The Quest for William John Blair

By Harold Dean Blair 
And Meriam Vestal Blair

1 September 2009

Off and on for a number of years, I have conducted some basic genealogy research on my Blair lineage. Starting in 2008, Meriam and I joined Ancestry.com and began a more active search for my most distant relative, my great-great-grandfather believed to be named William John Blair or John William Blair. In tracing my lineage I (and other researchers) have always encountered a dead-end when attempting to find definitive information on William Blair. We believed his wife’s name was Sarah Sallie Pledger Blair, born in South Carolina and then immigrating to Simpson County, MS. No information seemed to exist on William Blair. In fact, we were not sure William Blair ever existed, much less having married Sarah Sallie and fathering her six children.

In late August, 2009 Meriam and I made a visit to Simpson County, MS spending five days researching state archives in Jackson, MS, visiting a number of cemeteries, talking with various people and making contact with some of the Blairs who still live in Simpson County.

With some qualifications, we feel our trip was successful. Rather than create a lengthy dialog, I have listed below the most salient issues, discoveries and actions we took during our week in Mississippi.

·	State Archives Research

We spent two days researching various documents, books and microfiche in the Mississippi State Archives. This is a beautiful, modern building located in Jackson. While Meriam searched specific volumes of cemeteries, family bibles, land records, wills and estate documents, etc., I sent most of my time searching through a number of the 40,000 microfiche rolls in the Archives. My target was to locate any mention of a Blair, Pledger and Hubbard (we looked for Hubbards since Sarah Sallie’s mother, Agnes Pledger was born a Hubbard) in Simpson County during the years 1820 – 1870. Having previously searched Federal census, I concentrated on state census, wills of Simpson County, index of Chancery Court cases of Simpson County, Simpson County Tax Rolls (both combination and personal) and a book on microfiche named History of Simpson County, 1824 – 1952. 

We are indebted to Patti Whitington, a lifelong resident of Mississippi and who now lives in Simpson County. She has extensive experience in genealogy research and was most helpful to us. We spent several hours with her researching records in the Simpson County Archives. In addition, Patti and her husband Zach spent several more hours driving us around various parts of Simpson County where she showed us the grave of Elizabeth Hubbard and the area still called Hubbard Town. In the Simpson County Archives we researched land and marriage records. We found numerous land patent records for various Hubbards, but only one for Agnes Pledger and none for any Blair during the early to mid 1800s. We should note that the Simpson County Courthouse burned in 1872 destroying almost all the county records prior to and including 1872. This helps explain the dearth of documents dealing with William Blair. We also discovered that Simpson County did not begin recording marriages until the late 1800s.

Although Simpson County records were burned in 1872, there is an early Tract Book dated 1894 in which many families “re-recorded” their plats for lands they purchased before 1872. These early deeds and all land records are located across the street from the courthouse in the Office of the Chancery Clerk in Mendenhall, MS. Tax records and marriage records are located in the courthouse.

1.	William John Blair – In the Personal Tax records of 1844 I found a listing of a W. J. Blair (showing 1 white male) paying a pole taxes of $.50 in state tax and $.25 in county tax.
2.	William John Blair – In the Personal Tax records of 1845 I found a listing of a William Blair (showing 6 white males and 5 white females) paying a pole tax of $.50 in state tax and $.25 in county tax.
3.	Personal tax records in the 1840s included taxes on items such as carriages, clocks and other personal items. We know William did not own any taxable items since they do not show up on these records.
4.	This appears to be the only documented existence of my great-great-grandfather. While there is no definitive proof his middle name is John, oral history from several of his current living descendents in Simpson County say his middle name was John. We also believe this William John mentioned in the above tax rolls to be my great-great grandfather, since the tax roll indicates he is living in the area of Simpson County where Agnes Pledger and several Hubbards were living. Also, the number of people listed on the tax roll in 1845 corresponds closely to the number of males and females residing in the Sarah Sallie household in the 1850 Federal census. Note that the 1844 census does not delineate the number of individuals in a given household.
5.	The 1841 Simpson County census lists “Agga” (we assume this is Agnes) Pledger as head of household along with 2 free white males under the age of 5, 1 free white female (between 20-30) and 1 free white female (between 60 – 70). Based on the 1850 Federal census, we presume one female is Agnes, the other is Sarah and the two males under 5 are Peter Hubbard and Thomas Hubbard.
6.	The 1850 Federal census lists Agnes Pledger (age 65), Sarah Blair (age 44), Peter Hubbard (age 15), Thomas Hubbard (age 10), James Blair (age 8), Martha Blair (age 8), John Blair (age 6), Robert Blair (age 6), Caroline Blair (age 3) and George W Blair (age 1). 
7.	Based on the above two census (items 3 and 4), we believe William Blair arrived on the scene in Simpson County sometime after the 1841 Simpson County census was taken and died sometime prior to the 1850 Federal census. 
8.	Simpson County did not begin keeping birth and death records until the late 1800s. No land ownership record for William Blair exists. The earliest marriage records in Simpson County start in the 1870s, long after William and Sarah were married. 
9.	We know William John was the only Blair in Simpson County in 1844 and 1845 since he is the only Blair mentioned in any kind of Mississippi State record on Simpson County. As mentioned above, the courthouse records in Simpson County do not mention any Blair during this period.
10.	The earliest ownership of land by any Blair in Simpson County is that of James B Blair (son of William John and Sarah Sallie). This record appears in the “Family Maps of Simpson County, Mississippi” located in the State Archives. The reference to James’ land can be found on Map Group 16, Township 10-N Range 18-W, St. Stephens Meridian. He owned adjoining four parcels, two in section 32 and two in section 33. The date on this patent is 1881.
11.	Agnes Pledger owned one parcel of land located on Map Group 17, Township 10-N Range 17-W, St. Stephens Meridian, section 31. The date on this patent is 1850. One should also note that Agnes’ land abuts that of Peter B Hubbard and Thomas Hubbard. In addition, there are numerous other Hubbard holdings in the same general vicinity.
12.	We also obtained a copy of Agnes’ land patent from the Simpson County Courthouse records. In addition, the U.S. General Land Office Records, 1796-1907 on Ancestry.com provides a copy of her actual patent. She owned 39.9 acres.
13.	Meriam and I were intrigued that as a woman in the mid 1800s, Agnes could afford to purchase land. However, Patti stated this was not too unusual since land prices in the 1825-1850 period ranged from $.25 to $.50 per acre and at most $1.00.
14.	It seems clear to us that both Agnes and her Hubbard relatives must have had some money when they immigrated to Simpson County. In addition to their ownership of land, records exist showing their ownership of slaves.
15.	Adjacent to Hopewell Cemetery (where a number of Blairs and Hubbards are buried) is Hopewell Presbyterian Church. This church is one of the oldest in the area. It was established in 1830. We have posted a picture of this church showing the stair case leading to the upper balcony that slaves were required to use, capturing a glimpse of this time in history.

