| Notes |
- Joseph Culpepper was born around 1696 in Norfolk County, VA. He moved
to Bertie County, NC in the early to mid-1720's, to an area which
later became Northampton County. By the late 1730's he had moved to
Edgecombe County, NC, where he died intestate around 1745.
Since Joseph left no will, understanding the disposition of his land,
and the disposition of the land of his brother Benjamin, is central to
determining descendants of both lines.
Joseph's son Benjamin apparently inherited all of his land by right of
primogeniture. See the article on him for further details.
Joseph's own ancestry is not in question, as he was a legatee in his
father Robert Culpepper's will in Norfolk County in 1743, and no other
early Joseph who could have been Robert's son.
As mentioned, by 1725, if not earlier, Joseph was in Bertie County,
NC, as in August of that year he witnessed two deeds there, one for
William Whitehead and one for William Bennett. (Deed Book 1725-1727,
B2, B14) Whitehead and Bennett owned land adjacent to each other on
the Roanoke River.
On 2 Aug 1727, John Bass, Jr., was granted "410 acres on the
Northernly side of the Morattock [now Roanoke] River, joining the
South side of Bear Swamp," adjacent to Robert House and Joseph
Culpepper. (Abstracts of Land Patents by Margaret Hofmann, #2407 in
her book, found in Patent Book 3, page 213)
On the same day, 2 Aug 1727, Joseph Culpepper was granted 364 acres
in Bertie County on the "Northernly parts of the Morratock [now
Roanoke] River joining Robert Newsam and Robert House." (Abstracts of
Land Patents by Margaret Hofmann, # 2435 in her book, from Patent Bk 3
p. 220)
From the two previous grants, we can see that Joseph's land in the
1720's was near Bear Swamp in present day Northampton County, NC. So
the land must have been east of NC State Road 305, and less than four
miles north of present day Rich Square, NC (founded in 1750). Joseph
may have lived in present day Northampton County, NC, from his first
arrival in North Carolina, prior to 1725, until after the fall harvest
of 1738.
The John Bass, Jr., mentioned above, must have been related to Isaac
Bass, who, some 30 years later, owned land on Peachtree Creek adjacent
to Joseph's brother Benjamin. (Granville Grants Vol IV, by Margaret
Hofmann, her no's. 963-5).
On 5 Dec 1738, John Edwards [Sr.] of Bertie Pct. [later Northampton
County], Esquire, deeded 320 acres in Edgecombe Pct. to Joseph
Culpepper, for £16. The land was on the south side of the Morratuck
River and the west side of Fishing Creek, and joined the land of
Emanuel Rogers. (Abstracts of Edgecombe Pct. Deeds, by Margaret M.
Hofmann, her page 26, from Book1, page 291 in Halifax Co. NC deeds
Early Edgecombe deeds ended up in Halifax records.)
As proven by the grant to the adjacent land owner, Emanuel Rogers,
Joseph's new farm was near Beaverdam Swamp and present day State Road
48 and about 13 miles north of Rocky Mount, NC. The grant to Emanuel
Rogers, was "on the South side of the Morattock River, joining
Beaverdam Swamp (a branch of Fishing Creek). (Province of North
Carolina 1663-1729 Abstracts of Land Patents by Margaret M. Hofmann,
her # 2537, from Patent Book 3, page 246) Beaverdam Swamp is just
south of Fishing Creek and just east of State Road 48.
Joseph's new farm was about 30 miles west of his previous land on Bear
Swamp in Bertie (later Northampton) County. Culpepper's Bridge,
perhaps named for Joseph's nephew Benjamin, is on State Road 48 at
Fishing Creek.
A few years later, in 1749, William Culpepper got a grant in the same
area. (Granville Grants Vol. I, by Margaret M. Hofmann, #645 in her
book).
