Here's the description of the Black Oak property

Here's a good description of the land:

To wit: the West half of the North East quarter of section 2 in township 13 of range 3 east also the East half of the North West quarter of section 2 in township 13 of range 3 east, also the East half of the North West quarter of section 2 in township 13 of range 3 east, also all of the land lying East and being a part of the West half of the North West quarter of the same section township and range as above. Beginning at a stake on the township line and running Southwardly to a white oak near William Wards house thence west to the spring including ½ of said spring thence Southwardly to a black oak thence Eastwardly to a Sweet Gum thence Southwardly to the open line thence East to the South West corner of the East half of the North West quarter of section 2 thence North to a stake on the township line thence West to the beginning, containing 200 acres more or less.

The Black Oak Tree

Just got back from St Clair county. I can't thank Charlene Simpson (from the Ashville Museum and Archives) enough for her help. So, having talked to her about the property owned by Joseph and William, I have determined the following:
-The William Phillips in Shelby County was most likely the same William I'm related to. Shelby County was a part of St Clair county before 1821ish, and that would be why William has no other records other than the jury roll call in Shelby.

-On 2 Jan 1829, Golder Fields sells a piece of land to Samuel Boyd for $570. The property is described as having half of a creek, a Black Oak, and a White Oak as part of its borders.
-On 28 September 1835 Samuel Boyd sells the property, referring to a White Oak in the description, to William Phillips for $500
-On 29 March 1839, William sells the property to Brazil Wooley for $800. Brazil was likely a tax collector, and this could have been for a debt owed to the government.
-On 28 August 1846, Pinckney Woolley and Minor Woolley sell the same property to a William D. Washburn for $400. Both would have been children of Brazil (Basil).
-On 12 August 1856, William D. Washburn sells the property to James Phillips (who married Dorcas Crawford) for $500.
-On 12 August 1856, James Phillips takes out a mortgage for $814.41 on the property, and on this we get a reference to Canoe Creek, giving a better idea where this property is located today
-On 14 September 1857 James Phillips and Dorcas Crawford (his wife) sell the property to Joseph Phillips for $1200. A huge sum of money, but with enough interest could have been used to pay off the debt.

What does this mean? Likely William bought the property, lived there for a while, and Joseph ended up with it. Seems like Joseph would have to be William's son to be willing to do that.

Civil War Records

Since my last post I've been trying to piece together records of my family in the Civil War. Currently I'm using Footnote.com for the records and the site is extremely useful. So far I've been able to learn that my Grandfather White was actually a part of the battle over Mobile Bay and was a prisoner of war for a few months! Others in my family have been anything from privates in the infantry to lieutenants, and even a few in calvary units! Very useful, and I have even found physical descriptions of them from time to time. One uncle apparently had gray eyes, which I'm not so sure about honestly. Still, if you find relatives living in this time, try to look for war records. It adds a bunch of color to the family history.

Family bibles

It's been a while since I updated this blog, but lately I haven't been working on the Phillips line. I've been instead working on my paternal grandmothers family, the Whites. Turns out all I needed to do was put in the information I got from Bible pages from Nancy White and I would have been able to do a bunch more. I have all the kids of Thomas Phillips (1791-??) who married an Elizabeth in Ancestry.com now, and it's now easier to figure out where my direct line lived from 1850 and after. Thomas' son, Thomas Jefferson "TJ" White, was living in Arkansas in 1850, then disappears, and shows up in 1861 in Jefferson County, Alabama to marry Sarah E. Morrison. Turns out he was living with his brother Russel in Coosa County in 1860, and somehow decided to marry in Jefferson County. Now to just find out where Thomas was back in 1840...his son/family may have been involved in a murder, and I'll post that when I get back home

Fixing a common misconception

William Phillips who married Sarah Hays or Sarah Burleson was not born in Wilkinson County, Georgia. We know his family was living in the Wilkes County area in the late 1700s, and most likely he would not have moved too far from them, at least not moving south and then north east.
Also, the best proof of it is that the county of Wilkinson was not in existence in 1788. The county was formed in 1805, well after 1788. The area Wilkinson County was formed from wasn't another county, it was claimed land from Indians most likely.

The new timeline with William and Sarah

Here's the new trail he left his family:
1807: Warren County Deed Book A William buys 200 acres from Daniel/Danyl Middleton
1812: Warren County Deed Book A William sells 100 acres to John Durham
1813: Warren County Deed Book A William sells 100 acres to Levi Rodin
1813: Warren County Deed Book A William buys 140 acres from Thomas Lowry
1814: Warren County Deed Book B William sells land to James Cain
Aug 1814: Warren County Deed Book C William sells 130 acres to Thomas Lowry, Jr.
1819: Shelby County Jury List
1820: Shelby County census
1820s: Overseer of the building of a road
1832: Mortgage taken out in St Clair County
Beyond this: He has many different land transactions in St Clair.

Now we need to fill the gap between 1820 and 1832, and something between August 1814 and 1819. However, this does show that Joseph was in fact born in Shelby County, Alabama.

Hints on researching Shelby County, Alabama

Here's a few pointers on researching Shelby County:
1) The county probate court does not allow cameras or any recording devices at all. Frustrating, but true.
2) Most of the old records are located at the Historical building located about 3 blocks down on Main Street from the probate office. They are VERY nice over there, and can do a lot to help you locate records. They have most of the records you need as hard copies or on microfilm. Best to start your research here if you have research to do in the county area.