Ahnentafel Chart for Nancy Letitia DEATHERAGE
05 Jun 2000
First Generation
1. Nancy Letitia DEATHERAGE was born 14 Mar 1840 in Tennessee. She died about 1873 in Tennessee.
When James Larkin’s 2nd wife, Sarah, died, their daughter, Elizabeth Jane went to
live and be raised by her Aunt Phebe. Elizabeth Jane told the story about her dad,
James Larkin Wierick, coming riding up to the house on a horse and handed Nancy
Ellen off and told her, “Lizzie, I’ve brought you your little sister to live with you.”
They were raised together by Aunt Phebe.
I am guessing the date of Nancy Letitia’s death to be around 1873 so Elizabeth Jane
would have been about 10 and Nancy Ellen would have been about 3 years old.
Nancy married (1) Daniel CLOWER on 8 May 1859 in Roane County, Tennessee. Daniel was born about 1837 in Tennessee. He died before 1869.
They had the following children:
+ 2 M i. William C. CLOWER was born 10 Apr 1860 and died 2 Mar 1941.
3 F ii. Harriet J. CLOWER was born 1861.
William Deatherage appointed as guardian 3 Apr 1876 to William and Harriet J. Clower,
minor orphans. J.M> Barnard and D.C. Sparks enter into bond with him.
Roane County Heritage Commission Guardian Bonds 1875-1878 p. 44
Nancy also married (2) James Larkin WIERICK, son of William Sherman WYRICK and Nancy KENNEDY, on 23 Dec 1869. James was born 13 May 1831 in Tennessee. He died 4 May 1907 in Spring City, Tennessee and was buried in Spring City Cemetery, Spring City, Tennessee. Nancy married Daniel CLOWER on 8 May 1859 in Roane County, Tennessee. Daniel was born about 1837 in Tennessee. He died before 1869.
Second Generation
2. William DEATHERAGE was born about 1808. He died after 1880. William married Rosanna BUSTER. The marriage ended in divorce.
notes from Richard Tobin II
WILLIAM DEATHERAGE4 (Bird3, George2, William1), son of Bird and Sarah (English) Deatherage, was born
about the year 1808 [Fed Cen 1850-70]. He died after 1880.
William married first Rosanna Buster. Rosanna, daughter of William Buster, apparently married as her second
husband Alexander Deatherage. If that is correct she was born about the year 1814 at Tennessee and died about
the year 1860.
William married second Melinda Jolly on 18 Jun 1846 in Roane Co., Tennessee. She was born about the year
1815 [Fed Cen 1850] in Tennessee. Melinda’s first husband was Absolum Hurst. Absolum was killed by a falling
tree limb. She married him on 12 Mar 1833 in Roane Co., Tennessee.
William was a farmer and lived in Roane Co., Tennessee. It is thought he moved his family to Arkansas in the
1870s.Sources
issue: (William and Rosannah Deatherage)
i. Abner J. c1834-1862
ii. John c1838-
iii. Sally
iv. Betsey
v. Nancy Letitia 1840-c1873 m. 1)Daniel M. Clower 2)James Larkin Wierick
vi. Mahaly 1841-1919 m. Reuben Lacy
vii. Mary c1844-
issue: (William and Melinda Deatherage)
i. Thomas M. 1848-1918 m. Sarah Catherine Norman
ii. William J. c1848- m. Eliza Norman
iii. Margaret c1850- m. Dempsey Coleman
iv. Rebecca c1853-
v. James B. 1856-1905 m. Sarah Mahalia Barnett
vi. Jonathan B. 1859-1939 m. 1)Amanda Breckenridge 2)Anne Ervin
issue: (Absolum and Melinda Hurst)
i. George
ii. Nancy c1836-1908 m. Billy King
iii. John c1838-
sources from Richard Tobin II
WILLIAM DEATHERAGE
1840 Meigs Co., TN, federal census
1850, 1860, 1870 Roane Co., TN, federal census
In 1982 Gene Lacey had a long telephone conversation with 91 year old Amanda Deatherage Hayes. She was the
youngest child of Jonathan Barnard Deatherage & Amanda Breckenridge. Jonathan Barnard Deatherage being the
youngest child of William Deatherage & his second wife Malinda Jolly Hurst. She told him that her mother died
when she was a baby an she was raised by her aunt Rebecca Deatherage, a daughter of William & Malinda.
