Why is it, when you come across the tale of a families early settlement in an area, or arrival from "The Old Country", it always starts with three brothers as in ,"Three Brothers followed the Old Wagon Road south into Central HereWeAreNow"?
Never two brothers or four brothers or fourteen brothers but 3!
Well, quite coincidentally , this is going to be one of those stories of three brothers, and there really were three, not two, not four, although they certainly had other brothers, but 3. Their names were William, Bennett and Goodwin Solomon.
Franklin County, North Carolina was formed in 1779 from the southern part of the now defunct Butte County. It's sandwiched in between Nash, Johnston, Wake, Granville, Vance, Warren and Halifax Counties, yes, all of those. If you want to research someone who lived in Franklin County, it's best to look into not only Butte, and Franklin, of course, but also all of its above listed neighbors.
The Solomon Brothers hailed from Franklin County, but they joined a migration west to Montgomery County, NC, which had been formed from Anson in 1799. They settled along the Yadkin River, close to its conjunction with the Uwharrie River, whereupon its name changed to the Pee Dee River.
Their father left a Will, and these earliest years of the family have been fairly well researched. They left adequate records, so that something can be known of these earliest generations, even more so than some of the later ones.
This particular line of Solomons began with a man named Nicholas Solomon, born somewhere in England prior to 1490.
He married Estmi Coleman.
They became the parents of Nycholas Sloman b 1515, who married Margaret Goodwyn. They lived in the village of Rotherfield in Sussex, England. The Goodwyn name would be passed down through the family for numerous generations
Nycholas and Margaret would have a son named John Sloman born around 1541, who married Agnes Purnell. Among their four children was a son named Bartholomew Solomon who was born in 1571 in the village of Worth, still in Sussex. He married a lady named Margaret Pratt on April 30, 1606, in a village named Buxted, where they would settle and raise a family. Bartholomew had returned to the original spelling of the name Solomon. It is unknown why they changed it to start with.
Bartholomew Solomon died on December 30, 1868 at Mountfield, in Sussex, at the age of 57.
Bartholomew and Margaret were the parents of a son named Giles who was born in 1610 in Buxted. He married twice, first to a lady named Margaret, maiden name unknown. Second to Ealce Booker in 1648. They would become the parents of 7 children, the third being a son named Stephen.
Stephen Solomon was born before January 13, 1654 in Buxted, Sussex, England, the day he was baptized.
On January 12, 1673, he married Elizabeth Barden. Stephen died about 1740 in Buxted. He had four known children. One was a son named Lewis O. Solomon, who was our immigrant ancestor.
Lewis O Solomon was born about 1676 in Colan, Cornwall, England. Sometime before leaving Cornwall, Lewis married Martha King. Martha was born in 1695 in
Castlemorton, Worcestershire, England, daughter of Henry and Mary Carpenter King.
They probably landed in Jamestown before making their way to Albemarle Parrish, in Surry County, Virginia. Lewis would die there on July 20, 1743.
They were the parents of four children; Mary Elizabeth Solomon Asbill, William James Solomon, Charles Emmett Solomon and Lewis Solomon Jr.
William James Solomon was born around 1717 in Albemarle Parrish, Surry, Virginia.
In 1736, he married Ruth Hay, daughter of Gilbert and Susan Ivey Hay. William and Ruth would have six children: Judith, William, Ursula, Isham, John and Sukey.
William moved his family to North Carolina and died in 1796, at the age of 79, in Edgecomb County, North Carolina.
William Solomon II was born on December 22, 1738, in Albemarle Parrish, Surrey, VA. Around 1770, he married Diana Gordon. She was the daughter of John and Lucy Churchill Gordon. They would live in Edgecomb County, North Carolina and later in Franklin County, North Carolina.
William Solomon, Jr. and Diana would have 10 children: Goodwin, Bennett, Luke, Elizabeth Solomon Judd, Dica Solomon Hall, Jordan, Sally Solomon Solomon, William III, Jane Solomon Lewis and Jeremiah Solomon.
William Solomon Jr died on December 9, 1814, at the age of 75, in Franklin County, NC, leaving the following Will.
April 16, 1814
" In the name of God Amen, I William Solomon of the County of Frankllin and State of North Carolina do make and Constitute this my last Will and Testament.
Imprimus. My wish and desire is that my negro man Will shall remain with my wife for her use, during her life and after her Death, I wish him to be the property of any of my children to whom he shall chose.
Item I wish a sufficiency of my crops to be alotted off by my Executors for the support of wife and family (Sally and Jeremiah Solomon included) for one year.
Item I lend unto my beloved wife Deanna Solomon, during her natural life the following Negroes, (to wit) Lucy, Jack, Rachel, Annaky, Chance, Patty, Silvia and Mary and their increase. I likewise wish my two Negroe men, Sam and Robin, to be hired out by my Executors, till they think proper to call them in, and the money arizin from the hire of the said Negroes to go to the Discharge of my just debts. I also lend to my wife during her Natural Life, the Land and Planataion whereupon I now live, together with all my plantation utensils, three work horses, six cows and calves, one Yoke of Oxen and cart and wheels, and three sows and pigs, ^ and my stock of sheep. I lend to my wife all my Household and Kitchen furniture except two beds & furniture, which I intend for my daughter Sally Solomon and my son Jeremiah Solomon together with as much of my other Household and Kitchen furniture as will make them equal to those who have married and gone off.
