The Currituck Co NC - Fountain Co IN - Livingston Co IL Migration of the 1830’s and beyond, documented by Letters 1835-1866 

Introduction.  Residents of Currituck County, North Carolina - at the northern end of the Outer Banks - traveled overland to Fountain County, Indiana in 1832, with a second group making the same trip in 1835. Families traveled together in wagons and carts, and walked as well. The trip is referenced in various Fountain County histories posted below. Over the thirty years after the 1835 migration, a series of letters was written from Currituck County to the family members who moved west. These letters were transcribed one hundred years later and donated to the North Carolina Archives by a descendant. There are likely letters that were written in the other direction - in fact there are references to some in the letters from Currituck County to the Midwest - but they are not known to have survived.

The transcribed letters contain many references to people who had been born, married, and died in Currituck County - with added significance because an 1842 Currituck County Court House fire destroyed many of that county’s records, and these letters contain references to people and marriages for whom the records have been lost.

Eliza Brumsey Taylor, at the center of these letters, married James Carson in Fountain County. As a result, here are also letters involving the Carson family - and research on various records to try to determine James’ family.

This page gives the background to the Currituck - Western Migration, posts each of the transcribed letters, and for the first time contains a comprehensive index of all names in the twenty-eight pages of these letters and associated records.

Background on the Items in the Archives. Letters from Lucy Brumsey and other family members to her sister Eliza, after Eliza moved to Fountain County, Indiana - and later on to Livingston County, Illinois, were donated to the North Carolina Archives in the 1950’s or 1960’s. Eliza married James Carson after her first husband Reuben Taylor died, and some of the records and letters are of the Carson side of the family as well. They are not the originals, but a typescript transcription of the originals. Included as well are transcriptions of a few references to records and census entries of some of those mentioned in the letters. They were provided by Mildred Carson Roe, a great-granddaughter of Eliza. The description of the item for the archives is posted above as the header for this page.

I am very grateful for all the effort it took to transcribe these letters - and for the willingness to share them publicly. That effort, almost sixty years ago, was done when it could not be foreseen that there would be an internet to share them more widely. The letters are significant for three reasons. First, they are almost all from Currituck County, and contain lots of information about residents there. Due to an 1842 courthouse fire, and records that are not totally complete, these references are very helpful to anyone researching families of Currituck County in that period. Second, they do tell us things about the principals who immigrated to Indiana - their addresses, references to them, and the few records mentioned. And third, if you are a Carson descendant, there are letters between Carsons and many census and other records of possible Carson relatives.

Therefore, I thought it important to post these letters, so that researchers can easily access them. I further have indexed these letters, so that the information here can be easily accessed - and some researchers might realize there are references to their family members that they were unaware of.

The first letter was dated in 1835. Eliza married Reuben Taylor in Currituck County in 1834, probably immigrated to Indiana ca 1835, and her daughter Charlotte Taylor was born in 1835. Reuben died about this time. She likely traveled to Indiana with William and Catherine Taylor Doxey; Charles and Cortney Nicholson Taylor; and children, at least one of which was likely of a prior marriage of Reuben Taylor - Caroline Taylor [my own great-great grandmother]. Reuben Taylor (Eliza’s husband), Charles Taylor and Catherine Taylor Doxey were siblings.

Cortney Nicholson (Taylor) was likely the first cousin of her husband Charles - as her mother appears to have been Penelope Taylor, the sister of Charles’ father Reuben. My research interest has been the ancestry of Caroline Taylor. I am working on a separate future page on the Doxey Ancestry Mystery, with the goal of addressing this issue - was Reuben Taylor’s previous wife, and the mother of Caroline, a Doxey? There are frequent mentions of Doxey’s in the letters below.

These letters reflect for me on that research - it mentions Cortney Taylor’s brothers. William Thompson and James Nicholson. Cortney’s father Josiah Nicholson was the father of James Nicholson by a previous wife - and Cortney’s mother was the mother of William Thompson by a previous husband. On this website in the Currituck Families section is an article I wrote for the Currituck Family Histories book about Josiah Nicholson. At the time, I thought he was an ancestor, as I thought Caroline’s mother was Cortney Nicholson Taylor. I ascertained that Josiah and Penelope - Cortney’s parents - were each married before with children. These references in the letters confirm that. There were very limited records about Cortney, and these references again confirm again her parentage.

There is a question of Cortney in one of the letters about her “dumb child” - which is a reference to Albertis Taylor as her child, implying he was not the child of Reuben and a previous wife, but of Cortney and Charles Taylor. Despite this, Albertis is living with Caroline - daughter of Reuben - in the 1880 census, and the implication in the census entry is that they were siblings. His Indiana death record a few years later lists his mother’s surname as “Doxey” - not Nicholson.

Given that these letters help with information about my ancestors, I thought these letters might offer similar help to others researching their Currituck or Carson families.

The address for the letters moves to Livingston County, Illinois - and it appears that a number of family members moved on to there from Fountain County, including William Doxey’s sister Matilda, possibly some of William’s children, and at least one of Charles and Cortney’s children and her husband.

Following the letters are census and other records for the Carson family, the family of Eliza’s second husband. There is a suggested relationship to “Kit” Carson. While I do not descend from the Carson line, it is important for researchers of that family that they be posted here as well.

When I first came across these letters roughly twenty years ago, I obtained a copy from the archives. It was unclear to me when they had been donated and I attempted to contact the two people mentioned in the donation - both from Royal Oak, Michigan. I did not understand that Mrs. Hullinger died in 1972, which places the time of the donation probably in the decade just before that. Having them posted below in original form allows researchers to glean what they think important. The originals probably still exist, in the hands of a descendent of Mildred Carson Roe - but I do not know where they are.

Background on the Migration. The first group of families came to Fountain County from Currituck County in 1832. This migration is described in two entries in the 1881 Beckwith History of Fountain County, one in a biography of James Voliva, which describes the 1832 trip and lists the families of Volivas, Poyners, Woodhouses, and Whitehalls on the trip, and a Hunnings and Whitehall coming singly. [NOTE: There are references to a Voliva, Whitehall, and many Poyners in the letters and index below.]

The biography of Nicholas Whitehall in the same 1881 Fountain County history below lists most of the same names and has a brief description of the time of the trip. It mentions four carts, “of primitive make”, and three wagons were part of an arduous sojourn that went “over the mountains” and was “attended with no little danger and many privations”.

The Portrait and Biographical Record of Montgomery, Park and Fountain Counties, published by the Chapman Brothers in 1893, contains a biography of Nicholas Whitehall, that includes the paragraph below, which references some of the details of the 1832 trip from North Carolina to Indiana:

The 1913 “Past and Present of Fountain and Warren Counties”, compiled by Thomas Clifton, contains two references to the trip. A biography of Christopher Clement , who married Martha Whitehall, daughter of Alexander Whitehall and wife, states that they “came from North Carolina to Fountain County, Indiana, in 1832”. Part of a biography of Daniel Flory in the same book read: “Daniel Florey married, in March, 1862, Sarah Caroline Voliva, daughter of Thomas Jefferson Voliva and Dorcas (Taylor) Voliva.  These parents came from North Carolina to Fountain county, Indiana, in 1832, in a one-horse cart, accompanied by two ladies who walked all the way.  They settled in Richland township, one mile from Newtown . . .” This reference is also another link to the Currituck Taylors.

