CRAWFORD

Table 7
Children of John and Priscilla Crawford

  Name            Birth1         Death        Spouse

 1. James         ca. 1790       1868         Harriett       
 2. Lucretia      ca. 1790       after 1850   Thomas Morgan
 3. John          ca. 1792       ?            Nancy Wheeler
 4. Gideon        ca. 1795       1873         1st: Sarah Burgess
                                              2nd: Orenna/Renay Stone/Slone
 5. Civility      ca. 1799       ?            John Bennett
 6. Martha        ca. 1800       after 1850   Joseph Hitchcock
 7. Ruebin        29 Feb 1801    26 June 1887 Anna        
 8. Thomas        ca. 1803       1886         Mary Ann        
 9. Ezekiel       ca. 1805       1888         1st: Margaret        
                                              2nd: Amy        
10. William       8 Aug 1806     26 May 1895  Nancy Lee
11. Daughter      ca. 1810       ?            ?

1 The birth order presented here is estimated and uncertain.

A Profile of John Crawford
Only a brief profile of John Crawford can be developed since so little about him is known definitely. A summary of what is known about John Crawford is:

- he was probably born about 1765, since he first appeared in legal records 
     in 1785 and his oldest son was born in 1789 or 1790;
- he was probably born in Georgia;
- he was living in Georgia by 1785;
- he had a brother named James, probably had a brother named William,
      and may have had brothers named Alexander and Henry;
- he married Priscilla prior to about 1789 or 1790; 
- Priscilla may have been related to the Mallette family;
- he and Priscilla had seven sons and probably four daughters; and,
- John Crawford died prior to 1820.

John Crawford's Predecessors
Some evidence exists that provides hints that may lead to John Crawford's parents and predecessors. None of these leads constitute certain proof. The first lead is that a Thomas Crawford was granted land in Effingham County in 1769 and again in 1771 [20, 21]. The origins of this Thomas Crawford are unknown, although there is speculation that he is from South Carolina or Virginia [18]. No basis is given for the speculation. In one document claiming land, he lists himself as having one son [20]; in another, he lists himself as having five sons and a daughter [21]. Since land was granted based on the number of children, Thomas may have, in the first instance, only wanted the amount of land that one child enabled him to claim. In the second instance, he may have wanted more land, thereby listing a larger number of children. However, he disappears from the record in Effingham County in 1771, and his grant lapsed some time after that [83]. A second, and very promising, lead depends upon the hypothesis that John Crawford did have a brother named William. According to a correspondent [82], William H. Crawford was married to Martha Bailey, who remarried Richard Touchstone after the death of William. William was born in St. Frederick's Parish [probably Prince Frederick's Parish], South Carolina, in about 1749. His father was Thomas Crawford, who was born about 1720 in Virginia and who was married to Lucretia. This Thomas Crawford may be the Thomas Crawford mentioned in the previous paragraph. This correspondent had no information about any siblings of this William Crawford. This hypothesized link between Thomas and Lucretia Crawford with John Crawford gains some credence when one considers that John Crawford had a daughter with the somewhat unusual name, Lucretia, as well as a son named Thomas. The third lead is that a Carter Crawford from Richmond County, Georgia, was in Effingham County by 1769 [15, 39, 74]. He and his wife, Mary, had one known child, a son, John Louis Crawford, born in 1776 [74]. The fourth lead is that a Charles Crawford had land surveyed in Effingham County in 1793 [70]. This survey was witnessed by a John Crawford and Aaron Bennett. A Charles Crawford from what is now Richmond County is known to have bought land in 1775 nearby in what is now Bryan and Bullock counties [60, p. 94]. The family of the Charles Crawford from Richmond County is a prominent and well-documented family [19]. No link more definite than the general proximity of the land in the two cases has been identified to establish the Charles Crawfords as either the same person, as different persons one of whom was related to the Crawfords of interest, or different, unrelated persons. Summary
An outline of a Crawford family of the Wiregrass region of Georgia and Florida has been presented, and their movements within Georgia and into Florida have been described. There are a number of uncertainties that exist in the generations earlier than that of John C. Crawford. The immigrant Crawford and his country of origin have not been discovered, but the date of his entry into this country can be reasonably assumed to be prior to about 1765. Further research may reveal more clearly the origins of this large family of southeastern Georgia and northeastern Florida. Future work should concentrate on identifying the parents of John Crawford of Effingham County. William H. Crawford should be investigated to confirm his relationship with John Crawford. If they do prove to be brothers, then Thomas Crawford should be investigated to confirm or exclude him as the father of John and William H. Crawford, and to provide further information about the origins of the Crawford family. This direction is the most promising direction for immediate research. Additional work amplifying the Crawford family heritage should be undertaken through study of the maternal lines. The genealogy of Elizabeth Roberts, wife of John C. Crawford, is reasonably well known through the Pioneers of Wiregrass Georgia series. The origins of Sarah Burgess, wife of Gideon Crawford and mother of John C. Crawford, should be pursued initially by further research of Moses Burgess. Research to identify the family of Priscilla, mother of Gideon Crawford and wife of John Crawford, should first concentrate on identifying Priscilla Molliday, and perhaps more importantly, the correct form of the name, Molliday. The Mallette family is the most promising candidate at this time for being the actual family of Priscilla Molliday. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
The author wishes to thank many persons for their help in the research of this article. Gordon L. Remington, professional genealogist, deserves special mention for performing much of the research for this article while under contract to Lineages, Inc., of Salt Lake City, Utah. Most of his work was conducted in Salt Lake City by Mr. Remington himself, and in Georgia and Washington, D. C. by agents under his direction. The Huxford Genealogical Society must be commended for publishing the series, Pioneers of Wiregrass Georgia, and maintaining and nurturing interest in the families of the Wiregrass region. The author also thanks the many members and descendants of the Crawford family who made contributions or expressed support. Any errors in the article are entirely the responsibility of the author.
PRISCILLA MULLADY Return to CRAWFORD GENEALOGY
DALE CRAWFORD

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