Lawrence

The Lawrence family can be found when stepping back through generations of my father’s family. Robert Lawrence (who needs more research) would have been my 9th great grandfather.

Many generations of the Lawrence/Laurence family lived in England before crossing the Atlantic to the New World. According to John Gough Nichols, the family arrived “in England with William the Conqueror” and “Sir Robert Lawrence was made Banneret by Richard the First.” [i]  We cannot make a solid claim to these gentlemen but our Lawrence family did come from England to Virginia.

Researching the family quickly becomes confusing because of the repetition of the first names, especially Robert and John. It is important to look at both the names and the dates to understand which man is which.

The Lawrence surname is sometimes spelled Laurence and it is important to remember that when researching the name.

[i] Nichols, John Gough,The Herald and Genealogist, Vol. IV, (London: John Bowyer Nichols and Sons, 1862); digital image, Internet Archive(archive.org: accessed February 2018) 536.

1 Robert Lawrence b: London, England, d: VA
……2 John Lawrence
…… + Mary Lawrence
………3 Robert Lawrence b: c. 1680 in Nansemond, VA, d: 1744 Bertie, NC
……… + Elizabeth Nicholls
…………4 John Lawrence b: c. 1721, d: Abt. 1788 Bertie, NC
…………4 George Lawrence b: c 1725, d: Abt. 1756 Bertie, NC
…………4 Humphrey Lawrence b: c 1726, d: 1772 Bertie, NC
………… + Ann Ashley b: c. 1733
……………5 Frederick Lawrence b: c. 1746 Bertie, NC, d: 1823 Bertie, NC
……………5 Reuben Lawrence b: c. 1748 Bertie, NC, d: Bertie, NC
……………5 David Lawrence b: c. 1750 Bertie, NC, d: c 1786 Chowan, NC
……………5 Anne Lawrence b: c. 1762 Bertie, NC, d: c. 1830 MS
…………… + Richard Dillon b 7 Oct 1745 Norfolk, VA, m c 1776, d 7 Oct 1833 MS
……………5 Nathaniel Lawrence : 27 Jul 1766 Bertie, NC, d 24 Dec 1849 Artesia,
Lowndes, MS
…………4 Thomas Lawrence b: c. 1733
…………4 Robert Lawrence b: c. 1735
…………4 Elizabeth Lawrence
………… + Spruit
…………4 Martha Lawrence
…………4 William Lawrence

Read More About

• Frederick Lawrence 1746 – 1823
• Humphrey Lawrence 1726 – 1772
• Robert Lawrence 1680 – 1744

Selected Sources

• 1820 US Census, NC, Bertie Co., page 86; NARA Roll M33_82, Image 59; Frederick & Humphrey ‘Larrence’.
• Almasy, Sandra L. Bertie County, North Carolina Wills 1761 – 1780. Joliet, Illinois: Kensington Glen Publishing, 1990. From the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, Charlotte, North Carolina.
• Bell, Mary Best. Colonial Bertie County North Carolina 1744 – 1753. Volume V; Abstracts of Deed Book G. Windsor, North Carolina: Colonial Bertie, 1965. From the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, Charlotte, North Carolina.
• Bell, Mary Best. Colonial Bertie County North Carolina 1753 – 1757. Volume VI; Abstracts of Deed Book H. Windsor, North Carolina: Colonial Bertie, 1968.
• Bell, M. B. (1963). Colonial Bertie County, North Carolina: Deed Books A – H, 1720 – 1757 (2nd Edition). Greenville, SC: Southern Historical Press, Inc.
• Bertie County North Carolina County Court Minutes 1740 thru 1743; 1758 thru 1762. Book II. North Carolina: 1977.
• Conerly, Luke Ward, Source Records from Pike County, Mississippi: 1798-1910; 1798-1910; South Carolina, Southern Historical Press, 1989.
• Creel, Bevin. A Patriot’s Legacy: The Family of Richard Dillon and Ann Lawrence from Bertie County, North Carolina to Southern Mississippi and Louisiana; Mildred Penton Richbourg, Publisher, 2002.
• Gammon, David B. Abstracts of Wills; Bertie County, North Carolina; 1722 – 1774. Raleigh, North Carolina: 1990. From the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library, Charlotte, North Carolina.
• Parks, Weynette. Bertie County North Carolina County Court Minutes 1772 thru 1780. Book IV, Durham, North Carolina: 1979.
• War of 1812 Pension Application, Elizabeth Lawrence, widow of Robert Lawrence. Pension #WC 6376, Roll 56, Archive application #M313. Ancestry.com. War of 1812 Pension Application Files Index, 1812-1815 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2010.
• Whitley, Caroline B. North Carolina Headrights; A List of Names, 1663 – 1744. second Printing. Raleigh, North Carolina: Office of archives and History North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, 2008.