The Unknown Williams - On the waters of Clark's Creek

Montgomery County Register of Deeds Vol 15, Years 1842-1847, pages 60 and 61, is found recorded a deed on 12 January 1842 between Edmund Cook, Mastin C. Williams, Hiram Williams, and Mumford Williams to James Roper for the sum of one hundred dollars, a tract of land, 100 acres, lying in the county of Montgomery, situate on the waters of Clark’s Creek, adjoining the lands of John R. McRae, Dempsey Pittman, and Joshua Brown. The said Edmund Cook, Mastin C. Williams, Hiram Williams, and Mumford Williams, is now at the time of executing these presents seized of a good sure and indefinable estate of inheritance in the aforesaid lands and premises and that they have full power and lawful authority to convey the same…

Witness: Merritt Williams and Dempsey Boswell

I have been researching the Williams family who lived near my Morris family since January. It is my belief that my third great grandmother, Amelia Morris, is somehow related to this Williams family. I have been able to document most of this family, including the ones who migrated to Tennessee, Mississippi, and other parts west. I have learned that this Williams family were probably in Granville / Bute / Warren counties and migrated to Chatham and Montgomery counties.

There are five Williams men, Mastin C. Williams, Hiram Williams, Mumford D. Williams, Merritt Williams, and David Williams whom I am not able to connect together. There is also a man by the name of Edmund Cook who may have married a sister to these Williams men.

Below, I have noted what I have learned about these men. If anyone has any additional information, please leave a comment, or contact me through the blog.

Mumford D. Williams, born about 1817, probably in Montgomery County, North Carolina. I cannot document who his parents are. Married in 1843, Caroline Smith, daughter of Green Smith and Olive Moore. Mumford and Caroline had at least five children, Sarah (1846), Martha (1847), Mary (1850), William Green (1852), and Hiram Thomas (1855).

Mumford Williams died between the 1870 and 1880 Census years. I am not able to find an estate file for him. Caroline is living with daughter, Martha, son-in-law, Josiah Lisk, and granddaughter Lorena Caroline Lisk. Lorena married Samuel Berry Morgan, son of Samuel F. and Susan Morris Morgan, my second great aunt and daughter of John Jacky and Amelia Morris. Josiah Lisk married second to Hattie Lisk, daughter of George and Mollie Lisk in 1899. Lorena Carolina Lisk Morgan is usually confused as the daughter of Hattie but is not. Hattie did have a daughter, Lela, born 1890.

As a note, Samuel Berry Morgan fathered a daughter, Esther Hall, with Sarah Hall, daughter of John Hall and Margaret Talbert. The bastard bond dated Sep 1888, two months before Esther was born. Esther went on to marry Neal Ledbetter and had children.

William Green Williams married Mary Forrest and Hiram Thomas Williams married Martha Crowell. I can find no information on Sarah or Mary. Caroline Smith Williams, wife of Mumford Williams, died after 1880.

Green Smith is the son of James C. Smith and Martha, some family trees have her maiden-name listed as Parham, but no evidence to support the claim. In 1847, Green Smith sold his interest in slaves that belonged to the estate of his father James, and who Martha, his mother, took to Carroll County, Tennessee when she moved there with her son, Cuddy Smith and her grandson, Nelson, son of Green.

 

Other family members moved to Carroll County, Tennessee as well, Nancy Johnson, Green’s daughter, the widow of Thomas Johnson, as she was listed in the publication from Montgomery County, North Carolina Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions Term 1860, nine years after Greens death. John Smith, son of Green Smith, also migrated away from North Carolina, probably to Tennessee with the rest of the family but I have not found him yet in the Census.

In 1850, Green and Olive are enumerated on 20 September in Montgomery County, North Carolina living beside Olive’s father, Thomas Moore (born 1769) and mother, Elizabeth (born 1773). Living in the same household is her brother, John Moore (1807) and wife Jerusha, and children Regina, Armistead, Atlas, John, Laura, and Alfred. Joseph and Nancy Bulla are also listed, unidentified as of now.

