Two Rankin Revolutionary War Pension Applications

This article is about men from two Rankin families: (1) Robert and Rebecca Rankin of Guilford, North Carolina and (2) David Rankin of Iredell, North Carolina. The families are a good Y-DNA match. David of Iredell could be a son of Robert and Rebecca, although that is unproved. They are undoubtedly at least cousins of some degree. Both belong to Lineage 1 of the Rankin DNA Project.[1]

It is easy to confuse some of the Rankin men who lived in North Carolina and Tennessee in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. That includes two men named Robert, both of whom fought in the Revolutionary War. They were both originally from North Carolina, but moved to Tennessee about 1825-1830. A commentor on our website made it clear that I had done a bad job of distinguishing them.

To clear up the confusion, lets revisit each man briefly to contrast their histories and pension applications. First, the man I call “Rev War Robert Rankin” (“Rev” stands for “Revolutionary,” not “Reverend”), then his fellow soldier “Mystery Robert Rankin.

Rev War Robert Rankin of Rowan/Guilford, NC and McNairy, TN (1749 – 1840)[2]

Rev War Robert was a son of George and Lydia Steele Rankin of Rowan/Guilford County, North Carolina.[3]He married twice: first, to Mary (“Polly”) Cusick, probably in the early 1780s, and then to Mary Moody in 1803.[4]He applied for a pension in McNairy Co., TN on May 20, 1833.[5] Among other things, he testified as follows in his application:

    • He was born in Guilford Co., NC on May 29, 1759. (At that time, it was Rowan County; Guilford wasn’t created until 1770.)
    • He was in the battle of Guilford Courthouse on March 15, 1781.
    • He lived in Guilford until 1830. Then he moved to McNairy County, Tennessee, where he was residing when he applied for a pension.

Rev War Robert died in McNairy County on Dec. 21, 1840.[6] He is buried in Bethel Springs Cemetery; there is an image of his military tombstone at findagrave.com.[7]

“Mystery Robert Rankin” of Gibson County, TN (1748 – after 1835)

I refer to the second Robert Rankin as “Mystery Robert” because his family of origin is not conclusively proved. The records of Gibson County, Tennessee, where he applied for a Revolutionary War pension, reveal little about him. He only appeared in the 1830 census, one deed, the pension application, and a few tax records in Gibson County.

One thing, however, is obvious: the Robert Rankin who applied for a Revolutionary War pension from McNairy County, Tennessee (“Rev War Robert”) was not the same man as Robert Rankin of Gibson County, Tennessee (“Mystery Robert”). The two pension applications leave no doubt about that.

Mystery Robert testified in open court on September 7, 1832 in support of his application for a pension. [8]He said the following, inter alia:[9]

    • He was 84 years old, and thus born about 1748.
    • He served in the North Carolina militia. This almost certainly means that he lived in North Carolina when he enlisted.
    • He was in the battle of Ramsour’s Mill, where, he testified, “I lost a brother, killed by the Tories.” That battle took place in June 1780 in Lincoln County, North Carolina.

Most of the patriot troops who fought at Ramsour’s Mill were from Iredell County, NC. The Philip Langenhour papers, owned by the Iredell Genealogical Society in Statesville, establish that one of the dead patriots was named Rankin. Other Iredell and Lincoln County records provide evidence that James Rankin died at Ramsour’s and that he was a son of David and Margaret Rankin of Iredell. David and Margaret also had a son named Robert, proved by David’s will. Robert appeared frequently in the Iredell County records through the early 1820s, then disappeared without leaving any probate or cemetery records. Given the real and personal property ownership among this Rankin family, it is unlikely that Robert died in Iredell. Instead, he probably moved on.

The odds are that he landed in Gibson County, Tennessee. The evidence strongly suggests that Robert, brother of James, son of David and Margaret Rankin of Iredell, moved to Gibson County, where he stated in his pension application that he had a brother who died at Ramsour’s Mill.

I hope you read the pension applications of these two men. The amount of detail these veterans recalled is amazing – usually in 1832 or 1833, a full half-century after their service. I shouldn’t be surprised, though. My husband is a Vietnam vet, and it is clear that a war experience leaves one with very strong memories.

See you on down the road. The Rankins and I are not yet finished with each other …

Robin

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  * 

[1] See identified Rankin lineages on the project website here.

[2] National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 25, No. 4, December 1937, Revolutionary War Pension Applications. The pension application of Robert Rankin of McNairy Co., TN gave his date of birth as May 29, 1759. His widow, in her pension application, said he died on Dec. 21, 1840. See also an online transcription of Rev War Robert’s pension application, with additional information from his widow’s application, prepared by Will Graves. http://revwarapps.org/w5664.pdf.

[3] Rowan County, NC Will Book A: 141, will of George Rankin dated May 1760, proved Oct 1760, naming minor sons John and Robert and wife Lydia. See also the autobiography of Rev War Robert’s brother Shaker Rev. John Rankin, “Auto-biography of John Rankin, Sen.” (South Union, Ky., 1845), transcribed in Harvey L. Eads, ed., History of the South Union Shaker Colony from 1804 to 1836 (South Union, Ky., 1870), Shaker Museum at South Union, Auburn, Kentucky. The autobiography identifies Lydia Steele as George Rankin’s wife and the mother of John Rankin. See an article about the autobiography in Chapter 1.

[4] Guilford, NC Will Book B: 435, will of William Cusick naming three daughters of Robert Rankin (Lydia, Isbel and Thankful) and testator’s deceased daughter Polly Cusick Rankin; National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Vol. 25, No. 4, December 1937, Revolutionary War Pension Applications, identifying Rev War Robert’s second wife as Mary Moody, married in Guilford County on Nov. 22, 1803.

[5] See Note 2.

[6] For more information on Rev War Robert and his children, see the article discussing him and three other men named Robert from Robert and Rebecca’s line in Chapter 1.

[7] The Findagrave.com site poster claims that Rev. War Robert married Mary (“Polly”) Cusick in 1781. I found no evidence for that or any other specific date.

[8] Mystery Robert’s Gibson Co. pension application states his age, establishing his date of birth as about 1748. He was on the Tennessee pension roll in 1835, and may have been the grantor in an 1837 deed and a taxable on the 1838 Gibson tax list.

[9] Here is another link to Mystery Robert’s pension application, transcribed by Will Graves..

 

Some Colonial North Carolina Rankin Lines: an Overview

It is extremely easy to conflate families having the same surname when they lived in the same area at roughly the same time. In North Carolina, all of the Rankin lines first appeared in the area that was originally Anson County. At its formation, Anson included an enormous territory. Its northern border was the Virginia, line until the formation of Rowan County in 1753. It had no western boundary until the formation of Mecklenburg in 1762. Its southern boundary was indeterminate until the survey of the SC line in 1764.

In short, the Rankin families of Rowan, Lincoln, Rutherford, Mecklenburg, Iredell, and Guilford Counties all lived in areas that were originally part of Anson. As if that weren’t bad enough, they all recycled the same male given names ad infinitum: Robert, David, John, Samuel, and William. With that in mind, here is some basic information about several of these colonial Rankin lines. The objective is to help you distinguish among those families when you run across them.

First, a caveat. If you have read my article about the Scots-Irish,[1]  you know that the earliest migrants into the colonies from Ulster arrived around 1700 and settled mostly in New England. Among those were evidently some Rankins. I know absolutely nothing about New England Rankins. What I do know with a modicum of confidence is something about colonial Rankin families of North Carolina. I mucked about the North Carolina records for more than a year, trying to identify the parents of my last conclusively proved Rankin ancestor.

Here are the North Carolina Rankin families briefly sketched in this article: (1) Joseph Rankin of Delaware (1704-1764), two of whose sons went to Guilford County; (2) Samuel and Eleanor (“Ellen”) Alexander Rankin of Lincoln (then Gaston) County; (3) Robert and Rebecca Rankin of Guilford County; (4) David and Margaret Rankin of Iredell County; and (5) Robert Rankin (wives Mary Withrow and Leah MNU)of Rutherford County. Here are brief descriptions of each family.

Joseph Rankin of Delaware (1704-1764) (“Joseph of Delaware”), wife Rebecca MNU. Their sons John and William moved to Rowan/Guilford County.

Joseph of Delaware had definitely arrived in the colonies by 1731, when he acquired a tract in New Castle County, Delaware. He is buried at Head of Christiana Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Newark, New Castle County, where his tombstone survives. Joseph’s wife Rebecca (MNU) and his son William were administrators of his estate. His place of birth is unproved, although a serious gambler would put a lot of money on Ulster. One local history claims he was born in Clyde, Scotland, which is also possible. He had at least seven children. Four sons are conclusively proved (Joseph Jr., Thomas, John, and William), two sons are suggested by circumstantial evidence (Robert and James), and a daughter Ann, d.s.n.p., is proved by the will of her brother, Joseph Jr.

Joseph’s proved sons Joseph Jr. and Thomas remained in New Castle, where both died. Thomas, a Lieutenant in the Delaware militia, is buried in the same grave as his father. The DAR placed a “patriot” marker on the grave, probably giving rise to a claim by one researcher that Joseph (who died in 1764) was a Revolutionary War soldier. If so, he was a ghostly presence.

I have been unable to track Robert or James beyond brief appearances in the New Castle records.

Joseph’s other two sons, John and William Rankin, migrated to that part of Rowan Co., NC which later became Guilford County. John (born 1736, New Castle County, died 1814, Guilford) went to North Carolina first, about 1765-68. His wife was Hannah Carson. William Rankin (born 1744, New Castle, died 1804, Guilford) went to NC about 1768-70, where he married Jennet/Jean Chambers.

John and William are buried at the old Buffalo Presbyterian Church in Greensboro. They each had many children and grandchildren, and their lines were meticulously researched by Reverend Samuel Meek Rankin. His research is documented in his book, The Rankin and Wharton Families and Their Genealogy, originally published in 1931 and now available online in its entirety at at the UNC library website. For the record, Rev. Rankin’s book is dead wrong about Joseph of Delaware being the father of Samuel Rankin, see below.

Two of Joseph of Delaware’s proved descendants have YDNA tested and are a 37-marker match with a genetic distance (“GD”) of 1, a close match. One of the men is a participant in the Rankin DNA Project. Joseph’s line is part of Lineage 1B of the Rankin project, see the chart  here. Joseph’s descendants also match the lines of Robert and Rebecca Rankin of Guilford County and David Rankin of Iredell County. More about them  below. Together, those two families and Joseph of Delaware’s line comprise Rankin DNA Project Lineage 1.

