In my research...I have run across a bunch of ca. 1970's - 1800's folks who were given the first name Micajah or Needham in NC and SC!!!...does any body have a clue to the origin of these two commonly used "given" names in NC/SC? Thanks!!! Happy Thanksgiving Holiday!!!...and I GIVE "THANKS" FOR ALL OF YOU FINE FOLKS OUT THERE WHO HAVE BLESSED MY FAMILY RESEARCH EFFORTS IMMENSELY OVER THE PAST FOUR YEARS...SALUTE!!!! Dan Fairfax Nashville, Tennessee [Looking for Micajah Fairfax's parents and siblings...Micajah FAIRFAX was listed in the Bladen County 1800 Census.] ------------------ -----Original Message----- From: JoChurchD@aol.com [mailto:JoChurchD@aol.com] Sent: Thursday, November 18, 1999 11:56 AM To: SCHORRY-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [SCHORRY-L] OBRIANT = BRYANT ? (with Smith & Harrelson connections) In reply to Diane Moore's message to Horry County Mailing list: Your find in the Rev War indents for Jesse Obriant is very exciting. There are many Bryant and Smith and Harrelson researchers on the Marion County Mailing list, so I am taking the liberty of posting your query and this reply to that list, as well as to the Horry County List. Your find will be of interest to researchers in all three families. Yes, there was another Obriant/O'briant/Obryant in Marion County. Thomas Obriant had lands located quite near the lands that John Smith owned on Buck Swamp and not far from the lands where Jesse Bryant resided. About the only place I have seen reference to him is in the Marion Deedbooks, when Lydia Obryant and some of the Harrelsons sold his lands on Buck Swamp in 1793. Lydia was presumably the widow or an unmarried daughter of Thomas Obryant. Interestingly, Jeremiah and Micajah Harrelson, probable sons-in-law of Thomas, were also involved in the sale. Since these lands were not far from lands of Jesse Bryant, further investigation of Thomas Obriant's land grant would seem to be the logical course for further study. Grants and plats are available from the SC Archives. It might be possible, with some of the plats to these early land grants, to discover exactly where Thomas' lands were on Buck Swamp. Especially in relation to lands of Jesse Bryant, John Smith and later Samuel Smith, and the William Harrelson grant on Buck Swamp. (William Harrelson had another grant on Catfish Creek, bounding or near John Smith's lands over there near Bowling Green and the millpond. Interesting to note that the western lands of John Smith and William Harrelson also bounded or were near lands that belonged to Micajah Gainey/Ganey, who was captain of the local Loyalist Militia.) A search in the Revolutionary War records (both sides) as well as in the land grants and related records for Jesse Obriant (all spellings) might also turn up something previously overlooked. I've never seen any reference to Jesse Bryant being a Tory, but it wouldn't be surprising if he were. There is some reason to believe that some of the Harrelsons, including Jeremiah and William, were Torys. There is a reference in "Loyalists in the Southern Campaign" by June Clark Murtie (relating to Georgetown and/or Pee Dee Loyalist Militia): "William Harrell paid his son Jeremiah Harrell..." also shown as William and Jeremiah Harrald in other lists from same book. To my knowledge, no members of the Harrell family named William and Jeremiah have been found. But there were a William and Jeremiah Harrelson here at that time period. And as any Harrelson researcher can tell you, the "son" was frequently dropped from the name Harrelson in the records. Other names that I picked up in the Loyalist Militia for the Gerogetown and/or Pee Dee Militia lists in this same book were Micajah Ganey, Ananias Ganey, Wall Wright (Wright Wall?), Samuel Price, James Scott, Wm. Anderson, Miles Britt, John Price, James Taylor, Henry Scott, William Perritt, Hector McNeil, Archd. Shaw. (Meant to go back and copy all the Georgetown/Pee Dee lists, but never got around to it.) Note further, that John Smith's daughter, Celia Harrelson, later sold the land her father devised to her to one Archibald Shaw. Also that one of Jesse Bryant's daughters, Mourning Bryant, granddaughter of John Smith, married Jonathan Harrelson. There is much to connect these three families, and much yet to learn about their connections and roles in the Revolutionary War. Since I have previously posted a lot of my information about this Obriant and Harrelson connection to the Marion list, I am posting the pertinent parts of that message again, followed by your query to the Horry List. Jo Church Dickerson ----previous message from JCD to Marion List (edited)------- Subj: Harrelson / O'Briant connection Date: 12/22/98 To: SCMARION-L@rootsweb.com Re Harrelson/O'Brien connection, reference the following deed: MICAJAH HARRELSON & OTHERS TO ISOM COWARD Abstracted by jcd from recorded deed at Marion Courthouse Marion Deedbook A/114 15 lbs for 75 acres 18 Feb 1793 all parties of Georgetown Dist, Prince George Parish Micajah Harralson, Lydia Obryant, Pheby Harralson, Jeremiah Harralson, Abigill Harralson, Sary Rice grantors; ..on Buck Swamp, beg on a pine 3x on branch running N on vacant land...bounded N by Anguish McClain, W by Jesse Rice part of the same survey, S by Buck Swamp...part of a survey grant for Thomas Obriant to him the said Micajah Harralson & Lydia Obriant; signed: Lydia Obryant Micahjah Harralson Pheby "X" (her mark) Harralson Jeremiah "I" (his mark) Harralson Abigill "G" (her mark) Harralson Sary "X" (her mark) Rice witnesses: Edward Coward, Jesse Coward proved: by Edward Coward 5 Mar 1793 recorded: 2 Mar 1801 His probate record shows that Jeremiah Harrelson's widow was named Abigail. It was customary for a wife to sign a deed immediately after her husband. There are a number of deeds recorded in Marion related to this land grant. Basically, taken