Andersons of Colonial N. Carolina

Well… Traci has chimed in with some helpful history. She basically said I was totally out in left field with my dates and ought to be ashamed of myself. (very friendly like of course).

“Halifax became a bona fide county effective 1 January 1759. 

“In 1758 the residents of Edgecombe County petitioned the Governor and the Colonial Assembly requesting that the parish of Halifax be granted the status of an individual county – having functioned along with St. Mary’s Parish as the two original Edgecombe County parishes since its creation in 1741 from the southwestern section of Bertie County. Bertie County was formed from the western extension of Chowan Precinct (west of the Chowan River) in the year 1722, and was even earlier, an undefined part of the now extinct original Albemarle County 1664-1668. All territory within the boundaries of Edgecombe County north of the Fishing Creek and Rainbow Banks on the Roanoke River – approximately 711 square miles – was officially designated as Halifax County on January 1, 1759.”

https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Halifax_County,_North_Carolina_Genealogy

Edgecombe was created as a precinct in 1732. Some confusion comes in with the fact that most of the precincts were elevated to counties in 1739, but legislation did not make Edgecombe officially a county until 1741. By the formation of Halifax, however, all were definitely counties, not precincts.

and then in classic librarian fashion she can’t control herself and adds even more salt upon my wound:

“I should have added, more confusion comes in with the fact that, when Halifax County was created in 1758/9, the first six deed books of Edgecombe stayed in Halifax. As Margaret M. Hoffman explains, “By about the mid 1740s, the Edgecombe County courthouse at Enfield, NC was in use. Early in 1759, when Halifax County, North Carolina was formed from a part of Edgecombe County and the limit of Halifax County was set, one boundary was and still is Fishing Creek which flows just below Enfield. The Edgecombe County courthouse was then within the new County of Halifax. For this reason deed in the Halifax County, NC public registry prior to 1759 call for lands within the huge area that Edgecombe covered in its very early days.”

But not to belabor a point to a level of ridiculousness, here is a practical example of what Traci refers to concerning mere mortals like you and I when we search the county records.

Concerning the Ambrose Pitman property above I will attach a record I just found. It describes William Whitehead selling his land to Ambrose Pitman. (Which rewards my careful research to explain the missing land in my map! Capich?

The point is that it never would have occurred to me to search Halifax records for a “known” Edgecombe deed.

And yes, I dig this deeply when I get stumped on the maps.

And of course Holmes had to chime in with his perturbations, recollections and hindsight. He says Hold the damn horses a minute… he vaguely remembered a “disturbance in the Force” concerning this pissant little area of Edgecombe County that I found myself researching.

And Traci once again produced the goods… Voila!

“Part of Halifax was annexed to Edgecombe in 1779: “…all that part of Halifax County lying below a line beginning at John Wall’s and Drewry Crokers dividing corner tree on Fishing Creek, then along Wall’s line to the back corner, thence a direct line as near as may be to the fork of the Marsh Swamp at or near Matthew Parkers then down said swamp to Deep Creek and across said Creek to the mouth of the Indian Branch then the various courses of said branch to the Martin County line shall be held and deemed part of the County of Edgecombe…”
David L. Corbett, The Formation of the North Carolina Counties, p. 97.

https://docsouth.unc.edu/csr/index.php/document/csr24-0005

Holmes seems satisfied. But then he flips a few pages here and there and comes up with what is called a “practical Example”:

FYI

John Wall left a will dated 15 Sep 1778, said he was of Halifax County, but proved in Edgecombe May 1779.
Children: Jesse Wall

Elizabeth Weeks

Henah Alsobrook

Selah Kelly

Faithy Griffin

Pheby Alsobrook

Hannah Hyatt
Also gave a share to the children of David Alsobrook, namely Priscilla, Hannah, band Rhoda. 
Son-in-law Giles Kelly
Note:Daughter Elizabeth married Archelaus Weeks

Traci adds: Makes perfect sense. He was of Halifax when he wrote it in 1778, annex law was Jan/Feb 1779, and so by May 1779 he was a resident of Edgecombe.