Sivils - Family History & Genealogy Message Board

Re: LEWIS/ SIVILS/ BROWN

venicegl — 2009-06-18 08:11:50Z

Hi, I am related to Teletha Sivils Cox and would love to have copies of your Sivils stories, if possible.
Thank you,
Susan

Elizabeth Pary/Perry, b. 1815 in TN: born a Sivils or not?

patriciakrueger1 — 2009-03-15 23:57:28Z

Is there proof that the Elizabeth, b. 1815 in TN (according to the 1850 Bradley Co. TN census, p. 444 or 222) wife of John Perry (also spelled Pary) and lived next door to Jeptha Sivils and family in Bradley Co. TN in 1840 and 1850, was born a Sivils? So many Sivils researchers online have her listed with the maiden name of Sivils. If she was born in TN in 1815, how could she be a younger sister of Wallis, Absalom and Jeptha, and if she is not their younger sister, what would her connection be? Do people draw this conclusion simply because Absalom’s widow and son, Sallie and Timothy George Sivils, are living with Elizabeth and her family in Bradley Co. in 1850? Is it simply that she and her husband lived next door to Jeptha Sivils through the 1840’s and 1850’s? Is it that their son 16 year old son, John Pary, ends up working as a farmhand on the farm of Wallis Sivils’ widow, Virginia, in McMinn Co. in 1870? All things seem to point that she is so closely connected to these other Sivils families that she herself must have been a Sivils, but where can we find proof?

Sorry if this is redundant but I originally posted this line of questioning at the end of a long posting on Solomon and Mary Warden Sivils. I thought it would draw more attention from other researchers as a separate posting.

Re: Solomon & Mary Warden Sivils in NC through 1820

patriciakrueger1 — 2009-03-15 23:26:48Z

First of all let me refer all Sivils researchers to the Feb. 3, 2000 posting by Irv Goode on Genforum titled “Re: Sivils in Norfolk Co. VA”. This posting is full of important information which helps to solidify and verify the connection between the Norfolk Co. VA Sivils and the McMinn/Bradley Co. TN Sivils. I had not seen this information laid out so clearly or thoroughly in other postings on the Sivils family boards. I fully support the conclusions which Irv drew in this posting. At the end of this posting he relates “I could not find this family in 1810 or 1820 but I think that they were in Guilford Co later because the families that they seemed to be associated with in McMinn [Trotters, Levi Only, and Evans] were all from Guilford.”

I would be interested to know what information Mr. Goode has on the connection between the Sivils and these families he names. My information supports the connection between the Trotters and Sivils as having been formed in North Carolina, where Wallis Sivils married Jennie (Virginia) Trotter, and his brother Absalom married Sallie (Sarah) Trotter. The maiden names of Virginia and Sarah are not to my knowledge proven through documentation, but come to us through very consistently identical family traditions held by various branches of their descendants. (Thus I believe that the information in Goodspeed’s biography of Wallis and Virginia’s son Andrew Jackson Sivils of Tipton Co. TN which stated that Jennie’s maiden name was Turner is incorrect.) I, as many others, have always assumed that these Trotter women were sisters who married brothers. I have always wondered whether Jennie and Sallie had brothers or other family members who also migrated to TN around the same time, (I have seen some other Trotters in McMinn/Bradley County area around the same time), but I will have to pursue that at a later time. Perhaps someone has already researched that question and can provide more information.

In reference to Irv's statement about the Only's, I located a John Only, age 43, b. NC, Blacksmith, one of his son's named Levi (which I think makes a case for this being one of the sons of Levi Only), listed next door to Jeptha Civils in 1850 in McMinn Co.

I just recently acquired the information about the connection between the Levi Only family and the Wallis Sivils families in McMinn Co. TN, having to do with Wallis’ oldest son, Jeptha, fathering an illegitimate child with Levi Only’s daughter, Melissa, in 1860. Jeptha never married Melissa, but she and her child California were living with Malissa’s parents according to the 1860 McMinn Co. census. For anyone interested in learning more about this, you could consult Tara K. Painter’s website at: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~painter/Cp...
I found Levi Only in Guilford Co. NC census records in 1810, page 327, 31010/00010/00. He was six entries away from E. Trotter 10010/20010/00. I have not yet located any Sivils in Guilford in 1810.

I do not have any information on the connections between the Sivils and Evans families either in NC or TN., but I would be interested in learning about this.

Like Irv Goode, I had also come to the conclusion that Solomon and Mary Sivils had moved to Guilford Co. NC but through a different approach. As I said above I had several indicators from family tradition sources that Wallis and Absalom had married Trotter sisters in NC prior to coming to TN. So I began a search though all of the Trotter census records in NC from 1790 through 1820. Everywhere I found Trotters, I searched for Sivils families, which as you know is usually quite difficult due to the infinitely variable spelling of the Sivils name by owners of the name, census takers and by the people who interpreted the handwriting of the census takers to create the index to the census records. Whew! Naturally that meant that I did a great deal of browsing and manual searching in these counties where Trotters resided. I began to find a consistent line of Trotters in Guilford Co. who were growing more plentiful as time went on. These began in 1790 with Josiah and Benjamin Trotter in Guilford Co., Salisbury District, page 497. Finally in the 1820 Guilford Co. Census (which is all alphabetized so that it is impossible to know how close any of them lived) I also found two Sivils families on page 101: there is a John Sivel 110010/41010/02 and a ? Sivils 020201/03010/05 eight entries away. The part of the page where the second entry appears is almost completely unreadable; the only letter discernible in the first name is the last letter and could be either an n or m. I can tell that the last name of this entry is Sivils, but I do not think that the creator of the index even took a stab at it.

