Week 9
Where there is a will….
When I first started doing genealogy research I stuck to what I consider basic information and records. Birth records, marriage records, death certificates to me are the foundation of a person’s existence. Slowly I began to fill my ancestor’s stories with military records, and census records. For a while I was intimidated by other legal documents like land grants and wills.
I have since learned that they can be great resources, providing clues and filling in their migration pattern. Going through my trees I have spent a lot of time filling in my Green/Reynolds line (adopted family) and my Walker line (maternal biological).
After I received my DNA results back from Ancestry I realized I was getting so much more than just my DNA story. I was able to start adding to my paternal story. My adoption story gave me two names and through this testing I was able to say with certainty who my biological father was. I compared my matches to my sister’s matches, then when my DNA circles began to populate I was able to confirm my findings. I began to fill in my newly confirmed Zimmerman line (paternal biological) discovering some fascinating individuals and story plots.
Using my DNA circles to guide my progression through my tree I first looked at Zachariah Nance II (1760 – 1835) my fifth great grandfather. Of my DNA circles Zachariah Nance II has the most members. There are 51 members in this DNA circle. There are three in my family group and I share DNA Matches with 10 others.
It is recorded that at the age of 16 he joined the cause and took up arms against the British. Family lore states that his Uncle David who had been serving under Washington became ill, was sent home and Zachariah took his Uncle’s place.
Zachariah Nance II applied for pension in Sengamon Co, IL March 6, 1833. His time in the Continental Army is described as “enlisted in Williamsburg, VA 2/17/1777, a regiment was then organized at Yorktown, VA. He came with the Army of General George Washington to Valley Forge. He was in the battle of Monmouth and went to White Plains. A part of the march to West Point, he stormed the Point.
He Says “with his own hands I broke open a cannon and took out a bonnet of powder with which we were able to hold back the enemy awhile. We took 600 prisoners”
Family Lore out of Dallas County Texas says that “Zachariah Nance saw Cornwallis hand over his sword.” Zachariah Nance II was discharged 2/22/1780. He is buried at Farmers Point Cemetery in Menard Co, Illinois.
“The Nance Memorial: A History of The Nance Family in General” by George W. Nance has proved to also be very helpful. Although some of the information has been questioned, I find that it provides theories that I then can prove or disprove.
After reading about Zachariah Nance II, I took one step back and began to look at his father Zachariah Nance I.
It says He was born in Charles City Virginia in 1736 and died in 1771. Zachariah Nance and was a carpenter and wheelwright by trade. He married Susannah Duke Sherman and settled on a farm. He died leaving his wife and six children.
Zachariah Nance had one record hint. A Will.
Decided this was to be my first will that I would go through. I began to look at it and names seemed to match the will for instance there is listed a Zachariah Nance II as a son of Zachariah Nance I. I was also interested in all the historical information that was connected with this will. Fascinated by its contents, I did a Google search and found a document that breaks down the specific search for individuals from this will and finding their connections to family units.
After my first rough read through it I took a closer look and discovered that this could not be my Zachariah Nance I as the date of the will, 1828. My Zachariah Nance died in 1772, this will from 1828 is not the will of my Zachariah.
Going through this will taught me a few things but the biggest is paiciants. Do not rush to accept a doccument just because it appears to match or that it was included as a hint. Do not let others do the leg work. Look and study the document. If I had not gone back over the will I would have made a big mistake linking this docuement to my Zachariah. Besure to confirm to the best of your ability that authenticity of the connection.
As the “The Nance Memorial: A History of The Nance Family in General” by George W. Nance states there are large numbers of Nance descendants. I believe that they are connected but as to the how, I am still searching. There are Nance’s that can be traced all the way back to the 1300’s. Books have been written on the Nance Ancestry and as I keep digging through all the various books and documents I hope to discover more information on my Nance line. At this time I have concluded that the siblings of Zachariah Nance I could be David, William Howe, Frederick and Patsey. As to the parental units I can only speculate.
I am connected to the about through Joshua Nance (1807-1885) and his Daughter Katherine. Their Snip its from “The Nance Memorial: A History of The Nance Family in General” by George W. Nance are pictured below. I am going to continue my search of my Nance ancestors and maybe just maybe find Zachariahs will!
Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him…Colossians 2:7