Light a Candle

 An interesting topic for 52 Ancestors 52 Weeks.

I would like to light a candle on a glitch which exists in my Ancestry tree. My cousin is a DAR member, among other accepted credentials that prove our ancestors took part in the American Revolution, and then the Confederate Army in the Civil War. We also have ancestors who fought on the side of the Union, but I don't know if she has that affiliation also.

But her tree has our dear first immigrant as Giles Fitz Rogers (1643-1730) who came to Virginia in 1664 and 1670...who married in England and brought his wife and early children later to the wild new world.

Next in line was either their son, Peter Iverson Rogers (1677-1724) who had been born in England and had 9 children. My cousin believes he was the link in our ancestors.

BUT...I have his brother John Rogers (1680-1762) as the link for our ancestry.

It all comes down to a documented ancestor, Henry Rogers, several generations later. Unfortunately some eager DAR members gave his parentage as Mary Byrd, daughter of William Byrd. Nope. She didn't marry a Rogers, and there are lots of documents about who she did marry.

So whenever I look at documents on Ancestry, I check to see if they go back to these DAR documents. DAR doesn't necessarily mean things are facts. Original documents (wills, birth certificates or baptisms, land purchases) are what piece together the little we know about early colonists.

I do want to know more that has been researched in various journals by genealogists, and perhaps I'll find something that proves my theory wrong.

Barsically I've come up with this other line. It works with real people. But it doesn't include a Mary Byrd, but a Molly (Mary) of unknown parents, who was born around 1699 in England or America, and she married John Rogers (1680-1762). (This John was the son of Giles Rogers)

Their son George Rogers (1721-1802) fought for the Revolutionaries.  His son Henry Rogers (1741-1794) who also fought in the Revolution, took his family from VA into what became Tennessee eventually. 

There were two George Rogers' listed as fighting for Virginia, in one document is a 2nd. Lt. George Rogers on the brig Liberty from May 18 till July 30 1776 (a payroll document). The other is a member of the Vriginia Militia. So if we looked into that book on pg. 201 we could see about this amount of information.

Rogers, George, S. L., S. June 28, 1779.
Comments	VIRGINIA MILITIA IN THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR PART III Virginia's Share in the Military Movements of the Revolution
Page number	page 201

I am partial to the one in the Militia of Virginia, rather than a navy 2nd Lt.  These Rogers families were farmers, not sailors that I know of.

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Martha Rogers Cannon (1770-1844)

Mary, Mary, quite contrary.
How does your graden grow?

And for the last some-odd years or so, Mary Rogers (1769-1857) was listed as my Great times 4 grandfather's sister. But when I checked for her statistics with "hints" on Ancestry, I found her parents weren't Henry Rogers (1741-1794) and Elizabeth Lankford Rogers (1743-1787).  They were James (1742-1828) and another mother Rogers. So I won't be sharing about this Mary Rogers Casey Dunn.

Who is next on the list of siblings of Rev. Elijah Rogers (1774-1841) - the children of Henry Rogers (1741-1794) and Elizabeth Lankford Rogers (1743-1787)?  These were my great times five grandparents, born in Virginia, who relocated to the wilds of Tennessee, in Sevier County, before either became a state or county.

Martha Rogers Cannon (1770-1844) is next on the list of children born to the Rogers household in Virginia, and who then moved with her parents around 1780-90 to Tennessee. In 1791 she married James Cannon (1759-1832). He is on the list of early Sevier County settlers provided by the Sevier County Historical Association. 

But he has some confusing entries on his Ancestry information. It's possible he married to another Martha in 1780 in Cocke County TN, and her maiden name was unknown. They had a child, Mary Catherine Cannon (1786-1872.) We are pretty sure James Cannon didn't marry Martha Rogers until 1791, because she would have only been 10 years old in 1780.

Now this is the way these facts are given on Ancestry. And to turn them into a narrative is rather strange, because the dates just don't add up. But I don't have any way to know which are wrong in these listings. Most of them don't have records to substantiate them. I hate to pass along misinformation.

