William Benjamin Sellers Sr. (abt. 1710 - 1761)

Born about 1710 in Isle of Wight, Virginia

Ancestors

Husband of Sarah (Hickman) Dixon — married after 1740 in Edgecombe, North Carolina

Descendants

Died 3 Jan 1761 at about age 51 in Edgecombe, North Carolina

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Biography

Benjamin Sellers Sr. was a North Carolina colonist.

William "Benjamin" Sellers was born in 1717 in Bertie, North Carolina, his father, Matthew, was 27 and his mother, Catherine, was 19. He married (1) Marie Unknown Bef. 1736 in North Carolina. She was born Abt. 1710 in North Carolina, and died Bef. 1745 in North Carolina. He married (2) Sarah Hickman Abt. 1740 in Edgecombe County, North Carolina. She was born Bet. 1724 - 1728 in Edgecombe County, North Carolina, and died 1816 in Edgecombe County, North Carolina. He had five sons and two daughters with Sarah Hickman between 1739 and 1747. He died on January 3, 1761, in Edgecombe, North Carolina, at the age of 44.^[1] After Benjamin's death, Sarah (Hickman) Sellers married Thomas Dixon June 17, 1763 in Edgecombe County, North Carolina.^[2]

Birth and Early Years

William "Benjamin" Sellers, Sr. was born around 1710 in Isle of Wight, Virginia. His parents were Matthew Sellers and Catherine Jordan de Vatin.^[3][4] He was known as "Benjamin," although his given name was William Benjamin. His name is referred to alternately as William or Benjamin in various records^[5][6]

Benjamin's parents migrated to North Carolina before 1725,^[7] and this is where Benjamin spent part of his early years, in Chowan County (later reformed as Bertie County), near the Virginia border.^[3]

Marriages and Family

Before 1736, he married a lady named Marie (born ~1710 in North Carolina and died before 1745 in North Carolina).^[5] After Marie's death, he married Sarah Hickman in Edgecombe County, North Carolina.^[5] There is a great deal of debate among Sellers researchers about the distribution of Benjamin's children between his two wives. Descendant Evan Sellers believes Marie to be mother of the first three children (Elisha, James, and William Benjamin, Jr.); the others were a product of the union of Benjamin and Sarah.^[5]

Here is a list of all of Benjamin's children:^[5][7][4]

1. Elisha (1735-1801)
2. James (1737-1790)
3. William Benjamin, Jr. (1740-1817)
4. Matthew (1743-1807)
5. Henry (1744-1761)
6. Joel (1745-1813)
7. Mary Penelope (1746-1820)
8. Jechonias (Sion) (1747-1813)
9. Simon (1748-1816)
10. Sarah (1749-1763)
11. Mary Unity (1750-1781)

Land Transactions

By Feb 1740, Benjamin had moved to Edgecombe County, as indicated by a deed from Benjamin Sellers to Benjamin Hill, selling 50 acres of land on the south side of the Meherin River and Kirby Creek "that my father Matthew Sellers bought of Benjamin Foreman whereon my mother now lives and the other 50 acres which my father bought of John Mohere and also 170 acres patented in my father's names all the said lands joining together."^[3][8]

On 25 Mar 1743, he acquired 200 acres of land on South side of Swift Creek in Edgecombe County, North Carolina.^[9]

Death

Benjamin Sellers passed away during 1761, after his will was written on 3 Jan 1761, in Edgecombe County. The location of his grave is unknown.^[10]

Will of Benjamin Sellers

The original will of Benjamin Sellers is dated 3 Jan 1761,^[11] and it was probated in 1761, Edgecombe County, North Carolina. A will transcript is also available.^[3]

Abstract of Will of Benjamin Sellers:

Sarah (wife) - use of plantation which I now live upon during her life

Sons:

Simon - plantation and 200 acres of land

Jechonias - plantation if Simon dies with no heir

Elisha - five shillings

Benjamin - five shillings

Wife and William Dortch - executors

In the June 1762 session of the Edgecombe Co. Court, Benjamin's "orphans" Matthew, Jechonias, and Joel chose their mother Sarah Sellers as their guardian. The court also appointed Sarah as the guardian of Simon and Mary Sellers. In the April 1764 session, the court was notified that Thomas Dixon had married Sarah Sellers, Benjamin's widow and guardian to the children. In the October 1764 session, Joel Sellers was bound out to Kindred Carter.^[3]

Research Notes

• Mary Hardy, attached to this profile as Benjamin's first wife, has not been proven. The name is found in a few family trees, but no reliable source record has been found.
• It was long believed by many that the father of Elisha Sellers was a "William Sellers of Tarboro," who allegedly went from there to what is today Brunswick Co., North Carolina around 1750 and raised a large family of mostly sons. It is a claim based on family tradition, not the evidence. The problem stems from an error in W.W. Sellers' History of Marion Co., South Carolina (pub. 1901). But "William Sellers of Tarboro" and Benjamin Sellers were one and the same. Benjamin's 1761 will, in which he names Elisha his son, is the key to this issue.^[12] More information is available.^[13]
• Although his full name was William Benjamin Sellers, he went by Benjamin. He is alternately referred to as William or Benjamin in various records. Sarah Hickman was Benjamin Sellers' second wife. His first wife was (possibly) Marie, whose maiden surname is unknown at this time. There is a great deal of debate among Sellers researchers about the distribution of William Benjamin's children between his two wives.
• Carlisle-Faulk family Matthew Sellers: Genealogy online
• According to Genealogy online, Benjamin Sellers was the son of Matthew Sellers. Matthew Sellers had a relationship with a woman named Catherine (last name unknown at this time). Matthew Sellers was born 1690,which is impossible. It was more likely 1680. Matthew Sellers died ??-02-1739/1740 in Bertie County, North Carolina.

Sources

1. ↑ Find a Grave Index [1]
2. ↑ [2]
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4} Matthew Sellers Descendancy The J. Thomas Buchanan Genealogical Database (accessed 27 Dec 2020)
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} Benjamin Sellers Profile Family Tree Maker user home page for Edwin-C-Hudson-GA (accessed 27 Dec 2020)
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4} Evan Sellers' Family Tree and Notes (accessed 27 Dec 2020)
6. ↑ Sellers Family.FBK.FTW
7. ↑ ^{7.0 7.1} Family Tree Maker: Descendants of William Sellers (accessed 27 Dec 2020)
8. ↑ Edward Thomas Ray Descendants.FTW
9. ↑ North Carolina Land Grant Files Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Land Grant Files, 1693-1960 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2016. Original data:North Carolina Land Grants. Microfilm publication, 770 rolls. North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, North Carolina.
10. ↑ Find A Grave: Memorial #82281579 William Benjamin Sellers Sr.
11. ↑ Original Will of Benjamin Sellers Wills, 1663-1978; Estate Papers, 1748-1917 (Edgecombe County, North Carolina); Author: North Carolina. Division of Archives and History; Probate Place: Edgecombe, North Carolina. Source Information: Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1665-1998 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.
12. ↑ Notes posted on this profile by a prior researcher.
13. ↑ Additional Information about "William Sellers of Tarboro" (accessed 29 Dec 2020)

See also:

• [Sellers Family.FBK.FTW] History of the Sellers Family (Excerpted from a work compiled by Edith Odom -- McKenzie People)
• William Benjamin Sellers, Sr. - LK16-92F FamilySearch.org

Acknowledgements

• This person was created through the import of Holler 14 Feb 2010.ged on 26 April 2010.
• https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/82281579/william-benjamin-sellers