Linked2Ancestors@gmail.

com
587 East 3600 North
North Ogden, Utah 84414
Phone 801-732-0447

Patricia M cIntyre
Linked2Ancestors LLC
Professional Genealogist
& Consultant

DATE:

July 2016

REPORT TO:

Nancy Todd

REPORT TITLE:

A Father for William Todd, Jr.

OBJECTIVE:

To document the father of William Todd, Jr. who was born in 1816 in
Tennessee.

REPOSITORY:

Salt Lake Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah, and other
personal and on-line resources as needed.

AUTHORIZATION: 10 hours
BACKGROUND:

Many hours, if not years, worth of documentation was shared by the

client concerning both William Todd, Jr. and his suspected father,
James Todd. Previous research has not been able to verify any concrete
relationship between William Todd, Jr. and his parents, particularly his
father.

ASSOCIATES,

Todd, Tod, Toad, Tode, Tood, Vaser/Vasper, William H. Sherrod.

VARIATIONS OF
SURNAME:
____________________

Nancy Todd - A Father for Willia m Todd, Jr.

Patricia McIntyre - Linked2Ance stors LLC

SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

The father of William Todd, Jr. was not verified during this research session. A large
variety of sources were searched. Both books and microfilms were studied. Early tax records
and census records were utilized to locate the potential fathers, of which there seem to be
quite a number. Relationships, especially with James Todd's previously documented son,
Ransom, were considered to try to link William to a family. The search was also extended to
Rutherford County, Tennessee, where many with the Todd surname lived before the creation
of Cannon County in 1836.
James Todd still has many aspects of his life that point toward him as the father of
William Todd, Jr., such as:

William Todd bought land very close to others in the James Todd family - both
prospective siblings and the father.

James Todd and William Todd lived in the same community as shown by the Cannon
County Court Minutes.

The 1820 United States Census for then Rutherford County revealed that James Todd
had four males who were 10 years old or younger in his household. These boys may
have been Thomas Lawson Todd, Alexander Frazier Todd, James Todd, Jr., and
William Todd. None of those young men were in the household at the time of the
1830 census.

Naming patterns exist when comparing the James Todd family and the children of
William Todd. William named his first son James Cal. He also named a son Ransom,
who may have been named after one of his possible siblings.

William Todd migrated with, or close to the same time as, Ransom Todd, one of
James Todd's previously documented sons. Documents provide evidence that they had
a lifelong relationship.

When William Todd was enumerated in the 1880 United States Federal Census, the
census taker noted that his father was born in North Carolina and his mother was born
in Virginia. These are the same responses that were given by James and Jane Todd in
both the 1850 and 1860 census enumerations. James Todd was reportedly born in
North Carolina and Jane Todd in Virginia.

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Nancy Todd - A Father for Willia m Todd, Jr.

Patricia McIntyre - Linked2Ance stors LLC

The conflict lies in the fact that other potential fathers for William Todd have some of the
same characteristics.
At the end of the report is a section titled, "Future Research Recommendations."
These bullet points are suggestions of areas where future research could be pursued. They
were discovered while the research for this session was in progress. The recommendations
could not be accomplished with the time allotted but do have value. Please be sure to also
review the Document and Source Calendar in the appendix. It lists all resources used,
whether they contained desired results, and where they were located. Each document was
given a number which was noted in the footnotes, in the calendar, and on the document itself.

A FATHER FOR W ILLIAM TODD, JR.

ANALYSIS OF PROBLEM

Much research has already been done to try to solve the question of who was the
father of William Todd. This particular William Todd was born about 1816 in Tennessee and
married Sarah Ewell on 21 June 1839 in Cannon County, Tennessee. 1 He sometimes was
distinguished from others by the use of "Jr." at the end of his name. This, however, during
this time period, did not necessarily mean that his father was also a William. It may have
merely been a designation to separate him from others with the same name.
Many have thought the father of William Todd to be James Todd of Cannon County,
Tennessee, but no definite proof has yet been shown. James did live in the same area, was the
right age to be a father to William, and had quite a large family, which, according to previous
research, has a birth year gap which would accommodate William's year of birth.
Time was spent during this research session cataloging all of the information supplied
by the client. The events were verified, studied, and added to a timeline to assess migration
patterns and the location of any records not yet utilized. 2 Vital records, such as birth and
death records, may not be available in William Todd's case, but by performing reasonably
1
2

