Data Analysis - William A. Purvis, 1860 to 1872

For 36 years I have searched for the parents of my Great Great Grandfather William A. Purvis. Not a single shred of evidence has been found for William A. Purvis prior to 1860. He is listed in the 1860 census for Anson County, NC [1] with wife Sarah Jane and another couple by the name of Joseph & Laura [Brock] White. No record of a marriage date has been found for his marriage to Sarah  In 1863 their only child - William James was born (23 Sept. 1863).

The next record is dated 6 Dec 1866 is William A. Purvis is purchasing 36 acreage of  land from Joseph P. Smith (DB 8: 284-286).[2]  William A. Purvis then sells this same acreage to William J. Purvis on this same date - 6 Dec. 1866 (DB 8: 421-423).[3]

For years I thought he was selling the land to his son William James until it hit me while writing this blog post that this William J. Purvis CANNOT be his son because his son is only 3 years old. (more research required) [4]

             Such misstep as this one is why we need to sit down and write out our thought on individual facts and sources for those we are researching. When you start to put you information in a narrative form you realize when  the data just does not add up - a light bulb comes on just as it did while writing this article.

Land Deeds indicate my My Great Great Grandfather bought and sold the land and a lawsuit brought in Anson County, Spring term 1867 [5] by the heirs of Joseph P. Smith sought damages for the non-payment of this debt. My Great Great Grandfather William A. Purvis lost in court  with the following decision:


"continued from said Term until fall Term 1867 when judgment final by default was rendered in favor of said plaintiff against said Defendant for the sum of $150, and $73 damages for the detention thereof beside the further sum of $12 for costs in that behalf expended that the record thereof was lodged in the office of the Clerk of the Superior Court of Law for the County aforesaid and that the said office containing the said record was destroyed by fire on the 2nd day of April, A.D. 1868." 

Then we have the 1870 Census for Anson County, NC [6] followed by this document in 1871:

TRUST DEED – W. A. Purvis to James L. Edwards

and then in 1872 by this document:
DB 21 Pages 404-405 [7]


In this brief document we have documented the public life of William A. and Sarah Jane, as we know it,  for the past 12 years. No document has been found to indicate where William A. Purvis resided prior to his appearance in the 1860 Anson County, NC census.

Your comments and suggestions greatly appreciated on a suggested course of action for future research on William A. Purvis.


Other related postings: 

http://carolinafamilyroots.blogspot.com/2012/11/mystery-monday-parents-of-william-purvis.html

http://carolinafamilyroots.blogspot.com/2012/01/my-brickwall-william-purvis.html 

http://carolinafamilyroots.blogspot.com/2012/01/my-brickwall-william-purvis-part-2.html 

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** You can Google "trust deeds" and get a lot of definitions but here is mine: A Trust Deed is in essence a promissory note or mortgage.
[1] 1860 U. S. Census, Anson County, North Carolina, population schedule, Morven, Anson County, North Carolina, enumeration district (ED) No ED, page 300, line 34, Dwelling 1238, Family 1188, Household of William A. Purvis; online database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 1976); citing National Archives Microfilm Publication M653, Roll 887.
[2] Chesterfield County, South Carolina, Book 8: Page 284-286, Land Deed - Joseph P. Smith to William A. Purvis; 6 December 1866, Register of Deeds, Chesterfield, Chesterfield County, South Carolina.
[3] Chesterfield County, South Carolina, Book 8: Page 421-423, William A. Purvis to William James Purvis; 6 December 1866, Register of Deeds, Chesterfield, Chesterfield County, South Carolina.
[4] http://www.wpclipart.com/signs_symbol/assorted/assorted_2/idea_light_bulb.png.html
[5] Wadesboro, Anson County, NC, Minute Docket, Superior Court, 1868-1884 C.005. 30003, Abram Conlin to the use of W. G. Smith & Saml. Smith Jr., Exc. of J. P. Smith Dec’d VS William A. Purvis, William A. Purvis, Spring Term 1867; NS State Archives, Raleigh, Wake County, North Carolina.

[6] 1870 U S Census, Anson County, North Carolina, population schedule, Morven, Anson County, North Carolina, enumeration district (ED) No ED, page 403A, line 38, Dwelling 178; Family 178, Household of William A. Purvis; digital image, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 1976); citing National Archive Microfilm M593, Roll 1122.

[7] Anson County, North Carolina, Book 21: Page 404-405, W. P. Brantley to Wm. Purvis; 21 December 1872, Register of Deeds, Wadesboro, Anson County, North Carolina.