Whiteside and Whitsett Pioneers and The Whitsett Family of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania
William Whitsitt and Elizabeth Dawson
The oldest of the brothers
in Lancaster County, and the first to come to America was probably
William. According to Dr. William Heth Whitsitt, he, his wife Elizabeth Dawson
and son William Jr. came to Pennsylvania probably about 1732-34
shortly after the birth of their son William. Professor W. T. Whitsett
claimed that the family came to Pennsylvania around 1740, but evidence points to the earlier date. William Whiteside took
out a warrant for 100 acres of land on April 24, 1750 in Cumberland
County. Surveys show that the tract actually contained more than
200 acres. The surveys also show his name spelled as Whitesite.
The general belief of Whitsitt researchers is that William and his
family settled near Harris' Ferry (now Harrisburg). William’s
warrant for survey was for a tract located in what later became
Allen Township of Cumberland County. Before 1750 Cumberland County
was part of Lancaster County. It was west of the Susquehanna River
a short distance from Harris' Ferry. In about 1760, William’s
brothers Ralph and James moved from Lebanon Township to Allen Township
in Cumberland County.
In 1751, both William
Sr. and William Jr. appear on the Cumberland County tax list for
the Middleton district. One of them also appears on the
1762 tax list for Carlisle, the county seat for Cumberland County.
I suspect that William Jr. was living in Carlisle in 1762, shortly
before he purchased land in Virginia.
The records of Rev. Stoever
record the marriage of William Jr. to Eleanor McNees, daughter of
James McNees (Menees), in Bethel Township of Lancaster County (Bethel
was created from Lebanon Township and was directly north of the
town of Lebanon). Stoever united William and Eleanor McNees in marriage
on May 30, 1764.
What we know about William
Sr. is mostly from the family record kept by his granddaughter Margaret
Whitsitt Blakey. I believe, contrary to some researchers, that William
and Elizabeth Dawson Whitsitt lived in Pennsylvania almost thirty
years before moving to Virginia with their son William Jr. Why are
there so few records of him? We have found only his land warrant,
survey and tax lists of Cumberland County in 1751-52 and 1762. I
believe it was probably because William Sr. was engaged in some
sort of trade, perhaps traveling around Lancaster County or in Philadelphia.
He may not have come to Lancaster or Cumberland County for a few
years after his brothers had settled there. Some support for this
theory is that his brother James in his will written in 1754 listed
his trade as “weaver”. Most of the Irish Protestant
settlers to Pennsylvania in the 1730's and 40's were engaged in
a trade before coming to America. Very few were farmers who had
owned or leased land of any sizable quantity in Ireland. Many left
Ireland in that period because of the collapse of the Irish wool
business brought on by the monopolistic practices of the English
woolen industry. It is reasonable to think that these "Scotch-Irish"
continued their trades in America when possible. However, whether
William was a tradesman or not, is simply speculation.
In 1753 William Jr. applied
for a patent for sixty acres in Amherst County, Virginia (then part
of Albemarle and today is Nelson County), located on the South Branch
of the North Fork of Davis’ Creek. He was nearly twenty-two
years of age. The tract was surveyed for him on March 29, 1754.
William never completed this purchase, but in 1763 he bought 200
acres from John Wade and his wife. The 1754 survey shows that the
original tract was adjacent to the estate of John Wade. My belief
is that William Whitsitt, Jr. stayed in Pennsylvania because of
the French and Indian War, possibly to be close to his parents.
Cumberland and northern Lancaster Counties were wracked by the war.
After hostilities had faded, William Jr. then bought the land in
Amherst County. He returned to Lancaster County at least long enough
to marry Eleanor McNees in Bethel Township probably at the home
of her father, James. William Jr. then took his new wife and perhaps
his mother and father to Amherst County. Shortly after this, Eleanor’s
father James Menees also left Pennsylvania and moved south to Virginia.
It is claimed by some researchers that William Sr., husband of Elizabeth
Dawson, died in Amherst County, Virginia about 1770. I have seen
nothing to support or contradict this. Others claim he died in Orange
County, North Carolina probably before 1780. I doubt this, but I
cannot disprove it. Eventually William Jr. and his wife Eleanor
Menees Whitsitt moved from Amherst to Henry County in Virginia.
Then in about 1790 they moved to Davidson County, Tennessee. In
the early 1800’s they moved to Rural Choice in Logan County,
Kentucky. William died at the home of his son James near Nashville
in 1811. Eleanor died in Rural Choice, Kentucky in 1818.
Professor William T.
Whitsett in his family history says that William was a "great
Indian fighter." I think this is a bit of romantic legend.
William Sr. and William Jr. would have been "Indian
fighters" in the period of 1755 through 1763 simply out of
necessity. Homes were few and far apart in that area of Lancaster
and Cumberland County, which were then on the frontier between Indian
lands and the white settlements of Pennsylvania. After hostilities
began and Indian attacks became frequent, neighbors would band together
in small militia groups to help defend, or at least track down the
attackers. They would attempt to free captives and exact revenge
on the war party. Usually, if these militia groups consisted of
twenty or more men, they were considered a large company. Many "forts"
were built in the area of today’s Cumberland and Lebanon Counties
and several are referenced in Pennsylvania records. These forts
were simply stockades hurriedly erected by farmers for the protection
of their family and any neighbors that could make it to the stockade
when an alarm was raised. Usually, it was too late for the intended
targets of the Indians, who attacked in small bands without warning
and quickly disappeared into the woods and mountains.
There are a couple of things that I find peculiar about the history
of the family of William and Elizabeth Dawson Whitsitt's family. The first is that there
appears to be no record, except for William Jr., in Pennsylvania
or elsewhere of any other children. This seems a bit odd for the
time. Before modern times, families tended to be large, only in
part because of the lack of any sort of artificial birth control.
