Forefathers of the Southern Weems Families

Research on the history of the surname Weems in the Southern United States will usually lead back to one of three large families who settled in the Carolinas and Tennessee during the mid to late 1700s.

Thomas Weems was born around 1704, most likely in Pennsylvania or Maryland. He lived in Augusta County, Virginia from the mid-1740s until he settled in Abbeville, South Carolina around 1767. He had at least six children, and died between 1794 and 1800. One of his sons was also named Thomas, and he had at least two or three grandsons named Thomas. His wife's name was Elinor (or Eleanor) Jacobs.

Thomas Scott Weems was born around 1730, and first appeared in Cheraw District, South Carolina around 1774. He had at least eight children, and died between 1800 and 1810. His wife's maiden name was probably Redfearn, and there is a likely connection to the Redfearn family of North Carolina. His presumed descendants moved to Franklin County, Georgia and Perry County, Tennessee.

John Weems was born around 1745, and first appeared in Orange County, North Carolina around 1767. He eventually settled in Greene County, Tennessee with his nine children around 1792. He died in 1812. His wife's name was Kitty, which was probably a nickname for Catherine, but her maiden name is unknown.

Common spelling variations include Weemes, Weams, Wims, Wimms, Weims, Wemms, Wemes, Weyms, Wymes, Whims, and occasionally the original Scottish spelling Wemyss.

Although it has never been confirmed, it has long been speculated that these three men were possibly related, due to their somewhat close proximity and the similarity of names passed down. Of course, the records for this time period (early to mid 1700s) are extremely scarce. No one has been able to figure out conclusively where they were born, or the names of their parents. Even large branches of the next few generations down can be extremely difficult to verify with any degree of confidence.

Much of the speculation around these three families has involved connecting them to the only other significant Weems (or Wemyss) family in America at the time, who lived in Anne Arundel and Calvert County, Maryland. While a direct connection to at least one of the Southern branches remains plausible if not likely, no evidence has ever shown exactly how the Maryland family might be related. Occasionally, descendants of the Maryland lines have made their way down South, but no records exist to directly connect them to the three Southern Weems forefathers.

Thomas Weems (of Abbeville) and Thomas Scott Weems (of Cheraw) both came to South Carolina around the same time, both fought in the American Revolution, and both had multiple children whose descendants migrated across the Southeastern states. This has led to a lot of confusion over the years, but anyone who takes the time to carefully examine the records will see it is relatively easy to distinguish the two families from one another. Despite this, most family trees available on the internet have combined these two families into one.

The 1790 census shows a Thomas Weems living in Abbeville, SC, along with nearby heads of households Thomas Weems Jr., John Weems, William Wims, James Weems, Bartholomew Weems, Henry Weems, and another Thomas Weems. There was also a George Weems living nearby in Pendleton District, SC. Several of these households also appeared on the 1800 and 1810 census in Abbeville, along with younger Weems families who are likely their descendants.

The 1790 census also shows a Thomas S. Wemms living in St. Thomas, Cheraws District, SC, with no other Wemms (or any variation) nearby. The 1800 census (with the spelling Weyms) shows him living in Chesterfield, Cheraws District, SC. There were no longer any Weems (or any variation) in this area by 1810.

In order to understand how far apart these two men lived, you must have a basic understanding of the state's geographical divisions at the time. From 1770 until 1800, South Carolina was organized into seven to ten overarching districts which were each made up of multiple smaller counties. The larger districts were abolished in 1800, but the smaller divisions (formerly counties) were then renamed "districts" up until 1868 when they officially became counties again.

Carolana.com - J.D. Lewis

https://www.carolana.com/SC/Early_Statehood/home.html

In 1790, most of the upper third of the state was known as Ninety-Six District, and a large portion of its population lived in Abbeville County, in or near the town of Abbeville, close to the southern border with Georgia. The earliest settlement in this vicinity was Long Cane Creek, just south of what would eventually become the city of Abbeville.

Along the North Carolina border on the opposite side of the state, there was the much smaller Cheraw or Cheraws District, which contained Marlboro, Chesterfield, and Darlington Counties. To be clear, Ninety-Six District and Cheraw District never shared a border with each other. They were approximately 90 miles apart at their closest distance, seperated in the middle of the state by Camden and Orangeburg Districts.

