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Have I Solved My Pryor Genealogy Brick Wall?

Posted on April 24, 2012 by tnpryors

Albemarle County Courthouse IMG_2603

I’m pretty excited this morning because through all the Virginia records research I have finally discovered the opening in my Pryor “brick wall.”

A Recap. I’m descended through Allen L. Pryor of Sumner County, TN. Through his Goodspeed biography I know his parents were Massa Taylor and John Pryor. I found their marriage record in Campbell County, VA and have traced them on census records in Sumner County. The Goodspeed biography says that Allen was born in White Co., TN although I’ve never found a record of his family in that county. I know too from an 1830’s lawsuit that mentions both families, that my Pryors are connected to William Pryor of Overton Co., TN who was married to Massa Taylor’s sister, Spicy Taylor.

The Starting Point. The first and most obvious link that ties John Pryor to William Pryor are their wives who were sisters. The couples were both married in Campbell Co, VA: John and Massa in 1812, and William and Spicy in 1809. Both men and their respective wives were mentioned in the 1824 will of Edmund Taylor which was also filed in Campbell County.

Ty, a distant Pryor cousin, long ago found a deed in Campbell County that mentions both John and William Pryor as the sons of a deceased John Pryor. So, as of yesterday I was certain that John and William were brothers and that one of the many John Pryors from Virginia was their father, but which one?

The Missing Link. As I went through the records I’ve added to the TNPRYORS.com website, I saw numerous connections to Abraham Childers/Childres/Childress.

• 1747 – In the inventory of David Pryor filed in Goochland Co. Court, guardianship of his son also a David Pryor, given to Abraham Childres. Samuel Taylor was the security (an April 1759 deed to from Samuel Taylor to Jame Gillam states Samuel was the son of Richard Taylor)
• 1747 – Deed dated 15 Sep 1747, George Carrington deeds for 17.10 to John & David Pryor, sons of David Pryor deceased, 250 acres, land falling in Goochland and Albemarle. bounded by Phineas Glover, Isaac Bates, Abraham Childres & Richard Taylor
• 1759 – A deed in Albemarle County states that land owned by John Cannon was bounded by property owned by Abraham Childers and John Pryor.
• 1759 – Deed dated 22 Jan 1759 From Samuel Taylor of the county of Cumberland to John Meadors of the same county for 50 lbs., about 305 A. on the branches of Mill Branch in the county aforesaid, and part of a tract of land granted to Richard Taylor by patent dated August 20, 1745 containing 1200 A., and the said 305 A. of land is bounded southerly by the said Samuel Taylor, westerly by James GILLIAM, northerly by James Daniel and easterly by land belonging to the estate of James Nevel, deceased, and Philip Mayo.
• 1763/64 – Also in Albemarle County, Abraham Childers named his grandson David Pryor in his will. The will was probated in 1764.
• 1782 Will in Cumberland Co., VA for George Carrington Jr. mentions land he purchased from John Pryor and Samuel Taylor (Samuel was married to Sophia Childers, Abraham’s daughter)

The links from Abraham Childers to John and David Pryor, sons of David Pryor are pretty clear, and even their connection to Samuel Taylor, son of a Richard Taylor but what connects them to the John Pryor and Edmund Taylor who appear later in Campbell County records?

The Bow Who Ties Them All Together. My conclusion is that the John Pryor in Cumberland and Albemarle counties is the same John Pryor who was in Campbell County in the 1780′s. I think Sarah Woodson is the person who ties these families together. Sarah was married to Judge Creed Taylor, a son of Samuel Taylor of Albemarle County. Sarah was the niece of John Woodson and the cousin of Anderson Woodson. Samuel Taylor left a paper trail—Edmund Taylor didn’t leave a lot of records, but my “ah-ha” moment was when I realized that Anderson Woodson Jr. was the executor of Edmund Taylor’s estate in Campbell County.

Estimating Ages and Births. I played the age game from records trying to figure out relationships.