I don’t think we have enough hard and fast evidence yet to say that this ? Sivils is Solomon and Mary’s family, although I think it is certainly a good possibility based on the ongoing migratory relationships with other families which Irv Goode pointed out in his posting. We need to find more records in Guilford which can corroborate the presence of Solomon and family around 1820. Are there any Sivils researchers who live close to or have access to Guilford Co. records, who might be able to do followup research here?

For now though, let’s just say that this is Solomon’s family. What correlations can we find with what we know about the McMinn/Bradley Co. TN Sivils brothers? In the Guilford Co. census records there are two sons b. 1794 – 1802 and two sons b. 1806 – 1810, and three daughters b. 1804 – 1810. Wow, that was an awful lot of children between 1804 and 1810, 5 in 6 years! In 1820, we know that Wallis (b. Jan. 16, 1789 from his tombstone) would have been 31 at this time, so I do not think that any of these sons could be Wallis. His wife would have been around 18 – 19 at this time (her tombstone birthdate is 1801), so I would assume that he was already married and living in an independent household, although I could find no trace of him in Guilford. All we know about Absalom’s age from subsequent census records is that he was born sometime in the decade from 1790 – 1799, but we also know from the 1800 Halifax NC census that Solomon and Mary had two sons born in this decade. So the sons born between 1794 and 1802 could have been Absalom and an unknown brother. It is entirely possible that Absalom could have been married to Sallie Trotter by this time as well. As is the case with many census records for Sivils family members, Sallie’s recorded ages are very erratic through the years, e.g. sometimes 5 - 10 years too young, sometimes 5 – 10 years too old, etc. My best assessment is that she was born between 1800 – 1805, so she would have been old enough to marry by 1820.

Jeptha’s age data from census records also tended to be very inconsistent in his later years of life, but in 1850 in McMinn and Bradley Co. TN (Please see my posting on Jeptha and Jefferson Sivils on May 6, 2008), his given age would have made his birthdate around 1802. So the other son 18 – 26 could well have been Jeptha. There was another McMinn Co. Sivils named Silas, who first appeared in the 1840 census, fathered a large family and remained in McMinn Co. until he died; he gave his age as 50 in the 1860 McMinn Co. TN census. He also gave his birthplace as TN, but if he is indeed a brother to Wallis, Absalom and Jeptha, then this recording of his birthplace was a mistake on someone’s part. So he could well be one of the two sons born 1804 – 1810. There is one more Sivils male of this generation who appears only once in the McMinn Co. 1860 Census, p. 301: A. Sivils, age 55, b. NC, no occupation given, no family but living with a 28 year old male day laborer named Levi Kirby. Since this is all the information we have on this individual, it is harder to assess whether he is related, but if he is a brother, he could possibly be the other son born 1804 – 1810.

While I am on the subject of Silas, I did come upon a record of a Silas “Seevely”on p. 117 of the 1830 Sevier Co. TN census: 00001/200001. Silas does not show up on the McMinn census until 1840, so this could possibly be him. The ages of his oldest two daughters jive with the two young daughters on this census. I mention this only as a possibility, which needs further research.

As far as the females listed in the 1820 Guilford Co. Census, I do not think that the female 26 - 45 is likely to be Solomon’s first wife Mary, as I think Mary would have been older than 45, as Solomon was at this point. Has anyone been able to figure out a birthdate for Solomon? I would love for someone with this information to post it for us? This could be Solomon & Mary’s oldest daughter, whom we saw in the 1800 Halifax Co. census as age 16 – 26. She had to have been born by 1784 to be 16 at that time. Or this could be a younger woman whom Solomon married after being widowed. At any rate I don’t know anything else about the three girls born 1804 – 1810.

However, if this family is Solomon’s, then I think we can say that the Elizabeth Sivils, b. 1815 in TN (?) who married John Perry (also spelled Pary) and lives next door to Jeptha Sivils and family in Bradley Co. TN in 1840 and 1850, is probably not a younger sister of Wallis, Absalom and Jeptha, or else she would show up on this census as a daughter younger than 10. And if she is not their younger sister, what would her connection be? As a matter of fact, what proof do we have that her maiden name was Sivils? Is it simply that Absalom’s widow and son, Sallie and Timothy George Sivils, are living with Elizabeth and her family in Bradley Co. in 1850? Is it simply that she and her husband lived next door to Jeptha through the 1840’s and 1850’s? Is it that their son 16 year old son, John Pary, ends up working as a farmhand on the farm of Wallis Sivils’ widow, Virginia, in McMinn Co. in 1870. All things seem to point that she is so closely connected to these other Sivils families that she herself must have been a Sivils, but where can we find proof?

Sorry, folks, there is a great deal of conjecture in what I have just written, but I mean to be observing, exploring and questioning at this point, not drawing conclusions. I hope someone can add to, prove and correct some of the above.

Re: sophia sivils, daughter of jeptha sivils

patriciakrueger1 — 2009-03-15 22:14:07Z

I believe your ancestor Sophia Sivils Johnson was the daughter of Jeptha/Jefferson Sivils, most probably a brother of my ancestor Absalom Sivils in Bradley Co. TN; they both lived in McMinn/Bradley Counties during the decades from 1830 - 1850. Please consult my posting to this board from July 11, 2008, in which I discuss your Sophia and her birth family at length. Then if you have specific questions, you could post a reply to that message.

Good luck in your research.

Re: Looking for Joseph W. Sivil

DougandCindyLowe — 2009-02-03 05:17:35Z

Three of Joseph Sivil's children married into the Stewart family that I am researching!