By themselves, these census records make a pretty solid case for the existence of two completely separate Weems families in different parts of South Carolina during this time. The number of Weems households in Abbeville would seem to indicate that this family was larger and slightly older than that of Thomas Scott Weems in Cheraw District. Is it possible the two groups were closely related? Sure, but there isn't any evidence to strongly suggest one way or the other.

Here are some earlier documents which fill in more details about Thomas and Eleanor, who eventually settled in Abbeville:

New Jersey records show a Thomas Weems and Ellenor Jacobs of Pennsylvania married on November 6, 1728.

 

New Jersey, U.S., Marriage Records, 1683-1802
Volume XXII, Marriage Records 1665-1800
Ancestry.com

 

Birth records from St. Stephen's Parish, Cecilton, Maryland show two children (Isabella and John) born to Thomas and Eleanor in 1729 and 1731.

A copy of the records of St. Stephens Parish (Episcopal) Cecilton, Maryland
Author: Matilda Spicer Hart
Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, 1971
https://www.familysearch.org/search/film/007815109?cat=447036

 

Augusta County, Virginia records show a Thomas Weems receiving a land grant on the Calfpasture River as early as 1742 or 43, and appearing in several land transactions between 1745 and 1760. He was also listed as a juror in Augusta County in 1754. Some of the other names who received land grants and lived nearby were James Lockridge (2 properties), Andrew Hamilton, William Hamilton, and James Stephenson.

The Preston Plat (of Great Calfpasture in Augusta County, Virginia), 1744
Draper Collection at the University of Wisconsin
John Barrett Robb, Family Historian
http://www.johnbrobb.com/Content/Calfpasture/MAPs/MAP-CP-Guide.pdf

Colonial land patents and grantees : Calfpasture Rivers, Augusta County, Virginia
Staunton, Va. : Meredith Leitch, 1947.
Library of Congress
https://www.loc.gov/item/2012590170/

Then in 1763, Thomas and Elinor Weems of Augusta County, VA sold their land to William Givens. Notably, James and Isabella Lockridge sold their land on the same day. This record is particularly important because it shows that this Thomas Weems' wife was named Elinor, plus James Lockridge's wife was named Isabella, and it also happens to be the last evidence of these families living in Virginia.

Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia, Volume III

Extracted from the Original Court Records of Augusta County, 1745 - 1800

by Lyman Chalkley, Published by Mary S. Lockwood

The very next year, 1764, James Lockridge received a land grant for 250 acres on Norris Creek, a branch of Long Cane Creek near Abbeville, South Carolina. He received another grant for nearby land in 1765 (possibly father and son?)

South Carolina Department of Archives and History
https://www.archivesindex.sc.gov/

Two years later, the earliest direct evidence for any Weems in upstate South Carolina was a 1767 land grant for Thomas Weems, for 150 acres on Long Cane Creek in Abbeville.

South Carolina Department of Archives and History
https://www.archivesindex.sc.gov/

Subsequent records show land grants received by Thomas Weems from 1770 to 1775 in the Long Cane Creek area (possibly his son and/or grandson?) Some records use the name "Granville County" which was actually abolished around 1768, but was an older division running diagonally along the southwest border with Georgia, including Abbeville, but not including any of Cheraws District (then part of Craven) on the opposite side of the state.

 

A map of Colonial Abbeville land plats shows the exact location of Thomas Weems' property near Long Cane Creek, and provides some insight on the neighboring families. Notice how close Thomas Weems was located to the two properties belonging to James Lockridge.

Mapping Colonial Abbeville District
https://www.bfthompson.com/styled-2/index.html

Given the popularity of the name Eleanor/Elinor in the descendants of the Abbeville Weems, and the fact that the older James Lockridge of Abbeville was married to an Isabella Weems, believed to be the oldest daughter of Thomas and Elinor, a clear picture of this family's migration starts to emerge. Members of the Hamilton and Stephenson families from the Calfpasture River area in Augusta County, VA also appear to have made the move to Abbeville around this time. These are likely the same Stephensons whose descendants married two grandchildren of Thomas and Elinor. Several Hamiltons appear in probate records of the Abbeville Weems, suggesting they might have also been related by marriage.

To summarize: Thomas Weems and Elinor Jacobs were married in 1728 and lived for a while in Maryland, where at least their first two children were born. By the mid-1740s, they received a land grant in Augusta County, VA where they lived for about 20 years. Eventually, they received a land grant in Abbeville, SC where they moved once again with most of their extended family in 1767. Thomas would have been around 60 years old by the time he came to South Carolina, possibly even older.