There is no similar documentation or story of the second wave of migration from Currituck County to Fountain County. There is a marriage listing in the information below for Reuben Taylor and Eliza Brumsey in 1834 in Currituck County. Their daughter Charlotte was shown in a later census as born in 1835 in Virginia. Charles Taylor is shown in Fountain County deed records as buying various land parcels in August 1835. It appears that the extended Taylor family came in 1835 in a second wave of Currituck immigrants.

A Comprehensive Index to Names and Places in the Currituck-Fountain Letters and Records

How is this index organized?  For indexing purposes, the two cover pages with be referred to as CP1 and CP2, and then the remaining twenty-six pages by their page number one through twenty-six.  The cover pages are about the source of the letters and their transmittal to the North Carolina Archives.  The first part of the documents are letters from Currituck County to the Midwest relatives who immigrated.  The second part of the documents included census and other information about the family members who were in the letters – not just the Brumsey side, but more on the Carson family of Eliza Brumsey Taylor Carson’s second husband James Carson.

This index comes in two parts. The first part is a name index, with all names listed and a mention with those items that contain information about a birth, death, or marriage, and an estimated date of the birth, death, or marriage based on the date of the letter in which it is mentioned. There are a few name references that are just a first name and they have been listed alphabetically by that name.

The second part is an index of locations mentioned – and if the state of the location is indicated, it is alphabetized by the state the location is in.

On this webpage, the twenty-eight pages follow the index - headed by a brief summary for each page that lists the contents of the page and the date associated with it.

Obviously, this has been a complex and tedious task.  I am sure there are some errors here.  The letter transcription contains some errors, and I have corrected those that I have recognized.  I welcome any feedback or corrections by readers. The index follows:

Adam, Lucinda – p. 11 (appears to be dying ca 1842);

Andrew – p. 11 (son of Uncle Washington, died in Indiana ca August 1841);

Angeline – p. 11 (no surname listed, but in a section on the Johnson family);

Ares, John – p. 4;

Augustus – p. 17;

Ballance (page torn, possibly first name begins with Ang.) – p. 3 (married ca 1836-1837 to Benjamin Walker) [NOTE: in the 1850 census, Benjamin Walker’s wife’s name is Adeline];

Ballance, Betheral – p. 2;

Ballance, Caleb – p. 5 (died ca 1838);

Ballance, Dempsey – p. 3 (died 1837);

Balance, Ephrium (sic) – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Ballance, Loty – p. 12;

Balance, Sabina (Sabrina?) – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Ballance, Spense – p. 12 (died ca 1847), 25 (1830 census entry);

Balance, Uriah – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Ballance, Willoughby – pp. 7 (married to Shawney Collence), 12 (died ca 1847), 25 (1830 census entry);

Baxter, Ann – p. 15 (cousin, married to James Land, nine children, five living in 1853);

Baxter, Busker – p 2;

Baxter, Gracey – pp. 7 (aunt), 8 (aunt), 11 (aunt), 12 (aunt), 15 (aunt – dead six years in 1853), 25 (1830 census entry);

Baxter, Isaac – p. 3 (married ca 1836-1837 to Frances Bray);

Baxter, Joseph – p. 25 (1830 census entry);  

Baxter, Joshua – p. 2 (died ca 1836-1837);

Baxter, Lety – pp. 1, 7 (Letty), 15 (husband, two sons, two daughters, living in 1853);

Baxter, Tom – p. 7 (cousin Tom and wife Berry?);  

Baxter, Zack – p. 6 (married to cousin Frankedy [sic] Bray);

Beak, Mr. and Mrs. – p. 17;

Berry – p. 7 (wife of cousin Tom Baxter);

Bery, Emly (sic) – p. 5;

Birchfields – p. 23;  

Black, William – p. 13 (of Kentucky);

Boone, Daniel – pp. CP1, 22 (in Clarke County, Kentucky 1820 and 1830), 26;

Boone, George – p. 22 (in Clarke County, Kentucky 1820 and 1830);

Boone, Jesse – p. 22 (in Clarke County, Kentucky 1820 and 1830);  

Boone, Thomas – p. 22 (in Clarke County, Kentucky 1820 and 1830);

Boone, William – p. 22 (in Clarke County, Kentucky 1820 and 1830);  

Brable, Emly – p. 3 (married ca 1836-1837 to William Walker);

Bray, Frances – pp. 3 (married ca 1836-1837 to Isaac Baxter), 6 (Frankey – married);

Briggs, Jane – p. 23 (Rolls County, Missouri – 1821);

Brocket, Philip – p. 3 (died ca 1836-1837);

Brumsey, Unnamed – p. 20 (son of Samuel and Vilcy, died in infancy 1852);

Brumsey, Augustus – pp. 20 (1830 census entry), 25 (1830 census entry);

Brumsey, Betsey (Elizabeth) – pp. 1 (died March 31, 1836), 7 (listed as “Sister Bethey”, March 26, 1799-March 30, 1835), 20 (states that she died in 1835);

Brumsey (Taylor Carson), Eliza – pp. CP1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 13 (Eliza, husband James dead), 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 (reference to “mother”), 19 (date of marriage to Reuben Taylor and receipt from husband Reuben Taylor’s estate, as well as tax receipts in Livingston County, Illinois in 1850, 1851, and 1870), 20, 21;

Brumsey, John – pp. 20 (1830 census entry), 25 ( 1830 census entry);

Brumsey, Julia – p. 17;

Brumsey (Cowell), Lucy – pp. CP1, 1, 2 (listed as Louisa), 3, 4 (married December 18, 1837), 5 (Lucindy), 6, 7 (sister Lucy and Lucy Cowell), 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 (Lucy Cowell children), 20;

Brumsey (Pell), Polly – pp. 1, 2 (sister Polly), 3 (sister Polly), 4 (sister Polly), 6, 7 (sister Polly becomes widow spring 1847), 10, 11, 12 (sister Polly), 14 (all children married but William Thompson), 15 (sister Polly), 16 (lives in Virginia – 1855), 20 (descendants chart);

Brumsey, Samuel – pp. 1, 2, 3, 4 (Samuel P. Brumsey), 5 (S. B.), 6, 7 (Samuel P. Brumsey), 8 (listed as Samuel P. Rumsey), 10 (S. P. Brumsey), 11 (married to Thomas Simmon’s daughter), 12 (married to Vilcy Simmons), 13 (wife died June 11, 1852, last child died as well), 14, (died July 28, 1852, states that wife and child died before him), 16, 20 (also states that he married Vilcy Simmons, daughter of Thomas Simmons);

Brumsey, Susannah – pp. 7 (January 16, 1770-December 12, 1829), 20 (in descendants chart);

