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ASHLAND PLANTATION

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 Henderson, Vance County, North Carolina

(Formerly a part of Granville County)

PLANTATION NAME: ASHLAND PLANTATION
ASSOCIATED LINK(s): Montpelier Plantation -John Williams & Richard Henderson were 1st cousins; Sneed Plantation
ORIGINAL OWNER: Samuel Henderson (1700-1783), associated mostly with son, Richard Henderson
BUILT: ca 1740's
ASSOCIATED SURNAMES: Henderson, Sneed
HISTORY: Ashland Plantation was the home of members of the HENDERSON family for many generations, but it was most notably distinguished as the home of Col. Richard Henderson (1735-1785) the son of Samuel Henderson (ca 1700-1783) & Elizabeth Williams (1714-1790). The Plantation was most likely originated by Samuel Henderson during his early days in Granville County, when he first appeared in records. It is his son, Richard, whose name has mostly been associated with Ashland.  Richard Henderson (1735-1785) was one of the original founders of Kentucky, and along with Nathaniel Hart, John Williams, and 5 others, owned the Richard Henderson (Transylvania) Company. Richard was a compatriate of Daniel Boone, who believed in the prospect of expanding civilization past the mountains. He sent Boone on his first trip to Kentucky in 1764. Boone was represented by Henderson, then a lawyer, in Richard's enterprise to settle the land "west of the mountains". Henderson was seated as a Superior Court Judge at Salisbury, March 5, 1768 and ceased to represent Boone in a litigation pending before the Superior Court. They did, however, continue to confer with each other on the contemplated venture into Tennessee and Kentucky.. In December 1778, due to Henderson's influence with the lawmakers in Kentucky, the Virginia House of Delegates granted his Company 200,000 acres of land in Kentucky between the Ohio and Green Rivers. In 1783, North Carolina delegates also granted land to Henderson, giving him 200,000 acres in Powell's Valley, which became Henderson County, NC. In Kentucky, Henderson County was formed from part of Christian County on June 4, 1799 in honor of Colonel Richard Henderson. Henderson later returned to his home in North Carolina, where he died in 1785 at the age of 50. He is buried at his homestead, Ashland, in Nutbush Creek District, formerly Granville, NC in an unmarked grave.
Ashland came into the hands of Archibald Henderson, son of Richard, who in turn had sold it to Richard Bullock, son of Leonard Henley Bullock. Richard Bullock, whose wife was Ann Maria Martin, had a daughter, Anne Eliza Bullock (1803-1884), who inherited Ashland when her father died. Anne was the wife of Archibald Erskine Henderson (1801-1853) of Granville County, son of Leonard Henderson & Frances Farrar; Leonard, of course, was a son of Richard Henderson. Archibald E. & Anne Eliza Bullock-Henderson's daughter, Euphemia Hamilton Scales 1840-1901), inherited Ashland and after her death in 1901, the house was sold to Thomas Wiggins, and he sold the home shortly thereafter to Adolphus Eugene White, whose descendants now occupy the home.
 
SLAVE POPULATION: Samuel Henderson had only 1 slave listed in his Inventory in 1784. Richard Henderson had 18 Slaves included in a 1791 Inventory of Slaves after the death of his widow, Elizabeth. Archibald E. Henderson (son of Leonard Henderson & Frances Farrar) had 102 Slaves in 1850; his widow, Ann E. Henderson, had 129 Slaves in 1860.

 

RICHARD HENDERSON, Granville County Wills Vol. 2, Pg. 248-

August Term 1791
An Inventory of the Estate of COLO. RICHARD HENDERSON deceased which came to the hands of the Executors after the death MRS. ELIZABETH HENDERSON acting Executrix to the said Estate during her life, who had the whole in possession untill her Death, to wit:
NED
AGGY
ROGER
PEGGY
LUCY
BEN
JERRY
FRANK
JENNEY
WILL
HARRY
CHARLOTTE
SAM
HANNAH
DOLLY
BECKY
ANNY
BOB, who was purchased by MRS. HENDERSON after the death of COLO. HENDERSON in part pay for some lands of the Estate sold REUBEN SEARCY.

 

March 6, 1824
Granville County

SLAVES NAMED IN A LAWSUIT RE. PROPERTY OF RICHARD HENDERSON, who were said to have been sold by either JOHN WILLIAMS or ARCHIBALD HENDERSON:
By ARCHIBALD HENDERSON: BEN
By the honorable SPRUCE McCAY: NED, AGA, & LUCY
By JOHN WILLIAMS: FRANK. SAM, JENNEY & her son BEN
By A. HENDERSON sometime thereafter: CHARLOTTE and REBECCA
A Negro man ROGER it is believed was bought by A. HENDERSON or R. BURTON and the Estate of RICHARD HENDERSON the Testator credited for his price.
Two slaves AMY and LUCINDA were bought by a MR. FALKNER either before or after the death mf MRS. ELIZABETH HENDERSON.
Defendant has been also informed that four or five Slaves, to wit by AMY, PEGGY, HANNAH, DOLLY & JENY after the death of MRS. ELIZABETH HENDERSON went into the possession of ELIZABETH HENDERSON, who intermarried with WILLIAM L. ALEXANDER, but whether she had purchased them or not this defendant is unable to say the fact of their having gone into her possession having been communicated since filing complainants BEN, JENY it is believed and the rest with their increase, such as are living, Defendant has been informed were distributed among the children of said WILLIAM L. ALEXANDER.

