Laurens-Houston-Muscogee County GaArchives Biographies.....Dean/Deen R.S., Richard 1760 - 1840 ************************************************ 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: Sharon Dean Lee sdlee1@cox.net March 17, 2007, 6:52 pm Author: Thomas Herbert Dean The following chapter is from Thomas Herbert Dean's book The Deans: Two Hundred Years Across the South (C1987), and it is addressed to his children and grandchildren. Thomas H. Dean, descendant of Richard Dean R.S., Elijah Dean, and James Jefferson Dean, is the son of Thomas Jefferson and Hattye Forbes Bryan Dean. Thanks to Thomas H. Dean's meticulous research, many of Richard Dean's descendants have entered DAR chapters around the country. CHAPTER TWO PART 1 RICHARD DEAN Richard was your Great, Great, Great, Great Granddad and was a revolutionary soldier. Richard's life began in the year 1760. At this point, I have not established where he was born, and what his parents given names were. Richard was a soldier in the Revolutionary War, probably in North Carolina. At any rate, he was certified as a revol¬utionary soldier by the Secretary of State of Georgia, when he signed up and drew land in the Cherokee lottery of 1832. Richard was probably married in the year 1780, or 1781, wife's name unknown. I am basing this marriage date on the age of his oldest son, Micajah Dean. Micajah signed up and was "lucky" in drawing land in the 1805 lottery. He would have, by law, had to be at least 21 years old to sign up(or apply). Micajah most probably applied in late 1804, so this would have established his birth around 1782, or 1783. Richard also applied (signed up) in the same lottery (2 draws), but was not lucky. Richard had several children including your Great, Great, Great Grandfather, Elijah. Dean Sr. At the time of Richard's death in the year 1840, his heirs were listed as Micajah, Ransom L., Elijah, and three daughters. I do not know their given names at this time, however, one daughter married a G.D. Hightower. Another married a Joshua Hightower and the 3rd. married a James Stuby. Richard's son, Elijah was admin¬istrator of the estate and when estate was divided, apparently the daughter that was married to G.D. Hightower, had died and her share was divided between her children Wingfield Hightower and Tobyah Smith. Richard probably came to Washington County, Georgia, with his family around 1790, or 1791, and began buying land around "Big Creek" in what is now East Laurens Co., Ga. The land Richard bought first was 2872 acres and later another 120 acres ad¬joining it on the creek. The 2872 acres had been a land grant to a Reubin Barrow in 1785. The 120 acres was a grant to a John Smith in 1787 and conveyed directly to Reubin Barrow. Both places were then conveyed by Barrow directly to Richard. Richard later conveyed the 120 acres to his youngest son Elijah. This 120 acres was Elijah's plantation and homeplace until the year 1826. The 2872 acres was Richard's homeplace until he sold it in the year 1825. Laurens County records contain deeds on these lands plus many other acres bought and sold by the Dean family during the 35 to 36 years they lived on Big Creek. All of the lands bought and sold in Laurens County, Washington County, Montgomery County, and Wilkinson County were within a 5 or 6 mile radius of Richard's home place on Big Creek. There is an explanation in chapter one, history on how these counties were laid out at the time of Richard's coming to Washington County, and how they changed later on. Richard's life was closely knit to owning land and a living from it. As a general rule, when Richard acquired a plot of land, he kept it for a long time, before letting go of it. Richard was industrious and made a good living from all indications, and must have taught his children well. Richard and his sons knew the value of legal matters and were very diligent in recording deed to land etc. Even in the 1700s all at one time or another served grand jury duty. In all of my search in land deeds, mortgage papers, inferior court records, etc., I have not found even one single case where a Dean lost land or anything else because he couldn't pay his taxes or what have you. I consider Richard a conservative type person, who held on to life and what he had as long as he possibly could. At age 73, on the 16th of February, 1833, Richard bought at auction, from the estate of Leper Pollock, 2 bee hive tables for 562 cents and a stack of fodder for $3.50. Even at that age he was still going strong, even to keeping his bees for honey. When he died at age 80, July 10, 1840, in Muscogee County, Ga., Richard still owned and was paying taxes on the 160 acres of land he had received