The Oregon Land of Commodore Perry O'Neal

Yesterday, 14 Apr 2017, I wrote about Commodore Perry O'Neal, my 2nd great-grandfather. Today I am writing about his land. He bought his first land in Oregon 26 Oct 1870. He purchased 168.89 acres more or less for $500 from W. L. and Hester E. Bryant. It was (1) the northwest 1/4 of the southeast 1/4, (2) the north 1/2 of the southwest 1/4 and (3) Lot No. 3, all in Section 18, Township 19 South, Range 3 West and (4) Lot No. 4 in Section 13, Township 19 South, Range 4 West. This land was all located in Lane County Oregon. 

Mr. Bryant had entered a Homestead which included (1) 40 acres, (2) 84.38 acres and (4) 25.24 acres, for a total of 149.62 acres. Before the Bryants owned (3) 19.27 acres, it had been purchased from the federal government as a cash sale entry by James Moore. So the 149.62 acres plus 19.27 acres equals the total purchased by my ancestor. For most of the land he purchased, he was the second owner after the U.S. government.

Then about a dozen years later, in the spring of 1883, Commodore Perry made a homestead entry himself on land adjoining that which he had purchased. It was described as south 1/2 of the southeast 1/4 = 80 acres and south 1/2 of the southwest 1/4 = 84.53 acres for a total of 164.53 acres all in Section 18, Township 19 South, Range 3 West. Here he was the first owner after the government.

But what happened to his land when C. P. died in July 1919. Less than 2 months before his death, he had deeded the entire tract, 333.42 acres, to his 3 sons: John J, Edward C and George E. His one daughter had predeceased him in 1918. Apparently these 3 unmarried men lived there and farmed it. Then less than 3 years later, 27 Feb 1922, the oldest son, John J. O'Neal died without a will. So his share of the land would go to all of his heirs: his 2 brothers and the 5 children of his deceased sister.

In June of 1924 George married a neighbor girl, Cora Sutton. It was in 1935 when both of the brothers died, Edward in April and George in July. Deeds from 1937 and 1938 indicate that the property was divided and a Metzger map from about 1940 shows the western portion belonged to Cora O'Neal, George's widow, and the eastern side to Roy Bond et.al., which probably included all of Mary (O'Neal) Bond's children. By the time the 1954 Metzger map was published, none of the O'Neal or Bond clan owned any of this property.

A current map on-line from Lane County tax assessor's office shows that a portion of C.P.'s land has now been subdivided into Spencer View Estates. I wonder what Commodore Perry would have thought of that.

Looking at Samuel Nicholson's Will

Because some of my family lived in northeastern North Carolina from about 1670 until the 1830s I have collected a number of research materials for that area over the years.

The book, North Carolina Wills, by J. Bryan Grimes, originally published in 1912, has a transcription of Samuel's will. In 1993 Dr. Stephen E. Bradley Jr. published abstracts of Early Records of North Carolina, from the Secretary of State Papers. Volume 5 was wills from 1723-1736 and included Samuel. I checked today and found that Ancestry.com has a database of North Carolina will abstracts from 1690 to 1760 and Samuel is in that also. They don't agree exactly, but are close enough to show the will was written about 1727 or 1728.

Samuel gave "the whole Use and Benifit of all my Lands and houses and plantation" to his "dear and well beloved wife, Elizabeth Nicholson'' during her life. When she died they were to go to his surviving married daughter, Elizabeth Anderson. Elizabeth was also to receive a Negro woman "called bes." To his other surviving daughter, who was unmarried, Sarah Nicholson, he left a Nego boy "caled Sesor." He also left Sarah a feather bed and furniture. Each of his grandcchildren were to receive 40 shillings.

He gave one other bequest that is puzzling to me: "I also give to my Friend, Sarah Gloster, as much good fine Silk Crape as will make her a Suit of Close, a pare of good Stays, three yards of muslin, a pare of worsted hoes, two Yards of Holen, as much fine Garlick, as will make har a Shift." She is probably the same as Sarah Glauster named as an underage daughter in the will of Joseph Glaister of Pasquotank (neighboring County) from 1718/19. She and her sister Ruth were to receive land in North Carolina and Virginia when she came of age. I find it interesting that her sister Ruth received a bequest in 1724/25 from a Nathanel Setton (probably Sutton) for muslin for an apron.

Wills can made interesting reading. It reminded me that even though he was a Quaker, Samuel did have at least two negro slaves that he willed to his daughters.

Sibling Saturday - George O'Neal

      George O'Neal was one of the younger brothers of Mary Ann O'Neal, who was featured yesterday.  George was born in 1873 in the Creswell area, Lane County, Oregon.  By the 1880 census he was shown as attending school. On the 1900 census he was living with his widowed father and two unmarried brothers. Soon before his father's death in 1919 he deeded the farm to the three brothers. His brother John died in 1922 and it was two years later that George married, at the age of 50, in 1924 to Cora Belle Sutton, whose family lived near their farm. George died in 1935, a few months after his brother Edward. George, Edward and James were all buried in the Creswell Pioneer Cemetery, along with their parents, Commodore Perry O'Neal and Margaret Jane England O'Neal.

Read about George on my website:

http://www.joanneskelton.com/p393.htm 

photo courtesy of Robert Bond