James Adams

  Noted events in his life were:

• immigrated, Abt 1742, Chambersburg, Adams County, Pennsylvania.

• lived, 1766, Chambersburg, Adams County, Pennsylvania.

• Moved, 1767, Botetourt County, Virginia.

• Moved, Abt 1780, Hopkins County, Kentucky.

• Land Survey, 1783. To the principal SURVEYOR of the Land, set apart for the
Officers and Soldiers of the Common wealth of Virginia.

This shall be your WARRANTto survey and lay off in one or more
Surveys, for James Adams his Heirs or Assigns the Quantity of
four hundred Acres of Land, due unto the said James Adams In
consideration of his Services for three years as Corporal in
the Virginia Continental line agreeable to a Certificate from
the Governor in Council, which is received into the
Land-Office.

GIVEN under my Hand and Seal of the said Office, this 24th Day
of June in the Year One Thousand Seven Hundred and Eighty Three.

• Signed Petition, 1785. To create new counties.

• census, 1790.

• Tax List, 1795.

• migrated, 1810. Settled on White River. He built first mill
5 miles south of Buffalo River. Adams Buffalo City Landing,
(an early steamboat Landing), was named after him.

• census, 1810.

• will, 14 Oct 1814.

• Family History. Adams Family
James Adams, Sr., was born about 1745 in County Donegal, Ireland. He married Agnes Wilson, daughter of Matthew and Catherine (Hubbard) Wilson, also from Ireland. The families migrated into Pennsylvania, then into Kentucky where they lived. They were the parents of James, Jr., Matthew, Robert, John, Jesse and, perhaps, others. Matthew and John Adams were the first of the family to come to this area in 1819 with the Wolf family. Matthew married Kate Wolf in 1817 and John married Mary Ann Wolf; both were daughters of Michael Wolf. These families located near the mouth of North Fork River. In 1820, when Independence County was constituted (present Marion, Baxter and Izard Counties), Matthew was appointed by the Arkansas Territorial Legislature to be one of the five Commissioners to divide the territory into counties and set county seats.
Matthew Adams, supposedly, was the first white settler in what is now Yellville, living near what is known as Tutt Springs. The town was then Shawneetown and was the headquarters of the Shawnee Indian tribe. Across Crooked Creek from the Tutt Spring there was also a camp during the Civil War known as Camp Adams.
James Adams, Jr., (born in 1779) a brother to the earlier Adams settlers, brought his wife, Pheobe Davis, eight of their ten children and some slaves from Hopkins County, Kentucky, to Buffalo Fork on the White River in 1835. There Pheobe died in 1848 and James died in 1855.
Children of James and Pheobe Adams were: Catherine Bone who married Samuel B. Orr and settled near Lead Hill; Hannah Ramsey who married John Killough and remained in Kentucky until his death. Then she came to Arkansas with her children: Josephine who married Joseph T. McCracken of Flippin and Matilda who married A. C. Hull and was the mother of A. C. Hull, Secretary of State in the late 1890's; George; Isaac; Margaret who married Archibald Maupin and settled in Springfield, Missouri; Agnes W. who married W. B. Flippin for whom the town of Flippin was named; Joseph Davis married Jane DeArmond and later Bettie Morton; Mary Ann (Polly) who married James Duggins; John Quincy who married Avarilla Tinnon; and Matthew who died in infancy.
George Adams, third child of James and Pheobe, was born in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, in 1807, married Mariah Lynn, a daughter of Pitts Lynn, who came from Lynn, Massachusetts.
George and Mariah were married in Kentucky and came with their family in 1835 to Buffalo Fork. In 1846, they located five miles south of Yellville on Greasy Creek where he farmed. For some time he held office as Constable and County Treasurer. They were members of the Methodist Church and were Democrats. He died in 1855 and she died in 1883. They were both buried in the Adams Cemetery on Greasy Creek. This family consisted of: Lynn, Thena C., Isaac D., Angelina, Hannah, Pheobe, James W., Mariah and Mary.
