Elmer Sparks History
Elmer SparksDaddy ,Grandpa,& Great Grandpa
Sparks, Elmer Barton (*1920 - 1994 ) - male
d. in Myrtle Point, Orgeon
father: Sparks, Gideon (~1897 - 1953)
mother: Sparks, Melissa (*1895 - 1976 )
spouse: Sparks, Kathlene (*1923 - 1996)
--------- child:Sparks, Margie Kathlene(*1940 - 1996 )
--------- child:Sparks, William Elmer (*1942 - 1942 )
--------- child:Sparks, Lorriane Virginia (*1943 -)
--------- child:Sparks, Shawver Barton (*1945 -)
--------- child:Sparks, Gilbert Titus (*1946 - )
--------- child:Sparks, Ronnie Parson(*1948 - 2001 )
--------- child:Sparks, Mary Alice (*1950 -)
--------- child:Sparks, Grat Gideon Robert (*1952 - 1953)
--------- child:Sparks, Gearldene Sue (*1953 -)
--------- child:Sparks, Lonnie Wayne (*1954 - 1954 )
--------- child:Sparks, Evenly Mae (*1955 -)
--------- child:Sparks, Clyde Eugene (*1957 -)
--------- child:Sparks, Gearld Veron (*1959 - 1961)
--------- child:Sparks, Larry Wayne (*1960 - 196o)
--------- child:Sparks, Debbie Darlene (*1961 -)
--------- child:Sparks, Ida Diane (*1963 - )
Sparks, Gideon (*1897 - 1953 ) - male Grandpa
d. in Tazewell County, VA
father: Sparks, Joseph (~1868 - 1930)
mother: Sparks, Sarah (*1879 - )
spouse: Smith, Melissa (* - )
--------- child:Sparks, Elmer Barton(*1920 - 1994 )
--------- child:Sparks, Mary Magadlene (*1921 - 1921 )
--------- child:Sparks, Bessie Mae (*1922 - 1923)
--------- child:Sparks, Ernest Elector (*1924 - 1988 )
--------- child:Sparks, Clinton Thomas (*1926 - 2000 )
--------- child:Sparks, Ellen (*1928 - 1928 )
--------- child:Sparks, Claude (*1929 - 1968 )
--------- child:Sparks, Rex Eugene (*1932 - 2003 )
--------- child:Sparks, Clyde Witten (*1933 - 2007 )
--------- child:Sparks, Maude Virginia (*1936 - 1936 )
Sparks, Joseph (~1868 - 1930) - male Great, Grandpa
b. ABT. 1868
d. 1930 in Big Ridge, VA
father: Sparks, Jonas (1842 - )
mother: Harrison, Lucinda (1849 - )
The following email was received on Feb 12, 2002, from Okey L. King(okel@@inetone.net]:
"I have been gathering information on the Sparks family on behalf ofmyh deacon and friend Woodson P. Cox. He is the grandson of JosephSparks, 1868, who was the son of Jonas and Lucinda Harrison Sparks. Hehas given me from memory what he knows of the family of Joseph Sparks. Ifyou are interested, I can send it to you.
"Joseph Sparks settled on Big Ridge which is a section of AlleghneyMountain in Allegheny County, Virginia. Joseph was a farmer and aPrimitive Baptist Minister. He and his wife are buried at the DowdyCemetery in Monroe County, West Virginia not far from Big Ridge. Hisbrothers, William and Jonas, also settled in the area and William is alsoburied at Dowdy. Jonas is buried in an old cemetery on Cove Mountain onthe Virginia-West Virginia line. This cemetery has only fieldstones formonuments and it is not easy to find.
"At this time I have 63 individuals in this Jonas Sparks file countinghis other children that you already have. On my website, there is aphoto of Joseph Sparks officiating at a baptizing on Laurel Creek nearthe Dowdy Cemetery. I have served in this area for more than twenty yearsand have known some of the Sparks for that many years." (signed) Okey L.King.
Mr. King did not provide the address of his website.
spouse: Sparks, Sarah (*1879 - )
----------child: Sparks, Electra (*1896 - )
----------child: Sparks, Lottie (1905 - 1974)
----------child: Sparks, Lucy (<1905 - )
----------child: Sparks, Melinda (*1909 - )
----------child: Sparks, Patty (1912 - 1992)
----------child: Sparks, Lizia (<1918 - 1963)
----------child: Sparks, Sarah (<1918 - 1989)
----------child: Sparks, Elizabeth (1918 - 1989)
--------- child:Sparks, Gideon (*1897 - 1953 )
Sparks, Jonas (1842 - ) - male Great, Great ,Grandpa
b. FEB 1842 in NC
father: Sparks, John Henry (~1819 - 1888)
mother: Hankins, Sarah Matilda (*1818 - 1854)
SQ 3270: "Jonas Sparks was born February 1842 in North Carolina . Hemarried Lucinda "Lucy" Harrison on February 10, 1865, in Tazewell County,Virginia. She was born in January 1849. According to the records of the1880 and 1900 censuses of Tazewell County, Lucy and Jonas had elevenchildren:
(1) Martha b. ca. 1866.
(2) Joseph b. ca. 1868
(3) John b. ca. 1870.
(4) Lydia b. Aug 1871.
(5) Mary B. b. September 1873.
(6) Rachel b. ca. 1875.
(7) Harriet b. March 1877.
(8) Nancy "Nannie" b. June 1878.
(9) Elias b August 1880.
(10) Jonas Jr. b. April 1882.
(11) William b. February 1884."
spouse: Harrison, Lucinda (1849 - )
- m. 10 FEB 1865 in ,Tazewell, VA
----------child: Sparks, Martha (~1866 - )
----------child: Sparks, Joseph (~1868 - 1930)
----------child: Sparks, John (~1870 - )
----------child: Sparks, Lydia (1871 - )
----------child: Sparks, Mary B. (1873 - )
----------child: Sparks, Rachel (~1875 - )
----------child: Sparks, Harriet (1877 - )
----------child: Sparks, Nancy (1878 - )
----------child: Sparks, Elias (1880 - )
----------child: Sparks, Jonas (1882 - )
----------child: Sparks, William (1884 - )
Sparks, John Henry (~1819 - 1888) - male Great, Great,Great Grandpa
b. ABT. 1819 in Wilkes County, NC
d. 9 FEB 1888 in Tazewell County, VA
father: Sparks, Jonas (1793 - 1875)
mother: Brown, Mary (1800 - 1890)
SQ 1087: John Henry Sparks, without doubt the oldest son of Jonas andMary (Brown) Sparks, was born about 1818. He was married three times. Hisfirst wife was Matilda Holloway, who died on May 25 or 26, 1854, upon thebirth of a son. John Henry Sparks was married to Rebecca Mitchell, hissecond wife, on April 23, 1855. His third wife was Sallie Pruett. By hisfirst wife, John Henry Sparks is believed to have had the followingchildren:
(1) Jonas Sparks, born about1842; he married Lucy Harrison in Tazewell
County in 1865;
(2) William Sparks, bornabout 1844;
(3) Martha Sparks, born about1848;
(4) Joseph Sparks, born about1851, and
(5) John Henry Sparks, Jr.,born February 25, 1854; he was reared by his
grandparents andmarried Lucinda Asbury. By his second wife
(Rebecca Mitchell)John Henry Sparks had a daughter named Melissa,
born about 1857.There were probably other children born after 1860.
SQ 3269:
"John Henry Sparks, son of Jonas and Mary (Brown) Sparks , was bornabout 1819 in Wilkes County, North Carolina. He was married three times.His first marriage was to Sarah Matilda Hankins, probably about 1840 inNorth Carolina. She was a daughter of James Hankins. She died onFebruary 25, 1854, in Tazewell County, Virginia. On April 23, 1855, JohnHenry Sparks married (2nd) Rebecca Mitchell in Tazewell County. She wasborn about 1820 and was a daughter to John and Sarah (Hankins) Mitchell.She apparently died about 1871, and John Henry married (3rd) Sarah A.Pruitt on September 21, 1871, in Tazewell County. He died on February 9,1888. He had eight children. Those by his first marriage were: Jonas,William, Martha, Joseph, and John Henry, Jr. By his second marriage hehad: Melissa, Reuben and Rebecca. He had no children by his lastmarriage."
spouse: Hankins, Sarah Matilda (*1818 - 1854)
- m. ABT. 1840 in NC
----------child: Sparks, Jonas (1842 - )
----------child: Sparks, William (~1845 - )
----------child: Sparks, Martha (1847 - 1932)
----------child: Sparks, Joseph P. (1851 - )
----------child: Sparks, John Henry Jr. (1854 - 1936)
spouse: Mitchell, Rebecca (~1820 - ~1871)
- m. 23 APR 1855 in Tazewell County, VA
----------child: Sparks, Melissa (1856 - )
----------child: Sparks, Reuben (1857 - )
----------child: Sparks, Rebecca (~1861 - )
spouse: Pruitt, Sarah (*1848 - )
- m. 21 SEP 1871 in ,Tazewell,
Sparks, Jonas (1793 - 1875) - male Great, Great,Great,Great, Grandpa
b. 2 JUN 1793 in Wilkes County, NC
d. 18 JAN 1875 in Tazewell County, VA
father: Sparks, Reuben (~1755 - 1840)
mother: Buttery, Cassie (~1765 - 1842)
SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1967, Whole No. 59, 1082-1089 at p. 1086:
DESCENDANTS OF SOLOMON AND SARA SPARKS, OF MARYLAND AND NORTH CAROLINATHROUGH THEIR SON, REUBEN SPARKS (ca. 1755-1840),
"Jonas Sparks, son of Reuben and Cassie (Buttery) Sparks, was bornabout 1794 in Wilkes or Surry County, North Carolina. In 1817 he wasmarried to Mary Brown, a daughter of John Brown of Wilkes County. Themarriage bond is dated September 27, 1817 and John Brown was the bondsman.
"On the cover of this issue of THE QUARTERLY appears a photograph ofMary (Brown) Sparks, wife of Jonas Sparks. It has been provided by MaryEtta Sayers Bostic, a great-great-grandaughter of Jonas and Mary (Brown)Sparks. Mary (Brown) Sparks, daughter of John Brown, was born about1801. It is believed that she was still living as late as 1875; thispicture was probably taken sometime in the 1870's.
"Jonas and Mary (Brown) Sparks were listed as members of the SouthFork of Roaring River Baptist Church in 1829. In 1835, Jonas purchased70 acres of his father's home place in Wilkes County, North Carolina,while his brother William R. Sparks, purchased 100 acres. Earlier, onApril 5, 1821, Jonas Sparks had purchased a tract of 30 acres adjoininghis father's land in Wilkes County from Noel Wadill (Wilkes Deed Book1841-51, page 24); this tract was described as lying on "the East Side ofRoaring River." On Mar 13, 1835, Jonas Sparks purchased for $5.00 atract of twenty-five acres from the State of North Carolina. This tractwas described as follows: "Beginning on his own North west Corner at abunch of kornbeans on the bank of Roaring River and running West CrossingRoaring River with William R. Sparkse line fourteen poles to a Stake thenNorth ninety five poles to a Chestnut and Maple in Browns line then Eastwith sd. line Thirty two poles to a Chestnut then South With Browns lineCrossing the river Sixty poles to a poplar at or near to Browns Cornerthen East with Browns line Thirty five poles to a pine in his own linethen west with sd. line forty six poles to the beginning." ( WilkesCounty Deed Book 1841-51, p. 34). The reference to an adjoining tractbelonging to a man named Brown suggest that Mary Brown may have lived ona farm adjoining the Sparks family.