A 1779 account audit shows a Thomas Weems of Ninety-Six District making a claim for his service in the American Revolution. It gives his rank as captain.

South Carolina Department of Archives and History
https://www.archivesindex.sc.gov/

A 1794 Probate / Estate file for this same Thomas Weems in Abbeville also identifies his rank as captain, establishing this was the same Thomas who is known to have served in the Revolutionary War under General Andrew Pickens. It lists Elizabeth Weems as his widow, although it is unclear if this Thomas Weems was a Senior or Junior.

Purchasing items from his estate were Thomas Weems Jr., John Weems Jr., Henry Weems, Thomas Weems Sr., Martha Weems, Moses Weems, William Weems, Emily Weems, along with several neighbors. The listing of both a Thomas Junior and a Thomas Senior after the death of Captain Thomas Weems creates some serious confusion about the exact lineage.

South Carolina Department of Archives and History
https://www.archivesindex.sc.gov/

 

In this era, it wasn't unheard of for a Junior to be referred to as Senior after the death of his father. In other instances, Senior and Junior were used to distinguish between two men with the same name who were not necessarily father and son or even closely related. This makes it very difficult to sort out how Thomas Weems Senior and Junior were related to Captain Thomas, but they were clearly three seperate people, all living in Abbeville.

Logically, there seem to be five possibilities:

1. Thomas Senior was the oldest, Captain Thomas was his son, and Thomas Junior was the Captain's son.

2. Senior and Junior were father and son, but Captain Thomas was the grandson of Senior through another son, making Junior his uncle.

3. Senior and Captain Thomas were father and son, but Junior was the grandson of Senior through another son, making the Captain his uncle.

4. Captain Thomas was the oldest, Thomas Senior was his son, and Thomas Junior was Senior's son. This doesn't seem very likely since the oldest Thomas Weems (husband of Elinor) would have been in his 70s by the time of the Revolutionary War.

5. At least one of them was more distantly related (not a son/grandson/uncle/nephew of the others). This option is also somewhat unlikely.

I won't delve into the other Weems households in Abbeville during this time, who were the children and grandchildren of Thomas and Elinor. I plan to make a post about them in the future, breaking down the available records in a similar manner.

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Let's move on to Thomas Scott Weems who lived in Cheraws District, SC. As I noted before, the 1790 and 1800 census records show this Thomas living a significant distance from Abbeville with no other Weems/Wemms/Wims in the area. As far as I'm aware, no will or probate documents have ever been located for this Thomas, so there is no record stating the names of his children or other relatives. However, there are a few other records which help to fill in some details.

Thomas Scott Weems acquired land on Lynches Creek, St. Davids Parish, Craven County, SC in 1774. Lynches River (or Creek) starts just over the border in North Carolina, and forms the division between Lancaster and Chesterfield counties in South Carolina, eventually joining the Pee Dee River. The area where Thomas settled is approximately 130 miles northeast of Abbeville, SC.

South Carolina Department of Archives and History
https://www.archivesindex.sc.gov/

The Revolutionary War records for Thomas Scott Weems show he served from August 16, 1777 - December 13, 1778 (1 year, 3 months, 28 days). These records include his middle name Scott and the 6th South Carolina Regiment.

South Carolina Department of Archives and History
https://www.archivesindex.sc.gov/

Another land record, from 1790, shows Thomas Scott Weems moving slightly northeast, between Thompson Creek and Deep Creek, just a few miles from the NC border.

South Carolina Department of Archives and History
https://www.archivesindex.sc.gov/

There was also a land grant for a Thomas Scott Wims in Johnston County, NC which was filed or requested in 1790, and finally granted in 1799. It is unclear whether he actually lived on this land, and there are no other known records showing Thomas in Johnston County, NC.

 

 

 

North Carolina Land Grant Images and Data
NC Historical Records Online
State Archives of North Carolina

https://www.nclandgrants.com/query/?quick=Thomas%20Scott%20Wims&xn=E

In 1802 Thomas Scott Weems was still listed as an adjoining landowner in Chesterfield County on a deed filed in neighboring Lancaster County. This appears to be the very last record of his existence. To my knowledge, no death notice, will, or probate record has ever been found for Thomas Scott Weems.

