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From Gendex - Jessie Hagan's Information
Caroline County, Virginia Court Order Books: 11 March 1742/3 Upon the petition of Eliza. Singleton and Mathew Singleton, orphans of Robert Singleton, they being this day admitted to choose a guardian, made choice of Robert Singleton, and Robert Singleton with Richard Hampton and Richard West his securities acknowledged their bond. From "Colonial Caroline, A History of Caroline County, Virginia" by T.E. Campbell, on page 488 and others: In 1748 Robert Gilchrist, a wealthy Scottish immigrant who became the head of the Virginia's first Chamber of Commerece (Port Royal, Virginia) and a legislator in 1782-1783 filed papers as guardian of Elizabeth and Matthew Singleton. Caroline County, Virginia Court Order Books: 11 May 1750 William Beverley Esq. acknowledged his lease indented to Mathew Singleton. 11 July 1751 With approbation of the Court, Christr. Singleton makes choice of Matthew Singleton to be his guardian, who with Sherwood James acknowledged their bond. Abt. 7/1752 It's ordered Gabriel Tombs pay Matthew Singleton 125 pounds of tobacco for five dsays' attendence as an evidence for him against Morgan.The Caroline County., Virginia Court Order books note that on 11 July 1751, "With the approbation of the Court, Christr. Singleton makes choice of Matthew Singleton to be his guardian, who with Sherwood James, acknowledged their bond." This apparently means the elder Christopher, parent had died. Christopher would have been 16 at this point and Matthew 21 and fits well with the date of both marriages . In the early 1760's Matthew apparently moved to South Carolina and Christopher stayed in Virginia until moving to Lincoln County, Kentucky about 1779. According to "Historical Sketches of Sumter County" by Cassie Nicholas, Matthew was definately Robert's brother and son of Christopher. In 1765 received a grant of land which was bounded on one side by Christopher Singleton however there is no conclusive evidence that Christopher the father ever lived in South Carolina. It is noted that it could have been a brother and indeed there was a brother Christopher who settled in early Kentucky. Matthew was not the first Singleton who came through South Carolina. A Richard Singleton applied for warrants for land in 1733. The family is noted as being from Virginia. There are Christopher's, Robert's and Richard's in several straight generations of this family. In establishing the Singleton Graveyard, Captain John said it was on land settled originally by his father in 1752. This puts him in South Carolina earlier than believed. Somewhere between 1745 and 1759 Christopher and Matthew Singleton settled in the High Hills section of Sumter District, South Carolina. His move to South Carolina almost certainly occurred after 1749 when at age 19 he married Mary James, daughter of Sherwood James. By 1762 he held 1,250 acres in South Carolina. He received 3 grants from King George III, in 1765 for 150 acres, then another of the same size, then in 1769 a grant for 160 acres. In 1771 Thomas Singleton sold Matthew 1,000 acres of land on Shank's Creek. Also around that time brother Robert leased 750 acres to Matthew. By 1773 he held approximately 2,300 acres of land in South Carolina. Robert and Matthew appear to be the only Singleton's who remained in South Carolina and left many descendents. After the Battle of Lexington a group of settlers in the District Eastward of Wateree met and wrote a "Declaration of Independence" several months before the later version we know so well was drafted in Virginia. There were 104 signatories to this document with Matthew, John, Joseph, Robert and another John being the Singleton's who proudly signed. It is written in "Historical Sketches of Sumter County, South Carolina" page 29 that a Grand Jury which had Matthew Singleton as foreman reported to the Court in Camden in regard to the injustices being inflicted on the colonists' by the mother country. In the report these stirring words were written: "We rather choose to die FREEMEN than to live slaves". At the time Matthew was living in the High Hills of Santee, part of Sumter District. After the war, Matthew was a subscriber to fund an Chapel of Ease in the Stateburg area. He signed a petition with Robert to build an Episcopal Church. He and Robert Bradford had a chapel built on Bradford's Plantation near what is now known as Swan Lake Gardens in Sumter County, South Carolina. In 1783 he pleaded for leniency in the trial of a Tory, John Adamson for the sake of his wife and children. In the 1780's Matthew helped General Sumter and others found the Claremont Society which soon opened the Claremont Academy in Stateburg, Sumter County, South Carolina. The academy failed to grow despite having a boarding house and a seperate department for girls and closed in 1788. In 1789 the Society was incorporated with the purpose of building and endowing a seminary with a Dr. Patterson as head of staff. Matthew