Early Ancestors: The Ming Family

In the first Early Ancestors posts I traced two Virginia families on my dad's side. Now we're going to switch to North Carolina (and Bermuda!) on my mom's side. When I first started doing genealogy, the only Ming ancestor I knew was Cynthia Ming (1859-1900) whose name was written by my mother in the family tree in my baby book. I never thought when I started that Texas-born Cynthia would turn out to have such an exotic family background. 

Cynthia Ming and her 2nd husband, Thomas Rhodes

With a little research on my own, and the benefit of the copious research of my cousin, Paul Ming, I can now take this branch of the tree back to the first Ming on this side of the Atlantic Ocean, David Ming, who came to Bermuda in 1612. I would be remiss if I did not also credit two other Ming genealogists who collaborated with Paul: William L. Ming of Texas, and Bill D. Ming of Arkansas. 

This post is dedicated to my cousin, Paul Ming, for his decades of genealogical research, his generous help to other researchers, and his efforts to share his family history with today's descendants and those to come.

My brother and I with Paul

The Story of Christopher Carter

Booklet designed and written by Paul Ming for
"my family members and especially the young members
so they might know about their early ancestors"

The Bermuda Islands were discovered by Spanish explorer Juan de Bermudez in 1503. Usually the word "discovered" means "discovered by Europeans" because the place was already inhabited by indigenous people who had found the place and given it a name in their own language. However, Bermuda had no permanent inhabitants, so it really was discovered and named by Bermudez and his crew. 

The islands are 600 miles east of what is now North Carolina. There are seven main islands and numerous islands too small to be habitable. The islands are surrounded by coral reefs that made landing difficult and caused numerous shipwrecks in the 1500's. Bermuda was first listed on maps in the 1540's as Bermudez, but it was also sometimes called "Isle of the Devils" because of its stormy weather, treacherous coral reefs, and the presence of thousands of ***cahows--seabirds with a particularly eerie cry. 

Map of the New World, 1540
(Bermuda Islands outlined in black)

Both Spanish and Portuguese ships visited the islands in the 1500's to take on fresh meat and water, but the islands were not permanently inhabited until 1609. It was in that year that the English ship Sea Venture wrecked on the reef surrounding the islands and brought my 9th great-grandfather to Bermuda.

Seven ships had come to bring supplies and settlers to the colony at Jamestown, which had been established in 1607. On July 24th, 1609, a hurricane separated the flotilla. The flagship, Sea Venture, under the command of Sir George Somers, was leaking and slowly sinking, and Somers decided to make for the Bermudas and drive the ship onto the coral reef. All 150 people that were on board survived and reached the shore on smaller boats. (An interesting sidenote concerns Shakespeare's play, The Tempest, which was inspired by accounts of the shipwreck. It gives you some time perspective to realize that Shakespeare was alive when this event occurred.)

On board were the new governor of Jamestown, Sir Thomas Gates; John Rolfe and his first wife (his second wife was Pocahontas); and my ancestor, Christopher Carter, a laborer who was probably among the new settlers, as he was not listed with the ship's crew. As Paul wrote in his booklet, "The islands were a paradise with fresh water springs, forest, berries, many birds and feral wild pigs left by the Spanish years before. The officers in charge decided with little chance of rescue the best plan was to build two small ships that could carry all the survivors on to Jamestown. . . It wasn't long before Carter and five other men decided Bermuda was a better place to live than Jamestown," and they deserted camp. They were banished to a small island that could not support life, and supplies were brought to them. Finally, they were pardoned by Governor Gates, even though he was criticized for this decision.

It took ten months to build two ships that could carry the new settlers to Jamestown. In the meantime Admiral Somers found an opening in the reefs where the ships could sail through. On May 10, 1610, the two ships set sail for Jamestown. Not on board were two deserters, Christopher Carter and Robert Waters. "It was rumored that Admiral Somers had aided the deserters so as to have English men on the islands if the Spanish returned to claim it."