License and certificate of marriage supplied by client and verified during research.
See Appendix at end of report.
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exhaustive research, indirect evidence may be found to substantiate William Todd's father.
Much like the pieces of a puzzle, if the indirect evidence found all agrees and any conflicts
that emerge can be resolved, then confidence can be obtained. This research session will try
to find the direct or indirect evidence needed to either prove or disprove the father of
William Todd.
AVAILABILITY OF VITAL RECORDS

Both William and Sarah Todd seem to vanish after the 1880 United States Federal
Census. No death or probate records have been located for either of the couple. In 1880,
William was enumerated as the 62-year-old husband to Sarah whose occupation was
"teaming."3 This would imply hauling goods or materials used in the lead mining industry
that predominated in the area.4 They lived on Center Street in Granby, Newton County,
Missouri with their 14-year-old daughter, Sarah E., and three boarders who seem to have no
relationship to the Todd family. Renting out rooms in the home would have been another
source of income.
Without a death or birth record for William Todd and no parents named on the
marriage certificate and license to marry Sarah Ewell, the place of birth was considered. The
marriage record did help to place the couple in Cannon County, Tennessee in 1839.
CANNON COUNTY, TENNESSEE RESOURCES

Cannon County was created on 31 January 1836 from Warren, Coffee, Wilson, and
Rutherford Counties.5 There was a courthouse fire in 1934 and many records were lost or
damaged. The microfilm and books concerning Cannon County, Tennessee that are in the
collections at the Salt Lake Family History Library were searched. A transcription of a Todd

1880 United States Federal Census for Granby, Newton, Missouri supplied by the client.
Rootsweb > The Early History of Granby, Missouri >
http://freepages.history.rootsweb .ancestry.co m/~cappscreek/g ranbyh istory.ht ml .
5 FamilySearch.o rg > Wiki > United States > Tennessee > Cannon County > Cannon County Tennessee
History, https://familysearch .o rg/wiki/en/ Cannon_ County,_Tenn essee.
4

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Family Bible was scanned.6 It did not pertain to this particular family, but may be valuable to
the client at a later date or on a different line.
The most significant find in the Cannon County, Tennessee SLFHL collection was
transcripts and originals of the Cannon County Court Minute Books. The books started with
the creation of the county and extend to 1902. Bonds, some probate, road work, men who are
elected to offices, and other court entries are contained in these books. The first volume
(1836-1841) was examined, but the time allotted did not permit further inspection. The Todd
family was quite active in their community. The most significant mention of William Todd,
in the first volume, was during the process of realigning the district boundaries. The dividing
line between the second and third districts was changed with "the ridge so as to include
William Todd and Gideon Duke."7 If this is the
correct William Todd, this took place just days after
his marriage to Sarah Ewell and he had deeds to more
land than the 35 acre parcel he bought in 1848 in
District 4.
RUTHERFORD COUNTY, TENNESSEE

As was just mentioned, in 1848, William

Todd, Jr. bought land on Carson's Fork in District 4,
Cannon County.8 The James Todd family also lived in
District 4 in 1850.9 This area was just north of

Figure 1-Cannon County in 1882 or 1888.

Bradyville, very near the Rutherford-Cannon County line.10 Since the family resided on the
west side of what became Cannon County in 1836, it was likely that some of the early
records about them would be located in Rutherford County.
Tax records for Rutherford County were on microfilm at the SLFHL. The years
available are quite scattered. District 13 had extant early records - 1809-1813, 1867, and
6

U.S. Works Progress Administration [WPA], Tennessee, Records of Cannon County, Bible, Family, and
Tombstone Record, typescript, p. 4-5; FHL microfilm 24,608, Item 1. Document #1a-c.
7 FamilySearch > Tennessee Probate Court Books, 1795-1927 > Cannon > Minutes, 1836-1841, Vol. A >
image 206 of 294, William Todd. Document #2.
8 Knowledge of deed supplied by client.
9 1850 United States Federal Census for James Todd in Cannon County, TN supplied by client.
10 Map of Cannon County from www.My Genealogy Hound.co m by Rand, McNally & Co. 1882, 1888.
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1871.11 All of the other tax books are for the late 1800's into the 1900's. Using the tax lists
which would be the most useful for this research objective, Chart 1 was constructed so that
the data could be viewed in a relatively easy manner.

