They Went That Away ...
A number of Marion County, South Carolina families,
or branches of families, are known to have moved on to parts south, west, and,
less frequently, north. There were various reasons for emigration both before
and after the Revolutionary War, but the opportunity to acquire land in newly-opened
territories was surely alluring to our Marion ancestors. If you have kinfolk who
disappeared from Marion records in the early 1800s, you may find that they appear in
the records for states formed from these territories.
WHERE THEY WENT - 1850 Census statistics:
Per information provided on the 1850 census,
the first federal census to record place of birth, 186,500 persons born in
South Carolina lived in other states. The breakdown was:
Georgia 29% (c. 54,000)
Alabama 26% (48,500)
Mississippi 15% (28,000)
Tennessee 8% (15,000)
Arkansas 2.5%
Louisiana 2.5%
Texas 2.4%
Florida 2.4%
North Carolina 2.4%
Illinois 2.2%
Iowa 2.2%
Kentucky 1.7%
Missouri 1.8%
SOUTH AND WEST
Though I've organized the list below by states, you'll need to keep in mind
that states were not immediately formed as they appear today and apparent boundaries
can be misleading. The Mississippi Territory, for instance, at one time included part of
southwest Alabama, while the southeast portion was part of Florida Territory.
You'll need a series of maps to understand what was where and when, but take a look
at this
1790 map to see how these future states appeared at that time.
- Alabama
Alabama Territory - c. 1817 from Mississippi Territory
- Arkansas
- Florida
- Georgia
Yes, Georgia. Although a claim was made for all lands reaching to the Mississippi River,
Georgia had a frontier that was not settled until after treaties were concluded. Of
particular note are the Land Lotteries whereby new territory was surveyed and distributed
through lotteries from 1805 - 1832.
- Mississippi
- Louisiana
- Texas
NORTH
- North Carolina
Some married and/or moved a few miles over the border to Robeson County
- Tennessee
Maps
Migration Stories
LINKS
This page is a work in progress. Please stop back from time
to time to see what's new!
If there are any additions you'd like to see, or if you would like to contribute
articles or data, or recommend links, please
let me know.
Back to Marion County History and Genealogy
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