Davis Family of North Carolina
Wes Patterson was born in a suburb of Atlanta, GA in 1968. His mother, Vanza Mae Davis, was born in 1939 in Greensboro, Guilford Co, NC. Vanza’s father, Troy Lee Davis, was born in 1909 in Carthage, Moore Co, NC. Vanza’s mother was Lettie Mae Langley.
The Davis family of Moore Co, NC descends from old Robert Davis who was born in 1744. It is not known for certain if Robert Davis was born in Wales or if he was born in NC. However, he did settle in the Robbins and Carthage areas of what is now Moore County.
Robert Davis died in 1828 and his grave stone is shown to the right and is courtesy of Ed Sanders and SandersWeb.net. Presumably there are four generations of my Davis ancestors buried in Moore Co, NC, including Robert Davis (1744-1828), William Coleman Davis (ca. 1793-1870/80), William C. Davis (1820/22-1904/05), and John Wesley Davis (1844-1911). Wesley Davis was my great-grandfather (picture shown to the right and also below).
Wesley Davis was 65 years old when his son, Troy Lee Davis, was born in 1909. Troy did not know his father, sadly. About the time of Wesley’s death, the family then moved to the Greensboro, NC area to work in the mills. Troy’s mother was Ruth Barber Davis, left to raise six children by herself.
John Wesley Davis
Lettie Mae Langley Davis
Troy Lee Davis
Vanza Mae Davis Patterson
Ruth Barber Davis
Garland Wesley Davis
Originally from Wales, our Davis clan settled in Moore Co, NC and later moved to Greensboro, NC
My Davis ancestors are known to have been in Chatham and Moore Co NC by the late 1700’s. Robert and Nancy Cheek Davis both died there in the 1820’s. I have at least four generations of Davis ancestors buried in modern day Moore County.
For more information on the Robert Davis clan, go to Ed and David Sanders’ website at http://www.sandersweb.net/davisfamily.htm which contains a lot of Davis family information. A picture of Robert Davis’ tombstone is located at http://www.sandersweb.net/Photos/rdavis.htm
After my great-grandfather, Wesley Davis, died in 1911 or 1912, the family moved to the Greensboro, NC area of Guilford Co. This was when the factories and mills were growing and employment was available. My great-grandmother, Ruth Barber Davis, as well as my grandparents, are all buried in Greensboro, NC.
My Davis ancestors are as follows, beginning with the oldest generation.
Wes Patterson’s Lineage
- Robert Davis (1744-1828)
m. Nancy Cheek (Davis) - William Coleman Davis Sr (ca. 1793-1870/80)
m. Phoebe Phillips (Davis) - William C. Davis Jr (ca. 1820/2-1904/5)
m. Clarkey Hilliard (Davis) - John (Wesley) Davis (1844-ca. 1911)
m. Ruth Ann Barber (Davis) - Troy Lee Davis (1909-1988)
m. Lettie Mae Langley (Davis) - Vanza Mae Davis (Patterson) (1939-2018)
m. Francis Oliver Patterson - Wes Patterson
m. Ginna Fishburne
Ancestors Report for Troy Davis
Troy Davis was Wes’ Grandfather. He was born in 1909 in Carthage, Moore Co, NC and died in 1988 in Salisbury, Rowan Co, NC. The following PDF report shows 10 generations of his ancestors (includes photos).