New Information on the Descendants of James and Eliza (Clouse) McDole

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At the beginning of the year I could not find any new leads to follow to unearth the McDowell/McDole's past. I had considered writing to the counties in South Carolina that had McDowells living there in 1800, but that seemed like making cold calls.

I think a better way to identify the origin of the John McDowell clan is through DNA. Since writing in January, my sister, Kathy, and I have heard from three descendants of the McDowells or McDoles of White County. I haven't gotten to know anyone well enough to ask for a DNA sample, but I am hopeful. I will pay for the Y-chromosome test for anyone descending from the family of John McDole or from his father.
Obviously, it cannot be anyone who is not of the McDole/McDowell bloodline. That would leave out anyone whose father, grandfather, et al., was adopted by a McDole/McDowell.The McDowell DNA project is a good one. They are rather secretive with their results, but I believe they have found a few groups of McDowells were in the USA by the 1800. It would be great if we could identify which of those groups we descend from.
And the News about the McDoles...
Our new information on a descendant of of James and Eliza McDole comes from the genealogist who call himself Wolfman. I wrote about Jim and Eliza in the post dated 9/4/11 about relatives of Andrew McDole in the 1850 and 1860 censuses. Jim and Eliza were born approximately 1827 and 1826, respectively, and had died by the 1870's, leaving several children. Wolfman descends from their daughter, Mary, who is listed as being 17 in the 1880 census. 


In the blog from last September 4th, I had found information from the online death record of Tom McDole who was Mary's brother, and was listed as an infant in the 1860 census.  Wolfman had the death record for Mary McDole, and it lists her father as Jim McDole and her mother as Eliza Clouse. Eliza's last name had not been listed on any records I had seen.

Mary McDole was married first to Samuel Rice February 15, 1881 in White County. Samuel's parents were William Rice Jr. and Mary Massa, who lived in White County. Samuel's grandparents were William Rice Sr. and Eleanor of the Unknown Last Name. I looked at the 1840 census of DeKalb County and found a William Rice living near Andrew, John and Jane McDole. The families were close enough for their grandchildren to have easily met.

Mary McDole's second husband was Nathaniel S. Massa who was born Sep. 23, 1837. He had been married first to Amanda Minerva Campbell. Amanda's gravestone says she died in 1890. From the 1900 census of Civil District 8, Putnam County, TN, Nathaniel and Mary had married in 1891 and had their daughter in 1895. Little Mary Massa was listed as being born in January 1895.

Nathaniel Massa died February 17, 1915. He is buried in Baxter, Putnam County. Mary passed away March 30, 1919 in DeKalb County, TN.

Why the Blog is Still Here

Hi,

I have not entered any new data just because of a lack of information.

I see that you, my readers, look at the blog about 2 times per week. I have never had anyone tell me why you are interested in the McDowells who lived in Tennessee. Someone in Germany looks at this blog, which interests me. A McD descendant stationed in Germany, perhaps?

Some readers use a query about George Hamaker and Nancy Ann McDowell to find this blog, but no one has ever left me a comment telling me how you connect to them.

Possibly someone could suggest a new area that I could research. You may have a great idea that never crossed my mind. What I have left to do now is locate the place John McDowell came from when he arrived in White County, Tennessee by October 1810. His daughter, Elizabeth, was born in South Carolina in 1795 or 1796. I am not sure her father was born there.

I have gone as far as I can figure out what to do with the information I have, so I have not written anything. I have the feeling that I could go county-by-county through North and South Carolina and still not find which family John McDowell came from when he left the Carolinas about 1810. I might have a better idea, though, where he came from.

A Love family researcher did that in Pennsylvania and found the county his ancestor was from. Then he generously gave me the files he had accumulated on his tour of Pa. It helped me with my Robert Love of Bedford County. Then I was able to share the files with others at a Love research conference.

I will leave this blog on blogspot so others can find the information, and possibly contribute. I have had carcinoid cancer since 2007. I should still be around for 5 to 10 more years. It would be wonderful if I can figure out how to pay for touring the Carolinas in the future, and I will let you know if I do that. Maybe someone can tell me which counties would be the best to search.

Thanks,
Sharon

ANDREW McDOWELLS in the Census of DeKalb County and White County.

