The parents of Nancy Ann Hendrix Edins, Part 2

A few years ago I posted a theory on the Eddins forums at Ancestry.com and Genforum.com. I postulated that Peter Hendricks and Elizabeth Gibson were the parents of the Nancy Ann Hendricks who married James A. Edins. The purpose of THIS post is to discuss the Hendrickses/Hendrixes who probably AREN'T the parents of Nancy Ann—in order to establish who her parents might be.


Here are the "givens":

It's clear that Nancy Ann comes from one of the Hendrix/Hendricks/Hendrex families in Orangburgh, later Lexington County, SC. There are gazillions of Hendrixes in Orangeburg/Lexington, and she was married in Lexington County.


Most US Censuses state that she was born in SC between 1796 and 1800. She married James A. Edins/Eddins in 1813 (from his War of 1812 pension application). Assuming she married later than her 13th year, her birthdate is probably closer to 1796.  

Since the Edins family lived near several Hendrix families from 1790 to 1820, let's look at what the censuses can tell  us. 


First, the 1790 Census.

In the 1790 US Census for SC, John Edings (James's father) is in Orangeburgh District, as are Henry, Amos, John, Tobias (Peter and Henry, Jr.'s father), and William Hendricks.


Exit Tobias, as he is definitely the grandfather. 

Let's look at 1800.

In the 1800 US Census for SC, Selvia Edins is in the area "Lexington north of Saluda." For Hendrick we find Abraham, Amos, Henry, Jr., Mary, Peter, Tobias (grandfather), and William. Both Henry and Peter Hendrick are living in Orangeburgh near the Saluda River and the Edinses. Nancy Ann would be between four and six. Only Henry and Peter have females of the right age in their households. Henry has four females under 10, and Peter has two. So they're still in the running. 


Exit Tobias, Abraham, Amos, Mary, and William. 


1810:

In the 1810 US Census for SC, the Widow Edins is in Lexington County. Also Absolom Hendrix and Eliga, Elizabeth, Henry, Peter, Samuel, William Hendrex. Sarah Hendrick is in Richland County, which borders Lexington. As James A. lived in Richland in 1820, Sarah is still in the running. 

In the 1810 US Census for SC, Nancy Ann Hendrix would be about 10 - 14 if she were born in 1796 to 1800. Since most of the censuses list her age as ending in a “4,” let’s say she’s 14. In the 1810 Census for Lexington County, there are several Hendrix/Hendricks near the Widow Edins, which is where James A. is. 


In 1810 only three households have females of the correct age.


Peter Hendrix has two females 10 - 16. One is probably Nancy Ann, who would be 14. The other one could be Susanna, born 1798, and thus 12 in 1810. 

Henry Hendrix has one female 10 - 16 and two females 16 - 26.

Elizabeth Hendrix has one female 10 - 16, whom I have not yet identified.

In 1810 Absolom, Eliga, Samuel and David Hendrix do not have females 10 - 16 in their households, which would probably eliminate them as Nancy Ann's father. Sarah Hendrick has no females 10 - 16 in her household, either, which would probably eliminate her as Nancy Ann's mother. 

William Hendrix has two females 10 - 16, but they have been identified as  Elizabeth and Catherine; see http://awt.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=:3202133&id=I6569). Therefore:

Exit Tobias, Abraham, Amos, Mary, and William. Most likely, exit William, David, Samuel, Absolom, Eliga, William, and Sarah. 

1820:


By 1820 our Nancy Ann is already out of the household, having married James A. in 1813. She's probably with James Eddings in Richland County, SC. Richland County neighbors Lexington County and actually extends into it. 


Further, in the 1820 US Census for SC, David, Dod (clearly "Dvd'", or David) Jr, and John Hendrick are in Lexington County, as are Absalom, Elias, Isaac, James, John, William, and Henry Hendricks.


Most significantly, Andrew Fay (Frye) is in Lexington County right next door to Henry Hendricks. Since Henry's daughter Nancy (see the last blog entry) was married to Andrew Frye around 1820, this juxtaposition strongly suggests that Andrew's wife Nancy was Henry's daughter. Nancy Hendricks Frye and Nancy Ann Hendricks Eddins are definitely two different people. So we can probably eliminate Henry Hendricks as the father of Nancy Ann Hendricks Eddins. Therefore:


Exit Tobias, Abraham, Amos, Mary, and William. Most likely, exit William, David, Samuel, Absolom, Eliga, William, and Sarah. Exit Henry, Jr., too. 