Samuel Rankin (1734 – 1816) of Lincoln Co., NC and wife Eleanor (“Ellen”) Alexander (1740 – 1802)

Thanks to a family legend and YDNA testing, I am reasonably confident that Samuel and Eleanor are my ancestors. I therefore tend to be a bit prissy with respect to misinformation about them. Some researchers claim Samuel and Eleanor were married in Pennsylvania, which is demonstrably incorrect. Eleanor appeared in North Carolina deed and court records with her Alexander family of origin as a child in 1753 and 1755. She married Samuel about 1759-60, almost certainly in North Carolina. Their eldest son, William, was born in North Carolina in January 1761.

Some researchers assert that Samuel was born in Paxtang, Pennsylvania, although there seems to be no evidence for that claim. I think it’s highly improbable. Samuel may be the same man as the Samuel Rankin who appeared on the 1753 tax list for Sadsbury Township in Chester County, Pennsylvania There were no other Rankins on that list.

Samuel and Eleanor lived on Dutchman’s Creek in the part of Lincoln County that later became Gaston County. His nickname, I was charmed to learn, was “Old One-Eyed Sam.” I don’t know how he lost an eye. He and Eleanor had seven sons (William, Samuel, Robert, David, Richard, Alexander, and James) and three daughters (Jane/Jean, Anne, and Eleanor). William, Alexander, James, Jane, and Anne stayed in Lincoln County, or nearby. Richard Rankin died in Mecklenburg County, just east of the Catawba River. You can see Richard’s headstone on Beatty’s Ford Road north of Charlotte in the left foreground in the banner photo on this website. Three of Samuel and Eleanor’s sons (Samuel Jr., Robert, and David) and a daughter (Eleanor Rankin Dickson) went to Rutherford County, Tennessee. David stayed in Murfreesboro, but his three siblings moved on to Shelby County, Illinois.

Two theories about the father/parents of Samuel Rankin (Sr.) still have proponents on the internet. Both of them have been conclusively disproved by Y-DNA testing, see the article at this link. I have found no evidence in colonial records regarding the identity of Samuel’s parents. He is probably the original Rankin immigrant in his line.

Robert and Rebecca Rankin of Guilford Co., NC (“R&R”)

This family arrived in the colonies in 1750 from Letterkenny Parish, Donegal County, Ireland, where their children were probably born. [1] They were in Pennsylvania for only a short while. Robert Sr. and his son George Rankin (or perhaps Robert Jr. and his brother George) were included on the 1753 tax list for West Nottingham Township in Chester County. R&R then came to Guilford County in 1755 as part of the Nottingham Colony, a group of Scots-Irish members of Nottingham Presbyterian Church, now located in Maryland (it was then in Pennsylvania). Here is a map of Chester County in 1712 showing the Nottingham lots, located in disputed territory that wound up in Maryland.

R&R had at least two proved sons who died in Guilford County: George (died in 1760), whose wife was Lydia Steele, and Robert (died in 1795), whose wife’s identity is a matter of controversy among Rankin researchers. Some Rankin family trees and at least one compiled Rankin history conflate the Robert who died in 1795 with his father Robert (husband of Rebecca), who died about 1770-73. The article at this link addresses that issue.

According to Rev. S. M. Rankin, R&R also had a son John who proved to be a research dead end for me, although the Guilford records suggest that is possible. R&R also had a daughter Ann, whose husband was the William Denny who died in Guilford in 1770. R&R probably had other children as well, including two daughters who might be deemed only likely: Margaret (Rankin) Braly or Brawley, widow of Thomas Braly/Brawley,  and Rebecca (Rankin) Boyd, widow of John Boyd. Evidence concerning those daughters is discussed in this article.

All of the above is conventional wisdom so far as I know, except for (1) the identity of the wife of R&R’s son Robert Rankin who died in 1795 (see discussion under David Rankin of Iredell, below), (2) Ann as a daughter of R&R, (3) the two likely daughters Margaret and Rebecca, and (4) the death date of George Rankin, son of R&R. Rev. Rankin said George died in 1761, but that was probably a typo. George actually died in 1760, when his will was both written and probated.

David Rankin of Iredell Co., NC (d. 1789), wife Margaret LNU (“Iredell David”)

David Rankin’s 1789 Iredell will and other records establish a wife Margaret and three children: Robert, James (not explicitly named in the will), and Elizabeth (ditto). Both James and Elizabeth are established by the will, even though it doesn’t provide their given names, and other records.

Iredell David’s son Robert may be and probably is the same man as the “Mystery Robert” who applied for a Revolutionary War Pension from Gibson County, Tennessee in 1832. I made that argument in this article, although my opinion should be deemed somewhat speculative. The identity of Robert’s wife is also a matter of controversy. Some researchers believe his wife was a Jean Denny (1755-1779) from Guilford County. Some Jean Denny definitely married some Robert Rankin in Guilford County in 1775. Other researchers believe that Jean Denny of Guilford married Robert, the son of R&R who died in Guilford in 1795. I disagree, because I believe that Robert (son of R&R) of Guilford was Jean Denny’s uncle. This question requires a fairly lengthy argument which I will save for another day.

In any event, Robert and his wife Jean had two sons: (1) Denny, who married Sarah McMinn, and (2) James, who married Elizabeth McMinn, Sarah’s sister. Both families remained in Iredell. Two of Denny’s sons moved to Gibson County, TN (home of “Mystery Robert”) and then to Shelby Co., TN, where they both died. Many of James and Elizabeth’s descendants remained in Iredell; some are still there today. They are nice folks.

Iredell David’s son James died in the Battle of Ramsour’s Mill in Lincoln Co. in June 1780. His wife was a Miss Alexander (probably Susannah), and they had four children who are proved by Lincoln County guardian records: (1) David Rankin, born by 1781, Lincoln; (2) Margaret (“Peggy”) Rankin who married Thomas Witherspoon in Lincoln, 6 Jul 1801; (3) William Rankin who married. Mary Lourance/Lawrence, 17 Jan 1810; and (4) Jane/Jean Rankin m. William Crays.

Iredell deed records suggest that Iredell David’s daughter was probably  Elizabeth, wife of Samuel McCrary (or McCreary).

For a lengthy chart (including supporting records) on the line of David of Iredell, see the article at this link.

Robert Rankin of Rutherford County, NC (b. 1748-49, d. 1816, Caldwell County, KY), m#1 Mary Withrow, m#2 Leah LNU (“Rutherford Robert”)

Francis Gill did the definitive research on Rutherford Robert and published a book about him and others. I cannot find a copy of his book available for either purchase or loan, or I would buy it.

Rutherford Robert married Mary Withrow in Tryon County, North Carolina in 1769. He owned land on Second Broad River in what ultimately became Rutherford County. He and his future Withrow in-laws may have been listed on the tax list for Aston Township, Chester Co., PA in 1768, before going to NC. Rutherford Robert and Mary Withrow divorced, and he married as his second wife Leah LNU. They wound up in Caldwell County, Kentucky, where Robert applied for tax relief in a document establishing his birth year as 1748-49. He left a will naming his children Margaret, James, John, Rachel and David (children of Mary Withrow) and Elizabeth, Jennet, Jesse and Elias (children of his second wife Leah).  The children evidently scattered to the four winds. At least one of them, Jesse, wound up in Gibson County, Tennessee, see this article about him.

Whew! This article became longer than I expected. Hope this helps a bit in keeping these families straight. One final note: a couple of people who have read my articles say they never look at the footnotes, which just make them too long. I have started omitting them, for the most part. However, if anyone wants a citation to a source for anything in this or any other article, please let me know and I will be happy to provide it.

See you on down the road.

Robin

[1] See the article at https://digupdeadrelatives.com/2018/12/28/reprise-scots-irish-anyway/

[1] John Rankin, a Shaker preacher and grandson of R&R, hand-wrote his autobiography at age 88. These details about the migration of R&R are from that autobiography. See “Auto-biography of John Rankin, Sen.” (South Union, Ky., 1845), transcribed in Harvey L. Eads, ed., History of the South Union Shaker Colony from 1804 to 1836 (South Union, Ky., 1870), Shaker Museum at South Union, Auburn, Kentucky (SMSU), 29-30. For a typescript of Eads’s history, see Shaker Record A at the Special Collections Library, Western Kentucky University, Bowling Green, Kentucky (WKU). The above citation can be found at this link.

Line of Robert & Rebecca Rankin of Guilford Co., NC

THIS ARTICLE IS OUTDATED AND NEEDS TO BE REVISED. MORE YDNA RESULTS ARE IN.

This is a descendant chart for yet another line of Rankins: Robert and Rebecca Rankin of Guilford Co., NC. I cannot say anything positive about Y-DNA results concerning this line … yet. Y-DNA test results for one of their descendants should be available by the end of March 2017. More then. Meanwhile, I hope this chart has something of value for someone with a Rankin ancestor in North Carolina in the last half of the 18th century.

1 Robert Rankin and wife Rebecca (last name unknown) of Guilford County emigrated from Letterkenny Parish, Donegal County, Ireland to Pennsylvania about 1750.[1] Robert was part of the Nottingham Company, which acquired Granville grants in that part of North Carolina that became Guilford County. Robert and his son George were listed in the 1753 West Nottingham Township tax list for Chester County, PA.[2] Robert and Rebecca and some of their children migrated to NC in 1755. Because the family used the same men’s given names repeatedly – particularly Robert, George and John – I have adopted some shorthand designations or nicknames to distinguish among them. Here are the main ones:

  • Robert Rankin with wife Rebecca: “R&R” or “Robert Sr.’”
  • R&R’s son Robert: “Robert d. 1795.”
  • George d. 1851” was the only proved son of Robert d. 1795, although there may have been others. George d. 1851 married Nancy Gillespie and went to McNairy Co., TN. A gift deed proves that they had a son named Robert:
  • “Robert (1792? – 1845?).” As the question marks indicate, it is not certain where this Robert went and my opinion is speculative.
  • R&R’s son George who married Lydia Steele: “George d. 1760.” Proved sons of George d. 1760 and Lydia:
  • Shaker Rev. John, born in Guilford in 1757, was an ordained Presbyterian minister who became a “Shaker” and died in Logan Co., Kentucky.
  • Rev War Robert, born in Guilford in 1759, was a Revolutionary War veteran who moved to McNairy Co., TN and died there in 1840.

Robert Sr. left no will, despite bad information to the contrary in Gregg Moore’s compiled Rankin history. Moore claims that Robert Sr. died testate in 1795.[3] That is demonstrably incorrect, see my article on the subject here.

According to Rev. S. M. Rankin, Robert Sr. died in Guilford County about 1770.[4] Rev. Rankin also asserted in another part of his book that Robert died before the church started keeping minutes, which was in 1773. Rev. Rankin says that Robert and Rebecca’s children were George, Robert, Rebecca, John and others. I would add a daughter Ann Rankin Denny, who is established by strong circumstantial evidence. I would discount Rebecca because I didn’t find any evidence of her, although a daughter by that name would obviously be likely.