1880 Census Greenup Co. KY Pct. 1 ED 38 enum June 9 #135/107
Joseph Sivil WM 49 farmer West Virginia Germany Virginia (married Mary Ann Hubbard July 30, 1858 Greenup Co. KY)
Mary WF 41 wife keeps house KY KY Virginia
Emma WF 15 daughter day laborer KY WVA KY (married James Darby December 17, 1882 Greenup Co. KY)
Thomas WM 21 son KY WVA KY
Isaac WM 14 son KY WVA KY (married Sarah Ellen Victor Dec 29, 1889 Greenup Co. KY)
John WM 12 son KY WVA KY (married Mary Effie Stewart, daughter of Charles Lewis Stewart and Angeretta Colley August 23, 1890 Greenup Co. KY)
James WM 8 son KY WVA KY note: (married Elizabeth Stewart, daughter of Charles Lewis Stewart and Angeretta Colley August 10, 1890 Greenup Co. KY)
Florence WF 9 daughter KY WVA KY (married Matthew Stewart, son of Robert L. Stewart and Elizabeth Maynard or Mainard)
Jetha WF 7 daughter KY WVA KY
Buck WM 4 son KY WVA KY

SIVILS J D 1907 1986 married 23 Dec 1933

t42FiveMile — 2008-10-13 21:33:37Z

SIVILS J D 1907 1986 married 23 Dec 1933

I photographed this gravestone in the Five Mile Cemetery, Dallas, Dallas Co., Texas. Feel free to use this picture for your personal records.

This is one of the 196,391 cemetery photos free at http://teafor2.com If you know more about this person please reply here.

SIVILS Louise MAYES married 23 Dec 1933

t42FiveMile — 2008-10-13 21:33:24Z

SIVILS Louise MAYES married 23 Dec 1933

I photographed this gravestone in the Five Mile Cemetery, Dallas, Dallas Co., Texas. Feel free to use this picture for your personal records.

This is one of the 196,391 cemetery photos free at http://teafor2.com If you know more about this person please reply here.

SIVILS Jason Webb 1882 1975 Our Father which art in Heaven..

t42FiveMile — 2008-10-13 21:33:10Z

SIVILS Jason Webb 1882 1975 Our Father which art in Heaven..

I photographed this gravestone in the Five Mile Cemetery, Dallas, Dallas Co., Texas. Feel free to use this picture for your personal records.

This is one of the 196,391 cemetery photos free at http://teafor2.com If you know more about this person please reply here.

Timothy George Sivils

venicegl — 2008-09-12 04:54:30Z

Hi, does anyone have a picture of Timothy George Sivils? He was the brother of my great great grandmother Teletha Sivils.
Thanks,
Susan Burden

Timothy George Sivils

venicegl — 2008-09-12 04:53:56Z

Hi, does anyone have a picture of Timothy George Sivils? He was the brother of my great great grandmother Teletha Sivils.
Thanks,
Susan Burden

Thomas Jefferson Sivils

KathleenLancaster320 — 2008-09-03 21:49:49Z

My gg-grandfather was Thomas Jefferson Sivils, born in Tennessee and married Mary Graney who was born in Cork County, Ireland. From my understanding Thomas' father was Jefferson Sivils and his mother was America Luttrell. There seems to be quite a lot interest in Jefferson & America Sivils. I would be interested in any information.

Re: Is Jefferson Sivils the same man as Jeptha Sivils?

kariroehl — 2008-07-11 16:10:14Z

I looked back at my notes after my last posting and also reviewed the 1840 census. Although, Jeptha between 30-40 years old would work for this family, America would not have been in that age bracket as she would have been around 21 years old. Yes, it could be a mistake, but I don't think it clears up anything yet!

Re: Is Jefferson Sivils the same man as Jeptha Sivils?

kariroehl — 2008-07-11 15:47:44Z

It is quite a quandry. I haven't figured it out yet, but I swear that somewhere a long time ago when I first looked into this someone told me that Jefferson died somewhere in Texas or Arkansas on the way to California. However, the family went through Missouri and Kansas.....

I haven't planned the Bradley county trip yet, it may have to wait until this fall, but I have talked with various resources there and they state that there is hardly anything available and that I already have everything they have. Also, I tried to find out exactly where the 1850 census place of Subd. 26 was, but they don't know that either.

I will certainly post the information as soon as I can clarify it. Thanks for your input, it always helps to have someone to bounce things off of..

Re: Is Jefferson Sivils the same man as Jeptha Sivils?

patriciakrueger1 — 2008-07-11 02:55:31Z

Kari, thank you very much for your response to my posting. Evidently you have information which confirms my suspicion that Jeptha and America had divorced. Even though we may not have court documents regarding a divorce, the fact that you have later records for her and her children in a subsequent marriage, I think, suffices to prove that fact. I would very much appreciate your posting the information you have found for America and children in her subsequent marriage for all of us Sivils/Luttrell researchers, especially the name of her husband.

Also I wondered how it is that people figured out whose children were whose in the 1850 Bradley Co. census? Is it because Jeptha shows up with only Commodore, Sophia, Mary and William a few months earlier in the 1850 McMinn Census that they assume that America (the daughter), Thomas and James must be America's (the mother) children by a former marriage? The scenario which you put forth in your first posting to my message is certainly a possibility, i.e. that Jeptha and America had both just lost their spouses and married and blended their families between the McMinn and the Bradley censuses. I will have to spend more time pondering that. However, the fact that Jeptha appeared with his wife and one child in exactly the same household location in the 1840 census as he does with America and lots more children in the later 1850 Bradley Co. census still gives me some cause to wonder about that scenario.

If you find any more records in Bradley Co. when you make your trip to Tennessee this summer, I know we would all appreciate your sharing what you find.

Re: Is Jefferson Sivils the same man as Jeptha Sivils?

kariroehl — 2008-06-05 04:20:51Z

oops-forgot something. America goes west with some of her children and eventually remarries. In 1860 they are in Missouri, 1870 Kansas and in 1880 her family (but not her) are in California. I don't have the exact info available to me this instant, but I can look it up and send it to you. From my memory only, I think Commodore and Sophia stayed in Tennessee.

