It is hard to believe that it has been 2 years now since we attended the Everett Reunion in Meridian, MS. Unfortunately, we are unable to attend this year but we wanted to updte you on our relative progress and frustrations since our last Report of Summer, 1995.
We are grateful to Lee Everett, Hickory, MS, who has been involved in this search for nearly 30 years. She loaned us many of her papers when we were in MS in the Summer of 1994 and then sent many other records back with Bill Everett after the 1995 Reunion. We have found ourselves following the same strategies that she pursued many years ago--instead of focusing just on our Thomas and Penelope Everett, we have broadened our search to the entire Rogers’ family as well as working backwards from early Everett neighbors in Lawrence Co., MS. This includes the Dyess family, neighbors of our Everetts both in Lawrence and Newton Counties, MS, that we have also found in GA, and SC. We also keep an eye open for the family names of those who married Penelope and Thomas’ children -- Barksdale, Nelson, and Harris.
We have encountered something of a "dead-end" in gaining information on our Thomas and Penelope. By looking at their ages in the 1820 and 1830 census, we know that Thomas was born between 1770 and 1775 and Penelope between 1775 and 1790. Where they were born and who Thomas’ parents were are still unanswered questions. The 1880 and 1900 census records for Samuel Everett indicate that his father and mother were born in GA . Therefore, we have been focusing our efforts in GA. Some of the things working against us are that all of the GA census records prior to 1820 were destroyed by fire--and by 1820, Thomas and Penelope were already in Lawrence Co., MS. In the absence of census records, land records are your next best source of "who was where when" but it seems that our Thomas was never a land owner and even at the time of his death he still owned no real property. However, because census records may not be completely accurate and as yet we have not been able to corroborate GA as Thomas’ birthplace, we have continued to search records in NC and SC.
In April, Craig went to the Statesboro Regional Library in Bulloch Co., GA. The papers of Alvaretta Kenan Register, a well-known genealogist in the South, were donated to this library. She wrote the book, Everett/Everitt Family: A Genealogical History, (600 pages) which was published after her death in 1985. It traces Nathaniel Everett’s (born 1678) family, particularly his son John Everett, from Tyrell Co., NC through their migration into Effingham and Bulloch Cos., GA in 1785. Her "papers," on which the book was based, included records, newspaper clippings and correspondence from Everetts all over the country for 25 years. She was descended from Nathaniel and his wife Mary. Unfortunately, no relevant information to our search was found.
In spite of these frustrations, we have had two significant new "finds"
this year. Craig found a copy of the will of John Rogers, the older brother
of Penelope Rogers Everett. It was sent to him by a Rogers’ researcher,
Myrtle T. Rogers of Columbia, MS. The will names his brothers and sisters,
but unfortunately not their parents, although it was indicated that his
mother was still living at the time of his death. John Rogers died in 1834
in Copiah Co., MS. There is no doubt that this is the brother of our Penelope
as she inherited from him a Negro woman named Mima that is later found as
part of Thomas Everett’s estate in 1838.
We have begun researching these sisters and brothers in the census records
and have also been corresponding with a descendant of brother Elisha, Don
Hammer of San Antonio, TX
Briefly, we have learned the following about Penelope’s family (listed
in presumed birth order):
John Rogers b. ? d. 1834 Copiah Co., MS
Elizabeth Rogers b. 1788 NC married Bennett Bourne
Penelope Rogers b. 1775-1790 d. 1840 or after
Elisha Rogers b. 1795 NC d.1863 Lawrence Co., MS married Martha Lowe
Asa Rogers
Elijah Rogers b. ? d. 1846 Copiah Co., MS married Catherine Chance
Ducking F. Rogers b. 1814 GA d. ?
Some initial searches of NC records show Rogers with many of these same names living in Duplin Co. NC in the early 1800’s.
Our second find came during one of Dale’s many visits to the Regional Archives in CA. She found 4 Everetts and 8 Rogers from GA in the veterans records for the War of 1812. After a long wait, we received copies of enlistment and discharge papers on Thomas Everett, Elijah and Elisha Rogers. Thomas served in the 1st Regiment of the GA Militia from 10/26/1813 to 3/4/1814 in the Milledgeville, GA area and received pay of $36.98. Elijah enlisted at Camp Jackson 9/23/1814 and arrived at Waynesborough, GA 9/26. He was discharged on 3/4/1815 at Camp Covington and indicated that it took him 13 days to travel the 140 miles to his residence in Washington Co., GA. He received $45.04 pay. Elisha served only briefly, enlisting on 2/3/1815 and then being discharged 2/8 as "unfit for service". If these are indeed the same individuals mentioned above, then it places both our Everett and Rogers families on the frontier of north central Georgia between 1813 and 1815 in Baldwin and, nearly adjacent, Washington county.
A correction. Information we distributed previously showed a possible 1st child of Thomas and Penelope, Elizabeth b. 1798, married to Reuben Collins. Lee Everett’s research also included this child. However, this was purely speculation since it was extremely common that the husband of the eldest daughter be executor of her father’s estate. However, we have found conclusive documentation that Elizabeth, wife of Reuben Collins, was not an Everett. Therefore, their first known child is Temperance born in 1804 (in NC per a questionable census record).
You may know or have things we need! The 1880 census is the first one
that asks for
birthplace of parents. We have found Samuel, as mentioned above. H. Abner
was also living in 1880 but we cannot find him in the index. If anyone has
any information or suspicion where Abner might have been living in 1800,
maybe with a child, we would greatly appreciate your input.
We are also looking for the name and address of the earliest Baptist church in Lawrence Co., MS in hopes of finding some information on Penelope. We have written to Mississippi College, which is said to have all of the early Baptist records, but after two letters and many months, have gotten no response. We have also written to the Historical Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention in Nashville however, the only thing they would provide was a catalog of hundreds of reels of microfilm which could be purchased and searched.
Finally, we are searching for the obituaries of any of Thomas and Penelope’s
children which
might give information about their origin. If you have any knowledge about
where we could obtain these, we would appreciate hearing from you.