"James Lea was born in 1718 in King and Queen Co., Va., removed to Spotsylvania as a young man, lived there until about 1754, and after that date was in Orange Co., N.C., until Caswell was erected in 1771, and then until his death in Caswell County."
The identity of James Lea's parents and wife are disputed, as discussed below, although the evidence seems strong that he married Ann Herndon. James’ great-grandson, Solomon Graves (1784-1861), recorded in his bible that John Graves “married a daughter of James Lea, formerly of Virginia, whose name was Isabell Lea. James Lea, her father, married a Herndon.”[2]
"James Lea of Country Line Creek was among the first Leas to settle in the area, having entered in March 1752 one of the earliest claims for land [Report of Research on the Lea Family in North Carolina & Virginia Before 1800 by Ben L. Rose, p. 96]. From the fact that his son, Major Lea, declared in an affidavit that he (Major) was born in Spotsylvania County, Virginia in 1742 [ibid, p. 105], we deduce that this James Lea was in that county at that time and came to North Carolina from there. He became one of the larger land owners and quite prominent in the affairs of Caswell County, and as a result there are numerous references to him in the records of that county [ibid, pp. 96-98]. He was probably the James Lea who was appointed a Justice of the Peace is 1769 [ibid, p. 96], but he was almost certainly not in the Revolution. He may have been the James Lea who entered in 1773 a "claim against the public incurred in the late expedition against the insurgents" [Colonial Records of North Carolina, Vol. IX, 1771-11775, pp. 186-188], which meant that he may have participated in the colonial government's action against the Regulators of Orange Co[unty] NC in the late 1760's, which action resulted in the Battle of Alamance in May 1771. James Lea wrote his will in March 1771 and the will was proved in Casell Co[unty] NC in March 1792 [Report of Research, p. 98]. His estate was not finally settled until 1796 [ibid, p. 99], due probably to the fact that several of his children had moved to other states."
Rose provides this list of children of James and Ann (Herndon) Lea:[3]
See Rose [3] for the sources for the list of children and for tentative lists of grandchildren.
Will & Death
Last Will & Testament of James Lea[4]
Signed Orange County, North Carolina, 28 March 1771
Deposition Person County (?), North Carolina, 23 March 1792
Recorded Caswell County, North Carolina, 27 March 1792
His Will refers to:
"my true and well beloved" son William Lea
"my true and well beloved" son John Lea
"my true and well beloved" son Major Lea
"my true & well beloved Wife" Ann Lea
"the Rest of my Children"
Executors: "my true and well beloved Sons William Lea & John Lea & Major Lea."
Witnesses: Tho's Camp Jr, Henry Lea.
On 23 March 1792 at Person County (?), Capt. William Lea made oath that he wrote the Last Will & Testament of James Lea as the testator ordered, and saw James Lea and the two witnesses sign the same. Capt. William Lea does not state his familial relationship to James Lea.[5]
The Will was proved on 27 March 1792 at the Caswell County March Court 1792 by the written testimony of William Lea (23 March 1792 deposition, annexed) and was ordered to be recorded.[6] Major Lea and John Lea qualified as executors.
Final settlement, Caswell Co. April Court. 1796 [8]
Jacob Miles Jr.
Luke Lea, his voucher
Joseph Henderson (twice) voucher. [Later shown to be Joseph Henderson and Joseph Peterson.]
William Lea, by J. Lea voucher
Isabella Graves, voucher, Apr 27 1796 Isabella ack recpt of her portion.
Paul Haralson, voucher
John Lea, 2st legatee
Major Lea
Research Notes
Place Creation
Orange County, North Carolina, was created on 1752 from Johnston County, Bladen County and Granville County.
Caswell County, North Carolina, was created on 1777 from Orange County.
Person County, North Carolina, was created on 1791 from Caswell County.
Misinformation
Rose (pp. 7-10) [3] discusses the difficulty of Lea genealogy, including:
The number of different Leas with the same first name, which clerks dealt with through nicknames such as "James Lea of Country Line Creek".
["James Lea of Country Line Creek" does not appear to be a nickname, but rather standard legal language.] Spratlin-29 16:41, 12 August 2022 (UTC)
That several Leas did not leave wills.
Misinformation in DAR/SAR records and published accounts, such as Albert E. Casey's Amite County Mississippi 1699 - 1890, which, Rose calls "one of the most regular offenders in this regard … Casey recorded a number of his guesses as though they were facts and these guesses have been taken as facts by many persons working on the Lea lines." (See DAR section, below.)