lived on the plantation "Melrose", a description of which is: "... a small house but exceedingly quaint. A small one-story piazza extending across the entire front of the house shields two large rooms from the sun. At both gable ends are large chimneys, which are flanked on either side by long narrow windows. Through one of the windows James Singleton was fed by a faithful slave when the British were in the vicinity, he being ill with small-pox. Behind the large front rooms are found two smaller apartments with a hall dividing them and furnishing access to the rear. The hall contains a stairway leading to the rooms above. At the rear end of this hall is a large arched doorway that leads by way of a stoop to the yard." For his honorable service in the Revolutionary War, the state of South Carolina gave Matthew in 1784 a plantation he named Cane Savanah. He moved and lived there until he died in 1787. An entry from "Immigrant Ancestors, A List of 2,500 Immigrants to America before 1750", Edited by: Frederick Adams Virkus, Genealogical Publishing County, 1980: "Singleton, County;. Matthew (b. Isle of Wright, 1730-d. 1787). Came to Virginia, thence to S.C. 1752; received land grant from George II 176, which has since remained in the family. Member General Assembly 1772 & 76. A vestryman at St. Marks Parish 1770; Captain, later Colonel of troop of horse during Am. Reverend under General Francis Marion; married 1750 Mary , dau. of Sherwood James, m. Ann -" According to South Carolina Revolutationary Soldiers, Sailors, Patriots and Descendents by Maddox some of his descendents moved to Georgia.
From Singleton Mailing List -
MATTHEW SINGLETON
and the
HIGH HILLS OF SANTEE
Excerpted from a paper by Rickie Good
Matthew Singleton was one of the settlers who migrated from Virginia to
the High Hills with his family in the 1750s. Singleton (1730-1787J
married Mary James (1735-1784) in 1750. When they migrated to South
Carolina around 1753, the family consisted of Matthew, Mary, and their
daughter Ann (1750-1794?). Over the next several years the family
increased by five children. Two sons, John (1754-1820) and Robert
(1763-?), and three more daughters, Mary (1761-1783, Alice (1765) and
Rebecca (1774) were born in South Carolina.
In 1753, Singleton petitioned South Carolina for three hundred acres of
land located near Shanks Creek. His petition was one of many petitions
presented to the government by settlers in the colony. Many of the
subsequent grants were of small acreage, from one hundred to three
hundred acres of land. me government requirements for conveying these
grants included paying quit rents and improving the property. After the
early colonists settled on the land, the opportunities available to them
were many. While the work was hard, for those able to clear fields, build
houses, and mills, and survive the disease-laden environment, the future
was bright.
Matthew Singleton's political and military career closely paralleled that
of General Richard Richardson. In 1774 the tie between these two men
became even stronger with the marriage of Matthew's son, John, to
Richardson's daughter, Rebecca (1752-1834). These ties of friendship and
kinship led Singleton to follow Richardson's lead for over twenty years.
In 1759, Singleton followed Richardson on a military -expedition to Fort
Prince George. While the native American presence around the High Hills
was minimal, the Cherokee Nation was a major threat to other areas of the
backcountry. An incident in Virginia led to tensions between the Cherokee
and South Carolina colonists. In October of 1759, Governor Lyttleton
called up the militia of South Carolina to march to Fort Prince George,
located in present-day Pickens County. A force of Cherokee had attacked
the outpost and the backcountry feared another outbreak of hostilities
with the Native Americans.
Hunger, disease, and fighting turned the backcountry into a haven for
outlaws. These condition_ propelled Singleton and his neighbors to band
together in an extra-legal movement to control the "undesirables" in
their communities. The men involved in the movement became known as
Regulators.
After the demobilization of the Regulators, many of them worked for a
stronger community by seeking public office. Singleton became a church
warden of St. Mark's Parish (1770-71), was named a Justice of the Peace
(1771-74), appointed a collector for the poor tax (1772), and served as a
member of three Grand Juries from the Camden District (1773-74). His
neighbors elected him to the first and second Provincial Congress as well
as the first and third General Assembly for the District East of the
Wateree.
In August 1775, Captain Matthew Singleton raised a volunteer company of
horsemen who offered their services to the Council of Safety. His
thirty-four
man troop served in the field from 13 September to 22 September 1775. In
November, they marched with Colonel Richardson in the Snow campaign. This
campaign ended with most of the leaders of the loyalist cause killed or
captured.