Chart 1 - Rutherford County, TN Tax Lists

Years 1809-1813 for Todd Surname
Name

Year
1809
1810
1811 (2 tracts)
1812
1813
1809
1810
1811
1812
1813
1811

Acreage
52
52
74
52
52
0
30
30
30
90
0

Poll Tax
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1

Benjamin Todd, Jr.

1811
1812
1813

0
0
40

1
1
1

Robert Todd

1811
1813

0
0

1
1

Benjamin Todd, Sr.

1811
1813

40
40

0
0

James B. Todd

1811

Reuben Todd

1812
1813

0
0

1
1

James Todd

1812
1813

0
0

1
1

Jesse Todd

1813

40

William Todd

Aaron Todd

Edmund Todd

Poll tax was a tax enacted for those who were able to vote. In Tennessee, during this time
period, the free males who were 21 years of age and older had to pay a poll tax.12 Once the
man turned 50 years old, he no longer had to pay. There were a few other groups who were
not required to pay, such as ministers, men wounded in military service, and the deaf or
blind.

11

Rutherford County Tax Books, District 13, 1-25 1809-1813; FHL microfilm 431,395.
Tennessee State Library and Archives > Library and Archives > History and Genealogy > County and
Municipal Records > Tax Research > Tennessee Taxation Information and Chart, 1796-1899,
http://share.tn.gov/tsla/history/taxat ion.pd f.
12

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Nancy Todd - A Father for Willia m Todd, Jr.

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From this chart, it can be ascertained that Benjamin Todd, Sr. was most likely over
the age of 50. The men with one poll and no land were probably young and either still living
with their family or out on their own working. It is not known from the tax record if James B.
Todd and James Todd are the same person. This does fit the depiction of the James who may
be William's father as he was born in 1788 and married between 1810 and 1812. In all
honesty though, most of the other men on this list could be his father also.
A transcript of the 1849 tax list for Rutherford County showed a William Todd, Jr.
with his contemporaries as displayed in Chart 2 below:

Chart 2 - Rutherford County Tax List

1849 for Todd Surname 13
District & Area

Name

Acres, Value, and/or

Slaves

Poll Tax

7-Wilkinson Cross
Roads

James Todd

Jackson Todd

13-Murfreesboro

Todd & Barclay

18-Fox Camp

Frank Todd
J.R. Todd

0
town lots ($700); 2 slaves
($800)
0
0

19-McCracklins

Anderton Todd

100 acres ($225)

Robert Todd

84 acres ($300)
464 acres ($1800); 6 slaves
($2400)
0
0
0
0
147 acres ($600)

230 acres ($1200)

45 acres ($350); value of
lots (15)
115 acres ($700); 1 slave
($650); other property
($434)
188 acres ($500)

William Todd, Sr.

23-Youree's

Levy Todd
William Todd, Jr.
Walker Todd
James A. Todd
Benjamin Todd
Fealton Todd
Fealton Todd,
Adm.

24-Big Spring
Aaron Todd
Reuben Todd

13

Rutherford County, Tennessee, Tax List, 1849; FHL microfilm 24,808, item 3.

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0
1
1

0
1
1
1
1
1

0
0
0

Nancy Todd - A Father for Willia m Todd, Jr.

Patricia McIntyre - Linked2Ance stors LLC

Several thoughts can be gathered from Chart 2.

First, it must be remembered that this was after Cannon County was created, so those
who were on the eastern side of Rutherford County would now be paying their taxes
in Cannon County.

The two men with the name of James Todd paying taxes in Rutherford County in
1849 could not be the James Todd who may be the father of William Todd, Jr. They
are both paying a poll tax which means that they are between the ages of 21 and 50.
James Todd of Cannon County would have been about 61 years old, so he would not
have been paying a poll tax.

This particular William Todd, Jr. was not likely the William Todd, Jr. who bought
land in 1848 in Cannon County and married Sarah Ewell. Men did, however, pay
taxes in multiple counties if they owned land in multiple locations. When consulting
the marriage records for Rutherford County, William Todd married Sarah Davis on 12
November 1842.14 The William Todd, Jr., who paid a poll tax in 1849 in Rutherford
County was likely the same man who married Sarah Davis.

