Flipside: John Ferguson and Bathsheba Griffith Ferguson of Morgantown, (West) Virginia

Craigdarroch, Monaive, Dumfries, Scotland

John Ferguson, a lineal Descendant of Alexander Ferguson, Laird of Craigdarroch, Scotland

John Ferguson, my paternal great great great great great great grandfather was born circa 1730 in Prince Georges County, Maryland. Over the years I have corresponded with numerous Ferguson researchers and the consensus is that John's father was Duncan Ferguson (Dunkin). He was a Jacobite rebel, who was transported to Annapolis, Maryland on the ship Goodspeed on October 18, 1716 and purchased for a seven year term by Captain John Findell. The Jacobite prisoners on the ship were taken in the Rebellion at Preston in Lancashire, England in 1715.

John's mother was Catherine. On Ancestry various researchers give her maiden name as Cameron and her full name as Catherine Clark Cameron. There is a court record of a deed dated June 27, 1774 that a widow, Catherine Ferguson of Prince Georges County, Maryland sold to Catherine Lanham wife of William Lanham and granddaughter of said Catherine Ferguson one negro girl named Lucy who was 2 years old. Catherine Ferguson Lanham was the oldest daughter of John Ferguson, so one can conclude that Catherine Ferguson, widow, is John's mother.

There is an additional Maryland record that gives William Lanham as “a well beloved friend” of Catherine Ferguson of Frederick County, Maryland power of attorney to collect debts.

Of note in Bernard L. Butcher's book, "Genealogical and Personal History of the Upper Monongahela Valley," is a story that the Ferguson's are direct descendants of Alexander Ferguson, laird of Craigdarrock, Scotland and Annie Laurie of the Maxwellton House who is celebrated in the Scottish song, "Maxwellton Braes are Bonnie" or more commonly known as "Annie Laurie."

In 1755 John Ferguson married Bathsheba (Basheba, Bersheba) Griffith and began to raise a family in Prince Georges County, Maryland. Bathsheba was born circa 1734 and was also from Prince Georges County. Her parents were Samuel and Anne Skinner Griffith. Both the Griffith and Skinnner families trace back to the mid 1600's in Maryland.

John was a farmer with considerable property and slaves. The Ferguson's raised seven known children that were listed in John’s will. There is a possibility of another son, William. He is not named in John’s will, but there are Monongalia County records of him. He is listed as “living out of state.”

A family member who joined the DAR indicates that John Ferguson served as a private with the 7th Maryland Militia. He joined as a private on December 6, 1776 and was discharged in February 1778. He would have been around 50 years old at the time of the war. This is the record the application was based on. (Maryland Archives) There is no other information regarding John's service in the Maryland militia since John and Bathsheba both died before the 1832 Act of Congress granting Revolutionary War veterans pensions.

1776 Maryland Census Records
Prince Georges Parish

John Fergusson age 51

White Male under age 16--possibly John Ferguson

Bershiba Fergusson age 37

White Female age 20--Rebecca Ferguson ?

White Female age 16--Ann Skinner Ferguson

White Female age 14--Susanna Ferguson

White Female age 11--Vilando Ferguson

Male Slave age 37

Male Slave age 24

Estimated children as ages are also estimated.

John and Bathsheba's oldest daughter and her husband, William and Catherine Ferguson Lanham, are enumerated below their listing. They are my paternal great great great great great grandparents.

In 1777 there was a law in Maryland for all free males age eighteen and older were required to sign an Oath of Fidelity against the British King. There is a signed Prince Georges County, Maryland Oath of Fidelity and Support signed by John Ferguson. (Brumbaugh, 259)

1871 and 1872

1786 Decker's Creek Land Purchase

The Ferguson's decided to move west in the mid 1780's and by 1786, "John Forgoson" had purchased 400 acres on Decker's Creek in Monongalia County, Virginia. This area is located in present day Morgantown, West Virginia. In addition to the this piece of property, John also owned 200 acres “east of his land”, 440 acres on Three Fork Creek, 100 acres south of Decker’s Creek extending from Decker’s Creek to Aarons Creek, and a tavern on Lot 11 in Morgans Town owned jointly with his son in law, Farquier McRa.

