Elizabeth Reed b. 1824 or 1828 - All Things Cherokee

jsmith says

July 30, 2018 at 8:15 pm

Elizabeth’s grave:

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/85014414

A South Carolina birth in the 1820s would have a certain context. Consider, there were no full blood Cherokee family clusters living in west central South Carolina in the 1820s (when Elizabeth was born). Any mixed blood Cherokees somehow ending up in that location were living in White society and they’d represent very extreme demographic outliers. It’s like a needle in a haystack scenario, to put this in simple terms. Basically, we’d be talking about a small number of mixed bloods living well outside the Cherokee community.

For example, in the 1835 Henderson Roll, there were only 200+ intermarried Whites living with Cherokee spouses in the Cherokee Nation. The bulk of mixed marriages were indeed concentrated within the tribal community, not as common outside of it. You might be very liberal and say “a few hundred” mixed marriages saw White spouses taking Cherokee spouses to live in their White communities, and raise mixed blood children in those locations. But, it was still not very large numbers involved. This would represent a few hundred such family members spread out all over the southeast, and perhaps elsewhere, in the 1820s-1830s. This total mixed blood population living out side the Cherokee Nation at that time period would be VERY low. So, this scenario would be rather uncommon, as it is currently described.

Further, this scenario would mean they wouldn’t be enumerated as Cherokee on various rolls or records. And affiliation with the tribe would be harder to maintain. That’s just the general overview of the demographic and socio-political contexts involved here.

What we know specifically about Elizabeth is that she was born in South Carolina, with some sources saying her previous residence (or point of origin) was in Edgefield County.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgefield,_South_Carolina

At some point she moved to Bibb County, Alabama and married John Bracknell in 1846.
ALABAMA MARRIAGE RECORD:
Name Elizabeth Reede
Gender Female
Marriage Date 11 Aug 1846
Marriage Place Bibb, Alabama, USA
Spouse John Bracknell
Film Number 001031250

She is very likely the daughter of Bibb County, Alabama settler David Reed/Reede/Reid (spelling varies). But, the record trail is a bit sparse. So, this is not specifically proven. This man was found on the 1840 Federal Census in Bibb County. He also received homestead land grants in that location in the 1850s.

https://glorecords.blm.gov/details/patent/default.aspx?accession=AL2850__.415&docClass=STA&sid=2laxxzqb.nzs

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bibb_County,_Alabama

Elizabeth is found in several Census records as being in “West Cahaba River” in Bibb County. In 1870 Census, she was enumerated as being in “Kingdom,” SC. This was near a Scottsville P.O., which no longer stands. You can, however, find a few buildings (churches and cemeteries) that still use the old Scottsville moniker located a few miles northwest of Centreville, SC, and west of the Cahaba River. This is a few miles from David Reid’s homestead granted in the 1858. It’s within walking distance, actually.

Likewise, you can see on the 1850 Census, Elizabeth is married to John Bracknell. More specifically, this family unit includes John as head of household, wife Elizabeth, and a Mary Reid, age 70, born in Virginia. Below elder Mary Reid, there is another Mary Reid, age 17. Below this, you’ll see a John A. Reid, age 15. This is family entry number 188. David Reid (and wife Ann) is listed on the very next page, entry number 192. This couple is also listed with SC places of birth.

If you do a filtered search in the main genealogy websites (Ancestry.com), you’ll notice that there were only about 22 individuals with the surname Reed with various spellings, living in Bibb County in 1850. They are all found in a cluster of a few related families, with residence in “West Cahaba River” area.

It would be very logical to theorize that a grandmother or paternal aunt and a few younger siblings were living in this Bracknell household in 1850. They were living in very close proximity to other Reed/Reid families. David and Ann Reid could be her parents.

Additionally, the photograph I’ve seen of her certainly does not show a full blood Cherokee woman. Although, that has to be taken with a grain of salt as one’s looks, and how this is perceived, is subjective.
What we can clearly see is a family cluster coming from South Carolina, which never had any affiliation with the Cherokee people in their own lifetimes, moving in as White settlers in Alabama in the 1840s, at least. They were listed consistently in White and do not show up in Cherokee communities or records. You’d still have to confirm the parentage and move back further to verify the lineages. But, this will at least give you a little context and a theory to pursue. Check out the David Reed link. I think it might be a good lead.

