This is one of the most confusing points of Gatlin genealogy. We know that Edward of Neuse had a son named John (1673-1748) and that he had a son named John (1704-1766). After this, it becomes difficult to determine just how many John Gatlins there were. From the 1766 will of John Gatlin, we know that his children were Edward, James, Thomas, Mary and Hardy. No John. So the John Gatlin, Jr., found in land records and militia rolls in the 1750s must be his nephew, son of Edward Gatlin (1694-1763) and his unknown first wife. Then there is this deed (Craven County Deed Book 19, page 151):
The Indenture made the first Day of January in the Year of Our Lord One Thousand Seven hundred and seventy One Between John Gatlin Junr. of Craven County in the Province of North Carolina Planter of the one part and Samuel Smythe of Craven County and Province aforesaid Merchant of the other part...Tract or parcel of Land Situate lying and being in the County of Craven and Province aforesaid On the North Side of Neuse River between John Gatlin Senr. and Linkfield's Lines Known by the Name of Neck...containing One Hundred Acres...his Letters Patent Granted to John Gatlin Father of the above said John Gatlin bearing Date the Eleventh Day of October in the year of our Lord One Thousand Seven hundred and forty Eight....
A person could not deal in real estate on their own behalf before the age of twenty-one, so in order to obtain a grant in 1748, John the Father must have been born no later than 1727. John Gatling, Sr. sold this land to John Gatling, Jr. for thirty-five barrels of tar 10 November 1756 (Deed Book 9/10, page 294). This earlier deed does not say they were father and son, but the 1771 deed clearly does. The younger John in the 1756 deed was born no later than 1735. If the elder John was born in 1727, he'd have been 8 years old in 1735, so, he was, more likely, born sometime about 1715. His father, Edward, would have been 21 in 1715.
But, then, it gets even worse! From the will of the Edward Gatlin (1739-1781) who married Elizbeth Johnson, we know that he had a son named John and the will of his brother, Thomas (1743-1793) we learn that he did as well, so we can add John Black Gatlin (or so he was called in the estate papers of Hardy Gatlin) and John Slade Gatlin. James (1741-1801) also left a will, but there is no son named John mentioned, nor is their one mentioned in the will of James's daughter, Elizabeth (1806) or in the estate papers of his stepson, Francis Linkfield (1782).
Traditionally, John, son of Edward (1694-1763) is considered to be the one to marry Esther Johnson, but given these revised dates, I'm thinking it was his son. Elizabeth and Esther were sisters. Their other sister, Mary, also married a Gatlin, according to their brother, Richard's, will (1796), but I don't know which one. Anyway, John Gatlin and Esther Johnson also had a son named John, probably born about 1775. This is the one who married Dolly Barnes and died in 1807.
To review:
- John (1673-1748), son of Edward of Neuse
- John (1704-1766), son of John of Neuse, wife Mary
- John (1715-?), son of Edward (1694-1763)
- John (1735-1801), son of John (1715-?), wife Esther Johnson
- John Black (176?-?), son of Edward (1739-1781) and Elizabeth Johnson
- John Slade (1769-1836), son of Thomas (1744-1793)
- John (1775-1807), son of John (1735-1801) and Esther Johnson, wife Dolly Barnes
And then, there is my John who was born by 1750 and married Esther Tingle 6 January 1784. James Gatlin acted as security. He was granted a land patent 14 November 1771 (North Carolina Land Grant Images and Data, Grant Book 20, page 707), from which I've calculated his year of birth. He entered another patent 8 May 1779 and it was issued 24 October 1782 (Grant Book 48, page 289). This John died in 1811. From their estate records (Esther's in 1819), we know that they had, at least, six children but we only know the identities of four of them for certain: Abner (1785), Mills (1788), Shadrack (1790) and Holland (1793). I think that this John was the son of Edward Gatlin and Elizabeth Reel. She was either the second wife of Edward (1694-1763) or the wife of his son of the same name (1719-?). The other children I've attributed to them are: James who married Mary Searles, Joshua who married Sarah Banks, and Sarah who married Evan Thomas. I'm sure there were others.
My John may have had a son named John, but, if so, he predeceased his father. I know that John Slade Gatlin and Susannah Caswell had a son John who died in Florida in 1835.
Have a I missed any? Any additions or corrections?
Quote from Becky Sumrell on January 25, 2019, 8:28 amTraditionally, John, son of Edward (1694-1763) is considered to be the one to marry Esther Johnson, but given these revised dates, I'm thinking it was his son. Elizabeth and Esther were sisters. Their other sister, Mary, also married a Gatlin, according to their brother, Richard's, will (1796), but I don't know which one. Anyway, John Gatlin and Esther Johnson also had a son named John, probably born about 1775.
Great post with a lot of great information! I descend from Edward Gatlin and Elizabeth Johnson. I never have known to whom John Gatlin, Esther's husband, belonged, but I was wondering if I'm correct about the children I have for them, as well as if you know of any others.
