1. Claxton Family Updates
Current research on how we got to where we are today
Names in blue in this presentation indicate we have DNA on that line

2. DNA Project Overview
Currently we have 47 individuals who have returned kits
These represent 32 separate progenitor lines
Of those 32 lines, 7 lines match completely at the 37 marker level meaning there is about a 60% probability that they could have a common progenitor within 6 generations and the probability increases with each generation back
There are 3 lines which are 1 genetic marker off the main line in the first 25 markers
There are 2 lines which are 3 genetic markers off the main line
Of the remaining 35 lines, there is emerging a definite set of Clarkson/Clark markers with 3 family lines matching completely at 25 markers and 2 more lines being 1 genetic distance off that main Clarkson line.
To explain briefly about differing markers, for some of the samples which show the 1-3 marker differences we have definite paper trail documentation which gives them a common ancestor with someone from the main group, so in those instances, we KNOW that the mutations happened after that common progenitor. And when we look at the markers in which the mutation happened, we find that they are “fast changing” markers which can be seen to change from father to son.

3. DNA Project Overview, cont.
There is definite crossover between Claxton and Clarkson surnames
At this point the project results show that our geographic origins go back to western Europe, more specifically to the areas of western Ireland, northern Scotland, western France and the Basque area of northern Spain

4. Looking at the DARK RED color for our R1b1b2a1a group – the group in Ireland, northern Scotland, western France, and northeastern Spain

5. In the beginning . . . St. Louis Paducah
Migration into Tennessee came primarily from two states: Virginia and North Carolina. This map shows early migration routes (red lines). The Appalachian Mountains were a barrier to westward expansion and so – with one exception - we do not see lines going ACROSS the mountains. If you don’t understand WHY the mountains were a barrier, ask any big rig drivers who have had to go from NC to TN between OCT 2009 and March Notice on this map the red line coming out of VA into TN – if you are familiar with the routes of Interstates through this area, you will notice that this migration trail follows I-81 (or rather I-81 follows the migration trail!). But more importantly for our purposes here, notice the extension of that line which makes its way down through Charlotte Co., VA and into Granville Co., NC. Also notice that this major migration route carried people – our ancestors included – into Grainger Co., TN and eventually into Sumner, Smith and Wilson Counties in TN. Looking at this map it is not hard to understand why they wound up where they did.

6. Documentation Limits Sources for the information here include
Bedford Co., TN History Book
Wright Co., MO Family History Book
US Census Records except:
1890 which was lost for all states
1800 and 1810 which were lost for TN
Cemetery Records
Bedford Co., TN tax lists for 1812 and 1836 (only county records available for the early years)
Other county tax, deed, marriage, and court records for a variety of counties and states

7. Early Records – James Claxton
There is a 1765 Granville Co., NC County Court entry for Thomas Bryant who was ordered to care for “orphant James Claxton” until the next court when James is to be “bound out.”
People could be “bound out” as apprentices at least as early as age 9 and possibly earlier and until the age of 21
We next see James in 1769 in Granville Co. when he is listed on the tax list. So we are to assume that he turned 21 and was released from his bond by This would put his birth at about
This James is found in Granville Co. records through 1796 when we see him buying land from Joshua Bullock.
He is not in Granville records in 1798, but we pick up a James Claxton in Sumner Co., TN tax records in that year.
If James is “bound out” it means he was under 21 years of age and PROBABLY over 9 years of age, so his birth would have been between _____ and _____.
Charlotte Co., VA is only 12 miles “as the crow flies” from Granville Co., NC. John could easily have married in Charlotte Co. and then gone back to NC or stayed in VA and then moved into TN shortly thereafter. Assuming he married about age 21, that would put him b. about 1771.
Since James A. Claxton’s grandfather came from NC, that limits the number of people we can look at as progenitors for this line. James who is bound out in ____ is a possibility as is John who marries Frances Martin in Let’s examine these two possibilities.