Statements in the suit seem to indicate that no complete Inventory of Slaves had been done at the time of the death of RICHARD HENDERSON.

 

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Estate of ARCHIBALD E. HENDERSON, Granville County, NC
August Term 1854
Following Slaves were included in the Inventory of property to remain with ANNE E. HENDERSON, and were the subject of a Court dispute with some of the children & grandchildren of the deceased:
ESTHER
DELIA
WILLIAM
WASHINGTON
JANE
MARY
MARTHA
FRANCIS, an infant

 

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JOHN L. HENDERSON (1798-1847) son of LEONARD HENDERSON & FRANCES FARRAR), never married, so at his death in 1847, he left his property to his brother, ARCHIBALD E. HENDERSON's wife & their children, all the children they now have or may hereafter have:

Probated:

North Carolina
Granville County
February Court A.D. 1848

To my sister [in-law] ANNE E. HENDERSON boy OSCAR.
To my brother WILLIAM F. HENDERSON boy JOHN (son of PEGGY & PLEASANT).
Their children FRANCES ANN, SUSAN M., and LUCY HENDERSON shall have choice of my Slaves:
 

State of NC
Granville County
Directed to the Honourable Court of Pleas and Quarter Sessions for the County of Granvill[sic] County Feby Term 1859. We the Commissioners after being duly sworn S.S. ROYSTER, WILLIAM GILLIAM & JAMES TURNER appointed at Nov Term 1858 to dive the Negroes bequeathed by JNO. L. HENDERSON to R. B. HENDERSON, EFFIE H. HENDERSON, & CATHARINE B. HENDERSON do lay off and allot to the said R. B. HENDERSON the following Negro Slaves viz; LAVENIA & Child POLLY ANN; CLAY, CARY, & LUCY,STANLY & TIMOTHY valued at $4800.33?/100.
To said EFFIE: PEGGY & Child CATE, WILLIAM, PAUL, ELIZABETH, BALDY, ALLICE & EMILY valued at $4900.
To the said CATHARINE: SAVRY WILL, HAYWOOD, ANNETT & FRANKY valued at $4425.?.
The said RICHARD to pay to the said CATHARINE $92.33?100.
EUPHEMIA to pay said CATHARINE $283.33?/100 to equalize the division whereunto we hereunto set our hands and affix our seals this 21st January 1859.
S.S. ROYSTER
WM. H. GILLIAM
JAMES TURNER

 

RESEARCH NOTES: The children of Richard Henderson (1735-1785) and his wife, Elizabeth Keeling (ca 1742-1792), were: Fanny Henderson (1864-1892 Rowan Co, NC), mar: Spruce McCay. Richard Henderson (1764-aft.1796). Archibald Henderson (1768-1822 Rowan Co, NC), mar: Sarah Alexander. Elizabeth Henderson (1770-1806 Granville Co., NC), mar: William Lee Alexander, brother of Sarah Alexander. Leonard Henderson (1772-1833 Granville Co.,NC), mar: Frances Farrar. John Lawson Henderson (1778-1843 Raleigh, NC), never married.

The family of Leonard Henderson & Frances Farrar were:
Fannie McCoy Henderson (1796-1890 Davidson Co.TN; m: William V. Taylor). John Leonard Henderson (1798-1847 Granville Co, NC; never married), Lucy Farrar Henderson (1800-1868 Henderson, KY; m. Richard R. Sneed); Archibald Erskine Henderson (1801-1853 Granville Co. NC, m. Anne Eliza Bullock), and William Farrar Henderson (1806-1891 Caswell Co.,NC, m: Agnes F. E. Hare)

Archibald E. Henderson & Anne E. Bullock had children:
Leonard H. Henderson (1823-1904 Franklin Co, NC). Frances Anna Henderson(1826-bef 1870; m: William B. G. Sneed). Susan M. Henderson (b.1828 ; m: J.H.R. Taylor). Lucy F. Henderson (b. 1831).  Richard Bullock Henderson (1833-1917 Henderson, NC; m: Mary Elizabeth Martin).  Euphemia "Effie" Hamilton Henderson (1840-1901 Greensboro, NC; m: Junius Irving Scales);  Catherine B. Henderson (b.1845; m: Alfred Moore Scales).

 

(Researched & transcribed by Deloris Williams)

MISCELLANEOUS: National Register of Historic Places; Ashland images; Will & Estate of Richard Henderson, Granville Co. NC; Estate of Archibald E. Henderson; Research on Richard Henderson, by Evelyn W. Wallace; Will of Richard Henderson, 1784; Richard Henderson Biography, 1735-1785; Richard Henderson of Granville Co.; Will & Estate of John L. Henderson.

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