all together, they tend to show that Sarah Rice was probably a sister of Abigail and Phoebe. That Jesse Rice was probably her husband, but his signature was not recorded by the clerk who copied the deed to the deedbook, as his signature would have been necessary on the deed. Deedbook A/116 shows that Jesse Rice sold 75 acres of the Thomas O'Brian grant to Isom Coward in the same year. Sarah signed deed, stated that she was his wife. Phoebe Harrelson also signed this deed, no relationship given. (This and all deeds mentioned below found in 'Marion County Deed Abstracts' abstracted by Lucille Utley, published by Alita Sutcliffe.) (Interesting to note that in 1786 tax list, Mycagah Heraldson paid tax on 75 acres of land, and Jeremiah Heraldson paid tax on 66 acres. Sounds like a share of the O'Briant lands.) Coward sold the 150 acres of the Thomas O'Brian land grant to Zedikiah Owens in 1794. Owens sold the 150 acres to Samuel Smith in 1796. In 1796 the land bounded Samuel Johnson, Daniel Moody and Anguish McLean. In 1803 James & Sary Smith sold 25 acres of the Thomas O'Bryant land grant to Charles Meloy, at that time bounded by Thomas Finkley. In 1809 Daniel Moody sold 150 acres of the Thomas Obryan grant to Samuel Smith. And in 1819 John Taylor Senior of Georgetown sold to Norton Roberts of Marion District: 25 acres bounded east by Samuel Smith granted to Thomas Obriant. It is also interesting to note that John Smith, father or grandfather of the above Samuel Smith, bequeathed to his children land that had been granted to both Benjamin Harrelson and to William Harrelson. And that one of John Smith's daughters, Celia, married a Harrelson. And finally, this: I found the following in Pee Dee Queue as quoted from "Our Kin" by W. H. Manning, Jr., pp 225-226; (Sorry, I did not note volume & number of issue.) "I, Valentine Rowell, Senr, was born in New England 4/5/1745 & married Rebecca Shaw in SC in the fall of 1771 & she died January 6 1780 & left 4 ch, 1 but 3 days old...& in March 1786 I moved up to the little Pee Dee & on March 14 I married Elener Colson...then I let my brother David Rowell have land...I got titles to James Rowell's land dated 25 December 1797, but my wife Elener Colsen died June 22, 1797 & left me 4 more children. But the first 4 is all dead but one, after that I married Phebe Obryan September 18 1804." I have no idea what all of above means. Was Phoebe (O'Briant?) Harralson wife of Micajah Harrelson, and did Harrelson die prior to 1804, leaving her free to marry Val Rowell? Micajah Harralson disappeared from the Marion records after 1790 census (shown as 'Cage Harralson'), but there is a Micajah Harrelson found in Kershaw Co in 1800 census, age 26-45. Unknown if it is the same Micajah. Was Abigail Obriant wife of Jeremiah Harralson? Jeremiah Harralson is shown as over 45 in 1800 census. His estate records show his widow was named Abigail. Jo ----Original from Diane Moore to Horry List---- << Date: Wed, 17 Nov 1999 22:11:14 -0500 From: Dianne Moore <ladydee@erols.com> To: SCHORRY-L@rootsweb.com Subject: [SCHORRY-L] Jesse Bryant I just got some of the Stub Entries to Indents Issued in Payment of Claims Against South Carolina Growing Out of the Revolution by A. S. Salley, Jr. and have found a few very interesting entries. My Bryant family is the Jesse Bryant who married Mourning Smith. Recently I was going through some old pieces of paper in one of my many 'piles' and found one instance where someone (and don't ask me who [cause I don't have it right in front of me] or where they came up with this) stated that my Jesse was the son of Needham Bryant. Of course, I can't find that anywhere else. So, do any of ya'll have a Needham who has a son named Jesse with a wife who's a Smith? Actually that's not why I was writing ya'll. It just came to mind and I thought I'd ask. What I really was writing about was the fact that while I was looking through Book U of the Stub Entries to Indents, I came across something I've never seen before. There are 2 entries (that I've found so far) which show that a Jesse Obriant served in the Revolution in, from, or for SC. The actual entries read: "Issued the 12th July 1785 To Jesse Obriant for five pound one Shillsg and five pence for Militia duty 71 days in 1782 Per accot. audited Principal 5,,1,,5 Annual Interest 0,,9,,1" "Issued the 12th July 1785 To Jesse Obriant for Seven pound two Shills.g and ten pence for 100 Days duty as private in the Militia Per account Audited Principal 7,,2,,10 1/4 Annual Interest 0,,9,,11" Has anyone found any other Obriant's in SC or NC that this Jesse could have come from? I have verification that John Smith, the father of Jesse Bryant's wife Mourning Smith, served in the Revolutionary War. However, I was never able to find any evidence that Jesse, who should have been old enough to serve, had ever actually done so. I did find one instance in the DAR basement records where another individual who was submitting papers had included a statement on her application substantiation that she had wanted to join the DAR on the Bryant line but had had to settle for joining on John Smith's line because she had found that the Bryant's had been on the Tory side. (I, of course, have never been able to find that information anywhere else either.) Now with this new information on Jesse Obriant, I'm beginning to think that maybe my Jesse did serve after all. In addition to Jesse Obriant, there is also a stub entry which reads: "Issued the 12th July 1785 To George Obrian for two pound Seventeen Shillings and one penny 1/2 for Militia duty forty Days Per account audited Principal 2,,17,,1 3/4 Annual Interest 0,,3,,11" I don't know if very many of ya'll are interested in knowing this but just wondered if anyone knew anything about these Obriant's. Any help would be appreciated. Dianne >> ______________________________