52 Cousins~Abraham Dry & Wife, Mary Catherine "Polly" Harkey

The “52 Cousins” series of biographical sketches are Artificial Intelligence (AI) compiled narratives of selected individuals from my Genealogical database.  The selected AI will used documents and data from my RootsMagic Genealogical Software. All genealogical data is my research material acquired over the past 49+ years of research. Today's Biography of Abraham Dry (1804-1865) was compiled with the assistance of Claude Sonnett 4 and is entitled:

Abraham Dry

19 October 1804 – 3 April 1865

Cabarrus County, North Carolina

Overview

Abraham Dry was a farmer and landholder who spent his entire life in Cabarrus County, North Carolina — a community of German-descended families who had settled the Piedmont region generations before him. He was born in 1804, grew up during the era of westward expansion and early American nationhood, married young, raised a large family, and died just weeks after the Civil War's final battles. His story is woven into the fabric of small-town, rural North Carolina life, shaped by hard work, land, family ties, and the turbulent events of the mid-nineteenth century.

Parents and Family Origins

Abraham was born on October 19, 1804, in Cabarrus County, North Carolina, the son of Phillip Wiley Dry (1759–1837) and Catherine Köppel (1771–1830). His parents were part of the wave of German Lutheran and Reformed immigrants — often called the Pennsylvania Dutch — who settled the Carolina Piedmont in the late 1700s. The Dry (originally Drei or Drei) and Köppel families were deeply embedded in this tight-knit community of Germanic settlers who farmed, worshipped, and intermarried across the region for generations.

Phillip Wiley Dry was already in his mid-forties when Abraham was born, and he lived to see his son married and settled before passing away in 1837. Abraham's mother, Catherine Köppel, died in 1830, the same year Abraham married — she likely never met her daughter-in-law. Growing up in this household, Abraham would have been shaped by the values of his community: hard work, thriftiness, deep religious faith, and strong attachment to the land.

Historical context: Abraham came of age during a remarkable period in American history. When he was born in 1804, Thomas Jefferson was president and the Lewis and Clark Expedition was just getting underway. During his youth, the War of 1812 was fought, and the "Era of Good Feelings" brought a brief period of national unity. The state of North Carolina was growing rapidly, and Cabarrus County — formed in 1792 — was still a relatively young, developing community.

Marriage to Mary Catherine "Polly" Harkey

On February 9, 1830, Abraham Dry married Mary Catherine "Polly" Harkey in Cabarrus County. A marriage notice published in The North Carolina Star on April 1, 1830, announced the event: the wedding of Mr. Abraham Dry to Miss Polly Harkey, daughter of Jacob Harkey, Esq. Polly was born on October 26, 1811, also in Cabarrus County, making her about eighteen years old at the time of the wedding and Abraham about twenty-five — a typical age difference for the era.

The Harkey family was another prominent German-descended family in Cabarrus County. Polly's father, Jacob Harkey, Esq., was a well-regarded local figure — the title "Esq." suggesting he held some standing in the community, likely as a justice of the peace or a respected landowner. The Harkey and Dry families were already neighbors and community members, so this was very much a marriage within a close-knit social world.

Polly's brother Eli Harkey served as bondsman for the marriage bond, filed on February 27, 1830, with James G. Spears as witness — a common legal formality of the day that ensured the marriage was above board and the couple had community support.

Land and Livelihood

On October 25, 1834, just four years into his marriage, Abraham acquired 124 acres of land in Cabarrus County through a deed from his father-in-law, Jacob Harkey, Sr. — a generous and practical gift to help the young couple establish themselves. This land became the foundation of the family's farming life. In this era before mechanized agriculture, farming required the labor of the whole household: clearing land, tending crops of wheat, corn, rye, oats, and hay, and maintaining livestock including horses, cattle, hogs, and sheep.

The 1850 and 1860 federal censuses confirm Abraham as a resident farmer in Cabarrus County. By 1860, his household in the Subdivision East of the NC Railroad (a geographical designation used by census takers) was a busy one, with several adult children still living at home and presumably helping work the land.

When Abraham wrote his will in 1865, he painted a vivid picture of what he owned: household and kitchen furniture, weaving cards, spinning wheels, a loom, provisions including bacon, lard, salt, wheat, corn, hay, oats, rye and growing crops, two horses with wagon and gear, a cutting box, a windmill, and all manner of farming tools. This was the inventory of a self-sufficient, working farm — modest but sufficient for a large family.

Historical context: The 1830s and 1840s were a time of great change in North Carolina. The state's economy was still largely agricultural and rural. The completion of the North Carolina Railroad through the Piedmont in the 1850s was a transformative event — it linked communities like Cabarrus County to markets in the east and west, changing how farmers sold their goods and how communities grew. Abraham's land near the NC Railroad suggests he was well-positioned to benefit from this development.