Which leaves Peter Hendricks as the most likely father of Nancy Ann Hendricks. If Peter is the father, then Elizabeth Gibson is her mother. And there you have it. 

The children of John & Zilpha Eddins/Edins (Updated for the 3rd time)

Using both the 1790 US Census for SC and the ad that Zilpha placed in the South Carolina State Gazette, one can work out a fairly logical order of John & Zilpha's children. 


The 1790 Census lists one male 16+ (John) and three males under 16 (Blakely, John S., and Ephraim), and six free white females (Zilpha and five girls: Fereby, Elizabeth, Mary, Martha, and Obedience). 


Some birth dates are known for these people because of cemetery inscriptions. Other dates are implied from census records. Even others are listed because good researchers (for example, Bob Eddings) have listed them this way. 


So here's the list:

• Fereby, who married Samuel Hendrix, b. 1770 - 1780?, died after 1840 in Tuscaloosa County, AL? 
• Martha, born before 1790, died ?
• Elizabeth, who married a Brown, born before 1790, died ?
• Mary, who married George Turner, born before 1790, died ?
• Blakely, born about 1780, died about 1838 in Pulaski County, GA
• John S., born 1 August 1782, died 1831 or 1839 in Orangeburg/Lexington County, GA
• Ephraim, born about 1786, died by 1826 in Richland County, SC ?
• Obedience, born October 13, 1789, died May 14, 1863 in Walker County, GA
• William D., born about 1791, died after 1840 in Pulaski County, GA
• James A. (likely "Albert"), born 1792-3, died January 27, 1858 in Tallapoosa County, AL

Bob Eddings says there are 11 children, and there may be, but I can only find these 10. 


I'm going to update this list whenever I find compelling new information. So  there. 

Are Catharine & Louisa daughters of John & Zilpha?????

Several Public Trees at Ancestry.com have listed Catherine and Louisa as daughters of John & Zilpha Eddins. No other information is available. No birth dates. No death dates. Nuttin', honey. Folks probably copied a previously posted family tree without checking the sources. 

A disgression:

Please don't think I'm saying my research is always better. 


It's not. But when I do find new facts, I correct the information in my tree. This makes me very happy.    :)))))


For example:


Though my research is generally good and based on primary sources when possible, at the moment I too have a Catherine, born 1789 and listed as a daughter of John & Zilpha. Checking the footnote, I find this source listed: "1850 US Census for Pike County, AL, Ancestry.com, Viewed December 2004." Not too many details, huh? And when you search for "Eddins/Edins/Edings" in Pike County, AL, the only person born around 1790 is Elizabeth Eddins. No Catherine in sight.


Uhhhh....


See below. 

When you look at the 1860 US Census for Pike County, AL—Yay bo! Lots of Eddinses and Edinses. Since we're looking for children of John & Zilpha, let's focus on the most likely candidates: 

• Elizabeth Eddins, born 1795 in NC 
• Louisa Eddins, born 1784 in SC
• Catherine Eddins, born 1790 in AL

We can eliminate Elizabeth Eddins right away as a child of John & Zilpha. Née Wilson, she was enumerated in the 1850 and 1860 US Censuses for AL in Pike County with young Richard Eddins. According to a will in Pike County, she married Richard John Eddins and had Richard as a son. The source is a newspaper article at this URL:

http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/12953816/person/1739611301/media/6b24b9ab-44f6-4e54-87a0-265b5f59c77c?pg=32768&pgpl=pid


So much for Elizabeth. 


Next comes Louisa Eddins, born 1784 in South Carolina—


Sorry. Again, not a child of John & Zilpha. 

Louisa Eddins was the daughter-in-law of John & Zilpha, wife of the first John S. Eddins (son of John & Zilpha), and the mother of the second John S. Eddins. Louisa, née Swearingen/Swearingain, born about 1784, married John S. pére in Edgefield District, SC, on January 15, 1805. Corroboration of her position comes from the will of her son, John S., who wrote it before leaving for the Civil War. Here's a link to that will:

https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1942-23252-41691-68?cc=1978117&wc=14406399

The issue of Catherine Eddins is a little more complex. The most likely candidate is the Catherine who is in the household of Ephraim Eddins in Pike County, AL, in 1860. In the 1860 US Census for AL, Ephraim Eddins is living in the Western Division, Pike County, Hallsville P.O. In the household are Ephraim, 51, Mary A., 43, Mittie Small, 20, Manuel J., 18, James N., 13, Ellen, 13, Catharine, 70, and Ann C. M. Eddins, 5. Catharine was born about 1790 in AL. Ephraim through James were born in SC; Ellen, Catharine, and Ann C. M. were born in AL. 


