Stewart of Emanuel County

Dear Jeanette,

I had signed up for your genealogy news (my ID #31608) but had not yet asked for help with my family history search, hoping to break through the brick wall myself. But I've not made any progress in several years for some ancestors.

Would you be able to help me find information about two of my ancestors?

My first priority is to find parents of my great-grandmother, Elizabeth (Lizzie) Stewart Tennison (1870-1938).

Here are some clues, so far.

The 1930 census shows her in Augusta, Georgia, with her children, indicating that she was born in Summertown (Emanual county), GA, and that her parents were born in Sylvania (Screven County), GA. Also shows her as widow, but really she is separated from husband Jack Tennison.

I have located her in Emanuel County GA for 1900 (as Timerson) and 1910 census (as Tennerson), and in Augusta GA for 1920 and 1930.

She died in 1938,

and was buried by Elliot Funeral home, at Westview Cemetery in Augusta. But her death certificate from state of Georgia, and also Elliot funeral home records show no parents, and obituary in Augusta Chronicle does not indicate any family except children and husband.

Seems like it would be easy to find her, since there was only one Stewart family in Emanual County in 1870, the year she was born. But she is not shown with this family in 1880.

One possibility is that her mother died in childbirth, and Lizzie was sent to relative to raise. Another clue (maybe) is that the 1923 City Directory for Augusta shows her as living very close (backyards almost touching) to Jennie Stewart, the widow of Berry Stewart who was son in the one family in Emanuel County in 1870. So maybe they are relatives. Also, a daughter of Berry Stewart Jr. said that he had a cousin Bill Tennison (who might be my Lizzie's son Willis Miller Tennison).

So maybe I'm on the right track, but need documentation.

Would you be able to help?

The second ancestor I'm searching for is Elizabeth, the wife of John J. McCaw. She was born in SC, probably Chester County, but is shown in the 1850 census in Lowndes County, Alabama (Hayneville). She, her husband, and their first 3-4 children were all born in SC, before they migrated to Alabama about 1837.

They might have an older child, Rebecca, who married Grant before 1850 and so is not shown in the census. I have a book with history of the McCaw family in SC, but it does not show my John J. McCaw who was born in SC. He was a clerk in the Circuit Court in Lowndes County, AL, so he probably left a will somewhere.

Thank you very much for any assistance.

Best wishes, Kathy Hatcher

Research Results. 11/30/2007. This is a very interesting situation. You tell me that Berry Stewart Jr. and Bill Tennison were cousins. I believe that they were first cousins; that they had the same grandparents, i.e. Telitha and James Stewart.

In 1880, all of the family members of Telitha and James resided in District 59 of Emanuel Co., except for Levinah.

1870 Emanuel County Census

James Steward 39 SC, steam mill

Telitha 35 SC

Thomas 18 GA

Henry 16 GA

Berry 14 GA

Levinah (dau) 12 GA

Elisha (son) 9 GA

William 3 GA

1880 Emanuel County Census

Berry Stewart 25 GA, works on farm, parents born in GA

Jennie, wife, 25, GA, works on farm, parents born in GA

Litha, daughter, age 1 GA. Lithia is short for Telitha, her grandmother.

Elisha Stewart 20 GA, farm hand, parents born in GA, with James Rountree family.

Thomas Stewart 25 GA, Mill Hand, father born in GA, mother born in SC

Emma, wife 24 GA

Thomas 2 GA

Henry Stewart 24 GA, works on farm, parents born in GA

Myoma (probably Naomi), wife, 20 GA (Henry married N. Sutton on 10/201878 in Emanuel Co.

Meliar (daughter) 10 GA

James Stewart appears on the 1880 Emanuel Co. Census with a second wife, Elizabeth, formerly Elizabeth Hall, whom he must have married ca 1879 as her last son by the Hall husband was born in 1878. Residing with the family is James Stewart’s son, William, age 13. William married Sarah Spence and they are buried in the Twin City Cemetery in Emanuel County. William Stewart 4/15/1864-5/5/1938 Sarah Spence Stewart 1/28/1874-7/20/1939.

That accounts for all of the children listed on the 1870 census, except Levinah, born ca 1858. The Emanuel Co. Marriage Records record the marriage of Lizzie Stewart to Jack Timerson on 5/6/1890.

Apparently Lizzie was a daughter of James and Telitha Stewart, as per the cousin relationship (above), I am satisfied that Berry Stewart was her brother and that he named his child, Litha, after his mother. Now, how to prove this.

It does not appear that she ever left Emanuel County because she was married there in 1890. So where was she in 1880? She was probably born during the fall of 1870, after the census was taken, so this would explain why she was not listed with the family. All of James and Telitha Stewart’s children are grown and residing separately in 1880 when has remarried, except William, who is at home. Lizzie (age 10), Levinah (age 22) were not found. I did not discover a marriage record for Levinah in Emanuel Co. Lizzie was not residing with any of her brothers. Perhaps she went to live with her grandparents in SC to accommodate her father’s recent marriage.

Although you state that Lizzie’s parents were born in Screven County, I did not find any Stewarts in that area. The census designation of SC being a birth state is not unusual for residents of Screven County. I have seen that a lot. They could have considered Screven Co. as SC or GA.

I searched all of 1880 Census for Georgia. If Lizzie was listed, she may have been under another surname. Her brother named a daughter “Litha”, age 1 in 1880. I suspect that Telitha Stewart died about 1879, a recent memory. Since there is no other census to research for this time-period, this brings the matter to a dead end.

However, I will look for some cemetery records on Emanuel Co.