Re: Samuel Usher & Elizabeth Bostick of N. Carolina
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In reply to:
Samuel Usher & Elizabeth Bostick of N. Carolina
Don Usher 6/14/04
Hello everyone.First, I'd like to thank all of you who've done such great work tracking down the Usher family.I've had a ton of fun over the past few weeks digging out all of the information you've gathered and posted.
Second, my name is Jeremy Usher, and I'm a descendent of Samuel, and therefore, Thomas Usher.I've been trying to track down Thomas' origins as well and have come across what appears to be some conflicting opinion.From kathy's post here: http://genforum.genealogy.com/usher/messages/709.htmlhttp://genforum.genealogy.com/usher/messages/709.html, it seems like the mystery has been solved and Thomas Usher who died in Richmond, NC was the same Thomas Usher that was christened (not born) in Bristol, RI in 1757.Ignoring for the moment that many references show Thomas Usher from Richmond, NC was born in 1755 rather than christened in 1757 and that his parents were actually married in 1755, I'm more disturbed by the claims that this Thomas from RI married a different woman and had different children than the one that passed away in Richmond, NC.
Thomas from NC's will is shown here: http://www.ncroots.com/Diane/usher.htmlhttp://www.ncroots.com/Diane/usher.html and it talks only about his children Samuel, William, John, Anne, and Thomas, although we see below the will in that same link that the Mathews Cooper from this will must have been his son-in-law who was married to what must have been his first daughter, Elizabeth.This Thomas from this will is definitely my gggggrandfather.
However, there are others, for example this person from the "Real House of Ushers" website:
Comments: Great website with wonderful information! I am a descendant of Hannah Usher, born 1786 in Richmond County, NC, died ca. 1856 in Barbour County, AL, married ca. 1806 to Elias Wilkes (Wilks) in Robeson County, NC. Hannah was the daughter of Thomas Usher, born 1757 in Bristol, RI, and his wife Ann. Is anyone else researching this line?
and others on the ancestry.com family trees like this one: http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/1494795/person/-1416158123?stid=15043637&spid=203658182&pg=32804%2c32804http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/1494795/person/-1416158123?stid=15043637&spid=203658182&pg=32804%2c32804 that show this Rhode Island Thomas to have been married to an Alice or an Ann and having an only child named Hannah.That would make this RI Thomas a different person from the Richmond, NC will Thomas and therefore not my gggggrandfather.
Does someone know the definitive answer here?Was the Thomas Usher, son of Allen, from Rhode Island the same Thomas Usher that ended up filing this will in North Carolina with a son named Samuel, or was the Rhode Island Thomas Usher the husband of Alice (or Ann) and the father of Hannah?
It seems plausible that Thomas Usher from Rhode Island is the same Thomas that filed this will in North Carolina.A Thomas suddenly appears in this part of North Carolina in several instances with a James and a Samuel Usher during the late 1700s.RI Thomas had a brother named James and they were both listed as "Transient" on the Revolutionary War role call in Bristol, RI in 1777.He also had a cousin Samuel who is a candidate for making the trip as well.James, however, would have had to have made the trip south exactly during the year 1777, though, because he ends up - along with Samuel - being a witness on a document in November of that year.It is likely that Samuel came earlier given some of the other historical records...
I am curious to get my hands on a book that supposedly is a bunch of letters from the James Usher line that might clear things up definitively.It is called "Rebuilding the house of Usher : a collection of Usher family letters, 1831-1884 and biographical sketches of who's who in the house of James Usher" by Alma Usher Barclay and Catherine Usher Adams.If anyone knows how I can get my hands on a copy, I would greatly appreciate it.
It would be great to find out for sure if this NC Thomas is the same RI Thomas b/c that would bring clarity to the rest of the tree up the line through to Boston and London and presumably to Yorkshire.Otherwise, I'm back to square one trying to figure out where Thomas came from!
Thanks again for any help you guys are able to provide.
Regards,
Jeremy Usher