Rebecca never married, so Amanda was raised in the home of William & Malinda Deatherage at Beal (
pronounced Bell), Arkansas. Beal, Arkansas, is in Fulton County and this is where William Deatherage & family
moved to on leaving Roane County, Tennessee. Amanda told me that she did not know the name of William’s first
wife, however she was very clear about the names of all the children of William Deatherage. The children of the
first family were: Abner, John, Mary, Sally, Betsy, Mahala & Evangline ( She remembered seeing a picture of
Evangline.) The names of the second family were: Tom, Billy, Margaret (who remained in Tennessee & married
Dempsy Coleman), Rebecca, Jim & Jonathan. The Hurst children were: George, John & Nancy. John Hurst never
married & took on most of the responsibility of the family in Arkansas. Amanda stated that Malinda & William
are both buried in the Hurst graveyard there in Fulton County. She remembered Frank Lacy, Mahala’s youngest son,
as he used to visit them when she was a young girl. (Mahala Deatherage b. 1841 married Reuben Lacy in 1868 in
Roane County, Tennessee, they were Gene’s greatgrandparents.)
This seems to be a deed out of Scott County, Virginia, Deed Book 5 page 501. Indenture – 17 August 1833, page
501 between Sarah Buster and Zachariah Wells and Jane his wife, James English and Nancy his wife, William
Deatherage and Rosanna his wife, John Buster and Polly his wife, and William Buster all of county of Meigs and
state of Tennessee except for Zachariah Wells and his wife of Lee County, Virginia of the one part and John
Buster and Thomas Frazier of Scott County, Virginia of the second part – land being which John Buster, Sr lived at
the time of his death. John Buster sr—-Children were: Sarah, Nancy, John & William Sr. William Sr died ca 1830
in Meigs co. Tn, his children were: Jane, Rosannah, & William Jr.
Civil War Records (CSA) Private Abner J. Deatherage Company I, 26th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, was in the
battle of Fort Donaldson, enlisting July 22, 1861 Roane County, Tennessee. He was wounded at Fort Donaldson
and taken to Clarksville, Tennessee, where he died of his wounds February 15, 1862. Abner J. Deatherage is
described as being 27 years old, black eyes, dark hair, light complexion and was five feet eight inches tall.
William Deatherage signed as his father.
I have several Family Group Sheets which give other children for this family.
Tom McMurray, Ltr, 6 Aug 1998
Gene Lacey, e-mail, 14 Mar 1999, Tom and Gene unraveled whose children were whose for me.
Larry Dwayne Ponder, e-mail, 29 Jan 2000
3. Rosanna BUSTER was born about 1814. She died about 1860.
Third Generation
4. Rev. Bird DEATHERAGE was born about 1770 in North Carolina. He died after 1850 in Tennessee. Bird married Sarah ENGLISH.
notes from Ric Tobin:
BIRD DEATHERAGE3 (George2, William1), son of George and Nancy (Johnson) Deatherage was born between
1770 and 1780. He was living in 1850.
Bird married Sarah English daughter of John and Agnes English in North Carolina. Sarah died c1833.
Bird was living in Washington Co., Tennessee, in 1794 when he served on a jury there. He and Sarah moved to
Greene County Co., Tennessee, before 1807. They lived near the foot of Chimney Top mountain. By 1821 Bird
had moved to the Hiawasse Purchase in Roane Co., Tennessee. Bird was a Baptist minister. About the year 1846
he moved to Johnson Co., Arkansas, where he was listed in the 1850 federal census. Some researchers contend
that the Bird Deatherage in the 1850 federal census for Johnson County is not this Bird. Sources
children: (and others, names unknown, who died young)
75 i. Molly 1793-1875 m. John Morrison
76 ii. Allen 1794-1823 m. Margaret Jolly
77 iii. George Russell c1796-b1860 m. 1)Diana Jolly 2)Elizabeth C. Pollard
iv. Nancy
78 v. John E. 1802-1882 m. Agnes English
79 vi. Abner c1804-l1860 m. Rebecca Davis
80 vii. William c1808-a1880 m. 1)Rosanna Buster 2)Melinda Jolly Hurst
viii. Eliza
81 ix. Bird 1814-1908 m. Lucinda Pollard
5. Sarah ENGLISH died 1833.
Fourth Generation
8. George DEATHERAGE was born 1740 in Virginia. He died 12 Jan 1807 in Stokes County, North Carolina. George married Nancy JOHNSON about 1765.
