| SPOUSE | CHILDREN | |||
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? Allen or Jones m. Apr 1 1772? Cheraw Dist. SC b. 1750? ?Spotsylvania Co., VA d. late 1781 Washington Co. NC |
Catherine b. 1773? SC d. by 1820? MS? |
Jesse b. 1774? SC d. by Jul 21, 1794 Natchez Miss. Terr. |
Martha b. 1778? SC d. after 1785? MS? |
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Catherine "Cary" White m. late 1781 Burke Co. NC b. 1766? Craven Co. SC d. after Aug 30, 1823 St. Landry Parish LA |
William b. 1785? Natchez Dist. d. after 1840 ?St. Landry Parish LA |
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King and Queen County Virginia was formed in 1691
(see present day map
for location). |
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In 1770, Reuben White apparently bought
his brother's land in St. David's parish, Craven Co, SC so that William could
pay off his debts. William was in jail for debt in Cheraws SC in 1774. |
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The old Cheraws District was located partly in present day Marlboro Co. SC.
Map
of the Cheraws District between 1785 and 1790 shows location relative to other
SC districts. |
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A Mary Dewitt, possibly a cousin or sister of William, was married to a John McCall
on May 2, 1772 by Rev. Evan Pugh. This was several weeks after Rev. Pugh had married
Reuben White to Milly Allen, and also a daughter
of William White to George Hickman. Another
week later, on Wednesday Apr 1, 1772 he married "two cuples at Mr. Allens".
[Diary of Even Pugh, 1762-180x, at SC Archives]. The brides could then
both have been daughters of Erasmus Withers Allen
and the grooms could have been Dewitt brothers. Susannah Allen married William's
brother Thomas Dewitt about that time. The other may be William's bride, explaining
why M.L. Vineyard mistook William's wife as Susannah Allen [Poe, pp. 254-6]. |
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In the
1790 Cheraw District Census [middle of the middle column] there is a
"William Allen" household very close to a "John McCall" household of similar
sizes with wives who were possibly William Dewitt's sisters [Gregg, p. 49].
However, there is no William Dewitt household in the whole District. |
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On May 6, 1777 William White was summoned to
Rowan County Courthouse in Salisbury NC for having "purpose of defrauding Widow
and Orphan" of the deceased Reuben White.
William was required to return to render an account and further security of the
estate. On May 13, he was jailed for failure to do that. Prior to that, on May
8, 1777 William Dewitt gave a
sworn statement
before the Rowan Co. NC Court of Sessions saying that Reuben White left SC in the
"last of the year 1775 or beginning of 1776" and characterized William White
as "a dishonest man" [Gifford E. White, "Documents on Estate of Reuben White",
pp. 2-3]. In Jan 1778, a Thomas McCall gave a similar sworn statement before Thomas Powe, Justice of the Peace in SC. In Apr 1771 William Dewitt's uncle Charles married a Mary McCall. |
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During 1778-9 William was a Special Juror for the Cheraws District. Brothers[?]
Charles and John Dewitt, Thomas Powe, probably the grandson of
Samuel Poe, and several McCalls are also listed
as jurors in the
SC Jury Lists 1778-1779. |
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Modern Map of South Carolina
Counties showing the 18th Century Parishes. Welch Neck and Cashaway
Neck were in St. David Parish. Prince George Parish was to the South and included
the Pee Dee River basin from Lynches Creek down to Winyah Bay. |
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William and his family were in the Cumberland settlement with the family of
John White who was on a
List of Flotilla Captains
from the journal kept by Col. John Donelson
John White testified in 1785 in Natchez that in late 1781 William lost his wife
and remarried John's niece Catherine White
[McBee, Natchez Court Records, Book E, p. 36]. |
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Photo of a Map showing
the Route of the Donelson Expedition on display at the Tennessee State Museum.
