The Mercer Family page 109
Leaves of the Tree by Spears
James was born in 1713, in Norfolk Counts’, Virginia. He was the third of four Sons of Joseph and Amy Mercer. He was first married to Ann (Jones?). He moved to Currituck, North Carolina between 1735 and 1739.
In 1748 he married Sarah Simmons, daughter of Thomas and Sarah Simmons. He was living in Tyrwell District North Carolina in 1758 and at that time was in the Colonial Militia. The family was living in Halifax County North Carolina m 1766. It is not clear whether or not Tyrwell District fell in Halifax County the family moved to Wrightsboro, Georgia, Wilkes County on December 7, 1773.
At the outbreak of the Revolutionary War, James was living in Burke County Georgia, January 3, 1775.
During the hostilities, James had moved to Richmond County Georgia, February 5, 1782. In the fall of 1783, he moved back to Wilkes County and lived with his oldest son, the Reverend Silas Mercer. James was a minister of the Church of England and in all probability was also a planter. However, the Church of England sided with the King during the Revolution and, therefore, virtually fell apart in many communities. On August 11, 1786, James joined Phillips Mill Baptist Church in Washington, Georgia. His son Silas was the pastor there, and a few years later Silas’s son Jesse became the minister.
At age 77, James died in Wilkes County Georgia in 1790, and was buried on Silas’s farm, seven miles south of Washington, Georgia. Although his children most surely followed the Episcopal Church in early life, all became highly active in the Baptist faith. His eldest son, Silas, as stated, was the pastor of Phillips Mill Baptist Church, as well as a Major Chaplain, during the Revolutionary War. His son, Thomas, was also a Baptist minister in Wilkes and Hancock Counties in Georgia, and later in Amite County Mississippi. His daughter, Vashti, married a Baptist minister, the Reverend George Franklin. Two of his sons, Jacob and John, were highly active in starting new Baptist churches throughout Georgia.
The following will give chronological information on James’s activities.
Courtesy of Don Mercer, Houston, Texas.
110 Leaves of the Tree
James Mercer 1713-1790
1713
Norfolk Co., Va. — James Mercer born. (Memoir of Elder Jesse Mercer by Mallory)
Norfolk Co., Va. — James Mercer born. (Memoir of Elder Jesse Mercer by Mallory)1733Norfolk Co., Va. TithablesJoseph Messer, his son James & Negro Hannah
Norfolk Co., Va. TithablesJoseph Messer, his son James & Negro Hannah7-10-1735Norfolk Co., Va. C/M, p. 13 — The Estate of Joseph Mercer, deceased, having lodged in the office, judgments granted Richard Ball for 2# 19S 2 p, to Joseph Mercer for the sum of 2# , to William Parr 13# , to James Mercer 2# , to Nicholas Black 2# 19p and order against the Estate granted John Corphew. The Judgment bills taken for the Estate of Joseph Mercer this day returned to the office and ordered to be lodged in office.
Norfolk Co., Va. C/M, p. 13 — The Estate of Joseph Mercer, deceased, having lodged in the office, judgments granted Richard Ball for 2# 19S 2 p, to Joseph Mercer for the sum of 2# , to William Parr 13# , to James Mercer 2# , to Nicholas Black 2# 19p and order against the Estate granted John Corphew. The Judgment bills taken for the Estate of Joseph Mercer this day returned to the office and ordered to be lodged in office.6-10-1735Norfolk Co., Va. Tithables — Joseph Mercer and his brother James — 2.
Norfolk Co., Va. Tithables — Joseph Mercer and his brother James — 2.7-10-1735Norfolk Co., Va. Tithables — James Mercer.
Norfolk Co., Va. Tithables — James Mercer.2-25-1739/40Currituck Co., N.C. — Jurymen: James Mercer, Jeremiah Mercer.
Currituck Co., N.C. — Jurymen: James Mercer, Jeremiah Mercer.ca. 1738Norfolk Count); VA — James Mercer marries the first time, possibly Ann Jones, daughter of John and Ann Jones of Princess Anne Co., VA (See John Jones Will dated 9-23-1739 (B. 5, p. 419) and Edward Jones Will dated 1-21-1739/40 (B. 5, p. 476, Princess Anne Count~~ Va.).)
Norfolk Count); VA — James Mercer marries the first time, possibly Ann Jones, daughter of John and Ann Jones of Princess Anne Co., VA (See John Jones Will dated 9-23-1739 (B. 5, p. 419) and Edward Jones Will dated 1-21-1739/40 (B. 5, p. 476, Princess Anne Count~~ Va.).)10-5-1748Currituck Co., N.C. — James Mercer witnesses Will of Thomasia Stevens. (Grimes Abstracts of Will of North Carolina, p. 361).
Currituck Co., N.C. — James Mercer witnesses Will of Thomasia Stevens. (Grimes Abstracts of Will of North Carolina, p. 361).Ca. 1748Currituck Co., N.C. —James Mercer marries Sarah Simmons, daughter of Thomas and Sarah Nicholson Simmons. (Memoirs of Elder Jesse Mercer by Mallory states she was his second wife.)