A Family Tragedy: The Death of Polly

Sadly, Mary Catherine "Polly" Harkey Dry died on April 17, 1846, at just thirty-four years old. She and Abraham had been married sixteen years, and she left behind seven children ranging in age from about one to fourteen years old. Her death must have been a devastating blow to the family. The cause of her death is not recorded, but childbirth-related illness, fever, and infections were common killers of young women in this era.

Polly was buried at Henkelite Cemetery in Mount Pleasant, Cabarrus County — a Lutheran congregation cemetery that served the German community of the area. Abraham never remarried, raising his children as a widower for the remaining nineteen years of his life.

Children

Abraham and Polly had seven children, all born in Cabarrus County, North Carolina:

Mary Ann Dry (July 6, 1831 – November 2, 1904)

Mary Ann was the eldest child, born just a year after her parents married. She appears in both the 1850 and 1860 censuses living in her father's household, and she never appears to have married. She lived well into adulthood, eventually dying on November 2, 1904, in Zion, Somerset County, New Jersey — far from her North Carolina roots, suggesting she may have relocated north in her later years.

Margaret Purlina Dry (July 6, 1833 – February 12, 1892)

Margaret was born the same day as her older sister — July 6 — two years later, which is a remarkable coincidence. She married Caleb Franklin Allman (1853–1914) on July 27, 1873, and they remained in Cabarrus County. In 1866, following her father's death, she was named in guardianship proceedings — likely as a minor or young adult needing her affairs managed during the estate settlement. She died on February 12, 1892, in Cabarrus County. She is buried there, with a Find a Grave memorial on record.

Rebecca Maria Dry (August 27, 1834 – October 12, 1906)

Rebecca was born in August 1834, the year her parents received their land grant. She married Daniel Noah Corl (1834–1910) on February 8, 1867, in Cabarrus County. Rebecca died on October 12, 1906, in Cabarrus County. She is buried there as well, with a Find a Grave memorial on record.

Elizabeth Matilda Dry (February 12, 1838 – November 23, 1914)

Elizabeth, born in 1838, married Michael Caleb Rhinehardt (1843–1926) on August 9, 1866. She lived a long life, dying on November 23, 1914. She is buried at Organ Lutheran Church Cemetery in Salisbury, Rowan County, North Carolina — still within the region her family had called home for generations. The Organ Lutheran Church, founded in the 1700s, was one of the earliest Lutheran congregations in North Carolina, reflecting the deep roots of the German Lutheran community in this area.

Jacob Mathias Dry (May 16, 1840 – February 9, 1910)

Jacob was the only son in the family, born in 1840. He married Martha E. Rendleman on May 25, 1864, while his father was still living. In his father's will, Jacob received only ten dollars — a notable contrast to the extensive property left to his sisters. This was not necessarily a slight; it was common in this era to give sons cash or land while leaving the household goods and movable property to daughters who remained at home to care for aging parents. Jacob eventually moved west, and he died on February 9, 1910, in Makanda, Jackson County, Illinois — far from his Carolina birthplace.

Eleanor Adeline "Nellie" Dry (November 20, 1842 – April 10, 1926)

Nellie, as she was known, was born in 1842 and married Alfred Monroe Coleman (1838–1886) on June 2, 1866, in Cabarrus County. She, too, eventually left North Carolina, living out her later years in Anna, Union County, Illinois, where she died on April 10, 1926. She was buried on April 12, 1926, at Anna Cemetery in Anna, Illinois. At eighty-three years old, Nellie was the longest-lived of Abraham's children.

Polly Mellisa Dry (born about 1845)

Polly Mellisa, named for her mother, was the youngest child, born around 1845 — just about a year before her mother's death. She appears in the 1850, 1860 and 1870 censuses in her father's household. Like her sister Margaret, she was listed in guardianship proceedings in 1866 after her father's death. Her date of death and any marriage record have not been found among the current records.

The Civil War Years

Abraham Dry's final years were lived in the shadow of the Civil War (1861–1865). North Carolina seceded from the Union in May 1861, and Cabarrus County sent many of its men to fight for the Confederacy. As a man in his late fifties by the time the war began, Abraham himself was past fighting age, but the war would have profoundly affected his community — neighbors gone, food and supplies scarce, anxiety ever-present.

On March 3, 1865 — just weeks before the war's end — Abraham dictated and signed his Last Will and Testament. He was described as being "of sound mind and memory" but clearly aware of his mortality, reflecting on "the uncertainty of any earthly existence." The document is a touching and practical piece of family history, carefully dividing his possessions among his children. Perhaps he sensed the end was near; he was sixty years old and the war had taken a heavy toll on North Carolina's communities.

Abraham Dry died on April 3, 1865 — just four days before Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court House on April 9, ending the Civil War. He did not live to see the end of the conflict that had so dominated the nation's last four years. He was sixty years old. He was buried at Henkelite Cemetery in Mount Pleasant, Cabarrus County, alongside his wife Polly, who had preceded him by nineteen years.