Brumsey, Thomas – pp. 3 (died 1837), 20 (1830 census entry);

Brumsey, William – pp. 7 (September 5, 1773-January 25, 1833), 20 (1830 census entry and descendants chart), 25 (1830 census entry);

Burke, Mary – p. 23 (marries David Carson in 1794);

Carson, Alex – p. 24 (North Carolina Rev War soldier, 1790 Kentucky Tax Records);

Carson, Alexander – p. 24 (1800 Kentucky Tax Records);

Carson, Allen – p. 23 (listed in 1830 Missouri census);

Carson, Anderson – p. 26;

Carson, Andrew – pp. 23 (fought in Revolutionary War; person by this name married 1790), 24 (Revolutionary War soldier; and person by this name War of 1812 Kentucky);

Carson, Charles – p. 24 (Charles Carson - North Carolina Revolutionary War soldier; Charles C. Carson, War of 1812 soldier);

Carson, Constance – p. 22 (1820 and 1830 censuses in Clarke County, Kentucky);

Carson, D. R. – p. 24 (1833 Carroll County Indiana Business Directory);

Carson, David – p. 23 (also a Jr. and Sr.; married in North Carolina in 1794);

Carson, El – p. 15 (possibly Eliza Brumsey Carson);

Carson, Eliza (Brumsey – Taylor) – see Eliza Brumsey;

Carson, Eliza (Lizy) – p.  26;

Carson, Elizabeth – p. 21 (possible sister of James);

Carson, Elmer – p. 22 (nephew of Francis M. - 1918);

Carson, F. M. – pp. 19 (pays taxes in 1896 for land Eliza paid on over forty years before), 20 (Francis M. – listed as “never married”), 21, 22 (1918 will);

Carson, Francis – pp. 17 (just listed as Francis), 24 (listed in 1800 Kentucky tax records);

Carson, Frank – pp. 21, 22;

Carson, Hamilton – p. 26;

Carson, Hannah – p. 23 (married in 1811);  

Carson, Henry – pp. 17, 18, 20, 21;

Carson, Hugh – p. 24 (North Carolina Revolutionary War Soldier);

Carson, Hunter V. – p. 26 (also listed as Hunter V. Thomas);

Carson, Isaac – p. 24 (1800 Kentucky tax records and also mentioned as War of 1812 soldier);

Carson, Isaac W. – pp. 10 (also listed as I. W.), 21 (mentioned as nephew – and possible brother of James);

Carson, J. A. – p. 24;  

Carson, James [there were two James, one died ca 1853 and was married to Eliza Brumsey Taylor, and the other was married to Thursey] – pp. CP1, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 13 (listed as dead in 1852), 16, 19 (1844 receipt from Dr.), 20 (listed as “Carson”), 21 (multiple James in this reference, father of James possibly living in 1841), 22, 23, 24;  

Carson, James – p. 24 ( two James – 1800 Kentucky Tax Records);

Carson, James J. – p 21;

Carson, John – pp. 21 (possible brother of James), 23 (John witnesses 1795 marriage in North Carolina and also three John’s in 1830 Missouri census), 24 (three John’s in Kentucky 1800 tax records);

Carson, Kit – pp. CP1, 26 (listed once as Kit, a second time as Christopher “Kit”);

Carson, Lindsay – pp. CP1, 24 (1800 Kentucky Tax Records), 26;

Carson, Louis – p. 22 (nephew of Francis M., of Rock Island, IL);

Carson, Lucretia Moriah – pp. 13 (daughter of James and Thursey Carson – appears to be ill), 21;  

Carson, Mary (Mrs. Henry) – pp. 17, 18, 21 (Mary Gouge), 22 (1927 will reference);

Carson, Mary Eliza – p. 7;

Carson, Mary Susan – p.7 (Philip mentioned);

Carson, Mildred (Roe) – p. CP1;

Carson, Moses – p. 23 (Justice of the Peace – also 1790 tax records);

Carson, Moses B. – p. 26;

Carson, Nancy (apparent first wife of James Carson) – p. 16 (born about June 6, 1788), 21 (states born June 6, 1790 and died 1835);

Carson, Nancy Jane – p. 13 (daughter of James and Thursey Carson), 21;

Carson, Robert – pp. 23 (married in 1795 in North Carolina; also Robert Jr. and Sr.), 24 (1800 Kentucky tax records; North Carolina Revolutionary War soldier), 26;

Carson, Sarah – p. 21;

Carson, Silas (Sile) – p. 21 (possible brother of James);

Carson, T. J. – pp. 19 (pays taxes for Eliza Carson in 1851), 21 (Thomas J.), 22 (estate – Mrs. Carson referred to as well);

Carson, Thirsey – pp. 9, 13 (Thursey), 21;

Carson, Thomas – pp. 19 (signs note in 1846), 22 (1830 Fountain County Indiana census, suggested as possible brother to James), 24 (two 1800 Kentucky tax records), 26;

Carson, Thomas F. – p. 22 (son of Elmer Carson, who was nephew of Francis M. Carson, 1918);

Carson, W. – p. 23 (listed in 1830 Missouri census);

Carson, Washington – p. 21 (possible brother of James), SEE Washington (possible uncle); and see Andrew, son of Uncle Washington; and see Polly, daughter of Uncle Washington;

Carson, William – p 22 (son of Elmer Carson, who was nephew of Francis M. Carson, 1918);

Carson, William – p. 23 (1821 – older William – also justice of the peace in Ralls County, Missouri);

Carson, William – pp. 23 (Washington County North Carolina, later Tennessee), 24 (two 1800 Kentucky Tax Records, one War of 1812 soldier from Kentucky);

Carson, William – p. 23 (two Williams listed in 1830 Missouri census);

Carson, William – p. 26;

Carson, William C. – p. 24 (in 1833 Carroll County, Indiana Directory);

Carson, William Henry Harrison – pp. 13 (son of James and Thursey Carson), 21;

Carson, William P. – pp. 9, 21 (possible brother of James), 24 (first grand jury of Livingston County Illinois – previously possibly in Indiana);

Cawthons – p. 4;

Chapling, Mr. – p. 2;

Cheatham, Elizabeth Margaret – p. 22 (niece of Francis M. Carson, Long Beach, CA in 1918);

Clark, Mr. – p. 10;

Clarkson, Altheus – p. 8 (also listed as A. Clarkson);

Clarkson, Charlotte – p. 5 (died January 1838);

Collence, Shawney – p. 7 (married ca 1839 to Willoughby Balance; in later public records he had wives named Cynthia and Asenith);

Cooper, Will – p. 18 (death of, ca 1862);

Cowell – p. 7;

Cowell, Benjamin – pp. 4 (married Lucy Brumsey December 18, 1837), 11 (listed as Benjamin T. – and writes “Foling [sailing?] the seas fore my living”), 14 (Benjamin, husband of Lucy Brumsey Cowell, dies December 3, 1852), 20 (listed as “Cowell”), 25 (1830 census entry);

