Priscilla Christie

Notes:

Robert Christie

The descendants of Robert Christie are being recognized as the 2011 Olustee Battle Festival Descendant Family. The origin of this family is probably the Kingdom of Fife, Scotland with French, Welsh and predominant English ancestry added in later generations. Robert's great-great grandfather is first documented in Virginia around 1730, having possibly entered this country through a Maryland port. Following the pattern of most adventurous Virginians, the Christie's headed to the Carolinas. After the American Revolution, Robert's grandfather and namesake settled in Edgefield District, SC in what is now Saluda County. He beget the trail of Christie's from South Carolina through Georgia to Florida. Robert Christie was born 7/25/1830, west of Macon in Upson County, Ga., the son of Josiah A. Christie and Nancy Cureton. Both his tombstone at Hopewell Church in Columbia County, Fl and his Civil War Pension Application indicate a birth year of 1820; however, he received a legacy of $491.46 from his legal guardian one day after what would have been his 18th birthday in 1848. Robert's father had remarried less than three months after Robert was born and tragically died when Robert was only 10 years old; then, when Robert was 16, his step-mother died. He presumably married Emily Tuggle before he was 18 and already had a daughter, Mary Ann, by the time he received his inheritance.

Between 1850 and 1860, Robert and Emily followed two of his older brothers to South Georgia-Emily's parents, Emily and daughter Mary appear in the same household in the 1860 Thomas County Census. According to his pension application, in the fall of 1862, Robert enlisted in Ware County as a Private in Company F, 4th Regiment (Clinch's) of the Georgia Volunteer Cavalry under Captain James Pate Turner---his pay stubs indicate he enlisted in Company H, 3rd Battalion on 12/10/1862, at Waynesville which is between Brunswick and Waycross; as a result of reorganization in March of 1863, Co H became Co F, otherwise know as the Georgia Dragoons.Robert fought with his unit in the Battle of Olustee on Feb 20, 1864. Coincidentally, Dr. David Kendall, Jr., son of Robert's guardian, was appointed Surgeon of the 29th GA Battalion Cavalry, Co H out of Early County and tended the sick and wounded at Ocean Pond after the battle.

In 1865, Robert married Elizabeth Wheeler (b. 1841), daughter of Charles and Jane Wheeler of Appling County, Ga. About 1867, he followed the Wheeler's to an area north of Benton around Bay Creek in northern Columbia County---he likely worked for or with his father-in-law on 40 acres; the Wheeler's had 120 acres in an adjoining section. In 1880, Robert and Elizabeth were living at Suwannee Shoals east of White Springs, and by 1900, they were in Belmont in Hamilton County just across the Suwannee River from Benton. For the next 30 years, members of the extended Christie family moved back and forth between the two counties.

Benton was one of the more important small communities in the northern part of Columbia County. It was located on the banks of the Suwannee River some 21 miles north of Lake City and had a population of around 100 during the 1880's. Benton was only connected to Lake City by a twice-weekly stage coach before the Watertown Northern Railroad was built by the East Coast Lumber Company around 1889. Benton had a large general store, a cotton gin, saw mill, and a grist mill. Robert's son Benjamin (B.F.) donated land toexpand the cemetery. Near Benton and Hopewell were the East Coast Lumber Company's camp and Moore's Head Turpentine Still.

Even though Robert never owned much of any value, two successive generations adopted the opportunism and ambition of his ancestors to establish their mark in Columbia County's history. In 1925, B.F. Christie leased out 1,140 acres of timber north of Benton for the purpose of harvesting the gum or resin for turpentine, getting paid ten cents per cup--naval stores production peaked in Columbia County in the late 1920's. B.F.'s entreprenueurial spirit was instilled in his son Ralph who owned vast amounts of real estate, timber and cattle and invested in several buisness ventures in Columbia County. The Christie's have a rich heritage in agriculture and timber.

Robert and Elizabeth had three sons, who gave them 18 grandsons to carry on the Christie name, and three daughters:

Charles James Christie was born 10/08/1866, and died 9/27/1935; he married Martha Adaline Davis on 9/10/1884, and Mary Elizabeth Ogburn on 7/29/1906; he had fourteen sons and six daughters.
Priscilla "Silla" Christie was born 1/05/1869, and died 4/30/1942; she married John M. Chambers on 10/03/1888, and had five children.
Benjamin Franklin Christie was born 10/21/1872, and died 2/07/1946; he married Lutie Crews on 12/25/1898, and had three sons and nine daughters.
William Asbury "Scrap" Christie was born 5/23/1875, and died 1/09/1944; he married Ruby Bryan on 3/25/1906, and had one son and one daughter.
Eliza Christie was born 9/08/1877, and died 11/19/1950; she married Sidney Blair Freeman on 1/16/1901, and had six children.
Elizabeth "Wealthy" Christie was born 12/14/1883, and died 12/17/1947; she married John North on 4/04/1904, and had eight children.
Marriages with female Christie offspring have added the following surnames to the Christie family tree---many of them familiar to this area: Allen, Ash(e), Bailey, Blanton, Box, Bradley, Brown, Bryant, Bullard, Chambers, Denison, Erixton, Fields, Frazier, Freeman, Geibieg, Green, Huggins, Johnson, Jones, Law, Lee, Markham, McCall, McGovern, Melton, Milton, Moore, North, Phillips, Prichard, Rivers, Smith, Spradley, Thomas, Tompkins, Waldron, and many more. Every effort was made to locate as many descendants as possible for the 2011 Olustee festivities, yet some local residents may not even be aware they are descended from this family.

