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Ann Nancy Hinton m. by 1730? Bertie NC b. 1710? Chowan Precinct NC d. by Apr 18, 1784 Gatesville, Warren Co. NC |
Mary M. b. Jun 4, 1731 ?Chowan Dist. d. Mar 1795 Wake Co. NC |
Solomon Jr. b. Oct 24, 1733 Bertie Co. NC d. by Aug 1771 Granville Co. NC |
Sarah b. 1735 Bertie Co. NC d. after 1780 Granville Co. NC |
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John b. Apr 18, 1735 Bertie Co. NC d. Jul 2, 1802 West Feliciana Parish LA |
William b. Dec 25, 1736 Bertie Co. NC d. Jul 26, 1810 Elbert Co. GA |
Anne b. Mar 29, 1738 Bertie Co. NC d. 1786 Wilkes Co. GA |
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Philip b. Feb 18, 1741 Edgecombe Co. NC d. 1809? Jefferson Co. MS or New Madrid LA |
Charity Elizabeth b. Jan 19, 1743 Edgecombe Co. NC aft. 1799 Granville Co. NC |
Martha "Pattie" B. b. May 25, 1745 Edgecombe Co. NC d. 1815 Warren Co. NC |
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Rachel b. Sep 27, 1747 Edgecombe Co. NC d. by 1833? Chatham Co. NC |
James b. Feb 1, 1754 Edgecombe Co. NC d. Feb 27, 1805 ?Adams Co. MS |
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Solomon was a son of John Alston (1677-1758) from Essex England and Mary Baker
from the Isle of Wight colony of VA. |
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Bertie Co. was formed from part of the Chowan Precinct in 1722
(see Map of NC counties in 1740). |
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In 1750, daughter Mary married Nathaniel Kimbrough (1729?-Jul 12, 1781). |
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In 1750, son WIlliam married Charity ? (1738?-1823?). |
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Edgecombe Co. NC was formed in 1741 from Bertie Co.
(Map), then became part of Granville
Co. in 1754 (Map). Warren Co.
was formed in 1779 (Map).
Map of the region in 1746
from the Granville County 1746 Society's website. |
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On Aug 12, 1761, daughter Charity married James David Jones who died by Apr 4,
1778 when she married a Major Pollard. About 1770,
daughter Rachel married Edmund Jones (1749?-1834). He died in Chatham Co. NC. |
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Daughter Sarah married William Cheek (1735?-aft. Oct 1797) who was born in
Spotsylvania Co. VA. They had a son in Mar 1772 [Gurganos, Ray's Extended Family
Tree, website]. Presumably before they were married, in 1771, "Sarah Alston" was
recorded as having 14 taxables and 2 "cart wheels" in Granville Co. NC
Granville List
of Taxables [NC State Archives, original]. |
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Joshua Howard was among those who petitioned
the British Govt. of West Florida for land on Nov 6, 1776. He was given a warrant
for 200 acres on Second Creek in
the Natchez District and the receipt for surveying fees was dated Jan. 22, 1777.
After the Spaniards took possession of the territory, Howard left the Natchez
District for the Cumberland Settlement in an area of far western North Carolina
that later became Nashville TN. He returned to Natchez at the end of 1788. |
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On Nov 11, 1776, the petition of Absalom Hooper
for pardon, he being "accused of robbery on the Mississippi", was considered by
the West Florida government. On the same day the land grant petition of son
Philip Alston was considered. On Dec 10 and 16, the
land grant petition of son John Alston was also considered
[David Library of the American Revolution, West Florida Records, vol. 593, no. 107]. |
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In January and October 1779, Absalom Hooper
signed Loyalist petitions to the governor of British West Florida. On 27 Oct 1780,
he was named in a deposition
now held in Seville, Spain. Several others named in depositions in the record
series in late 1780 include Joshua Howard,
Thomas Holmes, and son Philip Alston, father of
John McCoy Alston who in 1795 married Hooper's daughter Sinia. |
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In April 1781, a person named "Stille" [probably
John Stillee], a messenger for the
merchant Alexander McIntosh, with whom he
resided on St. Catherine's Creek, was forced to be part of a plan to take over the
Fort of Natchez from the Spanish guard. Among these rebels was son
John Alston, who forged the message using his skill in handwriting [J.F.H. Claiborne,
pp. 127-8]. |
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Map of
the Natchez District as it may have looked between 1779 and 1799. |
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By May 1780, son Philip Alston was in the new
Cumberland Settlement in Washington Co. in western NC territory (now TN). Philip,
along with about 250 other men over the age of 16, signed the Cumberland Compact
created May 1, 1780. It was finalized on May 13 and established a provisional
government for the isolated area; provided for the election of twelve
representatives from the eight stations or forts; provided for a Sheriff, a Clerk,
a Militia that required service by all men over age 16, and for the adjudication
of causes, the administration of estates, and the awarding of executions.
