Who was Nancy MORRIS?

(This article was originally published January 22, 2014. It was most recently updated June 6, 2019.)

Nancy MORRIS shows up in the household of Laban MORRIS in 1850 and 1860, and best I can tell from ages on census records, she was living with the family as early as 1830. Many years ago, before I realized how census records worked, I had assumed that Nancy was another of Laban and Kitty’s children, but then I realized since she is older and listed after everybody else in the household, and that usually means she wasn‘t one of their children.

It’s possible she is Laban’s niece or some other relative. In fact, is it possible she’s a daughter of Thomas Morris of Beaufort County, and granddaughter of Elisha Morris?

Anyway, here is what we know for sure about the mysterious Nancy MORRIS:

1850 Census – Swift Creek, Craven County, NC

Weird situation. Laban’s household shows up twice — once on November 6th, and then again on the 9th. On the 6th, she’s in Laban’s house, but on the 9th, she’s in his son William’s house.

November 6, 1850