In 1611 Admiral Somers returned to claim the islands for the English. He soon died, leaving his nephew Captain Mathew Somers in charge. Captain Somers then sailed for England with the Admiral's body on board. Staying behind with Carter and Waters was one more man, Edward Chard. Together they would become known as the Three Kings of Bermuda, although at that time Bermuda was being called Somers Islands and continued to be for several years thereafter.

As Paul wrote in his booklet,

"In 1612 the ship Plough arrived with 60 settlers and Sir Richard Moore, who was sent to the islands to be the first Governor of the new settlement. The three men on shore signaled the ship to come in as prearranged by Captain Somers in 1611. The ship was directed to anchor near Smith Island where Carter had his camp. It was found the three men had done well. They had an acre garden with corn, beans, wheat, melons, and there were still plenty of wild pigs. They also were growing tobacco, which would later become an important export crop. St. George was built and appointed the capital. Governor Moore divided the settlers into groups he called "tribes." They were sent to different areas and islands. Carter claimed Coopers Island for himself."

Sometime between 1612, when the first female settlers arrived on the Plough, and 1623, Carter married. It is not known from which tribe his wife came, only that they married and had children by 1623. In that year the English ship, Seaflower, which was bound for Virginia, anchored in Castle Harbor. Christopher Carter and his wife were invited on board for a party. During the evening the ship blew up, killing 14 people, including Christopher Carter and his wife. 

The earliest date that Carter and his wife could have married was 1612, when the first women came on the Plough and stayed as permanent residents. Carter and his wife could have had a child as old as 10 at the time of their deaths, and it appears that they had both sons and daughters. Descendants with the Carter name lived on the islands into modern times. In fact, there is a Carter House Museum on St. Davids Island. It was built by a descendant of Christopher Carter and lived in by a great-granddaughter until 1791. 

It is thought that Elizabeth, the daughter of Christopher Carter, married David Ming, the first of our line on this side of the Atlantic. It is known that many Carter and Ming families lived on Coopers Island through the 1600's.

***Being a bird person, I had to find out about the cahow, also known as the Bermuda petrel. It is nocturnal and builds its nests on the ground, which is one of the reasons the species was almost destroyed when the islands became inhabited by humans. Not only were the birds killed for their meat, but their eggs were also prized for food by both humans and by the pigs that had been left by the Spanish. They were thought to be extinct for over 300 years, until a small number were re-identified in 1951. They are still the 2nd or 3rd rarest seabird on earth, and Nonsuch Island on Bermuda is the only place they breed.***

David Ming and Elizabeth Carter

According to the Bahama Historical Quarterly, vol. 13, pg. 13, David Ming came to Bermuda as mate aboard the Plough in 1612. Apparently, he continued to make a living with ships, both building and sailing them. According to the dissertation, "Cedars, Sloops and Slaves: The Development of the Bermuda Shipbuilding Industry" by Michael J. Jarvis at the College of William and Mary, early shipbuilders on Bermuda "contributed important skills toward founding the industry of shipbuilding. David Ming [was a] well-known carpenter on the island. In 1660 Ming ... received 360 pounds for the 'squaring of joyce (joists) and making trussells for the platform at the King's Castle and Southampton fforte.'" 

Early shipbuilding tools, ca. 1690

Ming was recorded as owner of a ship, name unknown, in 1673. According to Jarvis, "Bermuda's early shipowners seem to have constructed their vessels on their own land using their own timber. . . David Ming owned all of Coopers Island (77 acres) in Castle Harbor." This fact is affirmed by Richard Norwood's Survey for the Somers Island Company in 1662/63. There are references to another seafaring David Ming in 1670 and 1672, but these are probably his son. He is shown as mate of the ship Orange, departing Bermuda with oranges in 1670, and as master of the ketch Francis in 1672.

