My Genealogy Home Page:Information about Benjamin BUTLER
Benjamin BUTLER (b. Bef. 1750, d. Bet. 1794 - 1810)
Notes for Benjamin BUTLER:
[Butler&Wheeler&Geupel.ftw]
The Butlers
The English surname Butler probably has its origin in the title “Bouteillier.” The word bouteille is French for bottle. The French-speaking English King apparently appointed his most trustworthy attendant at court to have charge of his palace as a chief steward and to offer the king the first cup of wine at official ceremonies. “Le Bouteiller” passes the title on to his children as they became known as the Butlers.
From the “Descendants of James and Phoebe Butler” by Paul T. Butler.
Frank Richardson’s research:
My research consisted of spending dozens of nights until closing time at the Latter-Day-Saints Church on the southwest side of Fort Worth. This was where I found the research of Paul T. Butler (a descendant of Levi Butler), and Ima Franks (a descendant of the Rykards). I spent hundreds of hours at the Fort Worth public library, and our travels included trips to North and South Carolina where I found information on court and land records.
Most information found by these researchers is the same; reading other people’s books is always interesting and helps find things we missed.It is also a good way to learn how to organize and present our own records.
My mother, Bertha E. Butler Richardson, said she remembered her father, James Thomas Butler, discussing the Butlers with other members of the Butler family, as to the origin of the Butlers. She only remembered that they left England for another country before coming to America, maybe Holland, she said.
I also rely on the information and accuracy of Judith Holden Dixon’s book Ancestors and Descendants of James Thomas and Mary Elizabeth Walter Butler.
BENJAMIN BUTLER
Benjamin Butler is believed by several researchers to have been the head of this particular family of Butlers in South Carolina. This supposition is made without absolute proof. It is made because all other possibilities have been ruled out. No document has been found with this Benjamin’s children, and none has been found of the parents of Aron, the proven ancestor. However, unless Aron himself was the first Butler of his family into South Carolina at an extremely young age, Benjamin seems the most likely possibility. Further research is needed here.
Sometime after 1750 there was an influx of Butlers into the Ninety-Six District of South Carolina. One group sprang up in Edgefield County and another in Newberry County. Progenitor of the Edgefield Butlers was James Butler. This family developed into one of South Carolina’s most prominent, and a great deal has been written about them. Progenitor of the Newberry Butlers was Benjamin Butler. Lyman C. Draper in his manuscripts claims that a William Butler, born in Virginia in 1759, came to South Carolina with his two brothers, Benjamin and James.
Evidence that Benjamin had his roots in Virginia is shown by an entry in the Newberry County Court Records of July 1791, which states, “A Power of Attorney from Elizabeth (probably his wife) and Benjamin Butler to James Dillard ordered that the county seal be affixed to the same sent to the state of Virginia.” This is an indication that they had some interest in the state of Virginia as late as 1791, perhaps in the sale of land or other legal transaction.
The first recorded mention of Benjamin Butler in Newberry County was in June 1789, when he served on a jury (Minutes of the County Court 1785-1798 compiled by Brent Holcomb). He served twice more after that, both times in 1793. After 1795, no other mention of a Benjamin Butler was noted in the minutes of the county court.
In the first federal census of the United States in 1790, Benjamin is listed in Newberry County with himself as head of the household, one other male over 16, and four females. The other Butlers in the neighborhood were two more Benjamins, Aron, William, Willis, and Henry.
Henry Butler and one of the other Benjamins were ruled out as part of Aron’s immediate family when Henry’s 1806 will and some land sales mentioned the said Benjamin (whose wife was named Rachael) and all but one of his other nine children. Aron was never connected by association with any of the eight children, so the assumption is made that Aron was not the ninth child of Henry.
On 14 March 1794, Benjamin [the subject of this article] deeded much (perhaps all) of his household goods and stock to Willis (Deed Book C/25). Since no money exchanged hands, this was considered a deed of gift, and the assumption is that Willis was Benjamin’s son and legatee. This transaction was witnessed by William Butler and a John Butler. On the 1790 census, Aron is shown as living between Benjamin and Willis, perhaps a clue.