Lynn Adams was born in Hopkins County, Kentucky, in 1831, but was reared on the farm on Greasy Creek which was settled by his father. In 1850, he married Susan Edie Swafford, daughter of John H. and Eadie Prewitt Swafford, natives of North Carolina. The Swaffords came to Marion County in 1849. Lynn was a Methodist, did some preaching at Camp Meetings, taught school for one term at Pleasant Ridge, and was a prosperous farmer. The family owned several slaves who chose to stay with them during the Civil War and afterward. These slaves are buried at the Adams Cemetery on Greasy Creek.
Isaac Davis Adams, second son of George Adams, was born in Arkansas and was one of the first volunteers for service in the Confederate Army. He was a Sergeant in Company C, 14th Arkansas Infantry and was killed in action in 1864 while serving with General Sterling Price on his raid through Missouri.
Little is known of the other children of George Adams, except that Pheobe married Gould Thompson. A son, James Webber (as the story goes) accidentally shot a young woman named Sarah Moore in the hip as she was getting water from the spring, thinking she was a turkey. The nickname "Turkey Jim" followed him to his grave.
The children of Lynn and Susan Adams were: Louisa E., who married George Wade, a Methodist minister, parents of Lynn Wade (also a Methodist minister) and Ernest Wade; Serna J., died at age 18; John Quincy who married Emaline Keeter; Eadie P. married John Pennington -- and later Henry Humphrey; George D., who married Adeline Keeling, whose children were Lynn, Elbert and Betty (married Frank Stills); Joseph G., a physician in the Indian Territory, who married Eivira Davenport; Victoria I. (Belle) who married F. F. Burton; Adolphus and Robert died young; Frances E., who married Homer Hudson; Watson P., who married Dell Milligan and Laura S., who married J. F. Gilley.
John Quincy Adams, Sr., the eldest son of Lynn and Susan Adams, was born in 1858 on the homestead on Greasy Creek where he lived for many years. After getting as much education as he could in the schools in Marion County, he attended an Academy at Marshall in Searcy County and Rally Hill in Boone County. In 1879, he married Nancy Emaline Keeter, daughter of James Justice Keeter and Mary E. Moore, who came from North Carolina in 1858. (The Keeters lived on Greasy Creek, also). The young couple continued to live on Greasy Creek where he farmed and taught school.
Being actively interested in politics, John Quincy was elected to the office of Justice of Peace in Hampton Township in 1881, an office he held for eight years. In 1892, he was elected to the office of County and Probate Judge for two terms. In 1895, he was elected and attended as a delegate to the Constitutional Convention.
In the late 1880's, the family moved to a farm on Mill Creek, where in addition to farming, they owned one-half interest in a gristmill and cotton gin with Mr. Stokes. This mill was located near the head of Mill Creek, which is now Yellville's source of water. The mill was later known as the Pascoe Mill. The mill originally, located here long before the Civil War, was owned by another John Adams, a son of Matthew Adams. Another mill on this stream was owned and operated by Daniel Wickersham. This stream became known as Mill Creek.
In 1901, the year of the drouth, the family sold their home and, with friends and relatives, went by covered wagon to Indian Territory. They settled near what is now Paul's Valley, Oklahoma. They stayed for one year and returned to Marion County, Arkansas. On this trip a child, Nora, died and was buried in what is now Jay, Oklahoma. Upon their return to Arkansas, John Quincy bought a good-sized farm, known as the Pyle place, adjoining the old Adams homestead. While living here a post office was established at Adams, Arkansas, with Emma Adams as postmaster. The post office operated from 1907 until 1910.
In 1916, they moved to Yellville where they operated the County Farm, a home much like our present-day Nursing Homes. He was once again engaged in the milling and feed business. Here he worked until his death in 1931. She died in 1936. They were buried in the Layton Cemetery in Yellville.
