| ASHLEY |
The following is a register report. Use your browser edit/find to search for specific names.
All the following are real persons (except where identified otherwise), and all are
close relatives of my grandmother Amanda Becky Ashley. What is unknown is
which of these men is her father. -JR
DESCENDANTS OF WILLIAM ASHLEY
1. William ASHLEY b. ?, m. cir 1811, Della (Delila,Delia) _____, b. cir
1794. William died cir 1835. A William Ashley was listed on the 1830
Madison Co. GA census. Delila Ashley was listed in 1840. The
conjecture is that William was Delila's husband and died between 1830
and 1840 and left her as head of household.
Della: Wm. R. Ashley's will provides Della and her husband with a
place to live (which they cannot sell or lease) and an annual allowance
of food products, but no cash.
Children:
2. i William R. ASHLEY b. cir 1812, d. 1 Apr 1852,
Manatee(Manatee)FL. This birthdate is a guess, assuming that he was an
older brother to Moses. His will is listed in Greene Co. AL will book
C,p.308. His will identified no one as wife or children. He owned 80
acres of land in Talladega Co. which he willed to his brother Samuel S.
Ashley, with the stipulation that his mother Della Smith and her
husband Sion Smith retained use of the upper 40 acres during their
lifetime. He required that his slaves be sold without separation.
+ 3. ii _____ ASHLEY b. cir 1813.
+ 4. iii Moses ASHLEY b. 25 May 1814.
+ 5. iv Samuel S. ASHLEY b. cir 1823.
+ 6. v _____ ASHLEY b. cir 1829.
Second Generation
3. _____ ASHLEY b. cir 1813, m. cir 1835, in Madison Co. GA, Sarah
_____, b. cir 1814. This is a presumed deceased Ashley who could have
been the husband of Sarah Ashley to explain her having sons named
Ashley. It also fills the empty years of Delia's childbearing years.
Birth date a guess based on Sarah's son's age. This dating adds weight
to Sarah being a (former?) wife to William rather than to a deceased
brother.
Sarah: Sarah is mentioned in Wm. R. Ashley's will as living in Madison
Co. GA in 1852. Her relationship is not given. Guessed to be the
widow of a deceased brother. She could have been Wm.'s estranged or
divorced wife, except that her sons are identified as "her" sons and
not his. Their marriage in Madison Co. GA is also a guess.
Children:
7. i James ASHLEY b. cir 1835. He may have been the James living
with Delia and Sion Smith in 1850. He inherited Wm. R.'s silver watch
in addition to sharing the cash proceeds with his cousins. He would
have been 26 when Amanda B. was born. He could well have been involved
in the Civil War.
8. ii George Wesley ASHLEY b. ?. He is mentioned in Wm.R.'s will
as and heir and a son of Sarah. He does not appear in a known census,
but is listed after his brother James and is presumed younger. He is a
possibility as a father for Amanda B. He may have remained in Madison
Co. GA. He was probably involved in the Civil War.
4. Moses ASHLEY b. 25 May 1814, SC, m. (1) 16 Dec 1833, in Madison Co.
GA, Pamela MITCHEL, b. ?, m. (2) 13 Jan 1853, in Greene Co. AL, Nancy
LAY, b. 1822, m. (3) aft 1862, Annie R. _____, b. 8 Apr 1832, SC, d. 29
Jul 1908, Anniston(Calhoun)AL, buried: Hillside
Cmty,Anniston(Calhoun)AL. Moses died 5 Jun 1883, Anniston(Calhoun)AL,
buried: Hillside Cmty,Anniston(Calhoun)AL.
His age shown on 1850 Green Co. census agrees with birthdate shown in
John T. Robertson's memo book.
Nancy is believed to be Moses second wife, per comment in MOS51.
Wm. R.'s will again mentions him as a resident of Greene Co. in 1852.
He would have been 47 when Amanda B. was born.
Tuscaloosa Co. marriages show a wedding in the home of a Moses Ashley
in July 1876. A Moses Ashley is listed as a member of Grants Creek
Church from 1877 to 1880 when he moved his membership.
An Ann R. Ashley is shown as a member a year earlier, but moved her
membership the same year Moses did. When Moses died in 1883, he was
buried on John T. Robertson property at Anniston. A memorial stone to
Annie R. Robertson (8 Apr 1832/19 Jul 1908) was next to his grave (not
necessarily her burial place). Although 18 years younger than Moses,
it is not unreasonable to assume that she was his third wife. Annie R.
would have been 29 when Amanda B. was born. The stone in memory of her
on the John T. Robertson homeplace was a noticeably larger one than
that for Moses who had died some 25 years earlier.
Moses stone has the word "Father" carved in the top surface. Amanda
B.'s youngest daughter, born in 1903 (20 years after the death of Moses
and 5 years before Annie's and Amanda's deaths in 1908), was named Ann
Moses Robertson. While it is difficult to explain why Moses
relationship to Amanda is very vague (maybe a favorite uncle), for now
he remains the most likely candidate to be her father. If that is
true, it is most likely that her mother was Nancy Leigh. It is even
more probable that, regardless of relationship, Moses and Annie R.
Ashley were the only parent figures that Amanda ever knew.
Another individual who may have a part to play is William Henry Wood,
who was John T. Robertson's witness at his marriage, who is buried
head-to- foot with John T. at Grant's Creek, and whose wife Margaret
was a year younger than Amanda B. (a sister?)
It is possible that the Samuel Ashley who was married in the home of
Moses Ashley on 26 July 1876 was his own son, named after his brother,
and born after the 1850 census. It is also possible that his wife
Rebecca M. was an Ashley by marriage only. It is interesting to note
that she and Ann R. Ashley were both shown as new members of Grants
Creek Church in 1876. Moses and Ann R. left in 1880, and Rebecca M.
left in 1881, all "moving their letter".
