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Sunday, January 16, 2022

Gathering Giddens: John Giddens, a Planter in North Carolina

This land transaction shows the only record of John's occupation, a planter. [1]

I first started researching the Giddens family in 1998. My mother's mother, Edith Giddens, was a descendant of Mitchell Giddens, the youngest son of John Giddens and his wife, Sarah.  

Much documented and undocumented information is found when searching for John Giddens on genealogy websites. In this post, I will highlight some of the conflicts and some of the many documents that tell about John and his family.

 


John Giddens vs. John Jacob Giddens

When John died in 1802, he had at least 1000 acres of land and a large inventory of other items, as well as a wife and eight children.[2] John's name can be found in many records both before and after his death. In all records I have seen, his name is written with no middle name or initial. 

Sometime in the last decade, his name began to appear as John Jacob Giddens in family trees at Ancestry.com, FamilySearch, MyHeritage, and other sites. In October 2021, there were 162 trees at Ancestry for this John Giddens, father of Mitchell and other children. John Giddens is his name in 90 trees and John Jacob Giddens in 72 trees. In those 72 trees, there were no documents showing that his name was John Jacob Giddens.[3] 

The Birthplace and Parents of John Giddens

On the 1800 U.S. Census, John Giddens' age is that of a male 45 years and upward, giving him a birth year of 1755 or earlier.[4]

Many say that John Giddens was born in Maryland. My great-grandfather, Charles Giddens, wrote a letter about family to Lina Giddens, his half-sister, in 1952. The following excerpt tells what he knew about his early Giddens family. [5]



He didn't name John, but the fact that John was the one that came to North Carolina from Maryland may or may not be correct. Lewis D. Giddens, a grandson of John, died in 1909, so it was over 40 years since my great-grandfather had talked to Lewis.[6] If John was the first to come to North Carolina, I could not imagine that he would emigrate by himself. 

 William Giddens, of Hyde County, North Carolina, has been hypothesized to be the father of John Giddens.[7] There are other possibilities, but there is not yet any documentation giving the answer. 

John Giddens, Landowner

The first record found naming John Giddens was in Duplin County, where John witnessed a land sale in 1779. He witnessed another deed that same year, and then John was not seen again until 1782.[8] State of North Carolina Entries of Claims for Lands within the County of Wayne 1780-1795 showed that in 1782, John owned land adjoining William Reave's land, and in 1784, Thomas Bass received land adjoining both William Reaves and Giddens land.[9] 

By 1786, John Giddens owned 285 acres in Wayne when he appeared on the Wayne County tax list.[10] 

In 1787, John received 100 acres between Reaves, Dunkins, and Taylor's lines in Wayne County.[11] That same year he received 130 acres of land from Gabrial Stevens and then purchased about 150 acres of land from Thomas Bass, both adjacent to his properties in Wayne County.[12]

There were land purchases and sales that followed, and at the time of his death, it was reported that he owned 1000 acres. However, after looking at his wife's dower and the amount of land most children received, it can be surmised that the amount was at least 1500 acres.[13]


Wayne, Sampson, and Duplin Counties ca. 1870 [14]

Land records indicate that most of the land found was in Wayne County in the area of Mount Olive, and some land was just across the county line in Duplin.[15] The earliest land transactions were not found, and the record I would most like to have, documentation dividing the land among heirs, appears to be nonexistent. 

 Military Service

 A John Giddens was issued a pay voucher for 1140 pounds by the Wilmington District for service in the Revolutionary War. [16] He served in the North Carolina Militia, Wilmington District with men from Bladen, Brunswick, Cumberland, Duplin, New Hanover, and Onslow counties. Captain Nicolas Bowden led his Duplin County Regiment.[17] At least two men in this regiment had dealings with John well after the war. John Charles Slocumb was a close neighbor and assisted with John's estate settlement.[18]  William Taylor can be found as witnesses to some of John Giddens' land transactions.[19]


Pay Voucher - 27 October 1781[20]

His Wife and Children

This is an excerpt from Lina Letisha Giddens'
handwritten notes detailing the family of 
Mitchell Giddens and Letisha Britt.[25] To see 
the complete notes read  George Lullen 

