parentage
Hello! I am trying to confirm a parentage. I have an ancestor John W Waters (GCQM-99B). I am almost 100% certain that he has a brother names Amos W Waters (LZDY-G5Q), because they are always listed next to each other, and their descendants are living in the same area too. On the latest tax records that I can find them living in Raleigh, Beaufort, North Carolina, and on the 1755 record I find a Thomas Waters listed with them listed first, and then not in the later ones, which makes me think that he is potentially the father and died after that (or possibly an uncle or brother that died or moved away, but I don't know). I found that if he is the father that some people think that he is Thomas Waterhouse, and I have found that he might have lived in Charleston South Carolina, and then moved in the late 1740s to North Carolina based on records I can find. I have also potentially found his immigration record that show he was brough to Virginia in 1723 as an indentured servant from the general London area. Does anyone have any ideas of how I can find more proof (or disproof) of these connections between John W Waters his potential brother Amos W Waters and their potential father Thomas Waters (potentially Waterhouse from England).
For reference for what I have done, I have looked on USGenWeb, familsearch.com, Ancestry.com, and MyHeritage.com.
Any and all help would be appreciated including websites I can look at, records, people I could contact, or anything else.
Answers
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@AnneLoForteWillson what do you think?
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I'm not @AnneLoForteWillson but I think she's traveling with her family so let me try to answer your questions.
Yes, you are on the right track with using tax and land records to establish a close relationship between people with the same surname. The 1755 record is especially important to show the tie with Thomas. In the 1789 tax assessment for Beautford County, there are nine Waters listed: John, David, Jesse, Isaac, Amos, Zachariah, John Jr., Jeremiah, and Windfield. All are accounted for in your tree except Jesse. Can you determine from age on a census what generation he would be--i.e. another brother or an uncle? In the 1783 land grant you have attached to John, his property adjoins Jesse's.
If you haven't already done so, I would look up all the land deeds for the family and for clues to family relationships, especially any land distributions after someone's death. Also pay attention to the property description and who the neighbors are. Try to make a timeline of people's comings and goings and where they lived. Look up "Waters" in the deed index that you can find by searching for Beaufort County, NC in the catalog and clicking on "Index to Real Estate Conveyances". I noticed also, that there are name variances in the records: Watters, Warters, and Water.
I'm assuming you have already looked for probate records, but if not they would be very helpful. Also court records, but it seems there's a big gap in the available years. The research Wiki might help you think of other possible documents that might have been created. Also check other counties, especially for probate if you don't know where someone died. There were many boundary changes in the years the family were in Beaufort County. Check it out with the link marked in yellow:
The important thing to remember is that when you are not able to find other sources, do your best to analyze what you have and draw conclusions with what evidence you have.
I with you well and if you have further questions we'll do our best to answer them!
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That is definitely helpful! Thank you! I hadn’t really noticed Jesse Waters, but that is definitely a research route I will be following. Thank so much for the help!
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