On Dec 22, 1779, the expedition left Fort Patrick Henry on Long Island of the
Holston River. William Dewitt, John and James White, and their families likely
joined the Flotilla after it passed Knoxville in Mar 1780, and left it at the
Red River near Clarksville on Apr 12 [Donelson's Journal, pp. 98-105]. |
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Several months into the flotilla expedition, leader
John Donelson described the hardship and
the expected loss of some of the boats along the way in his
Journal entries for March 1780
[Donelson's Journal, 1779-1780]. |
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In late 1781 the widower William married Catherine "Cary" White, daughter of
William White (1730?-1818) in Burke Co. NC.
The newlyweds were among
13 families
going down to the Natchez District by flatboats
including that of Tiago White, and
Juan White, arriving in May 1782. They are
listed in the arrival that was recorded on Jul 6, as "Guillaume Duelt, wife &
children, 5 Individuos", and 23 Slaves. |
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Although judged a forgery, a Jan 22, 1781 Deed of Gift by William mentioned the
names of his children by his first wife. In it he gifts to his wife
Catherine White Dewitt
Negroes Ben, Filis, Jinny, and Mary; to his daughter Catherine Dewitt Negroes
Febe and Sambo June; to his son Jesse Negroes Cuffey, Stephen, Eudgo, Manday,
James, Dol and Lammenton; and to his daughter Martha Negroes Filis and her child,
and Jupiter [McBee, Book E, p. 162]. |
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On Jun 19, 1782, William bought a small tract of enclosed, cultivated land on
St. Catherine's Creek in the Natchez District from Joseph Duncan
[McBee, Natchez Court Records, p. 14-15]. He had also lent a horse to
Joseph Duncan so that William Brocus could go in pursuit of some rebels. Brocus
was sued for payment for the horse on Jan 16, 1784.
On Feb 3, 1784, this Duncan was defendant in a suit by Russell Jones over [Joseph]
Duncan's treatment of [Russell] Jones in regard to "partnership between them for
sundry horses they bought from the Indians and the said Duncan having put the whole
proceeds in his own pocket and made use of the goods of the firm for his wife and
family". The constable was ordered to bring Joseph Duncan to the fort without delay.
[McBee, Natchez Court Records, 1767-1805, p. 319-20]. |
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On Jul 17, 1783 William and a William Rawlings gave a declaration that a horse
race was fixed, that is, "two of the Calvits Sons in Law to Higdon Did Bett on
Cobbs horse which horse Higdon who was Father in Law to the two Calvitts & one
of the Judge's gave the race in favour of Cobb's horse" [MDAH Microfilm roll no.
5618 p. 3.65]. A Russell Jones also filed a suit against the same Arthur Cobb,
objecting to the judges of the race who were "Messr. Brocus and Higdon" [McBee,
p. 309-10]. The judge would be Daniel Higdon
who about 1762 had married a widow Mary Dean Calvit,
and the son-in-laws would be two of her four sons, possibly Joseph and Frederick
Calvit who lived in the St. Catherine's Creek area about that time. Higdon died
in Mar 1785 and Frederick Calvit died in 1790. |
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On Aug 31, 1784 the Natchez Court appointed appraisers to value William's whole
estate to protect creditors in case of William's "meditated flight". On Dec 23,
1784 the estate was valued at $4,319. It included 600 arpents on St. Catherine's Creek
with cabins, 400 arpents (about 336 acres) on the Mississippi River with dwelling
house and cabins, and 10 slaves. By Feb 20, 1786, after his conviction for
"intention to leave [Natchez] District without passport to evade payment", the
entire estate was put up for public sale and the proceeds distributed to the
creditors [Natchez Court Records, Book A, p. 207-11]. |
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On Sep 22, 1784 William and Russell Jones faced confinement in the
Fort of Natchez "for attempting to leave the country without passports", which
were required going in and out of the Spanish Territory at that time [Potter,
Passports of Southeastern Pioneers 1770-1823, p. 342]. Since William
and his new bride, Cary White, came down from Cumberland Settlement with other White
family members, his late wife may have been related to the Jones family, many of
whom were killed by Indians there. |
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William Dewitt was the subject of a deposition made in the Natchez District on
Jan 31, 1785. The deposition
was regarding a transfer of slaves and debts owed by William. Members of the White
family were witness to events in Washington Co. NC [now part of TN] where the
Dewitts and White brothers were living with their families in latter part of 1781.
