Anyone who has done genealogy research for very long knows that secondary sources take on a life of their own and are often difficult to refute even with primary source documents. Sometimes, though, we need to research the secondary source itself. Who wrote it originally and why? Knowing that can often help us rectify the two documents.
For years, those of us researching the line of John Lewis and Susan Daniel have had the following information from a seemingly undocumented source:
“John Lewis, born 1777 in Albemarle, VA; died 1848 in Hardin, TN. He was the son of Charles Lewis and Mary Randolph. He married Susan Daniel 1792 in Kentucky. Susan Daniel was the daughter of Terrance Daniel.
Children of John Lewis and Susan Daniel:
1. Spencer Polk Lewis b. Lincoln Co., KY married Martha McWhorter 11 May 1811 in Knox Co., KY.
2. Wiley Lewis married Charlotte Brickell 1821 in Madison Co., AL.
3. William Henry Lewis born September 14, 1799, in Knox, KY died January 4, 1879, Woodville, Jackson, AL; married Tabitha Allen Cotton on September 23, 1819, in Jackson, AL
4. Joel Daniel Lewis, born March 27, 1801, in Pulaski, KY; died May 12, 1876, in Piedmont, MO; married Rebecca Ingle Eagleton December 6, 1823, in Lincoln, TN.
5. Harriet Jackson Lewis.
6. Rebecca Lewis, born Pulaski Co., KY.
7. Daniel A. Augustus Lewis, born 1805 in Pulaski, KY; died in Madison, AL married Betsy Ann Young May 1, 1828, in Madison, AL.
8. Matilda Lewis, born in Pulaski, KY.
9. Jane Lewis, born Pulaski, KY.
10. Susan Lewis, born 1812 in Pulaski, KY; married Jesse K. Webb
11. John L. Lemuel Lewis, born in Lincoln, TN; married Elizabeth.
12. Caledonia Lewis, born Lincoln, TN.
13. Margaret Lewis, born in Jackson, AL.
14. Polk Lewis, born in Jackson, AL.”
I found this same list of children with additional information on spouses in "A Lewis-Randolph Excursus: Being an Outline for the Ancestry and Descendants John Lewis of Jackson County, Alabama" compiled by Robert M. McBride of Nashville, Tennessee in 1976. It is a six-page paper that came from the Guntersville Museum & Cultural Center in Guntersville, Alabama.
Of the list's origin, McBride states, "The list of children of John and Susan (Daniel) Lewis is taken from the Blaine Deposition (not necessarily in correct order)."
In footnote 5, McBride attributes a birth date of 1772 for John Lewis to the Blaine Deposition, stating, "The date is based on the 1800 and 1810 census records of Lincoln and Pulaski counties, Kentucky, and the 1830 census of Jackson County, Alabama. It is also so given in a sworn deposition by a great-granddaughter, Attie May (Old) Blaine, of Piedmont, Missouri, October 26, 1948 (hereafter cited as Blaine Deposition)."
John Lewis's marriage to Susan Daniel, sourced in footnote 6, states, "Blaine Deposition. Susan Daniel was the daughter of Terence Daniel (born c. 1745 in Pittsylvania County, Virginia). Her mother was probably a Spencer. Susan Daniel is not to be confused with Susannah Lewis, daughter of Jeremiah Lewis of Greene County, Kentucky. Susannah was married in 1804 to James E. Daniel, brother of Susan Daniel who married John Lewis."
McBride goes on to attribute John Lewis's residence in Pulaski Co., KY; his death in Hardin Co., TN; and a list of his thirteen children to the Blaine Deposition.
Of additional interest is the claim that "sometime, apparently in the 1830's, John Lewis removed to Holly Springs, Marshall County, Mississippi, and lived there two years." Again McBride attributes this to the Blaine Deposition in footnote 12, with the notation: "statement of granddaughter-in-law, Rebecca (Ingle) Lewis (1803-1875)."
So who created the Blaine Deposition? Where did the information come from? And why was the deposition created? In light of the fact that some of this information is in error--John Lewis died earlier in McNairy County, TN with a slightly different list of children--it is important to track this down.
To answer those questions, I first researched Attie May (Old) Blaine in FamilySearch.org. She was a little difficult to find because it turned out that her name was actually Attie Old Blaine, and her sister was May Blaine. Note the muddling of the name by McBride. Attie's maiden name is not Old; her middle name is actually Old. She never married, so Blaine was her maiden name. Additionally, her name and her sister May's name have been merged. It's hard to figure out how that happened. Working on Attie's family tree, by adding sources to it, I was, in fact, able to connect Attie Old Blaine to her great-grandparents: Joel Daniel Lewis and Rebbeca Ingle. McBride's reference to Rebecca Ingle as a granddaughter-in-law is also difficult to untangle. Rebecca may be the daughter-in-law of John Lewis, not a granddaughter-in-law. Attie Blaine is a great-granddaughter of Rebecca's.
This is Attie's connection to Joel Daniel Lewis, and here are the key dates:
Attie Old Blaine (1889-1971)
her mother: Annie Love (Old) Blaine (1863-1948)
her grandmother: Elizabeth Frances (Lewis) Old (1839-1910)
her great-grandparents: Rebbeca (Inge) Lewis (1803-1875) & Joel D. Lewis (1801-1876)
Given these dates, Attie never knew her great-grandparents because they died before her birth. She was about 21 years old when her grandmother died, and she was about 59 when her mother died. On October 26, 1948, when the Blaine Deposition was given, only Attie was still living. Since her sister May was married by then with the surname Newman, only Attie could have given the "Blaine Deposition."
