William P Cook Witness on Rutherford Co TN Deeds.1817

My attempt at transcribing two deeds on which William P Cook was a witness.

Do not know for sure if he is THE William P Cook that married Betsy Harrison(Franklin Co NC 1806) so will need further research but I do recognize Green Hill who was from the same North Carolina area as the Cook(e) family.

Rutherford Co TN Deed Book K Page 506 

No. 515 Matthew Johnson To Larkin Johnson Deed 30 Acres

This indenture made this 25th day of July in the year of Our Lord 1816 between Matthew Johnson of the county of Rutherford and state of Tennessee of the one part and Larkin Johnson of the same county and State Aforesaid of the other part witnessed that In consideration of the sum of $150 to him in hand paid the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged and bargained and sold and confirmed to the said Larkin Johnson a certain tract or parcel of land containing 30 Acres be the same more or less lying and being in the state and County aforesaid on the Waters of Christmas Creek a part of a 640 acres granted by the state aforesaid to Green Hill and by Green Hill to William Loftin and from the said Loftin to Samuel Hand and from Samuel Hand to Matthew Johnson. Beginning at a rock the southwest corner of James Johnson's 20 acres tract running thence 71 poles to a Sugar Tree on James Higgins East boundary line of his 47 acre tract thence North 66 poles and a half to an elm and Hickory thence East 70 poles to a stake and Dogwood then South to the beginning Rock to have and to hold the above tract and parcel of land with the appurtenances to him the said Larkin Johnson his heirs and assignees forever and the said Matthew Johnson doth bind himself to his heirs and assigns forever to warrant and defend the above recited tract of land with all the appurtenances and hereditaments there unto belonging or in any were appertaining to him the said Larkin Johnson his heirs and assigns forever In witness where of I hereunto set my hand and seal this day and date above written Signed and Sealed Delivered
Ack'd Matthew Johnson (Seal)
In Presents(sic) of
William Wear
William P Cook


State of Tennessee
Rutherford County Court January Term 1817
I Blackman Coleman Clerk of the Court of Pleas and Quarter Session of the County aforesaid do certify that Matthew Johnson a part to the foregoing deed of conveyance came in to open court at the above term and duly acknowledged the same to be his act and deed for the purpose therein mentioned and ordered to be registered

Attest Blackman Coleman Clerk
Rutherford County Court
21st of May 1817


Rutherford Co TN Deed Book K Page 507 

No. 516 Matthew Johnson To James Johnson

This indenture made this 25th day of July 1816 between Matthew Johnson of the one part and James Johnson of the other part both of the county of Rutherford and State of Tennessee witnesseth that the said Matthew Johnson for and in consideration of hundred and fifty dollars to him in hand paid by the said James Johnson the receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged hath bargained sold and delivered and by the presents do bargain sell and deliver to the said James Johnson a certain tract or parcel of land lying and being in the county and state aforesaid on the water of Christmas Creek a branch of Stones River beginning at a stake at the North East Corner of a ten acre tract of the said James Johnson running thence west fifty poles to a rock thence north sixty six and a half poles to a stake and dogwood thence east sixty poles to a hickory thence south sixty six and half poles to the beginning containing twenty acres be it more or less to have and to hold the aforesaid tract of parcel of land with all the appurtenances and hereditaments thereunto belonging or in any wise appertaining to the said Matthew Johnson here by warrant and binds himself his heirs executor administration and assigns to warrant and forever defend to the said James his heirs and assignees the aforesaid tract of land and bargained premises give under my hand and signed, seal and delivered the day and date above written.