Later Aron witnessed a divorce for Moses Butler. This would probably have been done for one of the family. Therefore the other male over 16 in Benjamin’s family on the 1790 census was probably Moses.
In the minutes of the Newberry County Court, it was discovered that in February 1795, four Butlers—Moses, Benjamin (possibly Benjamin, Jr.), Willis, and William—were sued separately by Wadsworth & Turpin for debts. Benjamin “confessed by letter,” and the other suits were dismissed at defendants’ costs. From various records, then, it would seem that possible members of Benjamin’s immediate family were at least Willis, Moses, William, Benjamin, Jr., and Aron.
It is difficult, because of the existence of so many Benjamins, to ascertain when the Benjamin Butler of this genealogy died. It might have been just after he deeded his goods and stock to Willis Butler. That would make sense if he were making some sort of will. However, Willis moved by 1800 to Greenville County and on the 1800 federal census, he appeared next to a Benjamin, an older man than Willis. On the same census, in Newberry County, there are still two other Benjamins in the same age category as Willis, Possibly Benjamin (son of Henry) and Benjamin, Jr. (son of Benjamin). By the 1810 census, there is only a William Butler and no Benjamin in Greenville County. Willis died in 1812.
But what of Benjamin’s parents? From where might he have originated? Taking a clue from the Power of Attorney ordered by Elizabeth and Benjamin Butler to be sent to the state of Virginia as mentioned earlier, some research has been done in that state. As of this writing, nothing has been found to prove successfully that the South Carolina Benjamin and Elizabeth did come from Virginia. However, there are indications of possibilities within the records of several Virginia counties, and these are presented here as suggestions for future research.
There is a very well-respected genealogist from South Carolina, now deceased, who left behind a great many manuscripts and files. His name was Leonardo Andrea. Many current professional genealogists consult the Andrea files when they are working on a case. Andrea’s manuscripts said he had “occasion to know” that the Butlers came to South Carolina from Prince William County, Virginia. He gave no further proof of his assertion. Prince William County was established in 1730-31 from the King George and Stafford Counties. Fauquier County was established in 1759 from Prince William.
Fauquier County seems at this time to be the most promising. There was a Benjamin Butler who was married to an Elizabeth in the correct time period there. He appeared as a witness in court for a William Crawford and was paid 100 pounds of tobacco for 4 days. Although the Court Minute Books were not dated in an exact manner, the time period was approximately 1760 (Minute Books 1759-1768, p 96). On 13 November 1764, Benjamin was bondsman for the marriage of Thomas Auberry and Ann Fletcher (Abstracts of Fauquier County, Virginia, Abstracts of Wills, Inventories and Accounts, 1759-1800 by John K. Gott). In 1769, he was a chain carrier along with John Butler at the resurvey of George Williams’ land warrant. There appears to be a probable connection between this John and Benjamin; they could have been brothers. John Butler had a son William who appeared in several Fauquier County records. By 1785, William was not living in the county. It is of note that on the 1794 South Carolina deed of gift referred to earlier in this section in which Benjamin gave Willis much of his personal property, the witnesses to this deed were John and William Butler.
On 27 August 1761, Benjamin Butler bought 70 acres of land in Fauquier County from George and Alice Williams for 54 pounds, 14 shillings, and sixpence half-penny current money (Bk 1/275). George and Alice were later shown to be the parents of his wife Elizabeth. It is not clear whether Benjamin was married or not at the time of the land sale. On 25 June 1784, the Butlers sold what was probably the same land to James Freeman, Jr., for 130 pounds (Bk 8/274). Of interest here is that when this deed of sale was proven on 21 March 1785, it was done by witnesses. This suggests that Benjamin and Elizabeth may not have been residents of Fauquier County after 1784. A possibility is that they moved to South Carolina.
