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Family
history
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Very little is known about the
Childress/Childer family line with the exception of our 4th
great-grandmother Jane Childress whose surname may actually be Childers. It is most probable that she was born
around 1760 in the area of Virginia encompassed by what was then known as Albemarle
County. Jane married to Samuel
Scott Scruggs around 1782.
There were several Childress families in Albemarle County at the
time. However there is no direct
record of the marriage. Jane settled
with her husband Samuel on a farm at the juncture of Rockfish Creek and Dutch
Creek in Nelson
County, Virginia. They
remained there at least until 1830 when Samuel died. She and Samuel produced seven children (5
sons and 2 daughters) between ca. 1783 and 1806. It is believed that Jane passed away
in 1842 in Nelson County, Virginia. During the 18th century the
Childers family name is prominent in that area of Albemarle county that
became Amherst County in
1761and then Nelson County in 1803.
Good candidates for the parents of our Jane Childress are Benjamin
Childers and his wife Ann Jopling whose father Thomas Jopling who in 1774
owned land at the branches of Dutch and Rockfish Creeks. Benjamin and Ann produced off-spring
between 1760 and 1773. Some of whom
appear to have held land in the vicinity of the Scruggs homestead. Another possible candidate for the father
of Jane is an Abraham Childers.
Records show an Abraham Childers performing several land transaction
in the vicinity of Rockfish and Davis Creeks about 6 miles from where Jane
and her husband Samuel settled in the early 1780’s. |
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Origins of the
surname
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An Introduction to the Name
The practice of adopting hereditary surnames
began in the southern areas of Germany during the second half of the 12th
century, and gradually spread northwards during the Middle Ages. . With
the passing of generations and the movement of families moved from place to
place many of the original identifying names were altered into some of the
versions that we are familiar with today.
Over the centuries, most of our European ancestors accepted their
surname as an unchangeable part of their lives. Thus people rarely changed their surname. Variations of most surnames were usually
the result of an involuntary act such as when a government official wrote a
name phonetically or made an error in transcription. Research into the record of this Childress family
line indicates that the variations, meanings and history of this surname is
most likely linked to that area of Europe where English, linguistic traditions are commonly
found. |
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Meaning of the Name
Most of the modern family names throughout Europe have originated from
with of the following circumstances: occupation (i.e., Carpenter, Cooper, Brewer, Mason); habitational (Middleton, Sidney, or Ireland) or topographical (i.e. Hill, Brook, Forrest, Dale); nicknames (i.e., Moody Freeholder, Wise, Armstrong); status (i.e. Freeman, Bond, Knight); and acquired
ornamental names that were simply made up. Childress
an English surname is a metathesized variant of Childers. Childers is
probably a habitational name from some lost place named Childerhouse,
from Old English cildra, genitive plural of cild ‘child’ + hus
‘house’. It is believed that the prime cause of the lost village phenomenon was the enforced
"clearing" and dispersal of the former inhabitants to make way for
sheep pastures at the height of the wool trade in the 14th Century, along
with natural causes such as the Black Death of 1348. This surname of Childress was also a name given to a child that
was in a children's home, orphanage or school
run by a religious order attached to some monastery or church. |
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History of the Name
Surnames as we know them today were first assumed in Europe from the 11th to the 15th century. They were not in use in England or Scotland, before the Norman Conquest of 1066, and were first found in the Domesday Book of 1086. The employment in the use of a second name was a custom that was first introduced from the Normans who had adopted the custom just prior to this time. Soon thereafter it became a mark of a generally higher socio-economic status and thus seen as disgraceful for a well-bred man to have only one name. It was not until the middle of the 14th century that surnames became general practice among all people in the British Isles. It is quite clear from the evidence that
the Childress surname and its variants sprang from the English counties of
Norfolk and Suffolk. The earliest of
the name on record appears to be Hemericus de Childerhus, who was recorded in "Close Rolls of Norfolk" in the year 1230. Other early records containg this name where William de Childerhous, a witness, was recorded in the "Fine court Rolls of
Norfolk", dated 1272, and an Alex del Childrehus in the 1273 Hundred Rolls. Guy Childerhouse was rector of Stiffkey,
Norfolk, in 1413, and on July 6th 1578 Thomas Childerhowse and Elizabeth Dimond were married in Attleborough,
Norfolk. On May 24th 1596, Edward Childerhouse married an Elizabeth Jonson in St. Julian's,
Norwich. Later instances of the name mention
Thomas Childres, who was buried at St.
