JOHN LANGSTON. WIR00332. Eunice Brooks Freese in her WILLIAM ROSE OF SURRY
COUNTY, VIRGINIA, does not offer much information on John Langston of Granville Co., NC, father of Amy Langston, who was the wife of
William Rose of Granville Co., NC. John Langston had sons named Solomon and James Langston. Refer to the biographies of the
two sons for some evidence that John was father of Solomon and James Langston. He also had a son named Absolem, according to a 1755
tax list of Granville Co. (Ransom McBride, List of Taxables in "Inhabitants of Granville County, NC, 1746, 1750" in NORTH
CAROLINA GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY JOURNAL, Vol 8 [Raleigh, NC: North Carolina Genealogical Society, 1982], p. 28)
Langston is a name long known in Virginia. The land of one Anthony Langston in New Kent Co. is mentioned in the 1662 patent of one
Edmund Machen (Machan), New Kent Co. (Patent Bk 4, p. 283 (388). It is unknown whether he is the progenitor of the later Langstons of Granville
Co., NC.
John Langston, as a witness, appears in the first recorded deed in Granville Co.:
Granville Co., NC Deed Bk A-1, 1 Sept 1746 John Wade to Peter Hill, 100 A of land granted to John Wade Apr 20, 1745 was witnessed by John
Langston, Gideon Macon, Samll. Henderson.
From this, it is known that Langston was one of the early residents of Granville Co., formed 1746 from Edgecombe Co. NC
On the same date, Deed Bk. A-4-5, shows the same witnesses, Langston, Macon, and Henderson, for deed John Wade to Daniel Higdon.
1 Mar 1747/8 [OS] John Langston submitted a petition to the court "for two acres of John Greens land lying upon Reedy Creek on the North
side thereof, whereon to build a water Grist Mill for the use of the Publick."
(Thomas McAdory Owen, HISTORY & GENEALOGIES OF OLD GRANVILLE COUNTY [Greenville SC: Southern Historical Press, 1993] p. 158. Owen
indicates this is the first order of the kind [for a mill] in the records.)
On a list of taxables, Granville Co., 1750, John Langston and his son Absolem and negro Bess appear. The other sons
do not appear, and therefore, were probably not of taxable age.
(Ge Lee Corley Hendrix, "The Inhabitants of Granville County, NC, 1746, 1750," NORTH CAROLINA GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY JOURNAL, V. 8 [Feb
1982], p. 28)
A few months later, on 3 Jun 1752, John Langston gave a deposition about stolen equipment from his mill house. (Owen, p. 159)
In June 1752, John Langston gave an affidavit at court concerning a complaint of Richard Cheek against Peter Collins about the theft of a
gun. (Owen, p. 121)
In 1755, John Langston received two grants from Lord Granville:
[Patent Bk 11]-1903 John Longston [sic] 9 May 1755 374 acres in Granville County in the Parish of St. John on Andrew Hamptons Creek,
joining McCullock's line and John Adcock OR: /s/ John Langston. Wits: W Churton, Sher Haywood surveyed 26 July 1753 SCC: Jno Adcock, Osmond
Gasherd (?) W. Churton D Surveyor Plat reads "...land surveyed for John Brown."
(Margaret M. Hofmann, THE GRANVILLE DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA 1748-1763, V. II [Weldon, NC: Roanoke News], p. 62)
[Patent Bk 11]-1911, page 439 John Langston 10 May 1755 560 acres in Granville County in the Parish of St. John on both sides of Tar
river, joining Ephraim Merret. OR: /s/ Jno Langston. Wits: Jno Haywood, David Hunter surveyed 6 March 1754 SCC: Thomas Roberson, William
Williams Sher Haywood D Sur
(Ibid., p. 63)
(Refer to biography of Ephraim Merrit. Another comment: The William Williams above is one who lived on the Tar River and not the
William Williams, son of John Williams,Sr., who resided in the Nutbush Creek area of Granville Co., NC, in the northern part of the county.)
