John Eastridge (1755/74-aft 1800) of Wilkes Co., NC

Marty and Karla Grant

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John Eastridge *might* be my 6 times great grandfather. I’m working on proving it.

The surname Eastridge and Estes were often used interchangeably in those days, so you may see both used for the same people in different records. As you can imagine there were many ways to spell both names. I’ve seen Eastridge, Estridge, Easridge, Estes, Eastes, Estis, etc. I also sometimes come across “Estep” families in the same area, but as best I can tell, Estep is not a variation of Eastridge/Estes, it just happens to be similar.

John Eastridge was born between 1755 and 1774 per his age on the 1800 census (26-44), which agrees with his 1790 age of 16+ (before 1774). Since it appears he was a newlywed for the 1790 census, we can assume he was at least 18 then, thus born ca 1772 or earlier, so we can narrow the range down to 1755/1772. I’d assume he was much closer to 1772 than 1755.

I don’t know where John was born. The only sure records I have for him are in Wilkes Co., NC, so he could have been born there or nearby. There was no Wilkes County until 1777, so if born in that region it would have been in the parent county of Surry most likely, or if born before 1768, in Rowan which was the parent of Surry. Of course I don’t know if John was born in that area at all. He may have migrated there.

A group of Eastridges moved to Wilkes from Granville Co., NC close to when John died, so it’s possible he’s part of that group and arrived before the rest came, or perhaps there is no connection.

Like his birth place, his parents are also unknown at present. John was listed on the 1790 census in Wilkes as was another John Eastridge. They were the only of their surname in the county then, though a Richard Eastridge had been there as late as the 1780s. Was the older John the father of the younger John? He was certainly old enough (born before 1734). The older John is probably the father of Micajah Eastridge (1780/90) who also wound up in Buncombe Co., NC as did children of the younger John. That could be a coincidence, but perhaps not. If it isn’t a coincidence, then that would probably make Micajah the younger brother (or half brother) of our John Eastridge. Thus, for now, I’m tentatively going to say that our John Eastridge is a son of the older John Eastridge who died between 1790 and 1794 in Wilkes. John (Sr) seems to have left a widow named Nancy, but I get the impression she’s a younger wife, so probably not John Jr’s mother. Then again, perhaps she is.

Our John Eastridge married his wife before 1790, perhaps just before, for they had no apparent children yet as of the 1790 census. I have not found a record of her name yet. However, she was born 1755/1774 per her age on the 1800 census. Like John, I’d assume she was born closer to 1774 than 1755.

On the 1790 census they were four houses from Moses Grimes, which is the prime reason I believe John is my ancestor, for my proven Eastridge ancestor (Fanny b 1793) married a likely son of Moses Grimes, thus them being neighbors in 1790 strongly suggests that John was her father or at least closely related to her. The other John was in a different company several pages away. Our John’s “next door neighbors” were William Barker and Hezekiah Barker.

1790 Census - Wilkes Co., NC

Page	Name	Males 16+	Males under 16	Females	Others	Slaves
	2^nd Company
151	John Estridge	1	1	2	~	~
	4^th Company
154	John Estridge	1	~	1	~	~

My analysis (who each person *might* be):

1m 16+ (before 1774) John Eastridge (1755/1774)

1f (before 1790) Mrs. Eastridge (1755/1774), wife

John Eastridge is listed on the 1794 and 1795 Wilkes Co., NC tax lists in Cpt. Hickerson’s district, each time with 1 white poll and no land. He was listed on the 1796 list in Cpt. McGrady’s district with the same enumerations. In 1797 he was in Cpt. Johnson’s district, with 1 poll and no land, as before. He was listed on the 1799 tax list in Cpt. Parker’s district, 1 poll, no land.

A summons in Wilkes County dated Feb 1799 for the case of John P. Watters vs George Barker included the names of George Barker Senr, Nancy Barker and John Eastridge as witnesses. I noted that two Barkers were his neighbors on the 1790 census. Perhaps there’s a family connection too.

There were two Eastridge listings on the 1800 census in Wilkes: Nathan (c1775) and John. They were on the same page, but this census taker made his list alphabetical so we can’t determine if they were neighbors or not. John has two daughters who match the ages of my ancestor Frances Eastridge (1793) and her proven sister Rebecca (1800) which is another reason I strongly suspect this John is their father.

1800 Census - Wilkes Co., NC

Page

Name

M0-9

M10-15

M16-25

M26-44

M45+

F0-9

F10-15

F16-25

F26-44

F45+

FPC

Slaves

John Eastridge

My analysis (who each person *might* be):

1m 26-44 (1755/1774) John Eastridge (1755/1774)

1m 0-9 (1790/1800) Son? (1790/1800)

1f 26-44 (1755/1774) Mrs. Eastridge (1755/1774), wife

1f 0-9 (1790/1800) 1. Frances “Fanny” Eastridge (1793) daughter

2. Rebecca Eastridge (c1800) daughter

And then the paper trail goes cold. I didn’t find John Eastridge on the 1810 census. In fact, there was no one of that name listed anywhere in the US in 1810. Of course we have to remember that the 1810 census was missing for Tennessee and several Virginia counties. There were no other Eastridge or variations at all in Wilkes Co., NC in 1810. There were a few John Estes listings in other states but none that seems to be ours as best as I can tell. There was a “J. Estep” in neighboring Ashe Co., NC, but that is John Estep who was also there back in 1800.

Thus may we conclude that John Eastridge died between 1800 and 1810? Or did he move into eastern Tennessee or into Virginia in one of those lost counties? Either could be true, or both could be true.