When I started to investigate the family on Ancestry, James Cannon and Martha Rogers Cannon had a daughter, Sarah Cannon (1789-1857) born in 1789 in Virginia.  When I looked further at this Sarah Cannon's details, she married someone named Wilson, and on her life details when she died, her parents weren't given as James and Martha Rogers Cannon at all...her descendants think she was Sarah Boone Wilson, born in North Carolina.

So I've done a snip-snip and removed her from my tree, though she still is listed on the list of ancestors...but not connected to the George Rogers tree any more. It may be there was a daughter named Sarah Cannon, who didn't marry Mr. Wilson, and then I'll add her with correct information onto my family tree

So let's look a bit more at Martha Rogers Cannon... who married James Cannon in 1791 in Sevier County TN. That fits a chronological scheme that is logical.  Their children may or may not have been the ones on my tree...starting with

Dicy P. Cannon (1799-1860), born in Virginia in 1799 (yes that's what it says on the trees)
James Cannon (1800-1842) born in Sevier County TN
William Cannon (1802-1880) born in Sevier County TN
Martha Susan Cannon (1804-1864) born in Sevier County TN
John R. Cannon (1808-1860) Sevier birth
Rebecca Cannon (1809-1844) Sevier
 Alexander E. Cannon (1810-1870) Sevier,
 Jackson Cannon (1812-?) Sevier County

James Cannon has a land grant from Tennessee dated 19 Jun 1810. So if he had served in a war, it would have been the Revolutionary War probably.

In case that's a bit hard to read, there was a descendant over on Ancestry who put a map of Sevier County available for James Cannon as well.

Notes that were included with the above map:
"FRENCH BROAD RIVER & LITTLE PIGEON: I cropped and enlarged the map that ___posted, & I highlighted in blue the French Broad River across the north part of the map, and the Little Pigeon Creek running perpendicular to it. I also highlighted in red the word "Sevierville" at the bottom or south...The area shown on this map is roughly some ___miles SE of Knoxville. The key to this map, which is cut off on this cropped enlargement states that the map "principally dates from 1806-07, but later land owners' names were added from 1824-30, where they did not interfere with those prior. "...Although names on map detail were hard to read, my transcription follows (caution-need to confirm with actual deeds/surveys). This map detail was of special interest to me because one of the "23 Moore Mentions" in the 1807-08 land grants south of Broad was a JOHN MOORE who had 210 acres (grant #951) on the west fork of this same Pigeon River, which he assigned to James CANNON, as I had noticed two CANNON's on this map detail: (1) John CANNON ( 114A) and (2) Wm. CANNON (175A). Other names on this attached map detail included: ANDROS, Prior (190A); BAER, Robert (81A); BARFILS, James (131A); BLAIR, Sam (137A); BRYAN, Peter(110A); CALVERT, Iram (167A); CALVERT, Edward (1146A); CLACK, Spencer (120A), CONGLITON, Nobert (97A); CROW, Robert, 90A; CROW, Latah (90A); HENDERSON, Wm. (100A); HENDERSON, 120A; HILL, John (477A) ;HUFF, Jacob (147A); KERR, Robert (147A);KERR, Robert (81A)*; MASSINGILL, Wm (140A); MITCHEL, Wm (100A); PITSER, Ha(_____A), ROGERS, Jonah (__A); TIPTON, Meshic (141A); WILSON, Alexander, 147A; UNKNOWN, William (41A)." 
Source of above comment is Ancestry member C. Larsen 828. I've added the underlined people who have relations to my ancestry. I've never heard of a Jonah Rogers, so that name was surprising.

