Addison appears to be an old English name, a variation of the surname Adamson or earlier "Adam's son" or possibly even a variation of Edison.
I have not done a great deal of research on this maternal line. Please note that the information below is my preliminary research - it remains a work in progress and is incomplete and fragmented.
In addition to my own research below, please visit the research of Elizabeth Shown Mills (Certified Genealogist) here.
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It appears that my southern Addison family begins with the Revolutionary War soldier Thomas Addison of Fairfield District, SC who is likely my maternal 5th great grandfather. Thomas had known sons Christopher, William and John Addison [1] who were also Revolutionary War soldiers. Thomas and his family likely lived near the Broad River just to the northwest of present day Columbia, SC. This is very close to the old "Dutch Fork" area of South Carolina where my maternal Cromer & Kesler ancestors lived.[2] My Cromer and Kesler ancestors also wound up in Franklin County, GA.
My line is through Thomas' son John Addison who arrived in Franklin County, Georgia around 1800-1810. He may have lived in Pendleton District, SC before moving across the Tugaloo River to Franklin County. He appears to have died in Franklin County sometime between 1826 and 1830. He had several children and two of these children (Christopher and Elizabeth) married children of Captain Moses Guest (Susannah and Sanford). My line is through his daughter Elizabeth who married Sanford Guest.
Thus far, here are the records that I have located:
Early Records
Addison Revolutionary War Soldiers in South Carolina
(Bobby Gilmer Moss, Roster of South Carolina Patriots)
1790 Census - Fairfield District, SC
So it is highly likely that our Addison ancestors lived closely together near Little River and probably close to the where present day Little River crosses Highway 215. [3]
It is not known what became of Thomas and his wife. As noted above, his son William moved to Kentucky where he died in 1853 - he is buried in Todd County. John and Christopher moved to Georgia, probably shortly after their father died.
Please visit this page to see these early plats. Most of these plats are on Little River and Cedar Creek but there are a few others in different areas - all in Camden District.
THREE KNOWNS SONS OF THOMAS ADDISON, REVOLUTIONARY WAR SOLDIER
1. Christopher Addison
Little is known about Christopher. He can be found on the 1820 census for Gwinnett County living near Stephen Noland whom some researchers claim to be Christopher's son-in-law. Interestingly, not too far away from Christopher's name on this census is the name of Elisha Winn, who is arguably the father of Gwinnett County. Elisha also has Fairfield District SC roots (Winn family). Some researchers have speculated that Christopher he died in Gwinnett County.
2. William Addison
Fold3 has an extensive file on William due to his filing for a Revolutionary War soldier's pension while living in Kentucky. He died in Kentucky and his grave has been found. Many of his descendants have been documented. I do know that he had a grandson that fought for the Union Army during the Civil War.
Highlights of his pension file:
- His wife is the former Nancy Mobley, his father is Captain Thomas Addison and his brother is Christopher Addison.
- He filed for a pension in 1833 and he clearly states that he was from Fairfield District, SC, born December 29, 1766 in Fairfield County, SC.
- He entered the militia service at Winnsborough in 1780 as a substitute for his brother Chistopher - With William Addison being only 14 years old in 1780, he would have been a very young soldier during the southern conflict. He served approx. 5 months with this unit.
- He again entered the service in the summer of 1780 with a Militia group of Mounted Rangers, also in Fairfield County.
- He was attached to General (Andrew) Pickens' Continentals at the Battle of Eutaw Springs where he was wounded.
- Total time of service was about 3 years - almost continuous.
- He married Nancy in 1797 in Sumter County, SC.
- He moved to Kentucky in 1788. (Did he return to SC to marry Nancy or is this date in error - did he move to KY in 1798?)
The website Revwarapps.org has a transcribed copy of the pension file which contain additional pages that are not included in the FOLD3 file. These additional pages offer additional family information:
- In this file, there is a 1792 record of a 209 acre tract of land laid out to John Addison on Cedar Creek adjoining William Addison. The land warrant was issued by John Winn. Note that Cedar Creek lies just to the east of Little River and this is the likely area where Thomas and his family lived (Broad River at Little River and Cedar Creek).
- Again, in the same file, Thomas Addison is noted to be listed in the records of General (Francis) Marion. (Note: I can find no mention of Thomas' service in Bobby Gilmer Moss' book. If Thomas was a Captain, he would almost surely be listed. He may have been a local Militia Captain however.) Interestingly, Christopher Addison named one of his sons General Marion Addison. General Marion Addison can be found living in Franklin County, Georgia in the mid 1800s.[4]
3. John Addison
FOLD3 has records for a John Addison serving with the 1st SC Regiment commanded by Col. Cotesworth Pinckney (undated document) and a John Addison serving with the 3rd Company of SC Continental Troops in 1783. It is not known if they are the same man. Also, I am not sure if the 3rd Company is the same as the 3rd Regiment.
