Tag Archives: Henry Alberty

Alberty

Taking A New Look at Henry Alberty (1777-1850+), Son of Frederick Alberty & Elizabeth Krieger

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Given all the time I’ve recently spent delving into the Krieger and Alberty families, I decided to take a new look at my husband’s ancestor, Henry Alberty, born 1777 in Surry County, North Carolina, the son of Frederick Alberty, Revolutionary War pensioner, and his first wife, Elizabeth Krieger.

If Henry had stayed put in Surry County until the family migrated to Washington County, Arkansas, there might not be so many unanswerable questions about him and his family.

For example, although he was born in 1777, Henry doesn’t appear in any census until 1820, when he was living in Rowan County, North Carolina.

In 1830, he was back in Surry County, but appeared in Washington County, Arkansas in 1840 and 1850.

He left no probate records in Arkansas, no deeds identifying his heirs and no vital records pertaining to his family.

Henry married Rebecca (MNU), born c1782 in North Carolina, who might possibly be a Wright, but that is pure speculation at this point and considered a possibility only because the Wrights are in the extended family FAN club.

There is also family lore in my husband’s maternal side of the family about a possible Cherokee connection, which I’ve never proven, but could be true if Rebecca is indeed a Wright by birth.

Henry and Rebecca at least nine children based on the 1820 and 1830 censuses. Given that Henry was the eldest Alberty in Washington County, Arkansas and that the next generation living there and in the southwest corner of Missouri are of ages to be his children, most of his family has been pieced together.

From 1820 to 1850, Henry appears in each census. Wife Rebecca was also enumerated in the 1860 census. From those records, the following children can be identified:

1. Son, born 1802;
2. Samuel, born c1806, North Carolina; died 1890, Washington County, AR; married Sarah Agnew, c1829.
3. Daniel, born c1811; died after 1860, possibly Washington County, Arkansas; married Valinda Douthit, 17 March 1834, Davidson County, North Carolina. Valinda died before 1850.
4. Son, born 1811-1815, probably c1813; not found after 1830
5. Henry, born 15 July 1815; died 1888, Washington County, Arkansas; married Nancy Douthit, 29 December 1836, Union County, Indiana
6. Daughter, born 1810-1819, probably c1817; not found after 1830
7. John S., born c1818; died 1861, Newton County, Missouri; married Susannah Douthit, c1840.
8. Eliza, born c1821; reportedly married John I. Douthit, but no further information found.
9. Sarah, born 11 April 1824; died 12 May 1899; married Thomas Douthit, c1841. This family removed to Washington.
10. Mary, born c1826; unmarried and living with Daniel’s family in 1860.

Notice that there are two sons for which I’ve not accounted. I think preponderance of evidence has identified them.

Many people have tried to insert Rev. Nathan Alberty in this family as the fourth child, but I believe that is WRONG.

It’s not impossible, but Henry’s children all seemed to move in a mob-type experience in the first half of the 1800s. Nathan never left Surry County, marrying and raising his family there.

There will be a follow up post on clues about Nathan’s origins.

However, while searching out early tax lists that might include Henry in Rowan and Surry Counties (no luck – he didn’t appear on a single list and no land deed entries were recorded in his name), two interesting Alberty entries were found, supplemented by a marriage record found in Davidson County, North Carolina.

Remember, Henry Alberty appears on the 1820 census roll of Rowan County, North Carolina, which is bordered on the east by Davidson County.

By 1830, he was again living in Surry County, where he was born.

In 1840, he lived in Washington County, Arkansas.

The Surry County tax lists are plentiful, but somewhat incomplete with some district tax lists missing.

However, one William Albarty married Lucy Anna Foard on 20 August 1823 in Davidson County. No mention is made of him being under legal age, so we can assume he was at least 21 years old and born no later than 1802.

In 1829,  William Alberty is living in Capt. Fultz’s District, Surry County, and is taxed for one white poll, no land.

In 1830, Henry Alberty and William Alberty are living 15 doors apart in Surry County.

The only other Albertys in the area are Frederick, Sr. (Henry’s father) and Frederick Jr. living next door to his father in 1830.

I believe that William Alberty is the eldest of Henry and Rebecca Alberty.

William Alberty is not found after 1830. There is no probate for him filed in Surry County; he may have died on the way to Arkansas or shortly after arriving there, which would account for him not appearing in the 1840 Arkansas census.

In 1830, there was one male, 20-30, one female, 20-30, one male 5-10, one male under 5 and one female under 5. None of these children has been identified.

As for the second missing son, the fourth child of Henry and Rebecca, I believe that is George Alberty. George is not a common name in this family and I find no other Georges which could prove there were two different men.

Remember, again, Henry removed form North Carolina to Arkansas between 1830 and 1840.

