| Notes |
- ** See marriage notes for list of children **
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Notes for George DERREBERRY
Biography
George Derryberry was one of seven "first-generation" Derryberry men who appear in the records of Burke Co., NC prior
to 1800. He appears to have been one of the younger of these men, and did not marry until after 1800. We presume he
was the lone male in the household of widow Anne Derryberry in the 1800 census, at which time he was age 26-44 years, placing his birth between 1756 and 1774. Given the fact that he married late, that his wife was considerably younger, that his brother Andrew was born about 1765, and that his brother Daniel, likely the very youngest, was born about 1771, a resonable estimate of George's birth date might be 1768, between Andrew and Daniel in the birth order. We do not know when his parents migrated from New Jersey or Pennsylvania to North Carolina, but it likely occurred sometime in the 1760's, and so we cannot be sure where he was born.
Because of the presence of a second George Derreberry of similar age, distinguishing the two Georges in the early
records is difficult. There is a special section below dedicated to sorting out the two men in the pre-1807 records.
Described here are the results as they pertain to this man.
Based on our estimated birth year of 1768 above, George was of age by about 1789. By this time, his brother Andrew had married and was living on his own, leaving George as the older of the two brothers in his mother Anne's household in
1790. Although Anne is the named head of household in 1790 and 1800, it is George who appears in the tax lists for
1793-1795, in the Silver Creek area of Burke Co. The three Derryberrys listed in those years were Hannah, George and
Andrew. (There are no surviving tax lists for the Silver Creek area for the period 1796-1801.)
Following Daniel's marriage about 1798, George became the only son left in Anne's household in 1800. George himself
married about 1801, to a woman named Nancy whose maiden name is unknown. They seem to have left the Silver Creek area, since George is listed in the 1804-1806 Burke Co. tax lists in Capt. Dysart's company, which was in the west Burke / east McDowell area. George probably died in early 1806, since he is not listed on Dysart's tax list in 1807 or later. Burke Co. court records from Jan 1807 include the administration bond for George's estate:
"We acknowledge ourselves justly indebted unto James Greenlee Esq. as presiding member of the County Court of Burke in the sum of two hundred and fifty pounds, and to be void on conditions that the Nancy O'Kelly formerly Nancy Derreberry, widow of George Derreberry Deceased, and Elijah Largent, shall will and justly administer on all and singular the goods and chattells rights and credits of the said George Derreberry Dec'd, and a just and free inventory of the same return within ninety days from the date hereof, and all the just debts to pay. Otherwise to remain in full force and
vesture[?] Given under our hands and seals 28th Jan 1807. [Signed Nancy O'Kelly, Elijah Largent, Thoma Largent, and
James Hennes(?).]"
Court minutes from the same session, abstracted by Peggy Dale Chapman in "Diehl Descendants" by same, p. 67:
"...George Derreberry deceased to Nancy OKelly the widow and relict of George Derryberry decd and Elijah Largent who
gave bond with approved Security in the Sum of 250 [pounds] ordered that the Estate be sold agreeable to law.
Maintenance: Ordered that Robert McElrath, Elisha Dossey, Charles Pearson be the freeholders and look to Poor be the
Justices to lay off one years provision for the widow and family of Geo Derryberry Decd for one year and report..."
A family Bible from the O'Kelley family notes that "Francis M. O'Kelley married the widow Dearaberry 1808." This
almost certainly refers to George's widow, despite the fact that they probably married in 1806 and not 1808. The same
Bible notes that Francis and Nancy had three children together, two daughters and a son. The 1810 and 1820 censuses
note five daughters altogether and no sons born by 1810, and so we can surmise that George and Nancy had three
daughters of their own, and no sons. Two of these daughters must be the Susannah and Charity Derreberry who
co-migrated with the O'Kelley family to Rhea Co., TN by 1850. (This is all consistent with the court records above,
which note that George had a "widow and family.") George's widow Nancy died sometime before 1830, in which year
Francis remarried.
