1850 Census, Morgan County, Tennessee

Elijah Cross was the son of my fourth great grandfather William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy.  As such, Elijah was the brother of my third great grandfather Alfred Carter Cross.  I believe Elijah's mother's name was Mary, but this is not proven.

Mary (Polly) Winters was the daughter of Moses Wineters Jr. and Elizabeth Jane Charleton.  It's not totally clear which generation anglicized the Wineters spelling (German, I think) to Winters.

F.W. was Franklin W. Cross.  According to the family bible, a son Pemberton G. Cross was born a year after Franklin.  Pemberton's absence from the 1850 census and all subsequent censuses suggests that he died before 1850.

Ellen Kington age 16 married Elijah J. Cross in 1855.  The IGI says that they were married in Anderson County.  There is no record of the marriage in the Anderson County marriage book and I believe that it's more likely they were married in Morgan County.

Elijah J. Cross was the son of David L. Cross and Mary (Polly) Himes.  As such, Elijah was the nephew of my third great grandfather Alfred Carter Cross.

I don't know how (or if) this Underwood family fits into my Underwood family of Sevier County, Tennessee.  My Sevier County family was founded by four brothers, three of whom moved from North Carolina to Sevier County, and the fourth of whom moved from North Carolina to Anderson County, Tennessee.  Many Anderson County families have branches in Morgan County, so there could be a connection.

Genette Underwood m. John T. Cross on 10 Sep 1852 in Morgan County.  John T. Cross was the son of Elijah Cross and Mary (Polly) Winters.  As such, he was the nephew of my third great grandfather Alfred Carter Cross.

This is a real shot in the dark.  James William (William or Wilburn or Bill) England was the son of my third great grandparents John England and Jane (Jenny) Peters.  As such, he was the brother of my second great grandmother Vesta Clay England.

Bill England married first Fanny E. Lea and married second Margaret Jones.  Before she married Bill England, Margaret Jones had a son named William Houston (Houston) Jones.  The death certificate of Houston Jones says that his father's name was Joe Howard.  Joseph Howard age 11/12 is the best candidate I have found to have been the father of Houston Jones.  Houston Jones was born in 1873, so Joe Howard should appear in either the 1860 or 1870 censuses.  However, I have not been able to trace this Howard family forward through any additional censuses.

Wesley M. Peters was the son of Tobias Peters Sr. and Elizabeth Rachel Scarborough.  Wesley married Catherine Paul, and I don't know who her parents were.

• Elijah F. age 13 was Elijah Franklin (Frank) Peters.
• Sarah J. age 11 was Sarah Jane Peters.
• Elizabeth age 9 may have been Elizabeth Tobitha Peters.  There was a Tobitha Peters on the 1860 census for the family, born four years after Elizabeth.  So it's not clear if Elizabeth and Tobitha were the same person or not.
• James age 7 was James Wiley (Wiley) Peters.
• Reuben D. age 3 was Reuben Dowell (Dowell) Peters.
• Rebecca A. Peters was not enumerated in this census because she was not born until 1852.

James Peters was the oldest son of Tobias Peters Sr. and Elizabeth Rachel Scarborough.  Rachel McCart was the daughter of Robert McCart and Hannah Peters.  Adam C. was Adam Clark Peters.

Rebecca Peters was the daughter of James Peters and Rachel McCart, and the granddaughter of Tobias Peters Sr. and Elizabeth Rachel Scarborough.

Hannah D. Peters was the daughter of James Peters and Rachel McCart, and the granddaughter of Tobias Peters Sr. and Elizabeth Rachel Scarborough.

James Shannon was the son of Andrew Shannon and Elizabeth.

James' brother Preston William Shannon married third Susan Emily (Emily) Peters who was the daughter of my fourth great grandparents Thomas Peters and Sarah (Sallie) England.

James' brother Pleasant Wright (Wright) Shannon married Sidney Viles, and they were the parents of Charlotte J. (Sharlley) Shannon who married Thomas Jefferson (Tom) Peters.  Tom was the son of my third great grandparents John W. Peters and Ruby M. Smith.

James' wife was Mary Hamby.

James and Mary's son Preston Wright Shannon age 8 later married Charlotte Temple McCart.  Charlotte was the great granddaughter of Robert McCart Sr. and Hannah Peters.  Hannah was probably one of mine, but I have not been able to determine for sure who her parents were.

James and Mary's daughter Rebecca P. Shannon later married Wiley Titus England.  Rebecca was born on 7 Nov 1850, shortly after this census entry was recorded.  Wiley Titus England was the son of Wiley R. England and Permina Emaline (Emaline) McCart.  As such, Wiley Titus England was the nephew of my third great grandfather John England.

The primary person of interest in this census entry is Hannah Peters.  I do not know how (or even if) she fits in to my Peters family.  In order for her to fit in, she would have to have been related to Tobias Peters Sr. and/or to my fifth great grandfather Henry Peters Sr.

Hannah really couldn't have been the daughter of Henry (born about 1869, married 1788) or of Tobias (born about 1776, married 1797).  It's possible or even likely that she was a younger sister or possibly a niece.  But in truth, we don't even know for sure if Henry and Tobias were brothers.

It us suggestive that Hannah was born in Virginia, but Virginia is a big place and there is no guarantee that Hannah was from the same part of Virginia as Henry and Tobias.  It's also worthy of note that Hannah's apparent daughter Elizabeth was born in Kentucky about 1800.  Henry and Tobias were both in Anderson County, Tennessee by 1798.  They would have come through Cumberland Gap to get here, which means they would have traveled from Greenbrier County, Virginia through Kentucky to get to Cumberland Gap.

It is also suggestive that there were a number of Peters/McCart marriages in Tennessee.  For example, Hannah's daughter Rachel McCart married James Peters who was a son of Tobias Peters Sr.  The families were obviously well acquainted.  But the bottom line is that I don't know who Hannah Peters' parents were nor if she was related to Henry and Tobias.

Margaret Jones age 7/12 later married James William (William or Wilburn or Bill) England.  Bill was the son of my third great grandparents John England and Jane (Jenny) Peters.  As such, Bill was the brother of my second great grandmother Vesta Clay England.

George W. Keith m. Rutha Jane Hendrix 24 Jun 1841 in Knox County, Tennessee.  George Keith was one of three people who filed the 1845 will of William Cross in the County Court of Anderson County.  I'm not aware of any connection between George W. Keith and the Cross family.  My suspicion is that George was a lawyer (he was Clerk of the County Court for Morgan County), and that he was representing the interests of William's son Elijah Cross.  Elijah was living in Morgan County at the time.