Re: Is Jefferson Sivils the same man as Jeptha Sivils?

kariroehl — 2008-06-05 04:09:06Z

Patricia,
I don't really follow the Sivils family mailing list so I missed your entry in May. I agree with part of your statements. I believe that the 1850 McMinn Jeptha and the 1850 Bradley Jefferson are the same person. In fact, I have written to other Sivil family members and asked the same questions you have. However, I have been told that his name was definitely Jefferson and that one of his son's was named after him (Thomas Jefferson). Also, I do believe that William and Mary Luttrell are the parents of America Luttrell.

Unless....what IF America Luttrell was a widow of a son of William and Mary Luttrell and Jefferson/Jeptha was a widower that got married between the time the McMinn county census and the Bradley county census were taken???

I have asked anyone for documented proof that America's last name was Luttrell, but haven't seen anything as of yet. One of the family members stated that it was a known family fact, which is better than nothing.

My lineage is off of the Luttrells. America had a sister named Jane. In the 1850 census my gggrandfather was a child living with his Aunt Jane and his siblings. They were enumerated under their aunts married name. (It only took me 20+ years to find him!!) One of his siblings was enumerated as Mary. Her full name was also America.

I am just getting back working harder on this family and plan a trip to Bradley County sometime this summer. I was in Chattanooga in the early 1980's and didn't even know how close I was to my roots!

I hope this make sense to you. Please feel free to email me directly with anything you want to "discuss". Thanks for your input.

kari@kariroehl.com

Re: Jefferson Sivils & America

patriciakrueger1 — 2008-06-05 02:54:39Z

In response to your questions about America's parents, I thought that the William and Mary Luteral living next door to Jefferson?/Jeptha Sivils in the 1850 Bradley Co. Census were probably the parents of America, although I do not have any other sources which back this up. (Please see my posting on May 7, 2008 which explores my theory that Jefferson and Jeptha are the same person.)

The Census information is on p. 444-445/222-223, line 40, William Luteral, age 74, Shoemaker, b. in NC; Mary, age 68, b. in NC also.

I know I have seen a William Luterel/Luttrell Jr. in the census of either 1840 or 1850 in Bradley Co. not to far from the others I have just mentioned, but I did not record it and I cannot find the census record online at this time.

Re: LEWIS/ SIVILS/ BROWN

patriciakrueger1 — 2008-05-08 03:25:56Z

The Teleta Lewis you are asking about married my father's uncle, William M. Sivils, or Uncle Will as my father remembers him. William was the next oldest brother to my grandfather, Martin Luther Sivils, and the two of them were especially close to each other. My father remembers Aunt Teleta with special fondness, and at one time he and his family were lucky enough to be posted at the Methodist Church in Harriman TN, so they lived next door to them for a year (his father Martin Luther was a Methodist Minister).

If you are researching this family, you must access the information on T.K. Painter's website, Experience's Children: http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~painter/Cp...

I just discovered this website myself two weeks ago, and through it I have been able to put together so much information about my Sivils ancestors in McMinn and Bradley Co. TN. Through her help, I was able to identify that William M. Sivils and Teleta Lewis were first cousins. William's father, Timothy George Sivils, was the younger brother of Teleta Lewis' mother, Sarah Jane Sivils Gibson Lewis. I had run across the unusual name of "Teleta" in Timothy George's family before (sister), and I always thought it was ironic that his brother William also married a woman by that name. Now I know why...they kept it all in the family!

If you go to T.K. Painter's website above, you will find a boatload of information about William M. and Teleta Sivils, very well documented. I really don't know that much more about the Lewis family itself, except for the information which you will find on the above website.

I have written up some personal stories based on remembrances of my father and his siblings about their memories of Uncle Will and Aunt Teleta, which I could email you sometime off the Message Boards, if you are interested.

Re: Sivils from Kentucky

2006-07-28 12:07:53Z

From SAVILS/SIVILS FAMILY RECORDS (Trigg Co., KY.) by Barbara Smirh, pages 68 &69:

...this record was taken from the Bible of Thomas Sivells...

BIRTHS
Thomas Sivells, son of Jas. and Elizabeth Sivells, born July 18th, 1773, the father of Thos. Sivells

Betsey, wife of Thos. Sivells, b. Dec. 16th, 1779, Mother

Ruth, daughter of Thos. & Betsey Sivells b. Sept. 10th, 1799
Also James W. born Nov. 1st, 1802
Also John M., born May 12th, 1806
Also Sallie S., born Feb. 15th, 1809
Also Amelia & Louvinia, twins, born Sep. 10th, 1812
Also Betsey born April 23rd, 1815
Also Thos. W., born March 25th, 1818
Also Mary J., born Sept. 16th, 1821

Book states that this record is part of the Dr. Lymon L. Duly Collection, which is under supervision of Martha Bentley Browning, Oak Ridge, TN.

Hope this helps.

Nancy Sivills Thompson
Trigg Co., KY.

Re: Sivils from Kentucky

2005-09-15 02:51:40Z

"Sivils" in the various censuses is spelled "Sivels", "Savils", "Sevels" and several other ways. A lot depends on the phonetics involved. So, your Thomas and the Thomas you found could very well be the same man.

Re: SIVILS Search

2004-11-27 14:50:16Z

i was posting to my cousin Diane, she is doing the same reseach that i am but she is trying to say that what i have found it the work that she has done. i am not afraid to post this because my family know the truth.

