Sarah (McCree) Russell Alexander, Cabarrus Co., NC
I'm going to post this in the hope that someone may be able to help.
Sarah McCree (1777-1855) was born in Cabarrus Co., NC, supposedly the daughter of a William McCree (I know nothing of him). In 1797 (Cabarrus Co. marriage records), she married William Russell by whom she had one child, Dr. William James Russell (1799-1872), supposedly born posthumously, who went to Gwinnett County, GA, in 1823. In 1808 (Cabarrus Co. marriage records), Sarah (McCree) Russell remarried to Major John Alexander (1755-1830) of the Fairview Presbyterian Church congregation of lower Greenville County, SC, as his second wife (I have his complete history), by whom she had children, and they went to Gwinnett County, GA. I can't find the common link as to how they met.
There was the family of James and Sarah (Kelso) Means of Union County, SC, whose children included Jane M. Means, born ca. 1804. She married a Mr. McCree of NC and had two children, Sarah McCree (1829-1859) and Moses W. McCree (1831-1855). Due to the 1839 will of James Means of Union County, SC, I know that both parents of Sarah and Moses W. McCree were dead. I found the 1837 intestate of a William S. McCree in Cabarrus County, NC, which names only his widow, Jane, and she was still alive in 1838, but there were children because she was given only 1/3 of the property. This William S. and Jane McCree certainly appear to be the parents of Sarah and Moses W. McCree, considering that Sarah stated on the Spartanburg, SC, 1850 census that she was born in NC.
Sarah and Moses W. McCree became the wards of their maternal uncle, James K. Means of Spartanburg County, SC. From an 1848 letter I have is mentioned that Sarah McCree visited Gwinnett County, GA, for a week and stayed at the home of Dr. William James Russell whose children were her cousins. It also stated that she visited her grandmother while there. Her maternal grandmother, Sarah (Kelso) Means, had been dead for years at that time, so it had to be her McCree grandmother whom she was visiting, possibly remarried with another surname. The only person I can suspect as being that grandmother was Sarah (McCree) Russell Alexander, but that would mean that she had an illegitimate son who took the McCree name (William S. McCree??).
The McCree name has been variously recorded as McRee, McRea, and even McKee. In fact, in an article about Dr. William James Russell in Gwinnett County, GA, his mother was named as Sarah "McKee." I mention this because I have some basic information on a James and John McKee living in the Fairforest area of Union County, SC, in 1795. I have no idea who they were, only that they were Presbyterians.
The Dr. William James Russell article stated that his mother was a daughter of William "McKee" whose father had emigrated from Scotland to PA and then to NC. Additionally, it stated that Dr. Russell's great-grandfather (Russell) emigrated from England to Philadelphia, PA, and from there his grandfather, James Russell, moved to Cabarrus County, NC, "near the close of the Revolutionary War."
I am of no kinship to any of these people, instead a historical writer and need information for footnotes in a book-in-progress.
If anyone can add anything to this confusion, I would appreciate it.
Bob Stevens
Darlington, SC
[email protected]
More Replies:
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Re: Sarah (McCree) Russell Alexander, Cabarrus Co., NC
linda mckee 4/19/05
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Re: Sarah (McCree) Russell Alexander, Cabarrus Co., NC
Robert J. Stevens 4/19/05
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Re: Sarah (McCree) Russell Alexander, Cabarrus Co., NC