Georgia Records

Records have been found in Georgia for four Holdridge men, between the years of 1824 and 1850. These men are Aaron Holdridge, whose relationship to William4 Holdridge of Laurens County, South Carolina has not been established; James5 Holdridge, son of William4; and John6 and Edmond D.6 Holdridge, sons of James5.

Aaron Holdridge

The earliest Holdridge record found in Georgia was this, "List of Letters remaining in the Post Office, Augusta, Ga., 1st January, 1824, Aaron Haldridge." [1] Aaron Holdridge is not one of the proven sons of James5 Holdridge, but he did appear on this list in Georgia the same year that James first appears on a tax record.

Aaron Holdridge lived in Upson Co, GA when he won land in Troup Co. during the Georgia Land Lottery of 1827. [2] He drew lot number 52 in District 6 of the third section of Troup County. He sold that land to Brittain D. Harris of Montgomery Co., Ga and then in 1830 Brittain D. Harris of Lowndes Co. sold the same lot to Arthur Smith of Troup Co. and in the deed mentioned it was the same land as drawn by Aron Holdridge in the lottery. [3]   Aaron Holdridge was named in a land fraud case in 1830, accused of entering the lottery illegally, because he did not serve in the late war with Britain or reside in Georgia three years prior to 1827. [4]

James5 Holdridge

The first record found for James Holdridge in Georgia is the 1824 tax list for Fayette County, Capt E. Dodson’s District. He owned no land but paid tax of .31 ¼. Next to him on the list was Joseph Hewy [Huey]. [5]

James5 Holdridge was in the Estray records, 1826, Captain Morgan's District, Fayette County, Georgia. Fayette is west of Henry County, but some parts of Fayette County were originally Henry County. [6]

James Haldridge appears again on the tax lists in 1827 in Fayette County, Capt. H.C. Morgan’s District, no land entered, tax .31 ¼. [7]

GEORGIA MAPS:
Georgia 1733
Georgia 1834
Georgia 1838

Although I found no record of land purchased by James Holdridge in Fayette County[8], the next record found was a notice in the August 1829 issue of a Macon newspaper for a Fayette Tax Collectors Sale: "On the first Tuesday in September next will be sold before the courthouse in the town of Fayetteville, Fayette County between the lawful hours of sale the following lands or so much thereof as will satisfy the taxes for the year 1828. 202 1-2 acres, No. 112 in the 13th District formerly Henry now Fayette sold as the property of James Holdridge." [9]

On April 25, 1830 James Holdridge married Nancy Blackstock in Brushy Knob, Henry County, Georgia. [10]

In the 1830 Georgia Census, Henry County, the James Holdridge household included two free males 5-10, one male age 10-15, one male age 15-20 [John H.], one age 40-50 [James]; one free female 20-30. [11]

In 1831, Henry County, Georgia, Captain House's District, James Holdridge paid one poll tax of 31 shillings. He apparently owned no land, slaves, or carriages, as a line was drawn through these entries and through the entries for land, quality, district, and water. [12]

In 1840, James Holdridge was in the Newton County Georgia census, with one male under 5, two males 5 and under ten, one male 40 and under 50 [James]; one female under 5, one female 5 and under ten, one female 20 and under 30 [Nancy]. [13]

On April 4, 1843, James Holdridge died in Brushy Knob, Henry County, Georgia.[14]

Edmond D. Holdridge

In 1840, Edmund D. Holdridge, son of James5, was enumerated in the Upson County, Georgia census, with two males under 5, one male 30 and under 40; one female 5 and under ten, one female 20 and under 30. He has not been located in the 1850 census. One daughter, Nancy reported in the 1870 census that she was born in Alabama in 1841.

John6 Holdridge

John H. Holdege (sic) was a winner in the 1832 Cherokee Land Lottery. He received lot #242 in the 24th District, 3rd section of Cherokee County. He was a resident of House's District, Henry County, Georgia, at the time of the drawing. Registrants for the 1832 lottery had to be a resident of Georgia since January 1,1829. Immediately after the drawings, Cherokee County was divided into ten counties. John's lot was in the new Floyd County. A map of Floyd with the lot numbers is available online at the Georgia Archives. Lot #242 is in the lower left corner. [15]

John Holddidge (sic) was a fortunate drawer in Georgia's 1832 Gold Lottery; he drew lot #278 in the 3rd district of section 2. This was located in the east side of the new county of Cherokee, one of ten counties formed from the old Cherokee County immediately after the drawing of the earlier Land Lottery of 1832. A map of the new Cherokee County showing the lot numbers is available online at the Georgia Archives. Lot #278 is in the upper left quadrant, seven lots down from top left, ten lots to the right. [16]

John Holdridge appeared on the 1837 defaulter's list in Henry County, Georgia. James Holdridge did not appear on the tax list. [17] "A list of persons owing taxes was often included at the end of the tax digests. These lists were usually published in a local newspaper, as well. Sometimes the lists were published before the tax deadline, and are really lists of persons who had not yet filed their returns, as opposed to actual defaulters." Other reasons to be on the list: "The taxpayer had moved out of the geographical area of the militia (tax) district. Or the person actually failed to pay their taxes." [18]