Rose (pp. 12-13) [3] claims that while there "is much speculation about who was the father of James Lea of Country Line Creek, but, in the documents available to us at the present time [1995], there is not one substantial clue as to who he was. We know from his will that his wife's name was Ann".
An article in The Virginia Genealogist (Herndon)[1] begins:
"Through the cooperation of Miss Frances Powell Otken, of McComb, Mississsippi, and Dr. Albert E. Casey, of Birmingham, Alabama, who are appropriately recognized as the two most serious students of the records of the Lea family of Virginia and North Carolina, the compiler of this genealogy has been able to discover the source of the misinformation that James Lea who died testate in 1788 in Caswell County, N.C., had married Ann Talbert (Talbort, Talbot, Tolbert, Tolburt, etc.)."
The article goes on to describe an 1898 transcription error by genealogist A. Elizabeth Womack (herself a descendant of James Lea) and how the error spread, and then argues that "the evidence, though circumstantial, is overwhelming that James Lea married Ann Herndon", analyzing documents pertaining to land ownership, business interests, family names, and genealogical references.[1]
The birth year for this profile (as of 24 July 2019) appears to be from Ancestry:
Database, jimjessee (22 Apr 2010) and other sources. Thank you James Jessee!
James Lea bought 200 acres of land in Spotsylvania County, Virginia from Joseph Brock of St. George's Parish, Spotsylvania county, Virginia, May 1, 1739.
James Lea was granted 600 acres in Orange Co., NC, Lord Granville Grant#01263, March 3, 1752. This was later voided.
James Lea and Ann sold 200 acres of land in St. George's Parish, Spotsylvania County, Virginia to John Chapman, March 3, 1753.
James Lea was granted 520 acres in Orange Co., NC, on both sides of Country Line Creek, November 12, 1756.
Note: This list was followed by "Source: Wills in Caswell Co.; 1792 March, LEA, JAMES, Anne (wife); William, John, and Major." but it is doubtful a will included such details (especially for events after the date given in the source).
Two Families
Apparently two James Leas:
One with wife Anne Herndon.
One with wife Annie Tolbert. (It has now been proven that her name was Annie Bankston. (This is incorrect. Her name was Ann Herndon) There is a separate profile for the mysterious James Lea with wife Ann Tolbert dying in TN in 1788.)
The March 1784 date is for a power of attorney filed by James Lea and it specifies that he is the son and heir of William Lea deceased, insinuating that William died at some point prior to that date. James, who now lives in NC, needs to transfer a deed and sell a piece of property in VA. Witnessed by Herndon Harrelson. (In the list of sources: Deed Book B, Caswell County, March 10, 1784) Note: This power of attorney is attributed to James of Kilgore's Branch Lea and NOT James of Country Line Creek Lea
Profiles for two sons were also detached on 7 July 2019, but apparently were re-attached in a merge of profiles for James (and they are currently, 24 July, in merges proposed with duplicate profiles attached as sons):
Land record, originally published in Virginia County Records - Spotsylvania County, 1721-1800, Volume I, edited by William Armstrong Crozier. Remarks: James Lea of St. Geo. Par., Spts. Co., and Ann, his wife, to John Chapman of afsd. Par. and Co. 80 curr. 200 a. in Spts. Co. No witnesses. 6 Mar 1753. Description Grantor Book E.
James Lea, 5 Mar 1753. Location Spotsylvania County, Virginia. Property 200 a. in Spts. Co.
“May 1, 1739. Joseph Brock of St. Geo. Par., Spts. Co., Gent., and Mary, his wife, to James Lee of St. Stephen's Par., King and Queen Co., planter. £21 Is. 6d. curr. 200 a. in Spts. Co. Witness: Edmund Waller. May 1, 1739.” [Spots Co. Deed Bk. C p.299. Crozier p.147.[11]
[In the original it is spelled “Lea.” 200 acres in Spots Co. being part of a patent granted Larkin Chew dec'd Jun 4 1722, by him to Joseph Brock Oct 17 1723 being for 7420 since resurved by sd Joseph Brock and patented in his own name Sep 12 1738. Beg at stone by black oak sapling, S15E230 poles to two black oaks corner to Mr. James Stevens land then with sd Stevens line S66E98 to two small hickorys in sd line corner to John Talbert, with sd Talberts line N41E178 poles to two black oaks corner to sd Talbert in the line of John Macou then with sd Mycou's line N67W144 to stone corner to sd Mycous land then N48W to beg.]
