#52ancestors-Lucky (Fortunate)

Two times a year the West Michigan Genealogical Society hosts a bus trip to Fort Wayne, Indiana, specifically Allen County Public Library. If you don't know, ALPC is the home to the nation's largest public genealogy collection. I love this place and the bus trips. Last April, I was at there, working hard on my Canady (Cannady, Kennedy, Canada, Kanada) families.

Let me walk you through this line starting with myself:

Michelle, daughter of Allen Utter and Marilyn Boorsma 

   Marilyn, daughter of Louis Boorsma and Dorothy Louise Marlin

     Dorothy, daughter of Edgar L Marlin and Mamie L Chapman

       Mamie, daughter of Cassius W Chapman and Delle Lydia Hollowell

         Cassius, son of James Chapman and Susannah Haynes

           Susannah, daughter of Richard Haynes and Susannah Mendenhall

             Susannah, daughter of Mordecai Mendenhall and Phoebe Canady

               Phoebe, daughter of John Canady and Margaret Thonberg (Thornburgh)

                  John, son of Charles Canady and Phoebe Ann Beals 

John Canady was the person I was researching that fortunate day. Thanks to the Quaker documentation, I have many of his vital records. He was born 25 Mar 1741 in Guilford, North Carolina.  By 1744, his family moved to northern Virginia. His father was killed in the Virginia Indian War (Lord Dunmore's war) in 1745. In 1746, Phoebe Beals Canady married again, Robert Sumner. They moved to Bladen County, North Carolina in 1751 and attended Carver's Creek Monthly meeting.

( 1)  Birth,U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935

(2)  1700-1900; Collection: North Carolina Yearly Meeting Minutes

 John and and his family were living in Deep River, Rowen (Guilford) County, North Carolina. Their group was called the New Garden Quakers. It is here that he met Margaret Thornberg.  According to two different sources they married on the 10th of April 1764. 

Earlham College; Richmond, Indiana; Quaker Marriage Records; Collection: Miscellaneous Vital Records

Their children were: Phoebe, Henry, Bowater, Charles, Walter, John Jr. and Robert. 

John and Margaret stayed in North Carolina for thirty-two years.  On 29 October 1796, the Canady's were given  the necessary certificates of transfer to be admitted to the New Hope meeting in Greene County, Tennessee.  
They decided to go further into Tennessee. On 17 June 1797, they were received into the Lost Creek Monthly meeting in Jefferson County.

(3)  Meeting transfer,New Garden Monthly Meeting 

 While living in Jefferson Co. Tennessee, a young man named David, also from Jefferson county, came to stay and work for John Canady and family. The year was 1802. David's father also named John, was in debt to Canady for $40. David worked off the debt for his father. When the debt was paid David spent another six months being taught by John Canady. David could neither read or write, because he had run away from school and home at an early age. Before he came to Canady some of his early jobs were: cattle driver, teamster, farmer's helper and hatter. 
David left for a time. Then at the end of 1803, he moved back in with the Canady's. David had spend a lot of time prior to this becoming a very good shot. Here is a quote from David:

"I had by this time got to be mighty fond of the rifle, and had bought a capital one. I most generally carried her with me wherever I went, and though I had got back to the Old Quaker's to live, who was a very particular man, I would sometimes slip out and attend shooting matches where they shot for beef."

David wanted to go courting but that was difficult without a horse.  Another source states that he needed new clothes, as he had worn his only set of clothes for a full year!
  Instead of working for the needed horse and or clothes, he did some chores and traded his rifle with Bowater Canady, son of John. He got his horse in August of 1806, then went off to court a girl named Polly Finley, of Long Creek in Jefferson County.
Bowater Canady later traded off the rifle. Fortunately, the rifle is now back in the Canady family. It has a letter included from David. The letter says in part, "what a help the Old Quaker Gentleman's teaching had been to him".
  David married Polly, had children and had other adventures. He was a frontiersman, soldier, politician and a folk hero.

Portrait of David

 He was often called "King of the Wild frontier". He is the one and only, David Crockett.

 Some of John Canady's sons left Tennessee and headed north to Ohio and Indiana in the years of 1815 and 1816. In November of 1816 John and Margaret also left Tennessee, to join their sons in Indiana. John was 75 and Margaret was 72. It had to be a challenging trip for these two elderly people, especially that time of year.

 (4) Deaths, U.S., Quaker Meeting Records, 1681-1935 [

The entire Canady family settled near a town called Economy. Many other Tennessee Quakers also came to that area. There meeting house was called Whitewater later to be changed to New Garden.
There were so many Quakers there that they eventually created a new meeting house in 1820 called Springfield. The meeting house was also the school and John Canady was its first teacher. 

Margaret died the 12th of March 1818 and John died the 3rd of March 1830.  He died at age 88 years 10 months and 26 days. He is buried at the west Grove Meeting House Burial grounds in Wayne County, Indiana.
It was fortunate for my "old quaker" that David Crockett came to their family for a time. As David grew in fame, the Canady's could take some pride in the fact that they helped him get his start.
It was especially fortunate for David Crockett to have met my Canadys. They provided for him financially, materially and with his education. Because of the lessons with John Canady, David was able to achieve much and also write his own biography, which includes a chapter on his time with John Canady.
It was fortunate for me to locate this information and add this remarkable story to my family tree.



1 US Quaker Meeting Records, Guilford College; Greensboro, North Carolina; Men's Minutes, 1783-1800; Collection: North Carolina Yearly Meeting Minutes
2 Guilford College; Greensboro, North Carolina; Men's Minutes, 1754-1775; Collection: North Carolina Yearly Meeting Minutes
3, 4 Earlham College; Richmond, Indiana; Men's Minutes, 1815-1829; Collection: Indiana Yearly Meeting Minutes

A couple of other links :
https://www.facebook.com/notes/rockcastle-laurel-pulaski-and-surrounding-counties-in-kentucky/john-canaday-1741-1830-includes-davy-crockett-bio-sketch/303642886384289/

https://www.billputman.com/Charlescanaday.pdf