Lewis Bryan & Elizabeth Hunter

Sally’s 7-great Grandparents:

Lewis Bryan ca 1660 – ca 1740/1 | his parents
& 1688 Elizabeth Hunter | her parents
of Surry Co VA & Bertie Co, NC

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My working hypothesis – the way I see it as of this moment!!

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Lewis Bryan came to Bertie Co in 1713.
He was the son of John Bryan of Nansemond Co. VA.

15 Oct 1715 – Chowan Ct – Lewis Bryan proved rights for ye importation of Symon, William, Edward, Jannett, Lewis, Elizabeth, Mary, Joanah, Sarah, and Ann Bryan, Lewis Bryan, Jr and Elizabeth Bryan Jr. — Chowan Deed Book B #1 abst by MM Hofmann

Children of Lewis Bryan and Elizabeth his wife: include
1. John Bryan ca 1689 – 1762 Bertie Co [probably the oldest son]
~”John Bryan son of Lewis Bryan was appointed a justice with John Cotten and John Hardy in 1720 by Governor Eden”~ Chowan Deed Bk F #1 p21
26 November 1720–“John Bryan, Jr. and wife Mary” to Phineas Whitaker 100 acres bought from John Drew in 1716. Wit. William Bryan. Great Book, p. 398.
2. Simon Bryan ca 1690 – 1753 Bertie Co testate
moved to Pasq Co –
? married 1st unknown
?married 2nd Elizabeth Bailey [Amour]
married Ann [his widow] d bef 28 Jan 1757
3. William Bryan ca 1691 – 1744 Bertie Co – 4 sons and 2 daughters
married Catherine d. 1779
she married 2nd Aaron Ellis d. 1769
4. Edward Bryan ca 1692 – will 1762
married Martha West will 1777
5. Jannett Bryan ca 1692 –
6. Lewis Bryan ca 1693 –
7. Elizabeth Bryan 15 Sept 1694 – 18 Jan 1753
married ca 1712 Thomas Whitmell 1688 – 24 Nov 1735
married 2nd 1736 Robert Hunter
8. Mary Bryan
9. Joanah Bryan
10. Sarah Bryan
11. Ann Bryan bef Oct 1715

Robert Hunter’s second wife was Elizabeth Bryan born 15 Sept 1694, daughter of Lewis Bryan & Elizabeth Hunter(Ray) who were married in 1688 and they lived in Bertie Co.

Grandchildren of Lewis Bryan and Elizabeth Hunter:

Children of Elizabeth Bryan and Thomas Whitmel:

Children of Edward Bryan [will 1762] and Martha West [will 1777]:
1. Mary Bryan
married bef 1777 George Lockhart
2. Martha Bryan dsp
3. Elizabeth Bryan dsp
4. Ann Bryan
married bef 1777 James Ryan
a. Edward Ryan
5. Sarah Bryan
married bef 1777 Thomas Baker
a. Edward Bryan Baker
b. Martha Baker
c. Susanna Baker
d. Elizabeth Baker
e. Sarah Baker
f. Mary Baker
6. Thomas Bryan dsp 1789
7. Edward Bryan dsp May 1799
8. Janette Bryan
married 1st bef 1777 Nathaniel Hill d aft 1777
married 2nd bef 1789 Thos. Whitmell Pugh
9. Winnefred Bryan 1762 –
married bef 1789 George Durant Reed
a. Edward Bryan Reed bef 1799 –
b. West Reed bef 1799 –
c. Durant Reed bef 1799 –