Re: EULA BELLE SIVILS

2004-11-17 09:37:27Z

Sandi, I just read your message that was dated Nov. 7th. 2001 where you had said your father Edgar Sivils and William Sivils were first cousins. I don't have very much information on the Sivils but I was just curious . Was your Edgar Sivils from Hamburg, Arkansas and was his wife's name Ethel. If these are the same people then we are related. Let me know.
Thanks MEL

Re: Sivils/Cox

2004-01-29 20:06:09Z

I also am looking for Jonathan Cox of Harrison, AR. I am the ggg granddaughter of Walton Cox. Please email me at nammajenk@comcast.net

Re: Sivils/Cox

2004-01-29 20:03:43Z

I am also looking for a Jonathan Cox of Harrison, Arkansas. I am the ggg granddaughter of Walton Cox. I believe there may be a connection as they both owned the same land in Harrison. You may email me at nammajenk@comcast.net. Linda Jenkins

Re: Jefferson Sivils & America

tsivils — 2008-01-30 00:38:04Z

I have a Commodore b.1841, Sophie b.1843, Mary b.1845, and William b.1848 that are children of a Jeptha Sivels b.1802 and an unknown first wife. There is a Bill Padilla in Fresno, CA. that is researching the Jefferson Sivils / Ammerica Luttrel line. Contact me at "tsivils@sivils.org" and I will give the contact info for Bill.

Re: Absalom Sivils

MaryAnnWilloughby96 — 2005-08-14 12:36:25Z

My great great grandpa's name was Absalom Sivils . Greatgrand Timithy George. Grandpa James Clayton Mother Cleo Married a Thompson.

Re: John Franklin Sivils

lc61350 — 2006-11-20 00:07:35Z

Was John Franklin's mothers name Ida McNitt/McNett, born IL? Do you know what the intitials J.A. in his fathers name stood for?

John Franklin and Richard Sivils

lc61350 — 2006-11-20 00:07:35Z

Does anyone have a current address for Richard Sivils who was looking for information in 2000 about his grandfather John Franklin Sivils? I need to contact him.

Louise in IL

Re: John Franklin and Richard Sivils

beachsands — 2006-11-14 04:30:43Z

Louise = You can email me at beach.sand@yahoo.com....Richard Sivils

Re: John Franklin Sivils

beachsands — 2006-11-14 04:17:51Z

Hi Louise -Sorry I didn't catch this sooner. I haven't been on the site for a while. My grandfather was John Franklin Sivils and he was married to Elvira Delaney. They lived in Coleman, Tx. and had two children. I knew John had died in Dublin/Erath county. I found where Elvira is buried but I haven't been able to find out who John's parents were. I've also lost the information on Elvira's parents. Any help you can give me would be very appreciated.

Re: Ada Sivils

JohnSivils — 2006-08-23 20:51:16Z

Did you get the desired information on Ada Sivils married to John Riley Poole. I have more information on the Sivils line.

Jefferson Sivils & America

kariroehl — 2006-05-05 18:46:12Z

Is anyone working on this family? I believe that Jefferson Sivils was married at least once before 1850, then married Americal in 1850. His children from his first marriage are Commodore, Sophia, Mary, and William. His children with America are Daniel & Martha. America had 3 children from her first husband. Anyone with ties to this family, please contact me. My interest lies mainly in America as I believe she was an aunt to my gggrandfather. Thanks!

Re: Jefferson Sivils & America

kariroehl — 2008-03-27 00:34:56Z

Sorry I forgot to get back to you. The person working on Sophia can be contacted at smmjohnson@cowisp.net, hopefully she can help you

Re: Jefferson Sivils & America

kariroehl — 2008-03-27 00:33:00Z

Thanks for the message. Are you from the Sivils side or the Luttrell side? Do you have any information on who America's siblings or parents were? The only "proof" we have that her maiden name was Luttrell is from Bill Padilla who has had it handed down orally in family history. I believe that she had a sister named Jane Luttrell Crisp Nicely, a sister named Mary A Luttrell, a brother named Jeremiah Luttrell, and another brother who I don't know the name of. Any help is really appreciated!!

Re: Jefferson Sivils & America

kariroehl — 2008-01-26 07:59:02Z

Hi-I'm not able to access my stuff right now, but I do have a contact for Sophia that would be able to help you. I'll follow up when I can get to my database.

Is Jefferson Sivils the same man as Jeptha Sivils?

patriciakrueger1 — 2008-05-07 03:26:14Z

For anyone who has researched the 1800’s Sivils families in McMinn and Bradley Co. TN, I know they must have had the same questions I have had about the mysterious phenomenon of what appears to be parallel families in the two counties at the same time. In the 1850 Census for McMinn Co. TN, on p. 253a there is a Jeptha Civils, age 48 (I have studied the census taker’s other 9’s and think that the first digit is indeed a squashed 8 rather than a 9, as it is typically interpreted), b. VA, blacksmith, no wife listed, four children: Commodore 11, Sophia 7, Mary 5, and William 2. In the 1850 Census for Bradley Co. TN on page 444 – 5 there is a Jefferson Sivils, age 48, b. NC, blacksmith, wife America age 29, b. TN, and 7 children: Comador 11, Sophia 8, Mary 7, America 4, Thomas 4, William 3 and James 1.

From the beginning, I have had the gut feeling that this was a duplicate census entry for this family. I think the first thing that struck me was that it was just too weird for these two Sivils in adjacent counties to agree to name at least four of their children identically. The more I have studied the situation, the more reasons I find which seem to confirm my initial gut feeling. One of the strongest is that a Jefferson Sivils never appears in either of these counties at another time. However, Jeptha age 30 – 39 appears in the 1840 Bradley Co. census, and he is living next door to the same family of John and Elizabeth Perry or Pary, as does Jefferson in 1850, with a wife same age and one son 1 - 4. Elizabeth Pary has been identified by several researchers as having the maiden name of Sivils, but I am not quite sure as to the proof for that. Also Absalom Sivils’ widow, Sarah, and her youngest son George are living with this John and Elizabeth Pary in 1850. Since Elizabeth was born in 1815, she is too old to be a daughter of Sarah Trotter Sivils b. 1800 - 1809, but there is a possibility that she was a daughter of Absalom by an earlier marriage, or even a younger sister of Absalom. So Jeptha is actually living in 1840 in the exact location where this supposed Jefferson lives in 1850.