The children of John Quincy and Emmaline are: Ethel who married MacDonald Callahan ... their children were Vivian, Logunza and James; Vilas Garland died young; Arthur Victor who married Bertha Smith; Ezra Adolphus who married Agnes Keeter ... their children were Rex, Ola, Nadine, Cecile, Doris, Emma, E. J., Marie and Eddie; Mary who married Alex James ... their children were Lena, Lura, Hammond, Hoyt, Bertha and Johnnie; John Quincy, Jr., who married Myrtle Burnes ... their children were Ewell Burnes and Bernice; James Lynn who married Una Page ... their children were Alma, Dorothy and Eugene; Rhetta was James Lynn's second wife ... their children were Jimmie Ruth and Frankie Sue; Joseph William who married Laura James ... they had one son, John W.; Walter Bryan who married Elva Pyle ... their children were Juanita, Walter Mitchel, Lexa Jean and Sue; Nellie G., who married Howell Burnes ... their children were Kathlyn Lane and Jetty Jo; Oka who married Hobert Willingham and had no children; Nora, a twin to Ora, died in infancy; Elmer who married Mohee Cox and had one child, Natilee.
The children of John Q. and Emmaline were much like their forefathers, moving to other states ancl counties to earn a living for their families. Those leaving were Ezra and family who settled at Grass Valley, California. His children remain in California. James moved to Yakima, Washington. His wife, Rhetta, and one daughter remain there. Walter Adams reared his family in Missouri -- he lives at present in Carthage. Elmer lives in Harrison. Nellie Burnes and Oka Willingham still reside in Yellville. Mary, Ethel, John Quincy, Jr. and Joseph are buried in the Layton Cemetery, in Yellville.
John Quincy Adams, Jr., was born September 5, 1887, to John Q. and Emmaline Keeter Adams at the homestead on Greasy Creek where he grew into manhood. He received his early education in the school near his home. In 1906, at the age of 18, he taught his first school at Bruno. While teaching in Bruno, he met Myrtle Burnes, whom he married in 1908. They took up residence on Greasy Creek where they lived for the next sixteen years. He continued to teach in schools close enough that he could be at home and run the farm.
Two children were born on the farm on Greasy Creek -- Ewell Burnes and Ethel Bernice. In 1920, the farm was sold and the family moved to Yellville. John Q. continued teaching, supplementing his income by working in a monument shop and selling insurance for National Old Line.
In 1922 and 1923 both John Q. and his wife, Myrtle, taught in the Summit School. This was the last year for the school there as they consolidated with Yellville, forming the present Yellville-Summit School.
John Q. then taught at the Hurst School near Flippin until 1928 when the schools consolidated. In 1929, both John Q. and Myrtle were employed in the Yellville-Summit School where they taught until 1942. The following two years were spent at the Flippin High School as Superintendent. In 1958, after 40 years of teaching, he retired and went into real estate business, where he worked until his death in 1968. John Q. was a prominent citizen of Marion County. He served as a Justice of Peace while living on Greasy Creek. He worked toward the consolidation of the schools, was a member of the Methodist Church where he served as a member of the Board of Stewards. He worked toward getting power for the Bull Shoals Dam; was a director of the American Foundation Insurance Company; and a member of the State Park Commission.
In 1930, Ewell B. Adams married Fern Coke, daughter of Leo H. Coke and Virge McCracken Coke. They had a daughter, Patricia Ann, who married Santiago "Jimmy" Torros and they have one child, Lisa Ann.
In 1936, Bernice Adams married Glenn Johnson, son of Eugene and Minnie Huddleston Johnson. Two children were born of this union, Hal Adams and Juanita. Hal married Patsy Ruth Carrico, daughter of Frank and Ruth Sowell Carrico. They have three children: Janice, Mark and Jenifer. Juanita married Leonard Gus McCracken, son of Gus and Latah Sanders McCracken. Their children are: Dan, John Bradley and Michael Lee.
Myrtle Burnes Adams died in 1962. John Q. died in 1968. Both are buried in the Layton Cemetery.
The Adams family still has the pioneering blood of their ancestors. Those left in the county who carry the family name are Ewell, son of John Quincy, Jr., and John C. and his son, Glen, who are the grandson and great grandson of Joseph William.