"In 1848, Jonas Sparks moved with his family to Tazewell County, Virginia, and settled in an area called Baptist Valley. Jonas Sparks isbelived to have died there in 1875.
"Jonas and Mary (Brown) Sparks are believed to have been the parentsof ten children. In John Newton Harman's ANNALS OF TAZEWELL COUNTY,VIRGINIA, published in Richmond in 1925, three of their sons areidentified: Jonas J. Sparks, Joshua W. Sparks, and Joseph Sparks. Fromother records, we believe that we can identify most of the other, but wecan not be certain. ( Here follows information on their children, forwhich see their individual files.)"
SQ 3269: "Jonas Sparks, son of Reuben and Cassie (Buttery) Sparks,was born in Wilkes County, North Carolina, on June 2, 1793. It was therethat he married Mary Brown in 1817. (The marriage bond was datedSeptember 27, 1817, and they were doubtless married shortly thereafter.)Mary was born on September 21, 1800, and was a daughter of John Brown.Jonas Sparks died on January 18, 1875, in Tazewell county, Virginia, andMary died there in June 1890. They had nine children. (For furtherinformation about this couple, the reader is referred to the September1967 issue of THE QUARTERLY , Whole No. 59, pp. 1086-88.)
spouse: Brown, Mary (1800 - 1890)
- m. AFT. 27 SEP 1817 in Wilkes County, NC
----------child: Sparks, John Henry (~1819 - 1888)
----------child: Sparks, Reuben R. (~1820 - )
----------child: Sparks, Sarah M. (~1822 - )
----------child: Sparks, Timothy (1823 - 1907)
----------child: Sparks, Malinda (1824 - )
----------child: Sparks, Shadrach (~1828 - )
----------child: Sparks, Joshua William (~1830 - 1903)
----------child: Sparks, Jonas J. (1833 - 1911)
----------child: Sparks, Joseph (~1838 - )
Sparks, Reuben (~1755 - 1840) - male Great,Great, Great,Great,Great, Grandpa
b. ABT. 1755 in Rowan County, NC
d. 13 JUL 1840 in Old R.R. Baptist Church, Wilkes County, NC
father: Sparks, Solomon (~1725 - <1800)
mother: ???, Sarah (*1728 - <1800)
See SPARKS QUARTERLY, September 1967, Whole No. 59, pp 1082-1089:
"DESCENDANTS OF SOLOMON AND SARAH SPARKS, OF MARYLAND ANDNORTH CAROLINA
THROUGH THEIR SON, REUBEN SPARKS (ca.1755-1840)":
[The article begins by including a brief history of the parents ofReuben Sparks for which see the notes under Solomon Sparks, (356)].
REUBEN SPARKS (ca. 1755-1840), SON OF SOLOMON AND SARAHSPARKS
"Reuben Sparks, believed to have been the second son of Solomon andSarah Sparks, was born in Rowan County, North Carolina, about 1755 . Hewas married about 1783, probably in Wilkes County, North Carolina, toCassa (or Cassie) Buttery, who was born about 1765 and died in 1842. Shewas probably the daughter of, or closely related to Timothy Buttery,whose estate was settled in 1802 in Wilkes County. (According to theMinutes of the Wilkes County Court dated February 1, 1802, Reuben Sparksand Richard Allen were securities for the bonds of Mary Buttery and JesseAllen who were named as administrators of Timothy Buttery's estate. In asubsequent court record, Mary Buttery is identified as the widow ofTimothy. In 1806 she married as her second husband Joseph Thomson(Wilkes County Marriage Bonddated Mary 4, 1806.)
"Reuben Sparks is mentioned frequently in the land and court recordsof Wilkes County. He frequently served on juries, helped to lay outroads, and he was an active member of the South Fork of Roaring RiverBaptist Church. In 1829, 1830, 1832 and 1834, he served as a delegate tothe Baptist Association. Like his father, he owned land in both WilkesCounty and in Surry County. In 1792, he purchased 340 acres in SurryCounty on Hunting Creek from Richard Goode for 50 pounds (Book E, pp.229-30). In 1797, he sold 170 acres in Surry County "on the North Forkof Hunting Creek on the Brushy Mountain" to James Denney for 100 pounds(Book G, pp. 365-66). In 1799, he purchased a tract of 300 acres inWilkes County on the Big Elkin from Andrew Crow (Book E, p. 306). In1800 he sold a tract of 179 acres in Surry County on Hunting Creek on theBrushy Mountain to William Jeffrey (Book H, p. 318). On March 5, 1835,Reuben Sparks sold a tract of 100 acres on Roaring River in Wilkes Countyto William R. Sparks, his son, for $300 (Book 1841-51, p.44). This landwas described as where "the sd. Reuben Sparks now lives." On the sameday he sold an adjoining tract of 70 acres to his son Jonas Sparks for$300 (Book 1841-51, p.42).
"According to the records of Old Roaring River Baptist Church inWilkes County, Reuben Sparks died at 2:00 A.M. on July 13, 1840. Hiswife Cassie Sparks, died about 1842. It is believed that Reuben andCassie (Buttery) Sparks were the parents of the following children: [Hereare listed eight children. Later information published in March, 1988{see below} repeats and corrects the information commencing on page 1084which will not be included here.]
SOME DESCENDANTS OF REUBEN AND CASSA (BUTTERY)SPARKS
"In the QUARTERLY of September 1967 (Vol. XV, No. 3, Whole No. 59) wedevoted several pages [JS: See Above] to a record of the family of ReubenSparks (ca.1755-1840) and his wife, Cassa (or Cassie) (Buttery) Sparks(ca.1765 -1842). Reuben Sparks was a son of Solomon and Sarah Sparks whomoved from Frederick County, Maryland, to Rowan County, North Carolina,in 1753. Reuben was born after the family moved to North Carolina; helived and died in the area of Wilkes and Surry Counties. Reuben and Cassa(Buttery) Sparks had eight children, one of whom was Lydia, born about1804. She married Henry Bauguess. One of their descendants, Tim Petermanof 11315 Applewood Dr., Kansas City, Mo. (64134), has supplied us withnew information regarding some of Lydia (Sparks) Bauguess' descendants.
"Lydia Sparks and Henry Bauguess were married in the early 1820's. A son,Bryant Bauguess, was born in Wilkes County, North Carolina, on March 29,1823. A daughter, Fanny Bauguess, was born in 1830. There were probablyother children as well. When the 1850 census was taken, Bryant Bauguesswas living in Jefferson Township, Owen County, Indiana. His mother, Lydia(Sparks) Bauguess, was living with him along with his sister, Fanny, andEli P. Bauguess; the latter was probably a brother. Soon after 1850,Fanny Bauguess moved to Crawford County, Illinois, where, on January 6,1853, she was married to Alexander Maleom Eagleton, a son of JamesEagleton. A month later, on February 17, 1853, James M. Eagleton, brotherof Alexander, married Nancy A. Bauguess. She was doubtless a closerelative, perhaps sister, of Fanny. Between 1853 and 1868, Alexander andFanny (Bauguess) Eagleton moved to Arcadia, Crawford County, Kansas. In1869, they moved to Rich Hill, Bates County, Missouri, where theyoperated the Eagleton Hotel. He died about 1900; Fanny died in 1925s atthe age of 95. They had four children:
1. Lydia Margaret Eagleton, born Jan. 22, 1868, died 1949; shemarried Josef Peterman (died 1953) a Swiss immigrant, son ofJakob Peterman. They had eleven children.
2. John Eagleton married Jane ----- and moved to Colorado. They hadfive children.
3. Mable Eagleton married Bert De Bord and had three children.
4. Fannie Eagleton married (lst) - - - - - Mickey; she married (2d)- - - - - Gee. She had four children.
In the March 1988 issue of THE SPARKS FAMILY QUARTERLY, Whole No. 141,pages 3175-3206, continued in the Sept 1988 issue, Whole No. 143 pages3262-3285 are articles devoted to the descendants of Reuben and Cassie(Buttery) Sparks for which see their individual sheets.
See also the article included in his brother John's notes entitled"THE GENEALOGY OF JOHN SPARKS" (359 ), " REVOLUTIONARY WAR PENSIONER OFWILKES COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA" in which Reuben is mentioned on p. 98 asJohn's brother.
spouse: Buttery, Cassie (~1765 - 1842)
- m. ABT. 1783 in Wilkes County, NC
----------child: Sparks, John (~1784 - 1868)
----------child: Sparks, Benjamin (1784 - 1876)
----------child: Sparks, Lydia (~1785 - >1850)
----------child: Sparks, Lydia (1785 - )
----------child: Sparks, --- (~1786 - )
----------child: Sparks, Solomon (~1790 - 1864)
----------child: Sparks, Jonas (1793 - 1875)
----------child: Sparks, --- (~1793 - )
----------child: Sparks, William Russell (1797 - 1880)
----------child: Sparks, Amelia "Millie" (~1799 - )
----------child: Sparks, Amelia (1799 - 1878)
----------child: Sparks, Matilda (1805 - 1878)
----------child: Sparks, Mary (1810 - )
Sparks, Solomon (~1725 - <1800) - male Great,Great,Great, Great,Great,Great, Grandpa
b. ABT. 1725 in MD
d. BEF. 1800
father: Sparks, Joseph (~1689 - <1749)
mother: ???, Mary (~1695 - )
SPARKS QUARTLY, December 1955, Whole No. 12, p. 97:
THE GENEALOGY OF JOHN SPARKS REVOLUTIONARY WAR PENSIONER OFWILKES COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA
" As John Sparks (359) stated in his pension application (SQ 94), hewas born on the 25th of February, 1753, near Salisbury, Rowan County,North Carolina , and removed with his father to what is now Wilkes (thenSurry) County, North Carolina about the year 1772. John Sparks did notidentify his father in his application, but other records prove that hisname was Solomon Sparks (356). Surry County was formed from Rowan Countyin 1770, and the Surry tax lists for 1771 and 1772 have been preserved.On the 1771 tax list , Solomon Sparks is listed, with 3 polls, andWilliam Sparks (???) with 1 poll; Will Sparks(199) and son Matthew(334), 2 polls; James Sparks, 1 poll; and Solomon Sparks (356), with sonsJoseph (365) and John (359), 3 polls.