Also, has anyone ever found records for more than one Commodore Sivils, b. 1839? This is such an unusual name, I would think it would clearly stand out if there were more than one person with this moniker running around so close in time and location, unless of course one of them died before adulthood.

Here is my scenario for how this duplication could have happened, although admittedly most of this is nothing but pure speculation. I think the full Jeptha Sivils family actually lived in Bradley Co. in 1840 and 1850, where Jeptha worked as a blacksmith. Here the census taker found the whole family at home in November of 1850 and recorded the information for the whole family. He did, however, misinterpret what he heard when Jeptha gave his name. We know that it was common for those Sivils named Jeptha in succeeding generations to use the nickname Jepp, which sounds very similar to Jeff, which was a commonly used nickname for Jefferson in those days. Anyone who has worked with census records knows how badly mangled the names were by the census takers; I have been told it was considered rude to ask for the spelling of someone’s name in those days. I can only imagine that was due to the fact that so many people were illiterate, and asking for the spelling of their name would likely expose their ignorance and be a cause for embarrassment.

The people appearing around Jeptha and children in McMinn Co. all had professions which were part of the trades, i.e. wagon maker, cabinet maker, stonemason, merchant, school teacher, which gives the appearance that they were in a small town setting with stores and workshops. I think it would have been perfectly feasible for Jeptha to sometimes travel to other locations within a few miles of his home to do blacksmithing jobs. I think he just happened to have taken four of his children along with him that day. Wouldn’t Jeptha have realized that he and his family would be “counted” twice, not necessarily desirable for the purposes of the census, if he gave their information to the census taker in a place other than where they normally lived? No, I really don’t think people were all that well informed about the purpose of the census and how it worked, and I would imagine that many people were even downright suspicious and reluctant about “dealin’ with them feller’s comin’ around askin’ all them nosey questions anyhow.” (Can you tell I grew up in Tennessee?)

What about the difference in the birth locations stated by Jeptha in the same census year? Well once again anyone who has worked with census records has seen the changes from decade to decade of the answer people gave for their names, ages and place of birth. Having studied the census records for these Sivils families over several decades, I have to say they are notoriously, maddeningly bad about changing their minds about their ages and birth places. The reality is that these families were on the move a great deal in the late 1700’s through the 1800’s as they moved further and further west, and apparently it was quite a challenge for them to keep their personal facts straight given all this mobility. Remember, the people who pioneered this country were of necessity people of action. It was unrelenting, hard, physical work and most of the time a daily fight for survival moving their families, clearing land, farming, providing food, shelter and clothing for their families and building communities where nothing but trees, animals, and native Americans lived before. All I can say is he remembered and thought something different in November than he did in September.

Of course all of this speculation has big implications for the family composition of Jeptha, if indeed there was no separate person named Jefferson, because he suddenly becomes the father of an enormous family. We know Jeptha was married and had one 1 year old son (this had to be Commodore) in 1840. His wife must have died within a year or so, because Jeptha would have married his second wife, American Luttrell by 1841 since they had their first child Sophia about 1842. In the 1850 census Jeptha/Jefferson and America have seven children as enumerated above. Then what happened to America? Did she suddenly die? Did they divorce? I ask the question about divorce because when Jeptha appears in the 1860 Hamilton Co. TN Census p. 44, (spelled Jesse Sivles, age 55, blacksmith) he is now married to Sarah “Sallie” Kimble age 25, b. GA. His oldest child is Mary E., age given as 13. This can’t be Sallie’s child; she would have been 12 at the time of Mary’s birth and that is really pushing it even for “the old days”. So this Mary could possibly be the Mary daughter of America, b. about 1843, which would make her closer to 17. Because there is such a large gap between Mary and the next children, I think it is likely that they must be Sallie’s: Malinda J. 9 b. TN, Susan E 8, b. GA, and Martha B. 6, b. GA. (So we see that Jeptha lived in GA for a brief period during the 1850’s and then moved back to Ooltewah in Hamilton Co. TN. Sallie states pretty consistently in the census records that she was born in GA until she gets older.) Also his next son’s birthdate is stated on his tombstone as Nov. 14, 1859, so James E. should have been listed in this census, but wasn’t.

So where are all the other children of America? If she had died, wouldn’t you think that Jeptha and his new wife would have continued to care for them, since America died when they were so young? Perhaps some of the Luttrell family researchers can answer this question better than I can.

Then in the 1870 Hamilton Co. TN census, Long Savannah District, page 9/596A, HH 58/58 Jeptha (age 66, b. VA, blacksmith) and his wife Sallie are listed with Malinda 16 (You see what I mean about his statement of his children’s ages! Malinda should be closer to 19 now.), Susannah 13 (This is probably Susan Emeline and she should be 15 by now; maybe Jeptha just didn’t like to think of his children growing up so fast.), Martha B. 12, James 10, Jasper 7, and Samuel 4. Tim Sivils on the Sivilst.org website says there was a son born about 1864 named King Absalom and another son Solomon b. 1868 who should have appeared on this census, but didn’t.