Curiously enough, a land entry for a Benjamin Culpepper was adjacent
to the land of John Rogers, thought to have been a brother of the
above Emanuel Rogers. (Edgecombe County, NC Court Records, February
1741, Book of Rights, file # SS906, found at the NC Archives by Dick
Culpepper)
John and Emanuel Rogers may have been the sons of John Rogers, Sr.,
who died in Bertie (later Northampton) County, NC, in 1726. [(Colonial
Bertie County, NC, Deed Books A-H, 1720-1757, by Mary Best Bell, page
35 in the book, from Bertie Deed Book B, page 201, "Inventory of John
Rogers, November 1726) Most of Emanuel Roger's land was north of
Fishing Creek in the Quankey Creek area. John Rogers, Jr. owned land
on Little Fishing Creek (a. k. a. Conway Creek), which was also north
of Fishing Creek. In 1758 these areas north of Fishing Creek became
part of Halifax County.
In 1741 Northampton County and Edgecombe County were formed from
Bertie County.
In January 1741, Joseph Culpepper of Edgecombe County deeded to his
brother Benjamin Culpepper, of Edgecombe Co, 160 acres for £8 on west
side of Fishing Creek, which was one-half of the John Edwards tract
mentioned above. Some 260 years later, this one key deed is the most
troubling one to current researchers. One can only speculate why, but
this deed does not adequately describe the land involved in this sale.
Was this the east half, or the west half, of Joseph's original Fishing
Creek property. We may never know. And the question is important. See
the footnote to this article, which describes the Fishing Creek deeds
in detail.
Joseph's cattle brand is recorded in Edgecombe County in 1741 in the
"Book of Marks.1
On 27 Feb 1743, Joseph Culpepper took out a land entry for 300 acres
in Edgecombe County on the north side of Swift Creek below the mouth
of Tuckahoe Branch, including his own improvements. (Tuckahoe Branch
on Swift Creek is not mentioned in "The North Carolina Gazeteer," by
Powell. It does mention other Tuckahoes, and says that the Tuckahoe
was a plant whose roots were eaten by the Indians.) The location of
this grant on Swift Creek has not been positively identified. This
writer thinks that it was probably near Hilliardston Community, in
current day Nash County. This is the point at which Sandy Creek
becomes Swift Creek.
Back in Northampton County, on 6 April 1745, John Edwards was granted
595 acres on both sides of Bear Swamp, joining Joseph Culpepper's
land, and at a point near the mouth of White Oak Branch, Solomon
Fuller, William Boon, and the said swamp. (Land Patents, by Margaret
M. Hofmann, her # 2839, from Patent Book 5, p. 223)
And on 10 November 1745, John Edwards granted 139 acres in Northampton
County on both sides of Bear Swamp to Thomas Hayes, for £20. The land
joined Joseph Culpepper, Solomon Fuller, and William Boon, and was
part of a 595 acre patent to John Edwards dated 6 April 1745.
Since Edward's original patent (Patent Bk 5, p. 223, as found in
Hofmann, Colony of NC Land Patents, p. 199) also mentioned the same
adjacent land owners, this might suggest that Joseph Culpepper still
owned his land in Northampton as late as 1745, having moved to
Edgecombe County a few years earlier. It is not clear whether Joseph
sold this land in Northampton prior to his death in 1745, or whether
his widow or heirs sold it after his death. Whoever bought the land,
unfortunately, did not record the deed.
John Edwards Sr., gave his sons John Jr., and Thomas, land in the
Rocky Swamp area north of Fishing Creek, in what later became Halifax
County. (Edgecombe Pct. Deeds, by Margaret Hofmann, Book 3, p. 136,
and Book 5, p. 192) John Edwards Sr. died in Northampton County in
1765, and his will does not mention a daughter who married a
Culpepper.
So while Joseph and Benjamin Culpepper lived south of Fishing Creek,
some of their acquaintances lived north of Fishing Creek, such as John
and Emanuel Rogers.
Joseph died in Edgecombe County in 1745. His wife Martha was appointed
administrator of his estate in May 1745, and in August was appointed
guardian of their four minor children, John, Joseph, Argent, and
Sampson. The children were all under the age of fourteen since their
guardian was appointed by the court.
At the time of his death, Joseph apparently owned one or possibly two
tracts of land. He owned the west half of his 320 acre grant on
Fishing Creek. And he may have owned a 300 acre tract on Swift Creek,
for which no final patent has survived. This writer thinks that he
owned both tracts, and that that both devolved by right of
primogeniture, to his son Benjamin. See the article on Benjamin for
further details.