There are several family trees on Ancestry.com that identify R&R as the parents of both (1) David Rankin who died in Iredell Co., NC in 1789 and (2) Samuel Rankin (1734 – 1816) who married Eleanor (“Ellen”) Alexander Rankin and lived in Lincoln Co., NC. So far, I have not found anyone who cites any evidence for that information except for other Ancestry family trees. I have found no evidence in county or other records that either David or Samuel was a son of R&R. Two descendants of David of Iredell have tested, and neither matches Samuel Rankin. At minimum, this proves that David of Iredell and Samuel of Lincoln cannot possibly have been brothers.

R&R’s children appear in this chart with a “2” preceding their names. R&R’s grandchildren are numbered “3,” their great-grandchildren are “4,” and so on, in standard outline genealogy format, except that I have included more information than is usual in the outline format. Citations are contained in footnotes.

2 John Rankin was a son of R&R, according to Rev. Rankin. There was a John Rankin in some early Rowan/Guilford records involving other people in the line of R&R. That John was too old to be Shaker Rev. John, born in 1757, the elder son of George d. 1760 and Lydia Steele Rankin.[5] Based on such records, Rev. Rankin is probably right about R&R having a son John. I found no evidence of land ownership or identities of any of John’s children except in Rev. Rankin’s book, which says that John had a son John. I have been unable positively to identify this line after Guilford County.

3 John Rankin

2 Rebecca Rankin was a daughter of R&R according to Rev. Rankin. She reportedly married James Denny. I found no evidence of a James and Rebecca Denny in Guilford, and I haven’t tried to find them elsewhere.

2 Ann Rankin married William Denny. R&R gifted land to their son George Rankin and to William Denny on subsequent days in April 1755. Both transactions were for five shillings, the traditional gift deed price.[6] Rev. Rankin’s book asserts that Robert & Rebecca “sold” William Denny his land, although the price clearly marks it as a gift. That virtually guarantees that William Denny was a son-in-law. William and Ann Rankin Denny’s children are proved by his 1766 will, which names his wife Ann and the following children:[7]

3 James Denny, of age by 1766

3 William Denny, of age by 1766

3 Hannah Denny, unmarried in 1766

3 Agnes Denny, unmarried in 1766

3 Jane Denny, unmarried in 1766. Many Rankin researchers believe this is the Jean Denny who married, in 1775, Robert d. 1795 — a son of R&R. However, R&R’s son Robert would have been Jane/Jean Denny’s uncle, if I am correct that Ann and Robert were siblings. It is definitely correct that some Jane/Jean Denny married some Robert Rankin in Guilford County in 1775. Who was the Robert in question? Not (1) Robert Sr. (who died by 1773 and was married to Rebecca LNU), (2) probably not Robert d. 1795, who was most likely Jane Denny’s uncle, and (3) not George and Lydia’s son Rev. War Robert, who was only 16 in 1775. Perhaps there was more than one Jane/Jean Denny in Guilford, which is quite possible. Or perhaps Jane/Jean Denny’s husband was the Robert Rankin of Iredell Co., son of David, who had a son named Denny Rankin. I suspect that is correct.

2 Robert RankinRobert d. 1795 — left a will proving five children. He may have had others, of course. He had three daughters and one son still living when he wrote his will.[8] The will identified by name a son George (George d. 1851), deceased daughter Mary Rankin Wilson’s three sons, and a daughter Isobel. Further, the will gave a 1/5th share of his estate to “each of my daughters now living,” implying two more living daughters in addition to Isabel. Thus, the will left 1/5th of the estate each to (1) George d. 1851, (2) the Wilson grandchildren (divided among the three of them), (3) Isobel, (4) an unnamed daughter, and (5) another unnamed daughter. One of the two unnamed daughters was the Rankin woman who married yet another William Denny, because the second William Denny died in 1825 and named his brother-in-law (identified as such) George d. 1851 as executor of his will.[9]

Rev. S. M. Rankin identified John, Robert and William Rankin as “sons of Robert [Robert d. 1795] and grandsons of Robert Sr.,” citing Caruther’s “Life of Caldwell” — but inexplicably omitting George d. 1851, proved in his father’s will. Elsewhere in the book, Rev. Rankin identifies John, Robert and William Rankin as sons of Rev. War Robert (making those three men great-grandsons of Robert Sr.). Rev. Rankin probably confused his Roberts, a very easy mistake to make in Guilford, and the latter is most likely correct. I am not including those three here as sons of Robert d. 1795, because I found no evidence for them in the Guilford records. Instead, this chart includes only the children proved by the will of Robert d. 1795: George d. 1851, Mary Rankin Wilson, Isabel, and two unnamed daughters, one of whom was the wife of William Denny who died in 1825.

3 George Rankin (George d. 1851) was born in Guilford Co., NC, 22 Mar 1767 and died in McNairy Co., TN, 15 Sep 1851.[10] George d. 1851 married Nancy Gillespie on 28 Jan 1791 in Guilford.[11] He sold 443 acres on the south side of Buffalo Creek in Guilford on 22 Aug 1832, and then moved to McNairy.[12] He and his wife Nancy (1773 – 30 Jul 1843) are buried at Bethel Springs Cemetery in McNairy. The census records for George in Guilford and McNairy support the possibility of 11 possible, but I haven’t been able to prove that many. This chart shows only seven children, and I’m not entirely sure about a couple of those.

4 Some Robert Rankin was a son of George’s, which is proved by a gift deed.[13] George d. 1851’s son was (if I have the right man) born in 1792 and died 1845 – the man whom I call Robert (1792? – 1845?).[14] It is possible — ** and this is speculative ** — that George d. 1851 and Nancy’s proved son Robert was the same man as the Robert Rankin who married Isabel Rankin, daughter of Rev. War Robert and Mary (“Polly”) Cusick Rankin. Isabel was b. 1791 – d. 1861, per her tombstone; she and her husband Robert Rankin would have been great-grandchildren of R&R and therefore second cousins. Their pedigrees, in short (if my speculation is correct: (1) Isabel’s pedigree would be R&R > George d. 1760 & Lydia > Rev. War Robert & Polly Cusick > Isabel Rankin, while (2) her husband’s would be R&R > Robert d. 1795 > George d. 1851 m. Nancy Gillespie > Robert (1792? – 1845?). Some Robert and Isabel definitely married in Guilford in December 1812.[15] See their line under Isabel. I have put their line under Isabel because her identity as a daughter of Rev. War Robert and Mary Cusick is reasonably certain, while the identity of her spouse Robert is speculative.

4 Rebecca Rankin, who was almost certainly the Rebecca who m. Jedediah Rankin in 1811. He was a son of Rev. War Robert and Polly Cusick. They went to Perry Co., AR, see their line under Jedediah.

4 Margaret (Peggy) Rankin, b. 1796, Guilford, d. 1875, Lincoln Co., TN, m. Joseph H Wallace, Guilford, 6 Jan 1818.

4 Daniel G. Rankin? m. Elizabeth Hanner 1823.

4 Thankful Rankin Wharton? 1803-1885.

4 David Caldwell Rankin, b. 1808, Guilford Co., NC, married #1 Mary M. C. F. _______ (d. 1847, McNairy Co., TN), married #2 Nancy Wilson. David was almost certainly still in his parents’ household in the 1830 Guilford Co., NC census. He was listed in his own household in the 1840 and 1850 census for McNairy Co., TN, with his father George enumerated in his household.

5 William Rankin, b. abt 1834

5 Nancy Rankin, b. abt 1838

5 George Washington Rankin, b. abt 1840

5 Angelina Rankin, b. abt 1842, may have married A. J. Minton, 23 Jun 1863, McNairy

5 Marion Rankin, b. abt 1847

4 John D. Rankin, b. Guilford 1816-17, d. McNairy 1870, m. Mary (“Polly”) Kerby (1820-1883). Buried Mt. Carmel Cemetery, Finger, McNairy Co., TN.[16]

5 Francis Marion Rankin, b. 1836, d. 25 Jun 1890, buried Mt. Carmel Cemetery, Finger, McNairy Co. Wife Louisa Elizabeth James, 19 Aug 1834 – 25 Oct 1926.[17]

6 Julia Ann Rankin, 1858 – 1906.

6 Robert W. Rankin, b. 12 Mar 1860 TN, d. 15 Nov 1919. Wife Margaret J. ______ (1868-1958).[18]

7 Perry P. Rankin, b. Feb 1889, d. _____

7 Letta V. Rankin, b. abt. 1893

7 Robert L. Rankin, b. Mar 1895

7 Franklin Rankin, b. 13 Sep 1899, d. 24 Apr 1979. Per his TN death certificate, Franklin was a son of R. W. Rankin & Margaret J. Rankin. Franklin’s wife was Winnie Essie Patterson. Per marriage certificate, they were m. 18 Dec 1921 in Chester Co., TN. Both are buried in the Cave Springs Cemetery, Henderson, Chester Co., TN. Winnie’s obituary (she died November 28, 2001) identified her husband as Frank, d. 1979, and identifies her children as follows …

8 Herman Rankin, predeceased his mother. Death certificate says he was b. 20 Jul 1923, d. 9 Aug 1998, son of Frank Rankin and Winnie Essie Patterson, buried Shelby Co., TN.

8 Daughter Bernice Rankin McDaniel of Memphis.

8 Son Glenn Rankin of Selmer, TN.

8 Son Aaron Rankin of Gallatin, TN.

6 William Sherman Rankin, 1866 – 1937

6 Mary F. Rankin, 1868 – 1937, m. Mr. Maness

6 F. M. Rankin, Jr., 1871 – 1894

6 Louisa Rankin, 1873 – 1949

6 John B. Rankin, b. 1877, d. ____

5 Nancy Rankin, b. 1838-39, d. 1923?

5 Sarah E. Rankin, b. 1842, d. 1915?

5 Lucy E. Rankin, 1843-44, d. ____

5 Mary J. Rankin, b. 1845, d. 1934?

5 Robert Neal Rankin, b. 1847, d. 1922?

5 Thankful Caroline Rankin, b. 1850, d. ?

5 Margaret S. Rankin, b. 1852, d. 1927?

5 Julia A. Rankin, b. 1854, d. ?

5 Elizabeth E. Rankin, b. 1857, d. 1943?

5 George D. Rankin, b. 1860, d. ? May have gone to Oklahoma.

5 Hugh Kerby Rankin, b. 1865, d. 1946? Ditto. McNairy estate records mentions Elizabeth, George and Hugh Rankin, heirs and minors, by their guardian ad litem. So the estate was administered prior to 1876.

3 Mary Rankin m. Andrew Wilson, d. by 1795. Some of these Wilsons went to McNairy Co., TN, but I have not attempted to track them or sort them out.

4 William Rankin Wilson, b. 1787, Guilford Co., NC, d. 1855, reportedly m. Lydia Rankin — the Lydia who was a daughter of Rev. War Robert and Polly Cusick. I haven’t seen proof.

