A Memorial to the Enslaved

[Note: White readers please read my post on guilt before reacting to or replying on this post.]

This post is dedicated to the tragedy of slavery, and in particular slavery as perpetuated by my ancestors.  It lists every person enslaved by one of my direct ancestors and the information we have about them. I will update it as I find new information. I've organized it by the last name of the enslaver, on the theory that that name may have been adopted by the enslaved person as well. Otherwise, I have no last names for any of the people listed here. Hopefully, this may be useful to someone searching for their ancestry among those who frequently went unnamed. 

Many myths about slavery are found in our history classes, and especially among white Americans. It is a myth, for example, that slaves - particularly house slaves - were generally well-treated by their masters; that slaves were better off under the "protection" of their enslavers than on their own; or that Black American slaves were no worse off than Irish potato farmers, or Jewish ghetto dwellers, or 19th century tenement laborers. Certainly, people of African-American descent have no monopoly on oppression, but the U.S. institution of slavery was so brutal, so horrific, so evil, that it belongs in a class of its own. Many slaves and former slaves told their own stories, and these are easily accessible on-line (although painful to read). Some places to begin: the WPA former slave narratives, Frederick Douglass's autobiography, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl by Harriet Ann Jacobs, or Twelve Years a Slave by Solomon Northup (the book, not the movie, although I hear that is good, too. I'm not a movie person). For a more analytical/historical perspective, an excellent resource is the History of American Slavery podcast by Slate Academy.

Slavery was the foundation on which this republic was built, so it is no surprise that its ripple effects continue to be felt today. One blog post cannot do justice to this topic, but some accessible authors include Ta-Nehisi Coates (personally I think his Pulitzer-winning work on reparations isn't even his best writing even on this topic. For a short intro, I highly recommend his appearance on Bill Moyers's show.); Isabel Wilkerson's book The Warmth of Other Suns, which focuses on the Great Migration but roots it clearly in the post-slavery period; for more technical work, try the publications of sociologist Rodney D. Coates (who is not, to my knowledge, a relative of Ta-Nehisi Coates) or political scientist William A. Darity. 

Please note that it is extremely disturbing to read about families torn apart and people referred to as property. Also, primary documents use words that we would not today, but this post maintains the original language, to bear witness.

Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord,
and let perpetual light shine upon them.
May they rest in peace.
Amen

Possible last name of Baird:

Name: Jane, Date of birth: Before 1764 (based on the fact that she had multiple children by 1784), location: North Carolina in 1784. Enslaver: John Baird and then Frances Scott Bradner Baird, and then Frances Baird Gilliland (their daughter), Details: In John Baird's will, dated February 20, 1784, "I give and bequeath unto Frances Baird my dearly and well-beloved wife, a negro wench named Jane and her youngest child named Tom". Because it says "her youngest child", I wonder if some of the other people who were willed away were other children of hers. Frances Baird made her own will on January 6, 1786, and in it she mentioned Jane. "I bequeath unto my daughter Frances, mar­ried to Alexander Gilleland a negro wench named Jane to her and to her heirs and assigns forever". No mention is made of Jane's son, Tom, suggesting he had died or been sold before this time.

Name: Tom (son of Jane), Date of birth: before 1784, location: North Carolina in 1784. Enslaver:  John Baird and then Frances Scott Bradner Baird, Details: In John Baird's will, dated February 20, 1784, "I give and bequeath unto Frances Baird my dearly and well-beloved wife, a negro wench named Jane and her youngest child named Tom". Because the will says "her youngest child", I wonder if some of the other people who were willed away were siblings of Tom.

Name: Nell, Date of birth: by 1764 (adult by 1784), location: North Carolina in 1784. Enslaver: John Baird, and then Eleanor Baird Witherspoon (his daughter). Details: In John Baird's will, dated February 20, 1784, "I will and bequeath to my well beloved daughter, Eleanor Witherspoon, all that tract or parcel of land on both sides of Little Catawba Creek including part of the meadow below the old mill containing two hundred and thirty-three acres, also a certain negro woman Nell To her and the heirs of her body or their heirs or assigns forever."

Name: Gilly, Date of birth: by 1764 (adult by 1784), location: North Carolina in 1784. Enslaver: John Baird and then Adam Baird (his son). Details: In John Baird's will, dated February 20, 1784, "I give and bequeath to my well beloved son, Adam Baird, the tract of land on the two small branches of Little Catawaba containing one hundred acres and one negro named Gilly, to him and his heirs and assigns forever."

Name: Harry, Date of birth: before 1784, location: North Carolina in 1784. Enslaver: John Baird and then Sarah Baird Martin (his daughter). Details: In John Baird's will, dated February 20, 1784, "I give and bequeath to my well beloved daughter, Sarah Martin, one negro boy named Harry, to her and the heirs of her body and their assigns forever." It is possible that Harry was the son of Jane, since she is described has having more than one child. It is also possible that Harry is the son of the man named Harry (see below), just based on the shared name.

Name: Harry, Date of birth: by 1764 (an adult by 1784), location: North Carolina in 1784. Enslaver: John Baird and then Frances Baird Gilliland (his daughter). Details: In John Baird's will, dated February 20, 1784, "I give and bequeath to my well beloved daughter Frances Gilliland, one negro man named Harry to her and the heirs of her body or their assigns forever." It is possible that Harry was the father of the boy named Harry (see above), just based on the shared name.

Name: Jack, Date of birth: by 1784, location: North Carolina in 1784. Enslaver: John Baird and then Anne Baird Brown (his daughter). Details: In John Baird's will, dated February 20, 1784, "I will and bequeath to my well beloved daughter Anne Brown, as above mentioned, one negro boy named Jack, to her and the heirs of her body or their assigns forever." Jack may have been the son of Jane, since she is mentioned as having other children. 

Name: Jean, Date of birth: by 1788 (described as a woman in 1808), location: Lincoln County, North Carolina in 1808. Enslaver: James Baird and then, possibly, Nancy Meney Baird (his wife). Details: In James Baird's will of October 9, 1808, he leaves to his wife "one Negro Woman Jean or Ann and to have her Choice of them." It may be possible that Jean was the same woman as Jane, mentioned above (the two names were often used interchangeably in the 18th century), who was enslaved under James' father John Baird and was willed with her youngest child to John's wife (James's mother) Francis Baird. Francis Baird willed Jane to her daughter, Frances Gilliland, though, not to her son.

Name: Ann, Date of birth: by 1788 (described as a woman in 1808), location: Lincoln County, North Carolina in 1808. Enslaver: James Baird and then, possibly, Nancy Meney Baird (his wife). Details: In James Baird's will of October 9, 1808, he leaves to his wife "one Negro Woman Jean or Ann and to have her Choice of them." 

