Atlanta semi-weekly journal. (Atlanta, Ga.) 1898-1920, 1902-01-27


penny by paying tribute to the vanity
of those Americans who want PROOF OF
long descent and a whole wardrobe OF
coats of arms
They make these records to order'
I found once, in Richmond, tremenu-
Gus octave, American Families OF
ROYAL Descent" found the names OF
people 1 had never heard of, but FOUND
they were kingly in birth, evidently as
they were rich. The Astors, | remem-
Der, descended from Charlemagne on
one side and Alfred the Great on the
other I asked DIR. Brock, OF Rlch-
mond. II the man was a fool, or II ne
thought his readers were daft. he salo
no; he was simply paid for doing TINS
kind of work. The writer or the ar
ticle referred to is much MISTAKEN IA
saying that few of those VINO emil
grated to America were of good ram
lilies
GOOD FAMILIES.
This expression is purely English
BY good families an Englishman
means none who are below the rank
of the gentry. AS all men know VINO
have paid any attention to social Gil
visions, there are in England C) Roy
atty; (2) nobility, dukes, earls' mar
quises, lords, ETC.; 90 gentry, squlres''
baronets, ETC.; (D middle class people
merchants, bankers, ETC.; Co yoeman-
nv. farmers not land owners; CO. peas
antry. All of the first three are count
ed from good family. and none others
VIRGINIA EMIGRATION.
There was a very large number from
these three upper classes VINO came
both to New England and virginia
and it does not require great skill 10
connect many American families In
general way with these Enghsh'
Scotch and Irish people, but 1t Is more
a strong conclusion than an estaplsh-
ed fact 1 do not know single case
where the demand of a court or chan-
Gerry could be met in going back three
hundred years, but the conclusions OF
a historian may be defended and ac-
cepted as highly probable, while legal
documentary proof is lacking. In max
ing my researches 1 have been aole
often times to reach with certainty the
first immigrant to Virginia, but from
that point backward, 1 had only IN
ferences. They were often satisfactory
but not sustained by legal proof we
often have a family tradition with
which to start. Sometimes it is worth
less, a piece of pure nonsense. OIten
II is a good clue, but very rarely does
II ever prove fully correct. It Is some
time the case that one has a directory
in some family record, which suggests
a. plan Of Investigation and leads TO
satisfactory results.
THE GRANTS.
am writing the history of Method
ism and heard of the diary OF Thomas
Grant, one of the first Georgia Meth
odists. secured the book and mace
copious extracts from II. AFTER my
hook was published discovered that
Colonel 1. +. Grant was the grandson
of this Colonel Thomas. Of Wilkes.
This journal told that Thomas, the
first emigrant, was a Scotchman, that
he went from Hanover county, Vir-
ginia. to North Carolina. went at
CAPTAIN Grants charge to Hanover
and found only one book OF the ola
records left the rest were burned
but in it / found mention Oh Ihonlas
Grant. and in searching for other facts
l went to the land office in Richmond
and there found records OF patents 70
Thomas Grant and at last record
of his first coming In 1868. In Green-
f0iIle N. CT found other records. so
I made a complete chain back to the
first comer-and no honest man could
go further, not with the aid Of Burke 3
Peerage and Burke's Landed Gentry
II had been a professional could
have made a plausible story which
would have reached the kings OF SCOT
land. uc
Sometimes the genealogist has pecu-
liar helps in name and In certain
general facts of history, as Is SHOWN
by the Talbot family.
THE TALBoTS.
The Earls OF Shrewsbury were Tai
bots, and the American Talbots gen.
orally claimed connection with them
hut the facts of this connection was
not proven. / was employed TO trace
the Georgia family back to its first
American head. I soon found he was
Matthew Talbot. I secured his family
Bible and established the fact that ne
was a native Of Great Britain; that he
was afterwards citizen or virginia
and a leading man. traced him by the
records from county to county and
troced him back to his landing in Ma
ryland, Burlxes Peerage said the Earls
of Shrewsbury were Talbots, but no
record was published of any but OF
those in the direct line. The first thing,
however, noted was that the family
names of the English and Irish Talbots
were the same as those OF the Georgia
family.
The second, that only in one family
that of the Talbots of Castle Taloot'
I'm ireland, was there found the name
IN W.
could not have been the Mathew in
America, for he was born so years after
that Mathew. The fact was noted that
there was a Sir William Talbot, secre-
tary of the Maryland colony, that
he was from this family of Castle Tai
bot. that he had a grandson named
Mathew, that ne had brother named
Charles, that a Mathew Talbot likely
his nephew, came to America, married
Mary Williston about 1870, and was the
founder of the Georgia family. Inc
oldest son of this Mathew was
Charles, so putting all these facts to-
gether. I drew the conclusion that
Mathew Talbot was the son Of Charles
of the family of Castle Talbot, and Of
the family of Earl Shrewsbury, and re-
motely of Sir Richard McTalbot, Of
aboui 100. Everything was clear
to 1649 Cor II was supported by docu-
ments beyond that there was logical
probability, but one Of the most con-
vincing kind.
| FAMILY NAMES AND TRADITIONS.
Sometimes you are led by family
name and a family tradition of a place,
and find positive proof from that chain
The family of Congressman Howard
has in II the name Groves. 1t is to be
found in no other Howard family
That name is found in Virginia in the
family record of William Howard,
whose name was found in the will OF
John Hayward, who died in 1861. With
this fact to start with, it was not diff
ficult to come forward to the present
time but who was John Hayward or
Howard. This question l have never
been able to answer and 1 was inter
l.