Griffins of Crawford County Arkansas

The first phase of this journey will be told with respect to the individual men of our Griffin line, going back as far as I have names for them. Though we probably never will know the names of earlier men, there is still quite a story to tell of earlier times. The second phase will take our line back to Wales, and how the line's Y-chromosome tells us where they came from before the advent of human civilization. The final phase will cover the rest of the family tree of William Griffin, my great-great grandfather, through all of his great-great grandparents. Keep in mind that most of them lived their lives before the Revolution. The ultimate origin of our Griffin line is an enigma in multiple ways. The name is Welsh, but the surname Griffin is actually rare in Wales today. The related name Griffith is more likely to come from Wales. We'll come back to that subject later in this document.

Griffins in America

Below is a non-photographic portrait of my great-great-grandfather William Griffin and his wife. He was 51 years old when World War I broke out, so he never personally saw combat. He wed in Crawford County Arkansas in 1888. One odd bit of trivia that I've discovered about William is his birthplace was put as Iowa in the 1900 and 1910 censuses. It probably was put that way in 1890 too, but that census was lost. William was born in 1866. His parents wed in Jackson County Alabama in 1865. His family was in the Jackson census in 1870, and 1880 for that matter. There's no way that William was born in Iowa. There's no way that William ever went to Iowa. He was born in Jackson. So how could he have claimed in two censuses that he was born in Iowa? I used to find this completely inexplicable, but I think I have an inkling about it now. It had to do with the Civil War. It was William's father who fought in it, so hold that thought for a moment.


William Lewis Griffin and Sarah Isabelle Parrish

William's father was John Griffin. I've mentioned what is known about him in Alabama. The only Arkansas record for him was his death in 1890. We'll go back before his 1865 marriage shortly. But first let's deal with the documented period. He's head of his family clearly in 1880. His wife was Temperance Caroline Evans. This should be straightforward. But another John Griffin and Temperance Caroline Evans were in Shelby County Texas in the same census. Now, you might wonder if maybe they moved from Alabama to Texas in the window of time between the two states being enumerated, and they were counted twice. But though even the children have some similarity in names, their ages are considerably different and the John in Texas was 14 years younger. They simply were spookily similar. The Texas John died in Shelby in 1900. Even findagrave.com says he was our William's father. He wasn't. He wed in Butler County Alabama, not Jackson.

The first thing to address about John before 1865 is he claimed an 1827 birth in South Carolina. He was 39 when William was born. Even though the Civil War delayed John's getting married, he was 35 in 1862. This suggests that he had a previous family. But there's no trace of them, at least not in his Jackson household. I have no idea what John was up to from 1850 to 1862. We'll come back to where he came from, but let's now address the Civil War. John servied in the 1st Regiment of Alabama Volunteer Cavalry. Now, I'm aware that there was a 1st Alabama Cavalry that was formed in Huntsville Alabama, 40 miles at the most from where John wed in Jackson County in 1865. That unit fought for the Union. So, I would guess that William claimed birth in Iowa to save himself persecution in Arkansas for being from a Union family in a confederate state. A former confederate state like Arkansas could welcome someone from Iowa coming to the south. They might not have been so welcoming to a family from Alabama that fought for the Union. But the problem with this theory is that William's mom (let's call her TC) filed for a confederate pension when John died in 1890. The only record I have is the application. I don't know if it was approved. Maybe she tried to lie and got caught.

Let's get back to John's origin. I've not found him anywhere in 1860 or 1850. And the censuses before 1850 only name the head of household. Before I learned how to use ThruLines to break down genealogical brick walls, I did a lot of manual census searching to try to figure out who John's father was. I found Griffins in Jackson County Alabama in 1850 and 1840, but I couldn't connect John to any of them. I still figured he had to be related to them, and I traced them back to Anson County North Carolina. I found a David Griffin who was clearly the patriarch there, and his father was Richard Griffin. Just making a guess at John's father, who would've been David's son, ThruLines confirmed that we do descend from David and Richard. I'm still not entirely certain what John's father's name was, but using ThruLines I filled out John's mother's side of his tree. She was Sally Williams of Anson. She died in Georgia, so it seems the line lived for a time in South Carolina. It could also be that they moved when John was young, and he actually was born in North Carolina or Georgia.