- Barron GATLIN (abt 1780–1848) m. Mary "Polly" GATLIN (bondsman: Lazarus GATLIN)
- Nancy Ann GATLIN (abt 1782–?) m. James MORRIS (bondsman: Lazarus GATLIN). Their children were:
- Jesse MORRIS
- Matilda MORRIS
- Possibly one other child
- William GATLIN (?) m. Elizabeth WILLIAMS (bondsman: Will TIGNOR)
I'm not sure where the William that married Elizabeth Williams fits into the puzzle. I know from John's estate that they had, at least, eight children. The ones I have are:
- Lazarus Gatlin. I think he married Alice Vendrick, widow of John (d. 1789) 18 Apr 1793, Samuel Lawson, bondsman, but I'm not entirely sure. There were at least two Lazarus Gatlins.
- John Gatlin married Dolly Barnes, widow, 9 Mar 1803
- Nancy Ann Morris
- Barron Gatlin
- Ferebee Gatlin married Abner Gatlin (son of my John) 17 Oct 1804, Lazarus Gatlin, bondsman
- Richard Gatlin. This is not the one who married Polly Roderick, I don't think. He appears in Craven County land records through the 1790s. I don't know if he died or moved elsewhere after that.
I know there were others. Another candidate is Sidney Gatlin who married Thomas Whitford 1 Apr 1806, Abner Gatlin, bondsman. However, Abner stood bondsman for the marriage of his sister, Milly Gatlin, with Jeremiah Rowe, so it's possible Sidney was his sister and not his sister-in-law.
I looked through my notes, again. For proof of Lazarus being the son of John Gatlin and brother of Nancy Morris, see Craven County Deed Book 36, page 698. And for Ferebee, see Deed Book 37, page 636. That last deed adds a daughter named Elizabeth to the children of John Gatlin and Esther Johnson. Both deeds confirm that they had eight children.
I don't even know where I got the William Gatlin son from. I've been looking at my tree trying to figure it out. I don't usually have anything without notes. I know I had looked quite a bit into that Nancy Ann Gatlin who married James Morris because of the Morris thing, but I don't have any of the supporting items in my Ancestry tree for why I have the other children that I *did* have for John and Esther. And I originally had Lazarus, but then I removed him... so I'm glad you mentioned that.
I know what I'll be doing today... fixing this part of my tree. I didn't know if you had seen this. (I'm guessing you have... but attaching it in case anyone else needs it.) I don't know if everything in it is 100% accurate in terms of children assigned to parents, but the research in it looks pretty solid from what I can tell.
[EDITED TO ADD: @bsumrell wisely warns that McDuffie's The Gatlin Family of America document is questionable. That said, it might be a reference point, but it certainly should not be a basis on which to "verify" family connections with the Gatlins.]
Ok... found this in my files on Nancy Gatlin Morris... (among other items related to James Morris's death). I think this is where I originally got the idea of William Gatlin being another brother... and I may have something else, but for now I'll post this before I forget.
This is from Craven County Court Minutes (at FamilySearch), 1808-1810. Specifically, this was from the December term 1809. The next item is from James Morris's estate folder.
Yes, I've read parts of McDuffie and, no, it is not accurate. In places, it's even self-contradictory. About William, there could very well be a William among the children of John Gatlin and Esther Johnson, but I can't prove it one way or the other and I couldn't tell you which one it would be.
The Gatlin family is very confusing with all the Edwards, Johns, Jameses and Williams. I know there were also, at least, three Davids, three Shadracks and three Stephens. Plus, it seems like most of the Edwards married women named Elizabeth!
I appreciate the warning about that Gatlin document! I was just talking about the usefulness of listening references so if I do a name search in the document, I might see a deed referenced, or something else, that I can go to and look at.
TBH, I just haven't spent much time on the Gatlins. Beyond knowing that I come from Edward Gatlin and Elizabeth Johnson, and knowing there was some connection with some Morrises, that's about it. BTW... I think you were posting as I was updating my last post with that document from James Morris' estate showing the signatures for Barron and William Gatlin.
Quote from Sara Whitford on January 26, 2019, 1:05 pmBTW... I think you were posting as I was updating my last post with that document from James Morris' estate showing the signatures for Barron and William Gatlin.
Probably. I've gone through James Morris's estate documents, but I'm still on the fence about William. There are a lot of administrator bonds with a William Gatlin as security.
Oh, and I wanted to tell you that the Sukey Gatlin that married Nancy's son, Jesse, was the daughter of David Gatlin and Nancy Cuthrell. Their other children were:
- Mary Gatlin married Joshua Rice 28 Oct 1824
- Barbara Gatlin married Benjamin Dixon 23 Dec 1831
- Ann Gatlin
- Stephen Gatlin
- David Gatlin married Percey Holton 29 Sep 1829
