Pittman Family Statistic Charts

Colonial's Third Son A Georgia Soldier Statesman and Judge

Son of John and Mary Polly Rowe Pittman

Brother of

Buckner Pittman

Phillip Pittman

Timothy Pittman

John Ichabod Pittman

James Greene, his Father John and four Brothers were soliders in the Revolutionary War where James rose to the rank of Lieutenant.  When Georgia fell into the hands of the British, James Greene returned to Virginia the state of his birth. 

July 2, 1781 Marriage To

Martha Patsy Taylor

Daughter of James and Nancy Owens Taylor

Family Lineage of

President Zachary Taylor

In September 1788 James Greene, Martha and three children born in Virginia, returned to Georgia.  Documents of Letters and Land Grants show that he owned large tracts of land in Franklin County which in 1796 became a part of newly formed Jackson County, Georgia.  In 1812 a portion of the Pittman land was made part of another new county, Madison County.   He also owned a large tract of land in Wilkes County, Georgia where the Pittman Family home once stood, but was destroyed by fire.

After the war, James Greene took an active role in the affairs of Georgia.  In 1796 he represented Jackson County at the 1795 Convention.  He returned to the 1798 Convention, again as a Representative of Jackson County which has been referred to as *the largest and ablest that ever assembled in Georgia.  They formed the Constitution that was not materially changed until after the War between the States.  *Historian George Smith.

James Greene Pittman State of Georgia Appointments

Judge of the Inferior Court of Jackson County - June 21, 1796

by Gov. Jared Irwin

Captain in the Jackson County Militia - Oct. 13, 1798

House of Representatiaves 1797-1799

Commissioner of Jackson County Academy - Feb. 11, 1797

In 1812 Jackson County was divided and Madison County was formed. 
Commissioner of Madison County Academy - Nov. 6, 1812

Legislative Representative for Madison County

Militia District of Madison County Honoree

Dist. named for James G. Pittman

James Greene Pittman died on Christmas Day, December 25, 1850 at the age of 94 years. 
He is buried in the Pittman Cemetery in Madison County, Georgia.
James Greene Pittman Memorial - Find A Grave Website
PITTMAN CEMETERY
Donated By
LIEUTENANT JAMES PITTMAN
1845
FROM HIS ORIGINAL U.S. GOVERNMENT
LAND GRANT SIGNED BY
PRESIDENT GEORGE WASHINGTON FOR SERVICE
IN THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR
Erected In Memory of Lieut. Pittman
By His Descendants
1953
Find A Grave Memorial and Photos by Leigh Williams Kitchens
4X Great Granddaughter of James Greene Pittman

Martha Taylor Pittman, wife of James Greene died in May 1850, seven months before his death in December.  During the summer of 1850, he had his slaves build a rock wall enclosing her grave and that of his daughter Martha and her husband, Abner Wells.  James Greene's grave is marked with the Bronze Marker of the United States Daughters of 1812 and with the Government Marker of the Revolutionary War.  This was secured through the efforts of two of his great -granddaughters in 1912. 

James Greene and Martha Patsy Taylor Pittman Children

John Green Pittman  1782-1873

Pleasant Owen Pittman 1784-1849

Martin Hughes Pittman 1786-1836

Sir James Pittman 1788-1848

Elizabeth Alice Pittman 1790-1850

Nancy Sarah Pittman 1792-1830

Lucinda Pittman 1794-1864

Timothy Franklin Pittman 1797-1883

Sarah Ann Pittman 1798-1854

Martha Diana Pittman 1801-1890

Noah Washington Pittman 1803-1890

Teresa Pittman 1807-1888

Elizabeth Ann Pittman 1822-1888

 

Acknowledgements

Ancestry.com Public Document

Judges James Greene and John Greene Memorial Presentation

Find A Grave Memorial

Leigh Williams Kitchens

The Georgia Historical Society's

Index To US Census of Georgia for 1820

 

James Greene Pittman

4X Great Uncle

of

Sandra Sue Pittman, Author

Tracks of My Texas Ancestors

The Patriot and The Pennsylvania Farmers Daughter

When Buckner Pittman stepped off the flatbottom boat that carried him across the Ohio from Clarksville to Lewisville, he was looking forward to returning home to his family in Georgia.  He had spent much of his time mapping out the route he would take and had even written letters home to let his folks know of his plans.  All those plans changed in an instant when his Kentucky Mountain Saddle Horse, Patriot, lost his footing on the muddy bank of the Ohio as they disembarked the flatbottom boat.  Buckners tradgedy in the accident was threefold. 