Children of Simon Bryan and 1st wife:
1. Simon Bryan

Children of Simon Bryan and Elizabeth Bailey [Armour]:
1. David Bryan [will pr May Ct 1777]
a. Elizabeth Bryan
b. Mary Bryan
c. David Bryan
d. Joseph Bryan
e. Peggy Bryan
f. Rebecca Bryan
2. Joseph Bryan 23 Sept 1742 – 18 April 1807
married 11 Aug 1774 Mary Hunter 28 Dec 1744 – 10 Aug 1810
dau of Sarah Whitmell and Henry Hunter and widow of Henry Coffield and a Dawson
a. Elizabeth Bryan 3 April 1775 – 28 July 1816
married George Outlaw of Bertie Co
i. George Outlaw
married Mary Elia Jordan
1. Elizabeth Outlaw
married William Hill of New Hanover Co left no issue
[after the death of George Outlaw, Mary Elia
married 2nd Lewis Bond of Bertie
married 3rd Governor John Branch]
ii. Polly Outlaw
married Mr. Dorsey
iii. Joseph Outlaw
married Hannah Stone
iv. Harriet Outlaw
married Mr. Leggett
b. Mary Whitmel Bryan 6 March 1776 –
married 1st John Hill no issue
married 2nd Whitmel Hill Pugh
i. Maria Pugh
ii. William Whitmel Pugh of LA
iii. Winifred Hill Pugh
iv. Harriet Eliza Pugh
v. Sallie Ann Louisa Pugh
c. Sallie Hunter Bryan 15 Aug 1778 – 3 Mar 1818
married William Keais died Oct 1808 Washington, NC
he was the collector of the Port of Washington, NC
i. Maria Keais
married Thomas Barnes
ii. Sally Keais
married Joshua Tayloe
d. Marina Brickell Bryan 2 Sept 1780 – 27 Jan 1822 TN
married Maj. John Edwards Turner
Note from James E Moore – Turnersville is a small community in rural Robertson County. Goodspeed’s “History of Tennessee” published in 1886 stated that it
“was formerly of considerable importance as a shipping point for tobacco”.
However, it declined after the railroad was built in another location.
The community was named for Major (Jack E.) Turner
i. William Keais Turner of Nashville 1848
married Betsey Cheatham
ii. Marina Turner of Nashville 1848
married bef 1848 George Cheatham
iii. Emily Baker Turner
married 1st Joseph Jordan Ryan
1. Harriet Ryan
married 1st Maj. John A Benbury
married 2nd Col. David Miller Carter of Hyde Co
2. Emily Ryan
married Rev. Gilliam
married 2nd bef 1848 Col David Outlaw
1. Annie Outlaw bef 1848
2. Bettie Outlaw bef 1848
issue but Stuart does not list]
e. Joseph Hunter Bryan 9 April 1782 – d TN
married Sarah Burlingham
i. Mary Eliza Bryan
married Jesse Isler
f. Harriet Bailey Bryan 26 Dec 1783 -1848 Warrenton, NC with will
married 1st James Peyton Tunstall
i. Thomas Tunstall [must have died young]
married 2 July 1823 Granville Co to Starke Armistead
i. one son per Struart
g. Henry Hunter Bryan 23 Feb 1786 – 4 May 1835
married Betsey Averitt
i. Mary Malvina Bryan
married Nathaniel J Pegram
ii. Marina Bryan
married 1st Mr Dortch
married 2nd Mr Cobb
iii. Henry Hunter Bryan Jr of New Orleans 1848
married Mary F Tyler
iv. Jesse Bryan never married
v. Harriet Elizabeth Bryan of Nashville 1848 still single
married aft 1848 1st Dr Harris
married 2nd Mr. Pegram
vi. Robert Allen Virginia Bryan [female]
married 1st Mr. Dickinson
married 2nd William S Handy of Philadelphia
1. daughter Handy
married Mr. Baltzell of Philadelphia
vii. Penelope W Bryan
married Robert P Hamlin
1. Harriett Hamlin
viii. Sallie Whitmel Bryan living Richmond 1848
married Mr Bierou/Biorci [note spelling]
h. Simon A Bryan 7 Feb 1788 – Nov 1828
married 17 Jan 1811 Mary Burlingham d 1815
Mary Hunter and Henry Coffield
a. Thomas H Coffield
i. Archibald Coffield of Martin Co 1848
ii. Betsey Coffield
iii. Maria Coffield
iv. Thomas Coffield of Martin Co 1848
v. Polly Coffield
vi. Sally Coffield
vii. Caroline Coffield
b. Martha Coffield died without issue
3. Winnefred Bryan

The will of Harriet B. Armistead[ # f above] was recorded in Book 39, page 456 in Warren County.
Dated 8 Jan 1848, proved May Court 1848. abstract by David Gammon
In it she mentions:
My executor is to hold certain Negroes in trust for the use of my niece Penelope W. Hamlin as if she were a single woman, for her lifetime, and with reversion to her children.
To Harriett Hamlin (daughter of niece Penelope Hamlin) – Negro Jane
My friend Benjamin E. Cook of Warrenton is to hold in trust for the use of my niece Sally Biorci (her last name is hard to read) of Richmond, $3500 for her sole use.
Niece Harriet Bryan of Nashville – $3500
Niece Marina Cheatham, formerly Marina Turner, also of Nashville – $3500
To Emily Outlaw, wife of David Outlaw of Windsor, NC – $500
TO Annie Outlaw and Bettie Outlaw, daughters of the said Emily Outlaw – $500 each
TO my niece Fanny Crawford – $100
Nephews Thomas Coffield and Archibald Coffield of Martin County – $250 each
My executors are to buy a Negro for my niece Patsy Powell to be held in trust for her.
Nephew Henry Bryan of New Orleans – $1000
To the Methodist church of Warrenton – $500
Niece Sally Dargin of Martin County – $250
To David Outlaw of Windsor, NC – $300 to be held in trust for Margaret Ryan, widow of Marcus Ryan
Nephew William Turner of Nashville – $500
I require Robert P. Hamlin to pay for the hire of any Negroes given his wife in trust
Niece Penelope W. Hamlin – my house and lot
Residue of estate to my nieces Penelope W. Hamlin, Sally Biorci (?), Harriet Bryan, and Marina Cheatham.
My niece Penelope W. Hamlin is to take my Negro Nancy.
Executor was friend William Plummer of Warren County

Will of Simon Bryan 26 Nov 1751 – Bertie Co May Ct 1753
[abstract by David B Gammon]
“…in a very bad state of health…”
Wife – one-third of my personal estate, there being nine Negroes belonging to my children, some of which came by the death of their brother Jno. Amour. the rest they hold by deed of gift, and the Negroes are named Perry, Hannah, Feb, Sina?, Ben, Lyd, Joe, Jupiter, and Pina.
Son David – the land I bought of Michell Henry King.
Remaining two-thirds of my personal estate to be divided between my three children, but if my wife is now with child this child shall have an equal share.
EX: wife Ann Bryan, brother Edward Bryan, son David
Wit: Martha Bryan, Isabel [x] Deal, Jas. Lockhart, Lillington Lockhart.

