John has asked me to change the web link in the Anson county Burlesons so it well be easy to go to link. Anson County Burlison Family In the latest Burleson Family Association bulletin (#1, 2013) Helen Kelso editor, put forth the theory that Jonathan of Lunenburg Co. VA was the father of Aaron of the Washington Co. Will. I fully agree. There was a Jonathan Burleson born in Suffield Massachusetts Bay Colony in 1704 and there was a Jonathan Burlison in Lunenburg County VA in 1748. The other Suffield Burlesons are accounted for and there are no records for any other Burlesons in the American colonies during that time period. I think my earlier article on The Life and Travels of Aaron Burleson will prove that Aaron of Lunenburg and Aaron of Washington Co. Will are the same man and pages 3479 through 3482 of the bulletin will reveal the connection between the Northern Branch to the Southern Branch. This article of my studies of the Burlison family on Rocky River NC (Anson 1748, Montgomery 1779 then became Stanly County in 1841) leads me to believe that John of Lunenburg was the son Jonathan and a brother to Aaron. I believe that John moved to Rocky River and possibly Jonathan also but we do not have a record for Jonathan on Rocky River. I have not concentrated on the Northern line because they have been documented very well. The BFA article on Edwards descendants (page 3479-3482) shows by the process of elimination, that Jonathan, the son of John the son of Edward of Suffield, was the Patriarch of the Southern Branch. DNA results verify that well could be true. Jonathan did live, and he was born in 1704 as documented in Suffield. There are no further record for him in Suffield or the North. He next appears in the 1748 Tithe list of Lunenburg, then in the 1752 Tithe list Jonathan was the head of house with a John living with him. John would have been at least 16 (born before 1733) to be taxed in the 1749 Tithe list. Aaron is also in the Lunenburg Tithe list but as head of house of his own home. Aaron purchased a Kings Grant in Lunenburg Co. in 1749. By law he would have to have been 21 years old (born before 1727) to make the purchase. I believe that Jonathan b. 1704 of Suffield was the same man as Jonathan of Lunenburg. Jonathan of Lunenburg would have been 48 years old in 1752. He was old enough to have a son Aaron born ca.1725 and a younger son John born ca.1727. Aaron is known to have sold his Kings Grant on Little Otter River to John Eckols because John Eckols resold the same property in 1755. John is last recorded in VA in a 1754 court case and Jonathan is last documented in November of 1755. Aaron and John would appear in documentation next in North Carolina, but I have not found Jonathan. Aaron is found on Dunham Creek in Cumberland County NC in 1760, he is on Richardson Creek of Rocky River in 1763. Later John Burlison conveys land on Rocky River to James Little and is mentioned in his Will. There were at least three more Burleson men, unidentified at this time, on Rocky River during the 1770s: James 1779, Moses 1774 and Aaron of Flat Branch 1777. The Burlison husband of Agnes Weatherford b. ca. 1740 could have been one of the above three. Because of Agness birth year ca. 1740, her Burleson husband could have been a younger son of Jonathan of Lunenburg or of that generation. Agnes Burlison son Isaac Burlison of Monroe Tn. was born in 1769 per his sworn affidavit to the Bureau of Indian Affairs. That date should be another indicator of how long the Burlison family has been on Rocky River where the Weatherford family was living. A widow Burleson was mentioned in a land entry in 1779. Her late husband could have been James, Moses or Aaron of Flat Branch. Another possibility would be she was the wife of Jonathan. She could not have been the wife of John because he alive when he conveyed land to James Little Sr. b.ca. 1767, after James became of legal age in 1788. The count of Burleson men documented by name on Rocky River at this point is at least five. They are; Aaron of the Washington Co. Will and John of Lunenburg plus the unidentified James, Moses and Aaron of Flat Branch. In 1776 Jesse, Isaac and David Burlison make their first appearance which brings the total to at least eight Burleson men on Rocky River. Did John and Jonathan of Lunenburg move to Rocky River? It is common for sons to marry and move to different territories as they became of age. Seldom if ever does five Burleson men move to the same area unless accompanied by their parents. It is possible that Jonathan followed his sons Aaron and John to North Carolina just like he followed (or took) them to Lunenburg VA. That could explain the appearance of James, Moses, and Aaron of Flat Branch on Rocky River. Aaron of the Washington Co. Will was there in 1763 as he witnessed a deed on Richardson Creek of Rocky River and in Cumberland Co. 40 miles to the