Midlesex, Virginia, Daniel Descendants... by Robert Sneville
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GENEALOGY COLLECTION Chesapeake Book Co. Berryville, Va. MIDDLESEX, VIRGINIA DANIEL DESCENDANTS (Including important notes, Bible records, etc. on the Adrian, Baber, Bledsoe, Cameron, Cannon, Chancellor, Chesnut, Clayton, Dickson, Doherty, Dykes, Hampton, Hardwick, Harton, Jack, Landers Lawrence, Lewis, Neely, Watt, Webb, Williamson, and Wood Families.) By Robert Neville Mann and Cathrine Cleek Mann Cedar Bluff, Alabama 1959 Copyright, 1959 by Robert Neville Mann and Cathrine Cleek Mann All Rights Reserved Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 59-9576 Printed in the United States of America by Whitener's Lettershop, Inc. Rome, Georgia 1215363 To The Memory of The Parents of Robert Neville Mann, Eugene Turner Mann and Lola Josephine (Williamson) Mann TABLE OF CONTENTS Page Preface. ........... 5 Foreword ................. T The Daniel Family. ............ 8 Early English Ancestors. ......... 194 Soldiers of the Various Early Wars .... 196 Bibliography ............... 198 Addenda and Errata ............ 201 Index of Names .............. 210 Unnumbered Blank Pages for Notes . .after 244 4 PREFACE Martha Jane Daniel, born in 1819, was my maternal great grandmother. She married as her second husband in 1839, George Jefferson Williamson, born 1811, my maternal great grandfather. George and Martha kept many personal records of their operations as large plantation owners. Family tradition slays that they, and the immediate members of their family, owned 300 slaves and 11,000 acres of land in the Alabama Counties of Cherokee, St. Clair, and in Oglethorpe County, Georgia, prior to the War Between the States. However, the writer has not been able to confirm this due to the destruction of records during the War Between the States and County Courthouse burnings since this war. George, however, did leave a secretary desk and an iron plantation safe containing many personal items relating to the period 1830 - 1859. He died suddenly of fever in 1859, and his widow, Martha, operated the plantation during the war period and the difficult reconstruction period immediately following. She added many items regarding the family and the operation of the plantation before her death in 1902. Their fourth child, David Neville Williamson, inherited the plantation and preserved these records until 1917-1923. Noting the intense fascination these records had for his oldest grandson, who would peruse these items by the hour, he gave them to this boy, the writer, during the period 1917 - 1923. This grandson has carefully preserved these records during the past forty years, always thinking he would find an opportunity to record them in book form for permanent preservation. This book is the first effort to preserve a part of these personal records. The writer hopes to include more data in a book on the Williamson family and the Camp family at a later date. Another reason for this book is that the writer has always been intrigued by the somewhat complicated inter-family relation¬ ships of this particular family. He has often tried in the past, without too much success, to puzzle out the degree of kinship between various members. Further, he has been impressed over the years with the degree to which this family has retained its pioneer characteristics of rugged individualism, virility, unimpeachable character, and personal loyalty and devotion to other members^ of the "clan." A more general reason for this book is that the writer has a sincere interest in his fellowman and a great respect for the pioneers who founded and built our present civilization. This is only a small monument to the pioneer accomplishments of one such family. A great mass of data has been gathered from the books and records listed in the bibliography included herein. Those who would do further research on this family and related families should consult these books. They will be well rewarded. 5 The data other than the references listed has been obtained from family and court records, letters and testimony of credit¬ able persons, and from every source considered reliable, by long and patient search during the past ten years. There are, no doubt, some errors. The authors would appreciate being advised of any errors when they are found. In a work of this kind it is not believed that perfection is possible or can be expected. The human element enters to such a large degree; however, all matters set forth as facts are known or believed to be true from substantial evidence. This manuscript is submitted to the kind and charitable judgment of the families included and their friends; and pardon is asked for shortcomings and imperfections. It is hoped that it may be interesting enough to cause them to over¬ look its faults and that they may be inspired