"Solomon Sparks lived in Maryland before settling in North Carolinaand was very probably the son of Joseph Sparks (344) who died intestatein Frederick County, Maryland in 1749.
"On the 20th of March 1750, Solomon Sparks patented 93 acres inFrederick County, Maryland, and gave his land the descriptive name of"Cold Friday". This land was located on Beaver Dam Branch, a tributaryof Linganore Creek. On the 20th of June, 1753, Solomon Sparks and hiswife , Sarah, sold these 93 acres for 34 Pounds, to Mathew Howard.Solomon is disignated in this deed as a "farmer".
"If Solomon Sparks and his wife Sarah were living in Frederick County,Maryland, as late as June 20, 1753, as this deed would indicate , thentheir son John, born February 25, 1753, was born in Frederick County,Maryland, rather than in Rowan County, North Carolina, and was carried toNorth Carolina as a babe in arms. Although we cannot be sure of theexact date, it is reasonably certain that Solomon Sparks removed with hisfamily some time in 1753 to near Salisbury, Rowan County, N.C. (RowanCounty was formed April 12,1753, from Anson County.)
"The following description of Salisbury is found in a letter writtenon November 24, 1755, by Governor Arthur Dobbs: "The Yadkin here (TradingFord) is a large beautiful river where is a ferry. It is near 300 yardsover, it was at this time fordable scarce coming to the horses bellies.At 6 miles distance I arrived at Salisbury the County town of Rowan, thetown is but just laid out, the Court House build and 7 or 8 log houseserected."
"The Sparkses settled in the Forks of the Yadkin, less than ten milesnorth of Salisbury, in what is now Davie County, North Carolina . SolomonSparks obtained a land grant in 1761, for 25O acres in Row an County, onthe west side of the Yadkin River, opposite the mouth of Muddy Creek. In1762 he obtained a grant for 290 acres on the south side of the YadkinRiver, which adjoined his other land. In 1763 Solomon sold 130 and 3/4acres to Jonas Sparks (354), and 159 and 1/ 4 acres to ValentineVanhouser. According to the statement made by John Sparks in his pensionapplication, Solomon Sparks and his family removed from Rowan County to"what is now Wilkes (then Surry) County, North Carolina, about the year1772." In 1787, as residents of Surry County, North Carolina, Solomonand Sarah Sparks sold 160 acres in Rowan County to Zephemiah Harris, andin 1788 they sold 170 (?) acres in Rowan County to Jonas Sparks. Solomonand Sarah Sparks disappear from North Carolina records after 1788.Solomon does not appear on the 1790 census, and there is no will, nointestate record, and no record of Solomon and Sarah Sparks buying orselling land in Surry or Wilkes Counties, although when the Surry-WilkesCounty Line wa s surveyed in 1778 it mentioned the plantation of SolomonSparks. (Here follows a full copy of the description of the dividingline between Surry Co. and Wilkes Co.)
"Thus Solomon Sparks lived just south of the village of Swan Creek inthe western part of Surry (now Yadkin) County, North Carolina, with landin Wilkes as well as in Surry. Around 1800 the Sparkses and theirconnections owned land for several miles along the Surry (nowYadkin)-Wilkes County line and there are still many descendants in thatarea today.
"It is believed that Solomon and Sarah Sparks were both deceased by1800, or possibly by 1790. Since neither of them left a will, and nofamily Bible or other record has been located, it has been difficult toascertain the names of the children of this couple. However, a power ofattorney recorded in Wilkes County, North Carolina, Court Minutes, onTuesday, August 4, 18O1, gives what we feel certain is a listing of atleast eight of the children of Solomon and Sarah Sparks. (Here follows acopy of the power of attorney. The article continues as to Solomon andSarah's son John Sparks, for which see his notes.)"
THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1959, Whole No. 26; DESCENDANTS OF SOLOMONSPARKS, JR. (DIED 1817) & AND HIS WIFE CHARITY OF WILKES COUNTY, NORTHCAROLINA, Page 382:
"In an article by William Perry Johnson entitled "The Genealogy ofJohn Sparks, Revolutionary War Pensioner of Wilkes County, NorthCarolina," which appeared in the QUARTERLY of December, 1955 (Vol. III,No. 4, p p. 97-104), the data were summarized which have been gleanedthus far on the life of Solomon Sparks, early settler in Wilkes County,North Carolina. In his article, Mr. Johnson pointed out that SolomonSparks was probably born in Frederick County, Maryland, and that he wasprobably a son of Joseph Sparks who died in Frederick County, Maryland,in 1749. Solomon Sparks, with his wife Sarah, and family moved fromFrederick County, Maryland, to near Salisbury, Rowan County (now DavieCounty), North Carolina, sometime during the year 1753. They settled inthe forks of the Yadkin River where Solomon obtained a land grant of 250acres in 1761 near the mouth of Muddy Creek. About 1772 they moved fromRowan County to what is now Wilkes (then a part of Surry) County, NorthCarolina.
"The last record we have of Solomon and Sarah Sparks is dated 1788when they sold land which they still owned in Rowan County to JonasSparks. (Jonas Sparks was probably a brother of Solomon and accompaniedDaniel Boone to Kentucky in 1773...")
THE SPARKS QUARTERLY,September, 1967, Whole No. 59, p 1082,
DESCENDANTS OF SOLOMON AND SARAHSPARKS, OF MARYLAND AND NORTH CAROLINA
THROUGH THEIRSON, REUBEN SPARKS (ca. 1755-1840)
"Solomon Sparks was born in Maryland about 1725. It is probable thathe was a son of Joseph Sparks who died intestate in Frederick County ,Maryland, in 1749. (Solomon named one of his sons Joseph, probably forhis father.) Sometime before 1750, Solomon Sparks married Sarah -----.
"On March 20, 1750, Solomon Sparks patented 93 acres of land inFrederick County, Maryland, and gave this tract the descriptive name ofCold Friday. This land was located on Beaver Dam Branch, a tributary ofLinganore Creek. On June 20, 1753, Solomon Sparks and his wife Sarah,sold this tract of 93 acres for 35 pounds to Mathew Howard. Solomon isdesignated in this deed as a "farmer."
"Sometime in 1753, probably soon after selling this tract of land ,Solomon Sparks moved from Frederick County, Maryland, to near Salisbury,Rowan County, North Carolina. (Rowan County was formed on April 12, 1753from Anson County.) Solomon and Sarah Sparks were among the firstsettlers in that area of North Carolina. Two years after their arrival,Governor Arthur Dobbs visited Salisbury and wrote the followingdescription on November 24, 1755: "The Yadkin here (Trading Ford ) is alarge beautiful river where there is a ferry. It is near 300 yards over,it was at this time fordable scarce coming to the horses' bellies. At 6miles distance I arrived at Salisbury the County town of Rowan, the townis but just laid out, the Court House built and 7 or 8 log Houseserected." (From THE COLONIAL RECORDS OF NORTH CAROLINA, Vol. 5, page 355.)
"Solomon Sparks settled in the Forks of the Yadkin, less than tenmiles north of Salisbury, in what is now Davie County, North Carolina. In1761, he obtained a land grant for 250 acres in Rowan County, on the westside of the Yadkin River, opposite the mouth of Muddy Creek. In 1762, heobtained a grant for 290 acres on the south side of the Yadkin River,which adjoined his other grant.
"By the early 1760's, Solomon Sparks had been joined in North Carolinaby several of his close relatives from Frederick County, Maryland:Matthew Sparks [256], son of William Sample Sparks who was a cousin ofSolomon], William Sample Sparks [201], son of William Sparks who wasbrother of Solomon's father, Joseph and, thus, was Solomon's cousin,Jonas Sparks [354], brother of Solomon, and James Sparks [355], brotherof Matthew and another first cousin once removed of Solomon].
"In 1763, Solomon Sparks sold a portion of his land on the Yadkin toJonas Sparks, who was probably (actually) his brother, and anotherportion to Valentine Vanhouser. According to a statement made by JohnSparks , son of Solomon, when applying for a Revolutionary War pension in1832, Solomon Sparks and his family moved from the Forks of the Yadkin towhat is now Wilkes County (then Surry County), North Carolina, in 1772.When the dividing line between Wilkes and Surry counties was surveyed in1778, it was found that the like cut through Solomon's plantation, butaccording to the Court Minutes, his house was on the Surry side. Thus ,Solomon Sparks lived just south of the present village of Swan Creek inthe western part of what is now Yadkin County, North Carolina.
"By 1800, Solomon and Sarah sparks had both died. Neither of themleft a will, nor has a family Bible record been found listing the namesof their children. However, a document recorded in the Wilkes CountyCourt Records reveals the names of those still living in the WilkesCounty area in 1801. It is a Letter of Attorney dated July 31, 1801,from John Sparks, Reuben Sparks, Solomon Sparks, Jr., Mary Jacks, HannahDenny, Susannah Johnson, and Joseph Sparks to Abel Sparks, all beingchildren of Solomon Sparks. We know from his application for a pensionthat John Sparks, son of Solomon, was born in 1753; it seems probablethat he was the oldest son.
"Assuming that the other children were listed in the Letter ofAttorney in the order of their birth, we may speculate on their birthdates as follows: [here is a list of the eight children of Solomon andSarah Sparks].
THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1991, Whole No. 154, p. 3777:
WILLIAM SPARKS, ca .1725-1801/02
"We know that Solomon Sparks, older brother of Jonas, and closeneighbor of William Sparks in Surry County, remained openly loyal to theBritish Crown. This is graphically revealed in an application for aRevolutionary War Pension application by one George Parks, dated April10, 1833. Congress had passed legislation in 1832 providing pensions forall surviving Revolutionary War soldiers whether or not they were infinancial need, and Parks was one of those who applied. Like many of hisfellow veterans, however, Parks could find no documentary proof of hisservice, which was required by the War Department before a pension couldbe issued. What veterans with this problem often did, besides seekingaffidavits from others who remembered their service, was to try to recallin as much detail as possible the events during the war in which they hadbeen participants. This George Parks did in his application. Herecalled that at the time of the Revolution, he had lived in that part ofSurry County, North Carolina, that was cut off to form Wilkes County in1777 and that in 1779, he thought "in the fall season," he had enlistedin a "Company of Minute Men" for a period of eighteen months . It wasthe primary mission of this company, which was commanded by CaptainWilliam Lenore, to find men in their neighborhood who belonged to Torymilitary units. Some they would hang when they captured them, whileothers were whipped "nearly to death." They also punished civilians whowere judged to be Loyalists, but less severely.
"One of the incidents recalled by Parks had involved "Old SolomonSparks," whom he described as "a celebrated Tory." He and several othermen from Captain Lenore's Company were determined to punish Solomon forhis Tory sentiments, but they knew that he was aware of this danger andwas usually armed. In order to entice him out of his house unarmed, Parksreca lled how he and his comrades had "employed a Whig from a distantneighborhood and a stranger to said Old Tory, to decoy him out of hishouse without his gun under the pretence of being a traveller & inquiringthe Road." Parks stated that the stranger "succeeded admirably" and thatSolomon had, indeed, stepped outside his house unarmed to point the wayfor the stranger.
