“And I do furthermore ordain and enjoin my executors to advertise and sell all the rest and residue of my property, both real and personal, except one acre of land around and including the family burying ground, and the right of way to and from the same, which I reserve forever as a family cemetery and others who may desire that as their last resting place.”

The Last Will and Testament of Davidson Mitchell, June 2, 1860

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Davidson Mitchell, son of the Rev. Elias Mitchell, wanted the family graveyard to remain in the Mitchell family. He underlined “except” and “forever” in his Last Will and Testament of June 1860.

It was there the Rev. Elias Mitchell had been laid to rest in 1834, his wife Permelia in 1839. Their son Davidson Mitchell would be buried there in 1862, and his wife Elizabeth would follow him to the grave ten years later.

Today, the graveyard is covered by overgrown brambles, neglected and forgotten, sitting in a small stand of trees — its location known only to those who are seeking the past.

It is owned not by the Mitchell family but a large corporation in Alabama whose business is lumber.

Ultimately, the wishes of Davidson Mitchell were not honored. Although the graveyard has not been wrecked, it is in disarray. But, at least, it still stands.

FROM MARYLAND TO BRUSHY FORK CREEK TO GRINDAL SHOALS

The Mitchell family had lived in Prince George’s County and Frederick County, Maryland in the 1700s. They had connections to both the Atterberry and Hill families in Maryland.

Many families —Mitchell, Atterberry, and Hill, and others — began migrating from Maryland to Chester and Union Counties, South Carolina as early as the 1770s.

The Mitchells settled near the Brushy Fork Creek area in Chester County, west of Broad River, not so far away from Union County.

There were early Mitchell families in both Chester and Union Counties counted on the first two census records of 1790 and 1800.

The early Mitchell families in Union County may have been from Virginia. The Chester County Mitchells were most definitely from Maryland.

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I find family trees that show Elias Mitchell as the son of either a William Mitchell or Joab Mitchell. His birth is often recorded as 1759; his place of birth either Chester County or Union County. I believe all of the above in this paragraph to be incorrect.

My research indicates that Elias Mitchell was born in Frederick County Maryland on March 12, 1761 to parents David Mitchell and Mary Davidson.

Maryland, U.S., Births and Christenings Index, 1662-1911: 

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The exact date that Elias Mitchell arrived in South Carolina is unknown to me, but it is certain that he was in Chester County by April 1787 when he was selected as a Petit Juror. He was required for the Grand Jury in July 1788.

Elias Mitchell married, circa 1780, Permelia Mildred Hill, daughter of William Hill, who had brought his family from Maryland to Brushy Fork in Chester County.

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In 1793, Elias Mitchell bought a tract of land containing 447 acres on the north side of Broad River in Chester County. He bought his nephew David Mitchell’s 124 acre home place on Wilson’s Creek in 1813.

In March of 1807, Elias Mitchell, along with other Mitchell relatives, was indicted for “forcible entry.” He was found “not guilty” in November of the same year.

Once he settled in South Carolina, the Reverend Elias Mitchell did not go far. He was enumerated in the 1800 and 1810 census records in Chester County; 1820 and 1830 in nearby Union County.

Other members of the Maryland Mitchell families kept moving as they searched for a better life. They settled in Tennessee, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, and Alabama.

PREACHING THE HOLY WORD OF GOD

During the 1700s, the Church of England was the established religion in South Carolina. The Baptist church began to emerge in the late 1700s in the state. Congregations formed and worshiped, often in tiny log cabins, in many of the small towns and backwoods.

The inscription on his headstone — “A zealous minister of the Baptist church for 47 years, who departed this life Nov 39, 1834” — is evidence Reverend Elias Mitchell began his religious career in the year 1785 at the age of twenty-four.

Little is known of the first twenty years of Elias Mitchell as a pastor. South Carolina had no formally established religious schools until several decades into the 1800s.

Elias Mitchell would have had no formal theological education. He would have relied on the mentorship of more experienced pastors, his own spiritual calling, his understanding of the Bible, and his ability to preach to and lead a congregation.

Was the Reverend Elias Mitchell preaching the Word of God in Chester County in the late 1700s and early 1800s? It has been written that he preached to the Brushy Fork congregation. I believe this to be true although I find no records to prove or disprove.