8. Early Records – James Cont.
While we do not see James in census in NC, we do see Anson Claxton in the 1800 census in Granville Co.; more on this later
Additionally, we find an 1804 deed where James Claxton enters 45 acres of land in Granville Co. This is the last entry we see for James in Granville
By 1808 James is back in Sumner Co., in court concerning an assault on Alexander McMillan. James serves on several juries and then we see more litigation with McMillan, some of which involves Joshua Claxton and a land dispute

9. Early Records - James cont.
A year later, in 1809, we find James paying tax in Sumner Co. on 274 acres on Rocky Creek; he does not pay a poll tax which may be construed to mean he is over the age of 60. That would match with the age of the James in Granville who was “bound out” in 1765.
The next year, 1810, we find Joshua Claxton paying tax in Sumner Co. on 274 acres on Rocky Creek; he does pay a poll tax, so he is younger than 60 AND the listing for James now has no acreage but 1 poll – this could be where James is paying poll tax for another son who is over 21.
Then later that same year, on 3 OCT 1810, there is the marriage of Joshua Claxton to Susannah “Rice” (actually Ross) in Sumner Co. with James Claxton as bondsman
In the 1820 Sumner Co. census we find James with two males over 45 and a female over 45 in his household.
Six years later, on 30 NOV 1826, there is a record for James Claxton’s estate with John Shaver (possibly brother-in-law of James) as administrator; there is no will. Listed as a buyer at the sale is “Susan” Claxton – probably Joshua’s wife Susannah.

10. Early Records – James Summary
Summarizing this James:
– James is born
1765 Granville Co., NC – “bound out”
1769 – pays tax; bondage ended
1796 – buys land in Granville
1798 – a James pays tax in Sumner Co., TN
1804 – James enters 45 acres of land in Granville Co.; last record in Granville
1808 – James in court in Sumner Co. for assault on Alexander McMillan
1809 – James pays tax on 274 acres on Rocky Creek in Sumner Co.; no poll
1810 – James pays poll, but no acreage; Joshua Claxton now pays on 274 acres on Rocky Creek
3 OCT 1810 Joshua marries Susannah Ross; James is surety
1820 – James in census with 2 males and 1 female over 45
30 NOV 1826 John Shaver in court as administrator of James’ estate; “Susan” Claxton is buyer at the estate sale

11. James and DNA
Nothing conclusive is known about James Claxton of Granville Co. and our DNA project but . . .
There seems to be a close association between James and Joshua Claxton, an association which would indicate a possible father/son relationship
We have two DNA samples from Joshua descendants – both match completely on the 1st 12 markers
Both differ SIGNIFICANTLY from the “main” Claxton group of markers
More on the possible implications of these facts will be presented after our notes on John

12. Early Records – John Claxton
There is a John Claxton who marries Frances Martin in 1792 in Charlotte Co., VA. Though we have no record of a John Claxton in NC, Charlotte Co. is about 12 miles “as the crow flies” north of Granville Co., NC. Convenient.
In an 1889 Goodspeed biography for James A. Claxton of Wright Co., MO, it says his grandfather was a native of NC and that his father (James who married Temperance Rackley/Ratcliff) was born “on the road from NC to TN”

13. John Claxton – Sumner Co., TN
It is POSSIBLE that the John Claxton that we see paying taxes in Sumner Co., TN in 1799 is the same one who marries Frances Martin in 1792 in Charlotte Co., VA.; no documentation to prove it
In 1803 John is in Mero District Court (which served Davidson, Sumner, and Wilson Counties in TN) in a land dispute
John is being evicted from his land that he leased
The land is said to be in Wilson Co., but was originally in Sumner Co. – this places John in Sumner Co. in early 1799 for the tax list, but in Wilson Co. when it was formed in Oct (south of the Cumberland River)
John is still in Wilson Co. in 1809 when the court case is continued.

14. John Claxton – Bedford Co., TN
We then see John Claxton in Bedford Co., TN in the 1812 tax list, so somewhere between 1809 and 1812 he relocates to Bedford Co.
We find John in Bedford Co. in the 1820 and 1830 censuses, but not in the We find him in the 1836 tax list, so it is assumed he died between 1836 and An 1843 court case in Bedford Co. supports this assumption (see John, Jr. for further information)
The age bracket for John in these 2 census records would put his birth around – the right age to be getting married in 1792.
There are four Claxton males for whom there is acceptable documentation to say that they are sons of John. They are James, Isaac, David, and John, Jr.
Due to court house fires, Civil War destruction, and a couple of tornadoes, there are very few remaining documents from early Bedford County. It is this lack of records that makes it necessary to speculate so much about connections between the people there. Two early tax lists exist for Bedford Co. – the 1812 and Two destructions of census records for Tennessee have deprived us of this usually reliable source for the years 1800 and 1810.