Cowell, Benjamin – pp. 11 (appears to be son of Benjamin and Lucy), 17 (killed in civil war), 20;

Cowell, Edney – p. 3 (died 1837);

Cowell, Eliza – pp. 11 (appears to be daughter of Benjamin and Lucy), 17 (not specifically named, but “long dead” in 1866);

Cowell, Emily Jane – pp. 12 (fourteen months old in mid-June, 1847), 17 (not specifically named, but “long dead” in 1866), 20;

Cowell, Jas. – p. 25 (census entry),

Cowell, Joseph – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Cowell, Lucy (Brumsey) – See Lucy Brumsey;

Cowell, Mary Eliza – pp. 3, 6, 9, 12, 20;

Cowell, Sarah – p. 4;

Cowell, Washington – p. 3 (died 1837);

Cox, Betea – p. 6;

Crockett, Davy – p. 23;

Crockett, John – p. 23;

Davidson, Captain General (Rev. War North Carolina) – p. 24;

Davis, Dr. – p. 3 (died 1837);

Dearing, Margaret (Hullinger) – see Hullinger;

Douglas, James – p. 7 (marriage to Nancy Snowden ca 1839);  

Doxey, Ardilcia (sic) – p. 12 (marriage, daughter of Dempsey, to Samuel Tatum son of Huldah, ca 1847);

Doxey, Dempsey – p. 12 (father of Ardilcia);  

Doxey, Fanny – p. 12 (died ca 1847);  

Doxey, Nancy – p. 5 (died ca 1838, appears to be wife of Caleb Ballance);

Doxey, William – pp. 1, 3, 5, 8;

Dowdy, Donazin – p. 5 (married 1837-1838 to Charlott Dozier at Powell’s Point);  

Dozier Families – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Dozier, Angelico – p. 12 (cannot tell if this is the Jillico Dozier list below; she is listed at the wife of Philip Dozier, and having died ca 1847; there is a Philip Dozier in Find-A-Grave, having died in 1855 and is buried in Gibson County, Tennessee);

Dozier, Charlott – p. 5 (married 1837-1838 to Donazin Dowdy at Powell’s Point);    

Dozier, Jillico (?) – pp. 11 (married Suly Dozier and is dead), 12 (Angelico Dozier dead, stated so in a letter in 1847, she married Philip Dozier and was in Tennessee);

Dozier, John E. Haywood – p. 13 (son of Samuel B. turns four December 1847);

Dozier, Elizabeth – p. 5;  

Dozier, Georgeanna – p. 13 (daughter of Samuel B. turned two November 1846);

Dozier, Mary Frances – p. 13 (daughter of Samuel B. turns six December 1847);

Dozier, Philip – p. 12 (married to Angelico Dozier, noted above that Philip died in 1855 and is buried in Gibson County, Tennessee);

Dozier, Polly – pp. 3 (couzen), 5, 12 (cozen);  

Dozier, Samuel B. – pp. 3, 5 (listed as S. B., 13 (Cozen, seven children, three living), 14 (“cousin Sam Dozier”, died ca 1851);

Dozier, Suly (? – a patriarch of the Dozier family was Tully Dozier, born ca 1780. It is possible that this is the name above, unclear what generation.  There is a second Tully Dozier in Currituck records and in a cemetery showing a birth in 1808 and death in 1852) – p. 11 (married Jillico Dozier);  

Dozier, Susan Ann Elizabeth – p. 3 (daughter of Polly, died September 18, 1837, about age four);

Dozier, Thomas Dorastus – p. 3 (son of Polly, died ca 1837, about age four);

Duke, Andrew – p. 5;

Duke, Ed – p. 5;   

Duke, Mr. – p. 4;

Dunton, Daniel – p. 3;

Dunton, Ellen – p. 1;

Dunton, Peter Leven – p. 12 (wife died, ca 1847, appears to be Nancy Parker);

Edmund, Cousin – p. 15 (possibly a Baxter);

Etheredge, Caleb – pp. 3 (son of W. B. Etheredge, married ca 1836-1837 to Susan Gray), 12 (died ca 1847);  

Etheredge, W. C. – p. 3 (father of Caleb);

Etheredge, Walter Edmund – p. 5 (died ca 1838);

Evens, Elijah – p. 9;

Fancherd, Rody – p. 7;

Fisher, Barter – p. 3;

Fisher, Grandmother – p. 7 (has Sally Fisher’s child);   

Fisher, Sally – pp. 2, 3, 4 (Listed as Sarah, had child ca November 1837), 5 (death February 7, 1838), p. 7 (Sally Fisher’s child);

Forbes, Ivy – p. 7;

Forbes, John – p. 3;

Forbes, Peter – p. 12 (married in Camden to “Miss Lawyer” ca 1847 – see the entry for her under “Lawyer” for name correction);  

Garner, Rachel – p. 16;

Gouges – p. 23;

Gouge, Mary – pp. 19 (married son of James and Eliza Carson), 21, 22 (listed as Carson, daughter of William Gouge), 23;  

Gouge, William – p. 22 (mention of his property in Mary Gouge Carson 1927 will);

Gracie – p. 15 (aunt, dead six years in 1853, Aunt Gracie Baxter still alive this year – must mean there were two Aunt Gracie’s);

Gray, Benjamin – p. 8 (wife died March 1841);

Gray, Nancy – p. 2;

Gray, Susan – p. 3 (married Caleb Etheredge ca 1836-1837);

Grundy, Mr. – p. 18;

Hannah, Elizabeth – p. 23 (marries Andrew Carson in 1790);

Hanse, Mary – p. 20 (shown as married Henry Carson);    

Harbert, Polly – p. 3 (died 1837);

Harrison, William Henry – p. 8;

Hart, Aaron – p. 11 (uncle); 

Hawkins, Rebecca – p. 23 (mother of Davy Crockett);

Hornbeck, Solomon - p. 16 (signed letter, was in Clark County, Kentucky);

Hughes, John – p. 6 (John and wife, died 1838);

Hughes, Mandy – p. 1;  

Hullinger, Margaret Dearing – p. CP2, 23;

Isaacs (Carson), Susan – p. 26 (married Thomas Carson);

James (uncle) – p. 9;

John – p. 9;

John – p. 18 (brother to Molly Steel);

Johnson, John – p. 11 (son of Uncle Thomas Johnson);

Johnson, Mr. – p. 11 (married to cousin Polly nears Howesville, Hancock County);

Johnson, Sadie – p. 22 (niece of Francis M. Carson and sister of Eliza Margaret Cheatham, resides in Long Beach, California 1918);

Johnson, Thomas – p. 11 (Uncle);

Joseph – p. 15 (dead in 1853);  

Julia – p. 17;

Land, Ann – p. 8 (possibly the one referred to right below);

Land, James – p. 15 (married to cousin Ann Baxter – nine children, five living in 1853);  

Land, Mr. – p. 3 (died 1837 – listed as “Old Mr. Land”);

