One Granville Co. researcher listed Yancey as a surname in which she was interested. I do not have info on a Bartlett Yancey, although I have seen the name in various Granville Co. publications. I have collected some information on a Sterling Yancey, who was a brother-in-law of my ancestor Samuel F. Williams (1759 Granville Co., NC-d. ca 1838 Henderson Co., KY). Whether Sterling is related to Bartlett Yancey, I cannot say. They may have had a common ancestor, however. If you use this material in your genealogies, please cite the sources, as all good genealogists should do. (Nowadays, the requirements seem to indicate the repositories where you found the material also.) Thanks to frequent trips to LDS centers (bleary-eyed from reading microfilms) and purchase of books, I have been been able to pull together some info about S.F. Williams's youngest sister, Betsy Williams Yancey. Another sister of S.F.Williams was Mary Williams, wife of Stephen Sneed/Snead, long-time county clerk of Granville Co., NC. Here goes: Submitted by E.W.Wallace, Jan 2004 STERLING YANCEY. Granville Co., NC deeds, grantors John Mitchell and his wife, the former Phillis (possibly Beckham) Williams, indicate that Sterling Yancey was the husband of Betsy Williams. Betsy was the daughter of William Williams and his wife Phillis, the latter who married 2nd) John Mitchell. Reportedly the parents of Sterling were Thornton Yancey and Elizabeth Mitchell of Granville Co. During the years 1781 and 1783 Thornton Yancey was sheriff, and Sterling Yancey qualified as Deputy Sheriff, according to Vol. 6 of Granville Co., NC court minutes (Thomas Owen McAdory "Sheriffs of Gr. Co." in HISTORY AND GENEALOGIES OF OLD GRANVILLE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, 1746-1800 [Greenville, SC: Southern Historical Press, 1993], p. 202) No marriage bond for the Yanceys appears in Brent H. Holcomb's abstracts for Granville Co. marriages. However, land records indicate a probable marriage date of about 1785. Two entries in Granville Co. Will Bk 1, pages 465, 477, and 478, dated 1786, give information Yancey was the husband of Betsey Williams, the child of Phillis Mitchell, formerly the widow of William Williams who died at Boonesborough (later in KY but then in VA) Dec 1775, probably Christmas day or shortly thereafter. 465 - 8 Feb 1786 Sterling Yancey and John Mitchel, guardian of Betsy Williams, now Betsy Yancey, wife of Sterling Yancey, agree that estate of said Betsy is clear and that it is to be turned over to Sterling Yancey, it being her part of her father William Williams' (deceased) estate. Wts: John Webb. 477 - 2 Dec 1785 John Mitchel & Phillis Mitchel as guardians and executors of William Williams' estate, deceased deliver to Sterling Yancey and Betsey Yancey, his wife, Negroes & other personal estate due them from William Williams' estate - negroes Hannah and James. Wts: Gideon Macon, S. Snead. 478 - 2 Dec 1785 - John Mitchel gave to son-in-law Sterling Yancey Negroes Toby and Wilks, as gift. (Source: Zae Hargett Gwynn, ABSTRACTS OF THE WILLS AND ESTATE RECORDS OF GRANVILLE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA 1746-1808; Rocky Mt, NC: 1973) DB O-457 Thornton Yancey deed to Sterling Yancey. 5 June 1786 (Gwynn: KINFOLKS OF GRANVILLE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, p. 69) The 1787 tax list for Granville Co. shows Sterling Yancey with 342 acres. There were a number of other Yancey males on this same tax list, but their linkage is unknown: Thornton, Esq., James, Philip, Charles, William, Lewis, Esq. James, Jr. Notes from the court Records of Granville County ca. 1757: "Sterling Yancey proved a Bill of Sale from Phillip Yancey to Thornton Yancey." (Worth S. Ray, COLONIAL GRANVILLE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA AND ITS PEOPLE [Baltimore: 1959], p. 209) From Ray's abstracts of other court minutes, it seems that Thornton Yancey, a relative of Sterling, probably his father, was from the Alra Plain District of Granville Co. Samuel (Farrar) Williams, the brother of Betsy Williams Yancey, on the other hand, was in the Island Creek District, which is near Nutbush Creek and Anderson's Swamp areas of old Granville Co. Court minutes of Granville Co. for 6 Feb 1797 indicate Sterling Yancey was treasurer for Granville Co. Earlier in 1781 and in 1782, he had qualified as "Dept. Shff." which may be interpreted as Deputy Sheriff. (Vol. 6 of Minutes, as abstracted by Thomas McAdory Owen). Other Public Office W. H. Wheeler in HISTORICAL SKETCHES OF NORTH CAROLINA FROM 1584 TO 1851 [Baltimore: Regional Publishing Co., 1964], p. 166, lists Sterling Yancey as a member of the House of Commons of the North Carolina