Montmorenci Plantation, Warren County, NC

Return \|Home \| Contact \| NCGenWeb \| Statewide MONTMORENCI PLANTATION *(click photos for larger images)* *Warrenton, Warren County, North Carolina*
PLANTATION NAME:	MONTMORENCI PLANTATION
ASSOCIATED LINK(s):	White Rock Plantation
ORIGINAL OWNER:	*General William Williams, a.k.a. "Pretty Billy" (1771-1832)*
BUILT:	1822

ASSOCIATED SURNAMES:	Williams, Alston, Kearney, Davis, Haywood

HISTORY: Montmorenci staircase	General William Williams, b.Feb. 2, 1771,nicknamed "Pretty Billy" was the son of Joseph John Williams (ca 1727-1818) and Elizabeth Alston (1753-bef 1818). He was married 4 times: 1st) Elizabeth Alston (dau/of Samuel Alston & Elizabeth Faulcon); 2nd) Elizabeth Matilda Alston (1791-1813; dau/of William Alston & Martha Hardy); 3rd) Melissa Jane Burgess (1797-1823; dau/of Lovatt Burgess & Sallie Lucas); and 4th) Delia Haywood (1807-1876) the daughter of Sherwood Haywood and Eleanor Hawkins of Wake County,North Carolina; Delia was a granddaughter of Philemon Hawkins, who had died in 1801 at Pleasant Hill Plantation. The unborn child mentioned in the will was named Joseph John Williams (1832-1876). Montmorenci was a plantation between Lickskillet and Highway 401 in the Shocco community. It was built by General William “Pretty Billy” Williams in 1822. Family history claims that General Lafayette stayed at Montmorenci during his 1825 tour of the United States. Montmorenci no longer exists. It was dismantled with portions of the house, including its spectacular staircase, placed in the Dupont family museum, Winterthur, in Wilmington, Del. A large stone from Montmorenci is in the back yard of the Polk House. It was used to hold up a column at Montmorenci. One of the Executors appointed in the will was William's nephew, Joseph John Williams (1800-1833), son of his half-brother, also named Joseph John Williams (1775-1808;son of Joseph John Williams & Rosanna Conner) who had also died relatively young. Joseph's widow, Mary Kearney Davis-Williams (1802-1887; daughter of Archibald Davis & Elizabeth Jane Hilliard) lived at Montmorenci after her husband died in 1833, where she lived for many years. General Williams' son, Joseph John Williams, born a few months after his death in 1832, got married to Eliza Helen Thompson, had a daughter, Margaret C. in 1856 North Carolina, and moved to Leon County, Florida by 1860. He established one of the largest cotton plantations in the area, La Grange Plantation, which had 4150 acres, and he became a very wealthy man. He had 232 Slaves, some of them, no doubt, were those he'd inherited from his father and his sister, Eleanor Williams (she had died in 1844), estates. J. J. Williams had a total of 5 plantations in 1860 Florida, including Hickory Hill and Betton Hill. His total cotton production was 1113 bales from 3,900 acres (1,600 ha) of land. The total value of Williams' holdings was $121,000 and his slaves were worth $150,000. In today's value (2022), his holding would be over $4,000,000 and slave valued at well over 5 million dollars. On November 19, 1876, Williams died from a heart attack in Raleigh, North Carolina while on a visit to see his mother, Delia, who had remarried to George E. Badger after the death of William Williams. She had died the day before. Some have attributed him as being a voter in the first Florida State Election in 1845, however, that is erroneous since J. J. Williams was only 13 years old at that time, certainly not of an age to vote, and not even residing in the State of Florida. It's likely that he was confused with another who was Joseph Williams, b. 1820, who lived in Leon County during those years.

