March 5, 2022
Pages 2986-2991
Whole Number 136
9.1.1.7 MARY ANN (SPARKS) CROSLAND (1785-1841)
AND HER DESCENDANTS
In the Quarterly of December 1962, Whole No. 40, we published an article, beginning on page 689, entitled "The Sparks Family of the Welch Neck Section of South Carolina." It was noted there that four sons of 9.1 James Sparks, Jr., who died in Spotsylvania County, Virginia, in 1758, had settled in the area along the Pee Dee River in South Carolina known as the Welch Neck. These four sons were: 9.1.1 Daniel Sparks, 1740-1810; 9.1.2 Charles Sparks, ca.1743/1744-1797; 9.1.3 Samuel Sparks, 1745-1811; and 9.1.4 Harry Sparks, died 1781. A biographical sketch of each of these men appeared in the issue of the Quarterly cited above.
Daniel Sparks (1740 -1810) was married twice. by his second wife, Martha (Pearce) Sparks (1762 -1853), Daniel Sparks had seven children, including a daughter named 9.1.1.7 Mary Ann ["Polly" ] Sparks who was born January 5, 1785; she died on May 7, 1841. Our knowledge of Mary Ann's (or Polly's) children was quite limited at the time we published the article on her father in 1962, but now, thanks to Eugene D. and Mary Lee (Wooley) Stubbs, we are able to give much more precise data regarding her family. Part of this information appears in The Family of Edward and Ann Snead Crosland 1740-1957 by Lulu Crosland Ricaud published privately in 1958.
According to this book (page 100), Mary Ann [ "Polly" ] Sparks married John Crosland who was born July 17, 1776, in Marlboro County, South Carolina; he died on December 4, 1832, also in Marlboro County. He was a son of Edward and Ann (Snead) Crosland.
His estate was finally settled on November 1, 1838, at which time there were seven living children, three sons and four daughters.
Mary Ann (Sparks) Crosland, widow of John Crosland, made her will in 1841. The name of the month was omitted in the dating of this will, but we know that it was the 11th of January, February, March, or April, 1841. She died on May 7, 1841, and her will was probated on June 4, 1841, in Marlboro County, South Carolina. Her will, which is an interesting historical document whether or not one descends from her, reads as follows (punctuation has been added where necessary for clarity)
"South Carolina, Marlborough District"I, Mary A. Crosland of the State and District aforesaid do make & constitute this my last Will and Testament, to wit:
"1st, I give and bequeath to my daughter Venetta Hustus [ Heustess ] a negro woman named Zillah, she and her increase except her first child if she should have one to descend to Venetta's daughters, but the first child of Zellah to be a boy when weaned to go to John Robertson Cook, child of Sarah & William Cook, but if a girl it is to go to Laura E. Cook.
I also give to Venetta my geese & the privilege of living in the house which she now occupies & tending twenty acres of the cleared land [during] her lifetime & if my afflicted daughter [Gillian] should live with Venetta, I direct that there shall be a comfortable room built there for said daughter, Gillian Crosland, to be paid for out of the portion of James and John Crosland. I also give to Venetta my largest iron pot, a yellow listed sow & her pigs & fifty bushels of corn from the present growing now. I give to Venetta's daughter, Lucy Hustus, a white and brown no horned heifer yearling, & to Ann Hustus a red heifer yearling.
"2nd, I give to Sarah E. Cook, my daughter, a negro girl Sophy & her increase & at Sarah's death to go to her daughters. I give to Henretta Cook, my granddaughter, one bed & its furniture; to Olivia Jane Cook, my China tea sett; to Laurie Cook, my Beaurough; to James O. A. Cook, one black sow with white list and her pigs.
"3rd, I give to my daughter, Mary Jane Stubbs, one negro girl, Lesette, & she & her increase to descend to Jane's daughters. I also give to Jane my loom.
"4th, I give to my daughter, Gillan Crosland, a negro woman Olly, to wait on her & hers forever if she should regain her reason, but if not, at her death, Olly & her increase is to go to my son Daniel E. Crosland. I also give to Gillan one bed & its furniture.
"5th, I give to my son John A. Crosland a negro man named Bob and if John die without heirs, to go to the other heirs. I also give to John one bed & its furniture, one sow & pigs, one red & white pied cow, half of the sitting chairs, half of the plantation gears & tools. I also give --?-- on condition that he pay to my estate or executors fifty dollars. I also give him the tract of land called the Seals place on condition that he pay to my executors six hundred & fifty one dollars, --?-- for the use of Gillan Crosland, which amount I have paid for the land out of her estate in my hands & my desire is that he have the use of the money paying the interest annually until he chuse to pay the principal & then the land [ ? ] to be free, but to be bound for the said sum till it is paid.
