cooper

MY Ferguson ANCESTORS
sent by Mary Cooper Miller, Wilbur is suffering from Alsheimer's..and doesn't function well.
(submitted by Wilbur Ferguson, 961 E. Main St., Batesville, AR 72501)

This short synopsis of my Ferguson ancestors was originally written to give
to my children, nieces and nephews, cousins, etc. who expressed an interest
in our genealogy. It is the result of over thirty years research, with
most of the information found in bits and pieces.

Isaac Ferguson and wife, Elizabeth, first show up in official records 23
April 1733/34 when he leased 100 acres of land in the Parish of Hamilton,
Prince William County, Virginia, from John Champe, of King George County.
Isaac and Elizabeth continued to live in Prince William Co. for a number of
years. Evidently, Isaac's main source of income was agriculture, with
tobacco being the main cash crop.
On 3 June 1745, he was elected to the vestry of Quantico Church, Parish of
Dettigen, until 2 Dec 1751.
On 4 May 1750, Isaac Ferguson was made administrator of the estate of
Josiah Ferguson (relationship unknown) in King George County. Settlement
was made 14 Sept 1752 for the estate.
On 8 Sept 1850, Isaac Ferguson became the security for Joel Berry,
administrator of Henry Berry's estate, in King George County.
Recorded in Book 4, page 41, County of Amelia, VA, Isaac Ferguson, on 2 Dec
1752, bought 399 acres on Whetstone Creek. On 27 June 1759, a deed by
Isaac and Elizabeth Ferguson, of Halifax County, province of North
Carolina, to James Lamkin, of Amelia County, VA, for the tract of land he
had bought on Whetstone Creek in 175?
Isaac Ferguson had three sons: Nimrod, William, and John. He may have had
two daughters.
Isaac's wife, Elizabeth, is thought to be a daughter of Isaac Edwards, who
died in Northampton Co., NC. His will was written 18 Dec 1758 and was
probated in January court 1759. In it, he mentioned a daughter, Elizabeth
Ferguson.
Isaac's will, made on 6 March 1764, aqd recorded July 1764 in Edgecomb Co.,
NC, gave son John 12 pounds money when he became 21. Wife Elizabeth was
given the rest of the estate for her use during the remaining part of her
natural life. Elizabeth was sole executor.
The will of Isaac's son, William Ferguson, was probated in Edgecomb Co.,
NC, the same July court in 1764. William left a child, Sarah, an unborn
child, and his wife, Jane Ferguson.
Some sources think Isaac's son, John Ferguson, went to Wilkes Co., NC and
died there.
Another of Isaac's sons, Nimrod Ferguson, married Rebekah, a daughter of
William Hudson who lived in Ameria Co., VA, before coming to North
Carolina. Nimrodand Rebekah probably married there. Nimrod was deeded 600 acres of land in Halifax Co., VA. on 15 Oct 1765. He and his wife, Rebakah, lived the rest of their lives in Halifax County. He died there in 1804, leaving seven sons and two daughters in addition to his wife.
Children of Nimrod and Rebecca Ferguson were:
1.      Judith Ferguson, born ca. 1755 in NC, married Thomas Scurlock, who died
in Halifax Co. in 1804. Their children were:
a.      Rebecca Scurlock who md. John Thompson 12 March 1793
b.      Ann Scurlock md. Charles Mason 11 Aug 1798
c.      Judah Scurlock md John Hill 1 July 1799
d.      Dudley Scurlock who later moved to Wilson County, Tennessee John Hill,
husband of Judah Scurlock, of Pittsylvania Co, VA, was appointed attorney
in place of Dudley Scurlock who was named as his father's administrator and
was unable to do so by reason of health in 1804.
2.      Isaac Ferguson, born 1757 in Edgecombe Co., NC, married Nancy Hatward 27
Oct 1779 in Halifax Co., VA. Their children were:
a.   Joel
      and probably
c.    James
d.   Jacob
e.    others?
Isaac Ferguson moved from Halifax Co., VA to Williamson County, Tennessee in
1806. He died there 21 Sept 1841.