At least two more people, names: unknown, Dates of birth: by 1808, Location: Lincoln County, North Carolina in 1808. Enslaver: James Baird. Details: In James Baird's will of October 9, 1808, he states, "is my will that all my negroes will be sold not above [withheld?] and that the family may go together if it can be done." He named two women (Jean and Ann) in his will, so this sentence suggests he had at least two more people held in slavery, and at least one family.


Possible last name of Ammon:

Name: Katherine, Date of birth: before September 19, 1757, Location: St. Peter's Parish, New Kent County, Virginia. Enslaver: Christopher Ammon. Details: The vestry book for St. Peter's Parish in New Kent County, Virginia, has a listing of baptisms, including "September 19, 1757: Katherine (Negro Girl belonging to Christopher Ammon)." There is no record of her mother or father. St. Peter's is an Episcopal church and many prominent Virginians were members there, including George Washington, who was married there in 1759. Christopher Ammon's own children were baptized there as well, between 1735 and 1755.  

Name: Ben, Date of birth: before February 5, 1757, Location: St. Peter's Parish, New Kent County, Virginia. Enslaver: Christopher Ammon. Details: The vestry book for St. Peter's Parish in New Kent County, Virginia, has a listing of baptisms, including "February 5, 1757: Ben (Negro Boy belonging to Christopher Ammon)." There is no record of his mother or father. St. Peter's is an Episcopal church and many prominent Virginians were members there, including George Washington, who was married there in 1759. Christopher Ammon's own children were baptized there as well, between 1735 and 1755.  

Name: Jude, Date of birth: before February 5, 1757, Location: St. Peter's Parish, New Kent County, Virginia. Enslaver: Christopher Ammon. Details: The vestry book for St. Peter's Parish in New Kent County, Virginia, has a listing of baptisms, including "February 5, 1757: Jude (Negro Girl belonging to Christopher Ammon)." There is no record of her mother or father. St. Peter's is an Episcopal church and many prominent Virginians were members there, including George Washington, who was married there in 1759. Christopher Ammon's own children were baptized there as well, between 1735 and 1755.  

Name: Unknown, Date of birth: around January 21, 1773, Location: St. Peter's Parish, New Kent County, Virginia. Enslaver: Christopher Ammon (although it is possible this is actually a son of of the Christopher Ammon from whom I'm descended) Details: The vestry book for St. Peter's Parish in New Kent County, Virginia, has a listing of baptisms, including "1773. Negro child belonging to Christopher Amons. Bapti Jan'ry 21." There is no record of the child's mother or father. Other children in the vestry book were all named, so I wonder if the fact that this child was not named suggests that he or she did not survive? St. Peter's is an Episcopal church and many prominent Virginians were members there, including George Washington, who was married there in 1759. Christopher Ammon's own children were baptized there as well, between 1735 and 1755.  



Possible last name of Welsheimer:

Name: unknown, Sex: female, date of birth: by 1800, location: Virginia in 1820. Enslaver: Philip Welsheimer, Details: There are documents from 1820 when the Welsheimer family moved from Virginia to Ohio, showing that Philip Welsheimer sold two slaves. Who these enslaved people are is not at all clear, but according to Welsheimer 1969, David Dean, who was the son of Philip's daughter, Anne (and my great-great-grandfather) remembered his mother's story of "seeing the negress who had cared for the children standing on a hillside, waving good-bye as they left Virginia." I assume she was one of the people sold, but it is possible that she was a third slave who was left with other members of the Welsheimer family.

Name: unknown, date of birth: unknown, location: Virginia in 1820. Enslaver: Philip Welsheimer, Details: There are documents from 1820 when the Welsheimer family moved from Virginia to Ohio, showing that Philip Welsheimer sold two slaves, one for about a thousand dollars, and the other "much less" (Welsheimer 1969). One of these slaves was probably the woman mentioned above. We do not know anything about the other person.


Possible last name of Cox:

Name: Robin, date of birth: unknown (adult by 1692?), location: Henrico County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Cox, and then Richard Cox. Details: In John Cox's will of February 19, 1692, he gave "To son Richard Cox, a negro named Robin".  Two other enslaved people are mentioned in the will, an adult woman named Betty and a child named Molley. It is possible that Robin was the husband/father of Betty and Molley.


Name: Molley, date of birth: child in 1692, location: Henrico County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Cox, and then Henry Cox. Details: In John Cox's will of February 19, 1692, he gave "To son Henry Cox, the bed I lie on and negro child Molley".  Two other enslaved people are mentioned in the will, an adult woman named Betty and an adult? man named Robin. It is possible that Molley was the daughter of Betty and Robin.

Name: Betty, date of birth: by 1672 (adult by 1692) location: Henrico County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Cox, and then George Cox. Details: In John Cox's will of February 19, 1692, he gave "To son George Cox, the plantation I live on and all the Neck of Land at Jarretts Spring to mouth of Capt. Gardner's Creek, a bed, a negro woman Betty, and items".  Two other enslaved people are mentioned in the will, a man named Robin and a child named Molley. It is possible that Betty was the wife/mother of Robin and Molley.

Name: Doll, date of birth: around 1692, location: Henrico County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Cox and then his grandson George Cox. Details: Book 6 of the Henrico Co. Records records a deed dated October 2, 1693, as follows; "Know all men by these presents that I, John Cox, Sen. of the County and parish of Henrico, planter, doe out of the love and affection for which I bear unto my son, Bartholomew Cox, and Rebecka his wife, and for yee advancement and promotion of their son George, have given, granted, aliened, assigned, and sett over and by these presents doe freely, clearly , and absolutely give, grant, alien, assign and set over unto my sd. Grandson, George Cox, ye son of Bartholomew Cox and Rebecka his wife, one Negro girl called Doll, being about a year old, to have and to hold the sd. girl and the issue of her body forever. As witness my hand this eleventh July, 1693" (pg. 439).

Name: Jack, date of birth: called "boy" in May 1754, location: Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: Frederick Cox, and then John Cox his son Details: In the will of Frederick Cox, he wrote "I give my Negro Boy Jack [to?] my Son John when he is at full age or after his Mothers Decease."

Name: Philis, date of birth: adult? by May 1754, location: Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: Frederick Cox, and then Elizabeth Cox. Details: In the will of Frederick Cox, he wrote "Philis and Sarah I lend to my loving Wife during her Natural Life she and their increase to be equally divided between my five Daughters."

Name: Sarah, date of birth: adult? by May 1754, location: Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: Frederick Cox, and then Elizabeth Cox Details: In the will of Frederick Cox, he wrote "Philis and Sarah I lend to my loving Wife during her Natural Life she and their increase to be equally divided between my five Daughters."