in Union County, Georgia, in the 1832 Cherokee lottery as a Revolutionary soldier. Richard was living in Houston County, Georgia in 1832, when the lottery was held. At time of death, he also still had his furniture, two saddles and bridles for horses and many other personal things, as well as his personal slave Pompey. So you see he held on to things. From all indications Richard was active, paying taxes, tending to his business and doing other necessary things of life until about March 10, of the year he died (four months before death). Richard applied for and received approximately 450 acres of grant land on Hightower Creek in Montgomery County, Georgia, in 1799. This land was about 3 miles, as a crow flies, from his Big Creek land. The grant was from the honorable James Jackson, Governor of Georgia and Commander & Chief. He also applied for and drew 490 acres of land in Appling County, Ga., in the 1820 land lottery. So you see our Richard owned quite a few acres of land during the part of his life that we know about. From all indications, Richard and family, the Hightowers and the Blackshear brothers (Gen. David Blackshear etc.) moved to Washington County, Ga., about the same time and were closely associated throughout the 36 year period around Big Creek. In fact, as previously mentioned, two of Richard’s daughters married into the Hightower family and G.D. moved later on to Houston County, Ga., to join the Deans. He then moved to Musco¬gee County, in 1839, with them. Richard and Elijah sold about 500 acres of their land on Big Creek, in 1825, and 1826, to Gen. David Blackshear, their adjoining neighbor. David Blackshear made this land part of his 1000 acre plantation called "Springfield". Part of this plantation exists to this day (1982). After the Indian Nation released lands west of the Oconee River and to the 0cmulgee River, in 1803, Richard and his sons bought and sold quite a bit of land in what is now Wilkinson County, West Laurens Co., and Pulaski County, Georgia. So Richard, although he was con¬servative, did do a little land speculation too. Richard's home place was bounded on both sides by big creek, by lands of Bryan E. Dean and lands of David Blackshear. This land was rich soil with plenty of water, not too far from the river and was highly favored over the "pine" lands south of this area. It probably looked then very nearly as it does now, except there were few houses and all lands were in farms or forest. A large pond or lake exists at the fork of big creek and big branch, where the old Blackshear grist mill and pond were in our Richard's time. Just west of the old "home place" at the so called bluffs, the old Blackshear ferry crossed the river giving our people access to their lands on the west bank of the Oconee. In reading Georgia history, I am sure that our Elijah, and maybe his bro¬thers helped build the access roads and ramps for the ferry under charter from the State of Georgia. You will remember, from reading chapter 1 of this book that from the year 1782, the Indian Territory Boundary was the west bank of the Oconee River. This was just a short distance from the big creek home place and remained this way until the Indians gave up their lands between the Oconee and Ochmulgee Rivers, by treaty in 1803. This created many problems for the land owners and in fact, Elijah Dean, according to Georgia history, was in the Georgia Militia and fought the Indians many times. Even after the treaty, Indian problems existed well into the 1800s. There were many hardships for Richard, his family and the other people there. Few doctors existed at that time and medicine to treat their sickness, had not been developed. In fact, most of the treatments were with herbs and other local remedies. These included mullin and sassafras tea and many types of hot poultices for colds, sores, fever and such. As a boy, I saw many of these things still in use. Many children died at birth or very young with pneumonia, typhoid fever and other problems that are easily prevented or cured today. Clearing the land for homes and farms was all done by hand with an axe and crude cross cut saw. Homes were small log cabins made by cutting trees into logs, notching the log ends, stacking one on the other and "pegging" together with wood dowels. The cracks between the logs were "chinked" with mud. Even the shingles to cover the roof had to be split from knotless white oak or cypress wood. Farming was done with "home made" plows, pulled by oxen or horses and a few years later by mules. The soil close around the plants was worked by hoes. Planting the seed, setting out the young plants and gathering the harvest was all done by hand. As a result of this slow