The combination of census analysis and DNA evidence traces us back firmly to Richard Griffin of Virginia. Richard was born about 1720 in Prince George County. David was born in 1757. This is claimed to have been in Essex County, but that's disjointed geographically. The line was in Essex earlier, but David was born in Halifax County. Before we work further backward, David left a will in which he named his sons and gave everything he owned to his wife. He described his dwelling as a plantation, but he made no mention of slaves. I've found no direct evidence that our Griffins participated in slavery, up through their time in Alabama. I expect that they were Anglican. John's father may have been of age to fight in the War of 1812, but I know nothing about him. David was 19 when the Revolutionary War broke out, and I expect that he fought in it, but I've found no record. A Richard Griffin's name is on a Union County North Carolina War Memorial, along with Philip Wolfe, another of my mom's ancestors. But I expect this Richard was not David's father, but his brother.

Griffins before America

Some researchers select Richard Rasty Griffin as our Richard's father, and my work agrees with this. Richard Sr was appointed constable of Lunenberg County Virginia in 1746. He was born in Bristol, Henrico County Virginia about 1700, where Prince George County would be formed. Richard Jr was born in the same place. Richard Sr's father was William Griffin, born 1678 in Bristol. He was the last of at least four Williams in a row, so we'll call him William IV. William III was born 1656 in Pembrokeshire Wales. William II was born 1628 in West Pennard, Somerset England. William I was born 1596 in Somerset, which is close to Wales.

Descendants of Richard Sr have been tested as Y-DNA haplogroup R-M269. That would align with this being a Welsh line. Griffin comes from Welsh Gruffudd, which was a name used by Welsh nobility. Certainly the Celtic forebears of Wales were R-M269. More than 90% of Welsh men today are of that haplpgroup. But the surname Griffin isn't actually Welsh. It's claimed to be English or Irish. See the map below. I used to be confused about this, but I think I can explain it now, having learned from research of the two primary Welsh lines on my dad's side, Howell and Meredith. Both of those were naturalized Welsh - that is, they were late-comers and didn't descend in male line from Celtic Welsh. The Howells clearly came from the Normans, having Viking Y-DNA and being connected to the Norman town Pembroke. The Merediths have the same Y-DNA, but aren't as clearly Norman. But if they weren't Norman, they were Angles.


Distribution of the Griffin surname

Our Griffins have the Celtic Y-DNA. But I don't think it came from pre-Roman Wales. I think it came from Gallic men who were in what would become Normandy when the Vikings took it over. The Griffins are also connected to Pembroke, which was founded by the Normans. My guess is our line came from nobles of Normandy who went to Pembroke in the wake of the 1066 invasion. The reason why Griffin is more common in Ireland than Wales was a mass movement of men with that name there in 1172.

William Griffin's other Great-Great-Grandparent Lines

In the last phase of this document, I collect all that I know about the non-Griffin paternal lines of the great-great-grandparents of my great-great-grandfather, William Griffin. Refer to the McAtee Pedigree page for a simple view of William's ancestors.

Evans

John Griffin's wife was Temperance Caroline (TC) Evans, born 1844 in Jackson County Alabama. TC's father was Claborn Evans, born 1816 in Scott County Virginia. Claborn's father was Tarlton Evans, born 1776 in Louisa County Virginia. He moved the line to the southwestern tip of Virginia and served in the War of 1812, probably the Creek War. Tarlton's father was Emanuel Evans, born 1754 in Goochland County Virginia. Emanuel's father was also named Emanuel, born 1730 in Goochland. Emanuel Sr's father was David Evans, born 1709 in Carnarvonshire Wales. This is on the Irish Sea west of Liverpool England. There is no evidence the Evanses were slaveholders. Presumably they were anglican. Descendants of Emanuel Jr have been tested as Y-DNA haplogroup R-M269. I have to assume that they came from Celtic Welsh.

Williams

As mentioned previously, I have more certainty in the identity of John Griffin's mother than his father, though I do know clearly who his paternal grandfather was. The maternal side of his tree was a complete mystery until I learned how to use ThruLines to confirm an educated guess about his mother and her parents. In the case of this Williams line, I manually scoured the 1790, 1800, and 1810 censuses of Anson County North Carolina, looking for neighbors of David Griffin who were his peers and could've had a daughter who wed his son that was in our line. The first neighbor I wrote down, before even determining that he could've had a daughter of the right age, was Roland Williams. I also noted men of surnames Lloyd, Hamer, Melton, Stroud, Taylor, James, Pearce, Sharpe, Shepard, Hasty, Shoemake, Nash, and Lewellen. I didn't have to go far, because I found Roland Williams on wikitree.com, and he definitely had children during the right time and the right place. So, I put his name and Fereby Beals (original form I found was Bailes) in my tree as the parents of Sally Williams, prospective mother of John Griffin. I also chose John Griffin as John 1827's father.