El Bethel Church north of the Pacolet River in Union County (now in Cherokee County) was constituted in 1803, and I have seen reference that Elias Mitchell was one of the organizers of the church as well as one of the church Elders.

He was preaching in Union County by the year 1806 — a busy time for the Reverend Elias Mitchell. He served as the first pastor to Unity Church, founded June 28, 1806. Unity Church was located in Union County, northeast of Union. It is known today as Brown’s Creek Baptist Church.

Reverend Elias Mitchell also served as the first pastor to the small log Hebron Baptist Church, founded on August 23, 1806. Because of its location on Tinker Creek, two miles south of Union, it was known as Tinker Creek Baptist Church.

The congregation was small –no more than 30 members – and the struggling church split into two places of worship around 1830. The “new” church moved into a school house located at present day Hebron Baptist Church. The “old” original church on Tinker Creek faded out of existence soon afterwards.

The need for places of worship was being met all over the newly formed communities of Union County. Gilead Baptist Church was formed on September 27, 1804 between Jonesville and Grindal Shoals. The Coleman, Gibson, Hames, McWhirter, and James families were founding members.

In 1810, the Rev. Elias Mitchell family was enumerated on the Chester County census. Elias and Permelia had moved to Union County by 1820. They would stay there for the rest of their lives.

On the 22nd day of July in the year 1822, the Rev. Elias Mitchell married Giles N. Smith and Elizabeth Mitchell. She was the daughter of William Mitchell (1759–1845) and Sally Rice (1759–1838).

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The Reverend Elias Mitchell became the third pastor to the Gilead Baptist Church congregation in 1826. He would preach his sermons there until his 1834 death.

TWO HOMECOMINGS: BRUSHY FORK AND HEAVEN

The Reverend Elias Mitchell was asked to return to Chester District to preach a funeral on November 30, 1834. His return to the Brushy Fork area must have been a welcomed homecoming for him.

It has been well documented that he began his sermon at the pulpit, then collapsed and died. It was perhaps fitting that the death of the Reverend Elias Mitchell occurred in that moment — praising God — and in the land where he began his service to God.

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“That awful day will surely come,

The appointed hour make haste,

When I must stand before my Judge

And pass the solemn test.”

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THE ESTATE SETTLEMENT

The Reverend Elisa Mitchell died on November 30, 1834.

Sons Elias and Davidson Mitchell were the administrators of the estate.

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The estate settlement of the Rev. Elias Mitchell was delayed until the widow Permilia Hill Mitchell’s death on March 12, 1839.

It was not until May 14, 1841 that the estate was finally settled.

The possessions of the preacher were appraised on April 19, 1839 by William Littlejohn, Jr., David Easterwood, and William Littlejohn, Sr. These men were neighbors of the Mitchell family, all living near Grindal Shoals.

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There were two estate sales. The first occurred on the day of the appraisal, April 19, 1839. The proceeds of $141.27 were noted on a document for the probate court dated July 14, 1839.

The second estate sale was held on November 20, 1839. The document submitted to the probate court on January 13, 1840 showed a total amount raised of $4553.41.

Among the sale of the personal possessions of the Reverend Elias Mitchell were the common items found in an 1800 era estate settlement: beds, spinning wheels, pots, bowls, chairs, tables, a clock, farm equipment, livestock — things one needed to survive and live somewhat comfortably in that era.

It is rare to find books listed in Union County estate settlements of the 1800s. Literacy rates were significantly lower in the South. Education was largely concentrated on white males from well-to-do families, and formal education for white females was limited.

The sons of the Rev. Elias Mitchell were educated. They signed their names on documents rather than the common “X” used by so many. Like their father, they had books in their estates.

I found the most interesting of the possessions of the Rev. Elias Mitchell to be his books, but especially his Bible and Testament. Son Davidson Mitchell bought his father’s Testament, and son Elias Mitchell bought the Large Bible.

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The support of the widow Permelia was mentioned several times in the documents. Both Elias Mitchell and Davidson Mitchell called her mother or mamma. The section below tells us that she died at home:

“after the death of mother on the plantation“

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Below is one mention of the support that had been allowed to their mother for the four years and four months that she outlived her preacher husband:

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Son Green Berry Mitchell (married to Sarah Shippey) and his brother-in-law William Shippey — acting as agent for brother-in-law Elijah Shippey — objected to a part of the estate returns. Their objections were over ruled.