General Assembly for the years 1798, 1799, 1800 as representative of Granville Co. Probably Sterling was son of Thornton Yancey as Thornton had been in the House of Commons in 1784, 1786, 1787, 1789, 1790, 1791, 1792. (Ibid., p. 165-166) In 1797, Sterling Yancey was witness to marriage of John Denton to Sarah Starks, Granville Co. Yancey may have been a county official. (Sarah Starks is believed to be an aunt or possibly the widowed mother of Susannah Starks, wife of John Williams IV of Henderson Co., KY. This John Williams of Henderson Co., KY was one of the older sons of Samuel Farrar Williams and grandson of William Williams II, great-grandson of John Williams II "of Goochland" but later of Granville Co.) Sterling Yancey - Land Transactions Deed Bk. O-457: Thornton Yancey deed to Sterling Yancey, 5 June 1786. Deed Bk. Q-149: George Culberson of Mecklenburg Co. deed to Edward Jones for part of a tract which Sterling Yancey now possesses. 3 Nov 1797 (Gwynn, op. cit.) The children of Sterling and Betsy Yancey are reported by Dennis Yancey to have been as follows: Minge Yancey (b. 24 Jul 1787, Granville Co.) m. Frances Knott William Williams Yancey (b. 14 Feb 1790, NC) Lewis Yancey (b. 20 Aug 1793) m. Harriet J. Casso James Madison Yancey (b. 25 Mar 1796, NC) m. 1) Eliza Slade 2) Ann (Nancy) Smith George Washington Yancey (b. 4 Sep 1798, NC) Elizabeth Ridley Yancey (b. 10 Dec 1800, NC) n.m. Albert Yancey (29 Dec 1803) m. Susan Simmons? Sterling Yancey died 5 Jan 1815, according to the Raleigh Register of 27 Jan 1815. (Carrie L. Broughton, "Deaths," MARRIAGE AND DEATH NOTICES FROM RALEIGH REGISTER AND NORTH CAROLINA STATE GAZETTE, 1799-1825 [Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Co., 1966], p. 151) Reported Ancestors of Sterling Yancey 1. Charles Yancey of Hanover Co., VA (b. bef 1684) 2. James Yancey (b. early 1700s) 3. Thornton Yancey (b. ca. 1750-d. 1811 NC) m. Elizabeth Mitchell in Hanover Co., VA. Possibly the Yanceys were from Virginia. Several Yanceys lived in Louisa Co., VA in the 1750s, and their names appear in Granville Co. deeds. As seen in one Granville Co. deed, another Yancey lived in Edgecombe Co., NC. Granville Co. Deed Bk B-169 through 173 - Mar 6, 1753: Robert Jones of Surry Co. to James Yancey for 1000 pds. 1280 acres on N. fork of Jonathans Creek on County Line dividing Virginia from North Carolina where James Yancey now lives. Wts: none. Granville Co. DB B-199-200 - May 20, 1753: William Williams and wife Elizabeth to Richard Yancey of Louisa Co., VA for 20 pds. 143 acres on both sides of Jonathan Creek. Wts: Richard Harris, George Underwood. (This is not the William Williams, whose wife was named Phillis.) 225-226: Sep 6, 1753 - Jaconias Yancey of Edgecombe Co., NC, to Samuel Henderson of Granville Co., for 75 pds. 440 acres on both sides of Andersons Swamp, a branch of Nut Bush Creek, which was granted Mar 25, 1749. Wts: Richard Bullock, Richard Henderson. Other evidence of possible father-son relationship: Thornton Yancey , probable father of Sterling. He was a witness in 1777 to a deed recorded in Caswell Co.: Deed Bk. A-74 Thomas Mutter & Co. of Granville Co., NC to John Bowls of CC...... 29 Sep 1777. Wit: Hugh Galt, Thornton Yancey, David Watt, Benjamin Yargain. (Source: K. K. Kendall, CASWELL CO., NC. DEEDS 1776-1817, p. 5) Mary Ginsey Yancey Wm. Christmas to Mary Jinsey Yancey. Bond dated: July 28, 1790. Signed by Wm. Christmas & Anderson Pattillo. Wit: H. Potter. (Thomas Owen McAdory in HISTORY AND GENEALOGIES...., p. 82) Problems with IGI Entries IGI gives a marriage date of 1739, Granville Co., NC for Sterling Yancey and Betsy Williams. This is in error in several ways: Granville Co. did not become a county until 1746. Further, Betsy more than likely was not even born at that early date, as her older brother, Samuel Farrar Williams, stated in his rejected Rev War Pension, filed in Henderson Co., KY, that he was born 1759. It seems he was older than she as reflected in her guardianship papers. In 1786, the date of her probable marriage to Yancey, she probably was underage as her stepfather John Mitchell is called guardian of Betsy Williams. John Mitchell died ca 1787, and then Betsy's mother Phillis Mitchell (formerly Williams) applied for guardianship of the youngest child, Sallie Williams. IGI indicates that the parents of Sterling Yancey were Thornton Yancey and Elizabeth Mitchell. There are two conflicting entries for the parents of Thornton Yancey: One states his parents were Charles Yancey and Miss Bartlett and the other states his parents were James Yancey and Ann Thornton, and that their child was b. 1740 in Hanover Co., VA. This information needs to be verified.