 Feb 1792), Ann (b. 6 May 1793). William Austin died March 1794 ).
So who the ?#!%?&? IS this John Nance? I don't know. . . but, judging from his date of death, and assuming that he would have been about her age when Nancy (Spraggins) Austin married him as her second husband after she'd already had 5 children, I'd speculate that this John Nance was born 1740-1760 or roundabouts...that yields a manageable number of candidates . . . any ideas out there?
April 5, 1997
-- Dinner with the John Nance family -- Here is a fascinating document, written by John Nance (b. abt 1715?, son of John & Jane Nance, and father of Giles Nance) in 1764. It was evidently written and recorded to provide legal evidence of a gift made by a neighbor, Michael Holland, to his daughter. What makes it particularly interesting, apart from the fact that it confirms two children of this John Nance (Giles and Elizabeth), is the picture it paints of an event out of daily life -- having dinner in the yard with visiting neighbors -- and the (to me, at least) unnervingly casual discussion about the disposition of slaves. This is from Amelia Co. Deed Book 8, p. 314, as set forth in "Amelia Co. VA Deeds, 1765-1768 (V.I)", T.L.C. Genealogy (1990) --| [A]bout 8 or 9 years ago, I heard my son Giles say that Michael Holland had given his daughter Mary, two Negroes, Patt & Nann. After that time, I heard Michael Holland say that he had given his daughter Mary the same 2 Negroes, & sometime since the wife of said Holland was apprehensive that no gift should be good unless it was recorded. Holland's wife wanted one r____ to her brother Winn to have the above gift recorded in court. I spoke to the said Winn concerning that affair & he promised he would have it done. I told Mrs. Holland what Mr. Winn had said, and she asked her husband Michael if he was willing that the gift should be recorded & the said Holland agreed to it in Aug or Sep, 1762. But 5 weeks before Michael Holland's death, he, Michael Holland came to my house, & as we sat at dinner in the yard, he said what a fine thing it was to have a small family, for his was so large that he wished that his children were old enough to go for themselves. I, getting up from the table, went into the house. As I stepped out again, I heard my daughter, Elizabeth, say to Michael Holland, what you intend the Blacks shall go to the whites. Yes, said Michael Holland, I have given my daughter Mary 2 & I intend to give Joseph 2. I said to Michael, you don't divide them equally, you should have given Mary a girl & boy and Joe a girl & boy. No, said Michael, Mary seemed to make choice of them 2 & them I have given her. Signed Jan 3, 1764 - John Nance. |
March 29, 1997 -- The Kentucky Biographies Project , a terrific feature which is part of the Kentucky GenWeb project, has over 5,000 on-line biographies of Kentuckians -- and it has a full-text search capability that allows them to be scanned for surnames. Searching for "Nance", I found a number of biographies that either had Nances as their subjects or that mentioned them.
March 22, 1997 -- Will of Reuben Nance The winner of the coveted "Odds and Ends Award" based on the sheer number of names and volume of information involved. This will was dated 10 Jan 1812 and proved 9 Mar 1812 in Henry Co., VA. (This is as set out in "Henry Co. VA Will Abstracts" , Lela C. Adams, Southern Historical Press, 1985).
| To wife Nancy Nance negro Benn, cow and calf, bed and furniture to dispose of at her discretion. To wife Nancy for her use during her natural lifetime or widowhood negros: Isaac, Dyder, Will, Hester, Jury, Martin, Simon, Joe and Janey also a wagon and team, still, all plantation tools, cattle stock, land, plantation house, furniture and the mill. My desire is that my old stock of negros should be divided between my oldest family of children that I had with my first wife viz: son William Nance, deduct $175 pd him, son Bird Nance, son Allen Nance, son Clement Nance, son Joseph Nance, daus Mary Crouch, Susannah McCulough and Tabithia Shackelford, the following negros, Bess' children, George, Peter, Moses, Bob, Rachel, Jiney and Gill. As to my son Isaac Nance, son John Nance, son Reubin (sic) Nance, son Isham Nance and Dau Sarah Sandford I have given each of them their part as follows: son Isaac has received one hundred pounds, son Isham one hundred pounds; son John received negro Amy; dau Sarah Sandford a negro named Liza; son Reuben (sic) negro named Lucy. The balance of my estate to my last children: Stephen Nance, Peyton Nance, Sarah Philpott, Edmund Nance, Lessonla (sic) Nance, Nancy Nance and Reuben Saunders Nance. Appoint Benjamin Jones as exor. Wit: John Conaway, Edward Richardson, John Lovell. Thomas Starling, Joseph Gravely Sr sec for Benjamin Jones. |
March 15, 1997 -- Nances in Old New England? I have tended to assume, based on the information I have seen, that the ancestral Nance immigrants came to the southern colonies. However, what I found at this page (part of the wonderful "Gene Pool" genealogy site) has made me wonder. "THE NINE SQUARES OF ANCIENT NEW HAVEN", a 1641 map of New Haven, CT (as shown in "Three Centuries of New Haven, 1638-1938" by Rollin G. Osterweis, published in 1953 by Yale Univ. Press), shows the names of persons owning property in a 9 - block area of old New Haven. It appears to show that a piece of property was owned by "Mark Nance". As the person who set this page up acknowledges, the names are difficult to make out. Still . . .
March 8, 1997 -- Colonel J.D. Nance, South Carolinian, Confederate officer at Gettysburg. The Confederate Order of Battle at Gettysburg, July 1 - 3, 1863 shows that in Lieut. Gen. James Longstreet's First Army Corps, the 3d South Carolina (in Kershaw's Brigade of McLaw's Division) was commanded by Maj. Robert C. Maffett and Col. J. D. Nance. What's more, the Union County, SC Probate Index (1782-1865) shows a J. D. Nance in Union County, SC in 1862 ( it also shows, in earlier years, William (1818), Zacariah (1828), Sarah (1835), John (1836), Alexander (1840), Thomas (1841), Sherod (1847), and John (1852)). The same person, presumably?
March 1, 1997 -- L.M. Nance,Commonwealth Attorney for Charles City County, VA. In "History of Virginia" (American History Society, 1924), Vol IV, at p.370, there is a profile of L. M. Nance, who was, at around the time that volume was published, the Commonwealth Attorney for Charles City County, Virginia. According to this source, L. M. Nance (the book didn't give his full names!) was born in 1857, and married Edmonia Taylor, daughter of William Taylor. L.M. and Edmonia had 4 children: Eliz.(m. W.P. Tunstall, Jr.), Walter M., George E., and Mattie. L.M.'s father was Benjamin A. Nance, whose wife (mother of L. M.) was Susan Stagg. (Benjamin A. had a brother -- L.M.'s uncle -- Eaton Nance II). L.M.'s grandfather was Zachariah Nance; his great grandfather was Eaton Nance, and his great-great-grandfather was James Nance.