"The soldiers, who had been hiding, then grabbed Solomon. "He foughtbravely without arms," Parks admitted with a certain degree ofadmiration, and in the fracas, Solomon had "considerably injured thisapplicant by kicking him." The soldiers had succeeded in overpoweringSolomon Sparks, however, and "he was sent down the Yadkin in aCanoe...tied hand and foot, on his back. " Although Solomon's plightmust have been quite precarious, Parks recalled that "he repeatedlyhallowed 'hurra for King George'," as he floated helplessly downstream.(See Park's Revolutionary War Pension File, W27456; BLWt. 53670-150-55 atthe National Archives.)
"Who finally rescued Solomon Sparks we do not know, but he did survivehis ordeal for he was still living in 1788 when he sold to his brother,Jonas, the last of his land in the Forks of the Yadkin."
In 1749, Solomon Sparks signed a petition, with others, for theestablishment of a road from their new church in the Linganore Creek areaof Frederick County to "Baltimoretown" and "Annapolistown." See PIONEERSOF OLD MONOCACY, The Early Settlement of Frederick County, Maryland,1721-1743, Grace L. Tracey & John P. Dern, pg 102-3.
spouse: ???, Sarah (*1728 - <1800)
- m. BEF. 1750
----------child: Sparks, Joseph (~1751 - 1820)
----------child: Sparks, John (1753 - 1840)
----------child: Sparks, Reuben (~1755 - 1840)
----------child: Sparks, Solomon Jr. (~1757 - 1817)
----------child: Sparks, Mary (~1759 - )
----------child: Sparks, Hanna (~1761 - )
----------child: Sparks, Susannah (~1763 - )
----------child: Sparks, Abel (1767 - )
Sparks, Joseph (~1689 - <1749) - male Great,Great,Great,Great, Great,Great,Great, Grandpa
b. ABT. 1689 in Talbot County, MD
d. BEF. 1 MAY 1749 in Monocacy Area, Fredrick, MD
father: Sparks, William (<1646 - ~1709)
mother: Wright, Mary (~1640 - 1730)
See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, Mar 1990, Whole No. 149, pp. 3554-3561:
"[Editor's Note: Joseph Sparks, who died in 1749 in Frederick County,Maryland, was a son of William and Mary ( ----- ) Sparks who migrated tothe Colony of Maryland from Hampshire County, England, about 1663. There,William Sparks died in Queen Annes County in 1709. His biographicalrecord was published in the QUARTERLY of March 1971, Whole No. 73, onpages 1381-1389, and included the text of his will. Named as sons in hiswill were William Sparks, Jr., John Sparks, George Sparks, and JosephSparks, the latter being described as "underage."
"Subsequent to the publication of the article about William Sparks(died 1709), an article dealing with his son, John Sparks, appeared inthe December 1974 issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 88, pages 1699-1704.This was followed by an article containing information regarding WilliamSparks, Jr., eldest son of William Sparks (died 1709), which waspublished in the QUARTERLY of December 1989, Whole No. 148, pages3484-3486. Here, we present an account of the life of Joseph Sparks,youngest son of William Sparks, Sr. who died in 1709.]
"Joseph Sparks, son of William and Mary ( ----- ) Sparks, was bornabout 1690 in Talbot County, Maryland. He was not "of age" (that is, age21 years) when his father made his will on June 21, 1709, in Queen AnnesCounty. From his father, he inherited (along with his brother, WilliamSparks, Jr.) a share of two tracts of land in Queen Annes County called"Hills Adventure" and "Sparks Outlet." The inherited tracts, located onIsland Creek, were also to be shared with another brother, John Sparks,if he (John) became dispossessed of another legacy of land left to him byhis father. In addition, the will specified that in the event thatJoseph Sparks died before coming of age, his share of the land was to goto his brother, William Sparks, Jr. Joseph was also given one yearlingheifer under the terms of his father's will.
"The legacy of land (referred to in the paragraph, above) whichWilliam Sparks, Sr. had given by his will to his son, John Sparks, was a249-acre tract called "Highgate" or more completely "Harden & Highgate."William Sparks, Sr. had purchased the land on February 2, 1707, from Johnand Elizabeth Hamer for 22,000 pounds of tobacco; however, there seemedto have been doubt as to whether Hamer had the right to sell this land.In the event that it was found that Hamer had no right to sell it,William Sparks asked his heirs to return the land to Hamer and then forthem to make provision for John to share equally in the land which he(William, Sr.) had given to his sons, William, Jr. and Joseph.
"Apparently the title to "Harden & Highgate" was not clear, and onMarch 15, 1716, William Sparks, Jr. and John Sparks returned the land toHamer. It also seems apparent that in the exchange of the various tractsof land, Joseph Sparks was given a portion (100 acres) of a 250-acretract of land called "Sparks Choice" to replace his equity in the twotracts of land ("Sparks Outlet" and "Hills Adventure") willed to him andhis brother, William, Jr., by their father.
"Three years later, on March 21, 1719, Joseph Sparks (designated inthe deed as "planter") sold his share (100 acres) of "Sparks Choice" toAugustine Thompson. The consideration was 3,000 pounds of tobacco. JohnWhittington and James Earle witnessed the transaction, and Joseph Sparksconveyed the land by signing the deed by mark. Since he conveyed theland by himself, it seems obvious that he had no wife at that time.(Augustine Thompson was mentioned a number of times in land transactionsof the Sparks brothers; he was obviously a neighbor and a fellow memberof St. Lukels Parish Church in Queen Annes County. The parish registershows his marriage to Elizabeth Ball on November 17, 1729. He died thereon February 26, 1738, according to the register.)
"We have found no record pertaining to Joseph Sparks during the periodfrom 1719 to 1738. From the estimated ages of some of his children, weassume that he was married about 1725, probably when he was about 35years old. His wife's name was Mary, but we have not learned her maidenname. Apparently, she and Joseph continued to live in Queen Annes Countyafter their marriage, and it was there that a son, William Sparks, wasborn to them on April 27, 1738. He was baptized on June 4, 1738,according to an early register of St. Luke's Parish in Queen AnnesCounty. (There is a possibility that Mary was the second wife of JosephSparks. This possibility will be discussed more fully later in thisarticle.)
"Joseph Sparks had a nephew, William Sample Sparks, who was a son(probably the eldest son) of Joseph's brother, William Sparks, Jr. Therewere only a few years difference in the ages of Joseph and William SampleSparks, probably ten at the most, and there appears to have been a closepersonal friendship as well as the family relationship between them. Thisbond apparently was handed down to other members of their families whoselives also became entwined for several generations.
"One of the first indications of a close friendship between Joseph andWilliam Sample is shown by their departures from Queen Annes County.William Sample Sparks left the county prior to 1736, as related by Dr.Russell E. Bidlack on page 3487 of the December 1989 issue of theQUARTERLY. Joseph followed his nephew some time after the birth of his(Joseph's) son in 1738. He probably used a ferry at Kent Island to crossChesapeake Bay to the community of Annapolis and then moved westward,with the aid of a horse-drawn cart, to the general area of Pipe Creeks(Big and Little) where he settled near his nephew. (See the map of thisarea in Frederick County, Maryland, on page 3488 of the QUARTERLY ofDecember 1989.)
"Joseph Sparks died in the spring of 1749. He was a relatively youngman and was probably stricken suddenly since he apparently had noopportunity to make a will. He left his wife, Mary, with a household ofchildren, probably ranging in ages from a few years to adulthood.
"The Frederick County Court appointed Mary Sparks, widow of Joseph, tobe administratrix of his estate and designated two neighbors, Joseph Woodand William Carmack, to take an inventory of his property. As recordedon pages 22-23 of the Frederick County Inventory Book A, No. 1, theinventory amounted to nearly 85 pounds. It was presented to the court onJune 21, 1749, by Mary Sparks. A transcription follows:
Inventory of Joseph Sparks - Frederick County, Maryland, 1749
Liber A #1 Folio 22-23
An inventory of the Goods and Chattels Rights and Credits of JosephSparks, Late of Frederick County, Deceased, viz:
£ S d
To his Wearing Apparil @@ 1 10 0
To three old feather Beds and some bed Cloaths
and three old bed steds @@ 10 0 0
To some putor and some Earthin Ware @@ 1 10 0
To three Iron Potts and two Pott Hooks @@ 2 15 0
To one Iron Kittle and one Iron Skillet @@ 0 10 0
To one Washing Tub, three pailes and
some wooden ware @@ 0 10 0
To one old Chest and old Wooden Lumber @@ 0 15 0
To three Books, one pr Wool Cards and
one Glass Bottle @@ 0 10 0
To some wool and Two Bells @@ 2 5 0
To thirteen head of Cattle, young and old @@ 24 0 0
To two Horses, one mare and one
two-year Horse Colt @@ 18 0 0
To fifteen head of Sheep, young and old @@ 5 2 6
To fourty four head of Swine, young
and old @@ 10 0 0
To one plow, plowshares and colter
and three cleavises @@ 1 10 0
To one old Loom, one old Woollen Wheel
and two old Linnen Wheels @@ 1 15 0
To one old Saddle and Bridle and two
Green Hides @@ 1 0 0
To two old Axes, two Iron Wedges, one
frow and one iron Pott @@ 1 5 0
To a Pair of old Stilyards, two old Weeding
Hoes and some old Iron @@ 1 0 0
To a old Cart and a short Iron Chain @@ 1 0 0
==============================[markedout]===========
To Cash Received for furr belonging to
ye Deceased @@ 1 2 4
Total 84 19 10
Appraised by us the Subscribers this first day of May 1749,
Witness our hands--
[signed] Jos. Wood
11 William Carmack
Creditors Duvalt X Young Creditor to the state of
Joseph Sparks one pound and for
[signed] Osborn Sprigg
Kinn William Sample Sparks his mark +
Rachell Sparks hermark
"On the 21st of June 1749, Mary Sparks admrx of Joseph Sparks, late ofFrederick County Deceased, made Oath on the Holy Evangelists of AlmightyGod that the within Inventory is a Just and perfect one of all andSingular the Goods and Chattels of the said Deceased that came to herhands and possession at the time of the making thereof; that what hathsince or shall hereafter come to her hands possession or knowledge, shewill return in an Additional Inventory; that she knows of no concealmentof any part or parcel thereof by any person or persons whomsoever; thatif she shall hereafter discover any concealment or suspect any to be, shewill acquaint the Commissary General for the time being or his Deputywith such discovery or Cause of Suspicion that it may be enquired into;and that she will well and Truly give an Account of all and Every Part ofthe Deceaseds Personal Estate that shall come to her hands, posession orknowledge.
Sworn before me, [signed] John Darnall, Depy Comy Fredk County.
