FINALLY! A breakthrough! William B. Rice of White county, TN is NOT the same William Rice who was there in White county in 1820. The 1820 William Rice was living on Cumberland Mountain, on the headwaters of the Caney Fork as early as 1819, when he received several land grants on the old stage coach road on Cumberland Mountain, and was much older than our William Rice on the Falling Water. William in 1820 had three sons in his household, while William Rice has two sons in his household in 1820 S.C. and two sons in 1830 White County. The William Rice on Cumberland Mountain vanishes by 1830, and was associated with an Enoch Rice, Mary Rice, and a George W. Miller. It now appears that OUR William Rice was in old Pendleton District of South Carolina in 1820, and Eleanor/Ellender Rice was actually Ellender "Nelly" LOOPER, daughter of Joseph Looper and Mary Magness of Overton County, TN. Joseph Looper was in Pendleton County, South Carolina records in 1790, 1800, 1810 and 1820. A Joseph Looper Jr. appears in Overton County land grant records as early as 1823, and his son Magness Looper was there by 1820. William Rice appears in White county during the same time frame, and was one of two William Rices in White county on the 1825 tax list. While no DEFINITE proof has been found to tie these two families together as far as court records are concerned, census data shows that "Ellender" Rice was born about 1792 in South Carolina, which fits the description of "Nelly" Looper daughter of Joseph Looper like a glove. Joseph Looper had sons by the names of Joseph and Samuel. William and Eleanor/Ellender Rice had grandsons named Joseph and Samuel. If anyone has additional information to help substantiate this information, please contact me immediately. We are in need of some proof that Ellender was indeed "Nelly" Looper, which it now appears she very well may have been. Will Smith