Possible last name of Hopkins:

Name: Annaky, date of birth: before Feb 21, 1803, location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: Francis Hopkins and then Jane Cox Hopkins (his wife). Details: In his will dated February 21, 1803, Francis Hopkins wrote "I lend to my wife, Jane Hopkins, during her natural life my plantation whereon I now live, except the parts in possession of my sons, John and Price Hopkins. I also lend her all my household and kitchen furniture, plantation utensils, etc.; also, four negroes, to- wit: Annaky, Nancy, Sooky and Peter"

Name: Nancy, date of birth: before Feb 21, 1803, location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: Francis Hopkins and then Jane Cox Hopkins (his wife). Details: In his will dated February 21, 1803, Francis Hopkins wrote "I lend to my wife, Jane Hopkins, during her natural life my plantation whereon I now live, except the parts in possession of my sons, John and Price Hopkins. I also lend her all my household and kitchen furniture, plantation utensils, etc.; also, four negroes, to- wit: Annaky, Nancy, Sooky and Peter"

Name: Sooky, date of birth: before Feb 21, 1803, location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: Francis Hopkins and then Jane Cox Hopkins (his wife). Details: In his will dated February 21, 1803, Francis Hopkins wrote "I lend to my wife, Jane Hopkins, during her natural life my plantation whereon I now live, except the parts in possession of my sons, John and Price Hopkins. I also lend her all my household and kitchen furniture, plantation utensils, etc.; also, four negroes, to- wit: Annaky, Nancy, Sooky and Peter"

Name: Peter, date of birth: before Feb 21, 1803, location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: Francis Hopkins and then Jane Cox Hopkins (his wife). Details: In his will dated February 21, 1803, Francis Hopkins wrote "I lend to my wife, Jane Hopkins, during her natural life my plantation whereon I now live, except the parts in possession of my sons, John and Price Hopkins. I also lend her all my household and kitchen furniture, plantation utensils, etc.; also, four negroes, to- wit: Annaky, Nancy, Sooky and Peter". It is possible that Peter is the same man as the child who was born December 13, 1726, in New Kent County (see below), but that would put him in his late 70s by 1803, which would be an unusually long lifespan for the time. I'm listing the two records of Peter separately, because it's possible that this Peter was the son or grandson of the other Peter (if related at all.) 

Name: Peter, Date of birth: December 13, 1726, Location: New Kent County, Virginia. Enslaver: William Hopkins. Details:  The Parish Register for St. Peter's Parish in New Kent County, Virginia, has a listing of baptisms, including "Peter a negro of Wm. Hopkins born Decembr 13th 1726." There is no record of his mother or father. St. Peter's is an Episcopal church and many prominent Virginians were members there, including George Washington, who was married there in 1759. William Hopkins' own children were baptized there as well, between 1728 and 1737. Peter may have been the same Peter mentioned in the will of William's son, Francis (see above), but I listed the two records separately, since the Peter born in 1726 would have been in his late 70s by the time of Francis's death. Although it is possible he lived that long, that is a very long lifespan for colonial Virginia, so I think it more likely that the Peter mentioned in 1803 was a younger man named for this Peter, perhaps his son or grandson. 

Name: Joe, Date of birth: September 10, 1729, Location: New Kent County, Virginia. Enslaver:  William Hopkins. Details:  The Parish Register for St. Peter's Parish in New Kent County, Virginia, has a listing of baptisms, including "Joe a negro boy belonging to Wm. Hopkins born Septr 10th, 1729." There is no record of his mother or father. St. Peter's is an Episcopal church and many prominent Virginians were members there, including George Washington, who was married there in 1759. William Hopkins' own children were baptized there as well, between 1728 and 1737.

Name: Phil, Date of birth: April 24 1736, Location: New Kent County, Virginia. Enslaver:  William Hopkins. Details:  The Parish Register for St. Peter's Parish in New Kent County, Virginia, has a listing of baptisms, including "Phil Negro boy belonging to William Hopkins born April 24." There is no record of his mother or father. St. Peter's is an Episcopal church and many prominent Virginians were members there, including George Washington, who was married there in 1759. William Hopkins' own children were baptized there as well, between 1728 and 1737.


Possible last name of Chastain:

Name: Robert. Date of birth: before 1714. Location: Manakintown, Virginia. Enslaver: Pierre Chastain. In the Vestry Book of King William Parish, "Robert, negro" is listed as one of the tithable people (along with Pierre) in Pierre Chastain's household. Please note that this may mean Robert was not enslaved but rather a servant. 

Name: Billander. Date of birth: adult in 1760. Location: King William Parish, Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: John (or Jean) Chastain, later his wife Charlotte Judith Chastain. In John's will, made December 22, 1760 but proved January 25, 1762, he left his wife, Charlotte Judith, "a Negro woman Billander and Negro man Mingo". Since Billander and Mingo were kept together, perhaps they were a couple? If so, they were potentially the parents of one or more of the children who were also divided by the will. Their names were Hannah, Myrtillo, Phyllis, Will, and Docus.

Name: Mingo. Date of birth: adult in 1760. Location: King William Parish, Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: John (or Jean) Chastain, later his wife Charlotte Judith Chastain, later his son, John Jr., later John Jr.'s daughter, Fanny.. In John's will, made December 22, 1760 but proved January 25, 1762, he left his wife, Charlotte Judith, "a Negro woman Billander and Negro man Mingo". Since Billander and Mingo were kept together, perhaps they were a couple? If so, they were potentially the parents of one or more of the children who were also divided by the will. Their names were Hannah, Myrtillo, Phyllis, Will, and Docus. It is likely that Mingo is the same man who is later mentioned in the will of John Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807 in Bedford County. In that will, "Negro Mingo" was given to John Jr.'s daughter Fanny. No mention is made of Billander in this later will. She may have already died or been sold away from her family. Of the children, Hannah and Phyllis were mentioned (and separated) in the later will.

Name: Hannah. Date of birth: described as "girl" in 1760. Location: King William Parish, Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: John (or Jean) Chastain, later his son John Chastain Jr, later to John Jr's son, Stephen. In John Sr's will, made December 22, 1760 but proved January 25, 1762, he left his son, "one Negro girl called Hannah". Hannah was potentially the daughter of Billander and Mingo, and the sister of Myrtillo, Phyllis, Will, and/or Docus.  It is likely that Hannah is the same woman who is later mentioned in the will of John Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807 in Bedford County. In that will, "2 Negroes Hannah and Tom" were given to John Jr.'s son Stephen. Mingo was also mentioned in the will, as was Phyllis (both were separated from their family, if indeed they were related to Hannah). No mention is made of Billander in this later will. She may have already died or been sold away from her family.

