James Jackson Jennings Sr. (1824-1891)

James Jackson Jennings Sr.

Birth

3 Aug 1824

Macon County, North Carolina, USA

Death

30 May 1891 (aged 66)

North Carolina, USA

Burial

Buck Creek Missionary Baptist Church Cemetery

Highlands, Macon County, North Carolina, USA Show Map

Memorial ID

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In the early 1900s, a number of James Jennings' sons moved to Oregon and Washington where they were involved in logging, mining, and the railroad industry.
A few migrated from the Pacific Northwest down to California. Most of them never returned to NC. James' 4th wife, Sallie Henderson and 3 of their children are buried
in Texas.

James owned land and lived where Buck Creek Church & Cemetery are located. He is buried there. There are a couple of unmarked graves near his. It is believed that these are the graves of a couple of his wives.

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In a letter dated Jan. 13, 1940, James' son Charlie wrote that his father had 3 children with his first wife.

1st wife: Mary L. "Polly" Caylor Jennings
married January 24, 1842

Their children were:
1. Charity Jane Jennings Hedden
2. George Butler Jennings
3. WILLIAM T. Jennings - born 1846 in Macon Co. — William is listed on the 1850 and 1860 census for Macon Co., NC. No other records have been found for William. Could he have died in the Civil War? He would have been the right age.
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2nd wife: SARAH BROOKS
married September 25, 1847
They had no children.
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3rd wife: Lucinda P. Evitt Jennings
married August 25, 1849

Their children were:
1. John M. Jennings
2. James Jackson Jennings, Jr.
3. Jasper Columbus Jennings
4. Newton McDonald Jennings
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4th wife: Sarah "Sallie" Henderson Jennings
married June 14, 1861

Below are James and Sallie's children as my family has always believed them to be. In a letter dated Jan. 13, 1940, their oldest child, Charlie wrote that his father had TEN children with his 4th wife (Charlie's mother). Unfortunately, Charlie did not list the names of his siblings. As you can see, the list below shows ELEVEN children. One of them needs to be eliminated, but I don't know which one. Todney and Lydra are the only ones in question.

children of James and Sarah (Henderson) Jennings:
1. Charlie C. Jennings
2. Sarah Elizabeth "Betty" Jennings Rogers
3. Mary Roxanna Jennings Rogers
4. Lavada Adda Jennings Horn
5. TODNEY Jennings
6. Elmer Grant Jennings
7. MARTHA Ann "Marthy" Jennings
born about 1873; married James T. Holland on Jan. 15, 1893 in Hamburg, NC
8. Thedorea Jennings Strain
9. Paul Sherman Jennings
10. LYDRA (Could it be Lydia?) Jennings born about 1881 — Was she Sherman's twin? Lydra must have died in infancy as no records can be found for her.
11. Henrietta "Etta" Jennings Chance

No documentation has been found for Todney or Lydra. Their names are found in the research of William Jay Jennings (a great, great grandson of James J. Jennings, Sr.). Jay obtained much of his information from conversations with other descendants. Someone must have told him the names of Todney and Lydra, but I have not been able to find them on any documents.

On the 1880 census for Jackson Co., NC there is a son listed for James and Sarah named DINK who was born about July 1879. "Dink" is sometimes a boy's nickname, but for which boy? Could it have been Todney?
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NOTE 1: There is evidence which suggests that James J. Jennings, Sr. may have been the father of William Tolvin Jennings.

NOTE 2: Some descendants of Mary Catherine "Kate" Holland (1851-1897) believe there is a possibility that James Jennings was the father of her 9 children (or at least some of them). This would have been while James was married to Sarah Henderson. Mary Catherine was the daughter of Anthony M. Holland, Sr. and his wife Elizabeth Corbin. From researching census records, it appears that all 9 of her children went by her maiden name of Holland, indicating that she was never married.

Mary Mae Evitt Stiwinter said that James J. Jennings, Sr. lived near her with two wives at the same time. She may have been referring to Sallie Henderson and Mary Catherine Holland.
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