DESCENDANTS AND POSSIBLE RELATIVES OF THOMAS COATS OF ROWAN CO., NC

My earliest, categorically proven Coat(e)s is Thomas Coats b.c. 1803 Rowan Co. NC, d. 1874 Lincoln Co. TN.  He is the presumed son of Sion Coats of Rowan by his first wife, Lucy Simpson.  Sion Coats, as best John D. Coates and I can determine, was the son of William Coats of Rowan.  Sion's brothers were:  Wylie, Solomon, Thomas, John and perhaps one or two others.

As far as Thomas Coat(e)s is concerned, my sources are Goodspeed's HISTORY OF LINCOLN CO. TN, various US census records, the marriage records of Rowan Co. NC, the research of John Dallas Coates, and the death certificate of Thomas Jefferson Coats(1833-1918).

As for the father of Wm Coats(b.c. 1745), I have conjectured that his father was Wilson William Coats, b.c. 1720-5 Pasquotank Co. NC and that Wm's grandfather was John Pomery Coats(b.c. 1700), but there is no hard evidence to prove this, only an oral family tradition.

However, a common thread in this Coat(e)s family ought to be considered:  three lines descending from Wm Coats(1745-c.1825)have used the name "Yerby"(and variants)as a middle name(e.g. 1. WILSON YERBY COATS, b. 1822 Rowan Co. NC, son of Wm T. Coats, 2. WILLIAM YERBY COATS, b. 1861 Lincoln Co. TN, Gg grandson of Sion Coats, and 3. WILLIAM YERBY WILLIS, son of Cicely Coats by Wm Willis.  From this I have conjectured that Wm Coats' wife's maiden name was IRBY(aka "Yerby",etc.).  I arrived at this conclusion after exchanging extensive correspondence with a Ms. Hildred Carlson, an Irby/Yerby researcher, who has spent years working on this line.  In fact, from Ms. Carlson's information, it would appear that Wm Coats' wife was likely a Margaret Irby, dau. of a Wm Green Irby(b. 1730 Prince Geo. Co. VA, d. 1806 Anson Co. NC).  This Magaret Irby was born in or near Edgecombe Co. NC c. 1755 and it was in this area, I believe, that she met Wm Coats.  Unfortunately, I have found no records that would verify this assertion (but I am working on it).

 
So, my direct line, as I now construe it, goes like this:

#8.  William Coats(1745-c. 1825)=Margaret Irby(aka Yerby)

#7.  Sion Coats(1778-1841)=Lucy Simpson(d.1813 NC)

#6.  Thomas Coat(e)s(1803-1874)=Sarah Hamilton(d.1870)

#5.  Thomas J. Coats(1833-1918)=Mary Ann Stewart

#4.  Robert Edw. Coats(1864-1944)=Docia Lee Clifton

#3.  Thomas J. Coats Sr.(1906-1975)=Gladys E. Slaughter

#2.  Thomas J. Coats Jr. (1927-2001)=Betty M. Briggs

Additions, corrections, etc., are welcomed.  The chart below should graphically show in more detail my current thinking as regards the relationships between the various branches of the Coat(e)s families of Rowan Co. NC.   An alternative theory that would also explain DNA relationship patterns in this Pasquotank family is that they could stem from the Ralph Coat(e)s who also appears near the top of the chart instead.

Contact:

Larry D. Hamilton Coats
P.O. Box 823
Aspermont, TX 79502
(940)989-3489(after 5 PM)

larcoa@aspermont.esc14.net