Category Archives: Tennessee Pryors

Pryors from Guilford County, NC – Connections to IN and TN and MO

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I heard from a researcher who is descended from some of the Pryors from Guilford County, NC who made their way to Dickson County, TN. They have a family story penned by a relative long ago.  It’s a lovely, romantic tale of siblings Tommy Pryor (or Thomas) and his sister Elizabeth who traveled to see another sister named Sinnie who was married and living in Guilford County.  The tale is unclear where the Pryors were traveling from. Elizabeth met and married George Waynick (there are multiple variations of the spelling)– and settled in Guilford County. We know George and Elizabeth “Betsy” married around 1814 (around the time their first child was born) which helps to date the story.

But I take these stories with a hefty dose of skepticism. Do any of the facts match the records? Do any of the facts help to explain the paper records? Well, in this case there’s a little of both.

Part of the story is that on this same trip, brother Tommy Pryor met a beautiful farmer’s daughter and married her shortly thereafter. This is probably an embellishment because there is a marriage record for Thomas Pryor who married Elizabeth Gerringer on December 8, 1820 in Guilford County.

The researcher suspects that these Pryor siblings were related to Denard Pryor (grandfather of famed trombonist Arthur Pryor) and Alson Pryor who were orphans and apprenticed to Andrew Waggonman/Waggoner in Guilford County in 1820. It’s not just a hunch based on the surnames showing up in the same locale — Betsy Pryor Waynick named a son Denard.

Thomas and Denard have a connection. There is a Thomas Pryor and Denard Pryor on the 1840 Census in Clay County, MO. Thomas had died before the 1850 Census and Thomas’ widow was Elizabeth later recorded in Lawrence County, MO.

I decided to play a hunch. What if apprentice-master Andrew Waggonman/Waggoner was not just a master, but a relative? I found an Andrew Waggonman/Waggoner b. 1780 who is ID’d in several family trees as from Guilford County, NC. On the 1850 Census his wife was ID’d as Sinni b. 1789 in NC:

1850 Census – Michigan Twp., Clinton County, Indiana
House 15/15 Samuel Waggoner 27 NC, Malinda 22 IA, David J 5 IA, Andrew V 2 IA, Mary A 4/12 IA.
House 17/17 Andrew Waggoner 70 farmer NC, Sinni 61 NC, Samuel 3 IA, John Burket 11 IA

andrew-waggoner-denard-pryorSinnie in these Family Trees is recorded as Cynthiann Thomas. Does that crush the idea that she may be Sinnie Pryor? Not yet because the family trees are unsourced.  Looks like more homework is needed to figure out if she’s a Pryor or a Thomas, or if she was a Pryor who had married a Thomas. Any Waggonmans out there who want to offer a source for Sinnie’s surname?

Find A Grave has memorials for both Andrew and Sinnie. Sinnie’s doesn’t contain a photo and the birth year is 10 years earlier than the age reported on the 1850 Census, so approach with caution:

S. Waggonman:

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=26012639&ref=acom

The story of the Pryor siblings gave an account that George Waynick and family had stayed in Indiana to grow one crop before moving into TN, so perhaps the Waynicks and Waggonmans both went to IN from NC.

If indeed Sinnie, Tommy, and Betsy are related to Denard and Alson, then we may also know the identity of Tommy.  Denard only shows up on one census records and it’s on the same page in Clay County, MO with Thomas Pryor b. 1791-1800. Thomas’ wife was recorded as Elizabeth and their first known child was David Josiah b. 1825 in NC –  could Thomas be the same man who married Betsy Geringer on 8 Dec 1820 in Guilford County with bondsman Samuel Pryor?

There’s a Guilford County marriage on https://ncgenweb.us :
Andrew Gerinor [Gerringer] + Elisabeth Wyrick ~ 16 Feb 1803 bond ~ Andrew Waggonman [Waggoner]

This marriage brings together the Gerringer, Wyrick, and Waggonman surnames. That certainly helps to tie together the story, the surnames and the Pryors.

 

Category: Tennessee Pryors | Tags: , , , ,

Samuel Pryor of Perry County, IL (James and Nancy Pryor Line from Overton Co., TN)

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Some time ago I was contacted by a researcher who identified the wife of Samuel Pryor who lived in Perry County, IL. Just passing along this research info.

