b. abt 1807, South Carolina
d. 1860-1870, DeSoto County, Mississippi
m. 25 Jul 1832 in Lauderdale, Alabama to Martha Jackson (b. abt 1816, Tennessee)
One of the most disappointing things about genealogy research is hitting the dreaded brick wall. Many times, especially in older generations, there is just not enough information to make the necessary connections to continue the line.
However, sometimes plausible connections can be drawn utilizing the data that is available. This can yield valuable information that can be used to find more supporting evidence.
In this case, I hit a wall with John Maxwell, my 4th great-grandfather. As always, we start with what we know about the subject and go from there.
- John appears in the 1850 census living in DeSoto County, Mississippi. He lists his age as 41 [est birth year: 1809] and his native state as South Carolina.
- John appears in the 1860 census still living in DeSoto County, Mississippi. He lists his age as 53 [est birth year: 1807] and his native state as South Carolina.
- In the 1870 census, John's wife, Martha, is listed as the head of the house in DeSoto County and John is no longer found. Thus, we can assume he died between 1860 and 1870.
From these records, we know that John was born in South Carolina around 1807-1809. It is always good when an individual in this era is born around a decade change. The closer in time that they are born to a census being taken, the more likely it is that we can correctly find a set of individuals that could be the subject's parents.
The census in 1810, children under 10 were enumerated. Thus, we can begin searching for Maxwells living in South Carolina in 1810 with a male child under 10 (John would have been 1-3 years in age at this time based on later census information).
We searched "Max*" (notice the wildcard) to return any families where the last name begins with "Max." This is a good idea in case the family name was changed or transcribed incorrectly.
Search: 1810 Federal Census, Last Name "Max*" in "South Carolina" with at least 1 male child under 10
- Francis Maxey (Female) - St. Johns Colleton, Charleston, South Carolina (1 male under 10)
- Rev John Maxey - Columbia, Richland, South Carolina (3 males under 10)
- John Maxon - York, South Carolina (2 males under 10)
- Chas Maxwell - Abbeville, Abbeville, South Carolina (1 male under 10)
- Hugh Maxwell - Abbeville, Abbeville, South Carolina (2 males under 10)
- John Maxwell - Pendleton, South Carolina (1 male under 10)
- John Maxwell - Newberry, South Carolina (1 male under 10)
It is likely that one of these individuals is the father of our subject. I will concede that this method is not flawless. For example, if our subject's father moved away from South Carolina before the 1810 census and after our subject was born, we would be looking at an incorrect data set. However, it can give us something from which to work.
We also have a marriage record from 25 Jul 1832 in Lauderdale, Alabama reflecting our subject's marriage to Martha Jackson.
Looking at 1830 census records, we find several Maxwells living in the area of Lauderdale County, Alabama. These could be members (mother, father, brother?) of our subject's family:
Search: 1830 Federal Census, Last Name "Max*" in "Lauderdale County, Alabama" and adjacent counties
- James Maxwell - Lauderdale County, Alabama
- James Maxwell - Limestone County, Alabama (east of Lauderdale)
- John Maxwell - Limestone County, Alabama (east of Lauderdale)
- W Maxwell - Giles County, Tennessee (northeast of Lauderdale)
- Isaiah Maxey - Giles County, Tennessee (northeast of Lauderdale)
- Nancey Maxey (Female) - Giles County, Tennessee (northeast of Lauderdale)
We cannot place too much value on this information. It is possible that none of these people are even related to our subject. Perhaps John was not even living in Alabama at the time. Or, maybe, he was living with another family. This was common if a young person set off and migrated to an new area without family.
The John Maxwell in Limestone County, Alabama cannot be our subject because this individual is 40-49 years of age (and married). Our subject would be around the age of 21-23 at this time. However, this could prove to be our subject's father. Though, there is no individual in this John Maxwell's household that would match our subject.
In fact, the only household where the enumeration fits our subject is the home of Isaiah Maxey from Giles County, Tennessee. It is possible that this individual is related to our subject, but it is highly unlikely because of the last name. But, we cannot rule it out.
We do know that our subject's first two children are thought to have been born in Mississippi:
- Adaline M Maxwell (b. abt 1836, Mississippi)
- James Harvey Maxwell (b. 30 May 1838, Mississippi)
Thus, we can assume that by the time of the 1840 Federal census, John's family was living in Mississippi. We do find a young John Maxwell living in DeSoto County, Mississippi in 1840. However, no children are enumerated. Additionally, the head is enumerated in the 20-29 column. At this time, our subject is thought to be 31-33. It is possible that he marked himself younger than he actually was, but it does not explain the children that should be enumerated (1 Male under 5, 1 Female under 5).
Interestingly, we also find a David Maxwell and his family in DeSoto County on the 1840 Federal Census. This individual is 50-59 and has several children. It is possible that this could be John Maxwell's father or uncle (as mentioned, the John Maxwell that we find in DeSoto County in 1840 may not actually be our subject). This David Maxwell does not show up in DeSoto County in the 1850 Federal Census. I believe that he died before this time.
There is a Thomas Maxwell that shows up in 1850 that could have been living with David Maxwell until his death. Thomas has a large family, and one of his sons is named "David."
It should be noted that we find two individuals by the name of "John Maxwell" in DeSoto County, Mississippi in the 1850 Federal census. One is our subject, John Maxwell. The other is probably the individual that we find living in DeSoto County in the 1840 census.
So, the question becomes, "Where was John Maxwell and his family in the 1840 Federal Census?" There are no other John Maxwells found in Mississippi that would fit the profile of our subject, but evidence leads us to believe that he was indeed living in Mississippi at during the time of the census.
Also, is our subject related to these other Maxwell families that we find in DeSoto County?
Many times the attempt to solve a question will just result with more questions. However, if we keep digging and find other sources of information, we may just have a moment where we break through.
This exploration will be continued in a future post.
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