John Pryor and David Pryor. The wills and land records indicate that John and David Pryor were the sons of a David Pryor who married one of Abraham Childres’ daughters (her name is lost to history so far). The younger David Pryor must have still been in his minority in 1747 when Abraham Childers was appointed his guardian, making David born somewhere around 1740, plus or minus a few years. I think it’s safe to assume that John was the oldest of the sons and that he was born around 1725 as he was probably an adult in 1747. That would mean David Pryor Sr. was born about 1700 or at the end of the 1600’s. Wow! I don’t have a David Pryor in my database that originates that far back!

Samuel Taylor and Edmund Taylor. I don’t believe they were brothers. Samuel married Sofia Childers in 1744. If Samuel was 20 when he married he may have been born around 1725. Edmund Taylor was on the 1820 Census in Campbell County. The census reflects that he born before 1775, yet from subsequent census and other records we know his first child, Hezekiah, was born about 1793, so it’s likely that Edmund wasn’t born too long before 1775. If Edmund was born about 1770, it’s likely that Samuel who was about 40 to 45 years old was his father or perhaps an uncle.

Associated Lines? I don’t believe our ancestors dropped out of the sky. I know that skillful sleuthing and measured calculations can help to link people to the correct branches of a family line. My gut tells me that Nicholas Pryor of Amherst County is closely connected to David Pryor and his sons David and John.

• Nicholas Pryor served in the militia and his brother William stated on his Revolutionary War affidavit that he was born in Albemarle County. Nicholas received payment for time served in the Militia in Abemarle County in 1756 while John Pryor (son of David Pryor) was recorded on a deed in the same county in 1759.
• Nicholas Pryor was counted in Amherst County in 1784. John Pryor and David Pryor were also in Amherst County in 1784.
• The Granite Monthly, Vol 42 stated that Capt. Daniel Pryor built a palatial residence in Amherst Co. in 1798 yet I can find no other records of a Daniel Pryor in that county. Yet, there is a David Pryor on the 1800 Tax list for Amherst County. Was ancient handwriting misread, substituting Daniel for David?

Did John Pryor Move On? I’m intrigued by the will filed by George Carrington in Fayette County , KY in 1782 mentioning land he purchased from John Pryor and Samuel Taylor in Cumberland County, VA. In 1783 there was a John Pryor in Fayette Co. who owned 6000 acres. Was this the same man who was Amherst County, Cumberland County, and was in Campbell Co., VA from 1785 to at least 1790?

Where did David Sr. and Nicholas Pryor Come From? I’ve seen many unsourced Ancestry.com trees that state Nicholas Pryor immigrated from Scotland or was the son of a Scottish immigrant. I’m not ready to commit to that yet. The guardianship papers for David Pryor Jr. were filed in Goochland County, which makes me lean to Goochland County as a place that David Sr. lived and perhaps David Jr and his brother John were born. I haven’t been able to find any stray David Pryors in Goochland records, however there is a Daniel Pryor born 1703 (son of Robert Pryor and Betty Virginia Green). Again I’m wondering if there’s a transcription issue with the names David and Daniel.

While this may feel like a beautiful ending, I sense this is the beginning of a lot more research!

Posted in Brick Walls, Tennessee Pryors, Virginia Pryors | Leave a comment

Christopher J D Pryor of Hampton’s Syms-Eaton Academy

Posted on April 23, 2012 by tnpryors

It’s always funny how little parts of the Pryor mysteries get solved. A while ago I was researching Christopher J D Pryor born 1800 in Charles City, VA. He was an educator– a graduate of William and Mary College, he enjoyed a long teaching career, even serving as the president of Greensboro Female Academy after migrating to Alabama. In my research I found he was appointed the guardian of an orphan named Thomas Allen in 1839 and later was made the guardian of Mary Eliza Allen in 1842. Who were these Allen children and what was their relationshipt to the Pryors?

I found an article1 posted online that explained C J D Pryor was a teacher at the distinguished Syms-Eaton Acadamy in Hampton, VA. This school was established in 1634 and is noted as the first free public school in America. The article describes how in the mid 1800′s the school was embroiled in a controvery:

… And by 1830, residents of the county were complaining that their children living too far outside Hampton to attend the Academy. This was a complete turn-about from the sentiments expressed in 1803 and petitions were again presented asking that “two or more schools be established in the county.