The 1836 Surry County tax list of the Baltimore District includes one George Alberty, taxed for one poll and 100 acres (for which I find no records of him buying or selling).

There is no George Alberty in the North Carolina 1840 census, but one George Alberty appears on the 1838 tax list of Washington County, Arkansas.

That is quite a good indication that the Albertys left North Carolina in 1837 and arrived in Washington County in time to be listed in the 1838 tax records.

From these clues, Henry’s and Rebecca’s family can be updated:

1. William, born c1802; died between 1830-1840; married Lucy Anna Foard [Ford?], 20 August 1823, Davidson County, North Carolina
2. Samuel, born c1806, North Carolina; died 1890, Washington County, AR; married Sarah Agnew, c1829.
3. Daniel, born c1811; died after 1860, possibly Washington County, Arkansas; married Valinda Douthit, 17 March 1834, Davidson County, North Carolina. Valinda died before 1850.
4. George, born c1813; died after 1860, probably Washington County, Arkansas; married Eveline (MNU), c1844, probably Washington County, Arkansas
5. Henry, born 15 July 1815; died 1888, Washington County, Arkansas; married Nancy Douthit, 29 December 1836, Union County, Indiana
6. Daughter, born probably c1817; not found after 1830
7. John S., born c1818; died 1861, Newton County, Missouri; married Susannah Douthit, c1840.
8. Eliza, born c1821; reportedly married John I. Douthit, but no further information found.
9. Sarah, born 11 April 1824; died 12 May 1899; married Thomas Douthit, c1841. This family removed to Washington.
10. Mary, born c1826; unmarried and living with Daniel’s family in 1860.

This family configuration leaves but one daughter for whom we can’t account.  She may have been lost to time in an unrecorded marriage or she may have died in her teen years.

 

 

 

Alberty, Brick Walls, Jarvis, Martin Miller

My Top 3 Most Wanted Ancestors x 2 in 2021

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We often hear that it’s not good to repeat research that we’ve already done, but I think that statement isn’t so true anymore. That’s because of the flood of records becoming digitally available online with each succeeding year.

I have been quite successful identifying a number of new leaves on the family trees by revisiting branches that have been sitting dormant for years.

I’ve decided it is time to give a serious new look to several more of those ancestral leaves and see if I can find some new blooms of information.

I don’t want to identify these ancestors as brick walls. To me, a brick wall is when I don’t have a new avenue to pursue. As you will see, there are clues for these Most Wanted.

I’ve chosen three ancestors from Dave’s tree and three from mine.

The lucky winners are – from the Stufflebean tree:

1. Parents of Jacob Miller. I know a lot about Jacob, as he was a Revolutionary War pensioner and served from Northampton County, Pennsylvania. I suspect his father might be one Henry Miller who died in the 1760s, when Jacob was just a child. I’ve made tentative searches in the past, but dropped them as I don’t find Pennsylvania to be a very researcher-friendly state. It’s time I really made the effort and dug around for more information about Henry and/or other potential parents for Jacob Miller.

2. Parents of Zadock Jarvis. Zadock also had military service during the American Revolution when he lived in Maryland. I’ve seen references that his father was James Jarvis. I also thought that Zadock probably died in North Carolina in the early 1800s, as he was quite elderly – 80ish – at his final census appearance. I figured he had died before the following census (I think it was the 1830), but another researcher claimed that Zadock died in Indiana, where he lived with his son. I checked the census and was I surprised to see a 90 year old male in that home. Therefore, I have Maryland and Indiana records that need to be combed for Jarvis clues.

3. Family of Rebecca (MNU) Alberty, wife of Henry Alberty of Surry County, North Carolina and Washington County, Arkansas. I’ve seen statements that her maiden name was Bryant, or possibly Bryan, without even a hint of a source for that. However, it’s a clue to be followed if I can find some crumbs of a trail. This is Dave’s maternal line and the family always claimed a Cherokee ancestor. Rebecca could possibly be it, as Henry lived in North Carolina, Georgia and Arkansas, all areas with ties to the Trail of Tears. Bryant is a name among Cherokees and, perhaps most importantly, Henry’s half brother, Moses Alberty, has family members documented on the Dawes Rolls.

I actually had a much harder time picking three most wanted from my own tree. My dad’s side is out of the picture, as there are no records in the village in Slovakia to tell me any more than I, or anyone else, knows.

The winners in the Sabo family tree are:

1. Robert Wilson, born c1730, of Campobello Island, New Brunswick, Canada. I knew that Robert was said to have come from the Boston, Massachusetts area after first arriving in the colonies, but there are new clues out there pointing to Sudbury, Middlesex, Massachusetts.

2. Mary Woodward, wife of Robert Wilson, above. If this proves to be the correct couple, there will possibly be an entirely new branch on my family tree.