Sources
1790 US census - see his mother Anne's notes. There are no George Derryberrys listed in this census.
1800 US census - see his mother Anne's notes. (The one George listed was probably his nephew.)
Burke Co., NC Tax Lists, Silver Creek (kindly provided by Betsy Pittman):
1793, Capt. Mackey's Co.: George Derryberry
1794, Capt. Mackey's Co.: George Derryberry, 100 acres
1795, Capt. Lain's Co., Avery Co. [?]: George Derryberry, 100 acres
Burke Co., NC Tax Lists, W. Burke / E. McDowell (kindly provided by Betsy Pittman):
1804, Dysart's Co.: George Derryberry, 100 a
1805, Dysart's Co.: George Derryberry, 100 a
1806, Dysart's Co.: George Derryberry, 0 a
1807, Dysart's Co.: no Derryberrys found [but Jonathan Hines is]
Burke Co. Court minutes, January 1807 session: see the Biography above.
Others of Same Name
There were two George Derreberrys in Burke Co. of similar ages, and care must be taken to distinguish them. One of
them was likely the son of Anne, and therefore one of the original seven, "first-generation" Derryberrys. The other
was likely the son of Hannah (and John). One of them married Nancy about 1801 and died relatively young in 1806, and
the other married Elizabeth McElrath about 1797 and died quite old in 1849. Therefore, all records of a George after
1806 must refer to Elizabeth McElrath's husband, and it is the period prior to that that we must be concerned about.
In the 1790 census, there are no George Derryberrys listed, and so both Georges were probably living with their
respective mothers. Both of Anne's sons were listed as over 16 years of age, while two of Hannah's three sons were
listed as under 16 years of age. Since one of Hannah's sons, John, begins appearing in land records in the early
1790's, he must have been the oldest of her sons, making George one of the sons under 16.
We can estimate that the single George Derryberry listed in the 1800 census, Burke Co., was the husband of Elizabeth
McElrath due to the presence of a wife and son in the household. Later records of Nancy and her family suggest that
she and her husband George had only daughters, all born 1802 and afterwards. Although that 1800 census is listed
alphabetically rather than by order of visitation, George is listed close to Hannah and Hannah's son Michael, in the
Silver Creek area. This suggests that the George in the 1800 census, husband of Elizabeth McElrath, was the son of
Hannah. This is further supported by the following land record:
"Land entry 3828 (10 Feb 1800). George Derryberry, 100 a on Silver Creek bounded by John Derrebery line, John Deal's
corner, and John George Hipps line including the vacancy between the lines for compliment. Warrant 26 Jul 1800.
Survey 24 Aug 1800, bounded by John Derebery on the west, George Deal on the north, and George Hips on the east.
Witnesses: John Derryberry, Jacob Hipps."
The John Derreberry named in the above record must have been Hannah's son, and the proximity of the property to George and Jacob Hipps suggests this was very near Hannah's own land described in earlier records. We surmise, again, that the George named in the above land record was the husband of Elizabeth McElrath, son of Hannah and brother of John.
Given that George, husband of Nancy, was not married in 1800, he was probably the lone male living in the household of
widow Anne in that census. Anne does not appear in the pre-1800 Burke Co. tax records, but a George does, as does
Hannah. We therefore surmise that the lone George Derryberry listed in the 1793-1795 Burke Co. tax records, from the
Silver Creek area, was Anne's son and later Nancy's husband.
There are no surviving tax lists for the period 1796-1801, but when tax records resume in 1802, there are two George
Derryberrys listed: one in the Silver Creek area (Simpson's, Whetstone's, and Neill's companies) for the period
1802-1809 but not 1810 on, and one in the west Burke / east McDowell area (Dysart's company) for the period 1804-1806 but not 1807 on. Since Nancy's husband died in 1806, there can be no doubt that the George in west Burke was Nancy's husband, while the George in Silver Creek was Elizabeth McElrath's husband. (This is counterintuitive since it means the George in Silver Creek for 1793-1795 was not the same George in Silver Creek in the period 1802-1809.)
Further confusion can arise since Elizabeth McElrath's husband George, who disappears from the Silver Creek lists after
1809, eventually ended up in what became McDowell Co., where Nancy's husband George had been living in 1804-1806.
These records are imprecise, and admittedly the interpretations above leave some inconsistency. However, this seems to be the most likely interpretation of the records. A case can also be made for Elizabeth McElrath's husband being one
of the "original seven" and Nancy's husband being the son of Hannah, but the interpretation here seems be slightly more
likely given the available data.
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Steve Butler and Suzanne Hibbs Family History
1768 - 1806 (38 years)
