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Nancy CRAWFORD (b c1814)

Nancy Crawford is my maternal great-great-grandmother.

The identity of Mary L Comer's mother is firmly established by the will of Joseph Crawford, the father of Nancy Crawford. Joseph explicitly named the children of his deceased daughter Nancy in his will dated 25 Nov 1868 and "Polly Kelly (wife of Thomas Kelly)" is among them. There is no question that the Polly Kelly name in his will is Mary L Comer Kelly. The evidence for this relationship is both direct and primary.

Joseph Crawford's will dated 25 Nov 1868 names the following as children of his daughter Nancy:

(1) Benjamin Comer,

(2) Simpson Comer,

(3) Polly [Comer] Kelly (wife of Thomas Kelly),

(4) Frank [Comer] Sherman (wife of James Sherman), and

(5) Sallie Comer (wife of (a) a Sartor, and (b) a Hollingsworth).

A petition before the probate court of Union County, SC in 1873 relating to the sale of land belonging to Nancy's father Joseph also establishes that the father of Nancy's children was Jason Comer. The petition by the children of Joseph Crawford as plaintiffs and the children of Joseph's fourth and now deceased daughter Nancy Crawford Comer as defendants was filed following the death of Nancy's father's wife Margaret in 1873. At that time, two of the defendants, Benjamin and Simpson Comer were living out of state. The record (on page 209) states that the father of the two grandchildren, Jason Comer, has notified the court that they are no longer living in South Carolina. With that, we now have primary and direct evidence of the identify of Polly Comer's mother and father.

The first year that Jason Comer appears in the censuses of Union County, SC is 1840. In that year his household includes one free white male age 20-29 [presumably Jason], one free white female age 20-29 [presumably Nancy] and two free white males under 5 [presumably Benjamin and Simpson]. This census serves to support a birth date for Jason and Nancy of years between 1811 and 1820 as well as a marriage date before 1836. The 1850 Census gives Benjamin's age as 16 and Simpson's as 12. I suspect that Benjamin's age may have been exaggerated in 1850 since he was employed as a laborer that year. In 1860, his age was given as 24. It seems reasonable to use birth years of 1836 and 1838 for these two sons. Giving the couple a year between marriage and birth of the first child, the date of marriage should be no later than 1835.

Such a wide range of possible birth years for Nancy is not particularly helpful. She almost certainly died about 1850 and she was also almost certainly not alive on 19 Nov 1850 when the census was enumerated. The 1850 census would have provided an age and place of birth, but we do not have it. Her brother Benjamin Crawford appears to have been born about 1817, her sister Louisa about 1810; and sister Jane about 1816. Nancy is unlikely to have been the firstborn child of her father Joseph. The 1840 Census would suggest she was born no earlier than 1811 and her sister Louisa was apparently born before 1811. Nancy could have been born between Louisa and Jane, suggesting a birth date of about 1814 or she could have been younger than Jane or Benjamin, suggesting a birth date of about 1820. Nancy's first child Benjamin was born about 1836. It's certainly possible that Nancy was only 15 when she married, but I'm inclined to think that she was probably closer to 20 or 21, so c1814 as a year of birth seems the better choice.

Unfortunately, I have been unable to find any record of Nancy's death. I'm surprised to find that her grave has not been documented on the Find-A-Grave website but perhaps the grave is now unmarked. The strongest evidence of the date of her death is the fact that she failed to appear in Jason's household in 1850 and her daughter Francis Margaret was reported to be 11 months old when the census was enumerated on 19 Nov 1850. That would place the child's birth in Dec 1849 or Jan 1850. It seems likely that Nancy's death was associated with the birth of Frances Margaret. Assigning Nancy's year of death to 1850 would seem reasonable in the absence of other direct evidence. Oddly, Nancy's death is not recorded in the 1850 Census Mortality Schedule which should have recorded not only the date but the cause of death. The absence of this record may suggest that her death was after 01 Jun 1850 since the schedule was a report on the 12 months prior to that date. As with her birth and marriage, it is likely that Nancy died in Union County, SC even if there is no direct evidence to support this.

Sources and Notes:

Will of Joseph Crawford: The source is Ancestry.com. South Carolina, Wills and Probate Records, 1670-1980.The will is found in Union County, SC, Will Book D, pages 9-10 and is dated 25 Nov 1868. In the will, James Crawford names his wife Margaret Crawford, his son Benjamin Crawford, daughters Louisa Hampton and Jane Gregory, and the children of his deceased daughter Nancy [Crawford] Comer "namely Benjamin Comer, Simpson Comer, Sally Hollingsworth (wife of James Hollingsworth), Polly Kelly (wife of Thomas Kelly), Franky Sherman (wife of James Sherman.

