Family History Writing Challenge Day 13

Thompson Hightower

The previous posts have illustrated the extent to which I have tried to find information about the parents of Thompson Hightower. It does not include all the online avenues that I have utilized, nor the trip I took to Richmond, Virginia back in 2014 as that trip involved looking at Hightowers and affiliated family lines from George Hightower, Jr. back. Thompson was born in Kentucky, so until I can ascertain if or how they are related to Thompson, it makes no sense to cover that information here.

As I stated on the beginning of this writing challenge, I am confident of the direct tie between myself and Thompson Hightower. It is getting beyond him that is the problem. My brother and I have taken DNA tests, and I am hopeful that someday a George Hightower, Jr. (or any Hightower, for that matter) descendant will reach out to me as a match. Until then, here is summary of what I know.

Thompson Hightower was born in Campbell County (which became Kenton County in 1840), Kentucky around 1815. He remained in the Covington area until his death from cholera in 1866.

George Hightower was born in Virginia in 1770, but moved to Kentucky with his wife Frances and children, Mary Polly and Austin, by 1800. By the 1830 census he was living in Adams County, Illinois with his wife. He sold his land in Kentucky to his son Austin in March of 1836. What is odd is that the deed indicates that both George and Austin are residents of Campbell County. That could have been an error on the recording clerk’s part. There were no other George Hightowers living in Campbell County at that time, and none that show up on the 1830 census for Campbell County.

Austin then sold the land to a non-family member in October of 1838. By the 1840 census, Austin was also living in Adams County, Illinois with his wife and children. George, Mary Polly and Austin, along with their spouses, all died in Adams County and are buried in the Denson Pioneer Cemetery in Ursa.

If George moved his family in 1830, Thompson would have only been 15 years of age. Would they have left him behind in the Covington area? Or if he went with them and is indeed the one male ages 15 thru 19 on that census record, would he have gone back to Covington on his own as an adult when all of his family remained in Adams County? That doesn’t seem likely to me.

Family History Writing Challenge Day 9

Another avenue that might provide a link between Thompson Hightower and George Hightower, Jr. is the existence of probate records or a will. Probate records are court records created after an individual’s death regarding the division of the estate to the heirs or creditors, and also the care of dependents. This process normally takes place when there is not a will, but sometimes even with a will the estate can go into probate. To begin the probate process, a petition must be filed with the court. Typically this is done by one of the heirs of the deceased. It often includes names, relationships, and residences of the heirs.

Quincy Public Library

Many resources for researching probates records are available online. But of course George Hightower does not appear in any of them. I visited Quincy, Illinois, which is the county seat of Adams County last year on the way back from visiting my in-laws in Iowa. I met with a local history librarian at the Quincy Public Library to discuss my Hightower family from the area. Ursa, where the Hightowers lived, is just 10 miles north of Quincy. The librarian was helpful, letting me know which websites to look at in the library, and showing me the local books which might be of assistance.

Unfortunately, I found no new information on any of the Hightower families. Before I totally give up finding any leads in Adams County I will need to contact the Adams County Clerk of the Circuit Courts office in Quincy. They have court records dating back to 1825, and probate records back to 1826. In this day and age of the computer, it is easy for genealogists to forget that not everything is online, nor has every document been indexed and placed neatly into a book for us to find at a library.

Family History Writing Challenge Day 7

In looking at whether or not George Hightower, Jr. could possibly be the father of Thompson, it helps to establish where George was living in relationship to Thompson. First, here is some background on George. He was born 31 March 1770 in Amelia County, Virginia to George Hightower, Sr. and Susannah (Thorn) Hightower. The Hightower and Thorn families are well-documented as they are both early settlers in what would later become the State of Virginia. These families came from England and settled in an area that was not yet the United States.

There are records for a Joshua Hightower in North Farnham Parish, in the late 1600s. North Farnham Parish was located in the general area of what would become Richmond in 1737. The Parish records date back to 1663, and it is in those records that the Hightower, Thorn and other related families are listed.

George Hightower, Sr. and his wife Susannah sold their land in Amelia County in 1771, and in 1776 purchased 715 acres of land adjacent to Hightower relatives in Lunenburg County. By 1787 they sold this property and moved to Campbell County, Virginia. Susannah died there in 1797.

It was in Campbell County that George Hightower, Jr. married Frances Ann Hall on 3 February 1796. Their daughter Mary Polly b. 1797 and son Austin b. 1799 were born in this location. Mary Polly’s marriage record lists George Hightower as her father. Austin is buried in the same pioneer cemetery in Ursa, Illinois as George and Frances, so he is most likely their son.

By 1800 both George Sr. and George Jr. are listed in the tax records in Jessamine County, Kentucky. Jessamine County was formed in 1799 from Fayette County, one of the three original counties founded by Virginia on 30 June 1780. (The other two were Jefferson and Lincoln.) The State of Kentucky separated from Virginia in 1792. It is possible that the men did not move but it was simply that their county name was changed.

By the 1810 census, George Jr. was in Campbell County, Kentucky. This record indicates there were 3 males under the age of 10, 4 females under the age of 10, and 1 female aged 10 thru 15 in addition to the adult male and female in the house. Mary Polly would have been about 13 in 1810, and Austin would have been about 11. Who are the other children?

The 1820 census shows George Hightower, Jr. in Covington, Campbell County, Kentucky. It also lists 2 males under age 10, 3 males ages 10-15, 1 male 45 and over, 1 female under 10, 3 females 10-15, 1 female 16-25 and 1 female 45 and over. It is possible that their daughter Mary Polly and her children were living with them. She was married in 1815 and since her first husband died young, she could be the 1 female 16-25 who appears here. Austin did not marry until 1823, so you would think that he would show up as a male 16-25.

By 1830 George and Frances were living in Adams County, Illinois. The census for that year indicates a male 15-19, a female 15-19, and a female 20-29 in addition to George and Frances. It would be very interesting to know what brought them to the small community of Ursa. Their daughter Mary Polly and her second husband did not move to Ursa until about 1850, and their son Austin moved there with his family around 1840.

Many Hightower family trees online list these additional children with George and Frances as the parents: Rolla b. 1802 in Kentucky, Richard b. 1812 in Kentucky, Archibald b. 1814 in Kentucky, and of course Thompson b. 1815 in Kentucky. I have found no proof of parentage on any of these boys. I do know, however, that they all lived in Campbell County (which became Kenton County).

Any of the older teens or young adults on the George Hightower, Jr.’s census records could be boarders, servants or laborers, of course. Since these early census records that do not list names of people in the household, they are of somewhat limited use.

But what the records do indicate is that George and Frances Hightower were living in Campbell County at the time of Thompson’s birth around 1815. Thompson could be one of the males under the age of 10 in their 1820 census, and he could be the 15-19 year old male in their 1830 census from Adams County, Illinois.

But is he?