- \n
- Elijah b.~1795<\/li>\n
- Solomon b.~1796<\/li>\n
- Benjamin b.1804<\/li>\n
- Ruth b.1807<\/li>\n
- Daniel\u00a0 b.1812<\/li>\n
- Nathaniel H.\u00a0 b.1813<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
\nJohn Pettit Birth and Birthplace<\/h2>\n
John was born on September 2, 1771, to Joshua and Rachel Pettit. His birth is recorded in the family Bible of his older brother, Henry Pettit Sr.\u00a0 (More information on this Bible record can be found in this article<\/a>.) A cleaned-up excerpt of that Bible record can be seen below.<\/p>\n
![\""John](\"https:\/\/pettitresearch.com\/familyhistory\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2020\/08\/john-pettit-in-the-bible-1024x261.png\")
<\/a>“John son of Joshua and Rachel Pettit”, enhanced image from Henry Pettit family Bible.<\/p><\/div>\n
His birthplace was likely either South Carolina or Virginia.\u00a0 On March 14, 1770, his father Joshua Pettit was at the Steenbrgen Ordinary in Romney, Virginia.\u00a0 On December 21, 1773, Joshua witnessed a land transaction between the Cherokee head men and a trader named Richard Pearis in what would later become Greenville County, SC.\u00a0 John was born in between these two dates but there is no record in this 3-year span to indicate when the Pettits moved from Virginia to South Carolina.\u00a0 There is some scant evidence the location of his birth may have been South Carolina.<\/p>\n
Daniel Pettit, a man who is thought to have been his son (discussed more below), was recorded on the 1880 census in Polk Co., GA.\u00a0 The census taker recorded the birthplace of Daniel’s father (and mother) was South Carolina.\u00a0 Assuming this is accurate and assuming his father was indeed John, then John was born in South Carolina.<\/p>\n
![\"1880](\"https:\/\/pettitresearch.com\/familyhistory\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/01\/Dan-Petti-1880-Polk-Co-GA-census-1024x154.png\")
<\/a>1880 Polk Co., GA Census showing Daniel and Lovina Pettit. Daniel is believed to have been the son of John Pettit (b.1771). If this census record is accurate this would mean John was born in South Carolina.<\/p><\/div>\n
<\/p>\n
\nChildhood in the Revolutionary War Years<\/h2>\n
By September 12, 1775, little John and his family were living in South Carolina.\u00a0 John’s younger brother Nathan Pettit was born in South Carolina on this date.\u00a0 His date of birth is recorded in the family Bible as well and his place of birth is noted on several censuses.<\/p>\n
Sometime that year, old Joshua Pettit sold off a 500 acre tract of land he had acquired from the Richard Pearis\/Cherokee land deal to John Armstrong from Frederick Co., VA.\u00a0 It is not known if the Pettits ever resided on this land, but in 1776 they settled in on on Lawsons Fork of the Pacolet River in 96 District, South Carolina.\u00a0 This was according to the Revolutionary War account of Henry Pettit Sr.<\/p>\n
In July of 1776 the Cherokee massacred many of the families who lived west of the Indian Boundary.\u00a0 This was very close to home for the Pettit family.\u00a0 In response, John’s father Joshua was called up to help build a fort known as Wofford’s Fort commanded\u00a0 by Col. William Wofford.\u00a0 This fort would prove to be a valuable place of refuge for the back country families in the case of Cherokee or Tory attacks.\u00a0\u00a0 While his father Joshua Pettit was working with Col. Wofford to construct the fort, his brother Henry Pettit volunteered to serve as a substitute in some early South Carolina campaigns of Revolutionary War.\u00a0 John Pettit would have been just 4 years old when he watched his father and brother ride off to war in July of 1776.\u00a0 Over the next year, young John may have spent many a restless day under the watchful eye of his mother in this fort which had been built by his father’s hands.<\/p>\n