Samuel Pryor b. 1832 in Tennessee is believed to be a son of James and Nancy Pryor from Overton Co., TN. Samuel left Tennessee with his probable brother Jesse some time between April 1849  and September 29, 1850 when he was counted on the Census in Carroll County, AR (Jesse’s son was born in TN about that time).

Samuel’s wife is reported to be Sarah Jane Poston, also from Overton County, TN. She and her family are on the 1850 Census in Overton Co. Samuel and Sarah married about 1856. Their first child was born in 1857 in Illinois. By 1860, Samuel’s brother Henry Logan Pryor had married Sarah Elizabeth Mize. Both of these Pryor men were counted on the 1860 Census in Perry Co., IL.

If you’re a male who carries the Pryor surname from the line of James and Nancy, there are female researchers who’d appreciate your Y-DNA test through the Pryor project.  https://www.familytreedna.com/group-join.aspx?Group=Pryor. The testing is a mouth swab (no blood needed), and we have a great representation of American and UK Pryor families, so odds are good that you’ll find a match to your family line.

 

Category: Illinois Pryors, Tennessee Pryors | Tags: , ,

Updates and Corrections on the Tree of Thomas Pryor and Telitha C.

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At last an answer to some of the questions in a recent post (Tabitha is Telitha C. Pryor of Wilson Co., TN and Franklin Co., IL). The answer is a good one because it really helps to straighten out this line.

Josie Pryor Franklin Co. IL

I asked who were the parents of Josephine/Josie Pryor (or Prior) who married James Purcell. Was she the daughter of Thomas and Telitha Pryor born about 1861? — the Josephine born about 1861 who appears on the 1870 with her mother in 1870. Or is she the daughter of Young Pryor (son of Allen and Cinderella Pryor of Jackson Co., TN)?– there’s no Josephine in his household in 1870, she stated her age and therefore her year of birth on the 1920 census as 1868, and relations of Young Pryor were recorded in her household through various census records.

Well, thanks to the researcher who has provided her death record! It states her father was Young Pryor/Prior. So beware, there is no evidence to connect Allen and Cinderella to Thomas and Telitha. It may look like Josie/Josephine on the 1870 Census in Telitha’s household could be Young’s daughter (because she’s not in Young’s household), but go to the 1880 Census where she is still in Telitha’s household and is recorded as her daughter.

What happened to the Josephine Pryor, daughter of Thomas and Telitha C.? It’s possible that she’s the Josephine Pryor who married F. T. McNail on 7 Dec. 1874 in Franklin Co., IL. They are on the 1900 and 1910 Census in Hamilton Co., IL. In 1910 and 1920 (Logan Co., IL) her parents were recorded as born in TN and IL which match to the 1850 and 1860 Census records in Wilson Co., TN for the births of Thomas and Telitha.  The index to her death record states her mother’s surname as Durham and father “Pryor….”  and there are some family trees on Ancestry that include Telitha C. Durham and a 1849 marriage date to Thomas Pryor — just be aware that their sources are on the skimpy side and source documents or links are not attached.

Time to do some corrections on the TN Pryor website.

Category: Tennessee Pryors | Tags: , ,

Identifying Joseph Pryor by Signature?

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You may have seen a question I posted 4 months ago on the Pryor Lastname Genealogy Facebook page. I asked who was the man identified as “Little” Joseph Pryor in Botetourt County, VA records. Oct 1784, “Little” Joseph Pryor cited for cohabitating with William Fulton’s wife.  There was Joseph Pryor who married Mary Fleming and his son who was born after 1766. The Facebook conversation included speculation of who an elderly Joseph Pryor was who turned up in White County records around 1813. Then there’s the Joseph Pryor who lived in Jackson County, TN. I wish the Pryors had been a bit more creative with the names… it would make piecing together the genealogy puzzle so much easier! Who were all of these Josephs?

I started looking at signatures. I was curious to see if there were any documents on the web that were signed by Joseph Pryors with similar signatures.