15. John and DNA
ASSUMING that these 4 men are sons of John and looking at the DNA from the three for whom we have DNA, we can make the following conclusions:
James, Isaac, and David match closely enough to POSSIBLY be John’s sons
James, Isaac, and David do NOT match Joshua
Based on these conclusions and the apparent close associations of John, James, Isaac and David and the close association of James and Joshua, we conclude that James of Granville Co. and John of Bedford Co. are probably NOT brothers and POSSIBLY are not even closely related.

16. Four Sons of John So we have four possible sons of John:
James b in VA “on the road” between NC and TN which coincides with John’s appearance in Sumner Co. in 1799
Isaac b in TN lives two houses before John in 1830 census and is in Giles Co. in 1840 where we think John was when he died
David b in Wilson Co., TN where John was living at that time
John, Jr. who was sued by Thomas Parsons on behalf of John’s estate concerning land he had mortgaged which belonged to John

17. James b – son of John
James was b. 18 SEP 1798 in VA – d. 6 OCT 1871 in Wright Co., MO
His place of birth is listed as VA in census records which agrees with the statement made by James’ son James A. Claxton in the Goodspeed article that his father was born “on the road” from NC to TN
He married Temperance Rackley (also Ratliffe and Ratcliff) on 26 APR 1819 in Bedford Co., TN
Temperance was the dau. of Joshua Rackley (Ratcliff in the Goodspeed article) who was living next door to John Claxton, Jr., four households after James in the 1830 census
Temperance was b. 12 JUN 1804 in NC and d. 26 NOV 1877 in Wright Co., MO.
Both James and Temperance are buried in Durbin Cem. in Wright Co.
James is living next to John Claxton (Sr.) in the 1830 Bedford Co. census. Then in 1843, we see James in Bedford Co. Chancery Court being sued by Thomas S. Parsons, administrator of John Claxton’s estate, because James had apparently mortgaged the land he was living on to Benjamin Brown, even though the land still belonged to John Claxton. The court found in favor of Parsons.
There were two Seminole Indian Wars and some records have incorrectly listed James as participating in the Second Seminole War in , but by this time James was in Wright Co. and is well documented there and there are no military records to say he was ever in this conflict.

18. James – Military Service
He enlisted in Jan at Fayetteville, Lincoln Co., TN and was honorably discharged on 4 JUL 1815; this was the end of the War of 1812, but it was on this service that he applied for a pension in 1871.
He volunteered in JAN 1818 at Fayetteville, Lincoln Co., TN as a private in Capt. James Byrn’s company of the 1st TN Volunteers commanded by Col. R. H. Dyer in the Seminole Indian War. It was on this service that he received 80 acres of bounty land in MO about 1852

19. James – Military, cont.
In looking at James’ bounty land application, all documents EXCEPT the application itself show James in Col. R. H. Dyer’s regiment: on the bounty land warrant it shows Col. William Dyer’s regiment.
This is of interest because in 1871, when James applied for his pension for his War of 1812 service, his application shows that he was in James Burns’ company of William Dyer’s regiment of TN Cavalry.
His application for pension was rejected 10 JUL 1872 apparently because they could not find record of his enlistment under the name of Capt. James Burns.
We wonder if – after the passage of 56 years – James had confused the two enlistments or if the spelling of the name Burns/Byrns made the pension office miss the enlistment record.

20. James’ Residences
As a son of John, James would have spent time in Sumner, Wilson, Smith, and Bedford Counties in TN as he grew up.
In 1820 James and Temperance are in Franklin Co., TN where at least their first child (Richard ?) was born and possibly two others; Richard dies before they leave TN
By 1830 they are in Bedford Co. and remain there until about 1851 so the rest of the children are born in Bedford Co.
In 1851 James applies for bounty land based on his Seminole War service. He gets 80 acres in Missouri and sometime between 1851 and 1855 they pack up the families – all their children except Joshua Calvin who remained in Bedford Co. – and head for an area near Springfield in Greene Co., MO where they are living by 1855.