The transfer of slaves was proved to be a forgery and his debts settled by the
Spanish Tribunal. [McBee, Natchez Court Records, Book E, p. 36]. |
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On Feb 4 and 5, 1785 depositions were made by Elizabeth
Stillee, her daughter Elizabeth Raby, and her husband John Stillee, all certifying
that William Dewitt had never given anything to his wife,
Catherine Dewitt, or his children. A month later,
a John Lovelace deposed that in Sep 1784 "Wm Dewitt sent for him to make Deed/Gift of
all his negroes to his wife and children, giving the name of Justice/Peace John Sumter,
desiring to antedate sd writing 1st January 1781, wich Lovelace did. Witnesses:
William Smith, James Armstrong, Esteven Minor" [Wells, p. 50-51]. |
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The Aug 7, 1788 inventory of the estate of a merchant named Richard Carpenter of
Natchez lists outstanding debts from many individuals including: James White, "Cadey Raby", son-in-law of Elizabeth White, Joseph Ford, Jno. Holloway, and "Wm. Dewitt (dead)" [McBee, Natchez Court Records, Book B, p. 112-114]. |
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The 1792 Census
of the Natchez District was translated from the Spanish handwritten records.
Located in the Bayou Pierre (BP-now in Claiborne Co.) subdivision is a single male
household under the name "Jese (Jesse) Dwet", with no land and no slaves. Also
listed in BP is a household "Elizabet Dewin", with 5 whites on 500 arpents of land.
The Head of Household Index to the same Census [a different translation] also has
an "Ezekiel Dwet" in the subdivision of Santa Catalina (SC-now in Adams Co. and
Franklin Co.). |
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Receipt of payment
by Garret Rapalje dated Aug 6, 1792 in the subdivision Big Black signed by Jesse
Dewitt [MDAH, website]. |
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On Jul 21, 1794, the estate of son Jesse Dewitt was appraised at $138 in Natchez.
The appraised property was received by Archibald Rea on Jul 23, 1794 "for the
benefit of the creditors" [McBee, Natchez Court Records, Book D page 131,
p. 153]. |
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A Dewitt owned land in the Bayou Pierre part of the Natchez District in 1798,
because Elizabeth Still Lee and her husband
transacted "764 acres (more or less)" [764 arpents in the survey] bounded on
the west by "Dewiet and Armstrong". Moises Armstrong also headed a single male
household in the "Bayou Pierre" subdivision in 1792
[Transaction
with survey from MDAH roll #5336 p. 89-90]. |
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Adams Co. was founded in 1799, the first county in the new Mississippi Territory.
It was named for the U.S. President at that time
(see present day map
for location). |
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Claiborne Co. was founded in 1804, the fourth county in the new Mississippi Territory.