Bermuda 1731

David Ming's estate was inventoried and filed with his will dated 25 June 1673. It was probated 19 August 1674. The will names his wife Elizabeth; sons Joseph, David, Thomas, Benjamin, and Jonathan; daughters Elizabeth Brangman and Rachel Colson; and grandchildren, Hannah Ming and Christopher Colson. Son Christopher had died by 28 July 1662; granddaughter Hannah Ming was his child by his wife, Hannah.

We believe that our ancestor is Joseph, son of the elder David Ming, who left Bermuda around 1700 to settle in North Carolina.

Paul wrote me a letter when he sent the booklet he had made about Christopher Carter. In it he said that he had "learned a little myself, which as you know usually happens. Cooper's Island is no more. When the U.S. Military was on the island beginning in 1940 they filled in the causeways between St. Davids Island and Coopers Island to make a longer runway for the planes. It is the Bermuda Airport now. The only Coopers Island name left is on the small part of the island that is a wildlife area."

Bermuda today--boxed area is former Coopers Island

Joseph Ming I

The date of Joseph Ming's birth is estimated to be before 1669 in Bermuda. 

Beginning in May 1696, "merchants and politicians both home and abroad" (Family Search) were required to sign an oath of loyalty to King William III. Lists of signers are called "association oath rolls." On "this 29th of the 7th month 1696," Bermuda merchants and politicians signed an oath that read, "Whereas itt is required of us that wee shall be true to King William; now King of England and of the English nation: Us say to all his just and lawful commands wee can willingly bee subject unto, not for wrath but ever for contienc saeck [conscience sake?]: And all Commands which are otherwise wheather from him or any other wee shall willingly and patiently suffer under them what men shall be permitted to imposs upon us." Signers include David Ming, Jonathan Ming, and two men named Joseph Ming. You can see the association oath roll of Bermuda here.  

In December 1701 Joseph Ming obtained 200 acres in Bath County, North Carolina, for bringing in seven settlers, including his son Thomas. (The others were Samuel Stokes, Abraham Bosur, John Porter, John Porter Jr., Edward Porter, and Joseph Porter.) Bath County had been carved out of Albemarle County in 1696 and took in the settlements on the Pamlico and Neuse Rivers and some of the settlements south of Albemarle Sound. According to Paul, "It is questionable where [Joseph's] land was located. Early maps show Bath County on the south side of Albemarle Sound; in later records the Mings have land on the Yeopim River in Chowan County on the north side of Albemarle Sound."

From Paul, "Chowan County was first settled in 1658 and a 1700 map shows Chowan County was all land west of Perquimans County on the north side of Albemarle Sound and Bath County on the south side of Albemarle Sound. It shows Chowan County as being all of the North Carolina Territory except those few counties around Albemarle Sound." 

Edenton, the county seat of Chowan County and the first state capital of North Carolina, has a history of settlement reaching back before 1700. It was not planned until 1712 and incorporated in 1722, but it is known that ships were often anchored in the area trading with the first settlers. It was a prosperous port into the late 1700's. Paul encouraged me to visit Edenton, and in 2017 my brother and I did. See the post "Revolution Road Trip: The Mings and Edenton."

Built in 1767, the Chowan County Courthouse
is the oldest courthouse in the U.S. still in use today.

View from the Edenton green out to the estuary

Joseph was a seafaring man, like his father. In 1702 he was the master of the six-ton sloop Tyrall, built in Virginia. In 1702 he was the master of Ruth of North Carolina, a ten-ton sloop. Records show he sailed in to the James, Potomack, and York Rivers.

A Virginia sloop of about 1741

Joseph was married to a woman named Sarah. By 1707 he had died, leaving her a widow with minor children. In March of that year she petitioned the court to grant letters of administration to her. In October 1707 she indentured her son, Nathaniel, probably the youngest, to Christopher Gale, a lawyer and land owner. Records show there were three other sons: Thomas, who came to North Carolina with his father; James, and Joseph. 