Historical context: The spring of 1865 was one of the most momentous in American history. General William Sherman's Union army had swept through the Carolinas just weeks before Abraham's death, and North Carolina was in turmoil. The surrender at Appomattox came just days after Abraham passed, followed by Lincoln's assassination on April 14, 1865 — less than two weeks after Abraham's death. The world he had known was coming apart and being rebuilt simultaneously.

Abraham's Will and the Settlement of His Estate

Abraham's will, probated at the Cabarrus County Court July Term in 1865, offers a warm and detailed glimpse into his values and family relationships. He appointed John L. Henderson as his executor, and directed that his debts and funeral expenses be paid first. He then left the bulk of his personal property — all the household furnishings, farm equipment, livestock, provisions, and tools — to his six daughters jointly, to be held in common or divided equally among them.

His son Jacob received only ten dollars in cash. The real estate was to be divided equally among all his children. Any surplus after debts were paid was also to be split equally. The will was witnessed by Mathias Cook and John L. Henderson, and duly proven in open court. It's a document that speaks to a man who wanted fairness and cared deeply for his daughters, who had remained with him and kept the household running through the difficult years of widowhood.

After Abraham's death, in June 1866, his daughters sold the family land for $75.00 — recorded in Deed Book 22, page 49, of Cabarrus County's Register of Deeds. That same month, several of the daughters married and began their own households, signaling the formal close of the family's long chapter on their Cabarrus County farm.

Legacy and Resting Place

Abraham Dry rests at Henkelite Cemetery in Mount Pleasant, Cabarrus County, North Carolina, alongside his beloved wife Polly. The Henkelite Cemetery takes its name from the Henkel family, early Lutheran leaders in the region, and it served the German-descended Lutheran community to which Abraham and his family belonged.

His children scattered after his death — some staying in Cabarrus County, others heading west to Illinois, and one reaching New Jersey. They carried with them the values of their Cabarrus County upbringing: industriousness, family loyalty, and the deep roots of a German-American community that had been building a life in the Carolina Piedmont for generations.

Abraham Dry's Find a Grave memorial (#29718932) was created in September 2008, and over the years, descendants and researchers have added information and left flowers in memory of him and his family. His story, pieced together from census records, deeds, wills, marriage bonds, and a single newspaper announcement, is the story of an ordinary man living through extraordinary times — and that makes it all the more worth telling.

Quick Reference: Family Summary

Abraham Dry

Born: October 19, 1804 | Cabarrus County, NC

Died: April 3, 1865 | Mount Pleasant, Cabarrus County, NC

Buried: Henkelite Cemetery, Mount Pleasant, Cabarrus County, NC

 

Parents

Father: Phillip Wiley Dry (1759–1837)

Mother: Catherine Köppel (1771–1830)

 

Wife

Mary Catherine "Polly" Harkey (October 26, 1811 – April 17, 1846)

Married: February 9, 1830 | Cabarrus County, NC

 

Children

1. Mary Ann Dry (July 6, 1831 – November 2, 1904)

2. Margaret Purlina Dry (July 6, 1833 – February 12, 1892) m. Caleb Franklin Allman, 1873

3. Rebecca Maria Dry (August 27, 1834 – October 12, 1906) m. Daniel Noah Corl, 1867

4. Elizabeth Matilda Dry (February 12, 1838 – November 23, 1914) m. Michael Caleb Rhinehardt, 1866

5. Jacob Mathias Dry (May 16, 1840 – February 9, 1910) m. Martha E. Rendleman, 1864

6. Eleanor Adeline "Nellie" Dry (November 20, 1842 – April 10, 1926) m. Alfred Monroe Coleman, 1866

7. Polly Mellisa Dry (born about 1845, date of death unknown)

 Abraham Dry is my 1st Cousin 5X Removed.

___________________________

1. Find A Grave, Inc., Find A Grave, database and digital images, (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed  3 April 2020); Memorial page for Abraham Dry; (19 October 1804–3 April 1865); Find a Grave memorial # 29718932, Citing Henkelite Cemetery; Mount Pleasant, Cabarrus County, North Carolina.

2. Land Deed - Jacob Harkey, Sr. to  Polly [Harky] Dry & Abraham Dry; 25 October 1834; Deed Book #12; Page(s) 404-405; Register of Deeds; Concord, Cabarrus County, North Carolina; November 2024.

3. 1850 U. S. Census, Cabarrus County, North Carolina, population schedule, Cabarrus, North Carolina, Page: 483A; Line 32, Dwelling 1245, Family 1245, Household of Abraham DRY; online database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 3 March 2020); citing National Archives Microfilm Publication M432, Roll 622.

4. 1860 U. S. Census, Cabarrus County, North Carolina, population schedule, Subdivision East of NC Rr, Cabarrus, North Carolina, Page: 110/55 (Stamped); Line 29, Dwelling 372, Family 372, Household of Adam [Abraham] DRY; online database, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 3 April 2020); citing National Archives Microfilm Publication M653, Roll 890.

