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James Rowell

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Evidence assessment

Supplemental early settler, verified on future-Brooks land by 1828. His church service is strongly supported by later abstracts; his family and relationship to Henry Rowell remain unresolved.

Evidence

An original deed copied into the later Brooks records shows Daniel Rowe of Crawford County conveying District 12, Lot 393 to James Rowell of Crawford County on December 13, 1828. The deed was recorded October 5, 1832. This directly anchors James to land that later lay in Brooks County, although it does not prove when he took up residence there.

Huxford's Bethel history names James as a delegate in 1827 and says he was elected deacon in July 1828 but declined. The Bethlehem history lists James Rowell and wife Sarah among the probable charter members, calls James a deacon, and records their dismissal by letter on November 12, 1842. These are detailed secondary abstracts; the original church books were not inspected.

A deed extraction records James Rowell of Lowndes County mortgaging most of Lot 393 to Francis Jones on July 1, 1842, while reserving the southeast 75 acres and a cemetery. This supplies continuity on the same tract, but the underlying deed image remains a target.

Identity and family controls

  • Sarah Rowell as James's wife: secondary-supported, explicitly stated in the Bethlehem abstract.
  • James and Henry Rowell: relationship unresolved.
  • Cyntha Rowell: relationship unresolved; shared church membership and surname are insufficient.

Barney relevance

Lot 393 was in District 12 within the future Brooks County area. No evidence places James at the later Barney townsite.

Remaining targets

Inspect original Bethel and Bethlehem minutes, the 1842 mortgage, census schedules, probate, and any record connecting or separating James, Henry, and Cyntha Rowell.

Sources

  1. Daniel Rowe to James Rowell, December 13, 1828, recorded October 5, 1832, Deed Book A, pages 596–597; FamilySearch ARK https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9BZ-3S7D-V
  2. Folks Huxford, The History of Brooks County, Georgia, 1858–1948, Bethel and Bethlehem church histories.
  3. Lowndes deed extraction, James Rowell to Francis Jones, July 1, 1842, Book C, p. 295.