However, looking at the map I can see next to Spencer Clack's property on the French Broad River, Elijah Rogers has a large tract of land (my great times 4 grandfather.) Spencer Clack (1746-1832) was Elijah's father-in-law, so he would be my great times 5 grandfather. The island in the river designated as McCroskey (something) is still known as McCroskey Island, upon which the water treatment plant for Sevierville is now located. I drove there last year, and didn't realize I was on a road traveling where my ancestors had lived. That gives me a chill! It could be a sewage treatment plant, but did have those big pipes running to and fro, and vats. I took a couple of pictures, but there wasn't a sign indicting what it was.

 McCroskey Island Road

 Bridge over Little Pigeon River

 Big pipe on bridge over Little Pigeon River

Whatever treatment facility is on McCroskey Island. A McCroskey married one of Elijah Rogers' daughters, so they are cousins.

I digress...I'm old and I think I'm entitled to do so.

Martha's husband, James Cannon, died 13 Dec 1832 in Sevier County TN

Back to Martha Rogers Cannon. She apparently died after 19 Feb 1844 in Sevier County TN. Whoever gave that date to my Ancestry records must have had her mentioned in some legal document or another, but they forgot to add it to the date. We don't know where she was buried.

There's a link to other families named Cannon, and going back into the Virginia families named Kennon. But it's pretty confusing!
.

Josiah Rogers (1766-1834)

Josiah Rogers (1766-1834) has his birth recorded in Franklin, Virginia. He died in Sevier County TN on 12 AUG 1834. 

He married Martha "Patty" Clack/Clark Rodgers (1768-1867) who had been born in Rocky Mount, Franklin County, Virginia. She was the daughter of Spencer Clack (1746-1832) and Mary Beavers Clack (1745-1840) (mentioned in my post in 2017 here.)  Josiah's brother, Elijah Rogers, married "Patty" Clack's sister, Catharine Clack Rogers (1778-1850).  Rev. Elijah and Catharine Clack Rogers were my great times 4 grandparents.

Josiah and "Patty" Clack Rogers' 1786 marriage was recorded by "Marriage Bonds Franklin County,Virginia 1786-1858; page 197.  Josiah Rodgers & Martha Clark, dau. Spencer Clark, 22 Jan 1786; Sur: Richard Literal." This is the source of the use of the name Clark, which was given to both Patty and her father Spencer, a clerical error. She was 17 at the time of her marriage to Josiah, who was 20 years old.

Their daughter, Elizabeth, was born in 1786 in Sevier County, TN, where their parents had moved as well.  Another daughter,  Nancy was born in 1787, also in Sevier County TN. Nancy married James Porter, and Elizabeth married Isaac Love, but both died on May 20, 1811. Nancy had had a daughter who did live to marry, so there may be descendants through her.

If the sisters' deaths on the same date isn't weird enough, about half the Ancestry trees give a death date for their mother, Patty Clack Rogers in 1810. These same trees have her marrying a second husband in 1804, named Spencer DeKalb Beavers, and having about a dozen more children...many of whom would have been born after the 1810 death date.

And how did it happen that Patty married another man in 1804, whcn Josiah lived until 1834?

A lot of people consider themselves descendants of Patty and Spencer De Kalb Beavers, at least by looking at all those children they supposedly had.  

Perhaps Patty didn't die in 1810, but on April 17, 1787,  at age 99, the way my tree says.  If so, she didn't have very many children in her long life, for those times.  Or maybe somehow she did marry again, and we don't know what condition Josiah might have been in when that happened.

There are many things we don't know about these people. Just a few facts. Josiah apparently died on Aug. 12, 1834 in Sevierville, Sevier County TN. He was buried in the Forks of the Little Pigeon River Cemetery, where his brother, Elijah, was also buried.

Bathsheba Rogers Amonette (1765 - 1835).

Another sibling of Rev. Elijah Rogers (my 4 greats grandfather.) So may I introduce five times great Aunt Bathsheba Rogers Amonette (1765 - died after June, 1835). Elijah was the youngest child of Henry Rogers (1741-1794) and Elizabeth Lankford Rogers (1743-1787), while Bathsheba was their third child (according to Ancestry DOT com.)  She was born in Virginia, then probably moved with her parents to Sevier County TN around 1791.

