John Bass 1780-1822

My great times three grandfather, who moved from Wayne County, NC to Perry County, Alabama.  His family had farmed (maybe plantation stye) for several generations in the eastern area of North Carolina.    I've mentioned before how the Bass family was connected to the formation of Wayne County...here's a quote from Wikipedia.

Wayne County was established during the American Revolutionary War on November 2, 1779 from the western part of Dobbs County. It was named for "Mad Anthony" Wayne, a general in the war. The act establishing the County provided that the first court should be held at the home of Josiah Sasser, at which time the justices were to decide on a place for all subsequent courts until a courthouse could be erected. By 1782 the commissioners were named. In 1787 an act was passed establishing Waynesborough on the west side of the Neuse River, on the land of Doctor Andrew Bass. The courthouse was built here.

Dr. Andrew Bass was John Bass' grandfather's brother (or his great uncle.) We'll talk about him further along in our tree.

Anyway, John was (probably) the oldest son of Edward Bass (1754-1802) and Sarah Farmer (maybe Stevens) Bass (about 1758 - 1826). There seems to be nothing substantiating that his mother belonged to either family Farmer or Stevens.

John' birth is recorded in different trees as either 1775, or 1780 or even as late as 1785. If so, he might not have been the oldest.  If he was born in 1775 (which is based on what?) his mother could not have been born in 1766, as several trees list.  So I've tentatively moved her birth back to about 1758...as there wasn't anything that proved 1766 was definite. Actually another Ancestry member gave her a 1756 birth. But back to John. I've thought long and hard and decided to go with the mean birth date, of 1780.

John married Julian (Julia A.) Holloman in 1805 in Wayne County NC.  Their first son was born there in 1806. But by 1808, his daughter was born in Alabama, and then the next one also probably in 1809-10. However he is on the census again in Wayne County NC, in 1810, and his next child is born in NC in 1810. But the next two are born in Alabama.  His last child, Richard, was born in Jan 1819 in Alabama (to become my great great grandfather.)

John moved to Perry County, AL, where many land grants were being given for those who served the US in one war or another.

But John had his 7 children by 1819.  Then he died in 1822 (or 1820 according to some of the petitions against his estate.)  Nothing indicates how he died at whatever young age he had been. Apparently he was in debt. And many of those who purchased the items that were inventoried of his estate were actually relatives of his and his wife's.  The list of items is available as well as how much was collected.  And the death of his mother in 1826 also left probate courts trying to figure out who inherited what from her estate back in North Carolina, as well as his father, Edward Bass' estate from when he died in 1802. The same relatives (Holloman, Bass and Green) show up in documents in NC courts.

Unfortunately the documents aren't always clear as to who was related to whom in what manner.  I'll keep wading through them, and maybe have to make some changes again on my own tree.

It is so helpful, and I wish I could thank them all, to have current cousins on Ancestry who figure things out from all the documents, and write summaries of them. What a great help to me.

Note: I noticed I perpetuated an incorrect date, but have now changed it, that it is assumed John Bass died in 1822.