William Cross Research Log - Other Cross Men in Anderson County Censuses

The will of David L. Cross of Sullivan County, Tennessee. makes reference to his interest in his father's land in Anderson County, Tennessee, but David's will does not provide us with the name of his father. The conclusion is that David's father must have been William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy because William was the only Cross man who owned land in Anderson County who was of an age appropriate to have been David's father. We investigate the evidence that there were no other Cross men in Anderson County who could have been David's father.

In general, this investigation will consist of trying to prove a negative which almost always is impossible in absolutist terms. Nevertheless, we will investigate available data about other Cross men who lived in early Anderson County who might have been the father of David L. Cross.

David's exact birthdate is not known. Census data suggests that he was born about 1798. Therefore, we are looking for a Cross man born about 1778 or earlier. We begin by examining early census records for Anderson County.

Census data for Anderson County prior to 1830 is not extant. Subsequent to 1840, there are no men living in Anderson County who were old enough to have been the father of David L. Cross. Therefore, this census analysis focuses on 1830 and 1840.

There were four entries for the Cross family in the 1830 census for Anderson County: Mary Cross, William Cross, Elijah Cross, and James Cross. In none of these entries do we find a possible father for David L. Cross of Sullivan County except for the entry for William Cross himself.

Mary Parks age 50-59 obviously was not male, but we include her for completeness and because in 1830 she was the widow of Brittain Cross (1776 - 1825). Brittain certainly owned land in Anderson County. Brittain would have been about 22 years old when David L. Cross was born which is old enough to have been David's father. However, there is absolutely no evidence that would link David L. Cross to Brittain Cross.

Brittain's sons were John Cross, William Cross, and Alfred Cross. They were all significant public figures in early Anderson County. John was a wealthy merchant, William was a wealthy attorney, and Alfred was a wealthy attorney who also served as sheriff of Anderson County. Brittain's daughter was Syntha Cross. Syntha was not as well known in Anderson County as her brothers and sometimes she is omitted as one of Brittain's children in Cross family histories. This is perhaps because she was female and perhaps because she and her husband James Monroe Tunnell moved to Missouri shortly after their marriage in 1840. In any case, all four of Brittain's children are mentioned in settlement documents and guardian documents after his death, and no other children are mentioned.

Brittain is frequently claimed as a son of William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy, and hence Brittain's descendants are frequently claimed as descendants of a Revolutionary War soldier. However, I have never seen any evidence to support this claim, and there is virtually no interaction between Brittain and his descendants on the one hand and William and his descendants on the other hand in any Anderson County records. In order for the claimed relationship to exist, William would have had to have fathered a child in 1776 at the age or 14. That seems very unlikely, and the oldest of William's proven children was born in 1794. The notion that Williams was Brittain's father simply doesn't fit any known evidence.

William Cross age 60-69 was William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy himself.

The males age 30-39 are mysteries. William's known male children of that age were enumerated elsewhere in the 1830 census.

• William's son David L. Cross was age 30-39. He was already married at the time of the 1830 census and he was enumerated as head of household in Sullivan County.
• William's son Elijah Cross was age 30-39. He was already married at the time of the 1830 census and he was enumerated as head of household in Anderson County. He was enumerated very near to William.
• William's son James Cross was age 30-39. He was already married at the time of the 1830 census and he was enumerated as head of household in Anderson County. He was not enumerated nearby to William, but he was enumerated in Anderson County.

One of the males age 20-29 is a mystery. One possibility for the three mystery males age 30-39 and for the one mystery male age 20-29 is Elkanah Cross. Elkanah's birthdate is not known, and he possibly could be one of the mystery males of either age.

Elijah Cross age 30-39 was the son of William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy. As such, Elijah was the brother of my third great grandfather Alfred Carter Cross. William was the last name on page 171a and Elijah was the second name on page 172a, so they were living very near to each other in 1830.

Elijah married Mary (Polly) Winters age 30-39 about 1828. Their courthouse marriage record is not extant. It seems likely that the unknown daughter age 00-04 was an enumerator's error and was really a son. Elijah Cross and Mary (Polly) Winters had a son, John T. Cross, born 25 Sep 1829 in Tennessee. John T. Cross surely would have been reflected on the 1830 census, and there is no other indication that the couple had a daughter born in the 1826-1830 time frame than this census entry itself.

