Joseph H. Davis Sr. (1775 - 1850)

Born 20 Oct 1775 in Halifax, Virginia

Ancestors

Husband of Lucy McGehee Hodnett — married 19 Mar 1793 in Pittsylvania County, Virginia

Descendants

Died 1 Oct 1850 at age 74 in Halifax, Virginia, United States

Biography

Joseph Davis was born about 1772 (he first appears in the Pittsylvania personal tax lists in 1793). He married Lucy McGehee Hodnett 19 Mar. 1793 Pittsylvania Co., Va. Lucy was the daughter of Ayers and Mary (McGehee) Hodnett, as shown by her parents’ wills.^[1]

On Dec. 14, 1831, Joseph Davis, Sr. and Lucy Davis his wife, formerly Lucy Hodnett sold Joseph Davis, Jr. their son, all of all of their interest in the estate in Halifax County, Virginia belonging to William McGehee decd.of the State of Georgia for $100.^[2]

See the wikitree page for Joseph's father for the supposition that Joseph's mother was Sarah Graves, daughter of John Graves, Jr. Two of the children of John Graves, Jr. married McGeehees who were related to Lucy Hodnett's mother Mary McGeehee, per this tree: http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=DESC&db=rewstv&id=I00076

Joseph Davis appears in the 1830 census in Pittsylvania County as follows: 1 male 10-15, 1 male 20-30, 1 male 50-60 (Joseph), 1 female 15-20, 1 female 50-60 (Lucy).

Joseph Davis acted as surety for the marriage of his daughter Elizabeth B. Davis on 9 May 1838 in Halifax County to James Belcher Strickland. Witnesses were Joseph Davis, Jr. and Garret W. Davis.^[3]

The following is quoted from of a 1939 letter written by Mrs. George L. Corbin, 3 Oak Lane, Hampton Gardens, and Richmond, Virginia to Mildred Keeling, Keeling, Virginia, online at this Davis family page of Pittsylvania County:

"I told you that Mary McGehee married Ayres Hodnett and came to Halifax to live. They had six children: Ayres, Jim, Sallie, John, Will andLucy. (The author left out Benjamin). One of them, Lucy, married Joseph Davis; I found a copy of the marriage certificate of Joseph Davis and Lucy Hodnett which was dated March 19, 1793. Her father, Ayres Hodnett, was not mentioned but brother, John, was her bondsman and Lazarus Dodson performed the ceremony. The names of their children were as follows: Garret, Joe, Ben, Tom, Jack, William, Polly, James and Elizabeth.

"Grandmother Lucy Davis was very independent. The last years of her life she lived with her son Garet, our grandfather. She claimed to be 105 when she died and her people say they know she was at least 100. She would get out of patience with her husband and tell the children that she went through beautiful forest where there were lovely trees and wonderful flowers and then picked up a crooked stick . Poor Joseph! She would sit in the chimney corner and seed cotton and Grandma Betsy never crossed her. Mother said she could not remember a time when there was the slightest misunderstanding between the two women. "

It appears that several (but not all) of Joseph's children moved to Madison County in western Tennessee:

"I am tracing my Davis line who migrated from Pittsylvania County, Va to Madison County,Tn ca 1835.Research indicates the following five Davises, brothers and sister or possibly first cousins, migrated at about the same time to Madison County, Tn:

1. Benjamin C. Davis who married Winfred Yeaman in Dec, 1834 in Pittsylvania County.

2. Joseph Davis [age 38 in 1850 census, living with Nancy Hardy and children]

3. John Egbert Davis who married Nancy Elizabeth (nee unknown) ca 1830 in Virginia [she appears in 1850 census in Madison Co., Tennessee with children]

4. James G. Davis who married Nancy Lovelace in Halifax County, Va June 16, 1830.

5. Nancy Davis Hardy who married James Hardy in Pittsylvania County, Va Dec. 19, 1825

"James G. Davis first went to Madison County, Tn in 1821 and began acquiring large land holdings. In 1830 he returned to Virginia and married Nancy Lovelace. James and Nancy Davis soon returned to Madison County, Tn accompanied by Nancy's brother, James Lovelace, and his family. Census records in Tennessee show the five listed individuals living in the same immediate neighborhood in Madison County, Tennessee. Nancy Davis Hardy, widow, and her children, were enumerated under head of household Joseph Davis who was single. James Lovelace also lived in this small area."^[4]

The author of this message later states in a pair of genforum posts:

"For several years I have researched my progenitor, John Egbert Davis and wife Nancy Elizabeth (nee unknown). My original information re them came from an old family bible which said "John Egbert and Nancy Elizabeth Davis came from Virginia to Tennessee 1837". The area of Tennessee they migrated to was Madison County in West Tennessee. I had no success in establishing county of origin in Virginia with such common names. Through saturation genealogy I was able to determine John Egbert had the following brothers who migrated with him from Virginia to Madison County, Tn: Benjamin Davis and wife Winifred Yeaman Davis, James G. Davis and wife Nancy Lovelace, Joseph Davis, no spouse identified. Also migrating with them was Nancy Davis Hardy widow of James Hardy. She and her children lived with Joseph Davis in Madison County.

"I was able to trace all these Davises to Pittsylvania and Halifax County, Virginia via marriage records. This information was only developed by me in the past two months. Recent research in Pittsylvania County lead me to William Davis whose will was probated in Pittsylvania County, Va in 1791. Research of his son Joseph who married Lucy Hodnett and possibly two other spouses revealed his sons John, Joseph, James (G.) (H.),and Benjamin fit very well with the ages for my 4 Davises.

"Is your Thomas H. Davis, born 1825 also a son of the same William Davis who had sons, Joseph b ca 1794, Benjamin b ca 1796, James b ca 1800, John b ca 1806, William b ca 1808 and Garrett W. b ca 1812, and Thomas? (Also daughters Elizabeth b ca 1804, Mary (Polly) b ca 1798)^[5]

And later in the same thread:

"William Davis had a brother, Garrett W. Davis (his youngest brother). Both William and Garrett stayed in Va. while several of his brothers migrated to Madison County, Tn."^[6]

This researcher has a lot of further information on this family (together with a bogus Davis ancestry going back to the Shelton family) at theDavis Glamorgan-Va.-Tn. website at rootsweb.com.

History: Joseph Davis served as surety for his daughter Elizabeth B. Davis' marriage and his sons Joseph Jr. and Garrett W. Davis were witnesses.

Sources

1. ↑ See this Hodnett page at http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~vapittsy/Hodnettgen.html . See also this Hodnett page (with various Davis connections) at http://wc.rootsweb.ancestry.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi?op=AHN&db=eleanor&id=I07766 and see also (better site?) http://www.hallgenealogy.com/ghtout/np64.htm
2. ↑ Davis family of Pittsylvania webpage, citing Halifax County Deed Book 31, p. 417.
3. ↑ Per James A. Davis's family tree, apparently citing a marriage bond.
4. ↑ Per a [2002 post at the ancestry.com message board by James A. Davis.
5. ↑ [http://genforum.genealogy.com/davis/messages/29869.html 2003 Genforum post by James A. Davis.
6. ↑ [http://genforum.genealogy.com/davis/messages/37830.html 2003 follow-up Genforum post by James A. Davis.

• Family Records Indicate

• https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/LTR9-HN3