east in 1761. As the Burleson men married and started a family they began to move to other territories. Agnes Burlison was living, near Jonesboro, Washington County, NC/TN (with or without her Burlison husband?) in 1780 per her son-in-law, Martin Maneys Revolutionary War Pension. It was not until 1784 that Jesse moved to Georgia and David moved to Tennessee in 1806. Isaac remained in Montgomery Co. and we have no further records for James, Moses and Aaron of Flat Branch. This indicates to me they came from common ancestors who settled on Rocky River. Were they all from the same father? The great mystery is; how were they related? For Jesse, Isaac and David we have documentation to show their descendants. They were born ca. 1750 through 1755. Jesse was born in 1751 per his original Bible records. Jesse witnessed a deed on Richardson Creek in 1779, and owned land on Swans Branch of Rocky River. He also enlisted in the 4th NC Regt. in 1776 with other men from Anson County, NC. Because of Jesse age and where he lived, he could well be a brother to Isaac and David. We know that David and Isaac were brothers per the Nov. 20th 1831 letter from Sarah Rowland to her parents David and Ursula Burlison, when she says, Old Aunt Patcy Burleyson (Martha Clay wife of Isaac Burlison) staid with me nine or ten days. In another letter dated 15 Jan 1826 to her parents, Sarah says Old Aunt Martha is living at her old place. These two letters almost 200 years old identify Isaac and David as brothers. Another letter from Hillikiah Burleson reveals that brothers Isaac and David are nephews to Aaron of the Washington Co. Will. Hillikiah born in 1790 the son of David and Ursula Burleson, wrote a letter to his parents on October 3, 1823. In the letter he explained that he had Rented land from cousin Joseph Burlison in Alabama. Joseph born 1770 was the son of Aaron of the Washington County Will and 20 years the senior of Hillikiah so they probably never met before Alabama. I believe that Hillikiah was writing to his father of his meeting Davids first cousin Joseph. Hillikiah was born and grew up on Rocky River until 1806; then lived with his father in Rutherford County TN until he left home for Alabama where he met Joseph. If David and Joseph were first cousins then they had a common grandfather Jonathan Burleson of Suffield/Lunenburg. From these three letters we know the relationship of David and Isaac, as well as their relationship to Aaron of the Washington Co. Will who was the son of Jonathan b.1704 of Suffield and Lunenburg. John Burlison may have been mentioned in an early North Carolina land Entry and definitely was mentioned in James Little Sr.s will. In Jan 1773 Henry Eustace McCulloh the land agent for Lord Granville, entered 54 acres on Rocky River as part of a huge land grab. In the Entry description it states, including Burlisons old place. The Burlison is not identified but he had to have been living there prior to Jan 1773. The use of Old Place indicates to me that Burlison had been on this property for some time; he was not a new arrival. If this Burlison was there for 5 or 10 years, that would eliminate possibility of Burlisons old place belonging to Jesse, Isaac or David. It is my belief that John Burlison was living on this 54 acres on Jan 1773 without legal title to the land. McCulloh did file on the land for Lord Granville. In 1775 McCulloh was run out of North Carolina and he returned to England. In 1776 the State of North Carolina took over all of Lord Granville’s unsold grants. I believe John Burlison remained in possession of the land until he at some later date conveyed the land to James Little Sr. James Little Sr. was born ca. 1767 and would have been 23 in 1790. Im not sure when Little started to obtain land, but he accumulated enough to give all ten of his children a farm. Little was a staunch Primitive Baptist and member and officer of Meadow Creek Primitive Baptist Church. He would not enter the 54 acres while John was living on the land, but instead chose to have conveyed to me by John Burlison. This conveyance is stated in James Little Srs will of August 1842 item # 6 to his son James Little Jr.. Item # 6 states: to my son James Jr...... beginning on the north bank of Rocky River where Peter Haglers last old mill dam joined the bank, .......thence........thence to the right hand side of the road leading to where I now live ........... thence a straight line to the corner of the tract I had conveyed to me by John Burlison, standing 50 yards above the mouth of the mill Race. The 54 acres bordered Rocky River to the South and East, there was a road and ford just a couple of hundred yards up stream. In Littles 1842 Will, Item # 10 states To Sophia Klutz my daughter I give ...... thence to the ford..........then to the beginning.......... including the Ford where I now live. This description in Littles will