In Granville Co. Will Bk. 1-104/105, dated 1775, is a bill of sale, John Langston of Orange Co., NC, to son Solomon Langston of Granville
Co. In Will Bk. 1-126/127, dated 1776, is a deed, John Langston of Orange Co., NC, to son James Langston of Granville Co.
William Rose, in making his will in Granville Co. Dec 1768 named as executors wife Ame Rose and brother-in-law James Langston. Jean
(her mark) Langston was a witness; it is surmised she was James's wife. There may have been another brother--Joseph Langston. (1) It is
deduced that Amy Rose, then, was a daughter of John Langston.
Pat Bk 11, No. 2695, Lord Granville to John Shearman, 13 May 1757, shows Shearmans corner adjoined John Langston, Parish of St. John on
both sides of Stoney Creek. John Williams was one of the sworn chain carriers.
(Margaret M. Hofmann, THE GRANVILLE DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA 1748-1763: ABSTRACTS OF LAND GRANTS, V. II. In Margaret M. Hofmann's
books of Granville grants by Lord Granville, there are several references to Langstons. Joseph Langston, for example, was a sworn chain
carrier for the grant of Israel Eastwood in 1762 [Patent Bk 11, No. 1551]. This land joined "Langston's corner" near the Tar River. Also he
was a SCC [sworn chain carrier] for grant of Henry Jones. The above-named John Williams more probably is of the Knap of Reeds area, Tar River,
and not of the "Nutbush Creek" Williamses of the northern part of Granville Co.
The following abstracted Granville Co. deed
seems to confirm the identity of this John Williams: C-91 "both sides of Tar R. on Wm. Williams' line. John Langston to John Williams; wits;
Danl Weldon, Richd Henderson. [Source: Gwynn, Deeds of Granville Co.] Also this: C-702 11 Aug 1760 Wm. Williams to John Williams - N. side
of Tarr R. at Wm. Williams' line. [Gwynn,])
Deed Bk. F-508-509, Capps to Green, John Langston had a mill to which reference is made in this deed dated 7 Feb 1764.
Several Langston males were members of Tar River Baptist Church, probably ca. 1765 (when the church was built). They were James, Solomon,
Absolom [sic].
(George Washington Paschal, HISTORY OF NORTH CAROLINA BAPTISTS, V. I 1663-1805 (Raleigh: The General Board NC Baptist State Convention:
1930).
At an estate sale of Nicholas Holstein, Granville Co., NC Nov Court 1774, among the purchasers were Solomon Langston, William Rose,
Frederick Rose, William Washington, and Richard Henderson, the latter of whom was a county official who probably was attending the sale in that
capacity. Also at the same court, the will of William Hester was proved, one of the witnesses being George Bruce. Bruce was to be the second
husband of the widow of William Rose, Amy Langston. The Roses were intermarried with the Langstons and the Washingtons.
Other Langston Males:
There were a number of other Langston males in the Granville Co. area.
Joseph Langston was a sworn chain carrier noted in Pat. Bk 11, No. 2612 for Thomas Person 27 Jul 1761, both sides of Reedy Creek.
(Hofmann)
Granville Co. Deed Book O-26: James Langston deed of gift to his son, William Langston, 4 Feb 1780. (James, as we have learned, is
son of John Langston.)
Also on page 26: James Langston deed of gift to his son-in-law John Wood, 5 Feb 1780.
Other Langstons in Early Virginia:
From card index of land records, Virginia State Library, it is learned that Langstons were in Virginia as early as 1655 and probably
prior to that:
26 Apr 1655, Anthony Langston, New Kent Co., 1000 A on the S sd of the freshes of York R beyond the land of Colo. Man. Hamond, Pat
3-360.
.... 1681, John Langston, New Kent Co, 1300 acs., formerly granted to Hannah Clark & was found to escheat. "Recorded more fuller
in fo:" see foot of record, Pat 7-108.