I am not entirely sure why the two Shippey men would have been involved. (Was William Shippey married to a daughter of the Rev. Elias Mitchell?)

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THE REVEREND ELIAS MITCHELL AND THE ENSLAVED

I do not know why I expected better of the Reverend Elias Mitchell.

Because he was a man of God, it never crossed my mind that he would “own” men, women, and children. I assumed his religion would overcome the mindset of owning other human beings as acceptable.

I was wrong.

I found, within his estate settlement, evidence of seven enslaved people:

• Patience and her two children
• Samuel
• Charles
• Lewis
• Peter

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• Green Berry Mitchell bought the boy Samuel;
• William Littlejohn bought the boy Charles;
• Elias Mitchell bought the boy Lewis;
• William Shippy bought the boy Peter.
• Davidson Mitchell bought Patience and her two children.

Patience and six other enslaved people — Isom, Ellen, Ashmore, Martha, Simon, and Eda — were mentioned in the Last Will and Testament of Davidson Mitchell signed on June 2, 1860:

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My research of the enslaved people in the Elias Mitchell household included the following records:

• 1800 Chester County Census: no evidence of enslaved people
• 1810 Chester County Census: 1 enslaved person
• 1820 Union Count Census: no evidence of enslaved people
• 1830 Union County Census: 13 enslaved people; 8 females and 5 males
• 1840 Estate Sale: 7 enslaved: 1 female, 4 males, and 2 unknown

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THE ELEVEN LEGATEES

The amount of $4380.47 was left to distribute to eleven legatees after paying the debts of Elias Mitchell and all estate settlement expenses. Each heir received $398.32 5/11.

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Eleven legatees. Who were they?

Except for one clue, the estate settlement does not reveal the names of the eleven.

Since the wife of Elias Mitchell was deceased. one has to assume that the legatees were his adult children.

I find many names in on-line family trees claiming kinship to the Reverend Elias Mitchell. Some are descended from documented and proven sons and daughters of the preacher; some are based on speculative circumstantial evidence, and some are just plain wrong.

My research to find the names of the sons and daughters of the Rev. Elias Mitchell is based on many factors. Location, census records, estate records, burial records, and naming patterns are just a few of the resources used in to make my conclusions.

Naming patterns are of particular interest to me. In this Mitchell family, these names were used over and over throughout generations of descendants: Elias, John, David, Davidson, Greenberry, Ellison, Glover, Permelia, Nancy, and Caroline.

The men and one woman listed below were the “frequent buyers” at the Rev. Elias Mitchell estate auction; their names are followed by the number of items bought, and my speculation of their identity:

• Davidson Mitchell: 42 (son)
• Green Berry Mitchell: 17 (son)
• Ellison Mitchell: 2 (son)
• Elias Mitchell Sr. 14 (son)
• Elias Mitchell 3 (grandson)
• Thomas Mitchell: 1 (son))
• Henry Mitchell: 1 (son or close relative?)
• Samuel Mitchell: 1 (son or close relative?)
• Moses Albertson: 27 (son-in-law or neighbor?)
• William Harmon: 12 (related by marriage)
• William Shippey: 2 (son-in-law?)
• William Knight: 2 (son-in-law)
• Nancy Little: 9 (was she a daughter married to Silas Little?)
• Silas Little: 1 (son-in-law?)

I will now analyze and offer my opinion of the names of the “sons and daughters” that I have found who were documented legatees, and those who may have been legatees:

“CHILDREN” OF THE REV. ELIAS MITCHELL IN SKETCHY FAMILY TREES

PETER MITCHELL (1811-1883)

Born in Chester District, SC in 1811; died in in 1882 in Randolph County, Alabama. The inscription on his headstone confirms this.

Permilia Hill Mitchell would have been 51 years old when Peter Mitchell was born.

The naming patterns of his children do not match any of the Rev. Elias Mitchell family.

On the plus side, he had moved from Chester District to the same Randolph/Chambers Counties in Alabama where documented daughter Barbara Mitchell Knight had moved.

Was he a son of the Rev. Elias Mitchell? Maybe.

