Robert Patterson's family needs some sorting.

Question

Robert Patterson has two wives and 26 children.  While it's not impossible that all the children are his, if they are, he was doing some amazing traveling back in the 1700's.  His children are born in Georgia, Virginia, South Carolina, North Carolina and Ireland (sometimes in the same year, but different states).  He dies in Tennessee.  Is anyone up for the challenge of straightening out what is probably more than 1 family?

Comments

The "Bicentennial History of Anderson County, TN, 1976 has the following information on Robert:

Born in Ireland 1720-1730

Married Elizabeth King in Augusta County, VA Nov 1751

Parents of  three children, all born in Augusta County:

William b. 1753

Robert, b. 1755

Catherine, b. 1757

Robert Sr. got land in Tennessee in 1792, died abt. 1795

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So now it looks like we might have 3 John/Roberts that have been combined.  Yuk.

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I have the exact problem with my line of Robert Patterson's out of Pennsylvania, Virginia, Ohio , Kentucky . I can't believe how many Robert Patterson's there were here in 1774 . And yes they all used the same names over and over . So the brothers would all have a child with the same name . A lot of my Line went by their middle name . A John Robert Patterson , would go by Robert . My son goes by his middle name . At one time there were five Robert Patterson's within 50 miles of Wheeling (West) Virginia in 1804 . So, good luck on this line of Patterson's . Surprised they (This and My line ) don't mesh somewhere . Regards , Robert .

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Kathy, I’ve looked at this profile before and thought: this is way above my pay grade, but I’m hoping this one can be worked out. I’ve been thinking that this Patterson family (maybe not this exact one) connects to my brickwall, Jeremiah Monroe Patterson (Patterson-12627). A Tennessee connection.

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I have the very same issue -- Robert.  I am also a descendant of a Robert Patterson from Pennsylvania into Ohio -- maybe.  We know he is in Ohio in 1850, 1860.  This is a good reminder of why just because a name and date matches (or almost matches) it might look like a good merge but it really isn't.

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My Robert Patterson is also a brick wall, Pip.  And, it's not above your pay grade now -- you're a zooming toward astronaut pilot.

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Well, I tell you what. Since there just might be a break through in this family for me, you tell me what you need help with, and I’ll be glad to give it a go.

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If you’d like to start looking at all those children attached to Margaret Baskin-83 for either duplicates or children who belong to some other Patterson family, that would help.  I posted my plan to detach her on the profile, so maybe someone who is actually connected to this family will help, too.  I have no dog in this hunt, although a number of early Augusta County relatives so some experience in those records,

Answer 1

Here is my recommendation:

I will detach Margaret Baskin from Robert Patterson and clean up Robert and his real family.

Margaret [Baskin-83] is a duplicate of Baskin-52, who is attached to the correct husband, but has only 1 child on that profile.  I will request a merge of the two Margarets and hope to enlist the help of the 'real' Margaret's manager.  .

I will look for duplicates among the children and request merges where appropriate.

Once I've done those things I will post a G2G listing any extra children Margaret has acquired and ask for help with them.

Comments

Excellent!  You get bonus points for taking on this task!  I just sent a message to the original profile starter and he may jump in there also.  I suggested that it would be a good idea to list the children and wives removed in Robert's bio until they are all sorted out into their correct families.

Answer 2

It looks like Robert and his family have been combined with the family of a different man named John Patterson, husband of Margaret Baskin.  Per Ancestry they were married in Ninety-Six, South Carolina (date uncertain but son William was born in 1777). John died in Elbert, Georgia in 1808 leaving a will which named wife Margaret, children William, Frances, James, Robert, Samuel, John, Elizabeth, Thomas, George, and Alexander. 

Image of the will is on Ancestry:

Author: Georgia. Probate Court (Elbert County); Probate Place: Elbert, Georgia

Ancestry.com. Georgia, Wills and Probate Records, 1742-1992 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.

Original data: Georgia County, District and Probate Courts.

Comments

Thanks, Kathie.  Now we just need someone to do the separation work.

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Detaching Margaret from Robert would be a start, but she also seems to have a lot of children attached that aren’t hers.  I don’t know if some belong to Robert and his wife.  Looks like Margaret has collected children that probably belong to a at least one other John Patterson - a Virginia/North Carolina one.

Answer 3

I found a DAR record for one of the sons (Robert Patterson born 1763). That profile had a source to a FamilySearch pedigree file that seems to be the source of 15 kids of this Robert (born 1727).

See https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Patterson-11337 for links.

Kids listed in the unsourced FS pedigree file for Robert (born 1727):

Joseph Patterson

1749–1810  •  LBBX-Q63 ​​

 

• Elizabeth Patterson

  1751–Deceased  •  LBBX-SG8 ​​
• John Francis Patterson

  1752–1818  •  LB1N-6J6 ​​
• Samuel Patterson

  1752–1836  •  LBBX-HL1 ​​
• James Patterson
• 1753–1853  •  LBBX-WMT ​​
• William Robert Patterson

  1753–1841  •  KLGC-8H3 ​​
• Frances Patterson

  1755–1853  •  LBBX-ZTD ​​
• Ann Patterson

  1755–Deceased  •  LBBX-9LN ​​
• Catherine Patterson

  1759–1806  •  LX7H-RT9 ​​
• Robert Patterson

  1763–1854  •  LBB6-PW4 ​​
• William Tryon Patterson

  1765–1838  •  LBB6-B1P ​​
• Elizabeth Patterson

  1766–1828  •  LBB6-554 ​​
• George Patterson

  1768–1864  •  LBB6-B12 ​​
• William Baskin Patterson

  1777–1854  •  LBB6-BFH ​​
• Frances Baskin Patterson

  1779–1853  •  LBKV-VBR ​​

Login to FamilySearch required to see more.

Comments

Thanks for looking Liz.  It's just amazing to me that just because a name matches, all of a sudden, the whole family matches, even if children are born in the same year but in different locales.

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it gets better (not)...

I've been working off DAR records trying to source existing Patterson profiles (making some progress).

I encountered a family... Robert b 1720 Scotland (DAR/bible) son of John & Jean Patterson (same page as bible transcription but...)

Will of John Patterson, dated Nov. 1755, names wife Jean & several sons, including one named Robert, and ONE grandson - John, son of Robert. Yet transcription of Robert's bible shows he had 4 living children as of Nov. 1755, so why name just John and not also grandsons Solomon and Josiah or granddaughter Lidea?

<sigh>

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Exactly   And born in Scotland , it would be unlikely for all inheritance to go to the oldest.