I submit to you that this Catharine is not a child of John & Zilpha. There are too many discrepancies. First of all, to be a daughter of J & Z, Catharine would have been born in SC, not AL, because all of John & Zilpha's children were born in SC. Alabama did not even become a state until 1819, so Catharine could not have been born there—period! 


So...maybe the census taker made a mistake. 


But there are more discrepancies:


Census takers usually (not always, but usually) listed heads of household first, then spouses, then children and step-children by age in descending order. After that could be  parents and in-laws, then siblings, then other relations or boarders. Compare Catharine's position to that of Louisa Eddins in the household of Samuel Small, above in the census. If Catharine were a sibling or aunt, in-law or parent, logically she'd be listed AFTER Ann C. M. Eddins, unless Ann is a grandchild—which she is not, as proved by this death notice:


http://search.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/sse.dll?db=FSAlabamaDeath&h=290732&indiv=try&o_cvc=Image:OtherRecord


Want more? 


Lastly, if you compare the "7's" of the census taker's handwriting to the "1's," it's clear that this female is TEN and not 70. Look at the entire entry for the family. Logically, this female is a CHILD named Catherine who is 10, and not an adult. 


Which knocks this Catherine Eddins out of the race to be a child of John & Zilpha. 


Some trees list another Catherine Eddins, born 1809, as a daughter of John & Zilpha. There WAS a Catherine Eddins. She was a daughter not of J & Z, but of William Eddins and Hannah Wilson. Born 1809 in Charleston, SC, married Noah Parker in 1825 in Conehuh County, AL, and died in 1862, buried Fairmont Cemetery, Butler County, AL. Source: 


http://familytreemaker.genealogy.com/users/p/a/r/Tannis-W-Parker/WEBSITE-0001/UHP-0235.html


Many family trees have errors (including my own; see above), but 99% of the trees at Ancestry.com and Genealogy.com list Catherine as a daughter of William Eddins and Hannah Wilson, so I'm inclined to believe it's true. At any rate, she was born too late to be a daughter of John & Zilpha. 


To wrap up, neither Louisa, Catherine, or Elizabeth are daughters of John & Zilpha. So now I have to go back and correct my family tree.


Goody!!!!!!!  :))))

The children of John and Zilpha Edins/Eddins (Updated)

Based on documentary evidence, John & Zilpha Edins/Eddins  of Orangeburg (later Lexington County), SC, had at least 10, probably 11, children. 

Here are their names and estimated birth and death dates:

• Fereby, who married Samuel Hendrix, b. 1770 - 1780?, died after 1840 in Tuscaloosa County, AL? 
• Blakely, born about 1780, died about 1838 in Pulaski County, GA
• John S., born 1 August 1782, died 1831 or 1839 in Orangeburg/Lexington County, GA
• Ephriam, born about 1786, died by 1826 in Richland County, SC ?
• Catherine ?, born about 1789 ?, died ?
• Obedience, born October 13, 1789, died May 14, 1863 in Walker County, GA
• William D., born about 1791, died after 1840 in Pulaski County, GA
• James A. (likely "Albert"), born 1792-3, died January 27, 1858 in Tallapoosa County, AL
• Martha, born ?, died ?
• Elizabeth, who married a Brown, born ?, died ?
• Mary, who married George Turner, born ?, died ?

Here's the documentary evidence from the 1790 US Census for SC: 

1. In the 1790 US census for SC, John Edings is living in Orangeburgh District. There is one male 16 + (John), three males under 16 (Blakely, John S. & Ephraim), and six free white females (Zilpha, Obedience for sure & four others, probably Fereby, Elizabeth, Mary, and Martha or possibly Catherine). Neighbors: Geiger, Busbee, Liphart, Kennerly, Gossett, Bookman, Weisinger, Corley, Price, Cummerland, Clark, Clark, Hydle, Busby, Hellman, Beard.

2. The ad that Zilpha ran in Lexington's South Carolina State Gazette in 1828 lists the people below as living out of state. While there are no guarantees that all of the people are children of the union, most of them are known to be; and so I choose to assume that they are. 

