One more time!! Several months earlier, I tried to set this matter to rest, but apparently I did not succeed. Let me try again. In order to know the names of heirs of Edward Jones and his wife Elizabeth Jones, of Laurens Co. SC, I flew to Salt Lake City in March and did research in the Family History Center. I found the book of wills abstracted, showing one of the Jones sons as JOSIAH. I had great hope that this was the Josiah Jones of my search. However, when I read the microfilmed copy of the wills from the Laurens County courthouse, written by hand and signed by Edward Jones and Elizabeth Jones, the son was clearly and unmistakeably identified as JOSEPH in both original documents -- or at least as close to the original documents as microfilm copies will permit. I can readily understand how the person who hastily did the abstracting for publication might have misread the handwriting, but when I saw the old handwritten [filmed] copies, I asked several of the staff people in the library to come over and take a look at my screened work. I did not tell any of them to specify whether it was Joseph or Josiah. I merely asked them to tell me what the name was, as written. All agreed that the name indeed was JOSEPH. Moral of this story: Do NOT accept as fact everything you see in book abstractions. Such books are great for clues, but please do as much checking into primary sources as possible. ============== > *JONES, Estate sale of Edward JONES and Will of his wife, Elizabeth JONES. (Laurens, SC) > Laurens County, SC: Wills, 1764-1840 > "10 Mar 1804. Sale of estate of Edward JONES, dec'd. Purchasers: Elizabeth JONES, Betsey JONES, **Joseph JONES, Edward JONES, Sarah JONES, John JONES, and *Gabriel JONES; John and Wm BURNSIDE, Adi GRIFFIN, Wiley SMITH, David HITT, Jos WILLIAMS, Patrick TODD, Angus CAMPBELL, Jr, Thos CUMMINS. Adm: Elizabeth JONES and Jno K_________." *Note: Gabriel JONES' daughter, Elizabeth JONES, married William POOL, b. 1785, Edgefield, SC, s/o John POOL & Mahulda HOLLOWAY. > "18 Apr 1809. Will of Elizabeth JONES, dec'd proven by John COOK, Elijah GEORGE. Edward and John JONES as exrs. 6 Apr 1809. Will of Elizabeth JONES, widow of Edward JONES. Sons: Gabriel JONES, James JONES and Josiah JONES**; daughters Frances WARD*, Marey BURNSIDE and Nancey BURNSIDE; other children Edward JONES, John JONES, Thomas JONES, Elizabeth JONES, Sarah JONES, Margret JONES and Lucy JONES. Exrs: sons Edward and John. Wit: John COOK, Elijah GEORGE and Nancy GEORGE."

Helen, thank you for telling us about your experiences with microfilmed copies. Ted and I are going to be in the courthouse in Laurens later this month. Do you know if we will be able to see the wills that you found on microfilm? Did the microfilm indicate where the originals are located? Freda Gualala, CA. > > >However, when I read the microfilmed copy of the wills from the Laurens >County courthouse, written by hand and signed by Edward Jones and Elizabeth >Jones, the son was clearly and unmistakeably identified as JOSEPH in both >original documents -- or at least as close to the original documents as >microfilm copies will permit. > >I can readily understand how the person who hastily did the abstracting for >publication might have misread the handwriting, but when I saw the old >handwritten [filmed] copies, I asked several of the staff people in the >library to come over and take a look at my screened work. I did not tell >any of them to specify whether it was Joseph or Josiah. I merely asked them >to tell me what the name was, as written. All agreed that the name indeed >was JOSEPH. > >Moral of this story: Do NOT accept as fact everything you see in book >abstractions. Such books are great for clues, but please do as much >checking into primary sources as possible. > >============== -- Researching my Southern Families: Roberson/Robertson/Robinson,Bonner, Blakely,Wright, Sills, Thornton, Canterbury, Godbold, Solomon, Pate, Grice, Herron, Regan, Sims, Boles, Jones.

Hi, Freda, I last visited the Laurens Co. courthouse in 1994. At that time, I was seeking only the LWT of my Charles Jones. [I was not then aware of my other ancestor Josiah Jones.] I found the clerk's copy in a will book there, and was able to learn more about Charles Jones. Family History Center, in Salt Lake City, shows the listings "in the county courthouse at Laurens, SC", and I infer that the records are still in Laurens, however, some other counties have sent their "old" records to the state archives in Columbia. At any rate, you will enjoy your visit in Laurens. The little cafe on the courthouse square was delightful. I was there for lunch, but it turned out to be a full-fledged dinner, or more like a banquet at high noon. Go hungry, leave happy.

