Our first concentration will be on the COOK families of Western North Carolina
and upstate South Carolina, primarly with the descendants of
Hence Marvin Cook.
Hence and his descendants have lived in the mountains of western North Carolina, primarily
in what is now known as Jackson county, since the early 1800's. Family tradition says we are
"Scot-Irish" but since we have not been able to document prior to Hence, we may not be able
to prove it yet, however several clues support the idea.
Starting in the mid 1700's several Scotish families that had been relocated to Ireland
had become disenchanted and had decided to seek out a new life in the American colonies where
there was plenty of land. We know that Hence was born in Buncombe county, NC so his parents
were over here at the beginning of the 19th century. The county lines have moved several
times over the last 200 years as new counties were formed and the old ones were divided up. So
Hence could have been born in any of these present day counties: Buncombe, Haywood
Jackson, Macon, Swain, or Transylvannia.
From land records and censuses we see that Hence and several of his sons were
in Jackson County in the 1850's. (Jackson County was formed in 1851 from parts of Haywood
and Macon counties.) Hence and his sons received at least 25 land grants
from the goverment along with just as many deeds which they bought. It's believed they
owned a good portion of the western side of the Balsam Mountains from Rocky Face near
Addie, NC over to Caney Fork Creek and Balsam Grove at Rich Mountain and on to
Wolf Mountain.
A lot of Hence's desendants still live in and around Jackson county. Several of the family
groups moved in the early 1900's looking for better jobs. One group went to Pickens County, SC
to work in textiles and another went to Darrington, WA to work in the lumber industry. It is
estimated that there are around 3000 to 5000 people
alive today that can trace their lineage back to Hence Marvin Cook.
For more information and background Click Here
Please contact me at [email protected]
just to say Hi or if you have information you'd like to add or correct.
John M. Cook, Jr.
or write to:
Cook Family History
c/o John M. Cook, Jr.
149 Timber Ridege Rd.
Liberty, SC 29657
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You will find a list of reference sources that we have found helpful along with books
that relate to the COOK branch of the family.
