Which Archibald Owings Did Jane Kellett Marry?

        ©  Kathy Duncan, 2021

The short answer is not mine. Here's why.

My ancestor, Archibald Owings, was born on 2 March 1750 to Richard Owings and his wife Anna Stonestreet in Baltimore County, Maryland. The Owings family removed to the Laurens County, South Carolina area by 1765ish.

Archibald Owings can be found in Lancaster County, South Carolina by 1790 when his household appeared on the Lancaster County, South Carolina census. His household was composed of one male over 16 (Archibald), six males under 16 (six sons?), and four free white females (wife and three daughters). That would indicate that Archibald and his unnamed wife were not newlyweds. Their household consisted of probably six sons and three daughters, the majority of whom were under sixteen years of age. That means that if they were having children at the rate of one every two years, then they had been married for at least 18 years. That would put their marriage at around 1771 at the latest. There is no way to know how many times Archibald Owings had been married, or if the wife with him in 1790 was his first wife and the mother of all of his children, or if she was a later wife. If Archibald Owings and his wife were married by 1771, then I would guesstimate her birth to be around 1751, give or take a few years. She would have probably been at least 40 years old by 1790. I would also guesstimate that her parents were born by about 1731 or a little earlier. 

My best guess is that Archibald Owings had married prior to his removal from Laurens County so that he was married and had several children by the time he arrived in Lancaster County. 

In October 1792 Archibald Owings witnessed a deed transaction from James Hood to John Hood Sr. in Lancaster County. He was also mentioned in a deed transaction from David Clanton to John Clanton of the Camden District of South Carolina in November of 1792. Since Clanton's land was on Singleton's Creek, which is where Archibald Owings died, Archibald likely died while still in possession of his land. If he did not sell any land while he was living, then it is impossible to learn his wife's name through her release of dower. However, it's still worth searching more thoroughly for land records. 

Meanwhile, back in Laurens County, South Carolina my Archibald Owings had a nephew named Archibald Owings, who was a son of his brother Richard Owings Jr. aka Richard Owings IV. The nephew was coming of age in the mid-1790s, and the two of them have often been confused for each other although they were both generating records in different counties, which is one way to sort them out. Plus, there is their age difference to consider; my Archibald, the uncle, was almost twenty years older than his nephew Archibald. 

By 1820, Archibald Owings, the uncle, was in Kershaw County, South Carolina, which was previously Camden District. His household was composed of just three males - two of whom were 16 to 25 years of age and one male over 45 (Archibald). There were no females in the household which implies that his wife was deceased prior to 1820. This is born out by his will dated 13 June 1826, which does not name a wife. 

Meanwhile, back in Laurens County, South Carolina, Archibald Owings, the nephew, had a large household of young children, and more importantly, he had a living wife. His household was composed of four boys under the age of 10, one boy aged 10 - 15, one man over the age of 45 (Archibald Owings), one girl under the age of 10, one girl aged 10 - 15, and one female age 26 - 44. He and his wife had a total of five sons and two daughters living in the home. 

Then in 1821, Jane Owings, the wife Archibald Owings, and daughter of Jeannette Kellet received a deed of gift from her mother in Laurens County, South Carolina:

The wording of this deed is very clear. On 13 February 1821, Jeannett Kellett deeded a slave woman named Fillis to her daughter Jane Owings, the wife of Archibald Owings. Clearly, Jane, the wife of Archibald Owings was alive and well in 1821 when she received this gift, unlike the wife of Archibald Owings, the uncle, of Kershaw County, who was deceased prior to 1820. When Archibald Owings, the uncle, died in Kershaw County in 1826, there was not a slave woman named Fillis (Phyllis) mentioned in his will. 

More importantly, Kellett can be found as a middle name among the children and descendants of Archibald Owings, the nephew, while it is never found among the children and descendants of Archibald Owings, the uncle. 

What that means for me is that the wife of my ancestor, Archibald Owings of Kershaw County, South Carolina is still unknown. Jane Kellett is ruled out as his spouse, and my hunt continues. 

Archibald Owings' Wife Revealed!