Chapter 2: Harrells in Chowan County & The Gates Area

 

            There were at least two Samuel Harrells who settled in the Gates area of Chowan County and stayed there. They both had descendants who became Hertford County Harrells. I am calling them Samuel of Kent and Samuel of Chowan. The distinguishing labels are derived from their presumed places of birth.

 

There was a third Samuel, the son of John Harrell Jr. of Virginia, who appeared on a Chowan County deed, but I believe he settled in Bertie County so he is discussed in the next chapter. The third Samuel Harrell was identified in a 1739 deed as the son of John Harrell Junior of Virginia.[1] The descendant-researchers of Samuel of Kent and Samuel of Chowan were pretty certain of the origins of their Samuels, and they do not consider their Samuels to be the son of a John Harrell. The question that needs an answer is who was the Samuel, son of John of Virginia, in the 1739 deed? John Jr./Sr. of Bertie County may have had a son named Samuel, but if so, he was not mentioned in John Jr./Sr.’s will of 1759. This Samuel may well have been the Samuel Harrell in southern Bertie County with the other descendants of John of Nansemond County, Virginia. There was a Samuel who owned land in Bertie county, and appeared on the county’s tax lists from 1757-1761, and again in 1774, which indicates he probably lived in Bertie County. 

 

            We know from Samuel of Kent’s descendants that he was living in the Gates area near Sunbury in the 1740s and early 1750s; we also know from Samuel of Chowan’s descendants, and from his 1761 will, that he was living in the same area during the same period of time. Samuel of Kent, however, was reported to have died around 1753—so he should have been about 35 years older than Samuel of Chowan.

 

            At this point, I will only discuss Samuel of Kent and Samuel of Chowan, and will consider Samuel the son of John in the next chapter with the Harrells in early Bertie County.

 

Samuel of Kent (b. 1663-d. c. 1753)

 

Samuel of Kent was reportedly on his farm near Sunbury from early on, but there is no record of its purchase in the Chowan County deeds. In fact, he apparently did not purchase or sell any land in the county with recorded deeds. There are three Chowan County deeds for a Samuel Harrell (they are dated 1737, 1740, and 1747), but they appear to be those of Samuel of Chowan, and are described in the following section.

 

            As I have indicated earlier, our main source for identifying Samuel of Kent is in the collected papers of William Bernard Harrell—in particular the record he extracted from his family Bible. The Biblical record indicates his immigrant ancestor, Samuel, was born in Kent County, England in 1663—tradition claims he came with a couple of his brothers. He supposedly bought the original Harrell farm in [page 32] the Gates area, near Sunbury, and raised his family and died there in 1753.  If I am able to confirm his immigrant status, he certainly would not have been one of the original Seven Harrell Brothers who came out of Nansemond County, but he would, nonetheless, have been one of the first Harrell settlers in the Albemarle area. William Bernard Harrell’s autobiography includes the following list of his ancestors:[2]

 

“James Harrell – Born 1792, on a farm near Sunbury, North Carolina. Died 1858, Harrellsville, N. C. He was a brother of Abner Harrell for whom the town of Harrellsville was named, and who lived there most of his life. James Harrell was a soldier of the War of 1812. He was the son of

 

Samuel Harrell – Born on the Harrell farm near Sunbury, 1750? – He died at the same place in 1828? – A large planter and slave-owner. He was a soldier in the Revolution. He was the son of

 

James Harrell – Born 1708 on the Harrell Farm. Died at his home in 1790. Planter and Merchant, with a large country store. He was the son of

 

Samuel Harrell – Born 1663 in Kent County, England. Original purchaser of the Harrell Farm, where he engaged largely in farming and also ran a store. He died there (cir.) 1753. This man is supposed to have originally spelled his name “Harold,” though after his coming to America, the name became spelled as at present.”

 

            William Bernard Harrell was the second son of James (born in 1792 on a farm near Sunbury). William Bernard’s grandfather was Samuel (born on the Harrell farm near Sunbury in 1750). His grandfather has been referred to as Samuel of Sunbury—he may also have been the person called Major Samuel. Samuel of Sunbury’s father was James Harrell, who was also born on the family farm in 1708 and died in 1790—this James was probably the Abner referred to by Winborne as being on the 1740 Bertie County tax list.