First, the loss of Patriot was devasting.  The powerful Kentucky bred horse was a source of pride and great affection, and putting him down was one of the hardest things Buckner ever had to do. Secondly, both of his legs were broken when Patriot fell full force on him.  One of them a compound fracture that the doc did the best he could in setting.  It was likely that he would never walk again without the aid of a crutch.  He certainly would not be riding across Kentucky to his Georgia home...the third and final blow to his carefully laid plans.

As a recently discharged soldier from Clarks Brigade at Fort Jefferson, and a severly injured veteran with no place to call home, Buckner settled in at the doctors office in Lewisville.  It was there he met Ann Smith, the young girl who had survived the Indian attack across the river in Clarksville.  Despite the loss of blood from being scalped and left for dead, Ann had been saved from a fate worse than death by the quick arrival of the soliders.  Ann, her mother Nancy and sister Margaret had come through the horrific experience, and like Buckner had no home and no one to care for them.  Ann's father had been killed in an Indian attack before they reached Clarksville, and the rest of their party resumed their trip down the Ohio.

Buckner Pittman and Ann Smith were married January 14, 1786. He was thirty-seven years of age and Ann was seventeen.  Their marriage was registered in  Jefferson County, Kentucky, which was established in 1780 and named after Govenor Thomas Jefferson of Virginia.

 They remained in Lewisville while Buckner recovered.  The next documented date of their whereabouts was the birth record of their first born son, James, born in 1789 in Fairchild, Adams County, Mississippi.  Buckner wrote to his parents John and Mary Polly Rowe Pittman that he and Ann had eight children, but records show five with all of them having been born in Adams County Mississippi. 

Buckner died in 1805 at the age of 57.  *The circumstances of his death have not been found nor his burial place.  The last document he was listed in was the Missississippi State and Territorial Census Collection of 1792 which indicated the Pittmans lived in the District of Bayu Pierre, Natchez County, Mississippi.   At the time of his death, it appears he did not have an estate or a Will.  No Pittmans appear on the records of Wills in Adams County in 1805.  Ann Smith was Buckner's second wife, and neither she nor any of their children are named in the Will of his father John Pittman.  However, Buckner's son Jesse by his first wife Nancy Harris, who died giving birth to Jesse, received 100 acres in Wilkes County, Georgia from his grandfather John's estate.  Buckner also was named in the his fathers will....he was awarded **one shilling.

What happened to widowed Ann Smith Pittman and her children by Buckner Pittman has been researched with little results as to their death dates and burial places. However, Ann's mother Nancy and sister Margaret's documented history re-surfaces on September 26, 1794 with Margaret's marriage to James Noble Wood.  

Nancy Smith died August 10th, 1828 at the age of 91.  She is buried in Hillcrest Cemetery, Utica, Clark County, Indiana.  Her daughter Margaret died March 5, 1854 at the age of 94 in Utica, Indiana.  She and her husband James Noble Wood and at least three of their sons are buried in Hillcrest Cemetery.  It would seem that Nancy and Margaret settled not far from the place where they became an unknowing part of 'Pittman Family History' with 'The Scalping of Ann Smith'.

What a legacy Harry Smith from Pennsylvania began where the Alleghany and Monongahela met the Ohio River.  Although he didn't live to see the Mighty Mississippi, his descendents did through Buckner Pittman, a Georgia Revolutionary Soldier and a Kentucky Frontiersman.

*Mississippi death certificates for 1805 not available online.  Will Update when records available.

**John Pittman's Will:  From: Historical Collections of the Georgia Chapters Daughters of the American Revolution  VolumeII, page13 Richmond County Georgia, court records. Wills, 1777

PITTMAN, JOHN - To wife Mary, my Kiokee plantation and slaves for widowhood or life, then to go to children Grace and timothy Pittman. To son Phillip Pittman, 200 acres in Wilkes Co. To daughter Patty Pittman and grandson Jesse Pittman, 100 acres each in Wilkes Co. To sons Buckner and John Pittman, one shilling each. The residue to go to seven (?) youngest children: Mary Rogers, James, Patty, Timothy and Grace Pittman. (says five youngest in another place).

Executors: Son-in-law Peleg Rogers, and Phillip Pittman

Witness: Wm Courson, Zachriah Marchel (Marshall), James Jimison (Jameson).

Signed April 14, 1782. Probated April 22, 1785.

Appraisers: Michael McNeill, Hugh Rogers, Ambros Jones, John Pittman, James Sims.



Pennsylvania To Kentucky In A Flatbottom Boat

Harry Smith was a Pennsylvania farmer. He was living in a time of new beginnings for those who were tough enough and willing to brave the hardships and dangers of 'The Great Westward Movement'.  Harry and his brother had heard about the rich farmland ready for the taking and the newly opened route that would take them down the Ohio River.  The were convinced they could navigate a Broadhorn Flatbottom Boat and began their trip where the Allegheny and Monongahela rivers formed the northeastern mouth of the Ohio River in Pittsburg and flowed in a southwesterly direction to the Mississippi. 