Robert married Elizabeth Wheeler in 1865 in Douglas, Coffee, Georgia, USA. Elizabeth (daughter of Charles Wheeler and Penny Jane Taylor) was born on 4 Aug 1841 in Appling, Georgia, USA; died on 11 Jul 1904 in Lake City, Columbia, Florida, USA; was buried in Hopewell Cemetery, Columbia, Florida, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Residence: 1850, Militia District 442, Appling, Georgia, USA

Other Events and Attributes:

• Residence: 1830, Appling, Georgia, USA
• Residence: 1840, District 9, Appling, Georgia, USA
• Residence: 30 Aug 1850, Militia District 442, Appling, Georgia, USA
• Residence: 17 Jul 1860, Appling, Georgia, USA; Southern District
• Residence: 21 Jun 1870, Columbia, Florida, USA; Not Stated
• Residence: Jun 1880, Precinct 1, 2, and 3, Columbia, Florida, USA

Charles married Penny Jane Taylor between 1818 and 1857. Penny (daughter of William Taylor and Living) was born in 1810 in Georgia, USA; died after 1880 in Hamilton, Florida, USA. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Other Events and Attributes:

• Also Known As: Jincey
• Name: Penny J Wheeler
• Residence: 1850, Militia District 442, Appling, Georgia, USA
• Residence: 1870, Columbia, Florida, USA; Not Stated
• Residence: 1880, Precinct 1, 2, and 3, Columbia, Florida, USA

Amos married Eunice Gates between 1770 and 1802. Eunice was born about 1754; died between 1803 and 1849. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]

Notes:

SOURCE:KIM'S FAMILY TREE CONTACT:LORRAINE KIMBERLY EPEARDSAT Repeards@aol.comCensus: 1820 Appling, Georgia Bacon, Georgia Stewart FamilyContact: C. Stewart AT thewritewing@yahoo.com this was copy from the database of C STEWARTREF.: "GENERATIONS MUSICK, TAYLOR, AND ALLIED FAMILIES" by Gloria M. Musick Taylor, Nicholls, GA 1984.TAYLOR, William 1775 - ? Appling Co. , GA.William Taylor, son of Henry Taylor the Revolutionary Soldier, was born probably in Burke County, Georgia, as his father was living there during this time, except for the few years they lived in the Barwell District in South Carolina, at thecommencement of the Revolution. William was born in 1775. The name of his wife is not known.William's name was not found in the 1830 census index for Georgia, but his son James was found. The microfilm of the census revealed that James lived in the same general area as William. Jesse Moody's name apperars just above William's in the 1820index, and at the top of the page in 1830. There are some problems with these entries. The ages of the children in the 1830 entry do not match those in Huxford's book. These may be explained in part by the fact he drew those ages from the 1850census. The 1850 census is probably closer to the right mark. In absence of written records, peoples memories can get confused after 20 years or more. There is also a problem with the entry for William in that the oldest males listed are ine ageof 16 and 25. This is difficult to explain, possibly William had already died and James, his son, who was one of the olders sons, was living in the same house as was his father.Possibly the land and probate records could clarify this problem, unfortunately, I did not pursue these leads at this time. In any event, the census returns support Huxford's conclusions in general, if not in every particular.However, this is how the family of William Taylor was listed in the 1830 Appling County Census Index, page 10.Head of Family William TaylorFree White Males 16 - 26 1Free White Males Under 10 2Free White Females 16 - 26 1Foreigners Not Naturalized 1 ( It is evident this person is not a slave, or they would be listed as such.)As I stated, I do not know if William had just died when the census were taken, and the above family is actually the family of James J. Taylor, his son. If William died at this time he was about 55 years of age, and the ' not naturalixed ' citizencould have been his wife living in her sons household, or the son living in her house.Records show that William Taylor and his family were the only Taylor's listed in the first census of Appling County taken in 1820. We can rest assured that the Taylor Town Community derived its' name from this family. Little is known at this timeconcerning William, and we may never learn anymore. It is believed that both he and his wife are buried in unmarked graves in some unknown location. At one time it was rumored that members of the Taylor family and other families in the Camp Groundarea were buried in an old unmarked cemetery in the woods near the end of what was once known as the Delp Ann Bridge., (named for Aunt Delphia Lassiter) as she lived near there. The bridge is located between the present farms of Amos Thomas andMrs. Pate Stewart, about 1/2 mile from Camp Ground Church.Some claim that this could have been an Indian burying ground. At any rate, I have visited many small family cemeteries located in woods and fields, but found no marker for William Taylor.Mr. and Mrs. Taylor had the following childern.1. John b. 1795, married Matilda Gray2. Mary (Pollie) b. 1801, married Wilson Tanner son of John and Mary (Douglas) Tanner.3. James J. "Black Jim" b. 1803, married Lydia Tanner, daughter of John and Mary (Douglas) Tanner.4. Burrell b. 1815, married Vicy Prescott.All the above children were born in Montgomery County, Georgia. huxford's book. These may be explained in part by the fact he drew those ages from the 1850 census. The 1850 census is probably closer to the right mark. In absence of written records, peoples memories can get confused after 20 years or more.There is also a problem with the entry for William in that the oldest males listed are ine age of 16 and 25. This is difficult to explain, possibly William had already died and James, his son, who was one of the olders sons, was living in the samehouse as was his father.Possibly the land and probate records could clarify this problem, unfortunately, I did not pursue these leads at this time. In any event, the census returns support Huxford's conclusions in general, if not in every particular.

William + Living. [Group Sheet] [Family Chart]