Lewis Thomas

17 November 1794. Lewis Thomas and Phebe Holloway. Surety, Joseph Flippin. Married by Rev. Richard Elliott (Pittsylvania County Ministers' Returns 1770 – 1799, 19; see Knorr 86, who reads the bride's name as Pheby; Dodd reads it as Phebe, Virginia Marriages, Early to 1800, 498). Phebe Holloway was Lewis Thomas' second wife. His first wife is unknown. Phoebe Holloway Thomas was born about 1760, probably in Virginia, and died 14 Mar. 1832 in Rockingham Co., NC. Lewis Thomas (c 1755–1817) was the son of Hans Wendel "John" Thomas and his second wife Sarah. John Thomas was born 1712 in Germany, and died 1787 in Rockingham Co., NC. Lewis was born in Culpeper Co., VA. Beginning in 1779, his father John patented 1,580 acres in Gilford Co., NC. Lewis served there in the Revolutionary War in 1781. That part of Gilford County was formed into Rockingham County in 1785. Lewis Thomas died at his home in Shiloh, Rockingham County. Phoebe died at the home of her stepdaughter, Martha Thomas Lewis in Rockingham County. Lewis Thomas has been confused in many family trees with two other persons named Lewis Thomas, both of whom have been erroneously thought to have been married to Phoebe Holloway. The first of these was a Quaker who lived in a different part of Rockingham County. Lewis Thomas the Quaker married Agnes Hampton. The second Lewis Thomas, not married to Phoebe Holloway, was born about 1755, son of Reuben Thomas and Sarah Crow. Reuben and Sarah moved from Culpeper County to Page Co., VA. Their son Lewis Thomas married Elizabeth Widener and died 1840 in Widener Valley, Washington Co., VA. Washington Co., VA is a 150-mile drive west of
Rockingham Co., NC. The Lewis Thomas who married Elizabeth Widener seems never to have lived in the same county as did Phoebe Holloway Thomas. Many online family trees have perpetuated the misinformation that the Lewis Thomas who married Phoebe Holloway was married to Agnes Hampton and/or Elizabeth Widener before marrying Phoebe Holloway. According to current evidence, the first wife of Lewis Thomas of
Shiloh, Rockingham County, Revolutionary patriot, is simply unknown (as given in his DAR file, #608507).

Phoebe Holloway seems to have been born in Virginia, reportedly in about 1760. She married Lewis Thomas on 17 Nov. 1794 in Pittsylvania Co., VA. Phoebe died 14 Mar. 1832 in Rockingham Co., NC at the home of her stepdaughter, Martha "Patsy" Thomas Lewis. The Lewis family passed down the information that Patsy's stepmother was the former Phoebe Holloway who married Lewis Thomas in Pittsylvania Co., VA in 1794.

Lewis Thomas was born c. 1755/60 in Culpeper Co., VA, and died before 19 Nov. 1817 in Shiloh, Rockingham Co., NC. Phoebe was Lewis' second wife. Lewis' first wife isunknown. Complicating the fact that Lewis was married twice (first to an unknown wife) is the additional fact that Lewis has been conflated in many online family trees with two other men named Lewis Thomas. This mistake has resulted in the claim that all three men were married to the same wives and had the same children. Phoebe Holloway was married to the Lewis Thomas who died 1817 in Shiloh, Rockingham Co., NC. She was not married to the Lewis Thomas, Quaker, who was married to Agnes Hampton. That couple lived in a different part of the county and had no known relation to the Thomas family under present discussion. Also, Phoebe Holloway was not married to the Lewis Thomas (1755–1840) of Widener Valley, Washington Co., VA. Lewis Thomas of Widener Valley was married to
Elizabeth Widener. The modern drive from Pittsylvania to Washington County is about 180 miles west, making it unlikely that the Lewis Thomas of Washington County married in Pittsylvania County. On the other hand, Rockingham County borders Pittsylvania County to the south/southwest, making it much more likely that the Lewis Thomas of Shiloh, Rockingham County married in Pittsylvania County, especially since his family
records state that he did. Lewis Thomas of Shiloh, Rockingham County served in the Revolutionary War from Gilford Co., NC. (Rockingham County was formed out of Gilford County in 1785.) DAR records for Lewis Thomas read as follows:

A Division of Estate of Lewis Thomas, naming wife Phoebe and his children may be found recorded in the Rockingham Estate Records at the NC Archives in Raleigh, NC, File Box No. CR-084-508-40. (DAR #608507). This estate identifies 11 children: Jesse, Mary, Martha, Lucy, Joanna, John, Anthony, Anne, Elizabeth, James and Christina. These estate papers have a map dividing the 485 acres for each child. The papers name
Phoebe as the widow of Lewis Thomas. Lewis Thomas and his first unknown wife seem to have been the parents of at least three children.

o Jesse Thomas was born in Rockingham Co., NC in about 1781. He married first to Nancy Walker on 10 Feb. 1810 in Rockingham County. He married second to Mary "Polly" Robertson on 14 Aug. 1812 in Rockingham County. His third marriage was to Mary (maiden name unknown). Jesse died 1 Jun. 1874 in Decatur Co., TN.

o Mary "Polly" Thomas was born sometime before 1785. She married Edward Robertson on 24 Jan. 1807. They lived on Shaprs Creek in Spring Garden, Rockingham County, this community now called Shiloh.

o Martha "Patsy" Thomas was born on 17 Dec. 1785 in Rockingham County, where she died on 9 Nov. 1867. She married Theophilus Lewis on 24 Jan. 1807 in Rockingham County.

Lewis Thomas and an undetermined wife (first unknown wife or second wife Phoebe Holloway) were the parents of the following children.

o John Thomas, born in Rockingham Co., NC, moved to Newton Co., GA.

o Lucy Thomas was born 1790-1800 in Rockingham Co., NC. She died on 10 Sep. 1837 in Henry Co., GA. She married James P. Knowles (b. c. 1775 in Fayette Co., GA) on 9 Feb. 1823 in Greene Co., GA.

o Anthony Thomas was born 1790-1800 in Rockingham Co., NC.

o James Thomas was born 1790-1800 in Rockingham Co., NC. No information for his marriage is known. (The James Thomas who married Mary "Polly" Price on 25 Jan. 1817 was James W. Thomas, the son of Michael Thomas, the half-brother of Lewis.)

Lewis Thomas and his second wife Phoebe Holloway were the parents of the following children.

o Anna Thomas was born 29 May 1797 in Rockingham Co., NC (her birth year read by early genealogists as 1777 from family Bible). She died about 1872 in Smith Co., TX. Anna married James Joseph Knowles on 25 Apr. 1821 in Greene Co., GA. James was born 12 May 1798 (also given as Aug. 1799) in GA (said by some to have been the son of Edmond Knowles Sr.), and died 27 Sep. 1885 in Smith Co., TX. (Note that Anna is sometimes thought to have married first to Zachariah Thomas. The Zachariah Thomas who married a different Anna was the son of Hans/John Thomas.) Anna and James were the parents of:

Amelia Miranda, born 15 May 1822 in GA, died 30 Nov. 1888, married Adam M. Stidham on 14 Nov. 1844 in Talladega Co., AL, (Adam was born 13 Dec. 1824 in GA, died 2 Aug. 1880 in Smith Co., TX); Phillip Edmond
Knowles, born on 30 Oct. 1830, died on 7 Jan. 1904 in Wolfe City, Hunt Co., TX, married Mahala Mariah Shanks (born 1841 in Cape Girardeau, Cape Girardeau Co., MO, died 1912 in Wolfe City, Hunt Co., TX); Martha Jane Knowles was born 1832 in GA, died 8 Aug. 1908 in Logan Co., AR, married John Henry Knowles on 23 Aug. 1854 in TX (John was born Dec. 1829 in Gibson Co., IN, died 9 May 1885); James Bellah Knowles was born 1834 in Fayette Co., GA, died 1865 in Smith Co., TX, married Katturah S. "Kitty" Prater on 3 Oct. 1860 in Fayette Co., GA (Katturah was born 1828 in SC, died 12 Jan. 1901 in Terrell, Kaufman Co., TX); Jesse Tense Knowles was born 1837 in Fayette Co., GA, died as a young man in Smith Co., TX); Sophronia
Ann Knowles was born on 7 Oct. 1840 in Fayette Co., GA, died on 18 Jan. 1888 in TX, married Johnson Robbs (born 20 Mar. 1834 in TN, died 4 Feb. 1902 in Mount Sylvan, Smith Co., TX); Matilda C. Knowles was born 1845.