Name: Prince. Date of birth: adult in 1760. Location: King William Parish, Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: John (or Jean) Chastain, later his daughter Mary Chastain Witt and her husband, Benjamin. In John Sr's will, made December 22, 1760 but proved January 25, 1762, he left his daughter, "one Negro man called Prince".

Name: Bett. Date of birth: adult in 1760. Location: King William Parish, Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: John (or Jean) Chastain, later his daughter Judith, later his son John Jr., later John Jr's son John. In John Sr's will, made December 22, 1760 but proved January 25, 1762, he left his daughter, "one Negro woman called Bett and one Negro girl called Myrtillo". Since Bett and Myrtillo were kept together, perhaps they were mother and daughter?  It is likely that Bett is the same woman who is later mentioned in the will of John Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807 in Bedford County. In that will, "Negro Bett" was given to John Jr.'s son John. No mention is made of Myrtillo in this later will. She may have already died or been sold away from her family.

Name: Myrtillo. Date of birth: described as a "girl" in 1760. Location: King William Parish, Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: John (or Jean) Chastain, later his daughter Judith. In John Sr's will, made December 22, 1760 but proved January 25, 1762, he left his daughter, "one Negro woman called Bett and one Negro girl called Myrtillo". Since Bett and Myrtillo were kept together, perhaps they were mother and daughter?

Name: Phyllis. Date of birth: described as a "girl" in 1760. Location: King William Parish, Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: John (or Jean) Chastain, later his daughter Jane, later his son John Jr., later John Jr's daughter, Mary "Molly" Chastain. In John Sr's will, made December 22, 1760 but proved January 25, 1762, he left his daughter, "one Negro girl called Phyllis and one Negro boy called Will, one Negro girl called Docus". These children potentially were the children of Billander and Mingo, or of Bett. It is likely that this Phyllis is the same woman who is later mentioned in the will of John Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807 in Bedford County. In that will, "Phillis and a boy" were given to John Jr.'s eldest daughter, Molly. The boy may have been Phyllis's son.

Name: Unknown. Date of birth: described as a "boy" in 1804. Location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Chastain, Jr., later his daughter Molly. In the will of John Chastain Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807, a "Phillis and a boy" were willed to John's daughter, Molly. The boy may have been Phyllis's son.

Name: Will. Date of birth: described as a "boy" in 1760. Location: King William Parish, Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: John (or Jean) Chastain, later his daughter Jane. In John Sr's will, made December 22, 1760 but proved January 25, 1762, he left his daughter, "one Negro girl called Phyllis and one Negro boy called Will, one Negro girl called Docus". These children potentially were the children of Billander and Mingo, or of Bett.

Name: Docus. Date of birth: described as a "girl" in 1760. Location: King William Parish, Cumberland County, Virginia. Enslaver: John (or Jean) Chastain, later his daughter Jane. In John Sr's will, made December 22, 1760 but proved January 25, 1762 in Bedford County, he left his daughter, "one Negro girl called Phyllis and one Negro boy called Will, one Negro girl called Docus". These children potentially were the children of Billander and Mingo, or of Bett.

Name: Jude. Date of birth: before 1804. Location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Chastain, Jr., later his daughter Elizabeth. In the will of John Chastain Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807, "2 Negroes Jude and Patt" were willed to John's daughter, Elizabeth.

Name: Patt. Date of birth: before 1804. Location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Chastain, Jr., later his daughter Elizabeth. In the will of John Chastain Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807, "2 Negroes Jude and Patt" were willed to John's daughter, Elizabeth.

Name: Sam. Date of birth: before 1804. Location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Chastain, Jr., later his son William. In the will of John Chastain Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807, "Negro Sam" was willed to John's son, William.

Name: Tom. Date of birth: before 1804. Location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Chastain, Jr., later his son Stephen. In the will of John Chastain Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807, "2 Negroes Hannah and Tom" were willed to John's son Stephen. It is possible Tom was Hannah's husband or son.

Name: Nell. Date of birth: before 1804. Location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Chastain, Jr., later his daughter Edith. In the will of John Chastain Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807, "Negro Nell" was willed to John's daughter, Edith.

Name: Jane. Date of birth: before 1804. Location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Chastain, Jr., later his daughter Jane (yes, same name as the enslaved woman). In the will of John Chastain Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807, "2 Negroes Jane and Selah" were willed to John's daughter, Jane.

Name: Selah. Date of birth: before 1804. Location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Chastain, Jr., later his daughter Jane (yes, same name as the enslaved woman). In the will of John Chastain Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807, "2 Negroes Jane and Selah" were willed to John's daughter, Jane.

Name: Unknown. Date of birth: described as a "wench" in 1804. Location: Bedford County, Virginia. Enslaver: John Chastain, Jr., later his wife Elizabeth. In the will of John Chastain Jr, written January 25, 1804, and proven September 28, 1807, a "Negro wench" was willed to John's wife, Elizabeth.

Possible last name of Hancock: (based on 1860 Slave Schedule and 1870 U.S. Census, see below for methods) All of the following people were enslaved by Ammon Goode Hancock.

Age: 50, Sex: male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 Census (Black or Mulatto men born around 1810, with the most likely matches listed first): Dandy Hancock, 60, Black, living in Brookville (or Brookneal), Campbell County, Virginia, which is the same location as the Ammon Good Hancock family. He works on a farm with his wife Sally, 50, and son Weaton, 12. Daniel Hancock, 60, Liberty Township, Bedford County, Virginia (this is the location of Ammon Hancock's father's plantation). Corbin F. Hancock, 59, East District, Loudon County, Virginia

Age: 48, Sex: male, Color: Black.  Possible matches from the 1870 Census (Black or Mulatto men born around 1812, with the most likely matches listed first): Jerry Hancock, 48, Southside, Appomattox County, Virginia. Harry Hancock, 48, Bacon, Charlotte County, Virginia. David Hancock, 47, First Revenue Division, Chesterfield County, Virginia

Age:35, Sex: male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 Census (Black or Mulatto men born around 1825, with the most likely matches listed first): Peter Hancock, 46, working on a farm in Eastern District Campbell County, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock), with wife Hannah, 32, and eight children ages 16-2, including a daughter named Lucy (same as Ammon Hancock's sister and youngest child). It seems unlikely that an enslaved person would name their child after a member of the family that enslaved them, but there are a number of reasons that one could have chosen to do so, including kinship ties or hoping to forge an economically helpful relationship with a potential employer. John Hancock and Jeff Hancock, both 45, both living in Stauton Township, Bedford County, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock's father's plantation), in separate households with their wives and children. George Hancock, 45, Gills Creek, Franklin County, Virginia. Jacob Hancock, 44, Union Hall, Franklin County, Virginia. Jacob Hancock, 45, Manchester, Chesterfield County, Virginia.