Joseph's widow, Martha, probably continued to live on the west half of
the Fishing Creek property until she remarried, around 1751 to
Benjamin Dumas. At this point, her son Benjamin sold his half of the
Fishing Creek property to his cousin Benjamin, ferryman, whose own
widowed mother already lived on the east half of the property.
On 21 August 1753, William Wilder sold 100 acres adjacent to the widow
Culpepper and the widow Mason and the south side of Fishing Creek.
Witnesses were Thomas Mann, Benjamin Culpepper (B was his mark) and
Nathaniel Powell (N was his mark). (Edgecombe Pct. Deeds by Margaret
M. Hofmann, Deed Book 4, page 531) This land had been a grant to
William Wilder on 2 May 1752. (Granville Grants Vol. I, by Hofmann,
#1292 in her book, from Patent Book 11, page 304) From the description
of the land, we can see that it bounded Joseph Culpepper's original
Fishing Creek property on the west.
The widow Mason, just mentioned, was probably Hannah, widow of Ralph
Mason. (Estate Records of Edgecombe County, NC, by Joseph W. Watson,
page 175) Later deeds show Ralph Mason's son Mark living adjacent to
the Culpepper farm, so Hannah must have been deceased by then.
(Granville Grants, Vol. I, by Hofmann, # 999 in her book, from Patent
Book 11, page 237 -- see also #863 and #1292 in this book) Ralph's
son, Foster Mason, also lived in this area, and his wife Elizabeth was
a widow by this time as well.
.
William Wilder, just mentioned, had married Elizabeth Culpepper,
daughter of Joseph and Martha Culpepper, around 1745.
According to testimony in court Martha Culpepper's second husband,
Benjamin Dumas died 1 Oct 1763 in Anson County. He did not leave a
will.
Martha's will has been found in the court minutes of a case filed in
Salisbury District by John and Joseph Culpepper, sons of Joseph
Culpepper, Sr., against David Dumas, son of Benjamin Dumas and
administrator of his estate. Martha's will was dated 23 Jan 1764 and
was probated 26 Jan, 1764. (Rowan County Estate Records 1753-1929,
under the heading "Benjamin Dumas, 1764" at the NC State Archives)
In it she mentioned her "well beloved children" Joseph Culpepper, John
Culpepper, Sampson Culpepper, Elizabeth Wilder and Sarah Culpepper.
Sampson was called "my youngest son." Elizabeth and Sarah were not
mentioned when Joseph died so they must have been over 21 or married.
A daughter, Argent, was mentioned in Joseph Culpepper's estate, but
not in his widow Martha's will.
The best clues we have to Allison's ancestry are in two 1827 deeds in
Jackson Co, GA. In Feb 1827, Allison Culpepper sold his 240 acres in
Jackson Co, GA, two separate tracts on Candler's Creek, to Ambrose
Yarbrough. Witnesses were Joel Culpepper and Dennis Duncan. The tracts
had been granted originally to David Allen (40 acres) and E. Marbury
(200 acres). The chain of title from these men to Allison Culpepper
has not been found (Jackson Co. Deed Bk. L, both on p. 32). The
Joel Culpepper who witnessed Allison's deed was the son of Joseph
Culpepper III. Ambrose Yarbrough, who bought Allison's land, was
a Baptist minister from Anson Co, NC. He was married to Elizabeth
Culpepper, apparent daughter of John Culpepper. But Ambrose was
closely associated with the family of Joseph Culpepper III, as well.
He was a witness to the 1816 will of Joseph Culpepper III in Jackson
Co. GA. Ambrose's daughter Frances married James Culpepper, son of the
above Joel Culpepper, son of Joseph III.
And it is significant that this 1827 record of Allison was in Jackson
Co, where Joseph Culpepper III lived. Malachi Culpepper, the other
known son of Joseph, Jr., was also connected to Jackson County. He
received Revolutionary War Grants there between 1784 and 1793.
(Miscellaneous Records of Jackson Co, GA, by Joseph T. Maddox, and
Early Jackson Co Court Records). Further research is needed.
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Abt 1696 - 1745 (49 years)