GEORGE DEATHERAGE 2 (William1) was probably a son of William. He died in Stokes Co, North Carolina, on
12 Jan 1807 [County Record]. He was a native of Virginia according to a biographical article about his son
William found in The History of Morgan Co.., Illinois, published in 1878.
George married first Nancy Johnson, according to family tradition. I have found no proof of this. It is said that
Gideon Johnson was her father but he had a daughter Nancy Cotton.
George married second Mildred “Milly” Bingham. Milly, daughter of Thomas Bingham, was born in 1765
[Tombstone] in Virginia. She died on 29 Dec 1855 [Tombstone, aged 90 years] in Morgan Co., Illinois. She is
buried in Rogers Cemetery, Morgan County.
George makes his first appearance in contemporary records, in North Carolina on 10 Jul 1764, when he appears in
Rowan County Court records. In 1769 he was made a constable for the region of Peters Creek, Snow Creek and the
head of the Dan River. On 14 Jul 1778 he entered a claim for 640 acres on both sides of the Dan River in Surry Co.
, North Carolina. This land contained the “plantations of John and George Deatherage.”The land was surveyed on
31 Mar 1779 and was granted 3 Apr 1780. On 4 Dec 1778 George Deatherage entered claim for 400 acres on the
Great Creek of the Dan River in Surry County. The land was surveyed on 6 Apr 1779 and was granted 3 Apr 1780.
George and his brother John are both mentioned extensively in the court records of Stokes Co., North Carolina.
During the Revolutionary War George aided the patriot cause by providing supplies to the militia. He also
appeared on a list of those who served in Captain Vernon’s Company of Light Horse for ten days in October 1781
from North Carolina.
George in his will written on 10 Dec 1806 named his wife Milly and his children
Nancy, “who intermarried with William Edgmon,” Bird, Abner, Anne, “who intermarried with George Cloud,”
Polly, Ursley, “who intermarried with Ashly Johnson,” John, Phillip, James, William, Coleman, George, and ”
Achkillas.” He named George Cloud as his executor. The witnesses of the will were Joseph Cloud, William
Lankford, Phillip Deatherage, and James Lyon, Jr. The will was proved in the March 1807 term of the Stokes
County Court by William Lankford.
After George’s death Milly lived in Stokes County for several years and then moved to Logan Co., Kentucky,
between 1810 and 1820. In 1826 she moved to Morgan Co., Illinois, where she lived until she died.
George is probably the son of William and his 2nd wife. He is listed in some of Deatherage family researchers as
the son of William and Susan Eastham, but she would have been too old in 1740. I received an LDS file that has
George’s birthdate as about 1717. That would make him right for being a son of Susan Eastham, but would make
him substantially older than his wife and quite old when his children were born. I currently believe George’s birth
date to be in 1740 in Virginia and not in 1717 in North Carolina.
9. Nancy JOHNSON was born 1748 in Stokes County, North Carolina. She died 1780 in Stokes County, North Carolina.
notes from Ric Tobin:
Nancy Johnson’s father is said to be Gideon Johnson but he had a daughter Nancy Cotton.
Fifth Generation
16. William DEATHERAGE was born 1685 in London, England. He died 1763/1780 in Shenandoah County. William married Susan EASTHAM on 1709 in Culpepper County, Virginia.
notes from:
Richard Tobin II
3200 Wessynton Way
Alexandria, VA 22309
WILLIAM DEATHERAGE is probably the immigrant ancestor of the family. According to family tradition he
married Susan Eastham and had five children: Robert, Susan, Achilles (who lived in Shenandoah County where he
died in 1780 (sic), John (who married Sarah Edwards (sic) and lived in Spotsylvania Co., Virginia) and George.
(This account is taken from “The Deatherage Family, “The Lookout: A Journal of Southern Society, 6 May 1916, v.
17. Please note that Achilles did not die in 1780 and John married Sarah Edwards Gale.)
William Deatherage first appears in the public records on 5 Jun 1734 when he witnessed a deed of gift executed
by Philemon Cavenaugh of St. Mark’s Parish, Spotsylvania Co., Virginia. The next year William received a royal
patent for 950 acres in Orange Co., Virginia (see pages 1-2). He had apparently sold this land by 1747 but
continued to live in Culpeper County as late as 1763-4 where he was involved in two lawsuits. In 1747 he was
married to Anna – who was probably a second wife. No records have been uncovered which list any of William’s
children, give the name of his wife other than as noted above, or give his date or place of death.