James Cross age 30-39 was very likely the son of William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy, but this is not proven. We know about James from his mention in the 1888 lawsuit. In any case, I do not know the names of James' wife nor his children.

There were seven entries for the Cross family in the 1840 census for Anderson County. The only entry that was for a male who was of an age to have been David L. Cross's father was William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy.

John Cross age 30-39 was the son of Brittain/Britton Cross and Mary (Polly) Parks. John was born 15 Sep 1803 in Anderson County. He married Mary Ann (Polly) Shinlever age 30-39 on 1 Dec 1831 in Anderson County. He was enumerated in the household of his widowed mother in 1830, and was first enumerated as head of household in 1840.

Elijah Cross age 40-49 was the son of William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy. As such, Elijah was the brother of my third great grandfather Alfred Carter Cross. Elijah was enumerated as head of household in both the 1830 and 1840 censuses.

Mary (Polly) Winters age 30-39 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.

William Cross age 20-29 was the son of Brittain Cross and Mary (Polly) Parks. William was enumerated in the household of his widowed mother in the 1830 census, and was first enumerated as head of household in 1840.

William married Jane Black age 20-29 on 12 May 1836 in Anderson County. William was the brother of Alfred Cross who married Jane's sister Elizabeth Black. This would be the "other" Alfred Cross, not my third great grandfather Alfred Carter Cross.

Alfred Carter Cross age 20-29 and Zipporah Peters age 20-29 were my third great grandparents. They were the parents of my second great grandmother Hulda Asberine Cross and the grandparents of of my great grandfather Alva Edward Peters. Alfred was 30 years old and Zipporah was 26 years old in 1840. They were married 2 May 1840.

Alfred Carter Cross was the son of William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy.

The 1840 census entry for Alfred Carter Cross can be distinguished from the 1840 census entry for the "other" Alfred Cross even though they were about the same age because the "other" Alfred Cross had a child at the time of the 1840 census and Alfred Carter Cross did not.

William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy age 70-79 was my fourth great grandfather. I believe that Elizabeth age 20-29 and Amanda Melvina age 20-29 were his daughters. However, there is at least a remote chance that one or the other of them was a much younger second wife, or that either or both of them were widowed daughters-in-law.

Mary age 20-29 is a tougher puzzle. Emilia Jane Cross age 10-14 and Safrona C. Cross were Mary's heirs and presumably therefore they were her daughters. Emilia was enumerated in the 1840 census and Safrona wasn't born until 1843. The question is, who (and where) was the father of Emilia and Safrona? Were Emilia and Safrona William's granddaughters who were born out of wedlock? Or was Mary a much younger second wife of William, and Emilia and Safrona were his daughters by Mary? Or was Mary William's daughter-in-law, and Emilia and Safrona were his granddaughters by Mary?

Jesse C. Cross age 30-39 was the son of William Cross the Revolutionary War drummer boy. As such, Jesse was the brother of my third great grandfather Alfred Carter Cross. At the time of the 1840 census, Jesse was living next door to his father.

Amelia (Milly) England age 30-39 was the daughter of my fifth great grandparents John England and Vesta Zipporah Choate. As such, Millie was the sister of Titus England and also the sister of my fourth great grandmother Sarah (Sallie) England.

Milly Cross signed an affidavit on 17 Feb 1872 as a part of Thomas Peters pension application for the War of 1812. The affidavit stated that she had attended the wedding of Thomas Peters and Sarah (Sallie) England in Anderson County, Tennessee in 1812.

The 70-79 year old female appears to have been Milly's mother Vesta Zipporah Choate, widow of John England.

Alfred Cross age 15-19 was the son of Brittain Cross and Mary (Polly) Parks. Elizabeth (Betty) Black age 15-19 was the daughter of Joseph Black Jr. and Elizabeth (Betty) Henry. Alfred and Polly were married 1 Jan 1839 in Anderson County, Tennessee. The birth date for John Allen (Allen) Cross is often listed as 15 Apr 1837, but it must have been 15 Apr 1839. The date comes from his tombstone, and it must have been hard to transcribe.