Eating Crow…
My flamboyant and somewhat effeminate bud William Byrd II, I think in his book of the “Dividing Line” 1728, quips about eating a bird boiled, fried, baked and possibly otherwise but never finding it very appetizing… I’m pretty sure it was buzzard. So I think I can handle a savory crow… Anyway, I think it wise to warn folks that my prior postings and pages concerning Joseph Pitman(s) et al may appear to be the rantings of a deranged lunatic. The actual truth may take longer to figure out than I realized… probably due to the fact that I am cutting severely into my alcohol budget with genealogy expenses.
I was convinced there were 2 Joseph Pitmans… each with a son Abner…. why? you ask.
Because the Joseph Pitman Sr. d.1763 was repeatedly associated with a Joseph Pitman Jr which I took to be his son… my current theory is that this was 2 different families. These 2 Josephs were uncle/nephew…. the son and grandson of Thomas Pitman of VA d.1730. For them to be father/son the Joseph d.1787 HAD to be a Quaker WITH a son Abner. Hence the dilemma… 2 Abners. Remember Robert Pitman with son Abner. But this is a good thing for my sanity but not for my conundrum… still… who was the Joseph Pitman that witnessed the will of William Anderson d.1789?
Also the question of Elizabeth Pitman who had the grant in 1749 is still open… was she a widow or a spinster? The elusive James Pitman who had property next to her and refuses to die before 1749 is still hiding.
Andersons of Colonial N. Carolina 
Ok Marc you are confrusing me.
Here’s the layout as I see it of this moment…I’m thinking there are at least five or six different Josephs. Probably more.
The ones I have a handle on are:
1.) Joseph Sr. and Jr. – doesn’t really matter to me whether they are father and son or uncle and nephew, as they seem to definitely be related, are probably both Quaker, and don’t seem terribly close to the Elizabeth crowd.
2.) Joseph d. 1787 who was married to Hannah and is the one Elizabeth sold her property to.
3.) Joseph who witnessed William Anderson’s will. Like you, not sure who he is.
And then there’s son of Robert, the constable. I toyed with the idea that he is Joseph m. Hannah, but…I am now thinking, not so much. I just don’t see much evidence that these guys are the same. I could be wrong…we just need to keep digging on both of them.
Every new piece of evidence changes the view like a kaleidoscope!
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Traci Thompson
February 25, 2012 at 9:44 am
Robert Pitman had a son named Abner? Where do you see that? I thought the name “Ambrose” was in that family.
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Traci Thompson
February 25, 2012 at 9:46 am
Edgecombe Co., NC, Court Minutes 1744-1762 Book I
GoldenWest Marketing Genealogy, Temple City, CA
[187] Feb 1757/8
Jos. PITMAN son of Robert (Overseer marked out) Constable in Room of George WIMBERLY
This guy has to be born around 1736 or so…. Ambrose was the brother of Robert… both lived near Enfield along with the other brother Thomas Pitman d.1754.
This is a perfect time for the “Constable” to show up and buy the property of Elizabeth Pitman in 1761.
He could also be the guardian to the legatee of John Gay… note the time period of each.
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anderson1951
February 25, 2012 at 10:06 am
Ooops… I missed your question of Abner… the supposition is that Abner is the grandson of Robert (from the Donald Gordon research)… yeah I know you are suspicious of it because of no sources but it isn’t “disproven” yet.
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anderson1951
February 27, 2012 at 4:32 am
Exactly…Joseph the Constable was probably born around the 1730s. I think Elizabeth’s Joseph is younger than that.
We know Joseph and Arthur were old enough to be working on the road by the 1760s. We also know from that record that Joseph, Arthur, and William Anderson lived near each other – I would guess very near. Joseph and Arthur appear to be near Elizabeth’s neck of the woods, not Robert’s. This has some significance to me. Also that we see no deed transactions for Joseph and Arthur prior to their buying Elizabeth’s land in 1761/2.
Ah GRANDson Abner. Gotta be precise here. 🙂 Yeah I’m still skeptical, but I don’t rule anything out – I just lean toward what there’s the most evidence for.
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Traci Thompson
February 27, 2012 at 4:22 pm
Touche’ on the GRANDson…. but what is this “Elizabeth’s Joseph”? 🙂 Still working the widow of James angle? hmmm…. maybe. But if Elizabeth is the sister of Robert then Joseph could be a nephew looking out for dear old aunt Lizzy. Robert’s brother Ambrose had a son Arthur.
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anderson1951
February 27, 2012 at 5:25 pm
Its possible…and i strongly considered it there for awhile…but I’ve come firmly back to the Elizabeth widow camp. I think the reference to her as widow means what it says, and it’s the most likely scenario. And as stated, i see more of a closeness of Joseph to Elizabeth than of Joseph to anyone else. That being said, it’s entirely possible that all these folks are kin in some way.
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traci thompson
February 27, 2012 at 9:36 pm
Well our stalemate of theories illustrates why I thought there were 2 Abners. One Abner is definitely the son of Joseph and Hannah (who definitely came into the Elizabeth property).
Then there is the proposition of the Donald Gordon genealogy that Robert Pitman had son Joseph with son Abner b.1756.
If there is no connection to Robert then the Gordon papers are bunk and should be exposed as such. Just stirring the pot. I don’t mind being led on a wild goose chase but if I catch that goose it is going to get cooked. 🙂
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anderson1951
February 28, 2012 at 5:38 am
LOL. At this point, I’m thinking there is a relationship, but it may not be the one Mr. Gordon thinks it is. But who can blame the guy? After all, with all the Josephs, you can see how incredibly easy it would be to attach the Joseph with son Abner to the wrong family.
We must keep digging…the truth is out there!!
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Traci Thompson
February 28, 2012 at 11:23 am