Friday Faces...Minister of the Scriptures

Throughout the early history of my Colonial Georgia Ancestors, Religious Freedom played a significant role in their lives beginning with their migration from Virginia to Georgia. Passionately devoted to the early Baptist Separatist Theology, the sons and daughters of John and Mary Polly Rowe raised their children in the same vein of what would prove to be a dominate force in their spiritual and daily lives.

So it would be for John and Mary's grandson, Elisha Coleman.  Elisha was born four years to the month after the death of his grandfather John, and although he didn't experience his  grandfather's passionate Baptist beliefs, he was strongly influenced by his mother, Millicent, John and Mary's fourth daughter.

Elisha was born on April 2, 1789, the fourth child of Jonathan and Millie Pittman Coleman.  His older siblings were brothers Charles born in 1786, and Jesse and Joseph who from all indications of their birthdates were twins.  Elisha would become the older brother to fifteen younger siblings among them another set of twin brothers.

His parents were founders and Charter Members of The Bark Camp Baptist Church in Burke County, Georgia on land that once was hunting and grazing land of the Indian Nations.  After the Indian Treaty of 1763 people moved into the area in large numbers.  The church was organized in 1788, even before George Washington was elected president.  It was a center of worship, culture and hospitality in one of the oldest settlements in Burke County. 

Elisha remained a faithful member of Bark Camp Church for 52 years.  During those years, his father Jonathan was buried in the churches cemetery along with his older brother Charles.  His mother Millicent, would join them in a matter of years.  His calling to the ministry in 1841, moved Elisha and his family to Emanuel County, Georgia where he joined the Old Canoochee Church.  After a few years of his service there, he went on to build his own church in Swainsboro, Emanuel County Georgia on land surveyed years earlier by and deeded to Elisha's older brother Charles Coleman.  Charles had obtained a grant from the state of Georgia and deeded a part of the tract to Nathaniel Daniels who in turn made a deed to the church dated October 16, 1849.  The Hawhammock Baptist Church continues to be an active part of the community today.

His obituary stated:  The church has lost her brightest light, and the county one of it's best citizens, ever ready to lend the helping hand to the needy and distressed.  His theme was to hear and expound the Scriptures.  ~The Christian Index, Feb. 13, 1861~

Reverend Elisha Coleman died on October 30, 1860 and was buried in a cemetery named in his honor, Elisha Coleman Cemetery in Swainsboro, Emanuel County, Georgia.  His life and service are well documented in Georgia history, and now in 'Tracks of My Georgia Ancestors'.  Reverend Elisha Coleman's branch in our family tree puts him as 1st cousin 5x removed.  His mother was my 4th great aunt, sister to my direct ancestor and 4th great grandfather John Ichabod Pittman, Jr.

Elisha's mother, Millicent 'Millie' Pittman Coleman's story.

Colonial Daughter Raised In The Revolutionary War

Wedding Wednesday...Colonial Ancestors Marriage Stories

The Colonial Marriages of my ancestors began in the late 1690's after the first married couples came from England.  First generation born American Colonists' marriages often followed customs of their homeland with dowry's and marriage ceremonies.  As far as I know, none of my ancestral Virginia brides were 'Auction Brides' paid for with 80 pounds of tobacco which was the practice in the early 1600's. 

In the colonies, weddings were not religious ceremonies.  Rather, they were a civil contract that set the responsibilities and duties of husband and wife.  In the marriage contract, women were protected by law in some colonies, for instance, a law passed in 1641 forbade men from beating there wives unless "it be in self defence."  It was also not unusual for many women to enter marriage with prenuptial contracts that would give her the right to retain control of her own property, or that it would return to her if the marriage dissolved.

On the more romantic side of weddings in Colonial America, brides and grooms often exchanged vows they had written themselves before starting the celebrations that could last for days.  In the Southern colonies...my ancestors part of the colonies...the couple was usually married in the bride's family home by a minister.  After the formal ceremony, there was feasting, dancing and drinking that sometimes lasted for days.

Contrary to popular belief, colonial girls seldom married in their teens.  It was far more common for colonial women to marry between the ages of 20 and 23.  The men were often older, sometimes in their mid to late twenties.  It was a father's duty to see to it that all of his daughters were provided for in one way or another.  While that sometimes meant arranged marriages, it was more common for a father to negotiate with the suitor of his daughters choosing.

Because life was difficult and life expectancy short, it was not unusual for a colonial man or woman to marry three of four times in their lives.  While there were families with 10 to 15 children, it was more common for families to have seven or eight children.  I found these marriage and family traditions to be a common thread among my Colonial Ancestors. 

In researching and documenting the daughters of my 5xGreat Grandparents John and Mary Polly Rowe Pittman, the stories of their marriages, mixed with the historical events of the times, made each of their weddings and marriages a story worth telling.  I hope you enjoy them and will be inspired to search beyond the names and dates of your ancestors, and be rewarded with a story of a life lived...for every life in your family tree is significant in time.

Click on the linked title for these Colonial Daughter Stories.

Colonial Daughter of Liberty

Colonial Daughter Weds for Love

Colonial Daughter's Dowry 100 Acres of Cherokee Land

Colonial Daughter's Biblical Name Prophecy
Colonial Daughter Raised In The Revolutionary War