Skip to main content

John Thompson (1751-1818)



I have a thick binder about the Thompson family, beginning with John Thompson of SC, b. 1751. Before that are rumors this family came from somewhere in the British Isles, or maybe even Germany, but after intensive research in Charleston, SC, I can say there were scores of John Thompsons and others who might be relatives. Thus, it is nearly impossible to sort them out without further evidence linking everyone. Perhaps DNA will eventually help.

I have not researched this line since 1999, and this is another family which has had extensive research done by others, so I do not worry about it. I tend to expend my efforts on family members about whom little is known, and, of course, now I write fiction about them.

Let me tell you what I do know. Credit for most of this goes to Betty Rolwing Darnell of Kentucky. Mom corresponded with various Thompson descendants from mid-Missouri before 1999, and they had information from Betty they passed along with their own information.

I have a real soft spot for the Thompsons, mainly because they were true Missouri pioneers. Their westward venture illustrates a typical migration of people who landed in Howard County, Missouri and surrounding “Little Dixie” counties, and John Thompson was one of the very first to come to Missouri Territory. His son, Nero Morgan Thompson, went on to Howard County.

John Thompson married Mary Jeffers (1756-abt. 1821) and their first known son, John, was born in an unknown location. Their second son, James, (1776-1852), however, was born in “Old 96” in a part now known as Union County, SC. “Old 96” is much larger than just Union County. It is the site of well-known Revolutionary War battles and is where other ancestors of our family fought and lived.

John’s son, our ancestor Nero Morgan Thompson (1794-1866), was born in SC according to the 1850 census; one could conclude it was in Old 96. John received a land warrant for “second-rate” land for which he was required to clear, fence, and tend corn for a year in order to buy in at sixty cents an acre. John bought 160 acres in Christian County, KY, and then more land to where he had more than 500 acres. He is found on the 1797 tax list in that county.

John Thompson sold his land in 1808, and sometime between 1800 and 1814, he settled near Egypt Mills, Cape Girardeau District, Missouri Territory. That time period is of great interest to me since researching and writing my “Louisa” series. I intend to write a saga of John’s son Nero Morgan Thompson’s family from the perspective of Elizabeth Williams, his wife. If I get a chance to expand that back to John’s settlement in the Cape Girardeau District, I will.

John Thompson and his first wife Mary Jeffers Thompson are buried in the Thompson cemetery on their farm near Egypt Mills.

This couple’s third son and seventh known child, was Nero Morgan Thompson, a pioneer of Howard County, Missouri where he settled c. 1816. He married Elizabeth Williams, and it is their son, John Thompson, who married his first cousin, fifteen-year-old Priscilla Williams, previously written about.

Elizabeth Williams Thompson, is a daughter of Colden Williams who is a sort of hero in Fayette, MO. If you want to get into the DAR or SAR, this is the line to follow because it is well-researched.

I digress.

I have a large binder full of information about Nero and his descendants and will defer further discussion of him until another time. Suffice it say, his story gives a very sentimental view (for those of us who love Howard County) of what it may have been like to settle there before Missouri became a state.


 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Thomas Gardner (1840-1909), Emeline Denning (1848-1925)

  Thomas Gardner, b. 1840 in Wales, came to the United States with his parents, Francis Gardner of South Wales and Hester (Esther) Hoppes Gardner of England in 1843, sailing into the port of New York. As would be a common theme among our ancestors who mined coal, Tom’s father Francis tried to make a living by farming, but had to fall back at times to mining. The family first settled in Strabane, Pennsylvania where Tom’s father is listed as a collier (coal mine) in the 1850 census. Though I could not find them in the 1860 census, from other census records, the family likely moved to Iowa in 1860 or 1861 where it appears Francis succeeded in farming. This family has ties, including many burials, to Black Hawk Township, near Fairfield, Iowa. Tom enlisted as a soldier in the Civil War in Company D, 19 th Iowa Infantry in August, 1862, until July, 1865. I have not yet researched this company’s record to know where he might have gone or fought. In 1866, Tom married 18-year-old Miss Emaline
Post a Comment
Read more

John DuBois (16??-abt. 1723) and Subsequent Generations

  The presumed progenitor of the “South Carolina DuBois” family is John DuBois who, at the time of his death around 1723, left a widow named Jane. Our connection is: John>Jasper>Peter>Peter>John>Rufus>Rev. HHS DuBois>Martha K., Bill, and Hugh Who was this man? How/why/when did he go to South Carolina? Was he the father of Jasper DuBois from whom we can definitely trace our DuBois lineage? John’s presence in the colony of Carolina is noted in 1696 where he is paying Quit Rents on a lot in Charles Town (Charleston). He likely had some connection to the lot sometime prior, as it was common for many to occupy the land before recording the patent and then paying quit rents (taxes). It is possible he was there by 1670 when Barbadian settlers arrived. There was a strong connection between Barbados and Charleston for decades, including the arrival of land speculators. Also permeating Charles Town was the slave trade. After 1696 are John DuBois’ land transactions further ou
Post a Comment
Read more

Martha Jane (Slaton) DuBois

Martha Jane (“Mattie”) Slaton (12/27/1838-7/20/1907) was born on a plantation in Autauga County, Alabama, not far from present-day Prattville. She was the youngest of seven children born to John Slaton and Nancy Harris. She was well-educated, attending a “Female Academy” and she was a staunch Methodist. From an early age, Mattie owned property, including enslaved people, in her own right. After her marriage to Dr. Rufus DuBois (a dentist), she provided funds for the family homestead and surrounding acreage in Greensboro, AL. In the years just before her death, the homestead was divided and parcels of land sold off. The house itself stood over 150 years before being torn down and replaced with affordable housing. According to the 1860 census, their real estate was worth $3500 ($111,695 today) and their personal property was $13,000 ($414,868 today). Of that, a substantial amount could be attributed to the eleven enslaved people on their property. I am attempting to trace their families.
Post a Comment
Read more