21. James’ Residences, cont.
They only remained in Greene Co. a short time and then moved to Elk Creek in Wright Co., MO by 1860 where they settled and raised their families.
Their daughter Elizabeth and husband Stephen Sanders and their family came with the Claxtons to MO, but Elizabeth didn’t like it there and returned immediately to Bedford Co.

22. James’ Family
Four of James’ children who stayed in MO had married before they left Bedford Co. These were Henderson, James Anderson, William Harvey, and John Wesley. They brought their families with them.
The other children, Noah, Temperance Adeline, Emily Adeline, and Margaret C., all married after they were in MO.
Son George Coleman, “Uncle Mike,” never married. He was a prominent farmer and had a lot of land on Elk Creek. He lived with his brother John Wesley’s family. He gave each of John’s children a farm of 40 to 80 acres and gave the youngest son, Charley, 120 acres – some of which was given to the Claxton Cemetery Association for use for the cemetery.
Many of the Claxtons in Wright Co. are buried in Claxton or Durbin Cemeteries.

23. Isaac – son of John Isaac was b. ca. 1800 in TN
Isaac can be traced through census records from and his children are documented in his estate settlement
He was in Lincoln Co., TN in 1820
He was in Bedford Co., TN in 1830 living two households before John
He was in Giles Co., TN in the 1836 tax list and censuses;
He owned land on Pigeon Roost Creek where the Parsons family also owned land; Thomas Parsons was executor of John Claxton’s estate
Isaac died there in July 1867
Isaac was b. about 1800 according to the 1860 census. He is listed by various spellings in the different censuses, but he can be found in census from In the 1830 census he is just two households before John, three households before James, and six households before John, Jr. All this would indicate close family ties rather than coincidence.

24. Isaac - Children
Isaac married Ann ? prior to 1828 when his first child, Sophia, was born; Sophia m. William S. Hyles
Three other children born to Isaac and Ann were
Milton Dudley m. first Jane ? who d. in 1868; then m. second Palestine Willeford in 1871
William Lane m Mary Ann Self, dau. of Isaac’s second wife
Susan Emma m. Simeon Gilmore in 1866
Apparently Ann died and Isaac m. Jane Self, widow of Owenby Self on 11 APR 1857

25. Isaac – Children, cont.
Milton Dudley enlisted 31 OCT 1863 to fight in the Civil War and suffered some serious health problems as a result.
His health problems may have been the reason that, when his wife died in 1868, he left the care of his son, Nathaniel Vandon, to his sister, Sophia, and her husband William Hyles.
Sophia and William had no children of their own, but in the 1900 census Sophia is listed as a widow in Nathaniel’s household and her relationship is listed as his “aunt.”
This census, the date of Nathaniel’s birth, 23 MAR 1863, and the fact that Nathaniel went by the Claxton surname, all point to Milton Dudley as Nathaniel’s father AND . . .

26. Isaac – Children, cont.
The other evidence for Milton being Nathaniel’s father is found in Isaac’s estate settlement
Isaac’s three living children are named
Two of Isaac’s grandchildren are named: William James and John Lane, the two children of Isaac’s son William Lane are named because William had been killed 12 MAY 1863 at the Battle of Raymond, MS
Grandson Nathaniel is NOT named, we assume, because his father Milton D. IS named.
When William was killed, Mary Ann then married Thomas Shadden and by 1880 they are in Fannin Co., TX, taking her sons William James and John Lane with them.

27. David – son of John
John Claxton is thought to be the father of David Claxton due to the following document:
In 1831 David Claxton made a statement to the warden of TN State Prison in Nashville on his admission to that facility. David’s statement said:
that he was born in 1801 in Wilson Co. and raised in Smith and Bedford Counties in TN.
that he had “6 brothers and 1 sister and his father and mother” still living in Bedford Co.
At that time, only two Claxton households were listed in the Bedford Co. census which had males old enough to have been David’s father
Most researchers believe that only John’s household has a Claxton as that oldest male, and remember John was involved in a court case which placed his land in Wilson Co. at the right time for David to be born there
SO assuming John to be that father, there are 6 Claxton males besides David living in Bedford Co. in 1831 who are sons of John. But which ones are they? That is the tricky part! More on that coming up.
The household of Isaac Claxton also has a male old enough to be David’s father, but Isaac’s age and children are known, and when we compare his census records from , it becomes clear that the “head of household” for each census is Isaac because the ages match. It is possible that the older male was Isaac’s father-in-law.