Account of Joseph Sparks -- Frederick County, Maryland, 1749
Liber 24 Folio 214
The account of Mary Sparks admintx of Joseph Sparks, Decd. The saidAccountant chargeth herself Debtor with the amount of her Decd HusbandsEstate as pr Inventory amounting to in Current money And humbly praysallowance for the following payments & disbursements pr
Payd Mr. Dudley Digges for his father John Digges as pr acct proved& Receipt appears the acct Pounds Shill. Pence
not proved in time but she knows it to be justly due 1 8 1
Payd David Young as pr receipt appears and acct proved 1 0 4
Payd Osborn Sprigg Sheriff as pr acct proved & receipt appears Tobo563 lbs. which at 12 s 6 per
centum is at 4 shillings cash 3 14 4
Payd Robert Gorman pr receipt appears & she declares to be just due 0 8 0
Payd Daniel Brook as pr account proved & receipt appears 0 2 6
Payd Jos. Wood for appraising her husbands Estate as pr receipt 0 5 0
Payd William Carmack for Do as pr receipt 0 5 0
Payd John Hamilton as pr receipt & she declares to be justly due 0 7 0
To Drawing & stating this account 0 5 0
To my Commission on 7 pds. 15 sh. 3 pence 0 14 1
"Nov. 20th 1749. Came the above named Mary Sparks admintx afsd beforeme the subscriber Deputy Comsary the County afsd & made oath on the HolyEvangelist of Almighty God that the above account is just & true whichafter examination is passed & allowed pr me.
[signed] John Darnall, DeptyComy.
"The older children of the large family of Joseph Sparks had reachedmaturity
by the time of their father's death, and some of them were married andhad already begun to establish families of their own. They had alsoheard stories of the cheap, fertile lands available to setters in thewestern sections of the American colonies where no quitrents werecharged. It is obvious that they were impatient for a final settlementand distribution of their share of their father's personal estate.Apparently their impatience was expressed to the Frederick County Courtin the spring or early summer of 1750. When the Court convened at itsregular August term, the justices approved the following memorandum:
"August 1750. Page 64. Memorandum this day towit:
"The twenty-second day of August Anno Dom Seventeen Hundred and Fifty:Mary Sparks, Col. Henry Munday and Thomas Wilson (Toms Creek) ofFrederick County entered into and executed a certain writing obligatoryin One Hundred and Fifty Three Pounds, one Shilling, current money, to bepaid unto Solomon, Joseph, Charles, Jonas, Jonathan, William, George,Merum, Mary, Ann, Rebecca and Sarah Sparks on Condition that the abovebounden Mary Sparks, or some person on her behalf, shall and do well andtruly satisfy and pay unto the above named Solomon, Joseph, Charles,Jonas, Jonathan, William, George, Merum, Mary, Ann, Rebecca and SarahSparks, their executors, administrators, assigns or lawful guardian orguardians their respective parts or portions of Joseph Sparks, deceased,his estate according to Acts of Assembly in such cases made and provided.
"[It should be noted in the above document that the figure of 153pounds and one shilling current money referred to the amount of the bondagreed to by Mary Sparks, Col. Munday, and Thomas Wilson to assurecompliance with this court order; this was not the amount of JosephSparks's estate.]
"The apparent impatience of at least some of Joseph Sparks's childrento obtain their share of their father's estate may only suggest that theywere making immediate plans to leave Frederick County. On the otherhand, their action could suggest some sort of alienation between them andMary Sparks, Joseph's widow. One wonders whether, perhaps, Mary couldhave been a second wife and thus the step-mother of Joseph's oldestchildren. We know that there was a considerable spread in the ages ofJoseph's children, with the son named William (who had been baptized inQueen Annes County in 1738) only about 11 years old when his fatherdied. Might the reason Joseph had no wife to co-sign his deed in 1719have been that he was even then a widower?
"A widow left with small children was not usually required todistribute immediately her late husband's estate among his heirs ininstances where he had left no will. Furthermore, there was not a greatdeal to divide among twelve children. Joseph owned no land at the timeof his death, and the estimated value of his personal property came toonly 84 pounds, 19 shillings, and 10 pence. The payment of debts and thecosts of probating the estate (8 pounds, 9 shillings, and 4 pence)further reduced this total to 76 pounds, 10 shillings, and 6 pence. Inthe absence of a will, the law provided that a widow should receive onethird of her late husband's estate. Assuming that there had been apublic sale and that the articles inventoried brought the amountsestimated to be their value by the appraisers of the estate, this wouldwould have left slightly over 51 pounds in "current money" to be dividedby 12, resulting in 4 pounds and 5 shillings per child. When, forexample, we compare this figure with the appraised value of Joseph's mareand two-year-old colt, which was 24 pounds, we realize how relativelylittle only 4 pounds and 5 shillings could purchase. Considering, also,in what a difficult strait this distribution must have left Mary, we canfind, perhaps, the children's action to be more understandable if Marywere their stepmother rather than their mother. There is also thepossibility, of course, that the older children of Joseph Sparks expectedhis widow to marry again rather soon. We have no information regarding asecond marriage of Mary Sparks, but we are aware that youthful widows didoften marry a second time rather quickly.
"The two men appointed to prepare the inventory of the estate left byJoseph Sparks (Joseph Wood and William Carmack) were chosen from amonghis neighbors, as was the custom. To perform such service, it was notonly necessary that they be men who were known to be good judges ofproperty values, but they also had to be able to write in a clear hand.Wood and Carmack were each paid five shillings for their service on thisoccasion.
"Joseph Wood, whose wife's name was Mary, was known as "Joseph Wood ofLinganore" to distinguish him from another Frederick County residentknown as "Joseph Wood of Israells Creek." Joseph Wood of Linganore hadacquired a tract of land in 1748 which he named "Wood's Lot." It waslocated a half-mile from present day Unionville according to PIONEERS OFOLD MONOCACY, THE EARLY SETTLEMENT OF FREDERICK COUNTY, MARYLAND,1721-1743, by Grace L. Tracey and John P. Dern, published in 1987. It isnoted on page 103 of this book that "some of the buildings built by Wood[on "Wood's Lot"] were still standing in 1956, on Wilbur Baker's farm.11At a meeting of the Frederick County Court in November 1751, "Joseph Woodof Linganore was appointed overseer of the Middle
Part of the Road from Thomas Beatty's to Baltimore." (See p. 88 of THISWAS
THE LIFE, EXCERPTS FROM THE JUDGMENT RECORDS OF FREDERICK COUNTY,
MARYLAND, 1748-1765, by Millard Rice, 1979.)
"William Carmack (1716-1776), the other neighbor who helped preparethe inventory, was a son of Cornelius Carmack who had died in 1748, justa year before Joseph Sparks's death. This family had come to FrederickCounty from Cecil County, Maryland, prior to 1742. William Carmack'swife's name was Jane. They were living where the town of Liberty nowstands when he helped prepare the inventory of Joseph Sparks's propertyin 1749. (See pp. 103-04 of PIONEERS OF OLD MONOCACY.)
"It was a requirement in the Province of Maryland that the inventoryof an estate be signed not only by the men making the inventory, but alsoby the two major creditors of the estate and by two "kinn" of thedeceased. The "kinn" were supposed to be the closest relatives who werenot heirs to the estate, brothers and sisters, as well as brothers-in-lawand sisters-in-law, often performing this service. No brothers orsisters were living near Joseph Sparks when he died, however, so anephew, William Sample Sparks, signed as "kinn," as did also a RachellSparks. We believe that Rachell was the wife of William Sample Sparks.Both signed by mark. Joseph's father, William Sparks (died 1709), alwayssigned his name by mark, as did Joseph and his brothers and most of theirchildren. This does not necessarily mean, however, that they could notread. It is interesting to note that among the possessions of JosephSparks were three books, even though both he and Mary signed their namesby mark.
"The two chief creditors of Joseph Sparks who signed the inventorywere Duvalt Young and Osborn Sprigg. Young signed by mark, which meansthat someone else wrote his name. Because in the final settling of debtsowed by Joseph's estate, Young's name appears as "David Young," webelieve that David was his correct name, not "Duvalt," and that he wasthe David Young identified in PIONEERS OF OLD MONOCACY as one of theearly German settlers in Frederick County (p. 350). Why Joseph Sparksowed David Young 1 pound and 4 pence is not known.
"Osborn Sprigg, the other chief creditor, was identified as "Sheriff"when Mary Sparks paid the 3 pounds, 14 shillings, and 4 pence owed tohim. (Tobacco being the chief medium of exchange in colonial Maryland,through documents proving ownership of tobacco stored in warehouses, itis interesting to note that this amount of current money was equivalentto 563 pounds of tobacco.) Osborn Sprigg, son of Thomas, Jr. and Margaret(Mariarte) Sprigg, first acquired a land grant in 1734 in that part ofPrince Georges County that was cut off to form Frederick County in 1748.Sprigg was never a resident of Frederick County, but continued to live inthat part of Prince Georges County which remained after Frederick wascreated in 1748. In 1745, he was one of four men elected to representPrince Georges County in the General Assembly of Maryland. (See THEMARYLAND GAZETTE of April 26, 1748. ) By 1748, he had become High Sheriffof Prince Georges County, which accounts for his title as used by MarySparks in paying her husband's debt to him.
"Osborn Sprigg owned several tracts of land in Frederick County andwas thus an absentee landlord. At a meeting of the Frederick CountyCourt in November 1749, the Court contracted with Sprigg "to keep a ferryat the mouth of Monocacy until the end of next November Court." The Courtagreed to pay him 7,200 pounds of tobacco for this service. We can besure, however, that he engaged someone to operate the ferry for him. Itwas in November 1749 that Mary Sparks paid Osborn Sprigg the amount owedhim by her deceased husband, and it was then also that he agreed tooperate the ferry at the mouth of the Monocacy River. On January 5,1750, however, he died. His widow, Rachel Sprigg, was appointedadministratrix of his estate. (See THE MARYLAND GAZETTE of January 10,1750, and April 11, 1750.)
"Although Joseph Sparks owned no land in Frederick County, theinventory of his personal estate reveals that he owned a considerableamount of livestock, consisting of cattle, horses, sheep, and swine,along with some basic farming machinery. We can only conclude that heoccupied land owned by someone else, doubtless paying rent for its use.(In Colonial Maryland, all land was owned by the Lord Proprietor and,although grants were made by his office to individuals, persons obtainingsuch grants were not only required to pay "caution money" at the time ofthe acquisition, but also an annual quitrent. When the land was sold toanother party, an "alienation flne" was assessed. Such land could beinherited, but in the absence of heirs, it reverted to the LordProprietor.)
"It seems probable that Joseph Sparks had lived on and cultivated landin Frederick County which belonged to Osborn Sprigg, paying him annualrent, which would, then, explain the fact that Sprigg was one of thechief creditors of Joseph Sparks (in the amount of 563 pounds of tobacco,or 3 pounds, 14 shillings, and 4 pence).
"Perhaps there is a similar explanation for Joseph Sparks's debt toJohn Digges. As seen in her account of expenditures for the estate, MarySparks made a payment from her husband's estate in the amount of 1 pound,8 shillings, and 1 pence to "Mr. Dudley Digges for his father JohnDigges."