In the presents(sic) of
Wm Wair
William P Cook

State of Tennessee
Rutherford County Court January Term 1817
I Blackman Coleman Clerk of the Court of Pleas and
Quarter Session of the County aforesaid do certify that Mathew
Johnson a party to the within deed of conveyance came into open court at the above term and  acknowledged the same to be his act and deed the same was ordered to be registered

Blackman Coleman Clerk
Rutherford County Court
21st May 1817
Delivered to Jas Johnson 4 Nov 1820

Source:
"Rutherford County, Deeds 1804-1964; Trust deeds 1797-1963; General indexes," images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS4H-D4FY?i=489 : accessed 28 August 2023), Deeds Vols. H, K - L, 1809-1819, Film # 377684( DGS 7894573 ) image 490 of 779; imaged by Tennessee State Library & Archives, Nashville, n.d.

Link:
Green Hill Jr. NCpedia  

Wm C Cook Bedford Co. TN District 10(1846)

FamilySearch had an experimental search of the United States Wills and Deeds that they were testing some weeks back.  I hope that they will make that available again soon even if it is just the search portion and not the transcription.  While it was live I found a number of items quickly that it would have taken me months and even years to find without access to this type of search. Not knowing how long the search would be available, I collected my results in a Google Doc.   

One of the great finds was a Deed with Nathan Jackson selling 42 acres to Absalom Power in 1846. The land was located in Bedford Co TN District 10 and its description list the neighbors.

Bounded as follows
On the East by Wm C Cook
On the South by Ivy Phillips
On the West by John Scott
On the North by Samuel Jackson.

I've been having issues with the regular search at FamilySearch for awhile now and this one(while experimental) was more productive in it's time live, than the regular search function at FamilySearch has been in a long time.  This tool would be a real time saver for researchers attempting neighborhood reconstruction.  

Source:  

"Bedford County, Tennessee deed books and index, 1808-1966," images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C3QY-KSRH-F : accessed 28 August 2023), Deeds v. OO-QQ Jan 1845-May 1849, Film # 476362( DGS 8567893) image 228 of 775; imaged by Tennessee Dept. of Education, Nashville, 1965.

Don't miss out on FTDNA's Summer Sale

 

Just a reminder that FamilyTreeDNA is having their Summer sale and it's the perfect time to test.  If you have ever considered testing a patrilineal line from any your more common surnames don't miss this opportunity to purchase a YDNA test.  

If you have already tested there are also upgrades available thru the end of August.

Also on my wish list of folks I'd like to see test are any direct male line descendants of Shem Cooke.  This is the Shem Cooke who wrote his will in 1792 which was probated in 1796 Granville Co North Carolina.  There are descendants from his son James Cook that have tested but none that I have identified from his sons William, John. Shem and Claiborne.  I think my Cooke may be from son William but I don't have a known direct male from Shem's son William to compare ours too.  My Brother took the BigY700 and we have those results in the Cook(e)  & variation surname project at FTDNA.  

MyHeritage releases PhotoDater™ tool

MyHeritage released their PhotoDater™ tool today. See their announcement on their blog.

I was among those that got a preview of the tool and have been using it to see how well it does as well as to answer some questions I had about a timeframe for a photo which some claim is of my 3rd great grandparents (born in 1803 and 1808 respectively).  I have always felt that the photo was not them.  The clothes, hairstyles date the picture to about 1890 and at that time they would be in their 80s.  The folks in the picture do not appear to be in their 80s but closer to the 30/40 age range.  A number of the ancestry trees have it attached to Daniel and Comfort Hatfield Pittman's profiles.  The MyHeritage tool estimated the photo to have been from around 1890 with a high confidence level.

I knew the date of this picture of my Aunt Viola Cooke Agee. The PhotoDater™ was only off by one year.  There are limitations of course to what it can do.  This is going to be a very helpful tool to use in getting a quick idea of the time in which a picture was taken.  See the blog post announcement from MyHeritage for full details.  

