Abbeville County Genealogy Records: Wills, Estates, Minutes, Land Grants
Abbeville County was part of the Ninety-Six District where the old deed may be found. It became Abbeville County in 1785, with parts, later divided into Greenwood (1897) and McCormick (1916) counties. The county and the county seat were both named for the French town, of Abbeville. The county was settled primarily by Scotch-Irish and French Huguenot farmers in the mid-eighteenth century. After the treaty with the Cherokee Indians signed in 1777 at Dewitt’s Corner (now Due West) with a flux of Scotch-Irish and French Huguenot farmers. Abbeville played a major role in the secession from the union of the southern states, and it is the site where the last Confederate council was held.
Early settlers: Andrew Hamilton, James Jordan, Patrick Forbis, James Moore, William McCaleb, William Young, James Maxwell, Thomas Coker, Tucker Woodson, William Brown, John Lawrence, Ralph Wilson, William Love, Thomas Shockley, William Love, Barnard Putnam, James Shirley, William Anderson, Richard Sadler, Benjamin Alderidge, John Nash, Adam Crain Jones, William Love, Joseph Brown, and others.
Transcripts of Wills (1787-1815)
Adams, William ; Agnew, Samuel ; Alexander, Aaron ; Alexander, William ; Astin, James ; Baird, John ; Baird, Thomas ; Baker, Caleb ; Banks, Rivers ; Barksdale, Elizabeth ; Barksdale, Higgason ; Baskin, Hugh ; Bates, Fleming ; Bates, Stephen ; Bayle, Mary ; Bealey, Jane ; Bell, Mathew ; Beraud, John ; Boles, John ; Bond, Robert ; Bouchillon, John ; Bouchillon, Joseph ; Bowman, John ; Bowman, William ; Boyd, William ; Branson, Eli ; Brazbach?, William ; Bredden, Margery ; Brooks, Christopher ; Brown, Cornelius ; Brown, William ; Brownlee, James ; Brownlee, John ; Buchanan, Mary ; Caein, Richard ; Caldwell, John ; Calhoun, Hugh ; Calhoun, James ; Calhoun, Patrick ; Campbell, John ; Campbell, Margery ; Cane, Mary ; Carmichael, William ; Carson, William ; Caruthers, Martha ; Chambers, John ; Chandler, Jesse ; Chiles, James ; Chiles, John ; Chiles, Jonathan ; Chiles, William, Sr. ; Clark, John Huston ; Clark, Samuel ; Clark, William ; Clarke, Benjamin ; Clarke, Mary ; Cochran, Andrew ; Coldwell, John ; Collins, Edward LWT (1837) ; Couey, Samuel ; Covington, William ; Cowan, Andrew ; Cowans, John ; Crozier, James ; Cunningham, David ; Cunningham, James ; Davenport, John ; Davis, Martha ; Delechaux, Sarah ; De La Howe, John ; Delechaux, Jacob ; Donaldson, Mathew ; Drummond, Benjamin ; Edmiston, John ; Edwards, Andrew ; Edwards, James Cumton ; Elgin, Ann ; Eymerie, John ; Gable, Herman ; Gaines, William ; Gamble, Samuel ; Gantt, Benjamin ; Gantt, William (1809) slow loading ; Gill, Daniel ; Glover, Frederick ; Gorley, James ; Gowedy, Robert ; Gray, James ; Green, Peter ; Guttry, Thomas ; Hamilton, Archibald ; Hamilton, Thomas ; Hanks, Luke ; Hannah, Jean ; Harris, John ; Harris, William ; Hathorn, Ann ; Hawkins, John ; Heard, Isaac ; Hemphill, Andrew ; Houston, John ; Houston, John ; Huggins, William ; Hughs, Caterene ; Huston, James ; Hutchinson, William ; Jeffries, Nathaniel ; Jones, Harris ; Kennedy, Joseph ; Kerr, William ; Kaise, Elizabeth ; King, Benjamin ; Lewallen, Richard ; Liddell, George ; Liddell, James ; Little, William ; Livingston, George ; Logan, Andrew ; Marck, John Balthaser ; Marshal, John ; Martin, William ; Mathews, Victor ; Maxfield, Susanna ; Mayson, John ; Mathew, John ; McBride, Thomas ; McCarter, Benjamin ; McElwee, John, John ; McFarlin, Charles ; McGowan, James ; McKee, Marthy (1813) ; McKee, Thomas ; McKinley, Esther ; Mebin, John ; Mecklin, David ; Meriwether, Francis, LWT ; Miller, John ; Mills, Gilbert ; Milroy, William ; Mitchell, Isaac ; Mitchell, Randle ; Mitchell, Tanner ; Morris, William ; Morrow, George ; Morrow, John ; Moseley, Arthur ; Mott, Andrew ; Mouchet, Samuel ; Mulherrin, Charles ; Murdoch, James, Estate, 1837 (image) ; Nash, John ; Nicholas, Julius ; Noble, James ; Norwood, John ; Norwood, Samuel ; Norwood, Theophilos ; Oliver, James ; Owens, John ; Paterson, Robert ; Patterson, James ; Patterson, Samuel ; Pettigrew, James ; Pollard, Richard ; Porter, John ; Prince, John, 1782 ; Pulliam, John ; Ragland, Samuel, John ; Ralston, James ; Ravlin, John ; Ray, Thomas ; Reid, George ; Reighley, William ; Robartson, John, Sr. ; Roger, Ann ; Roger, Peter ; Rosemond, John ; Ross, Robert ; Ross, William ; Russel, John ; Russell, Timothy ; Seawright, James ; Shaw, William ; Shelly, Agnes transcript ; Sims, Nathan ; Smith, Harry ; Stalsworth, Joseph ; Steel, Aaron ; Stewart, Andrew ; Strain, John ; Swanzy, Robert ; Tatom, William ; Taylor, Thomas ; Thornton, Samuel ; Tinsley, Thomas ; Turk, John ; Van Swearingen, Joseph ; Vernon, James ; Vernon, James ; Vickrey, William ; Wallace, James ; Waller, Benjamin ; Waller, Elizabeth ; Waller, John ; Ward, Joseph ; Wardlaw, Hugh ; Wardlaw, John ; Wardlaw, Joseph ; Waters, Mary ; Wedgeworth, William ; Webb, James ; Weed, Nathaniel ; Weed, Reuben ; White, Francis ; White, James ; White, John ; Williams, Simeon ; Wilson, Hugh ; Wilson, John ; Wilson, Michael ; Wilson, Nathaniel ; Wilson, William ; Winn, Thomas ; Woodin, Rebekah ; Woods, William ; Yeldell, Robert ; Young, James ; Zimmerman, Mary
- Abbeville County Land Grants
- Abbeville Minutes of the Court of Ordinary, Book B (1776-1783)
- Index to Abbeville County Will Book A 1782-1868
- Index to Abbeville County Will Book B 1815-1839
- Index to Abbeville County Will Book C 1839-1855
Miscellaneous
- Marriages, Estate Notices, and Obituaries from The Abbeville Banner 1847 to 1848
- Some Land Grants
- Minutes of the Court, Book B 1776 to 1783
Indexes to Equity Cases (Deeds) 1791 to 1906
Indexes to Wills
- Will Book A 1782 to 1868
- Will Book B 1815 to 1839
- Will Book C 1839 to 1855
The Past was more Glamorous than Today
The fashions of yesteryear are interesting because they reflect the lifestyles of an era that no longer exists. And vehicles such as farm tractors and old automobiles go right along with it. My sisters and I used to sit on a swing on the front porch and count the various autos which passed. During the 1940s and 1950s, each automobile possessed a uniquely easily- identifiable styling that is not seen today. This generation is not leaving behind such a luxury nothing but square autos that I can see. And where are the gorgeous fedora hats, hair goods, and fascinators with net veils? Everything seemed to be swooped away during the 1960s as people dressed down and cared less for style. As we trace the lineage of former days, there is a certain appreciation for those who employed glamour in their daily lives.
Remember Home Spun?
During the 18th century, there were no closets, and women confined themselves to two dresses, one for daytime, and the other for special occasions, such as attending church and parties. The dress was folded in a cedar chest at the foot of the bed. When it became too worn, the seams were torn apart and the old dress was used as a pattern to make a new one. When the cotton crop was harvested, the ladies spun cotton into thread. And sewed with their hands the clothing for all the family.