process and hard labor, one person could only tend a few acres with one horse. Thus was born the "One Horse Farm." Richard and Elijah were both "plantation" owners, who farmed many acres with their slaves. As a matter of family record, the slave families of the Deans were highly regarded and either remained with them after they were freed, as tenant farmers, or stayed in close contact with the family generations. Travel was slow and hazardous since it was either by walk¬ing, saddle horse, horse and wagon or buggy and prone to attack by Indians or wild animals. Most plantations were almost completely self sufficient in that they made or grew almost everything they needed to survive and have productive lives. Richard sold his home place on big creek the 24th. of Oct. 1825, and moved with Elijah and his family to Houston County, Ga., in late 1826, or early 1827. Richard was 65 years old, when he sold his land. Most probably he lived with Elijah, or with one of his daughters, who lived nearby, until he moved to Houston County, Ga. Micajah, Richard's oldest son, lived nearby in Washington County, (now East Laurens County), and bought and sold land until 1818, when he sold his last land there and moved south. Micajah appeared in the 1820 census in Telfair County, just south of Laurens County, according to a certification by his brother, Elijah, as administrator of Richard's estates Micajah was living in Florida at Richard's death and had also died around that time. Micajah bought and sold land greater distance away from the "homeplace" than did either Richard or Elijah. Since he usually kept land for short periods and sold at considerable profit, I assume he was the real land speculator of the Deans. Ransom L., Richard's middle son, apparently went west to Covington County, Alabama, about 1837. He either received grant and/or purchased land there on Jan. 13,1837. At any rate, Ransom came back to Muscogee County, in 1843 or 1844, to claim his share of Richard's estate. ***addemdum at end The daughters of Richard married the two Hightower boys and James Stuby, as previously mentioned and we will of course, follow our ancestor, Elijah, on down the road to you. In summing up Richard, I firmly believe that he was a good citizen and a credit to our family and country. I did not, or have not found any derogatory information on him or in your direct lineage of the generations following him. He apparently used his life and land well, instructed his children in the right values in life and. left a heritage we Deans should be proud of. Your dear Aunt Kitty Dean applied for DAR status on Richard's service in the Revolutionary War and on his records, we found in our search. Kitty was accepted into the DAR in Dec., 1982. The national number is 668812. DAR and SAR memberships be available to all future generations of Richard. I hope that someday one of us can learn more about Richard's early life and the legacy he has left for us. In an effort to clarify the total Dean community around big creek, I am including the following as information only. Other than our Richard, and his immediate family living there during parts of the time span, 1790, to 1826, there was a Bryan E. Dean, a William Enel Dean and a John Dean, who I be¬lieve, were some kin to our Richard. It should be remembered that, Elijah Dean named one of his sons Bryan Dean years later. To confuse the issue, there was also another Richard Dean and his family living on big creek at the same time. This Richard married a Winnefred Dyson in Nash County, North Carolina, in 1793, and came to Washington County, Georgia, sometime in the late 1790s or early 1800s. This Richard died there in 1813, and left three children, a Williamson Dean, a Meckey Tarley Dean, and daughter, Minnie. These Deans remained there after our people moved to Houston County, Ga. There was also a Sherod Dean that was kin to this Richard that died in 1813, who was in the area for a while. I have been unable to find any relationship between this Richard and Sherod Dean and our Richard and family, even though they lived only three to five miles apart at the time. The Richard that died in 1813, only lived on big creek for about a year or so before he died, since the land he owned on the creek was bought by him July 8, 1812. He bought 2872 acres there on a tax sale by the Sheriff due to tax default of the original owner, John Brassile. I believe this Richard lived on Hightower Creek, in Montgomery County, until that time or about five miles from our Richard's place. File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/ga/laurens/bios/deandeen923gbs.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/gafiles/ File size: 14.4 Kb