First, I will list Andrew (ca 1800-1840s) McDowell/McDole with all of his neighbors during the 1840 census. Then I will list those who lived near the older Andrew (b. before 1775- d. before 1830) McDole in 1820.

The county lines had changed when DeKalb County was formed, so in 1840 Andrew is in DeKalb County in District 8. Later, when Putnam County formed in 1854, this part of District 8 may have gone into Putnam County.

DeKalb County 1840
James McDonel
Richard Harris
Isum Cole
William Rice
James Roberson
James Willis
William Jones
Pleasant Farler
Hannah Elrod
Nathan Vincent
Jane McDole
Britten Medley
Riley Medley
Hiram Childress
Nancy Anderson
Henry Waddle
John Roberson
Andrew McDole
John McDole
John Lafferty
Asa Thompson
William Curton
Gibson Billings
top of the next page:
Henry Frazure
David Stroud
F_veley Martin
Alex Martin
William Hames
John Heddreth ?
Charles Bevert
Josiah Husk
John Pinegar
Bartemus Pack

Now look at who lived by the older Andrew McDole in 1820 in White County, before DeKalb County had formed. I do not know if the older Andrew is a non-relative or an uncle or a grandfather or a cousin. But I'm just going to refer to him as "Uncle Andrew" for fun. He could be a brother of John, the father of Elizabeth and Andrew, so he could be their uncle. From the info in the census Uncle Andrew was already over 45 (born by 1775), with two women in the house 16-25 years old. There was also a little boy in the home. Andrew could be the father or grandfather of the boy.

Simon Odom

Nancy Stephens

William Weeks

Elizabeth Perrin

John Powers

Joseph Driver

Leonard Thompson

William Farmer

Micijah Rashbey

John Gamble

Alexander Martin

Elisha Howard

Thomas Gambrell

Andrew Steel

John Steel

John Hubbard

James Davis

John Dasse ??

Samuel H. Allen

George Allen

Abraham Izbell

Daniel French

William Sington

Archibald Warren

Levi Bozarth

Zachariah Laphifer (Lafever)

Hambleton Roves

Thomas Pierce

Nathan Pierce

John Robinson

James Elrod

Samuel Moore

John Barr

Andrew McDole

Ephram Guffy

Richard Dean

Moses Smith

Rebecca Taylor

Austin Coker

Randolph McDaniel

Rachel Beagley

On this 1820 census, James Elrod is listed three families before Andrew. James Elrod and Elizabeth McDowell were married and parents of several children. They are listed as having 3 boys and 2 little girls. James is listed as being over 45, and Elizabeth is between 26 and 44. She was born in 1795. I don't know how James and Elizabeth met, but it might have been when she came to see "Uncle Andrew". James and Elizabeth were married by 1813.

Sippy Mcdole married William Steele, the son of John Steele, in DeKalb county in 1848. Andrew McDowell b.1799 was probably her father.

Levi Bozarth was the father of Nathan Bozarth who married Hester Ann McDowell's sister, Nancy. Nathan and Nancy took in Hester Ann and her children in Missouri in 1850. Nathan Bozarth died in Missouri before 1860. Nancy's last husband was William Lawrence. Descendants of William Lawrence say her name was Nancy Allen. If that is true, Nancy could be a daughter of the George Allen or Samuel Allen listed in this census.

ANDREW McDowell/McDole's Neighbors in 1830 WHITE CO.

Reading down the same sheet of the 1830 census of White County, Tennessee with Andrew. It is page 63. As you can see, there is no correlation between the neighbors Andrew had in 1820 and his neighbors in 1830.
If anyone call tell me what part of the county these people lived in, it would help me.

Robert Vanbibber
John Suttle
Laban Foster
Robert Love
Josiah Williams
Josiah Noland
Jesse Adkins
Thompson N. Bartlett
John Polls
Wm Baker Jr.
Peter Baker
John Brown
Claibourne Hill
John Ramsey
Joseph England
John Wilhite
Benjamin Harris
James Barn
Thomas Frashur
James Bradley
Andrew McDowel
Gideon Lyda
Benjamin Hunter Sr.
Wm. Nanny
Isaac Dotson
Wm. M. Bryan Sr.