Note that on several of these records, the middle name Scott or middle initial S was used. However, there were never any middle names or initials used for any of the men named Thomas Weems who lived in Abbeville (Ninety-Six District).

In the late 1790s and early 1800s, three men named Redfearn, John, and Washington Weems (sometimes spelled Wims) started appearing in land records in Franklin County, Georgia, just over the state border a short distance from Abbeville, SC. They are believed to be brothers, or at least closely related.

Redfearn Weems was a prominent figure in his section of Franklin County, serving as a constable, tax collector, and justice of the peace. I've seen some sources claiming he bought land there as early as 1787, but I haven't been able to confirm anything prior to 1799. He raised a large family and continued living in Franklin County until his death in 1848, while his (possible) brothers John and Washington moved away. The name of Redfearn's father is never directly stated on any known historical document, but there are some small clues about the identity of his parents.

Franklin County tax lists from 1800 to 1802 show Redfearn Weems (Wims) living next door to Elizabeth Beeson, Uriah Beeson, and Isiah Beeson, with John Wims living just a few doors down. Redfearn was listed as a witness or administrator on several documents involving land transactions and estates of this Beeson/Beason family. It appears Elizabeth was the mother (or stepmother) of Uriah and Isiah.

Georgia, U.S., Property Tax Digests, 1793-1892
Original data: Georgia Tax Digests [1890]. 140 volumes.

Morrow, Georgia: Georgia Archives.
Ancestry.com

A document from 1799 found in "Georgia Pioneers Genealogical Magazine - Volumes 23-24" (Page 32) states directly that Elizabeth Beeson was the widow of James Beeson, and her maiden name was Elizabeth Redfearn. The witness for this transaction was Redfearn Weems. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to see the full text of this page online, so I'm not sure if it contains any further information.

This is where the exact relationships start to get somewhat confusing. There has been a lot of speculation that Elizabeth Beeson might have been the mother of Redfearn Weems. In other words, she was married to a Weems before marrying James Beeson. However, after extensive searching, I haven't found any direct evidence for this. It cannot be ruled out that Elizabeth was actually the aunt, cousin, or step/half sibling of Redfearn Weems, since her exact age and birth year are unclear. I will continue researching these families in Franklin County and beyond to see if any other records might clear up the confusion.

It is very important to note that no one by the first or last name Redfearn or Beason/Beeson appears in any records associated with the Abbeville Weems family. In fact, I haven't been able to locate anyone by these names in close proximity to Abbeville at all. Although Franklin County is a short distance from Abbeville, there are plenty of SC wills, estate, probate, and census records where you would expect Redfearns or Beasons to show up if there was in fact a close relationship. When browsing these records, you see plenty of known in-laws and neighbors of the Abbeville Weems listed. The notable absence of these names seems to imply that Redfearn Weems and the Beeson family were not closely related to any of the Abbeville Weems family.

So where did Redfearn Weems come from? Interestingly, the closest family by the last name of Redfearn was living in Chesterfield County (Cheraw District, SC) in the early 1800s, where Thomas Scott Weems was living. Some Redfearns also lived just north of the border in Anson County, NC. These families have been traced back to Redfearns who were living in or near Johnston County, NC, where Thomas Scott Weems received a land grant. This could be considered strong circumstantial evidence that Thomas Scott Weems was the father of Redfearn Weems, since there were no other Weems within a reasonable distance of any Redfearns.

There is only one problem - Thomas Scott Weems was still living in Chesterfield County according to the 1800 census and the 1802 land record of a neighbor. So, why was he not with his wife and sons in Franklin County, Georgia at this time? Could his wife have remarried if Thomas was still alive? The 1800 census even shows a woman in the right age range to be Thomas Scott Weems' wife and mother of his children in his Chesterfield, SC household.

Formal divorces were extremely rare in this era, although informal separations or abandonment were not unheard of. These scenarios cannot be ruled out here, but in my opinion if Redfearn Weems was in fact the son of Thomas Scott Weems, then Elizabeth Redfearn Beeson was more likely an aunt, cousin, or step/half sibling, and not Redfearn's mother. Families often migrated in groups at this time, and it wasn't uncommon to see in-laws, cousins and other relatives moving together, while a smaller group of relatives stayed behind or moved elsewhere. Without stronger evidence, it's difficult to draw any definitive conclusions.