[Larkin Chew’s large patent was on the headwaters of the Mattapony River near the Caroline Co. line.]
”March 5, 1753, James Lea of St. Geo. Par., Spts. Co., and Ann, his wife, to John Chapman of afsd. Par. and Co. £80 curr. 200 a. in Spts. Co. No witnesses. March 6, 1753.” [Spots. Co. Deed Bk. E p.102,; Crozier p.192.[11]]
[The original has the same land description as the 1739 deed and no witnesses, but also mentions that March 5 1753 James Lea acknowledged, witnessed by Richard Roaddus, Jeremiah Stevens, Richard Collins.]
DAR
A search of DAR's online records revealed three James Leas:
James Lea (before 1718-before 23 March 1792; born Virginia, died North Carolina) Civil Service/Patriotic Service in NC.[12]
Flag on file: "MAIDEN NAME OF WIFE, ANNE, CANNOT BE PROVEN AS TOLBERT OR HERNDON."
James Lea (c1720-1788; died North Carolina) Patriotic Service in NC.[13]
DAR Lineage book[15] shows a James Lea 1718-88 who was a private of the expedition against the Cherokee Indians under Gen. Griffith Rutherford of North Carolina. He was born in Virginia; died in Tennessee. Married Annie Tolbert.
The dates are quite different and this James Lea died in Tennessee, not North Carolina. This is probably the reason for the confusion of wives for this profile's James Lea. It would seem that he indeed married Anne Herndon.
Google Search
The following URLs came up in a Google search for "James Lea" +"Major Lea" (21 July 2019):
"Major James Lea (1760–1823)," Caswell County Genealogy (profile), James Lea, died 1823, aged 63 in Amite, MS. "Some researchers ascribe the title "Major," but without supporting documentation."
"James Lea (1707–1792)," Caswell County Genealogy (profile), James "Country Line" Lea. Lots of information with sources, citations, and explanations.
"James Lea of Country Line Creek," Lea Links To Caswell Co., NC: Will the Real James Lea of Caswell Co., NC Please Stand Up?, 28 October 2007 (http://lealinkscaswellco.blogspot.com/2007/10/researching-james-lea-of-caswell-county.html). Explains Major connection: "There are no records proving parentage for James Lea County Line. While the parents of this James Lea are unknown, the discovery of a baptismal record for a Frances Major, daughter of George Major is important.(NOTE: There is no known baptismal record for Frances daughter of George Major as this site claims exists but provides no evidence.) Long-held tradition and naming patterns suggest James Lea's mother had a maiden name of Major."
Ancestry.com, Frances Major profile. (NOTE; There is a baptismal record for 19 Nov 1698 for Frances Major, dau. of William Major in St. Peter's Parish, New Kent, VA. Source Citation for New Kent County, Virginia St. Peter's Parish Vestry Book and Register, 1684-1786; Ancestry Record Citation Details Associated Facts Media; New Kent County, Virginia St. Peter's Parish Vestry Book and Register, 1684-1786.)
↑ 3.03.13.23.33.4 Ben L. Rose, Lea families in Caswell & Person Counties, North Carolina and in Virginia before 1800 (Decorah, Iowa: Anundsen Publishing Company, c1995); hardcopy book, Family History Library (https://familysearch.org/search/catalog/745785).
↑ Daughters of the American Revolution, DAR Genealogical Research Databases, database online, (http://www.dar.org/ : accessed 21 July 2019), "Record of James Lea (a1718-a1792)", Ancestor # A067574.
↑ Daughters of the American Revolution, DAR Genealogical Research Databases, database online, (http://www.dar.org/ : accessed 21 July 2019), "Record of James Lea (c1720-1788)", Ancestor # A067590.
↑ Daughters of the American Revolution, DAR Genealogical Research Databases, database online, (http://www.dar.org/ : accessed 21 July 2019), "Record of James Lea of CT", Ancestor # A067592.
US & International Marriage Records (Herndon), Yates Publishing (Ancestry Online publication, 2004; APID 1,7836::0). Original data... extracted from a variety of sources including family group sheets and electronic databases. (is this a reliable source?)
Family Data Collection - Individual Records, Edmund West, comp. (Ancestry Online publication, 2000; APID 1,4725::0). (is this a reliable source?)
Ancestry.com Title: Virginia Land, Marriage, and Probate Records, 1639 - 1850 Publication: Name: Online publication - Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004. Original data - Chalkley, Lyman. Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, 1745 - 1800. Extracted from the Original Court Records of Augusta County. (which record?)