Lawyer (sic), Miss – p. 12 (married in Camden to Peter Forbes ca 1847);  NOTE: Peter and Nancy Forbes are shown in the 1860 census, with three children – the oldest born not long after this marriage; one of the children’s death certificate lists her mother as “Nancy Sawyer”;

Lewis, J. W. – p. 19;

Lynch, A. P. – p. 19;

Marrens – p. 18,

McGinnis, Achilles – p. 23 (Ralls County, Missouri 1831);

Methodist Church – p. 15;

Miller, Caleb – p. 12 (died ca 1847),

Miller, Cenela (?) – p. 4 (is likely Nealey shown below with Isaac);

Miller, Choey (?) – p. 7;

Miller, Isaac – pp. 2 (married ca 1836-1837 to Nealey Simmons), 4;

Miller, Sally – p. 3 (married ca 1836-1837 to Edmund Simmons);

Moseley, Mrs. Love – p. 7 (traveling to Indiana ca 1839-1840);

Nancy Jane – pp. 9, 13;

Nathan – p. 17 (brother of one of the Needhams);

Neal, Simmons – p. 3 (died 1837);

Neal, William O. – p. 3 (died 1837);

Needham, Annie – p. 17 (daughter of Sahrey and Silveryee);

Needham, Elizabeth – p. 17 (daughter of Sahrey and Silveryee – mentioned that she has a husband);

Needham, Nathan – p. 17 (son of Sahrey and Silveryee);  

Needham, Sahrey – p. 17;

Needham, Silveryee – p. 17;

Nicholson, James W. – p. 3 (died ca 1836-1837), 4 (married), 5 (died fall 1837 – referenced as brother to Mrs. Charles Taylor);

Nicholson, Mrs. – p. 15;

O, Mrs. – p. 17;

O’Neil, Rebecca – p. 8 (died 1841);

Ostrander, Mrs. – p. 19;

Parker, Betsy – p. 17;

Parker, Nancy – p. 12 (died ca 1847 – possibly wife of Peter Leven Dunton);

Payne, Nathaniel – p. 23;

Payner – SEE Poyner;

Pell – p. 7;

Pell, Andrew Jackson – pp. 6, 12, 13 (married), 20;

Pell, Courtney – p. 20 (married a Taylor, moved to Illinois);

Pell, Joseph – pp. 6, 25 (1830 census entry);

Pell, Lucinda – p. 6;

Pell, Mr. – pp. 2, 4, 6, 10, 12 (husband of Polly, died spring, 1847), 20;

Pell, Polly (Brumsey) – See Polly Brumsey;

Pell, Will – p. 2 (lost oldest child, 1836);

Pell, William Thompson – pp. 6, 7, 12 (confusing entry, but appears to be Pell), 14 (living with mother unmarried), 15 (to be married soon),16 (dead in 1855), 20;

Phillips, Beauford – p. 16;

Phillips, James – p. 5 (died ca 1838);

Phillips, William – p. 5 (died ca 1838);

Polly – p. 11 (daughter of Uncle Washington);

Pool, Wm. – p. 2;

Porter, Jack – p. 11;

Porter, Samuel – p. 8 (this could be Samuel Porter Brumsey);

Potend (?), Samuel – pp. 4, 5 (Portend);

Poyner – NOTE: Many Poyners have been transcribed as “Payner”);

Poyner, Mr. – p. 4;  

Poyner, Enoch – p. 25 (1830 census entry, listed as Payner);

Poyner, Jesse – p. 25 (1830 census entry, listed as Payner);

Poyner, Joel – p. 25 (1830 census entry, listed as Payner);

Poyner, John – p. 25 (1830 census entry, listed as Payner);

Poyner, Lydia – p. 25 (1830 census entry, listed as Payner);

Poyner, Nathan – pp. 2 (transcribed at “Payner”), 25 (1830 census entry, listed as Payner);

Poyner, Powers – p. 25 (1830 census entry, listed as Payner);

Poyner, Robert – p. 25 (1830 census entry, listed as Payner);

Poyner, Thomas – pp. 1 (deceased), 3 (transcribed as “Payner” both times, appears to have died prior to April 1836), 25 (1830 census entry, appears to have been listed as Jr.);

Poyner, Wm. – pp. 4 (transcribed as “Payner”), 5;

Reynolds, Dr. C. W. – p. 19 (1844 receipt as doctor from James Carson);

Rhodes, Lydia – p. 15 (living in Elizabeth City in 1855);

Ritchey, Jane – p. 23 (marries Robert Carson in 1795);

Roe, Mildred Carson – pp. CP1, CP2;

Sally – pp. 2, 15 (dead in 1853), 16 (knew Nancy Carson);

Sarah – p. 9;

Sawyer, Nancy – p. 12 (SEE Nancy Lawyer);  

Sile – p. 9;

Simmons, Anthony – p. 25 ( 1830 census entry);

Simmons, B. T. – p. 12 (wife Mary dies ca 1847; then in 1847 he married Susan Taylor, daughter of Lamb Taylor);

Simmons, Casandra – p. 1;

Simmons, Cobb – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Simmons, E. L. – p. 1;

Simmons, Edmund – p. 3 (married ca 1836-1837 to Sally Miller);

Simmons, Hilary – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Simmons, John – p. 1 (sailor);

Simmons, Marum (sic) – p. 25 (1830 census entry);  

Simmons, Mary – p. 12 (died ca 1847, wife of B. T. Simmons);

Simmons, Mitchell – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Simmons, Nealey – p. 2 (married ca 1836-1837 to Isaac Miller);

Simmons, Patrick – p. 3 (died 1837);

Simmons, Patsy – p. 3 (died 1837);

Simmons, Thomas – pp. 5 (died January 29, 1838), 11 (Thomas Simmons’ daughter married to Samuel Brumsey), 12 (brother Samuel marries Vilcy Simmons daughter of Thomas Simmons), 20, 25 (two 1830 census entries, one as Thomas W.);

Simmons, Vilcy – pp. 12 (married to Samuel Brumsey, she was the daughter of Thomas), 20;

Simmons, Zacha (sic) – p. 12 (now Zacha Stevens, widow);

Smith, S. O. – p. 19;

Snader - Snowden, Edney – pp. 1 (Snader), 4 (Edney Snowden);

Snowden – p. 7 (no legible first name, daughters Nancy and Lery?);

Snowden, Lery (?) – p. 7;

Snowden, Nancy – p. 7 (marriage to James Douglas ca 1839);

Stell, Molly – pp. 18, 19 (transcribed as Steel);

Stevens, E. L. – pp. 1, 6 (Enoch);

Stevens, Zacha (sic) – p. 12 (once Zacha Simmons, widow);

Talbott, Col. Hale – p. 26;

Tatum, Benj. – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Tatum, Daniel – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Tatum, Hulda/Huldy – pp. 1, 2, 6, 7 (cousin), 12 (son Samuel married Ardilicia Doxey, daughter of Dempsey Doxey, also listed as Cozin), 25 (1830 census entry – listed as Hulda);

Tatum, Joseph – p. 25 (1830 census entry);

