"Hello again Cousins!" Am finally to the point that I'm willing to stick my next out and state that James WATSON's wife was indeed far more likely being Jean CRAIG, sibling in "Our CRAIG Family," than Jean HOUSTON. Name: James WATSON Sex: M Birth: 1738 Place: ,Franklin,PA Chr: Place: Marr: Spouse: Jean CRAIG-1512 Marr: Spouse: Marr: Spouse: Death: 5 Dec 1802 Place: ,York,SC Burial: Place: ,York,SC Father: David WATSON-64181 Mother: Hannah-64628 Notes---------------------------------------------------------------- Of York Co., SC. Died in his 64th year. Buried Beerseba Cemetery. My primary reasons for so believing are not founded solely on the applications of four ladies who joined the D. A. R. between 1900 and 1950, stating that relatives had Bible records indicating that she was Jean CRAIG. 1. Samuel CRAIG was a signatory to the estate of Gilbert WATSON. 2. WATSON families went to the same area of western KY (Calloway, Graves, Livingston, etc.) that "Our CRAIG Family's" Margaret (CRAIG) WATSON KIRKPATRICK DODDS' descendants were to go, and if not at the exact same time, not far removed from same. 3. Gilbert WATSON went to Madison Co., IL, by 1820, at likely the same time as did Robert CRAIG, brother of my family's John CRAIG. 4. WATSON family descendants went to Pike Co., MO, by 1816, at likely the same time as did John BRYSON, husband of Elizabeth CRAIG, sister of my family's John CRAIG. 5. Some of Margaret (CRAIG) WATSON KIRKPATRICK DODDS' descendants would also go to Pike Co., MO, at a later date, and intermarry with WATSON family descendants. 6. Have come across but a single researcher who backs the Jean HOUSTON attribution of the Joe HART Genealogical Collection, and she has stated that she has not tried to follow up on the Rowan Co., NC, estate to verify Joe HART's attribution. 7. Have yet to come across a single WATSON family researcher of the Rowan Co., NC, WATSON families who claims that James WATSON of York Dist., SC, was ever in Rowan Co., or knows of any Rowan Co., NC, WATSON family in that time frame who was to go to York Dist., SC. 8. Have yet to come across a single HOUSTON / HUSTON family researcher who knows anything substantive of this, and only one to date that had even heard of this "controversy". 9. In so far as naming patterns for descendant families, I am not aware of any first or second born descendant, whose birth order and middle name having been HUSTON or HOUSTON, would best suggest that Jean, wife of James WATSON, was a HOUSTON. To this end, I contend that it might be just as easy to build a case for either Hannah, wife of David WATSON, to have been Hannah HOUSTON, or for (Martha?), likely mother of "Our CRAIG Family" to have been a Martha HOUSTON. Item: James Houston WATSON, b 1792, was either the second or third known child born to David WATSON and Mary McCORD. Might Mary McCORD have been a HOUSTON family descendant? Item: Levina Houston WATSON, b 1799, was second known child born to John WATSON and Margaret BYERS, but logic would suggest to me that if she were being named for her grandmother, she would have likely been named Jean Houston WATSON. Might Margaret BYERS have been a HOUSTON descendant? Item: David Huston HEMPHILL, b 1810, was the fifth known child born to Robert HEMPHILL and Ann WATSON. Item: David Huston HEMPHILL, b 1830, was the third known child of Alexander HEMPHILL and Margaret WILSON. 10. As the researcher who volunteered to go to the Rowan County, NC, court house and try to locate a probate packet for Mary (MORRISON) HOUSTON, failed to find one, I really don't know whether none exists, or whether only that he failed to locate same. To this end, I am now prepared to: 1. Try to obtain photocopies of any and all documentation for all four D. A. R. applications stating that she was Jean CRAIG. 2. Try to make contact the D. A. R. chapters where those ladies' applications were processed to see if the local D. A. R. chapter might possibly have something in their chapter libraries to help provide clarity to this situation. Please shoot me down, if you have come across anything, or might know of anyone who has provided a single shred of evidence contributing to the possibility that she was Jean HOUSTON, other than the assertion of the Joe HART Genealogical Collection, and the previously mentioned occurrences of Huston or Houston as a middle name. Still keeping my fingers crossed that someone, a far better family researcher than I, might have discovered something far more substantive than the case that I've laid out above. If I were fortunate enough to know as much about WATSON and HOUSTON families, as I know about CRAIG family, perhaps there could be an even better case built for Jean being Jean CRAIG, or Jean HOUSTON, but for now, my money is on James WATSON's wife being Jean CRAIG, sister to the other siblings in "Our CRAIG Family!" Will go to the corner of the room and hide should any of you be able to shoot down every single point that I've laid out above! <G> TTYL Craig "Always looking for Cousins!"