The article goes on to explain C J D Pryor, while a school master, became involved in the controversy, resulting in the murder of one of his supporters, a Thomas Allen:

Hampton Academy, however, enjoyed full use of the Syms and Eaton funds and the Academy trustees were reluctant to endorse new schools which might demand a share of the money. Many meeetings were called and feelings ran high for several years. Indeed, tempers were so frayed that Christopher Pryor, the Academy schoolmaaster, attacked a supporter of the county schools, Dr. Richard Banks “with horse whip and pistol”. Pryor was dismissed from his post but ill-feeling lingered over his dismissal and on July 4, 1837 the expected explosion occured with Major Cooper, who had replaced Pryor, shot and killed one Thomas Allen, a supporter of the ousted schoolmaster.

Another facinating Pryor story!
1 Article published by Syms – Eaton Museum, 416 W Mercury Blvd, Hampton VA 23669

Posted in Alabama Pryors, Virginia Pryors | Leave a comment

Shippingport, KY on “The Falls of the Ohio”

Posted on April 9, 2012 by tnpryors

Louisville and Ohio RiverSometimes the places are as interesting as the people. I’ve been updating the Pryors on the Kentucky pages of the TNPRYORs website. I was reading the truncated will of James Offand of Jefferson County and became interested in Shippingport, KY.  While I haven’t solved any great mysteries, I thought it was worth mentioning this river port — perhaps someone will find an connection to the Pryors who passed through Jefferson County.

1818 Will, Jefferson Co., KY – Will of John M. Offand [of France]. 23 Nov 1818– 11 Mar 1822. Of Shippingport, KY. Estate to James PRYOR , William McKever, and Fortunatus Cosby in trust for wife Henrietta for life and then to children including what he shall receive from his father Thomas Offand of France, where testator was shortly going. Executors: wife Henrietta, James PRYOR, Fortunatus Cosby, and William McKeever. Witnesses: Thomas Phillips, David Jewell, J. W. Harrison, Samuel Tyler.

According to Wikipedia.org Shippingport, KY was part of Jefferson County as early as 1785. It got its name in 1803 (the same year as the Lewis and Clark Expedition) when a warehouse and mill were established. Lewisandclarkinkentucky.org states “Boats going down the Ohio regularly put into Louisville to hire a pilot to go through the Falls. Their cargoes were often off-loaded and portaged around the Falls to the lower landing – soon to become the town of Shippingport.” The same site discusses how fur traders and trappers went through Shipping port as a supply point. It sounds like the area was the hub of frontiersmen entering and exiting the Louisville area. For Pryor researchers it’s a site to keep in mind when researching pioneer ancestors who came to Kentucky from Virginia, Ohio, and what would later become West Virginia.

I spent some time trying to find a trail of the people who were mentioned in the will.
Fortunatus Cosby was christened at St. James Northam in Goochland Co., VA. This was a church where numerous Pryor marriages and christenings were performed.

John M. Offond (sp.) is on the 1820 Census in Shippingport, KY and Henrietta Offand is on the 1830 Census in Shippingport, KY near William McKeever. I believe I found traces of the Offand’s children (Henrietta had no children recorded in her household in 1830) or grandchildren: William H. Offand age 12 and Sofia Offand age 16 (Ofand) were on the 1850 Census in Jefferson Co., KY. They were living with a family whose head of household was a boat builder. William was in Gunnison Co., Colorado in 1880, age 36, miner, born in KY, parents born in France and KY. William Henry Offand was registered to vote in San Diego, California in 1869 and his reported occupation was carpenter. It looks like William had the frontier spirit and continued West.

David Jewell is on the 1820 Census in Portland, Jefferson Co., KY. On the same page Charles Floyd and a Henry Lewis were also recorded.

I didn’t find Harrison or Tyler.

Posted in Kentucky Pryors | Leave a comment