·	Early Blair Oral History

1.	Harold’s conversation with Neil A Blair, a current resident of Simpson County and descendant of William John Blair
a.	Neil descends from William Blair as follows: Neil Blair  Curtis Eugene Blair  Estes Thomas Blair  Peter B Blair  George W Blair  William John Blair
b.	We found no gravestone for William Blair. Oral history from Neil says William was “buried in a field.” 
c.	Another interesting bit of oral history from Neil says Sarah Sallie would sit by William’s grave and peel potatoes.

2.	Meriam’s conversation with Beverly Blair, wife of Will H Blair, who owns and maintains some of the original Blair land.
a.	Will Blair descends from William Blair as follows: Will H Blair  Hollis Blair  Estes Thomas Blair  Peter B Blair  George W Blair  William John Blair
b.	Beverly Blair stated she does not believe any of the current day Blairs in Simpson County own a “Blair Bible” which would contain any history of the early Blairs in Simpson County.
c.	Will and Beverly currently live in Pearl, MS but return to their place on Blair family land almost every weekend where they attend Mt. Zion Baptist Church. Mt. Zion Cemetery is the burial site of Sarah Sallie and other Blair family members.
d.	Marie is the oldest of the current generation of Blairs in Simpson County. Neil Blair stated he has interviewed Marie extensively about Blair history. Marie has no history (other than herein stated) of William John (ie, where he came from, location of his burial, etc.)
e.	Beverly described Peter B Blair as the patriarch of the whole Blair family, buying, selling and giving land, loaning money, etc.)

·	Some facts and some speculation
1.	It appears almost all the Blairs in Simpson County are descendants of William John’s youngest son, George W Blair
2.	Some of descendants of James B Blair, William John’s oldest son continued to migrate West. James B’s middle son, John Daniel Blair moved to Ruby, Louisiana where a number of his descendants continue to reside. 
3.	John Daniel continued to move West, living in Texas for awhile (Paris, TX and Muleshoe, TX), then in Melrose, NM and then continuing on to California where he died.
4.	There are numerous Blair graves in both Mt. Zion Cemetery in Simpson County and Hopewell Cemetery in Jefferson Davis County. Anyone visiting these cemeteries should be aware there is also a Hopewell Church in Simpson County (there are also other Mt. Zion and Hopewell churches in other parts of Mississippi.)

·	Early Pledger and Hubbard History

As mentioned previously, the history of the early Mississippi Blairs is closely intertwined with those of the Pledger and Hubbard families. Sarah Sallie’s mother Agnes was married to a Pledger. We have no record of her husband and only know the Pledger name because of census records listing Agnes Pledger along with Sarah Sallie and her six children. We know Agnes was a Hubbard from census records showing Agnes along with her brothers John Carraway Hubbard (b.1786) and Peter Hubbard (b.1788). We also have early South Carolina census records listing Agnes Hubbard with her daughter Sarah Sallie. Although we know nothing of William John Blair and his ancestors, we are fortunate to know a great deal about the Hubbards.