3. Jonathan Parker, of Campobello Island, c1788, Loyalist. There are lists of his children out there with marriages and then descendants. I hope Parker relatives on Campobello Island (and there are many) have correctly pieced together his family, with a possible wife! Jonathan’s son, Benjamin, married Robert and Mary Wilson’s granddaughter, Maria Wilson, which is my direct line.

We will see how much success I have in documenting any of these clues. I might be wildly successful or it just might be many cases of non-researchers copying, pasting and spreading wishful thinking!

Alberty, Bryan/Bryant

A Final Look at the Bryan Family and Rebecca (MNU) Alberty, wife of Henry

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I’ve spent a fair amount of time researching the family of Morgan Bryan of Rowan County, North Carolina. This is the Bryan family with very close ties to the Daniel Boone family, both through friendship and marriage. Thankfully, Morgan and most of his sons left wills identifying their children.

From those records, there are eleven possibilities if Rebecca was born a Bryan. She could be a grandchild, but it’s also possible that she might be a great grandchild.

Each succeeding generation makes it a bit more difficult to establish ties because Henry Alberty is MIA until he surfaces in the 1820 census of Rowan County, North Carolina. To quickly review Henry, he was born c1772 in Surry County, North Carolina (which formed from Rowan County in 1771), the son of Frederick Alberty and Elizabeth Krieger.

In 1850, John H(enry) and Rebecca were living with son Daniel in Vineyard Township, Washington, Arkansas and he was enumerated as a farmer. However, he was way up in his senior years at age 78 and it is more likely that Daniel was the farmer.

In spite of Henry’s stated occupation, I cannot find any land records for him in Rowan or Surry Counties, nor is he found in any census anywhere before 1820, when he was close to 40 years old with a wife and house full of children.

It has crossed my mind that Henry might have worked on someone else’s plantation in his younger years as a tradesman or perhaps as an overseer.  It’s just as likely that he was a wanderer, as were the Bryans. It was about 400 miles form Rowan County to Bryan’s Station, near today’s city of Lexington, Kentucky.

Henry’s first child was a son, born c1802-1804, but he has been lost to time. His other children included Samuel, Daniel, Henry, John S., Eliza, Sarah and Mary. There are two other unknown children – a son and another daughter, both born between 1810-1820.

None of his children’s names are unusual in any way, but Samuel and Daniel are not names found in the earlier generation of Albertys and might be a clue as to Rebecca’s family.

It so happens that Samuel does, indeed, appear in the Bryan family, as Morgan Bryan had a son named Samuel and four of Morgan’s sons gave that name to their own sons. Given the strong ties to Squire Boone and his family, it is easy to assume that Daniel crept into the family names because of Daniel Boone, who married one of Morgan’s grandchildren.

The eleven descendants of Morgan Bryan who could possibly BE Rebecca or be her parent are:

One of Joseph Bryan’s three sons – Samuel, Joseph and John Bryan, who lived in Kentucky

Samuel Bryan, one of his two sons, Samuel Jr. and Morgan or his  daughter, called “Daughter Bryan” in his Rowan County, North Carolina will

Morgan Bryan’s daughter Rebecca and his son, Morgan, named in his 1797 will in Fayette County, Kentucky

John Bryan’s son, Samuel, named in his Rowan County, North Carolina 1804 will

One of William Bryan’s sons, Samuel and Daniel, named in his 1789 Kentucky will, but which was proved in Rowan County, North Carolina

Here’s where things get a bit sticky. A first look at the Rowan County census records show but two Bryans living there in 1790. We have William with one male over 16, one under 16 and one female.  We also have Samuel, named above, who left the will a few years later that included “Daughter Bryan.”

The 1800 census has exactly ZERO Bryans living in Rowan County. It is known that Samuel visited Kentucky as late as 1797, even though he reportedly died in Rowan in 1798.

The 1810 census of Rowan County shows two families, that of Thomas and his wife, both over 45, and a Battaley Bryan from Fauquier County, Virginia.

The 1820 census has two Bryons, neither of whom live near Henry Alberty. Both are named John. The elder John is 26-44 years old, so is an age where he could be Rebecca’s brother, living in Battalion 1. The young John is probably a newlywed as he is 16-25 years old with one female his age and one male and one female under 10. He is living in Battalion #3.

Sadly, I have to admit here that I’ve lost this battle. The Bryan surname is too common and by the early 1800s, Morgan Bryan’s descendants had left North Carolina for Kentucky and then Tennessee, Missouri and other destinations.

I have never been able to track down the original source that stated Rebecca (MNU) Alberty was a Bryan or Bryant, but that fact that Henry and Rebecca named two of their three eldest children Samuel and Daniel, I have to wonder if there is a kernel of truth in this statement.

If you are an Alberty researcher and can shed any further light on the mystery of Rebecca’s maiden name, please leave a comment.