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HENRY MITCHELL (1782–1856)

A mention of Henry Mitchell in the estate settlement of the Rev. Elias Mitchell is the only “evidence” of a family connection.

Many on-line family trees have Henry Mitchell as a son, and others have Henry as the middle name of John HENRY Mitchell.

Henry Mitchell was in the 1790, 1800, 1810, 1820, and 1840 Union County census records.

Henry Mitchell was in the 1800-1840 Chester County census records. Although I have not researched this man, there is evidence found by others that suggest this Mitchell line came from Virginia, and briefly settled in Johnston County, SC before moving to Chester County.

Was either Henry the son of the preacher? I have not seen any evidence to convince me that Henry Mitchell was a son of the Rev. Elias Mitchell.

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DELILAH MITCHELL (1811–1888)

Delilah Mitchell was born in Chester or Union District, South Carolina in 1811. Permilia Hill Mitchell would have been 51 years old, too elderly for this birth.

Delilah Mitchell married William Harmon (1804-1871) in Union County. They left Union County after 1840, stopping for a while in Harris County, Georgia (1850 census) and settled permanently in Chambers County, Alabama before 1860.

They had three daughters and five sons. Son Elias Harmon born in 1844 is circumstantial naming pattern evidence of the Rev. Elias Mitchell line.

Was Delilah a daughter of the preacher? I think she was a granddaughter.

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JENETTA ANGELICA MITCHELL (1817–1867)

Permilia Hill Mitchell would have been 57 years old at this birth.

Most importantly, Jenetta was not even a Mitchell. She was born a Brown — the daughter of William Henry Brown (1780–1865) and Nancy Crocker (1787–1840).

Her first name was sometimes spelled Genetta and the middle name of Angelica is questionable. I believe it was Crocker.

Jenetta did have connections to the Rev. Elias Mitchell family. Her husband was Elijah Shippey whose sisters Elizabeth and Sarah married brothers Davidson and Green Berry Mitchell.

Another connection: Jenetta’s brother was Green Berry Brown; his second wife was Francis Mitchell, daughter of Green Berry Mitchell and Sarah Shippey.

Jenetta is an excellent example of “copy and paste” from the on-line family trees of “researchers” who do not document their work.

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DOCUMENTED CHILDREN OF THE REV. ELIAS MITCHELL

• John Mitchell (1781–1838)
• Barbara Elizabeth Mitchell (1783–1876)
• Elias Mitchell (1785–1871)
• Ellison Mitchell (1787–1845)
• Nancy Mitchell (b. 1793)
• David Davidson Mitchell (1795–1862)
• Green Berry Mitchell (1800–1888)
• Thomas Mitchell (b. 1805)

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FROM THE MITCHELL FAMILY BIBLE:

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JOHN MITCHELL (1781–1838)

John Mitchell was born about 1781 in Chester County, SC. He may have been the first son born to the Rev. Elias Mitchell.

Naming patterns suggest that John Mitchell was named after the paternal grandfather of the Rev. Elias Mitchell (son of David Mitchell who was the son of John Mitchell)

John Mitchell married Jane Pendergrass about 1802. The family was in Union County SC by 1830. Census records for that year show the following:

1830 Union County SC Census

• John Mitchell (40-49)
• Female (40-49)
• Male (20-29)
• Male (20-29)
• Male (15-19)
• Male (10-14)
• Male (5-9)
• Female (10-14)
• Female (10-14)

Equity Court records regarding the settlement of the John Mitchell estate list nine heirs:

• Henry H. Mitchell
• Elias Mitchell
• Berryman Mitchell
• Wife of William Haney (Letticia Jane Mitchell)
• Eli L. Mitchell
• Miles Mitchell
• Nancy Mitchell
• J.G. Mitchell (John Glover Mitchell)
• Franklin Mitchell

John Mitchell died before June, 29, 1838, the date that sons Henry H. Mitchell and Miles Mitchell applied to be joint administrators of their father’s estate.

Col. Elias Mitchell (documented son of the Rev. Elias Mitchell and brother of John Mitchell) applied to become administrator of the estate on August 13, 1838. He was granted this duty.

The Rev. Elias Mitchell died in 1834, but his estate was not settled until 1841.

John Mitchell died in 1838 –after the death of his father but well before his father’s estate was settled.