Thank you much, Helen. Laurens and Edgefield sound like wonderful places to visit. And, I hope we get a chance to see the will books. Best to you. Freda >Hi, Freda, >I last visited the Laurens Co. courthouse in 1994. At that time, I was >seeking only the LWT of my Charles Jones. [I was not then aware of my other >ancestor Josiah Jones.] I found the clerk's copy in a will book there, and >was able to learn more about Charles Jones. > >Family History Center, in Salt Lake City, shows the listings "in the county >courthouse at Laurens, SC", and I infer that the records are still in >Laurens, however, some other counties have sent their "old" records to the >state archives in Columbia. >At any rate, you will enjoy your visit in Laurens. The little cafe on the >courthouse square was delightful. I was there for lunch, but it turned out >to be a full-fledged dinner, or more like a banquet at high noon. Go >hungry, leave happy. > > > > > >==== SC-Genealogy Mailing List ==== >To UNSUBSCRIBE >Write [email protected] >Plain Text with just the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of letter >Change the "L" to "D" if you have Digest Mode > >============================== >Gain access to over two billion names including the new Immigration >Collection with an Ancestry.com free trial. Click to learn more. >http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=4930&sourceid=1237 -- Researching my Southern Families: Roberson/Robertson/Robinson,Bonner, Blakely,Wright, Sills, Thornton, Canterbury, Godbold, Solomon, Pate, Grice, Herron, Regan, Sims, Boles, Jones.

Some thoughts that came to my mind that I have learned in my research of Edgefield Co after reading an exchange between Freda and Helen (following my message) 1) I have found most of the records of Edgefield Co. (and all of the other counties I presume) have been microfilmed and are located at the state archives. If you have multiple folks to look for in several areas, you can find them all in one stop shopping at the state archives. 2) Don't restrict yourself to the Will books. They give the will only and do NOT include the accountings, the petitions against the estate etc that provide wonderful clues as to the relationships of others in the family. Especially if there were two marriages and two sets of children. Wills books make nice copies of the info, but just don't provide all that you need. I make my transcriptions from the original containing all the accountings and often find that they are not the same when read in their entirity as they are in the Abstracts of Wills found in several books. Study it all and make your own conclusion as to the meaning of the info. Also if possible, get probate records for several members of the connecting families.... you will often find surnames and married names of the women in the family that way. 3) Microfilm Index at the state Archives called Probate Records gives wills AND administrative box and package numbers, and then you get the film that has them on it and see everything that was in the box when filmed. This will provide so much more than the will, and lots more if there was an administration with no will. 4) Don't forget equity records - I love it when someone I am looking for got into a dispute with someone else, or made a petition for a portion due to a child of a deceased child. At the State archives these are all in the same area. Don't know where they are in Edgefield. Good place to start is with Carol Well's abstracts. 5) You will NOT get the tenderloving care and help at the State Archives that you will get at Edgefield. I have not researched in Laurens, but most of the smaller individual libraries or archives have always provided me with a more personal touch. Unlike the Edgefield Tompkins library, some of the others are not very knowledgable, but that is certainly NOT true in Edgefield. Tonya and volunteers are very capable of helping folks on their research. Plus they know the area, the churches, the cemeteries, and the old families. 6) the Last time I tried to work on probate records in Edgefield, the probate judge was refusing to let anyone in. Don't know if what ever problem set him off at that time is resolved or not. 7. Tompkins library at Edgefield has lots of family files that have been sent in by others. Like you and I they are bound to contain errors, but they are a start. You will not find any such records like these on the state level that I have ever seen. I am sure that there are other things I should think of to put in here, but those are the ones that come to my mind quickly. Hope they help someone. Billie Jones Camden, SC [email protected] ----- Original Message ----- From: "Ted and Freda Noble" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Wednesday, September 08, 2004 6:47 PM Subject: Re: [SC] Re: JONES- > Thank you much, Helen. Laurens and Edgefield sound like wonderful > places to visit. And, I hope we get a chance to see the will books. > > Best to you. Freda > > > > > > >Hi, Freda, > >I last visited the Laurens Co. courthouse in 1994. At that time, I was > >seeking only the LWT of my Charles Jones. [I was not then aware of my other > >ancestor Josiah Jones.] I found the clerk's copy in a will book there, and > >was able to learn more about Charles Jones. > > > >Family History Center, in Salt Lake City, shows the listings "in the county > >courthouse at Laurens, SC", and I infer that the records are still in > >Laurens, however, some other counties have sent their "old" records to the > >state archives in Columbia. > >At any rate, you will enjoy your visit in Laurens. The little cafe on the > >courthouse square was delightful. I was there for lunch, but it turned out > >to be a full-fledged dinner, or more like a banquet at high noon. Go > >hungry, leave happy.