Harry Smith, his wife Nancy, their two daughters Ann and Margaret most likely were part of a small contingent of farmers who contracted one of the larger flatboats referred to as Arks.  The Ark Barges were built for navagating big rivers like the Ohio and Mississippi and carried two or more families traveling West with their farm animals.  The trip took a month or longer depending on the final destination, the number of times they banked for supplies, and how often they stopped to forage feed for the animals.  Then there was the ever present danger of encountering Indian raiding parties.  It was on a banking for the cattle to feed that the Smith Party came under attack.

Not far from the Falls of the Ohio River at Fort Washington (now Cincinnati), the Smith Ark poled over to an embankment that led to a grassy pasture.  The cattle were hered to the field while Harry and his brother scythed and bundled grass for storage.  When time came to round up the cattle, Harry noticed the milk cow was missing.  He followed the sound of her bell coming from the wooded area just beyond the pasture.   To late, he realized that the Indians had taken the cow and were using the bell to lure him closer to the woods where he would not be able to warn his family and the crew on the boat.  He was shot and killed while running back to the boat.  The warning he shouted gave the crew just enough time to push off the bank and fight off the Indian's from boarding the barge.

Nancy and her daughters were tending to housekeeping chores atop the covered compartments when she heard her husbands shouts.  She instantly knew they were under attack and threw her body over her daughters to protect them, all the while screaming her husbands name.   After the attack, Nancy and her daughters were devastated at the loss of their husband and father, but had no choice but to continue downstream to Louisville where they thought they would be safe.  Louisville had been under attack and all river boats were routed across the Ohio to Clarksville and the fort.

Fearing for their lives, Nancy and her daughters quickly left the barge with the rest of the Smith's and the crew, leaving their belongings and animals on the boat.  Before they could get off the river bank, they were attacked again.  Nancy and her younger daughter Margaret were able to escape the onslaught as the soliders from the fort arrived.   As soon as they reached safety, Nancy noticed that Ann was not with them.  She tried to run back, but was stopped. 

All through the siege, Nancy prayed  that if her daughter was dead that her death at the hands of the Indians be quick and merciful, as she was remembering the accounts she had read about another young girl's horrifying death not so many years earlier.  The story of  Jane McCrea had been published in the Pennsylvania Ledger and it was all Nancy could think of as she waited for the fighting to end. 

As Nancy and Margaret clung to each other and prayed, shouts could be heard to open the gate.  A soldier was running toward the fort and not far behind, a band of savages, their weapons raised.   Thrown over his shoulder was the lifeless figure of Ann Smith.

As soon as he was through the gate, he collapsed.  Nancy too, fell to the ground and took her daughter in her arms.  Anns face and strands of hair around her face were covered and soaked in blood.  As Nancy touched her daughters head to pull her close for a hint of a breath, she felt a mixture of blood and dirt, and heard Margaret scream,

 "She has been Scalped!"

Colonial First Born Son and Revolutionary Soldier

Buckner Pittman was the oldest son of the Colonial Pittmans, John and Mary Polly Rowe Pittman of Virginia.  He is not mentioned by name in the records of the Pittmans migration from Virginia to Georgia, but it is assumed that he spent his youth in the ways of colonial boys. 

As young as four years of age, boys began to help with the daily chores by working along side their fathers learning how to farm, cut wood and follow in their fathers footsteps of providing for their family.  Boys also wore clothing just like their father, and by the age of nine they began their schooling.  For most frontier colonials, parents educated their children at home from a *Horn Book with an emphasis on their sons book learning and apprenticeships which were more often than not learning about farming from their fathers.  *Horn Book...Colonial Education

 

Buckner's enlistment in the early Revolutionary War days is not duly recorded, but it is known that he and his brothers joined their father who enlisted in December 1776.  In May 1780, Sergant Buckner Pittman enlisted in the Commonwealth of Virginia under Captain George Rogers Clark's Company of Artillery.  The fact that he was a senior non-commissioned officer suggests that he had prior military service.  Under the service of Clark, Buckner Pittman is documented as a Master Boatman at Fort Jefferson which suggests that he was in Clarks Navy Brigade that was responsible for moving troops and supplies on the Ohio and Mississippi Rivers. 

 

It was during this time that Buckner was counted as one of the 100 men in Clarks service who participated in the bloody conflits against the Chickasaw Indians at Fort Jefferson located on the 'Ironbanks' (now Kentucky) on the east bank of the Mississippi River.  The building of Fort Jefferson was ordered by then Govenor Thomas Jefferson of Virginia who saw the fort as a strategic location for controlling traffic on the Ohio and Mississippi and a source for protecting the settlers. 