But these were not the only ones living in Jeptha’s household in 1870. In the same house is living Sefiah Johnson, age 28, keeping house, b. TN, and her children Sarah E., 8, b. TN; Black, 6, b. TN; William W., 3, b. TN; Caleb, 1, b. TN. Who is she? Look back to America’s Luttrell’s children and there you will find her first child, a daughter by the name of Sophia, b. about 1842. This Sophia married Blackburn Johnson, and she can be found on the 1860 Hamilton Co. TN Census p. 75/142a with her husband, 1 year old son Calvin, and mother in law Susan. On her website Tara Painter includes information that Blackburn Johnson served as a private, I think with the Confederate army, and died April 6, 1865; she says he is buried in the Nashville Nat’l Cemetery in Madison, TN. William and Caleb are listed on the census with the last name of Johnson, but their birthdates don’t jive with this deathdate. Also whatever happened to Calvin? Again I will have to leave it to others to answer these questions, but I think this tying in of Sophia Sivils Johnson to Jeptha in 1870 gives significant credence to the idea that Jefferson is really Jeptha.

Wow! Hasn’t Jeptha had a boat-load of children … 15 at this point? In 1870 he was 66 years old, still working as a blacksmith, and wasn’t done fathering children. I would say he was one robust man. Now in 1880 He can be found on the James Co. TN Census, 2nd Civil Dist. P. 2/319, (hard to find as the index misspells his name as Sinels). He is 79 (there go those inconsistent ages again, but at least he finally has settled on VA as his birth place for a few times now), finally “superannuated” which means retired from blacksmithing, his wife is still alive (although she is now b. in TN), they still have Susan, Martha, Jasper, Samuel and Solomon living with them, but they have added John (Roundtree) 8 and Abner 3. I found family group sheets on the Sivils.net website which say that he also had a daughter Belinda, but no other information is given on her. So that makes 18 children total with his most recent child born when he was a whopping 75 years old! He outdoes his nephew, my greatgrandfather Timothy George Sivils, who outlived 4 wives and but “only” fathered 14 children.

I welcome responses, corrections, and additions to the above. If you post it on the Sivils family boards, then all can benefit from the exchange…Patricia Sivils Krueger

Website of T. K. Painter excellent source for McMinn and Bradley Co. Sivils

patriciakrueger1 — 2008-05-07 03:24:12Z

For all researchers of the Sivils in Bradley and McMinn Co. Tennessee in the 1800’s, Tara Painter’s website “Experience’s Children” is an extremely well documented and complete source of information on these Sivils families. Here is the link for the pages of her website covering the Sivils families:
http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~painter/Cp...

Will of James Savells d. 1790 Norfolk Co. VA

patriciakrueger1 — 2008-04-14 01:11:52Z

Here is the will for James Savells d. 1790 Norfolk Co. VA. I took this from a book of will abstracts for Norfolk VA in the Library of Congress. When I find my exact reference info I will post it as a followup later.

Page 24 – 25:
pp. 59 – 59a: JAMES SAVELLS (Norfolk Co.)
15 Jun 1790 – 18 Oct. 1790
Extr: DANIEL SAVELLS
Wife: ELIZABETH SAVELLS (after just debts are pd., the whole of my Est. – real & personal;
liberty of cutting timber as long as she’s a widow for the support of
her and the children)
Sons: THOMAS, JAMES & (the whole of my land to be divided betw. them– my desire is that 3
SOLOMON SAVELLS men should divide what lies this side of the rd. that goes to MR.
WILSONS & what is on the other side is for the support of the three
places)
Daus: RUTHA, NANCY & (the remainder part of the Estate, to be equally divided betw. them)
ELIZABETH SAVELLS
Wit: JEREMIAH (x) CASTEEN, WILLIAM WORDAIN, MOURNING (x) LOMMON
Proved by MOURNING LOMMON 19 Jul. 1790 & lodged for further proof.
Proved by JEREMIAH CASTEEN, 18 Oct. 1790 & ordered to be recorded.
ELIZABETH SAVELLS & DANIEL SAVELLS, Ex’rs. Given certif. for Probat.

Will of Absalom Sivils d. 1795 Norfolk Co. VA

patriciakrueger1 — 2008-04-14 01:06:03Z

Here is the will of Absalom Sivils d. 1795 Norfolk Co. VA. I am sorry I misplaced the reference info. I found this in a book of will abstracts for Norfolk Co. in the Library of Congress. When I retrieve this info. I will post it as a followup.

Page 80:
pp. 153, 153a ABSAL0M SIVILLS (X) (St. Brides Parish, Norfolk Co.)
20 Dec. 1793 – 20 July 1795
Ex’r: WILLIAM WALLACE, SR.
Wife: MARY SIVILLS (feather bed & furniture, 1 linen spinning wheel)
Son: ABSALOM SIVILLS (feather bed & furniture)
Son in law: WILLIAM CREEKMUR (feather bed & furn., 1 heifer, 1 cow
& calf; 1 chest, 2 pewter plates)
Dau: COURTNEY LITCHFIELD (feather bed, 1 loom, 1 spinning wheel)
Dau: SUKEY MERCER (feather bed, 1 spinning wheel)
Item: I desire that my land, w/ the rest of my estate, after being sold -
the money therefrom, be equally divided between, viz: my sons SAMUEL,
SOLOMON & ABSALOM & COURTNEY LITCHFIELD & NANCY SIVILLS, dau.
Of SUKEY SIVILLS. If said Nancy Sivills dies before age of maturity, then
her part is to be returned to her mother.

Wit: WILLIAM (X) WALLACE, WILLIS LEAKE, WILLIAM WALLACE, JR.
Proved by the witnesses & ord. To be recorded. The Ex’r. named refused to take upon himself the burthen of the Execution.
ABRAHAM SIVILLS, with HENRY SEGUINE & SAMUEL SIVILS, as
his securities – given certif. for Letters of Admin. On the sd.decedent's estate.

Will of Solomon Sivils (Savells) 1769 Norfolk Co. VA

patriciakrueger1 — 2008-04-14 00:52:10Z

Here is the will for Solomon Sivils, d. 1769 in Norfolk Co. VA. Sorry I have misplaced the exact reference info. I took this from a book of Will Abstracts for Norfolk Co. located in the Library of Congress.

