I have been tracking deeds and will do some further research soon into
deeds of Washington Co., VA and Wilkes Co., NC in hopes of finding one with
a wife's name and to pin down when he left NC.
I think further research is warranted here because Osborne is a very common
name and in fact, there were two James Osbornes in Russell Co., VA at this
time. Everyone wants to assume that James Osborn was Zachariah Wells,
Sr.'s father in law, yet I see no reason to rush to that conclusion.
It must be remembered that both NC and VA were states that strongly
protected a married woman's right to a portion of the land acquired during
marriage. As you read through the deeds of the day, you see a wife's name
mentioned often. The fact that there is no wife listed on Zachariah's
deeds is something that cannot be ignored and suggests that she was already
dead making any reference to a daughter Abigail in the will of James
Osborne proof that he was not Zachariah's father in law.
John