5. Cabarrus County, North Carolina, : Will Book#2, pages 122-123 The Last Will and Testament of Abraham Dry; Ancestry.com, Salt Lake City, Utah.

6. North Carolina, Deed Book:  DEED BOOK 22, pages 49, Daughters selling the land for $75.00; Register of Deeds, Concord, Cabarrus County, North Carolina.

7. "North Carolina Marriage Index, 1741-1868," database, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed 3 April 2020), Marriage: Abraham Dry & Polly Harkey; North Carolina Division of Archives and History, 1977; 27 Feb 1830.

8. "Marriage: Mr. Abraham Dry to Miss Polly Harkey, daughter of Jacob Harkey, Esq.," The North Carolina Star, Raleigh, North Carolina, 1 April 1830, page 3, Col. 5. MARRIED: 9th [Feb. 1830].

9. Find A Grave, Inc., Find A Grave, database and digital images, (http://www.findagrave.com : accessed  3 April 2020); Memorial page for Mary Catherine “Polly” Harkey Dry; (26 Oct 1811- 17 Apr 1846 (aged 34)); Find a Grave memorial # 17905899, Citing Henkelite Cemetery; Mount Pleasant, Cabarrus County, North Carolina, USA.

Aunts and Uncles~Edith “Edy” Sellers (1799 – 1875)

The “Aunts & Uncles” series of biographical sketches are Artificial Intelligence (AI) compiled narratives of selected individuals from my Genealogical database.  The selected AI will used the RootsMagic Individual Summary from my Genealogical Software, Roots Magic. All genealogical data is my research material acquired over the past 46 years of research. Today's Biography of Edith "Edy" Sellers (1799-1875) was compiled with the assistance of Claude Sonnett 4 and is entitled:

 Edith “Edy” Sellers

1799 – 1875

South Carolina • Alabama

Overview

Edith, known to family and friends as “Edy,” was born in 1799 in Chesterfield County, South Carolina, at a time when the young United States was still finding its footing as a nation. She lived through some of the most turbulent and transformative decades in American history — the War of 1812, the era of westward expansion, and the Civil War — and she carried her family through all of it with quiet determination. By the time she passed away on October 16, 1875, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, at around age 76, she had outlived her first husband and one of her own daughters, and had built a life remarkable in its fullness and resilience.

Edy married twice and raised at least five daughters. She spent her later decades in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, where she was known well enough that her death and estate settlement were announced in the local newspaper. Though she left no grand monument behind — just two cows and calves, some household furniture, and “sundry minor articles” — her descendants spread across Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Texas, a testament to the family she helped build.

 

Family Background & Early Life

Edy was born to Philip Sellers Sr. (1774–1835) and Mary [LNU] (1774–1848), both of whom lived long and productive lives. Her father Philip was born just before the American Revolution and lived to see Andrew Jackson in the White House. Her mother Mary outlived him by thirteen years, passing away in 1848. The Sellers family was part of the early settlement of Chesterfield County, South Carolina, a largely rural Piedmont region that had been frontier territory just a generation before Edy’s birth.

Chesterfield County in the late 1700s and early 1800s was a farming community, and families like the Sellers were part of the backbone of that world — working the land, raising children, and building communities in the American South. Edy grew up in this environment, and it would shape the practical, hardworking woman she would become.

The exact number of Philip and Mary’s children is not fully documented here, but Edy grew up as part of a close-knit Chesterfield County community where families like the Sellers were well established across the region.

 

First Marriage: James David Weaver

The Marriage

Sometime around 1827, Edy married James David Weaver (1797–1868), likely in Alabama, where the couple had apparently settled after leaving South Carolina. James was just two years older than Edy, born in 1797. He may have been from Lexington County, South Carolina (also called the Ninety-Six District), and like many Southern families of that era, the Weavers and Sellers families made the journey west into Alabama as part of the great migration of settlers moving into the newly opened territories of the Deep South.

This was the era of the “Alabama Fever” — the 1810s and 1820s saw tens of thousands of families pouring into Alabama after it became a state in 1819, drawn by fertile land and the promise of a fresh start. Tuscaloosa itself became Alabama’s state capital in 1826, bringing growth and activity to the region where Edy and James would make their home.

Their Children

Edy and James had at least five daughters together, born over a span of about ten years:

•  Cassandra D. Weaver (1828–1875) — Born when Edy was around 29, Cassandra sadly died the same year as her mother, in 1875. She married and became Cassandra Marion, living in Itawamba County, Mississippi.

•  Louisa Caroline Weaver (1830–1869) — Louisa died young, at around age 39, in 1869. She married a man named West and moved to Texas, where her sons William, George, David, Thomas, and Isaac were living at the time of their grandfather James’s estate settlement.

•  Mary Francis Weaver (1832–1910) — Mary lived the longest of the sisters, passing away in 1910. She married William Loggins and remained in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama.

•  Nancy Ann Weaver (1833–1914) — Nancy had a remarkably long life, surviving until 1914. She married John Starkie and settled in Itawamba County, Mississippi.

•  Malinda Ann Weaver (1838–1896) — The youngest daughter, Malinda married Asa Wallace and lived in Fayette County, Alabama.

The probate records from James’s estate in 1869 also mention a son, George W. Weaver, who was living in Jefferson County, Alabama at the time — so there may have been additional children not fully documented in this summary.

Life During the Civil War Era

Edy and James raised their family through one of the most defining and devastating periods in American history. Alabama was deeply affected by the Civil War (1861–1865). Tuscaloosa County, where the family lived, saw Union forces raid the area in April 1865, just weeks before the war ended. Many families in the region lost property, livestock, and loved ones. By the time the war ended, Edy would have been in her mid-sixties — an older woman navigating the chaos of Reconstruction alongside her family.

James David Weaver died in 1868, leaving Edy a widow at around age 69. She stepped up immediately, serving as the administrator of his estate — no small task. In December 1869, she petitioned the Tuscaloosa Probate Court for her dower rights (her legal share of her deceased husband’s land), and the probate records show her navigating a complex legal process involving heirs scattered across Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, and Texas.

 

Second Marriage: Hilliard George Sellers

Just weeks after James’s death — on January 6, 1868 — Edy married for the second time. Her new husband was Hilliard George Sellers (1805–1886). Though they share the Sellers surname, Edy and Hilliard were not related — Edy simply took his surname upon their marriage, as was the custom of the time.

The marriage record from the Alabama Select Marriage Indexes lists her as “Eda Weaver” marrying “Hiliard Sellars” in Tuscaloosa County — confirming that Edy took her first husband’s surname after his death, as was common, and then remarried. Hilliard outlived Edy by eleven years, dying in 1886.

Edy and Hilliard were enumerated together in the 1870 U.S. Census for Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, recorded on August 15, 1870, showing them living as a household in their final years together.

 

Later Life, Death & Estate

Final Years

Edy lived out her final years in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, likely at or near the home of her son-in-law L. B. Battle (husband of her daughter Belinda/Malinda). Alabama in the 1870s was deep in the Reconstruction era — a time of significant social and political upheaval in the South. For an elderly widow like Edy, day-to-day life would have centered around family, her small household, and the rhythms of rural Alabama life.

Death

Edith “Edy” Sellers passed away on October 16, 1875, at approximately age 76, in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. She left no last will or testament. The petition filed for Letters of Administration noted that she “respectfully departed this life” at the residence of L. B. Battle, approximately 18 miles east of Tuscaloosa.

Estate Settlement

Following Edy’s death, L. B. Battle was granted Letters of Administration over her estate on January 7, 1876, by Judge Newbern H. Browne of the Tuscaloosa County Probate Court. The administration of the estate was announced publicly in the Tuscaloosa Weekly Times on February 2, 1876.

On March 15, 1876, Battle placed a notice in the Tuscaloosa Weekly Times advertising a sale of Edy’s personal property, to be held on Friday, March 31, 1876, at his residence 18 miles east of Tuscaloosa. The estate’s assets were modest but practical: two cows and calves, household and kitchen furniture, and various smaller items. The sale terms were cash.

"Administrator's Sale of PERSONAL PROPERTY... the following described property, belonging to the Estate of Edy Sellers, dec, to-wit: TWO COWS AND CALVES, HOUSEHOLD & KITCHEN FURNITURE, together with sundry minor articles, too numerous to specify." — Tuscaloosa Weekly Times, March 15, 1876

A second notice appeared in the Tuscaloosa Weekly Times on April 12, 1876, reminding any creditors or debtors of the estate to come forward promptly, or risk being forever barred from making claims.

 

Historical Context: Edy’s World (1799–1875)

To truly appreciate Edy’s life, it helps to consider the world she lived in. She was born the same year George Washington died (1799), and she lived long enough to see the aftermath of the Civil War and the beginning of Reconstruction. Here are some of the major events that shaped the world around her:

•  1803: The Louisiana Purchase doubled the size of the United States, opening the continent to westward expansion.

•  1812–1815: The War of 1812 was fought while Edy was a teenager in South Carolina.

•  1819: Alabama became the 22nd state, the same territory Edy would call home for most of her adult life.

•  1826: Tuscaloosa became Alabama’s state capital (it held that status until 1846).

•  1830s–1840s: The forced removal of Native American tribes (the Trail of Tears) opened vast new lands in Alabama and beyond.

•  1861–1865: The Civil War tore through the South. Alabama seceded in January 1861. Tuscaloosa was raided by Union forces in April 1865, just weeks before the war’s end.

•  1865–1877: Reconstruction brought significant political and social change to Alabama and the South. Edy lived through the entire Reconstruction period before her death in 1875.