4 Andrew Wilson

4 Maxwell Wilson

3 Isobel Rankin

3 Daughter Rankin, possibly Rebecca? Not identified by name in her father’s 1795 will, but see will of William Denny dated 12 Dec 1824 proved Feb 1825. Will mentions brother-in-law George Rankin. See also Guilford DB 8: 230, 1803 deed witnessed by William Denny and Rebeckah Denny.

4 Rebeckah Denny m. Mr. Black

4 Pamela Denny m. Mr. Wilson

4 Nancy Denny

4 Isabel Denny

4 James Denny

4 William Denny

4 Allen Denny

3 Unnamed daughter Rankin.

2 George Rankin, b. 1729, Letterkenny Parish, County Donegal, Ireland. Emigrated to Pennsylvania about 1750 with father Robert.[19] Died 1760, Guilford Co., NC, m. Lydia Steele, from County Derry. George’s will, dated and proved 1760, names their sons John (“Rev. Shaker John”) and Robert (“Rev War Robert”).

3 Rev. Shaker John Rankin, b. 27 Nov 1757, Guilford Co., NC, d. 1850, Logan Co., KY. Married Rebeccah Rankin, 5 Dec 1786, a daughter of John Rankin and Hannah Carson (per Old Buffalo Church and Rev. John’s autobiography). He was ordained by Rev. Caldwell. He left NC in October 1796 and arrived in Gallatin, Sumner Co., TN, in Nov. 1796. In Dec. 1798, he moved to Gasper River, Logan Co., KY.

See http://digitalcommons.wku.edu.theses/1243. My listing of his children is entirely from the census records in Logan Co., KY.

4 George Rankin, 1787-1880. If birth date correct, he was b. NC.

 4 Hannah Rankin, 1789-1826. Ditto.

4 Robert Rankin, date unknown, reportedly second eldest son, if so … b. 1790.

4 James Rankin, 1791-1884

4 Solomon Rankin, 1796-1882

4 John N. Rankin, 1798-1870

4 Jesse Rankin, 1799-1882.

4 William Rankin, 1803-1880

3 Robert Rankin (“Rev War Robert”), b. 1759 in Guilford (per pension application), m. #1 Polly Cusick (date unknown), m. #2 Mary Moody in 1803, both marriages in Guilford. Polly Cusick evidently died about 1801. Robert and Mary Moody moved from Guilford to McNairy, TN about 1832. He died there in 1840.[20] She died after 1850, when she appeared in the census in a son’s household.

Children of Rev War Robert and Polly Cusick. Three daughters (Lydia, Isabel and Thankful) are proved by the Guilford Co. 1816 will of their grandfather, William Cusick, who identified his granddaughters as children of Robert Rankin and his deceased daughter Polly. [21]

4 Lydia Rankin, b. before 1803. Reportedly married her cousin William Rankin Wilson (a grandson of Robert Rankin d. 1795 in Guilford) and d. 1862 in Arkansas. I haven’t found proof. I (blush) haven’t seriously looked yet.

4 Isbel/Isabel Rankin, b. 1791, m. Robert Rankin 9 Dec 1812 in Guilford. I ** speculate ** he was her second cousin Robert, a proved son of George (1767-1851) and Nancy Gillespie Rankin.  Isabel and her husband Robert went to Arkansas, d. Pope Co. They are buried in the Old Kinslow Cemetery (about 1 mile west of Appleton, AR, now abandoned). Tombstones are inscribed “Robert Rankin d. 1845 aged 53” (which puts his birth year at 1792), “Isabelle Rankin died 1861 aged 70 years” (so born abt 1791), and “George W. Rankin died 1843 aged 22 yrs. 9 mo.” George was their son.

5 Margaret D. Rankin, 1813 –

5 Susan Rankin, 1814 –

5 George W. Rankin, 1821 – 1843

5 Malinda Rankin, 1823-1880, or possibly Salenda

5 Isabell Jane Rankin, b. 1825–26, d. 1899, married Joseph Poe

5 Robert M. Rankin, 1827 – 1894

5 Anthony Lambert Rankin, 1830-1892, m. Patience Ann Jones

6 Evert Rankin

7 Alta Rankin m. Ed Wilson

5 William Rankin?

5 Jasper N. Rankin, 1832-1862

5 Julia Ann Rankin

5 Carolina Rankin

5 Reuben Burr Rankin, b. 4 May 1834, d. 17 Aug 1909, Ozark, Franklin Co., AR. Married Nancy Elizabeth Nash, b. 1836, on 8 Dec 1853, marriage recorded in the minutes of the Glass Village Presby Congregation in Appleton, AR.[22]

6 John James Rankin, b. AR 8 Oct 1854, d. 22 Jan 1931, Perryville, Perry Co., AR. Married Margaret Ann Lemley, 7 Apr 1862 – 20 Oct 1948, Perryville.

7 Mollie Rankin, d. bef. 1961

7 Lee Lester Rankin m. May Hamilton, d. bef. 1961

8 Ruby Rankin

8 Lowell Rankin

7 Sibley Arthur Rankin, b. 1882, Appleton, AR, m. #1 Mayme Bunn, m. #2 Mary Estella Rankin, Morrilton, AR.

8 L. D. Rankin, Nachez, MS m. ????

9 Michael Rankin, b. abt. 1939, wife Carolyn, lived in Natchez on Rankin St.

9 John Patrick Rankin, b. abt 1943, Ole Miss, geological engineering

9 Lee Dennis Rankin, b. abt 1946.

7 Reuben Anderson Rankin, m. #1 Mae Bowie, m#2 Dollie Gentry, d. bef. 1961

7 Rulen? Nulen? Ephriam Rankin m. LaVada McGehee

8 John Edward Rankin of Tulsa, OK as of 1961

7 Jesse Parke Rankin m. Pearl Thedford, d. bef. 1961

8 Cleburne Rankin, lived in Perryville, AR as of 1961

8 Ida Rae Rankin m. Mr. Henry, lived in Little Rock as of 1961

7 Maudie Ethel Rankin, m. R. E. Richey, lived in Tulsa as of 1961

7 Odie Ella Rankin, m. #1 Ed Bland, m. #2 Jake Tulp, lived Little Rock

7 John Leland Rankin m. Maudie Luella Rankin, twin sister of the Mary Estella who m. Sibley Arthur Rankin, lived in Cutler, CA

7 Cecil Farrar Rankin, Perryville, AR, never married.

6 Mary M. Rankin, 1856-1871

6 Rosetta A. Rankin, 1857-1947, “Zett,” married Henry Templeton

6 Nancy Isobel Rankin, 1858-1947, m. Anderson Bartlett

6 Sarah Fina? Fine? Rankin, 1859-1934, m. Henry Bartlett

6 Laura Alice Rankin, 1865-1948

6 George Alver Rankin, 1868 – 1938, b. Mulberry AR, d. Lone Elm, Franklin, AR, m. Ollie Delana Francis, b. 1869

7 William Edgar Rankin, 1890-1946

7 Thomas Fay Rankin, 1892-1920

7 Phoebe Lois Rankin, 1895-1970

7 Jasper Francis Rankin, 1897-1988

7 George Argus Rankin, 1900-1993 m. Grace L.

7 Rollie Burr Rankin, b. 1905, AR, d. 1995, San Pablo, Contra Costa, CA, m. Hazel Melissa Mackey, 1904-1995. Kit #207504 in the Rankin DNA project.

4 Thankful Rankin, b. before 1803, m. Hance McCain in Guilford, 4 Feb 1818.

4 John Rankin, b. 17 Feb 1797 d. 24 Mar 1846, buried Bethel Springs Cem., McNairy Co., TN.

4 Jedediah Rankin is proved as a son of Rev. War Robert by an 1815 Guilford gift deed.[23] Born abt 1783-84, Guilford Co., NC, d. 1862. Appeared in the Guilford census in 1820.[24] Went to Perry Co., AR about 1832, says one source; another says he was there by 1830. Appears in the Perry Co. census in 1850 and 1860 in the household of his son George M. Rankin.[25] Jedediah was married twice. He married wife #1, Rebecca Rankin, 4 Dec 1811, Guilford Co., NC, Robert Rankin Jr., bondsman. [Note: Robert JUNIOR in 1811 was Robert, a proved son of George and Nancy Gillespie. Rebecca was almost certainly also a daughter of George and Nancy.] Rebecca died in 1827. Jedediah m. wife #2 was Elizabeth _______.

5 Catherine Rankin, b. 1812, married Mr. Kidd, to Texas.

5 Polly Ann Rankin, m. Capt. Wilson of Arkansas, she died in 1863.

5 George M. Rankin, b. abt 1822, Guilford Co., NC, m. Elizabeth Jane Alexander, 28 Dec 1841. See 1880 census.[26] Died 1896, Perry Co., AR. They had 14 children, per Goodspeed’s.

6 Robert N. Rankin, b. AR 10 Jun 1844, d. Corinth, MS, 1863

6 George W. Rankin, b. AR 15 Sep 1846, lived in Perryville

6 Rebecca Rankin, b. 1848, d. infant

6 William H. C. (or H. R.,?) Rankin, b. AR 4 Mar 1850, Perryville merchant, m. Mollie E. Swaggerty 7 Feb 1875 (she was b. GA)

6 Polly Ann Rankin, b. Apr 1851, d. 1863

6 Lucinda C. Rankin, b. AR abt 1854, might be the Lucinda Catherine b. Apr 1853, m. John Bland.

6 John J. Rankin, b. AR Apr 1855, d. Dec 1880

6 Isbel or Isabella C. Rankin, b. AR 1857, d. Jan 1877

6 Henry M. Rankin, b. AR 1859

6 Lousetta Rankin, b. AR 25 Dec 1861, m. George Bland, to California

6 Edmund (“Eddie”) Rankin, b. AR 26 Dec 1864, d. TX 1886

6 Elizabeth (“Betsey”) J. Rankin, b. AR Mar 1867, m. E. B. Rorer of Perry Co.

6 Monroe Madison Rankin, b. 3 Mar 1869, AR. See 1910, 1920 and 1930 census. Married Maggie Edwards 14 Jul 1895, Moab, Perry Co., AR. He was 26, she was 16. A SSI claim identifies spouse as Margaret M. Edwards, a child as Faye Edith Filkins. Children from census:

7 Lyle Rankin, b. abt 1898

7 Fay Rankin, b. abt 1905, married Mr. Filkins.

7 Roy Rankin, b. abt 1907-08 (seems to be “Ray” in the 1930 census)

7 Ruben N. Rankin, b. 1909. See 1930 census, living with parents Madison & Maggie. Married Eunice Bell Lane, 13 Jan 1929, Saline Co. AR. They have one child in that census: Ruben C. Rankin.

