Although these abstracted deeds were recorded from 1798 to 1800, the years in which they were written stretch from the 1760s. Many chains of title reach back to the 1750s and may tell of land sold, disputed and inherited; they name heirs, kinfolk of other surnames, remarriages, residences in different states and counties, and may state exact or approximate dates of arrivals, departures, deaths and marriages. Edgefield then included parts of present Aiken, Greenwood, McCormick and Saluda Counties. Much commerce across the Savannah River with businessmen and planters in several Georgia counties is documented. Locations are identified by names of nearby watercourses and by names of adjoining landowners. Names of witnesses and surveyors give further details. Besides the land conveyances, deed books include mortgages, releases of dower, rights, powers of attorney, depositions, bills of sale for slaves and other possessions, and conditional sales that provide care of the aged until death. Edgefield clerks who wrote county names such as "Linkhorn" (Lincoln) and "Ogle Thorp" (Oglethorp), Georgia; and the state of "Tenecy" (Tennessee) could also do interesting things to family names. All names written in the original books are given here. The everyname index is a convenient aid in checking for these variant name spellings.
Carol Wells
(1997), 2007, 5.5" x 8.5", paper, index, 160 pp.
ISBN: 9780788406706
101-W0670