3.      Jacob Ferguson, born ca. 1760, Halifax Co.,VA, married Sarah Mason 13
March 1784 in Lunenburg Co., VA. He died ca. 1813 in Halifax Co., VA.
Their children were:
a.      Joseph Ferguson md. Sarah Anderson 7 Sept 1807 in Halifax Co.
b.      Pleasant Ferguson
c.      Rebecca Hudson Ferguson md. Joseph Dunman 7 Feb 1806 in Halifax Co.
d.      Elizabeth Ferguson md. John Anderson 26 Sept 1808
e.      Sarah Fergison md. Jonas Anderson 27 Feb 1809 in Halifax Co.
f.      Nimrod Ferguson md. Frances Anderson 20 Feb 1815 in Halifax Co.
g.      Jane Ferguson md. Meredith Anderson 28 Oct 1816; md. second Hardin
Beasley in 1822
h.      Jacob H. Ferguson, born 1805/6 md. Alice Hartwell ca. 1826

4. Hudson Ferguson, born ca. 1761, Halifax Co., VA, md. Rachel Hart 13
Dec 1786; died Hamilton Co., Ohio in 1826. Their children were:
a.      James Brown Ferguson
b.      William Ferguson
c.      Anthony Ferguson
Hudson's will mentioned two daughters but no names were given.
5.      John Ferguson, born ca. 1764, md. Sarah Anderson 7 Jan 1789.
She was born ca. 1768, d. 1829. Their children were:
a.      Beverly Ferguson, born 1789
b.      Thomas Ferguson, born 1790, md. Rebecca Ferrill 7 Dec 1812
c.      Elizabeth Ferguson, born ca. 1793, md. Thomas Lovelace 28 Dec 1814
d.      Eady, born ca. 1795, md. Asa Walrand 14 Feb 1831
e.      Rebecca, born ca. 1798, md Samuel Dickson 11 Jan 1831
f.      William P., born ca. 1803, md. Sarah Jane Burton 22 Dec 1835
g.      John, born ca. 1805; never married; was Baptist minister; died 28 July
1877
h.      Henry A. K. Ferguson, born 1807, md. Nancy Petty 12 Jan 1835
i.      Rachel Ferguson, born 1810

6.      William Ferguson, born ca. 1771, md. Sally Ferrill 10 Dec 1796; he
died 1855.
Their children were:
a.      Henry H. Ferguson
b.      Billington Ferguson
c.      James Ferguson
d.      Creek H. Ferguson
e.      Nimrod Ferguson
f.      Nancy Ferguson
g.      Elizabeth Ferguson

7.      Lemuel Ferguson, born ca. 1774, md. Sarah Hudson 21 Oct 1799. He died
in Christian County, Kentucky, and his will was probated July 1844. Their
children:
a.      John Ferguson, born ca. 1795, md. Barbara Harpole 24 Oct 1821. He died
27 July 1831 in Wilson Co., Tennessee.
b.      Mary B. Ferguson md. Jacob H. Ferguson 28 Dec 1824
c.      Rebecca Ferguson md. Thomas Furgerson 16 Jan 1827
d.      Sarah Ferguson md. Jacob Hunter 16 Aug 1830
e.      Elizabeth Montgomery
f.      Judah Harpole
g.      Seluda Ferguson md. Wm. England 10 Feb 1826

8.      Nimrod Ferguson, Jr., born ca. 1776, md. Anna Anderson 14 Jan 1801.
Their children:
a.      Mary Feguson, born ca. 1802, md. James Carver 28 Feb 1821
b.      Isaac H. Fergison, born ca. 1804
c.      Elizabeth Ferguson, born ca. 1816
d.      William A. Ferguson, born ca. 1818
e.      Richard P. Ferguson, born ca. 1820
f.      Rebecca Ferguson, b. ca. 1822
g.      Nimrod Ferguson, b. ca. 1824

9.      Elizabeth Ferguson, b. ca. 1778
a.      Son, Grief Ferguson, b. 11 Jan 1797, Halifax Co., VA; died 14 May 1878,
Talbot Co., GA.
Elizabeth married Thomas Whitworth 10 Jan 1802.

WILLIAM PACKWOOD Ferguson
William Packwood Ferguson was born in Halifax County, Virginia, ca. 1803,
the son of John and Sarah Anderson Ferguson. The first official record so
far found is recorded in the Jones County, Georgia, tax lists of 1830,
1831, 1832, and 1833, where he is listed with no taxable property and one
poll tax.
In the 1832 land lottery of Georgia, he was listed as a resident of Jones
Co., GA. and was a successful drawer of a prize in Cherokee County. He
apparently did not settle on this property but probably put it up for sale
or abandoned it entirely.
Some three years later, Wm. Packwood married Sarah Jane Burton on 22 Dec
1835 in Hancock Co., GA. Sarah Jane, born in 1819 or 1820, was the
daughter of Thomas Burton, who was listed in the 1860 census as being 81
years old, born in Virginia, and a planter with real estate valued at
$4,000 and personal property valued at $30,000. He died in Hancock Co. 29
July 1861, after living there more than forty years.
Sarah Jane Burton's mother was Charity Wright, daughter of Abednego Wright,
a resident of Hancock County when his will was probated 6 Dec 1824. The
will listed his wife, Susannah Wright, son-in-law I. N. Barnes and wife
Elizabeth, son-in-law Thomas W. Burton and wife Charity, son-in-law Ambrose
Jones and wife Shadaan, son Abednego A. Wright, son-in-law Elijah Franey
and wife Finetta, daughter Amanda Reynolds, son James N. Wright, and
youngest son Dyonicius I. C. Wright.