The fortunes of most families depended to some degree on the labor
of their children, especially on farms. If Elizabeth Dawson Whitsitt bore no other children
we have to wonder why, and when did she die? Perhaps it was in Ireland or the voyage to America.
Dr. William Heth Whitsitt
in his family history of the Whitsitt's cites some Albemarle County, Virginia deeds
and church records dated between 1754 and 1770 as evidence of the
existence of Elizabeth Dawson Whitsitt, some of which contain her
given name. One document in particular that Dr. Whitsitt references
is dated in 1770. It tells of Elizabeth, wife of William Whiteside
of Amherst County, being examined about her dower rights in the
sale of land in Albemarle County by her husband William. This seemed
to be good evidence that Elizabeth was alive as late as 1770. However,
we can now show that these documents are in fact associated with
Elizabeth Stockton and her husband William Whiteside later of Rutherford
County, North Carolina. Significantly, 1770 is about the time this
couple and their large family removed from Virginia to North Carolina.
The Albemarle County records dated in the 1750's would contradict
our assertions that both William Sr. and William Jr. were in Pennsylvania
during that decade. However, a careful analysis of these records
show that almost without exception they refer to William and Elizabeth
Stockton Whiteside, not William and Elizabeth Dawson Whitsitt. The
records document the settlement on Ivy Creek and Mechum's
River by the Whiteside and the Stockton families. The Stockton name
almost always shows up somehow with the Whitesides.
The Stockton relatives
and in-laws of Elizabeth and William Whiteside witnessed several
of the deeds of Albemarle County neighbors. A
look at historical maps of Virginia, taking in account the changes
in county boundaries does little to help us distinguish the William
of Ivy Creek on Mechum's River from either of the William
Whitsitt's who came to Amherst County from Pennsylvania during the
1760’s. Both of these families were in Amherst County at one
time or another. However, the Amherst County records pertaining
to the Pennsylvania family usually use the name “Whitsitt”
rather than “Whiteside.” We had one advantage over Dr.
Whitsitt when we were doing our research. We knew about William
and Elizabeth Stockton Whiteside. I feel certain that Dr. Whitsitt
did not, or he probably would have noticed some of the discrepancies
that indicate these were two separate families. I believe that we
need a more thorough examination of Virginia Colonial records to
help us clarify who was who, and who was where during the Amherst
period of their lives.
If Elizabeth Dawson Whitsitt lived
until the 1770's, it seems very odd that Margaret Whitsitt
Blakey took no note in the family records of children other than
William Jr. Even Dr. Whitsitt made specific mention of this in his
family history. Other than just a lack of documents, there could
be other reasons why no other children are found in this family.
I am inclined to believe that Elizabeth died not long after the
birth of their son William. Many lives were lost in the Atlantic crossing
and the victims were buried at sea. Young pregnant women were especially
vulnerable. Elizabeth could have been among them. If William remarried,
his second wife did not bear him any children. The second fact that
I find odd is that William Jr. was thirty-three years of age when
he married Eleanor Menees, much older than the average. Not only
do the records of Rev. Stoever support the fact that the couple
was married in 1764, but also the birth dates for most of their
children as recorded by Margaret Whitsitt Blakey point to that date.
The birth date of the oldest daughter, Frances, is not given in
Dr. Whitsitt’s history, but is estimated to have been early
in 1765. The second daughter, Elizabeth Dawson Whitsitt, was born
on November 23, 1765. Is it possible that William Jr. was married
once before he married Eleanor? We know that Eleanor was at least
eight years younger than William. That much of an age difference
was not unusual for a second marriage, but was unusual if it was
the first for both. Of course, I can speculate all I want.
The fact is that I have found no records to help support my theory.
But, when we find these types of curiosities in a family history,
it is important to keep them in mind while continuing our research.
William and Eleanor Menees
Whitsitt had the following children, as documented in Dr. William
Heth Whitsitt’s, “The Whitsitt's of Nashville, Tennessee”
and multiple other sources. This is a brief summary. For more information
please see “Annals of a Scotch-Irish Family: The Whitsitt's
of Nashville, Tennessee." Copies of the four articles that appeared
in the American Historical Magazine, Vol. IX published in 1904 are
available from the Tennessee State Library and Archives in Nashville
for the cost of the copies. These articles
are a must for anyone researching this family. Daughter Frances,
the oldest, was born probably in 1764 in Amherst County, Virginia.
Daughter Elizabeth Dawson Whitsitt was born on November 23, 1765
in Amherst County, Virginia, married William Breathitt and died
in Kentucky on April 3, 1834. Daughter Margaret was born on October
26, 1767 in Virginia, married George Blakey and died in Kentucky
on October 25, 1859. Daughter Jane was born in 1769 and died in
Virginia in 1775. Son James Whitsitt was born on January 31, 1771
in Amherst County, Virginia. He was a well-known Baptist clergyman
and the founder and minister of the Mill Creek Baptist Church near
Nashville. There is a lot of material available on him over the
Internet. Son Samuel Whitsitt was born about 1773 in Virginia and
died at the age of 19 in Tennessee. Daughter Nancy Whitsitt was
born about 1775 in Virginia and died sometime after 1811 in Tennessee.
Daughter Ellen Frances Whitsitt was born about 1779 in Virginia,
married Judge Reuben Ewing and died in Kentucky in 1834. Daughter
Susan Whitsitt was born in Henry County, Virginia about 1780 and
died as a young girl around 1790 in Henry County. Son William Whitsett
was born in 1780 in Virginia, married Emily Haden in 1799 and died
in Canton, Mississippi in 1842. Daughter Sarah Whitsett was born
about 1783 in Virginia, married Reese Porter in 1805 and died in
Kentucky in 1810. |