Gene Notes

Some random and some not-so-random thoughts on family history.

Wednesday, June 30, 2021

Sparking My Curiosity

I just happened to check Ancestry for Kentucky wills. I found one for one of my collateral relatives, William Reed Bowman, a second cousin three times removed, who died in 1938. His will was dated 1936, and he made sure that a tenant farmer of his would receive the home the tenant was living in, unless said tenant farmer predeceased him. He names him as William Allen Bryant, a negro. William R. Bowman left no heirs other than his wife. 

The name William Bryant is a fairly common one in the Lexington, Kentucky area whether one was black or white. My great-great-great-great grandmother, Sarah Henry, was married to a David Bryan(t) and was a grandmother to a William Bryan(t). Depending on the record, you would see the name Bryan or Bryant. 

I have found a William A. Bryan in that area on the 1930 census and in the World War I and II draft registrations, and Kentucky death index. Do I have the correct person? I don't know, but I've enjoyed the search.

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