1873 Probate Court Petition naming husband of Nancy Crawford Comer. South Carolina Probate Records, Bound Volumes, 1671-1977. FamilySearch: South Carolina, Union County, Real estate book, 1872-1876, image 114 of 330; citing Department of Archives and History, Columbia. Note: The record shows an appeal to the Union County probate court dated 07 Oct 1873 by the living children of Joseph Crawford as petitioners and the children (and one grandchild) of Nancy Crawford Comer (their deceased sibling) as defendants for the partition or sale of 495 acres of land that were once the property of Joseph Crawford. The occasion is the death of Joseph's wife Margaret who was the primary legatee of Joseph's will. On page 209 there is reference to Jason Comer, the father of Benjamin and Simpson Comer who are of concern because they are not residents of South Carolina at the time of the appeal.

1820 US Census, household of Joseph Crawford: Ancestry.com. 1820 United States Federal Census. Census Place: Union County, SC; Page 134; NARA Roll: M33_121; Image 244. The census, conducted on 15 Jan 1821, shows the household of Joseph Crawford comprised of 1 male under 10 [presumably son Benjamin], 1 male age 26-44 [presumably Joseph Crawford], 3 females under 10 [presumably Nancy, Jane, and ?another daughter who did not live to marry?], 1 female 10-15 [possibly Louisa], 1 female 16-25 [?a daughter who died before 1868 without issue?], 1 female 26-44 [presumably Joseph's wife Margaret] and 2 slaves.

1840 US Census, household of Jason Comer: Ancestry.com. 1840 United States Federal Census. Census Place: Union County, SC; Roll 516; Page 179; Family History Library Film: 0022511. The record shows the household of Jason Comer. One person in the household is engaged in agriculture. There is a free white male age 20-29 [presumably Jason], a free white female age 20-29 [presumably Nancy] and two free white males under 5 [presumably Benjamin and Simpson]. There are no slaves in this household.

1850 US Census, household of Jason Comer: Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census. Union County, SC. 09 Nov 1850. [Unfortunately, the name Comer has been transcribed as Pomer in the Ancestry database. The name in the record is almost certainly Comer but the reason for the confusion is obvious.] The household is listed as dwelling and family 201. It is comprised of (1) Jason Comer (age 40, male, overseer), (2) Franklin (age 10, male), (3) Sarah (age 7, female), and (4) Mary (age 5, female). NOTE: In 1850, Jason's son Benjamin (age 16 and a laborer) can be found in the household of Messer Fuller, son Simpson (age 12) can be found in the household of Andrew Mullinas, and daughter Frances Margaret in the household of Betty Gregory, all in Union County, SC.

1850 US Census, household of Betty Gregory: Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census. Union County, SC, 19 Nov 1850, dwelling 352, family 352. The household includes (1) Betty Gregory (age 64, female), (2) Mary (age 36, female), and (3) Margaret Comer (age 11/12, female). All were born in SC.

1850 US Census, household of Messer Fuller: Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census. Union County, SC, 19 Nov 1850, dwelling 351, family 351. The household includes (1) Messer Fuller (age 46, male, planter, real estate value $3000), (2) Jane (age 48, female), (3) Mary (age 15, female, attended school), (4) Minerva ?Gracey? (age 22, female), (5) Benjamin Comer (age 16, male, laborer). All were born in South Carolina.

1850 US Census, household of Andrew Mullinas: Ancestry.com. 1850 United States Federal Census. Union County, SC. 25 Oct 1850. The household is listed as dwelling and family 921. Simpson Comer (age 12, male) appears in the household of Andrew (age 27, a shoemaker) and Lydia (24) Mullinas. There is another couple, James (age 59, planter) and Mary (age 37) McBride and three other children, William (age 4, male), James (age 3, male) and Christiana (age 1, female) in the household.

1860 US Census, household of Jason Comer: Ancestry.com. 1860 United States Federal Census. Santuck (Union) SC. 19 Jun 1860. Dwelling 360 and family 307. The household includes (1) Jason Comer (age 50, male, farmer, person estate valued at $500, no real estate), (2) Jane (age 4[0], female), (3) Benjamin (age 24, male, farm laborer), (4) Francis [Franklin] age 27 [age 21], male, farm laborer), (5) Sarah (age 16, female), (6) Mary (age 13, female), (7) Nancy (age 6, female), (8) Elendar (age 5, female), (9) Susan (age 1, female) and (10) Infant (age 1/12, female (sic). All members of the household were reported to be born in South Carolina. NOTE: Jason's daughter Francis Margaret was not part of this household but can be found in the household of George Spencer in Union Township.