Tatum, Samuel – pp. 12 (son of Huldah, married Ardilicia Doxey, daughter of Dempsey Doxey), 25 (1830 census entry);

Taylor (unnamed) – p. 20 (married Cortney Pell);

Taylor, Albertis – p. 15 (not listed by name but Lucy Cowell refers to him in a letter to Cortney Taylor as “your dumb child” – he was disabled);

Taylor, Charles – pp. 1, 2, 3, 4 (Charley), 5, 6, 8, 14, 19 (receipt from brother Reuben’s estate);

Taylor, Charlotte – pp. 3, 4 (Charlotte P. Taylor), 5 (Charlotte Virginia), 6, 7, 20;

Taylor, Cortney – p. 15 (Mrs. [married to Charles] – listed as sister of the late William Thompson);

Taylor, Eliza – p. 4;

Taylor, Eliza (Brumsey, later Carson) – See Eliza Brumsey;

Taylor, Lamb – p. 12 (father of Susan, who married B. T. Simmons);

Taylor, Macey [Maxey] – p. 15 (married and living in Elizabeth City [shown as E. City] “a long time” in 1855);   

Taylor, Molley – p. 3 (married ca 1836-1837 to Dempsey Walker);

Taylor, Olly – p. 15 (living in Elizabeth City in 1855);    

Taylor, Reuben – pp. CP1, 5 (estate), 19 (estate and date of marriage), 20 (listed as “Taylor” and married Eliza);

Taylor, Susan – p. 12 (daughter of Lamb Taylor, marriage to B. T. Simmons ca 1847);

Thar – p. 3 (died ca 1837);

Thompson, Mr. – p. 13;

Thompson, Squire – p. 16;

Thompson, William – pp. 8 (in Tyrell County, Columbia P. O., North Carolina), 15 (dead for some time by 1855, and listed as brother of Cortney Taylor);  

Tom – p. 15 (cousin of Lucy and Eliza, has three children in 1853);

VanMeter, Jane – pp. 11 (listed as Aunt in a letter to Isaac Carson), 21 (mentioned as aunt);

Voliva/Valiway, Jefferson – p. 3 (listed as Valiway);

Walker, Benjamin – p. 3 (married ca 1836-1837 to Ang. Balance);

Walker, Dempsey – p. 3 (married ca 1836-1837 to Molly Taylor);

Walker, Edmund Etheredge – p. 5 (died ca 1838 – cannot tell if Edmund Etheridge is incorrectly combined with Walker):

Walker, Griffin – p. 3 (died 1837);

Walker, William – p. 3 (married ca 1836-1837 to Emly Brabble);

Warner, Tilda – p. 18 (death, ca 1862);

Washington (Uncle Washington, Carson?) – pp. 10, 11 (married a second time and living in Nolin);

Whitehall, Mr. Ana (?) – p. 2;

William – p. 15 (cousin of Lucy and Eliza), has two children);

Wilson, Polly – pp. 7 (cousin), 8, 11 (Poly), 15 (still living in 1853, with cousin Ann);  

Index to Place Locations in the Currituck-Fountain Letters

Below is the place name index for the letters. If a state is indicated, it is alphabetized by that state. If there is a township or post office location, it is with the county if the county was indicated.

California – p. 26;

            Long Beach – p. 22;

Currituck County – See North Carolina;

Fountain County – See Indiana;

Grand River – p. 13;

Green County, New Mexico Territory – p. 8;

Illinois – pp. 9, 16, 20, 21, 24;

Ladeamia (sic), Illinois – p. 22 [NOTE: There is a town of Lodemia, which is in Avoca Township in Livingston County.];

Livingston County, Illinois – pp. 11, 12, 13, 14, 17, 18, 19, 22, 24;

                        Avoco P. O.(sic Avoca) – pp. 13, 14, 15 (listed as Avoco County, Illinois);

                        Fairbury – pp. 17, 18, 22; 

                        Pontiac P. O. – pp. 12, 19;

Oxbow, Illinois – p. 17 (unclear where this is, there is an oxbow prairie in northern Illinois);

Rock Island, Illinois – p. 22;  

Springfield – p. 18 (appears to be Illinois);

Indiana – pp. 9, 11;

Benton County, Indiana – p. 8;

                        Parishes Grove Post Office – pp. 8, 24;

            Carroll County, Indiana – Jefferson Twp. – p. 24

Fountain County, Indiana – pp. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 14, 15, 16, 22;

                        Newtown – pp. 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 14;

Ireland – p. 12;

Kentucky – pp. CP1, 13, 24 (all Page 24 Kentucky references were related to a Carson who was in 1800 tax records or was an officer in the War of 1812), 26;

            Bourbon Co. – p. 24;

            Butler Co. – p. 24;

            Clarke County – pp. 16, 22 [NOTE: The references in the letter and record transcripts read “Clarke” - and are shown that way here - but the correct name of the County in Kentucky is “Clark”.]

            Fayette Co. – p. 24;

            Greene Co. – p. 24;

Hancock County – p. 11 (no state listed, but there is a Hawesville in Hancock County, Kentucky);

Howesville – p. 11 (listed as in Hancock County; there is a Hawesville in Hancock Co., Kentucky);

            Jefferson Co. – p. 24;

            Jessamine Co. – p. 24;

            Lincoln Co. – p. 24;

            Livingston Co. – p. 24;

            Madison Co. – p. 24;

            Mercer Co. – p. 24;    

Rockcastle Co. – p. 24;

            Scott Co. – p. 24;

            Shelby Co. – p. 24;

            Woodford Co. – p. 24;

Maple Creek – p. 19;

Marengo (?) – pp. 17, 18; (no state listed – there is a city by this name in Crawford Co., Indiana and another one in McHenry County, Illinois);

Missouri – pp. 13, 23 (on page 23 are counties where a Carson was listed in the 1830 census), 24, 26 (History of NW Missouri);

Cooper Co. – p. 23;

Dade County, Missouri – pp. 21, 22;

Grayson County, Missouri – pp. 10, 21;

Howard County, Missouri – pp. CP1, 23, 26 (from County History);

Livingston County, Missouri – p. 13;

                        Naves Store – p. 13;

Marion Co. – p. 23;

Pike Co. – p. 23;

Ralls Co. – p. 23 (transcribed as “Rolls” but is Ralls, also James Carson sold land to William Carson in 1821 in this county);

St. Louis Co. – p. 23;  

Washington Co. – p. 23;   

Mountain Creek – p. 1;,

Newtown – See Indiana, Fountain County;

Nolin – p. 11;

North Carolina – pp. CP1, 24;

            Calawba – p. 23 (in Rowan County, North Carolina);

            Camden County, North Carolina – pp. 7, 8, 10, 12;

                        Moran Town Post Office – p. 8;

Currituck County, North Carolina – pp. CP1, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 9, 11, 12 (Old Currituck), 13, 14, 15, 16, 20, 25;

                        Coinjock – pp. 3, 4 (listed as Cowing Jack), 7 (Coing?), 9, 16 (Coinjock P. O.);