George Williams’ very interesting will was entered into Will Book 2, p. 112, in 1786. He had a new wife by then, having married a widow several years earlier. He left possessions to his wife, Ann Williams; to sons Elijah, George, John, and William; to grandsons Richardson and George Williams (sons of John); to daughters Elizabeth Butler, Ann Butler (wife of John), Margaret Freeman, and Catherine Williams; to grandchildren James, George, and Ann Collins, heirs of his deceased daughter Mary Collins; to grandson George Butler (son of John); and to grandson Benjamin Butler, Junior, “if living, if otherwise, to his next younger surviving brother.” The exact wording for Elizabeth’s portion was, “I give and bequeth to my daughter Elizabeth Butler all that part of my Estate she hath already received and twenty five shillings to be paid out of my Estate by my Executors to her and her heirs forever.” The will was made 13 November 1786 and proved 25 December 1786.
There were, of course, other Benjamin Butlers in Virginia at the time period of interest. Culpeper County was established in 1748 from Orange County. A Benjamin Butler was born 7 January 1765 in Culpeper, who enlisted in the military there in 1781 under Col. James Slaughter. This Benjamin had a brother named William Butler. Neither of these men, of course, was old enough to be the father of Aron, the proven ancestor in South Carolina, but could be his brothers. This Benjamin, in a Revolutionary War pension application, said that two years after the War, he moved (in the following order) to Laurens County, South Carolina; Richmond County, Georgia; Newberry County, South Carolina, for one year; Abbeville District, South Carolina, for many years; finally, to the Tennessee counties of Davidson, Williamson, Carroll, and Henderson. His pension application, S3096, was filed 15 April 1834. The problem with this man being Aron’s brother was that he did not live in Newberry County long enough.
In Culpeper County in 1799, a Benjamin Butler was given acres from his father and mother, William and Mary Butler (U/239). This Benjamin, son of William and Mary, had brothers Joseph, Charles, Armistead, and sister Nancy who were also given land nearby. The problem here was that the deed book mentioned that Benjamin was at the time living on the Virginia land, whereas we know the Benjamin we seek to have been in South Carolina as early as 1789 when he served on a jury.
According to the land indexes of Culpeper County, there was an Aaron Butler with his wife Sarah there in 1824 through 1831. In a book by Lela Wolfe Prewitt called Sims and Butler written in 1972, Edmund Butler of Goochland County, Virginia, had as children Aaron, John, Edmond, William, a daughter married to a Watson, and Ann Lowe. Ms. Prewitt said that Aaron died in 1777 after having children Frances Puckett, Sarah Williams, John Butler, and Edmund Butler. John and Edmund moved to Culpeper County by 1791. John had William and Aaron who married Sarah Sims. Edmund went to Kentucky. The point of these paragraphs is just to show how many Benjamin and Aaron Butlers there were at the same time period.
There was some miscellaneous information found which may later provide leads. In the deed index (B/30-31) of Prince William County, a George Williams of Stafford County bought land from a John Fishback. Although somehow the date of the deed was not retained in the research notes, the earliest index of the A books contained deeds for 1732. If George Williams of Fauquier County turns out to be connected to the correct Benjamin Butler, this deed may prove valuable. Ms. Little, the Virginia researcher, reported that Benjamin Butler, who was connected to George Williams, was living in the area of the Deep Run River. Deep Run flows into the Rappahannock or Hedgeman River on the border between Fauquier and Stafford Counties where they border Culpeper County. Secondly, there was a deed dated 5 August 1748 from William Butler and Mary, his wife, of Prince William County to Joseph Butler of Westmorland County (L/72-73). In Aron Butler's Notes of this genealogy, there is a connection between Aron Butler and a William and Mary Butler of Newberry County over the estate of Stephen Lewis in 1789. Who knows where small clues of this kind will lead?
Children of Benjamin BUTLER and Elizabeth ?WILLIAMS? are:
- +Aron Butler, b. Abt. 1770, Prob Virginia, d. Abt. 1831, Macon Co., NC.