Abednego Wright, Sarah Jane Burton's grandfather, lived in the Georgia
counties of Richmond, Columbia, and Hancock. He no doubt was the same
Abednego Wright listed as the son of Dyonicius Wright of Ninety-Six
District of South Carolina in a will probated 20 March 1780 before William
Candler, J.P of Richmond Co.
Thomas W. Burton was married at least twice. He married Charity in
Columbia Co., GA, 16 Sept 1809 and married Hannah W. Jackson in Hancock Co.
around 1840.
More than likely the children mentioned in his will were by his first wife
and were as follows:
a. Sarah Jane Burton married Wm. Packwood Ferguson and moved to Columbia
Co., Ark.
b. Mary Burton married John W. McMillin and moved to Noxubee Co., MS.
c. Martha A. D. Burton married William C. Smith.
   d.   William B. Burton moved to Fannin County, Texas.
   e.   George W. Burton moved to Shelby County, Texas.
   f.   Elizabeth E. Burton married a Sanford.
   g.   Edwin L. Burton, a doctor and administrator of his estate, later
moved to Texas.

Wm. Packwood Ferguson and wife Sarah Jane lived in Baldwin County, Ga. for
several years after their marriage. Their first child, Sarah E. C., was
born there in 1836.
By August, 1838, Wm. Packwood Ferguson held title to three quarter
sections of land in Lafayette County, Miss. This land was land the U.S.
government had taken title to after moving the Indian tribes out. By 1840,
they were well settled in their new home, located in Township Seven North,
Range One West. This land was in the north-east part of the county near
the New Albany Road.
There were other transactions listed up to 6 Jan 1855, when the family
moved to Columbia County, Arkansas. The W. P. Ferguson family is listed in
both the 1840 and 1850 census of Lafayette County, Miss. The 1840 census:
Males
Two under five years
Two between twenty and thirty
One between thirty and forth

Females
One under five years
One between twenty and thirty

The males listed as twenty and under thirty are unknown. Perhaps an
overseer or brother or nephew.

The 1850 census of Lafayette Co:
                Name Age   Sex       Occupation Value Prop. Born
        William P. Ferguson     47      Male    Farmer    $800 Virginia
        Sara J. 30    Female Georgia
        Sara E. C.      14      Female Georgia
        John T. 10      Male     Mississippi
        James H.        7       Male            "
        Robert P. M.4   Male            "
        Jackson T.      2.      Male            "
        un-named infant 4/12    Male            "
        James W. Moland 22      Male    Overseer South Carolina
        John Ferguson   44      Male    M.B. Clergyman Virginia

The John Ferguson in the above census was the younger brother of Wm.
Packwood Ferguson. He remained in Lafayette County after Wm. P. went to
Arkansas. He was a Baptist preacher and owned property in the county,
mostly abound Lafayette Springs in the eastern part. He never married and
died 28 July 1877.
Another resident of the county was Charles Lovelace, a nephew of Wm. and
John. Charles was the son of Wm. and John's sister, Elizabeth, who
married Thomas Lovelace 28 Dec 1814.
After coming to Arkansas, the Wm. Packwood Ferguson family settled on land
west of Corcheat Bayou on what is now the Magnolia-Taylor highway, situated
about half-way between Dorcheat and the road which intersects it and runs
from Friendship past Sharman Cemetery. Eventually the property grew into a
tract of 1,400 acres and was worked by a number of slaves, who were called
servants by their master.
The original Ferguson home in Columbia County, Ark., was of logs but was
quite a large home. It was here the last child which lived was burn, as
shown by the 1860 census, taken on Oct. 4 in Clay Township:
        W. P. Ferguson 55      Virginia
        Sarah J.        41      Georgia
        James H.        17      Mississippi
        R. P. M.        13
        J. T.         12
        Martha V.       8
        Joseph L.       5
        William 3       Arkansas