Age: 30, Sex: Male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 Census (Black or Mulatto men born around 1830, with the most likely matches listed first): Jacob (or possibly Joe S.) Hancock, 40, works on a farm in Eastern Division, Campbell County, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock), with his wife Amanda, 35. Samuel Hancock, 40, blacksmith, in Union Hall, Franklin County, Virginia. He is listed as "Mulatto", but a person's color description was not always the same from year to year.

Age: 28, Sex: Male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 Census (Black or Mulatto men born around 1832, with the most likely matches listed first): Spanell Hancock, 38, working on a farm in Franklin County, Virginia. Sam Hancock, 37, working on a farm in Franklin County, Virginia.

Age: 25, Sex: male, Color: Black. Jordan Hancock, 35, Union Hall, Franklin County, Virginia. Frank Hancock, 35, Elon, Amherst County, Virginia. (Since color designations weren't always consistent, all of the men listed here could also have been possible matches for the men listed in the entry below.)

Age: 25, Sex: male, Color: Mulatto. Possible matches from the 1870 Census: Morgan Hancock, 35, color: Mulatto, Birch Creek, Halifax County, Virginia. (Since color designations weren't always consistent, Morgan could also have been a possible match for the men listed in the entry above).

Age: 23, Sex: male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 Census: Madison Hancock, 34, Staunton, Bedford County, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock's father's plantation). Anderson Hancock, 34, Madison, Charlotte County, Virginia.

Age 23, Sex: male, Color: Mulatto. Possible matches from the 1870 Census: Daniel Hancock, 34, color: Mulatto, living in Brookville, Campbell County Virginia (same county as Ammon Goode Hancock). (Since color designations weren't always consistent, Daniel could also have been a possible match for the men listed in the entry above).

Age 22, Sex: Male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 Census: Alex Hancock, 32, Madison, Charlotte County, Virginia. 

Age 22, Sex: Male, Color: Mulatto. Possible matches from the 1870 Census: I couldn't find any exact matches, but color designations weren't always consistent, so Alex, above, could have been a possible match for this enslaved person. Also, the age/date of birth isn't always 100% correct, so someone listed as age 23 or 21 may actually be this person. Alternatively, of course, he could have died, moved away, or fallen between the census cracks.

Age: 21, Sex: Male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 Census: Sam Hancock, 31, Gills Creek, Franklin County, Virginia. James Henrick (may say Hancock), 31, Southside, Appomatox County, Virginia. Anthony Hancock, 30, Southside, Appomattox County, Virginia. John Hancock, 30, Madison, Charlotte County, Virginia. Silas Hancock, 30, Southside, Appomattox County, Virginia. William Hancock, 30, Madison, Charlotte County, Virginia. W. Hancock, 30, Jefferson, Alexandria County, Virginia. (W. Hancock's color is listed as "Mulatto", but color designations weren't always consistent, so he could have been the person listed in the 1860 slave schedule).

Age: 19, Sex: Female, Color: Mulatto. Possible matches from the 1870 Census (please note women are particularly hard to track in this way, since their names changed with marriage): Susan Hancock, 29, Brookville, Campbell, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock and his family). Harriet Hancock, 30, Union Hall, Franklin County, Virginia. Maria Hancock, 30, Madison, Charlotte County, Virginia. Mary Hancock, 30, Jefferson, Alexandria, Virginia. 

Age: 18, Sex: Male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 census, with most likely first: Richard Hancock, 28, Eastern Division, Campbell County, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock and family). Clem Hancock, 28, Madison, Charlotte County, Virginia. Henry Hancock, 28, Gills Creek, Franklin County, Virginia. 

Age: 17, Sex: Male, Color: Mulatto. Possible matches from the 1870 census, with most likely first (note all the men on this list were listed as "Black" on the 1870 census): Henry Hancock, 27, Union Hall, Franklin County, Virginia. Nathan Hancock, 27, Southside, Appomattox County, Virginia. Thomas Hancock, 26, Union Hall, Franklin County, Virginia.

Age: 17, Sex: Female, Color: Mulatto. Possible matches from the 1870 Census (please note women are particularly hard to track in this way, since their names changed with marriage): Cela Hancock, 27, Madison, Charlotte County, Virginia. Catharine Hancock, 26, Madison, Charlotte, Virginia.

Four children, all Age: 14, Sex: Male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 census: Henry Hancock, 23, Staunton, Bedford County, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock's father's plantation). Robert Hancock, 25, Stonewall, Appomattox County, Virginia. Robert Hancock, 25, Bonbrook, Franklin County, Virginia. Samuel Hancock, 25, Amherst, Amherst County, Virginia. William Hancock, 25, First Revenue Division, Chesterfield County, Virginia. Wilson Hancock, 25, Southside, Appomattox County, Virginia. Doctor Hancock, 23, Southside, Appomatox County, Virginia. 

Five children, all Age: 12, Sex: Male, 3 were listed as Color: Mulatto; 2 were listed as Color: Black. All of the possible matches from the 1870 census are Black, but color was not consistently recorded. Moses Hancock, 22, Eastern Division, Campbell County, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock and his family). Beverly Hancock, 22, First Revenue Division, Chesterfield County, Virginia. Isaac B. Hancock, 22, Southside, Appomattox County, Virginia. Jonathan Hancock, 22, Norfolk Ward 3, Norfolk County, Virginia.

Age: 11, Sex: Male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 census (most likely matches listed first): Robert Hancock, 21, Chamblissburg, Bedford County, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock's father's plantation). Henry Hancock, 21, Union Hall, Franklin County, Virginia. Peter Hancock, 21, Gills Creek, Franklin County, Virginia.

Seven children, all Age: 10, Sex: Male, 2 listed as Color: Mulatto, 5 listed as Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 census (most likely matches listed first): Joseph Hancock, 20, Staunton, Bedford County, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock's father's plantation). Levi Hancock, 20, Lynchburg, Lynch Ward, Campbell County, Virginia (same town as Ammon Hancock and his family). Alexander Hancock, 19, Staunton, Bedford County, Virginia (same county as Ammon Hancock's father's plantation). Filbert Hancock, 20, Madison, Charlotte County, Virginia. Anthony Hancock, 20, Elon, Amherst County, Virginia. Lewis Hancock, 19, Union Hall, Franklin County, Virginia.

Age: 8, Sex: Male, Color: Black. Possible matches from the 1870 census (most likely matches listed first): Lewis Hancock, 18, Union Hall, Franklin County, Virginia. James Hancock, 17, Gills Creek, Franklin County, Virginia. Madison Hancock, 17, Stonewall, Appomattox County, Virginia.