In this case, I got a tepid response. There was one match for Roland and it wasn't specified who was on the other end or how, and three for Fereby. And then later Fereby's matches went down to one as well. I decided to go ahead and put in parents for both of them, and then ThruLines reported several matches for that generation. It then became clear that I guessed right. As to why Roland and Fereby have a single match each, I have a few theories. One, it's possible that a brother of Roland and a sister of Fereby were my ancestors. I have seen a Richard Williams who wed a Prudence Beals. Two, there may only be one other ancestry.com member out there who also descends from them. Three, maybe only one other ancestry.com member has Roland and Fereby in their tree. four, everyone else out there has wrong info that's befuddling ThruLines. Five, Roland was 30 years older than Fereby, so maybe it was his son who wed her. Regardless, Williams is the correct line. And so is Beals.

John Griffin's mother was Sally Williams, born 1784 in Anson County North Carolina. Sally's father was Roland Williams, born 1725 in Edgecombe County North Carolina. Roland'a father was John Williams, born 1697 in Edgecombe. John was the first of at least three in a row with that name, so let's call him John III. John II Williams was born 1675 in York County Virginia. John I Williams was born 1640 in Isle of Wight County Virginia. I don't know who John I's father was, but Williams is a Welsh line. I've learned that my Welsh lines tend to be very anglicized, and could've moved back and or forth between Wales and England before immigrating. Believe it or not, it looks like John III Williams had four different children who were my ancestors: Roland, one in the Carlile tree on my dad's side, and two in the Draper tree. There's a Williams line in the Burrell tree on my dad's side, but if they have a common ancestor it was in Britain. Presumably this line was anglican. All of these related Williams lines were slaveholders. I've found a few connections in the Williams DNA project that I believe are descendants of this line, but I'm not completely sure. They were tested as haplogroup R-M269, which makes sense for Wales as a guess.

Haney

TC Evans's mother was Mariah Haney, born 1815 in Tennessee. I don't have a location, but the line came from Virginia, so they probably were in the far-eastern part of the state. Mariah's father was Isaac Haney, born 1771 in Charlotte County Virginia. Isaac served in the War of 1812, which fits with eastern Tennessee and the Creek War. Isaac's father was John Haney, born in 1740. All information for John has him born also in Charlotte, but it wasn't formed until 1764. John's father was also named John, born in 1722. I haven't found a Haney who knows where they came from, but it's said to be a native Irish line. There are claims that Haney came from German Hoenig, but I don't think it applies to ours. The name has a connection to Londonderry, which is the best guess I can make. I presume that John Jr and Sr came to Charlotte from Londonderry, in the late 1760s. I assume they were Catholic and not slaveholders. The best guess is this line was of Y-DNA haplogroup R-M269.

Mullis

David Griffin's wife was Dosha Mullis, born 1759 in Essex County Virginia. Dosha's father was John Mullis, born 1720 in Lancaster County Virginia. John's father was Richard Mullis, born 1695 in Lancaster. Richard's father was John Mullis, born 1640 in Michaelstow, Cornwall England. The surname Mullis comes from Mullyes in Cornwall. It derives from French moulin, which means 'mill'. Mullis has the same meaning as Miller. Presumably this line was anglican. It was too early to have info on slaveholding. I've found nothing on the DNA of this line, so I have to assume it was of haplogroup R-M269.

Beals

Sally Williams's mother was Fereby Beals, born 1755 in Orange County North Carolina. Her unique first name comes from an English surname, originating from Ferriby in Lincolnshire. Fereby's father was John Beals, born 1717 in Nottingham, Chester County Pennsylvania. He was the last of at least three in a row with that name, so let's call him John III. John II was born 1685 in Aston of Chester. John I was born 1650 in Chichester, Sussex England. The surname Beals has been mistaken for Bailes, but is separate from it, originating in Old English for Bee Hill in Yorkshire. Our line traces back to Cheshire in more recent history. Presumably it was Anglican. It's too early to have slaveholding info. Descendants of the line have been tested as Y-DNA haplogroup R-M269.