The 1820 United States Federal Census enumeration was consulted to see what
possible fathers were in the area of Rutherford County, Tennessee, during the time William
Todd would have been born.15 Out of ten men, eight of them had one tick mark or more for a
male under ten years old in their home for a total of 22 boys. Quite a number of Todd cousins
who were close to the same age! In 1830, William Todd would have been about 14 years old.
The same procedure was performed for the 1830 census, using the male 10 to 20-year-old
categories for comparison. Seventeen young Todd men were then enumerated. By 1840,
William Todd was married and lived in Cannon County that had been created four years
earlier.
By using the 1820 and 1830 United States Federal Census returns and the tax lists on
Charts 1 and 2, certain assumptions can be made.

14
15

Rutherford County, Tennessee, Marriage Records, 1838-1845; FHL microfilm 24,808, item 2, page 70.
Ancestry.com was used for the assessment of both the 1820 and 1830 United States Federal Censuses.
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Aaron Todd, Robert Todd, Reuben Todd, and William Todd all had sons the right age
to be the father of William Todd who was born in 1816. All of these men stayed in
Rutherford County after Cannon County was created.

Edmund Todd on Chart 1 was only taxed in 1811 and then not seen again on any of
the tax lists and only the 1820 census. He either migrated or died and had a reason to
not pay the poll tax.

Benjamin Todd, Jr. paid his first poll tax without owning any land in 1811. He was
probably born about 1790. He could not be the same Benjamin Todd that paid taxes in
1849 in Rutherford County, as he would have been very near 59 years old and still
paying a poll tax. The 1849 Benjamin had to be a different one. There was one of the
men named Benjamin Todd, during the 1820 and 1830 censuses, who had boys in his
family the right age for William.

The Benjamin Todd, Sr. who paid no poll tax in 1813 was likely deceased by 1849.

James Todd paying the poll tax in 1811-1813 would not be the same man paying the
poll tax in 1849. He would have been over 50 years old by that time. James, who
likely was in Cannon County after it was created, had a slot for William in 1820 but
not 1830. At the age of 14, a son could have been off working the day the enumerator
came by.

Jesse Todd had land and was paying a poll tax in 1813. He also had boys the right age
in both the 1820 and 1830 census returns.

The Tennessee State Library and Archives has shared the early tax lists for Cannon
County and Rutherford County with Ancestry.com. Previously, they were only available
outside of the library by interlibrary loan. These were consulted to try to narrow down the
candidates for William's father. The extant records that had not already been studied were for
the years 1836 and 1838 to 1839 for Cannon County and 1836 and 1837 for Rutherford
County. William Todd, if born in the second half of 1816, should be paying a poll tax in
1838. This is what was found:

A William Todd who paid a poll tax in 1836 in District 2, Cannon County, with Jesse
Todd was probably older, unless the date for William's birth has been calculated

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wrong.16 This same William paid a poll tax again in 183817 and 183918 in District 2
close by Jesse Todd who did have room in the census enumerations for a boy
William's age.

Rutherford County had an over 50-year-old William Todd paying taxes on land in
1836. The next year, a young William appeared paying only a poll tax along with two
James and a Pinkney, all paying only one poll. 19 The older William was also listed
and along with Benjamin Todd, who was likewise old enough to not be paying a poll
tax. This was the only William Todd paying only a poll tax at a time when "the"
William Todd should have been showing.

There are multiple men with the name James Todd during these years in Cannon
County in both District 2 and District 4.

So, using the early census records and tax records that are available did not point out the one
specific William Todd or his father. It did, however, make known who the possibilities were
and eliminated some of the potential patriarchs.

MIGRATION AND RANSOM TODD

When families migrated from one area to another, they most often moved in groups.
This concept was used as a research tool to try to find a family pattern and link between
possible siblings. The one Todd relative that William Todd did seem to maintain close
contact with was Ransom Todd. The client relayed that Ransom Todd, born in 1829 in
Rutherford County, Tennessee, to James and Jane Todd, was a documented son of James. If
Ransom could be proven a sibling of William, then he was also a son of James Todd.

16

Ancestry.com > Tennessee, Early Tax List Records, 1783-1895 > Cannon > 1836 > image 9 of 59, William
Todd. Document 3.
17
Ancestry.com > Tennessee, Early Tax List Records, 1783-1895 > Cannon > 1838 > image 6 of 25, William
Todd. Document 4.
18
Ancestry.com > Tennessee, Early Tax List Records, 1783-1895 > Cannon > 1839 > image 6 of 25, William
Todd. Document 5.
19
Ancestry.com > Tennessee, Early Tax List Records, 1783-1895 > Rutherford > 1837 > image 48 of 53,
William Todd. Document 6.