Green Smith’s estate file is ninety-two pages long. The file begins with his wife, Olive, renouncing her right to Administer the estate of her husband, Green, and hands that duty over to John H. Montgomery (he married Mumford and Caroline in 1843).

 

In Jan 1851, Olive’s dower in the estate of her husband, Green, was laid off by commissioners of the court and included 265 acres of land on Rocky Creek adjoining Thomas Moore and Mumford Williams, two hundred acres of piney woods where Jonathan Smith lives adjoining Benjamin Deberry, and one other tract where Peter Hall lives on the waters of Clark's Creek near Lawrenceville, one hundred acres.

 

By 1859, Olive and her brothers-in-law, Richmond, and Curtis, are back in court looking for settlement of the estate, advising that Green Smith’s estate was more than sufficient to pay all debts and funeral expenses. The estate was finally settled by C. W. Wooley, nearly 20 years later.

 

Mastin Crawford Williams, born about 1814, probably in Montgomery County, North Carolina. I am not able to document parents for Mastin, however, there are some clues found in an 1839 deed where Thomas Williams and Keziah Andrews sold one hundred and forty acres of land on the waters of Clark’s Creek to Mastin C. Williams. A fellow researcher pointed out that this could be siblings selling land. Keziah could be a female who married an Andrews. Several searches have not found anything useful on Thomas or Keziah. There were several Thomas Williams in Montgomery County but none that would be around the same age as Mastin.

 

 

Mastin married first Jane Hearne, daughter of Selby and Nancy Hearne. Jane was mentioned in Selby Hearne’s will as his daughter Jane Williams, Dec’d. Jane died before 27 Oct 1861, when Mastin remarried.

Mastin and Jane had eleven children: Missouri Ann (1840), Henry W (1842), Nancy Caroline (1844), William (1845), Alexander (1848), Jacob (1849) (more research required here), John (called Jack) (1850), Samuel (1852), Mary (1854), James (1857, and Sarah (1859).

Mastin married second to Francis Andrews, daughter of Edmund Andrews and Priscilla Hancock. Mastin and Francis had Cornelia Florence (1863), Ella (or Ellen) Priscilla (1866), Edmund Mastin (1868), and Laura Adaline (called Addie) (1872).

 

Hiram Williams, born about 1805, married unknown. Parents unknown. Hiram is found on the 1840 Census for Montgomery County, age between 30 – 39. He has a wife, age 20 – 29 and a son under 5 years old. Hiram is also a slave owner. He disappears after 1840 and it is possible that Hiram moved to Tennessee with some of the other members of this family. I found a possible Hiram Williams who later ended up in Lamar, Texas who matches the age range. More research required.

 

 

Merritt Williams, born about 1792, probably in Montgomery County, North Carolina. His parents are unknown. He married Jane Smith. Her parents are also unknown. Merritt and Jane had at least five children, all daughters. Harriet (1825), Emeline (1831), Mary (1832), Eliza (1839), and Martha (1842). In 1886, Eliza Williams married Grandison Fields Morris, my second great uncle, and son of John Jacky and Amelia Morris. Eliza was Grandison’s second wife.

In 1843, Seth Andrews notified Merritt Williams that he had levied on three hundred acres of land on the waters of Clark’s Creek adjoining E. Davis by virtue of an execution in favor of John McRae.

Edmund Cook, born about 1795, probably in Montgomery County, North Carolina. Married unknown, but perhaps a Williams since he was an heir to the land in the deed with Mastin, Hiram, and Mumford. Edmund had seventeen acres of land surveyed in 1836 on the waters of Clark’s Creek adjoining David Williams deceased. James Roper and Mastin Williams were the chain carriers.

 

David Williams, born about 1785, probably in Montgomery County, North Carolina. Married unknown. Had at least two children, Randolph (1829) and Seth (1830). Died about 1836, listed as David Williams, deceased on an 1836 land survey for Edmund Cook; Mastin Williams and James Roper were chain carriers. Randolph Williams, son of David, married Mary Ballard, sister of Sarah Ballard who married Samuel Gardner after his first wife Francis Williams, daughter of Archibald and Nancy Williams, died.