The pre-American origins of the Deatherage family are not known.1
Our ancestor was possibly William, son of John and Mary DITHERIDG, who was baptized on 31 May 1705 at
Dudley St. Thomas, Worcestershire, England. He was not buried as an infant and there appears to be no later
record of him in that county.2 Further proof is needed before we can claim this man as our forebear.
In A Dictionary of British Surnames3 Deathridge is listed as a variation of Death. It also states that the rare
occupational surname of
DETHEWRIGHT, DEDEWRITHE, DEDEWRIGHTE which means “fuel tender” survives today as
DEATHRIDGE and DETH(E)RIDGE4.
While family tradition has been that the Deatherages were English, there is at least one book that says they were
French Huguenot. Mr. Anderson Quisenberry relates the D’Etherage family was one of those French Huguenot
families that spread to other parts of the United States from Monikin-Town (an old Indian town) in what was then
Powhattan County, now Goochland County, Virginia.5
The first record I have of our Deatherage family in America is a deed of
gift6 executed by Philemon Cavenaugh of St. Mark’s Parish, Spotsylvania County, Colony of Virginia, on 5 Jun
1734 witnessed by William Deatherage the probable immigrant.7 During this period William was issued a right or
certificate for land that was surveyed on 11/12 April 1735. This original patent was located in present Culpeper
Co., VA, just west of the town of Jeffersonton. By 1748 this land was in the hands of two Germans and Charles
DeWitt. This is not the “Horse Shoe” Farm. See map on page 2.
______________________________
1. I am aware of the story that the family is descended from the D’Aeth family of Kent County, England, but this is
improbable.
I have found some who have William with 8 children: Robert b. 1710, Philemon b. 1712, Robert b. 1730,
Philemon b. 1733, John b. 1735, George b. 1740, Achilles b. 1742, Susan b. 1744. William was married twice
and I would think that some of the later children were born with his 2nd wife. Perhaps his first wife bore him
the first two sons, the first Robert and Philemon.
17. Susan EASTHAM was born about 1689 in Culpepper County, Virginia.
18. Gideon JOHNSON was born about 1722 in North Carolina. He died 1807. Gideon married Ursula (Ursly) ALLIN.
19. Ursula (Ursly) ALLIN was born 16 Feb 1728 in Hanover, Virginia.
Sixth Generation
38. William Hunt ALLEN was born 1710 in Granville County, North Carolina. He died 1786 in Granville County, North Carolina. William married Mary Ann OWEN about 1725 in Virginia.
39. Mary Ann OWEN was born 1700/1701 in Henrico, Virginia. She died before 1750 in Hanover, Virginia.
Seventh Generation
76. Robert ALLEN was born 1675 in New Kent County, Virginia. He died 4 Oct 1785 in Virginia. Robert married Sarah WALKER in Virginia.
77. Sarah WALKER was born 1675 in New Kent County, Virginia. She died after 1758.
78. Thomas OWEN was born 1660/1664 in Southwarkee Parish, Surry, Virginia. He died 1744 in Henrico, Virginia. Thomas married Elizabeth BROOKES on 1690 in Henrico, Virginia.
79. Elizabeth BROOKES was born 18 Feb 1665 in West Bromwich, Staffordshire, England. She died after 1706 in Henrico, Virginia.
Eighth Generation
152. Richard ALLIN was born 1679 in New Kent County, Virginia. He died 17 Jun 1725 in Hanover, Virginia. Richard married Elizabeth WALKER on 1692 in St. Peters Parish, New Kent, Virginia.
153. Elizabeth WALKER was born about 1679 in Henrico County, Virginia. She died after 1734.
Ninth Generation
304. Richard ALLIN was born about 1654 in Northampton County, Virginia. He died 1725 in Hanover, Virginia. Richard married Elizabeth.
305. Elizabeth was born about 1654 in St. Peters Parish, New Kent, Virginia. She died after 1727 in St. Peters Parish, New Kent, Virginia.
306. William WALKER was born about 1649 in St. Peters Parish, New Kent, Virginia. He died Aug 1723 in Henrico County, Virginia. William married Elizabeth WARREN.
307. Elizabeth WARREN was born 1644 in St. Peters Parish, New Kent, Virginia. She died 3 Jun 1728 in Henrico County, Virginia.
Tenth Generation
608. Richard ALLIN was born about 1613 in England. He died in New Kent County, Virginia. Richard married Joan.
609. Joan was born about 1615 in England ?.
612. Alexander WALKER was born 1614 in St. Peters Parish, New Kent, Virginia.