In the book "Pendleton District, S.C. Deeds 1790-1806" by Betty Willie, page 285, we have the following deed transcription:
"10 Feb. 1794, Godfrey Isbell of Franklin Co., Ga., planter, to James Alexander of Pendleton Co., planter, for £75 stg. for 100 acres on Cain Creek of Toogalow River, part of 200 acres granted to John Atterson, soldier, by Benj. Guerard, 21 Jan. 1784, conveyed to Minor Winn, Esq., then to Isbell, 14 Feb. 1790. Signed: Godfrey Isbell, Hannah Isbell,. Wit: James Clark (John (X) Alexander. John Alexander made oath to Nathl. Perry, J.P., 14 Feb. 1794."
I believe that this John Attison is John Addison. 1784 would have been about the right date for bounty land to have been awarded to soldiers of the American Revolution and it matches the date range for the lands shown here on the family plats. Note that Minor Winn was a resident of Fairfield District and related to the John Winn (possibly son/father) noted above who laid out land to John Addison on Cedar Creek. These Winns were all related to General Richard Winn, Rev. War soldier and namesake of Winnsborough in Fairfield District, SC. (Note: Cedar Creek lies between Winnsboro & Columbia.) Godfrey Isbell is another Revolutionary War soldier as is Moses Guest, whose children married Addisons, and he too was living in Pendleton District before moving across the Tugaloo River into Franklin County, Georgia. Also, I can find no John Attison listed on any tax roll or other record for Pendleton or Franklin County during this time.
Per the 1790 census for Pendleton District, John Cleveland, Moses Guest, and Godfrey Isbell are all listed closely together in Captain John Kee's/Key's district. Thomas Harrison is also listed in the same district and he is another maternal ancestor of mine - see here. John Addison is not listed on the 1790 or 1800 census for Pendleton District so he likely did not live on these lands that he owned. He may have remained in Fairfield District until the early 1800s where his name can be found in the Franklin County, GA tax digests.
John married Ann (lnu) and they had several children, most of whom were born about 1800-1815 in Georgia. Based on the early tax digests which no longer appear with the name of John Addison beginning in 1826, and the fact that he is not shown on the 1830 census, he probably died about 1825. His widow is probably the Ann Addison shown on the 1830 census living near her son-in-law Sanford Guest. She does not appear on any later censuses so she likely died before 1840 or she moved away and is not shown on any census.
Early Georgia Tax Digest Listings For John Addison
I found a few online records from Ancestry.com, the earliest tax list for Franklin County that shows John Addison's name is 1811 and it is an index entry only. He is however shown on the 1819-1823 and 1825 tax books. Note: This is not an exhaustive search by any means - visiting the GA Archives and/or the Franklin County courthouse may be more useful in finding all records for John.
1819 - 100 acres on Hunters Creek, Franklin County
1820 - 100 acres
1821 - 250 acres in Gwinnett County. This is likely the land he won in the 1820 lottery. Note that his name is shown on the same page as Colbert Guest and (Colonel) Benjamin Cleveland.
1822 - 100 acres on Hunters Creek, Franklin County
1823 - 100 acres on Hunters Creek, Franklin County
1825 - 100 acres on Hunters Creek, Franklin County. His name is again shown on the same page as Benjamin Cleveland.
1820 Georgia Land Lottery
John Addison is shown on the 1820 Land Lottery living in Franklin County where he was awarded land lot 29 in the 7th District of Gwinnett County. This land lot lies just to the north of present day Highway 316 along Collins Hill Drive - Georgia Gwinnett College lies just to the west and the Gwinnett County Jail lies to the east. Note that his brother Christopher Addison is shown living in Gwinnett on the 1820 Census.
Below are a few censuses for Georgia that are relevant to John Addison.
1830 - Franklin County, Georgia
Note: Due to the fire during the War of 1812 that destroyed many of the early Georgia censuses, the earliest census for Georgia that shows our Addison family is the 1830 census.
Sanford Guest: 3 males under 5; 1 male 30-40; 2 females 5-10; 1 female 20-30
Ann Addison: 1 male 20-30; 1 female 20-30; 1 female 50-60
Christopher Addison: 1 male 5-10; 2 males 30-40; 2 females under 5, 1 female 5-10; 1 female 30-40
Ann Addison is likely the widow of John Addison, Christopher Addison would be her son and Sanford Guest would be her son-in-law.
1840 Census - Franklin County, GA
This census shows Colbert Guest, Sanford Guest, Oliver Guest, Josiah Addison, Hester Addison and George Verner all living fairly close together. This George Verner (my ancestor) is the grandfather of George Edwin Verner that married the daughter of Sanford Guest and Elizabeth Addison (Annie). Robert Crump is also listed living close - Robert is the father of Richard L. Crump who married Elizabeth Kesler.