"6th, I give to my son James S. Crosland the tract of land whereon I now live except the privilege herein before granted to Venetta Bustus, the said land after his death to descend to his oldest son if one should be born to him, & whose name I desire should be John, & if James die without any child for it to descend to Daniel S. Crosland. I also give to James a negro boy named Joe, one bed & its furniture, the side board & dining table, the Family Bible, half the setting chairs, the wagon, black mule, half the plantation gear & tools, the sixth part of the present growing crop, except the field at Seale place & the little cotton field which is to be Johns part of the crop & the wheat which I wish to be equally divided between James, John, & Vennetta. I also give James all the cows & hogs not herein otherwise given & the sorrel mare & gigg for the mutual accomodation of him & Venetta & he is to pay over to my executors two hundred dollars for the benefit of Gillan which is part of her estate in my hands. I desire that he keep the money & pay the interest till he wishes to pay it over or she regain her reason.
"7th, I give to my son Daniel E. Crosland two negro boys named Frank & Henry, a lot of land in the village of Bennettsville which I purchased from Wm. J. Cook. I also give him a bed & its furniture. I desire the kitchen furniture to be equally divided bwtween James & John, if the latter should keep house. I desire the ballance of the crop & my estate not herein before mentioned to be sold for the benefit of all my children to pay debts, etc. & I do hereby appoint & constitute John McCollum, William J. Cook, & William Crosland to be my executors to execute this my last will & testament in witness whereof I hereunto subscribe my name in presence of the witnesses who, in presence of each other have subscribed thier names this the 11th 1841.
[signed] Mary A. Crosland"
The witnesses to this will were Phillip Barrington, Lucy Barrington, and Wm. D. Crosland. Phillip and Lucy both signed by mark. The will was recorded in Marlboro County Will Book 1A, page 218, on June 14, 1841, and was designated Case 1, Box 24.
The children of John and Mary Ann (Sparks) Crosland were:
9.1.1.7.1 Vinetta Crosland, born September 7, 1806, in Marlboro County, South Carolina. She married (first) William Heustess (her mother spelled the name Hustus in her will) and (second) James Cole Husbands. She had children only by her first husband. They were:
9.1.1.7.1.1 Lucy Katherine Heustess.
9.1.1.7.1.2 Ann Heustess.
9.1.1.7.1.3 William Heustess, who died young.
9.1.1.7.1.4 David Heustess, who "wandered off."A daughter of Vinetta is said to have married FNU Rogers and lived in Carroll County, Tennessee.
9.1.1.7.2 Martha Ann Crosland, born April 13, 1808, in Marlboro County, South Carolina, and died there on July 16, 1808.
9.1.1.7.3 Sarah Elizabeth Crosland, born July 25, 1810, in Marlboro County; she died there on February 15, 1885. She was married on January 12, 1830, to William Jefferson Cook who had been born in Marlboro County on November 16, 1806. He died there on December 25, 1881. He was a son of James Cook (1742-1831) and his second wife, Martha (McDaniel) Cook. William Jefferson Cook was the colonel of the Marlboro Militia and was prominent politically. He gave the land for the First Methodist Church in Bennettsville, South Carolina, in 1834. The children of William Jefferson and Sarah Elizabeth (Crosland) Cook were:
9.1.1.7.3.1 Mary Ann Cook, born November 5, 1830; died October 23, 1831.
9.1.1.7.3.2 Henrietta Martha Cook, born November 5, 1832, died November 1, 1898. She was married on November 25, 1852, in Marlboro County to Joseph Lindsey Breeden, born November 30, 1830, died November 21, 1905. They had seven children: Sarah Josephine Breeden; Annie Alice Breeden, Lindsey Joseph Breeden; William Cook Breeden; Clarence E. Breeden; Josie O. Breeden; and Henrietta Elizabeth Breeden.
9.1.1.7.3.3 James Osgood Andrew Cook, born July 28, 1834, in Marlboro County; He died on March 29, 1871, in Marion, Arkansas. He is said to have been the first volunteer in the Confederate Army from Arkansas.