DNA Connections
It may be possible to confirm family relationships with James by comparing test results with other carriers of his Y-chromosome or his mother's mitochondrial DNA.
However, there are no known yDNA or mtDNA test-takers in his direct paternal or maternal line.
It is likely that these autosomal DNA test-takers will share some percentage of DNA with James:
The biography and comments by Kelly and Cynthia Forde on the profile for James "of Kilgore's Branch" Lea address the James Lea confusion and lack of absolute proof in a clear and understandable discussion. https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Lea-1502
The research of Richmond Frederick on Rootsweb database should be considered as a source linking James Lea "Country Line" as brother of William Lea of "South Hico," 1715-abt 1803 Person, NC (Lea-200) He details extensive research/records proving the "brothers" claim. Post: Name: caswellcounty -- Caswell County Family Tree.Updated: 10-14-2019 01:10:04. Owner: Richmond Frederick
There is nothing in this research that has proven that James of Country Line and William of South Hico were brothers. This is a compilation of previous research available at Caswell County and from Spirit in the South by Cynthia Forde. The parents of James of Country Line have yet to be proven. Thank you for posting anyway. Mary
So, the crux of the issue is which James? was brother of William "South Hyco" and sons of John and Ann Taylor Lea, of Kg & Qn. With your knowledge and research you do not believe there is proof the brother is James "Country Line Creek" whose parentage is yet to be proven. Cynthia Forde, "Spirit in the South," p. 341 (https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/viewer/361699/?offset=0#page=360&viewer=picture&o=search&n=0&q=country%20line%20creek) Forde stated "James, the son of John Lea and Ann Taylor, became known as James "Kilgore Branch." The data under "Two Famillies" profile above noted a Power of Attorney, filed by James Lea, stated he was son and heir of William Lea, dec'd... and further noted in the profile above "This power of attorney is attributed to James of Kilgore's Branch Lea and not James of Country Line Creek Lea." WHICH CONTRIDICTS FORDE'S CONCLUSION. The POA was located in Caswell, NC, deed Bk B, March 10, 1784 a PRIMARY SOURCE. If James of "Kilgore's Branch's" father was William Lea, per POA, then James of "Country Line Creek" had to be son of John and Ann Taylor Lea of King and Queen, Virginia. The expert researcher Katherine K. Kendall, also made this same conclusion, "Katharine K. Kendall provided the following (June 15, 1989). Note that she continued of the opinion that James (Country Line) Lea and William (South Hico) Lea are brothers." (https://wc.rootsweb.com/trees/117534/I1420/jamescountryline-lea/individual) The Bible records of Alexander Rose, at NC Archives Digital Collection, details James Lea of Caswell County was brother of Capt. William Lea, a PRIMARY SOURCE.(https://digital.ncdcr.gov/digital/collection/p15012coll1/id/57702) These sources are quite conclusive.
I have discussed the Ben Rose book with Cynthia and she has differences of opinion with his research.
It is well known that Kendall has many errors. And above all of them is Casey with errors. It is not wrong to assume that they were brothers, but to assume that their parents were John and Ann Taylor is incorrect.
There is still an ongoing issue with which James Lea was the one who obtained the Power of Attorney in 1784. At one time it was thought that he was James Country Line and not James Kilgore's Branch.
It is well known that the parents of James Country Line Lea are unknown so that also says that the parents of William of South Hico are unknown if you say they are brothers.
We have 3 James Leas in the same area and several William Leas. This has been debated for years and when you boil it all down, no one knows for sure. I am waiting on the Ydna studies from Cynthia to help make this more clear. I side mainly with Cynthia's theories over other researchers but she has changed them over the years. The issue is that WIKI Tree is about absolutes, not theories, so unless it is proven without doubt it is best to leave it off.
Keep up the good work on Leas,
Mary
Thank you, Mary, for further explanation. Yes, although primary records do exist, the interpretation of them is more subjective. the Ydna study would be very helpful. This line is very difficult no matter, for descendants even differ as to the parents. Hope Cynthia finishes her research with this issue. So many of early researcher of MANY Virginia lines had it wrong in early books. EVERY line I have researched for 30 years of both parents were wrong on Ancestry.com, per Ydna and colonial records! Even with Ydna many descendants still will not accept the results backed also by primary source records. I have never relied on others research I've gathered records at NC State Archives for proof and glad you two are of the same mindset. THANKS for further clarification.
Yes, it seems unlikely that this was a nickname applied to him during his lifetime. Unless anyone is aware of a source indicating that it was, I would delete it.