At the end of his three year service under Clark, he was part of an encampment on the Falls of the Ohio River.  His plan after being discharged was to return to Georgia or Virginia, however his discharge came during a hard winter when the Ohio River was impassable.  He was forced to wait for favorable conditions to cross.  After all the hardships and battles he had survived during his war service, he was severly injured when his horse fell on him as they disembarked the flatboat that carried them across the Ohio River.  He was forced to remain in Kentucky to convalesce from the injury that left him crippled. 

Commemorative Bronze Marker In Memory of the

Pittman Soliders of the Revolutionary War.

Erected in 1967 by United States Daughters of the War of 1812

Placed at the Grave of James Green Pittman

In Loving Memory of

Soldiers of the Revolutionary War

John Pittman and Sons

Georgia Notable Ancestors

JOHN PITTMAN AND POLLY ROWE PITTMAN

Colonial America Settlers

Pittman Family History In Colonial America 1700’s

A Collection from Ancestry.com and Various Website (*referenced)

Referenced and Assembled by
S.S. Pittman, Author/Photographer/Owner
Pittman/Carroll/Marley Family Tree, Ancestry.com
{all rights reserved...copy/paste of photos and text prohibited}
{exception-public web links}
{contact collectintexas@gmail.com for permission}

Document Format: Outlined by Name and Date

Linked to Individual Pittman’s Page in The Pittman/Carroll/Marley Family Tree

{access granted to Family Members...contact collectintexas@gmail.com }

{click CAPITALIZED BOLD PRINT NAMES}

{other links active to all}

It has been said that this Pittman Line came from the Wales Pittmans and were among the first settlers in the 13 Colonies as one is listed among the dead in Virginia in 1623.

I. JOHN PITTMAN – Oct. 3, 1726-April 17, 1785

~John Pittman was of Scotch-English descent. He lived in Buckingham County, Virginia before moving to Edgefield District, South Carolina prior to 1770.

~Moved to St. Paul's Parish, GA and settled on Kiokee Creek. His plantation was located in that portion of land later named Richmond County, and in 1790 was cut off and named Columbia County.

~Enlisted on Dec 18, 1776 in the 4th Artillery Regiment of South Carolina, commanded by Col. Barnard Beeckman.

He served as a Matross (Gunner) in Capt. Harmon Davis' Company.

Link to Capt. Harmon Davis Regiment and Battles HERE

Photo: Revolutionary Canons…Revolutionary War Antiques

~In 1778 John Pittman was reported in the South Carolina Militia as a Ships Master. *Georgia Revolutionary War Soldiers Graves by Arnold and Burnham, 1993 pg 576. Other Documentation: The Roster of South Carolina Patriots In The American Revolution by BG Moss, 1983 pg 775.

~ John Pittman is also listed with the Rebels who kept watch on the Savannah River Crossings. On the Muster Roll of Capt. Ephraim Mitchell’s Company of the South Carolina Continental Regiment of Artillery Encampment at the Two Sisters Ferry commanded by Colonel Owen Roberts…March 21, 1779.

~Sons of John Pittman who also served in the Revolutionary War:

John Ichabod Pittman…aka John Pittman, Jr.

Buckner Pittman

James Greene Pittman

Phillip Pittman

Timothy Pittman

The Torries Raid on John Pittman Homestead

While John and his sons were away fighting in the American Revolution the Torries raided their home. The house was ransacked and Mary Polly was thrown off the porch while trying to defend her home. She suffered a broken hip which left her crippled for the rest of her life. The Pittman men returned home and learned the identities of the raiders. Only one had survived the war and he was found in Nashville, Tennessee where Buckner Pittman shot him dead in the street.

II. John Pittman and MARY POLLY ROWE PITTMAN – Marriage May 1, 1747 Buckingham, Virginia (Amelia County)

~After the birth of Fifth child…James Greene Pittman…moved to Edgefield District, South Carolina where John had a survey in Amelia Township in 1757. It is thought he owned land on Raifords Creek Mill, South Carolina. In 1772 John Pittmans Platt between back swamp and cabin branch showed a path to the meeting house (according to Townsends South Carolina Baptists, 1670-1805,pg.142n,144n).

~Pittman Family Biographers proposed that John and Mary moved further south to escape Religious Restrictions placed upon Baptist activities. The following excerpt from Pittman Family Biography…authors unknown.