The relative calm of the period between 1776-1778 in South Carolina ended
with an increase in military activity. On 4 June 1778, Matthew Singleton,
now a Lt. Colonel, formally took the Oath of Allegiance to South Carolina
in the presence of his former and future commanding officer, General
Richardson. The British took Savannah in 1779 and the South Carolinians
presumed that attacks on Charles Then would come next. In December 1778,
Singleton's company of 241 militia and 23 slaves encamped at Moncks
Corner to await orders. m e order to march to "face our Enemy now at
Savannah" came on 1 January 1779. Singleton and the other members of the
militia and army journed to Augusta impressing horses, carts, wagons, and
foodstuffs along the way. By March 1779 Singleton's militia had encamped
at Augusta under the command of General Andrew Williamson (17301786).
Without the constant striving for community growth by men like Matthew
Singleton, the area known as the High Hills of Santee never would have
become part of St. Mark's Parish, or the District East of the Wateree, or
Sumter District.
*This paper in its entirety in available at the Research Center.
Sumter County Chap SCGS
"Memory tells me that two of Lt Col Matthew Singleton's sons were disowned due to drinking and gambling proclivities. They removed to Mississippi, where they married twin sisters. Both died in Mississippi. When/if I find the old book pages I copied back in the 1980's, will fill-in more details.
Matthew Singleton was a Captain under General Francis Marion, and rose in rank due to luck and circumstances. His older brother, Robert Singleton, started as a Lieut. and rose in rank, too, perhaps as senior as Lt. Colonel, but in what we today would refer to as supply and logistics field. After the Battle of Lexington, April 18, 1775, Robert Singleton (born 1724), Col. Matthew Singleton (born 1730), Capt. John Singleton (Col. Matthew Singleton's son born 1754), Joseph Singleton (son of Robert Singleton born 1724), and John Singleton (another son of Robert Singleton born 1724) signed the SC District Eastward of Wateree "Declaration of Independence".
(SOURCE George Singleton ).
***
"Mathew Singleton was captain and colonel of South Carolina militia".
(SOURCE: The Daughters of the American Revolution Lineage Books Vol 159).
***
Matthew Singleton (1730-1787), a native of the Isle of Wight, England, immigrated to Virginia, ca. 1745. Moving to South Carolina in 1752, he settled in the High Hills of Santee in what became Sumter County and established himself as a planter. Through grants he received 2,150 acres in the High Hills area, 300 acres on Shanks Creek in Sumter District, 250 acres on Beech Creek in Craven County, 200 acres on the Santee River, 200 acres in Berkeley County, and 4,000 acres at Cane Savannah, a branch of the Black River. His home plantation was Melrose in the High Hills. Before moving to South Carolina, Singleton
married Mary James, daughter of Sherwood and Anne James. They were the parents of six children: Ann (m. Isham Moore), John (1754-1820), Mary (m. Thomas Benison), Robert, Alice, and Rebecca. The latter two children died in infancy.
(SOURCE: Robert Peyton (rbp@@ms.com))
***
Matthew Singleton's son, John Singleton (1754-1820), grew indigo, cotton, and peanuts on his Midway Plantation near Stateburg. He also bred and raced horses, serving as treasurer of the Stateburgh Jockey Club. In 1774, John Singleton married Rebecca Richardson (1752-1834), daughter of General Richard Richardson. They had five children: John Peter (b. 1775), Richard (1776-1852), Harriet Richardson (1779-1817), Matthew R. (1783-1793), and Mary Martha (1785-1863).
(SOURCE: "American Revolution Roster, Fort Sullivan, 1776-1780")
***
Caroline Co (VA) Order Books 1742/43: 11 March, on p. 159:
Upon the petition of Eliza. Singleton and Mathew Singleton, orphans of Robert Singleton, they being this day admitted to choose a guardian, made choice of Robert Singleton [their older brother in my opinion], and Robert Singleton with Richard Hampton and Richard West his securities acknowledged their bond.
Caroline Co (VA) Order Book, Part II, 1748-1750:
William Beverley Esq. acknowledged his lease indented to Mathew Singleton.
Caroline Co (VA) Order Book, page 261, 11 July 1751:
11 July 1751: It's ordered Gabriel Tombs pay Matthew Singleton 125 pounds of tobacco for five days attendance as evidence for him against Morgan.