Mary, wife of George Turner

Elizabeth Brown

Fereby, wife of Samuel Hendrix

John

Martha

Blakely

Obedience, wife of Edom Moon

James A.

William D. 

3. In the 1800 US Census for Orangeburgh, SC, Selvia Eddins is head of household. In the household are two males under 10 (William D. & James A.), two males 10 - 15 (John S. & Ephraim?), questionable 1 male 26 - 44--(looks "one," then changed to zero, could have been a miswrite or mistake) (David Winchell?). There are also one female under 10 (Obedience), two females 10 - 15 (Catherine and Martha?), and one female 26 - 44 (Zilpha). Neighbors include Muntz, Peter Sea/Lea, Elizabeth Kelly, William Kelley, Samuel Kelley, Roof (Ross?), Blakeley, Turner, Borman, Senn, Carter, Hydle, Smith, Lipheart, Charles Corley, Lites (Lightsey), John Weisinger, William Daniel (brother to Frederick Daniel who married Susanah Hendrix?), Busby, John Ricord (Rickard), Geiger, Sanders, Evans, Christian Wingard.

4. In the 1810 US Census for SC, Widow Edins is in Lexington County. In the household are one male 10 - 15 (Unk), two males 16 - 25 (William D., 19,  and James A., 17), one male 26 - 44 (Blakely, 30? Ephraim, 26? Not John S., who was married and out of the house by then. David Winchell, whom Zilpha would later marry?). Also in the household are one female under 10 (Unknown), one female 16 - 25 (Catherine, 21?), two females 26 - 45 (Martha and Unknown?) and one female 45 and over (Widow Eddins). Nearby neighbors are Windgard,  Rambo, Furney, Busby, Jumper, Martin, King, Johnston, Bookman, Oliver, Oswalt, Keixer, Busbee, Rall, Boozer, Gibson.

I'll blog about each person as I can. More soon!

What I know about John Eddins/Edins/Edings who married Zilpha

Not much. To whit:

John Eddins/Edins/Eddings was born about 1750 in VA (?) and died about 1795 (?) in Orangeburg, later Lexington County, SC. He may have served in the Revolutionary War. He married at least once, maybe twice; the wife who survived him was Zilpha/Zylpha/Zelpha/Sylvia/Selvia, who died in 1831. They sold and deeded land. There were at least 10, probably 11, children. Here are their names and estimated birth dates:

• Fereby, who married Samuel Hendrix, 1770 - 1780
• Blakely, born about 1780
• John S., born 1 August 1782
• Ephriam, born about 1786
• Catherine ?, born about 1789 ?
• Obedience, born October 13, 1789
• William D., born about 1791 ?
• James A. (likely "Albert"), born 1792 or 1793
• Martha
• Elizabeth, who married a Brown
• Mary, who married George Turner

That's it. That's all. 


Only six sources that I've found list credible information about John: the 1790 US Census for SC; an 1828 ad in the South Carolina State Gazette; a set of payroll pages from the National Archives; land transaction books for SC; Bob Eddings, who moderates Genforum.com/Eddins; and a Rootsweb column. Below I've listed the sources and my evaluation of their reliability. 

Here's the documentary evidence from the 1790 US Census for SC (Reliable):

1. In the 1790 US census for SC, John Edings is living in Orangeburgh District. There is one male 16 + (John), three males under 16 (Blakely, John S. & Ephraim), and six free white females (Zilpha & five others, possibly Elizabeth & others). Neighbors: Geiger, Busbee, Liphart, Kennerly, Gossett, Bookman, Weisinger, Corley, Price, Cummerland, Clark, Clark, Hydle, Busby, Hellman, Beard.

2. The ad that Zilpha ran in Lexington's South Carolina State Gazette in 1828 mentions these children living out of state (reliable):

Mary, wife of George Turner

Elizabeth Brown

Fereby, wife of Samuel Hendrix

John

Martha

Blakely

Obedience, wife of Edom Moon

James A.

William D. 

3. There is a John Edins who served as a private in Col. Thompson's 3rd SC Militia during the Revolutionary War. at Fold3.com. There's no way at this point to tell if it's our John Edins, so I'm listing it here as "interesting; needs more research."


4. Land transaction books that list John & Zilpha's business dealings are located in the Birmingham Public Library (reliable). I remember seeing them, but as it was in the beginning of my research, didn't record all the info. Bad girl. Guess where I'm going next time I'm in AL???


