Problem: Unresolved
Who are Elizabeth's parents?
Elizabeth's parents are widely believed to be John Harrison and his wife Phoebe of Augusta County, Virginia, as promoted by Dellmann O. Hood in his book The Tunis Hood Family on pages 456-458. Below I will present: (1) Dellmann O. Hood's full statement as it appears in his book; (2) a brief summary of some of the major pieces of evidence that Dellmann O. Hood's argument relies on; and (3) my objections to his argument and why I feel the evidence is ultimately inconclusive.
Full Statement Copied Verbatim from The Tunis Hood Family
JOHN HARRISON, second son of Isaiah Harrison and Elizabeth Wright, is reasonably well identified as the father of Elizabeth Harrison, first wife of Tunis Hood. In his Will, dated August 23, 1758, and proved May 1771, lodged in the Wills records of Augusta County, at Staunton, Virginia, names specifically only five children, and his wife Phoebe. Elizabeth was not among the children named. The children named were:
| 1. | Zebulon Harrison (1718-1792); m. July 23, 1747 in Morristown, N. J., Margaret Primrose, a widow, daughter of Robert Cravens and Mary Harrison, and was therefore his first cousin. |
| 2. | John Harrison Jr. (1721-1763) murdered by a Negro slave. Never married. |
| 3. | Phoebe Harrison II (1728-1807); m. 1, in 1745, Daniel Davidson, of New Jersey; m. 2, in 1753, Thomas Moore. |
| 4. | Ann Harrison (1730-1805); m. 1, John Davidson; m. 2.
Joseph Langdon; m. 3, David Harnett. |
| 5. | Reuben Harrison (1731-1807); m. 1, Lydia Donnell Harrison, daughter of Jeremiah Harrison and Catherine Adams, and was therefore his half first cousin; m. 2, Mary McDonald. He served in the Revolutionary War as a captain in the Virginia militia. |
The seven year lapse between the births of son John, Jr., and daughter Phoebe II, would suggest that one or more children, not named in the Will, were born during that period. That
Elizabeth, first wife of Tunis Hood, was one of them there can be little doubt. That she was the Elizabeth Herrison “an adult person” baptized by Rev. John Craig July 27, 1744 appears equally certain. That would be about the time of her marriage to Tunis Hood.
That the name of the first wife of Tunis Hood was Harrison, is a well handed down tradition among a number of their descendant families. That her name was Elizabeth is verified by a number of early Augusta County, Virginia court records. The case for her as a daughter of John and Phoebe Harrison, while necessarily circumstantial, nevertheless appears air-tight. Similarity of typical Harrison family Christian names appearing in the family of Tunis and Elizabeth Hood, as well as in so many of their descendants' families, offers reasonably positive proof of her identity, as Elizabeth Harrison, a daughter of John and Phoebe Harrison of Rockingham County, Virginia. These typical Harrison family names such as Reuben, Jeremiah, Robert, Harrison, Elizabeth, Lydia, Phoebe, Mary, Eleanor, Adams, appearing in Tunis Hood families came from the Harrison side. None have appeared insofar as known among Tunis Hood paternal ancestral families. Rachel is the only Hood family name appearing, named for Rachel Van Bunschoten, mother of Tunis Hood.
John Harrison's mother was Elizabeth Wright; he had a sister named Elizabeth and apparently a daughter. It is significant therefore that Tunis and Elizabeth Harrison Hood named their first daughter Elizabeth.
The father of Tunis Hood was John Hood, and the father of Elizabeth Harrison, his first wife, was almost certainly John Harrison. It was appropriate therefore that their first born son was named John.
John Harrison's wife was named Phoebe, and they also gave that name to one of their daughters. It was not unusual therefore to find one of the daughters of Tunis and Elizabeth Hood named Phoebe. There were no Phoebes in Tunis Hood's ancestral lines families. Tunis and Elizabeth had a daughter named Lydia, as did Tunis Hood Jr. and Eleanor Harrison. Lydia Donnell Harrison married Reuben, son of John and Phoebe Harrison, her half first cousin. No Lydias have appeared in Tunis Hood ancestral families. Mary, a favorite Harrison Christian name, has been equally popular among Tunis Hood descendant families. There were no Marys in Tunis Hood's ancestral families. The
wife of Tunis Hood Jr. was Eleanor Harrison, his half first cousin. Eleanor was a more or less common Harrison Christian name, but never appearing in early Hood families.
The youngest son of Tunis and Elizabeth Harrison Hood was named Reuben, for Captain Reuben Harrison, son of John and Phoebe, and brother of Elizabeth. Reuben Hood named a
son Reuben, as did his brother Robert. Reuben has also appeared as a Christian name in other Tunis Hood descendant families. No Reuben ever appeared in early Hood families. It was a favorite Harrison name.