In Patent Bk 7-, there is reference to 1316 acs. New Kent Co., beg. at mouth of a small sw. on S. side of Yorke Riv. Also refers to escheat
of Hannah Clarke, and therefore may refer to same tract.
22 Sep 1681, John Langston, New Kent Co., 1316 A beg & c standing on the mouth of a small swamp on the bank of the York R. on the South side
sd river which divides this land from the land of Sir Philip Honywood.
20 Apr 1694, Catherine Langstone (widow relict of John Langstone, decd), Nansemond Co., 380 A On one of the Cypress branches which comes out
of Sarum Creek (Patent 8-335)
Reference to John Langston(e) in these Virginia land patents:
1682/3 patent of Mr. David Crafford, New Kent Co., S. side York Riv. The acreage of 1316 had been granted to Mr. John Langstone, date not
given, who assigned to Mr. William Taylo, 28 Oct 1681, who assigned to sd. Crafford, 28 July 1682. (Nell Marion Nugent, Cavaliers & Pioneers,
Vol 2, p. 253).
21 Apr 1690 patent of Mr. John Lyddall, New Kent Co. St. John's Par. Evidently a tract of 1600 acres had been deserted earlier by Lydall
and had been been granted to Mr. John Langston, 11 Mar 1672/3, but "never pattented and deserted."
By 1694, John Langston(e) was deceased, or else this is another person. The Virginia patent (Bk 8-335) went to Catherine Langstone, Widow
of John Langstone; 380 acs. Nansemond Co., 20 Apr 1694. This for the import of 8 persons.
There are other references to Anthony Langston or Captain Langston, also in New Kent Co., S. side of York River.
Research to be conducted: Refer to des Cognets, pp. 58-59 for two references to a John Langston, county & date omitted.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ |
Additional Notes by the author: Added to July 2005 [from
an e-mail correspondent--not my notes]
JOHN LANGSTON He is called John Langston III by one of his descendants Jane Wade of Clarksville, AR Feb 8 2001 in an e-mail.
(jwade@cawnet.com)
According to Jane Wade, John Langston is the the father of Amey Langston, wife of William Rose of Granville Co. NC. At any rate John Langston and
his son Absolem.. negro Bess...3 appear on a list of taxable of Granville Co. NC in 1750.
(Ransom McBride, List of Taxables, 1750 [Granville County, NC] in North Carolina Genealogical Society Journal, Vol. 8, Feb 82, p. 28)
Two adult Mangum males also appear on the list:
Willm Mangum & son James &
Sollomon Adkisson boarder 3
Saml Mangum 1 (Ibid.)
Granville Co. WB pp. 104-105 John Langston of Orange Co. NC to son Solomon Langston of Granville Co.
As stated, there is no documentation for the following statements:
The following apparently was copied from an unknown source!!! This John Langston, if the same person, would have been about 80 years old, more or
less, an unusual age for that time and place. Perhaps there is mistaken identity.
1) John Langston born about 1710 in Nansemond County, Virginia and his will was probated November 11, 1790 in Greenville District, South
Carolina. [Comment: an unusual span of time for this century.] John married Mary Agnes Mangum, March 2, 1729 in Virginia. Mary Agnes/Agnas Mangum,
born about 1715 in Surry County, Virginia and died about 1742. After Mary's death, John married Elizabeth Person about 1743 probably in Granville
County, North Carolina. Elizabeth Person was born about 1714 in Edgecombe County, North Carolina and died about 1794 in Greenville District, SC.
John Langston and Mary Agnes Mangum's children:
Jane Wade gives his first wife's name as Ann Agnes Mangham (est. 1712-174/42)
1) Absolom/Absalom Langston born about 1729, possibly in Nansemond County, Virginia and died September 1783 at Newberry County, South Carolina.