Just a few months later, on October 29, 1776, Rachel would give birth to John’s brother Abraham Pettit.\u00a0 His mother had her hands full.\u00a0 Abraham suffered from some sort of mental or physical ailment which caused him to need a caretaker into his adulthood.\u00a0 Thankfully, by the end of 1776 the Cherokee warriors had been subdued and fighting had tapered off in the south in general.\u00a0 Joshua and Henry soon returned home.<\/p>\n
On April 9, 1779, a younger sister was born to Joshua and Rachel Pettit who they named Rachel.\u00a0 This was the last recorded birth in this family.\u00a0 At the Pettit home to welcome her would have been her parents, Joshua and Rachel Pettit and siblings: Henry 16 y\/o, Joshua ~14 y\/o,\u00a0 Hannah ~14 y\/o, Benjamin 9 y\/o, John 7 y\/o, Nathan 3 y\/o, and Abraham 3 y\/o. (estimated ages best on current evidence<\/a>)<\/p>\n
On May 12, 1780, the British captured Charleston and the war made a violent return to the Carolina back country.\u00a0 John’s father Joshua and brother Henry again enlisted to aid the Patriot cause.\u00a0 This time they served under the command of Col. Benjamin Roebuck.\u00a0 Records indicate their service was “before and since the fall of Charleston.”\u00a0 Violent men like Banastre Tarleton and William “Bloody Bill” Cunningham murdered their way across the countryside and found several innocent victims around the Pacolet River settlement.\u00a0 Houses and fields were burned.\u00a0 Patriots were drug out of their homes and shot in front of their families.\u00a0 John Nucklos, for instance, on December 11, 1780, was murdered by Tories and his body stuffed into a hollow tree while he was on his way to a mill.\u00a0 He was a neighbor who lived nearby at Thickety Creek and Joshua Pettit had witnessed a land transaction involving him.\u00a0 Aside from the bloody scouting of Cunningham, numerous engagements and battles took place in the vicinity of Lawsons Fork.\u00a0 It would not have been unusual for the residents to hear distant gunfire as they worked in the fields.\u00a0 These must have been terrifying times for the Pettit family.<\/p>\n
On January 17, 1781, Henry Pettit and presumably his father, were at the battle of Cowpens.\u00a0 This monumental battle was only about 10 miles from where the Pettits probably resided.\u00a0 At this battle, John’s brother Henry was wounded in his thigh and returned home to recover.\u00a0 He would reenlist again in April.\u00a0 The record is not clear,\u00a0 but it seems that something may have happened to John’s father Joshua Pettit in or around the year 1782<\/a>.<\/p>\n
John Pettit would have been about 10 years old in 1782 when when Henry showed up with his fellow troops under the command of General Pickens.\u00a0 The soldiers were in need of of some beef and fodder and the Pettit family supplied it to them.<\/p>\n
In November of 1782 a war treaty was signed and the British were driven off the continent.\u00a0 Some semblance of peace returned to 96 District.\u00a0 John would have been 15 years old when, on September 15, 1786, his father was confirmed to be deceased in an audited Revolutionary War account. <\/a>His demise may have been some time earlier than this but the impact on young John would have been the same.<\/p>\n
\nTeenage Years and A New Family<\/h2>\n
If John’s father Joshua died between 1780-1786, and his mother was still alive, there would have been several small children for her to take care of in addition to the cattle and crops.\u00a0 We can only speculate, but it is possible the family may have been divided to ensure their survival.\u00a0 Mother Rachel and the younger children may have moved in with another family, perhaps the family of Joel Hembree and his (presumed) wife Hannah Pettit.\u00a0 The teen boys, on the\u00a0 other hand, could have been apprenticed out or worked as farm laborers nearby for room and board.\u00a0 At censustime in 1790 John would have been 19 years old and his brother Benjamin would have been 21.\u00a0 They were old enough to head their own households but it does not appear that they did.\u00a0 The only Pettits who materialized by name in the 1790 Spartanburg County census were brothers Henry and Joshua Jr.\u00a0 Based on the data and the known birth dates of their children, it does not seem that John, or any other sibling, was living in Henry or Joshua Jr’s household.\u00a0 John’s whereabouts during this time simply is not known.<\/p>\n