A short time later, the Civil War broke out, and the two oldest Ferguson
boys enlisted. John and James were in Company C, Colquitt's Arkansas
Infantry, which was dispatched to the Corinth, Miss. locale in time to take
part in the Battle of Shiloh. John was killed in the left center at 1
p.m., and James was killed at 3 p.m. in the same location.
A few months later in 1863, William P. Ferguson died. His will was written
on Dec. 12, 1863, and death must have occirred just a day or two later.
Under the terms of the will, his wife, Sarah Jane, was the executrix. A
deceased daughter had already received two slaves, the estate to be divided
among the children, with a double portion to R. P. M., an afflicted child.
The estate was gradually liquidated over seven or eight years. This period
following the Civil War was exceedingly difficult for people in the South.
The slaves, of course, were freed and this left no one to work the large
estates. The Ferguson estate was no exception, and a large part of it
reverted to the State because of inability to pay the taxes.
The remaining children of the Ferguson family were: R. P. M., Jackson T.,
Martha V., Joseph L., and William P.
The oldest child, nicknamed Sally, married Charles Smith and had died before
her father. They had one child, which died young. Her husband died not
long after her death.
Jackson T., nicknamed Jack, received his common education in the local
schools and then went to Little Rock to study law. He was admitted to the
bar and later moved to Texas and practiced law there. Shortly after moving
to Texas, he contracted pneumonia and died in his early twenties. He never
married.
Robert Patilla Moss Ferguson was born with a physical informity. One side
failed to develop properly, and he was unable to do hard physical work.
After his mother died, he lived with various relations, mostly his sister,
Martha Virginia Keith, and later the Hines family. He died Oct. 16, 1911,
age 65 years, and was buried at Smithland Cemetery.
Martha Virginia Ferguson was born Nov. 20, 1851, in Lafayette County, Miss.
She was four years old when the family moved to Arkansas, where she grew
up and married W. V. Keith, who was born Aug. 2, 1844 in Georgia. Mr.
Keith, along with two brothers, served in the Civil War in the battles of
Vicksburg, Port Hudson, and others. They were captured and confined in a
military prison on the shores of Lake Michigan. At war's end, they
returned to Arkansas. The couple became the parents of twelve children,
all born in Arkansas:
        CHILDREN        BORN    DIED    MARRIED
        Fannie Keith    Aug. 6, 1870    Jan. 24, 1946   B. F. Hines
        Wm. P. Keith    April 19, 1871 Oct. 30, 1945 Lena Maloch
        Janie Keith     Dec. 27, 1872   May 10, 1919   John M. Boone
        Robert Whitton Keith    March 5, 1975 June 13, 1921
        Ada J. Keith    Oct. 19, 1876 April 14, 1975 W. A. Martin
        Vincent B. Keith        Aug. 28, 1878 Aug. 12, 1962   Clemmie Sayers
        John D. Keith   Nov. 13, 1881   April 1929        Mary Raley
        Joseph L. Keith Oct. 19,        1884    Sept. 30, 1961 Eddith Tubb
        Una D. Keith    April 18,       1886    April   2, 1968 W. T. Wells
        George W. Keith Sept. 5,        1888    Mar. 29,   1971 Edna Landers
        Martha Keith    Mar. 22,        1890    Nov. 14,   1891
        Duo D. Keith    Feb. 9, 1893    July 14,   1960 Solon Keith

Martha Virginia Ferguson married William Vincent Keith Jan. 15, 1868. She
died Jan 20, 1905 and was buried at Sharman Cemetery where her husband was
buried March 13, 1936.
William Packwood Ferguson, Jr., was born in Columbia County, Ark. in 1857
and lived his early life on the family farm. He left Columbia County as a
young man, vowing not to return until he made his fortune. Nothing was
heard from him for years until his brother, Joe, located him in Montrose
County, Colorado. He had gone into the sheep raising business with some
success. He married a Colo-
roda widow named Carrie. In a picture of ca. 1908, she is pictured with
two girls and a boy. It is not known which were by W. P. Ferguson. In a
letter of 1907, Wm. P. mentioned Ruth and Rubin. He apparently died
shortly after 1907, and his widow married Charles S. Bever of Gunnison,
Colorado.
(TO BE CONTINUED)

(EDITOR'S NOTE: My husband, Jerry Miller, Sr., is a descendant of Isaac
Ferguson, too. We had known Wilbur, author of this article, for years
before discovering the kinship! Jerry descends from Isaac's son, Ninrod;
his son, Isaac; Isaac's son, Joel; Joells son, Jerome Washington; his son,
Robert Wyatt Ferguson; his daughter, Callie Leona; her daughter, Clara
Jeffrey, who was Jerry's mother. See the September 1985 issue of "Bits of
Bark" for an article on Callie Leona Ferguson Jeffrey.)