In celebration of the 250th Anniversary of our country, local members of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution will highlight the patriots buried in Southeast Missouri.
Charles Ellis was born January 28, 1749, in Henrico County, Virginia to Charles and Susannah (Harding) Ellis. Charles Ellis’ first wife was Elizabeth Waters. He married his second wife, Sarah Tucker, on August 29, 1770, in Amherst County, Virginia.
Charles Ellis provided bacon and beef for the American Revolutionary War effort to help provide food to the troops. Some sources claim military service, but currently it is believed that is a different Charles Ellis.
Charles migrated from Amherst County, Virginia, to Oglethorpe County, Georgia, then to Jefferson County, Kentucky. In Kentucky, a tract of 701 acres of land on Robinson’s Creek and the waters of the Green River, was surveyed for him in April of 1784 and it was issued to him on June 5, 1787. He then moved to the District of Ste. Genevieve in the Louisiana Territory. This is known because his daughter, Eliza Ellis, married Henry Tucker in Ste. Genevieve on August 24, 1802. On April 23, 1806, Charles claimed 997.85 arpens, as he had been living on the property since 1804. His claim was rejected and in 1808, Ellis bought Spanish Land Grand number 66, which he then sold to his son-in-law, Rowland Boyd. Charles Ellis is listed in other land transactions in the area that became Perry County, Missouri. The 1821 census of Perry County, Missouri, list Charles as having enslaved people valued at $600.
His wife, Sarah, had died on November 23, 1803, in Ste. Genevieve District, Louisiana Territory. Charles Ellis died at the residence of his son, Willis Ellis in Perry County, Missouri. His will dated June 14, 1828, was recorded on August 5, 1828, in Perry County, Missouri, and Amherst County, Virginia. His will states that he was owed money for land that he owned in Amherst County, Virginia. This property was from the estate of his mother, Susannah. The will also names eight children and states their inheritance. Those named were Lucretia Ellis (who married Robert Martin); Elizabeth Ellis (who married Henry Tucker); Lunsford Ellis (who married Keziah Bull); Susannah Ellis (who married Josephus Tucker); Josiah Ellis (who married Bethena Gilliam); Charles Ellis (who married Sarah Newsom); Julia Ellis (who married Rowland Boyd) and Willis Ellis (who married Mary Ann Tucker).
The burial site for Charles Ellis is unknown, but it is presumed to be in the northern part of Perry County, Missouri. His son, Willis Ellis, is buried in the Henderson Farm Cemetery, near Cedar fork in Perry County, Missouri.
Compiled by Lori Harris-Franklin, Chairity Stille Langstaff NSDAR; Pamela Johnson, John Guild Chapter NSDAR
Sources:
- Land Records – Kentucky 1784, Jefferson County
- Ste. Genevieve Parrish Records 1764-1843, V5, pg. 69-70, State Historical Society of Missouri
- Louisiana Territory Recorder of Land Titles, Book 8, pg. 426
- Sweeney, Marriage Bonds & Other Marriage Records of Amherst County, Virginia 1763-1800, pg. 28
- Charles Ellis Will #14, filed in Perry County, MO 5 Aug 1828
- Will of Charles Ellis, Will Book 8, page 369-370, Amherst County, Virginia, 5 Aug 1828
- Abercrombie & Slatten VA Rev Pub Claims, Vol. 1, pg. 76
- Library of Virginia, APA 243, Commissioners Books 1783, Vol 4. pg. 194
- Charles Ellis family tree:https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Ellis-11595
- Perry County Historical Society’s Facebook page: Reclaiming the Henderson Farm Cemetery https://www.facebook.com/perrycountyhistoricalsociety.mo/posts/progress-at-cedar-fork-today-reclaiming-the-henderson-farm-cemetery-some-of-the-/791175063045519/