Through all of this, Edy raised her family, buried a husband, married again, navigated probate courts, and managed a household. She was, in every sense, a woman of her time — tough, practical, and deeply rooted in her family.

 

Family at a Glance

Parents

Philip Sellers Sr. (1774–1835) and Mary [LNU] (1774–1848), Chesterfield County, South Carolina.

First Husband

James David Weaver (1797–1868). Married approximately 1827 in Alabama. Died 1868.

Children with James David Weaver

1. Cassandra D. Weaver (1828–1875) — married John Marion; lived in Itawamba County, Mississippi.

2. Louisa Caroline Weaver (1830–1869) — married David West; lived in Texas.

3. Mary Francis Weaver (1832–1910) — married William Loggins; lived in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama.

4. Nancy Ann Weaver (1833–1914) — married John Starkie; lived in Itawamba County, Mississippi.

5. Malinda Ann Weaver (1838–1896) — married Asa Wallace; lived in Fayette County, Alabama.

Second Husband

Hilliard George Sellers (1805–1886). Married January 6, 1868, in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama. He outlived Edy by 11 years.

 

Sources & Further Research

The information in this biography is drawn from the following primary sources:

•  Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Probate Files — Tuscaloosa County Probate Court (via FamilySearch.org)

•  Tuscaloosa Weekly Times newspaper notices (February 2, 1876; March 15, 1876; April 12, 1876) via Newspapers.com

•  Alabama, Select Marriage Indexes, 1816–1942 (via Ancestry.com)

•  1870 U.S. Federal Census, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama

•  FamilySearch.org — Edy Sellers Probate File

For those wishing to explore further, the WikiTree profile (Weaver-11697) and Ancestry.com family tree (Tree #180210056) contain additional linked records and researcher notes.

Edith "Edy" Sellers is my 3rd Great GrandAunt. 

____________________

1. Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, Probate Files & Loose papers, ; "Tuscaloosa County Court Minutes," digital images, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org: online May 2025).

2. Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, Death date Edy Sellers died on 16 Oct 1875, Estate of Edy Sellers -.

3. Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, Letters of Administration, Estate of Edy Sellers.

4. Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, Administrator's Sale of Personal Property, Estate of Edy Sellers.

5. "Administrator's Notice.," Estate, Tuscaloosa Weekly Times, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, 2 February 1876, Page 3, Column 6; Digital On-Line Archives, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/ : online May 2025); https://www.newspapers.com/.

6. 1820 U S Census, Lexington County, South Carolina, population schedule, Lexington, Lexington, South Carolina, 1820; Microfilm M33; Page#41 (Stamped), Line#9, Household of David WEAVER; digital images, HeritageQuest Online (http://persi.heritagequestonline.com : viewed 1 October 2023); citing  National Archives Microfilm M33.

7. 1840 U. S. Census, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, population schedule, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Page#239B (Stamped), Line#11,, Household of David WEAVER; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed October 2023); citing  National Archives Microfilm M704.

8. 1850 U. S. Census, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, population schedule, District 2, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Page#260 (Stamped), Line#1, Dwelling#967; Family#967, Household of James WEAVER; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed October 2023); citing NARA publication M432_.

9. 1855 Alabama State Census, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, state census, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, page#62, Line#9, David Weaver; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed October 2023); citing NARA publication M432_.

10. 1850 U. S. Census, Non=Population, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, agricultural schedule, District 1, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, enumeration district (ED) Enumeration Date 15 Jan 1850, Page#883; Line#18, Household of David WEAVER; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed October 2023); citing  National Archives Microfilm.

11. 1855 Alabama State Census, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, State Census, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, page#1, Line#5, , David Weaver.

12. 1860 U. S. Census, Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, population schedule, Pitchers, Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Page#96/530B(Stamped); Line#4, Dwelling#1250, Family#1169, David WEAVER; digital images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : viewed October 2023); citing National Archives Microfilm M653.

13. "Legal Notice," Notice to creditors, The Daily Selma Reporter, Selma, Alabama, 9 February 1839, Page 1, column 3; Digital On-Line Archives, Newspapers.com (https://www.newspapers.com/:On-line October 2023); https://www.newspapers.com/.

14. "Alabama,  Select Marriage Indexes, 1816-1942," database, Ancestry (http://www.ancestry.com : online February 2025), Marriage:  Eda Weaver & Hillard Sellars, https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/29647:60000.

 

 

Biography compiled from genealogical records • March 2026

52 Cousins~James M. Sides

 The “52 Cousins” series of biographical sketches are Artificial Intelligence (AI) compiled narratives of selected individuals from my Genealogical database.  The selected AI will used documents and data from my RootsMagic Genealogical Software. All genealogical data is my research material acquired over the past 49+ years of research. Today's Biography of James M. Sides (1848-1919) was compiled with the assistance of Claude Sonnett 4 and is entitled:

James M. Sides

February 7, 1848 – March 18, 1919

Farmer  •  Iredell County, North Carolina

Unmarried  •  Concord Township

Overview

James M. Sides was born in the winter of 1848 in Iredell County, North Carolina — the youngest son of Daniel Sides and Esther Dry. He came into a world on the brink of enormous change: the nation was just two years removed from the end of the Mexican-American War, gold had been discovered in California, and the great sectional tensions over slavery were building toward a breaking point.