1850 Census - Franklin County, GA
Josiah Addison and Sanford Guest are shown as adjacent landowners or living very close to one another in Franklin County, GA. Although not shown on the same census page, Christopher Addison and Brasel/Brazel Addison are living nearby.
The Descendants of John Addison and Ann (lnu)
John and Ann had known sons Brazel/Brasel, Josiah and Christopher and known daughter Elizabeth. Elizabeth married Sanford Guest. Christopher married Sanford Guest's sister, Susannah. I have not done any research on Brazel/Brasel or Josiah. Sanford Guest and Elizabeth Addison are my ancestors. Ancestry.com has the estate administration file for Christopher Addison.
1. Elizabeth Addison - see my GUEST family info here.
John Addison is the likely father of Elizabeth Addison (b. about 1801) who married Sanford Guest, the son of Revolutionary War veteran Captain Moses Guest. I have not found any written document that proves the marriage of Elizabeth Addison to Sanford Guest. Elizabeth died about 1860.
2. Christopher Addison
Christopher died in late 1861 and his estate administration papers can be found on Ancestry.com. The appraisers of his estate were Morgan and Sanford Guest (brothers), Robert Verner and two men with the last name of Mize. Morgan and Sanford Guest and Robert Verner are proven ancestors of mine.[6]
Although the relationship of Sanford Guest is not specifically mentioned in the Will of Christopher, it can be inferred that there is a close familial relationship. As other researchers have noted, Christopher likely married the sister of Sanford. Sanford Guest purchased 2 slaves from the estate: One female named Matilda and one male named Addison/Anderson.
Other names noted in the estate administration are G.M. Addison, John W. Crump, Susannah Addison, Susannah Clark, Clark Addison, W.J. Oliver, James C. Ginn, L.B Addison, J.M. Ayers, David Kesler and David Cromer.
Susannah Addison - Widow of Christopher, daughter of Captain Moses Guest.
Susannah Clark - Possibly a daughter of Christopher.
Clark Addison - Clark Terrell Addison, son of Christopher.
G.M. Addison - General Marion Addison, son of Christopher. Interestingly named after General Francis Marion who Christopher's grandfather Thomas is said to have served under during the Rev. War.
W.J. Oliver - Probably William Jeff Oliver who married Mary Addison who is possibly the daughter of Christopher..
John W. Crump - Probably John Wesley Crump, son-in-law of Christopher. He married Elizabeth Addison daughter of Christopher. John Wesley Crump is a son of Richard Lane Crump and Elizabeth Kesler. Elizabeth Kesler was the daughter of William Henry Kesler and Barbara Ann Cromer.
David Kesler - Might be the son of William Henry Kesler and Barbara Ann Cromer. This David Cromer is likely related to Barbara Ann Cromer.
James C. Ginn - may have married another Addison family member.
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NEXT - VISIT THESE LINKS:
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[1] My maternal 4th great grandfather
[2] My Cromer & Kesler ancestors moved to Franklin County, Georgia and lived fairly close to the Addisons.
[3]The name Elizabeth Bockman appearing on this plat is interesting. I could not find any Bockmans on any records; However, there is an Elizabeth Beckman shown living in Charleston on the 1800 census who is likely Elizabeth Beekman. This Beekman family has a very rich history in Charleston. Oddly, and probably coincidentally, there is a Bookman Mill Road, Bookman Road and Bookman Shoals in present day Richland County, SC that lie very close to where Little River and Cedar Creek flow into the Broad River. There are plats for our Addisons on Little River and Cedar Creek in the 1700s. From the little research that I did, the Bookmans do not seem to be closely related to the Beekmans.
[4] General Marion Addison is the son of Christopher Addison and thus the great grandson of Thomas.
[5] Note that Robert Isaac Miller of Spartanburg County, SC supposedly married a Mary Alexander. Robert and Mary had son James Miller whose grandchildren married lived near the Addisons in Franklin County, Georgia. We also have the Alexander family that arrived in Gwinnett County in the early 1820s who were also from Franklin County, GA and Pendleton District. These Millers are more of my maternal ancestors. More research is needed to determine if these Alexander families are related. They are likely all Scots-Irish Presbyterians traveling the Wagon Road from Maryland and Virginia into NC, SC and Georgia.
[6] Morgan is a son of Sanford and Sanford is my 3rd great grandfather; Robert Verner is both a maternal 3rd great grandfather and a 1st cousin of mine (My maternal grandparents shared John Verner and Mary Pettigrew as ancestors.)
This page was created on 11/26/2023.