Page 117:
F. 191a SAVELLS, SOLOMON (x) (Norfolk Co.)
10 July 1768 – 22 Sept. 1769
Ex’x: Wife, SARAH SAVELLS Ex’r: Son, DANIEL SAVELLS
SON: DANIEL SAVELLS (all my land, but reserving
the use of ½ of sd. Land to my wife, SARAH SAVELLS,
and negro SAM to her during her widowhood; negro
HARRY after my wife’s death)
DAU: COURTNEY CURLING (negro, DIANA)
DAU: AFFIAH BOUSHALL (negro boy, DICK)
DAU: LYDIA SMITH (negro boy, ABRAHAM)
SON: JAMES SAVELLS (negro boy, little DICK)
SON: SETH SAVELLS (negro boy, JUPITER)
G.DAU: BETTY CURLING (negro child, CATE)
WIFE: SARAH SAVELLS (use of all negroes named
during her Widowhood)
Item: Two of my best beds to my sons, JAMES & SETH,
when they are of age. Remainder of est. to my
daughters after my wife’s death.
WIT: PATRICK MACKEY, JESSE (X) LANE, WILLIAM NICHOLSON

Earliest Sivils Records in Tidewater Area of Virginia

patriciakrueger1 — 2008-04-14 00:21:35Z

Here are several records for headrights for Sivils (with variant spellings) in the tidewater area of Virginia in the 1600's. Any of these could be an ancestor for our earliest documented ancestor Solomon d. 1769 Norfolk Co. VA.

Headright for Thomas Savell, 5/20, 1638, for 450 acres on Chickahominy River, James City Co., granted to Edward Lewis
Headright (possibly, record imcomplete) for Thomas Savill, 11/12/1642, 150 acres on Charles River
Headright for Eliza Savill, 12/6/1652, 300 acres on Cattatawoman River, granted to Edwin Connaway
* Headright for John Savill, 1655 – 58, 3950 acres around Charles City Co., granted to Howell Pryse
Headright for William Savell, 6/1/1663, for 498 acres 1 mi. up Edward River, ?, granted to Edward Lewis

*This are taken from Beverly Fleet’s Virginia Colonial Abstracts, 1998, Vol III, p. 195

Sorry, I lost my documentation for the other entries. When I find it again,I will post it as a followup to this message.

Re: Help me.

martysbunnygirl — 2004-11-07 15:54:08Z

Hello, My name is Valerie Walker and I am looking for any relatives on my husbands side . His grandmother's maiden name was myrtle virginia sivils and she was born, we believe in Oaklahoma and lived in Ar. She was married to a John Roscoe Walker. Her mother's name was Ida mae. any information would be of great help thanks for your time sincerely Valerie Walker

Re: SIVILS Search

BiggestBaby — 2004-11-27 05:00:14Z

What was the Indian Blood line that we have in our Bloodline? My GreatGrandmother was Kate Mae Suggs/Sivils married to Burton (Burtram?) Sivils. I have always heard we have Cherokee in our bloodline.

Sivils of Kentucky

Baywebb_1 — 2005-06-15 00:54:49Z

My name is Marilyn Sivels-Webb. I am trying to find info on a Hardy Sivils in Kentucky. He is listed on the 1870 Lyon Co, Kentucky Census. Born in 1824. Any info would be very much appreciated. Thanks. The family spelling was Sivils until 1920 then changed to Sivels. Thanks.

Sivils from Kentucky

Baywebb_1 — 2005-06-15 00:46:40Z

Please Help,
I am trying to find information on a Thos Sivils from Kentucky. I found a land grand for 7-14-1814 in Christian Co, Kentucky. There is no census record for Thos Sivils, but one for Thomas Savills on the 1840, one for Thomas Savells b. 1774 in VA and was in Trigg, KY by 1850. Could this be the same person? You may email me with info. Thanks.
Marilyn

Re: Jefferson Sivils & America

JacquelineSwadley14 — 2008-01-26 03:33:13Z

i read your message and have no info for you. thought you might have info i could use in finding my gfather's family. his mother was sophia sivels johnson. his name was jefferson [walter?] johnson. he was born in chattanauga tennessee about 1850. he ran away from home at age 13. he had a cousin or uncle with the name of commador sivils who died around pauls valley,ok.

sophia sivils, daughter of jeptha sivils

JacquelineSwadley14 — 2008-01-08 01:59:52Z

I believe Sophia Sivils Johnson is my greatgrandmother. Her son Jefferson(jeptha,Jet,Jep,Walter?) was my grandfather. He was from Tennessee and was born 1850?. He is said to have run away from home at age 13. He married Maude Delouch in Ft Smith, Arkansas in 1890? They lived in Oak Lodge, Indian Territory. I would appreciate any information anyone may have.

Re: Jefferson Sivils & America

kschali1 — 2008-03-27 18:32:02Z

My maiden name is Sivils. My Aunt, Kathleen Lancaster (Sivils), has researched our family tree on the Sivils side and the name "America", is one of the names in our family tree. I got the information from my aunt while searching for family names for my unborn child (11 years ago ). I have recently rejoined the ancestry quest and was excited to come across your message. I am working on finding that information again and will share what I know about my family line. Hopefully it will be of some use to you.

Re: Jefferson Sivils & America

kschali1 — 2008-03-26 22:51:09Z

I believe the person you are talking about is my gggggrandmother.

Solomon Sivils

venicegl — 2006-11-29 05:50:49Z

Hi, if anybody is still researching the Sivils I got some papers on Solomon Sivils, the son of Jeptha and Sallie Kimble. These are the papers from his time in Leavenworth Prison. Photo included. Will e-mail to you if you send me your email address. Take care, Susan