James spent his entire life in the same patch of North Carolina piedmont where he was born — never married, never moved far, and never sought the spotlight. He lived the quiet life of a farmer, first in his parents' household, then alongside his older brother Noah as the family home aged around them. By the time James died on March 18, 1919 in Statesville, the United States had just fought a world war and his beloved horse was long gone. He was 71 years old, and he was laid to rest — in an unmarked grave — at Concord Presbyterian Church Cemetery on March 19, 1919.

Family of Origin

Parents

James's father, Daniel Sides, was born around 1806 in North Carolina and died in 1881. Daniel was a farmer who built a sizeable household in Iredell County and clearly had deep roots in the Concord Township area. He owned land on the Robin Potts tract and operated a farm that, by his will, he hoped his sons would continue working together. Daniel's wife — and James's mother — was Esther Dry, also born around 1805–1806 in North Carolina. Esther died the same year as her husband, 1881, suggesting either illness or simply that the hardships of farm life caught up with them both in the same season of life. Daniel and Esther raised a very large family together in Iredell County.

Siblings

James was the youngest of at least thirteen children. The 1850 census gives us a vivid snapshot of the crowded Sides household, with nearly a dozen children living under one roof at the same time. His known siblings were:

• Jacob W. Sides — born c. 1826, eldest son known from the 1850 census and named as an executor in Daniel's will (later went by J.W.C. Sides). He and Noah both ultimately renounced their executor duties in 1881.

• Noah Sides — born March 1826 in North Carolina. Noah became something of a second father figure to James in later life. The 1900 and 1910 censuses show the two brothers living together, with Noah as head of household. Noah was 74 in 1900 and still keeping house at 86 in 1910 — a remarkable age for the era.

• Christopher Sides — born c. 1830, present in the 1850 census.

• Charles Sides — born c. 1832, present in the 1850 census.

• Caroline L. Sides — born c. 1834. She is listed as a sibling in both the 1900 and 1910 censuses, still living with Noah and James at ages 67 and 76 respectively.

• Elizabeth C. Sides / Elvina Sides — a daughter born c. 1837–1842, listed in various censuses under slightly different names.

• Esther A. Sides — born c. 1837, twin or very close in age to Elizabeth.

• Daniel M. Sides / Martin Sides — a son born c. 1839–1840, seen in both 1850 and 1860 censuses.

• Sarah E. (Sallie/Salena) Sides — born c. 1841. Still living with Noah and James in the 1910 census at age 70.

• Archibald A. Sides — born c. 1843. Named an executor in Daniel's will alongside James. He too was still living with Noah's household in 1900 (age 59) and 1910 (age 67).

• Margaret (Peggy C.) Sides — born c. 1844. Listed in the 1900 and 1910 censuses as a sister, at ages 54 and 65.

What is striking about this family is how many of the children — James, Noah, Caroline, Sarah, Archibald, and Margaret — never married and spent their entire adult lives together on the family farm. Daniel's will even anticipated this, stating that "as long as the children remain single, the place where I now reside shall be a common home for them all." In a sense, the house Daniel built held his children for generations.

Marriage and Children

James M. Sides never married and had no known children. This was consistent with several of his siblings, who also remained single throughout their lives. Whether this was a personal choice, economic circumstance, or simply the way life unfolded on that North Carolina farm, we cannot say. His father's will specifically carved out a permanent home for the unmarried children, and James appears to have taken full advantage of that provision — he was still living on the family land with Noah in 1910, just nine years before his death.

Life on the Farm

Every census from 1850 through 1910 tells essentially the same story: James Sides was a farmer in Concord Township, Iredell County, North Carolina. That consistency says something meaningful about his character. He didn't chase opportunity in the booming textile towns or head west like many of his generation. He stayed put.

From about 1850 through the 1870s, James lived in his parents' household. The 1860 census shows him as the youngest child still at home, age 12, with his father Daniel (54), mother Esther (54), and several older siblings. By 1870, James was 21 and still under his father's roof — now a grown man contributing to the farm's operation. The 1880 census again finds him there at age 32, as Daniel's health was presumably declining (Daniel died the following year, 1881, as did Esther).

The most personal — and honestly, the most charming — glimpse we have of James's daily life comes from a small notice in The Concord Times dated June 6, 1890: "Mr. James Sides lost a very good horse on last Saturday night. Old age was the chief cause of her death." It's a tiny window into the life of a 42-year-old farmer, and it suggests that his horse was a prized companion and working partner — the loss worth a mention in the local paper. One imagines James was genuinely grieved.