The ironclad evidence that John was a son of the Rev. Elias Mitchell is found in the estate settlement of John Mitchell.

“Amount received of the Estate of the Rev. Elias Mitchell dec’d belonging to John Mitchell estate.”

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The settlement of John Mitchell’s estate dragged on for many years. The heirs of John Mitchell wrote a letter to B. Johnson, Ordinary of Union County, dated 1851 (or 1854?) asking – almost begging – for the estates of Elias and John Mitchell to be closed.

The estate of John Mitchell was not a large one, but the heirs were tired of waiting for their share.

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His widow Jane, sons Eli, Henry, and Miles Mitchell, and brothers Elias and Davidson Mitchell are names found multiple times in the estate settlement.

John Mitchell was buried in the graveyard at Brown’s Creek Church, the very one once founded as Unity Church by his father the Rev. Elias Mitchell in 1806. Jane Pendergrass Mitchell would be buried there in 1857.

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BARBARA ELIZABETH MITCHELL (1783–1876)

Born in 1793 in Chester County, SC, Barbara Elizabeth Mitchell married William ‘Uncle Billy’ Knight.

William Knight was born about 1794 in Virginia, but was in Chester County, SC by 1814, which is the year he married Barbara Elizabeth Mitchell.

The William Knight family can be found in the 1820 Chester County census, the 1830 Union County census, the 1840 Harris County, Georgia census. The family eventually settled in Chambers County, Alabama and were counted there in the 1850, 1860, 1870, and 1880 census records.

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William Knight and Barbara Elizabeth Mitchell had eight sons and three daughters. The naming pattern reflected the names used in the Rev. Elias Mitchell family.

• ELIAS Knight (1817-1853)
• Henry Elijah Knight (1815–1881)
• William Alexander Knight (1819–1886)
• Barbara Gibson (1820–1905)
• GREEN BERRY Knight (1824–1885)
• JOHN GLOVER Knight (1826–1886)
• Hiram Joshua Knight (1828–1912)
• PERMELIA Elizabeth Knight (1831–1910)
• DAVID ELLERSON Knight (1833–1916)
• MORRIS MITCHELL Knight (1836–1902)
• Sarah Frances Knight (1839–1926)

In 1881, tragedy struck the family of Barbara Elizabeth Mitchell Knight.

Her son David Ellerson Knight was the father of Lobina Elizabeth Knight (b. 1862). Just months after Lobina married Alfred Wood Mitchell (1859-1938), she and her unborn child were brutally murdered June 30, 1881 by Charley Jesse Waldrop.

Waldrop was later arrested, but before justice was served, a mob consisting of Knight family members and outraged neighbors took him from the jail and ended his miserable life.

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Lobina Elizabeth Knight Mitchell was the great granddaughter of the Rev. Elias Mitchell.

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ELIAS MITCHELL (1785–1871)

Elias Mitchell was referred to as Col. Elias Mitchell, Maj. Elias Mitchell, and Elias Mitchell, Esquire. He was born in 1785, after the American Revolutionary War. He would have been 76 years old –too old to serve — when the American Civil War began. I searched military records to see if he enlisted in the War of 1812, or any of the Indian Wars, but I found nothing.

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His “titles” (Colonel, Major, and Esquire) may have been honorary ones bestowed upon him for his tireless call to civic duty. Elias Mitchell signed his name on countless documents: serving as administrator, executor, and witness on many Last Will and Testaments and estate settlements. He was a deacon (1845) at Brown’s Creek Church — the congregation his father the Rev Elias Mitchell founded in 1806 known then as Unity Church.

Elias Mitchell signed his name with one “L” on the end; Mitchel rather than Mitchell. His brother Davidson Mitchell used double “L” in his signature. This was not that unusual but needs to be noted.

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Too old to serve in the Civil War, Elias Mitchell was not too old to sell a four-horse wagon to the Confederate States of American for $150 on November 23, 1862. Note his signature –which was, by this time, very familiar to me –on the document below.

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Elias Mitchell married Hannah Smith (1789–1871), a daughter of Samuel Smith
(1754–1835).