9.1.1.7.3.4 Olivia [ "Eedie" ] Jane Cook, born May 1, 1836, in Marlboro County. She died there on April 4, 1917.
9.1.1.7.3.5 Laura Ann [ "Ottie" ] Cook, born October 15, 1837, in Marlboro County; She died April 29, 1910. She married John Swann ["Crockett"] Moore on January 5, 1860. Children: Mary Anna Ashe Moore; a son who died in infancy; and Laura Sarah Moore.
9.1.1.7.3.6 John Robinson Cook, born April 24, 1839; died May 15, 1895, in St. Matthews, South Carolina. He married Lucy Elizabeth Spigener in 1869. She was born September 15, 1849, and died May 21, 1910. They had five children: Daisy Hunt Cook; Annie Alice Cook; Thomas Morris Cook; Laura Moore Euleila Cook; and Sarah Isabelle Cook.
9.1.1.7.3.7 Thomas Alexander Morris Cook, born March 27, 1841; died March 25, 1876. He married Laura Johnson on February 1, 1871. She was born October 1, 1846, and died November 28, 1872. They had one child, James Johnson Cook.
9.1.1.7.3.8 Josephine M. Cook, born January 4, 1843; died November 23, 1845.
9.1.1.7.3.9 Frances Georgette Cook, born November 4, 1844. She married the Rev. Daniel Zimmerman Dantzler, born March 4, 1848, died August 30,
1889. They had children:Rosa Olivia Dantzler;
Lewis Marshall Dantzler;
Sarah Cook Dantzler; and
William Zimmerman Dantzler.9.1.1.7.3.10 Sarah William Cook, born May 28, 1846, died Decembr 28, 1906.
9.1.1.7.3.11 Ann Margaret Cook, born May, 1851, died May 1851.
9.1.1.7.4 Lucinda Crosland was born July 21, 1812. She died July 30, 1825.
9.1.1.7.5 Mary Jane Crosland was born January 16, 1814; she died March 16, 1882. She was married ca. 1840 in Marlboro County, South Carolina, to Louis Andrew Jackson Stubbs. This was his second marriage; he had been married previously to Mary Ann Hubbard, and by her he had had a daughter named Mary Ann Stubbs, born April 11, 1835, who married Elijah C. Hamer on January 25, 1851.
Mary Jane (Crosland) Stubbs was left a widow with seven children when her husband died in 1853. by December 1854, she had moved to Carroll County, Tennessee, accompanied by her nephew, J. O. A. Cook. Her children purchased 50 acres of land there on December 25, 1854. Mary Jane lived out the rest of her life in Carroll County, Tennessee, dying on March 16, 1882. She was buried in the Shiloh Church Cemetery near McKenzie, Tennessee.
According to research conducted by Mary L. and Eugene D. Stubbs, Mary Jane (Crosland) Stubbs had the following children. Her son, Benjamin John Stubbs, was the great-grandfather of Eugene.
9.1.1.7.5.1 Benjamin John [or John Benjamin] Stubbs was born July 25, 1841, and died on November 14, 1920. He left South Carolina with his mother and siblings ca. 1854. by 1880 he was in Hunt County, Texas, after which he moved to Revenna, in Fannin County, Texas. He was married twice, first to Sarah ["Sally"] Rowden (born June 25, 1855, died October 10, 1883); and, second, to Louisa ["Liza"] J. Smith (born January 1853, died May 14, 1923). Both wives are buried with Benjamin in Sandy Cemetery, Revenna, Fannin County, Texas. by his first wife, Benjamin John Stubbs had four children: Edward D. Stubbs, born March 18, 1875; John Wesley Stubbs, born December 5, 1876; Nannie Maude Stubbs, born August 16, 1879; and Bee Benjamin Stubbs, born 1880. by his second wife, Benjamin Stubbs had three children: Lattie Stubbs, born August 12, 1886; Bessie Lee Stubbs, born October 16, 1887; and Earnest Vincent Stubbs, born January 6, 1891.
9.1.1.7.5.2 Nicholas Stubbs was born in April 1843. He was married in Carroll County, Tennessee, on December 1, 1870, to Elbratta K. Anderson, who had been born in March 1850. They had six children, three of whom were living in Carroll County in 1880: Ella Stubbs, born 1876; Mary E. Stubbs, born April 1877; and Alice Stubbs, born 1879. The 1900 census shows also Sarah F. Stubbs, born November 1881.
9.1.1.7.5.3 Sarah C. Stubbs, born 1844. She was married on January 9, 1868, to M. A. Crawford according to the Carroll County, Tennessee, marriage records. We have no further information regarding her.