Image of
page 4 of what survived of the original Compact. The signature, of
"Philip Alston" is next to last of all signatures, just below that of
"Howard Lucas". It appears to be written with his own pen and in perfect script. |
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A possible relative also signed the Cumberland Compact in May 1780.
Image of
page 3. The signature of "Thos W. Alston" is third of the
signatures on the page. To sign, he would have to be sixteen, born by 1763, which
would make him the first born son of either John or
Philip Alston. The two Alston signatures are similar. |
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Washington Co., previously Washington District, was formed by North Carolina in
1777 and extended west to the Mississippi River, mostly containing land inhabited
by five different tribes of Native Americans, but mostly Cherokee. In 1779, the
Cumberland Settlement was created by the granting of land by the NC government.
In 1783 this settlement was mostly contained in the newly formed Davidson Co. and
surrounded by Indian Lands, and Virginia and Kentucky to the North.
Map of
the Cumberland Settlements showing Forts, known as Stations, in present-day counties. |
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Joshua Howard arrived in the Cumberland
Settlement from the Natchez District by the beginning of 1781. He eventually was
assigned Captain of the Freeland's Station on Mar 15, 1783 [Clayton, p. 37]. |
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The Commandant of the Natchez District received notice of the death on Jul 29,
1781 of Elizabeth Alston. On that date a
Conveyance was issued to appoint the guardian of the surviving children,
and an Estate Inventory was performed, listing 16 slaves as well as lands and
buildings [McBee, Book A, p. 1]. |
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On Sep 5, 1781 son John Alston sold "all his cattle" to a William Brocus, as
witnessed by John Townshend. By Sep 29,
1781 John Alston had "absconded" when the rest of his estate was put up for sale
[McBee, Book A, p. 3, Book F, p. 235]. |
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On Jun 17, 1782 two lands of son John Alston were confiscated "for use of the King"
of Spain. One was 800 acres on Second Creek in the Narchez District very near the
British grant of Joshua Howard. |
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Daughter Mary married Nathaniel Kimbrough. Daughter Charity married James Jones.
Daughter Martha married Isaac Hunter, and daughter Anne married Jesse Hunter.
Daughter Rachel married Edmund Jones. |
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On Jul 4, 1786, the McIntosh brothers William
and James, administrators of the estate
and guardians of the children of son John Alston, declared to the Natchez District
Commandant that a 20 year old slave named King had been
stolen by James Drumgoole and Philip Alston. King had
"formerly belonged to the 'robber' Philip Alston"
[McBee, p. 34]. |
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In a letter dated Mar 2, 1790, from
Carlos de Grand-Pré, Natchez, Mar 2, 1790
to Governor Don Estavan Miro, the amount of tobacco was reported by growers of
Natchez. The Alston family reported as follows: son John 11,000 pounds, "Lewis" 13,000 pounds, William 3,000 pounds, and son James 1,000 pounds [MDAH, website]. |
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On Oct 26, 1789 The mother of James and
William McIntosh, "Eunice McIntosh, widow,
[sold] to Ithamar Andrews a negro named King, aged 23,
nat. of Va., for $550 (Mexican), terms" and
James McIntosh witnessed the transaction
for Mrs. McIntosh [McBee, Book B, p. 71]. James and his brother William had
reported King stolen on Jul 4, 1786. |
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According to the 1792 Spanish Census for Natchez District, "Juan Alston" and
brother "Phelipe Luis Alston" were each heads of household in the District of
Buffalo Creek, which was replaced by parts of Adams and Wilkinson Cos. MS
[MSGenWeb, 1792 Census Index].
