William Joseph Little (1780 - 1859)

Born 1780 in Union County, South Carolina, United States

Ancestors

Husband of Elizabeth (Unknown) Little — married 1797 in Jackson, Georgia, United States

Husband of Mary (Johnson) Little — married 3 Mar 1825 in Jackson, Georgia, United States

Descendants

Died 1859 at about age 79 in Tallapoosa, Haralson, Georgia, United States

Problems/Questions Profile managers: Brenda Duncan [send private message], Lesa Little [send private message], Cheryl Little [send private message], and Reba Jean Ennis [send private message]

Biography

When Joseph Little was born in 1780 in Union, South Carolina, his father, George, was 45 and his mother, Mary, was 20. His birth may be as early as 1772, based on some sources

He married at least twice.

• Joseph's first wife Elizabeth died before he came to Carroll County. Her maiden name is not known.
• Joseph Little married Mary Johnson on 3 Mar 1825 in Jackson, Georgia, United States.^[1][2]

Fifteen children are accounted for, though some may have died young. Some birth dates here appear to be incorrect based on Joseph's age in 1850.

Joseph's children by his first marriage were:

1. Josiah Little mar Martha ___?;
2. Mary / Polly Little mar Asa Powell;
3. Nancy Little b. ca 1804 mar George Traylor;
4. Anna Little b. 1807 mar Joshua Roberts;
5. Arthelda / Athelia Little mar Hazlet Hines;
6. William Little mar Berchey Powell;
7. Theophelus Little (in TN in 1860).

Joseph's children by Mary / Polly Johnson were:

1. Joseph Cephius Little b. 1826 mar 1) Sarah Bailey, mar 2) Saphronia Sides;
2. Frances L. Little b. 1829 mar Amanda Holland, dau of Edmond Holland;
3. Exer / Exia Little b. 1830 mar Alfred Green (in TX 1873);
4. Thomas Jefferson Little b. 1831 mar Ann Taylor, dau of Dorey Taylor;
5. Elizabeth Little b. 1832 mar William D. F. Mann;
6. Elijah Little b. 1838 mar Mary Bentley;
7. John W. Little mar Mary "Mollie" Stockwell/Sockwell;
8. Mary Caroline Little b. 1843 mar Jesse A. Mann Jr.

Joseph Little Jr. was a physician. He practiced medicine at Tallapoosa at one time. Others of the children scattered to other states and not much is known of them. It has been established by genealogical research by members of the family that Jim Roberts, a vocalist on the famed Lawrence Welk show, is a descendant of Joseph Little Sr. through his daughter Ann who married Joshua Roberts.

He fought in two wars the War of 1812 and the Creek Indian War.

He was Sheriff of Jackson Co in 1815.

Joseph Little Sr. moved from Jackson County, Georgia to Carroll County ca 1828. He bought Land Lot #250 Eighth District of what is now Haralson County from William Porter 1 Dec 1827. Porter had drawn the lot in the 1827 Land Lottery of Georgie. (Book A, p 155, Carroll County Deeds and Mortgages.) This land is located near the Tallapoosa River, west of Tallapoosa, and some of his descendants still own part of the property. (1992)

Joseph Little can be claimed as one of Carroll-Haralson counties' earliest citizens. He was there some twenty-eight years or more before Haralson Co was organized.

Joseph served as Road Commissioner of Carroll County before Haralson County was established. He served on jury duty and as Justice of Peace. He married couples and signed various documents. James C. Bonner, in his book "Georgia's Last Frontier" stated that Joseph Little had a cattle brand with the letters J. L. He was a slave owner and had seventeen slaves at the time of his death.

Joseph Little was one of three men of the Eighth District who were recommended as suitable to superintend one of the elections in the Cherokee Territory following the removal of the Cherokees. He was recommended by Indian Agent Christopher Brown to Governor Gilmer 15 May 1831. (This item is from the Telamon Cuyler Collection, Hargrett Rare Book and Manuscript Library, University of Georgia Libraries, Athens, GA. Used by permission granted by Thomas E. Hamden, Head.)" See pg. 202 in "Haralson County, Georgia: A History" by Lois Owens Newman pub. 1994 by WH Wolfe Associates through the Carroll County Genealogical Society in Carrollton, Georgia. Library of Congress Catalog Card Number 94-71838.

The 1850 census of Carroll County shows Joseph Little age 70 years.^[3] Only a few of his children were at home in 1850.

His estate was appraised 12 May 1857. Appraisors were John Robinson, Josiah Goggans, Wyatt S. Moore, Jesse Mann, and Robert Kilgore. Seventeen slaves were valued at $8,000. William Walton JP recorded 3 Jun 1857. G. R. Hamilton, Clerk. Appraisal Book 1856-1864, p 13. Haralson County. (Book partly damaged by courthouse fire.)

He died in 1859 in Tallapoosa, Georgia, having lived a long life of 79 years, and was buried in Mount Zion West Baptist Church Cemetery, Tallapoosa, Haralson County, Georgia.^[4] However, the church cemetery surrounds the family cemetery of Joseph Little which predates the church for possibly 50 years or more. Some of the Little families still bury there.