Reprinted with permission from History of Marion County edited by Earl Berry, copyright 1977.

• Family History. Name: James Adams Sr.
Given Name: James
Surname: Adams
NSFX: Sr.
Sex: M
Change Date: 20 MAR 1999
Birth: 1740 1
Death: FEB 1815 in Hopkins Co., KY, USA 2
Burial: FEB 1815 in Hopkins Co., KY, USA 2
Event: Milit-Beg 15 JAN 1777 in VA, USA
Note: Revolutionary War 3
Residence: 24 JUN 1783 in KY, USA 4
WILL: 14 OCT 1814 in Hopkins Co., KY, USA 5
Marriage 1 Agnes Wilson b: ABT 1750 in Adams Co., PA,
USA
Married: ABT 1766 6 2
Children
Matthew Adams b: 1768 in VA, USA
Andrew Adams b: 1794 in KY, USA
Wilson Hicks Adams b: ABT 1796 in KY, USA
William Adams
John Adams
George Adams
Adams
Robert Adams b: 1770 in VA, USA
Jesse Adams b: 1774 in VA, USA
Alexander Adams b: 1776 in VA, USA
James Adams Jr. b: 18 MAY 1779 in Botetourt Co., VA, USA
Mary Adams b: ABT 1785 in VA, USA
Thomas Adams b: 18 MAR 1788 in Madison Co., KY, USA
Catherine Adams b: 1790
Jane Adams b: 1792
They were stocky with fair or red hair and blue eyes, blessed with a strong native intellect and retentive memories."
"Earlier generations of the family reported that he served in the French and Indian War for which service he received 50 acres of land. Kate Adams, an earlier researcher of the family history, wrote that her grandfather, John Quincy Adams, claimed James Adams served during the Revolution under Capt. Uriah Springer."
"James Adams enlisted as a private in Capt. Benjamin Harrison's Co., 13th Va. Regiment, 15 Jan. 1777, and was listed on the payroll through 30 April 1778. From 1 Nov. 1781 through 30 June 1783, he was listed as a corporal in Capt. Uriah Springer's Co., 7th Va. Regiment. On 24 June 1783, Bounty Warrant #1039 was issued in consideration for his services for 400 acres of land which it is thought he took in eastern Kentucky."
The following is a transcription of a document obtained from the Office of Land Records in Frankfort, Kentucky:
To the principal SURVEYOR of the Land, set apart for the Officers and Soldiers of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
This shall be your WARRANT to survey and lay off in one or more Surveys, for James Adams his Heirs or Assigns the Quantity of four hundred Acres of Land, due unto the said James Adams In consideration of his Services for three years as Corporal in the Virginia Continental line agreeable to a Certificate from the Governor in Council, which is received into the Land-Office.
GIVEN under my Hand and Seal of the said Office, this 24th Day of June in the Year One Thousand Seven Hundred and 83. "The will of James Adams was dated 14 Oct. 1814, and was probated in Hopkins Co., KY in 1815. (Will Book "A", 1807-1820) and mentions daughters, Caty Bone, Poly Davis, and Jenny; sons, Thomas, James, Jr., Andrew, Wilson, Matthew, Robert, Alexander, and Jesse; and his "beloved wife, Agnes." Tradition tells us there were probably at least four more sons, three were slain by Indians. It is said that two sons, Thomas and another whose name has been forgotten, were playing in the woods near their home when they were taken by Indians. Thomas finally managed to escape but the other son refused to leave his captors. The boy had become accustomed to the Indians and thought of his own people as strangers. It is said Thomas never recovered from the experience and ever after hated all Indians."
http://www.angelfire.com/mo/lissa1/Adams1.html