Currituck Co., N.C. —James Mercer marries Sarah Simmons, daughter of Thomas and Sarah Nicholson Simmons. (Memoirs of Elder Jesse Mercer by Mallory states she was his second wife.)Feb. 1755Currituck Co., N.C. — Thomas Simmons’ Will mentions sons Thomas, Samuel, Sampson, Edom, Caleb and Asalel Simmons, daughters Many Morris, Elizabeth Muncrief and Sarah Mercer — only one cow and calf to be taken out and given to her. Wife Sarah. W: Benjamin Prescott, Benjamin Cowell and Elizabeth Cowell. (Book 9, Folio 64.) (Probated 9-1755.)
Currituck Co., N.C. — Thomas Simmons’ Will mentions sons Thomas, Samuel, Sampson, Edom, Caleb and Asalel Simmons, daughters Many Morris, Elizabeth Muncrief and Sarah Mercer — only one cow and calf to be taken out and given to her. Wife Sarah. W: Benjamin Prescott, Benjamin Cowell and Elizabeth Cowell. (Book 9, Folio 64.) (Probated 9-1755.)The Mercer Family 111
1758Tyrrell District, NC. — James Mercer and his second Cousin James Mercer were members of Captain John Woodhouse’s Company, Colonial Militia.
Tyrrell District, NC. — James Mercer and his second Cousin James Mercer were members of Captain John Woodhouse’s Company, Colonial Militia.1766-1772Halifax Co., N.C. — James Mercer Family lived next to Neighbors Wm. Green, Sr. & all went to Georgia to Together. (Wm. Green, Dr. Rev. R-4279.)
Halifax Co., N.C. — James Mercer Family lived next to Neighbors Wm. Green, Sr. & all went to Georgia to Together. (Wm. Green, Dr. Rev. R-4279.)9-6-1767Currituck Co., NC. — James and Silas Mercer, Planters Sell 100 acres to David Cook for 76# on Currituck Road Near landing on Benjamin Portwood’s fence and along James Dunlap line to an oak branch known by the name Of Tanyan, to the swamp along Michael O’Neal’s line With house. Outhouses, orchards, garden, woods and Water rites. W: Asalel Simmons, Isaac Cook, John Cowell. ~DB2—p. 10.)
Currituck Co., NC. — James and Silas Mercer, Planters Sell 100 acres to David Cook for 76# on Currituck Road Near landing on Benjamin Portwood’s fence and along James Dunlap line to an oak branch known by the name Of Tanyan, to the swamp along Michael O’Neal’s line With house. Outhouses, orchards, garden, woods and Water rites. W: Asalel Simmons, Isaac Cook, John Cowell. ~DB2—p. 10.)10-16-1773Currituck Co., NC. — Jeremiah Mercer, Sr. deeds land to Jeremiah Mercer. Jr. land given by his father Thomas Mercer on 7-8-1742 on James Mercer line. (DB 2, p. 476.)
Currituck Co., NC. — Jeremiah Mercer, Sr. deeds land to Jeremiah Mercer. Jr. land given by his father Thomas Mercer on 7-8-1742 on James Mercer line. (DB 2, p. 476.)12-7-1773Wrightsborough, Ga. — James Mercer of North Carolina , a wife, 2 sons and 5 daughters from 13 years to 3 months old — 150 acres on first branch that makes into Harden’s creek, where he is camped. (Early Records of Georgia — Wilkes County by Davidson. Vol. 1, p. 21.)
Wrightsborough, Ga. — James Mercer of North Carolina , a wife, 2 sons and 5 daughters from 13 years to 3 months old — 150 acres on first branch that makes into Harden’s creek, where he is camped. (Early Records of Georgia — Wilkes County by Davidson. Vol. 1, p. 21.)1-3-1775Burke Co., Ga. Little Ogechee Christ Church Parish - John McLean Will — Wife Elizabeth, sons John, Josiah, Andrew and Jercey McLean, daughter Elizabeth, wife of Alexander Creighton, daughter Margaret, Executor James Read. W: I. & Tabitha Baillou, James Mercer. Probated 2-20-1775.
Burke Co., Ga. Little Ogechee Christ Church Parish - John McLean Will — Wife Elizabeth, sons John, Josiah, Andrew and Jercey McLean, daughter Elizabeth, wife of Alexander Creighton, daughter Margaret, Executor James Read. W: I. & Tabitha Baillou, James Mercer. Probated 2-20-1775.2-5-1782Richmond Co., Ga. — On Tuesday, the Executive Council has ordered that his Honor the Governor be requested to order the Commissary to furnish Mr. James Mercer with fifteen bushels of corn, and that Thomas Mercer, his son, be exempt from militia duty in order to attend to the family of his father, they being in great distress. (Revolutionary Records of Georgia, Vol. II, p. 316.) Note Church of England fell apart during the Revolution, and he had no job.
Richmond Co., Ga. — On Tuesday, the Executive Council has ordered that his Honor the Governor be requested to order the Commissary to furnish Mr. James Mercer with fifteen bushels of corn, and that Thomas Mercer, his son, be exempt from militia duty in order to attend to the family of his father, they being in great distress. (Revolutionary Records of Georgia, Vol. II, p. 316.) Note Church of England fell apart during the Revolution, and he had no job.112 Leaves of the Tree
1-10-1783Richmond Co., Ga. — On Friday, the Georgia House of Assembly received a petition from a number of inhabitants of the County of Richmond (Columbia County was formed later from Richmond. the original old St. Paul’s Parish) in behalf of James Mercer and his distressed family. The petition was granted (Revolutionary Records of Georgia by Chandler, Vol. III, p. 203.)
