A Sullivan family descendant took a Big Y DNA test at Family Tree DNA and matched the Skaggs for Y-DNA. This has led us all down a rabbit hole of Sullivan(t) genealogy to try to find out how this tester could be related to the Longhunter branch of the Skaggs family.
The Longhunter branch of the Skaggs family is described here. Our research of the genealogy of the Sullivan family resulted in us questioning the common view of the Sullivan pedigree as described in our earlier post here. We found evidence that calls into question whether Thomas Sullivan, father of Daniel, was the Thomas from Maryland who married Sarah Wood, as shown below:
1 Thomas Sullivan (1765-1830)
+ Sarah Wood
2 Daniel Sullivan (1786-1815)
+ Esther Lytle
3 Alfred Sullivan (1811-1899)
+ Sarah Fountain
4 Solomon Sullivan (1849-1912)
+ Ella Dorr
5 Alfred Sullivan (1878-1956)
+ Eva Wilson
6 Delbert Sullivan (1908-1983)
+ Ruth Nihart
The Sarah Wood of Anne Arundel County, Maryland who married Thomas Sullivan was the daughter of William Wood of Anne Arundel County who died in 1804. Information about the probate of the estate of William Wood, deceased, is found in summary at his Find-a-Grave site here. William Wood died intestate and Thomas Sullivan was an administrator of the estate of William Wood in 1807 in Anne Arundel County, Maryland. This Thomas Sullivan in Anne Arundel County in 1805-1807 was different from the Thomas Sullivan in the 1804 Barren County, Kentucky tax list and who was a member of the committee to erect the Old Mulkey Meeting House in Barren County in 1804. So we were interested in the family of the Thomas Sullivan of Old Mulkey Meeting House fame.
THEN EVERYTHING CHANGED
We did a Y-DNA test on a descendant of Thomas Sullivan, Jr, son of Thomas Sullivan who was on the committee to erect the Old Mulkey Meeting House. We thought he might be brother to Daniel Sullivan who married Esther Lytle. They did not match. It appears that the Thomas Sullivan who was associated with the Old Mulkey Meeting House might be from the Sullivan(t) family of Charlotte County, Virginia. Our Sullivan tester matches the Skaggs family, not the Charlotte County Sullivants.
That descendant of Thomas Sullivan Jr definitely did not match our Sullivan descendant.
We are now back to looking for another Sullivan family in Kentucky about 1810. There are records that show that Alfred Sullivan (1811-1899) was son of a Sullivan and born in Kentucky. Our focus is now on the family of Peter Sullivan (1755-1840) related to the Sellards family of Jenny Wiley fame who was in Floyd County, Kentucky in 1810 with an un-accounted-for son age 16-25. Could he be our "Daniel Sullivan"?
For some reason I can't sign in as myself, Sunny Biss, but I will comment as Anonymous for now. I obtained a copy of a court document connected to Thomas Sullivan of Anne Arundel. Chancery Court Anne Arundel MD dated Sep 9 1817: Rezin Estep vs Francis Whittington, Sarah Whittington, William Sullivan, Joseph Sullivan, Henrietta Sullivan, Eleanor Sullivan and Janett Sullivan. In this 25 page court document: It talks about the following: Charles D Hodges was Trustee for William Wood's estate land called Hunt's Chance. Charles D Hodges sold that land to Thomas Sullivan. Hodges died and a new Trustee was named, Rezin Estep. Estep states that Thomas Sullivan had agreed to pay 3 hundred dollars, 7 shillings and 6 pence and put up bond for said land but had died before paying for Hunt's Chance. Estep wants the children of Thomas Sullivan to pay for said land or allow him to sell said land. The court then states that William Sullivan is administrator of Thomas Sullivan's estate. Also states Thomas Sullivan left behind 6 children: A daughter Sarah who married Francis Whittington, 2 sons over the age of 21: William and Joseph, 3 children under the age of 21 the court is calling "infants": Eleanor, Henrietta and Janett. The court proceeds to name a guardian for Eleanor, Henrietta and Janett because they are too young to speak for themselves. This leads me to believe that Sarah Wood died before this court date of 1817 or the children would not have needed a guardian. The guardian named is Samuel Gover. Gover agrees that the land can be sold. So as you can see in this court document Thomas Sullivan died between 1807 when he was named co administrator of William Wood's estate and this 1817 land dispute. I do not see in this list of children any that belong to my line of Nancy Sullivan who married Gabriel Odell or her brother Thomas JR who married Rebecca Goble. Nancy's siblings married in Barren Count, KY. I believe they belong to a Thomas Sullivan that was in Barren County but not the one that was from Anne Arundel Maryland. I have also done extensive DNA research so far using my mother's 2nd Great Grandfather, Nancy Sullivan's Grandson, as the common denominator. All cousins who share him cross match to cousins who pull two groupings. 1 shares a common tree branch with one another of Sizemore, Rose, Johnston, Skaggs, Blankenship. The 2nd grouping has Appling, Leake, Gibson, Burton, Wade. None of these have been found in our paper trail but that is probably due to the fact that we have only had a paper trail belonging to the Thomas Sullivan that married Sarah Wood.
