Bill of Sale--Enslaved man, Lewis --Maury County Tennessee(1821)

Maury County Tennessee--Recording of Bill of Sale--Enslaved Man named Lewis

William P Cook to James Hardison

(William and James on the same page of the 1820 US Federal Census in Maury Co TN.)

Timeline
6 Feb 1821 - Transaction
20 Jan 1823 - Bill of Sale Produced in Court 
28 Jan 1823  - Ordered to be certified
24 Feb 1823 - Registered in Deed book

Witnesses
John Wilson
Sally Smithwick(likely kin of James Hardison's wife)

Sources:

Maury County Tennessee Court Minutes, Vol 6, Monday 20 January 1823, Wm P Cook to James Hardison, negro man named Lewis; image, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSKX-VQ4B-9 accessed: 14 April 2025) IGN 8151023, Image 788 of 830.

Maury County Tennessee Deeds, Deed Book, Vol K, p 98, William P Cook to James Hardison a negro man named Lewis, 24 February 1823; image, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CS4F-XG2K : accessed 14 April 2025), IGN 7896936, Image 377 of 558.

1820 US Federal Census, Maury County, Tennessee, p 99, William P Cook; Database with Images, FamilySearch(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33SQ-GYB9-SKSQ : accessed 14 April 2025), IGN 5156987 , Image 74 of 242.

How I am using Ancestry's Network Tool

I have access to the Beta of Ancestry's Network Tool.  At this point, it's only available to those with the ProTools add-on.  Since my main research block is my Cook ancestry, I've created several networks dealing with William Clifford Cook to try and pull together what I have and hopefully make some discoveries.

William Clifford Cook(1811-1882) Networks

• Purchasers at the Estate Sale of Jos S Cook 1838
• Involved in Robert Williams vs Wm Putman et al
• 1830 Bedford County TN Dist 9 Neighborhood
• W C Cook Deeds--Note Involvement Regardless of Role

Within those networks, I use the Stickies to make notes.  In the W C Cook's Deeds network, I create a Stickie for each transaction, which allows me to tag people from the network involved in each record, along with the date and location. The Stickies remind me of Trello (I have used Trello for some genealogy projects to organize my work)

I'm continuing to add people, events, and notes to the network, but the image above is a screenshot of what I have done as of this date. As I add people to the networks, I will need to research them and use the protools tree checker to merge duplicates and check for other errors.  

I've already discovered some overlap and new information because of using the network and working to learn more about the connections. When you review your notes, you can sometimes discover that you have errors, and correcting those will help to clear the picture.  

I love the ability to focus on a Network with the Tree Mapper.

Things I'd like to see as far as improving the Networks

• The ability to move, sort, and save how I view Stickies.  
• An +ADD A PERSON button at the top AND the bottom of a list
• The page view amounts(10 is the default) seem too small, which can hinder productivity (it does in other areas of the site--list of people, DNA match list, etc.)
• The SORT of the items in the Tree Mapper is done by Fact or Event type, but I'd like to be able to arrange that by date overall or at least by date under each Fact or Event.

The Networks tool is a great addition. I truly wish they would work on a Find & Replace tool for locations. That would not only help to improve Ancestry Trees but also the functionality of tools that rely on those trees, such as Thrulines and the ProTools Tree Mapper.

Consider the Weather: Factoring Weather into Family History

This week has been full of dramatic weather across the southeastern U.S., where I live. As storms rolled through, I found myself wondering how my ancestors might have dealt with similar conditions without the aid of the tools and technology we rely on today.

These days, we often receive weather alerts days in advance. Radar systems, smartphone apps, and emergency alerts give us time to prepare, evacuate, or seek shelter. But for those living in the 1800s and even into the early 20th century, storm preparedness looked very different. While they might have consulted an almanac for seasonal patterns, my ancestors largely depended on nature to warn them. They watched the skies, listened to the wind, and observed animal behavior for signs of approaching danger. When it came to tornadoes and severe storms, the best they could do was be alert and ready to take cover.

Curious to learn more, I used the Full-Text Search feature on FamilySearch.org to track down newspaper articles referencing major weather events in areas where my family lived. Even as late as the 1920s, articles show that storm preparedness was minimal—focused mostly on reaction.

One article I came across was in The Gallatin Examiner, Vol. 118, No. 10, dated March 8, 1956 (page 13), from Gallatin, Tennessee. It offers suggestions about tornado behavior and stats along with information about what to do in the event of a warning.

For more on how weather forecasting has evolved, check out the History of the National Weather Service, which provides a fascinating timeline of developments that changed how we experience and survive storms today. While many factors influenced our ancestors’ lives, weather played a significant role—and it’s one we shouldn’t overlook when researching their stories. 

See also my blog post from May 2021:  Chapel Hill Tornado Tuesday 10th May 1921 4pm