James's, Clerkenwell, London in the year 1665, and William Knight and Phillis
Childers, were married at St.
George's Chapel, Mayfair, London in the year 1746. |
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Early Immigrants to North America
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Variations of the surname
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Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have
continued to unfold and expand often leading to an overwhelming number of
variants. As such one
can encounter great variation in the spelling of surnames because in early
times, spelling in general and thus the spelling of names was not yet
standardized. Later on spellings would
change with the branching and movement of families. Spelling
variations of this family name include: Childers,
Childress, Childres, and many others. |
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The complexity of researching records is compounded by the fact
that in many cases an ancestors surname may also have been misspelled. This is especially true when searching
census documents. The Soundex system was developed in an effort to assist with
identifying spelling variations for a given surname. Soundex is a method of indexing names in
the 1880, 1900, 1910, and 1920 US Census, and can aid genealogists in their
research. The
Soundex Code for Childress is C436.
Other surnames sharing this Soundex Code: CALDER | CALDERWOOD | CHILDERS | CHILDRESS | CLADER | CLOTHIER | CLOUTIER | CLUTTER | CLUTTERBUCK | COULTER | COULTHARD | COULTHURST |
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Searching for more Information about this and other surnames? |
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Then take a look at our: |
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Coat of arms
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Fig. 1 |
Fig. 2 |
There is one armorial bearing for a Childers of Cantley in Yorkshire recorded in Sir
Bernard Burke’s General Armory.
This coat of arms as shown at the top of this page contains a silver shield with a red cross humette between four red
buckles. The crest is a cubit arm in
chain armour holding a red buckle in the gauntlet. These armorial bearings have descended from Hugh Childers of Carr House who was the Mayor of
Doncaster in 1604. The figures shown at
the left are all stylized versions of the aforementioned Childers coat of
arms. Any Childers/Childress/Childerhouse family motto is not known. · Burke, Sir Bernard, The general armory of England, Scotland, Ireland, and
Wales: comprising a registry of armorial bearings from the earliest to the
present time, published by
Harrison & sons, 1864, page 193. |
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Fig. 3 |
Fig. 4 |
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A Coat of Arms
is defined as a group of emblems
and figures (heraldic bearings) usually arranged on and around a shield and
serving as the special insignia of some person, family, or institution. Except for a few cases, there is really no
such thing as a standard "coat of arms" for a surname. A coat of arms,
more properly called an armorial achievement,
armorial bearings or often
just arms for short, is a
design usually granted only to a
single person not to an entire family or to a particular surname. Coats of arms are inheritable property, and
they generally descend to male lineal descendents of the original arms
grantee. The rules and traditions
regarding Coats of Arms vary from country to country. Therefore a Coat of
Arms for an English family would differ from that of a German family even
when the surname is the same. The art of designing, displaying, describing, and
recording arms is called heraldry. The use of coats of arms by countries,
states, provinces, towns and villages is called civic heraldry. Some of the more prominent elements incorporated into
a coat of arms are : |
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Crest - The word crest
is often mistakenly applied to a coat of arms. The crest was a later development
arising from the love of pageantry.