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jsmith says

July 30, 2018 at 8:15 pm

Elizabeth’s grave:

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/85014414

A South Carolina birth in the 1820s would have a certain context. Consider, there were no full blood Cherokee family clusters living in west central South Carolina in the 1820s (when Elizabeth was born). Any mixed blood Cherokees somehow ending up in that location were living in White society and they’d represent very extreme demographic outliers. It’s like a needle in a haystack scenario, to put this in simple terms. Basically, we’d be talking about a small number of mixed bloods living well outside the Cherokee community.

For example, in the 1835 Henderson Roll, there were only 200+ intermarried Whites living with Cherokee spouses in the Cherokee Nation. The bulk of mixed marriages were indeed concentrated within the tribal community, not as common outside of it. You might be very liberal and say “a few hundred” mixed marriages saw White spouses taking Cherokee spouses to live in their White communities, and raise mixed blood children in those locations. But, it was still not very large numbers involved. This would represent a few hundred such family members spread out all over the southeast, and perhaps elsewhere, in the 1820s-1830s. This total mixed blood population living out side the Cherokee Nation at that time period would be VERY low. So, this scenario would be rather uncommon, as it is currently described.

Further, this scenario would mean they wouldn’t be enumerated as Cherokee on various rolls or records. And affiliation with the tribe would be harder to maintain. That’s just the general overview of the demographic and socio-political contexts involved here.

What we know specifically about Elizabeth is that she was born in South Carolina, with some sources saying her previous residence (or point of origin) was in Edgefield County.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edgefield,_South_Carolina

At some point she moved to Bibb County, Alabama and married John Bracknell in 1846.
ALABAMA MARRIAGE RECORD:
Name Elizabeth Reede
Gender Female
Marriage Date 11 Aug 1846
Marriage Place Bibb, Alabama, USA
Spouse John Bracknell
Film Number 001031250

She is very likely the daughter of Bibb County, Alabama settler David Reed/Reede/Reid (spelling varies). But, the record trail is a bit sparse. So, this is not specifically proven. This man was found on the 1840 Federal Census in Bibb County. He also received homestead land grants in that location in the 1850s.

https://glorecords.blm.gov/details/patent/default.aspx?accession=AL2850__.415&docClass=STA&sid=2laxxzqb.nzs

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bibb_County,_Alabama

Elizabeth is found in several Census records as being in “West Cahaba River” in Bibb County. In 1870 Census, she was enumerated as being in “Kingdom,” SC. This was near a Scottsville P.O., which no longer stands. You can, however, find a few buildings (churches and cemeteries) that still use the old Scottsville moniker located a few miles northwest of Centreville, SC, and west of the Cahaba River. This is a few miles from David Reid’s homestead granted in the 1858. It’s within walking distance, actually.

Likewise, you can see on the 1850 Census, Elizabeth is married to John Bracknell. More specifically, this family unit includes John as head of household, wife Elizabeth, and a Mary Reid, age 70, born in Virginia. Below elder Mary Reid, there is another Mary Reid, age 17. Below this, you’ll see a John A. Reid, age 15. This is family entry number 188. David Reid (and wife Ann) is listed on the very next page, entry number 192. This couple is also listed with SC places of birth.

If you do a filtered search in the main genealogy websites (Ancestry.com), you’ll notice that there were only about 22 individuals with the surname Reed with various spellings, living in Bibb County in 1850. They are all found in a cluster of a few related families, with residence in “West Cahaba River” area.

It would be very logical to theorize that a grandmother or paternal aunt and a few younger siblings were living in this Bracknell household in 1850. They were living in very close proximity to other Reed/Reid families. David and Ann Reid could be her parents.

Additionally, the photograph I’ve seen of her certainly does not show a full blood Cherokee woman. Although, that has to be taken with a grain of salt as one’s looks, and how this is perceived, is subjective.
What we can clearly see is a family cluster coming from South Carolina, which never had any affiliation with the Cherokee people in their own lifetimes, moving in as White settlers in Alabama in the 1840s, at least. They were listed consistently in White and do not show up in Cherokee communities or records. You’d still have to confirm the parentage and move back further to verify the lineages. But, this will at least give you a little context and a theory to pursue. Check out the David Reed link. I think it might be a good lead.

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