• Permilly “Milly” Mitchell (1811–1880)
• Glover Eli Mitchell (1821–1896)
• Miriam Mitchell (1824–1900)
• Irene Mitchell (1826–1901)
• Elias Mitchell (1826–1896)
• Hiram Lockhart Mitchell (1826–1900)
• Caroline Mitchell (1831–1894)
• Nancy Catherine Mitchell (1831–1854)
• Julia Ann Mitchell (1833–1900)

Daughter Caroline was born circa 1831. She was insane, but lived with her parents Elias and Hannah Mitchell until their 1871 deaths. Caroline was sent to the asylum in Columbia; she was recorded there on the 1880 census. She died October 1, 1894 and was buried at Elmwood Memorial Gardens in Columbia.

DAVID DAVIDSON MITCHELL 1795–1862

David Davidson Mitchell — named after his paternal grandfather DAVID Mitchell and his paternal grandmother Elizabeth DAVIDSON — was born in 1795 in Chester County. He married Elizabeth Shippey (1792–1872), a daughter of Samuel Shippey (1763-1836).

Three children of Samuel Shippey would marry three children of the Rev. Elias Mitchell. This was not an unusual occurrence within families of that era.

Davidson Mitchell owned land next to his father in Union County; part of the land he owned also included acreage that he inherited from his father’s estate. This is confirmed by the wording of his Last Will and Testament written in 1860.

The Mitchell family graveyard where the Rev. Elias Mitchell was buried was on the land of Davidson, who died in 1862.

Davidson Mitchell’s name is found often in legal documents. He is buried near his father in the Mitchell graveyard.

There is no doubt that David Davidson Mitchell was a son of the Rev. Elias Mitchell and one of the eleven legatees.

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The children of Davidson Mitchell and Elizabeth Shippey:

• Elias C. Mitchell (1820–1905)
• J Merriman Mitchell (1822–1866)
• Doctor Elijah Mitchell (1830–1862)
• Lucinda Mitchell (1832-1909)
• Sarah Mitchell
• Caroline Mitchell

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ELLISON MITCHELL (1787–1843)

Ellison Mitchell left few clues. I suspected that his father was the Rev. Elias Mitchell, but I needed proof.

At one time and for reasons I cannot quite explain, I thought that Ellison Mitchell was married to a woman named Nancy. Thanks to an amazing historian and genealogist, I have now learned that the wife of Ellison Mitchell was a woman named Elizabeth.

Elizabeth was the widow of Nathaniel Davis who died in 1797. His Last Will and Testament lists the widow Elizabeth and children Margaret, Joseph, Sarah, Nathaniel, Ephraim, James, and Elizabeth.

Documents in the estate settlement of Nathaniel Davis confirm that Ellison Mitchell married Elizabeth Davis before 1811. The 1810 Union County census indicates that they had married at least three years earlier.

Ellison Mitchell and Elizabeth had at least one son and one daughter. Looking at the 1810 census, it could be concluded he had fathered several children. Looks can be deceiving.

• #1. Ellison Mitchell (male 26-44; date of birth: 1766 to 1784)
• #2. Nancy (female 26-44; date of birth: 1766 to 1784)
• #3. Male (16-25; date of birth: 1785 to 1794)
• #4. Male (16-25; date of birth: 1785 to 1794)
• #5. Ellison Mitchell (male < 10; date of birth: 1801-1809)
• #6. Female ((10-15; date of birth: 1795 to 1800)
• #7. Female (< 10; date of birth: 1801 to 1809)

Let’s analyze the above record!

#1. The Rev. Elias Mitchell was born in 1761 and married Permelia Hill in 1780. His first child would have been born circa 1781. Ellison Mitchell was unlikely to have been the first son (naming patterns would put John as the first son). Ellison Mitchell was likely born circa 1784.

#2. The female aged 26-44 was the wife of Ellison Mitchell. Her name was Nancy, and she was born circa 1784.

#3 and #4. The two males –age 16 to 25 — would have been born between 1784 to 1794. They were the two youngest sons of Nathaniel Davis and Elizabeth.

#5. The male under ten was a son named Ellison Mitchell, born between 1801 to 1809. He married Amy Quinn circa 1839. She was the daughter of James Lawson Quinn (1778-1866) and Charity Tolleson (1789-1866)

#6. The female, age 10-15 and born 1795 to 1800, may have been a daughter of Ellison Mitchell, but my best guess is that she was the daughter — the last child– born to Elizabeth and Nathaniel Davis before his 1797 death.