Initially the crest consisted of charges painted onto a ridge on top
of the helmet. Wreath
or Torse – The torse is a twist of cloth or wreath underneath and part of a crest. Always shown as
six twists, the first tincture being the tincture of the field, the second
the tincture of the metal, and so on. Mantling – The mantling is a drapery
tied to the helmet above the shield. It forms a backdrop for the shield. Helm or Helmet - The helmet or helm is situated above the shield and
bears the torse and crest. The style of helmet displayed varies according to
rank and social status, and these styles developed over time, in step with
the development of actual military helmets. Shield or Arms - The basis of all coats of arms. At their simplest, arms consist of a shield with a plain field on which appears a geometrical shape or object. The items appearing on the shield are known as charges. Motto - The motto was originally a war cry,
but later mottoes often expressed some worthy sentiment.
It may appear at the top or bottom of a family coat of arms. |
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Direct ancestors
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Descendant Register Generation 1 |
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Jane Childress-1 was born
on Abt. 1760 in Albemarle County, Virginia. She died on 24 Oct 1842 in Nelson
County, Virginia. She married Samuel Scott Scruggs Sr. on Bet. 1781-1783 in
Albemarle County, Virginia, son of II?? John Scruggs. He was born on 28 Mar
1757 in Albemarle County, Virginia. He died on 1830 in Nelson County,
Virginia. Children of
Jane Childress and Samuel Scott Scruggs Sr. are: 2.
John Scruggs, B: Abt.
1783 in Amherst County, Virginia, D: Abt. 1823 in Nelson County, Virginia, M:
1806 in Amherst County, Virginia. 3.
Samuel Scott Scruggs Jr.,
B: Abt. 1788 in Amherst County, Virginia, D: Abt. 1831 in Nelson Co.,
Virginia, M: 06 Jun 1812 in Nelson Co., Virginia. 4.
William Scruggs, B: Abt.
1791 in Amherst County, Virginia, D: Abt. 1842 in Virginia. 5.
Joseph C. Scruggs, B: 14
Aug 1794 in Amherst County, Virginia, D: 29 Jan 1879 in Palmyra, Fluvanna
Co., Virginia, M: 16 Dec 1824 in Fluvanna County, Virginia. 6.
Nancy C. Scruggs, B: Abt.
1795 in Amherst County, Virginia, D: Abt. 1847 in Virginia, M: 25 Jan 1813 in
Nelson County, Virginia. 7.
Theophilus C. Scruggs, B:
14 Aug 1798 in Amherst County, Virginia, D: 20 Nov 1867 in Bedford Co.,
Virginia, M: 15 Feb 1821 in Nelson County, Virginia. 8.
Mary Scruggs, B: Abt.
1808 in Nelson County, Virginia. |
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Additional information about our DIRECT ANCESTORS as
well as a complete listing of individuals with this surname may be
reviewed by clicking on the following LINK. |
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Free Genealogy Surname Search Help from Google |
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Use this free
genealogy site to help you
get the best genealogy searches from Google™
by using your family tree, for your research. It
will create a series of different searches using tips or "tricks" |
that will likely
improve your results. The different searches will give you many different
ways of using Google and the Internet to find ancestry information about this
or any other Surname. |
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Ancestral
locations
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Researching
the locations where our ancestors lived has provided us with valuable
evidence needed to fill-in the gaps in our family trees. It has also led us to many interesting
facts that enhance the overall picture of each family group. The names of states and counties on the
following list were derived from the known places where the persons in the
“Direct Ancestors” list (see above) were born, married, and / or died. |
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COUNTRY |
STATE |
COUNTY / SUBDIVISION |
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UNITED STATES |
VIRGINIA |
Albemarle Co.; Amherst Co.; Nelson Co. |
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Use this LINK to find out
more about the locations listed above. |
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Where in the World are My Ancestors? |
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Resources
which enhance our knowledge of the places inhabited by our ancestors are
almost as important as their names.
The LINK |
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to the right will take you to
Maps, Gazetteers,
and other helpful
resources that will assist you
in discovering Ancestral Locations. |
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Source documents
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The
documents contained herein have been located during our research of this
family, and used as evidence to prove many of the facts
contained within the database of this family’s record. Most of these documents
can be considered as primary or secondary.