 

            What William Bernard’s records unfortunately do not reveal are the names of Samuel of Kent’s other children—it is very probable that he had several. One or more of Samuel of Kent’s other sons could have been among the first settlers in the Hertford County area in the 1730s and 1740s. It is also very probable that Samuel of Kent’s son, James (born 1708), had more than one son, but their names are also not yet available, and, of course, one or more of these probable sons could have been among the early residents of the Hertford County area.

 

            There is one additional reference that needs to be included in this discussion of Samuel of Sunbury and his father, Abner (born 1708)—or perhaps, James Abner Harrell. In his history of Hertford County, Winborne made the following claim for Samuel of Sunbury’s son, Abner of Harrellsville (born 1790):[3]

 

“He [Abner, b. 1790] descended from one of the oldest families in the county. He was the son of Maj. Samuel Harrell, who resigned his military office in 1783. Samuel Harrell was a soldier in the War of 1776-1782, a member of the State Convention of 1788, and a son of Abner Harrell, a freeholder in Bertie County in 1740, as they appear from the Jury list of that county. Major Harrell left the following children; Noah, James, William B., Willis, Isaac, Andrew, and Abner, Mary and Nancy.”

 [page 33]

I think there is little doubt that William Bernard’s Samuel of Sunbury and Winborne’s Major Samuel were one in the same person. This makes sense if the suggestion made earlier that Major Samuel’s father, referred to as Abner from time-to-time, was indeed James Abner Harrell, as Lellie et. al. have suggested in their work.

 

Winborne made an interesting observation when he places Abner (probably James Abner) in Bertie County in the 1740s, and his son, Major Samuel as a representative from Hertford County to the Hillsborough Convention in July of 1788 to consider the Bill of Rights and Constitution for the United States.[4]

 

William Bernard’s records show that Samuel of Sunbury (born around 1750) died in 1828—his will was signed February 13, 1811. In his 1811 will, Samuel of Sunbury named his children in the order below. He then carefully named his three youngest sons: Willis, Andrew, and Isaac. Then he named his five youngest children: Henry, Willis, Andrew, Elizabeth, and Isaac. [5] On the basis of his will, Samuel of Sunbury was the father of:

 

(with his first wife)

William Harrell                      born before 1786                  died 1834

Mary Harrell Wilson            born c. 1787

Noah Harrell                          born 1788                               died 1849

Abner Harrell                        born 1790                               died 1865

James Harrell                         born 1792                               died 1858 

Joseph Harrell                       born c. 1794                           died 1820

Nancy Harrell                        born        c. 1796                    died 1858

(with his wife, Sally Bond Harrell)

Henry Harrell                        born about 1800                   died between 1820 & 1833

Willis Harrell                         born 1802                               died 1858

Andrew Harrell                     born 1805                               died between 1850 & 1860

Elizabeth Harrell                   born about 1807                   died

Isaac Harrell                          born 1808-1810                     died 1862-1863

 

William Harrell (born before 1786)

 

            In Samuel’s 1811 will, William’s father left him the land he was already on—“… beginning in the Horse Pool Swamp, then running up the Swamp to Moses Briggs Line, along said Briggs’ line into the Desert to the back line of Joseph Gordon’s line,… containing 380 acres….”

 

            There was one William Harrell in the 1800 and 1810 censuses; there were four Williams at the time of the 1820 census; there were three William Harrells in 1830 (William, William H., and William Sen.); and there were three in 1840 (William, William Jr., and William Sr.). The following Williams are in the Gates Census for 1850:

 [page 34]

1850 census entry, Gates Co., N. C.

 

1850 census entry, Gates Co., N. C.

 

1850 census entry, Gates Co., N. C.

 

            If Major Samuel’s son, William, lived until the 1850 census, he would have been over 64 years of age. He was more than likely the William Sr., age 72 in 1850, as well as the other censuses listed just above. The only other William in 1850 who was close to Major Samuel’s son in age was William H. Harrell age 63—William H. was the son of William who died in 1833 and was identified in his father’s will.[6] William G. in 1850 may have been the son of William Sr. in both the 1840 and 1850 censuses.

 

Mary Harrell Wilson (born c. 1787)

 

Mary married John G. Wilson in Gates County on 12/6/1825—he was 25 years of age.

They moved to Hertford County and remained there. Mary and her husband are described at greater length in chapter 10 along with Major Samuel’s other children who settled in Hertford County.