When Moses died in 1883, he was buried on John T. Robertson's property
on the western outskirts of Anniston AL. He was reburied in the Will
Robertson plot in Hillside Cemetary. Annie R.'s memorial stone was
also relocated there. It is not clear that her remains were involved
in either location of her memorial stone.
An additional Ashley still lived in Tuscaloosa around 1930: M.D.
Ashley, 3409 5th St., phone 1373. This person would have been a
relative of Amanda's in some way.
Pamela: Nancy is believed to be Moses' second wife, requiring an
unknown first wife.
Nancy: Mrs. Marie Bruce, 800 4th St SW, Appt. N118, Washington, DC, a
descendent. Nancy was named as Moses second wife.
Annie: Annie's being a 3rd wife to Moses is pure supposition, but not
an unreasonable one. Her "marriage" date is based on another
supposition that she was not Amanda B. Ashley's or Margaret's mother.
Children by Pamela MITCHEL:
9. i Joseph ASHLEY b. 1848. Joseph is shown in the 1850 Green Co.
census in Moses' household. He is presumed the son of Nancy, but may
be a son by the first wife. Named as Moses' son and an heir in William
R. Ashley's will.
Children by Nancy LAY:
10. ii Samuel ASHLEY b. cir 1856, m. 26 Jul 1876, in Tuscaloosa Co.
AL, Rebecca M. _____, b. cir 1856.
This is pure supposition: that the Samuel Ashley who was married in
the home of Moses Ashley in Tuscaloosa was his son, named after his
brother. It is equally possible that Rebecca M. could have been his
daughter, but that presents the problem of Ashley marrying Ashley.
The birth dates for Samuel and Rebecca is a guess consistent with
his being Moses son and with a first marriage in 1876.
John T. Robertson's circa 1930 memo book had an address for a Sam
Ashley in Soso MS. Ashleys still live in that area in 1996.
Rebecca: A Rebecca M. (Ashley?) married a Samuel Ashley in Moses
Ashley's Tuscaloosa County home on 26 July 1876. It is pure
supposition that Samuel was his son. The birth date is a guess
consistent with that for her husband. If Rebecca's maiden name were not
Ashley, it may have been M_____.
11. iii Amanda Rebecca ASHLEY b. 4 Jul 1861, d. 16 Dec 1908,
buried: Grant's Creek Cmty(Tuscaloosa)AL. This is pure supposition.
Perhaps the strongest argument against Amanda B. being the daughter of
Moses is that if it were true, why is it not common knowledge?
She married John Thomas ROBERTSON.
A gravestone on their own land saying "Father" on it is fairly strong evidence.
Her youngest was named Joe, perhaps named for an uncle Joseph. She died 5
months after Annie R. and could have been responsible for obtaining AR's
memorial stone, the largest in this family.
12. iv Margaret ASHLEY b. 1862. This is pure supposition to point
out that William Henry Wood's wife might well have been Amanda B.'s
sister. She also could have been Annie R.'s daughter by a previous
marriage (and thereby a possible step-sister to Amanda). Amanda and
Margaret are buried head-to-foot in Grants Creek Cemetary.
5. Samuel S. ASHLEY b. cir 1823, m. 1839, in Madison Co. GA, Jane
CRESWELL, b. cir 1823.
Shown living next door to Tabitha Ashley (who lived next door to Delia
Smith) in the 1840 Talladega Co. AL census. Specified in Wm. R.'s will
as his brother, and mentioned as a resident of Benton Co. AL.
He would have been 46 when Amanda B. was born.
A Samuel Ashley (probably not this one) married Rebecca M. (Ashley?)
in the home of Moses Ashley in 1876. This SSA would have been 53 at
the time of that marriage, so it is probable that this was another
Samuel born cir 1856.
Jane: Named in Madison Co. GA marriage records as marrying Samuel
Ashley in Jan 1839. Was married in January.
Children:
13. i Moses ASHLEY b. cir 1841. He was not listed as an heir in
William R. Ashley's will, but his father was. He is shown in Samuel's
household in Talladega county in 1850. He would have been 20 when
Amanda B. was born. He is likely to have been involved in the Civil
War.
14. ii William ASHLEY b. cir 1843. He was not listed as an heir in
William R. Ashley's will, but his father was. He is shown in Samuel's
household in Talladega county in 1850. He would have been 18 when
Amanda B. was born. He is likely to have been involved in the Civil
War.
15. iii Taylor ASHLEY b. cir 1847. He was not listed as an heir in
William R. Ashley's will, but his father was. He is shown in Samuel's
household in Talladega county in 1850.
6. _____ ASHLEY b. cir 1829, m. Tabitha _____, b. cir 1829. This is a
presumed deceased Ashley son to explain Tabitha living alone with a son
named Ashley in the 1840 Talladega census. It also fills the empty
years of Delia's childbearing.
Tabitha: Tabitha may have been a daughter whose husband had left her
or she may have been the widow of an Ashley son. Her relationship is
not given. She lived alone with her son next door to Delia and Sion
Smith in the 1850 Talladega Co. AL census.
Children:
16. i Marcus ASHLEY b. cir 1845. Named as an heir in Wm.R.
Ashley's will.
Margaret Oliver Stevens and Henry T. Poole provided most of the data on which the preceding conjectural Ashley family is based.
Other researchers possibly having connections are : Dennis Smith, 76264.1471
and Glenn Selch, 75713.2566
Please report any additions or corrections to John Robertson.
© 1996 by John Robertson; all rights reserved. All material provided is copyrighted to the public domain for non-commercial, non-profit use only. Commercial use of this information is strictly prohibited without prior permission of the/all author(s). If copied, this copyright notice must appear with the information.