Richmond Co., Ga. — On Friday, the Georgia House of Assembly received a petition from a number of inhabitants of the County of Richmond (Columbia County was formed later from Richmond. the original old St. Paul’s Parish) in behalf of James Mercer and his distressed family. The petition was granted (Revolutionary Records of Georgia by Chandler, Vol. III, p. 203.)Fall 1783Burke Co., Ga. — John Mercer, youngest son of James Mercer stated that his aged father and family had removed from Wilkes County and settled on Brier Creek and Silas Mercer, eldest son of James Mercer, came down the ensuing fall after his six-year absence in North Carolina and Virginia spreading the Baptist doctrine, to see about his father and his family and took them back to live on his farm in Wilkes Co., Ga. (Memoirs of Elder Jesse Mercer by Mallory)
Burke Co., Ga. — John Mercer, youngest son of James Mercer stated that his aged father and family had removed from Wilkes County and settled on Brier Creek and Silas Mercer, eldest son of James Mercer, came down the ensuing fall after his six-year absence in North Carolina and Virginia spreading the Baptist doctrine, to see about his father and his family and took them back to live on his farm in Wilkes Co., Ga. (Memoirs of Elder Jesse Mercer by Mallory)3-31-1784Wilkes Co., Ga. — James Mercer with a Certificate from Elijah Clarke prays for land in Washington Count\~ Georgia. (Georgia Roster of the Revolution by Knight. p. 18.) This is evidence that at advanced age he participated in the Revolution.
Wilkes Co., Ga. — James Mercer with a Certificate from Elijah Clarke prays for land in Washington Count\~ Georgia. (Georgia Roster of the Revolution by Knight. p. 18.) This is evidence that at advanced age he participated in the Revolution.2-26-1785Richmond Co., Ga. — Rhoda Mercer, daughter of James Mercer, received a land grant of 200 acres bounded S Jackson, W Charles Smitherlin, NW Wm. Tindall, NE Isaac Lou; other vacant. (Book GGG, 125.)
Richmond Co., Ga. — Rhoda Mercer, daughter of James Mercer, received a land grant of 200 acres bounded S Jackson, W Charles Smitherlin, NW Wm. Tindall, NE Isaac Lou; other vacant. (Book GGG, 125.)8-9-1785Wilkes Co., Ga. Phillips Mill Baptist Church organized with Silas and Dorcas Mercer and Elizabeth Muncrief, Sr.,* three of the sixteen charter members. (Minutes of Phillips Mill Baptist Church.)
Wilkes Co., Ga. Phillips Mill Baptist Church organized with Silas and Dorcas Mercer and Elizabeth Muncrief, Sr.,* three of the sixteen charter members. (Minutes of Phillips Mill Baptist Church.)9-9-1785Wilkes Co., Ga. — Jacob Mercer received by experience. (Ibid.)
Wilkes Co., Ga. — Jacob Mercer received by experience. (Ibid.)4-10-1786Wilkes Co., Ga. Thomas and Annis Mercer received by letter. (Ibid.)
Wilkes Co., Ga. Thomas and Annis Mercer received by letter. (Ibid.)7-8-1786Wilkes Co., Ga. — Temperance Mercer received by letter. (Ibid.)
Wilkes Co., Ga. — Temperance Mercer received by letter. (Ibid.)8-11-1786Wilkes Co., Ga. — James Mercer, Nancy Ozburn, Jael Mercer received by letter. (Ibid.)
Wilkes Co., Ga. — James Mercer, Nancy Ozburn, Jael Mercer received by letter. (Ibid.)8-12-1786Wilkes Co., Ga. — Elizabeth Muncrief, Jr. and Sarah Mercer received by letter. (Ibid.)
Wilkes Co., Ga. — Elizabeth Muncrief, Jr. and Sarah Mercer received by letter. (Ibid.)The Mercer Family 113
2-10-1787Wilkes Co., Ga. — Rhoda Mercer and Lydy Derricott received by letter.
Wilkes Co., Ga. — Rhoda Mercer and Lydy Derricott received by letter.7-7-1787Wilkes Co., Ga. — Jesse Mercer received by experience. (Ibid.
Wilkes Co., Ga. — Jesse Mercer received by experience. (Ibid.9-12-1789Wilkes Co., Ga. Agreed to hear Jesse Mercer’s call to the Ministry at next conference. (Ibid.)
Wilkes Co., Ga. Agreed to hear Jesse Mercer’s call to the Ministry at next conference. (Ibid.)1789Wilkes Co., Ga. — Memoirs of Elder Jesse Mercer by Mallory states that young Jesse Mercer preached his first sermon to his grandmother in her house a few yards away from his Father Silas Mercer’s home. Memoirs also states James Mercer was a High Churchman in Virginia and North Carolina before going to Georgia and was highly opposed, after training Silas in that Church, to his conversion to the Baptist religion that was sweeping the South; however, in old age James Mercer and his wife were converted to the Baptist religion. The 1786 entries in the Phillips Mill Minutes may be their joining the church. However, they had a son James and a daughter Sarah of age to profess their faith and bring their letters to this newly established church.