9.1.1.7.5.4 Thomas James Stubbs, born December 1846, died 1923. He was married in Carroll County, Tennessee, on January 20, 1870, to Jane C. Anderson. They had three children: M. F. Stubbs, born 1872; L. T. Stubbs, born 1875; and Lula Jane Stubbs, born 1876.
9.1.1.7.5.5 Martha L. Stubbs born in November 1848. She was married in Carroll County, Tennessee, Benjamin F. Gibson on November 15, 1863. (Her name on the marriage record appears as Martha G. Stubbs.) According to the 1890 census of Weakley County, Tennessee, they had six children, four of whom were then living. Only one was shown on the census, however; this was a daughter named Verda, born in January 1881.
9.1.1.7.5.6 Susanna L. Stubbs was born in 1851. She was married in Carroll County, Tennessee, to Joseph G. Milam on September 3, 1870. (On the marriage record, her name appears as Susan L. Stubbs.) No further information.
9.1.1.7.5.7 Olivia J. Stubbs, daughter of Louis A. J. and Mary Jane (Crosland) Stubbs, was born in 1853. She married J. S. Mitchell and they lived in Thornton, Arkansas. No further information.
9.1.1.7.6 Gillian Crosland, daughter of John and Mary Ann (Sparks) Crosland, was born on October 10, 1815. From her mother's will, we know that she suffered some kind of mental illness. We have no further information.
9.1.1.7.7 Emily Crosland was born on March 5, 1817. She died on September 6, 1925.
9.1.1.7.8 Eliza Crosland was born on July 31, 1819. She was a twin of Laura, below. She died on October 30, 1819.
9.1.1.7.9 Laura Crosland was born on July 31, 1819. She was a twin of Eliza. She died on November 25, 1830.
9.1.1.7.10 John A. Crosland was born July 7, 1820; he died on January 26,1884, in Prescott, Arkansas. He changed the spelling of his surname to "Crossland." He married Sallie Stewart who was born October 15, 1828, and died on February 21, 1882. They had eight children:
9.1.1.7.10.1 Lemuel Crossland. No further record.
9.1.1.7.10.2 James A. Crossland. No further record.9.1.1.7.10.3 John Bell Crossland, born October 15, 1860, in Chanaha, Alabama; died October 31, 1903. He married Fannie Lenora Tyree who was born February 20, 1872, in Emmett, Arkansas, and died on October 8, 1908, in Prescott, Arkansas. They had five children: Effie Gertrude Crossland; Paralee Lorena Crossland; Tyree Jones Crossland; Stella Cleo Crossland; and Conway Elmer Crossland.
9.1.1.7.10.4 William A. Crossland. No further record.
9.1.1.7.10.5 Josephine Crossland. She married FNU Davis.
9.1.1.7.10.6 Annie Crossland. She married FNU Davis.
9.1.1.7.10.7 Della Crossland. She married FNU Liggon.
9.1.1.7.10.8 Jennie Crossland. She married FNU Darby.9.1.1.7.11 James Sparks Crosland was born on March 30, 1822, and died on March 13, 1885. He married Elizabeth Pearce who was born December 27, 1822, and died on July 13, 1875. They had eight children:
9.1.1.7.11.1 John C. Crosland, born June 13, 1846; died July 2, 1864.
9.1.1.7.11.2 William Edward Crosland, born May 7, 1848, died July 23, 1908. He married Louisa Bailey Evans on May 21, 1889. She was born September 8, 1865, in Cumberland County, North Carolina; she died on September 20, 1951, in Charlotte, North Carolina. They had seven children: Erasmus Evans Crosland; William Edward Crosland; Patrick Murphy Crosland; John Crosland; Louisa Evans Crosland; David Bailey Crosland, and Robert Moseley Crosland.
9.1.1.7.11.3 Ann M. Crosland, born May 20, 1850.
9.1.1.7.11.4 James A. Crosland, born October 29, 1852.
9.1.1.7.11.5 Daniel Crosland, born May 16, 1855; died September 11, 1865.
9.1.1.7.11.6 Temperence Jane Crosland, born February 13, 1856; she died in 1910.
9.1.1.7.11.7 Mary Henrietta Crosland, born February 23, 1860.
9.1.1.7.11.8 Charles E. Crosland, born December 6, 1864; died April 16, 1892.9.1.1.7.12 Daniel Edward Crosland was born July 3, 1824, in Marlboro County, South Carolina. No further record.