Thomas also married a woman named Sarah. Nathaniel married Martha Horth about 1721. It is not known who James married, but his son James Jr. married Mary Horth. Joseph, our ancestor, married Rachel Ward, and they are the subjects of our next profile.

Joseph Ming II and Rachel Ward

Joseph Ming II was born in Bermuda, the son of Joseph I and his wife Sarah. Joseph I was in Bath County in 1701. Later records show Joseph II and his brothers living in Chowan County. It's possible that the move to Chowan County was the result of conflict with Indians in Bath County in September 1711. In the history of that conflict, the Mings are not mentioned, but the John Porter family was. The Porters had been brought into Bath County by Joseph I in 1701. If the Mings were still in Bath County in 1711, they may have moved afterwards to the more settled and safe Chowan County north of Albemarle Sound. John Porter is also shown living in Chowan County after that period. In 1719 Joseph bought 150 acres from Sam Darner in Chowan County.

Joseph married Rachel Ward, daughter of James and Mary Ward. Their marriage date is not known, but it was before 1722, as in that year "James Ward deeded to planter Joseph Ming for a marriage already solemnized between Joseph and Rachel gave two plantations westward of Yoppim [Yeopim] River Bridge, being 108 acres and 200 acres with cattle in Bridge Neck." 

The next year Joseph had to prove that the land he held in Pasquotank County had been seated. This land had been granted in 1702, whether to Joseph I or II is unclear. In the court action of 1723 it was proven that the land did belong to Joseph II. Records of land bought and sold by Joseph between 1719 and 1759 show he had acquired more than 508 acres of land in Chowan County, in addition to the land in Pasquotank.

Joseph and Rachel had six children: Thomas, Sarah, James, Mary, Joseph III, and Annarita. Joseph drew up his will, signing it on 1 December 1750. He names as heirs his wife Rachel; sons Thomas and Joseph; daughters Sarah Wilkins, Annarita Collins, and Mary Ming; and grandsons Joseph Wilkins and Thomas Collins. About three months later Joseph added a codicil to his will, giving daughter Mary only ten shillings; it is possible that Joseph had settled some property upon her for her marriage to William Haughton in 1748. Joseph appointed Thomas Ward, his wife Rachel, and his son Joseph as executors of his estate. He must have died soon after signing the codicil to the will, as an inventory of the estate was taken on 16 July 1751. 

Further information on children of Joseph and Rachel Ming:

• James died in 1743 with no heirs.
• Sarah married William Wilkins on 18 January 1741 and had a son, Joseph. She died 6 February 1802.
• Annarita married Thomas Collins on 25 January 1742. They had a daughter, Francis, and son, Thomas.
• Joseph III married Ann, and they had one son and two daughters. Joseph died in 1755.
• Mary married William Haughton on 1 April 1748; they had a son, Charles, who died before 1809.
• Our ancestor Thomas married Delilah Felton. Their profile follows.

Thomas and Delilah (Felton) Ming

Thomas was probably the youngest child of Joseph and Rachel. How Paul determined his date of birth has lessons for genealogists in thinking outside the box. Thomas was born in an era with no birth or census records, so you have to look to other records for clues. Here is how Paul estimated the date of Thomas's birth from an available record, Joseph's will: "After the death of his father in 1750 it was pointed out in the will that he [Thomas] was not yet eighteen and had three more years of schooling. He was given a horse he was to receive at age eighteen, so it must be assumed he was only a year or two under eighteen. This would make his date of birth between 1732 and 1734." 

Paul's conclusions were reached after reading the will carefully and in its entirety, which is not easy to do, given the legal language and the wills and probate records of the day being written out in longhand. Joseph's will also gives us a clue, Paul says, about his wealth and his regard for education, as it was unusual for a young man to still be in school at that age, and schooling would have been private and expensive.