By 1900 and 1910, the old family farmstead had become a kind of communal home for a remarkable cluster of aging Sides siblings. In the 1900 census, we find Noah (74), Caroline (67), Sarah E. (64), Archibald A. (59), Margaret S. (54), and James (52) all living together under Noah's roof, along with two nieces — Adeline Lewis (64) and Prudie N. Lewis (41). By 1910, the household looked much the same, minus Adeline, but now including two grand-nephews, John S. Lewis and Henry S. Lewis, both age 24.

This is the picture of a family that held together through the decades, through the Civil War, through Reconstruction, through the turbulent turn of the century — siblings who had outlived their parents and chosen, or found themselves, sharing a life on the land their father had farmed.

Father's Will and Family Legacy

On January 9, 1880, James's father Daniel Sides signed his last will and testament. It is a beautifully detailed document that reveals both the family's economic situation and Daniel's affection for his children. Among its provisions, Daniel specifically named Noah, Archibald A., and James M. Sides as the sons responsible for tending the farm and caring for the family after his death. If they failed to do so, Esther would have the power to rent the land to the highest bidder.

Daniel also named all four surviving sons — Jacob W., Noah, Archibald A., and James M. — as executors of the will. However, when the will was probated in April 1881 (Daniel and Esther both died that year), Jacob W. and Noah both renounced their executor duties, leaving the burden to Archibald and James.

The will further stipulated that the family's home place would remain "a home for all the single members of the family as long as they shall live" — a provision that James and several of his siblings appear to have taken to heart for the rest of their days.

Historical Context: The World James Knew

James Sides was born in 1848 and died in 1919 — a lifespan that encompassed some of the most turbulent and transformative decades in American history.

The Civil War Era (1861–1865)

James was 13 years old when the Civil War broke out in 1861. North Carolina seceded from the Union in May of that year and contributed more troops to the Confederate cause than any other Southern state. Iredell County sent many of its men to fight. By 1865, when the war ended, James was 17. The war's devastation was felt across the South, and the Sides family — like every family in the region — would have lived through years of hardship, food shortages, and loss. The records do not indicate whether James served in the Confederate army, but it is possible, given his age.

Reconstruction and the New South (1865–1900)

After the war, North Carolina went through the upheaval of Reconstruction. Formerly enslaved people claimed their freedom, and white Southern farming families like the Sideses had to adjust to an entirely new economic and social order. The 1870 and 1880 censuses find James and his family still farming in Concord Township — holding on, as many families did, by working the land together. By the 1890s, the textile industry was transforming the North Carolina piedmont, with mill towns springing up across the region. Statesville, the county seat just down the road, was growing steadily. James, it seems, watched all of this from his farm.

The Turn of the Century and Beyond (1900–1919)

By 1900, James was in his fifties. The United States had just fought the Spanish-American War (1898) and was becoming a world power. The Wright Brothers flew at Kitty Hawk in 1903 — just 80 miles or so from Iredell County. The first automobiles appeared on North Carolina roads. James lived through all of this, though one suspects he remained focused on the rhythms of farm life that had defined his entire existence.

World War I began in Europe in 1914, and the United States entered the conflict in April 1917. James was nearly 70 years old by then — far too old to serve. On November 11, 1918, the armistice was signed. James Sides died just four months later, on March 18, 1919, in Statesville, as the country was still celebrating the end of the war and trying to process the devastating flu pandemic of 1918–1919 that had killed hundreds of thousands of Americans — including, possibly, many of his neighbors.

Death and Burial

James M. Sides died on March 18, 1919, in Statesville, Iredell County, North Carolina, at the age of 71. His death certificate — recorded under certificate number 7215 — lists his father as Daniel Sides and his mother as Ester Dry, confirming the family connections established throughout his life. His race is listed as white, consistent with the census records.

He was buried the very next day, March 19, 1919, at Concord Presbyterian Church Cemetery in Statesville, Iredell County. The undertaker was Crawford-Burch of Statesville. His grave is unmarked — a quiet ending for a quiet life. A Find A Grave memorial (#127378295) was created in his honor on April 3, 2014, by researcher Mark Lawson.

Quick Reference: Key Dates

Birth:   February 7, 1848 · Iredell County, North Carolina

Parents: Daniel Sides (c.1806–1881) and Esther Dry (c.1805–1881)

Census:  1850, 1860, 1870, 1880 — in parents' household, Iredell County

Will:    Named executor of father's estate, January 9, 1880 (probated April 1881)

Census:  1900, 1910 — in brother Noah's household, Concord Township

Notable: Lost a "very good horse" to old age, June 1890 (The Concord Times)

Death:   March 18, 1919 · Statesville, Iredell County, North Carolina · Age 71

Burial:  March 19, 1919 · Concord Presbyterian Church Cemetery · Unmarked grave

Marital: Never married · No known children.

 

James M. Sides is my 1st Cousin 4X Removed.

— End of Biography —