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Descendants of John Landers

Generation No. 1

1. JOHN¹ LANDERS was born Bet. 1694 - 1724 in Alsace-Lorraine ^1,², and died about 1757 in Granville County, NC ³. He married FRANCES ?⁴. She died about 1770 in Granville County, NC⁴.

Notes for JOHN LANDERS:
In deference to more methodical researchers, it must be said that I do not have hard-copy documentation of most of the data in this file. Credit for most of it belongs to the many genealogists who have generously shared the results of their long hours of hard work. Wherever possible, their names, and sometimes email addresses, appear in the footnotes. Without them, this data file would not be possible.

If you are reading this data from a commercial on-line service, please be advised that such services may be several months behind in posting updates. For the most recent findings, and relevant photographs, visit the Landiss Family home page at:

<A HREF="http://www.landiss.com/family"> http://www.landiss.com/family </A>

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Rodger Rice Landers, who has a copy of his estate record, says he died in 1757. Also says he arrived in Granville County by 1753, "late of the Province of Pennsylvania".

From Roger Rice Landers:

1. John Landers purchased 238 acres of land from Minus Griggs on 4 Dec. 1753. The deed recorded in Granville Co. NC. Deed Bk. B p. 251 indicates the following: John Landers "late of the Province of Pennsylvania" ... "238... acres of land lying on both sides of the Tarr River..."

2. The Muster Roll of the Regiment in Granville County, under the Command of Col. William Eaton, 8 October 1754, Captain Andrew Hampton’s Company lists the following: John Landres, Sargeant; John Landers, Junr. (State Records of North Carolina, Vol XXII, page 370, 379-380)

3. No will has been found for John Landers. However, an inventory of all the "goods and chattels of John Landers" exists. Frances Landers and Robert Harris are listed as Administrators. (NC Archives, Granville Co. Estate Records, Box 44.508.109) Of particular interest is the entry: "Twenty books chiefly of Dutch print". The Record of the sale of items in the inventory was dated 6 July 1757, recorded in the Court minutes 9 Sept 1757 and listed the "whole of books" to Frances Landers for 1.6.0 lb. Present and purchasing at the sale were John Landers, Frances Landers, Nicholas Hopkins, Jacob Slaughter, Andrew Hampton, William Sloan, Francis Fowler, John Sherman, John White, Mathew Minor, George Thompson, William Jones, William Rose, Moses Coppock, Robert Harris and Minor Griggs. Total value of sale: 89.57.35 lbs.

4. The will and inventory of Frances Landress (NC Archives, Granville Co. Wills Box 044.801.24, Frances Landress 1770) list no land. Of particular interest in the will are:

A. "item I ordain that my two daughters Mary and Betty shall be paid fourteen pounds ... out of John's Bond..." and later "my son John's bond..."

B. "item I ordain that my three sons Abraham, Joseph, and Jacob shall have... all the English books..."

5. Note: Frances Landers did not sign her name to the inventory, signed with "her mark". John Landers (Jr.) and his brother Abraham also did not sign their names to deeds and/or his will. Joseph Landers did sign deeds. The books must have been both Dutch and English.

6. The land owned by John Landers Senior passed to John Landers Junior. (See notes, John Landers, Jr.)

7. The date of birth for old John Landers should be recorded as between 1694 and 1724, based on the following: Men who served in the local militia were between 16 and 60 years of age. John Landers, SGT. and John Landers Jr. , PVT. were listed with Andrew Hampton's Company in 1754. Therefore, John Sr. could have been born as early as 1694 and as late as 1724 (John Jr. born 1738, and John Sr. could have married as early as age 14).

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Based on this note from Roger Rice Landers, I have added Alsace-Lorraine as John's probable birthplace (note that this region is but 50 miles from Basel, Switzerland; and about 75 miles from Solothorn, where Hans Landis was imprisoned):

A new research question for us: John Landers (previously of the Province of Pennsylvania) may have been our original ancestor. As I was reading the old notes of Frances B. Hayes from the Granville County Library, I found notes by Hayes about an interview with Ed Landis, son of Augustine Landis, dated 1914. He said that John Landers came from the Alsace-Lorraine region because of religious persecution. In one place Hayes/Landis mentions that they came down the Shenandoah valley to central NC. Alsace-Lorraine does not sound correct, because it is part of France, but in the 1700-1750 period it was part of a region that changed hands between Germany and France many times. In fact the Duchy of Lorraine was surrounded by French territory completely in 1714. The Duchy of Lorraine was then a part of the Hapsburg Empire. So it seems that John could be the emigrant ancestor, but more research is needed. This seem to fit other info that we had i.e. Flavious Landers said that his ggf came from Europe, was in some German States rebellion, Dutch books, etc. etc.

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From Carroll Hayden:

Granville County has been found to be quite different from some other eastern North Carolina counties, namely, Edgecombe, Nash, and Halifax, in one respect. There were a very large number of merchants in Granville County from its beginning and they bought and resold quite a bit of land. They were noted, to a great extent, buying land at Sheriff's sales and buying from persons who removed to other states. This is applied to the buying of slaves for resale. In the other counties mentioned, the merchants had very little to do with the buying and selling of land and personal property.

Another difference between Granville and the above named counties is that the boundaries of Granville County at that time were mostly artificial and many tracts of land lay in two counties and quite often in two states. Many persons who inherited part of a home tract found that their part, when divided, lay in another county. So there were a great many of these "border line" sales and other by people living in a county which was actually only a few yards away. --- Joseph W. Watson

Granville County was established in 1746 from Edgecombe County. It is presently located in the NE section of the state and is bounded by Vance, Franklin, Wake, Durham, and Person Counties and the State of Virginia. It originally was much larger.

Notes for FRANCES ?:
Dorothy Landers Fisher states that the will of Frances Landress, proved in court in 1770, names all four sons and both daughters:

From "Unrecorded Wills, 1746-1771", page 13:

June 5, 1769 - July Court 1770 - recorded by Isaac Edwards, C.C. Frances Landress wills that all horses, cattle, sheep, all working tools belonging to the plantation be divided to my three sons: Abraham, Joseph, and Jacob Landress, with 15 pds. drawn out of Abraham's share that he has already had, and that my son Joseph shall have a colt if there be one, and if not a cow and calf extra of his share; to my daughters Mary and Betty to be paid 40 pds. between them out of John's bond and what is in Robert Harris's hands and if what is in Robert Harris's hands and my son John's bond is not enough to pay this, then my sons shall be obliged to make it up out of their shares; to sons Abraham, Joseph, and Jacob, the middle iron pot, six pewter plates, one bason and the bed that they lie on and all that is in the chest excepting my own clothes, equally divided between them, and all the English books and a skillet. Executor: Nicholas Holston, Witnesses: William Jacob, Anne Jacobs. Proved in Court in 1770.

The will of Frances Landress is available from the NC Archives. It is in Granville County Wills box: 044.801.24/ Frances Landress, 1770.

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From Carroll Hayden:

She and John bought 238 acres on both sides of the Tar River. The deed lists John Landress as being from Pennsylvania.

Children of JOHN LANDERS and FRANCES ? are:

2.	i.	JOHN² LANDERS, JR., b. about 1739; d. about May 1825, Granville County, NC.
	ii.	ELIZABETH LANDERS, b. Aft. 1739.
3.	iii.	ABRAHAM LANDERS, b. about 1743; d. Bef. 22 Aug 1827, Bedford County, TN.
4.	iv.	JOSEPH LANDERS, b. about 1745, Granville County, NC; d. Bef. 1830, Bedford County, TN.
	v.	JACOB LANDERS, b. about 1748 ⁵.

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