Why was the deposition created? It seems unlikely that any of John Lewis's estate was still in question in 1948. Perhaps a land title needed to be cleared? I've seen the occasional deposition in old DAR applications. Both Attie Old Blaine and her sister May (Blaine) Newman were members of the DAR, but they both were accepted based on the service of their ancestor John Wood - not a Lewis. Besides, John Lewis would have been too young to serve in the Revolutionary War. Perhaps, a lineage society for the War of 1812?
In any event, it seems likely that the Blaine Deposition contained information based on family tradition, which would have become altered as it was passed down over the generations. Additionally, it may have been embellished by Attie's own research.
The deposition's exact contents and where it was filed, if at all, remain unknown at this time. McBride's paper makes no notation of its location, and it may be one of the "private records of a number of descendants" to which he alludes.
I found this same list of children with additional information on spouses in "A Lewis-Randolph Excursus: Being an Outline for the Ancestry and Descendants John Lewis of Jackson County, Alabama" compiled by Robert M. McBride of Nashville, Tennessee in 1976. It is a six-page paper that came from the Guntersville Museum & Cultural Center in Guntersville, Alabama.
Of the list's origin, McBride states, "The list of children of John and Susan (Daniel) Lewis is taken from the Blaine Deposition (not necessarily in correct order)."
In footnote 5, McBride attributes a birth date of 1772 for John Lewis to the Blaine Deposition, stating, "The date is based on the 1800 and 1810 census records of Lincoln and Pulaski counties, Kentucky, and the 1830 census of Jackson County, Alabama. It is also so given in a sworn deposition by a great-granddaughter, Attie May (Old) Blaine, of Piedmont, Missouri, October 26, 1948 (hereafter cited as Blaine Deposition)."
John Lewis's marriage to Susan Daniel, sourced in footnote 6, states, "Blaine Deposition. Susan Daniel was the daughter of Terence Daniel (born c. 1745 in Pittsylvania County, Virginia). Her mother was probably a Spencer. Susan Daniel is not to be confused with Susannah Lewis, daughter of Jeremiah Lewis of Greene County, Kentucky. Susannah was married in 1804 to James E. Daniel, brother of Susan Daniel who married John Lewis."
McBride goes on to attribute John Lewis's residence in Pulaski Co., KY; his death in Hardin Co., TN; and a list of his thirteen children to the Blaine Deposition.
Of additional interest is the claim that "sometime, apparently in the 1830's, John Lewis removed to Holly Springs, Marshall County, Mississippi, and lived there two years." Again McBride attributes this to the Blaine Deposition in footnote 12, with the notation: "statement of granddaughter-in-law, Rebecca (Ingle) Lewis (1803-1875)."
So who created the Blaine Deposition? Where did the information come from? And why was the deposition created? In light of the fact that some of this information is in error--John Lewis died earlier in McNairy County, TN with a slightly different list of children--it is important to track this down.
To answer those questions, I first researched Attie May (Old) Blaine in FamilySearch.org. She was a little difficult to find because it turned out that her name was actually Attie Old Blaine, and her sister was May Blaine. Note the muddling of the name by McBride. Attie's maiden name is not Old; her middle name is actually Old. She never married, so Blaine was her maiden name. Additionally, her name and her sister May's name have been merged. It's hard to figure out how that happened. Working on Attie's family tree, by adding sources to it, I was, in fact, able to connect Attie Old Blaine to her great-grandparents: Joel Daniel Lewis and Rebbeca Ingle. McBride's reference to Rebecca Ingle as a granddaughter-in-law is also difficult to untangle. Rebecca may be the daughter-in-law of John Lewis, not a granddaughter-in-law. Attie Blaine is a great-granddaughter of Rebecca's.
This is Attie's connection to Joel Daniel Lewis, and here are the key dates:
Attie Old Blaine (1889-1971)
her mother: Annie Love (Old) Blaine (1863-1948)
her grandmother: Elizabeth Frances (Lewis) Old (1839-1910)
her great-grandparents: Rebbeca (Inge) Lewis (1803-1875) & Joel D. Lewis (1801-1876)
Given these dates, Attie never knew her great-grandparents because they died before her birth. She was about 21 years old when her grandmother died, and she was about 59 when her mother died. On October 26, 1948, when the Blaine Deposition was given, only Attie was still living. Since her sister May was married by then with the surname Newman, only Attie could have given the "Blaine Deposition."
Why was the deposition created? It seems unlikely that any of John Lewis's estate was still in question in 1948. Perhaps a land title needed to be cleared? I've seen the occasional deposition in old DAR applications. Both Attie Old Blaine and her sister May (Blaine) Newman were members of the DAR, but they both were accepted based on the service of their ancestor John Wood - not a Lewis. Besides, John Lewis would have been too young to serve in the Revolutionary War. Perhaps, a lineage society for the War of 1812?
In any event, it seems likely that the Blaine Deposition contained information based on family tradition, which would have become altered as it was passed down over the generations. Additionally, it may have been embellished by Attie's own research.
The deposition's exact contents and where it was filed, if at all, remain unknown at this time. McBride's paper makes no notation of its location, and it may be one of the "private records of a number of descendants" to which he alludes.
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