From Find A Grave: Memorial #29558697 ^[4]

William 'Joseph' Little married first a unknown and they had the following children, Josiah, Mary Polly, Nancy, William L., Anna, Theophelus F., Arthelda (Arthelia).

He married second Mary(Polly) Johnson 3 March 1825 in Jackson County Georgia. They had the following children, Joseph Cephius Dr., Francis L., Exer(Exia), Elizabeth, Thomas Jefferson, Elijah Marion(Pitt), John W., and Mary Caroline.

He was sheriff of Jackson County.

He fought in two wars the War of 1812 and the Creek Indian War.

Following is an email that I received from Joseph Little's gggg-grandson.

William Joseph Little's first wife was named Elizabeth and she went by the nickname of Betsy. During the period Joseph Little was JP in Jackson County, GA many records of court decisions were witnessed by an Elizabeth Little or Betsy Little who was always available and had to have been his first wife. Sarah was a mere speculation by several researchers including Calvin Little. When presented with these primary source records, even Calvin has come around to accepting Elizabeth as Joseph;s first wife.

Also, you will find Joseph Little in in the 1850 census where he gives his age as 70. This is in agreement with the 1780 birth date on his marker.

There is also a great amount of controversy surrounding whether or not William was his first name. The only hint of this is the WM on his marker. Otherwise, because he was a Sheriff, tax collector and Justice of the peace for 30 years or so, he left a larger than life paper trail with his name. I every case that has been brought to light, he simply used the name Joseph Little on all transactions. Some people have raised the possibility that WM was stood for his Masonic Lodge tile, Worshipful Master. We will likely never know for sure, but one of my rules of Genealogy is that it is better to make an error of omission than commission. Omission errors are fixable. Commission errors will always be with us since they propagate through the internet at the speed of light.

William Gorman

Plano Texas

gggg-grandson of Joseph Little and his first wife Elizabeth.

Research Notes

There is a child Nancy Martha (Little) Knight (1821-1877) that is not included in the list of children above, but is linked to this profiles and is linked on the Find A Grave: Memorial #29558697 page. The birth location is different in many sources - North Carolina, South Carolina, or Georgia. With a birth year of 1821, she would be born quite a few years after the last child listed above with his first wife and the year is before his 2nd marraige.

Family Traditional Information

• William Joseph Little was said to have followed his Uncle, Col. James Little from Wilkes Co., GA to Jackson County, GA. This was told by Mary Jo Akins, among others in that area. His grand-daughter also wrote a letter in which she recalled that he was called ' Squire Billy Little'.
• The records of the Revolutionary War indicate that Col. James Little ordered a group of men, including his brother, William Little, to guard a crossing of the Edisto River in South Carolina against a group of Tories who were on the other side from crossing. The Tories slipped down- stream far enough to be undetected. They then crossed over, slipped around and attracted the patriots, killing most of them, including William Little, the brother of Col. James Little. Later in the War, William Little, Jr. was also killed . This was two William Littles who were killed in the War. Now this brings up some suppositions, This is the reason that I think William Joseph Little never signed his name using the name " William". His father and grandfather were both killed in the War and both were named William.

Sources

1. ↑ "Georgia, County Marriages, 1785-1950," database with images, (FamilySearch Record: KXJ1-8ZF : accessed 11 February 2023) FamilySearch Image: 33S7-8BZN-NSC Image number 00136, Joseph Little marriage to Mary Johnson on 3 Mar 1825 in Jackson, Georgia, United States; citing Marriage, Jackson, Georgia, United States, Georgia Department of Archives and History, Morrow, FHL microfilm 325,652.
2. ↑ "Georgia Marriages, 1808-1967", database, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:FWDD-TXH : 11 January 2020), Joseph Little, 1825.
3. ↑ "United States Census, 1850," database with images, (FamilySearch Record: MZYN-VSX : accessed 11 February 2023) FamilySearch Image: S3HY-DBBQ-MCG, Joseph Little (70) in Carroll, Georgia, United States. Born in South Carolina, United States; citing Affiliate Publication Number: M432; Line: 17;.

   Joseph Little M 70 years South Carolina, United States

4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} Find a Grave, database and images (accessed 07 June 2020), memorial page for Joseph Little (1780–1859), Find A Grave: Memorial #29558697, citing Mount Zion West Baptist Church Cemetery, Tallapoosa, Haralson County, Georgia, USA; maintained by Judith Greene-Little (contributor 46865053), headstone photo.

• 1790 US Federal Census
• 1800 US Federal Census
• 1820 US Federal Census
• 1830 US Federal Census
• 1840 US Federal Census
• Alabama, Homestead & Cash Entry Patents, Pre 1908
• Georgia Marriages, 1699-1944 (2nd wife)
• Georgia Tax Index, 1789-1799
• Georgia, Complied Census and Census Substitute, 1790-1890
• Georgia Property Tax Digests, 1793-1892
• U.S., Indexed Early Land Ownership and Township Plats, 1785-1898

Acknowledgements

Profile created by Reba Jean Ennis, Friday, February 6, 2015.