SLAVE POPULATION:	Slaves in the Will of GEN. WILLIAM WILLIAMS, 1832: To son SAMUEL A. WILLIAMS: HOUSE CHARLES DAVY BURT and his wife BRISTER and his wife old Uncle SAM To be sold: BOOKER and SAM HILL, the blacksmith To wife DELIA: SALLY ELIJAH and his wife CYNTHIA and her two children To son SAMUEL: YELLOW NANCY and her family (who live at Union Hill) HARRY and his wife LILLY & his family boy ROBERTSON To daughter MELISSA: MARINA Estate of GEN. WILLIAM "Pretty Billy" WILLIAMS, Warren County, North Carolina, 1832. Pursuant to the Will of the late GEN. WILLIAM WILLIAMS dec'd we, the Executors have proceeded to divide and set apart, the Slaves belonging to the Estate of said decedent, among the Heirs, respectively entitled to the same, and at the following valuation, viz: No. 1 to SAMUEL A. WILLIAMS:
	NAMES:	VALUATION:	NAMES:	VALUATION:
	HARRY HAYWOOD SOLOMON OSBOURNE RALPH LEWIS MARY PEGGY PATIENCE NANCY WILLIAM SPRIGG LAFAYETTE CINDERILLA ROBERTSON RICHARD	$300 500 375 375 300 300 300 350 75 250 210 170 110 50 425 375	PLUMMER MATILDA VIOLET LILA HENDERSON NED NANCY ANDERSON ALPHEUS MARTHA PHIL CHARLES JR. BLOUNT CHARITY OLD JUDY Aggregate Amount:	250 245 210 300 170 140 140 100 50 325 400 300 350 250 1 $7696.00
	Lot No. 2 to MELISSA WILLIAMS:
	TRINKET ANTHONY NELSON HENRY MARY HANNAH FRANCES ALLEN JR. NANCY JR. ANGELINA MARTHA ANN FRANK SAMPSON MARIA, wife of PHIL JULIANNE	$275 500 300 300 245 325 210 170 115 85 65 500 475 325 110	MADISON JIM JOHN CARTER DAVY CLARINDA JACOB CAROLINE GEORGE NORFLETT MADISON ALSTON PATTY BETSY MERINIA OLD CREECY Aggregate Amount:	85 475 375 215 275 425 340 400 165 100 50 300 210 245 1 $7661.00
	Lot No. 3 to MRS. DELIA WILLIAMS:
	HENRIETTA BURTON TOM JOHN BOXTON MINERVA CHINA HARRIET VIRGIL MILLEY PRECILLA CHERRY ANTOINETTE BEN. WILLIAMS MILBRY MAJOR AMEY	$300 500 250 300 245 300 195 165 325 140 90 65 500 325 150 50	RANDOLPH LARKIN BEN BURGESS ANTOINETTE NELSON JR. ANNIS DAVY JR. BECKY SANDY SALLY ELIJAH CYNTHIA RUFUS OLD RHODA Aggregate Amount:	475 475 400 300 350 175 240 155 140 325 275 350 150 1 $7711.00
	Lot No.4 to ELEANOR WILLIAMS:
	DICEY ORIN ALLEN JERRY HILLIARD JOHN BLOUNT MATILDA CORNELIUS ALTIMORE SUSAN BILLY SAM, the Blacksmith GREEN LETTEY WYATT	$325 500 250 300 170 140 325 170 150 100 65 650 475 350 175	RALEIGH HARRY MATTHEW DAVY WILLIS ELIZA WASHINGTON POLLY THOMAS AILSEY SUSAN BOATSWAIN JACK LOUISA HARRIET OLD PHILIS Aggregate Amount:	475 350 250 275 350 350 165 110 85 475 150 275 195 1 $7651.00
	Lot No.5 to JOSEPH JOHN WILLIAMS:
	LUCY ANN WILEY, Carpenter AUGUSTINE PETER WATSON JENNY POLLY JR. BRINA EVERET SEYMOUR HENRY MASON EMELINE OLIVE JR. HILLIARD HINTON RANSOM	$ 45 750 200 250 150 320 140 140 100 50 475 475 350 85 50 475 475	ABRAHAM BRYNA TONEY MARIA ANN ELIZA HUBBARD ANDREW JACKSON BOOKER MOSES OLIVE MILES MARGARET LINNEY NED, a dwarf LIZA, a burnt child OLD SAMPSON Aggregate Amount:	400 300 450 270 195 150 110 65 215 340 120 100 65 50 50 1 $7611.00