1.	Early Simpson County settlers
a.	Thomas and Elizabeth Hubbard - The book entitled “A History of Simpson County, MS, 1824-1962”, by Richard Thomas Bennett, 1962 lists Thomas Hubbard as one of the earliest settler of Simpson County. He came with his wife to Simpson County sometime before 1844 since we know his second oldest child was born in Mississippi.
b.	The Old Hubbard Cemetery – through the efforts of Pattie Whitington, we were able to locate and visit the “Old Hubbard Cemetery”, the grave site of Elizabeth. This is probably the oldest known grave of all the Hubbards, Pledgers and Blairs in the county. Patti has lived in Simpson County for many years and became aware of Elizabeth’s tombstone a number of years ago. Patti is friends with a number of the present day Hubbards who told her of the grave site. Many of the present day Hubbards call this the “old Hubbard graveyard.” It is located on New Hope Road in Simpson County. Drive south out of Magee, MS on Hwy 49, turn right on New Hope Road and travel 1 mile. Elizabeth’s tombstone is on the left just west of Cecile Sullivan Road. Not too many years ago New Hope Road was built right through the old grave yard, destroying all other grave markers with the exception of Elizabeth. While many other Hubbards are buried in other graveyards in and around Simpson County, none other contain any of the first generation Hubbards. Patti has visited with Laura Hubbard, one of the oldest living Hubbards, and she recalls visiting the “Old Hubbard Cemetery” which then contained numerous other gravestones. Elizabeth’s tombstone is located by the very edge of the road, just inside the fence line. As typical of that time, it is on the crest of a hill. One can still see vestiges of the old road bed running to the south of Elizabeth’s grave stone.
c.	Agnes Hubbard Pledger’s grave site – Since there are no records of Agnes’ grave, we speculate she might have been buried in this cemetery. 

2.	Early Hubbard History -- Peter Hubbard (b.1720) -- great grandfather of Thomas Hubbard and grandfather of Agnes Hubbard Pledger mentioned above -- and Agnes Chiles (b.1727) were married on 12 Nov 1744. Records show (Minutes of Cedar Creek Monthly Meetings film #0288184) that as Quakers, Peter and Agnes published their intentions to marry on 8/9 Oct 1744 in the Cedar Creek Monthly Meeting House (Quaker), Caroline County, Virginia. These same records show (page 49 – Disorders Peter Hubbard, “Deneighing and Disowning the sd Peter Hubbard whilst he Remaines in the unchristian Spirit from being a member of our Society.” – 11 June 1750 Testemony against Hubbard) that Peter and Agnes were removed from the Society on or about 11 June 1750. Perhaps this is why Peter and Agnes moved from Virginia to South Carolina.
3.	Early death of John Carraway Hubbard (b.1763) – John Carraway (b.1763) died at the age of 26 in 1789 leaving his four children Agnes (b.1785), John Carraway (b.1786), William (b.1787) and Peter (b.1788). Upon his death, his children were bound by the court (page 59, Marlboro County Court Minutes, September Term, 1791) as follows: Agnes (b.1785) and John Carraway (b.1786) were bound to his brother Peter Hubbard (b.1756), William (b.1787) was bound to John Little and Peter (b.1788) was bound to Anne Baker. Records indicate Peter Hubbard (b.1756) subsequently moved to Greenville, Bond County, Illinois where he became a very prominent individual.  For some unknown reason, both John Carraway (b.1786) and Agnes (b.1785) then moved from Illinois to Simpson County. Also sometime during this same period, Peter (b.1788) moved to Simpson County.
4.	Email exchanges with Mr. Grady Wait and Mr. Jon Hubbard resulted in considerable additional information about the Hubbards. In addition to an extensive genealogical tree of the Hubbards received from them, we also learned there is (and has been) a significant presence of Hubbards in Panola County. Panola County is located in the Northeastern portion of Mississippi. Records indicate there was considerable movement by the Hubbards between Simpson and Panola Counties. For instance, we know Thomas Hubbard (husband of Elizabeth) was died in Panola County, while Elizabeth was buried in Simpson County.
5.	There are numerous Hubbards buried in Hopewell Cemetery, including many second generation immigrants to Simpson County.
6.	In September 2009, we were most fortunate to have a visit by Mr. Grady Wait at our home in Jefferson, TX. Grady told us he has attended several of the current day Hubbard family reunions in Panola County. Grady also mentioned the existence of a book entitled “One Thousand Years of Hubbard History, 866 to 1896”, published by Harland Page Hubbard in 1895. Meriam did some searching on the web and discovered this entire document could be downloaded (free of charge) from the following web URL: http://www.archive.org/stream/onethousandyears00daye#page/n5/mode/2up.
7.	As mentioned previously, the Hubbards became early land owners in Simpson County. They seemed to have increased their ownership as time passed. Both the “Family Maps of Simpson County, Mississippi” and the Simpson County Courthouse records delineate many patents for various Hubbards, primarily located in Map Group 17 Township 10-N Range 17-W sections 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 28, 29, and 30.