Moving to 1820 I found one in Indiana who probably isn’t him. Closer to home was one in Anson Co., NC. Anson wasn’t a likely migration point from Wilkes, but it certainly *could* be him, but I doubt it.

In 1830 the one in Anson was still there, aged 40-49 (born ca 1780/1790) which doesn’t work for our John. One was in Illinois in the same age group, which might be the same one from 1820 Indiana (or not).

The reason I’ve looked all the way to 1830 is because apparently Mrs. Eastridge was still alive at that time.

On 11 Nov 1905, in court testimony, Mary Tabor (daughter of Jeffrey Graham and Fanny Eastridge Graham) said:

“I heard father and mother in conversation with Grandmother Estes say that we was of the Portugese descent, when I was about twelve years old at the home of my father.”

Mary was born January 1822, so would have been 12 in 1834. If her memory was good, then Mrs. Eastridge was still alive as late as 1834, and possibly living in or near Buncombe Co., NC where the Grahams were then.

Other testimony in that same court case alternated between Estes and Eastridge and variations of both.

Let’s back up a little. If we assume that John Eastridge/Estes died between 1800 and 1810, then where was Mrs. Eastridge in 1810, 1820 and 1830? The most obvious answer is with one of her married daughters. Neither of her known sons-in-law were listed on the 1810 census so we can’t determine if she was living with one of them (or even if they were married yet).

However, in 1820, her son-in-law Lewis Grimes in Buncombe Co., NC had a woman aged 45+ with him. That’s someone born before 1775 which definitely fits for Mrs. Eastridge.

Mrs. Eastridge *might* still be with her son-in-law Lewis Grimes in 1830 Buncombe though listed in the 36-54 age group (1775/1794) which could be her, or maybe not.

Mrs. Eastridge was still living ca 1834 per the aforementioned 1905 testimony.

Neither Jeffrey or Lewis Graham/Grimes had anyone her age with them on the 1840 census.

Unfortunately that’s all I have on John Eastridge and Mrs. Eastridge.

Children

The 1800 census entry for John Eastridge shows three apparent children, one son and two daughters, all three born between 1790 and 1800. I believe the two girls were my ancestor Fanny and her sister Rebecca who fit age-wise, and we know they were from Wilkes Co., NC, so it pretty much has to be them. The male *could* be the husband of apparent widow Margaret Eastridge (1790/1800) listed on the 1830 census in Cocke Co., TN a few houses from Micajah.

1. Son (1790/1800). Possibly husband of widow Margaret Eastridge.

2. Daughter (1790/1800). Probably Frances Eastridge Graham.

3. Daughter (1790/1800). Probably Rebecca Eastridge Grimes.

Son (1790/1800). John Eastridge had an apparent son this age with him on the 1800 census, aged under 10 (1790/1800). I once suspected this was Micajah Eastridge (1780/90) if born ca 1790 instead of earlier in the 1780s. However, I don’t think it was Micajah after all. I still think he’s related, perhaps a younger brother of John Eastridge if both are sons of the older John Eastridge.

So far I have no clues as to this sons name, nor where he was in 1810, 1820 or after. Keep in mind the Tennessee censuses are lost for those years (only eastern Tennessee is lost for 1820).

There is an apparent widow Margaret Eastridge (1790/1800) on the 1830 census in Cocke Co., TN two houses from Micajah Eastridge (1780/90). Could Margaret be the widow of this unknown son of John Eastridge? That is certainly a possibility. It is also possible that Micajah had a brother we don’t know about and she was his widow instead. The size and ages of her family members suggests she was married ca 1815/1820.

1830 Census - Cocke Co., TN

Page

Name

(Males first row, females on second)

0-4

5-9

10-14

15-19

20-29

30-39

40-49

50-59

60-69

70-79

80-89

90-99

100+

247

Margaret Eastridge

My analysis (who each person *might* be):

3m 10-14 (1815/1820) 1. Son?

2. Son?

3. Son?

1m 5-9 (1820/1825) Son?

3m 0-4 (1825/1830) 1. Son?

2. Son?

3. Son?

1f 30-39 (1790/1800) Margaret (---) Eastridge (1790/1800) widow of?

2f 10-14 (1815/1820) 1. Daughter?

2. Daughter?

1f 5-9 (1820/1825) Daughter?

1f 0-4 (1825/1830) Daughter?

I didn’t find her in 1840 or 1850. There were no Eastridge’s (or similar) in Cocke Co., TN in 1850. Where did all those children go? Unfortunately almost all of the early Cocke County records were destroyed in an 1876 court house fire.

Daughter (1790/1800). John Eastridge had an apparent daughter this age with him on the 1800 census, aged under 10 (1790/1800).

This is almost certainly my ancestor Frances “Fanny” Eastridge (1793-1855) who married Jeffrey Grimes/Graham ca 1808 in Wilkes then moved to Buncombe Co., NC. No absolute proof of her being John’s child has been found, but there is proof that her maiden name was Eastridge/Estes (and variations) and that the family came from Wilkes Co., NC, thus John Eastridge (Jr) is pretty much the only choice. Furthermore, Fanny has a proven sister named Rebecca. See below.

Daughter (1790/1800). John Eastridge had an apparent daughter this age with him on the 1800 census, aged under 10 (1790/1800).

This is almost certainly my aunt Rebecca Eastridge (c1800-aft 1860) who married Lewis Grimes/Graham before ca 1817 and lived in Buncombe Co., NC.

As noted above in Fanny’s section, Rebecca is a proven Eastridge, and her proven sister, and the family is proven to have been from Wilkes.

For Family Group Sheet and other notes see my database pages for John Eastridge.

Revised: December 27, 2025

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