Scott County's fourth 'forgotten' Revolutionary War veteran?
Robert Lawson may have also been a veteran of the War of Independence
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Does Scott County have a fourth ‘forgotten’ Revolutionary War veteran?
In past issues of Echoes in Time, we have examined Scott County’s three “forgotten” Revolutionary War veterans: Abraham Goad, Randolph Lawson, and Abel Peak.
These men are referred to as “forgotten” because they were inadvertently left off the plaque honoring Scott County’s Revolutionary War veterans when it was placed outside the courthouse in Huntsville during America’s bicentennial celebration in 1976. Twelve Revolutionary War veterans are listed on that plaque: Joseph Griffith, Dennis Trammell, James McDonald, Joseph McPeters, James Chitwood, William Chambers, Joseph Hatfield, David Lawson, John Lawson, David Blevins Jr., John Reed, and Timothy Sexton.
Why the other men were left off isn’t clear; likely, not enough genealogy research had been done at that time to identify them. Among the three, Randolph Lawson was especially interesting, because he had two brothers who were listed on the plaque: David Lawson and John Lawson.
There is now sufficient evidence to ask whether Scott County may have a fourth “forgotten” Revolutionary War veteran who wasn’t listed: another Lawson brother.
Abraham Goad’s daughter, Anna, married a Robert Lawson in Montgomery, Va. on Aug. 1, 1793, and they moved to present-day Scott County with the rest of the Goad family sometime just after 1800. (A tax record proves that Abraham Goad was still in Virginia in 1802, while land records in Tennessee prove that he was in present-day Scott County by 1807.)
It has always been assumed that Anna Goad’s husband was unrelated to the other Lawsons who settled in this area — David, John and Randolph — and that he was the son of a Scottish immigrant named William Lawson (1731-1826), a man genealogists refer to as William “The Scottish Rebel” Lawson.
That always seemed to be quite a large coincidence, because there’s evidence that the Goads and the other Lawsons who settled in present-day Scott County were acquainted in Virginia. Abraham Goad and Randolph Lawson appear to have served together during the Revolutionary War. And while it cannot be proven that they moved to present-day Scott County together, they were next-door neighbors on New River. Abraham Goad was granted 100 acres that today is known as the Vanderpool Place, while Randolph Lawson obtained property nearby where Paint Rock Creek empties into New River. When Goad’s tract was surveyed in 1808, Lawson was listed as a chainman on the survey team.
Known to have been with Goad when he moved from Virginia to New River were three of his children, Joshua, Anna and Mary, along with their siblings, Sarah Smiddy (Smithers), Robert Lawson, and Thomas Phillips. Thomas Phillips’ 15-year-old brother, Joseph Phillips, was also part of the trip, and he later married Elizabeth “Millie” Lawson — Randolph Lawson’s daughter.
So who was Robert Lawson? According to an old court record, Anna Goad and Robert Lawson were married in Montgomery County, Va. on Aug. 1, 1793. The marriage record lists Anna’s father as Abraham Goad but does not list Robert’s parents — which was common, since he was the groom. It’s traditionally been assumed that Robert was the son of William Lawson (1731-1826) and Anne Harvey (1715-1775). However, modern DNA testing is casting doubt on that original assumption by showing no evidence of a familial connection between some of Robert’s known descendants and William Lawson. Genealogical researchers now suspect that Robert Lawson was connected to the group of Lawsons from Virginia that they refer to as “The Falling River Lawsons,” a group that includes the brothers Randolph, David and John, the sons of Bartholomew Lawson (about 1717-1765).
Some genealogical records list Robert Lawson as the son of Jonas Lawson (1707-1771) and Millie Lawson (born about 1710). Jonas was a brother to Bartholomew Lawson. Other records list Robert Lawson as the son of Bartholomew Lawson and Susanna Simpkins (about 1726-1787).
Depending on which of those records are correct, Robert Lawson may be a first cousin to Scott County’s Lawson brothers, or he may be a fourth Lawson brother who moved to present-day Scott County after the Revolutionary War.