John Pittman, wife and ten children joined the Colony of Baptists headed by the celebrated preacher, the Reverend Daniel Marshall, whom they most likely met in church in Buckingham County Virginia. This Colony settled in Georgia on Kiokee Creek, St. Paul’s Parish which became Richmond County and later Columbia County. The church established by the Reverend Marshall was the first Baptist Church in Georgia. (Marshall Monument in Elijah Clark Memorial State Park-Lincolnton Georgia)

*A Number of Baptist Ministers were named Pittman. James Pittman, a member of Tuckahoo Baptist Church, was imprisioned for 15 days for preaching in his home on December 18, 1776. *History of The Rise and Progress of Baptists in Virginia Robert B. Semple…revised in 1894 by G.W. Beale.

JOHN ICHABOD PITTMAN, son of John and Mary, married LUCY EUNICE MARSHALL…daughter of REVEREND DANIEL MARSHALL and Martha Stearns Marshall.

JAMES GREENE PITTMAN

HON. JOHN GREENE PITTMAN

The Unveiling of Bronze Marker In Their Honor

James Pittman, born in Amelia County, Virginia, March 4, 1756. was the 4th child of John and Mary (Rowe) Pittman, who came from Buckingham County, Virginia to Edgefield Dist., S.C., and later to Georgia prior to 1770.

 

Tradition says the Pittman family, this line, came from Wales. Pittmans have been among the first settlers in all 13 colonies; one is listed among the dead in Virginia in 1623.

 

James Pittman, with his father, John Pittman, and four brother, Buckner, John Jr., Phillip and Timothy, were soldiers in the Revolutionary War, where James Pittman rose to the rank of Lieutenant. When Georgia fell into the hands of the British, James Pittman returned to Virginia, where he met and married Martha Taylor. July 5th, 1781. She was the daughter of James and Nancy (Owens) Taylor, of the same lineage of President Zachary Taylor.

 

They returned to Georgia, September 1788. Their three children were born in Virginia. Old letters, land grants, etc., prove that James Pittman owned large tracts of land in Franklin Co. which in 1796 became a part of the new County, Jackson, and in 1812 that portion where he lived was made part of another new county, Madison. He also owned a large tract of land in Wilkes Co. The old home once stood in sight of this spot, but was burned many years ago.

 

James Pittman did not retire to private life after the war, but took an active part in the affairs of his state. He was a delegate from Jackson Co. to the convention of 1795. The Convention which referred the question of repudiating the sale of the Yazoo land to the succeeding Legislature, and made provision for the Convention of 1798. He represented Jackson Co. in that Convention, of which George Smith, Historian says, "Was the largest and ablest that ever assembled in Georgia. They formed the Constitution that was not materially changed until after the War between the States."

 

He was appointed Judge of the Inferior Court of Jackson County, June 21st, 1796, by Gov, Jared Irwin, at that time a position of honor and distinction. He was a Justice of the peace in 1798, He was commissioned by Gov. Jared Irwin, Oct. 13th, 1798, as Captain in the Jackson Co. Militia. In 1799, Gov. James Jackson appointed him Judge of the Inferior Court, where he served until that part of Jackson County was cut into Madison in 1812,

 

He represented Jackson County in House of Representatives in 1797-98-99. Was made a commissioner for the Jackson County Academy February 11, 1797, and in 1603. December 9th, was made Commissioner for the joint Academy of Clarke and Jackson Counties. Was a member of the Convention of 1633, from Madison Co., which met to reduce the members in the General Assembly. Was made Commissioner of Madison County Academy November 6th, 1812, represented Madison County in Legislature several terms.

 

Pittman's Militia District in Madison County was named for him. He died December 25th, 1850, 94 years old, honored and respected by all. He and his wife reared a family of 13 children, whose descendants are now scattered all over the south and west.

 

His grave which we have marked today with the Bronze Marker of the U.S. Daughters of 1812 is also marked with the Government Marker of the Revolutionary War. This was secured through the efforts of two of his great-granddaughters, Mrs. J. H. Hardwick, Cleveland, Tenn., and Mrs. C. K. Henderson, in 1912. The stone wall was built by the family slaves.

 

Martha Taylor Pittman, wife of James Pittman, died in May 1850; during that summer James Pittman had his slaves build this rock wall enclosing her grave and that of his daughter Martha and her husband, Abner Wells. This marker was not properly set in cement in 1912, and some years later, William Owen Davis (My great Uncle) of Gainesville, Texas, a great-grandson of James Pittman, visited the cemetery, seeing that the wall was falling to pieces and that his great- grandmother's grave was unmarked, he generously and lovingly procured a marker for her grave, at his own expense, A year later he returned to Georgia had the marker placed over the grave of Martha Pittman, and the Government Marker for James Pittman cemented, the wall reset and firmly cemented. The family owe a debt of gratitude to William Owen Davis for this service.