What is clear from the census records is that Thomas Scott Weems had at least five sons, and at least three daughters. There doesn't seem to be any direct documentation of their names, so besides possibly Redfearn, John, and Washington, the identities of the other children have eluded researchers for years. Since they likely moved west like the others, it became difficult to distinguish them from the Abbeville Weems family and other lineages. However, in recent years a few other likely descendants have been found, which I'll get into later.

This concludes my overview of all the known historical records showing the clear difference between Thomas Weems of Abbeville and Thomas Scott Weems of Cheraw. It's easy to see where the confusion comes from - Captain Thomas Weems of Abbeville left behind a widow named Elizabeth in 1794, which is right around the same time Elizabeth Beeson and Redfearn Weems started appearing in Franklin County, Georgia records. With only this information, there would appear to be an obvious connection, but it's extremely unlikely once all of the records are closely examined.

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Finally, onto the third group...

John Weems first appeared in Orange County, North Carolina in 1767, and eventually settled with his family in Greene County, Tennessee around 1792. Although I haven't been researching this family for quite as long as the others, I've become familiar with them while trying to track various Weems families across the country. There is no indication they ever lived near Abbeville, SC or Cheraw District, SC.

In 1767, John Weems bought 382 acres of land from William Castleberry in Orange County, NC.

Orange County, North Carolina Registration of Deeds 1753-1793

Film # 004770551, Image 759 of 811

https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/324412

John also appeared on an Orange County jury list in 1772.

Jury lists (Orange County, North Carolina), 1772-1878
Filmed by the Genealogical Society of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, 2005
https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/1302110

The 1790 US Census for Orange County, NC has been lost or destroyed, but John Weems does appear on a 1790 tax list under the spelling "Wemes" in St. Thomas District, Orange County, NC.

Documenting the American South

Colonial and State Records of North Carolina
List of taxpayers in Orange County in 1790
Tax List for St. Thomas' District (Page 1307)

https://docsouth.unc.edu/csr/index.php/document/csr26-0055

On December 13, 1790, John Weems sold his land in Orange County to Samuel Allen.

Register of Deeds - Orange County, NC

https://rod.orangecountync.gov/orangenc/

There are two Orange County, NC marriage records for the name Weems in 1791 - John and William. It would be logical to deduce these were probably sons of John Weems, since they would be the right age and there is no evidence for any other Weems families in the area.

North Carolina, U.S., Marriage Records, 1741-2011
Original data: North Carolina County Registers of Deeds. Microfilm. Record Group 048.
North Carolina State Archives, Raleigh, NC.
Ancestry.com

A Greene County, TN deed from February 7, 1792 shows John Gass selling 400 acres of land on both sides of Lick Creek to John Weems. Some online sources say John Weems received a land grant in Greene County as early as 1783 or 1785, but I haven't been able to locate any such documents.

Deeds, vols. 1-2, 1785-1797 (Volume 2, Page 142) (Image 314 of 512)
Greene County (Tennessee). Register of Deeds
Nashville, Tennessee : Tennessee State Library and Archives
https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/95096

There seems to be a lot of conflicting information about John Weems' full name, age, birth location, and wife's name. Most online sources list a birth year of 1741 or 1745, but there doesn't appear to be any record of his exact age or birth year on any available documents. It's possible he was born before 1741, but probably not after 1747 or 1748 at the very latest, since he purchased land in 1767.

John is commonly assigned the middle initial A, which supposedly stands for Abraham (or possibly Alexander). However, just like his birth year, this doesn't appear on any historical documents. His name was only written as "John Weems" with no middle initial. His wife's name was Kitty, which was presumably short for Catherine since this name is so prevalent among their descendants. Some early sources give Kitty's maiden name as Catherine Goodwin, and more recent sources claim her maiden name was Catherine Dengler. After extensive searching, I have been unable to confirm either maiden name, or connect John Weems to any close neighbor or known associate with either last name (Dengler or Goodwin).

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Lastly, there was one additional southern Weems forefather who I only learned about recently. His name was Benjamin F. Weems, and he was apparently born in North Carolina around 1756. He supposedly lived in Sumner County, Tennessee from at least the late 1790s, and he died there in 1830. His wife's name was Lavinia, and they had two known children: John Wesley Weems, born in 1797 and Rachel Adeline Weems, born in 1800.