8 Reubin Cecil Rankin, 1930-1992. Tombstone in Smith-Rosemont Cemetery, Saline, Benton Co., AR. Wife Frances Louise Samples. SS death index mentions Reuben N. Rankin and Eunice J. Lane, his parents.

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=RAN&GSpartial=1&GSbyrel=all&GSst=4&GScntry=4&GSsr=1601&GRid=44304504&

 7 Sybil Rankin, b. abt 1915

4 George Rankin, b. Guilford Co., NC (reportedly 1782), d. 1828, went to Pulaski Co., AR. Married Ann McMurray, 22 Nov 1803. See Pulaski County census, 1840 … Ann Rankin, 0001-00000001. She is 50<60, b. 1780-1790, fits with likely birthdate of George, son of Rev War Robert and Polly Cusick. She is listed on the same page as Wiliam D. Rankin in the 1840 census, suggesting he is her son. See also 1830 tax list, Pulaski Co., Ann Rankin (also listed 1836, 1839). Jedediah Rankin is listed on the 1830 tax list along with Robert Rankin. In the 1835 tax list, there is Robert Rankin, William Rankin (1835 and 36) and William D. Rankin (1839).

5 Probable son: John J. Rankin, b. abt 1822. In the 1850 census, Pulaski Co., AR, he is listed in the dwelling next to Ann Rankin, probably his mother.[27]

6 Dores, probably Doris, Rankin, b. AR abt 1845

6 Frances Rankin, b. AR abt. 1846

6 George Rankin, b. AR abt. 1849-50.

5 William D. Rankin, b. 1800-1810, AR. Married Minerva Payne, 12 Jul 1832, Pulaski Co., AR. Land grant, 1838, 160A, Section 29, T3-N, R15-W. 1840 census suggests two sons born 1835-40, one son born 1833-1840, plus two daughters. [28] His wife is 20 < 30 in 1840, born 1810-1820.[29] Children from 1850 census.[30]

6 Thomas Rankin, b. AR abt 1831

6 Julia Ann Rankin, b. AR abt 1834

6 James W. Rankin, b. AR abt 1836, married Sarah LNU.[31]

 7 William D. Rankin, b. AR 1859-60

7 Franklin Rankin, b. AR abt 1861

7 Texas? Rankin, female, b AR abt 1862

7 Elmira Rankin, b. AR abt 1867

7 Julia Rankin, b. AR abt 1869

6 Sarah Rankin, b. AR abt 1841

6 William? Henry Rankin, b. abt 1843 per 1850 census, abt. 1842 per 1870 census. Rankin descendant says he was b. 1839, d. 1906.[32]

 7 George Emory Rankin, 1866-1931, m. Sophronia Evelena Coley, 29 Mar 1894, Faulkner Co., AR. She died 1926 in Ouachita Parish, LA. Obit said her husband was “of Caldwell Parish.”[33]

8 Chester Clyde Rankin of Ceres, CA, b. 27 Dec 1894, Conway Co., AR per draft registration card, d. 11 Jul 1977, Ceres, CA.

8 William Henry Rankin, b. 1898, Howard Co., AR, d. 1981, Columbia, Caldwell Par., LA.

8 Rollie R. Rankin, b. 1902, Howard Co., AR, d. 1984, Caldwell Parish, LA

8 Alberta Rankin, b. abt 1905, Howard Co., AR

8 Bertie L. Rankin, b. abt 1907, Howard Co., AR

8 Laura Dee Rankin, b. abt 1909, Howard Co., AR

8 Harry B. Rankin, b. abt 1909, Howard Co., AR

8 Fred D. Rankin, b. 10 Feb 1913, Howard Co., AR, d. 11 Feb 1975, Winnsboro, Franklin Parish, LA. His obituary names his surviving sons and a couple of his brothers.

9 George E. Rankin of Bossier City.

9 Fred Allen Rankin, b. 1944, lives in Benton, Bossier Parish, LA.

6 Enneline? Rankin, b. AR abt 1845

6 George Rankin, b. AR abt 1847

5 Robert Rankin, b. 1805, NC, d. 1863, Perry Co., AR, m. Frances Hogan.[34] Buried in Antioch Cemetery, Perryville, AR. Double headstone with Frances. His tombstone says “Killed by Jayhawkers.” http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Rankin&GSiman=1&GScid=52846&GRid=28734817&

6 W. G. Rankin, b. 2 Mar 1830, m. #1 Parmelia Ellsberry Mar 1852, two subsequent wives.

6 Martha A. Rankin, b. abt 1832, AR

6 Edmund Hogan Rankin, 5th child of 12, b. 31 Mar 1837 – d. 25 Jun 1917, m. #1 Nancy Jane Spears Jan 1863 (she d. 1883); m #2 Sarah Elizabeth Camp. Buried Antioch Cemetery, Perryville, Perry Co., AR.[35]

7 George W. Rankin, b. abt 1863, probably d. abt. 1881, age 18, buried Antioch Cem.

7 John A. J. Rankin, b. abt. 1864

7 Henry C. Rankin, b. abt. 1865

7 Elizabeth J. Rankin, b. abt. 1869

7 Charles C. Rankin, b. 11 Feb 1872, d. 15 Apr. 1901, buried Antioch Cemetery.

7 Edmond Filmore Rankin, b. 25 Jun 1873, d. 10 Aug 1947, wife Nancy Annie Rankin, 1872 – 1944. Buried Antioch Cemetery, Perryville.

7 Alice L. Rankin, b. abt 1874

7 Julie E. Rankin, b. abt 1878

7 William Alexander Rankin, b. 21 Sept. 1879, d. 1965, m. Zora Mae _____.[36] See also WWII Draft Registration card giving birth date, Zora’s name, and middle name.

8 Otto Harris Rankin, b. 5 May 1904, Perry Co., AR, d. 5 Dec 1977, AR. Married Novie Brown, Morrilton, Conway Co., AR, 14 Oct 1923, both age 19. Both buried Ada Valley Cemetery in Conway Co., AR.[37]

9 Marie Rankin, b. abt 1925

9 Paul Rankin, b. abt 1927

9 Juanita Rankin, b. abt 1929

9 Harold Leon Rankin, b. 2 Oct 1931, d. 20 Aug 2013, buried in Ada Valley Cemetery. Obituary names his survivors, including two sons. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Rankin&GSiman=1&GScid=2162879&GRid=115842083&

8 Edward C. Rankin, b. abt 1906

8 Pearl E. Rankin, b. abt 1908-09

8 Lloyd M. Rankin, b. 22 Jun 1910, d. 18 May 1963. Buried Antioch Cemetery. Married #1, Conway Co., Lorene Paul, 12 May 1935. Married #2 Pearl McClain, 29 Mar 1941.

8 Violet Rankin, b. abt 1912

8 Dollie Rankin, b. abt 1916

8 Rayburn Rankin, b. abt 1920

Grandsons of William A. and Zora, not sure of father, positive about grandfather:

9 Don Rankin, b. abt 1933

9 Ronnie Rankin, b. abt 1936

6 Harriet J. Rankin, b. abt 1840, AR

6 Julia E. Rankin, b. abt 1842, AR

6 Luzetta E. Rankin, b. abt 1844, AR

6 John S. Rankin, b. abt 1847, AR

6 Charles C. Rankin, b. AR abt. 1849

6 Frances J. Rankin, b. abt. 1851

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Some more info, from one of those old “Heritage” books for Perry County, Page 689-690. *** Which George? (1) not George, son of R&R, died 1760; (2) not George d. 1851, because he stayed in TN and died there;

W.G. Rankin, a prominent stock dealer residing in Perryville, is a son of Robert Rankin and Frances Hogan of Tennessee and Georgia, respectively, the former a son of George Rankin of Guilford County, North CarolinaGeorge Rankin*** and his son Robert, in company with several others, traveled up the Arkansas River as far as Cane Hill, Washington, looking for a suitable location, but finally returned to Little Rock and shortly afterward settled on the Maumelle River, about fourteen miles southeast of Perryville, where he resided until his death. His wife died in 1858, a few years after his decease. … Robert Rankin moved with his father to the settlement on Maumelle River, where he entered eighty acres of land … Robert was married when quite young, being only twenty two years old on that occasion. He sold forty acres of land which he had previously entered and entered 120 acres more in the neighborhood of his eighty acres upon which he made his home and resided until his death in the fall of 1863, being murdered by a bushwhacker. His wife lived five years afterward and followed him to the grave. W.G. Rankin was born March 2, 1830, in what is now Faulkner County, and received all the advantages to be derived from the schools of that period. He remained at home and worked on the farm with his father until March 1852, when he married to Miss Parmelia Ellsberry, by whom he has had three children: C.C. (who resides in Perryville), Edmund H. (also of Perryville), and Margaret (wife of Robert Long, who resides eight miles from that town). Mr Rankin lost his wife on November 7, 1868 and in November 1871 he was again married, his second wife being Miss Julia Bagly, by whom he had one child: Mary Josephine. This wife died in 1878 and about one year and nine months later Mr Rankin married #3 Mrs Missouri Brazeale, by whom he has had two children: Egbert and Quinlen. After his first marriage he bought forty acres of land and entered 160 acres more eight miles east of Perryville where he resided from 1853 to 1876, and then moved to Perryville where he has lived ever since. During the war he enlisted in the army, but after three months’ service, the long marches, exposure and hard life of a soldier affected his health and he was forced to return home and hire a substitute to fill his place for the remainder of the war. Mr Rankin has made industry and good management accumulate a comfortable amount of property. He owns land east of block 14 in the town of Perryville, also forty acres just across the river with twenty acres under cultivation, besides having a half interest in 215 acres ten miles down the Fourche, of which twenty five acres are under cultivation. He is a member of the Masonic order and belongs to the Perryville Lodge. In politics he is a Democrat and has always voted that ticket. He is one of the old landmarks of the county and any history of the State of Arkansas would be incomplete without his name. Besides himself, Mr Rankin has two brothers and one sister still living: Edmund H. (residing in Perry County on the old homestead), Charles (residing 3 miles south of Perryville), and Martha (now the wife of Willis Y. Russell, living in Effingham County, Ill.

 

* * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Source for the following: The Goodspeed Biographical and Historical Memoirs of Central Arkansas (Easley, SC: Southern Historical Press reprint, 1978; original publisher The Goodspeed Publishing Co. of Chicago, Nashville and St. Louis, 1889).

Goodspeed says that Jedediah Rankin came to Perry Co., AR in 1832. Jed was the father of G. M. Rankin, “who was born within one-half mile of the famous Guilford Court House … August 1, 1821.” “The grandfather, Robert Rankin, was a Revolutionary Soldier, and took part in the battle of Guilford Court House.”

