| Birth: | 1690 in Surry Co., VA |
| Death: | 1748 in Albemarle, Bertis Precinct, NC |
| Sex: | M |
| Father: | James Byenum b. 1666 in Surry Co., VA |
| Mother: | Elizabeth Mizell b. 1666 in Surry Co., VA |
| Changed: 9 Sep 2001 20:33:07 |
| Spouses & Children |
| Mary Fort (Wife) b. About 1690 in Surry Co. VA. | |
| Marriage: | 1720 in Isle of Wight, VA. |
| Children: | |
| |
| Notes |
DEATH: LDS records show he died about 1730 in Albermarle, NC.
TimeLine: * By 1723 he was married to Mary, daughter of John Fort and Elizabeth Jordan. The f ollowing year he and Mary removed from Isle of Wight County in Virginia to the Bertie Precinct in North Carolina and later to Fishing Creek in Edgecombe County, North Carolina.
*1724 After 21 Oct, 1724, William and Mary (Fort) Bynum had moved from Isle of Wight County V irginia, to Bertie Precinct, North Carolina, then to Fishing Creek, Edgecombe County, North Carolina.
*20 November, 1733 - William Bynum, 300 acres, Great Britain money, joining Cypress Swamp. Wi lliam had many more Edgecombe County deeds.
*17 August. 1741 - 100 acres south side Moratuck River (current Roanoke River) joining Bynum' s Mill pond, all houses, buildings, etc. Probably William and Mary (Fort) Bynum, the supposed parents of Luke Bynum.
*1746 William Bynum died. His proven son was William Jr., and probable sons, James, John an d *Luke
BIOGRAPHY: William, Sr. BYNUM-817 is the 5th great grandfather of Jabe Joseph FINCHER Jr
BURIAL: Burial: Fishing Creek, Edgecombe, NC.
William Bynum was probably the eldest son of James and Elizabeth Bynum. The earliest recor d of him is a
deed recorded in Surry County from âÇúWilliam Bynam of the upper Parish of the Isle of Wight Co âÇù to Edward
Grantham of Surry County dated 16 September 1723. The deed was signed by William and Mary By num,
and both appeared in court on 18 September when Mary relinquished her dower right in the land . The land
conveyed, 460 acres on the Blackwater in Surry County, seems to be the same as two parcels g ranted to
James Bynum in 1714[1].
It seems likely that William Bynum was living on his fatherâÇôs land in Isle of Wight County, w hich adjoined
Surry to the east. On 3 January 1724 he witnessed a deed for land in Isle of Wight[2]. By e arly 1724,
however, it appears he had moved south into what was then the Bertie Precinct of Albemarle Co unty, North
Carolina. On 21 April 1724, as âÇúWilliam Binam of the prcink of bartye in the province of Nor th CarilinahâÇù he
sold to Joseph Franco 100 acres on Flatt Swamp in Isle of Wight County which had been âÇúgrante d by patent
to James Bynum dectâÇù in 1719[3]. Flatt Swamp was a creek of the Meherrin River located in pr esent-day
Southampton County just a few miles above the North Carolina border. William Bynum appeare d in the Isle
of Wight court on 25 May 1724 to acknowledge the deed.
On 3 August 1724 he witnessed a deed in Bertie Precinct from Arthur Davis to Richard Killings worth. The
following day, Arthur Davis deeded William Bynum 200 acres in Bertie, probably in what late r became
Halifax County. William Bynum sold this land to Richard Killingsworth on 14 February 1728[4 ] and
apparently moved onto a 595 acre parcel on the south side of the Moratock River which he pate nted on 1
February 1726[5]. Following the sale, Arthur Davis sued William Bynum over a debt (possibl y an unpaid
mortgage on the land sold) but the case was dismissed by the July court later that year[6].
In the meantime, it was probably this William Bynum who witnessed the will of his probably fa ther-in-law
John Fort on 21 October 1724 back in Surry County. In 1730, he also witnessed Mary FortâÇôs di scharge of
dower in land conveyed by her husband John Fort, Jr. to Davis Hopper in Bertie Precinct.