Probate indicates David Bryan, qualified as exr.
Aug 1753 – Inventory presented by David Bryan.
Edward Bryan and David Bryan petitioned for a division,
28 Jan 1757 Edward Bryan appd. gdn. of the orphan Joseph Bryan
right was given Henry Gibbon to take the property of the ded’d into his possession
Division [undated] indicated the widow had died. The names of the Negroes belonging to the estate were named Argill, Thornton, “Jenny from Pasquotank,” Jenny and Joe. [abstract by David B Gammon]

Ref: Hathaway’s NCHGR vol 2 p325
The Whitmell Family Bible, 1726 from Historic Woodville
Whitmel of Bertie, Halifax & Warren Co by Lyndon H Hart III in Gammon’s ENCF Vol 1.
Stuart Hall Hill’s notebooks

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Sally’s 8-great Grandparents:

John Bryan ca 1630 – 1680/88 | his parents
& ? | her parents
of Nansemond Co VA

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Patented often on the Indian Creek branch of the Nansemond River in the Upper Parish and close to the Isle of Wight County line; the property extended toward Kingsale
a. 168 acres on 15 Oct 1652 adj John Garrett and William Story;
b. 200 acres on 18 Mar 1662 adj William Denson [whose widow Frances outlived him 33 or 34 years [Chapman wills pp 14, 47] and Hugh Sanders ~ this 200 acres sold eventually to John Moore.
c. 350 acres adj Robert Johnson 8 Oct 1671 and “close to county line”
d. 81 acres 6 Oct 1674 adj his own land, Henry Gay, and William Denson
e. 470 acres on 20 April 1682, inc. the 350 acres of the 1671 grant adj Robert Johnson and Thomas Mason.

19 December 1741 — Richard Gay of the upper parish of Isle of Wight to William Moor of the upper parish of Nansemond County 170 acres (part of the Thomas Mason patent of 1666, sold to Isaac Bolton in 1666 who sold to John Bryan 14 December 1668 who “devised” to his son John Bryan 14 February 1680 who “devised” it to his “son” Samuel 23 Jan 1725 who conveyed to “brother” Walter who conveyed to his “brother-in-law” Richard Gay). Isle of Wight Deed Book # 6, p. 102.

Children of John Bryan:
1. John Bryan[t] ca 1659 – bef 19 Dec 1741
land patent 1682
married Alice Macland d. aft 1705 will of father
a. Needham Bryant 23 Feb 1690 – 1770
married 11 Nov 1711 Annie Rombeau d. 16 Jan 1730
married 2nd Susannah Harrell d. 1752
married 3rd 1752 Sarah Woodward d bef May 1777
b. William Bryant bef 1705 –
24 December 1722–William Bryan of the Lower Parish deeded to his son-in-law Thomas Gay 95 acres adjacent William Coggan and Phineas Whitaker that William had brought from Phineas in 1720, land that John Moore devised to his daughter Mrs. Jane Moore Carver Whitaker in 1702. Wit. John Moore, Jr. of the next deed. Great Book, pp. 400, 510. [Thomas Gay was the brother-in-law of __?__ Page, as noted in the will of Thomas Gay, Sr. 1719/20, abstracted by Mrs. Chapman, p. 84.]
23 December 1724–John Bryan, Sr. of the LP, Isle of Wight to son William Bryan 200 acres (part of the 1682 patent). Great Book. p. 685. Wit. Thomas Gale, Jr. [His sister Mary Gale married Robert Bryan (Southampton will 1750), possibly a half brother of William and a brother of the “full blood” of Walter and Samuel Bryan. – e-mail from Barry Hayes]
c. John Bryant bef 1705 –of Halifax Co NC
” lived on Cypress Swamp near the Nicholas Smith homestead”
married Elizabeth Joyner
d. Mary Bryant bef 1705 –
married Richard Gay
e. Alice Bryant bef 1705 –
married aft 1705 2nd ?
a. Samuel Bryan
23 January 1725–John Bryan, Sr. deeded to son Samuel Bryan 200 acres in possession of Thomas Mason, the land “devised” to John Bryan by his father John Bryan 14 February 1680. Great Book, p. 685. Wit. Thomas Gale, Jr.
b. Walter Bryan of Iof W VA 1731
received land from brother Samuel 27 May 1728
20 April 1731–Walter Bryan of the LP of Isle of Wight and wife Sarah [Johnson] Bryan to Edward Taylor 200 acres, southern branch of the Nansemond River (part of a patent to John Bryan 20 April 1682 adjacent Thomas Mason) plus 30 acres (part of the Mason patent given to said Walter Bryan by his brother Samuel 27 May 1728), the 200 acres given by William Bryan to his brother Walter Bryan [possibly a half brother]. Wit. James Bryan and his wife Joan. Isle of Wight Deed Book # 4, p. 110. e-mail from Dr. Barry Hayes
married Sarah Johnson
c. Robert Bryan
married Mary Gale
2. Lewis Bryan[t] ca 1660 – ca 1740/1
married Elizabeth Hunter
3. Edward Bryan[t]
married Christina Council
a. John Bryan of Craven Co NC 1741 will
On 26 December 1723, John Bryan of “Bertie County, North Carolina” deeded to James Bryan the 200 acres, “willed by Hodges Council to his daughter Christian, wife of Edward Bryan.” Isle of Wight Great Book, p. 618.
i. James Bryan
witnesses of deed dated 27 May 1728
married bef 27 May 1728 Joan
e-mail from Dr. Barry Hayes: This James Bryan was the grandson of Edward Bryan and Christina Council and was the son of their son John. On 20 April 1731, James Bryan and wife Joan deeded to his first cousin Walter Bryan 200 acres adjacent Hodges Council, willed by Council to daughter “Christina, wife of Edward Bryan.” “Her [Christina’s] heir” John Bryan, Sr. “willed” it to said James Bryan. Isle of Wight Deed Book # 4, p. 104. I think both Edward and Christina were dead by then, but John Bryan, Sr. did not “will” this land at all. I am particularly interested in this line because Christina’s sister Lucy Council Wooten, wife of Richard Wooten, is a recently discovered ancestress of mine.
b. Edward Bryan will 1746 New Bern NC
4. James Bryan[t] – ca Aug 1732 Bertie Co
married Elizabeth
land patent 1683
a. William Bryant
married Mary Bridger
b. daughter
married John Dew
c. daughter
married Richard Braswell
d. James Bryant
e. Thomas Bryant
f. daughter
married Mathew Telar

e-mail from Barry Hayes: [cor from e-mail of Connie Fisher ”

“That deed at Bk 6 p 102 should be corrected to read Richard Gay of the upper parish of Isle of Wight to William Moor of the upper parish of Nansemond County.]