John Holdridge, private, appears on the Muster-in Roll for Captain [John S.] McMullen's Co., 2nd Regiment (Turk's) Georgia Militia, joined for duty and enrolled May 14, 1838, New Echota, Georgia, for three months. He served during the Cherokee Removals. [19]

In 1838, James Farmer and others (family) sold to John Falls, "a certain part-lot, or parcel of land, situate, lying, and being in the eleventh district of originally Henry, now Newton County. Known and distinguished in the plan of said district by being No. 171, one hundred and seventy one, and more particularly distinguished by being all that part, or parcel of same lot of land situate and lying in the north side of South river, adjoining lands of Clark on the east, HOLDRIDGE on the north, and McLennon on the west, and bounded as aforesaid on the South by South river, containing one hundred and sixty acres, more or less." This HOLDRIDGE was either John Holdridge or James Holdridge, but James Holdridge was not even on the tax list in 1837 and John Holdridge was on the tax list. [20]

John Holdridge and Edy Coley obtained a marriage license 18 July, 1839, in Newton County, Georgia. They married 21 July, 1839 in DeKalb County, Georgia. [21]

John Holdridge was on the 1840 Newton County census with one male under 5 [James W.], two males 20-30m [John]; one female 15 and under 20 [Edy]. One of these older males may be a brother of John. Both adult males were born between 1811 and 1820. [22]

Based on the reported ages and birthplaces of Mary W. Holdridge (in Georgia) and Edmond Carey (in Alabama), the John Holdridge family moved from Georgia to Alabama between 1845 and 1847. [23]

1. Aaron Haldridge mail notice, Augusta Chronicle, Augusta Georgia, Saturday Jan. 03, 1824, Issue 169, Col. A, Classified Ads

2. Miss Martha Lou Houston, Reprint of Official Register of Land Lottery of Georgia 1827, (1827; reprint 1992 for Clearfield Company by Genealogical Publishing Company: Baltimore) page 166

3. Aaron Holdridge, "Land Fraud Case", in e-mail from Troup County Archives [email protected] to Cindy Smith, 04 Aug 2001

4. Aaron Holdridge, Superior Court Records, Troup County, Georgia, p. 182.

5. Fayette County GA Tax Digests for the Years 1823, 1824, 1827, 1829, 1831, 1832, 1833, 1834, (Ancestors Unlimited, Jonesboro GA: 1988), Georgia Department of Archives and History, p. 15

6. Fayette County Georgia Estray Book 1823-1873, US Genweb, online at http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/ga/fayette/court/wl237records.txt

7. Fayette County GA Tax Digests for the Years 1823, 1824, 1827, 1829, 1831, 1832, 1833, 1834, (Ancestors Unlimited, Jonesboro GA: 1988), GDAH

8. Fayette County Superior Court Deeds and Mortgages General Index, 1821-1900, drawer 93, box 45, Direct and Indirect Index, GDAH. No Holdridges or variations found.

9. James Holdridge Tax Sale, The Macon Telegraph, (Macon, GA) Saturday, August 15, 1829, Issue 33, pg. 132, col A, Multiple Classified Advertisements, online at www.galegroup.com

10. James Holdridge, Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Applications, file WL28340, Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration

11. James Holdridge household, 1830 U.S. Census, Henry County, Georgia, MyFamily.com, Inc., Provo, Utah, page 227, online at MyFamily.com, Ancestry.com image 57

12. James Holdridge tax roll entry, 1831 Henry County, Georgia, Tax Digest, Captain House's District; FHL film #0159152; Family History Library, Salt Lake City, UT

13. James Holdege household, 1840 U.S. Census, Newton County, Georgia, MyFamily.com, Inc., Provo, Utah, District 476, page 50, Ancestry.com image 3

14. James Holdridge, Pension and Bounty Land Warrant Applications, file WL28340, Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration

15. James F. Smith, The Cherokee Land Lottery Containing A Numerical List of the Names of the Fortunate Drawers in Said Lottery (1838; reprint New York: Harper & Brothers, 1968)

16. Mary Bondurant Warren, compiler, Alphabetical Index to Georgia's 1832 Gold Lottery, page 107(Danielsville, GA 30633: Heritage Papers, 1981).

17. John Holdridge entry, 1837 Henry County, Georgia, Tax Digest, Captain Posey's District, FHL film #0159152; Family History Library, Salt Lake City, UT.

18. Georgia Archives, Georgia Tax List FAQs, online at http://www.sos.state.ga.us/archives/what_do_we_have/taxfaq.htm

19. John Holdridge, Cherokee War Military Service Record, Record 397, Washington, D.C.: National Archives

20. James Farmer, Newton County, Georgia, Deed Book F, transcribed online at http://ftp.rootsweb.com/pub/usgenweb/ga/newton/deeds/dd289farmerfa.txt

21. John Holdridge and Edie Coley Marriage License, Newton County, Georgia, page 75

22. John Holdege household, 1840 U.S. Census, Newton County, Georgia, MyFamily.com, Inc., Provo, Utah, District 476, page 50, Ancestry.com image 3

23. John Holdridge household, 1860 U.S. census, MyFamily.com, Inc., Provo, Utah, western division, Youngville post office, dwelling 1309, family 1309, page 193/387, Ancestry.com image 16