Robert Smith Mabry, Sr.: Life in Pittsylvania County, Virginia (1777-1812)

Robert Smith Mabry was born on October 27, 1777 in Virginia, the oldest child of Braxton Mabry. Robert's mother died before 1790, before Robert was 13 years old. Apparently Braxton was unable (or unwilling) to take care of his three pre-teen children.

The first record we have found that names our Robert Mabry is a Pittsylvania County, Virginia court order dated December 19th, 1791. At that time the custody of Robert and his sisters Polly and Jane/Jean was transferred from their father, Braxton to their uncle, William Clark (husband of Jane White). At time they were about age 14,12, and 10, respectively). It appears that Robert had subsequently little to do with his father.[more about Braxton and his troubles in a later post]

In 1797 "S. Robert Mabry" was taxed in Pittsylvania county for one white adult male (age 16+, presumably himself) and one horse. In 1799 he was only taxed for one adult and no horse. Robert was probably a tobacco farmer, like his father.

On December 6, 1799 Robert married Rebekah (or Rebecca) Adams, the daughter of Nathan Adams, in Pittsylvania County. They had five children in Virginia: Martha White, Nancy Jayne, Joel Braxton, Polly C. and Jane S. Mabry.

Robert continued to be taxed by Pittsylvania County for one white male (age 16+) and one horse from 1800 through 1810. In 1800 and 1801 there was also one black (age 16+) in his household.

In March 1809, Robert had a bit of trouble:

Robert S. Mabry having behaved Impertinently and reproachfully in the presence of the Court It is ordered that the Sheriff put him in the stocks and there keep him for the space of one hour.

There is no record of what exactly Robert did to deserve this punishment!

By the spring of 1812, Robert and family had headed west and settled on the border between Kentucky and Tennessee.

Note: our Robert Mabry is often confused with a different Robert Mabry, who also lived in the same part of Virginia, and also had a wife named Rebecca. The other Robert Mabry, son of Nathaniel Mabry, served as a lieutenant in the Revolutionary War (our Robert Mabry could not serve during the Revolution, because it ended before he was 10 years old!).
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References:
Pittsylvania Co, VA Court Order Book vol. 7, p. 71
Pittsylvania Co, VA Court Order Book vol. 13, p.420
Pittsylvania Co, VA Personal Property Tax Lists, 1796-1810 (information about Virginia Personal Property Tax Lists)

Robert Smith Mabry, Sr. mini-biography

Needed information: The Pittsylvania county land records have not been examined to see if Robert owned property there.

Thanks to Nicki Beatty, related to us through the White family, for sharing her transcriptions of the original Pittsylvania County Court Orders.

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How to use this site

Welcome! I just wanted to share a few tips for using this site.

What information can I find here?

The purpose of this site is to share information about the ancestors of Robert Neil Mabry, and their families.

The surnames covered here include: Adams, Bayles, Holben, Mabry, Shaffer, Weiser and White.

In the right-hand sidebar are a series of "mini-biographies". This lists the basic facts for a number of our ancestors, including birth and death dates, and names of parents and children. Since the "nitty gritty" for these individuals is listed there, the posts (I hope) will contain more personal information about the lives of our parents, grandparents and cousins.

Do you have a story or anecdote to share? a question about a particular person? drop me a note! (genresearch_04 @ hotmail . com).

Where to start?

One way to start is to just dive it and begin reading the entries!

However, a more logical place might be the mini-biographies in the right-hand sidebar. Start with a name you recognize and work your way from there.

It can be helpful to look at the family tree, as well.

Comments?

You can comment on any of the posts. In order to prevent "comment spam", at this time it requires a (free) account from Blogger.

Alternatively, feel free to send comments, criticisms, and suggestions to me at (genresearch_04 @ hotmail . com).

Enjoy!

Peggy

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Updated Mabry Family Tree

The Mabry family tree has been updated.
It now includes family photos. A big thank to you Loretta (Mabry) Barker and Melva Kaye Rowe for sharing their old photos.

If you feel that different photos should be used, please feel free to comment.

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