Another clue to Thomas's age is revealed when he takes over the administration of his father's will from his older brother, Joseph, in 1752. He had to be of age--eighteen--to do so. Another conclusion Paul reached: "Joseph must have been in ill health to turn it over to his brother so soon and the fact that Joseph died in 1755 adds to that conclusion." Thomas sold part of the estate in 1752 to pay off debts against it. 

In 1754 Thomas was listed among the militia for Pasquotank County under the command of Ed. Vail. In 1762 he sold land at Bridge Neck that he had inherited from James Ward, his grandfather, to Richard Rogers and Delight Nixon. (The land had been granted to James Ward in 1706, then it went to grandson James Ming who died without children, then to Joseph II, and finally to Thomas. According to a post at Genealogy.com about a neighboring family, the land was situated at the fork of Eggerton's Mill Swamp.) 

Thomas married Delilah Felton, probably sometime in the early 1760's, as we know that their son James was born about 1765. It is believed that Delilah's father was William Felton, but her mother's name is unknown. During the 1760's and 70's Thomas and Delilah had seven children: sons Joseph, James, Thomas Jr., and Willy; and daughters Mary, Rachel, and Penelope. They also raised an orphan named Mary Babcock. 

Thomas was a miller for a while. A deed dated 1766 shows Thomas bought a grist mill known as Eggerton's Mill on a branch of the Yeopim River which divides the counties of Chowan and Perquimans. By 5 December 1766 Thomas had paid for the mill in full. On 21 March 1768 he sold the mill, now known as "Thomas Ming's Mill" to Francis Brown.

By 1782 the family had moved to Edenton, where Thomas bought a small house. The 1784 tax records show he still owned 200 acres in Chowan County. The first census of 1790 shows Thomas in Chowan County as head of household with two males over 16, one male under 16, four females, and ten slaves. Listed on the same page of the census are heads of households: Thomas Ming Jr., James Ming, and Joseph Ming. (Would that all census takers had such clear and easy-to-read handwriting!)

1790 Chowan County (U.S. Federal) Census

Thomas made his will 6 November 1792. He had died by 1796 or early 1797 because his taxes were paid by William Jackson and William Lawthers. From this point on Delilah was administrator of the will and posted a bond 15 March 1797 to make an inventory of the estate. The estate papers, 55 pages in all, are available on Ancestry. On 28 July 1797 there was an estate sale. The list of items to be given or sold takes eight pages of the probate record.

I always love to read the list of items sold or taken possession of by the heirs, especially because they give you such a glimpse into the life of your ancestor. In this case the items included: a horse cart and wheels, plows, blacksmith tools, a grind stone, a canoe, a razor strop, a shaving cup, a loom, a feather bed, a walnut table and chairs, a tea chest, a looking glass, china bowls, 5 silver teaspoons, a spice mortar, a coffee mill, and books.

One page of items in the estate sale

I'm still not sure I understand completely how an estate was divided and provision made for the heirs, particularly those who were not yet of age. I suspect it's because it's hard for a modern woman to understand why the wife doesn't get to keep all her husband's estate or why her children need to be appointed a "guardian." Family Search has a great document to help you understand probate and all of the records that are produced in the closing of an estate, but I think I need a class or a webinar or something.

It's hard to know what to think of Delilah, Thomas's wife. She brought suit against her son James on 18 March 1797 (this is also part of the probate record) because he had taken possession of three slaves she had "casually lost." A lawsuit was brought against her by her neighbor, William Jackson, for putting her fish pots on his property. Maybe she was just holding her own with these men, but it sure seems like a lot of drama. 

As Thomas and Delilah's children grew up, some moved away from Chowan County. Joseph went to Orange County, North Carolina, and James moved to Limestone County, Alabama, after 1810. Joseph married Sarah Beasley; Thomas Jr. married Sarah Burkett. Mary married a man named Warburton and had a son, Bartholomew; Rachel married Harry Gregory and had a daughter, Sarah. Willy married Elizabeth Roberts on 29 October 1800. No information is known for Penelope.