Andrew McDowell's Neighbors in 1820 White County

I have a notebook where I have listed everyone on the same page of the census with Andrew in 1820, 1830, and 1840. I wrote the names out in columns in hopes of finding that some of the names in the different columns would match up. However, no one matched up! It's like Andrew moved every year. Any hopes I had of finding Andrew with his grandparents, cousins, et al, are dashed.

So here is the list of Andrew and his neighbors in 1820. They are in White County, Tennessee. Maybe someone will be able to tell me where these people are living within the county.

Abraham Ditty
James Ellison
Wm. Austin
Wm Martin
Thomas Custus
Thomas Ellison
Hamblenton Ellison
Alesey Setts/Fetts
Wesley Green
Arthur Green
Phllip Tarbell
Cady Fetts/Setts
Andrew McDole
James Gentry
Seaborn Odom
Charles Goodman
Thomas Bashers
Richard Herren
Wm Herren
Barry Bashers
Wm Thomas
John Bashers
Middleton Bashers
Bazil Bashers
Samuel Perrigen/Terrigen
Levi Swell
Jeremiah Swell

There Really were TWO Andrew McDowells

I found there were two Andrew McDowells in the 1820 census. One of them is 45 and over and he lives very close to Levi Bozarth, George Allen, and a variety of other men in White County. Levi Bozarth and George Allen were oldtimers, born 20 years or more before 1800. (Actually, the older Andrew is listed as a McDole and the younger Andrew is a McDowell.) There are two young women in the house with this older Andrew and one boy. I don't know who the older Andrew is.

I like to think he is an uncle of Andrew's. Maybe even his grandfather. Andrew the younger was born about 1799, but his sister Elizabeth was born in 1795 in South Carolina; so an uncle could have been born about 1770 and a grandfather about 1740/1750. The darn thing about this census is that we have no clue if a man is 47, 62, or 80 years old. He's just 45 or older. I would love to find older Andrew in an earlier census, but the Tennessee census from 1810 has been lost. Then, last night, I found the 1800 census has been lost for most of Tennessee! This will be very tough, unless I can find some proof of where this family lived in SC or NC in 1800 or 1810. There are so many McDowells by 1800.

The younger Andrew is over 16 and under 25 in 1820. He is joined by a woman the same age and two young boys that fit well with the ages of their sons John and Smith. This week I decided to figure out if young Andrew remained in the same place in 1820, 1830, and 1840 by studying his neighbors. This answer is he did not remain in the same place. The neighbors are different every time, so I decided to double check by locating his "old" neighbors in the "new" census. Sure enough, they were far apart. For example, Seibert Odom; James and Joseph Allison; and Richard and William Herron had all been close to Andrew in 1820, but in 1830 they are listed on page 97 of the census, while Andrew is on page 63. So, it looks like Andrew moved.

I am curious to find out what part of White County Andrew was in during 1820 and 1830. It doesn't really matter until 1840, since Andrew and his son, John, died between 1840 and 1850. I would like to know where they were, so I can locate a couple of local cemeteries, and go leave some flowers to show my respects.

"The MacDowells" Book

I got my copy of The MacDowells by Fergus D.H. Macdowall and William L. MacDougall a few days ago. I have read half of it already

The content covers the history of the MacDowells as they move across Europe to Ireland and then to Scotland, but that is just the beginning. What I wanted to find out was how the brothers Alexander, John, William, and Ephraim McDowell spread across the US. The book chronicles the family's history very well. It includes several other McDowell immigrants also, but not in detail. No other group of McDowells seems to have recorded their their movements as well as the four brothers.

Right now I am reading the chapter McDowells of Virginia and Kentucky by Linda McDowell Swann. The next chapter is about the move from Virginia to the Carolinas by Leo B. McDowell. There are more chapters on McDowells in the Civil War and in the Revolution. There are also chapters on McDowells of note, and well known estates of the McDowells.

So far, I have not seen any references that point to my John McDowell who was born about 1765 t0 1770. (I figure he had to be too young to serve in the Revolutionary War, or he would have a land warrant in his own name, rather than one in Willis Anderson's name. I am still looking for Willis' enlistment or pension file.)

The book is only $19 and well worth it. I happened to get my from Lulu.com while they had a free shipping event. Put the book in your shopping cart on Lulu, and see if you get a discount offer in the next week.