The first two signatures are the Joseph Pryor Sr and Joseph Pryor Jr who were from Botetourt County records.  In 1800 a Chancery Court suit was filed in Augusta County naming Joseph Pryor as a resident of Botetourt County. Joseph Pryor “the elder” was a plaintiff and there’s  a deposition (although very short) given by Joseph Jr who states that the older Joseph was his father. This is the signature of Joseph Jr. in 1802.

josephpryor1803-2

josephpryor1803

Isn’t it interesting how different the same signature looks? I guess it depended on how you held the quill on a given day! The “J” though is very similar and the final “r” in Pryor is also very similar.

This is the signature of of Joseph Pryor Sr. Wow, very different than his son’s writing. Different J. Different P. Different curve on the Y.

josephpryor1802The next Joseph Pryor I looked at was the Joseph in Greene County, TN who signed the marriage bond in 1799 for Catharine Pryor and Enoch Odle.

josephpryor1799

 

Enoch Odle left his “mark” in 1799 (see above Joseph’s signature) as he did in 1855 when he applied for his 1812 land bounty warrant, but Joseph Pryor signed the bond. Was Joseph Pryor one of the educated men from among the Virginia Pryors? I don’t think this Joseph Pryor’s signature looks a thing like Jr or Sr Pryor from Botetourt County, so can we rule out that they are the same man?

The Joseph Pryor who was in Tuscaloosa, AL left a family Bible and will. I don’t know who wrote the names into the Bible or even if they are contemporary inscriptions. The writing doesn’t compare with any of the Josephs noted above– there are green dots next to “J” and “P” that differ from the above samples.

josephpryorinal

 

Joseph in Alabama left a will but it’s signed with a “mark” rather than a signature.  Was he unable to sign his name due to old age or infirmity? Or was he a different man than the one who was in Green County, TN?

josephpryorwill

I’d love to compare another signature.  In 1801 Joseph Pryor signed a petition in Smith County to prevent consolidating part of Smith County with White County. Enoch Odle also signed or left his mark. Does anyone have a copy of this document?

 

 

Category: Alabama Pryors, Tennessee Pryors, Virginia Pryors | Tags: , , , , ,

Logan Pryor of Overton County, TN and Perry County, IL

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I’m passing along a small find in case it helps to advance someone else’s genealogy research. Logan Pryor was the son of James and Nancy Pryor of Overton County, TN. On the 1870 Census in Perry Co., IL Elmana Swallows age 9 was living in his household. I think she’s Ellen A Swallows buried in the Mueller Hill Cemetery, Pinkneyville, Perry Co. She died 3 Dec 1871, and she was the daughter of E A Swallows and L M. I betting the L M inscribed on her gravemaker is incorrect, there is no actual photo of the gravemarker online so I can’t tell if I’m right. I suspect possibly someone transcribed in it incorrectly and it’s actually I M Swallows. I found Isaac M Swallows (IM?) also buried in Pinkneyville, IOOF Cemetery. He died 15 Feb 1862 in the Battle of Fort Donelson (that was a Civil War battle in TN). On the 1860 Census Isaac Swallows is in Jackson Co., TN. He was 28 (born 1832) married to Elizabeth Swallows 24, with a daughter Sarah 3. I found another interesting Swallows: Alfred P Swallows b. 1855 in TN. On the 1860 Census in District 10 of Overton Co. living with his parents Reuben and Bethenia Swallows. Ruben and son Alfred were in District 13 of Jackson Co., in 1870. Alfred P Swallows was in Tyrone, Franklin Co., IL in 1880. He was married and just a couple houses from Isaac Copeland. Children of Allen and Cinderella Pryor of Jackson Co., TN were in Franklin Co. in 1880 and living very close to Alfred Swallows. I’m not saying there’s a connection… just making an observation. I checked the 1850 Census and found that Rueben Swallows had a son named Isaac, but he was 10 years too young to be the Isaac in Pinkneyville. But I found Isaac born 1832 in Dist 1 of Overton Co., he was the son of Andrew Swallows. I suspect that the two Swallows, Alfred and Isaac, were cousins. Hmmmm I wonder if Alfred’s middle name was Pryor. Sorry I don’t have anything definite, but on the way (perhaps) to explaining who Miss Swallows was who was living with Logan Pryor.

Category: Tennessee Pryors | Tags: , , , ,
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