                …. “Jedediah Rankin and his wife were the parents of five children, of whom 2 died when very young. The oldest, Catherine, was born in 1812 and married a man named Kidd, now residing in Texas. The next was Polly Ann, who married a Capt. Wilson, of Arkansas, [where] she died in 1863; and G. M. Rankin, who, after his mother’s death, in 1827, lived with an uncle named Robert Rankin, until 1837, when he moved to Arkansas, and joined his father … the elder Rankin [died] in 1862 at the age of 79 [thus born 1783, that would be Jedediah]… his wife [died in 1882, age 81].

                  … G. M. Rankin m. Elizabeth Jane Alexander 28 Dec 1841. They had 14 children, 7 still living (as of 1889, I suppose)…(1) Robert N. Rankin (b. 10 Jun 1844, killed at Corinth, 1863); (2) Wash. (b. 15 Sep 1846, lives in Perrybille); (3) Rebeca (b. 1848, d. infant); (4) W. H. R. Rankin (b. 4 Mar 1850, a merchant in Perryville, m. Mollie E. Swaggerty 7 Feb 1875, she from GA); (5) Polly Ann (b. Apr 1851, d. 1863); (6) Catherine (b. Apr 1853, m. John Bland of Perryville); (7) John Rankin (b. Apr 1855 d. Dec 1880); (8) Isabella (b. 1857, d. Jan 1877); (9) Henry (b. 1859); (10) Lousetta (b. 25 Dec 1861, m. George Bland, to CA); (11) Edmund (b 26 Dec 1864, d. TX 1886); (12) Betsey J. (b. Mar 1857, m. E. B. Rorer of Perry Co.); (13) Madison M. (b. 3 Mar 1869).

                  (Note on #4, William H. R. Rankin m. Mollie Swaggerty: they had 4 kids, (1) Hallie (Feb 1876), (2) Sibyl (Dec 1879), (3) Fay (Nov 1883) and (4) Joe (Jan 1886).

Another Rankin family, but I’m on a roll here … same source…

                  “W. G. Rankin …[of] Perryville is a son of Robert Rankin and Frances (Hogan) Rankin … Robert being a son of George Rankin of Guilford Co., NC… George Rankin and his son Robert …settled on the Maumelle River about 14 miles SW of Perryville … Robert … married … when only 22, d. fall of 1863, “being murdered by a bushwhacker” … W. G. Rankin was b. 2 Mar 1830 in what is now Faulkner county…m. Parmelia Elsberry in March 1852. W. G. and Parmelia had 3 children: (1) C. C. Rankin (Perryville); (2) Edmund H. (ditto); (3) Margaret m. Robert Long. Parmelia d. 7 Nov 1868 and W. G. married w#2 Julia Bagly, one dau (4) Mary Josephine. Julia d. in 1878 and W. G. married Mrs. Missouri Brazeale, two children: (5) Egbert and (6) Quinlen.

 …W. G. Rankin has 2 brothers and one sister still living: Edmund H. Rankin (Perry Co. on old homestead), Charles (3 miles south of Perryville) and Martha m. Willis Y. Russell, Effingham Co., IL.

 …about Edmund H. Rankin (b. 1 Mar 1837, Perry Co., the 5th of 12 children), son of Robert and Frances (Hogan) Rankin, m. Nancy Jane Spears, and they had 10 children, 9 still living: (1) George W., (2) Andrew J., (3) Henry Clay, (4) Frances Jane, (5) Charles C., (6) Edmond F., (7) Laura Alice, (8) Julian E. and (9) William A. … “the paternal grandfather” fought in the Battle of Guilford Court House…” I think Goodspeed’s may have omitted a generation … “the paternal great-grandfather came to America before the Rev War.” (ditto).

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

[1] The source for the migration information is the autobiography of one of Robert and Rebecca’s grandsons, “Shaker Reverend John Rankin” who went to Union Co., KY. Excerpts from it are available in some family trees at ancestry.com. I would love to have a complete copy if anyone has one or can send a link.

[2] J. Smith Futhey and Gilbert Cope, History of Chester County, Pennsylvania (Philadelphia: Louis H. Everts, 1881), reproduction facsimile by Chester County Historical Society (Mt. Vernon, IN: Windmill Publications, Inc., 1996).

[3] A. Gregg Moore & Forney A. Rankin (as added author), The Rankins of North Carolina : A Genealogy and History of Those Who Can Trace Their Ancestry to One of the Several Rankin Families Native to the Tar Heel State (Marietta, GA: A. G. Moore, 1997) (two volumes). Moore confused Robert d. 1795 with his father Robert Sr. m. Rebecca.

[4] Rev. S. M. Rankin, History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church and Her People (Greensboro, NC: Jos. J. Stone & Co., 1931).

[5] See, e.g., Rowan County, NC Order Book 3: 200 and Will Book A: 31, will of William Denny dated 1766, witnessed in 1766 and proved in 1770 by John Rankin.

[6] Rowan Deed Book 2: 67, 14 Apr 1755 deed from Robert Rankin to William Denny, 5 shillings, 640 acres adjacent the corners of Nottingham Company tracts No. 14 and 15; Rowan Deed Book 2: 70, 13 Apr 1775 deed from Robert and Rebecca Rankin to George Rankin, 480 acres on the south side of Brushy Fork.

[7] Guilford or Rowan County Will Book A: 31, Order Book 3: 200, will of Wm Denny naming wife Ann, dated 10 Aug 1766 proved May 1770.

[8] Will of Robert Rankin Sr. (who was then called “Sr.” since Robert m. Rebecca had died earlier) dated May 1795, proved Nov 1795. Guilford Co., NC, WB A: file #312.

[9] Ancestry.com. North Carolina, Wills and Probate Records, 1665-1998 (database online).

[10] Albert Brown, Cemeteries, 1824 – 1986 McNairy County, TN (1993).

[11] Frances T. Ingmire, Guilford County North Carolina Marriage Records 1771-1868 Volume III Names O-Z (Athens, GA: Iberian Publishing Co., 1984).

[12] A. B. Pruitt, Abstracts of Deeds Guilford Co, NC Books 19, 20, & 21 (1825-1836) (2007), abstract of Deed Book 19: 688.

[13] A. B. Pruitt, Abstracts of Deeds Guilford Co, NC Books 14, 15, & 16 (1819-1826) (2005), abstract of Deed Book 14: 11, deed of 23 Mar 1819 from “George Rankin Sr. to his son Robert Rankin Jr.,” both of Guilford, 110.5 acres on the south side of North Buffalo Creek. By 1819, the man designated as Robert Rankin Senior would be Rev. War Robert, son of George and Lydia Steele Rankin.

[14] See the 1820 federal census for Guilford Co., 1830 census for McNairy, and the 1840 census for Pope Co., AR.

[15] Ingmire, Guilford County North Carolina Marriage Records.

[16] 7 Mar 1870, McNairy Co., TN, administrator’s bond on estate of J. D. Rankin, administrator F. M. Rankin, bond Francis Kirby. Book B: 88.

http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=Rankin&GSiman=1&GScid=15910&GRid=99472727&

[17] 1860 census, Purdy P.O., McNairy Co., TN, Frank Rankin, age 23, b. TN, Elizabeth Rankin, 24, July A. Rankin (sic, Julie or Julia), 2, and Robert W. Rankin, 3 months. Two households down from Frank Kerby. 1870 census, McNairy Co., Frances Ranken, 34, Sarah (?) E. Rankin, 35, Julia A. Rankin, 12, Robert W. Rankin, 10, William S. Rankin, 4, Mary F. Rankin, 1. The adjacent household is Mary F. Rankin, his mother (widow of J. D. Rankin). In 1870, he was the administrator on the estate of J. D. Rankin, with Francis Kirby, bondsman. 1880 census, McNairy Co., TN, F. M. Rankin, b. TN, parents b. NC, wife Louisa E. Rankin, son R. W. Rankin, 20, daughter Mary F. Rankin, 11, son F. M. Rankin, Jr., daughter Louisa Rankin, 7, and son John B. Rankin, 3. Headstone application for military veterans says that he was a Chief Master Sgt., 6th Tennessee Cavalry. http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=6039779

[18] 1900 census, Chester Co., TN, Robert W. Rankins, 40, b. TN Mar 1860, wife Margaret J. Rankins, 32, b. TN Feb 1868, son Perry P. Rankin, 10, b. TN Feb 1889, dau Letta V. Rankins, 7, b. TN _____, son Robert L. Rankins, 5, b. TN Mar.1895, son Franklin Rankins, 8 months, b TN Sep 1899. Plus Louisa E. Rankin, 65, b. TN Aug 1835. Buried in Cave Springs Cemetery, Henderson, Chester Co., TN: Robert W. Rankin, 12 Mar 1860 – 15 Nov 1919, and Margaret J. Rankin, 13 Feb 1868 – 16 Mar 1958.

[19] William R. Black, “Went off to the Shakers: The First Converts of South Union” (2013), Masters Theses and Special Projects. Paper 1243. http://digitalcommons.wku.edu.theses/1243. Cites the autobiography of Shaker Rev. John Rankin, son of George and Lydia, for the immigration facts.

[20] Tombstone in Bethel Springs Cem., McNairy Co., TN: “Private Robert Rankin, 29 May 1759 – 21 Dec 1840.”

[21] Will of William Cusick dated 4 May 1816 proved May 1817 naming children of Robert Rankin “Sr.” and deceased daughter Polly: Lydia, Isbel and Thankful. Guilford Co. WB B: 435.

[22] From Jackie Gillie’s 1961 letter, the organizational minutes of the Sulphur Springs Congregation (now the Appleton Presbyterian Church, Appleton, AR): church was organized 23 Mar 1856, “Bros. Jno. M. Poe and Reuben B. Rankin were duly elected and ordained to the office of Ruling Elders. List of charter members included R. B. (Reuben Burr) Rankin, his wife Elizabeth Rankin, R. M. Rankin (Robert, Reuben’s brother), A. L. Rankin (Anthony Lambert), Isabel J. Poe (Reuben’s sister Isabel who m. Jo. S. Poe) and their mother Isabel Rankin, who was #1 on the list.

[23] Guilford Co., NC Deed Book 12: 312, deed dated 24 Oct 1815 from Robert Rankin to his son Jeddediah Rankin, both of Guilford, for natural love & affection, 150A on the waters of North Buffalo Cr. adjacent the northeast corner of Robert Rankin’s old tract. Acknowledged by grantor August 1816.

[24] Federal census, 1820, Guilford Co., NC, Jedediah Rankin, p. 96, 000110-20010. Eldest male (Jedediah) is 26<45.