(1) 19 December 1741–Richard Gay to William Moore of Isle of Wight 170 acres (part of the Thomas Mason patent of 1666, sold to Isaac Bolton in 1666 who sold to John Bryan 14 December 1668 who “devised” to his son John Bryan 14 February 1680 who “devised” it to his “son” Samuel who conveyed to “brother” Walter who conveyed to his “brother-in-law” Richard Gay). Isle of Wight Deed Book # 6, p. 102. [ Does this mean that your John Bryan made a will in 1680? If so, did he die before the 1682 patent of John Bryan [II?] and the 1683 patent of James Bryan? Could these patents be to land devised to them by their father? The Patent of 1682 to John (Nugent, II, p. 231, the patent to 470 acres, near Robert Johnson and Thomas Mason) states that 150 acres of it was “granted him on 6 October 1672” [“him” sounds like John I; but perhaps not, as father and son had the same name]. Perhaps John I made a will in 1680 or just deeded the property. If at law “devise” means to will, I have seen some conveyances that use words “devise” and “deed” interchangeably. In any case, John Bryan I was certainly dead by 1688 when Lewis Bryan’s deal with Henry Gay refers to “John Bryan, deceased” (Boddie, Seventeenth Century, p. 601).

Needham was clearly a grandson of John Bryan I. But who was his father? Needham’s mother was obviously the Alice named as the daughter in the will of Needham’s maternal grandfather “Macland [sic]” in 1705. I do not find an older Needham who could have been his father and doubt that he existed. The William Bryan whom so many Bryan researchers contend was the husband of an Alice Needham and the father of Needham Bryan was an invention or the subject of a family legend that Hathaway accepted “whole cloth,” and without any citations, when he wrote the North Carolina Register a century ago. The oldest William that I can find in the Southside Virginia records is the William, an older brother of Needham who, I think, was born about ten years later than William. William, son of James and husband of Mary Bridger, was a contemporary of the other William. I can only account for four possible sons of John I (John II, James, Lewis, and Edward). Neither James and wife Elizabeth (his will 1731 in Bertie), Lewis (whose importation into N.C. listed his children in 1715 except his son John), nor Edward (who was married to Christina Council ca. 1690) could have been the father of Needham. Edward had a son John who left his will in Craven County, North Carolina in 1741 and son Edward who left his will in New Bern in 1746. Lewis had the son John who was appointed a justice with John Cotten and John Hardy in 1720 in Bertie County. Only James did not have a son John.

In focusing on John Bryan II, son of John I, I at first theorized that John I died in 1680; that John II patented in 1682, died before 1713, and was the father of Needham (cf. the Needham deed of 1713); and that John III (the “Sr.” in # 3 and 4 above) was the brother of Needham. Obviously, some of the deeds would have had to contain some mistakes for that scenario to hold. But at least by that theory, John II could qualify as the father of Needham (and William, John, Alice, and Mary (wife of the Richard Gay in # 1, all named in the will of 1705) and then John III could qualify as the father of Walter, Samuel, and Robert. Then it occurred to me several days ago that there may be another answer. John I died ca. 1680/88, but John II (the “Sr.” of # 3 and 4 above, still very much alive as late as 1725, and probably died in Nansemond) had two sets of children by two wives. He had the five children by (1) Alice who probably died soon after her father made his will in 1705 and soon married (2) the mother of Samuel, Walter, and Robert. What do you think?

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Needham Bryant 1690 – 1770 | his parents
& 1711 Annie Rombeau ? – 1730/1 | her parents
& ca 1731 Susannah Harrell d. 1752 | her parents
& 1752 Sarah Woodward d bef May 1777 | her parents
of “Snowfield” Bertie Co NC

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Needham Bryant 23 Feb 1690 Isle of Wght Co VA – 1770
married 11 Nov 1711 Annie Rombeau d. 16 Jan 1730
Needham and all three of his wives are buried at “Snowfield” in Bertie County
he also names grandsons Ezekiel Williams, Lewis Gardner, and Joseph Garnigham
and bequeath a mare to Susannah Harrell and three pounds to young Jacob Jernigan

17 February 1713–Needham Bryan and wife Anne of the UP Nansemond County to James Nolliboy of the LP Isle of Wight “for his love of his brother John Bryan” (conveyed to Nolliboy for John Bryan?) 170 acres “bounded by Edward Bryan and Mason” and “now in the possession of John Bryan” (“part of a grant” to John Bryan “deceased” on 20 April 1782). Isle of Wight Deed Book # 2, p. 265. This John Bryan would appear to have been the John Bryan, Jr. of the previous two deeds.