***
Memorial exhibited by Mathew Singleton, to be registered in Auditor's office...............150 acres in Craven County, on waters of the Santee at Strauks Creek, Bounding all sides on vacant lands. Survey certified 1st. of March 1762; granted 8th of July 1762 to Memorialist. Quit rent 3/ Sterling,or 4/Proclamation money per hundred acres. In witness where of the Memorialist hath hereunto set his hand November 20th 1762.
Mathew Singleton
John Evans, D. Surveyor
(XII, p. 292)
this one taken from p. 36 of above listed book
Memorial exhibited by Mathew Singleton, to be registered in Auditor's office..............150 acres in Craven County, St. Marks Parish. Bounding NW, SW & NW [sic] on lands belonging to said Mathew Singleton & NW on land of Christopher Singleton; all other sides on vacant land. Survey certified 15th of ______ 1765, and granted September 1765, to ye Memorialist. Quit rent 3/ Sterling or 4/ Proclamation money per hundred acres, commencing two years from date. In witness whereof he hath hereunto set his hand 11th October 1765.
Mathew Singleton
Wm. Glasscock, D.S.
(VIII, p. 114)
the above taken from p. 96 of above mentioned book.
Memorial exhibited by Mathew Singleton, to be registered in Auditor's office......................200 acres in Craven County, St. Marks Parish, on the high hills of Santee. Bounded NW by Thomas Crofford's & Thomas Singleton's; on SW by John Colleton's and & John Dawson's lands; on SE by land formerly surveyed, granted and belonging to the said Mathew Singleton. Survey certified 14th September 1772 & granted 8th February 1773 to said Mathew Singleton. Quit rent 3/ Sterling, or 4/ Proclamation money per hundred acres, to commence two years from date. In witness whereof he hath hereunto the 9th of June 1773 set his hand.
Delivered 30th July 1773 to
Mathew Singleton
Isham Moore, D. S.
(XII, p. 241)
this one taken from p. 98 of above mentioned book
(Gail at embracer@@strato.net)
The information on Matthew Singleton was given to me by Bobby Thigpen of Florence, SC.
Colonial-era Melrose was home of prominent Singleton family
An unidentified man examines the condition of the Singleton cemetery in the Poinsett State Park area near the site of the former Melrose Plantation.
Sumter Item File Photo
Melrose, former home of pioneer Matthew Singleton, was abandoned and left to disintegrate before it burned to the ground in 1963. This sketch, below, shows Melrose as it appeared in the mid-18th century.
The entrance to the Singleton cemetery shows part of the coquina wall that once surrounded it completely.
Sumter Item File Photo
This sketch — drawn by Alfred Hutty — shows Melrose as it appeared in the mid-18th century.
Two members of the Sumter County Historical Society inspect the grave marker of S.C. Gov.George McDuffie in the Singleton cemetery.
Sumter Item File Photo
Colonial-era Melrose was home of prominent Singleton family
Another view of the abandoned Melrose Plantation is shown.
Melrose House, the oldest Singleton residence in the county, is shown. Former home of pioneer Matthew Singleton, it was abandoned and left to disintegrate before it burned to the ground in 1962.
Sammy Way Item Archivist
The following article about the former residence of the powerful Singleton family was written by Mrs. Josie P. Parler. Having first appeared in The Sumter Daily Item on Oct. 31, 1939, it is reprinted here with a minimum of editing:
An Englishman visiting in the High Hills of Santee a few years ago was shown the old homes, old churches and some of the old graveyards. He listened to stories of the old neighborhood, so proud of its history, until he would keep silent no longer. "What do you Americans call old anyway?" he exclaimed. "Two hundred years! Well, the little house where I was born, called "the little house on the church step," has been the home of my family for twelve generations. Eleven generations sleep in the church yard; when I die, I shall be the twelfth."
In comparison with this man's standards, it does seem that we have little to boast of as to age. Yet, how rapidly our landmarks, young as they are, are disappearing.
Often we hear old plantation houses referred to as "old colonial homes," but more often than not, they prove to be early American or even later antebellum "mansions" built between 1800 and 1840. A real "colonial" house, unaltered by successive owners, is a rare find.
One genuine colonial home still in a good state of preservation is Melrose plantation house in the Sand Hills section of Sumter County, near the site of the forgotten village of Manchester. Almost all of this section of the High Hills of Santee has recently been purchased by the government as part of Poinsett Resettlement Project, and with it, Melrose.