[25] 1850 census, Perry Co., AR, household of George M. Rankin, 28, b. NC abt 1822, farmer, Elizabeth Rankin, 22, b. AR, Robert Rankin, 6, b. AR, George W. Rankin, 4, b. AR, and Jedediah Rankin, 65, b. NC abt 1785 and with Elizabeth Rankin, 54, NC; 1860 census, Fource LaFave Twp., Perryville PO, Perry Co., AR: household of George M. Rankin, 38, farmer, b. NC abt 1822, Elizabeth Rankin, 32, b. AR, Robert N.? Rankin, 16, AR, George W. Rankin, 14, AR, William H. C. Rankin, 10, AR, Lucinda C. Rankin, 6, AR, John J. Rankin, 4, AR, Isbel C. Rankin, 2, AR, Henry M. Rankin, 3 months?, AR, Jeddiah S. Rankin, 74, b. NC, and Elizabeth Rankin, 63, NC.

[26] 1880 census, Fourch LaFave Twp., Perry Co., AR, household of George M. Rankin, 58, farmer, b. NC about 1822, parents b. NC, wife Elizabeth J. Rankin, 54, b. AR, parents b. VA, son John J. Rankin, 24, b. AR, son Henry Rankin, 20, AR, son Eddie? Rankin, 15, b. AR, daughter Elizabeth J. Rankin, 13, AR, son Monroe Rankin, 11, b. AR.

[27] 1850 census, Big Rock Pulaski Co., p. 340, dwl. 369: John J. Rankin, 28, Elizabeth, 26, Dores, 5, fem., Frances, 4, fem., and George 6 mos, all b. AR. Next dwelling Ann Rankin, 70, b NC, 1780.

[28] 1840 census, Pulaski Co., AR, 210001-11001, he is 30 < 40, born 1800-1810. One Rankin researcher says Wm. D. Rankin, s/o George, lived 1806-1846.

[29] Minerva Rankin m. George Abbott, 13 Oct 1855, Conway Co., AR, age 42 (b. abt. 1813). She appeared in the 1860 census in Conway Co., dwelling #257, in the household of Chas Adams, 38, as a cook, name of Minerva Abbott, 46, b. TN abt 1814, with Nancy Sexton, 15, b TN, George Rankin, 12, b. AR (Minerva’s son). In the adj. dwelling is J. W. Rankin (James), also Minerva’s son, 25, farmer, b. AR, Sarah Rankin, 22, b. TN, and Wm. D. Rankin, 6 mos., b AR.

[30] 1850 census, Conway Co., AR, #390, Minerva Rankin, 36 (b. abt. 1814), farmer, b TN, with Thomas Rankin, 19, b. AR, Julia Ann Rankin, 16, b. AR, James Rankin, 14, b. AR, Sarah Rankin, 9, b. AR, Henry Rankin, 7, b. AR (abt. 1843, is this William Henry???), Enneline? Rankin, 5, b. AR, and George Rankin, 3, b. AR (abt 1847).

[31] See 1850, 1860 and 1870 census. In 1870, he is listed in Conway Co., AR, dwl #89: J. W. Rankin, 35, b. AR abt 1835, with Susan, 30, MS, William, 11, AR, Franklin, 9, AR, Texas?, female, 8, b AR, Elmira, 4, b AR, and Julia, 1, b AR.

[32] 1870 census, Clark, Pope Co., AR, #342: Henry W. H. Rankin, 28, b AR abt 1842, Elizabeth H. Rankin, 20, b. AR abt 1850, and George E. Rankin, 4, b AR abt 1866.

[33] 1900 census, Suplhur Springs, Howard Co., AR, George E. Rankin, b. May 1866, m. 7 years, b AR/AR/AR, with wife Fromia E., b. July 1891, age 28, m. 7 years, AL/AL/AL, with sons Chester C., b. Dec 1894 and William H., b. Oct 1898. 1910 census, Duckett, Howard Co., AR, George Rankin, 44, AR/AR/AR, Saphronia Rankin, AL/TN/TN, Chester Rankin, son, 14, Wm. H. Rankin, 11, son, Rolly Rankin, 7, son, Elberta Rankin, 5, daughter, Bertie L. Rankin, 3, daughter, Laura Dee Rankin, 2, daughter, Harry Bee, 2, son.

[34] 1850 census, Perry Co., AR, household of Robert Rankin, 47, farmer, b. TN about 1803, so TN is wrong, Frances J. Rankin, 37, b. AR, William G. Rankin, 20, b. AR, Martha A. Rankin, 18, b. AR, Edward H. Rankin, 13, b. AR, Harriet J. Rankin, 10, b. AR, Julia E. Rankin, 8, b. AR, Luzette E. Rankin, 6, b. AR, John S. Rankin, 3, b. AR, Charles C. Rankin, 1, b. AR 1849.

[35] 1880 census, Fourche Lafave Twp., Perry Co., AR: Edmond H. Rankin, 43, farmer, b. AR, father b. NC; wife Nancy J. Rankin, 39; son George W. Rankin, 17; son John A. J. Rankin, 16; son Henry C. Rankin, 15; daughter Elizabeth J. Rankin, 11; son Charles C. Rankin, 9; son Edmond F. Rankin, 6; daughter Alice L. Rankin, 6; daughter Julie E. Rankin, 2; son William A. Rankin, 8 months.

[36] 1910 census, Rankin, Perry Co., AR: William A. Rankin, b. AR/AR/AR, farmer; wife Zora M. Rankin; son Otto H. Rankin, 6; son Edward C. Rankin, 4; daughter Pearl E. Rankin, 2. See also 1920 census, Maumelle, Rankin Twp., Perry, AR: Will A. Rankin, 40, b. AR, parents b. AR; wife Zora Rankin, 35; son Otto Rankin, 16; son Eddie Rankin, 14; daughter 1910 Pearl Rankin, 11; son Loyd Rankin, 10; daughter Violet Rankin, 8; daughter Dollie Rankin, 4; son Rayburn Rankin, 9 months. See also 1940 census, Rankin, Perry Co., AR: William A. Rankin, 60, b. AR; Zara Rankin, wife, 53, has had 8 children, all living; son Loyd Rankin, 29; daughter Violet Rankin, 27; grandsons Don Rankin, 7, and Ronnie Rankin, 4.

[37] 1940 census, Higgins Twp., Conway, AR: Otto Rankin, 35, farmer; wife Novie Rankin, 34; daughter Marie Rankin, 15; son Paul Rankin, 13; daughter Juanita Rankin, 11; son Harold Rankin, 8; daughter Thelma Rankin, 4; daughter Evaline Rankin, 7 months.

The Rankins of Guilford County, NC: the Mistaken Identity of Robert Rankin Who Died in 1795

A professional genealogist once told me that most trees on the internet aren’t worth the paper it would take to print them. She said the most serious mistake a rookie can make is to use information from someone else’s tree without confirming it. Her advice was too late for me: I had already learned that lesson the hard way.

When I was a still a beginning family history researcher, I sent a chart for one of my lines to the administrator of the Graves Family Association website at his request.[1] The chart included information I had obtained from other researchers on the identity of my early Graves ancestors. Unfortunately, I had not confirmed the information with my own research.

I wish I had remembered that before I forwarded the chart. Ken Graves, the website administrator, replied with a blistering email excoriating me for perpetuating a fiction that serious researchers had long ago discarded. My screen and my red face were both too hot to touch after I read that email.[2]

We all make mistakes, even if we don’t naïvely adopt someone else’s data. Original records are incomplete or the courthouse burned down entirely. The handwriting in films of original records is faded, blurred, or indecipherable. Our ancestors recycled the same given names ad nauseam, producing a frequent error called “same name confusion.” Other mistakes are probably caused by the occasionally unwarranted aura of accuracy enjoyed by books and journals. Some mistakes are just plain ol’ carelessness.

Here’s an example: Robert Rankin who died in 1795 in Guilford Co., NC

An error about one of the early Rankins in Guilford County, North Carolina combines same name confusion and carelessness. It may have originated in a Rankin compiled history which wrongly interpreted the 1795 will of Robert Rankin as being the will of the “patriarch” – the eldest immigrant – of his Guilford family line.[3] The ease of importing data from online trees probably guarantees the error’s immortality.

Robert Rankin the patriarch (let’s call him “Old Robert”) had a wife named Rebecca, maiden name unproved.[4] Old Robert and Rebecca had a son named George.[5] The 1795 will identified the testator as “Robert Rankin Senior” of Guilford County.[6] The will devised land to a son named George. It did not name a wife, who evidently predeceased him. In short, identifying the testator in the 1795 will as Old Robert seems reasonable at first glance. On second glance, not so much.

The problem is that Old Robert and Rebecca’s son George died in 1760 – thirty-five years before some Robert Rankin wrote that 1795 will.[7] Presumably, Robert the testator intended to devise land to a flesh-and-blood son George rather than someone who had been dead for several decades.

Guilford County is admittedly tough on Rankin researchers. There are a dizzying number of country records referencing, e.g., Robert Rankin, Robert Rankin Sr., and/or Robert Rankin Jr. One state grant mentions all three![8]As was common, the line of Old Robert and Rebecca recycled the same names ad infinitum, so that every generation had at least one Robert.

Guilford is also rough sledding because there were three Rankin “patriarchs” in Guilford: (1) John Rankin (1736-1814) who married Hannah Carson and is a proved son of Joseph and Rebecca Rankin of Delaware;[9] (2) John’s brother William Rankin (1744-1804), who married Jane Chambers; and (3) Old Robert Rankin and his wife Rebecca, who came to Pennsylvania from Letterkenny Parish, County Donegal, Ireland about 1750 and moved a few years later to the part of Rowan County that became Guilford.[10]

The facts in brief

Two facts prove that the Robert Rankin who wrote a will and died in 1795 in Guilford County – call him “Robert died in 1795” – was not Old Robert. First, a book about the Buffalo Presbyterian Church of Guilford establishes that Old Robert died well before 1795.[11] Second, the George Rankin issue: Old Robert’s son George, who died in 1760, was obviously not the same man as George, a devisee in the 1795 will. In fact, Guilford records establish that George the devisee was alive and well after 1795.

When did Old Robert with wife Rebecca die? Answer: circa 1770, definitely by 1773

Rev. Samuel Meek Rankin provides information about Old Robert Rankin in his book History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church and Her People. Rev. Rankin identified Old Robert as having belonged to Nottingham Presbyterian Church in Pennsylvania.[12] Old Robert and his family (or some of them) migrated to North Carolina in the early 1750s.[13] The family acquired land in that part of Rowan County that later became Guilford.[14] Rev. Rankin identified Old Robert’s wife as Rebecca, whose name is confirmed in a 1755 gift deed of land by the couple to their son George.[15] According to Rev. Rankin, Old Robert and Rebecca had children “George, Robert, Rebecca, John and others.”[16]

For purposes of this article, we are only concerned with Old Robert and Rebecca, their sons George and Robert, and a grandson named – I’m sure you can guess this – Robert. A few facts about them are in order. Rev. Rankin says that George died in 1761, although his will was actually written and proved in 1760.[17] George’s will named his widow Lydia (Steele) and two minor sons, John and Robert. The latter is the grandson we have in mind.

