There are 3 generations of men named Thomas Mullins, all of whom were tobacco growers and manufacturers in Rockingham County, N.C. To distinguish among these 3 men in proof of lineage, the following designations will be used:
- Thomas Mullins I (Rev. Thomas Mullins), father of Thomas II
- Thomas Mullins II (Sr.) (Thomas Mullins), father of Thomas III
- Thomas Mullins III (Jr.) (Thomas Jefferson Mullins), father of William Madison Mullins
The 1840 Rockingham, NC, shows a father and son, Thomas Mullin(s) Sr. and Thomas Mullin(s) Jr. [1]. The following deed from Rockingham County also shows a father and son Thomas Mullins in Rockingham:
– Indenture dated 22 May 1839 between Thomas Mullins and “Thomas Mullins his son”, both of Rockingham County1.
Evidence is provided below that the Thomas Mullins Jr. named on the 1840 census and on the 1839 deed is the father of William Madison Mullins. Therefore, the father of Thomas III is Thomas Mullin(s) Sr. shown on the 1840 Rockingham County census.
1840 U.S. Census: North Carolina, Rockingham
First, we can conclude that Thomas III lived in North Carolina in 1840, based on the following evidence:
- He married Matilda Mims in Caswell County, NC, in 1836 [3].
- Based on the stated ages and birthplaces of his first 5 children on the 1850 U.S. Census: Tennessee, McNairy [4] and on later censuses, these first 5 children were born in North Carolina in about 1837, 1839, 1841, 1843, and 1845.
- William Madison Mullins’ Union Army enlistment card indicates that he was born in Rockingham County, NC [5].
Second, an ancestry.com search for “Thomas Mullin” on the 1840 U.S. Census (North Carolina) reveals only 2 individuals named Thomas Mullin in the entire state: The Thomas Mullins Sr. and Thomas Mullins Jr. listed in Rockingham County.
A further search using all common alternate spellings and misspellings for “Mullins” yields only one additional person, Thomas Mullens in Chatham County, NC, age 60-69, wife age 70-79. This could not be Thomas III, who would have been about 24 in 1840 based on later census records.
Therefore, the Thomas Mullins Jr. listed on the 1840 census and 1839 Rockingham County deed is Thomas III, the father of William Madison Mullins, and the son of Thomas Mullins Sr. of Rockingham County.
An additional confirmatory piece of evidence comprises the ages of Thomas Mullins Jr.’s children shown on the 1840 census [6]: One son under 5, and one daughter under 5. These two children correspond to the listings on the 1850 census [7]. In 1850, the only two children of Thomas III older than 10 years were Mary, age 13, and John, age 11. These are the two children shown on the 1840 census.
Evidence below ties Thomas III directly to two aunts and one uncle, who were children of his grandfather, Thomas I (Rev. Thomas Mullins) of the Lick Fork Primitive Baptist Church, through land deeds in Tennessee.
Documentation Of Birth, Marriage, And Death Places/Dates
Thomas Mullins II was 78 years old on the 1850 Rockingham County [8], placing his birth year c. 1772. His will [9] was written February 8, 1855, and was probated Feb term 1859, placing his death year c. 1859.
Anny Smith was between 16 and 25 years old on the 1810 Rockingham census [10] placing her birth year 1784-1794. Other census records do not narrow her age range. Therefore her birth year is aft 1783. Anny’s place of birth is unknown. She is not listed on the 1850 Rockingham census presumably deceased, placing her death year before 1850.
The marriage date for Thomas Mullins II and Anny Smith is recorded in Rockingham County as December 25, 1804 [11].
Thomas Mullins III
Thomas Mullins III and Matilda Brooks Mims had a son, William Madison Mullins.
Evidence
William’s parents are shown on their marriage bond: Thomas Mullin(s) and Matilda B(rooks) Mims, dated October 10, 1836, in Caswell Co., NC (home county of the Mims family) [12]. Thomas and his father-in-law, John W. Mims, signed the bond.
The proof of William Madison Mullins’ parents is that he appears on every U.S. census living with his parents, Thomas and Matilda Mullins, from 1850 through 1870 [13,14,15] and he appears living next to his parents and in-laws in 1880 [16].
Further, he is named on a probate document in 1891 for his father’s estate as a security for the bond posted by his brother, T.J. Mullins (Jr.), who was administrator of the estate.
The 1890 U.S. Census for Arkansas was lost (as it was for most states).
Thomas Jefferson Mullins died intestate in Washington Co. AR on February 11, 1891, as documented on a letter of probate [17]. In this letter, the court clerk appointed Thomas’ oldest son, T.J. Mullins, administrator of the estate, during a court vacation.
On June 1, 1891, the Washington County Court confirmed the appointment of T.J. Mullins (Jr.) as administrator and approved the bond of $4,000 that he posted. William Madison Mullins is cited on this document as one of T.J. Mullins’s securities:
“…with W.(?)W. Hewett, W.M. Mullins, and Geo. P. Moore as his securities” [18].
[George P. Moore was a contemporary of the Mullins brothers, grew up next door to William’s wife, Sophia Freyschlag (1860 Fayetteville census), and served in the CSA with Thomas Jefferson Mullins III. There were several Hewitt families in Prairie, Washington, Arkansas, including a W.W. Hewitt who was a large landholder.]
Documentation Of Birth, Marriage, And Death Places/Dates
The birth year for both Thomas Mullins III and Matilda Mims is c. 1816 from the ages listed on the 1850-1880 censuses (1850-1870 for Matilda).
Matilda’s death year is after 1870 because she is not listed on the 1880 census.
Thomas Jefferson Mullins’s death date is 1891, from the probate documents cited above.
© 2013 W. Mullins