From the Mountains to the Prairies

Ben "Dewitt"
Born 1768? ?Africa or Jamaica
Died after Dec 1794 ?Natchez District, Mississippi Territory

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?Mother

SPOUSE	CHILDREN
?
Ben may have come to Charleston SC aboard the ship Phillis which arrived in Charleston on Oct 22, 1764 with 70 slaves. The American brigantine ship embarked 82 captives purchased in Sierra Leone Estuary (in West Africa) and landed in SC after a voyage from Boston that started in 1763 [Donnen, Documents Illustrative of the History of the Slave Trade to the Americas, Voyage ID #37293]. Like Jupiter, William Dewitt tried to gift a slave named Ben to his new wife Catherine Dewitt in 1784. On Dec 23, 1784 "Negro Man Ben" was bought at auction by Estevan Minor [McBee, Book E, pp. 17, 163].
During 1778-9, current or future owner William Dewitt was a Special Juror for the Cheraws District in SC. Brothers[?] Charles and John Dewitt, Thomas Powe, probably the grandson of Samuel Poe, and several McCalls were also listed as jurors in the SC Jury Lists 1778-1779.
Modern Map of South Carolina Counties showing the 18th Century Parishes. Welch Neck and Cashaway Neck were in St. David Parish. Prince George Parish was to the South and included the Pee Dee River basin from Lynches Creek down to Winyah Bay.
William Dewitt and his family were in the Cumberland settlement with the family of John White who was on a List of Flotilla Captains from the journal kept by Col. John Donelson. John White testified in 1785 in Natchez that in late 1781 William lost his wife and remarried John's niece Catherine White [McBee, Natchez Court Records, Book E, p. 36].
Photo of a Map showing the Route of the Donelson Expedition on display at the Tennessee State Museum. On Dec 22, 1779, the expedition left Fort Patrick Henry on Long Island of the Holston River. William Dewitt, John and James White, and their families likely joined the Flotilla after it passed Knoxville in Mar 1780, and left it at the Red River near Clarksville on Apr 12 [Donelson's Journal, pp. 98-105].
In late 1781 the widower William Dewitt married Catherine "Cary" White, daughter of William White (1730?-1818) in Burke Co. NC. The newlyweds were among 13 families going down to the Natchez District by flatboats including that of Cary's uncles, James (Tiago) White, and John (Juan) White, arriving in May 1782. The Dewitt family was listed in the arrival record dated Jul 6, as "Guillaume Duelt, wife & children, 5 Individuos", and also bringing 23 Slaves [Natchez Court Records].
In 1784, William Dewitt had tried to deed Ben to his new wife Catherine Dewitt. Although judged a forgery by the Natchez court by 1785, a Jan 22, 1781 Deed of Gift by William mentioned the names of his children by his first wife and gifts to his wife Catherine White Dewitt negroes Ben, Filis, Jinny, and Mary; to his daughter Catherine Dewitt negroes Febe [Phoebe] and Sambo June [Juno or his mother, June]; to his son Jesse negroes Cuffey, Stephen, Eudgo, Manday, James, Dol and Lammenton; and to his daughter Martha negroes Filis and her child, and Jupiter [McBee, Book E, pp. 162-3].
On Feb 24, 1784 William Dewitt sued Adam Bingaman. "Wm. Dewitt represents that he is indebted to Adam Bingaman for $1100, which he advanced to him in money some time since, and $400 more for goods furnished him, with $100 premium on the advance afsd, of which he gave his bond payable 16 April next". Bingaman took six slaves from William in an attempt to be repaid but William "was under great difficulties at the time and unable to pay". Three days later, Bingaman was ordered by the court to return the slaves to William [McBee, Book G, p. 320].