It is important to leave Country Line on. He lived on Country Line Creek. He has been confused with another James Lea who lived in the area. This is the only way to keep the two different Lea families straight. It has been used by researcher of this family for decades. It was just the Sr. that seemed strange because did not have a son name James.
The profile has: The number of different Leas with the same first name, which clerks dealt with through nicknames such as "James Lea of Country Line Creek".
I added an identity note above the Biography heading. I do this for often conflated profiles to more clearly identify the record (will, etc.) or other information establishing the person's identity. Also just added source with images for his Will and Estate File.
I understand this issue, and we definitely need to have a prominent disclaimer on the profile to flag it, but the WikiTree naming convention guidelines say that the name fields are not the place to do it. The naming conventions are here. In particular, there is a provision discussing personal coding systems like this, which says:
"Sometimes genealogists have their own coding systems for identifying or distinguishing individuals. These may be beneficial in personal research but on a shared website where we collaborate on the same ancestor profiles we should only use fields for their intended purposes, as described in this style guide."
Unless there is some evidence that he was referred to as "Country Line" Lea during his life, then we should remove that nickname to comply with the WikiTree guidelines. Ken has added a prominent disclaimer to distinguish him from other James Leas -- if you think we need to make that more prominent or add more detail to it, we can certainly do that too.
He was mentioned as James Lea of Country Line in court records as Betty mention previously. The clerks used this to keep them separated. Leave it alone Scott.
I completely agree with Betty. You have no idea of how confusing the James Leas of Caswell County have been to separate from each other without using a geographical distinction.
Have you ever done any research with Cynthia Forde or the Caswell County Genealogy? The old records did have notations by the clerks on the deeds to distinguish the James Leas living at the same time in Caswell County. Why is this such a big deal?
There are no valid sources for the exact place of birth for James Lea. His son Luke stated that he was born in Spotsylvania, Virginia in 1742.
There are no valid sources that prove James Country Line was the orphan son of John Lea and Ann Taylor, son of William Leigh and Mary Greene of K&Q.
There are no valid sources for his mother being Frances Major. I removed that link.
The FTDNA Big Y Lea Surname Study results are forth coming soon. Cynthia Forde will have a new book and these results charted out in it I believe. Refer to her blog Spirit in the South. link in bio above. Thanks, Mary
https://wc.rootsweb.com/trees/117534/I1420/jamescountryline-lea/individual
edited by Juliet (Adams) Wills
edited by Mary Gresham
It is well known that Kendall has many errors. And above all of them is Casey with errors. It is not wrong to assume that they were brothers, but to assume that their parents were John and Ann Taylor is incorrect.
There is still an ongoing issue with which James Lea was the one who obtained the Power of Attorney in 1784. At one time it was thought that he was James Country Line and not James Kilgore's Branch. It is well known that the parents of James Country Line Lea are unknown so that also says that the parents of William of South Hico are unknown if you say they are brothers. We have 3 James Leas in the same area and several William Leas. This has been debated for years and when you boil it all down, no one knows for sure. I am waiting on the Ydna studies from Cynthia to help make this more clear. I side mainly with Cynthia's theories over other researchers but she has changed them over the years. The issue is that WIKI Tree is about absolutes, not theories, so unless it is proven without doubt it is best to leave it off. Keep up the good work on Leas, Mary
edited by Mary Gresham
The profile has: The number of different Leas with the same first name, which clerks dealt with through nicknames such as "James Lea of Country Line Creek".
edited by Betty (Harrell) Gerlack
"Sometimes genealogists have their own coding systems for identifying or distinguishing individuals. These may be beneficial in personal research but on a shared website where we collaborate on the same ancestor profiles we should only use fields for their intended purposes, as described in this style guide."
Unless there is some evidence that he was referred to as "Country Line" Lea during his life, then we should remove that nickname to comply with the WikiTree guidelines. Ken has added a prominent disclaimer to distinguish him from other James Leas -- if you think we need to make that more prominent or add more detail to it, we can certainly do that too.
There are no valid sources that prove James Country Line was the orphan son of John Lea and Ann Taylor, son of William Leigh and Mary Greene of K&Q. There are no valid sources for his mother being Frances Major. I removed that link. The FTDNA Big Y Lea Surname Study results are forth coming soon. Cynthia Forde will have a new book and these results charted out in it I believe. Refer to her blog Spirit in the South. link in bio above. Thanks, Mary
edited by Mary Gresham