JOHN GREENE PITTMAN was a son worthy of his sire. Born in Virginia October 2nd, 1782, coming to Georgia with his parents in September 1788. He grew to manhood and married Mary Moore, January 24, 1804, dying, October 7th, 1873, leaving a large family. like his father he too was active in the affairs of his country and state.

 

He represented Jackson County in the Convention of 1853. In the House of Representatives from Jackson County in 1833-34-35-36. He was Judge of the Inferior Court of that County from 1835-36-37. Was Ordinary of the County 1853-59, Was a delegate from the County to the secession Convention in 1861.

 

He was Major in the 53rd Battalion, Georgia Militia from February 15th, 1810 to June 23rd, 1814, when he was made a Lt. Col. He was a man of prominence in his county and had large property investments.

NOTE: This document was apparently a talk given at the laying of bronze markers on the tombs of these Pittmans.

Rene Marion Pittman...Notable Ancestor

Mordecia Monroe Pittman...Notable Ancestor

Baptist Patriarch Daniel Marshall

Born in Windsor, Connecticut, on August 24, 1706, Daniel Marshall was the ninth child born to Thomas and Mary Drake Marshall, second generation Connecticut Colonials.

Like his father, Daniel, served as a deacon of the First Church of Windsor, one of the nations oldest Congregational churches.  Daniels parents were considered respectable and devoted to the church with their family of eleven children having been raised and educated within the constrictions of the church.  Although, without a formal education, Daniel's Bible education served him well.

In 1742 he married Hannah Drake and they had a son, Daniel Jr. born in 1746.  They settled on Daniel's farm and continued their devotion to the Windsor Church.  Around 1745 a revivalist, George Whitefield, influenced Daniel to become a Separate Congregationalist, a group considerably more evangelistic and charismatic than the establishment Standing Order Congregationalist Churches of Connecticut.  During this time, he established his reputation as a 'Layman Minister' and preached in New York and Pennsylvania.  In 1746 at the age of 29 years, Hannah Drake Marshall died, leaving Daniel a widower at age 40 with an infant son.  (although undocumented, the birth date of her son and her death date give rise to Hannah's death due to complications of childbirth).

In 1747 Daniel Marshall (41) and Martha Stearns (20) were married in Tolland, Connecticut.

The daughter of Evangelist Shubael Stearns, Martha has been credited with her husbands extraordinary success in the ministry for her unwearied and zealous support of her husband and their faith.  Known as a lady of good sense, singular piety, and surprising elocution, Martha Stearns Marshall, became a minister in her own right, although she was never ordained.

 

From 1754 to 1771 Daniel Marshall ministered in Virginia, North Carolina, and South Carolina, becoming an ordained Separate Baptist leader second in influence only to Shubeal Stearns.  During these years he was a revivalistic and emotional Farmer-Preacher who influenced many others to enter the ministry and assisted in founding Separate Baptist Churches in the above mentioned states.

 

The Marshall Family moved to Columbia County, Georgia, in 1771, and organized the Kiokee Church with the John and Mary Polly Rowe Pittman Family, who had moved with them each step of the way from Virginia to Georgia.  As the Baptist patriarch in the area, he was a mentor to many young preachers, including James Greene Pittman, son of John and Mary Polly.  The *Pittman and *Marshall Families were united with the marriage of **Lucy Eunice Marshall and **John Ichabod Pittman in 1781.

Daniel Marshall died in Columbia County on November 2, 1784.  He was succeeded as pastor of Kiokee Baptist Church by his son Abraham and later by a grandson, Jabez Pleiades Marshall, Abraham's son.  The Marshall ministerial dynasty lasted sixty-one years, a rare occurance in Baptist circles.  *His estate was deemed considerable with at least 400 acres.  He is noted as the First Baptist Leader in Georgia with many monuments and churches bearing his name still in existence today.

*Reverend Daniel and Martha Stearns Marshall

5xGreat Grandparents

*John I. and Mary Polly Rowe Pittman

5xGreat Grandparents 

**Lucy Eunice Marshall Pittman...4xGreat Grandmother

            **John Ichabod Pittman................4xGreat Grandfather  

     

*Richmond County, Georgia WILLS 1777-1797

Daniel Marshall ~ Minister of the Gospel.  Wife Martha, eldest son Daniel.  Oldest daughter Eunice having received her part when she married.  The remainder to 'be divided between Daniel, Abraham, John, Zacheus, Levy, Moses, Solomon, Joseph and Mary equally.  Wife Martha, oldest sons Daniel and Abraha, Excrs.  Wit: Zacheus Marshall, Solomon Marshall, Joseph Marshall.

Signed Nov. 20, 1780.  Probated Nov. 23, 1784.