• Family History. Year Location Event
birth of James ADAMS
birth of Agnes WILSON
marriage of James ADAMS & Agnes WILSON
c1766/7 birth of son, Matthew
c1770 birth of son, Robert
c1774 birth of son, Jesse
c1776 birth of son, Alexander
1776 VA [now KY]: Kentucky Co. formed
1779 birth of son, James
1780 VA [now KY]: Lincoln Co. formed from Kentucky Co.
c1784 birth of son, Harold
c1785 birth of daughter, Mary
1785 VA [now KY]: Lincoln Co. James ADAMS signs Petition to create new counties
1785/6 VA [now KY]: Madison Co. formed from Lincoln Co.
1788 VA [now KY]: Lincoln Co. marriage of son, Matthew, to Esther BARNETT
1788 birth of son, Thomas
c1790 birth of daughter, Catherine
1790 Census - no Federal census taken in KY
1792 Kentucky achieves statehood; Logan Co. formed from Lincoln Co.
c1794 birth of son, Andrew
1795 Tax List KY: Madison Co. James ADAMS, taxpayer
c1796 birth of son, Wilson
1797 KY: Madison Co. marriage of son, Alexander, to Isabella MILLER
1797 KY: Christian Co. formed from Logan Co.
1798 KY: Henderson Co. formed from Christian Co.
1797-1800 Madison Co. to Christian Co. family moves
1800 Census - KY census lost
1800 Tax List KY: Christian Co. James ADAMS (Jr.?), taxpayer
1801 KY: Christian Co. marriage of daughter, Mary, to Edward DAVIS
1802 KY: Christian Co. marriage of son, Matthew, to Catherine FERGUSON
1803 KY: Christian Co. marriage of son, James, to Phoebe DAVIS
1804 Tax List KY: Christian Co. James ADAMS (Jr.?), taxpayer
1805 Tax List KY: Christian [now Todd] Co.: WFRR James ADAMS (Sr.), taxpayer
1805 death of son, Alexander
1806 Tax List KY: Christian Co. James ADAMS (Sr.), taxpayer
1806/7 KY: Hopkins Co. formed from Henderson Co.
1807 Tax List KY: Christian [now Todd] Co.: WFRR James ADAMS (Sr.), taxpayer
1808 KY: Christian Co. marriage of daughter, Catherine, to John BONE
1808 Tax List KY: Christian [now Todd] Co.: WFRR James ADAMS (Sr.), taxpayer
1809 KY: Christian Co. marriage of son, Thomas, to Mary DAVIS
1809 Tax List KY: Christian [now Todd] Co.: WFRR James ADAMS (Sr.), taxpayer - last time in the county
1809/10 Christian Co. to Hopkins Co. family moves
1810 Census KY: Hopkins Co. James ADAMS, head-of-household
1814 KY: Hopkins Co. James ADAMS makes his will
1815 KY: Hopkins Co. death of James ADAMS, Sr.
1816 KY: Muhlenberg Co. marriage of son, Wilson, to Elizabeth BONE


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sources:
. Census Index: U.S. Selected Counties, 1790 (Broderbund CD-311): no Kentucky census was taken.

. Anon. 1991. The 1795 Census of Kentucky [as constructed from tax lists]. T.L.C. Genealogy, Miami Beach, FL: Name County
Adams, James Madison


. Anon. 1990. Logan County, Kentucky, Taxpayers, 1792-1799. T.L.C. Genealogy, Miami Beach, FL: not found.

. Census Index: U.S. Selected Counties, 1800 (Broderbund CD-312): the Kentucky census was destroyed. 1800 Tax List Adams, James KY Christian Co.


. Census Index: U.S. Selected Counties, 1810 (Broderbund CD-313). Please see my WARNING regarding use of this database (the numerical data have the genders switched). 1810 Adams, James KY Hopkins Co. p. 375 00101-0111100
These data should read: 01111-00101-00
which indicate: No. & Sex Age Class Therefore Born Individuals Inferred
1 male 10-15 1794-1800 = Wilson (b. 1796)
1 male 16-25 1784-1794 = Andrew (b. 1794)
1 male 26-44 1765-1784 = Harold (b. 1784)
1 male 45 or over in or bef. 1765 = James (b. ca. 1745)
1 female 16-25 1784-1794 = Jinny (b. 1792)
1 female 45 or over in or bef. 1765 = Agnes (b. 1750)


. Lon Bostick. 1991. Family History Book: Christian County, Kentucky. Turner Publ. Co., Paducah, KY (available from the author at 1110 Hewitt St., Huntsville, AL 35816; also available through Christian County Genealogical Society, Hopkinsville, KY). On p. 28 is a biographical sketch of Agnes ADAMS, granddaughter of our subjects. The parts referring to our subjects reads: ...James Adams, Sr., was an early settler in Lincoln Co., KY. He was among those inhabitants of Lincoln County who signed a Petition to the General Assembly of Virginia, dated Sept. 26, 1785, asking that two distinct counties be laid off... The request was granted. Madison and Mercer Counties were established... James Adams, Sr. and family moved to Hopkins County, the Weir's Creek area, around 1810. His will is recorded in Hopkins County Court, February, 1815. Listed as heirs were his wife, Agnes; their daughters: Caty Bone, Jinny, Polly Davis; their sons: Andrew, Wilson, Thomas, Matthew, Robert, Jesse, and James, Jr.; also listed were the heirs of their deceased son, Alexander.