28. David - Residences
David is one of the more “colorful” characters in our Claxton clan
As already noted, much of what we can surmise about the Claxtons of Bedford Co., TN comes from David’s statement to the TN State Prison Warden whom David met because he had apparently been passing counterfeit bills in Bedford Co.!
David’s scars – which were noted on his entrance into the prison – seemed to indicate a somewhat rough life
But probably the best indicator of David’s temperament was that he served his 3 year term at the prison PLUS 35 days for BAD CONDUCT!

29. David - Residences David also moved around a bit
In the 1830 census when everyone else seems to be in Bedford Co., David and wife Rosanah (Moore) are in Cave In Rock, Gallatin Co., IL
They have been married about 3 years from what we know of the children
They have a son and dau. under age 5
We know where David was from so there is a corresponding gap in the ages of the children

30. David - Residences Four more children are born between 1837 and 1843.
Then somewhere between 1843 and 1850 David disappears
In 1850 census Rosanah is listed as head of household and 5 of their 6 children are with her (Martha Ann had married Alfred Knott about 1848 and they are living next door to Rosanah with their first son)
At first researchers were not sure where David had gone, but he was finally “found” in Montgomery Co., TN where “D. C. Claxton” had married on 1 AUG 1849 Eliza Taylor (the little matter of the wife and 6 children in Bedford Co. must have temporarily slipped his mind!)

31. David - Residences
By the 1860 census, David and Eliza with son Zachariah are in Lawrence Co., AR
That is the last time we see David – there is a family Bible record passed down through Zachariah’s family which says that David died in 1865 in TN
We need to insert a DNA note here, however. We have DNA from each of David’s marriages:
The DNA from the second marriage – from Zachariah’s descendant – matches the main Claxton line on all 37 markers
The DNA from the first marriage came from a descendant of Abraham, b. ca. 1828; it doesn’t match the main Claxton line AT ALL, and, in fact, it is in a DIFFERENT HAPLOGROUP (that group comes through the Scandinavian countries!) We really need to get DNA from another son of the first marriage because this looks more like a “non-paternal event.”

32. John – son of John
John Claxton (Jr. to distinguish him from his father) was b. 12 JAN 1804 and d. 10 AUG John (Jr.) is thought to be a son of John (Sr.) because:
John, Jr. is living four households after John in the 1830 census
Descendants of James (b. 1798) and John, Jr. who remained in Bedford Co. called each other “cousin.”
John, Jr. married Sallie (?) about 1825 and they had at least two sons and three daughters. Tombstones in Pisgah Cemetery near North Fork Church in Bedford Co. tell much of what we know about this family.

33. John – son of John
John’s first son, John Kimbro died at age 1, then came Elizabeth, Matilda and Sophia; Elizabeth died at age 21, and the others married
At Sallie’s death, John m. second Margaret Oakley and they had three more children: T. A., Cannon, and Joshua
John died 10 AUG 1869 and is buried in Pisgah Cemetery with others of the family

34. From Paper Trails to DNA
Of the four sons of John Claxton, we have DNA for three of them:
James through sons Henderson, John Wesley, and James Anderson
Isaac through sons William L. and Milton Dudley
David through Abraham, child of his first marriage and Zachariah, child of his second marriage
John, Jr.’s sons died with no issue
All of these lines show close matches with the “main” Claxton group with the exception of the line through David’s first marriage
In addition, there are other DNA samples that we have that also show close matches. We can look at these for the possible other two children of John.

