Demoris Lay

Spencer married Ruth White in 1897. Ruth (daughter of Jasper Newton "Newt" White and Susan Parker) was born on 27 Feb 1878 in Whitley County, Kentucky; died on 29 Nov 1963; was buried in Briar Creek Cemetery, Williamsburg, Whitley, Kentucky. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: Jun 1848, Whitley County, Kentucky

Notes:

Libby Freeman Spieth, quoted by "Dolores1630" on ancestry.com says that sometime soon after 1870, "my gr-grandfather John [Freeman] went to Elk Valley TN. He managed a lumber business for my other gr-grandfather Jasper Newton White (Newt) and that is also how he met my gr-grandmother Teresa Allen. They returned to Whitley." Of interest since both John Freeman and Jasper Newton White are among PNH's direct ancestors as well (great-great grandfathers, in his case).

Relationships between Jasper Newton White and John Freeman:

GG-grandfather Jasper Newton White (1848-1909):
* employed GG-grandfather John Freeman (1850-1931) as manager of his lumber mill
* married, as his third wife, Mary Ann Freeman (1855-1928), sister of John Freeman
* Jasper Newton White's son by his second wife, G-grandfather Alfred Franklin White (1880-1952), married John Freeman's daughter, G-grandmother Mary Jane Freeman (1880-1932)

Jasper married Susan Parker on 19 Sep 1867 in Whitley County, Kentucky. Susan (daughter of William Henderson Parker and Sarah "Sally" Patrick) was born on 19 Dec 1852; died in Sep 1879 in Whitley County, Kentucky; was buried in Concord Cemetery, Whitley, Kentucky. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Died of dyspepsia; attending physician Parker (relative?).

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: 6 May 1802, Knox County, Kentucky
• Alternate birth: 15 May 1802, Bertie County, North Carolina
• Alternate birth: 15 May 1802, Whitley County, Kentucky

Notes:

Served as juror. 8 Jul 1826. (Whitley Circuit Court Order Book A-B-C, p.308.)

Paid $24 for killing four wolves, 27 May 1844. (Whitley Circuit Court Order Book G-H, p. 139.)

There are birth and death dates given on his tombstone, but the stone is a relatively recent one.

Nicholas married Nancy Anne Sumner on 13 Oct 1825 in Whitley County, Kentucky. Nancy (daughter of James Sumner and Mourning Blanshard) was born in Jun 1804 in Grayson County, Virginia; died in Jul 1876 in Williamsburg, Whitley, Kentucky; was buried in Red Bird Cemetery, Williamsburg, Whitley, Kentucky. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

Nancy Jonckheere says here that they were married 24 Oct 1825.

Notes:

Born on 8 Apr 1824 in Claiborne County, Tennessee, Henderson came with his family to Whitley County, Kentucky, as a boy. On 3 Oct 1844, when he was 20, Henderson first married Sarah S. Patrick, daughter of Bryant Patrick & Nancy Davis, in Whitley County, Kentucky. Sally was born 13 Jan 1831 in North Carolina. Henderson was disabled in the course of his Army service during the Civil War, and never really recovered. About two months before his discharge from the Army, their oldest daughter died in childbirth. Sally's health was so impaired during the Civil War that she finally died in Whitley County on 2 Mar 1867, at the age of 36, when her youngest children (twins) were only 4 years old. He then married Nancy White [...] After 1880, Henderson, Nancy, and their unmarried children moved from Whitley County, Kentucky, to Piney in Franklin County, Arkansas. Henderson, Nancy, and some of their children later moved to Wister, Choctaw Nation, Indian Territory, where Henderson died on 11 Mar 1898; he was 73. He is buried in City Cemetery, Wister, Oklahoma. [Parker's Genealogy & History Establishment]

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He was an identical twin to his sister Neworlena Jane Parker (1824-1901).

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Compiled Civil War Service Record of William Henderson Parker

At age 39, William Henderson Parker was drafted as a private for a period of one year into a detachment of substitutes for the Union Army. He was then mustered into Company F of the 18th Kentucky Infantry in London, Kentucky on 20 Sep 1864. He served for at least 10 months. He was discharged early on 23 Jun 1865 near Louisville, Kentucky, essentially because the War had ended with the surrender of General Lee's forces in April of 1865.

