Research Blog

The Great Massengill Mystery

The Great Massengill Mystery

Daniel Massengill came from Whitby, England, Yorkshire. Daniel Massengill was born 1624. Settled in Charles City County, Va., in 1653. His children moved to South Hampton County, Va...This record written by Henry Massengill, Jr., this 10th day of July, 1785. The...

The Family of Boaz Squires

The Family of Boaz Squires

Boaz Squires is a rather enigmatic figure.  Appropriate, wouldn't you say, for a man legend says was a wizard?  Local stories claim he was a rather lazy fellow who made demons build boats while he lounged beneath the pines smoking his pipe.  He even fought the Devil,...

William Bright of Craven: There Were Two

William Bright of Craven: There Were Two

There were, demonstrably, two William Brights living within, what was then, Craven County during the mid 1700s. Look at the Petition to Change the Seat of Government of 1733. Among the signatories of this document were William Brite and William Bright. So, how do we...

Family Tree Fact Check: Miranda Ross Gaskins

Family Tree Fact Check: Miranda Ross Gaskins

While Ancestry is notorious for spreading false information, you should also be wary of Find-a-Grave (link to her page). Remember, both sites depend on users, who are human, to create family trees/bios. Always, always, always check the facts against contemporary...

The Williams/Grinder Connection

The Williams/Grinder Connection

A couple of years ago, I posted this on the forum under with Williams surname: I'm not at all sure about this one, but it's a possibility. I am descended from Andrew Grinder and his wife, Elizabeth, through their daughter Ann Sevilla who married Esau Tingle. In the...

Marriage Bond of Laban Morris & Kitty Williams

Marriage Bond of Laban Morris & Kitty Williams

When you have a brick wall in your family tree, what else can you do but chase down every lead of anyone who had any relation to your mystery relative? This annotated marriage bond serves that purpose for me. On Thursday, August 22, 1805, John KING (son of Joel KING)...

General Assembly Session Records available online

General Assembly Session Records available online

I've had to take a break from research for the past few months because I've been so busy with work, but knowing we'll all be hunkering down for much of the coming weeks, I thought last night was a perfect time to get back to research.  I was thrilled to see the...

Is Harriet Morris a relative of Laban Morris?

Is Harriet Morris a relative of Laban Morris?

(This article was originally published July 25, 2018. It was most recently updated June 6, 2019.) It's now worth investigating the possibility that Harriet Morris is a daughter of Thomas Morris of Beaufort County and granddaughter of Elisha Morris. While Laban...

Who was Nancy MORRIS?

Who was Nancy MORRIS?

(This article was originally published January 22, 2014. It was most recently updated June 6, 2019.) Nancy MORRIS shows up in the household of Laban MORRIS in 1850 and 1860, and best I can tell from ages on census records, she was living with the family as early as...

The Family of Elisha Morris of Beaufort County, NC

The Family of Elisha Morris of Beaufort County, NC

The following post is an attempt to reconcile information that I've gathered so far, as well as an invitation for anyone who has more details to add in their comments.  I have had a special interest in Elisha Morris for several years now. My cousin Mike Morris and I...