I have no marriage record that shows John Giddens wife's surname was Taylor. My great-grandfather indicated it was Taylor in his letter.[21] Probate records show that her first name was definitely Sarah, and she used the name, Salley.[22] John had land adjacent to land in Wayne County that Jacob Taylor received in 1780.[23] A William Taylor served in the North Carolina Militia with John Giddens and served as a witness for at least two of John's land transactions.[24] 

Her name was Sallie Taylor in a handwritten record shared by Lina Letisha Giddens, John's great-granddaughter, in 1952. That record appears to have been copied from a Bible record, but the source was not revealed.[26] If there was a Bible, its whereabouts are unknown. 

In 1800, John and Sarah had eight children. One child must have died before 1802 as, at the time of John's death, the probate indicated that there were eight children in the family and Mitchell had been born in 1802. [27]

At the time of John's death, his sons Mitchell, Abraham, David, and Jacob were minors and were found named in John's probate records. [28] Elizabeth was named in a land record as his daughter.[29] Other children are thought to be John, Isaac, and Jemima. 

John Giddens - Death and Probate

John Giddens died in 1802 without a will, so he died intestate. Sarah Giddens was the administratrix of the estate. A committee was appointed to divide and settle the estate. Committee members were John Charles Slocumb, Durham Graddy, and Ezekiel Slocumb.[30]  

The inventory of the estate is now found online. Much stock, farming tools, shoemakers tools, hatters implements, ten books, a desk, ten guns, three wool wheels, two linen wheels, and a trumpet were a few of the many items on the inventory. [31]



A sale was held on 10 December 1802. Most furniture and household tools were not a part of the sale. Isaac Giddens bought the hatters tools, sheep, hogsheads, and some barrels of corn. He was probably John's 20-year-old son. There were not many Giddens in North Carolina at the time. Other buyers included William Taylor, Jacob Taylor, Adam Reaves, Lovett Reaves, Sampson Edwards, David Slocumb, Thomas Brown, Stephen Hines, Jonathan Taylor, Hardy Bizzell, and John Jones.[32]

The probate record named the minor children and showed that Sarah Giddens married Jesse Flowers sometime between 1806 and 1808. No mention of enslaved persons was found on the probate record.[33]

John's burial place is unknown. John lived in Wayne County near Mount Olive, so it is suspected that he was probably buried on land he owned near his home. Some think he might be buried in the Troublefield Cemetery, but the Giddens family did not own land near the cemetery until the late 1850s or 1860s.[34] For more about the area near the Troublefield Cemetery, which was eventually called Giddensville, read one of my first posts, Giddensville.

Your Response

If you have answers to my research questions or can contradict any of the information in my post, I would love to hear from you. Please don't hesitate to contact me with questions as well. Find my email on the "About Me" tab at the top of this page. 

Next Steps 

In 1790, there were only 28 Giddens listed as heads of families on the United States census - a new investigation of these families might be warranted.[35]  Geography is guiding my research but, I would love to see some more Giddens YDNA tests to compare at FamilyTreeDNA (a 37 marker test is currently $119 but watch for sales). If you are a male Giddens, please consider taking a YDNA test and joining Giddens/Giddings Group Project. You might find more about your Giddens line and help others make connections as well.[36] 

Lewis D. Giddens was the son of David Giddens and grandson of John. According to my great-grandfather, Lewis' hobby was genealogy.[37] Did Lewis know the identity of John's parents? Newspaper articles indicate that Lewis may have collaborated with Professor Lucian P. Giddens in Alabama, and they may be related.[38] Finding the research of Lewis or Lucian Giddens might be extremely helpful. 


Other Posts Relating to this Giddens Family                

These are only a few of the many Giddens posts and photos found on my blog. Search this blog for Giddens to see more. 
Posts in this Series 






If you want to know more about the families I research, click here to like my Facebook page where you will see each post and other genealogical finds. 