by their an¬ cestors to be more worthy ancestors themselves. The authors are grateful to the many members of the family who have assisted during the past ten years in gathering this data. n lXAAaa. Jr JUj V(L 4 Robert Neville Mann Cedar Bluff, Alabama January 31, 1959 6 FOREWORD This manuscript is numbered by the following system. The emigrant or earliest known member of the family of the name is given the number one - 1. His children are numbered 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, etc., in the order of birth, if known. The children are listed immediately following the parents in every case. If any child is the ancestor of a family line to be followed further in the text, a cross ( + ) is typed in the manuscript opposite his or her name. His or her number will be found numerically further on in the text. It may be on the next page or many pages further along in the text depending on the number of children of his or her parents and the amount of biographical material pertaining to each. The number in parenthesis, (2), (4), (7), (ll), etc., after the subject individual's name, indicates his or her generation number with respect to the emigrant or earliest known ancestor in that particular family line. This system, it is believed, is the easiest to follow of the various systems used in genealogy. After very little ex¬ perience one will find that he can look backward for ancestors or forward for descendants by simply using the subject indi¬ vidual's number or those of his parents or children. The index of this manuscript includes names only. Places and events are not indexed. The page number where an indi¬ vidual's name is first listed is given, as well as the page number where supplementary information is given. The Index of Soldiers of the Various Early Wars includes only those where military service is definitely known. Un¬ doubtedly there are many others who should have been listed. The authors had hoped to include in this manuscript a greater amount of biographical material on the individuals included herein than they have been able to collect. However, many individuals with brilliant war records, interesting and successful careers were never able to find the time to furnish the requested data. s Included in the back of this volume are ten unnumbered pages to be used as the book owner desires in keeping this genealogy up-to-date. It is suggested that they be used in a similar manner to the old Family Bible of yesteryear to enter births, marriages, deaths, and other pertinent notes. 7 THE DANIEL FAMILY The name of Daniel or Daniels is believed to be of Bibical origin. It is believed the stories about Daniel were in circu¬ lation as early as the 6th century B,C, C, W, Bardsley in his book of English Surnames, London, 1875, states that the Bible story of Daniel is doubtless the origin of the name Daniel. He also cites its use in early English State papers, William Arthur in a Dictionary of Family and Christian Names, 1860, states that Daniel signifies the judgment of God, the * s * added being a contraction of son - the son of Daniel and that the name is derived from the Hebrew language. Henry Harrison in Volume I, Surnames of the United King¬ dom, 1912, states the name is Hebrew, meaning God is my Judge or God the Judge (Heb. dan, a judge and El, God). M, A. Lower in English Surnames,^London, 1846, one of the oldest authorities on family nomenclature says Daniel is one of the earliest English surnames to be derived from a baptismal name. In a later book, Patronymica Britanica, London, i860, a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom, he says other family lines adopted the surname from its earlier use as a given name. That is, the son of Daniel became known for example as John of Daniel, or John, Daniel's son; or in shorten¬ ed form as simply John Daniel, He says it is the parent name of Daniels, Dann, Danyell and Dsnieli. Daniel and Daniels are the two names in common use during the past century. A Dictionary of English and Welch Surnames by Charles W, Bardsley, London, 1901, lists the name of Daniel, Daniel!, Daniels, and Dannell as being one and the same and states it was a very popular name in the 13th century. It is believed the first record of the name in England was about 1C66 A,D. A History of Surnames of the British Isles by C, Lt 'Estrange Ewen, New York, 1931, lists Roger Daniel on page 89 as an Under Tenant in Domesday Book 1066-1036. He also lists Robert Daniel as a taxpayer in the twentieth year of the reign of Edward III and living at Huntingdonshire in 1327. H. Barber in British Family Names, London, 1903, says Daniel is a French Huguenot name and lists the name as one of the knights accompanying William,the Conqueor,m his invasion of the British Isles in the year 1066, He lists Arnant Daniel as an important Troubadour in Normandy at the time of the Crusades.