Sometime between 1790 and 1795 John would find a bride slightly younger than he.\u00a0 Evidence indicates they made their home near Peter’s Creek of the Pacolet River.\u00a0 There is nothing in the record that suggests he purchased land here until some time later.\u00a0 He perhaps was a tenant farmer living on someone else’s spread.<\/p>\n
Before 1800 three sons were born.\u00a0 These were most likely an Elijah, a Solomon, and a Benjamin. John, the family man, made his first census appearance in 1800 in Spartanburg County.\u00a0 In his house was (1) Male age 26-44, (1) Female age 16-25, and (3) Males under age 10.<\/p>\n
![\"1800](\"https:\/\/pettitresearch.com\/familyhistory\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/01\/John-in-1800-spartanburg-census-1024x539.png\")
<\/a>1800 Spartanburg Co., SC Census showing John Petitt with 3 male children under the age of 10.<\/p><\/div>\n
Neighbors include Abbott, McAbee, Ward, Wyatt — all landowners in the Peters Creek\/Pacolet area.<\/p>\n
In March of 1801 John witnessed a deed for the sale of 150 acres of his brother Henry Pettit’s land to his brother Joshua Pettit.\u00a0 In April of 1802 he appeared before Spartanburg County Justice of the Peace, John Lipscomb, and made oath he witnessed the 1801 deed between his brothers. (Spartanburg Deeds, Book F, p 219)<\/p>\n
He would have been well familiar with John Lipscomb who was the secretary for Goucher Baptist Church.\u00a0 Sometime around this time period he began attending Goucher Baptist Church where his brothers Henry and Joshua Pettit Jr were also members.\u00a0 Goucher Baptist Church was on the other side of the Pacolet a good 15 miles or more from the Peters Creek community.\u00a0 Attending the church meetings would require a fair trip on horseback from John’s home.\u00a0 The minutes indicate John was in regular attendance and made financial contributions to support the church as well.<\/p>\n
It should be mentioned that a preserved minute book from Goucher Baptist Church contains a fragment of what looks like an early membership roll which has fueled speculation that John’s wife may have been named Nancy.\u00a0 At the time, none of the children of Joshua and Rachel Pettit nor their grandchildren would have been named Nancy.\u00a0 Nevertheless, member number 30 on the list was a woman named Nancy Pettit.<\/p>\n
![\"Nancy](\"https:\/\/pettitresearch.com\/familyhistory\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/10\/Goucher-Baptist-Church-minutes-Nanacy-Pettit-Polly-Hembree-Rebecca-Pool-pettitresearch-249x300.png\")
<\/a>Nancy Pettit in Goucher Baptist Church minutes, SC<\/p><\/div>\n
Nancy is a common nickname for Anne.\u00a0 As early as 1812, Henry Pettit and his wife Ann Poole Pettit were very involved in this church.\u00a0 Ann appears in the minutes in conjunction with her husband Henry but it is always by the name “Ann Pettit”.\u00a0 The early Nancy Pettit could have been John’s wife, or she could have been Henry’s wife Ann.\u00a0 She could have also been someone else.\u00a0 There is not sufficient information to reach any conclusion at this time.\u00a0 This fragment is from the first page of the minuet book which is said to have begun in 1810 but no context as to its meaning is provided.<\/p>\n
John was again in Spartanburg County in the same Peter’s Creek neighborhood when the next census was taken in 1810.<\/p>\n
![\"1810](\"https:\/\/pettitresearch.com\/familyhistory\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/01\/John-Pettit-Jesse-Cannon-Robert-Armour-in-1810-spartanburg-census.png\")
<\/a>1810 Spartanburg Co., SC census showing John Pettit, Robert Armor, Jesse Cannon and others.<\/p><\/div>\n
