The Early Steagall (Stegall) Settlers of Anson County, North Carolina

By R. M. Steagall, Jr.

Family genealogy of the Steagall (Stegall) settlers in Anson County, North Carolina. Moses Steagall, his seven sons and four daughters arrived in Anson County before the 1800 Federal census. Using census records, land records, military records and family traditions; we can learn a lot about the early pioneers. We follow the story of the family through the post-Civil War period. Other information concerning the first Steagalls in America and roots in Virginia is discussed. An appendix of reference material is included.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Oct 27, 2022
• ISBN: 9781387516797

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

I was not very deep in the investigation of my Steagall heritage before discovering the link with the Stegall family of Union County. Forty years ago, I was trying to find the father of my great, great grandfather. My great Aunt Nan Robinson from Morven told me that she remembered going to see her Granddaddy Steagall’s brother as a child. Her Uncle Bob lived in Marshville. That was a clue. After making phone calls to two Robert Stegalls in Marshville; I was put in touch with Mrs. Georgia Stegall Bailey, who was a Stegall family historian. She had copies of all the early Anson and Union County census records. Within fifteen minutes of calling her, she had tracked down David Milton’s father as being Aaron, Thomas’ oldest son. When I visited Mrs. Bailey, she called Mrs. Faye Stegall Little, who gave details of all my great, great grandfather’s family including who they married, if they died as children and if fought in the Civil War. Mrs. Bailey also told me that her father, Samuel fought in the War. At first, I thought she meant to say her grandfather, but her father remarried in 1911 in his mid-sixties. Amazingly, Georgia was in her 70s and her father fought in the War Between the States.

I had driven through Marshville on the way to Charlotte for decades. On each trip, I saw multiple businesses with the Stegall name… Stegall Smoked Turkey, Stegall Hardware, Stegall Insurance, etc., I could not help but wonder if I was related to these Stegalls with one a.  Now I have a new perspective on things. Moses and his children could not read or write, so the record keepers were doing all the spelling in the early days. The census takers changed how the name was spelled every ten years. Steagall, Stegall and Stigall each had a turn. The land deeds even used more than one spelling in the same document on occasion. By the time Moses’ grandkids came along, many of them were sent to school to learn to read and write. Most of these grandchildren spelled their name Stegall, but my Aaron was one of the exceptions. Aaron had served as a Union County Justice of the Peace, and he signed his name Steagall.  Suddenly a light turned on in my head. That must be the reason my branch of the family spells our name the way we do. His son, David Milton spelled his name Steagall, but his other sons spelled their name Stegall. Some of Absalom’s children in Tennessee spelled their name Steagald. That spelling was passed down to their children. I am sure there are even more exotic spelling out there.

No matter how the name is spelled, we are truthfully talking about the same family. I have attempted to be fair with the surname spelling in this book using Ste(a)gall in some cases. For Moses and his children, I have used Steagall since the earliest land records used that spelling. For later generations, I have tried to use the preferred spelling of each family, if I was aware of one.

For many years, I wanted to author a book with all the information I could find on the Steagall family. Unfortunately, there are still numerous unknowns. Particularly, the first two generations in America left behind very few records. Additionally, the links with our home country have many unanswered questions. I have laid out my conclusions based on the information we have currently. Hopefully, we will learn more in the future, I hope I am still around to hear the revelations. I have also attached many supporting documents in the Appendix section for anyone who wants to see the evidence for themselves. These documents would also be good for those who want to dig into the genealogy. This book is not very thick, but I hope you find it informative.

THE EARLY STEAGALLS OF ANSON

Over the years, Moses Steagall has become a mythical figure. As the patriarch of the Steagall family which located in the Anson County area of North Carolina in the late 1700s, the stories concerning Moses are as numerous as they are varied. It is important to separate myth from fact when trying to set the record straight concerning the true history of early Steagalls and Stegalls in Anson and Union counties in North Carolina.

We can start by reviewing some of the stories that have been told over the years about Moses. A