Is there Native American ancestry in the TN Pryor lines? In the early days of tracing my family tree, I relied heavily on family lore. My grandfather was raised in the household of his grandfather Allen L. Pryor in Sumner County, Tennessee. Several times he showed me arrowheads and told me “We have Indian blood.” I have not yet found any family member of his branch of the family tree who appears in Native American records or was identified as such on the census records. The cynical researcher in me asks “Where’s the proof?” Over the years I’ve heard from several Pryor researchers from the Pryor lines of Overton and Sumner County, TN. They tell facinating stories of family lore that includes Native American connections. I would like to add our stories to the TN Pryor website. Is there a common threat that will help to solve this mystery? Email me your Pryor Native American story and I’ll put it on the website. Please add to your email permission to use your name or initials, and if your would like your email address displayed. I think we’ll all enjoy these stories next month.
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Thanks to the dilligence of Barbara VanHout, we’ve added numerous Pryor records from Virginia this month. These early Pryors are of interest to folks tracing their Pryor roots for families that migrated in to Tennessee and Kentucky. Be sure to visit the Virginia pages in Southern Roots.
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Where were the Pryors in Virginia? Added to Southern Roots a map of Virginia with counties marked in red to indicate Pryor(s) appeared in its records. The map covers the records from 1770-1850. It’s an interesting graphic that reveals a pattern of residency in central Virginia. It should be noted that West Virginia was part of Virginia until 1870 and is not included on the map. Pryors of Berkeley, Kanawah, and Greenbrier counties can trace their kinship to the Pryors in Virginia. The Pryors of Berkeley County appear to be Irish immigrants, those in Kanawah were from Amherst County, VA and the Pryors in Greenbrier County have ties to Goochland County.
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Identified another Pryor from the line of William Pryor and Spicy Taylor… Martha (Mary?) Pryor born March 1898 was counted in the household of John M. Pryor in 1900. She is on the 1910 Census as the servant of Jess C. Winningham. Martha’s father was John McHenry Pryor, probably the son of Parker Young Pryor. Martha married Joe C. Jackson in about 1919 and she and many Pryor kin were counted on the 1930 Census in McCreary Co., KY. I was contacted by Martha’s granddaughter Jean. Martha’s father was known in the family as “Mack” Pryor. The family tradition is that Mack’s wife was a full-blooded Cherokee, perhaps named Leanne Conaster. Jean has kindly contributed a photo of Martha Pryor Jackson b. 1898 and one of Martha’s son Joe Copeland Jackson.
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Good news from Ancestry.com. The 1920 Census which has been previously only searchable by the names of heads of households. In the near future Ancestry promises that the searchable census will more than triple with the addition of all family members.
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Added a new Pryor to the list of ALL TN PRYORS. Bernard Pryor is named the December 14, 1860 edition of the Weekly Tobacco Leaf from Clarksville, TN as a suspect in murder that had occured in Paducah, KY. Bernard is probably Bernard H. Pryor who appeared on census records in McCracken County, KY from 1860 through 1900. He was recorded in 1850 in Trigg Co., KY. There’s a strong possiblity that he is kin to the Pryors of Stewart Co., TN who migrated to Trigg Co. Stewart County borders Montgomery County (where Clarksville is located), the matriarchs of the Stewart/Trigg Pryors were from Virginia and Bernard reported on the 1880 and 1900 census that his parents were form VA. Thanks to Melody Pryor who found this news article at
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~nightshade/Keeping_the_Peace.html#217