He received a pension for his Civil War service. He he applied for it on 2 Jan 1884. After his death, it went to his widow, Nancy White Parker.

Notes from his Compiled Service Record:

Muster and Descriptive Roll of a Detachment of Substitutes forwarded for the 18 Reg't Kentucky Inf.
Roll dated: Dft Board Louisville, Ky., Nov 22, 1864.
Age: 39 y'rs
Occupation: Farmer
Where born: Claiborne, Tenn.
Enlistment (drafted): 1 years.
Eyes Hazel; hair Black. Complexion Dark; height 5 ft. 7 in.
When mustered in: Sept 20, 1864.
Where mustered: London (KY)
Where credited: 8 Dist Ky.
Remarks: Drafted.
Company Muster Roll for Mar and April, 1865. "Present" (3)
Company Muster Roll for May and June, 1865. Remarks: Discharged June 23, 65 by reason of Telegram order dated War Dep. May 18, 65. (4)
Company Muster-out Roll dated: Near Louisville, Ky, Jul 18, 1865. Remarks: Discharged June 23, 65 by reason of Telegram order dated War Dep. May 18, 65 (5)
Detachment Muster-out Roll, Dated; Near Loiusville, Ky, June 23 1865. Remarks: P.O. Ad W.c.H.
Reported absent without leave. Restored to duty without forfeiture of time or pay. Mustered out in obediance to Telegram Order War Dept (6) May 18, 65, ordering the Muster out of all troops whose terms of service expire prior to Oct. 1, 65. (7)
N.B. This information is available at footnote.com.

Content Source: The National Archives
Publication Number: M397
Publication Title: Compiled Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of Kentucky.
Content Source: NARA
National Archives Catalog ID: 300398
National Archives Catalog Title: Carded Records Showing Military Service of Soldiers Who Fought in Volunteer Organizations During the American Civil War, compiled 1890-1912, documenting the period 1861-1866.
Record Group: 94
State: Kentucky
Short Description: NARA M397. Compiled Service Records of Volunteer Union Soldiers Who Served in Organizations from the State of Kentucky.
Military Unit: Eighteenth Infantry, Mi-Pl
Surname Starts With: P
Given name: William H
Surname: Parker
Age: 39 Year: 1864

Note: According to worldconnect.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=GET&db=tvdavis&id=I18008, "William Henderson was a severe asthmatic and had to sleep sitting up at night because he could not lie down, which made his breathing difficult. A part, if not all, of his treatment was smoking some kind of pipe with a medication in it."

A Pension Office document dated 14 Jan 1886, a photocopy of which is held by P & T Nielsen Hayden, states that he was disabled by "paralysis caused by wading in water waist deep."

More detail about the dates of his Civil War service can be found here.

William married Sarah "Sally" Patrick on 3 Oct 1844 in Whitley County, Kentucky. Sarah (daughter of Bryant Patrick and Nancy Ann Davis) was born on 13 Jan 1830; died on 2 Mar 1867 in Whitley County, Kentucky; was buried in Red Bird Cemetery, Williamsburg, Whitley, Kentucky. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: 13 Jan 1831, North Carolina

Notes:

A typed family FGR sheet (probably by Joan Van Syckle or Nancy Jonckheere) has their marriage date as 30 Oct 1844. So does Descendants of John Parker by Wynell Morrison.

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: 2 May 1753, Granville County, North Carolina

Notes:

Called "John Calvin White" in some sources.

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According to "familywest" on ancestry.com, his first marriage to Mary Hendrick is recorded in the Hendrick family Bible.

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From Ancestry of Elizabeth Louise White by Steven C. Perkins:

He was probably born 1750-55, as Nancy Jonckheere states that in 1777 he sold land inherited from his father, Richard. Was this the 330 acres in Bute County that he was devised? At that time he was stated to be a planter from Craven County. CHECK

He was probably born in Warren County, N.C., and about 1798 he came to the portion of Knox that is now Whitley County. He died between June and October 1829, based upon his appearance in Whitley County Court as a Commissioner in June and an Order in October that his son, Dempsey, return court records. CHECK whitley order book 1 for his signature. He is probably in an unmarked grave at Redbird; there is a marker for a John White, but the date of death appears to be 1896.