"John Digges was both a land investor and a land speculator in WesternMaryland. As described in PIONEERS OF OLD MONOCACY (p. 42), Digges "wasa man of somewhat doubtful honor"; he sold land on occasion to which hedid not have a legal title. As a grandson of Governor Edward Digges ofVirginia, John Digges had obtained warrants for thousands of acres ofland which he claimed entitled him to most of northern and westernMaryland. In 1732, the Maryland Assembly was informed that Diggesclaimed all the vacant land on the Monocacy and its branches. JohnDigges died not long after Mary Sparks paid his son, Dudley, the amountowed by Joseph Sparks. The legal tangles left by John Digges continuedto embroil his family in disputes, however, and "in 1752 Dudley Diggeswas killed in a battle between contesting groups."
"We have not succeeded in identifying Robert Gorman, Daniel Brook, andJohn Hamilton to whom Mary Sparks paid small amounts from Joseph'sestate. They were probably workman from the area who performed suchservices as digging Joseph's grave and providing a coffin.
"The children of Joseph Sparks were probably not named in theMemorandum reproduced on pages 3557-58 in the exact order of theirbirths, although we feel fairly certain that Solomon and Joseph wereamong the oldest of the family. We have found no further recordpertaining to any of the five daughters; however, we have been able tofollow the lives of all of the seven sons for several years after thesettlement of their father's estate. As noted earlier, no further recordhas been found of Mary Sparks, widow of Joseph.
Following are the references to Joseph's sons as recorded in THE SPARKSQUARTERLY:
1. Solomon Sparks married Sarah ------ and they went to Rowan County,North Carolina. See the December 1955 and the December 1989 issues ofthe QUARTERLY, Whole Nos. 12 and 148, respectively.
2. Joseph Sparks married Mary McDaniel, and they lived in FrederickCounty, Maryland, until about 1800 when he went to Bedford County,Pennsylvania. See the March 1955 issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 9;the December 1960 issue, Whole No. 32; the September 1961 issue, WholeNo. 35; the September 1986 issue, Whole No. 135; and the December 1986issue, Whole No. 136.
3. Charles Sparks married Margaret ------ and they went to BedfordCounty, Pennsylvania, then on to Washington County. See the June 1963issue of the QUARTERLY, Whole No. 42.
4. George Sparks married Mary ------ and they went to WashingtonCounty, Pennsylvania. See the June 1963 issue of the QUARTERLY, WholeNo. 42.
5. Jonas Sparks married a woman whose name we have not learned, andthey went to Rowan County, North Carolina. See the March 1964 issue ofthe QUARTERLY, Whole No. 45.
6. Jonathan Sparks probably went to Rowan County, North Carolina, andwas probably the Jonathan Sparks who entered land there in 1761.
7. William Sparks married Martha Moore, and they went to WashingtonCounty, Pennsylvania. See the June 1963 issue of the QUARTERLY, WholeNo. 42; the March 1984 issue, Whole No. 125; and the June 1984 issue,Whole No.
126
"Col. Henry Munday who, with Thomas Wilson, entered into the August1750 obligation of Mary Sparks to divide her husband's estate among hisheirs, had obtained his first grants of land in the Monocacy Valley in1738 near the mouth of Pipe Creek where it flows into the Monocacy River.(See the map on page 3488 of the December 1989 issue of the QUARTERLY,Whole No. 148.) When Frederick County was separated from its parent,Prince Georges County, in 1748, Munday was chosen to be one of the fivejustices to manage the legal affairs of the new county. He was also anofficer in the Maryland Militia. Munday died early in 1751. (See P. 333of PIONEERS OF OLD MONOCACY.)
"Thomas Wilson, the other individual named in 1750 to assure that eachheir of Joseph Sparks received his/her proper share of the estate, wasidentified as a resident of Tom's Creek. Tom's Creek flows into theMonocacy River a short distance above the mouth of Pipe Creek. He wasappointed one of Frederick County's 21 constables in November 1753.
spouse: ???, Mary (~1695 - )
- m. 1723 in Queen Anne's County, MD
----------child: Sparks, Solomon (~1725 - <1800)
----------child: Sparks, Jonathan (*1725 - )
----------child: Sparks, Jonas (~1730 - 1805)
----------child: Sparks, Joseph (~1730 - ~1809)
----------child: Sparks, Merum (~1730 - )
----------child: Sparks, Charles (~1731 - ~1771)
----------child: Sparks, George (~1733 - <1806)
----------child: Sparks, Ann (~1735 - )
----------child: Sparks, Rebecca (~1735 - )
----------child: Sparks, William (1738 - <1786)
----------child: Sparks, Mary (~1740 - )
----------child: Sparks, Sarah (~1747 - )
Sparks, William (<1646 - ~1709) - male Great,Great,Great,Great,Great, Great,Great,Great, Grandpa
b. BEF. 6 AUG 1646 in Hampshire, England
d. ABT. 21 JUN 1709 in Queen Annes County, MD
father: Sparks, Thomas (~1615 - <1707)
mother: Davis, Joane (~1619 - )
Below we will find several quotes from the SPARKS QUARTERLY from articlespublished for a 50 year period, each adding new information and somecorrecting earlier data. In the issue for December 1992, Whole No. 160,from pg. 4025 through page 4034, several corrections or augmentationswere published. Rather than copy this whole article as written, relevantportions will hereinafter be inserted near the earlier data which itcorrects or supplements. Such information will be in brackets [ ], andwill bear the notation "No. 160, p. xxx".
See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, Dec 1970, Whole No. 72, pg 1362: IMMIGRANTSNAMED SPARKS WHO CAME TO MARYLAND BEFORE 1675.
"That part of North America now called Maryland was first settled bywhite people in 1631 when William Claiborne came over from the colony ofVirginia and established a trading post on Kent Island. He remainedwithout neighbors until 1634 when the first colonists, led by LeonardCalvert, arrived from England in the vessels called the ARK and the DOVE,and founded the county of St. Marys. The future of the colony (namedTerrae Marie or Maryland in honor of Queen Henrietta Marie) was assured.Thereafter, settlers from England poured in by shipload after shipload."Each freeman who came to Maryland was given 100 acres of land forhimself, his wife and each child over age sixteen. In addition, he wasgiven 50 acres for each child under age sixteen and for each "servant" hebrought with him. "Servants" were persons brought in for hire andobligated to work or in some other manner pay for their transportation.In general, these persons were farmers, mechanics, masons, carpenters,shipbuilders, and often they were educated clerks and teachers.
"Generally speaking, the lot of a servant was not especiallyunpleasant. The indenture usually lasted from two to six years and atthe end provision was made to give him or her a degree of independence.In the case of a male servant, he was given fifty acres of land, an ox, agun, two hoes, and a modest amount of clothing. If the servant were afemale, she received a skirt, waistcoat, apron, smock, cap, shoes andstockings, and three barrels of Indian corn.
"This provision for encouraging new colonists proved so popular thatseven years after the colony was established the land allowance wasreduced from 100 acres to 50 acres for adults and to 25 acres for eachchild under age sixteen. In like manner, the early liberal allowance ofland for transporting colonists was tightened. Initially thetransportation of five men was worth 2000 acres, but in 1636 this waschanged to require the transportation of ten men for this amount of land,and in 1641 it was again changed to require twenty men and women to beworth 2000 acres.
"In many cases, the servant paid for his transportation by simplytransfering the acreage he was to receive as a new colonist to the personwho transported him. In turn, the person who provided the transportationmight transfer his right to the land to another person who had n o actualpart in arranging or providing the transport- ation. The system wasfinally abolished in 1683.
[See SQ No. 160, p. 4026: after repeating the above information takenfrom the article published in December 1970, No. 72, (commencing on page1362), see the following: "Our reason reason for including thisdescription of immigration to Maryland during much of the seventeenthcentury is because we believe, although we cannot prove beyond any doubt,that the William Sparks who died in 1709 in Queen Annes County was thesame William Sparks who had been brought to Maryland in 1662 by a mannamed Thomas Skillington. (On page 1363 of the December 1970 issue of theQUARTERLY, Whole No . 72, we mistakenly copied his name as ThomasSkillingham, and this error was repeated on page 1381 of the March 1971issue, Whole No. 73.)]
[Dr. Sparks noted in his 1970 article, cited above, that the recordsof the assigning of land to persons transporting themselves or others toMaryland are preserved at the Maryland Hall of Records in Annapolis . Wehave obtained a photographic copy of each of the two records pertainingto William Sparks who came to Maryland in 1662. The first of these isfound in Liber 6, called "Patents," page 71, entry #359, and reads asfollows:
I Thomas Skillington of the province of Maryland do assign untoGeorge Richardson all my right and Title of these following Rights ofLand first For Thomas Skillington and Mary his wife, William Sparks,Servants in all Six Ann Powell, Mary Webb, John Green as wittness myhand this 2d of the 10 Month 1663.
[signed] ThomasSkillington]
[From the wording of this transfer of Skillington's claim for land, itis difficult to determine the status of William Sparks. It appears thatAnn Powell, Mary Webb, and John Green were definitely "servants," butWilliam Sparks may not have been a servant, but was simply one of the sixpersons entitled to land. The manner in which Skillington wrote the dateof this transfer of his "Rights of Land" to Richardson is significant. Inother entries on this same page, as well as on preceding and succeedingpages, the name of the month is given. Members of the Quaker faith,however, refused to use what they considered pagan names for the monthsin the Julian calendar, and substituted numbers. Under the Juliancalendar, which would continue to be used in England and her coloniesuntil 1752, March 25th was designated as the beginning of each new year.March was thus considered to be the first month while February wasconsidered to be the twelfth month . Thus, when Skillington dated histransfer of land rights to Richardson as "this 2d of the 10 Month 1663,"he substituted the number 10 for the month of December. The date of thistransfer under the Julian calendar was thus, December 2, 1663.]
[Although we have found no further references to Thomas Skillington inrelationship to William Sparks, there is further reason to believe thatSkillington was a Quaker. An entry appears in the minutes of the ThirdHaven Meeting of the Quaker denomination in Maryland which reads :"Kenellam Skillington of Talbot County, planter, and Lydia Craxtill, lateof Barbados, speinster, married 20 8th month, 1692, at home of ThomasSkillington."]
[The next entry (#372) among Maryland's land patents in Liber 6containing a reference to William Sparks is dated January 5, 1663. Underthe Julian calendar, the year 1663 extended from what would, under theGregorian Calendar, have been March 25, 1663, through March 24, 1664.Under the Gregorian Calendar (in use in England and America after 1752) ,entry #372 was made just a month and three days after entry #359, quotedabove.]