A note on Hancock methods: The names of enslaved people are often only recorded in wills or other property documents left by white slave-owners. Wills were the primary sources for the names of people enslaved by most of the families from which I've descended. Unfortunately, the Hancock line, in addition to being the part of my family most thoroughly complicit in the system of slavery, did not leave any wills from prior to the Civil War. Therefore, the only information we have about the names of the people enslaved by Ammon Goode Hancock come from the 1860 U.S. Slave Schedule. Ammon Goode Hancock bought a plantation and began a tobacco business around 1850. In the 1860 Slave Schedule, he is listed as enslaving 34 people. Based on their ages and sexes (almost all young men and boys), my guess is that they were purchased for Ammon's business, rather than slaves owned by his family over multiple generations. 

Unfortunately, Slave Schedules only list the age, sex, and color of individuals. In an attempt to put some names to these bare records, I compared the information from the 1860 Slave Schedule for Ammon Hancock with the U.S. Census of 1870 for the state of Virginia. 1870 was the first time that all people, regardless of the color of their skin, were counted as full citizens of the United States, and their fundamental humanity affirmed by listing their names, occupations, and relationships to each other in the census. I assumed that formerly enslaved people had taken the last name of Hancock, and that they were likely still in Virginia, merely because the alternatives would make them impossible to identify.

It would be great if the 1870 U.S. census produced many obvious correspondences between Black men and women listed in the 1860 Slave Schedule under the Hancock name. The reality is more complicated. To begin with, the 1860 Slave Schedule for the state of Virginia listed over 2,000 people enslaved by someone with the last name Hancock. Most had no connection to Ammon Hancock. Further more, many slaves, of course, chose any name other than their former enslaver's as their last name. Many took the name of the owner of the plantation where they were born, rather than where they were enslaved at the time of the Emancipation Proclamation. So, if Ammon Hancock had indeed purchased a number of people in the 1850s, it's possible that they took different last names. Finally, a number of the people listed in the 1860 Slave Schedule may have died, joined the Union Army during the Civil War and stayed up North, or, after the war, taken advantage of their freedom to move away. As a result, this list of individuals is really just a list of possibilities.

The Deans in a Nutshell

I've been going back through the WikiTree pages and filling in the siblings and their first-generation children for every one of my direct ancestors. I've finished the Deans (that is, the straight patronymic line, not including all of the wives who married in), so this seems a good time to summarize the Deans in America.*

The Deans were Scotch-Irish, an ethnic/religious group mostly from northern England and southern Scotland. They were Protestant dissenters, strong Calvinists, who were first settled in Ulster in the 1500s (because they were causing too much trouble as border raiders in England), and later encouraged or forced to migrate to the American colonies, particularly in the 1700s. Over 300,000 Scotch-Irish migrated from Ulster to the Americas between 1710 and 1810, mostly to Pennsylvania, which had the most welcoming religious laws, or south along the Appalachian mountains, particularly into the Carolinas.

James Dean (about 1740-?) and Catherine Gamble (about 1740-?): These were the first Deans in the Americas. They were both born in Ireland, almost certainly in Ulster, and settled in Pennsylvania. They were married after their arrival in the Americas, which suggests that Catherine's parents and siblings could also be somewhere in Pennsylvania, although I haven't found them. They arrived sometime before 1760, since that was the year their first child, Margary, was born. In History of Huntingdon and Blair Counties, Pennsylvania, by J. Simpson Africa (p. 329), James is listed under the pioneers of Oneida Township, with his son, Abraham. This is an area of central Pennsylvania that was badly hit during the Seven Years War (aka French and Indian War). In the generation before, it had been largely cleared of people, Native and European alike. When the war ended, the Scotch-Irish were particularly prevalent among the new settlers. The same source says James was a member of the first board of elders elected by the congregation of Hart's Log Church, Sept. 10, 1787. He and Catherine may very well have settled elsewhere in Pennsylvania earlier, but there is no record of them before their arrival in Oneida Township. His farm was located near what is today Alexandria, Pennsylvania.

Old Hartslog Church

We only have records of two children, Margary and Abraham (see below). Margary married Colonel John Canan, who was also Scotch-Irish, and stayed near her parents in Pennsylvania. I blogged about the Canan family previously. John Canan was a Revolutionary War soldier and served in the General Assembly and as state senator for Pennsylvania. He developed coal and iron deposits, building one of the first furnaces in the region. Small families were very rare at this time, although childhood mortality was high. It is possible/likely that there were other children born to James and Catherine, but we have no record of them.

Tombstone of Abraham Dean, Ross County, Ohio
photograph by Scott
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=mr&MRid=47082416

Abraham Dean (1763-1806) and Sarah Stewart (1766-1837): Abraham and Sarah were both born in Pennsylvania to Scotch-Irish families. He served as a private 3rd class in the 7th company, 1st battalion, of the Cumberland County Militia during the Revolutionary War (1). In 1784 he bought land north of present-day Alexandria, Pennsylvania, and named the tract "Mexico" (2). He and Sarah were married sometime around 1790. By 1811, however, they had moved their family to South Salem, in Ross County, Ohio. Ohio had been Shawnee and Lenape land (along with other tribes), and under military occupation by the French until the Revolutionary War. Freed from restraint by the British government, the new United States started pushing westward soon after independence. The first major Euro-American colony in Ohio was at Marietta in 1788, with statehood following in 1803 (after decades of war to enforce Euro-American rule). The Deans entered an Ohio that was only recently conquered and sparsely inhabited by Euro-Americans.

At least one of Sarah Stewart's sisters, Margaret Stewart Brown, and her family, also moved to South Salem. More of her siblings may have joined them. As I mentioned in a previous post, this type of clan migration was common. Abraham and Sarah had eight children who scattered throughout the Midwest. Their fifth child (and second son) was John Stewart Dean.

John Stewart Dean (1792-1872) and Hannah Baird (1800-1828): John was born in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. He was a child when his family moved to Ohio. Hannah was probably born in Lincoln County, North Carolina, near King's Mountain, where her father fought during the Revolutionary War (3). In fact, he was one of the original signers of the Tryon Resolves, an early declaration of resistance to British rule. The Bairds were another Scotch-Irish family that had originally been from Pennsylvania. The Bairds moved into Ohio in the early 1800s, partly because of their opposition to slavery, Many Bairds were participants in abolitionist activities.

Hannah and John were married in Brown County, Ohio, in 1819. Hannah's older brother, John Hill Baird, was a good friend of John Stewart Dean. They served together during the war of 1812 (3). After returning to their homes (they had to walk across Ohio after being discharged), John Hill Baird married the eldest Dean sister, Catharine, and John Stewart Dean married his friend's sister, Hannah. Hannah and John had three children, the oldest of whom was Abram Stewart Dean. Unfortunately, Hannah died quite young and was buried in the Dean cemetery in South Salem, Ohio. John went on to marry twice more.

