This is a Message Board Post that is gatewayed to this mailing list. Surnames: MASTERS, O'SHIELDS, COKER, MCCOMBS, JOHNSON, BUCHANAN, LAND, LATHEM, RISINGER, SMITH, QUATTLEBAUM, GUNTER, HELTON, BURNETT, TANKERSLEY Classification: Query Message Board URL: http://boards.ancestry.com/mbexec/msg/rw/UeB.2ACI/2417.2420.1.1.1 Message Board Post: Hi Barbara! Thanks for your reply. My birth father is Larry Masters, son of Columbus Masters (1919-1984) and Frances Coker (1919-1978), grandson of C.O. Masters and Ola O'Shields. Larry lives in Marietta, S.C. The only other info that I have is that C.O. Masters is somehow descended from William M. Masters. One of William's sons was John Calhoun Masters from Table Rock. I'm not sure if I'm related through that line or not. And that's it for the Masters. Pat's mother's family were the Johnsons and Buchanans. Pat's grandfather was Moody Parsons Johnson who married Sarah Selina Buchanan. Sarah's father was William Greenberry Buchanan. I have very limited info on them as well. The only McCombs I know of was Pat's father, John Thomas McCombs. Again - that's all I know. The Risingers are from Leesville, Lexington County, S.C. The earliest ancestors I know of are David Risinger (1756-1848 from Heidelberg, Germany) and Catherine Swartz (1791-1878 from Mannheim, German! y). Polly Gunter married John Roston Risinger (my husband's great-grandparents). Polly's ancestor was John Quattlebaum, inventor of the Quattlebaum rifle that was used in the Civil War. One of those rifles is on display here in Columbia at the Confederate Museum. I have extensive research on the Risinger family. I don't live too far from Leesville. I've even been to the old homestead. I've just begun research on the Smith family (my husband's mother's family). They lived in various parts of the state. My mother-in-law basically grew up in Greenwood, S.C. Her father's name was Andrew Smith and he married Addie Saxon (b. 1911). He was killed by a car while riding a bicycle, but my mother-in-law doesn't know the year, nor does she know anything about his family. Her mother later married Harold Nobles from Atlanta, GA. He worked at the Atlanta Journal. (They lived there for a while.) My mother-in-law, Marian, has siblings Fred, Bob, Tom (deceased) and Mary Ellen. ! The other surnames that I mentioned come from my adopted families. Mama's family were the Land, Lathem and Tankersleys. Mama's mama was Nellie Kate Land Tankersley. Mama's grandmother on her mother's side was a Lathem before marrying a Land. I just found out recently that the Lathems were from Upstate S.C. What a coincidence!! John Lathem had a daughter named Sallie L. Lathem and she married Thomas Jeff Land. They had children Leila Land, who married a Tankersley (brother of my adopted grandfather), George Land, Claude Land and Nellie Kate Land. "Kate" was born August 13, 1912 and married Charles Thomas Tankersley, a descendant of Napoleon Bonaparte Tankersley. "C.T." or "Charlie" as "Pop" was called was one of 12 children. One of his brothers was plainly named "NC". The initials didn't stand for anything!! (Charlie died in the early 70's and Kate died in the mid-90's.) They had children Andy Jeff Tankersley and Martha Corine Tankersley (my "Mama"). Mama marri! ed William Martin Helton, Jr. Daddy's family lived in Gainesville, GA. Daddy said his parents (Harriett Maynellie "Nellie" Burnett and William Martin Helton) were from Suches, GA (upstate). "Nellie" is a descendant of Samuel Burnett, who's lineage can be found on genealogy.com. I have some info on the Heltons as well, but it's been a while since I've looked at it, so I can't really go into detail at the moment. And that's it! I hope I haven't left a surname out!! If you have heard of any of these people, and/or if you can shed some light on some, I certainly would appreciate it!!!! THANKS!!!