Glynn-Muscogee-Chatham County GaArchives Biographies.....Samuel Pyles March 4 1788 - January 1837 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/ga/gafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Charles Blankenship PylesSRP@aol.com November 4, 2003, 5:50 pm Author: Charles Blankenship Samuel R. Piles [Pyles]was most likely born in Glynn County, Georgia to Mary [Mangum] and John Piles. According to his mother's LWT filed in 1850, he had sibling brothers: William, James, John and Robert S. Numerous Glynn County Deed Book entries in DBK G/H give the relation of all named siblings to their parents. In 1809, Samuel married Miss Charlotte Winn [Wynn] in Savannah, GA. Later, they lived in Glynn County, most likely on the Turtle River and the property that his father, John had obtained before 1800. Samuel R. Piles first served Glynn County at the General Assembly in Milledgeville as Glynn County Representative. Between the years 1814 to 1821, he was a State Senator.Several times in the Senate Journal's he was referred to a Colonel Piles. He achieved that title from being elected to and promoted to full Colonel in the Georgia Militia. In 1823, he sold over 2,000 acres to Thomas Butler King and his wife, Charlotte Piles waived her dower in December of that year. According to American State Papers dealing with hearings in St. Augustine, Florida on Spanish Land Grants, he was reported to be living on the Big Arredondo Land Grant with 30 people in his party from Georgia. In 1842, his son, Thomas W. Pyles reported that he came to Florida in 1824. The date of the hearing in St. Augustine was 1 October 1824, thus between that time in 1823 and the fall of 1824, he and his sons moved into what became Alachua County before it became a county on 29 December 1824. The land in question was "three leagues into the wind" which extended from Micanopy to what is depicted as San Felasco Settlement on current maps. Because he did not receive a Spanish Land Grant and due mainly to the Second Seminole Indian War that began in 1835, the family eventually moved to an area then known as Newnansville, Alachua County. From 1824 until his death reported to be January 1837, Samuel and his family were reported by Indian Chieftan, Joe Hicks to have assisted several Indian families. Samuel was also appointed Sutler to the Indians and during 1826 entertained the Territorial Florida Governor, William Duval at his house. In 1830, Samuel verified and signed the 1830 U. S. Census for Alachua which at the time extended southward past Tampa Bay and to Port Charlotte, Florida. There are many Territorial Florida Papers with Samuel Piles and Col. S. R. Piles' name on them. He was also named as a Presiding Judge for Alachua. Before he reached the age of 50, he died and most likely is buried in the old Newnansville Methodist Cemetery. The town of Newnansville has become extinct and is now encompassed by the town of Alachua in Alachua County. In 1852, his son Samuel R. Pyles (Jr.) erected a Memorial Stone depicting the names of all those siblings plus his mother who had died in 1842 on the monument. The stone serves as well as a Family Bible "in honor of mother, father, sisters and brothers." The inscription includes: Mary A. E. [Dell], John W., Robert, William, Jane M. [Tucker] and Thomas W. Pyles. When the brother, Samuel R. Pyles [Jr.] died in 1862, he had listed on his LWT, the remaining siblings, including: Rebecca [Harn], Charlotte L. [Helvenston], James W. [Barnes], Lewis G. [Remington] and Frances Sophia [Hope]. His estate was not settled until 1898 by the son of his sister, Jane M. Tucker who again named the siblings from the earlier LWT. Additional Comments: In Glynn County historian, Margaret Davis Cate's file [now on microfilm in the Georgia History Center in Morrow, GA] there was correspondence between Mrs. Cate, Judge Folks Huxford and Alex D. Williams of Columbus, GA. They also provided a copy to Mrs. W. Ely [Hazel] Chambers of New York, New York. One letter dated 15 October 1960 by Mr. Williams to Mrs. Cate stated "I am sure that there are many descendants of Samuel and Sarah Piles [grandparents of Samuel R. Pyles]living today in the state of Florida...." Indeed, besides Samuel R. Pyles, his brothers James and William moved to Alachua and later settled in Marion County, Florida. They too had and still have many descendants from their family. This file has been created by a form at http://www.poppet.org/gafiles/ File size: 4.6 Kb