. In a database at WorldConnect, William Esparza quotes the following: The will of James Adams was dated 14 Oct. 1814, and was probated in Hopkins Co., KY in 1815. (Will Book "A", 1807-1820) and mentions daughters, Caty Bone, Poly Davis, and Jenny; sons, Thomas, James, Jr., Andrew, Wilson, Matthew, Robert, Alexander, and Jesse; and his "beloved wife, Agnes." Tradition tells us there were probably at least four more sons, three were slain by Indians. It is said that two sons, Thomas and another whose name has been forgotten, were playing in the woods near their home when they were taken by Indians. Thomas finally managed to escape but the other son refused to leave his captors. The boy had become accustomed to the Indians and thought of his own people as strangers. It is said Thomas never recovered from the experience and ever after hated all Indians.
(James and Allied Fams, qtd by WC Hightowr)


. A.B. Willhite. [n.d.] Christian Co., Kentucky, Tax List, 1804-1809. (self-published; available from author at 4396 Coopertown Rd., Russellville, KY 42276, or from the Christian County Genealogical Society, Hopkinsville, KY): Pg. in
Willhite Year Dist.* Last
Name First
Name A B C D E Acres Watercourse
1 1804 South Adams James 1 - - - 2 - -
29 1805 South Adams James 1 1 2 6 4 200 West Fork of Red River
69 1806 South Adams James 1 1 3 6 6 200 L R
114 1807 East Adams James 2 - 3 7 7 200 W
155 1808 East Adams James 1 1 3 7 5 200 West Fork Red River
204 1809 East Adams, Sr James 1 3 6 5 200 W
Legend for numerical data: A = White Males 21 or over; B = White Males 16-20 (this column not used in 1809); C = Blacks over 16; D = Total Blacks; E = Horses
Abbreviations: W = West Fork of the Red River; LR = Little River, but this is obviously an error, either by the lister, the county clerk, or the transcriber
*The county was divided into just two districts: from 1804 to 1806, into North and South Districts; and from 1807 to 1809, into East and West Districts. The change tells us that James was in the southeast quadrant of early Christian County, which later became the southwest quadrant of Todd Co., when it was formed in 1820. This location is confirmed by the location of the West Fork of the Red River in today's southwestern Todd Co.
The James in 1804 looks like James Jr.; James Jr. is on the tax list from 1804-1809.

. A.B. Willhite. [n.d.] Christian Co., Kentucky, Tax List, 1810-1813. (Self-published; available from author at 4396 Coopertown Rd., Russellville, KY 42276, or from the Christian County Genealogical Society, Hopkinsville, KY). The one James ADAMS on the tax list and in the census for 1810 is James ADAMS, Jr. Our subject, James ADAMS, Sr., is now in Hopkins Co., KY.

. Willard Rouse Jillson. 1925. The Kentucky Land Grants. Filson Club Publ., Louisville, KY (online at Ancestry.com; Broderbund CD-650): Pg Grantee Acres Book Pg Date County Watercourse
Part 1, Chapter III, Old Kentucky Grants, 1793-1856
140 Adams, James 50 7 20 5-1-1795 Lincoln Silver Cr
-
- - - - - - - -


. Leona Adams Loviska. c1978. Descendants of James and Agnes (Wilson) Adams with Fifty-Seven Allied Families. Not seen, but apparently still available from the author.

. Family Group Sheet of James DAVIS & Hannah RAMSEY by Anthony Lee Rockefeller, dated 27 Jan 1986 (purchased from Yates Publishing, Stevensville, MT) - Mr. Rockefeller's database is now online at WorldConnect.

. Anon. 1986. Family Histories, 1797-1986. Christian County Genealogical Society, Hopkinsville, KY, p. 149. Biographical sketch of James Davis.

. Ancestry World Trees (online at Ancestry.com).

. WorldConnect (online at RootsWeb.com).

. LDS. Family Search: Internet Genealogy Service: Ancestral File (AF).

James married Agnes Wilson in 1766 in Chambersburg, Adams County, Pennsylvania. (Agnes Wilson was born in 1750 in Chambersburg, Adams County, Pennsylvania, died in 1815 in Hopkins County, Kentucky and was buried in Hopkins County, Kentucky.)