Hopkins in Anson Co NC1November 13, 2018

The Hopkins Family in the Anson County, NC, area in the 1700s

by Donald A. Hopkins

Some of the early Hopkins settlers of my line, later found in Georgia, Mississippi, and Texas, may have been in Anson County, NC, in the early 1760s. At that time Anson County was very large. It had been formed from western Bladen County before 1760. From the time of its origin Anson had as its southern border the NC/SC line, joining Chesterfield County, South Carolina.

As other counties were developed, at one point, about 1760, Anson touched "corners" with Orange, Rowan, and Cumberland Counties of NC. These large counties joined in the central part of NC close to the Deep River. Guilford was formed from western Orange County and most of Rowan County and then joined Anson County at the midpoint of Guilford's southern border.

Later, other counties (Montgomery from north Anson, Richmond from southeast Anson, and Mecklenburg from western Anson) were formed. Still later, Randolph was formed from southern Guilford County, which had been Orange and thus joined Montgomery.

This brief geographical sketch of this region is presented so that further research into this Hopkins family in NC may have some logical geographic references. Records relating to Hopkinses could be found in most of these counties named.

Two rivers, the Yadkin and the Pee Dee, run through this area as well as the Deep River mentioned above. These waterways are mentioned in many of the land transactions involving the name Hopkins during the 1700s. Land areas near these rivers would have been in different counties at different times due to the shifting of county boundaries noted above. For instance, land areas near both the Yadkin and Pee Dee would have been in Anson, Orange, or Rowan in about 1760, in Anson or Guilford about 1775, in Montgomery or Randolph about the late 1770s. So, even if the Hopkins family group remained on the same parcels of land near these rivers, their counties of record could have changed over the years.

A John Hopkins had a land grant in December 1764 on McLain's Creek, between Yadkin and Ulway in Anson (#2052 508 Pt. Bk. 20). On the same date, Lambert Hopkins had a grant on the northeast side of Yadkin River. Later, in January 1773, John had grant #2963 and Lambert grant #2964 on the Pee Dee River. Lambert had received two other grants in November of 1771 on the Yadkin River "below Daniel Bankston's canoe landing." In my opinion, the timing of these grants and the proximity of these grants to each [other] make it very likely that John and Lambert were close relatives, likely brothers or possibly father and son.

Lambeth [sp. changes here--HH] was listed in the Anson census in 1763 with one tithable. A Lambeth had been listed as a "chain carrier" for John Hopkins in Orange County in 1756 for survey of land on "both sides of Deep River." Again, because of the geographical proximity and because the names were the same one must assume that these were probably the same two individuals or certainly at least closely related. I believe this Lambeth was a son of John. Other deeds of 1769, 1771, 1774, and the grand jury list of 1775 place a Lambeth in this area until at least 1775. The grand jury duty in 1775 would seem to establish that Lambeth was indeed a resident in Anson at that time. In 1779 Montgomery County was formed from the northern part of Anson County and in 1780 a Lambert was found on the Montgomery tax lists. He is not listed on the 1790 census of NC as head of family.

The name John Hopkins is found in Anson during this same period. He also was involved in various land transactions on Yadkin River and Pee Dee River. A John Hopkins was involved in the estate proceedings of Aaron Sanders of Montgomery County in November of 1782. I do not have any record which clearly establishes that John was actually a resident of Anson. Detailed evaluation of some of these deeds would probably establish that fact. A John was on the 1790 census of Montgomery with two males of over 16, three under 16, and 5 females in the household.

I believe that John and Lambeth were brothers, sons of John of Orange County, and lived near each other in the part of Anson that later became Montgomery.

A Richard Hopkins was noted in the 1782 Montgomery tax lists. He was on the 1789 tax list also. In the 1790 census of Montgomery County the names Alex Hopkins, Benjamin Hopkins, John Hopkins, and Richard Hopkins appeared. Richard was married with two young sons. He may be the same as Richard in the 1800 Randolph County, NC, census. More work needs to be done to establish the relationship, if any, to my Hopkins line.

Furthermore, it must be noted that several other family names found associated with Hopkins names in Orange County, NC (Bankston), or even later associated with the Hopkins family in Georgia (Bankston, Callaway) are found closely associated with John and Lambeth Hopkins of the Anson County, NC, area in the 1700s. For instance, in Anson on 13 Apr 1774, Lambeth gave deed to Daniel Bankston, proved by Job Callaway. On the same day, Jacob Bankston [gave] deed to Job Callaway, deed proved by Daniel Bankston, and Lambeth [gave] deed to John Callaway, proved by Daniel Bankston!

I have not been able to find any definite documentation of the origin of these Hopkins families in NC. In fact, much family tradition suggests that this line came from Virginia, perhaps from Northumberland County, as descendants of a Richard Hopkins. However, it has been well documented by myself and others that the same given names abound in the Hopkins family of the Eastern Shore of Maryland as are found in North Carolina and later Georgia (Dennis, Lambeth or Lambert, Moses). It is also a known fact that by the early mid 1700s the land of the Eastern Shore had been "used up" by tobacco farmers who could not replace the soil nutrients, and the area, being near the seaboard, was becoming relatively crowded. These factors inspired a large migration toward the Carolinas. Furthermore, it is documented that a splinter group of Quakers, called the Nicholites after their founder Joseph Nichols, migrated from the Eastern Shore area to the Guilford County area of NC between the Deep River and the Yadkin in the 1770s and the 1800s. A Lambeth Hopkins of the Eastern Shore was a very close friend and a follower of Joseph Nichols. I do not have any documentation that this Lambeth Hopkins accompanied these Nicholites to NC, [and] in fact this religious migration occurred after there were Hopkins family members in the Anson County area of NC. However, it is reasonable to consider that perhaps an earlier migration of Eastern Shore families, including relatives of the above-mentioned Lambeth of the Eastern Shore, may have occurred. Reports and communications back to family members on the Eastern Shore could have stimulated Joseph Nichols to take his followers to NC.

My Opinion and Conclusion

1. The origin of my Hopkins line in NC remains somewhat obscure. My personal opinion is that they were closely related to the Hopkins Family of the Eastern Shore of Maryland during this period, and likely were actually part of the same direct line.

2. The John and Lambeth Hopkins families of the Anson County area during this period were one and the same with the Hopkins families that were in Orange, Randolph, and Montgomery counties during the mid- to late 1700s.

3. The Lambeth (Lambert, Lambath) Hopkins, William Hopkins, and others found in early Wilkes, Greene, Washington, and Clarke counties in Georgia, along with their friends the Bankstons and Callaways, migrated from the above areas in NC in the last quarter of the 18th Century. They were later followed by members of the same family from Orange and Randolph County areas of NC.

Don Hopkins

1992

orig. reprod. 27 Feb 1992

[copied by Harold C Hopkins]

Anson Co., NC--DAH111/13/2018