Item I wish my daughter Sally Solomon and my son Jeremiah Solomon (if they think Proper) to live with my wife as long as they remain single, and to be supported, and when they or either of them marry or go off, I give them one Horse, one Cow and one Calf apiece.
I wish at the death of my wife the Land to be equally divided between my two sons William Solomon and Jeremiah Solomon to them and their heirs forever.
My Will and Desire is that my Negroes hereforto mentioned and their increase after the death of my wife be divided by Lot after evaluation by two or more disinterested persons and to be Equally divided between my children as follows, Goodwyn Solomon, Luke Solomon, Bennett Solomon, Eliza Judd, Dica Hall, Sally Solomon, William Solomon, Jinny Lewis, and Jeremiah Solomon, to them and their heirs forever.
Item, I give unto my son Jordon Solomon a negroe boy now in his possession by the name of Dick to him and his heirs forever.
Item I wish for my present crop and stock which I have ^ not left my wife after she takes her support, as before mentioned to be sold at the expiration of the year on twelve months credit and the money arising there from to go to the discharge of my just debts.
Item It's my Will and Desire at the Death of my Wife for all my stock of every kind, Household and Kitchen furniture and plantation utensils to be sold on twelve months credit and the money arising there from to be Equally divided between the whole of my children to them and their heirs forever.
Item I apppoint my beloved wife and my sons Luke Solomon and Jeremiah Solomon my Executors to this my Last Will and Testament.
Lastly, it's my will that if either my children should decend from this my Last Will and Testament or in other words, bring on a Lawsuit they shall have been cut off with 5 shillings.
16 April 1814 William Solomon (seal)
Signed Sealed and Acknowledge in presence of
John Perry
Chas. Deberum (jurat)
J Denson (jurat)
In the estate records, on December 9, 1814, the property of William Solomon was put up for sale by this two sons, Jeremiah and Luke Solomon. Sons, sons-in-law, other relatives and persons of interest or involvement with the family are highligted.
Buyers were Jordan Denson, John Emery, Ezekial Fuller, James K. Goodloe, Jesse Gordon, Simon Green, Richard Hall, Benjamin Hawkings, John Huckaby, Elijah Jones, Capt. John Perry, Jeremiah Solomon, Luke Solomon.
Three years later, on Jan 1817, there was another Estate sale after the death of Deanna Gordon Solomon, who outlived her husband by 3 years. Among the buyers were: William Judd, Riall Pinnell, Luke Solomon, Willilam P. Williams, Stephen Davis, Jesse Gordon, Hicks Wynne, Guilford Lewis, Alexander Falconer, John Huckabey, Jeremiah Solomon, William Waddle.
On March 1, 1818 a Division of the Negroes, per William Solomon's wishes, after the death of Deanna, was performed.
Richard Hall, in lieu of his wife, Dica, drew Lucy and Patt.
William Solomon, Jr. drew Rachel.
Guilford Lewis, in lieuof his wife Jane (Jinny) drew Robin
Bennett Solomon excr drew China
William Judd, in lieu of wife Eliza, drew Mary
Goodwin Solomon drew Anaky
William Solomon, in lieu of his wife Sally, drew Sam (Sally Solomon had married a cousin named William Solomon in the years following her father's death).
Luke Solomon drew Sylvia
Jeremiah Solomon drew Sylvia.
There was an addendum, or an inquiry, by a J.S. Solomon, if anything had been left for Sally Solomon, the widow of Lewis Solomon, Lewis being the brother of William Solomon, deceased. This cousin had written, "The old Jentleman (sic) died some 10 or 12 years ago....do not recollect his given name but he had 1 son Elijah & 1 son Lewis & 1 son James...only James still living in Franklin County." from Loose Estate Papers Volume II, Franklin County, NC.
James Solomon, the son of Lewis and Sally Solomon, and a nephew of William Solomon II, who married Deanna Gordon, wrote his Will on September 7, 1822. He seems to have managed to hang on about four years longer than the illness or disability that prompted him to write a will in the first place predicted. His Will was probated in the March Term of Court of Franklin County in the year 1826. He mentions a wife, Elizabeth, and children, James Jr., Rebecca (spelled Rebecker), Lucy, (Lewceey), Elijah, (Eligah), Lewis, Betsy, Eatha and Amos Solomon.
As all but the one son, James, of Lewis Solomon Jr had "gone off", as William had put it in his Will, looking for greener pastures, so it was with Williams own sons. Only the youngest, Jeremiah, remained in Franklin County. His own Will was probated there in 1852.
Jeremiah Solomon had written his will on June 14, 1852 and his death must have been imminent, as it was probated in the fall term of court in September of that year. He named his children Levenia Powel, Josiah B. Solomon, son William and a wife, but not named.
So, the Solomon family that remained in Franklin County were descendants of either Jeremiah or his cousin, James.
The others, like dandelion fluff in a strong wind, took to the paths west and south, looking for a paradise of their own.
Three Brothers, William III, Bennett and Goodwin ended up in Montgomery County, NC, near the end of the Yadkin River.