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Ancestors of Andrew Bankson Wakefield

Generation No. 1

1. ?¹ BANKSON was born Abt. 1740 in Ireland or Sweden. He married ANNE O'DEAR 1759 in Ireland.

Notes for ? BANKSON:
The Bankston family records were from information furnished by Violet Hill of Shelbyville, IL and Sherry Mazetti of Chicago, IL.

It appears that Bankson was a Swedish man so the Wakefields have some Swedish blood.

From Sherry Mazetti of Chicago comes the following information.
Revolutionary War Vets:
Jacob Bankson B. about 1733 from PA d. 1802 served GA
John Bankson B. 11 June 1754 d. 25 Sept. 1823 served GA militia; m. Henrietta Coates

Family tradition has it that a Bankson was the person that assassinated the King of Sweden and then fled to Ireland. Whether it was the same Bankston that later immigrated to America I do not know.

From Violet Hill. (Question to Family Puzzlers, a genealogy news column.
BANKSON-BANKSTON-LEE. Need the ancestry of James Bankson who m. Judith Lee. His parents came from Ireland ca. 1760. His mother was an O'Dear, and the couple married before making the voyage to America. for a child Rachael Bankson (Mrs Charles Wakefield) was B. on the ship).
The Wakefields and James and Judith went to IL by 1805 and James must have been b. ca. 1765. In Oglethorpe Co. GA. Deeds Book B 1795-1798, James and Judith witnessed the sale of land from John and Salley Wallace to Ann Bankson 3-6-1797. Who was Ann? James and Judith's first child Andrew Bankson b. 11-14-1790 in GA.

Editor's note: Oglethorpe Co. was cut off the western edge of Wilkes Co., GA in December 1793, so earlier records will be in Wilkes Co. Here are the entries from Oglethorpe's tax digests before 1800.
James Bankson, 1796 land in Oglethorpe and Jackson Cos. GA
Ann Bankston, Widow, 1794 reported for herself: in 1797 and 1798 taxes were reported for her by Charles Wakefield.
Silas Bankson (in 1796, 1797. Bankston (1798), in last tax digest had land in Oglethorpe and Jackson Cos,. GA. Silas was enumerated as a resident of Oglethorpe Co. in the 1800 census.
There were no other Bankson or Bankston tax payers in the county, and apparently only Silas remained.
There are a number of records on the surname, under both spellings, in Wilkes Co. GA. Some Bankstons moved westward into Clarke Co. GA where they were prominent in the first Baptist church established here, and Jacob and Sarah Bankston were the founding members of Mars Hill Baptist Church (1799). That church was located in Jackson co. when chartered. was cut off into Clarke when it was formed, and then into Oconee Co. when Oconee was taken from Clarke in 1875. The usual spelling of the surname after about 1800 is Bankston.

Children of ? BANKSON and ANNE O'DEAR are:

RACHAEL MARTHA² BANKSON, b. Abt. 1760, On a ship immigrating from Ireland; d. Shelby County, Illinois.

ii.

SILAS BANKSON, b. Abt. 1762.

Notes for SILAS BANKSON:
From Illinois 1820 census, Silas Bankston showing one 0-10 male, one 26-45 male, two 0-10 females, and one 26-45 female residing in his household.

iii.

FRANKIE BANKSON, b. Abt. 1764.

iv.

JAMES BANKSON, b. 1765, North Carolina; d. 1829, Fayette County, Illinois.

SARAH BANKSON, b. 1766.

vi.

? BANKSON, b. 1768.

vii.

? BANKSON, b. 1770.

viii.

JUDITH BANKSON, b. 1772.

ix.