Children of Needham Bryan and Annie Rombeau:
1. Rachel Bryan 10 June 1723 – Nov 1780
married 6 Nov 1741 William Whitfield 29 May 1715 – 31 Mar 1795
son of William Whitfield and Elizabeth Goodman
a. William Whitfield 1 June 1743 – Mar 1817
married Hester Williams
b. Elizabeth Whitfield 16 Mar 1746 –
married 1765 Alexander Smith
c. Sarah Whitfield 16 April 1749 – 22 Jan 1780
married 1769 Col. Joseph Greer
d. Bryan Whitfield 9 Feb 1754 – 3 Jan 1817
married 1st 1780 Nancy Bryan dau of Needham
married 2nd 1798 Winifred Bryan dau of Hon. Nathan Bryan
e. Charity Whitfield 6 April 1756 – 21 Aug 1818
married David Smith
f. Needham Whitfield 20 Feb 1758 – 6 Apr 1812
g. Rachel Whitfield 16 Sept 1760 –
married 1st McCabe
married 2nd James Whitfield
married 3rd John Hentage
married 4th Isaac Bryan son of Col Hardy Bryan
h. Mary Whitfield 18 May 1763 –
married 1785/6 Kedar Bryan son of Neeham [as 2nd wife]
i. Rev. Lewis Whitfield 1766 – 1849
married 1st Charlotte Moore Bryan 2 April 1765 – 1798
dau of Needham Bryan and Charlotte Moore
married 2nd 9 Feb 1800 Tabitha Atkinson
married 3rd 10 Nov 1816 Martha [Patsy] Hinton [Bryan]
widow of John Bryan son of William Bryan and Elizabeth Smith
2. William Bryan 31 Oct 1724 Bertie Co NC – 1785 Johnston Co NC
a member of the Provincial Congress 1775
and one of the officers appointed by the Convention which organized the militia
married 1744 Elizabeth Smith
dau of John Smith and Elizabeth Whitfield
a. Lewis/Louis Bryan 4 Nov 1745 Johnston Co NC – 1780
married ca 1769 Sarah Hinton
dau of William Hinton ca. 1715/20-1761
i. Lewis Hinton Bryan 4 April 1780 – 1851

e-mail 6/8/06 Sally, I am a descendant of Capt. Lewis Bryan (c. 1745) of Johnston County, NC….. I have always thought Lewis to have married Sarah Hinton d/o William Hinton as per this deed made by Lewis’s son Lewis Jr. in Bunconbe Co. NC in 1802.HARDY BRYAN – deed book B-2, p. 85, 12 March 1802 LEWIS BRYAN of Buncomb Co. to JOHN RUSSELL of Johnston Co for $1,000, 260 acres NS Neuse River on Marks Ck. adj. CHRISTOPHER CURTIS & LEWIS BRYAN. . all that tract of land deeded to me by my mother SARAH BRYAN, left to her by her father WILLIAM HINTON, dec. in his LW&T. Signed: LEWIS BRYAN, May Ct. 1802. Wit: HARDY BRYAN, SAML LEE, JR…….. Herman Hensleyfrom Barry Hayes

Lewis Bryan (1746-1780) married Sarah Hinton, daughter of William Hinton (ca. 1715/20-1761) and stepdaughter of Colonel Needham Bryan II, brother of Colonel William Bryan, as discussed below. Contrary to various reports, including the account in Hathaway, Lewis Bryan did not marry a Nancy Ann Hinton.
The true identity of his wife is proved by a series of deeds in Johnston County and Buncombe County where Sarah settled with her second husband Edward Blurton. The son Lewis Hinton Bryan (1780-1851), born on 4 April 1780 shortly after his father’s death, sold, on 12 March 1802 as Lewis Bryan of Buncombe County, where he would leave his will, 260 acres in Johnston County that William Hinton had left his daughter Sarah, Lewis Bryan’s mother.
The property was adjacent Christopher Curtis who, as noted below, married Lewis Bryan’s first cousin, Esther Bryan, daughter of Needham Bryan II by his third wife Charlotte Moore. . . .

b.William Bryan July 1747 – Sept 1800 Bertie Co NC
married 1788 Elizabeth Gray
dau of William Gray and Frances Lee
i. Francis Lee Bryan 1779 – 1850 Windsor NC
ii. William Bryan 5 March 1781 – dy
iii. Elizabeth Bryan 26 March 1783 – 30 July 1840
iv. Ann Gray Bryan 5 Dec 1784 – 12 Oct 1864
married 1808 Sam Hyman of Bertie Co
v. Jane Smith Bryan 24 April 1786 – 18 Feb 1818
married 1812 Peter Boyd Martin
vi. Susannah Bush Bryan 11 April 1791 –
vii. John Gray Bryan 1796 – 31 Oct 1830
viii. John Stevens Bryan April 1797 – 1848 NY
married Lucy Haywood of Raleigh
ix. James Louis Bryan 6 Aug 1799 – 26 Nov 1856
c. Arthur Bryan 12 May 1749 – rem to Twigg Co GA
married ca 1780 Nancy McCullers of Johnston Co NC
i. John Arthur Bryan
d. Elizabeth Bryan 28 May 1751 –
married Col. Josiah Sasser
i. Lewis Sasser
ii. Blake Sasser
iii. William Sasser
iv. Mary Sasser 1775 –
married 28 Aug 1792 William Stevens
married 2nd ca 1800 Benjamin Bryan son of Needham II
moved to GA in 1818
married 2nd 1783 William Blackman of Johnson City NC
i. Elizabeth R Blackman 1784 – 1811
married Isaac Williams
e. Hardy Bryan 4 June 1753 –
married 1777 Winnefred McCullers of Johnston Co NC
i. William Bryan 10 Sept 1779 –
ii. Hardy Bryan 10 Aug 1781 –
iii. Matthew Bryan Dec 1783 –
iv. Gen Harry Bryan 7 May 1786 –
married 1815 Susan Blackman
v. David Bryan Dec 1790 –
married the widow of Edwin Smith
vi. John Gray Bryan 1792 –
f. Blake Bryan 12 June 1759 –
married 1790 Elizabeth Blackshear 16 Sept 1765 – of Jones Co NC
i. Mary Bryan 1792 –
married 1814 Maj. Ezekiel Wimberley
ii. Elizabeth Bryan 8 Dec 1795 –
married GA 1814 Joel Walker
iii. Joseph Bryan 1798 –
married GA 1819 Mary Walker
iv. Blake Bryan Jr dy
g. Esther Bryan 22 June 1760 –
married ca 1780 Jonathan Smith son of Col. Samuel Smith
i. Elizabeth Smith 1787 –
married 1802 Nathaniel Lane
ii. Esther B Smith dsp
h. Susannah Bryan 25 Nov 1763 –
married ca 1783 John Bush of Jones Co NC moved to GA
i. David Bush 1784 –
ii. Elizabeth Bush 1785 –
married 1805 James Tooke
iii. Zilpah Bush
married Mr. Baker
i. John Bryan 14 Jan 1765 –
married 1795 Patsy Hinton 25 July 1775 –
dau of Col. James Hinton and Delilah Hunter;
granddaughter of Col John Hinton and wife Grizelle Kimbrough
i. Bythan Bryan 1796 –
married 1825 Julia Smith
dau of Maj. Sam Smith Jr.
? 1. Wiley Bryan 20 Nov 1825 – 15 Dec 1895 near Rich Square 4 dau and one son
married 21 Dec 1847 Mary Ann Beale d 1874
dau of Jordan Beale
married 14 Sept 1880 Bettie V Sessoms
ii. Nancy Bryan 1798 –
married 1827 James Hinton Smith
son of Edward Smith and Temperance Hinton
3. Needham Bryan 1715/26 – d between 23 Sept 1767 and May 1777
married 5 Feb 1747 Nancy Ann Smith d. ca 1760
dau of John Smith and Elizabeth Whitfield