A different translation has a "Juan Haton" with 1200 arpents of land
(about 1,000 acres), 3 White persons [possibly John, son Solomon and ?], and
13 Black persons, in the same area, which was south of Natchez
[Adams Co. Miss. Gen. & Hist. Network]. |
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On Mar 31, 1804, after son John died, grandson Solomon claimed "as heir and
representative" 450 acres 5 miles south of Natchez granted to John Alston on
Jun 16, 1777 by the British Govt. This land then bordered lands of
Absalom Hooper and "Mrs. Holmes" [McBee,
p. 504]. |
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Grandson John McCoy Alston married Sinah Hooper, daughter of
Absalom Hooper, on Jan 3, 1795 in
Davidson Co. when it was part of the Southwest Territory. |
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Petit Gulf where the Alston family owned land is now part of Jefferson Co., created
from Adams Co., Mississippi Territory, in 1796
(see present day map). |
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Joshua Howard had become "Conservator of the
Peace for the Southern District, Mississippi Territory" by Oct 27, 1798 when two
men swore to the truth of statements made re: suit involving
Elizabeth Still Lee lending a slave girl Peg
to her son-in-law Alexander Freeland in the Summer of 1796. She had made her
deposition before Cato West, Howard's counterpart in the Northern District
[Ragland p.6]. |
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Sources: Adams Co. Mississippi Genealogy & History Network, "1792 Census for Natchez District (under Spanish Government control)", 2009, 1792 Census. Claiborne, J.F.H., Mississippi as a Province, Territory and State, with Biographical Notices of Eminent Citizens, vol. 1, Power & Barksdale, Jackson, MS, 1880, pp. 126-131. Clayton, Prof. W.W., History of Davidson County Tennessee, reprod. 1971 by Charles Elder, Nashville TN. Corbitt, D. L., The formation of the N.C. counties, 1663-1943, Dept. Arch. & Hist, Raleigh NC, 1950, 323 pp. Cumberland Compact, original document signed May 13, 1780, Washington County NC, website. Drake, Doug, Jack Masters and Bill Puryear, Founding of the Cumberland Settlements, The First Atlas, 1779-1804, Warioto Press, 2009, pp. 23, map E7. McBee, May Wilson, comp., Natchez Court Records, 1767-1805, Greenwood MS, 1953, v. 2, Book A, p. 1-3, 34, 450, 541, Book B, p. 71, Book F, p. 235. Gurganos, Ray, "Ray's Extended Family Tree", website. MS Dept. of Archives & History (MDAH), Jackson MS, rootsweb, Americans Arriving in Spanish-Held Natchez 1780-1790. MSGenWeb, Natchez District 1792 Census Index, comp. by Ellen Pack, Head of Household Index, transcribed and translated from Spanish. NC State Archives, Raleigh NC, Granville List of Taxables 1771 For The Clerk of the Assembly, TranscribeNC, ncdcr.gov, website, p. 1. Rowland, Dunbar, "1816 Census for Franklin Co. Miss.", taken from The Official and Statistical Register of the State of Mississippi,Centennial Edition, 1917, rootsweb website. Tennessee, County Marriages, 1790-1950, "John Alston" Marriage Record, p. 8. Wells, Carol, Natchez Postscripts 1781-1798, Heritage Books, pp. 101, 144-5, 151. Will Books 3 and 4, Wilkes County, North Carolina, 1811-1848, The Genealogical Society of "Original" Wilkes County), Will Book 3, "Estate of Joahua Howard", Oct 1814, page 89, 120. |
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