[Entry #372 reveals that George Richardson obtained a warrant for 1300acres of land based on his being credited with transporting himself and aMary Richardson, who may have been his wife, along with twenty-fourothers. These included the six individuals whose transportation had been"assigned" to him by Thomas Skillington, plus six others that had beentransported by Robert Blurkhorse and likewise assigned to him, along withfour individuals transported by John Edmondson and also assigned toRichardson. We can assume that Richardson rewarded rewarded Skillington,Blurkhorse, and Edmondson in some manner for transferring these landrights to him. In the transcription of the entire text of entry #359which follows, it will be seen that the name of Thomas and MarySkillington was mistakenly spelled "Skillinson" and that William Sparkswas called "William Sparke."]
[[Liber 6, Entry #372, dated 5th January 1663 (i.e. 1664 under theGregorian Calendar) Punctuation has been added for clarity in thistranscription. Then came George Richardson and demands Land for thetransportation of himself in Anno 1661, Mary Richardson in 1663, ThomasHayward in 1662, Elizabeth Clarke 1661, Anthony Willson 1659; JohnSkitters 1656 ; Thomas Skillinson 1653; Mary Skillinson 1660, WilliamSparke [and] Ann Powell in 1662, Mary Webb 1661. John Green 1663, JohnGary 1660, Jno Morfett[?] 1663, were Entered by Robert Blurkhorse, dittodie, assigned unto the said Richardson. Francis Devine [and] Mary Devine1660, Edward Goodman 1656, Robert Stapleford 1661, Richard Richardson1663, Elizabeth Cordrass 1661 . Ditto Richardson Enters more rights,Viz: William Lile 1653, Priscilla Lile 1656; John Cooke, James Graner,John Housmond, and Susanna Eastneck, these four assignd him from JohnEdmondson as per assignment. Warrant Issued, ditto die, in the saidRichardsons Name for 1300 Acres, being for all the above mentionedRights, returnable 5t h July next.
[While George Richardson spelled Thomas and Mary Skillington's name as"Skillinson," and William Sparks as "William Sparke," there can be nodoubt that the six immigrants whose land rights he had acquired fromThomas Skillington (Entry #359) were among those for whom he subsequentlyobtained his warrant for 1,300 acres of Maryland land. It should benoted that Entry #372 also identifies the precise year (1662) thatWilliam Sparks came to America. Again, we must emphasize, however , thatwe have no compelling proof that he was the same William Sparks (died1709) for whom we have many subsequent Maryland records. Their being thesame person, however, seems highly probable. {Here ends the insert fromWhole No. 160, at p. 4027}]
"In the index which follows, the names of many colonists have beenomitted and in cases where there were many names, only those settlersnamed SPARKS have been included in the interest of brevity. In futureissues of the QUARTERLY, we hope to be able to trace further the recordof these Sparks immigrants to Maryland. The book and page numbers whichappear in the following list refer to the bound volumes at the Hall ofRecords in Annapolis, MD, entitled INDEX OF EARLY SETTLERS, MARYLAND,1633-1680. (Here find list of names.)
SPARKS QUARTERLY March, 1971, Whole No. 73, SPARKS FAMILIES IN KENT,TALBOT AND QUEEN ANNE'S COUNTIES, MARYLAND, pp. 1372-1374:
"The history of the Colony of Maryland begins with the first LordBaltimore (George Calvert), convert to the Roman Catholic faith, whoprevailed upon King James I to grant him a colony along the Atlanticcoast which would serve as an asylum for Englishmen seeking religiousfreedom. Although the first Lord Baltimore died before his dream couldbe realized, the King granted the promised charter to his son , CeciliusCalvert, the 2nd Lord Baltimore, on June 20, 1632.
"Leonard Calvert, brother to Cecilius, became the Colony's firstgovernor. Although the 2nd Lord Baltimore never visited his colony, hesupervised its development until his death in 1675 and has often beenreferred to as the First Lord Proprietor. [JS Note: Leonard Calvert isthe twelfth great-grandfather of James J. Sparks through James's paternalgrandmother, Mary Theresa (Stone) Sparks.]
"Before Lord Baltimore could arrange to send the fist colonists to hiscolony, a Virginian named William Claiborne had established a tradingpost on Kent Island. For many decades thereafter there was conflictbetween the Virginia traders and settlers on Kent Island (which is nowpart of Queen Anne's County) and the settlers brought from England to theColony by Lord Baltimore. There were also agree ments with William Pennregarding the boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania and with theDuke of York regarding the boundary between Maryland and Deleware. Therewere also Indian uprisings and civil strife but religious freedomprevailed through all of these troubles.
"In the article appearing (above) Dr. Paul Sparks described the systemby which large numbers of settlers were brought to Maryland from Englandin the 1600's. Many of the settlers came as "indentured servants,"individuals and who had traded a term of service, (from two to six yearsfor adults and longer for children), for the cost of passage to America.The individual who wished to emigrate but could not afford the passagewould get in touch with a ship master or his agent and a contract wouldbe drawn up in which the passenger agreed to serve the ship master or hisagent for a stated term of years. When the passenger, now an "indentured servant", reached his destination, his master was free to sellthe passenger's services to any purchaser in order to recoup the expenseof passange. The "servant" then went to live with and work for the newfor the number of years specified in the contract. (The number of yearsof service varied from one "indentured servant" to another because theirskills varied--the skilled artisan brought a highter price than anordinary laborer; thus the agent would have to demand longer service ofthe laborer in order to his indenture and recover the cost of thevoyage.) Many of the early immigrants to Maryland settled on the easternshore of Chesapeake Bay in the area that is now Queen Anne's County. Itwas here that the branch of the Sparks family settled which is traced inthis Article.
"Kent County, comprising what is now the counties of Cecil, Kent ,Queen Anne's, Talbot and a portion of Caroline, was created officially in1642. In1661,Talbot County was cut off from Kent, although Kent Islandremained as part of Kent County until 1695. In 1706, Talbot County wasdivided to form Queen Anne's County. (Queen Anne's accession to theEnglish throne had occurred four years earlier and the new county wasnamed for her. ) The Sparks family in whom we are currently interestedlived in what became Queen Anne's County in 1706. Edward Sparks lived onKent Island (that portion of Queen Anne's County which extends into theBay. ) William and John Sparks, believed to have been brothers, bothowned property in "West Chester Towne", believed to have been the westernpart of what is now the town of Chester; their land holdings were on theChester River (which forms the northern boundary of Queen Anne' s and thesouthern boundary of Kent County) near the present towns of Centrevilleand Church Hill. Island Creek and Southeast Creek are mentioned in thedeed describing the land of William Sparks. There was also a ThomasSparks who was a servant of Richard Tilghman in 1671 who lived on ChesterRiver.
"It is important to keep in mind that records of this branch of theSparks family are found in Kent County up until 1661 when Talbot Countywas set apart from Kent County. From 1661 until 1706, the records ofthis family were recorded in both Kent and Talbot because their land layin both counties and the boundary line was often uncertain. Furthermore,Kent Island remained part of Kent County until 1695. After 1706, recordsof the family are found chiefly in Queen Anne's County , which was carvedout of Talbot County. In 1706 Kent Island also became a part of QueenAnne's County. [nd of article at page 1374.]
See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, March, 1971, No. 73, pp. 1381-1389; SPARKSFAMILIES IN KENT, TALBOT AND QUEEN ANNE'S COUNTIES, MARYLAND; WILLIAMSPARKS (d . 1709):
"Our earliest reference to a William Sparks in Maryland is dated 1663when Thomas Skillington sold to George Richardson the land which he hadbeen granted by the Lord Proprietor for having transported six settlersto the Province, one of whom was William Sparks. The other five werehimself, his wife Mary, Ann Powell, Mary Webb and John Green. A littlelater the same year George Richardson, in making claim for the land soldto him by Thomas Skillington, Richardson gave William Sparks's name asWilliam Sparke and the date of his coming to Maryland as 1662 . Neitherthe name of Thomas Skillington nor George Richardson has been found amongthe records of Kent, Talbot, and Queen Anne's County ; perhaps thisWilliam Sparks was not the William Sparks who died in Queen Anne's Countyin 1709. Further research will probably determine this.
"Our first definite record of the William Sparks who died in 1709living in the area that is now Queen Anne's County, Maryland, is a deedby which he and a man named Thomas Heather purchased jointly a tract of100 acres from Richard Pernes on July 17, 1672, for 5,60 0 pounds oftobacco. This deed was recorded in Talbot County (Deed Book I, p. 213).The land was described as "Lying and being on the North Side of St.Michaels River beginning at a marked Oake Standing at the head of a Smallbranch Running North West & Runing for breadth down the branch East Southeast 50 poles to a marked gumme tree then North East up the River forLength 320 poles being formerly laid out for Francis Martin." Thewitnesses were James and Mary Murphy.
"Apparently William Sparks and Thomas Heather were businessassociates, perhaps even partners, because five years later, on October16 , 1677, Heather publicly acknowledged that he owed Sparks 20,000pounds of tobacco. In this document, Heather's wife was identified asAnna; the document was witnessed by Ralph Elston, Jr., and RichardDuddley. (Talbot County Deed Book 3, p. 93) Tobacco was the chiefmedium of currency at that time in Maryland and Virginia and remained ascurrency until sometime after the Revolutionary War.
"There is no evidence that William Sparks ever lived on the land inSt. Michael's River, located in what is now the sourthern portion ofQueen Anne's County. On July 21, 1696, William Sparks (called WilliamSparks Senr .) and his wife Mary sold this tract to Alexander Ray for10,000 pounds of tobacco. Apparently he had acquired Thomas Heather'sportion of this land earlier. (See Talbot County Deed Book 7, p. 224.)
[See No. 160, p. 4028]: "When we published the March 1971 article, wehad not discovered the Talbot County deed dated September 17, 1677(Talbot Co. Land Record GG#:85:87) by which Thomas Heather (spelled"Hatherd" in the deed), with the consent of his wife, Anna, sold toWilliam Sparks his share (50 acres) of this 100-acre tract. In thisdeed, both Sparks (spelled Sparkes) and Heather were described as thenbeing residents of Talbot County, but what is especially interestingabout this 1677 deed is that it reveals that it was on this same 100-acretract that "the said Sparkes now liveth." The tract, as we have noted,was located on "the north side of St. Michaels River. " Today, thisriver is called "Miles River". It is in what is now the southern portionof Queen Annes County.]
["As we noted on page 1381 of the March 1971 issue of the QUARTERLY,there is a Talbot County record dated October 16, 1677, which was just amonth after Heather sold his interest in the land to Sparks, in whichHeather acknowledged a debt to Sparks of 20,000 pounds of tobacco. HowHeather became indebted to Sparks for this sizeable amount we do notknow. It seems probable, however, that what was described as a "valuableconsideration" as Heather's compensation when he sold his share of the100-acre tract to Sparks was actually in the form of a reduction of hisdebt to Sparks. Thomas Heather and William Sparks were obviouslyneighbors and close associates over a period of many years. We wonderwhether there might have been a family relationship.]
