Saturday, July 14, 2007

An Elder George Brooks - Caswell Co., NC

An Account of an original Caswell County, NC settler, George Brooks and his possible relation to my ancestor, Christopher Williams Brooks:

1777Caswell County, NC Tax Records, 1777:
Glouster District, George Brooks, 650 Acres, 7 wp, 0 bp
- Where did this 650 acres come from? I did not see a land grant in Caswell, Orange, or Granville County, NC Land Grants. Maybe he bought it from someone in Orange County? Or it came from Lord or Earl Granville? (Caswell Co was formed from Orange Co in 1777)
1779

North Carolina Land Grant, 1779, File no. 444
: 300 acres, Entry no. 622 entered 11 Jan 1779; Grant no. 605, issued 13 Oct 1783; Book 53, p. 25; Located on the Middle fork of the South Fork of Country Line Creek

Deed book A, page 144, 1779: State of NC – No. 57, to Elisha Parks, 300 acres on both sides of middle fork of south fork of Country Line Cr adjacent claims of Samuel Kelly, William Gooch, George Brooks, John Anthony, Elijah Mason. 3 May 1779. chain carriers John Anthony, Ransom Atkinson. (Abstracts, p. 9) This 300 acres of land was then sold by Elisha Parks to Thomas Johnston of Culpepper Co (see below). [Note: this was probably taken in March; The date of May was probably a mistake by the abstractor. Subsequent deed information continues to be dated in March.] Source: Caswell Co., NC Deed Books, 1777-1817, Abstracts, Katherine Kerr Kendall, p.9

Deed book A, page 175, 1779: State of NC No. 66 to Henry Williams, 216 acres on branches Shaws, Toms and Stoney Creeks adj William Brown, claims of Arthur Lovings, John Brothers. 3 Mar 1779. chain carriers Wm. Brown and Geo Brooks Jun. (Abstracts, p. 11)

Deed book A, page 296, 1779: Elisha Parks of Caswell Co., NC to Thomas Johnston of Culpepper Co., VA for 1000 lbs, 300 acres on middle fork of Country line Creek adj claims of Samuel Kelly and William Gooch, John Anthony, George Brooks, claim of Elijah Mason, said land granted by NC to Parks 3 Mar 1779 adknowledged. (Abstracts, p. 18)

These deeds provide evidence that there was another older George Brooks who lived in Caswell Co in 1779; since he owned land, he was born at least before 1758 (had to be 21 to own land). Could this be the George Brooks who heired land that he received as a Revolutionary soldier in TN to Christopher Williams Brooks? There was no George Brooks on the 1790 or 1800 Caswell Co., NC census report, so either he died or he moved. (Probably he died because he heired the land to Christopher). The next George is not enumerated until 1830 in Caswell co., NC. He was the son of Jonathan and Ann Lewis Brooks (According to Kay Haden...Charles and Sally Brooks' son George moved to Stokes/Forsynth Co., NC). There are no George Brooks men in the Person Co deed book (1792-1825) or census reports.

TO DO:
Look for references to this George Brooks as a soldier in the American Revolution. Did not have a pension because he probably died prior to the law passed by Congress.