William BynumâÇôs 595 acre patent on the Moratock (later called the Roanoke) River was locate d in the part of
Bertie which became Edgecombe County in 1741 and Halifax County in 1758. He was William Bynu m âÇúof
Edgecombe precinctâÇù on 20 November 1733 when he sold 300 acres of it to Elizabeth Jenkins[7] . (This
land, incidentally, was located in what is called the Scotland Neck area of present-day Halif ax County within
a mile or two of the land his brother James Bynum purchased in 1733.) William Bynum retaine d 295 acres
of the land and his son William Bynum Jr. sold it forty years later.
The 1735 Quit Rent roll for the Edgecombe precinct of Bertie County list William Bynum with 2 40 acres and
his brother John Bynum with 270 acres. How William acquired this parcel is unknown, but it w as
apparently the same 240 acres on Looking Glass swamp and Panther poccosin âÇúwhere said Bynum n ow
livesâÇù which he sold to John and Robert Whittaker on 19 October 1744[8]. This deed was exec uted by
William Bynum and âÇúMary his wifeâÇù. Looking Glass swamp was a creek of the Roanoke River loca ted in the
southeastern part of what is now Halifax County near the present site of the town of Sprin g Hill.
A few months later on 3 December 1744, William Bynum bought from Thomas Drake 300 acres in
Edgecombe County on the upper side of Fishing Creek[9]. This was several miles west of Looki ng Glass
swamp on the Halifax side of what became the border between Halifax and Edgecombe Counties . He
apparently lived on this land until his death.
On 30 December 1745, William Bynum witnessed a deed from William Mearness to âÇúWilliam Bynum J r. of
Fishing CreekâÇù for land on the south side of Fishing Creek, the Edgecombe County side. Thi s is the last
record for William Bynum, and the first record of his (apparently) eldest son.
On 20 May 1746 the will of William Bynum was proved in the Edgecombe County court and the wid ow Mary
Bynum was confirmed as executor. Unfortunately, the will no longer exists. Only court recor ds survive. In
fact, other than the court entry noting the proving of the will, I found only one surviving d ocument, an
inventory of the estate by the widow. This is a loose, undated paper found in the North Caro lina
Archives[10]. The inventory is a lengthy list of the goods of a moderately well-to-do plant er: âÇúâǦsix
Negroes, 40 head of cattle, 2 horses and 3 mares, 16 sheep, 6 feather beds and furniture, 4 b edsteads, 3
chests, 1 box, 2 tables, 6 chairs, 2 pails, 2 piggons, 1 tub, 2 spinning wheels, 6 pairs of c asks, 1 lume, 5
sleys and harnesses, 3 plow hoes, 10 weeding hoes, 1 iron wedge, 1 grindstone,âǦ12 bottles , 3 stone jugs,
1 butter pot, 2 vials, some shoemakers tools, some carpenters tools, 1 adds, [many other tool s listed]âǦ1
sword, 4 guns and one barrel of a gun,9 pounds of powder and 10 pounds of shotâǦ[a long list o f farm
implements]âǦâÇú117 pounds of cotton, 6 pounds of feathers, 51 pounds of wool, 89 pounds of pewt erâǦsome
books (on) the duty of man and 3 testaments and one psalter.âÇù This paper is signed by Mary B ynumâÇôs
mark.
Since the will itself no longer exists, we are forced to speculate about the children. Willi am Bynum Jr.
seems to have inherited his fatherâÇôs land on Fishing Creek, which he later sold, as well as t he Scotland Neck
land granted in 1726, which he sold as âÇúson and heir of William BynumâÇù. WilliamâÇôs other chil dren must be
deduced. If William Bynum Jr. were the eldest, which seems likely, the other children woul d have been
born after about 1725. This is also consistent with a marriage date in the mid 1720s. His o wnership of six
feather beds suggests a large family. It seems quite likely that there were several children , likely born in the
mid-1720s through the 1730s.