#7. The female under ten was daughter Nancy Mitchell (born between 1801 to 1809) who married Thomas Gordon.

Ellison and Nancy Mitchell had two children. Did they have more? I find no other census records to help answer this question. The estate settlement of Ellison Mitchell lends credibility that there were only two children.

One must also consider that Elizabeth Davis Mitchell was near the end of her childbearing years when she married Ellison Mitchell.

The younger Ellison Mitchell and wife Amy Quinn Mitchell and had two sons and one daughter:

• Elias F. Mitchell (b. 1840)
• Columbus Mitchell (1842-1896) m. Martha Thomason
• Louisa Jane Mitchell (1844-1921) m. Benson Horn; m. Godfrey Butler Fowler

The younger Ellison Mitchell family lived near Pacolet, SC and this family was recorded in the 1840 Spartanburg County census. I find no census for 1850, but the widow Amy Mitchell was counted in 1860, 1870, and 1880 census records.

Ellison Mitchell married to Amy Quinn had died by 1845. The estate settlement of the younger Ellison Mitchell was probated in Spartanburg County. The administrator was his uncle Davidson Mitchell (son of the preacher). The document found in the Guardian Bond Book in Spartanburg County is proof of his death:

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Ellison Mitchell (the elder) died December 20, 1845. His estate was probated in Union County. His son-in-law Thomas Gordon was administrator of the estate.

The petition by Thomas Gordon gives us the date of death, and tells us that Ellison Mitchell left a widow (the elder Nancy) and an (adult) child (the younger Nancy) to whom Thomas Gordon married.

The mention of only one child is further proof that son Ellison Mitchell (married to Amy Quinn) had died. The son Ellison died prior to October 10, 1845, not long before the December 10, 1845 death of his father Ellison Mitchell (married to Nancy).

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The estate was appraised on January 31, 1846, and the sale quickly followed four days later, February 4, 1846.

Typical of estate sales, the widow Nancy Mitchell and son-in-law Thomas Gordon were the high bidders on most of the household goods, livestock and farm equipment.

The only other mention of the name Mitchel within the estate settlement was that of Franklin Mitchell. He owed the estate of Ellison Mitchell $4.70.

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Godfrey Butler Fowler (1837-1906) –great grandson of Henry Ellis Fowler –wrote a letter included in The Annals of the Fowler Family. This book was written by Glenn Dora Fowler Arthur and published in 1901.

The statement in the paragraph below from the book is all the proof I need. Godfrey Butler Fowler married Louisa Jane Mitchell –widow of Benson Horn and daughter of Ellison Mitchell (the younger).

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Ellison Mitchell (the elder, born 1784) was a son of the Reverend Elias Mitchell.

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GREEN BERRY MITCHELL (1800–1888)

Green Berry Mitchell arranged for the tomb stone that stands at the head of the Reverend Elias Mitchell’s grave. It was mentioned in the estate settlement: its cost plus freight was $34.70.

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In the May 12, 1912 issue of The Gaffney Ledger, I find a small mention that Mr. and Mrs. T. G. Chalk and their son Linden visited the grave of the Reverend Elias Mitchell.

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My first thought was that the graveyard in 1912 must have been better known and more accessible than now. It is not easy to find and one has to hike into the woods a short distance.

My second thought was a question: who was this Chalk family? It did not take long to find out.

Thomas G. Chalk was a grandson of the Reverand Elias Mitchell. His mother Melissa Mitchell Chalk was the daughter of Green Berry Mitchell, son of the pastor. Linden Chalk would have been about fourteen years old when his family went to visit the grave of his great grandfather. The Chalk family lived in Cherokee County, so the journey was not a long one, but news worthy nevertheless.

The lineage of Ralph Linden Chalk. He was descended from both the Rev. Elias Mitchell and Isaiah Mitchell through his paternal grandparents. Elias and Isaiah Mitchell were brothers:

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Green Berry Mitchell was counted in census records: 1830 in Union County, and 1840-1880 in Spartanburg County.

The 1880 census recorded his parents as having been born in Maryland, good circumstantial evidence that his parents were the Rev. Elias Mitchell and his wife Permelia, both born in Maryland.