In 1847, John led a group of five families (mostly his relatives) from South Salem to Polk County, Iowa(4). They were among the first families to settle in the area. The U.S. Army had built a fort on the Des Moines River in 1843. (Fun fact, the fort was originally going to be called Fort Raccoon, after the other river that joins the Des Moines at that point. Only by the grace of the War Department was Iowa saved from having Raccoon as its state capital.) The fort was there to control the Sauk and Meskwaki tribes, who had been forcibly resettled there from eastern Iowa. It wasn't long, however, before the army moved the tribes farther west, and in 1846 the fort was abandoned as Native people were denied land rights in Iowa. The city was opened to settlement as the seat of Polk County in May of 1846, and the Deans arrived in November of 1847.

Walnut Street Bridge, Des Moines, Iowa, 1866
On the far side of the bridge was the site of the original
Dean household in Iowa.

The John Stewart Dean became a leading man in Des Moines (4). He was known as "Uncle Johnny" throughout the area. He and his family settled on the east side of the river, and were founders of the Presbyterian church, which met for the first time in his home. He was instrumental in getting the state capital located in east Des Moines, donating some of his land to the project. To this day, the state capital sits at the end of Dean Street, just to the west of Dean Lake. The Dean's original homestead was in downtown Des Moines, along the river. In 1851 a massive flood destroyed much of the area. The Deans resettled a few miles east, closer to where John's son, Abram, had placed his farm.

Abram Stuart Dean (1820-1859) and Anne Retta Welsheimer (1819-1905): Abram was born in Ohio, where he met and married Anne Welsheimer. Anne was a first in the direct Dean line: a wife who was not primarily of Scotch-Irish stock. In fact, her mother was probably Scotch-Irish (there's very little known about her), but her father was German (5). The Welsheimers had settled in Pennsylvania in the 1760's. They came from Berlin, probably for religious reasons (they were Calvinists). Anne's grandfather and great-grandfather had fought in the Revolutionary War, then her father had moved westward into Ohio.

The Dean plot in Sims cemetery, Des Moines

Abram and Anne had five known children, three born while they still lived in Ohio. They were about 27 when they moved to Des Moines. They spent the first winter in an old barracks, then built a log cabin on the north shore of Dean Lake (6). Their last two children were born there. Like his father, Abram was a devout Presbyterian and founding member of the church in Des Moines. Unfortunately, he only lived about a decade after their move to Iowa. He was 39 when he died in 1859. He lived long enough to see the city incorporated in 1851, and the capital moved to part of the land he donated in 1857. Anne never remarried. They and many of their children are buried in Sims Cemetery in Des Moines.

David Philip Dean (1852-1941) and Sarah Jane "Jennie" Brattain (1855-1919): David was the youngest child of Abram and Anne, born after their move to Des Moines. His father died just before his 7th birthday. Luckily, he had an extensive network of cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents in Iowa. I wonder if that is what turned him into such an avid genealogist.

The Brattains deserve their own blog post, but, briefly, they were another Scotch-Irish family. The Brattains, like the Deans, had married into Protestant German families. Jennie Brattain was born and raised in Henry County, Indiana, then married David in Des Moines, Iowa in 1876. I don't know how she met David. Jennie's father, Hiram, had spent time in Iowa as a child. In the 1850 census, he was living with his family in Van Buren County. Perhaps the families had met then, but Van Buren is not very close to Des Moines. My guess is that David was working in Indiana and met Jennie there.

However they met, their marriage was very successful. They had fourteen children, nine of whom survived past early childhood. Sometime between 1910 and 1919, the family moved to Coupeville, Washington, where they stayed until the current generation. Honestly, I have no idea why they moved there. One of the things I've learned from genealogy is that, in some ways, I know more about my distant ancestors than my more recent ones. David, his children, and his grandchildren were so busy discovering the Deans of the distant past that they didn't always document the Deans of the 20th century. Either that, or the documentation was gathered by my great aunt, Lillian Dean Huffstetler (David's granddaughter) whose materials I have not yet had a chance to see.

References:

1. American Revolutionary Soldiers of Franklin County Pennsylvania, by Virginia Shannon Fendrick, p. 59

2. History of Huntingdon and Blair Counties, Pennsylvania, by J. Simpson Africa, p. 329

3.  "Wilson-Baird History" by Fran C. Shepherd, 1942 (exerpt on page2 here: http://baird-bard-beard.org/BB/downloads/Volume5-March1995.pdf):

4. From "Portrait and Biographical Album of Polk County, Iowa", 1890, p. 428, (https://archive.org/stream/portraitbiograph08chic#page/428/mode/2up)

5. "A History of the Welsheimer Family", by Edith Welsheimer, Bronson Printing, Las Cruces, New Mexico, 1969.https://dcms.lds.org/delivery/DeliveryManagerServlet?dps_pid=IE97573

6. Portrait and biographical album of Polk County, Iowa, Lake City Publishing Co., Chicago, 1890

_____
*I can't summarize the Deans before America because I have nothing in the way of records prior to their arrival here.

General Daniel Harvey Hill

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bb/Daniel_Harvey_Hill.jpg

[Update: It looks like we're not actually related to this Hill, but rather to a different Hill family in North Carolina. So, yay!]

With one exception (the Hancock line), most of my family left the South at the first opportunity. This includes a number of Scotch-Irish ancestors from the Carolinas who moved into the Midwest in the early 1800's, partly because of their opposition to slavery.

So I find it interesting that I'm related, however distantly, to a number of Southern leaders from the Civil War. I blogged earlier about the Dean connection to Zebulon Baird Vance. We are also connected, even more closely (although less certainly), to General D.H. Hill.

Daniel Harvey Hill was the son of Solomon Hill and Nancy Cabeen. He was the nephew of Jane Hill Baird, who is my 5xgreat-grandmother. (The reason I say this relationship is less certain than the connection to Zebulon Baird Vance is that the Baird genealogy, to be frank, is a total mess. Jane Hill Baird is not mentioned in the will of her supposed father, Colonel Billy Hill, which makes me wonder if that connection is truly proven. But onward...).

D.H. Hill was born on his grandfather's Iron Works in South Carolina (his grandfather being another famous military man because of the importance of his iron to the Revolutionary War.) General Hill's father died young, leaving his mother with few resources and eleven children. D.H. Hill, the youngest child, attended West Point and served in the Mexican-American War. Afterward, he became a professor of mathematics at Washington College (which is now Washington and Lee). He then moved to Davidson College, where he married the president's daughter, Isabella Morrison. Her younger sister married Thomas Jackson, better known to history as Stonewall Jackson, making Hill the brother-in-law of his future brother-in-arms. Throughout this early part of his career, Hill earned a reputation for being moodly, anti-social, and difficult to work with. (Gee, a mathematician with poor social skills. What a shock.)