Primary evidence is usually defined as the best
available to prove the fact in question, usually in an original document or
record. Secondary evidence
is in essence all that evidence which is inferior in its origin to primary
evidence. That does not mean secondary evidence is always in error, but there
is a greater chance of error. Examples
of this type of evidence would be a copy of an original record, or oral
testimony of a record’s contents.
Published genealogies and family histories are also secondary
evidence. Classifying evidence as either
primary or secondary does not tell anything about its accuracy or ultimate
value. This is especially true of
secondary evidence. Thus it is always
a good idea to ask the following questions: (1) How far removed from the
original is it, (when it is a copy)?;
(2) What was the reason for the creation of the source which contains
this evidence?; and (3) Who was responsible for creating this secondary
evidence and what interest did they have in its accuracy? SOURCE: Greenwood, Val D., The Researcher’s Guide
to American Genealogy, 2nd edition, Genealogical Publishing Co., Baltimore, MD 21202, 1990, pgs. 62-63 You are welcome to download any of the documents contained within
this archive. Should you encounter a
problem obtaining a copy you may get in touch with us via the contact information
found at the end of this page. |
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Use the
following LINK to view the source documents pertaining to this family. |
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Web resources
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This search engine may provide you with additional |
information to assist with your research about this topic. |
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General Surname Resources |
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Your
genealogy
research of this surname can be facilitated by use of SURNAME
WEB.
This website links to the majority of the surname data on the web, as well as
to individual family trees, origin and surname meaning if known, and many
other related genealogy resources. |
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SURNAME
FINDER
provides easy access to free and commercial resources for 1,731,359 surnames.
On each surname specific "finder" page, you can search a variety of
online databases all pre-programmed with your surname. |
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Use ALL
SURNAMES GENEALOGY
to get access to find your surname resources
. There are almost 1300 links in this
directory. |
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Additional Sites That We
Recommend |
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Linkpendium Surnames - Web sites, obituaries, biographies,
and other material specific to a surname. Cyndi's List - Surnames, Family Associations & Family Newsletters
Index - Sites or resources dedicated to specific, individual
family surnames. FamilySearch.org
- Family History and Genealogy Records - The
largest collection of free family history, family tree and genealogy records
in the world. Top Genealogical Websites - These mighty roots resources compiled by “Family Tree
Magazine”, will give you the power to bust through research brick walls and
find answers about your ancestors—all from your home computer. SurnameDB
Free database of surname meanings - This site
SurnameDB.Com contains a large FREE to access database (almost 50,000
surnames) on the history and meaning of family last names. The
Childers ~ Childress Family Association Childress Genealogy - The Childers/Childress
Family Association was formed in 1982 and is the repository and clearinghouse
for information on the Childers and Childress surname(s) and various other
spellings of the name. These families are in or from England and the United
States and Canada. |
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OUR
GENEALOGY REFERENCE LIBRARY |
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The
following Link
will take you to our library of genealogy reference books. Here you will find bibliographies, family histories and books
about names. In addition, there are texts that pertain
to ethnic and religion groups, history, geography
as well as other books that will assist you with your research. Research
Library – Table of Contents |
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Images
gallery
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During our
research we have collected images and photographs that are of general
interest to a particular family. Some
of them are presented on this website because we believe they tend to provide
the reader with additional information which may aid in the understanding of
our ancestors past lives. If you have any photographs or other
images relating to this ancestral
family we would greatly appreciate hearing from you. |
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Use the following LINKS to ascertain
whether we have any images that pertain to this family. |
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Free Image Search Help from Google |
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Use the power of Google™ to find more interesting images about
this topic. A Click on this button will link you to the Google Images
Search page. |
Enter
the topic you are searching in the box and click “Search Images”. At the “Images”
display page you will see the image, as well as the website of which it
is associated. |
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Snail
Mail: Fred USA |
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Pony Express: Tom |
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