o Joanna Thomas was born 1798 (some family trees give 15 Nov. 1798) in Rockingham Co., NC. She died 1865 in Tuskegee, Macon Co., AL. Her first marriage was to Benjamin C. Knowles (also given as Benjamin Evans Knowles) on 9 Nov. 1820 in Green Co., GA. (Benjamin was born 29 Oct. 1796 (said by some to have been the son of Edmond Knowles Sr.) and died 21 Feb. 1839.) Joanna's second marriage was to Edmond Knowles Jr. (possibly Benjamin's brother) on 24 Dec. 1840 in Fayette Co., GA. Edmond had been widowed from Joanna's sister Christina. Joanna and Edmond were in Fayette Co., GA for the 1850 census. (Joanna's name was transcribed incorrectly in the Ancestry index of the census as Susana, causing some to mistake Susana as a middle name.) Edmond was listed as 50, Joanna 52. The children listed with Edmond and Joanna in the 1850 census were all older than 10, and thus too old to have had both Edmond and Joanna as their parents. The children would thus have been born to Edmond and Joanna by their previous marriages, that is,
Benjamin & Joanna or Edmond & Christina. Joanna and Edmond appear in the 1860 census of Auburn, Macon Co., AL in the household of Sarah (Knowles) and Joshua Spradlin (Joanna 60, Edmond 58). Because Sarah and Joshua named their first son Benjamin (and did not name a son Edmond), it is reasonable to conjecture that Sarah Knowles Spradlin was a daughter of Benjamin Knowles and Joanna Thomas.

o Christina Thomas was born 1790-1800 in Rockingham Co., NC, and died before Jun. 1840 in GA. (Her name appears as Christina on her father's estate papers, Christiana on her father's will and as Christian on her marriage record. Note that Christa/Christia were names of two close relatives of Phoebe in the Holloway family. James and Sally Holloway named a daughter Christa. The Rev. Billy Holloway Jr. named a daughter Christa/Christia). Christina married Edmond Knowles Jr. on 24 Feb. 1820 in Greene Co., GA. Edmond was born
about 1802 in GA. After Christina's death, Edmond second marriage was to Christina's widowed sister Joanna on 24 Dec. 1840 in Fayette Co., GA. Joanna had been widowed from Benjamin C. Knowles (or Benjamin Evans Knowles) (claimed by some to have been Edmond's brother). Edmond Knowles appears with his second wife Joanna in the 1850 Fayette Co., GA Census. This census lists their combined children from their previous marriages (only those children who were still at home). Joanna and Edmond appear in the 1860 census of Auburn, Macon Co., AL in the household of Sarah (Knowles) and Joshua Spradlin (Joanna 60, Edmond 58). The 1850 census lists the combined children of Edmond and Joanna (surviving partners of Joanna & Benjamin and Christina & Edmond) as follows: Sarah B. Knowles, 17 (b. abt. 1733); William Knowles, 13 (b. abt. 1837); Selena Knowles (transcribed incorrectly as Lelena on the Ancestry census index), 12 (b. abt. 1838); and Benjamin Knowles, 28 (b. abt. 1822). Given that Joanna and Christina Thomas both married into the Knowles family in 1820, it is difficult to determine who their respective children were. The following partial compilation is gleaned from Ancestry trees concerning children attributed to Joanna and/or Christina:

Phoebe Thomas (1821- ?);
Benjamin Floyd (1822-1908);
Sarah (1822-1862);
Sallie Evans (1823-?);
Cader Carter (1825-1910);
Andrew Jackson (1829-?);
Jesse Thomas (1829-?);
Rice Prettyman t (1831-?);
Sarah B., (1833-?);
James Mathew (1833-1896);
Mary Ann (1835-?);
Benjamin Floyd (1837-1897);
William (1837-?);
Selena Ann (1838-?). (Selena Ann Knowles married George Daniel Phillips on 15 Sep. 1859 in Macon Co., AL.)
The Benjamin Knowles listed with Edmond and Joanna in the 1850 census seems to have been Benjamin Knowles (jr.), the son and namesake of Benjamin Knowles, the first husband of Joanna Thomas. Benjamin (Jr.) was 28 in the 1850 census, thus born about 1822. Joanna and Edmond were living with the family of Joshua and Sarah Spradlin in the 1860 census of Macon Co.,, AL. This makes it seem likely that Sarah was a daughter of either Joanna & Benjamin or of Christina & Edmond. Because Sarah Knowles (Spradlin) (born about 1824) named her first son Benjamin (and did not name a son Edmond), it seems more likely that she was a daughter of Benjamin and Joanna rather than of Christina and Edmond. According to the 1860 census, Sarah and Joshua Spradlin (both 36, born abt. 1824) were the parents of:

Benjamin, born about 1745;
James, born about 1847;
Mary, born about 1849;
Jackson, born about 1851;
Lewis, born about 1853;
Cade, born
about 1855;
Sarah, born about 1857; and
Martha, born about 1859.

These children are thought to have been grandchildren of Joanna Thomas and her first husband Benjamin Knowles.

If the preceding conjecture is accepted, then Sarah B. Knowles (17 in the 1850 census) would have been the daughter of Christina and Edmond (assuming Joanna & Benjamin didn't name two daughters Sarah).

o Elizabeth "Betsy" Thomas was born 1800-1802 in Rockingham Co., NC. She married Edlow Lynch on 21 Sep. 1820 in Green Co., GA. They reportedly moved to Newton Co., GA. (One Ancestry tree claims that Elizabeth was Native American. Perhaps this claim is intended for Edlow's second wife. ???) According to the 1800 census, Lewis Thomas' household included 4 females age 10 or younger. These 4 females definitely included Anna and Joanna. The other 2 seem to have been Lucy and Christina.

GEDCOM Note

Biography ==Lewis was born in 1755. He was the son of Hans Thoma andSarah Unknown. Lewis married Agnes Breedon in 1775.<ref>U.S. and International Marriage Records, 1560-1900. Yates Publishing 2004. Ancestry.com. </ref>

Lewis is listed on the 1790 census in Rockingham County, North Carolina. <ref>"United States Census, 1790," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHK1-C16 : accessed 24 July 2019), Lewis Thomas, Rockingham, North Carolina, United States; citing p. 526, NARA microfilm publication M637, (Washington D.C.: NationalArchives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 7; FHL microfilm 568,147.</ref> He is also on the 1800 census still in Rockingham County, North Carolina. <ref>"United States Census, 1800," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XHRD-DMX : accessed 24 July 2019), Lewis Thomas, Salisbury, Rockingham, North Carolina, United States; citing p. 488, NARA microfilm publication M32, (Washington D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, n.d.), roll 32; FHL microfilm 337,908.</ref>

He passed away in 1817. <ref>"North Carolina Estate Files, 1663-1979,"database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:QJ8G-M7N1 : 16 March 2018), Lewis Thomas, 1817; citing Rockingham County, North Carolina, United States, State Archives, Raleigh; FHLmicrofilm 2,110,608.</ref>
Lewis was married twice. He first married Agnes - perhaps Hampton. They had the following children:

1. Mary Polly Thomas (1775-1874)
2. Jesse Thomas (1780-1874)
3. Martha Thomas (1785-1867)
4. John Thomas (no dates)

Lewis married second Phoebe Holloway. Their children are as follows:

1. Anthony Thomas (1794- )
2. James Thomas (aft 1794 - )
3. Lucy Thomas (aft 1794 - 1837)
4. Anna Thomas (1797-1872)
5. Joanna Thomas (1800- )
6. Elizabeth Thomas (1802- )
7. Christiana Thomas ( -1840)

Sources

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