Family Group Sheet
NameJohn W. Riddle
Birthabt 1781, Wilkes Co., North Carolina
SpouseMary
Birthabt 1800, Wilkes Co., North Carolina
Children
Birth4 Apr 1825, Wilkes Co., North Carolina
Death10 Jan 1914, Sandy Hook, Elliott Co., Kentucky
Notes for John W. Riddle
This represents the father of the John W. Riddle who was mentioned in the 1914 death certificate of his son of the same name. The birthplace of both father and son was given in that death certificate as Wilkes Co., North Carolina. (Well, actually the death certificate gave the father’s name as J. W. Riddle, which theoretically could be James or Josiah or Jeremiah or many other names, but the only Riddle recorded in the 1820 or 1830 censuses of Wilkes Co. was named John. The 1840 census gave that John’s middle initial as T., not W., though.)
Notes for Mary
Some family trees on Ancestry.com give her name as Morning Star Mary Cook, but I have no idea what they base that on, so I am not entering it.
Census Notes for John W. & Mary (Family)
1830 census of Wilkes Co., North Carolina, lists on p. 507, line 6:
males: 1 under 10, 1 26-44; females: 3 under 10; 1 26-44. No slaves.
1830 census of Wilkes Co., North Carolina, lists on p. 385, line 12:
males: 3 under 5, 1 15-19, 1 40-49; females: 2 5 -9, 1 10-14, 1 15-19, 1 30-39. No slaves.
1840 census of Wilkes Co., North Carolina, lists on p. 19, in Capt. Wright’s district, Hanting Creek:
John T. Riddle, 1 male under 5, 2 males 5-9, 1 male 50-59; 1 female under 5, 1 female 5-9, 2 females 15-19, 1 female 40-49.
If this is the same household as the 1830 family, one would expect some males in the 10-14 bracket, so perhaps it is not. But the females are a good fit. The only other Riddle household in Wilkes Co. in 1840 is on the next page (20), line 38, James Riddle and wife both 20-29 with 1 son under 5 and 1 daughter under 5, who would be a good fit to be the son 15-19 in the 1830 census.
1850 census of Wilkes Co., North Carolina, enumerated 14 Sep, lists as family #1124:
John Riddle, 69, b. Rowan Co.; Polly, 65, b. Orange Co.; John, 20, b. Wilkes Co.; Polly, 17, b. Wilkes Co., Milly, 15, b. Wilkes Co.
If the above records are for the family of the John W. Riddle who died in 1914 in Elliott Co., Ky, then his age as reported in the 1860 through 1910 censuses and on his death certificate are incorrect, since they would suggest he should be 15 in 1840 and 25 in 1850. The 1900 and 1910 censuses are also consistent that he and Susan were married about 1847.
I cannot, however, find any 1850 census record for a John Riddle born ca 1825 in N.C. with a wife Susan (or Lucinda), so it is possible that the number of years married and all of his age records were reported too high. The records are exceptionally consistent, so he may have decided to represent himself as older.
It is possible that he is this John Riddle in the 1850 and 1860 censuses of Yancey Co., North Carolina:
Several family trees on Ancestry.com appear to make that assumption. (They do not link to censuses, but they report that the father of the Elliott Co. John W. Riddle died in Yancey Co., North Carolina between 1860 and 1870.)
However, the above records are probably for a different John Riddle. The primary counter-evidence is that the Yancey Co. John Riddle’s son John was born ca 1832 and was listed as single in 1850, whereas the census and death certificate records for the John W. Riddle who died in Elliott Co. are consistent that he was born in 1825, and the 1900 and 1910 censuses state that he had been married to Susan since about 1847.
males: 1 under 10, 1 26-44; females: 3 under 10; 1 26-44. No slaves.
1830 census of Wilkes Co., North Carolina, lists on p. 385, line 12:
males: 3 under 5, 1 15-19, 1 40-49; females: 2 5 -9, 1 10-14, 1 15-19, 1 30-39. No slaves.
1840 census of Wilkes Co., North Carolina, lists on p. 19, in Capt. Wright’s district, Hanting Creek:
John T. Riddle, 1 male under 5, 2 males 5-9, 1 male 50-59; 1 female under 5, 1 female 5-9, 2 females 15-19, 1 female 40-49.
If this is the same household as the 1830 family, one would expect some males in the 10-14 bracket, so perhaps it is not. But the females are a good fit. The only other Riddle household in Wilkes Co. in 1840 is on the next page (20), line 38, James Riddle and wife both 20-29 with 1 son under 5 and 1 daughter under 5, who would be a good fit to be the son 15-19 in the 1830 census.
1850 census of Wilkes Co., North Carolina, enumerated 14 Sep, lists as family #1124:
John Riddle, 69, b. Rowan Co.; Polly, 65, b. Orange Co.; John, 20, b. Wilkes Co.; Polly, 17, b. Wilkes Co., Milly, 15, b. Wilkes Co.
If the above records are for the family of the John W. Riddle who died in 1914 in Elliott Co., Ky, then his age as reported in the 1860 through 1910 censuses and on his death certificate are incorrect, since they would suggest he should be 15 in 1840 and 25 in 1850. The 1900 and 1910 censuses are also consistent that he and Susan were married about 1847.
I cannot, however, find any 1850 census record for a John Riddle born ca 1825 in N.C. with a wife Susan (or Lucinda), so it is possible that the number of years married and all of his age records were reported too high. The records are exceptionally consistent, so he may have decided to represent himself as older.
It is possible that he is this John Riddle in the 1850 and 1860 censuses of Yancey Co., North Carolina:
Several family trees on Ancestry.com appear to make that assumption. (They do not link to censuses, but they report that the father of the Elliott Co. John W. Riddle died in Yancey Co., North Carolina between 1860 and 1870.)
However, the above records are probably for a different John Riddle. The primary counter-evidence is that the Yancey Co. John Riddle’s son John was born ca 1832 and was listed as single in 1850, whereas the census and death certificate records for the John W. Riddle who died in Elliott Co. are consistent that he was born in 1825, and the 1900 and 1910 censuses state that he had been married to Susan since about 1847.