 

Noah Harrell (born 1787-1849)

 

            Noah was born on April 24, 1787. He married Sarah Goodman, and built a home on a portion of the original Harrell property around 1810—the house was called “Spring Hill.”[7] Noah’s father left him 2 slaves, stock and furniture he already possessed, as well as notes and bonds worth $250, but there was no mention of land given to Noah in his father’s 1811 will. Noah and many of his descendants nonetheless stayed on the property for generations.

 [page 35]

The property on which Noah built his house was located about five miles from Sunbury, and ten miles from Gatesville. The house was still standing in 1952. Noah and Sarah’s children, grandchildren, and some of their great grandchildren were born in this place. Noah died there on January 24, 1849—Sarah had died there in 1839.

 

Noah’s will was signed on September 29, 1848, and in it he named five of his children (the names marked with an asterisk in the following list of his children were those mentioned in his 1848 will).[8] The names of the children not mentioned in Noah’s will were taken from Lellie Harrell Edwards et. al., Harrell Family Records.

 

Samuel Riddick Harrell*                      born February 24, 1812

Mary Harrell Bond*                             born August 10, 1814

Elbert Harrell Riddick*                        died 1880 (daughter)

Margaret A. Harrell                              born January 22, 1817

James A. Harrell*                 born June 24, 1819

Sarah E. Harrell                                     born November 30, 1821

Anne C. Harrell Goodman*                born November 22, 1824

Martha I. Harrell                                   born January 28, 1828

Emily Frances Harrell                           born September 15, 1829

Virginia C. Harrell                 born July 3, 1831.

 

            Noah’s son, Samuel Riddick Harrell, died on July 27, 1864. He and his wife, Mary Vaughan, are buried on the home farm called “Spring Hill.”[9]

 

Abner Harrell (1790-1865)

 

Abner inherited two slaves and all the property already in his possession. He was already listed as a head of household in Gates County for the 1810 census, but by 1820 he had moved to Hertford County, and consequently he is discussed at greater length in chapter ten.

 

James Harrell (1792-1858)

 

According to his father’s will, James inherited “… the land that I purchased of James Creecy, formerly belonging to David Rice, deceased.” James did not stay on the farm in Gates County, however. He went off to fight in the War of 1812 and then soon after moved to Suffolk, Norfolk, and finally Hertford County, North Carolina. As a Hertford County resident, James and his descendants are covered in more detail in chapter ten.

 

Joseph Harrell (born c. 1794-1820)

 

Joseph’s father left him the lands purchased from Josiah Lassiter and Nathaniel Riddick consisting of 100 acres, and 100 acres on the west side of the deep branch, bounded by the lands of William Harrell (his brother) and Moses Briggs, and Horse Pool Swamp. He died in Gates County in 1820.[10]

 [page 36]

Nancy Harrell (born c. 1794-1858)

 

Nancy did not receive any of her parents’ land, but she did get personal property including two slaves, according to her father’s will.

 

According to one account, she never married, but another has her married to Moses Harrell on February 19, 1827—because with her marriage, she did not change her last name, some may have assumed she never married.[11]

 

Henry Harrell (born c. 1800)

 

Henry’s inheritance included two parcels of land: the first was the balance of the land his father had purchased from David Riddick, which was adjoining the land of his brother, Joseph; and a piece of land his father had purchased form Joseph Gordon Esq., containing another 100 acres. Henry was born around 1800, and he probably died at a relatively young age.

 

Willis W. Harrell (1802-1858)

 

Willis married Louisa Liles in Gates County on March 22, 1827, and they had several children as can be seen in the information from the 1850 census just below.

 

Willis stayed in touch with his family in Hertford County over the years. For instance, in early 1841, Willis sent his son, Edward , who was young and not well, to Murfreesboro to live with his Uncle James (b. 1792), but James had a large family and had just moved to Hertford County from Norfolk, and thus had little means to provide for a nephew. Consequently, young Edward was sent on to live with his aunt Mary Harrell Wilson up the street—she had a large house and no children. Also in 1847, when Willis’ brother, James, returned from Hertford County to bury his second wife in the family cemetery on the old farm, Willis was still on the family farm.[12] Part of Willis’ land was originally his brother, Abner’s inheritance, which Willis bought from him sometime between 1815 and 1820, when Abner moved to Hertford County—Willis refers to this in his will years later. In 1850, Willis and Louisa’s family appeared as follows in the census.

[page 37] 

1850 census entry, Gates Co., N. C.