takes in the 54 acres of Burlisons old place I believe At the Ford was Littles first of many purchases and he built his home here. 1788-90 would be my guess of the conveyance because John Burlison does not appear in the 1790 census. Before the 1790 census David had left his Richardson Creek Grants property 15 miles to the East, and was living on Rocky River 3/4 of a mile downstream from Burlison old place. David lived there in the 1790 and 1800 Montgomery County Census proven by the neighbors listed around him in the census and deeds of adjoining land owners. Map and Legal Descriptions for Grants and Conveyances for Anson, Union, Mecklenburg, Montgomery, and Stanly Counties Located on Both Sides of Rocky River By George Thomas angelfire/nc/benjthomasofansonnc/southword.html  No. 10 --54 acres gray area with two sides and Rocky River to south and east 10. Grant 3750, Anson NC, ent. 16 Jan 1773, sur. 18 Jan 1774, iss. 28 Feb 1773. Issued to Henry Eustace McCulloh, this is but one of numerous grants issued to McCulloh at this time. Most were for land on the north side of Rocky River near mouth’s of several creeks. Most of the grants indicate that others live or have lived on the land. I suspect McCulloh was acquiring lands out from under people who lived on land without proper title of ownership. This enabled him to sell off, without question, large blocks of land in what was known as Tract #2. The legal description for this piece of land reads: “fifty four acres of land in Anson County on the no. side of Rocky River including Burlison’s old place.” The metes and bounds are from a hic (on the bank, and running thence with new lines) north 13 east 100 to w.o., south 77 east 120 to b.o. (on the bank of the river), then (with the river) to beginning. No. 11--31 acres red area with reverse L shape, Rocky River to south 11. Grant # 7, Stanly NC ent. _____, sur. 21 Feb 1842, iss. _____. Issued to James Little Junior, being 31 acres adjoining James Little Senr. and the land belonging to the heirs of George Tucker deceased. From the survey, the land crosses over “Little Camp Branch” at its mouth. This is the mouth of present day Pumpkin Branch. The next plat (from Stanly County ejectment papers) also locates the mouth of this creek. Adjoining the tract to the east, grant # 1802 to Stokes Pinion indicates this grant to James Little was once land held by David Burleson. The metes and bounds are from a dead pine (said Tucker’s corner of the 100 acre tract & runs with a line of said tract) south 10 east 25 ch to the river, (up the river) to (James Little Senr’s corner) Sycamore, (with Little’s line) north 80 east 16 ch to (his corner in Little Camp branch), north 20 west 22 ch to small b. g. by pine, north 80 east 8 ch 50 lk to small r. o. by two pines, then to begin. CC: Rubin Pinion, Olemsted Little. On 21 February, 1842, James Little Jr. entered 31 ac, (No. 11 on the George Thomas map) adjoining James Little Sr.s property to the west and Stokes Pinion property to the east. This 31 ac was once held by David Burlison without title. This was proven by a 7 October 1806 Entry, (No. 12 on map) Issued to Stokes Pinion, being 100 acres on Rocky River, “Beginning at the turkey rust (roost) tract. The warrant is for land “joining David Burlison’s line and the Turkey Rust tract & between the same.” The turkey roost track is #13 on the George Thomas map. Stokes Pinions grant is #12. James Little Jr.s 1842 entry is #11. By the time James Little Sr. died in 1842 he owned; #10 (Burlisons old place) and the 120 acre unnumbered track on the map between #10 and #11 tracts. When James Little Srs Will was probated in August 1842, the will gave James Little Jr. the unnumbered track between #11 and #10 that was described as thence a straight line to the corner of the tract I had conveyed to me by John Burlison By following the deeds and map you will see that the tract of land Burlisons old place and the tract Held by David Burlison 1806 were two different tracts separated by at least 3/4 of a mile. The 54 ac tract, Burlisons old place, was surveyed in 1773 by Lord Granville but not by Burlison. The 54 acre tract today is farm land. It is all level with only about 30 foot in elevation drop from the northern side to Rocky River to the south and east where there is a 50 foot bluff down to the rivers edge. We do not know how much land David lived on/claimed because he never had it entered. Davids tract today (31 acre James Little Jr. 1842 Entry) is mostly hilly. I believe that David sold his Richardson Creek property and moved close to his ageing father. Conclusion This article is about the travels of Burleson men who are named in documentation: Jonathan, John and Aaron. The evidence is: We have a Jonathan in Suffield and we then have a Jonathan in Lunenburg. Simple logic is that they are the same man especially since the age is correct and the other