Wilkes Co., Ga. — Memoirs of Elder Jesse Mercer by Mallory states that young Jesse Mercer preached his first sermon to his grandmother in her house a few yards away from his Father Silas Mercer’s home. Memoirs also states James Mercer was a High Churchman in Virginia and North Carolina before going to Georgia and was highly opposed, after training Silas in that Church, to his conversion to the Baptist religion that was sweeping the South; however, in old age James Mercer and his wife were converted to the Baptist religion. The 1786 entries in the Phillips Mill Minutes may be their joining the church. However, they had a son James and a daughter Sarah of age to profess their faith and bring their letters to this newly established church.1790Wilkes Co., Ga. — James Mercer died at age 77 and was buried on his son Silas’s plantation, 7 miles south of Washington, Ga.
Wilkes Co., Ga. — James Mercer died at age 77 and was buried on his son Silas’s plantation, 7 miles south of Washington, Ga.3-10-1797Wilkes Co., Ga. — Sarah Mercer was dismissed by letter.
Wilkes Co., Ga. — Sarah Mercer was dismissed by letter.8-11-1797Wilkes Co., Ga. — since our last meeting Elizabeth Muncrief has died.
Wilkes Co., Ga. — since our last meeting Elizabeth Muncrief has died.4-17-1798Wilkes Co., Ga. — Sarah Mercer is received by letter.
Wilkes Co., Ga. — Sarah Mercer is received by letter. *Elizabeth Simmons (sister of Sarah Simmons Mercer) married W Alex. Muncrief (1715-1765), a Baptist minister.
114 Leaves of the Tree
Thomas Simmons Will
Currituck County, North Carolina
(Section Office Book 9, Folio 64)
February 1755
I, Thomas Simmons of Currituck Province of North Carolina being well stricken in years but in perfect memory — Christian burial — discretion of my executor I give to my three eldest sons the plantation and land whereon I live now to be divided as hereafter shall be mentioned — my son Thomas Simmons I give land binding on Thomas Taylor’s line the easternmost side of the road as the road is now a part of the plantation to a certain black walnut tree standing by the road side and from that to a black mulberry tree standing in the easternmost side of the plantation and from thence on east north east comes to the bay side to my son Samuel I give the remainder of the aforesaid plantation and land on the easternmost side of the road binding on the line of Gilbert Portwood to my son Samson Simmons I give the westernmost part of the aforesaid land on the westernmost side of the road excepting one fifty acres which I have all reads’ given to my son Samuel by a Deed of Gift — to them and their heirs during their pleasures only — make this reservation that they are not any or either of my three sons any ways to molest or disturb their said Mother during her natural life. I give and bequeath to my daughter Mary the plantation whereon she now lives with 50 acres of land to the same ___
ging. I give and bequeath to my son Edom 50 acres of land joining on the easternmost part of the aforesaid Mary Morris her land, to them and their heirs during their pleasures. I give to my daughter Elizabeth Muncrief one cow and calf. I give and bequeath to my well beloved wife Sarah Simmons whom I likewise constitute make and ordain to he sole executor of my last will and testament all and singular my household goods and moveable effects during her natural life and at her decease all that to he divided equally between m~’ three youngest Sons — Edom Simmons, Caleb Simmons, and Asalel Simmons. Only one cow and calf to be taken out and given to my daughter Sarah Mercer and I do hereby disallow. revoke and disown all and even’ other former testament, wills, legacies and bequests and executed by me and in an\’ ways before names willed and bequeaths ratifying and confirming this one no other to be my last will and testament in witness whereof I have here unto set my hand.
The Mercer Family 11 5
W:Benjamin Prescott
Benjamin PrescottBenjamin (B~ Cowell his mark
Elizabeth (E) Cowell her mark
Thomas Simmons & Seal
T
His Mark
September Court, 1755 — This may certify that Benjamin Cowell, Benjamin Prescott and Elizabeth Cowell saw Thomas Simmons sign and also saw Sarah Simmons appear as executor and take oath. William Shergold, Clerk.
James & Silas Mercer to David Cook
Deed Book 2, page 10
9-6-1767— James and Silas Mercer of the County of Currituck and Province of North Carolina, Planters, one part, and David Cook of the County aforesaid on the other part, in consideration of the sum of Seventy-Six Pounds to them in hand paid, James and Silas Mercer bargain, sell and convey unto David Cook one parcel or tract of land containing by estimation One Hundred acres, more or less, on Currituck Road, beginning at a landing near Benjamin Portwood’s knee and then running along road binding on James Dunlap line to a oak then and from that oak westerly course to a tree head of branch formerly known by the name of Tanyan Branch then down the above named branch to the swamp binding along swamp by Michael O’Neal’s line northwesterly course to a pine on Benjamin Portwood line then running Portwood’s line to the first station to hold, one parcel of land together with house, outhouses, orchards, garden, woods and water rites.