Absolom married Christian Bennett and had issue. Christian Bennett, born about 1733 in Nansemond County, Virginia and died about 1803 in South
Carolina (from internet - 8/29/02 - check it out)
Others furnished by jwade@cswnet.com (Jane Wade) 2/8/01
James 1731-1818 m. Joannah Davis
Solomon abt 1732-1825 m. Sarah Bennett
Sally b. abt 1733
Amy [see her bio]
Louisa b. abt 1734
Lucinda abt 1735-1783 m. George W. Thompson
Jechonias abt 1740-1780 m. Mary Williams
Joseph Dec 1740-1827 m. Ruth Hopper and Agnes Ragland
Second wife: Elizabeth believed to be Persons
Their children were:
Rebekah about 1744-1802 m. Thomas Williams
Samuel 1745-1825 m. Sarah Young. (This is my line - J. Wade)
Jesse about 1747-1837 m. Mary Young
Molley abt 1753-1804
John abt 1754
Martha "Patta" 1755-1790 m. Hugh McVey
Frances "Fanny" 1759-abt 1850 m. James McElroy
Sarah "Sallie" 1762-aft 1830 m. Aaron Smith, John Dodd, Armistead Anderson
Elizabeth - aft 1790 m. Moses Spann
Jane, Clarksville, Arkansas |
WILLIAM ROSE II. (ca 1729 prob VA-ca Dec 1768 NC) WIR00068. A very well
documented biography of William Rose is found in Eunice Brooks Freese, WILLIAM ROSE OF SURRY CO., VA [Fort Worth, TX: Published by author], and
will not be repeated here. Only added information will be presented.
It is to be noted that many of the families who clustered around Knap or Nap of Reeds area near the Tar River were closely associated, and
several of them were intermarried: Merrit[t], Langston, Washington, a Ragland family. Published documents of Granville Co. bear out
these associations.
William Rose was one of the sureties, along with Evan Ragland for admrx Agnes Merrit, when her husband Ephraim Merrit died
prior to the date of the admn bond, Aug 12, 1760. Refer to the biography of Ephraim Merritt for details.
(Thomas McAdory Owen, HISTORY AND GENEALOGIES OLD GRANVILLE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, 1746-1800, [Greenville, SC: Southern Historical Press,
Inc., 1993] p. 57)
See biography of Thomas Rose for some land transactions in Granville District, Colonial North Carolina, involving both Thomas and son
William or one or the other, beginning ca. 1752. Granville Co. was formed 1746 of Edgecombe Co.
William Rose appears on the 1750 tax list of Granville Co., Jonathan White's list. His father Thomas Rose, Sr. with 2 tithables, appears
on the same list. It is assumed from this list that William Rose was at least of legal age and presumably had land (not proved).
(Ge Lee Corley Hendrix, "The Inhabitants of Granville County, NC, 1746, 1750," NORTH CAROLINA GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY JOURNAL, V. 8 [Feb 1982],
p. 29)
William Rose and his associates, Ephraim Merrit and William Washington, all appear on a Muster Roll of the Regiment of Colonel William
Eaton, Granville Co., NC Oct 8, 1754, in Captain Andrew Hampton's Company. Also in Captain Hampton's Company were William Williams, Serjeant,
and John Williams, Corporal. (The latter two men are probably the sons of John Williams II, formerly of Goochland Co, VA and later of Nutbush
Creek area of Granville Co., NC, but this has not been proved as Jan 2003.)
(Murtie June Clark, COLONIAL SOLDIERS OF THE SOUTH 1732-1774, p. 727)
At Halifax on 9 Sep 1763, both William Rose and Thomas Rose received grants from the agents of Lord Granville. These appear consecutively
in Granville Co. Deed Bk H, page 70 for William Rose and page 70-71 for Thomas Rose. William Rose's grant was for 300 acres for 27 pds.
Virginia money. It was near Kemp Creek & Nap of Reeds Creek. Thomas Rose's grant was for 404 acres of land for 24 pds. Virginia money and it
was near Nap of Reeds Creek, Townsend's line and John Walker's land.
(Timothy W. Rackley, GRANVILLE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA DEEDS, 1763-1766 [Kernersville, NC: Published by author, 1999], pp. 87 and 88.)
