John Rowland (?)
There
are several Rowland families who lived in the western
portion of Rutherford County in
the 19th century and who appear to have been related.
The mystery is that it is not at all clear who the
parents of this group of possible siblings were for
various reasons:
-- While most of these Rowlands are in Rutherford County in
the 1850 census (at least one is in neighboring Marshall
County), there are no potential parents of that surname
anywhere in the county.
-- There are no Rutherford County land or probate records
that directly indicate a head of household.
-- So far, there are no other Rutherford County court
records that offer clues as to possible parents.
Because the boundary between Rutherford and Williamson
Counties changed significantly over the years (check out
the wonderful animap of Tennessee!),
we also have searched many Williamson County records,
but so far have found no links between our Rowlands and
others.
Why do we think these Rowlands are related? There are
various clues and information that indicate relationships
among the various Rowland children that are proposed for
this family group:
-- Lucy A. Rowland, Littleberry Rowland, William Rowland,
and John Rowland all married into the same Brown family
(all four of their spouses were children of Lent Brown, who
lived in the neighborhood)
-- Mary Jane Rowland and Martha Ann Rowland both married
men named Underwood (possible brothers)
-- In 1850, William and Littleberry Rowland live next door
to one another; John Rowland lives 3 houses away; Lent
Brown lives in between.
-- In 1860, Thomas Rowland and his family were enumerated
in Littleberry Rowland's household
-- In 1880, Emiline Rowland lives with “sister”
Mary J. Underwood in Rutherford Co
-- John, Littleberry, and William Rowland all appear to
live near one another as late as 1880-1900, judging from
deed records
-- "Granville" (or variants) is a common name among these
families. Both William and Thomas Rowland named sons
“Granville” or “Granvel”; Columbus
Underwood (son of Mary Jane Rowland) also named a son
“Granville”.
There is one family that is especially intriguing: John
Rowland (born between 1780/1790) was enumerated with his
wife and eleven children in Rutherford County in the 1830
census, and the age groups of his children fit the
Rutherford Rowlands rather closely. However, John does not
appear in the 1836 and 1837 tax lists, suggesting that he
either died and his wife remarried or that he had moved out
of the county.
While we search for more evidence, we are using John as a
hypothetical father for this group, but this is only
tentative. We do know that the parents of this group were
born in Virginia (all the siblings say in census records
that their parents were from Virginia), and that is where
they probably married, since several of these Rowlands were
born in that state. John's wife's name is unknown at this
point; she probably also was born between 1790/1794 in
Virginia and died sometime after 1830. It is possible that
John's first wife may have died and that he married a
second time after arriving in Rutherford County; in 1812 a
John Rowland married Mary "Polly" Robertson in that county,
but it is unclear whether John and Polly are the parents of
any of the Rutherford Rowlands.
A John Rowlon appears in Rutherford County land records in
1811 as a witness when William Rowlon purchased 200 acres
on the east side of Stone's River from William Threatt; a
John Roulon also witnessed a deed in 1816 between John
Donaldson and William Ward, and John Rowland served as
witness to a transaction in 1818 when Frederick Rowland
sold 50 acres on Overall's Creek to Charles Newsom (the
deed in which Frederick purchased the land has not yet been
located in county records). Many of the Rowlands lived in
this same general area throughout the 19th century.
Using the 1830 enumeration as a baseline, then, the
children of John Rowland and his unknown wife (or wives)
are:
i. unknown female (1808 - after 1830 -- no further
information)
ii. unknown female (1808 - after 1830 -- no further
information)
iii.
Lucy A. Rowland (1810/11,
in VA-1879); m.
James A. Brown
iv.
Littleberry Rowland (1812,
in VA-1899); m1.
Jane Brown, m2.
Sarah Ann Winsett
v.
Mary Jane Rowland (1814,
in VA-aft 1880); m. Matthew Underwood
vi.
Martha Ann Rowland (ca.
1817, in TN-after 1834); m. James Underwood
vii.
William M. Rowland (ca
1819/20, in TN-1900); m.
Elizabeth Brown
viii.
John J. Rowland (1823,
in TN-1889); m.
Anna Brown
ix.
Thomas T. Rowland (1825,
in TN-1863); m. Elizabeth Smotherman
x.
Emiline Rowland (1827,
in TN-after 1880 -- never married)
xi. unknown male (1829 -- no further information)
The following chronology can be constructed using census
and other data:
1780/90 - Born in Virginia, county and parents unknown
1806 - Marries in Virginia, county unknown, wife's name
unknown
1809 - Lucy A. Rowland is born in Virginia, county unknown
1811 - Littleberry Rowland is born in Virginia, county
unknown
1816 - William Rowland is born in Tennessee, probably in
Rutherford County
1826 - Emeline Rowland is born in Rutherford County
1830 -
Enumerated in the census in Rutherford County
1836 - Does not appear as head of household in Rutherford
County tax list
1837 - Does not appear as head of household in Rutherford
County tax list
1840 - Littleberry Rowland and Matthew Underwood are in the
Rutherford County census