WilliamâÇôs wife, Mary Bynum, was almost certainly the daughter of John Fort and Elizabeth Jord an. John
Fort made his will on 21 October 1724 in Surry County. It named his children, among them a d aughter
named Mary Bynum. It was witnessed by John Phillips, a son-in-law, and William Bynum. Joh n Phillips,
who lived in Isle of Wight County, also witnessed the 1723 deed by William and Mary Bynum. F urther,
most of the rest of John FortâÇôs children also migrated to Edgecombe County. Two sons, John F ort Jr. and
Elias Fort, lived on Looking Glass Swamp near William and Mary Bynum. Another son, Richard F ort, made
a will in 1746 in Craven County which named his sister Mary Bynum. Finally, I note that, o f William
BynumâÇôs brothers and cousins, all their wives can be accounted for except for his first cousi n John Bynum âÇô
whose wife was also named Mary. I strongly suspect JohnâÇôs wife was Mary Gray of Surry. Base d simply on
the much closer association with the Forts, I believe it is a near certainty that Mary Fort w as WilliamâÇôs wife.
(Coincidently, William BynumâÇôs first cousin, also named William Bynum, married Elizabeth Shug ars Fort.
She was the young widow of Mary FortâÇôs first cousin, Elias Fort and the daughter of John Shug ars.)
There must have been several children, including:
1.William Bynum (c1723 - ?) He was likely the eldest son, and is the only one we can iden tify with
certainty. See below.
2.James Bynum (1725/30 - ?) He was probably another son, as in 1757 he sold 300 acres tha t had
belonged to William Bynum Sr. to John Bynum, probably his uncle. Oddly enough, the lan d was
described as land where Edward Tatum lived âÇô Tatum later showed up as a neighbor of Luk e Bynum
in Chatham County. He was living on William Bynum Jr.âÇôs land when William sold him a p ortion of it
in 1761. It appears this was the James Bynum to whom William Bynum Jr. sold his Fishin g Creek
land in 1752 âÇô his uncle James lived a few miles away on Deep Creek. James sold the lan d he bought
from William Bynum three years later in 1764, to Edward Tatum. In 1767 he bought 456 ac res in the
part of Orange County that became Chatham County, just south of William and Luke Bynum . He
appears in the Chatham County records through 1774 when he disappears from North Carolin a. It
was apparently the same James Bynum who appeared on the 1772 militia roster of Elisha Ca inâÇôs
company. We have a deed from John Hatley Jr. dated 27 January 1772 of some household go ods
âÇúfor and in consideration of the love, good will and affection that I have and do bear t owards my
loving friend Elizabeth Bynum, daughter of James Bynum and RebeccaâÇù. This implies Jame s Bynum
was old enough to have had a mature daughter who needed household goods. James Bynum wa s
one of the famous Regulators, a militant agitator against severe local government corrup tion. In
1770, he was successfully sued for slander by Edmund Fanning, perhaps the most corrup t and hated
local official in the area, and was a participant in the âÇúHillsborough riotâÇù later tha t year in which
demonstrators seized the courthouse and conducted their own court; he was one of 50-od d people
indicted by the governor for this riot in early 1771. A fine of Âú110 was assessed, he d efaulted, and
his land was sold by Sheriff Elisha Cain in late 1773. Our last citation is his witnes s of a deed on 8
November 1774, after which he disappears from the local records. What became of him an d his
family is a mystery. I think he may have accompanied the others to Wilkes County, Georg ia and later
crossed the Savannah River county line into Abbeville County, South Carolina. It seem s likely he was
the James Bynum who was granted land in Abbeville on the Savannah River in 1787, 1790, a nd 1798,
and who witnessed a will in Abbeville in 1792. He therefore was probably the âÇúJames Bin omâÇù who
appeared alone in the 1790 census of Abbeville County near a âÇúJesse BinomâÇù. This Jame s Bynum
apparently died shortly thereafter. The Jesse Bynum, probably his son, later moved int o Pendleton
where he lived with the children of William Bynum, and ended up in Blount County, Alabam a. He is
the Jesse Bynum identified by Jasper E. Bynum (q.v.) as a âÇúrelativeâÇù. I believe James B ynum had a
son named James as well as Elizabeth and Jesse.