During the Civil War, he served in a variety of posts, ending up as a General, but loosing field command twice because he got along so poorly with his superiors, including his brother-in-law, General Bragg, and General Lee. He was particularly blamed for the costly victory at Chickamauga, which kept him out of the fighting for most of the rest of the war, despite his acknowledged military skill.

After the war, he served as the first president of the University of Arkansas, resigning twice (but only having his resignation accepted once) because he got along so poorly with the faculty (sensing a pattern here?) He took on leadership positions at other universities, until he died in 1889, and was buried at Davidson College.

Revolutionary War Soldiers

As I work through the genealogies, I'm keeping lists, so I can easily find information about people who, for example, were all Scotch-Irish, or lived in North Carolina. Most of these lists are not share-worthy, but I think this one is interesting: a list of family members who fought in the Revolutionary War.

(Note: I'll keep updating this as I get more information)

James Baird, Captain under Col. William Graham, Tryon County Regiment, 1776-1779. From 1779-1780 served in the Lincoln County Regiment (note: this is the same county, it just changed it's name). Fought in the battle of King's Mountain, South Carolina, and in the Cherokee Expedition.(1) See also my post on his life. James Baird is my 6xgreat-grandfather. His grand-daughter, Hannah Baird, married into the Dean line.

William Hill, Colonel in the militia (which one? I don't know!). Served in the battle at Rocky Mount and wounded at Hanging Rock, August 6, 1780. Also fought in King's Mountain and Cowpens.(2) Perhaps a more important contribution would be his Ironworks. William Hill is my 6xgreat-grandfather. His daughter, Jane, was the mother of Hannah Baird, who married into the Dean line. [Update, Feb 14, 2016: Oops! Turns out Jane Hill wasn't the daughter of William, she was the daughter of John and Jane Hill of Lincoln County, North Carolina. More on this as I figure it out]

Abraham Dean, Private 3rd Class, 7th Company, 1st Battalion, Cumberland County Militia, 1780-1781, under Captain John Woods.(3) Abraham Dean is my 5xgreat-grandfather, in the direct Dean line.

William Stewart. Private 4th Class?, Cumberland County Militia. It is unclear when he served, but he is listed as part of the militia in 1778 and 1780. There is an existing pass from Captain Philip Mathias, saying "Permit the Bearer William Stewart to pass unmolested to Cumberland County as he hath served 2 months honestly and faithfully in the 4 class of Cumberland Militia. Given under my hand this 4th Day of January 1778" (4) My great aunt Lillian Dean Huffstetler has records that list him as "Captain of a troop of Dragoon", or "second lieutenant in the Cumberland County, PA militia", but it is not clear if either of these are true.

James Addair. He is mentioned as a Revolutionary War soldier in several genealogies, but the source isn't clear. He did serve in the Virginia militia before the war, and he also took the oath of loyalty in 1777. (7) 

Philip Welsheimer, Sr. Rank and File in the 3rd Battalion of the York County Militia. Listed in the roster of April 15, 1778, under Captain Michael Kohn.(5)

Johannes Philip Welsheimer. in Captain Andrew Graff's company from Pennsylvania, mustered in Philadelphia in July 16, 1776, with the remark "appointed gunsmith."(5)

"Colonel" Samuel Hancock. He served as a sergeant and private for more than two years during the Revolutionary War. The description of his service, which he gave as part of his pension application, can be found here. He seems to have spent much of the war marching around and being deathly ill. His brother Simon died in 1776 in Chester, PA, during military service. Samuel was not actually a Colonel, but like Colonel Sanders, he was a southern gentlemen of means and military background, so he was given the courtesy title. His brother, Edward, was similarly called "Captain" after serving three terms during the Revolution. Their eldest brother, William, also served. (10)

These were all the men from the Dean lineage who fought in the war. The other major branch off this side of the tree was the Brattains, who married into the Dean line when Sarah Jane Brattain married David P. Dean (my great-great-grandfather). The Brattains were Quakers, and did not fight in the war, although Sarah Brattain's great-grandfather, William Milliken, was burned out by Loyalists who objected to their support for independence.(6)

It appears that some of her non-Quaker ancestors did fight in the war, however:

Johann Georg Kissling. He served in Pennsylvania under Captain Kemp, in the Berk's County Militia, along with sons George Jr. and Conrad (8)

Jean (John) Chastain - he was too old to serve, but he is considered a "patriot" by the DAR for supplying the Bedford County, Virginia, militia with pounds of beef(9)

John Hewitt - there is a John Hewitt, of the right age and place, who was in the Revolutionary War, although it is not clear that this is the same John Hewitt as our ancestor.

The other line, that of the Kinneys, moved to Nova Scotia before the war, although it is possible some of them were loyalists and moved there afterward. I'm still looking into that possibility. 

References:
(1). Information from "The American Revolution in North Carolina" http://www.carolana.com/NC/Revolution/nc_patriot_military_captains.html, accessed April 18, 2015

(2). Roster of South Carolina Patriots in the American Revolution, Volume 1, A-J. By Bobby Gilmer Moss. 2009

(3). "AMERICAN REVOLUTIONARY SOLDIERS OF FRANKLIN COUNTY PENNSYLVANIA", compiled by Virginia Shannon Fendrick, p.59 (Available online:http://lcweb2.loc.gov/master/gdc/scdser01/200401/World_Almanacs_1903_1923/american%20rev%20sold%20frank

(4).  "History of that part of the Susquehanna and Juniata valleys, embraced in the counties of Mifflin, Juniata, Perry, Union and Snyder, in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania..."Edited by F. Ellis and A. N. Hungerford. Published in Philadelphia by Everts, Peck & Richards, 1886, Pages 865-874.

(5) "A History of the Welsheimer Family", by Edith Welsheimer, Bronson Printing, Las Cruces, New Mexico, 1969.https://dcms.lds.org/delivery/DeliveryManagerServlet?dps_pid=IE97573

(6) "Notes on the Milliken Family", by Millard F. Hudson, California Genealogy Society, Issues 1-3, 1900, p.55 https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=oW8wzD32obkC&rdid=book-oW8wzD32obkC&rdot=1

(7) Blog by Kenny Adair: http://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/adair/2999

(8) http://mcclure.freeservers.com/geokeas.htm

(9) Pierre Chastain and Descendants, Vol. 1, p.24

(10) Dorman, John Frederick. 2004. Adventurers of Purse and Person: Virginia 1607-1624. Genealogical Publishing Company, p. 287.