 

Seven years after the above census entry, Willis W. Harrell wrote his will—it was signed September 15, 1857, presented in the Gates County Court in February of 1858. In his will he named the following children: his youngest son, William Norfleet Harrell, his youngest daughter, Mary Louise Harrell, Edward R. Harrell, James Noah Harrell, and daughter, Marthy O. Hill. The executors to his will were sons Edward R. Harrell and James Noah Harrell.[13]

 

Based on the 1850 census and Willis’ will, their children were as follows:

 

                Edward R. Harrell                 born 1828

Sarah A. Harrell                                    born 1830

James Noah Harrell                              born 1836

Martha Olivia Harrell Hill                    born 1839

Mary Louise Harrell                             born 1847

William Norfleet Harrell                       born 1850

 

Edward R. Harrell (b. 1828)

 

     Edward R. and his brother, J. Noah, divided equally their father’s farm of approximately 500 acres according the Willis’ 1858 will.

 

Edward was sent to train as a merchant with his uncles James Harrell and John G. Wilson in Murfreesboro, Hertford County. He was living with his Uncle Isaac in Gates County for the 1850 census. He was listed as 22 years of age, a merchant with $500 worth of property.

Sarah A. Harrell (b. 1830)

James Noah Harrell (b. 1836)

 

     It appears from his father’s entry in the 1850 census, that James was better known as “Noah.” He should have inherited about 250 acres from his father as did his brother Edward R. Harrell.

 

Martha Olivia Harrell Hill (b. 1839)

Martha Harrell married Washington L. Hill in Gates County on June 17, 1856.

[page 38]

Mary Louise Harrell (b. 1847)

William Norfleet Harrell (b. 1850)

     William N. was only eight years old when his father died in 1858.

Andrew Harrell (born 1805)

 

Samuel of Sunbury’s (Major Samuel) son, Andrew Harrell, married Julia Brothers in Gates on December 13, 1826, and he was still married to her in 1850. (This means the Andrew Harrell who married Elizabeth Rice in Gates on March 27, 1830 was a different person.)

 

1850 census entry, Gates Co., N. C.

 

            Andrew and Julia Harrell’s children are listed below:

William H. Harrell (b. 1828)

Sarena A. Harrell (b. 1828)

Elizabeth F. Harrell (b. 1833)

Clenton E. Harrell (b. 1835)

Andrew J. Harrell (b. 1836)

Sarah Harrell (b. 1840)

Isaac S. Harrell (b. 1841)

Riddick H. Harrell (b. 1843)

 [page 39]

 

Elizabeth Harrell Briggs (c. 1807)

Lellie et. al. state that Major Samuel’s daughter, Elizabeth, married a Mr. Briggs, but the Gates County marriage records only show that Elizabeth Copeland married Benjamin Briggs in 1822, and Elizabeth Jones married Charles Briggs in 1828. If one of these Elizabeths was Major Samuel’s daughter, it would have been her second marriage—considering her age, the first marriage would have been very short. There is no Benjamin or Charles Briggs in the 1850 census for Gates or adjacent counties. The 1850 census does have the following entry, however, for an Elizabeth Briggs, and her age was very close to that of Samuel of Sunbury’s daughter.

 

1850 census entry, Gates Co., N. C. 

 

            If I have the correct Elizabeth Harrell Briggs, then her children were as follows:

Joseph Briggs (b. 1828)

Andrew J. Briggs (b. 1831)

Sarah E. Briggs (b. 1835)

Isaac Harrell (1810-1862)

 

            After Isaac’s mother died, the family farm was to be divided among Samuel’s three youngest sons: Willis, Andrew, and Isaac.

 

            Isaac married Mary E. Hinton in Gates County February 25, 1836. By 1850, their household appeared as follows.

 

1850 census entry, Gates Co., N. C.

 

            Edward R. Harrell was Isaac’s nephew, a son of Willis, who had gone to work in Murfreesboro, Hertford County, with his Uncles James Harrell and John G. Wilson who were merchants.

 

            Isaac S. Harrell wrote his will on November 20, 1862.[14] In addition to the children listed in the 1850 census, he named Mills Roberts Harrell, Isaac Samuel Harrell, and Dianna Margaret and Florence Harrell. Isaac left the plantation on which he was living to his sons Mills Roberts and Isaac Samuel. He also refers to his daughters Martha Louisa and Mary Ann Hills. Isaac S. and Mary E. Harrell’s children were as follows.