Helen, Like many other names, Joseph and Josiah can be the same name, depending on the culture. Sometimes they are simply used interchangably. Audrey ----- Original Message ----- From: "Helen Harrell" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Tuesday, September 07, 2004 1:19 PM Subject: Re: [SC] Re: JONES-believe to be our direct line of JONES > One more time!! Several months earlier, I tried to set this matter to rest, > but apparently I did not succeed. Let me try again. > > In order to know the names of heirs of Edward Jones and his wife Elizabeth > Jones, of Laurens Co. SC, I flew to Salt Lake City in March and did research > in the Family History Center. I found the book of wills abstracted, > showing one of the Jones sons as JOSIAH. I had great hope that this was the > Josiah Jones of my search. > > However, when I read the microfilmed copy of the wills from the Laurens > County courthouse, written by hand and signed by Edward Jones and Elizabeth > Jones, the son was clearly and unmistakeably identified as JOSEPH in both > original documents -- or at least as close to the original documents as > microfilm copies will permit. > > I can readily understand how the person who hastily did the abstracting for > publication might have misread the handwriting, but when I saw the old > handwritten [filmed] copies, I asked several of the staff people in the > library to come over and take a look at my screened work. I did not tell > any of them to specify whether it was Joseph or Josiah. I merely asked them > to tell me what the name was, as written. All agreed that the name indeed > was JOSEPH. > > Moral of this story: Do NOT accept as fact everything you see in book > abstractions. Such books are great for clues, but please do as much > checking into primary sources as possible. > > ============== > > > *JONES, Estate sale of Edward JONES and Will of his wife, Elizabeth JONES. > (Laurens, SC) > > Laurens County, SC: Wills, 1764-1840 > > > "10 Mar 1804. Sale of estate of Edward JONES, dec'd. Purchasers: > Elizabeth JONES, Betsey JONES, **Joseph JONES, Edward JONES, Sarah JONES, > John JONES, and *Gabriel JONES; John and Wm BURNSIDE, Adi GRIFFIN, Wiley > SMITH, David HITT, Jos WILLIAMS, Patrick TODD, Angus CAMPBELL, Jr, Thos > CUMMINS. Adm: Elizabeth JONES and Jno K_________." *Note: Gabriel JONES' > daughter, Elizabeth JONES, married William POOL, b. 1785, Edgefield, SC, s/o > John POOL & Mahulda HOLLOWAY. > > > "18 Apr 1809. Will of Elizabeth JONES, dec'd proven by John COOK, Elijah > GEORGE. Edward and John JONES as exrs. 6 Apr 1809. Will of Elizabeth > JONES, widow of Edward JONES. Sons: Gabriel JONES, James JONES and Josiah > JONES**; daughters Frances WARD*, Marey BURNSIDE and Nancey BURNSIDE; > other children Edward JONES, John JONES, Thomas JONES, Elizabeth JONES, > Sarah JONES, Margret JONES and Lucy JONES. Exrs: sons Edward and John. > Wit: John COOK, Elijah GEORGE and Nancy GEORGE." > > > > > ==== SC-Genealogy Mailing List ==== > To UNSUBSCRIBE > Write [email protected] > Plain Text with just the word UNSUBSCRIBE in the body of letter > Change the "L" to "D" if you have Digest Mode > > ============================== > Gain access to over two billion names including the new Immigration > Collection with an Ancestry.com free trial. Click to learn more. > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=4930&sourceid=1237 > >