B. before 1770 in Burke County, North Carolina
M. 1787 in (probably) Burke County, North Carolina
Wife: Mary Polly Franklin
D. after June 1, 1830 in (probably) Indiana
Those who followed a trail from the colonial South to the American Midwest, carving out farms in raw wilderness, often left few records along the way. Such was the case for William Sutherland who went from North Carolina to Indiana during the period 1790 to 1820. It takes detective work and DNA evidence to piece together some of his story.
William was believed to be the second oldest child of William Sutherland and Mary Polly Owen, born about 1769 in Burke County, North Carolina. He was a young boy when his father went off to serve in the American Revolution, and he probably took on responsibilities on the farm by the time he was ten. There would be eight younger siblings in the family, with the youngest born in about 1792. William’s brother Fendall was about three years older, and they were likely close. The two brothers married sisters, Lydia and Mary Polly Franklin. The dates of both marriages are unknown, but William seems to have been about 18-years-old at the time of his wedding.
The military service of William’s father would play an important factor in the lives of William and his siblings. As a veteran of the Revolution, William Sr. earned a considerable amount of bounty land. He shared the land with his sons, and this began a migration of the family into the west. In 1801, William Jr. appeared on a tax list in Lincoln County, Kentucky, living near the Green River. On the same record were his father and brother Fendall. While Fendall had 100 acres and 2 horses, William had only 50 acres and a single horse.
By now William had started a family of his own, but not all of the children are confirmed with written records. When William was still living in North Carolina, the 1800 census described his family as one boy age 10 to 15, one girl age 10 to 15, two boys under 10 and 1 girl under 10. These children are thought to be Isaac, Ervin, William, Jordan and Ann. During the next decade, William continued to live in Kentucky, gaining title to his Lincoln County farm upon the death of his father in 1803. It was said that William’s mother Mary came to live in his household “for many years.” In about 1808, he relocated to Adair County, Kentucky, and the 1810 census showed that more children were added to the family: two boys under 10 (Jesse and possibly John) and one girl under 10 (possibly Mary).
William was listed on Adair County tax lists through 1815, then disappeared from records, suggesting he left the region after that date. We pick up his trail in Orange County, Indiana on a voting list dated August 1819. The following year, he was listed in the 1820 census in Orange County with some new additions to his family: two girls and one boy, all under the age of ten. The boy is almost certainly Jackson Sutherlin, who was thought to be William’s youngest child (see here).
Two brothers of William — Fendall and George — had also moved to Indiana, and all three settled in Putnam County by the early 1820s. A land deed shows that William purchased 80 acres there on May 25, 1824. In his listing in the 1830 census in Putnam County, his household consisted of one man age 60 to 70 (himself), one girl age 15 to 20, and one boy age 10 to 15 (Jackson). William’s son Ervin lived next door with his wife, and on the other side of Ervin was William’s younger brother George. William’s wife Mary had likely died by the 1830 census. This was the last known record of William; other researchers have claimed he died in Marysville, Missouri in 1856, but this was a son of Fendall who was also named William.
How DNA Helps Identify William’s Family
I am a descendant of Jackson Sutherlin, and because I received a very large amount of his DNA, I was able to connect him to William because I have so many matches with the Franklin family (see my proof in Jackson Sutherlin’s biography.) The key piece of DNA evidence is a segment on chromosome 5 which I share with both Sutherland/Sutherlin and Franklin descendants. This segment is also shared by descendants of Ervin Sutherland, making them Franklin descendants as well, and firmly connecting Ervin to William Sutherland. Of William’s other listed children, Jesse, Mary and Ann seem fairly certain because of information passed down in their families, but I can’t use the same DNA proof with the segment on chromosome 5. The other names on the list come from a printed book that didn’t cite its sources.
Children (all except Ervin and Jackson are uncertain):
1. Isaac Sutherland — B. about 1788, (probably) Burke County, North Carolina
2. Ann Sutherland — B. about 1795, (probably) Burke County, North Carolina; D. before 8 May 1823, (probably) Adair County, Kentucky; M. John H. Boyer (1795-1868), 4 Apr 1815, Adair County, Kentucky
3. William Sutherland — B. about 1797, (probably) Burke County, North Carolina
4. Ervin Sutherland — B. about 1798, (probably) Burke County, North Carolina; D. 10 Dec 1878, (probably) Polk County, Missouri; M. Susannah Keith (~1806-?), 27 Nov 1821, Orange County, Indiana
5. Jordan Sutherland — B. about 1799, (probably) Burke County, North Carolina; D. after 21 Aug 1850, (probably) Vermillion County, Illinois; M. Martha Patsy Bailey, 24 Aug 1831, Adair County, Kentucky
6. John Sutherland — B. about 1802, (probably) Lincoln County, Kentucky
7. Mary Sutherland — B. 28 Jan 1803, (probably) Lincoln County, Kentucky; D. 24 Feb 1879, Morgan County, Illinois; M. John H. Boyer (1795-1868), 8 May 1823, Adair County, Kentucky
7. Jesse R. Sutherland — B. about 1805, (probably) Lincoln County, Kentucky; D. before 1860, (probably) Polk County, Missouri; M. Tabitha Wilson (~1805-?),18 Sep 1826, Putnam County, Indiana
8. [UNKNOWN FEMALE] Sutherlin — B. between 1810 and 1815, (probably) Adair County, Kentucky
9. [UNKNOWN FEMALE] Sutherlin — B. between 1810 and 1820, (probably) Adair County, Kentucky
10. Jackson Sutherlin — B. about 1815, (probably) Orange County, Indiana; D. before 22 Apr 1878, Merriam, Kansas; M. Mary Fleming (1819-1907), 17 Jan 1838, Parke County, Indiana
Sources:
