Stephen Langford (1789 - abt. 1871)

Born 1789 in Pickens County, South Carolina, USA

Ancestors

Husband of Jane Holcombe — married before 1810 in SC.

Descendants

Died about 1871 at about age 82 in Clay County, Tennessee, USA

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Biography

Stephen's father Eli received his first land grant in South Carolina of 272 acres just off the Cherokee Path, 2 Oct 1786, in what is now Pickens County, SC. Three years before Stephen was born, Eli had five grants along the Little Eastatoe Road in Pickens County 1786 - 1802 a total of 1600 acres. In 1802 a deed between Stephen Langford and Thomas Morgan shows that Eli had adjoining land. This is in Greenville County, SC, on old Hwy 25 near the Saluda Gap and the North Carolina line. Stephen with his brother James and father Eli Sr. moved to Wet Mill Creek area in Jackson County (Clay Co.), Tennessee before August 1812. We have wondered why Eli and his family left the SC/NC area to move to Clay Co., Tennessee. Clay Co. was formed later from Jackson and Overton. Upon examining the deeds that he received in Jackson County, Tennessee we see very clearly that it was to mine saltpeter. There was a great demand for saltpeter at this time as England had blockaded for several years and now the war of 1812 was going on. Saltpeter is one of the three main ingredients of gunpowder. Stephen received 2 land grants in August of 1812. Eli received 8 grants in January 1813 each of which included a saltpeter cave. Saltpeter was in such demand that merchants on the Cumberland River would accept it as payment for goods. Stephen, Eli and Josiah,(Josiah moved to his father’s place in Tn. from Illinois in the fall of 1814) received at least 20 different small land grants in the Mill Creek valleys. James was a teenager at this time and not old enough to get grants. The 1860 Census shows that Stephen and his oldest son Ervin had accumulated $250,000 worth of wealth. The war could have wiped out all of this wealth. Stephen’s descendants moved west to Smith, Sumner, and Trousdale counties. At this present time I find none of his descendents in Clay County. Today, 2010, there are Langfords still living Up Wet Mill Creek Valley. These are descendents of James, the youngest son of Eli. There have been nine known living descendents of Eli’s tied together with the FamilyTree DNA test. This confirms to us four of Eli’s Sons, Matthew 1775, Eli Jr.1777, Stephen 1789 and James 1797. This is Stephens eldest Son. A Brief History of Clay County, Tennessee by Landon B. Anderson - written about 1934 to 44

South of the McColgan place was the Irvin Langford farm. Langford married Parmelia, sister of Jacob Gates, and from their union were born three sons, Palo, Randolph, and Farlow; also five daughters, Belle, Mattie, Florintha, Beuena and Dappie. Palo married Miss Allie Allen of Sumner County lived on a farm for a few years and moved to Sumner County where he lived until his death. He was a splendid citizen, a high class gentleman with a lovable disposition and was the father of Judge Frank Langford, who has been for several years a prominent and efficient judge of one of the courts in Nashville, TN., respected by all high class people who know him. Randolph married Miss Susie Allen of Trousdale County lived on a farm located near Bennett’s Ferry and moved to Trousdale County where he lived with his interesting family until his death. Barlow was a prominent figure in Celina for many years before going to Nashville where he lived for a time with his sister, Dappie McMillin, before going to Trousdale County where he died a number of years ago. Belle married a man by the name of Smith; Mattie married a Mr. Stone; Florintha married Joseph Roberts (son of Baskie Stone and Jefferson Roberts), all moving soon after their marriage to a Western state; Buena married Mr. Noak of Lebanon, where she is now living; Dappie married Joe McMillin, (brother of Ex-Governor Benton McMillin) who lived only a few years after his marriage. They had one daughter, Joe, named after her father. Dappie, after the death of her husband, moved to Nashville and ran successfully a boarding house for several years. Her daughter, Joe, married C.H. Litterer, a gentleman of high order of honor and integrity, who was for many years prominent in the banking business and held other positions of trust and honor. Dappie and Joe are exceptionally fine women of the highest type of womanhood. They all live together in Nashville. They are an interesting, intelligent and lovable family.

Earl E. Langford January 22, 2014

Sources

• Lorenzo Dow Langford's "Recollections of a Methodist Circuit Rider" “The Great Wagon Road” by Parke Rouse, Jr. 1751 Map of Va & Md. by Joshua Fry & Peter Jefferson
• Jonathan B. Butcher, Registered Genealogist, Cary, North Carolina 12/1989
• NC Genealogical Society Journal Vol. IX,NO 3,August 1983
• SC Archives state grants 1786-Vol-13-p567, 1793-Vol-34-p77, 1800-Vol-46 p216, 1802-Vol-48-pgs-206/7
• 1802 Greenville Dist., SC, Reg. of Deeds, DB G -- 69, 70
• 1808 Census Greenville Dist., SC #128
• 1808 Buncombe County, NC DB b/28
• 1814 Buncombe Co., NC Db F102 & 103
• 1813 Nashville Archives, Jackson Co, Tn. 9863,9864,9865 8th Jan 1813
• Nashville Archives, Jackson Co, Tn. 9866,9868,9869,9964,9965
• 1815 Nashville Archives, Jackson Co, Tn. 15926,15927,15928
• Source: S-2067364542 Repository: #R-2139937017 Title: Ancestry Family Trees Publication: Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com. Original data: Family Tree files submitted by Ancestry members. Note: This information comes from 1 or more individual Ancestry Family Tree files. This source citation points you to a current version of those files. Note: The owners of these tree files may have removed or changed information since this source citation was created. Page: Ancestry Family Trees Note: Data: Text: http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=15300688&pid=418 Text: http://trees.ancestry.com/pt/AMTCitationRedir.aspx?tid=15300688&pid=390
• Source: S-2067364512 Repository: #R-2139937017 Title: U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900 Author: Yates Publishing Publication: Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004.Original data - This unique collection of records was extracted from a variety of sources including family group sheets and electronic databases. Originally, the information was derived Note: APID: 1,7836::0
• Repository: R-2139937017 Ancestry.com

Acknowledgements

• WikiTree profiles Langford-197 and Langford-190 created through the import of Ries - Kennedy.ged on Sep 26, 2011 by Cindy Davis.