The father of Eleanor Harrison, wife of Tunis Hood Jr., was Jeremiah Harrison, son of Isaiah Harrison and second wife, Abigail Smith. Tunis Hood Jr. had a son named Jeremiah, as did his brother, Tunis Hood III. Col. Solomon Reid and Eleanor Adams Hood, daughter of Tunis Hood Jr. and Eleanor Harrison, named their only son Jeremiah Solomon Reid, and there have been other Jeremiahs in family lines. There were no Jeremiahs in Tunis Hood's ancestral families.
The wife of Jeremiah Harrison was Catherine Adams, hence Adams has appeared more or less frequently in Jeremiah Harrison descendant families, both Hood and Harrison, as a middle Christian name.
Harrison, as a Christian first and second name, has appeared frequently and consistently in Tunis Hood descendant families, down to present generation members in some cases. Harrison, in fact, has appeared even more frequently as a Christian name in Hood families, than the name Tunis.
Robert, a favorite Hood family Christian name, was equally prominent in Harrison families of the Isaiah Harrison lines. There were no Roberts in Tunis Hood’s ancestral families. This name came from the Harrisons.
Tunis Hood Jr. named Nehemiah Harrison, his brother-in-law, a son of Jeremiah Harrison, as one of the executors of his estate under his Will. Nehemiah Harrison also moved to Mecklenburg County from Virginia about the same time as the Hoods.
The consistently repeated appearances of these typical Harrison family Christian names in Tunis Hood’s family, and among his descendant families, could not have been coincidences. There
can be no reasonable doubt therefore that Elizabeth, wife of Tunis Hood Sr., was in fact Elizabeth Harrison, daughter of John and Phoebe Harrison of Rockingham County, Virginia. Nor can
it be doubted that Eleanor, wife of Tunis Hood Jr., was Eleanor Harrison, daughter of Jeremiah Harrison and Catherine Adams.
Overview of Major Elements of Dellmann O. Hood's Argument
The family tree shown below illustrates some of the major relationships and names that Dellmann O. Hood relied upon to build his argument, complete with source citations (which are noted by numbers; the full citations are at the bottom of this page).
My Objections to Dellmann O. Hood's Argument
Although Dellmann O. Hood's conclusion is plausible, even likely, I firmly disagree that "[t]here can be no reasonable doubt" about Elizabeth's maiden name and parentage. Some deficiencies I find with his argument as presented in The Tunis Hood Family include:
| 1. | With only one exception, Hood provides no source citations to support his argument. At times he passingly mentions certain documents whose origins can be deduced or found in other parts of his book, but in other places—even including key statements that are vital to proving or reinforcing his argument—he cites no sources at all. In some cases I've been unable to independently find evidence to corroborate his claims. |
| 2. | Among the many claims that lack supporting evidence, perhaps the most frustrating is this: "The seven year lapse between the births of son John, Jr., and daughter Phoebe II, would suggest that one or more children, not named in the Will, were born during that period." If backed by evidence, this sentence would give considerable weight towards proving Dellmann Hood's argument, but sadly I have been unable to find evidence to prove the birthdates of John, Jr. and Phoebe, neither in The Tunis Hood Family nor elsewhere. |
| 3. | Hood's argument relies almost entirely on repetitive naming patterns. Although this strategy is important and useful (Indeed, I've accepted this strategy as proof of another relationship that appears on my website.), ultimately it is still circumstantial evidence. Therefore, its weight as evidence is greatly diminished if other records seem inconsistent with one's hypothesis. This brings me to my next point: |
| 4. | The will of John Harrison (Elizabeth's supposed father) doesn't mention Elizabeth as an heir, even though it does mention several other children, including two married daughters. That John failed to mention Elizabeth in his will is a somewhat strong indicator that she may not have been his daughter, or at the very least one would hope to find some rationale/justification for why she was excluded. Dellmann Hood does mention her absence from John's will but does not provide an explanation for this unexpected finding. |
| 5. | Just as John's will mentions several children but not Elizabeth, so too does the will of his son John (who was murdered in 1763) mention several siblings but not Elizabeth.6 Notably, both wills mention Zebulon, Phoebe, and Reuben (Ann is mentioned only in her father's will.), and neither will implies that there are any other unnamed, would-be heirs. This will effectively corroborates the will of the elder John, and mildly strengthens the hypothesis that Elizabeth was not his daughter. Sadly, Dellmann Hood fails to note the significance of this will, even though he clearly had reviewed it (since he mentions John, Jr.'s will in passing at the bottom of The Tunis Hood Family page 459). This exclusion is either a major oversight or outright dishonesty (by concealing/ignoring potentially contrary evidence) on Dellmann Hood's part. |
| 6. | J. Houston Harrison's outstanding book Settlers by the Long Grey Trail presents a meticulous, lengthy, well-cited discussion of John Harrison and his children, but he likewise doesn't mention Elizabeth as one of those children. (See page 189.) |
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