J. Walter Potts family papers

The people whose papers appear in this collection to a prominent degree are John Neely, Charles L. Hunter and James Walter Potts.

John Neely Notes: Not a lot is known about John Neely, but from the small collection of papers that he left behind, we know that he had at least two children—John S. Neely and Jane Neely, both of whom migrated to eastern Tennessee and periodically wrote to their father in the Steele Creek Township. Receipts indicate that Neely purchased a captive in 1776: Jude, a girl who was nine years old at the time. A receipt for the purchase of Will, an enslaved individual in 1779 indicates that he was “Clear of Convultion [sic], fits or any Other Impediment known.” In 1784, Neely purchased an Rose, an enslaved woman. According to Neely’s estate inventory dated May 10, 1806, only two of the four enslaved persons were identified in the document by name: Sue and Will. The inventory does not indicate their ages, but identified Sue as a “wench” (little girl) and Will as a boy. Also, according to this inventory, Neely owned 250 acres of land, indicating that he was one of the more prominent figures in that part of the county. The fact that Neely’s estate inventory was drawn up on May 10, 1806 suggests that he died shortly before that time.

Charles L. Hunter Notes: The 1850 census indicate that there were two Hunter families living in the Steele Creek Township. One family consisted of Henry Hunter (41 years of age in 1850); Esther Hunter (21 years of age at that time); and Charles Hunter (five years old). This family made their living by farming and their estate was valued at $900 in 1850. Though there is considerable evidence to the ownership of enslaved persons, the 1850 census makes no mention of them. Adjacent to this family listed in the census (and probably geographically as well) was another Hunter family, which included John (age 35 in 1850) and Miss Susan (age 40). The fact that there is a sizeable quantity of material concerning Charles’s guardianship beginning in 1854 indicates that both of his parents had died by that time. Because Charles inherited property while still a minor, a neighbor, James Lee Grier, served as executor of the Hunter estate and handled Hunter’s business affairs. The Hunter estate included enslaved people and there are several rental contracts for enslaved people in the collection. The guardianship records decline in quantity around 1861, when Charles was sixteen years old, though there is one item dating 1863. According to Michael C. Hardy’s The Thirty-seventh North Carolina Troops: Tar Heels on the Army of Northern Virginia, Charles L. Hunter enlisted in Company I, of the 37th North Carolina Infantry Regiment. Hardy also indicates that Hunter was transferred from the 37th to Company F of the 63rd North Carolina Troops (later identified as the 5th NC Cavalry). Other military records indicate that he was mortally wounded and died in a military hospital in Petersburg, Virginia on September 12, 1864. The disposition of his estate after his death is not known.

J. Walter Potts Notes: James Walter Potts (known to his family and friends as “Walter”) was an active and prominent member of the Steele Creek community. As a lawyer, this collection contains a variety of materials concerning such things as the guardianship of certain minors (his grand-daughters, Daisy and Ada Bell Potts and members of the Carothers family), and the administration of the estates of deceased people (such as James Lee Grier). Potts also served as a school committeeman in District 10 of the Steele Creek Township. Potts and his wife Elizabeth had at least one child—J. Walter Potts, Junior. Junior married and had two daughters (Ada Bell and Daisy D. Potts); but died at a young age while his daughters were still minors.

[Sources: 1850 Census of Mecklenburg County, North Carolina Compiled by the Olde Mecklenburg Genealogical Society, 1994 ; Hardy. Michael C., The Thirty-seventh North Carolina Troops: Tar Heels on the Army of Northern Virginia ; J. Walter Potts Family Papers, 1776-1942, MS 402.