On Aug 31, 1784 the Natchez Court appointed appraisers to value William Dewitt's whole estate to protect creditors in case of William's "meditated flight". On Dec 23, 1784 the estate was valued at $4,319. It included 600 arpents on St. Catherine's Creek with cabins, 400 arpents (about 336 acres) on the Mississippi River with dwelling house and cabins, and 10 slaves. By Feb 20, 1786, after his conviction for "intention to leave [Natchez] District without passport to evade payment", the entire estate was put up for public sale and the proceeds distributed to the creditors. Ben (no age given), "Cuff" aged 40, and "Phillus" aged 38, were sold at the estate sale, but Phoebe was not. The ages may have been from the appraisal in late 1784 or 1785 [McBee, Natchez Court Records, Book A, pp. 24-27].
On Sep 22, 1784 William Dewitt and Russell Jones faced confinement in the Fort of Natchez "for attempting to leave the country without passports", which were required going in and out of the Spanish Territory at that time [Potter, Passports of Southeastern Pioneers 1770-1823, p. 342]. Since William and his new wife, Cary White, came down from Cumberland Settlement with other White family members, his late wife may have been related to the Jones family, many of whom were killed by Indians there.
William Dewitt was the subject of a deposition made in the Natchez District on Jan 31, 1785, regarding a transfer of slaves and debts owed by William. Members of the White family were witness to events in Washington Co. NC [now part of TN] where the Dewitts and White brothers were living with their families in the latter part of 1781. The transfer of slaves was proved to be a forgery and his debts settled by the Spanish Tribunal. [McBee, Natchez Court Records, Book E, p. 36].
On Jan 15, 1787, John Stillee sold Phoebe, "nat. of Carolina, 11 years old" (born about 1775), to Polser Shilling for $300 [McBee, p. 37]. There is no record of Phoebe being part of the public sale of the William Dewitt estate between Dec 1784 and Feb 1786. However, "Phillis and her child" were, so the child could be Phoebe. Phoebe's owner after 1787, the Shilling family, had no head of household in the 1792 Natchez Census [Adams Co. Mississippi Genealogy & History Network].
By May of 1787 John Stillee and wife Elizabeth, along with their three children and the slaves Bella, Dorinda, and Lucinda, had left the Natchez District when Carlos de Grand-Pré authorized the settling of the "affairs of John Stilles, absconded" by having three disinterested persons examine the "books and accounts" of Stillee, and meet any debtors mentioned in the books along with George Fitzgerald, who would defend the "absent party" [Wells, p. 125].
In May 1787, "a negro Ben, nat. of Africa, aged 20" (born about 1767), was sold by David Ross to Anthony Hutchins, "for $480, payable Jany. 1788" [McBee, Book B, p. 40].
The Aug 7, 1788 inventory of the estate of a merchant named Richard Carpenter of Natchez lists outstanding debts from many individuals including: James White, "Cadey Raby", son-in-law of Elizabeth White, Joseph Ford, Jno. Holloway, and "Wm. Dewitt (dead)" [McBee, Natchez Court Records, Book B, p. 112-114].
According to the 1792 Natchez District Census, translated from the Spanish handwritten records, Ben's new owner "Anthonio Hutchins" was possibly the largest landowner, with 59 slaves on 8,510 arpents of land in the "Second and Sandy Creek" (SS) area, and counted 10 white persons living there. Ben's previous owner David Ross headed a household of 2 white persons and 13 slaves in "Bayou Sarah", which became part of Wilkinson Co. MS.
Map of the Natchez District as it may have looked between 1779 and 1799.
In a letter dated Mar 2, 1790, from Carlos de Grand-Pré to Governor Don Estavan Miro, the amount of tobacco produced in 1790 was reported by growers of Natchez. Ben's current owner "Anthony Hutchens" reported producing 22,000 pounds of tobacco that year. Ben's future owner "George Killion" produced 3,000 pounds of tobacco, and Thomas Wilkins did not produce tobacco [MDAH, "Early Mississippians ...", in "Americans Arriving ...", website].
Manuel Gayoso de Lemos succeeded Charles de Grand-Pré in 1792 and changed the name of the mansion built by his predecessor to Concord. Postcard showing the mansion before it burned down in 1901.