— James and Silas Mercer of the County of Currituck and Province of North Carolina, Planters, one part, and David Cook of the County aforesaid on the other part, in consideration of the sum of Seventy-Six Pounds to them in hand paid, James and Silas Mercer bargain, sell and convey unto David Cook one parcel or tract of land containing by estimation One Hundred acres, more or less, on Currituck Road, beginning at a landing near Benjamin Portwood’s knee and then running along road binding on James Dunlap line to a oak then and from that oak westerly course to a tree head of branch formerly known by the name of Tanyan Branch then down the above named branch to the swamp binding along swamp by Michael O’Neal’s line northwesterly course to a pine on Benjamin Portwood line then running Portwood’s line to the first station to hold, one parcel of land together with house, outhouses, orchards, garden, woods and water rites.James Mercer & Seal
Silas Mercer & Seal
W:Asahel Simmons Isaac Cook
Asahel Simmons Isaac CookJohn Cowell
116 Leaves of the Tree
Will of John Jones
9-23-1739— John Jones — Sons: Edward, John (his wife Ann Spann not to get anything, Sons: Simeon and Henry — land adjacent to William West). Daughters: Ann Messer and Sarah Moore. W: Adam Toole\~ Israel Slater, John Rogers, William Wood. (Will Book 5, p.419.)
— John Jones — Sons: Edward, John (his wife Ann Spann not to get anything, Sons: Simeon and Henry — land adjacent to William West). Daughters: Ann Messer and Sarah Moore. W: Adam Toole\~ Israel Slater, John Rogers, William Wood. (Will Book 5, p.419.)Will of Edward Jones
1-21-1739/40 — Edward Jones of Backwater in Currituck, Brothers: Simeon, John and Henry Jones, Sisters: Ann Messer, Sarah Moore, bought of John Ward and he of Christopher Philpot. W: Letitia Buck, Joseph Dobbs, John Rogers. (Will Book 5, p. 476, Princess Anne County, Virginia.)
Note:This family was next door neighbors to John Biggs, Jr. and wife Ellinor Biggs. Letitia Buck is the daughter of their daughter Ellinor Biggs Buck.
This family was next door neighbors to John Biggs, Jr. and wife Ellinor Biggs. Letitia Buck is the daughter of their daughter Ellinor Biggs Buck.James Mercer 1713-1790
Tyrrell District North Carolina Militia — 1756
Patriotic Service, Revolutionary War 1776-1783
Children by first marriage to possibly Ann Jones:
1.Lydia Mercer.
Lydia Mercer.2.Rhoda Mercer — died a single person.
Rhoda Mercer — died a single person.3.Reverend Silas Mercer, Major-Chaplain, Rev. War, Ga., N.C & Va. born 2-1745, Currituck Bay N.C., d. 8-1-1796, Wilkes Co., Ga., m. ca. 1768, Halifax Co., N.C. Dorcas Green b. 12-30-1746, Stafford Co., Va., d. 9-7-1819, Wilkes Co., Ga., daughter of William Green, m. 12-18-1743 Ann Robinson, Overwharton Parish, Stafford Co.. Va.
Reverend Silas Mercer, Major-Chaplain, Rev. War, Ga., N.C & Va. born 2-1745, Currituck Bay N.C., d. 8-1-1796, Wilkes Co., Ga., m. ca. 1768, Halifax Co., N.C. Dorcas Green b. 12-30-1746, Stafford Co., Va., d. 9-7-1819, Wilkes Co., Ga., daughter of William Green, m. 12-18-1743 Ann Robinson, Overwharton Parish, Stafford Co.. Va.Children by second marriage to Sarah Simmons ca. I ~48:
4.Reverend Thomas Mercer, Baptist, Pvt., Rev. War, Ga. h. ca. 1 750, Currituck Co., N.C. d. by 10-16-1819, Amite Co. Miss., in. (1) Ca. 1772. Halifax Co., N.C. Annis Green b. 3-15-1749. Stafford Co...
Reverend Thomas Mercer, Baptist, Pvt., Rev. War, Ga. h. ca. 1 750, Currituck Co., N.C. d. by 10-16-1819, Amite Co. Miss., in. (1) Ca. 1772. Halifax Co., N.C. Annis Green b. 3-15-1749. Stafford Co...The Mercer Family 117
Va., d. Ca. 1806, Wilkinson Co., Miss., daughter of William Green, m.12-18-1743 Ann Robinson, Overwharton Parish, Stafford Co., Va., m. (2) 8-13-1808, Wilkinson Co., Miss. Elizabeth Jackson b. 2- 22-1789, Ga., d. 9-1868, Amite Co., Miss. m. (1) 10-27-1803 Walter Rollins (2) 10-4-1827 John Straughan d. August 1841, Amite Co., Miss.
12-18-1743 Ann Robinson, Overwharton Parish, Stafford Co., Va., m. (2) 8-13-1808, Wilkinson Co., Miss. Elizabeth Jackson b. 2- 22-1789, Ga., d. 9-1868, Amite Co., Miss. m. (1) 10-27-1803 Walter Rollins (2) 10-4-1827 John Straughan d. August 1841, Amite Co., Miss.5. Jacob Mercer, Pvt., Rev. War, Ga. b. 4-15-1753, Currituck Co., N.C. d. 8-6-1837, Jasper Co., Ga., m. ca. 1772, Halifax Co., N.C. Jael Green b. 11-12-1753, Stafford Co., Va., d. after 12-15-1810, Jasper Co., Ga., daughter of William Green m. 12-18-1743 Ann Robinson, Overwharton Parish, Stafford Co., Va.