Diana
© 2022

    1. Duplin County, North Carolina, Deed Book 3A: 231-232, John Reaves to John Giddens, 1 January 1796; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-9983-6WLC?i=473&cat=247388 : accessed 1 December 2021), images 474-475.
    2. "North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9CF-2P37?cc=1911121&wc=Q649-S69%3A1066694502%2C183295401%2C1066696236 : accessed 3 January 2022), Wayne County > G > Giddens, John (1802); State Archives, Raleigh.
    3. Public Member Trees, database, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1030/ : accessed 15 October 2021. A search for John Giddens, along with variation John Jacob Giddens, resulted in 162 trees.  
    4. "United States Census, 1800," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHRD-ZJR : accessed 15 January 2022), John Giddens, Wayne, North Carolina, United States; citing p. 856, NARA microfilm publication M32, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 32; FHL microfilm 337,908.
    5. Letter from Charles Giddens, (Sedalia, Missouri) to Lina Giddens (address unknown), 7 January 1952; digital copy held in 2022 by D. Quinn (Virginia Beach, VA). Current location of the original is unknown.
    6. Find a Grave, database and images (https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/37357449/lewis-devereaux-giddens : accessed 15 January 2022), memorial page for Lewis Devereaux Giddens Sr. (9 Sep 1835–1 Nov 1909), Find a Grave Memorial ID 37357449, citing Willow Dale Cemetery, Goldsboro, Wayne County, North Carolina, USA; Maintained by Cousins by the Dozens (contributor 46904925).
    7. Public Member Trees, database, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1030/ : accessed 15 October 2021).
    8. Duplin County, North Carolina, Deed Book 7: 173-174, Robert Warren to Chloe Simple, 13 December 1779; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-9983-69NS?i=606&cat=247388 : accessed 1 December 2021), images 607-608. Also, Duplin County, North Carolina, Deed Book 6: 321, Robert Warren to Ezakieh Millard, 13 [blank] 1779; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-8983-69JH?i=429&cat=247388 : accessed 1 December 2021), images 430. 
    9. William L. "Bill" Murphy, State of North Carolina Entries of Claims for Lands within the County of Wayne 1780-1795 (Raleigh, n.d.).
    10. Wayne County, NC - 1786 Wayne County Tax List, USGenWeb Archives
(http://files.usgwarchives.net/nc/wayne/taxlists/tax1786.txt : accessed 30 October 2021). 
    11. William L. "Bill" Murphy, State of North Carolina Entries of Claims for Lands within the County of Wayne 1780-1795 (Raleigh, n.d.).
    12. Wayne County, North Carolina, Deed Book 4: 18-21, Gabriel Stevens (by Sheriff) to John Giddens, 10 October 1787; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-998Q-WXNP?i=14&cat=307067 : accessed 1 December 2021), images 15-16.  Also, Wayne County, North Carolina, Deed Book 4: 523-524, Thomas Bass to John Giddens, 25 September 1787; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-898Q-WXJB?i=277&cat=307067 : accessed 1 December 2021), images 278-279.     
    13. "North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979," database with images, FamilySearch  Giddens, John, 1802; State Archives, Raleigh.
    14. Pearce & Best. Pearce's new map of the state of North Carolina: constructed from actual surveys, Library of Congress (https://www.loc.gov/item/2009582408/ : accessed 21 November 2021). North Carolina map showing only Wayne, Duplin, and Sampson Counties. 
    15. Thomas M. Byrd, Land Grant Map Mount Olive Quadrangle Duplin, and Wayne Counties, North Carolina (Cary, North Carolina: n.d.).
    16. Treasurer & Comptroller, Military Papers, Revolutionary War, Army Accounts
Volume V, Page 40, Folio 3, page listing John Giddens, S.115.58.
    17. Treasurer & Comptroller, Military Papers, Revolutionary War, Army Accounts
Volume V, Page 40, Folio 3, page listing John Giddens, S.115.58. Also, J. D. Lewis, Captains, The American Revolution in North Carolina (https://www.carolana.com/NC/Revolution/nc_patriot_military_captains.html : accessed 6 May 2021). 
    18. "North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979," database with images, FamilySearch  Giddens, John, 1802; State Archives, Raleigh. Also, J. D. Lewis, The Privates, Horsemen, Fifers, Drummers, etc. - Last Names Beginning with "S"The American Revolution in North Carolina (https://www.carolana.com/NC/Revolution/nc_patriot_military_captains.html : accessed 6 May 2021). 