From 1760, when Matthew Singleton built Melrose, until this recent purchase, it has remained in the Singleton family. Perhaps this fact accounts for, at least in part, its remarkable preservation as well as the few architectural changes from the original plan. Melrose has a very interesting history that touches that of county, state and nation at every vital point. The old house is a typical example of what the home of a well-to-do planter was like when this country was still an English possession. One almost universal characteristic of any but the homes of the very wealthy was a dormer-windowed second story, thus making it a story-and-a-half house; hence the dormer-windowed dodge.
After the Revolution, increasing wealth brought expanding tastes which found expression in the large two-storied houses with basements and tall columns. Only very rarely were the smaller, colonial structures not remodeled to larger proportions, or replaced with more stately mansions. That Melrose remains practically as originally designed makes it unique. Only two minor changes have been made in the house as originally built: One is that, a few years ago when the dormers were falling in, the roof was built across the openings; the other is that one of the chimneys, originally at the ends of the house, was rebuilt to run up through the roof. Hand-hewn timbers joined by wooden pegs, cypress weatherboards and blacksmith shop nails, small-paned windows and solid doors hung on hand-wrought hinges; all are there just as they were placed in 1760 by Matthew Singleton.
This sturdy pioneer came from Virginia in 1752. He is said to have come from the Isle of Wight to Virginia. Until this influx of settlers from Virginia the High Hills of Santee was a thinly settled portion of the back country. Its growth to a prosperous and populous community, a center of progress and culture, was a matter of only a few years. From the very first, Matthew Singleton was a leader in this development. Eight years after coming to South Carolina and building his pioneer home, he erected the Melrose house and moved there. As evidence of this man's qualities of leadership, we find him in 1770, "Captain in Col. Richardson's Regiment of Foot," in 1774, a "Member of the Council of Safety," and, 1775, "Capt. of St. Mark's Volunteers" under Francis Marion. His son, John, and his son-in-law, Isham Moore, were lieutenants in this company. Some members of this company were Wm. Williams, Charles Brunson, George Brunson, John Malone, Edward Lane, John Foster, Joseph Singleton, William O'Harrow, Francis Martin, Thomas Wells, Joseph Rogers, James McCormick, Isaac Jackson, Henry Wheeler, Willis Ramsey, Josiah Gayle, Jr., Edward Hill, Samuel DeWitt, Sabe Stom, John James, Isham James, Joseph Hill, and Daniel Jinnings. ...
In 1788 the records show that, as the largest contributor to the erection of Claremont Episcopal Church, Matthew Singleton had first choice of a pew. This church was the predecessor of the present Church of the Holy Cross, Stateburg.
John Singleton, son of Matthew, who married Rebecca, daughter of Gen. Richard Richardson, built the Midway House near Wedgefield which was burned many years ago. He inherited Melrose and willed it to his daughter, Harriet, who was married to Robert Broun, son of Archibald and Mary Deas Broun. Since then it has belonged to the Broun family until its purchase by the government.
Each generation of Matthew Singleton's descendants has contributed to some phase of public life. His grandson, Col. Richard, became very wealthy. His interests were many, including cotton planting on his seven plantations, horse-racing in which he distinguished himself with many victories on the turf, railroad promoting, and summer resorts in Virginia. The editor of the "Turf Register" for 1840 called him "the Napoleon of the South." One of his daughters, Mary, became the wife of George McDuffie; another, Angelica, was married to Abraham, eldest son of President Martin Van Buren and presided as mistress of the White House during the Van Buren administration.
A short distance behind Melrose is Singleton's graveyard, where Matthew Singleton and his descendants are buried. (Note: Though Parler wrote Singleton was buried behind Melrose, Cassie Nicholes' "Historical Sketches of Sumter County," stated he was most likely interred at Cane Savannah Plantation). Enclosed in a wall of coquina rock, bordered with alternating pyramidal cypress and tall boxwoods, this quiet spot is the last resting place of many prominent South Carolinians, all members of the Singleton family. This is an interesting historic and beautiful spot which should surely be preserved.
Perhaps Melrose and the old graveyard will be restored by the resettlement authorities, perhaps not; it remains to be seen. But, meantime, would it not be a good idea for Sumter County folk to interest themselves in preserving these landmarks by taking some steps toward having them spared?
*Melrose, believed to be the oldest house in Sumter County, burned to the ground in June of 1962. The home, reportedly constructed by Matthew Singleton in 1753, was situated in the center of his Manchester estate.
Reach Item Archivist Sammy Way at waysammy@theitem.com or (803) 774-1294.
Posted in Reflections on Sunday, June 15, 2014 [5, 8] |
1822 - 1787
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