Skip to main content

Amanuensis Monday: The Civil War Pension File of Isaac Carter, Document #15

Below is a transcription of an affidavit sworn out by Theophilus George. This could either be Isaac's brother-in-law (b. 10 Jul 1850), or his father-in-law (b. abt. 1804). Upon completion, further analysis will determine the realtionship.

 North Carolina
Craven County
Also personally appeared before 
me a clerk of Superior Court
a court of record in and 
for the County & State aforesaid
Theophilus George age 40 yrs. 
well known unto be respectable and
entitled to credit & who being duly
declares: I have been acquainted
with Isaac Carter the soldier
all my Life. When he came home
from the war Dec 1865 he appeared
to be quite sick from Rheumatism
and was stiff in his joints of feet & 
Legs and he would be unable
to walk and he also complains 
of diarrhea & piles and asthma
soreness of throat and heart.
He has suffered to a great
excess each and every year
to the present that he has been
down for two or three times each
year or a month or more at a 
time. And I have lived near
his house ever since the war
and have been able to see
him every week at times and
I so on. When ever I see
He is complaining and is at times 
laid up from Rheumatism
diarrhea piles and asthma.
and he is continually sick
from said disabilities.
I have no interest in the
claim. My P.I. address is
Harlowe N. C. 

witness               )
E.W. Carpenter  )  Theophilus George
J.B. Willis         )


sworn & sub-
scribed to before me this 3rd day of
June 1890 & I certify that officiant states'that the foregoing was read to him before
signing same & that he is the identical
person he claims to be & is credible &
worthy of belief.                            E.W. Carpenter

[stamp]
Frederick Douglass,
U.S. Claim Agent.
Box 590, New Berne, N.C.

Analysis
  • Taking into account that Theophilus George was 40 years old on 3 June 1890, he would have been born in 1850, which is compatible with Isaac Carter's brother-in-law. Certain he would have known Isaac all his life as Isaac was eleven years old when Theophilus was born. 
  • Theophilus reports Isaac's condition following the war in 1865. He married Theophilus' older sister, Martha Ann, one and a half years later (15 May 1867). 
  • The informant reports that I have lived near his house ever since the war. Perhaps an examination of land deeds and Census documents for 1870 and 1880 would determine the location of this land, whether it corresponds to the current Martha Ann (George) Carter Heirs Land. Also, where both Carter and George resided before the war. 






Comments

  1. Thank you so much, Jim. Yes, it is hard to believe that it has been two years since I started blogging. Thanks also, for sharing your blog link. I'll be stopping by!

    ReplyDelete
  2. I too read at GeneaBloggers that it's your blogiversary - happy 2nd!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Happy Blogiversay Debra!!! Love the post!!!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Estate of Isaac Dove (1826): Transcription of Summons, Image 5

Summons: ....14 November 1825 "North Carolina, Estate Files, 1663-1979," index and images,  FamilySearch   (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.1.1/VKJM-FYZ :  accessed 08 Aug 2013), Isaac Dove, 1826. Image 5/45 [As you can see here, the Summons referred to in the transcription of Image 3/45 was attached to the description and plat.] STATE OF NORTH-CAROLINA. To the Sheriff of Craven County, GREETING: YOU are hereby commanded to summon Hardy L. Jones, James T. Jones Esquire, Gideon Jones, Joseph Davis & Benjamin Borden ------------- to me at such place and at some time before the next Court, to be held for your County, on the second Monday of February next, as to [scratched out] you shall seem fit, then and there to make partition of that part of the lands (which were formerly held in common between Isaac Dove and Anthony Brown) which belongs to the heirs of Isaac Dove and are situated in Craven County on the east side of Spring Branch. ---------------- -------

Using Estate Files to Document Family Relationships on FamilySearch.org

FamilySearch The other day I had a Facebook exchange with a fellow genealogist regarding the valuable resource of FamilySearch.org. This researcher was looking for estate records for South Carolina, and since my husband's maternal line descends from Horry County, I continued to tell her about the records on FamilySearch.org, until I rediscovered why I had chosen to work on my husband's paternal line from North Carolina: not all states' records are represented equally on the site, by far!  Browsing records by location In case you've never searched using the "browse the records" method, here is the process: After signing in and clicking on the "Search" option, scroll down to the bottom of the page and click on the country file you would like to explore. For this purpose, I'll be clicking on "United States." On the left side of the screen you will find a listing of states to select from. I'll be clicking on "South Ca

Isaac Carter: Determining the Identity of Same Name Rev War Soldiers, Part 1

Have you ever come upon some information that was published in a book by credentialed individuals and assumed that because they said it was so, it must be? I’m sure that at one time or another, we’ve all done that. But can authors make errors? Certainly. There are some cases where the only people who might be able to spot such a mistake are those who have first-hand knowledge of a family’s history because it is their own. When presented with what appears to be a find, they accept it as a clue and take it to the next level.  It’s a bit like being a detective.  This latter group of researchers is familiar with the names associated with their family. When a clue is revealed, they possess the instinct to know if the information is sound, or if there might be some room for interpretation. Such was the case of Isaac Carter’s Revolutionary War record. (March 2008) My husband’s CARTER ancestry takes us back to colonial North Carolina, to New Bern in Craven County. His 3 rd great-grandfat