                        Powel’s Point – p. 5 (transcribed as “Paint”, not Point);

            Darlington, North Carolina – p. 19;

Elizabeth City, North Carolina – p. 15;   

Iredell County, North Carolina – pp. CP1 (listed as Iredale), 23;

Militia Salisbury District – p. 24;

Rowan Co., N.C. – p. 23,

Rutherfordston – p. 19;

Tyrell County, North Carolina – p. 8 (Columbia P. O.);

Washington Co, North Carolina (later Tennessee), p. 23;

                        Limestove Cove – p. 23;

Ohio – p. 8;

Old England – p. 10;

Plimmoth (sic) – p.4;

Richmond – p. 18;

Royal Oak, Michigan – pp. CP1, CP2;

Shilow – p. 10;

Tennessee – pp. 12, 15;

Butler, Tennessee – p. 19;

            Franklin Co. – p. 23;

                        Upper Beans Creek, p. 23;

            Johnson City (likely Tennessee) – p. 19;

            Lawrence Co. – p. 23;

            Lincoln Co. – p. 23;

            Winchester – p. 23;

Virginia – pp. 16 (Polly Pell lives there), 20;

            Norfolk – p. 2;

Washington, D. C. – p. 23;

West Indies – p. 7;

The actual letters and records in typescript form - as donated to the North Carolina Archives

As stated at the beginning of the index, there are two cover pages and twenty-six pages of letters and records. They are posted below in sequence - with the page number in front of each to make reference from the index easier, and also a brief description of the letters and records included on that page.

Cover Page 1 (CP1) – This is the first of two cover pages atop the twenty-six pages of letters and records. Letter of Mrs. R. J. [Ralph Justin] Hullinger, on behalf of letters’ custodian and Carson descendant Mrs. Mildred (Carson) Roe, to the North Carolina State archives about the history of the Taylor and Carson family.  Probably written in the 1950’s or 1960’s.  Part One. This page is listed in the index as page CP1.

Cover Page 2 (CP2) – Letter of Mrs. R. J. Hullinger.  Part Two. This is the second of two cover pages atop the twenty-six pages of letters and records. This page includes the names and addresses of the two women who submitted this information to the North Carolina State Archives. This page is listed in the index as page CP2.

Page One – 1835-1836 – Letter #1, December 3, 1835 – Lucy Brumsey of Currituck County, North Carolina to Eliza Taylor of Newtown P. O. Fountain County, Indiana; It mentions letters that were sent in August, September, and October. Letter #2, April 2, 1836 – Louisia (sic) Brumsey of Currituck County to Eliza Taylor of Fountain County, Indiana – Part One; these letters report on family members and friends, including the death of Betsy Brumsey, sister of Eliza and Lucy; Charles Taylor and William Doxey are mentioned - confirming she was near them in Fountain County at this time.

Page Two – 1836-1837 – Letter #2, April 2, 1836 – Louisia (sic) Brumsey of Currituck County to Eliza Taylor of Fountain County, Indiana – Part Two; Letter #3, January 24, 1837 – Lucy Brumsey of Currituck County to Eliza Taylor of Fountain County, Indiana; Letter #4, January 27, 1837 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck County to Eliza Taylor of Fountain County, Indiana – Part One; Lucy reports on family members, Charles Taylor and family and Mr. Whitehall are mentioned;

Page Three – 1837 – Letter #4, January 27, 1837 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck County to Eliza Taylor of Fountain County, Indiana – Part Two; Letter #5, June 24, 1837 – Lucy Brumsey of Currituck County to Eliza Taylor of Fountain County, Indiana – Part One; Among those mentioned is the death of James W. Nicholson, and the marriage of Dempsey Walker and Molley Taylor;

Page Four – 1837 –Letter #5, June 24, 1837 – Lucy Brumsey of Currituck County to Eliza Taylor of Fountain County, Indiana – Part Two, with postscript from Samuel Brumsey; Letter #6, January 27, 1838 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck County to Eliza Taylor of Fountain County, Indiana – Part One;

Page Five – 1838 –Letter #6, January 27, 1838 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck County to Eliza Taylor of Fountain County, Indiana – Part Two, postscript by S. P. Brumsey; Letter #7, October 24, 1838 – Polly Pell of Currituck County to Eliza Carson (first letter after Eliza remarried) of Fountain County, Indiana – Part One.

Page Six – 1838-1839 –Letter #7, October 24, 1838 – Lucinda Cowell of Currituck County, N. C. to Eliza Carson of Fountain County, Indiana – Part Two.  Letter #8, July 6, 1839 – Polly Pell of Currituck County to Mr. James Carson of Fountain County, Indiana, Newtown Post Office.  Letter #9, October 4, 1839 – Samuel P. Brumsey of Currituck County, N. C. to Mr. James Carson of Fountain County, Indiana, Newtown P. O. – Part One.

Page Seven – 1839-1840.  Letter #9, October 4, 1839 – Samuel P. Brumsey of Currituck County, N. C. to Mr. James Carson of Fountain County, Indiana, Newtown P. O. – Part Two, with postscript by Lucy Cowell.  Letter #10, November 26, 1840 – Samuel P. Rumsey (sic) of Currituck County, N. C. to Mr. James and Eliza Carson of Fountain Co., Indiana, Newtown P. O. – Part One.

Page Eight – 1840-1841.  Letter #10, November 26, 1840 – Samuel P. Rumsey (sic) of Currituck County, N. C. to Mr. James and Eliza Carson of Fountain Co., Indiana, Newtown P. O. – Part Two.  Letter #11, March 20, 1841 – Samuel P. Rumsey (sic) Camden County, N. C., Moran Town P. O. to Mr. James Carson (Eliza) of Fountain County, Indiana, Newtown P. O.  Letter #12, August 1, 1841 – William P. Carson and Thirsey Carson, New Mexico, Green County, W. T. to Mr. James Carson of Benton County, Indiana, Parishes Grove P. O., Part One;  

Page Nine – 1841.  Letter #12, August 1, 1841 – William P. Carson and Thirsey Carson, New Mexico, Green County, W. T. to Mr. James Carson of Benton County, Indiana, Parishes Grove P. O., Part Two; Letter #13, September 24, 1841 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck Co., N. C., to James Carson (Eliza), Fountain Co., Ind., Newtown P. O., Part One;

Page Ten – 1841-1842.  Letter #13, September 24, 1841 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck Co., N. C., to James Carson (Eliza), Fountain Co., Ind., Newtown P. O., Part Two – postscript by S. P. Brumsey; Letter #14, June 18, 1842 – Jane VanMeter of Grayson Co., MO to I. W. Carson (listed in lower left corner as Isaac W. Carson), Part One

Page Eleven – 1842-1845.  Letter #14, June 18, 1842 – Jane VanMeter of Grayson Co., MO to I. W. Carson (listed in lower left corner as Isaac W. Carson), Part Two; Letter #15, August 12, 1845 – Benjamin T. Cowell and Lucy Cowell of Currituck County, N. C. to Mr. James Carson, Livingston County, Illinois (this is the first letter after James and Eliza moved from Fountain County to Livingston County, Illinois);

