William JOHNSTON b. [1725] [only for research purposes], d. c. 1786 Bladen Co., NC, m. Sallie Bigford (ref. C.F.R.) and the tradition claims his name probably was Samuel. I believe this is just confusion with his son Samuel. He is not in the 1788 tax list nor the 1790 census. Deeds state that William was the father of Charles who was the brother of Samuel and Samuel was the brother of James. Benjamin
seems to have died in the Revolution before he acquired any land in his name. William was a farmer owning land scattered north of Elizabethtown, Bladen Co. He continued to receive land grants through 1784 and was in the tax book in 1784, but not that of 1788. His sons, Samuel and Charles, were in the tax book of 1788. In 1786 there began a series of sheriff's auctions and sales of his lands that continued until 1788. I think this was part of settling his estate and paying
his debts. He seemed to have enough land to cover any debt.
The earliest record I have found in Bladen Co., NC, is on the 7th of April 1750 where at a Council meeting, petitions for warrants of land for 100 acres in Bladen Co., were granted. Ref. NORTH CAROLINA COLONIAL RECORDS, V. 4, p. 1039. He next received a 100 acre grant, #635, in Bladen Co. on 23 Feb 1752. Ref. same, Book 2, p. 98. Or is this 1752 record just the recording of the 1750 grant?
In New Hanover Co., just down stream from Bladen, there are several deeds of a William Johnston and several of a Jeremiah Bigford in the 1750s and 1760s. Persons entering NC in this area would come into the port of New Brunswick. This is on the north side of the present town of South Port. If William entered this area, he would have come in there. It became a thriving port before 1725. It was so destroyed by British naval guns during the Revolution that it was never
successfully inhabited again. Finally they gave up and established a port at Wilmington. New Brunswick is now a Rev. War monument.
The New Hanover deeds are later than the land grants of 1750 and 1752. Possibly William was buying lands wherever it was profitable. There are not enough Williams in the area in 1770-1790 tax lists and census to make all of these different men. Jeremiah Bigford was in the same area buying land. If Jeremiah had a daughter, Sally, it would have been easy for William to meet her and marry here 1750-1752.
William's oldest son James was b. about 1753.
William's four sons all fought in the Revolution. I wonder if any of them were at New Brunswick during the shelling? The dirt walls around New Brunswick are still visible as are some of the shell holes.
In 1761 and 1762 William Johnston was named as a party in two law suits. In the second he was said to be a wheelwright.
William must have been making money in his profession as he bought 640 acres in Bladen Co. from Samuel Carman for 100 pounds proclamation money on Aug. 25, 1772. He also bought land from 1779 on, with the last being in 1784.
There is a 1763 tax list of Bladen Co. but no William or Samuel is listed. Only a Robert, Jno., Lazerus and Thos. Johnston. No Johnsons, Also listed are a Jeremiah Bigford, Stephen and Thos. Freeman. According to the traditions in CFR, these might be related.
He was listed in Bladen Co. Tax Lists of 1781 and 1784. He is not on the list of 1788. In 1781 the list is of persons exempted from paying the specisie (sp) tax for that year. William Johnston - 999 L.
In 1784 William Johnson (no "t") was given as being in Capt. Johnson's District and having 270 acres and one white pole.
When he died is not known but certainly between the time he last bought land on Nov. 7, 1784 and 1787 when one of his tracts of land was sold to Charles by sheriff's sale. Charles sold it to Samuel in 1798 and when Samuel sold it to John Dickson in 1807, it is stated that Charles bought it at an execution against the ESTATE of William in 1787. Several tracts of land belonging to William were sold by sheriff's sale starting in May 1786 and lasting into 1788. There is problem with the deed that shows William selling land in Sept. 1786 to his son Samuel. In Feb. 1788, the sheriff seized this land in a suit against William and Samuel and was able to sell it. What happened? Was William sick or too old to work and not able to pay his bills and so land was sold to pay his debts? Then in Sept. did he sell land to
Samuel to try to keep some of it in the family? If so, then it failed. The courthouse in Elizabethtown burned twice before 1900 with the deeds being the only records held within the county that did survive. Even some of those show signs of fire as a few have scorched pages and edges.
The deeds of Bladen Co. form the best genealogical record for the Johnston family anyone could ever hope to find. One deed states that William Johnston bought land from Samuel Carman in 1772, that it was sold at a sheriff's sale in 1787 to his son Charles who sold it to his brother Samuel in 1798. Another deed was to a land grant to James Johnston who died intestate with his brother Samuel being his heir. Samuel sold both of these in 1807 to John Dickson of Cumberland Co. This gives three of William's sons with their relationships.
Subscribing witnesses to the deed of Samuel Carmen in 1772 to William Johnston were James Johnson and Elizabeth Johnson. I wonder if this is the same James that bought and sold several tracts of land between 1771 and 1775, and if he might be a brother of William? William's son James would be about 19 at the time and too young to be
a legal witness.
http://xaa.tripod.com/johnstn1.html