from Dr. Bascum Barry Hayes Colonel Needham Bryan II (1715/26?-ca. 1776/77) married (1) his first cousin and sister-in-law Nancy Ann Smith on 5 February 1747. After her death ca. 1760, he married (2) Mrs. Sophia Hinton, the widow of William Hinton, who left his will in Johnston County in 1761. The proof of this second marriage, long ignored, will follow. Colonel Bryan married (3), not (2), as long supposed, Charlotte Moore ca. 1764. Mrs. Zella Armstrong in her collection, Notable Southern Families, was clearly wrong when she placed Colonel Bryan’s death in 1784 and suggested that in 1780 his second wife became Charlotte Moore. The daughter by this third marriage, Charlotte Moore Bryan, was born on 2 April 1765; her marriage was on 27 October 1782 to Reverend Lewis Whitfield (1766-1849), son of William Whitfield, Jr. and Rachel Bryan; and her death was on 9 March 1798. Reverend Whitfield married (2) Tabitha Atkinson on 9 February 1800 and (3) Mrs. Martha Hinton Bryan on 10 November 1816. Mrs. Martha “Patsy” Hinton Bryan, the third wife of Reverend Whitfield, was a granddaughter of Colonel John Hinton and wife Grizelle Kimbrough and daughter of Colonel James Hinton (ca. 1749-after 1794) of “Silent Retreat,” assemblyman, senator, and justice of Wake County, and wife Delilah Hunter, daughter of Colonel Theophilus Hunter of “Hunter’s Lodge.” The first husband of Mrs. Patsy Hinton Bryan Whitfield was Reverend Whitfield’s double first cousin, John Bryan, son of William Bryan and Elizabeth Whitfield Smith, as noted above. The proof about the second wife, previously ignored by Bryan researchers, is found in a deed, undated but received by the Johnston County court in August 1769, wherein Joseph Hinton, son of William Hinton deceased, received from Major Needham Bryan, guardian of Joseph Hinton, Joseph’s share of William Hinton’s estate. Needham’s brother William Bryan witnessed, and Needham’s son Needham Bryan, Jr. and stepson Joseph Bryan signed the decree. Needham Bryan and “wife Sophia” deeded land to “my son” Needham Bryan, Jr., undated but probably shortly after part of this property was patented in December 1763. The deed to the land was probably filed, the date not indicated, before Needham Bryan III had reached his majority ca. 1768/69. See Deed Book E-1, p. 43. Sophia’s name does not appear on another document and had evidently died by early 1764 before the third marriage.Concerning the third wife Charlotte Moore, she was a probably a great-granddaughter of Francis Denson whose will was witnessed in Isle of Wight by Needham Bryan I in 1709. Charlotte may have been a second cousin of the compiler’s ancestor John Moore the Hatter (ca. 1760-1843) and the daughter of Reverend John Moore (1717-1803) who did not mention her in his will (Wake County 1795/1803) perhaps because she had died before he signed it. Reverend John Moore, Jr. who left his will in Wake County in 1802 may have named his daughter Charlotte for her. It is noteworthy that Mark Myatt (ca. 1749-1821), with whom Reverend John Moore, Sr. was living, according to his will, at the time he signed his will in 1795 and was executor of the Moore estate, was the father of Alvin Myatt (1782-1818) who married Sarah Moore, daughter of John Moore the Hatter.