ReplyDeleteThere is a Thomas Sullivan the right age to be Nancy Sullivan's father living in 1820 Wayne County Indiana about 4 houses from Charles Vincent who married Nancy's sister. That Thomas I think is who we want. The issue is every person on ancestry is making him into the Thomas from Anne Arundel MD.
I hope this helps your research as it would change who Daniel is probably hooked to as well.
Thank you,
Sunny
Adding to your research. I ordered a copy of a Sept 9, 1817 Anne Arundel, Maryland Chancery Court document. In that document it discusses that Charles D Hodges was the Trustee of William Wood's land Hunt's Chance and he had sold Hunt's Chance to Thomas Sullivan. Charles D Hodges died and Rezin Estep was named new Trustee of Hunt's Chance. Estep was suing Thomas Sullivan's 6 children as he states in court that: Thomas Sullivan agreed to pay for Hunt's Chance and put up Bond but died before he paid for it. So that means that Thomas Sullivan of Anne Arundel, MD died between 1807 when he was co administrator of William Wood's estate and this 1817 lawsuit. Rezin Estep is asking the court to have Thomas Sullivan's 6 children pay for the land or allow him to sell it. Thomas Sullivan's children are listed as 3 adult children over 21 years old named: Sarah (Sullivan) Whittington who married Francis Whittington, William Sullivan (administrator of Thomas Sullivan's estate) and Joseph Sullivan. Then 3 more children are listed but called "Infants" by the court those are: Henrietta Sullivan, Eleanor Sullivan and Janett Sullivan. The court names a guardian for the youngest 3 and that guardian is Samuel Gover. So I believe Sarah Wood is also dead by 1817. Also in 1810 I found a Sarah Sullivan in the Anne Arundel MD census living with children and no husband. So Thomas may even have died before 1810.
ReplyDeleteMy family descends from Nancy Sullivan who married Gabriel Odell, daughter of the Thomas Sullivan of Barren County, Kentucky. I have been doing extensive DNA research and have found this line pulls 2 groups and one of the groups shares a same tree branch of Sizemore, Rose, Johnston, Skaggs, Blankenship. My mother and her siblings carry 4 Native American Alleles and a Pygmy Allele. I have also had them in Virginia Tribes DNA Study and have matched some of their Amerindian DNA markers with the exact placement of others with proven lineage to Virginia Tribes in their same Amerindian marker placements. My mother and her siblings also match Clovis. Some of the cousins in the 2 groups are carrying small percentages of Indigenous North America, Benin & Togo, Senegal and Nigeria on Ancestry DNA. I believe from the DNA this Ancestor that was Native American is at least 6 generations ago or just past that. I fully believe this ancestor is on this branch of the family tree. I also see you were noting the Sullivans from Charlotte County VA. I ran the descendants of those found on Wikitree and did not get a match to my mother or her two siblings.
In my blog I have the documents that prove that Thomas Sullivan of Barren co, KY / Mulkey Meeting House is a different man than the Thomas Sullivan of Anne Arundel, MD who married Sarah Wood. I go over the Wood family in the church as well. I also discuss the Roden Thompson that purchased Thomas Sullivan of Barren co, KY's land. Roden's two aunts were married Skaggs brothers. There is DNA shared between the Thompson/Skaggs descendants and the descendants of Thomas Sullivan of Barren co, KY / Mulkey Meeting House. The blog link below has the information separating the two Thomas Sullivans facts, documents and DNA.
ReplyDeletehttps://the5amdnatheorist.blogspot.com/2024/10/separating-two-thomas-sullivans-do-you.html