There are 3 suggested dates and places of her marriage to John Amonette (1756-1833). First when she was 17 she might have married him in Laurens County, South Carolina in 1782. Or maybe she married him in Knox County, TN in 1789, or perhaps in 1794 in Tennessee.  There are no documents to substantiate where or when, but these are the dates and places on Ancestry trees. Since John Amonette is considered to have been a soldier in the Revolutionary War, and his life used by Daughters of the American Revolution for such, I am voting for either of the places in Tennessee, with dates of 1789 or 1794. Those aren't so far apart after all.

John Amonette served from  Nov. 21, 1776 to Nov. 7, 1779 as a private, 10th Virginia Regiment, and 6th Virginia Rgt. (According to headstone application for him in 1937 by Vivian D. Vaughn.)

Aunt Bathsheba had 7 children, 4 girls and 3 boys. They were born between 1790 and 1809.  I don't know the date when John and Bathsheba Amonette moved to Madison County AL. This was probably a result of his receiving a land grant for his service in the war. In his obituary in 1833, his residence in Madison County is stated to be at least 20 years.

There's no date of Aunt Bathsheba's death, except that it was after June 1835. I don't know what that was based upon. As is often the case for women, there aren't many documents with her name on them. But I find the many documents about her husband, especially those substantiating his soldiering history, do give a glimpse into her life.  The pension record is practically illegible, but I think it stopped when he died. It spelled his name Ammonet, rather than Amonett, which is what was used in most other records. He was buried in Donaldson Cemetery, Hazel Green, Madison County, Alabama. But the family trees over on Ancestry say that Aunt Bathsheba died in either Washington County, TN, or Memphis, Shelby County, TN. She probably was living with one of her children, or even grandchildren.

The big question that I have in the back of my mind, is what she was called...you know, her nickname. 

George Rogers Sr. (1764-1858)

Another sibling of Rev. Elijah Rogers (1774-1841).

George Rogers Sr. (1764-1858) was born on Feb 8, in Somerville, Fauquier County, Virginia to Henry Rogers (1741-1794) and Elizabeth Lankford Rogers (1743-1787).

He moved with his family to Tennessee before 1791, when he married Elizabeth Randall/Randles (1772-1861), who also had come from Virginia.  They lived there for a while, then moved on to Sinking Creek, Wayne County, Kentucky.

He served in the War of 1812, as a private, in Johnson's Reg't, mounted Kentucky Volunteers. His wife was eligible for a pension, which is listed as Revolutionary War Pensions, and he is listed as serving on the Continental Line on his headstone. There are many pages of documents saved into Ancestry that give George Rogers a lot of credit for having served in the Revolutionary War, and Elizabeth being eligible for his pension.

How many children did Elizabeth and George have? That's a good question. It looks like they either adopted some children, or counted some of the sons-in-law married to their daughters as their own child. The list includes Abraham Goodding, husband of their daughter, Margaret Rogers Goodding. I think there may have been 12 children born to Elizabeth Randall Rogers and George. There are actually two sons named George Rogers, and the older one was still alive when the younger one was born. I can't figure it out unless the second was adopted perhaps.

There's a will that father George Rogers wrote 7 Feb, 1857. He died in the next year, and his son James Rogers was the executor. He left his land to James and a son, George. Since the older son George had died in 1848, it must have been meant for the one born in 1820. His wife was given his entire "estate."

The will only mentions his wife, several children, and one grandchild. He states the others had received their portions "when they left him." Many of his children moved to Missouri apparently.

Elizabeth and George Rogers (from "Find A Grave") I dare say some photos were being taken in the 1850s...but this seems pretty early to me.

The above photos were posted on the "Find a Grave" site for George Rogers.

George Rogers' will recorded in Wayne County KY documents.
Note: I've corrected date of his birth to 1764...when this blog was first published it was in error saying he was born in 1774.