To:
Hi Patricia,
My name is Shelia Douglas, a descendant of the Beech Grove, Coffee County
Douglases. You're the first cousin going back to Coffee County that
I've found on my surname line.
After 15 years of research on all my lines, I'm somewhat burnt out on
genealogy after finishing a three volume, 1200 page book on one of
mother's lines last year. My material is packed up, but I'll try to
give you some information from memory if it will help you.
I'm a direct descendant of Thomas and Edith Thompson Douglas's youngest
son, Elijah Douglas. He married Elizabeth Adeline Duke (of Cannon
County) and they moved with her family to Decatur County, Tennessee
around 1855, I believe. He was the only Douglas in our line to move to
this area and settled in what is now known as the Beacon Community.
Somewhere in boxes, I have information on the Douglases in Coffee County,
Tennessee, Johnston County, North Carolina, Richmond and Northumberland
Counties, Virginia. I've also gathered information on the Thompsons in
Johnston County, North Carolina and Virginia, but nothing that proves
Edith's parentage.
Thomas is the son of Rodham Douglas, Sr. There was a Rodham Douglas,
Jr. who died after 1850 in Bedford County, Tennessee, I believe. A
sister was also documented and I want to say her name was Francis. She
married a Jernigan and they moved to the Coffee County, Tennessee area
around 1803-1805. (I'm not sure my dates are totally accurate, but
they're close.)
Rodham, Sr. and Jr., Thomas and their sister (perhaps undocumented
others) moved to Johnston County, North Carolina just prior to 1800 from
the Northern Neck of Virginia, possibly after the death of the first Mrs.
Rodham Douglas, Sr. Rodham, Sr. remarried in Johnston County, North
Carolina, I believe. I vaguely recall finding a marriage record in
Bedford or Rutherford County, Tennessee for a Rodham, but now I don't
remember if it may have been Rodham, Sr. I want to say I've never found
any record of Rodham, Sr. in Tennessee or his will in either Tennessee or
North Carolina. He either died in Johnston County or moved from there,
even back to Virginia. Well, Rodham, Sr. was on the 1800 Johnston
County, North Carolina census and wasn't found by me on any 1810 state
census. It's logical to assume he moved to Tennessee with his daughter
and sons, but nothing's been found to prove what happened to him.
Rodham, Sr. was the son of John and Susannah Douglas of Northern Neck,
Virginia. Records were found of the birth of some of John and
Susannah's children, but Rodham is documented in John's will dated about
1772, if the date is remembered correctly. I don't know Susannah's
maiden name or Rodham, Sr.'s first wife's name (and he may have been
married more than twice). Susannah may have been Rodham's stepmother as
well. Hahaha! Genealogy is full of mystery.
There were so many John Douglases in those and nearby Virginia Counties
back then, it may be impossible to ever pinpoint which one is ours. A
search of those county records and ships' passenger lists just opens more
possibilities for more Johns. Unfortunately, the names John, William
and Edward were common names in our line back then. Rodham was such a
unique and easy
name to research.
After years of research and not being able to document my speculations,
I'll venture to say we may be descendants of the early Jamestown William
Douglas or the Edward Douglas found in the Eastern Shores of Virginia.
Edward was born in 1590 Scotland. Then again, our John may have
immigrated to Virginia from another colony or from another country. In
conclusion, all we have to go on is the prevalence of the use of the
names John, William and Edward in our early proven surname line.
I'm so glad to find someone from my Coffee County Douglas line! Dad and
I have been to Coffee County and thereabouts at least three times to
research. It was educational visiting the Beech Grove Cumberland
Presbyterian Church built in 1820. That's where my grandfather said his
grandfather, Elijah, attended church as a child. We were also up on
Douglas Ridge. My aunt said,
sarcastically, "This is a fine place to be from." At that time, people
on the ridge were participating in cock fighting...very backward.
Hahaha!Someone pointed us to what they called a Douglas Cemetery. It's
called Greene Cemetery now, I believe. On another trip, we were
directed to another cemetery next to Greene Cemetery that was sort of
fenced in or blocked off, but there weren't any markers there.
Please keep in touch. : )
Shelia Douglas
aka WomanOnJupiter
Ok, Pat. Hahahaa! Far be it for me to prove your lineage. : )
Don't you think it's unusual, though, that your ancestor, Bryant, had
children named Thomas and Edith? Hahaha!
If you'll research the deed and land survey books in Coffee County or
perhaps the counties it was formed from, you'll find a very close
connection between your Bryant and my Thomas. I've got copies of the
deeds and/or land surveys packed up in boxes, but I know both Bryant and
Thomas's names were on many of the same ones. I'm referring to the Thomas
who was married to Edith. Anyway, the documentation I've gathered does
indicate rather reliably that
Bryant was a son of Thomas and Edith. I also think I've seen a will or
estate deed that proves Bryant is Thomas's son. I don't know what you
and William H. Douglas have found.
It's doubtful the Douglas genealogy on your web site is accurate. There
are too many missing links to prove it and it would never stand up in the
court of genealogy. Hahaha! Oh, you know...genealogy associations
like the Daughters of the American Revolution. The early information on
the Douglases provided by William H. Douglas is from published
genealogies and is by no stretch of the imagination proven for the Coffee
County Douglases.
Well, I know you're having fun trying to put the puzzle together. Just
don't rely too much on what people tell you. Get out and look at
microfilmed records. I've been to the archives in Nashville at least a
dozen times and need to go a few more dozen. : )
Best wishes always,
Shelia
Hi Pat,
I looked a while last night for my Douglas folders. They are probably
in a box at the bottom of the stack. I haven't been doing any research
whatsoever in the past year after burning out with genealogy.
If I'm not badly mistaken, I did see Bryant's name on a document that
listed
Thomas and Edith Douglas's children. It may have been an estate deed or
something similar containing their names or signatures. The year was
1855,
the same year my ancestor Elijah Douglas moved to Decatur County. That's
the year Thomas must have died. Edith probably died between 1850 and
1860. I think she died before Thomas between 1850 and 1855.
If I can find the copy of the microfilmed page, I'll try to scan it and
send
it to you. My computer needs a complete reformat and the scanner
software
then has to be reinstalled. If I find the document and can't scan it,
I'll
transcribe it for you.
So sorry to hear about your husband being sick. I hope the new year
brings
better health. : ) Shelia
Research by Patricia Douglas Vance using all sources available to me. If you family members see something you do not want included, please notify me.
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