NEW HANOVER COUNTY, NORTH CAROLINA

ROGERS FAMILY

Letter from Peleg Rogers to Thomas Brand 31 Jan 1759

North Carolina, Wilmington Janry ye 31 A D 1759

Honored Father these are to inform you that I and my

children are in good health. I have five sons and Three

Daughters. My two eldest sons and two eldest Daughters

are married. I take leave to acquaint you that my wife, Isabell,

deceased April ye 25 A D 1754. I beg you'd acquaint

my friends of my condition and that my brother Job

is living and his wife & two sons. The gospel of late is

very frequently Preached in this part of the Country with

success and we are in hopes it will greatly flourish.

Thanks be given to God for the Same. I beg you'd write to me by

the first opportunity and subscribe your letter to Mrs.

Thos Rogers living on Black River in Cape Fear

in Hanover County. I am in great haste and must

conclude my self your loving son

                                                            Peleg Rogers

Your Son Benjamin Brand is living

& has a wife and six children in

this county.

Note: This letter and other documents connected with it provide an enormous amount of information and clues on the Rogers family. Although the salutation in the letter is "Honored Father", it was addressed to Thomas Brand. Therefore, the letter is actually to the father-in-law of Peleg rather than to his father. Much of the information is connected to a lawsuit entitled Saunders Vs. Baker litigated in Newport, RI and involves a lot of references to the Brand family. If Isabell Rogers predeceased her father Thomas Brand, then the estate records of Thomas Brand, if extant, could conclusively prove the children of Peleg Rogers. The fact that Job is mentioned as having two sons identifies Job who died in Wake County, NC as the brother of Peleg. Four of the five sons of Peleg, to wit, Thomas, Job, James, and Peleg, are identified by association in the Duplin County, NC area. The fifth son is John Rogers at one time of Craven Co., SC.

The Five Sons of Peleg Rogers:

We know from letter dated 31 Jan 1759 that Peleg Rogers had five sons and one of them was Thomas Rogers of Black R., New Hanover County. That leaves four more sons.

We know from Power of Attorney, dated 15 Nov 1768, recorded in Deed Book 4, Page 155 Sampson Co., NC (old Duplin County Book) that the same Thomas Rogers of Black R., New Hanover County had a brother John Rogers of Craven District., SC. That leaves three more sons.

We know from NC Patent Book 10, page 217 that Job Rogers received a grant dated 30 Oct 1765. Peleg's brother Job did not leave nearby, so he must also be a son of Peleg. That leaves two more sons.

We know from a series of deeds recorded in Duplin Co., NC that James Rogers had sons named Peleg and Job, so he must be a son of Peleg. That leaves only one more son.

Lastly, we know Peleg Rogers of Duplin Co. was born about 1747 and later moved to Baldwin Co., GA. He must be the last remaining son of Peleg Rogers.

Elizabeth F. McKoy, "Early New Hanover Records", p. 78; and

McKoy Collection, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC.

Compiled By: David H. Robertson, 159 Hickory St., Roswell, GA 30075 davidhr@hushmail.com