Believe me, I have researched these Bearden families for years. I have never found any information to prove who the parents were of Ansel Bearden Sr. It is only speculation. Yes, the Ansel b. 1783 (I may have posted 1785 previously)in Georgia is not the same man as Ansel Sr. b. 1775. I think it is possible for Ansel Sr. to be the son of John b. 1717, but there does not appear to be any proof. I think the Ansel b. 1783 may be the son of Richard, who settled in north Georgia. I'm thinking out loud on this as I don't have my notes in front of me. I've got a couple copies of the book "Southern Lineages: Records of Thirteen Families", by A. Evans Wynn (1940). In this book, there is a lot of informatiion on the early Bearden families, from Francis down to John (b 1717). The book is fairly well documented, with references to deeds and other documents. For that particular line, John (b 1717) is as far as it goes. Ron