35. Possible Sons of John by DNA
Avery b. ca. 1815, based on 1850 census which is the only one where we find him listed
He is a possibility for a son of John according to the DNA
There is a male in John’s household in 1820 and 1830 that matches Avery’s age
Avery married Leatha Nichols ca (based on age of children in 1850)
He had 5 sons and three daughters
Sarah
Salinda Jane
William Morgan
James Henry
John Wesley
Thomas Leander
Risden C.
Frances Catherine
By 1857 Avery is either dead or has left the family because by 1858 Leatha marries Isaac Boaz
After this marriage the family moves to Caldwell Co., KY to try to be in a neutral state during the war

36. Possible Sons of John by DNA
Solomon b. ca in NC. Although his DNA matches the main Claxton line, it is not generally thought that Solomon is a son of John because John was not in NC in 1802.
Remember, though, Anson Claxton was in Granville Co. in the 1800 census. Definitely a possibility as father of Solomon. More support for this theory shortly.

37. Possible Sons of John by DNA
Jeremiah – b – family tradition says he was b. in Bedford Co.
He is not found in the 1830 census, but we find him selling cotton in 1831 in Bedford Co.
He is on the 1836 tax list in the Farmington District of Bedford Co. which later that year became Marshall Co.
Also, in OCT 1836 Jeremiah’s wife dies; she is buried just inside the Marshall Co. line at Farmington
In 1838 Jeremiah enlists in the Tennessee Volunteers for the Cherokee Removal for 3 months
He marries again in 1846 and buys land in 1853 which he sells in 1856 and then moves to Henry Co., TN
His first 6 children were born in Marshall Co., but the 7th child was b. in Henry Co.
Though we list Jeremiah as a possible son of John, there really is no matching person for him in the 1820 census for John’s household; there is only one male in Jeremiah’s age bracket and that would more likely be John, Jr.

38. Possible Sons of John – no DNA
Jonathan F. b in NC is in the 1830, 1850 and 1860 Bedford Co. censuses. The birth date and location make him a possible son of John
In the 1830 census there are 5 males ranging from under 5 to and 3 females ranging from 5-10 to in addition to Jonathan and his wife who are 30-40
However, in the 1830 although Jonathan’s age matches the later censuses, his wife’s age does not match; it is possible that his first wife died and he remarried
We also need to point out that the male age COULD be a brother of Jonathan and not his son; we do not have enough information to determine which is correct
In the 1850 and 1860 censuses, Jonathan’s wife is Dorcas and he has a son, Andrew J. b. 1842
Wesley Claxton is found only on the 1836 Bedford Co. tax list. Nothing further is known about Wesley, but Wesley becomes a common name among the Claxton families.

39. Anson Claxton – John’s Brother?
We have Anson Claxton in only one census: the 1800 Granville Co., NC
Anson is b. between 1755 and 1774, but there are two sons and a daughter under age 10, so we believe he was born closer to the 1774 date than the 1755 (remember that John (Sr.) was b. between )
There is a female over age 45 in the household – possibly Anson’s mother or mother-in-law
We then fast-forward 9 years to 1809 where we find Anson in Sumner Co., TN buying 25 acres of land
When he came to TN we do not know but he pays taxes in (Thomas Claxton pays on the 25 acres in 1813)
In DEC 1814 he turns over possession of 25 acres to John Stamps – apparently Anson was moving
On 28 OCT 1817 we find Anson listed as bondsman with John Steele for the marriage of Hiram Claxton and Martha (Patsey) Steele in Christian Co., KY. This is accepted as evidence that Hiram is a son of Anson Claxton.

40. Anson Claxton – John’s Brother?
So Anson Claxton is thought to have been born about 1774
John (Sr.) was b. between
Remember Solomon and Jeremiah who did not fit in John’s 1820 census record?
Solomon was b. in 1802 in NC
Anson was in NC in 1800 and not in TN until 1809 – room for Solomon to be his son
Jeremiah was b. ca in TN
Anson was in TN by 1809, so again room for Jeremiah to be his son
Sometimes families tended to use either Old Testament OR New Testament names for their children (obviously this is not a RULE you can go by, but it happened quite often)

41. John and Anson – Brothers?
So if we look at the DNA
Hiram, Solomon, Jeremiah, James, David, and Avery descendants match on 37 markers
One Isaac descendant matches 24 of 25 markers
The DNA shows that there is a common ancestor for these people and probably not very far back
From the information we’ve found and the approximate date of birth for Anson and John, it is very possible that they were brothers. But who was their father?

42. TO

43. BE

44. CONTINUED . . .