Four of John and Bathsheba's married daughters and their families also relocated in Morgantown. These were the families of William and Catherine Ferguson Lanham, William and Rebecca Ferguson Wilson, Joseph and Ann Skinner Ferguson Wilson and Farquier and Susannah Ferguson McRa. Only one daughter, Vialindo Ferguson Beall (Bell) stayed in Maryland.

The Ferguson's farm was considered a plantation and according to the 1787 tax return for Monongalia County, John had 6 black slaves working for him. He also owned 5 horses and 7 cows.

I have seen no other records of the Ferguson family until John's death in 1796. In a will dated December 4, 1793, John left all his worldly goods to his wife and children. This included a plantation on Decker's Creek and three slaves. It is presumed that he his buried in Morgantown. The exact location of his grave is unknown and with time the stone has probably been destroyed.

Bathsheba continued to live on the plantation with her daughter Peggy and son John. In 1798 a male slave belonging to Bathsheba was involved in a court case which lead to the first hanging in Monongalia County. A slave girl was found guilty of burning her master's barn along with a male slave named Will, who was owned by Bathsheba Ferguson. The girl was hanged and Will, who was accused as an accessory to the crime, was burnt on the hand and received thirty lashes.

Bathsheba died at about the age of 66 during 1799 or early 1800. Monongalia County court records show many entries concerning the will and dissolution of the Ferguson estate. It should be noted that Bathsheba signed her own name to her will in 1799 which was certainly not common for women in the late 1700's. William Lanham and Farquier McRa, two of Bathsheba's son-in-law's, were the executors. The first court document was recorded in 1802 and claims continued to be filed for and against the estate until after 1807.

The Children of John Ferguson and Bathsheba Griffith Ferguson:

Catherine Ferguson born in 1756 in Maryland died after 1830 in Monongalia County, (West) Virginia married William Lanham. (my paternal great great great great great grandparents)

Rebecca Ferguson born in 1759 in Maryland died 1823 in Monongalia County, (West) Virginia married William Wilson.
Anne Skinner Ferguson born in 1760 in Maryland died in Monongalia County, (West) Virginia married Joseph Wilson.
Susannah Fergsuon born on December 19, 1762 in Maryland married Farquier McRa.
Vialindo (Lydia) Fergsuon born on August 10, 1766 in Maryland married Zepaniah Beall. Vialindo is listed as a widow in Montgomery County, Maryland in 1806 and she and her nephew, Alexander Ferguson Lanham disposed of sixty acres of land on Deckers Creek in Monongalia County which was a portion of Margaret Ferguson’s inheritance from her father.
Margaret (Peggy) Ferguson born in 1779 in Prince Georges County, Maryland died before 1799 in Monongalia County, (West) Virginia.
John Ferguson born in 1777 or 1781 in Prince Georges County and married Elizabeth (possibly maiden name Hamilton)before 1897. By his father’s will, John received the upper portion of the Deckers Creek property where he was already living. He also purchased lot #105 in Morgans Town and in 1797, 400 acres on Indian Creek. Before 1804 he and Elizabeth moved to Ohio County, Maryland where he died in 1829.

Sources:

Brumbaugh, Gaius Marcus. Maryland Records: Colonial, Revolutionary, County, and Church. Volume II, Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, Maryland, 1975, page 259.

Butcher, Bernard L. Genealogical and Personal History of the Upper Monongahela Valley, Volume I, Genealogical Publishing Company, Baltimore, Maryland, 1978, page 957.

Maryland Archives. Records of Maryland Troops in Continental Service, Volume 18, page207.

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