Pace

Tarlton Evans's wife was Susannah Pace, born 1781 in Louisa County Virginia. Susannah's father was William Pace, born 1745 in Goochland County Virginia. William's father was John Pace, born 1722 in Middlesex County Virginia. John's father was Joseph Pace, born 1698 in Middlesex. Joseph's father was John Pace, born 1665 in Wrockwardine, Shropshire England. This line is not related (in America) to the Jamestown Paces of the Tapp tree. Presumably this line was anglican. It's too early to have slaveholding info. Descendants of this line have been tested as Y-DNA haplogroup I-M223. This haplogroup has an affinity with northern Scandinavia and central Germany, and is relatively common in England. But it's not considered to be a Viking or Anglo-Saxon haplogroup. It's believed to have entered Britain around the same time as it came to Germany, before the advent of farming. Our Pace line came from men who were hunter-gatherers in Britain. They were in Britain before the Celtic tribes, whose descendants are still the dominant genetics.

Terry

Isaac Haney's wife was Susanna Terry, born 1776 in Charlotte County Virginia. Susanna's father was George Terry, born 1730, probably in Brunswick County Virginia. It appears that Susanna was born around the same place, but Charlotte didn't exist in 1730, nor did Lunenberg, which was formed from Brunswick. George's father was Benjamin Terry, born 1704 in Prince George County. Again, the line may not have moved, just new counties forming. I don't know who Benjamin's father was. He may himself have been the immigrant. The name Terry comes from French Thierry, landing in England with the Normans. It's said to have been established in Kent, so I will assume that Benjamin was born there, unless I learn more. Presumably the line was anglican. I know of no information about slaveholding. Descendants of Benjamin have been tested as Y-DNA haplogroup I-P37, also known as I2. Remember that I-M253 is I1. My understanding is I-P37 came to what would become France before the advent of agriculture, as hunter-gatherers like I-M223 for the Pace line above. Our Terry line then became French, and Norman, and then came to Britain after 1066.

Newman

David Griffin's mother was Catharine Newman, born in 1724. ThruLines can't help to prove this line, but where I believe it goes is uniquely interesting. Catharine had to have been born in Virginia to have wed into the Griffins, but her line came from New Jersey. Her father was John Newman, born 1697 in Shrewsbury, Monmouth County New Jersey. I don't know where in Virginia that he went, so I assume it was Prince George County, where Richard Griffin was born. John's father was also named John, born about 1680 in Monmouth. John Sr's father was William Newman, born in 1638. This line followed a similar path to the Morris line on my dad's side, as William was born in Weymouth, Norfolk County Massachusetts. I don't know a similar story here as the connection the Morrises had to prove how they came from Massachusetts to New Jersey, but given that precendent I don't deny this line's path. There probably is a tale like that out there, but I haven't made the effort to find it. William's father was Samuel Newman, born 1602 in Banbury, Oxfordshire England. Samuel was an interesting guy, known for leaving England over of religious persecution. Samuel had a Theology degree from Trinity College, Oxford University. He wrote a famous book called the Concordance. He was a pastor and helped found the town of Rehoboth, from which I have several ancestors. The name Newman is said to have been given to newcomers in a community. The same was said about Newcomb, which is on my dad's side, where newcome was turned into a place name. A combe is a small valley. I'm not sure about either claim. Descendants of Samuel have been tested as Y-DNA haplogroup I-M253. This means the Newman line could've come from Viking settlers, but I would sooner expect them to have come with the Normans.

Dancer

Dosha Mullis's mother was Susanna Dancer, born 1737 in Essex County Virginia. I know nothing else about this line, but the name Dancer is said to have come to England with the Normans. Presumably this line was anglican. I have to guess that the Y-DNA is of haplogroup R-M269.

Fort

Ancestry.com hints say that Roland Williams's mother was named Margaret, and nothing more. I don't know what that was based on, but ThruLines recommend Phyllis Fort with one match. ThruLines can't show how this one match is determined, but it's the best I've got. The surname Fort is said to have come to England with the Normans, where Fort in French means strong. The Ford DNA project has some Forts in it, but the two names are unrelated. I have to make the usual guesses with this line.

