Montgomery County, located in the Piedmont region of south
central North Carolina, formed in 1779 from Anson County. Named for General
Richard Montgomery, a Revolutionary War brigadier, killed at the Battle of
Quebec. The county divided in 1841 to form present day Stanly with the Pee Dee
River as the dividing line. Early inhabitants of the region were Keyauwee and
Saura (Cheraw) Indians, followed by German and Scottish settlers. The fifth county
seat, Troy, was incorporated in 1852 and there seems to be a lot of controversy
on who the city was named for. The majority of the Uwharrie National Forest
is contained within the county. Townships include Eldorado, Ophir, Little
River, Uwharrie, Troy, Star, Biscoe, Candor, Rocky Springs, Cheek Creek, and Mount
Gilead with smaller communities lying inside each township.
I have only 60 Morgan family members documented in my family
tree and more than 500 Ancestry DNA matches who have the surname Morgan in
their family trees and even more Morgan matches on Family Tree DNA. I decided
to take a break from my Marks research and attempt to make sense out of all my Morgan
ancestors.
My earliest known Morgan ancestor is my fifth great
grandmother, Letitia Morgan, born about 1745, died about 1840 in Montgomery
County, North Carolina (the parts that became Stanly). I have no documented
evidence of who her parents are or where she was born, though some researchers
believe Virginia while others contend she took her first breath in Anson
County. Letitia married Samuel Carter in 1769. Fifth great grandpa, Samuel, was
born about 1740 in Somerset County, Maryland (a place I have visited and researched
extensively for other family members).
On April 26, 1776, Samuel Carter enlisted in the
Revolutionary War for 2 1/2 years. He served in the fifth Regiment, Williams
Company and in the second North Carolina Battalion commanded by Colonel John
Patten. Samuel made Corporal in November of 1777. He was discharged October 16,
1778. He fought in the Battle of White Plains, New York, was wounded in the
battle at Germantown, Pennsylvania, a strong possibility exist that he was at
Valley Forge. Samuel was granted 228 acres of land in Montgomery County
(present-day Stanly County) for thirty months service. Samuel's land was on the
Cloverfork Creek between Albemarle and Palestine. (Stanly County Heritage
Book, page 189).
The known children of Samuel and Letitia Morgan Carter
are:
Clement b. 1770 Anson County d. 16 Apr 1827 Montgomery County
Henry Laban b. 1782 Montgomery County d. 1844
Johnson b. 1785 Anson County d. 1862 Hamilton County, IL
By 1790, there were six Carter families and three Morgan
families listed on the Census for Montgomery County, North Carolina, two of
which were Samuel Carters, and neither of which meet the age requirements for
the children of Samuel and Letitia Morgan Carter. Therefore, the search
continues to verify information and clearly document this Carter / Morgan line.
Samuel and Letitia Morgan Carter are buried at Old Mountain
Creek Cemetery on a hill above the creek. I visited there not too long ago and
saw some very old stones marking the graves of the people who are buried there alongside
them. Most of the gravestones are not legible and many have sunk into the ground.