In 1794, a "negro man Ben, aged 26" (born about 1768), "nat. of Jamaica" was sold by George Killian to Thomas Wilkins. [McBee, p. 105]. Six years earlier, in 1788, a slave named "Cuffy" [Ben's possible father's name], "aged 14 (born 1774?), nat. of Jamaica" was sold to James Stoddard [McBee, p. 45]
Phoebe's owner after Jan 15, 1787 was Polser Shilling. Her owner before Feb 15, 1796 was Damiel Ogden. Daniel Ogden was an early settler of the Miss. Terr. in a part of future Wilkinson Co. MS. On Jun 23, 1788, he applied for a deed of 250 acres that was originally a Spanish grant near Loftus Cliff [Ewing, "Early Settlers of MS Territory Wilkinson County, MS"]. Ogden was not a name in Americans arriving in Natchez list that year, but in 1790 Daniel was in Natchez and he reported producing 1,000 pounds of tobacco [MDAH]. Phoebe must have been one of Ogden's seven slaves in the 1792 Census and gave birth six months before Ogden sold her on Feb 15, 1796.
In the 1792 census, possible sister Phoebe's owner "Daniel Ogden" headed a household of 6 white persons and 7 black persons on 1250 arpents of land in the Buffalo Creek area which is now approximately part of Adams and Wilkinson Counties. Adams Co. was founded in 1799, the first county in the new Mississippi Territory (see present day map for location of Adams Co. MS). Wilkinson Co. was founded in 1802 (See present day map for location of Wilkinson Co. MS).
Possible sister Phoebe's former "owner" John Stillee died on Sep 30, 1808. His son-in-law George B Watson and son "Reuben Stilly" were administrators of his estate. They reported to the Claiborne Co. Court that there were not enough assets to pay all of the debts of the deceased.
SOURCES: Adams Co. Mississippi Genealogy & History Network, "1792 Census for Natchez District (under Spanish Government control)", 2009, 1792 Census. Adams Co. MS Index to Deed Records, 1780-1798, on microfilm, A-105. Clark, Walter, State Records of North Carolina Vol XVII 1781-1785, Broadfoot Publishing, Wilmington NC, 1994, pp. 287-8, 294. Donelson's Journal, 1779-1780, Transcription from the Tennessee Virtual Archive website, pp. 98-107. Ewing, Virginia, trans., "Early Settlers of MS Territory Wilkinson County, MS", msgw.org, website]. Genealogical Register, vol. VIII, No. 3, Sep 1961. McBee, May Wilson, Natchez Court Records 1767-1805, Abstract of Early Records, Greenwood MS, 1953, pp. 27, 37, 40, 45, 52, 105, Book B, p. 49, Book E, pp. 162-3. MS Dept. of Archives and History (MDAH), microfilm no. 5618, roll 3, various doc. MDAH, Jackson MS, rootsweb, Americans Arriving in Spanish-Held Natchez 1788-1790. Potter, Dorothy Williams, Passports of Southeastern Pioneers 1770-1823, Gateway Press, Baltimore MD, 1982, p. 342. Pre-Revolutionary Plat Books, SC Archives Dept., vol. 21, pp 424-433. U.S. 1820 Census, St. Landry Parish LA, Index, S-K Publications, 2021. U.S. 1830 Census, St. Landry Parish LA, Index, S-K Publications, 2021. U.S. 1820 Census, Wilkinson MS, File 1 of 2, USGenWeb, transcribed by Virginia Ewing, 2001. U.S. 1840 Census, St. Landry Parish LA, Index, USGenWeb, transcribed by Karen Sherman, 2002. Virginia Land Patents, Book 8, p. 16. Wells, Carol, Natchez Postscripts 1781-1798, Heritage Books, Bowie MD, 1992, pp. 50-52. White, Gifford, "James White and John White", Wm. Wiseman & the Davenports, Pioneers Of Old Burke County, North Carolina, v.2, by M.L.Vineyard & E.M.Wiseman, Franklin NC, 1997, pp. 86-96, 107-112. White, Gifford, James Taylor White of Virginia and some of his descendants into Texas, Austin, TX, April 1982.