Hardin and Perlina Holyfield of Surry Co NC

Last updated 11 May 2006

Keith Holyfield's page
Hardin and Paulina Holyfield of Rockford, Surry County NC
This is a family of distant cousins of the William Holderfield family.

How Hardin's father Watson on this page connects to my family:
William(Fannie)>William(Lydia)>Isaac(Cynthia)>Valentine(Sally or Alcey)>Valentine Holyfield and Susannah
James Bronna Holyfield>Hardin Jr. (Amelia)>Hardin(Perlina)>Watson(Peggy) >Valentine Holyfield and Susannah
Valentine and Watson were brothers
Isaac and Hardin were first cousins
William(wife Lydia) and Hardin Jr. were second cousins.
William (wife Fannie)Holderfield and James Bronna Holyfield were third cousins.

Contributor Keith Holyfield tells us this about James Bronna Holyfield:
James Bronna Holyfield, Hardin's son, is his [Keith's] great grandfather. He is buried in Roanoke Va. in Evergreen Cemetery. He moved there during the depression. He was a founding member of a church there which was started in a shack and today is one of the biggest churches there. The church still has the old records. James built a house beside the church with his own hands, and it still stands today . He was the first Holyfield to come to Roanoke Valley and his decendants are still here today .

Keith Holyfield's email address is THEHOLYFIELDS@aol.com

See War of 1812 papers for Hardin's father Watson Holyfield.
See Revolutionary papers for Valentine and Susannah.
On another site it said that Hardin and his father and grandfather were constables, so the constable in the census below
may have been written on the wrong line. The last time I tried to get through to that site, it was down. I will put the address on here if I find that it still exists.

Road Sign in Surry County NC
(Contributed by Keith Holyfield, a descendant of Hardin)

1850 Census Surry County, North District, NC

1850 census Surry County NC

Hardin HOLIFIELD, age 34, born NC [Hardin is son of Watson Holyfield and Peggy Venable]
Palina [hard to read] his wife, age 35 born NC
Children: All were born in NC
Rosey, age 17
James, age 15
Columbus, age 14
Letty [f], age 13 [see the picture of the Norman family below]
Margaret, age 11
Watson, age 10
Matilda, age 8
Martha, age 7
John, age 5
Drury [m], age 3
Hardin, age 2/12 [2 months]

Additonal notes on this family contributed by Keith Holyfield:
1) Rosey Holyfield - b. 15 Sept 1833, died 4 Oct 1850

2) James Byrd Holyfield died either at home in 1860 of a fever or in camp during the Civil War. Does anyone know which story is correct? [see Civil War below] He is buried near Rockford...Contributor Keith says that this grave yard is on the Hardin Holyfield Rd pictured above and he has directions to it written in 1910 by a family member. [John Henry Holyfield Cemetery, Level Cross Comm. State Route 2236 which becomes a very narrow dirt road where you can get stuck! This is near the old homestead of Hardin HolyfieldSr. There are some members of the Snow family known to be buried there and James Holyfield.]

3) Columbus Holyfield, b. 19 May 1836, died Dec 3 1910. Married Carry Anne SNOW, 12 July 1866, daughter of Elizabeth Forkner and Byrd Snow. They are buried in Snow Hill Baptist church, his marker says Holyfield hers says Holderfield [Civil War...see below]

4) Letitia Holyfield, b. 21 Sep 1837, died 7 March 1919, married William Mason Norman [See below for Civil War] [Click here for picture of family] Buried Rockford Baptist Church.

5)Margaret Holyfield, b. 5 May 1839, died before 1872.

6) Watson Butcher Holyfield , born 9 May 1841, died 29 Jan 1916, m. Virginia Frances Turner on 12 July 1866 [See below for Civil War] [Click here for picture of burial place]

7) Matilda Holyfield - b. 3 Oct 1842, m. Stephen Dunnacan, moved to Indiana and Illinois

8)Martha Holyfield b. 10 June 1844, m. Lacey Jasper Norman in 1872...he was widower who had been married to her sister Margaret

9)John Henry Holyfield b. 13 May 1846 d. 7 Jan 1907, m. Fannie Folger 25 Oct 1876

10) Drewry K Holyfield , b 8 April 1848, married in Dallas TX. His eleven daughters all died from typhiod fever.

11) Hardin Holyfield, Jr, b. 12 March 1850, married Amelia Walker, 21 Dec 1876. Amelia's sister Sarah Anne Walker married Noah Jay Holyfield...... Noah and Hardin were second cousins once removed. [See Civil War below] Children were: James Bronna Holyfield, Raleigh Gilmer, Hardin Glenn, and Mattie E.

12) Daughter born and died same day...21 Mar 1852

13) Thomas Bragg Holyfield, b 4 Sept 1854, died 19 April 1951m. L.A. Burris june 8th 1879 [The jusice of the peace who married them, J. G. Burris, is also listed on Hardin Jr's pension application as a witness.] Thomas also married Alice Emma Cook on 28 Jan 1897.