Our ancestor James married Ann Beasley and is the subject of the next profile. Although we are nearing the end of the 1700's, I want to take James through the end of his life--although we don't know where or when that was exactly. I would just like to connect up this line, as I have already written a post on James's son, Thomas Norton Ming, who was born in 1796. 

James and Ann (Beasley) Ming

James was born about 1765 in Chowan County. He married Ann Beasley, daughter of Thomas and Martha Beasley, on 23 February 1790. (Thomas Beasley was already deceased at this time. The 1790 census shows Martha as head of household with two sons under the age of sixteen and one daughter still living with her at home.)

Marriage record for James Ming and Ann Beasley

James and Ann's eldest son, Samuel Gregory, was born in 1792. On 14 February 1796 Thomas Norton Ming, my 3rd great grandfather, was born. Two other sons, Joseph and Fred, were born to the couple, but the order of their births is unknown. It is believed that they also had at least one daughter whose name and date of birth is unknown.

James had his own farm by the time his father died in 1797. We know this because of the suit filed against James by his mother for being in possession of three of her slaves. 

From Paul's profile of James Ming, "After James's line of the Ming family had been in Chowan County over a century, James left Chowan County sometime after 1815. Some of the Ming families remained there for several more years, but they slowly died off or moved away. By the end of the 1800's the Ming name had disappeared from the census records. James took his family and settled in Limestone County, Alabama." 

It's possible that some of the Mings had previously moved to Alabama during the recession after the Revolutionary War, as there is a record of slaves being sent to Alabama from the Mings in Chowan County. However, the only Mings listed as head of household in Limestone County on the Alabama State Census of 1820 were James and his son, Samuel Gregory. 

1820 Alabama State Census, Limestone County

During the 1820's and 1830's James, Samuel Gregory, and Thomas N. appear in several court cases involving matters of indebtedness. Paul's conclusion is that the three were in business together and having a hard time paying their debts. However, during the same time period all three men served on juries, indicating that they must have had some standing in the community. 

James appears for the last time on the 1830 census of Limestone County as head of household with seven people in the household and five slaves. James may have left Limestone County because of his financial problems, or he may have died there. It is not known where or when James and Ann died or are buried.

Samuel Gregory Ming (who was the ancestor of Paul's fellow researcher, William L. Ming) married Elizabeth Bartie on 14 March 1815. They had five children: Martha A., Sarah Jane, James Samuel, Margaret, and William. 

Thomas Norton Ming married Susannah Stephenson, granddaughter of Colonel William Chapman Whitley and his wife Esther through their daughter Elizabeth who married Robert Stephenson. Both Paul and I are descendants of Thomas N.'s son, William Frederick Ming, who married his first cousin, Susanna Wheat, daughter of Samuel Wheat and Cynthia Stephenson. Paul descends from William Frederick's son, George Alexander, and I descend from his daughter, Cynthia Frances.

And we have come full circle. It was only when I started writing this post and found the reference to David Ming being a "well-known carpenter" on the island of Bermuda that I made the connection to Thomas N. Ming, also a carpenter by occupation. 

Portrait of Thomas Norton Ming
with his hammer and carpenter's square

I love this quote from The Iliad with which Paul opened his book, Ancestral Profiles of Paul E. Ming. It seems fitting after all these generations of Mings.

Like leaves on trees the race of man is found,

Now green in young, now withering on the ground:

Another race the following Spring supplies:

They rise successive, and successive fall:

So generations in their course decay:

So flourish these when those are passed away

(Pope's translation of Homer's Iliad)

See other posts about the Mings:

The Ming Dynasty

DNA Circles: Thomas N. Ming and Susannah Stephenson

Revolution Road Trip: The Mings and Edenton

New Ming Cousins