[cont. The finding of the September 17, 1677, deed disproves ourstatement at the bottom of page 1381 that "there is no evidence thatWilliam Sparks ever lived on the land on St. Michaels River." We n owknow that he and his family were, indeed, living there in the autumn of1677 and probably had been living there since 1672.
[cont. As noted on page 1381, William Sparks and his wife Mary, soldthis tract of 100 acres for 10,000 pounds of tobacco to Alexander Ray onJuly 21,1696. However, it must have been considerably before 1696 thatWilli am Sparks had moved his family a few miles north to the 250-acretract of land called "Sparks Choice" on the east side of Chester River .We do not have the exact date of his purchase of this larger tract , forwhich he chose the name, but it was about 1681.]
(Continuing in the SPARKS QUARTERLY, pg 1382:)
"During the years from the early 1670's until his death in 1709,William Sparks's name was frequently recorded in the official records ofKent, Talbot, and Queen Anne's Counties. We cannot, however make manystatements of fact regarding his personal life. He was probably bornabout 1640 in England. His wife's name was Mary and they had at leastfive children, four sons and one daughter. William Sparks graduallyacquired a considerable amount of land. At one time he owned nearly 1,000acres on Island Creek, a tributary of Southeast Creek, which in turn is atributary of Chester River. He was a member of the Anglican faith.
"On August 16, 1681, William Sparks purchased a tract of 100 acresfrom Michael Hackett and his wife Mary of Talbot County for 5,000 poundsof tobacco. This tract had originally been granted on October 16, 1670,to John Mitchell at which time it had been given the name "Adventure."Mitchell had later sold it to Hackett, who sold it to William Sparks.This deed of 1681 (Book 4, p. 68) and the rent rolls describe the tractas lying on the south side of Chester River and on the south-east side ofIsland Creek, and adjoining land owned by John Hawkins. The deed bywhich William Sparks purchased this tract was witnessed by HenryWillcockes and John Parsons. On June 1, 1691, William Sparks sold thistract along with 100 additional acres to Samuel Withers (Book 5, p. 336). (John Hawkins, who owned land adjoining William Sparks's "Adventure ,also owned land on Coursey's Creek; in 1706 the Assembly passed an act toestablish the county-seat of Queen Anne's County on a tract of 100 acres"upon the plantation of Major John Hawkins, in Coursey 's Creek to becalled Queens-Towne." After the Revolution, however, the county seat wasmoved to Centreville. John Hawkins was a vestryman of the parish churchat Chester; when he died in 1718 he was succeeded by Augustine Thompson,another close friend and neighbor of the Sparks family.
"At about the same time that William Sparks purchased "Adventure "from Michael Hackett, he also acquired a tract of 250 acres which hadbeen originally as part of a 450-acre tract for Michael Hackett o n July18, 1681. This 250-acre tract was known as "Sparks Choice" and waslocated on the "east side of Chester River near the head of a smallbranch of Island Creek." Although we have not found the actual patent bywhich he acquired this important tract, we know from the Rent Rolls andsubsequent deeds that this was the land on which Wil liam Sparks and hisfamily actually lived. Anthony Ivy owned the remaining 200 acres in theoriginal tract of 450 acres of Michael Hackett.
"On September 10, 1684, William Sparks obtained a patent from theProvince of Maryland for another tract of land adjoining his homeplantation comprising 100 acres. It had been surveyed for him on June21, 1683 ( Rent Rolls, Queen Anne's County, p. 242). To this new tract,he gave the name "Sparks Own", or "Sparks Oune" as it was first recordedin Talbot County Deed Book A, p. 507, although it had been previouslyowned by Anthony Ivy and his wife Anne. William Sparks purchas- ed thistract from William Coursey, Jr., assignee for Col. Vinceant Lowe who hadobtained it as part of a tract of 3,000 acres granted to him on March 20,1683. The description of William Sparks's tract reads as follows on thepatent dated Septem- ber 10, 1683: "...all that tract or parcell of landcalled Sparks Oune lying in the county of Talbott on the east side ofChester River beginning at a marked oake standing neere the head of abranch on the north side of Island Creeke and running north north-westparallel with a line of a tract of land he ld by Michaell Hackett toCapt. Hide one hundred perches untill it intersects an east and by southline of a parcell of land formerly lai d out for John Mitchell and thenrunning with the said line two hundred perches untill it come to aparcell of land called Sparks Choice and running thence south south-eastone hundred perches untill it comes to a parcell of land called MountHope lately taken up by Henry Wilcocks and from the end of that said linewest and north to the first tree two hundred perches containing...onehundred acres..." For this grant William Sparks agreed to pay the LordProprietor "Rent of four Shillings Sterling in Silver or Gold." (TalbotCounty Land Records, Book SD #A, p.507.)
"Island Creek, mentioned in the patent for "Sparks Own", has itssource about four miles northeast of Centreville, the county seat ofQueen Annes County. It meanders nearly due north as a gentle streamthrough fairly level land until it reaches Southeast Creek, nearly ninemiles away. There , Southeast Creek empties into the Chester River aboutthree miles west of the community of Church Hill. The surrounding areais low and inclined to be marshy. It was, and is, an agricultural area.One of the roads serving the area today is Sparks Mill Road.
"On October 22, 1687, a tract of 114 acres known as "Sparks Outlet "was surveyed for William Sparks. The patent for this tract was issued onJune 12, 1688 (Talbot County Deed Book 2, p. 625). According to thispatent, this tract was assigned to Sparks by Thomas Smithson who was anassignee of Daniel Walker, all being of Talbot County . Walker hadacquired this tract as part of a grant of 1,200 acres on June 13, 1687.In the patent, it is described as "that tract or parcel of land calledSparkes Outlett lyeing in Talbott County neare Chester River betwixt theLand of the said William Sparkes and the Land of John Hawkins beginningat a marked Red oake standing in or near the line of John Hawkins and--?-- runs thence south-west most eighty perches to another marked Redoake thence southeast forty perches to a marked blacke oake att theCorner of a little pocoson, thence east and by south one hundred sixtyperches, and from the end there of Running north and by east towards theLand of John Hawkins one hundred and fourteen perches and from the end ofthe north and by east line runing west and by north to the first Red OakeContaining within the sd lines and now laid out for one hundred andfourteen Acres be it more or less according to the Certificate of surveythereof taken and Returned into the Land office att the City of St.Maries being date the twenty second day of October one thousand sixhundred eighty seaven..." For this tract William Sparks promised to paythe Lord Proprietor "Rent of foure shillings and seven pence sterling insilver or Gold..."
"A near neighbor of William Sparks was John Hamer. On May 12, 1689,William Sparks was named by Hannah Hamer, wife of John Hamer, as her"true and lawful attorney" in connection with the sale of some land.(Tal. Co. Deed Bk 5, p 232)
"On June 1, 1691, William Sparks sold lot No. 6 in the Town of WestChester to John Salter, Joyner, "for a valuable consideration by me inhand already received." (Talbot County Deed Book 7, p. 53). As on otheroccasions, William Sparks signed this deed by mark. The witnesses wereJohn Hamer and William Godinge. John Salter appears to have been a closefriend of William Sparks. He was a prominent man in the area that becameQueen Anne's County in 1707 and was a member of the House of Delegatesfrom 1708 to 1711. He was also a member of the Probate Court and avestryman of St. Paul's Parish. John Salter was a witness along withJohn Hamer, Jr., to William Sparks's will when it was probated in 1709.As noted earlier in the sketch on John Sparks who died in 1700, this sameJohn Salter purchased a lot in West Chester from John Sparks in 1695.There is little doubt that John Sparks (died 1700) and William Sparks(died 1709) were brothers."
"On October 20, 1691, William Sparks purchased from Robert and AnnSmith a tract of 200 acres for 8,500 pounds of tobacco. This tract waspart of a larger tract called "Wrights Choyse" and was located on thesouth side of Chester River "and on the North Side of the South Eastbranch of a Creek in the Said River called Island Creek." In the description of this tract, there is a reference to an adjoining tract "formerly Layde out for Robert Smith." It must have been located very nearWilliam Sparks's other holdings. The witnesses to this deed were ThomasBeckles and Sollomon Wright. (Talbot County Deed Book 5, p. 328) (RobertSmith died about 1703 and Anthony Ivy and Renatus Smith were theexecutors of his estate. They sold his land on Island Creek (150-acres)to John Fowler and it was noted in the deed that it adjoined land ownedby John Hawkins, John Singleton, and Thomas Norris . (See Emory'shistory of Queen Anne's County, p. 39.) Solomon Wright, whose wife'sname was Anna, was a member of a large and prominent family in QueenAnne's County; he was a church warden in 1698. We believe that therewere family connection between the Wright and Sparks families.) "Theday following his purchase of this 200-acre tract, William Sparks and hiswife Mary sold 200 acres of their other land to Samuel Withers for 8,000pounds of tobacco. In all probability, William Sparks increased thevalue of his other holdings through this purchase and sale. As part ofthe 200 acres which he sold to Withers was "Sparks Own" which he hadacquired in 1684. The other 100 acres was a portion of his 250 acretract called "Sparks Choice" which he had acquired in 1681. Thewitnesses to this deed were Solomon Wright, John Salter, and John Chafe.(Talbot
(For limitations of space these notes are continued in notes forWilliam's wife, Mary.)
spouse: Wright, Mary (~1640 - 1730)
- m. 1674 in Queen Annes County, Maryland
----------child: Sparks, William Jr. (~1674 - ~1735)
----------child: Sparks, George (~1678 - )
----------child: Sparks, John (~1680 - 1737)
----------child: Sparks, Joseph (~1689 - <1749)
Sparks, Thomas (~1615 - <1707) - male Great,Great,Great,Great,Great,Great, Great,Great,Great, Grandpa
b. ABT. 1615 in Hampshire, England
d. BEF. 1707
See THE SPARKS QUARTERLY, June 1991, Whole No . 154, page 3753:
"Land records in Queen Annes County prove that this first WilliamSparks had come to Maryland from Hampshire County, England, at least asearly as 1670, as had also his brother, John Sparks. Recent researchstrongly suggests that they were sons of Thomas and Joane (Davis) Sparkswho had been married in Fareham Parish in Hampshire County, England, onOctober 19 , 1635.
"Among the children of Thomas and Joane was a son named WilliamSparks, baptised on August 6, 1646, and a son named John Sparks, baptizedon December 3, 1649. They also had two other sons baptized in theFareham Parish,Church: Francis Sparks, baptized on July 20, 1641, andRichard Sparks , baptised on December 10, 1658."
The World Family Tree disk Vol. 2, file 5319, shows Thomas and Joaneand their descendants for seven generations down to thegreat-great-grandfather of James J. Sparks, Solomon Sr.
spouse: Davis, Joane (~1619 - )
- m. 19 OCT 1635 in Fareham Parish, Hampshire County, England
----------child: Sparks, Francis (<1641 - )
----------child: Sparks, William (<1646 - ~1709)
----------child: Sparks, John (<1649 - 1700)
----------child: Sparks, Richard (<1658 - )