James Sims, Samuel Carledge, Holland Middleton, Levy

Georgia Genealogy Trails 'Where your Journey Begins'

 

Pittman/Carroll/Marley Family Tree on Ancestry.com

 ~ Public ~ Membership required to view.

Rev. Daniel Marshall Profile...HERE

Martha Stearns Marshall Profile...HERE



A Mother Is...Someone Who Defends...

...like my 5xGreatGrandmother...Wife and Mother of American Revolutionary Patriots.

A Mother is a friend for all time, to cherish and protect, as her achievements will linger for generations.
A five times Great Grandmother is a wonderous discovery in anyone's ancestorial research, especially when you are rewarded with names, dates and a story of her achievements that has been passed down for generations.

Just knowing her name as the Mother of my Direct Descendent was in itself a satisfying genealogy bit of information.  It is afterall, quite a challenge tracing the women in one's family tree, due to the traditional practice of women assuming their husbands surname.

In Virginia, when my 5xGreat Grandmother married on May 1, 1747, marriage was performed by ministers of the Church of England.  It would be another forty years before 'dissenting ministers', like Daniel Marshall, could perform marriage ceremonies.  Ministers were required by law to file marriage certificates with governing offices, however,  the laws were rarely enforced, resulting in many incomplete or nonexistent certificates.

Although women were treated as second-class citizens during the 1700's, their roles as women and mothers during the American Revolution gave rise to The Articles of Confederation and the important part they played in support of Republican Motherhood.  She encouraged her sons and husband to be soldiers, she boycotted particular goods and supported the causes of the Revolution by speaking out at home and in public.

My 5xGreat Grandmother Mary Polly Rowe Pittman was an

American Revolutionary Wife, Mother and Patriot.

Husband John I. Pittman

December 1776...4th Artillery Regiment of South Carolina

Commanded by Colonel Barnard Beeckman. 

He served as a Matross (Gunner) in Capt. Harmon Davis' Company.

Link to Capt. Harmon Davis Regiment and Battles HERE

Photo: Revolutionary Canons…Revolutionary War Antiques

~In 1778 John Pittman was reported in the South Carolina Militia as a Ships Master. *Georgia Revolutionary War Soldiers Graves by Arnold and Burnham, 1993 pg 576. Other Documentation: The Roster of South Carolina Patriots In The American Revolution by BG Moss, 1983 pg 775.

~ John Pittman is also listed with the Rebels who kept watch on the Savannah River Crossings. On the Muster Roll of Capt. Ephraim Mitchell’s Company of the South Carolina Continental Regiment of Artillery Encampment at the Two Sisters Ferry commanded by Colonel Owen Roberts…March 21, 1779.

~Sons of John Pittman and Mary Polly Rowe Pittman
 Served in the Revolutionary War:

*John Ichabod Pittman

Buckner Pittman

James Greene Pittman

Phillip Pittman

Timothy Pittman

The Torries Raid on John Pittman Homestead

While John and his sons were away fighting in the American Revolution the Torries raided their home on Kiokee Creek, Georgia.    The house was ransacked and Mary Polly was thrown off the porch while trying to defend her home. She suffered a broken hip which left her crippled for the rest of her life.

Her achievements will linger for generations....

*John Ichabod Pittman...Direct Descendent...4xGreat Grandfather

Making Tracks Out of Virginia

By the time John and Mary had married and started their family, The Great Awakening had swept through the colonies.  The revival  experience found itinerant preachers traveling from colony to colony urging citizens to return to their faith in God.  Even with their diverse religious factions, the colonists had strong religious values and strict practices including Religious Taxes imposed by the governing bodies to pay Anglican ministers. 

Many colonist believed that a separation of church and state should be established and made permanent.  For the Pittman Clan, the 'Revival' swept into their lives in the form of a man who set in motion a chain of events that would effect Pittmans for generations to come.

 Reverend Daniel Marshall, a former missionary to the Mohawk Indians and converted Baptist Separatist journeyed into the backwoods of Virgina and established a small church with a growing congregation that included the John Pittman family.

John supported the church as a Deacon and his older son James was called upon as an Itinerant Preacher...a position that landed him in jail for preaching the Baptist Gospel in the Pittman home. 

When the Reverend Marshall moved on to establish another church,  John Pittman and his family followed.

Several years were spent moving and establishing new Baptist churches in North and South Carolina.  Rev. Daniel and his wife Martha Stearns had completed their family of eight while John and Mary Polly's clan numbered eleven by the time they finished their trek from Virginia to Georgia.  There is a great deal written about the Reverend Marshall, his wife Martha and her famous Baptist Separatist Father, Shubael Stearns, and all of it relevant to future generations of Pittmans' deep Southern Baptist Roots.