Burlesons are accounted for. I think my article on Aaron proves that Aaron in Lunenburg is the same as Aaron of the Washington Co. Will. While my analysis of John of Lunenburg and Burlisons old Place and had conveyed to me by John Burlison is not proof that they are the same man, but that is a logical conclusion especially considering the presence of Aaron on Rocky River during the same period. There was a John Burleson in Lunenburg 1752 and there was a John Burlison on Rocky River later. Of the Burleson family in Anson County the biggest unknown is the identity of James 1779, Moses 1774 and Aaron of Flat branch 1777. They are only mentioned once and were of age in those years. Without further documentation we can only guess who they were and when they were born. My guess is that they were younger sons of Jonathan or sons of John. The Revolutionary War in Anson County was a turbulent time. It was a real neighbor against neighbor struggle. Anson County had a Regiment of Whig Militia and there was a Regiment of Loyalist Militia. In 1779 thru 1782 both militias remained very active, taking prisoners, hangings, house burnings and murders in the night were common place until the Whig Patriots hanged and murdered and burned the Tories out of Anson Co into the lower reaches of South Carolina. The fate of James, Moses, Aaron of Flat Branch, the Burlison husband of Agnes Weatherford Burlison and the husband of the Widow Burlison 1779, may well have been casualties of the Tory and Patriot conflicts. The brother to Aaron of the Washington Co. Will who is proven to be the father of Isaac and David, (Jesse was probably a brother to Isaac and David because of his known age and location) could have been John, James, Moses or some unknown/undocumented Burleson. You can rule out Aaron of Flat Branch because that would make two Aarons as brothers. From my Stanly County ancestors we do have a one clue to the name of the father of Isaac and David. A gggrandson of Isaac, Allen Burleson b. 1874 - d.1969 was asked by his daughter about her Burleson linage. The daughter Beulah Way recorded Allen statement at the time and that paper in later years was given to the Burleson Family Research Group. Allen stated that Isaac Sr. father was named Moses. Even without any documentation of Moses except he witnessed a deed on Rocky River in 1774, I must give Allens statement some credibility. Isaacs descendants were very clannish and we remain so today. For the last eight generations we have lived within three miles of the home place of Isaac Burlison of 1782. Some sons and grandsons have moved west but there always remains one or more that settled just next door. In 1882 when Allen was a young man, he knew and was told stories of the Burlison Family by the grandchildren of Isaac. Moses is not a name that carries on in the Isaac line, so Allen was not confusing the name. Allens statement must be considered as traditional but Allen grew up with people that surely would have known. There are two types of Family Traditions: 1. Stories told by unknown people without any documentation. 2. Stories told by known and credible people without any documentation. Never, never accept the first type as proof. Only use the second type as a starting point to do your research. Who was Moses? I assume he was kin to Jonathan b.1704 because Moses is found with other relatives of Jonathan. He was only recorded one time in 1774 on Rocky River as a witness to a deed. He had to have been born prior to 1753 to be of age to sign as a witness. If he was the father of Isaac and David he had to be born prior to 1730, and after 1724 to have been a son of Jonathan. This could be, in theory, he could have been either a son or grandson of Jonathan. Apparently Moses lived his whole life and never left but one record so most anything is possible. For now I can only document that my ggggrandfather Isaacs Sr. father is unknown, Isaac Sr. was the grandson of Jonathan b. 1704. Isaacs father by credible tradition could have been Moses Burlison. One further clue to the name of the father of Isaac and David is the naming pattern of the sons of David and Isaac. David named his first son John and the second son Moses. Isaac named his first son Jonathan and the second son after himself Isaac Jr. With these names John, Moses and Jonathan, I think Im on the right track. Could the John Burlison that conveyed the tract to James Little Sr. have been John Burlison b.1775 son of David? No, David never legally owned the land on the North side of Rocky River so John b.1775 would certainly not have had any claim to the land. Christian neighbors might recognize the right of procession but they would never recognize the right of procession to the second generation. John Hoyle Burleson Stanly Co NC Rocky River
Posted on: Sat, 02 Nov 2013 18:12:11 +0000
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