(see present day map
for location). |
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Wife Cary had at least two other marriages after William died. About 1788, she
married Henry Milburn, who was a head of household "Enrique Milburn" in the Villa
Gayoso division of Natchez in 1792, and gave birth to three children by him. She
married Elisha Forman on Aug 30, 1823 in St. Landry Parish LA. |
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St. Landry Parish was created in 1805. It is located just west of Baton Rouge
(see Map of Louisiana Parishes
for location). |
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In the 1820 Census for St. Landry Parish LA, located within 10 households from
"Cary Milbourne", is a household headed by "William Milbourne". This William,
Cary's first born child, son of William Dewitt, listed 7 members on line 3 of
page 103: 2 Males under 10 years of age, 1 Male aged 16 and under 26, 2 Males aged 26 and under 45 [William b. 1782-1788 aged 32-38, & ?], 1 Female aged 16 and under 26 [wife born by 1794] 1 Female slave aged 45 and upwards [possibly Phoebe, b. about 1775 in Carolina], 2 of the persons were engaged in agriculture and 1 in manufacturing. The one slave in this household could be Phoebe aged 45 since she was 6 in Jan 1782 when William Dewitt tried to deed her to his daughter Catherine (who may have died by 1820). There is no record of Phoebe being part of the public sale of the William Dewitt estate in 1784. In 1830 there is one household headed by "William Milborne" and no other Milburn families in the parish. |
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In the 1840 Census for St. Landry Parish LA, there were no Milborne households
regardless of spelling. However there was a single Dewitt household. No Dewitts
were listed in any previous censuses for the parish. The "William Dewitt" household matches the William Milbourn households in 1820 and 1830 and listed 7 members on line 19 of page 239a and page 239b: 1 Male aged 5 to 10 years of age, 1 Male aged 20 to 30 years of age, 1 Male aged 50 and under 60 [son William b. 1782-1788 aged 52-58], 2 Females aged 10 and under 20, 1 Female aged 20 and under 30, 1 Female aged 40 and under 50, [wife born by 1794], and no slaves. As in the 1830 "Milborne" household, 2 of the persons were engaged in agriculture. In 1850 there are no households headed by Milbornes or Dewitts in the parish. |
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SOURCES: Adams Co. Mississippi Genealogy & History Network, "1792 Census for Natchez District (under Spanish Government control)", 2009, 1792 Census. Adams Co. MS Index to Deed Records, 1780-1798, on microfilm, A-105. Clark, Walter, State Records of North Carolina Vol XVII 1781-1785, Broadfoot Publishing, Wilmington NC, 1994, pp. 287-8, 294. Donelson's Journal, 1779-1780, Transcription from the Tennessee Virtual Archive website, pp. 98-107. Genealogical Register, vol. VIII, No. 3, Sep 1961. Hendrix, G.L.C., The Jury Lists of South Carolinians, 1778-1779, private printing, 1975. McBee, May Wilson, Natchez Court Records 1767-1805, Abstract of Early Records, Greenwood MS, 1953, pp. 14-15, 27, 55, 40-43, 88-89, 152-3, 309-10, Book D, p. 153, Book E, p. 162-3. MS Dept. of Archives and History (MDAH), microfilm no. 5618, roll 3, various doc. Northern Neck Grants, Virginia State Archives, Book G. Poe, Allan, "The Records, From Virginia to Old Burke Co. N.C.", publ. in Wm Wiseman & the Davenports, Pioneers Of Old Burke County, North Carolina, v.2, by M.L.Vineyard & E.M.Wiseman, Franklin NC, 1997, pp. 254-256. Potter, Dorothy Williams, Passports of Southeastern Pioneers 1770-1823, Gateway Press, Baltimore MD, 1982, p. 342. Pre-Revolutionary Plat Books, SC Archives Dept., vol. 21, pp 424-433. U.S. 1820 Census, St. Landry Parish LA, Index, S-K Publications, 2021. U.S. 1830 Census, St. Landry Parish LA, Index, S-K Publications, 2021. U.S. 1840 Census, St. Landry Parish LA, Index, USGenWeb, transcribed by Karen Sherman, 2002. Virginia Land Patents, Book 8, p. 16. Wells, Carol, Natchez Postscripts 1781-1798, Heritage Books, Bowie MD, 1992, pp. 50-52. White, Gifford, "James White and John White", Wm. Wiseman & the Davenports, Pioneers Of Old Burke County, North Carolina, v.2, by M.L.Vineyard & E.M.Wiseman, Franklin NC, 1997, pp. 86-96, 107-112. White, Gifford, James Taylor White of Virginia and some of his descendants into Texas, Austin, TX, April 1982. |
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