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In 1847, before leaving Tennessee, William Todd named one of his sons Ransom.
Ransom, the son of James, named one son James and another William. The two families
migrated from Tennessee to Missouri and then to Arkansas and back to Missouri, if not
together, then very close to the same time period. Even when one family was in Arkansas
and the other in Missouri, they geographically were not far from one another. For example,
in 1880, William and Sarah resided in Newton, Missouri, which is located in the southwest
corner of the state, and Ransom and Melissa lived in Benton County, Arkansas in the furthest
northwest corner of Arkansas.20
This same 1880 census, the only one found that both Ransom and William
participated in that listed the birth place of parents, does show a difference in the parentage
of the men. William Todd's parents are enumerated as his father born in North Carolina and
his mother born in Virginia. These are the same places of birth given to the enumerator by
James and Jane Todd in both the 1850 and 1860 United States Census returns. Ransom
Todd's census sheet for 1880, the first census where the parent's birth places are asked for,
related that his father was born in North Carolina and his mother was born in Kentucky. This
may be an enumerator error or the person answering the questions honestly didn't know, but
it is a piece of evidence for William being the son of James.
In the 1890 Veterans Schedule, Ransom was in Missouri and enumerated in Splitlog,
Erie Township, which was part of McDonald County. 21 This coincides with the Civil War
Draft Registration Records dated November of 1863. At that time, Ransom Todd was in
Dade County, Missouri and 35 years old.22 William Todd was 47 years old and was not
subjected to the draft as the Conscription Act set the eligibility at 20 to 45 years of age. 23
After the Civil War, both William and Ransom Todd along with James A. Todd were named
as witnesses in the 20 February 1873 approved claim by the Southern Claims Commission on
behalf of William H. Sherrod.24 All of the witnesses appear to be residents of Washington
County, Arkansas. William Todd and Ransom Todd did have a lifelong association that
20

Ancestry.com > 1880 United States Federal Census > Arkansas > Benton > Dickson > 014 > image 1 of 17,
Ransom Todd. Document 7.
21 Ancestry.com > 1890 Veterans Schedule > Missouri > McDonald > Erie > image 5 of 8, Ransom Todd.
Document 8.
22 Ancestry.com > U.S., Civil War Draft Registrations Records, 1863-1865 > Missouri > 4th > Vol 2 of 2 >
image 238 of 269, Ransom Todd. Document 9.
23 FamilySearch .o rg > Wiki > United States > U.S. Military > U.S. Civil War > Union Draft Records.
24 Fold3.com > Southern Claims Commission > Southern Claims Commission Approved Claim > Arkansas >
Washington > S > Sherrod, William H (20499) > page 7. Document 10.
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spanned many years and many miles, but no documentation was found to convey how they
were related.
FUTURE RESEARCH RECOMMENDATIONS

The following bullet points are suggestions for future research which may be used to learn
more about the father of William Todd, Jr.:

Deed abstracts were located for Cannon County. Deeds were mentioned in the
narrative connected to the Family Group Record, so this resource has been used, but it
was not known how deeply. For example, William Todd, Jr. and Milton Todd bought
land near James Todd, Sr. from the same man and on the same day. Does this have
any significance? Were there any land sales after the death of James Todd?
Rutherford County also has many deeds involving the Todd surname. A more
thorough study of the deeds and the land that pertained to the deeds may be needed.

Study the men who were found by using the tax records and the 1820 and 1830
United States Census enumerations of Rutherford and Cannon Counties to be possible
fathers to William Todd. Did they have a son named William? Was there a child in
their family born in the same time period as William Todd?

Spend more time reading the County Court books for Cannon County to see if there is
any mention of William Todd that would lead to the name of his father.

Search the records available for Warren, Coffee, and Wilson Counties which helped
to form Cannon County when it was created in 1836.

Death certificates for children of William Todd, Jr. may give a more specific place of
birth for father. This would require gathering more information about some of the
children and learning if there were death records kept at that time in the particular
state that they lived.

Patricia McIntyre
Professional Genealogist

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