BIOGRAPHY OF WILLIAM WILLOUGHBY - Clarke & Oconee Cos. GA Submitted by: JIM WILLOUGHBY The known progenitor of my line of Willoughbys, William Willoughby, was born in 1759 in either Maryland or Virginia. As a young lad of 17, he enlisted as a Soldier of the American Revolution in Spotsylvania, Virginia. He, along with Edlene Willoughby, who may have been his brother, both were members of the Georgia Continental Line. At the conclusion of the war, William remained in Georgia. The earliest records show him in Richmond County, Georgia, and later, Green County, Georgia. Augusta (Richmond County) was the second city in Georgia to follow Savannah in population growth largely because it was a port city and was also in a location that afforded profitable trade with the Indians. William Willoughby was a private in Captain John Moseley's Co, Company 3, of the 2nd Georgia Regiment,Georgia Continental Line. He served three years in this capacity before and he was taken prisoner in Savannah Georgia. He was exchanged 13 August 1779 at Augusta, Georgia. His discharge date was 30 Aug 1779. He was REV soldier number S36396; he enlisted in Amherst Co, VA 22 Aug 1776. Another, perhaps more accurate source states that he enlisted in Amelia County Virginia in 1776. He applied for pension 24 Sept 1818 in Clark County, Georgia. In 1779, he was 20 years of age. His revolutionary Soldier number is documented in both the Abstracts of Revolutionary WarPension Files by Virgil White and Oconee County Lineage, by Sue Lutz. William Willoughby married Jeresulem Jones In Richmond County Georgia (Augusta, Georgia) in 1790.The moved to Green, then to Clark County, Georgia. They first appear on the 1810 Tax Rolls of Clark County. They are listed in Captain Martindale's District (Rose Creek and Oconee River Area) Many of the other heads of families on the 1810 tax list became relatives and/or close friends of the Willoughby family. Among these are the MEADOWS, HARDIGREES, ELDERS, PRIDGENS, MOXLEYS, HAYES, FAMBROUGHS, ANDERSONS and others. Many of the ancestors of these families still live in Oconee County Georgia today. . The move from Green county to present day Oconee, then Clark County, was approximately 25 miles. Green County and Oconee County are adjacent, so the move was only a short one. William and Jerusalem were blessed with a large family. Except in instances where children suffered from diseases, large families were the norm. The only contraceptive was abstinence and a large number of children could help produce items needed by the family. In the late 1700s and early 1800s, there were no preventatives for any disease. Poor diets and poor health care often resulted in very small families. Although some of the following children died young, they did survive infancy, and some lived to ripe old ages. William and Jerusalem Willoughby had the following Children i. Thomas F WILLOUGHBY ii. David WILLOUGHBY iii. Sarah (Sally) WILLOUGHBY iv. Robert WILLOUGHBY v. Mary Ann "Polly" WILLOUGHBY vi. James M. WILLOUGHBY vii. Ellis WILLOUGHBY viii. Elizabeth WILLOUGHBY ix. Randall WILLOUGHBY x. Agnes WILLOUGHBY xi. William B. WILLOUGHBY xii. George Willoughby Jerusalem was the daughter of Thomas JONES and Mary HOWELL. Her grandparents were Thomas JONES and Martha BONNER, who were born in Virginia. Thomas Jones was also a REV soldier. Jerusalems father, Thomas, wrote his will in Columbia County, Georgia in 1804. In the will are the names of his children; sons, William, Thomas, Robert, Ellis, Randal, and James. Daughters Jerusalem, Mary, Sarah, and Ann. Jerusalem is referred to as "the wife of William Willibe." By comparison, it can be seen that Jerusalem and William named their children after the sibling names of Jerusalem. This was not as common a practice as to passing down "family names" to the next generation. The practice of passing down family names was to was to continue in all future generations of the Willoughby Family. The parents of Jerusalem were married in Jerusalem Lutheran Church in Ebenezer, Georgia. This church is the oldest standing public structure in Georgia. Construction was began in 1767 and completed the next year. Jerusalem Church was the most prominent structure in Ebenezer and is illustrative of the importance of religion to the new colonists. Although the town no longer exists, the church and cemetery still exist and in fact, the church is still used for services. By virtue of his service as a REV Soldier, William Willoughby drew land in several counties. This is shown by both Deeds and in his Will. At the time of his death in 1829, William owned land in Green, Wilkinson, Dooley, Troup and Clark Counties. He and Jerusalem settled in Clark County, Georgia, near present day Watkinsville, Georgia. He