52 Ancestors Week 32-George David Eargle

  It's week 32 of the blog prompt series by Amy Johnson Crow-52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks and 32 is the topic.
 Why 32? Because we all have 32  3rd Great Grandparents.
My chosen ancestor is George David Eargle (1827 -1886), my maternal 3rd Great Grandfather.
  David, as he was known, was born in the Edgefield District of South Carolina to Frederick Solomon Eagle (1788-1870) and Mary Ann (Huet) Eargle (born about 1793).

Eargle Cabin
Childhood home of George David Eargle
©Cheri Hudson Passey

   He and wife Elvira America (Booth) Eargle (1834-1898) were married in the late 1840's and were the parents of 9 children. They raised them on the family farm not far from the Edisto River.  The 1860 Agricultural Census of Edisto Hills, Edgefield District shows that David was growing potatoes, sweet potatoes, and grapes. He was producing honey, butter, and other homemade items. His livestock included cows and pigs.
 George David Eargle served in the Civil War as part of Company E 2nd South Carolina Artillery. 
 One of his daughter's,  Emma Janette (Eargle) Williamson (1866-1958), was interviewed several times by Aiken, South Carolina and Augusta, Georgia newspapers.
 She tells of her father's service by saying that he had a small Testament that he took with him. He told her that he had read from it every day of the war. In it he had written that he left for war on 20 Nov. 1861 and returned 1 April 1864. She said that David had walked back home to South Carolina from Gettysburg.
  One newspaper article reported:
"She often tells of the time when her father, David Ergle, made all the foods and medicines. together with the clothes and shoes on the farm. The best-known iron tonic was anvil dust, gathered from the anvil in the blacksmith's shop and mixed with honey.
  The spring tonic was mostly sassafras. mullen and pip-sis-oway along with many other home remedies. Doctors were scarce and hard to find. and the usual broken bones and other injuries were taken care of by home folks and neighbors."

David died in about in June of 1886 and is buried in the Eargle-Sanders Cemetery in Aiken County, South Carolina.

George David Eargle. A very interesting part of my 32.

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52 Ancestors Week 30-The William J. Dority Challenge

Time to look at a challenging to research ancestor for Week 30 of Amy Johnson Crow's 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks 2015 Edition.
  
William J. Dority, my maternal 3rd great grandfather has been one of my challenges for several years.
 Born in about 1820 , most likely in the Sumter District area of South Carolina, William's parentage is still unknown to me.
 Several researchers have parents recorded for him, but none have been able to prove with any type of document why they feel that they have found his parents. One researcher felt that a certain person was William's father simply because he lived next to him in the census.
  The Dority name has been found spelled many different ways. Dorrity, Darity, and Darrity to list a few, as well as the modern Daughrity. This has lead to challenges in researching the family.
William married Martha Mathis (1820-1905) in about 1836 and together they had at least 12 children. He served during the civil war with his sons in the 20th South Carolina Infantry.
The 1880 Sumter County census reports that William had consumption and by 1897 Martha is listed as receiving a Widow's Pension in a Sumter County newspaper.
While wife Martha (Mathis) Dority's grave can be found in the St. John's Methodist Cemetery in Springhill, Lee, South Carolina, If Williams is buried near her, his grave is unmarked. 

Martha (Mathis) Dority
Headstone
St. John's Methodist Cemetery
Springhill, Lee, South Carolina

 Land, probate and church records have not produced information leading to his death date or the names of his parents. Researching his children has not helped either. Currently, I am working on the FAN principle. Researching his friends, associates, and neighbors to see if those that he knew from his community can lead me to the answers.
   William J. Dority remains a challenge.

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Helping you climb your family tree,

This Week On My Family History Calendar

Aug. 2-Aug. 8

 Aug. 5~
  Samuel James Bradford II (1815-1875), my paternal 3rd Great Grandfather, died 140 years ago in Sumter County, South Carolina.

 Aug. 7~
  My paternal 4th Great Grandfather, John Milton Dargan (1799-1847), died in Sumter County, South Carolina 168 years ago. He was buried in the Dargan Cemetery in Sumter County. 

Are we kin? Please contact me. Together we can find our people.
Thanks so much for stopping by!