William Rose owned land in Edgecombe Co. (part of his inheritance?) or had removed to Edgecombe Co., NC by 1764, so indicated by Eunice
Brooks Freese, compiler of a history of the Rose family of this area. Or, is this another William Rose?
Warren Co., NC Deed Bk A-49: Thomas Mann to William Rose, both of Edgecombe Co. 12 Aug 1764. 40 pds. VA money for 640 A., an Earl
Granville Grant 1 Dec 1760. Wit: James Drake, Asia Drake, Isom Wheless. Ack: Nov. Court 1764, Ben McCulloch, CC. Reg: 10 Jan 1765, Sugan
[Sugar?] Johnson, P.R.
William Rose's abstracted will indicates that by the time of his death, he had accumulated a modest estate, or perhaps a handsome one for
the time and place:
Granville Co. NC unrecorded will-page 54. [Written] Dec 1, 1768 - proved Jan. court 1769- William Rose wills to son Frederick Rose
300 acres on Reeds creek, 6 head of cattle, and 3 sows and pigs when he is 21 years old; to my son William Rose, my lower tract on Nap of Reeds
creek known as "Elwoods," 6 cattle, 4 sows and pigs when he is 21 years old; to son Howel Rose, all land whereon I now live after his mother's
death, she to live and use it for her lifetime; to daughter Sarah Williams, 10 pds; to daughter Elizabeth Rose, 40 pds. when she is 21 years old
or married; to daughter Winneyfred Rose, a negro woman, 5 cattle now at Robert Sorriels when she is 21 years old or married; to my wife Amy
Rose, 2 negroes, household furniture, livestock, for her lifetime and, at her death, to be sold and money to my son Howel Rose, with exception
of setting up Frederick and William with enough of pewter, tools, etc., etc. Exrs: wife Ame Rose, brother-in-law James Langston. Wts: James
Langston, James Willis, Jean Langston.
(Zae Hargett Gwynn, ABSTRACTS OF THE WILLS AND ESTATE RECORDS OF GRANVILLE COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA, 1746-1808 [Rocky Mount, NC: Joseph W.
Watson, 1973], p. 22)
As noted, a number of these heirs were not yet 21 years of age, including Frederick.
The Sons of William Rose II
In Granville Co. in 1774, a William Rose, along with Solomon Langston and William Washington were purchasers of goods at estate sale of
Nicholas Holstein, decd, Nov Ct., 1774. We assume this is the son of William the elder, who was deceased
(Z. H. Gwynn, GRANVILLE CO, NC, WILLS, p. 47. This document refers to William Rose III, as the elder William II was deceased.)
Located and abstracted by Christine Rose, of Rose Family Association, ca. 1995 at North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh in a folder
labeled William Rose, 1789:
"Bond: 4 May 1778, James Langston, Joseph Taylor & Reuben Searcy for James Langston grdn of Howel Rose orphan of William Rose decd. All
sign."
"Inv. William Rose decd, 3 tracts of land, 4 negroes, pers. ppty. Signed: Amey? [written over] & James Langston. July Ct. 1769 retd."
James Langston was probably Howel's maternal uncle.
A Younger William Rose
A William Rose appears in 1786 Granville Co. tax lists is shown in Tarr River District, page 2. No doubt this is William Rose III, as the
older William Rose of Granville Co. was now deceased. Rose is shown 1 WM 21-60; 2 WM under 21 & above 60; 4 WF all ages; 1 black. Also shown
in Tarr River District are Howell Rose and Frederick Rose. These are his brothers.
(Alvaretta C. Register, NC TAXPAYERS)
Fred A. Olds, AN ABSTRACT OF NORTH CAROLINA WILLS FROM ABOUT 1760 TO ABOUT 1800 shows that Rose's unregistered will is dated 1769. In it
he names his wife Amy. His children were: Frederick, William, Elizabeth, Winifred, Patty, and Sarah Williams. Freese shows a more complete
will. |