Hunt

Fereby Beals's mother was Margaret Hunt, born 1719 in Cecil County Maryland. ThruLines can't defend this line, but Margaret's father was William Hunt, born 1690 in Philadelphia. William's father was also named William, born 1660 in Cheshire England. The pattern of this line indicates that they were Catholic. The name Hunt is related to Hunter. The Hunt DNA project has a William Hunt born in 1690, but in Scotland. I have to assume Y-DNA of haplogroup R-M269 for ours.

Thacker

Tarlton Evans's mother was Elizabeth Thacker, born 1756 in Goochland County Virginia. I have a line of forefathers for Elizabeth that go back to Norfolk England, and there's a claim that one of them wed a Cherokee woman. I have no idea if there's any basis for it. Thacker is said to be a specifically Saxon name, and apparently unrelated to Thatcher. I'm not motivated to do more work this far out in the tree, so I make the usual guesses. There's no Thacker DNA project.

Winegar

Susannah Pace's mother was Mary Winegar, born 1749 in Augusta County Virginia. What's most interesting to me about this line is the form of the name. I've seen claims that Winegar is English. But it doesn't look English at all. My research points to Mary's father being John Wenninger of Alsace France. The name looks like it had something to do with winemaking. I'm not assuming this line was Lutheran without more info. All the Winegars I saw in America were in Rockbridge County Virginia.

Foster

Isaac Haney's mother was Elizabeth Foster, born 1738 in Amelia County Virginia. The line I have that produced her goes back to Durham England. The name Foster is claimed to be Anglo-Saxon and shortened from Forrester.

Pettus

Susanna Terry's mother was Mary Pettus, born 1728 in Hanover County Virginia. The line I have for Pettus goes back to Norfolk England. The name Pettus came from Norman gentry.

Summary of William Griffin's Great-Great-Grandparent Lines

Only one of William's lines have been confirmed as slaveholders. Surely at least a few more were, but records just don't exist. William's ancestors were three quarters English and one quarter Welsh. I assume that about seven in eight were Anglican, but there might be more religious diversity that I'm not aware of. I estimate at least three quarters were of Y-DNA haplogroup R-M269, but many of those are guesses. Of the remainder, there are unique I-haplogroup lines M223 and P37, who both evidently came to England as ancient hunter-gatherers. Only the R-M269 Y-DNA came down to us, but the others do help in understanding where William Griffin's ancestors came from. A few of the lines are so obscure that I didn't attempt to define a migration path for them below.

Migration paths
Griffin: 1888 Mulberry, Crawford, Arkansas - 1865 Berrys Stone, Jackson, Alabama - 1820 Anderson, Anderson, South Carolina - 1780 Wadesboro, Anson, North Carolina - 1750 Halifax, Halifax, Virginia - 1700 Bristol, Henrico, Virginia - 1675 Warsaw, Richmond, Virginia - 1650 Pembroke, Pembrokeshire, Wales - 0 West Pennard, Somerset, England
Evans: 1825 Scottsboro, Jackson, Alabama - 1790 Nickelsville, Scott, Virginia - 1772 Louisa, Louisa, Virginia - 1730 Goochland, Goochland, Virginia - 0 Conwy, Carnarvonshire, Wales
Williams: 1780 Wadesboro, Anson, North Carolina - 1695 Tarboro, Edgecombe, North Carolina - 1670 Yorktown, York, Virginia - 0 Newtown, Powys, Wales
Haney: 1825 Scottsboro, Jackson, Alabama - 1814 Jonesborough, Washington, Tennessee - 1765 Keysville, Charlotte, Virginia - 0 Londonderry, Derry, Ireland
Mullis: 1780 Wadesboro, Anson, North Carolina - 1750 Dunbrooke, Essex, Virginia - 1680 Lancaster, Lancaster, Virginia - 0 Michaelstow, Cornwall, England
Beals: 1750 Hillsborough, Orange, North Carolina - 1710 Nottingham, Chester, Pennsylvania - 1680 Aston, Chester, Pennsylvania - 1600 Chichester, Sussex, England - 0 York, Yorkshire, England
Pace: 1770 Louisa, Louisa, Virginia - 1740 Goochland, Goochland, Virginia - 1695 Saluda, Middlesex, Virginia - 0 Wrockwardine, Shropshire, England
Terry: 1730 Keysville, Brunswick, Virginia - 0 Maidstone, Kent, England
Newman: 1720 Newville, Prince George, Virginia - 1660 Shrewsbury, Monmouth, New Jersey - 1630 Weymouth, Norfolk, Massachusetts - 0 Banbury, Oxfordshire, England