Page Twelve – 1847.  Letter #16, June 17, 1847 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck County, N. C. to Mrs. Eliza Carson, Livingston County Illinois, Pontiac P. O.;

Page Thirteen – 1847-1852.  Letter #16, June 17, 1847 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck County, N. C. to Mrs. Eliza Carson, Livingston County Illinois, Pontiac P. O., postscript by Lucy Cowell; Letter #17, September 9, 1849 – James Carson and Thursey Carson of Livingston Co., MO., Naves Store P. O., to Mr. James Carson, Livingston County, Illinois; Letter #18, July 16, 1852 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck Co., N. C., to Mrs. Eliza Carson (handwritten in: “Husband James Dead”) of Livingston Co., Ill., Avoco (sic) P. O., Part One;

Page Fourteen – 1852-1853.  Letter #18, July 16, 1852 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck Co., N. C., to Mrs. Eliza Carson (handwritten in: “Husband James Dead”) of Livingston Co., Ill., Avoco (sic) P. O., Part Two; Letter #19, December 20, 1852 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck Co., N. C., to Mrs. Eliza Carson of Livingston Co., Ill., Avoco (sic) P. O.; Letter #20, March 10, 1853 (typescript incorrectly states 1953) – Lucy Cowell of Currituck Co., N. C., to Mr. Charles Taylor, Fountain Co., Ind., Newtown P. O., Part One;

Page Fifteen – 1853-1855.  Letter #20, March 10, 1853 (typescript incorrectly states 1953) – Lucy Cowell of Currituck Co., N. C., to Mr. Charles Taylor, Fountain Co., Ind., Newtown P. O., Part Two; Letter #21, November 1, 1853 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck Co., N. C., to Mrs. Eliza Carson, Avoco County (sic), Ill.; Letter #22, April 9, 1855 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck Co., N. C., to Mrs. Cortney Taylor, Fountain County, Ind., Part One;

Page Sixteen – 1855 and 1835.  Letter #22, April 9, 1855 – Lucy Cowell of Currituck Co., N. C., to Mrs. Cortney Taylor, Fountain County, Ind., Part Two; Letter #23, August 23, 1835 – No Apparent signature from Clarke County, Ky., to James Carson, Fountain County, Ind. [There is a faint typed name at the bottom in the signature location that looks like Solomon Hornbeck. There is a Solomon Hornback in the 1830 census in Clark County, Kentucky. This Solomon was in Pike County, Illinois by 1840, and is shown in the Find-A-Grave database as born in Clark County, Kentucky in 1810 and died in Pike County in 1890. It is unclear how he fits in].

Page Seventeen – 1862-1866.  Letter #24, December 14, 1866 – Sahrey and Silvereye Needham of Oxbow, Illinois to Eliza Carson c/o Henry Carson, Fairbury, Livingston Co., Ill.; Letter #25, December 15, 1866 – Julia Brumsey of Oxbow, Ill., to Eliza Carson, c/o Henry Carson, to Eliza Carson c/o Henry Carson, Fairbury, Livingston Co., Ill.; Letter #26, August 15, 1862 – Molly Stell (spelling?) of Marengo (no county or state listed) to Mrs. Mary (Henry) Carson, Fairbury, Livingston Co., Ill., Part One;

Page Eighteen – 1862.  Letter #26, August 15, 1862 – Molly Stell (spelling?) of Marengo (no county or state listed) to Mrs. Mary (Henry) Carson, Fairbury, Livingston Co., Ill., Part Two; Letter #27, October 18, 1862 – Molly Steel (spelling?) of Marengo (no county or state listed) to Mrs. Mary (Henry) Carson, Fairbury, Livingston Co., Ill., Part One;

Page Nineteen – 1862.  Letter #27, October 18, 1862 – Molly Steel (spelling?) of Marengo (no county or state listed) to Mrs. Mary (Henry) Carson, Fairbury, Livingston Co., Ill., Part Two; Letter #28, no date listed – J. W. Lewis of Darlington, N. C. to Miss Mary Gouge, Butler, Tenn., (handwritten after address: “This Mary Gouge married the son of James and Eliza Carson”); the second half of this page includes a brief summary of various records where the copies were held by the person who also had the originals of the letters; some of these records are extremely helpful to this researcher – having the date of Reuben Taylor and Eliza Brumsey’s marriage, and that it took place in Currituck County; and that somewhere there was an estate for Reuben Taylor;

Page Twenty – 1830 census records for William, John, Augustus, and Thomas Brumsey (no location listed on this page – but these entries were in Currituck County, North Carolina); descendants chart for William and Susannah Brumsey, including five of their children: Polly, Betsey, Eliza, Lucy, and Samuel P.;

Page Twenty-One – Carson descendant chart and information – James Carson; James Carson, Jr.; known and possible brothers and sisters of James Carson;

Page Twenty-Two – 1918 Will of Francis M. Carson (no location given, but he lived his life in Livingston County, Illinois and is buried there); 1927 Mary A. Carson will reference; 1895 letter to Frank Carson of Ladeamia, Illinois re the estate of T. J. Carson, deceased; 1830 Census listing for Thomas Carson of Fountain County, Indiana; reference to 1835 letter to James Carson from Clarke County Kentucky; 1820 and 1830 Clarke County, Kentucky census listings for Constance Carson; and mention of Boones, including Daniel, listed in Clarke County;

Page Twenty-Three – 1830 Missouri Census head of households named Carson; two abstracts of Rolla County, Missouri deeds 1821-1822 [The typescripts reads “Rolls” but Rolla is the correct reference]; Reference to Andrew Carson Revolutionary War in Rowan County, N. C.; Washington County, N.C. (later Tennessee) references to Carson 1790’s and 1811; 1790’s Carson taxpayers in Washington Co., N.C. (later Tennessee); Tidbit regarding where Mary Gouge was born, Washington Co., N.C. (later Tennessee) with Davy Crockett reference in that location;

Page Twenty-Four – Search for the father of James Carson; 1800 Kentucky Tax listings for Carson; North Carolina Revolutionary War soldiers named Carson; Officers from Kentucky in War of 1812 named Carson; Livingston Co. Il 1840 Carson reference; A Carson listed in the 1790 Lincoln Co., Kentucky tax list; Carroll Co IN Jefferson Twp business directory, 1855?;

Page Twenty-Five – 1830 census entries in Currituck County for Poyner, Simmons, Brumsey, Ballance, Baxter, Tatum, and Cowell;

Page Twenty-Six – History of North West Missouri biography of Hunter V. Carson of Howard County, Missouri; History of Howard County, Missouri description of Lindsay Carson and family;

This page will be distributed to various libraries, starting with the North Carolina State Archives. I will search for a descendant that might have the actual letters. As stated above, I welcome any corrections or feedback. These letters helped me with my ancestral research, I hope others benefit in the same way.

John Laird - January 2024