6. Vashti Mercer b. ca. 1759, Currituck Bay, N.C., d. 9-1836, Washington Co., Ga., m. Rev. George Franklin, Baptist, Rev. Soldier b. Va. 1744, d. 1-1816, Washington Co., Ga.
7. Sarah Mercer.
8. Mary Mercer.
9. James Mercer b. 1769, Halifax District, N.C. d. 12-1850, Coweta Co., Ga., m. 4-11-1807 Wilkes Co., Ga. Elizabeth Williamson b. 1786, Va. (See 1850 Census Coweta Co., Ga., Household No. 290). (1) Williamson S. Mercer b. Ca. 1809, Jasper Co., Ga., m. 2-7-1838 Wilkinson Co., Miss., Frances Jones.
(2) James Francis Mercer b. ca. 1814.(3) Hulda Mercer b. ca. 1813, m. William Chapman.(4) Amanda Mercer b. 4-22-1822, Jasper Co., Ga., d. 9-20-1903, Carroll Co., Ga., m. 11-14-1839, Coweta Co., Ga. William 0. Meadows d. 12-25-1868 Carroll Co.(5) Elizabeth Mercer b. 1835, m. 1-30-1851 Coweta Co., Ga. John F. Dickson.(6) Vashti Mercer b. 1837, m. 10-13-185 1 Coweta Co., Ga. James Williamson.10.Caleb Mercer b. 1771, d. s. p. 12-11-1823, Jasper Co., Ga.
Caleb Mercer b. 1771, d. s. p. 12-11-1823, Jasper Co., Ga.11.Chloe Mercer b. 1773, Ga., d. after 1840, Scott Co., Miss., m. John Whittington.
Chloe Mercer b. 1773, Ga., d. after 1840, Scott Co., Miss., m. John Whittington.12.John Mercer, Colonel Indian War b. 10-1776, Wilkes Co., Ga., d. 3-23-1852, Lee Co., Ga., m. (1) ca. 1801 Sally Chivers b. ca. 1782, d. by 7-14-1836, Lee Co., Ga., daughter of Thomas and Jane Chivers, m. (2) 5-1-1838 Mrs. Sarah Towers b. 1786, d. 1-30-1862, Palmyra, Lee Co., Ga.
John Mercer, Colonel Indian War b. 10-1776, Wilkes Co., Ga., d. 3-23-1852, Lee Co., Ga., m. (1) ca. 1801 Sally Chivers b. ca. 1782, d. by 7-14-1836, Lee Co., Ga., daughter of Thomas and Jane Chivers, m. (2) 5-1-1838 Mrs. Sarah Towers b. 1786, d. 1-30-1862, Palmyra, Lee Co., Ga.(1) Leonidas Bennington Mercer b. 1803, Wilkes Co., Ga., m. (1) 8-23-1826 Taliaferro Co., Ga. Lovicia Janes b. 1810 d. 9- 13-1841,Cedar Valle~ Paulding Co., Ga. m. (2) 9-20-1842, Hancock Co., Ga. Mary Ann Hillsman.118 Leaves of the Tree
(2) Joel Elleott Mercer b. 1805, m. (1) Miss Terrell, m. (2) 1837 Taliaferro Co., Ga., Nancy Nelms. (See Household 275, Lee Co., Ga. 1850 Census)(3)Rebecca b. Ca. 1808, m. 1826 Taliaferro Co., Ga., William Janes, Jr.Mercer, Silas. Clergyman. Born Currituck Bay N.C., 25 February 1745; died Wilkes County Ga., 1 August 1796. Son of James Mercer 1713 and Ann Jones Mercer. Married Dorcas Green, date unknown. Children: Jesse,
Ann, Mary, Daniel, Mourning, Harmon, Mt. Moriah, and Joshua. Education: private instruction.