George and Lydia’s son John – the future Shaker Reverend John – inherited the 480-acre tract on Brushy Fork that Old Robert and Rebecca had given to George. John sold it and left Guilford before 1800.[18] George and Lydia’s other son Robert, grandson of Old Robert, fought in the Revolutionary War and applied for a pension in 1833.[19]Bless his heart, because the application provides useful information. Let’s call him “Rev War Robert,” with “Rev” short for “Revolutionary,” not “Reverend.” His application establishes that Rev War Robert was born in Guilford County in May 1759 and that he moved to McNairy County, Tennessee in 1830. It is important for this narrative that Rev War Robert lived into the nineteenth century: hold that thought.

 Meanwhile, Reverend Samuel Meek Rankin had this to say about Old Robert, who was (according to oral tradition) one of the first elders in Buffalo Church:

Robert Rankin is another whom Rev. J. C. Alexander said tradition listed as one of the first elders. He settled here in 1753 … he died before the first date in the minute book.”[20]

Reverend Rankin said there were no records for Buffalo Church “from the organization in 1756 to 1773.” Consequently, Old Robert Rankin, husband of Rebecca, must have died by 1773. Rev. Rankin states elsewhere that Old Robert died about 1770, although there is no extant tombstone for him in the Buffalo Church cemetery.[21]

What about the George named in the will of Robert Rankin d. 1795?

Let’s look closely at Robert Rankin’s 1795 will, which names the following devisees and beneficiaries:[22]

    • his son George.
    • his three grandsons William Rankin Wilson, Andrew Wilson and Maxwell Wilson, sons of his deceased daughter Mary Rankin and her husband Andrew Wilson. Robert devised land on Buffalo Creek to George and the three Wilson grandsons.
    • his daughter Isobel.
    • and (5) two unnamed living daughters, each of whom was to receive one-fifth of Robert’s personal estate.

Subsequent Guilford County records establish that George Rankin was still alive in 1795, when his father wrote his will. About three years after Robert died, George surveyed the land he and his Wilson nephews inherited. Robert’s will prescribed a detailed metes and bounds description for how his land on Buffalo Creek was to “be divided.” The document filed in the real property records expressly recites that the survey of the tract was required by the will of Robert Rankin, deceased, and by his executor.[23] Some two decades later, George Rankin made a gift of a portion of that tract to his own son – named Robert, of course.[24]

So … who the heck was the Robert who died in 1795?

 Naturally, there were several Robert Rankins living in Guilford County in the late 18th century. We can eliminate anyone from the lines of John Rankin and Hannah Carson or William Rankin and Jean Chambers. Their sons named Robert (each couple had one) lived well past 1795.[25] The testator in 1795 was not Rev War Robert, son of George and Lydia Steele Rankin, because his pension file proves that he survived to the 19th century, dying in 1833. The only Robert Rankin in Guilford in 1795 who was old enough to have three grandsons, and who did notlive into the nineteenth century, was Robert Rankin, son of Old Robert and Rebecca.

And that is enough about one of the many Robert Rankins of Guilford County, North Carolina.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *  *

[1]  See http://www.gravesfa.org.

[2] Ken Graves subsequently sent me and my cousin Barbara Parker (who is also descended from John Graves of Halifax, VA) an email telling us Y-DNA research had proved that we are not descended from the famous Capt. John Graves of early 1600s Virginia. We are therefore not related to Ken. His email was positively gleeful. So was I. I have heard about him from other DNA project administrators.

[3]  A. Gregg Moore and Forney A. Rankin, The Rankins of North Carolina (Marietta, GA: A. G. Moore, 1997).

[4]  Rev. S. M. Rankin, History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church and Her People (Greensboro, NC: J. J. Stone & Co., Printers, 1934) at 27. See also the gift deed in Note 5 from Robert and Rebecca to their son George Rankin.

[5] Jo White Linn, Rowan County North Carolina Deed Abstracts Vol. 1, 1753 – 1762, Abstracts of Books 1 – 4(Salisbury, NC), abstract of Deed Book 2: 70, a gift deed dated 13 Apr 1755 from Robert and Rebecca Rankin to their son George for 5 shillings (the usual gift deed consideration), 480 acres on the south side of Brushy Fork. Robert paid 10 shillings for that tract, which was a Granville grant. Id., abstract of Deed Book 2: 102.

[6] Clayton Genealogical Library microfilm, “NC Guilford County Wills Books A-B 1771-1838,” File #312, will of Robert Rankin Sr. dated 30 May 1795 proved Nov 1795, devising land on the south side of Buffalo Creek to his son George Rankin and grandsons William Rankin Willson, Andrew Willson and Maxwell Willson. Robert also named his daughter Isobel and two other living daughters who weren’t identified by either a given name or a married surname.

[7] Id., “NC Rowan County Will Books A-B 1767-1793,” will of George Rankin of Rowan County dated 23 May 1760, proved Oct 1760. Witnesses to the will included Robert Rankin (either George’s father or his brother), William Denny (George’s brother-in-law, whose wife was George’s sister Ann Rankin Denny), and John Braley (another brother-in-law). See the article titled “Four Robert Rankins of Guilford County, NC” at this link.

[8] E.g., William D. Bennett, Guilford County Deed Book One (Raleigh, NC: Oaky Grove Press, 1990), abstract of Deed Book 1: 504, 16 Dec 1778 state grant to Moses McClain, 200 acres adjacent Jonas Touchstone, Robert McKnight, David Allison, Robert Rankin Jr.’s line, along Robert Rankin Sr.’s line, NC Grant Book No. 33: 83. There is one deed in my Lunenburg Co., VA Winn line in which the grantee and two witnesses to a deed were identified as John Winn, John Winn, and John Winn. No “Sr.” or “Jr.,” or “John Winn, carpenter,” or “John Winn of Amelia County.” Those three men obviously had a sense of whimsy. Lunenburg Deed Book 7: 231.

[9] FHL Film No. 6564, New Castle Co., DE Deed Book Y1: 499, deed dated Apr 1768 from grantors John Rankin of Orange Co., NC (a predecessor to Guilford County) and his wife Hannah, and William Rankin of New Castle Co., DE, to grantees Thomas Rankin and Joseph Rankin, both of New Castle, land devised to John and William by their father Joseph Rankin.

[10] Autobiography of George and Lydia Rankin’s son John Rankin, “Auto-biography of John Rankin, Sen.” (South Union, Ky., 1845), transcribed in Harvey L. Eads, ed., History of the South Union Shaker Colony from 1804 to 1836 (South Union, Ky., 1870), Shaker Museum at South Union, Auburn, Kentucky. A copy of the transcript can be obtained from the University of Western Kentucky. The autobiography establishes Robert and Rebecca’s migration dates and origin. See the article titled “Autobiography of Rev. John Rankin, Grandson of Robert and Rebecca” here.

[11] Rev. S. M. Rankin, History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church 22.

[12] Id. See also Futhey and Cope, History of Chester Co., PA (Philadelphia: Louis H. Everts, 1881), reproduction facsimile by Chester County Historical Society (Mt. Vernon, IN: Windmill Publications, Inc. ,1996). The 1753 tax list for West Nottingham Township, Chester Co., PA included George Rankin and Robert Rankin.

[13]  Rankin, History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church 22.

[14]  E.g., Jo White Linn, Rowan County North Carolina Deed Abstracts Vol. 1, 1753 – 1762, Abstracts of Books 1 – 4(Salisbury, NC), Deed Book 4: 100, Granville grant dated 24 Jun 1758 to Robert Rankin, 640 acres on both sides of North Buffalo Creek. That creek flows roughly SW to NE into Buffalo Cr. The creek and the grant are located just south of Buffalo Presbyterian Church.

[15]  See Note 5.

[16] Rankin, History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church 27. George and Robert are also proved as sons by deed records. There is only circumstantial evidence for a son John. Deed and probate records also prove a daughter Ann Rankin who married William Denny. Rowan County probate records also suggest daughters Rebecca Rankin Braley/Brawley and Margaret Rankin Boyd.

[17] Clayton Genealogical Library microfilm, “NC Rowan County Will Books A-B 1767-1793”  141, will of George Rankin of Rowan County, dated 23 May 1760 and proved Oct 1760. The 1761 date for George’s death appears in every family tree I have seen for Robert and Rebecca. Someone apparently read Rev. Rankin’s book and accepted the 1761 date without question, guaranteeing that it will multiply on the internet like Tribbles.

[18] Id. George devised to his son John the 480-acre tract on Brushy Fork or Brush Creek. John sold 200 acres in August 1784, Guilford Deed Book 3: 101, and the remaining 297 acres in Sep 1796, Deed Book 6: 182. John was listed in the 1790 census for Guilford County but not in 1800. He was an ordained Presbyterian minister. He struggled with what he saw as the abstract and impersonal nature of Presbyterian doctrine and became a Shaker minister. He went to Tennessee in the late 1790s and wound up in Logan County, KY in a place called “Shakertown.” See Note 10. In a Guilford County marriage record that makes Rankin researchers rip their hair out, Shaker Rev. John married Miss Rebecca Rankin. She was a daughter of John Rankin and Hannah Carson from the line of Joseph and Rebecca Rankin of Delaware.

[19] Virgil D. White, Abstracts of Revolutionary War Pension Files, Vol. III: N-Z (Waynesboro, TN: National Historical Publishing Co., 1992), abstract of the pension application of Robert Rankin, W5664. Robert was born 29 May 1759. Wife Mary. NC line. Soldier was born in Guilford and enlisted there. In 1830, he moved to McNairy Co., TN where he applied 20 May 1833. He died there 21 Dec 1840. Soldier had married Mary Moody 22 Nov 1803 in Guilford. Widow applied 12 Jun 1853 from McNairy at age 75. She died 11 Jul 1854.

[20] Rankin, History of Buffalo Presbyterian Church at 122.  

[21] Raymond Dufau Donnell, Buffalo Presbyterian Church and Cemetery Greensboro, North Carolina (Greensboro, NC: The Guilford County Genealogical Society (1994), second printing March 1996), at p. ii, saying that the “earliest written records of the church date from 1773,” and stating that Robert Rankin Sr., “Pioneer … Ruling Elder” died circa 1770.

[22] Clayton Genealogical Library microfilm, “NC Guilford County Wills Books A-B 1771-1838,” File #312, will of Robert Rankin Sr. dated 30 May 1795 proved Nov 1795.

[23] Guilford Co. Deed Book 6: 346, 16 Feb 1798.

[24] Guilford Co., Deed Book 14: 11, 23 Mar 1819.

[25]  Rev. S. M. Rankin, The Rankin and Wharton Families and Their Genealogy (Salem, MS: Higginson Book Company facsimile reprint of the 1931 original) 55 (John Rankin and Hannah Carson’s son Robert lived from 1780-1866) and 149 (William Rankin and Jane Chambers’ son Robert C. Rankin lived 1791-1853).