These assumptions are supported by tax records from Henry County, Va. dated 1789 and 1790, which place Robert Lawson with other “Falling River” Lawsons. The records list Mormon Lawson (a brother to Randolph, David and John) and David Lawson, in addition to Robert Lawson. Additional records list Bartholomew and his wife Susannah, along with David, Thomas, Jacob and Robert.
These records indicate that Robert Lawson may have been a son of Bartholomew Lawson — a brother to Randolph, David and John.
As for his Revolutionary War service, almost all of Bartholomew Lawson’s sons served in the war — including the three known to have later moved to Scott County (Randolph, David and John), among others. In court records from Montgomery County, Va., there is a reference to a council meeting from April 28, 1778 that discusses Capt. Johnathan Isom’s company from the Revolutionary War. Among the men in the company are Abram Goad, Randolph Lawson, Robert Lawson, Robert Lawson Jr., James Goad and James Goad Sr.
This is obviously not confirmation that Robert Lawson, husband of Anna Goad, served in the Revolutionary War, but with DNA evidence that Robert was not the son of William Lawson, it’s reasonable to suspect that he was part of the Bartholomew Lawson family and served in the Revolutionary War alongside Randolph Lawson and Abraham Goad, before moving to present-day Scott County in the early 1800s.
Robert Lawson died in 1837, about 12 years before Scott County was established. Anna Goad Lawson is believed to have died about 1850. It isn’t known where either of them were buried.
Robert Lawson is found in Campbell County — which much of Scott County was a part of prior to 1849 — when the 1830 census was taken, along with one other person in his household (Anna). Unfortunately, the data that census enumerators collected was limited prior to 1850, and it appears that Anna died before the 1850 census was taken.
However, there are a few records that support the conclusion that Robert and Anna lived in Scott County. One is an 1810 land grant for 100 acres on New River, adjacent to Randolph Lawson and “the Goads.” As previously mentioned, Randolph Lawson and Abraham Goad were next-door neighbors on New River, with Abraham Goad owning 100 acres at what is now referred to as the Vanderpool Place and Randolph owning land near the mouth of Paint Rock Creek. Another is an 1836 land entry, referring to a tract of land along “Montgomery Fork of New River.” While the land record is from Campbell County, this area would be Scott County when the new county was formed in 1849. Finally, Anna Lawson, widow of Robert Lawson, filed a petition to request a dower of her late husband’s real estate on April 3, 1837 in Campbell County. The appointed commission included Allen McDonald and Blackburn Thompson, who were from the Huntsville area. In fact, Blackburn Thompson was Robert and Anna’s son-in-law.
Based on the complete body of evidence, it appears that Robert Lawson, husband of Anna Goad Lawson, was the brother David, John and Randolph Lawson, and that he’s Scott County’s 16th Revolutionary War veteran, along with his three brothers, Abraham Goad, Abel Peak, Joseph Griffith, Dennis Trammell, James McDonald, Joseph McPeters, James Chitwood, William Chambers, Joseph Hatfield, David Blevins Jr., John Reed, and Timothy Sexton.
Known children of Robert and Anna Goad Lawson included Sophronia Jane Lawson and Lucretia Lawson. Others may have included James Robert Lawson, David Lawson, Willis Lawson, Andrew Lawson, and Henry Lawson.
Lucretia (about 1792-1880) married Blackburn Thompson, son of Elswick Thompson and Martha Patsy Akers. He served in the East Tennessee Militia during the War of 1812. They had about eight children. They moved to Arkansas prior to the start of the Civil War, settling in the Richland area.
Sophronia Jane (1794-1880) married Richard Griffith (1773-1855) in 1809. He was the son of Revolutionary War veteran Joseph Griffith and Phebe Hudson of Brimstone Creek. Their children included Andrew Griffith, Joseph Griffith, William Griffith, Jane Ellis, Elizabeth Newport and Lewis Griffith, and perhaps others. Allen Griffith, who died in Confederate captivity during the Civil War, is believed to have been their son. Joseph also died during the war, at his father’s home on Brimstone Creek.
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◼️ Monday morning: The Daybreaker (news & the week ahead)
◼️ Tuesday: Echoes in Time (stories of our history)
◼️ Wednesday: Threads of Life (obituaries)
◼️ Thursday evening: The Weekender (news & the weekend)
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