    19. J. D. Lewis, The Privates, Horsemen, Fifers, Drummers, etc. - Last Names Beginning with "T," The American Revolution in North Carolina (https://www.carolana.com/NC/Revolution/nc_patriot_military_privates_t.htm : accessed 6 May 2021). Also, Duplin County, North Carolina, Deed Book 3A: 231-232, John Reaves to John Giddens, 1 January 1796; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-9983-6WLC?i=473&cat=247388 : accessed 1 December 2021), images 474-475. Also, Wayne County, North Carolina, Deed Book 9: 354, John Giddens to Jesse Norris, 1 January 1796; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L98Q-Q23G?i=180&cat=307067 : accessed 1 December 2021), images 354.  
    20. Treasurer & Comptroller, Military Papers, Revolutionary War, Army Accounts
Volume V, Page 40, Folio 3, page listing John Giddens, S.115.58.
    21. Charles Giddens to Lina Giddens, 7 January 1952. 
    22. "North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979," database with images, FamilySearch  Giddens, John, 1802; State Archives, Raleigh.
    23. Thomas M. Byrd, Land Grant Map Mount Olive Quadrangle Duplin, and Wayne Counties, North Carolina (Cary, North Carolina: n.d.).
    24. Treasurer & Comptroller, Military Papers, Revolutionary War, Army Accounts
Volume V, Page 40, Folio 3, page listing John Giddens, S.115.58. Also, Duplin County, North Carolina, Deed Book 3A: 231-232, John Reaves to John Giddens, 1 January 1796; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-9983-6WLC?i=473&cat=247388 : accessed 1 December 2021), images 474-475. Also, Wayne County, North Carolina, Deed Book 9: 354, John Giddens to Jesse Norris, 1 January 1796; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L98Q-Q23G?i=180&cat=307067 : accessed 1 December 2021), images 354.  
    25. Lina Giddens Byrd, Giddens family record, ca. 1950, digital copy held in 2022 by D. Quinn (Virginia Beach, VA). Current location of the original is unknown.
    26. Ibid.
    27. "United States Census, 1800," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHRD-ZJR : accessed 15 January 2022), John Giddens, Wayne, North Carolina, United States; citing p. 856, NARA microfilm publication M32, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 32; FHL microfilm 337,908.
    28. "North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979," database with images, FamilySearch  Giddens, John, 1802; State Archives, Raleigh.
    29. Wayne County, North Carolina, Deed Book 9: 320, William Bryan and wife, Elizabeth, to Jesse Norris, 17 September 1810; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L98Q-Q27Z?i=163&cat=307067 : accessed 1 December 2021), images 164-165. 
    30. "North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979," database with images, FamilySearch  Giddens, John, 1802; State Archives, Raleigh.
    31. Ibid.
    32. Ibid.
    33. Ibid.
    34. Diana Bryan Quinn, "Giddensville," blog entry, 13 Jul 2011, Moments in Time, A Genealogy Blog  (https://momentsintimeagenealogyblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/giddensville.html : accessed 10 January 2022.) 
    35. 1790 U.S. Census, database, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/5058/ : accessed 15 December 2021. A search for Giddens, along with spelling variations, resulted in an outcome of 28 Giddens, along with spelling variations, heads of household in the United States.
    36. FamilyTreeDNA, (https://www.familytreedna.com/ : accessed 30 October 2021). 
    37. Charles Giddens to Lina Giddens, 7 January 1952. 
    38. LP Giddens of Alabama visited LD Giddens, The Morning Post (Raleigh, North Carolina), 20 July 1900, p. 3; database and images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19186666/lp-giddens-alabama-visited-ld-giddens/ : accessed 12 April 2018). Also, LP Giddens family of Alabama in Goldsboro, Goldsboro Daily Argus (Goldsboro, North Carolina), 9 September 1901, p. 4; database and images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19181360/lp-giddens-family-of-alabama-in/ : accessed 12 April 2018). Also, LD Giddens visited JC Giddens in Alabama, The Leighton News (Leighton, Alabama), 9 September 1901, p. 4; database and images, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/clip/19181360/lp-giddens-family-of-alabama-in/ : accessed 12 April 2018).
  



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