a. Capt Needham Bryan III 1750 – 1787 Johnson Co NC
married 1768 Sarah [Sallie] Hinton
dau of Col. John Hinton II [ca 1720 -1784] and Grizelle Kimbrough of Wake Co
i. Leonard Bryan 1769 –
married Elizabeth Green dau of Joseph Green and Sarah Whitfield
ii. Clement Bryan 13 Oct 1770 – 1839
married Edith Smith dau of Col David Smith and Charity Whitfield
iii. Benjamin Bryan 1771 NC – moved to GA in 1818
married ca 1800 Mary Sasser Stevens widow of William Stevens
iv. Sallie Bryan 1773 –
married 1793 Jack Hinton

from Dr. Barry Hayes Captain Needham Bryan III (ca. 1748/49-1787) married Sarah Hinton, daughter of Colonel John Hinton II (ca. 1720-1784) and Grizelle Kimbrough of Wake County and sister of John Hinton III (1748-1818) who married Pherabee Smith, yet another daughter daughter of Colonel John Smith and wife Elizabeth Whitfield. The attempt by various researchers to connect Sarah’s grandmother Mary Hardy Bryan, wife of Colonel John Hinton I (ca. 1673-1731) of the old Chowan Precinct, to our Hardy family of Isle of Wight seems problematical. Some researchers claim that Grizelle Kimbrough was the daughter “Gilly” of Nathaniel Kimbrough (ca. 1710-1781) who signed his will in Wake County on 12 July 1781; probated December 1781. See Wake County Will Book # A, p. 141. That conclusion seems problematical. Grizelle may have been his sister. A Johnston County record of 10 July 1763 notes that Needham Bryan’s uncle William Bryan placed his youngest son John “under the tuition and management of Nathaniel Kimbrough until “the son shall arrive at the age of 21.” Grizelle Kimbrough Hinton’s brother-in-law was the aforementioned William Hinton whose widow Sophia became Captain Needham Bryan’s stepmother and whose daughter, Sarah Hinton, married Lewis Bryan, son of Captain Needham Bryan’s uncle, Colonel William Bryan and wife Elizabeth Whitfield Smith. Sarah Hinton Bryan’s aforementioned brother Colonel John Hinton III (1748-1818) of “Clay Hill” in Wake County and wife Pherabee Smith were the parents of Grizelle Hinton Seawell. Grizelle Hinton Seawell married Judge Henry Seawell of Wake County (ca. 1774-1835) whose son John Hinton Seawell married Louisa Hendon, sister of the compiler’s great-great-grandfather James Albert Hendon (1807-1875). . . . [Much left out here!] . . . Captain Needham Bryan signed his will in Johnston County, North Carolina on 25 January 1787; probated February 1787 (Johnston County Will Book # 1, p. 3).

c. Kedar Bryan 1752 –
married ca 1781 Elizabeth Smith
dau of Alexander Smith and Elizabeth Whitfield
i. John Bryan 1784 –
married Eleanor Torrence
married 2nd 1786 Mary Whitfield 18 May 1763 – bef 1793
ii. Rachel Bryan 1787 –
married 1805 Gibson Sloane
married 3rd 1793 Betsy Jones no issue
married 4th 1800 Nancy Dickson
iii. Needham Bryan
iv. Kedar Bryan
v. Robert Bryan
vi. Nancy Bryan
vii. Catherine Bryan
viii. Elizabeth Bryanc. Winnefred Bryan 1754 –
married 1773 Col. Nathan Bryan
[died in Philadelphia while attending the Continental Congress]
i. Mary Bryan 1774 –
married Gen. William Croom
ii. John Bryan 1776 –
married Miss Hatch
iii. Nathan Bryan 1777 –
married Rachel Whitfield dau of Gen Bryan Whitfield
iv. Winifred Bryan 1778 –
married 1797 Gen Bryan Whitfield [2nd wife]
v. Needham Bryan 1781 –
d. Nancy Bryan 1756 –
married 1780 Gen. Bryan Whitfield
i. Bryan Whitfield Jr 1782 –
married 1810 Elizabeth Turner
ii. Needham Whitfield dy
iii. Rachel Whitfield
married 1st Nathan Bryan
married 2nd William Herring
iv. Nancy Whitfield
married 1815 John Cobb
v. Patsy Whitfield
married William Coom??
married 2nd Mrs. Sophie Hinton
widow of William Hinton will 1761 Johnston Co NC
married 3rd ca 1764 Charlotte Moore of Sampson Co
e. Charlotte Moore Bryan 2 April 1765 – 9 March 1798
married 27 Oct 1782 Rev. Lewis Whitfield 1766 – 1849
son of William Whitfield Jr and Rachel Bryan

Needham Bryan and 2nd wife Susannah Harrell [d. 1752] had no children
Needham Bryan and 3rd wife 1752 Sarah Woodward [d bef May 1777] had no children

Will of Needham Bryan 23 Sep 1767 – prob Mar Ct 1770 Bertie Co
“…being very sick in body. .”
– wife Sarah one feather bed and furniture, one horse, side saddle and bridle.
– my grandson William Bryan, the son of William Bryan – my still and smith’s tools
– my four grandsons: Ezekil Williams, Lewis Gardner, and Joseph Jarnighan and my daughters son William her first born
– to Susana Harrell
– to young Jacob Jarnighan.
– lend all to wife and grandson but after her widowhood – all to be divided to my three children: Needham Bryan, William Bryan and daughter Rachell Whitfield
-son in law William Whitfield.

*******************************************************************************
In Bertie, on 15 May 1777, Pursuant to the Dimentions of an order of
the Inferior Court of Pleas and Quarters Sessions….the second Tuesday
in May [1777]… We the Subscribers met examined audited and setled the
accounts of WILLIAM BRYAN Exec. of NEEDHAM BRYAN deceased and find a
ballance due to the said deceased’s estate of four hundred and eighty and
eight pounds thirteen shillings and nine pence proclamation money –
which we have divided and set apart agreably to the last will and
testament of the said deceased to the administrator of NEEDHAM BRYAN son
of the said deceased for his part and shair of the said deceased’s estate
one hundred and sixty two pounds seventeen shillings & eleven pence…
and the same amount for their shares “To Rachel Whitfield daughter of
the said deceased”. This is signed by Noah Hinton, Samuel Moore, and
Thomas House. We may assume the recent death of the elder Needham
Bryan’s widow Sarah, in 1776 or early 1777, terminating her life
interest and allowing final settlement of the estate.