 

As I read and researched these 'Early Colonial Ancestors', I was struck by the hardships, injustices and paths they took in their search for a better way of life and religious freedom, or what we today, and for generations, have called 'The American Dream'.   So it is that the following 18th Century Events are written 'In Contrasting Irreverence' to the above written 'Reverence To Historical Facts'.  In my 20th/21st Century minds eye and contemporary authorship I write this in awe of the incredulous involvement and historically significant parts played by my Ancestors.  





The Great Awakening!!!  Really!!!!  My poor, poor,  5X Great Great Grandmother, bless her heart, eleven children starting with Buckner in 1726 through 1767 with Timothy.  And still had one to go once they reached Georgia which made for an even dozen blessings.  At the age of 37 years old, Mary Polly had been married 21 years, had 11 children ranging in age from 19 years to 1 month.  During 21 years of marriage she was with child all but a few months each year until 1756 when she had  a whole year off...time for praise and prayer.  For Mary Polly, I imagine the Great Awakening had a double innuendo.

John and Mary Polly's first five children were born in Virginia...three sons and two daughters.  John Ichabod, their third child born in 1752 is my Direct Descendent and the 'Key' connection to my Southern Baptist Roots and Reverends Marshall and Stearns.

 Both whose places in Baptist History as Colonial and Frontier Baptist Ministers are held in high esteem and whose genealogy is well documented for all time.

Here's how two Colonial~Frontier Baptist Preachers became Grandfathers to Generations of Pittmans.

John Ichabod Pittman...son of John and Mary Polly Rowe Pittman

in the year 1781 married

Lucy Eunice Marshall...daughter of Rev. Daniel and Martha Stearns Marshall

Granddaughter of Rev. Shubael and Rebeckah Lariby Stearns

6X Great Godly Grandfather...What were you thinking?

~A Fictional Account~

 Seriously, what were you thinking?  Giving away all your earthly possessions, which were considerable due to the fact you were born into a respectable and pious family of Windsor, Conn. 

Here's a man whose ardent temperament and zealous Christian beliefs led him to a real 'Calling of the Wild..erness'. 

It is said he caught 'The Glowing Spirit' of the approaching 'Millenial Glory', abandoned everything and everyone except his wife and three young children, and moved to the Susquehanna to live in a WigWam among the Mohawks.  Poor Martha went from the bosom of civilized society and all the comforts of life to a wilderness where your next meal was covered in fur, your neighbors were nearly naked,  your children's lessons went from books to bows and arrows, and your husband was thumping a Bible to the beat of TomToms.  Bless her heart!

Note:  the following is purely supposition on my part...based on facts...of course.
Apparently, Reverend Marshall,  now known as 'BlackBook Thumper' among the Mohawks, had some success in converting the savages into receiving the Gospel.  However, after about eighteen months, Martha was fed up with WigWam housekeeping, her heathen children, clothes shopping at the tanning poles, washing Daniels 'breachcloth' and his disregard for removing his moccasins before coming in the WigWam.  Then there was the all out WAR between the savage tribes.

 "I'm leaving, Daniel.   You can stay or go, but know this...if you stay, your heathen kids are staying with you."

Next thing we know, Daniel, Martha and their tribe are in the back woods of Virginia with a different outlook on religion.  It wasn't long before they were both immersed in the Baptist scriptures and in the creek. Through it all, Lucy Eunice, the future Mrs. John Ichabod Pittman, made a complete turnaround from buckskin to bonnets and the only lasting influence from the Mohawk days was the Name she called her children, their children, and their childrens children.  It has passed down through the generations, and has become a Family Name Tradition,  and for the most part it has fit a good many of us.

 Lucy's 6x Great Grandson and my Grandson!

He's a 'Heathen'!

  

Colonial Americans John and Mary Rowe Pittman

John Pittman and Mary Polly Rowe were married on May 1, 1747 in Buckingham, Virginia where John was born and raised.   Mary Polly Rowe, born in 1730, was the daughter of William and Mary Brough Rowe of Isle of Wrights, Virginia.

For John and Mary, the family was at the center of Puritan godly homes, and they began their married life with Puritan proscribed proper gender roles.

Men were expected to love their wives and provide for her and their children.  Women were expected to be obedient to their husbands, work beside them in the fields, do all of the household work which included everything from cooking to making soap, washing and nurturing their children.

The early years of their marriage were spent in Virginia where their children were born.  Records indicate they migrated through South Carolina and prior to 1770 settled in St. Paul's Parish, Georgia near Kiokee Creek.  Their Plantation home was located in then Richmond County which was later divided and named Columbia County.

Pittman/Carroll/Marley Family Tree on Ancestry.com

 ~ Public ~ Membership required to view.

John Pittman Profile...HERE

Mary Polly Rowe Pittman Profile...HERE