was a farmer and is listed in the 1810 tax list of Clark County as being in The Will of William Willoughby indicates that he was more than a small farmer. He owned hundreds of acres of land in several Counties. He bequeathed land to various of their male children. Although women could legally own land, it was the practice to leave land to male family members. This was done in order that the "family name be perpetuated." He is also seen to be a slave owner. He bequeathed several slaves to other family members. (including son in laws Pridgen and Giles.) He possessed various types of livestock, (horses, cows, pigs, mules); numerous types of plantation farming equipment, as well as many household items. Among the more pretentious possessions was a cotton gin. As was the practice at the time, the family likely had two money crops, cotton and corn. Other crops were raised for the subsistence of the stock, slaves and family members. John H. Lowe and son David were named executors of his will. The Estate of William Willoughby was appraised by Thomas Robertson,Samuel Blakely, and Jonathan Hardigree. "We do hereby certify that we have appraised the Estate of William Williby deceased as was shown to us by the Exors. to the best of our Judgement-Nov 11th, 1829. The appraisers were sworn before Ethelred Sorrell, Justice of the Peace. The Estate Returns in 1834 included these Buyers. A.S. Simms-1 motley face cow $6.25 William Giles-1 jar $ .56 John Williams-3 chairs $2.06 David Williby-1 old cotton gin $5.00 Ellis Williby- 1 heifer $9.62 William Giles-1 grinding stone $ .31 Charles Burger-1 pot $ .37 James Willoughby-1 new cotton gin $100.00 Joseph Maxey-1 bay filly $33.25 Hail Maxey- 1 pair cartwheels $ 9.00 William Martin-1 gray horse $37.12 David Christopher- 6 hogs $15.50 David Elder-1 black cow and calf $11.25 Samuel Blakeley-1 measure and sifter $ .37 Joseph M Elder-2 beds and steads $20.00 John Hardigree-1 pewter pot $ .62 Edwin F Cox-1 sandy sow $10.18 "Sale of Negro man Hampton and Negro woman Hanna on the 1st Tuesday in December, 1834 for $1076.00." Approved and ordered to be recorded at the May Term 1835. Recorded in Book G. Folio 194, Clark County Georgia Estate Records First Generation 1. William WILLOUGHBY. Born 1759 Virginia. Died 14 Jan 1829 in Clark Co.GA. Second Generation 2. Thomas F WILLOUGHBY. Born 1790. Died After 1860. married Agnes Hayes 3. David WILLOUGHBY mar Born 1794. Died About 1870. married Mary Polly Meadows 4. Sarah (Sally) WILLOUGHBY. Born 1801. She married William GILES, son of Unknown GILES & Unknown, 23 Dec 1819 in Clark Co Ga. 5. Robert WILLOUGHBY. Born 1799 in Ga.. Died 13 Aug 1834 in Clark Co. Ga. married Elizabeth Meadows 6. Mary Ann "Polly" WILLOUGHBY She married Nathaniel Waller PRIDGEON, son of William PRIDGEON & Sophia WALLER, 12 Dec 1824 in Clark Co., GA. Born 9 Apr 1804 in Montgomery Co., N.C. Died 8 Apr 1888 in Clark Co., GA. 7. James M. WILLOUGHBY. Born 28 Aug 1801. Died 23 Mar 1876 in Oconee Co. GA., Willoughby Cemetery, Oconee County, Watkinsville, Georgia Married Willoughby, Mary Polly Blakely; b. 2 Apr 1811; d. 10 Oct 1894; wife of James, daughter of Samuel Blakely and Elizabeth "Betty" Elder. 8. Ellis WILLOUGHBY. Born 1805. Died 1844 intestate/ annual return 6 May 1844, Clark Co. GA. married Elizabeth Durham 9. Elizabeth WILLOUGHBY. Born 18 Dec 1808 in Green Co. GA. Died Apr 1859 in Taylor Co. GA.She married Joseph (Josiah) PYRON, son of William PYRON & Martha ALLEN, 12 Dec 1833 in Green Co. GA. Born 18 Dec 1806 in Green Co. GA. Died 22 Nov 1882 in Taylor Co. GA. Buried in Buried On His Own Property, Green Co., GA. 10. Randall WILLOUGHBY. Born 1810 in Clark Co. GA. Died About 1870. 11. Agnes WILLOUGHBY. She married William ANDERSON. 12. William B. WILLOUGHBY. Died 5 Nov 1827 in Clark Co. GA. His will was probated in Clark Co.Ga. in 1827, two years before his father. married Elizabeth Anderson 13. George Willoughby. Born 1812 in Clark Co Georgia. Died About 1868 in LOWNDES CO. ALABAMA. married Elizabeth Moorer ==================================================================== USGENWEB ARCHIVES NOTICE: In keeping with our policy of providing free information on the Internet, data may be used by non-commercial entities, as long as this message remains on all copied material. These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or for presentation by other persons or organizations. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material for purposes other than stated above must obtain the written consent of the file contributor. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. This file was contributed for use in the USGenWeb Archives by: JIM WILLOUGHBY ====================================================================