Nancy (Herd) Bowling (abt. 1790 - abt. 1850)

Wife of Eli Bowling — married 23 Jul 1817 in Clay, Kentucky, United States

Descendants

Died about 1850 at about age 60 in Clay County, Kentucky [uncertain]

Biography

Nancy was born about 1790^[1].

Nancy Herd is believed to have married William Wilson in 1812 in Clay Co., KY^[2]. Consent, however, appears to have been given by Uriel & Elizabeth Gibson^[3], teste. by William Herd.

William Wilson is taxed in Clay Co., KY through 1816^[4] when he disappears. The 1818 list shows a "Widow Wilson"^[5] which may be her.

She is believed to be the Nancy Wilson who marries an Eli Bowling in 1817^[6].

She is stated to have passed in 1850.^[7]

Research Notes

There are some issues to keep in mind when researching Nancy:

Parents

The FamilySearch Tree lists her as a daughter of a George Herd - no source is shown on the tree to verify this.

Her 1812 marriage record to William Wilson appears to show consent to be given by Urial & Elizabeth Gibson, however. It may be that she is a daughter of Urial & Elizabeth Gibson. It may be that she is a daughter of Elizabeth, wife of Urial Gibson, & Urial Gibson is her stepfather.

Further research needs to be undertaken to correctly identify her parents & source the connection.

Husbands

She is often shown as marrying 2-3 times.

• in 1812 to William Wilson
• in 1817 to Eli Bowling
• in 1837 to Eli Bowling^[8]

There is no source found showing this exact timeline:

• the 1817 marriage does not record her as a widow
• the 1837 marriage, also, does not show her as a widow (this 1837 marriage , however, is most often stated to belong to a different person - an Eli Bowling (1811-1880), who married a Nancy Bowling (1826-1880))

Her first husband, William Wilson, is found taxed within Clay Co., KY through to 1816 when he drops off record. A "Widow Wilson" is taxed on the 1818 list.

She is listed as marrying in 1817 to the Eli Bowling who passed in 1833. However, she may be the Widow Wilson from the 1818 Clay Co., KY tax list which calls this marriage into question - it may not be her.

It appears as if this Eli Bowling's wife, Sarah, did not predecease him - as a Sarah Bowling can be found taxed within Clay Co., KY from at least 1836-1845^[9] next to other Bolins attached as children of Eli Bowling. She can, thus, be found on the 1840 census of Clay Co., KY^[10] and signed consent for her children Mourning to marry in 1837^[11] & Blevins to marry in 1841^[12].

It would appear, at a glance, that she did not marry the Eli Bowling she is attached to.

Children

Blevins Bowling, previously listed as her son, appears to be a son of Sally, due to his mother, Sally Bowling, signing consent for his marriage in 1841. This Blevins, however, does appear to be a son of an Eli Bowling, as a Blevins Bowling is taxed in 1842 as a son of Eli^[13].

There is another Blevins Bowling who married Harriet McCollum in 1837^[14] - but this Eli is still married to Harriet McCollum in 1850^[15] so he isn't the Blevins Bowling, son of Sally, who married Nancy Lewis in 1841.

Nancy is also listed with a daughter, Lydia (Bowling) Herd. Lydia married Clem Herd in 1839^[16]. However, consent for Lydia was signed by her guardian, Jesse Roberts, Jr. If Nancy passed in 1850 and was, thus, alive when her daughter married, why did her daughter have a guardian? Lydia may not be her daughter. Or, she may not have passed in 1850.

Sources

1. ↑ A source for this information is needed
2. ↑ "Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q28L-PT5Z : Sat Feb 24 07:50:12 UTC 2024), Entry for William Wilson and Nancy Hurd, 09 Mar 1812.
3. ↑ "Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q28L-PTHR : Sat Feb 24 07:11:31 UTC 2024), Entry for William Wilson and Nancy Hurde, 09 Mar 1812.
4. ↑ Tax Lists; https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS3J-KS3N-V?i=186&cat=155110; Citing: Clay Co., KY Tax Lists (1816), Slide 187.
5. ↑ Tax Lists; https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS3J-KS3D-F?i=237&cat=155110; Citing: Clay Co., KY Tax Lists (1818), Slide 238.
6. ↑ "Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q28L-PG86 : Sat Feb 24 02:05:18 UTC 2024), Entry for Ely Bowling and Nance Wilson, 23 Jul 1817.
7. ↑ A source for this information is needed.
8. ↑ "Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q28L-5YQP : Sat Feb 24 07:50:58 UTC 2024), Entry for Eli Bowling and Nancy Bowling, 08 Jul 1837.
9. ↑ Tax Lists; https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS3J-KSQL-6?i=795; Citing: Clay Co., KY Tax Lists (1838), Slide 796.
10. ↑ "United States Census, 1840", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHYP-5YR : Sat Mar 09 15:36:11 UTC 2024), Entry for Sarah Bolin, 1840.
11. ↑ "Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q28L-PLC3 : Sat Feb 24 02:04:31 UTC 2024), Entry for William Sisemore and Mournen Bowlin Or Bollen, 16 Sep 1837.
12. ↑ "Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q28L-5352 : Sat Feb 24 07:05:01 UTC 2024), Entry for Blevins Boling and Sally Boling, 08 Jan 1841.
13. ↑ Tax Lists; https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSKW-P3MV-Y?i=44&cat=155110; Citing: Clay Co., KY Tax Lists (1842), Slide 45.
14. ↑ "Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9BG-Q95Z-2?cc=1804888 : 29 November 2018), > image 1 of 1; citing multiple county clerks, county courts, and historical societies, Kentucky.
15. ↑ "United States Census, 1850," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:S3HT-DY3X-P1?cc=1401638&wc=95R3-VZK%3A1031325101%2C1031325102%2C1031325103 : 9 April 2016), Kentucky > Clay > Clay county > image 18 of 118; citing NARA microfilm publication M432 (Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.).
16. ↑ "Kentucky, County Marriages, 1797-1954", , FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:Q28L-57C3 : Sat Feb 24 07:51:35 UTC 2024), Entry for Clem Hird and Lydia Bowling, 27 Feb 1839.