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DEAS & FORD
FAMILY TREE and BOOK, as Researched and Chronicled by Theresa Ford Allen
CLICK HERE for Book Synopisis of
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A LITTLE BACKGROUND...
When CORNELIUS WITHINGTON FORD and CELIA ESTELLE DEAS met each other in 1938 at Miss Chapman's Music School for Negroes in Brooklyn, NY, little did anyone know a dynasty would be born! They saw each other again at an engagement party in nine years later and began dating. The couple married in 1951 at Concord Baptist Church, Brooklyn, NY and began their family. On Feb. 3, 2001 they celebrated their 50th Wedding Annversary and the Legacy continues! But, this was just the beginning...the DEAS and FORD family history dates back many years. Here is their story...
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THE DEAS LINE
The Deas Family line dates back to the late 1700's from the shores of Sierra Leone, Africa. They came to Charleston, South Carolina as slaves on the H.M.S. Brigatine Dembia in 1749, by traders, John and David Deas, and remained in Charleston until 1895. Most likely they were on the Buck Hall Plantation on the Cooper River. Robert Deas b.circa 1820 and married Affie b.1829, daughter of an African born father b. 1795 and Bermudian born mother b. 1799. They bore five children; Ellen, Robert Jr., Samuel, Joseph b. 1859, and William. Affie (maiden name unknown) lived with Robert DEAS in an area of Charleston, SC called Charleston Neck until he either died or escaped north.
Celia Kinlock b. 1860 lived with her mother, Alice Kinlock, b. 1830 and brother Butler during slavery. The family went to Spartensburg, SC just before the Civil War. Circumstances are unknown why they left Charleston, but once freed from slavery, the family made their way back to Charleston after the war. All the Kinlock women were the "mid-wives and "house-slaves" of the families. They were all most likely daughtersof the white Kinlock men. Alice Kinlock is believed to have been born to be the mulatto great grandaughter of an Angolan Princess, who had been bought to Charleston to marry Captain Cleland Kinlock in 1795. Her name was angolized to Elizabeth Hardcastle. After her husband died, a court battle that ensued regarding property. Blacks were not allowed to own property. She won the battle, but lost the war, to remaining relatives of the Kinlock family. Documents in the family show, that she had claimed and won in a Charleston, SC court of law that she was entitled to the property becasue she was not American born black, but African born, and therefore not under the laws of South Carolina slaves. Unfortunately, when she died, the white Kinlock family ent back to court and eventually won, because her children were no longer entitled to the property, having been born in Charleston.
Her great grandaughter, Celia Kinlock who later married JOSEPH DEAS, on Dec. 20, 1882 at the Morris Brown AME Church, were the parents of Jospeh Jr., Alice, Celia, Samuel, John, Ellentyne, Ethel, all born in Charleston. Joseph and Celia later moved to Rutherford, New Jersey and had their last child, Beatrice. Joseph died in 1936 the wealthiest Negro in Rutherford. The family then began spreading out into Brooklyn, New Jersey, Long Island, New York, and Queens, where many remain today.
On the Stith side, Anna b. 1899 was born to Celie b. 1857 in Blackstone, VA. Celie had sisters; Katherine (Kate), Mary, Tempe, Sarah, and Susan. Anna's father was a d white irishman farmer, named McCarthy. He lived down the road. She moved to New York, met and married Samuel Butler Deas, a Charleston man. They had two children, Celia and Samuel Jr. Anna also had another daughter, Helen who was raised by Kate Boone, Anna's aunt in Brooklyn, NY. Celia Deas met and married Cornelius Withington Ford, a Brooklyn man. The couple made their home in Long Island, New York. The moved to Fort Washington, Maryland in 1991.
Some other DEAS family surnames are:
DEAS, KINLOCK, KINLOCH, CAMPBELL, ARRINGTON, WHITEHEAD, STITH, STITHE, MCCARTHY, WRIGHT, JONES, HARDCASTLE, JONES, BARNES, FORD, BOONE, BARTLEY, BRYD, TUCKER, HILL, WRIGHT, HAWKE, EVANS, YOUNG, BOONE.
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THE FORD LINE
The Ford family line has been a little more difficult to trace. We have only been able to go as far back as 1832 with the Withington surname dating to Delaware. The presupposition is that Samuel Withington was either a runaway slave or born free in Delaware. He then made his way to Red Bank, New Jersey by 1870, where he had married Katherine and was raising 13 children; Wesley, Alfred, Caroline, Cornelius, Augustus, Moses, Ida, James, Will, John, and Alex. Cornelius Withington, married Mary Sutton. The couple had Therese Withington and Consewelo Withington. They lived in a prominent section of Brooklyn called Weeksville. They were very well off Negroes, well bred and cultured.
Mary Sutton, Cornelius' wife was born on the Shinnocock Indian Plantation in Long Island, New York. Although it is not documented, it is family folklore that Mary Sutton was to have come from the wealthy Skyler family. Yes, the same New York Skyler's that were married into the Andrew Jackson family. The Skylers were from Huntingtonshire, England, and were a family of great wealth. So wealthy in fact, that when the inheritance was offered, and the lawyers found out some of the family was just a tad too dark, they were bamboozled into giving up their portion. The only thing they were sent was a floor that had come out of the Hungtintonshire estate mansion. It was actually shipped to Brooklyn and laid on the floor on Monroe Street.
On the Withington side, there is believed to have been a grandmother from Barbados on one side of the family. She came off the boat somewhere on the east coast, met by family, and had a very thick Barbados accent.
On the Thompson side, mulatto Mary Thompson was born in North Carolina. Her grandmother, an Indian, was believed to have died in the back of a wagon on the way north. After slavery Mary went to Hampton Institute, a newly built college for the emancipated slaves. While attending during 1881 and 1884, she met, fell in love with, and married Charles Ford of North Carolina. They moved to Jersey City, where they remained until their deaths. They had five children, Jesse, Walter, Blanche, Charles, and Ethel.
The only one of these children who had children was Walter, who had a son, Cornelius with his wife Therese Withington. Cornelius married Celia Deas from Brooklyn. The couple had Theresa, Ronald, Ellen, and Lawrence. The family lived in Freeport, New York, a middle class suburb of New York City. Theresa married Victor Simonson and had Victor and Pamela. Ronald's children are RaKiesha, Tiffany, Tyrika, Ronald, and Yolanda. Ellen married Norris Wiggins and had Norris Jr. Lawrence has a son, Lawrence.
SOME other FORD FAMILY SURNAMES INCLUDE:
FORD, WITHINGTON, SUTTON, SYLVER, SKYLER, THOMPSON, KIRKPATRICK, GUTHMAN, LYNCH, JACKSON, STEWART, PEARSALL, ETHERIDGE, CARTER, LAWRENCE, DAVIDSON, SMITH, SPRUILL, THELEMAQUE, TOLENTINO, SIMONSON, PORTER, ALLEN, WIGGINS, CHILLOUS, RICHARDS, WILLIAMS.
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"KINDRED SPIRITS...
click title to get complete description of book and other publications by Terri Allen
Pictorial history of the DEAS and FORD family. This beautiful publication will be released in 2003 and feature photographs dating back 100 years. A complete family tree is included. Also a valuable resource guide, "Kindred Spirits..." also offers "hot tos" on getting started in Genealogy Research.
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Copyright by Thelemaque Associates; Washington, DC 2002 © All rights reserved.
Unlawful distribution of material herein is punishable by law.
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