Silas Mercer has long been overshadowed by his son Jesse, despite the fact that he was an early religious leader of considerable importance. He played an active role in establishing the Baptist denomination in post Revolutionary Georgia. Biographical information is scarce, especially for his early life. Mercer’s mother died when he was an infant and the well-meaning father reared the young Silas rigidly within the Church of England. Apparently religiously inclined even as a youth, at about age eighteen, after a serious illness, he began a long and arduous spiritual quest punctuated by periods of despair and not finally resolved until he was almost thirty years old. During this period he developed an interest in Baptist doctrines, much to the dismay of his father. The Mercer family moved to Wilkes County in northeast Georgia about 1773, and there Mercer brought his long inner struggle to a conclusion. Convinced of his state of salvation, he emerged as something of a Calvinist, a defender of the doctrine of free, unmerited grace,” according to an earls’ biographer. He was baptized, probably in 1775, into the Kiokee Baptist Church, the first Baptist church in Georgia. He was soon licensed to preach and subsequently was ordained. For the rest of his life he devoted his formidable energies to the Baptist ministry’~ Records indicate that Mercer served as a Revolutionary War chaplain. At some point he was forced to flee to Halifax County N.C.; he recorded having preached two thousand sermons during his stay there. He returned to Georgia about 1783, and with a land grant of eight hundred acres he settled permanently in Wilkes County Almost immediately he resumed his career of intensive service to the Baptist cause in Georgia. He was present at the formation of the Georgia Association in 1784, the first such Baptist organization in the state. With
The Mercer Family 119
the aid of others, in 1785 he founded and became pastor of Phillips’ Mill Church in Wilkes County and Bethesda Church in Greene County, and the following year of Powelton Church in Hancock County In 1788 he formed the Sardis Church in Wilkes County; and he is credited with assisting other efforts on both the church and associational levels. Quite in keeping with Baptist experience, Mercer brushed against the political system. The 1785 efforts of the state to establish public support for churches elicited from him a “remonstrance” that was read before the state legislature in 1786. The tabling of the proposal may well be in part due to Silas Mercer and Baptist opposition. Mercer also served in the constitutional amending convention of 1795. One of Mercer’s enduring legacies was a belief in the necessity of education as an aid to religion, a conviction carried to greater fruition by his son Jesse in later years. Originally opposed to formal education, he changed his mind and opened Salem Academy in his own home in 1793; the academy was the first Baptist educational institution in the state. Efforts by Jesse Mercer to continue the school after his father’s death failed. Although of limited formal education, he gladly waded into doctrinal matters, orally and in writing. His best known work was Tyranny Exposed, and True Liberty Discovered, a combination of history, theology, and apocalyptic pronouncements. His autobiographical sketch, written in 1792 and published in the Analytical Repository in 1802, is a remarkable account of inner conflict and conversion. An indefatigable traveler, in 1791 he went as far as Virginia to debate on the topic of free will versus free grace. When Mercer came to Georgia there were only a handful of Baptists in the state. The rapid Baptist expansion in and along the frontier and near-frontier can be attributed in part to the dedicated labors of Silas Mercer. He was in the truest sense a Georgia Baptist pioneer and founding father who, according to an early Baptist historian, “Labored abundantly and with good effect.” At his death in 1796 Mercer was buried in a cemetery near Ficklin in Wilkes County. In 1976, under the auspices of the History Committee of the Georgia Baptist Convention, the bodies of Silas and Dorcas Mercer were reinterred in front of Phillips’ Mill Church.
Source:Dictionary of Georgia Biography, Coleman & Gurr.
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Children of Silas Mercer & Dorcas Green
Reverend Silas Mercer. Major (Chaplain) Rev. War, Ga., NC., & Va. born February 1745, Currituck Co., N.C.. d. 8-1-1796, Wilkes County, Ga. m. Ca. 1768, Halifax Co., N.C. Dorcas Green b. 12-30-1746, Stafford Co., Virginia d. 9-7-18 19, Wilkes Co:~Ga., daughter of William Green m. 12-18-1743 Ann Robinson, Overwharton Parish, Stafford Co., Va.
1. Reverend Jesse Mercer b. 12-16-1769, Halifax District, N.C., d. 9-6-1841 Butts Co., Ga., m. (1) 1-31-1788 Sabrina Chivers, m. (2) 12-11- 1827 Nancy Simons in Wilkes Co., Ga. No issue lived to maturity.2. Anna Mercer b. 12-10-1774, Wilkes Co., Ga., d. 1852, Lincoln Co., Tenn., m. 6-28-1792 William Robertson b. Va. 1-6-1771, d. 1833, Lincoln Co., Tenn., son of Thomas and Peggy Robertson.3. Nancy Mercer died in infancy4. Daniel Mercer b. 1780, N.C., d. 2-26-1830, Henry Co., Ga., m. ca. 1812 Mrs. Sarah Tuggle, Widow. No issue.5. Mourning Mercer died in infancy6. Reverend Harmon Mercer, Captain, War of 1812-18 15 & Indian Wars, b.1784 N.C., d. 1-13-1854. Ochusee, Jackson Co., Fla., m. (1) 9-3- 1802 Greene Co., Ga., Elizabeth Andrews, m. (2) ca. 1820 Mary Hale Battle b. 1-28-1794 d. ca. 1825, m. (3) 8-13-1826, Taliaferro Co., Ga., Mrs. Elizabeth Darracott Terrell b. 7-14-1775, Va., d. 3-24-1837, Crawfordville, Taliaferro Co., Ga.7. Mount Moriah Mercer b. 1787, Wilkes Co., Ga., d. 6-1822, Oglethorpe Co., Ga., m. ca. 1815 Nancy Ann Edge b. 1798, d. 1865.8. Reverend Joshua Mercer, Sgt., Capt. Browning Co. and Capt. Harmon Mercer Co., War of 1812 and Creek War, b. 6-10-1788, Wilkes Co., Ga., d. 2-4-1869, Gordon, Henry Co., Ala., m. 12-21-1808, Wilkes Co., Ga. Mary D. Wells b. 5-11-1790 Ga., d. 9-17-1880, Gordon, Henry Co., Ala.Mercer, Jesse 1769 . Clergyman. Born Halifax County, N.C., 16 December 1769; died Butts County Ga., 6 September 1841. Son of Silas and Dorcas Mercer. Married Sabrina Chivers, 31 January 1788. Children: two daughters, both named Miriam. Married Nan~ Mills Simons, 11 December 1827. Education: intermittent academy and private study Honorary degree: Brown University D.D. (1835).