The Civil War Period for Hardin and Paulina's family:
contributed by Keith Holyfield

The flag of the 28th NC

James Byrd Holyfield ....Surry County Soldiers in the Civil War says that Hardin and Paulina's son Byrd was 1st sergeant in Company A of the 28th NC, CSA. He volunteered 5 May 1861. That would make him about 26 yrs. at his enlistment. It says he died of illness in camp 11 Jan 1862.

Columbus Holyfield, Co. A, 28th Reg. NC Inf. CSA. Surry County Soldiers in the Civil War says he joined up in Surry County 4 May 1861 at age 24. He made Sergeant, but after being absent the summer of 1864 he was reduced in rank. Maybe his family needed him home on the farm that summer.

[Note to Keith Holyfield who sent this picture]
Keith, this is the one that I need help with. I am thinking that the Chrisopher Columbus in this picture is Columbus C.(1836-1910). That seems to have been what you told me. Then you had the names Lum, Boyce, and Carnes and I don't know who they are. You also said that this is a 5th generation picture. But the lady to the right looks old enough to be his wife [Cary Snow 1846-1940] And if this picture is close to 1910 when he died, then all of his children would be 43 yrs old or younger. So the lady has to be his wife. I looked at the children/grandchildren in the manuscript about Surry county Holyfields, but could not find any names that corresponded with those.

[If anyone can help us with the identification, please get in touch.]

Keith Holyfield was told that this man is James Byrd Holyfield. We think that he would be the James Byrd (1867-1935) who was the son of Columbus C. rather than the James Byrd who died in the Civil War. The child would then possibly be his son William Alfonso Holyfield (b.1889) and his wife Lilly L.Adams (1872-1942). Their next child was not born until 1897. That would date this picture at around 1895. If anyone knows more about this picture, please get in touch.

Letitia's husband, William Mason Norman, Captain of the 22nd NC and 28th NC Inf. was imprisioned at Johnsons Island in Ohio. He was released at the end of the war and walked home. He wrote book "A Portion of My Life ". Wm had a law degree and is said to have spent some time in Iowa and Ohio. He was a farmer, surveyer and justice of the peace.

Watson Butcher Holyfield was wounded 9 times in war. He was in Co. A of the 28th NC Inf. He took lead ball in arm and was finaly dicharged from CSA after losing use of this right arm. He had a fair complexion, blue eyes, and light red hair. After the war he was a farmer and operated a mill on the Yadkin river.

Hardin Holyfield, Jr. joined Company A 28th NC Inf at age 14 or so. There is no military record for him, according to Surry County Soldiers in the Civil War, but there are pension papers. He applied for pension in 1931, one year before his death. After the war he was a tobacco farmer. Keith's great uncle said he remembers when as a boy he would take him on wagon trips to towns to sell his tobacco, and that every kid in family thought it to be a great privilege. Hardin met his wife Amelia Walker on a wagon trip to Rutherford County NC. She is buried at Rockford Baptist Church. Keith thinks Hardin Jr. is one of the unmarked graves at the family site on Hardin Holyfield Rd. [According to the 1850 census above, Hardin would have turned 14 in 1864.]

LINKS
Friends and Descendants of Johnson's Island	http://www.heidelberg.edu/~dbush/index.html
Personal webpage on Johnson's Island	http://home.thirdplanet.net/lsrssw/
NARRATIVE OF PRISON LIFE AT BALTIMORE AND JOHNSON'S ISLAND, OHIO BY HENRY E. SHEPHERD, M. A., LL. D. Formerly Superintendent of Public Instruction, Baltimore.	http://docsouth.unc.edu/shepherd/shepherd.html
Some of the activities of the 28th NC Inf.	http://www.isocks.com/28th.html

I Perlina Holyfield of the County of Surry and State of North Carolina do make and publish this to be my last will
and testament in manner and form following
To Wit
In consideration of the kindness and attention and support given me by my three sons during my old age I give will,
bequeath and devise to my sons John Henry Holyfield, Hardin Holyfield and Thomas Holyfield at my death all of
my real estate, the same being the dower right which I bought when sold to be equally divided between them to
have and to hold the same to them and their heirs forever. I also give will and bequeath to my three sons above
named all of my personal property of every kind and description such as cattle hogs sheep and other stock also
all of my household and kitchen furnature of every kind and description. All of my farming tools of every
description such as waggons carts[?] included to be equally divided between them. And give to my three living
daughters all of my weaving apperal[?] to be equally divided between them.
And lastly I nominate constitute and appoint my three sons John H. Holyfield, Hardin Holyfield and Thomas
Holyfield my executors to carry into effect this my last will and testament.
This 12th of June 1875 Perlina herXmark Holyfield

Witness
H.C. Hampton
John Brown

[Perlina died about 1877.]

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