5. Another source, as mentioned, is Bob Eddings. I have always found Bob's information to be correct. He may not have found everything that I have found (for example, the marriage of Zilpha Eleanor Edins and William Pope, or Nancy Ann Hendricks's final home in Lee County, AL), but I have never caught him in a mistake. I'd like to thank him here for generosity in sharing his research. 

For example, here is Bob's entry from July 16, 2000, that outlines the life of John Eddins:

"...I dont know anything about James' wife Mary, but I'll give you some background on James. The earliest Eddings/Eddins I have found in that line is John Eddins, born ca 1750 (where? Va?) and died in Lexington Co., S.C. ca 1795. His wife was Zilpha (might have been his 2nd wife) and they had 11 kids, including James A., born 1793 and died 1/27/1858 in Tallapoosa Co., Ala. He married Nancy Ann Hendricks ca 1817 in Lexington Co.. They had 9 kids, including Blakely A., born 11/2/1822 in Lexington Co. and died 6/14/1885 in Jefferson Co., Ala. Blakely married Elizabeth Hilton (Helton?) 2/7/1847 in Tallapoosa Co.  I understand they had 10 kids, including your James. I guess you know the rest of the story. Bob."

And this from 14 Oct 2003:

"John and Zilpha Eddins --- I have never been able to tie John in

to the Virginia Eddins, but I estimate he was born circa 1750 and died  circa 1795. His kids were all born in Orangeburgh District (later became Lexington Co.), S.C. As far as I know, here were his kids:  Blakely, born ca 1780, died ca 1838 in Pulaski Co., Ga, ; John , born ca 1784, died 10/1839 in Lexington Co., S.C. ; Ephriam, born ca 1786, died 1826 (or '28?) in Richland Co., S.C.; William D., born ca  1791, died after 1850 probably in Pulaski Co., Ga. ; James A., born 1792 or 93, died 1858 in Tallapoosa Co., Ala.  In addition, there were 6 daughters born , whose names I have never heard....Hope this helps. Bob"

6. Finally, this entry from the Rootsweb Archiver in 2007 (probably reliable). This is the quote that everyone puts in their public trees but never credits. The quote refers to the above mentioned land transactions. (Bad girl!) The web address is:

http://archiver.rootsweb.ancestry.com/th/read/SCLEXING/2007-10/1191887181

"The single Eddins family with records in Lexington Co by 1800 was headed by a John, not a William. John Eddins purchased 102 acre south of the Saluda River on 19 Dec 1798, adjacent to lands owned by Benjamin Wingart and Daniel Wingart. John Eddins was not necessarily the father-in-law of Benjamin Wingart, but his children were of the right generation. In 1800, the household in the same land location (Twelve Mile Creek of the Saluda) was headed by widow Silvia [sic: Zelpha] Eddins. The children in her household included two sons and two daughters born 1784<1790, and two sons and a daughter born 1790<1800. In 1816, Zelpha/Zilpha (recorded both ways) Eddins deeded Saluda property to sons named James A. and William D. Eddins. She stated that she had already given equal shares of land to the older children (not named). The John S. Eddins who lived in the same Twelve Mile Creek region in 1810 and 1820, purchased land from William Wingard in 1818, was presumably one of her older sons. His census age groups indicate a birth year of ~1784. John S. Eddins married Louisa Swearingen. The Eddins and Swearingen families of Edgefield Co. were both involved in the early history of Horn's Creek Baptist Church. John and Zilpha Eddins of Lexington Co were probably closely-related to the large Eddins family resident mainly in Edgefield Co, but the precise relationship is not documented."

And that's all I know. So there. Bleah....

FOUND! Marriage date for Zilpha Eleanor & William Pope

January 9, 1839, in Wilcox County, AL. 


I found this yesterday when idly checking some marriage dates at FamilySearch.org. The names on the license were William Pope and Eleanor Edin. 


The reason that they were married in Wilcox County is that James A. Edins, Zilpha Eleanor's father, moved the family there between 1819 and 1822. That was just about the time between the births of Sarah Edins (born SC about 1819), Hiram E. Edins (born SC or AL about 1821) and Rebecca Ann (born probably AL about 1822).


More checking to do to see if I can find Zilpha and William between 1839 when they got married, and 1849, when Ellender Pope married Francis M. Freeman.