A John White was a taxpayer in Warren County, North Carolina in 1784. North Carolina Taxpayers, supra, v.2, p.217. A John White was a purchaser at an estate sale in Franklin County, N.C., confirmed in June of 1796, Bradley, Will Book B of Franklin County, North Carolina 1784-1804, 929.375654 qB811b 1988, p.16 and at a sale on 10 January 1799, p.38.

A John White is on the Knox tax rolls for 1804, with 300 acres of 2d class land on the Cumberland, 2 horses and 6 slaves. A John White appears in the 1810 and 1820 Knox County censuses, and in Lincoln County before that; a John White is on an 8/3/1790 Lincoln tax list. John White and John White, Sr. appear on an 1816 Knox County tax list. A John White appears on a 1788 Fayette County tax list, as do two Williams and a James. Some Pre-1800 Kentucky Tax Lists, supra, p.11. CHECK

On 28 September 1826 he granted Demcey (sic) White (a Whitley County resident) a Power of Attorney to deal with legacies he might be entitled to from the estates of his father, Richard White, or his mother, Elizabeth, in Franklin County, North Carolina. Whitley County Deed Book 1, p.145-6. Mark White was stated to be the Executor of Richard and Sherrod Celly/Kinney the administrator of Elizabeth. Decker (p. 305) says that Knox County Revolutionary War Veterans included John White of Virginia, and says that he is thought to have settled in Knox in about 1804; if so, that would not [may not] be our John.

*****

The "Demcey" White mentioned above is almost certainly the Dempsey White who is recorded in Collins's History of Kentucky as a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives for Whitley County in 1833, 1835, 1838, and 1839; he was a son of this John White, and his daughter Nancy White (1838-1928) was the second wife of Patrick's greatX3-grandfather William Henderson Parker (1824-1898).

John married Mary Shelton. Mary was born about 1760 in Virginia; died about 1824. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

James married Mourning Blanshard after 3 Apr 1784 in Gates County, North Carolina. Mourning was born in Mar 1768 in North Carolina; died in Sep 1834 in Whitley County, Kentucky; was buried in Red Bird Cemetery, Williamsburg, Whitley, Kentucky. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

According to P. Bryant, current maintainer of her Find a Grave page, she has been extensively confused with the Mahala Smith (1799-1882) who married Joseph Chestnutt Sumner (1793-1880). There appears to be no evidence that our Mourning (Blanshard) Sumner was called "Mahala" in her lifetime, despite the presence of that given name on her modern gravestone at Red Bird.

Bryant goes on to say that the two extant contemporary records of Mourning (Blanshard) Sumner are her Gates County marriage contract and the 1790 census, neither of which call her Mahala. The marriage contract does show her birth surname as Blanshard and calls her "of Hertford County." It also specifies that once married, she will continue to have full possession of the land and slaves that were hers before marriage. Witnesses were Starkey Sharp, Walter McFarlane, and Joseph Witherington. 3 Apr 1784.

(An Aaron Blanchard of Chowan County, North Carolina made his will on 15 Jul 1772, naming daughters Millicent, Mary, and Esther, wife Rachel, and "trusty friend" James Sumner, the latter of whom was also named an executor, leading many people, including us, to the hasty conclusion that Aaron was her father. But the James Sumner who married Mourning Blanshard would have been a young child at the time of Aaron Blanchard's will.)

Assertions that she was of Cherokee heritage are, to the best of our knowledge, baseless.

Sampson married Sarah "Sally" Elizabeth Davis before 1824 in Whitley County, Kentucky. Sarah (daughter of William "Billie" Davis and Sarah Rapier) was born on 8 Sep 1801; died on 2 Jun 1868 in Whitley County, Kentucky; was buried in John Parker Cemetery, Williamsburg, Whitley, Kentucky. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: 8 Sep 1802, North Carolina
• Alternate death: 9 Jun 1868, Whitley County, Kentucky

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate death: Bef 23 Mar 1864, Whitley County, Kentucky

Bryant married Nancy Ann Davis on 13 Jan 1820 in Knox County, Tennessee. Nancy was born in 1802 in Tennessee; died in 1832 in Whitley County, Kentucky. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

From Ancestry of Elizabeth Louise White by Steven C. Perkins:

RICHARD WHITE, JR. A resident of North Carolina, his will was recorded in Warren/Bute Will Book 2 at 73, dated 17 July 1775. (Olds, An Abstract of North Carolina Wills, supra, p.316.)