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Despite more than two hundred years in active Baptist history in Georgia, there can be little doubt that Jesse Mercer, an early leader, still remains the pre-eminent Georgia Baptist figure. The Georgia Baptist Convention, the Christian Index, and Mercer University all continue as impressive testimony to this claim. The Mercer family entered this country from Scotland in the late seventeenth century and drifted from Virginia southward. Jesse Mercer, the oldest of eight children, came with his family from North Carolina to the area north of Augusta about 1773. His father, Silas, at that time resolved a long internal religious conflict that took him from the Church of England to the Baptist denomination. The family fled back to North Carolina during the Revolutionary War but returned after that struggle to permanent residence in Wilkes County. The frontier conditions of that era allowed very little formal schooling, and Mercer never received higher education. Although he enjoyed many of the rural pleasures, he was described by an uncle as a “staid, discreet and sober youth” but never “dejected, morose and sullen~” Like his father, at about age seventeen Jesse resolved his long, intense religious struggles and was baptized by his father in July 1787 at Phillips’ Mill Church. In January 1788 he married Sabrina Chivers of Wilkes County. Neither of their two daughters lived to adulthood. Already an impressive expounder of the scriptures, Mercer was ordained at the Phillips’ Mill Church in November 1789. He soon accepted a church at Hutton’s Fork (Sardis) in Wilkes County and later the Bethany Church in Oglethorpe County Upon the death of his father in 1796 he took up the pastorates at Phillips’ Mill in Wilkes County Bethesda in Greene County and Powelton in Hancock County Some of these pastorates were held until late in his career. From this pastoral base Mercer began to build his commanding reputation in Georgia and beyond. He was a popular and congenial man, greatly admired and respected, a strong leader but not overbearing or abrupt. Forceful in the pulpit, he employed his talents for argumentation and emotional appeal; one observed noted that he could “arouse and enchain the imagination of reflecting men beyond any minister I have ever heard.” He was especially noted for his moving prayers. An ardent supporter of the evangelical ministry, he traveled and preached widely inside the state and out. He was not a schooled theologian, and according to his friend, Adiel Sherwood, the most prominent trait of his sermons was “originality.” In the five decades after his ordination in 1789 Mercer was involved in virtually even’ aspect of Baptist life and development and increasingly assumed leadership. From 1795 to 1816 he served intermittently as clerk of the Georgia Baptist Association and as its moderator from 1816 to 1839. He was a key figure in the Powelton-
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Conferences in 1801, 1802, and 1803, early efforts at Baptist cooperation and support for Indian and itinerant mission efforts. He was a major force in the formation of the General Baptist Association for the State of Georgia in 1822 (later the Georgia Baptist Convention) and helped to write that organization’s constitution. He was elected the first moderator, a post that he held until 1841, and the year of his death. In an era of often-violent opposition to missionary activity especially foreign, Mercer remained a firm supporter of church missions and four times served as delegate to the General Convention of the Baptist Denomination in the United States for Foreign Missions and for a number of years served as president of the board of managers. In recognition of Mercer’s impressive service to the Baptist cause, Brown University conferred upon him the D.D. degree in 1835. Although not considered as effective a writer as a speaker, Mercer nevertheless emerged as an important writer and publisher. In 1833 he purchased and brought from Philadelphia to Washington, Ga., the Christian Index, formerly the Columbian Star, which he edited for seven years and which now, serves as the official organ of the Georgia Baptist Convention. In 1813 the first edition of his hymnal, The Cluster of Spiritual Songs, was printed in Augusta, with later editions appearing in Philadelphia and New York. His book A History of the Georgia Baptist Association was published in 1838. In 1826 or early 1827 Mercer moved to Washington, Ga., where he helped to establish a Baptist church and served as its minister. In 1827 he married Nancy Mills Simons, the widow of a wealthy Jewish merchant. Her inherited wealth became the source of much of the Mercer philanthropy~~ Mercer’s name is correctly associated with the establishing of Mercer University, but it is not at all clear that Mercer was its principal founder, that honor being shared with other Baptist leaders. Mercer had, however, always been a staunch supporter of education when many of his own denomination were at best indifferent to clerical training. He gave his influential backing to the founding of Mercer Institute, which opened in 1833 at Penfield in Greene County and was named in his honor, but in the 1830s he was also actively engaged in trying to locate a Baptist college in Washington, Ga. When that effort failed he willingly transferred his moral and financial support to Mercer Institute and was instrumental in raising it to the status of a university in 1837. In his will he left Mercer University assets later estimated to be in excess of forty thousand dollars. Although Jesse Mercer was not one of the founding fathers of the Baptist denomination in Georgia, he rose to prominence and power during the crucial first four decades of the nineteenth century when Georgia was expanding into its frontier
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Regions. In such matters as church organization and polity, evangelism, education, publishing, missions and philanthropy he helped to shape the nature and destiny of Georgia Baptists to a degree probably unequaled by any other single person. Mercer, along with three Mercer University presidents, is buried in the Penfield cemetery adjoining the old Mercer campus. The university, now located in Macon, owns and maintains the cemetery as a historic Baptist site.
Source: Dictionary of Georgia Biography, Coleman & Gurr.