Census records for 1830 and 1840 also show a James Weems and William Weems living in Sumner County, both born between 1800 and 1810. Tax lists show a John Weems and Thomas Weems living in Sumner County between 1819 and 1822.

I haven't been able to locate any records for Benjamin, so much of this information comes from unsourced family trees. Whatever the case, there was definitely a Weems family in Sumner County, TN (later in Macon County, TN) who don't appear to be directly related to the other Weems groups.

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Even though the lack of early historical records limits our understanding of these Weems families, the emergence of genetic genealogy and popularity of DNA testing in recent years has answered some questions.

In 2018, I became aware of a Weems Y-DNA project on FamilyTreeDNA, which has continued to grow for the last few years. Of course, Y-DNA only traces direct paternal lineage, showing whether individuals share a recent paternal ancestor within a certain time frame. The Weems project is not huge, but currently includes almost 40 males from across the United States, with a few from Canada, Australia, and Scotland.

What's extremely clear is that these Y-DNA results show three completely separate, unrelated paternal lineages for the last name Weems:

- The Cheraw, SC and Franklin, GA descendants form one group, along with one Australian and one Canadian who both trace back to Wemyss families in Scotland. In addition to Thomas Scott Weems' three presumed sons Redfearn, John, and Washington, this group includes descendants of Britton and Hardy Weems, two brothers who came from SC or GA and settled in Holmes County, Mississippi. Their inclusion in this paternal lineage group indicates they were likely also sons of Thomas Scott Weems of Cheraw District.

- The Abbeville, SC descendants, along with the Greene County, TN descendants, and Sumner County, TN descendants form a different group, showing a relatively recent common paternal ancestor shared by Thomas Weems, John Weems, and Benjamin F. Weems. So far, this group does not appear to contain any actual Wemyss/Weems descendants from outside the United States, although it does include two men from Scotland with different surnames. This group is genetically completely distinct from the first group.

- A smaller third group consists of four descendants of the Calvert County, Maryland Weems/Wemyss family. This group could share a distant paternal connection to the second group, but more testing is required to know for sure.

So, what conclusions can we draw from these Y-DNA results? First off, the evidence is very strong that Thomas Weems of Abbeville and Thomas Scott Weems of Cheraw were not closely related. However, the Abbeville group does appear to share a paternal lineage with the two Tennessee groups (Greene County and Sumner County).

This means either there are multiple origins for the surname Weems / Wemyss, or there was a non-paternity event (NPE) somewhere up the line, perhaps multiple times. In other words, a man who went by the surname Wemyss/Weems was not actually the biological son of a Wemyss/Weems, for whatever reason.

Whatever the case, these three separate groups are easy to distinguish from one another on a genetic level. Let's say hypothetically all of the Weems/Wemyss are related on paper, but biologically some lines are the result of NPEs...

Since Thomas Scott Weems' presumed descendants match multiple Wemyss individuals with a direct connection to Scotland and no connection to America, the theoretical NPE must have happened on another branch, either in America or further up the line in Scotland. The Abbeville, Greene, and Sumner County Weems families could all be descended from this other branch.

Another explanation is that the non-paternity event was the birth of Thomas Weems (of Abbeville) himself around 1704, but this would require Thomas being the father/grandfather of both John Weems of Greene County, TN and Benjamin Weems of Sumner County, TN. This scenario is not impossible, but further evidence would be needed. In any case, none of these groups seem to represent any major Weems NPE happening in the last 300 years or so.

This concludes my overview of the available records and Y-DNA evidence for these Southern Weems families. As each subsequent generation is researched, more information becomes available and a clearer picture of the many branches can be developed. Since I am not a direct paternal descendant, most of my DNA experience has been using autosomal testing, which has also helped fill in missing information.

Unfortunately, a lot of misconceptions and unverified claims have spread far and wide about these Weems forefathers. Building on the basic facts presented here, I plan to continue documenting my research, in order to clear up the confusion and hopefully get to the truth. If you have anything to add or correct, please feel free to contact me.

 

Edit (4/7/2023):

Added additional image of James Lockridge's land grant.

Added images of Thomas Scott Weems' land grant in Johnston County, NC.

Minor changes were made to clarify that there is no direct evidence showing Thomas Scott Weems was the father of Redfearn, John, Washington, Britton, and Hardy Weems. However, the circumstantial evidence is strong, and Y-DNA shows all five of these men sharing a recent paternal ancestor, seperate from the Abbeville Weems group.