William Ruffin (1797-1857)/Margaret Boswell Dugar -- King Wm, VA to West TN
William Ruffin (1797-1857) and his brother James Ruffin (b. 1787) moved to West Tennessee in the early 1830s. They were sons of James B. Ruffin (b. 1754) and Mary Roane. William Ruffin served as a Major on the Staff of Gen. Andrew Jackson during the War of 1812 (even though he was very young). He went on to become a bank president in Somerville, Fayette County, TN and later was on the founding board of the Elmwood Cemetery in Memphis, TN where he is buried in an unmarked grave.
William was married three times (the last two wives being sisters, Eleanor and Mary Shelton ), however there were only descendants coming from William's first marriage to MARGARET BOSWELL DUGAR (abt. 1797-aft. 1831). They had two children, James Drury Ruffin (b. 1817, who married his first cousin Rosa Ruffin, a daughter of Wm's brother James mentioned above), and Mary Eliza Ruffin (b. 1818) (who later married Adolphus Fenton Tucker). No other information has been known about Margaret Boswell Dugar other than her name and that she was from King William County, VA. She died rather early in life.
About a year ago I was sent a transcription of a Will from Fayette County, TN from 1845. It was the will of MARY M. DUGAR, and the will very specifically mentions her "grandchildren", James D. Ruffin and Mary E. Tucker. Both William (b. 1797) and James (b. 1787) are mentioned in the will also.
A recent connection with a fellow researcher has uncovered the MAIDEN NAME of Mary M. Dugar as being "Blackwell", the daughter of Thomas Blackwell of King Wm County, VA. Furthermore, Mary M. Blackwell was married three times and had two daughters (her only children) by two of her husbands: "Peggy Boswell WINFREY" was the daughter of her first husband, an unnamed Winfrey of King William County who died before 1807. By that year, she had remarried Samuel Jones Catlett who fathered her other daughter, Eliza A. Catlett. Unfortunately, Samuel Catlett also died, and left guardianship of Eliza to relatives. By 1810, MARY M. CATLETT negotiated a marriage agreement with FLEMING DUGAR, her third and last husband. This agreement dealt with some of Mary's personal inheritance from her second husband, Samuel J. Catlett, but the agreement also included information on Mary M.'s daughter, PEGGY B. WINFREY, who was to live with her mother and new husband FLEMING DUGAR without rent to be paid, until Peggy married.
Peggy/Margaret married William Ruffin about 1816, since their first child was born in 1817, so that would have given Peggy/Margaret at least six years in the home of her DUGAR step-father. Whether or not she was legally adopted is a matter of speculation (spotty King Wm Records), but at the very least she was KNOWN as DUGAR when she married Ruffin.
The "NEW IDENTITY" of Margaret Boswell WINFREY Dugar is a recent "FIND", and researchers of this family need to take note. There is more to know about this lady than just "a name" ... now there are "official ancestors", at least on her mother's side! Perhaps in time the identity of Peggy/Margaret's father may also be discovered, but for now, we are relishing the breakthrough that takes us this far!
All of these records which give identity to Mary M. Blackwell Winfrey Catlett Dugar are among the existent papers of King William County, VA and many have been compiled by June B. Evans in her book, "The Blackwells of Blackwell's Neck".