He acquired land on Cedar Creek by deed in Warren Deed Book 5, at 167, in January of 1775. In a deed from John Wait (sic), John recites that his father, Richard White, acquired the land by grant from the Earl of Granville County in November of 1760 (this is Richard White, Jr. as Richard White, Sr. was dead by 1757). See The Granville District of North Carolina, supra, v.2, p. 159. None of this narrows down his birthdate much. The most that can be said is that he obviously was born well before 1754, when his father named him in his will. A Richard White was listed as a taxpayer in Bute County in 1771. (North Carolina Taxpayers, 929.3756 R233, v.1, p.216.)

The will names his wife as Elizabeth and his children as John, Mark, Harrison, Richard, Nicholas, Mary, Sarah, Elizabeth, Drusilla and Nancy. It also recites that he died owning land on Buffaloe Creek, on Burnt Coat, on Franko Creek and between Franko and Cedar Creeks. Some other useful information is found in Bradley, Will Book C of Franklin County, North Carolina 1804-1812, supra, p. 1. There it is recited that White's Negroes were willed to his wife, Elizabeth, and that she was dividing most of them among her daughters. It was stated that one of four lots was drawn by Thomas Hardin, husband of Salley, and that Elizabeth, Drucilla (sic) and Nancy White drew the other three. The date of the drawing is stated to have been 24 February 1801; however, the recording of the event was at the March 1804 term of court. Apparently, only Sarah (Salley) was married. Perhaps the order of the draw indicates seniority. It would appear that Elizabeth was still alive in 1804. However, she may have been alive much closer to 1826. Material from Nancy Jonckheere indicates that the division, pursuant to an award by the commissioners, was at the September term in 1826; that Sarah Harding, Steven Sparks and Elizabeth, his wife, Drucilla White and Crofford Kearney and Nancy, his wife, took at that time. This seems to be a second effort to divide the slaves, this time not by lot or agreement, but by court order. Also note the power of attorney John gave in 1826 to settle his mother's estate. These actions would indicate a possible residence in Franklin County, North Carolina.

This site says:

73 (A) Will of RICHARD WHITE, planter. Dated 17 July 1775. Recorded Nov. Court 1775. Land on Buffaloe Creek to son JOHN WHITE. Land bought of WILLIAM WHITE to son MARK WHITE. Land on Burnt Coat to son HARRISON WHITE. Land between Franko & Cedar Creek to son RICHARD. Land where I now live, on Franko Creek, to son NICHOLAS. To my wife ELIZABETH WHITE and then to my five daughters MARY, SARAH, ELIZABETH, DRUSILLA, NANCY. Exors: Wife ELIZABETH WHITE, THOMAS SHERROD, and son MARK WHITE. Wit: WILLOUGHBY SELF, ISAAC HUDSON, JOHN HUDSON, WILLIAM HUDSON.

Richard married Elizabeth. Elizabeth died after 1775 in Franklin, North Carolina. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

"According to the memoir of his grandson Chrisman Harrison Parker, John fought in the War of 1812, and was at the Battle of New Orleans when the British General Packenham was killed." [Parker's Genealogy & History Establishment]

From the memoir of Chrisman Harrison Parker:

"I have heard my grandfather tell how the Torys came and robed his mother while that war was going on; - They come one day; and robed the house; - taking the bedding; emtying the feather-beds or ticks over the ground. The feathers come of them rising above the tops of the trees. They then went into the feild and striped the harness off the horse granfather was plowing, and led Him away. - By this time they had gathered the sheep and cattle; - and horses and drove them away. Lleving my great grandmother and her children destitute - undaunted she geathered leaves to sleep on; living as best she could. Clothed her children and cotten and Flaxe, garments of her own make; - The next morning after the robery; she geathered her children and all the hoes and went into the feild. Those who had hoes howed those who had none pulled weeds and grass: - at last the war ceased, and great grandfather come home, and settled down to honest toil. Where he lived and died.