 [page 40]

Martha Louisa Harrell Hill (b. 1838)

           

Martha L. Harrell married Washington L. Hill in Gates County on June 17, 1856.

 

Mary Ann Harrell Hill (b. 1841)

Henry B. Harrell (b. 1848)

Mills Robert Harrell

Samuel Isaac Harrell (b. 1860)

 

Isaac and Mary’s son, Samuel Isaac Harrell (1860-1928), married Isa Costen, and they had six children. Their third child was Isaac Samuel Harrell.

 

 

Isaac Samuel Harrell (b. 1894)

 

Isaac Samuel Harrell (1894-1927) was raised in the Sunbury area in Gates County, North Carolina.[15] Isaac was a professor and historian who wrote a history of Gates County, among other things.

 

Dianna Margaret Harrell

Florence Harrell                               

 

Samuel of Chowan (b. c. 1700, d 1761)

 

     The other Samuel Harrell who resided in the Gates area of Chowan County also left numerous descendants there—but, in addition, he was born in the area, and can be called Samuel of Chowan. He was the person Orrin F. Harrell called Samuel I. He was the Samuel Harrell, son of Thomas Harrell, and he was identified as such in a 1769 Chowan County deed.

 

The 1769 Chowan County deed that provides a link across three generations connects Samuel of Chowan to the area at a very early age—it is a deed reflecting the sale of a piece of land by Samuel’s son, Samuel Jr., to his brother, Isaac Harrell. When Samuel Jr. sold his land, he described it as follows: “… and is part of a larger tract granted to John More and by him sold to Thomas Harrell and by his will given to Samuel Harrell Father to Samuel Harrell Party to these present, and given by the Father’s Last Will to said Samuel.”[16] The Thomas Harrell referred to in the deed was probably one of the Thomas Harrells (Harrold) on the 1704 tax list for Nansemond County, Virginia—probably the younger of the two. Thomas Harrell continued to buy land in the area; he did so in 1742, 1744, 1748, and perhaps 1754.

 

Samuel of Chowan, the son of Thomas Harrell, was born around 1700 and probably in Nansemond County, Virginia. He was more than likely one of the original “Seven Harrell Brothers” who settled in North Carolina. (Keeping in mind that a number of the other “Brothers” were sons of John Harrell of Virginia.) Samuel of Chowan’s father, Thomas, may not have actually lived in the area, in spite of the amount of property he purchased there. Which is why Samuel of Chowan qualifies as a first Harrell resident of North Carolina, even though Thomas was of the same generation as Samuel of Kent who was discussed in the previous section.

 

            In the previous section of this chapter, I mentioned there were three deeds reflecting the purchase of land in the area by a Samuel Harrell, and that I assumed all three were made by Samuel of Chowan and not Samuel of Kent. I will continue to operate on that working assumption until evidence to the contrary surfaces.

 

            In addition to the land Samuel of Chowan inherited form his father, Thomas, he purchased 160 acres from Will Ward on November 29, 1737—this tract was located at the head of Oyster Tong Branch and was part of a tract of land granted to John Moore on November 17, 1700. Then in 1741, Samuel of Chowan purchased another 100 acres from Abraham Hill, and in 1747 he purchased another 100 acres in the same area from John Rice, who had purchased it from Abraham Hill.[17] (Samuel of Chowan left part of the land purchased from John Moore to his son, Isaac Sr. in his 1761 will.)

 

            Samuel of Chowan’s will was recorded in Chowan County on October 1, 1761. In the will he specified his sons William, Isaac, Abraham, Samuel, and his daughters Mary and Martha. His sons, William and Isaac, were the executors, and Dempsey Harrell was a witness. I assume the names listed in the will were in order of birth—so his children were:

 

William Harrell (b. c. 1715)

 

            In his 1761 will, Samuel Chowan gave his son, William, title to the land he was already living on. William apparently passed this land on to his youngest son, Samuel (born around 1760). William wrote his will on February 18, 1762, and in it he named his wife, Elizabeth, and youngest son, Samuel. His plantation was to be used by his wife, and then go to his son, Samuel. If Samuel was not of age, William wanted his brother, Abraham, to care for his youngest son until he was of age. William’s estate settlement was presented at the October Term, 1766, in Chowan County Court, and provided the names of his older children. They were Henry, Abner, Ruth, and Abselah. I do not think all of his older children were of age in 1762, but it is possible.

William and Elizabeth’s children were as follows.