John’s family had expanded to include a total of 4 male children and 2 little girls.\u00a0 His neighbors included Robert Armour, many Cannons, McAbees, Wards, and Wyatt –all landowners in the Peters Creek\/Pacolet River area.<\/p>\n
\nFarm Life on Peters Creek, Spartanburg County, SC<\/h2>\n
On January 7, 1815, John Pettit bought 222 acres “on waters of Peters Creek” from Robert Armour.\u00a0 The deed was witnessed by Enoch Ward and Sampson Sosebee.\u00a0 There is no record of land ownership for John Pettit prior to this transaction though he clearly lived in the area.<\/p>\n
The following year, John was selected to deliver a letter from Goucher Baptist Church to a sister church on the other side of the river called Buck Creek Baptist Church.\u00a0 The minutes note that the message was delivered by John to Bucks Creek Baptist Church in May of 1816.<\/p>\n
Four years later John was recorded on the 1820 Spartanburg Co., SC census.\u00a0 The same familiar neighbors were nearby with the exception of Robert Armour who had moved to Tennessee.\u00a0 In the home in 1820 were John at age 45+ and 4 young males, presumably his sons. (Note: The 1820 census counts males in the 16-26 range twice). There were also 4 young females, probably daughters, and one woman age 26-45, presumably his wife.<\/p>\n
![\"1820](\"https:\/\/pettitresearch.com\/familyhistory\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/10\/1820-spartanburg-co-sc-census-showing-John-Pettit-and-Lee-Lynder.png\")
<\/a>1820 Spartanburg Co., SC census showing John Pettit, Lee Linder and others.<\/p><\/div>\n
John was enumerated directly next to Lee Linder and several other members of the Linder family appear on the page.\u00a0 Lee Linder operated a tavern near Cannon’s Camp ground not far from Peter’s Creek.<\/p>\n
Five years later, on March 5, 1825, John entered indebtedness for the sum of $273.43 to Thomas Poole. The following year, on March 21, 1826, John Pettit was sued by Thomas Poole to collect the debt.\u00a0 John “confessed before the clerk” and judgment was issued for the full amount.<\/p>\n
![\"Thomas](\"https:\/\/pettitresearch.com\/familyhistory\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/10\/Thomas-Poole-vs-John-Pettit-Spartanburg-Co-SC-1024x483.png\")
<\/a>Thomas Poole vs John Pettit Court Case 1825-1826<\/p><\/div>\n
The Court of Common Please ordered that all of John’s property be seized and sold so that the debt could be paid to Thomas Poole.\u00a0 It is not clear what happened to avert this sale, but a note written on the record says “not levied by order of plaintiff” –meaning Thomas Poole halted the sale of John Pettit’s land.\u00a0 The administrative fee of $3.60 was paid to the county in fodder.\u00a0 Perhaps John came up with the money before the sale.\u00a0 Perhaps Thomas Poole recovered the land with a private deed or made some other arrangement with John Pettit.<\/p>\n
Regarding this, researcher George Pettett in his book Pettett and Pettit: This Family Business <\/em>noted the following:<\/p>\n
By John Pettit being named as a border owner in Thomas Poole’s 1833 purchase of 30 acres from Vincent Wyatt, agent for Robert Armour, his land evidently escaped seizure in the 1825-1826 court action.\u00a0 Yet no record has been found of John Pettit selling his Peters Creek property.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Twenty two years since my friend George Pettett made the astute observation above, the records of the transference of John Pettit’s Peters Creek land have remained elusive.<\/p>\n
After the legal excitement in 1826, John Pettit would appear in the 1830 Spartanburg Census.<\/p>\n
![\"1830](\"https:\/\/pettitresearch.com\/familyhistory\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/10\/1830-Spartanburg-Census-John-Pettit-Tillotson-Hammett-Mathis-etc-1024x572.png\")
<\/a>![\"1840](\"https:\/\/pettitresearch.com\/familyhistory\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2023\/10\/John-Pettit-Daniel-Pettit-Gabe-Rainwater-1840-Cherokee-Co-GA-1024x582.png\")
<\/a>