"My granfather grew up in in North Carolina, and maired there, and when my father was three years olde mooved to Tennsee: where he raised his family. In the War of 1812. Granfather Parker, entered the servis of his country and was at Battle of New Orleans when Pakenham was killed.

"My mother, - Celety - Harrison, Parker lost two brothers in the War of 1812. I have heard my mother say grandmother Harrison kept the clothing of her two lost sons as long as she lived; and once a year would look them over; and weep as she folded them up and laid them carfully away."

John married Elizabeth Carrel on 9 Jan 1793 in Wilkes County, North Carolina. Elizabeth (daughter of James Carrel) was born in 1775 in North Carolina; died on 3 Dec 1859 in Whitley County, Kentucky. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

[The paragraph below is from http://homepages.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~kmparker, evidently from info provided by Patrick's late aunt Nancy Jonckheere.]

"Born in 1776 in North Carolina, Billie Davis was famous as a trapper, guide and explorer. He had a disagreement with a bear and lost his arm as a result, but it was the bear who lost the fight. Later, one-armed Billie became sheriff of Whitley County, an office he held for many years. He had considerable presence and could handle just about any problem with words alone. Nancy Jonckheere once found online a copy of an old North Carolina election handout from about 1850, which said was that the candidate was endorsed by 'Billie Davis, the famous one-armed sheriff of Whitley County, Kentucky.' By 1795, when Billie was 19, he was already married to Sarah Rapier, who was born about 1779 in North Carolina. Her brother Jesse moved to Whitley County, Kentucky, as well. Billie and Sarah both lived to a ripe old age and died in Whitley County: Sarah between 1860 and 1870, when she was at least 81 years old; and Billie in 1864 at the age of 88."

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We wonder if he wasn't born significantly later than the late 1770s. According to the records of the Kentucky Assembly, William Davis was sheriff of Whitley County in 1848 and 1849, at which time he would have been 72 and 73 years old if he was in fact born in 1776. Memory and oral traditions often exaggerate the age-at-death of particularly colorful individuals.

More absurdly, multiple ancestry.com trees claim that this William Davis is the Union soldier who died on 6 October 1864 and is buried at Cave Hill National Cemetery in Louisville, Kentucky. We have no idea how they imagine that an 82-year-old man was serving as a Union private.

*****

Michele Brooks reproduces a bill of sale for his estate, executed by his son Melton Lewis Davis, which may provide some clues to his ancestry:

Sale Bill Dated 3 December 1864
Son - M.L. Davis 1 pistol $5.50
Son - William R. Davis 3 books 1.60
William Patrick 4 books .50
William Patrick 5 books .60
Dau - Matilda 1 book 1.90
son-in-law Sampson Parker 2 razors 1.40
Son - M. L. Davis 1/2 bushel ?
Seth Freeman
Cousin - James E. White 1 board 1.00
Cousin-in-law - Melton E. White 2 boxes 4.00
Son - M. L. Davis Furniture 55.00
M. L. Davis 1 saddle 1.00
M. L. Davis 1 satchel 3.00
Dau - Matilda Cattle .50

William married Sarah Rapier between 1795 and 1800 in North Carolina. Sarah was born in 1777; died before 1870 in Whitley County, Kentucky. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Alternate birth: Abt 1778, North Carolina
• Alternate birth: Abt 1779, North Carolina

Notes:

Appears in some online trees as Roper, Rapour, etc. Frequently given as a daughter of William J. Rapier and Elizabeth Thompson; there is absolutely no evidence for this.

Notes:

Variously given as born in Dublin, Ireland or Ayreshire, Scotland. In the 1880 and 1900 censuses, he was said by his son Andrew to have been born in Ireland.

A James Patrick is recorded as baptized 3 May 1778 in Dalry, Ayrshire, Scotland, born 1 May 1778, son of Robert Patrick.

James married Courtney Sykes. Courtney was born in Virginia. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

A Courtney Patrick appears in the 1800 census of Hertford County, North Carolina with sons under 10.