3.Luke Bynum (c1730 âÇô 1810) This is purely speculative, but we canâÇôt identify any other l ikely
candidates to be LukeâÇôs father. Luke Bynum was on the 1755 tax list of Orange County (w ith two
slaves which he may have acquired from his fatherâÇôs will), but not on the tithables lis t for that year.
He was enumerated in the part of Orange that had been carved out of Johnston County. H e was
appointed to a grand jury for Orange in 1757 and again in 1760. I was told many years a go that a
correspondent had found a note in the court records of Luke Bynum selling land to Benjam in
Clements, but I could not find this reference when I searched the records. There is, ho wever, a
record of Luke Bynum registering a deed from Clements in 1762. As noted above, Luke rec eived a
patent on 30 June 1762, recorded in 1763, which appears to adjoin the land William Bynu m bought a
year later. Luke and William Bynum thus appear to have been neighbors from roughly 176 3 through
1775 when William left the area. Luke Bynum is a DAR line, on the strength of his havin g rendered
âÇúpatriotic serviceâÇù in the form of furnishing supplies. A statement by his great-grands on, Alvis Jesse
Bynum in 1893, says Luke âÇúimmigrated to this country [meaning Chatham County] from Pa. o r Va.
about 1750âǦHe had two brothers who immigrated with him; one went to Stokes Co. and the o ther to
Edgecombe CoâǦHe was of English or Irish descent, In religion a MethodistâǦâÇù[11] Luke Bynu mâÇôs
descendants are among the best-researched Bynums. He married Martha Patterson around 17 60 and
had children named Tapley, Mark, James, William, Sarah, Martha, Milly, and Edith. Luke d ied testate in
Chatham County in 1809.
4.Mary Bynum (c1725 âÇô aft1792) This is pure speculation. Two sons of Richard Bell of Sur ry County,
Virginia âÇô William and Joseph âÇô settled in Edgecombe County, NC. One of them, Joseph Be ll
(1722-1792?) is said to have married a Mary Bynum about 1745. They had a son, James Bel l
(1747-1809), who was later associated with William Bynum in Orange/Chatham Counties, an d in
Georgia, and who died in Wilkes County, Georgia. Another son was named Thomas, who als o settled
in Chatham County. A Bell family history gives the wifeâÇôs name as âÇúMary Fort BynumâÇù, an d claims she
was the widow of William Bynum Sr., not the daughter. This is clearly an error. It i s obvious that
Mary was far more likely to have been a daughter.
[1] Surry County Deeds & Wills, p477
[2] Isle of Wight County Deeds & Wills., Vol. II, Part 1, p533 and p536
[3] Isle of Wight County Deeds & Wills, Vol. II, Part 2, p655
[4] Colonial Bertie County, Bell, p63
[5] North Carolina Land Patents 1663-1729, Margaret M. Hoffman, 1979 (also described in dee d of sale)
[6] North Carolina Higher Court Minutes 1724-1730, Robert J. Cain, 1981, p464 and p468
[7] Halifax County Deed Book 1, p46 (which inherited Edgecombe deeds)
[8] Halifax County Deed Book 5, p316 and p318
[9] Halifax County Deed Book 5, p343
[10] Edgecombe County Inventories, Accounts and Sales 1730-1747, NC Archives File Number 037. 514.1
(loose papers in box)
[11] There are many old letters written among the descendants of Gray Bynum (a son of John II I), those of
Luke Bynum, and between the descendants of Gray and Luke, mostly after the turn of the centur y.
Although they are not consistent with regard to ancestry, they tend to assume that the Bynum s who
remained in North Carolina and gained prominence there were descended from brothers. These p eople all
were evidently unaware that these people were cousins, not brothers, and that large numbers o f Bynums in
every branch had left the area in the late 1790s and early 1800s. In the case of this 189 3 letter, it seems
likely that Luke had two brothers who came with him, but they almost certainly were not thos e implied. I
would note that this letter identifies the âÇúoriginalâÇù homestead of Luke Bynum incorrectly, an d contains a few
other errors, so it should probably not be taken too literally with regard to Luke Bynum.