The final evidence I offer is the headstone that stands over the grave of Green Berry Mitchell who died in 1888. He is buried at Goucher Baptist Church north of the Pacolet River, and his headstone reads:

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NANCY MITCHELL (b. 1793)

While researching the Rev. Elias Mitchell, I stumbled upon many on-line family trees “giving” him a daughter named Nancy. I view on-line trees very cautiously. I always research and document anything I find before believing what I see.

Those family trees “gave” Nancy Mitchell a husband named Silas Little. I find nothing — so far — that makes me think that

The only reason I hesitate to dismiss Nancy Mitchell married to Silas Little is a simple one:

There was a Nancy Little (age 40-49) in the 1830 Union County SC census. Three sons, three daughters.

Well, there is actually another reason even more important than the first: Nancy Little (the only female bidder) bought nine items at the estate auction, and Silas Mitchell bought one item.

Does someone out there have documentation proving that Nancy was a daughter of the preacher? I find nothing other than the 1830 census and the mention of the name Nancy in the estate settlement.

I am inclined to believe that Nancy was a daughter. Take that with a grain of salt; my belief is based on total speculation.

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THOMAS MITCHELL (b. 1805

Thomas Mitchell is found in the 1830 and 1840 Union County census. His age is given as 30-39 in both records.

1830 Union County SC Census

• Thomas Mitchell (30-39)
• Wife (20-29)
• Female (< 5)
• Female (< 5)
• Female (30-39)
• Female (50-59)
• 6 enslaved people

1840 Union County SC Census

• Thomas Mitchell (30-39)
• Wife (30-39)
• Male (10-14)
• Male (5-9)
• Female (5-9)
• Female (5-9)
• 8 enslaved people

The name “Thomas” is not a good fit within the naming pattern of this Mitchell family. I needed more proof that this man was a son of the preacher.

Other than the on-line family trees that are often undocumented, there was nothing to convince me that Thomas Mitchell was a son of the Rev. Elias Mitchell.

Except………

Once I read the entire estate settlement of the Reverend Elias Mitchell — word for word –I found a clue.

“One note payable to Milly Mitchell due the 26 January 1837, on THOMAS MITCHELL one of the heirs of Elias Mitchell, $24.00“

Thomas Mitchell was an heir of the preacher. Was he a son? I say yes.

I have not completed my research on Thomas Mitchell. If this family moved away from Union County after 1840, I will find where they went.

If Thomas Mitchell died after the 1840 census and the 1841 estate settlement, I will find his widow and children. Somewhere, buried as deeply in the archives as Thomas Mitchell must be in his grave, there will be a document that will lead to answers.

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MITCHELL AND FOWLER CONNECTIONS

The Mitchell family came across my research radar for two reasons:

1. My Fowler family intermarried with the Mitchell family at least three times;
2. I stumbled across the Mitchell graves while searching in the woods for the Reuben Fowler family graveyard.

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In 1860, the Reuben Fowler family lived next to the Davidson Mitchell, Doctor E. Mitchell, and Merriman Mitchell families. My great grandfather Gillman Fowler, aged two is in the Reuben Fowler household.

• DAVIDSON MITCHELL (66)
  • ELIZABETH (67)
  • ELISA (27)
  • LUCINDA (24)
• D.E. MITCHELL (DOCTOR E. MITCHELL) (30)
  • MARYAN
  • MARIETTA (4)
  • EDWARD (2)
  • MORRIS (1)
• MERRIMAN MITCHELL (38)
  • HARRIET (26) (Daughter of Reuben Fowler)
  • CAROLINE (3)
  • FEMALE INFANT (MARY JANE ADELINE)
  • DAVIDSON (would marry Alice Fowler)
• REUBEN FOWLER (63)
  • MARY
  • MARTHA
  • FRANCES
  • GILLMAN
  • FEMALE INFANT (ALICE who would marry Davidson Mitchell)

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It is a little sad to me, that the graves of the Reverend Elias Mitchell and his family are hidden in the woods.

It seems a lonely place for eternal sleep. A man who stood on a pulpit ministering to the souls of the lost and the ones seeking spiritual healing surely deserves more.

But maybe he is at peace in the woods, far away from the curious, and the ones who would trod over his bones.

Somehow, though, I think he is not there at all. He is surely in the heavens, surrounded by angels at the feet of his God.

Rest well, Elias. Rest well.

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