The three principal heirs of Needham Bryan, Sr., as clearly indicated
in both the will and settlement, were sons WILLIAM and NEEDHAM, Jr., and
daughter RACHEL WHITFIELD.
Payment to “the administrator of NEEDHAM BRYAN son of the said deceased” indicates the death intestate of NEEDHAM, JR.,
after date of the will, 23 Sept. 1767, and before the settlement, in May 1777.
This conflicts with 1784, given as year of
Needham, Jr’s death by Zella Armstrong [see below].
The will does not name the daughters who were mothers of “my fore Gran Sons”,
each of the four being cut off with a crown sterling,
thus disinheriting these daughters andor their heirs
and avoiding division of the estate per stirpes.
The executor’s accounting, as approved by the commissioners in 1777,
includes payments of five minor monetary bequests:
For four grandson,
“To pay Ezekiel wimberly [sic] shi Legacy”
and, tabulated in immediate succession,
“LEWIS GARDNER do do”,
“JOSEPH JERNAGAN do do”,
and “WILLIAM BRYAN son of ANN BRYAN do do”,
each 8 chillings, 4 pence
[the equivalent then in local currency of a crown sterling];
to “JACOB JERNAGAN, Jr. do do” 3 pounds
[Bertie Co., NC Inventories and sales of
estates, 1775-1790, Part I, pp. 18-19, in NC Archives, Arleigh;
photocopy in compiler’s possession].
Possibly JACOB JERNIGAN, Jr., is a son-in-law.
SUSANNA HARRELL, legatee in the will, may be a favored niece,
namesake, and or god-daughter of NEEDHAM’S second wife,
said to have been born SUSANNA HARRELL.
The compiler is uncertain whether one of the above legatees and grandsons of NEEDHAM BRYAN, Sr., is really EZEKIEL “WILLIAMS”,
as named in the will, or EZEKIEL “WIMBERLY”, as listed in the final accounting.

Jewel Davis Scarborough, in a chapter on Bryans and Gardners of Bertie
[Southern Kith and Kin, vol. 2, The Davis Family and Their Connections,
1952, page 116-122], misinterpreted NEEDHAM BRYAN’s will as though it
named three GARDNER grandson – EZEKIEL, WILLIAM and LEWIS GARDNER. With
inadequate justification, she then assigned these three as sons to
MARTIN GARDNER, Jr. of Bertie, although admitting that they are not
mentioned in the latter’s will of 1784. LEWIS GARDNER appears in an
early Bertie record as a “headright’, 9 Nov 1742: “WILLIAM GARDNER
proved his rights vis: WM. GARDENER, MARY GARDENER, USELFA GARDINER,
NEHOMI [NAOMI?] GARDINER, LEWIS GARDENER, MARY GARDINER, whites, Pegg,
black” [Bertie Co. NC Minute Book 1724-1743, pg. 193], presumably
WILLIAM as head of family, wife MARY, their four children, and a slave.
A conjecture, for further consideration, is that WILLIAM and MARY
GARDNER are son-in-law and daughter of NEEDHAM BRYAN, Sr., and LEWIS the
GARDNER grandson named in NEEDHAM’s will. In 1793 a LEWIS GARDNER [died
1799] of Georgia gave ALEXANDER GARDNER power of attorney to sell two
tracts of land in Bertie (Columbia Co Ga, Deed Book B, pg. 202].

Incomplete, and not altogether in agreement, are some published notes
on the Bertie County Bryans: J.R.B. Hathaway, “Bryan Record”, North
Carolina Historical and Genealogical Register, vol. 1, pg. 577-84; Worth
S. Ray, “The Bryan Family”, Lost Tribes of North Carolina, pg. 655-58;
and Zella Armstrong, Notable Southern Families, vol. 2, pg. 50-57.
Malcolm E. Gardner
Arlington, Virginia
12 November 1969

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John Bryant bef 1705 – | his parents
& Elizabeth Joyner | her parents
of Halifax Co NC

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John Bryant bef 1705 –of Halifax Co NC
” lived on Cypress Swamp near the Nicholas Smith homestead”
married Elizabeth Joyner

Children of John Bryant and Elizabeth Joyner:
1. William Bryan[t] d. 15 May 1761 Edgecombe Co NC
married ca 1740 Sarah Smith
a. John Bryan
married Sarah Hobby
b. Arthur Bryan
married Rhoda Hobby
c. Brittain Bryan
married Elizabeth Williams
d. Smith Bryan
married Lucy Barlow will Edgecombe Co 1811
married 2nd Martha Weeks
e. William Bryan will Edgecombe co 1797
2. Arthur Bryan[t]
married ca 1740 Mary Smith sister of Sarah
a. James Smith Bryan 18 March 1746 – 1785 Halifax will 1785
married Lucy ?
i. Mary Bryan
married Turner Joyner
ii. Sarah Bryan
married Ethelred Ellis
iii. James Bryan dsp 1805
b. Mary Bryan 1752 –
c. Priscilla Bryan Jan 1758
d. Nicholas Bryan dy?
e. Needham Bryan died 1785
married Jamima Daffin died 1808
she married 2nd 1796 John Williamson
3. Elizabeth Bryan
married Dr. David Hopper d. 1735 intestate
the first physician on record in the Scotland Neck section
a. David Hopper
b. Hannah Hopper