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From: "Diana M Williams" < >
Subject: [BOZEMAN-L] Mordecai-Ralph
Date: Sat, 24 Oct 1998 15:16:09 -0500

To those interested in Mordecai,
I want to pick up a line from Nancy and Emma and say I am really
confused now. Cousins do not think you are alone.

We all must keep our minds focused upon original documents. These are
items which are generated at the actual time of the event, i.e. marriage
records, deeds, wills, tax lists, court documents of all kinds. These are
called primary documents. I am not sure of the exact definition of
secondary documents, or of how many layers of documents can be considered of
value. I do not know if "Sketches" is considered secondary or lower.

I have always considered Mordecai and his children to be a KEY element
in linking together the family. Starting with "Sketches", he is called a
native of NC, b. c. 1735, and then placed in Darlington Co., SC with only 3
sons being credited to him by whoever was the correspondent of Rev. Joseph
Bozeman. This person must have been a descendant of son James who mar.
Elizabeth Flowers.
The other two sons were Peter b. c. 1758 and John b. c. 1760.
NOTE: The errors that I have found in "Sketches" almost entirely relate
to dates and so these must be taken as very generalized.

"Sketches" gives Capt. Peter Bozeman, b. 1817, a grandfather named Peter
and linked him to SC, so I was ready to say this was the Peter son of
Mordecai.
Because Capt. Peter's father was named Meady Gee Bozeman, I felt this linked
Mordecai to James of Edgecombe who named his son Meady.

Now my confusion is with Ralph Bozeman. Barbara Helmes has given us a
great abstract from the Rev. War pension application of a Ralph Bozeman. A
Rev. War pension application, while not generated at the time of the event,
i.e. the Rev. War, nonetheless is the actual voice of this Ralph Bozeman
telling us of his life. For this reason it is a very important document.

I had been told that Ralph Bozeman was b. in Bladen Co NC, but had not
known the source of this data. Now we hear Ralph say it in his application.
He also says he was born in 1760. This corresponds with the statement that
he is, in 1838, a 79 year old.

Going back to the Edgecombe Co. Court Minutes of 1764, we read that
Ralph Bozeman, the son of Elizabeth, is aged 16, i.e. born in 1749. This is
a ten year difference. Since the Court Minutes of 1764 are primary
documents, they have to have "some" truth. There are a number of court
documents that were generated at this time in 1764, I do not have them all
to hand. They give Elizabeth children named Ralph, John, Peter, Paul and
Mary. I do not think there was a James.

Barbara goes on to say that SC Militia records show John, Peter, Paul,
Mordecai and a 'ringer' named Phillip Bozeman. Who is he?

My confusion is that how can there be two parallel families with
children named Ralph, John, Peter and Paul?

I had built up a great Fantasy scenario about Elizabeth. I did and
may still think she was the legitimate wife of Mordecai. I think they
married in the area of either Bertie or Edgecombe Co NC and perhaps moved to
Bladen where they would have had a relationship with the family of Samuel
and Anne. When Modecai told Elizabeth that he wanted to pack up and move to
SC, she rebelled and said she did not want to leave all the family and
friends she had ever known and go off to the wilderness. Somehow, she
gathered up her children and made it back to Edgecombe where James and the
other relatives must have told her to return to her husband. She then
appealed to the court.
At that time there was no system to take care of indigent women with
children who were also married to a man in another Colony. The only
resource available would have been the Bastardy Court. She may have told
herself she would do anything possible to avoid going to SC (no offence
intended, I have never been there myself). In any case, a Court's
language, calling her children base born, may have only been a legal
necessity and not the truth. In time, she reconciled and rejoined her
husband and moved to SC.
As far as this case is concerned, I think it is very important to
find out the exact jurisdiction of this court, how it is defined and what
charges it can undertake. Would it be in accordance with English Law or
what?

Now this does not work because Ralph of SC says he was not born until
1760.
So are we left with two Ralphs or what? Could two Ralphs have been in SC?
I do not expect an answer, but it is a very important issue.

A clue pops up here. Ralph's pension says his father's house burned in
Charleston in 1794. Charleston has great records. Deed records should show
a Bozeman, not named Ralph, buying property in Charleston. If there is only
one, then he is Ralph's father? The above statement does not mean that the
father was necessarily alive in 1794. The house could have been occupied
by a widow or other family and just been the site where the Bible record
Ralph needed to verify his pension was lost. Anyway, Who Is This Ralph's
Father?

The last part of Barbara's post is equally, or more important but I
will discuss it later.
Diana Williams

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• [BOZEMAN-L] Mordecai-Ralph by "Diana M Williams" < >