Hello all,
I am a descendant of the mysterious William Carruthers, b. 1740
(possibly in NC, although that's unproven) who married twice -- to
Isabelle Bacon and Margaret McCarthy/McCarty/McCroskey etc., and who
shows up in Louisiana in the late 1700's with a whole slew of kids.
Several of his kids converted to Catholicism as adults in the first
decade of the 1800's. His son (by Isabelle Bacon) David Carruthers is
sometimes called "David of Philadelphia" in the records of the time;
Isabelle is herself said to be "of New Jersey." Old William is always
said to be "of North Carolina," except in one record which says "of
South Carolina."
Anyhow, I had tentatively identified him as the William mentioned in the
1752 Craven Co. NC will of John Carruthers who m. Content ____. It
seemed a good guess; John's son William was not there when his father's
will was read, which is understandable if William was in Louisiana (or
New Jersey, or Philadelphia, or wherever -- this guy really got around).
Now, however, it seems like John's son William has been identified with
a William who m. Sarah Harvey. I know that most of the children of my
William were born between 1765 and 1785; from the dates listed for
William and Sarah, it looks impossible that the two Williams are the
same.
Does anyone have any clever ideas about this? It looks like my theory
about William's parents may be wrong. (I hate it when that happens.)
But I don't have any _other_ clever ideas about how William may fit into
known Carruthers families. Any helps or hints would be very much
appreciated.
Thanks,
Gordon Bonnet
<bonnet(a)fltg.net>