	**************** William's daughter, ELEANOR, died in 1844, and her Estate was settled as follows: To the Worshipful, the County Court of Warren In pursuance of an order from your worships, to as directed, the undersigned, Commissioners, on the 30th day of Dec'r 1844, in the town of Warrenton, proceeded to divide the Negroes of the late ELEANOR WILLIAMS, among those entitled to them according to the Will of her father, the late GEN'L WM. W. WILLIAMS of this County; and have allotted them as follows, to wit, To JOSEPH JOHN WILLIAMS, Lot No. 1 consisting of the following slaves, to wit:**
	NAME	AGE
	POLLY ANN ELIZA SAM (burnt) DAVY GEORGE MARY JANE ALFRED HARRIET HENRY THOMAS DAVY WILLIS MATTHEW AILSY BOSON JOHN BLOUNT ALLEN ATIMORE	38 12 10 8 6 4 ½ 19 2 17 62 27 15 38 15 52 16
	To SAM'L A. WILLIAMS, Lot No. 2 consisting of the following Slaves, viz:
	MATILDA BILLY DANIEL ALTIMEGA MARIA WILLIS ELEANOR CORNELIUS SAM (Blacksmith) LOUISA MELISSA SERENA WASHINGTON RALEIGH HARRY SUSAN (daughter of Matilda)	41 13 11 9 6 4 2 18 39 24 6 3 24 36 [age not indicated]
	To MELISSA, Wife of JOS. JNO. LONG, Lot No. 3, consisting of the following Slaves:
	LETTIE WIATT THOMAS MARY ANN RANDOL GRAN EMELINE HILLIARD GREEN SUSAN ELIZA ORRIN JERRY DICY OLD JACK & OLD PHILLIS	39 18 11 9 7 5 6 mos. 17 38 14 24 33 24 27
	There are many additional details that can be found in the complete transcription of the Estate of Eleanor Williams-1844
	****************** In 1856, there was a court action concerning the disposition of some slaves supposedly "loaned" to Pretty Billy Williams from the Estate of his father-in-law, Sherwood Haywood, d. 1829. A complete listing of they Haywood Slaves can be found in the Slaves of Sherwood Haywood, died 1829 on the Warren County NCGenWeb site. From that list, these are an accounting the ones received by Williams, note that I believe the ages were as of the 1829 Inventory:
	MILLY MATILDA MATILDA's child MATTHEW CHARITY HARRY EASTER JOHN EDWARD	9 years 20 years 1 month 14 years 16 years 18 years 21 years 18 years 20 years
	See the entire listing of the Slaves of Sherwood Haywood, died 1829 See the entire Will of William Williams, 1832 for additional details ******************
RESEARCH NOTES:	Children of William Williams: With 1st wife Elizabeth Alston: Samuel A. Williams (ca 1811-1883) No children with 2nd wife Elizabeth Matilda Alston. With 3rd wife Melissa J. Burgess: Melissa Williams (1820-1902) With 4th wife Delia Haywood: Eleanor Williams (1828-1844) Joseph John Williams (1832-1876) Researched & transcribed by Deloris Williams
MISCELLANEOUS:	Will & Estate of Gen. William Williams 1832 ; Estate of Eleanor Williams 1844 ; Slaves Sherwood Haywood 1829 ; Montmorenci Ruins, Library of Congress, Carnegie Collections ; The Williams Family ; Preservation Warrenton ; LaGrange on Wikipedia