James Jakes & George Jakes Land--Coffee Co TN(1860)

"Coffee Co. TN, Deeds, 1836-1901; deed index, 1836-1910"
Register of Deeds
Deed Book K pg. 471 & 472
Microfilmed by TN State Library & Archives (1969)
Deeds, v. I-K 1857-1861
Digitized at FamilySearch
FHL Film 802760 DGS 8418603
Image 577 of 626
https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS1X-3NCM?i=576
Deed for land from estate of Martha Wall registered for James Jakes & George Jakes

This indenture made and entered into this day of June in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and sixty between Hiram S Emerson Clerk of the County Court of Coffee Special Commissioner of the one part and James Jakes and George Jakes of the other parts, witnesseth that whereas the county court of Coffee County at it's January Term 1857 on the petition of the administrator and heirs at law of Martha Walls deceased decreed that the land belonging to the estate of said Martha Wall deceased be sold by the clerk of said court and whereas on the 16th day of February 1857 the said Hiram S. Emerson Clerk and said court after having first advertised the time and place of sale as required by said decree proceeded to sell the said land when W. A. C. Kendall became the purchaser at the sum of six hundred and fifty dollars, he paid Forty dollars down and executed his two notes with said James Jakes and George Jakes his securities payable in one and two years that said notes have since been fully paid off by said James Jakes and George Jakes and the said W A C Kendall transferred to the said Jakes all the rights and interest acquired by him under said purchase and directed the title to the sale land to be vested in said James Jakes and George Jakes, and the court having at the February Term of said court 1860 ordered and decreed that the said lands be conveyed to the said James Jakes and George Jakes by the Clerk of said court describing said land by metes and bounds, therefore in consideration of the premises and by virtue of decree aforesaid do hereby convey to the said James Jakes and George Jakes 2 certain tracts or parcels of land situated lying and being in the county of Coffee on the water of Rileys Creek in the 4th Civil District and bounded as follows towit, Beginning on two dogwoods and a stake the North East corner of Fifty acres entered and surveyed in the name of Thomas Jones, thence with the East boundary line of said tract South one hundred and twenty poles to two pawpaw about one and a half poles North of a large Buckeye marked W thence East passing a dogwood poplar and large Beech said to the Walter Daniels North West Corner at ten and a half poles continuing East in all seventy seven poles to a stake in said Daniels North Boundary line about three poles west of a dogwood marked as a corner thence North one hundred and thirty five poles to a stake in the South boundary line of an entry and survey for one hundred acres in the name of Barrett Adcock thence West with said south boundary line Seventy seven poles to a stake in said line thence south fifteen poles to the beginning, including and excluding fifteen acres older claims and one other tract bounded as follows to wit, Beginning on a stake about three poles west of a dogwood marked as a corner in Walter Daniels North boundary line and being also the south East corner of a fifty acre survey in the name of Martha Walls made upon entry No 1342 thence east with said Walter Daniels line seventy five and one half poles to a state in said Daniels field supposed to be on the west boundary line of W. Daniels land thence North Twenty six poles to a Black oak on the east band of a branch supposed to be said Wm Daniels North West corner thence North 27(degrees) West with a conditional line as laid off and agreed upon by and between James H Daniel and Alexr. Wall for Martha Wall one hundred and twenty four poles to a white oak the south east corner of an entry and survey in the name of Barrett Adcock for 100 acres thence West with said south boundary line of said survey eighteen poles to a state in said line, the North east Corner of said Martha Walls survey upon Entry No. 1349 for forty acres, thence south with the East boundary line of said survey one hundred and thirty five poles to the beginning.

To have and to hold the above mentioned and described land to them the said James Jakes and George Jakes the said Hiram S. Emerson Clerk and Special Commissioner as aforesaid do hereby convey to said James Jakes and George Jakes all the right title and claim of the heirs at law of Martha Wall deceased in and to said lands, hereby vesting in them the title to the same in as full and ample a manner as the said Hiram S. Emerson as clerk and Special Commissioner is capable of doing.  In testimony whereof the said Hiram S. Emerson hereunto set his hand and affixed his seal this the day and year above written

Hiram S. Emerson Clerk (seal)

& Special Commissioner