Porter Morgan Owenbey

1774 - 1853  (79 years)

• Name	Porter Morgan Owenbey
  Born	1774	Amherst County, Virginia
  Gender	Male
  Died	1853	Union County, Georgia
  Person ID	I15353	DNA Family 1 Genealogies
  Last Modified	4 May 2006

  
  

  Family	Martha Ann Morgan,   b. 2 Feb 1778, Randolph County, North Carolina ,   d. 1863, Union County, Georgia  (Age 84 years)
  Married	23 Mar 1797	McDowell County, North Carolina
  Children	1. Miriam Owenbey,   b. 8 Feb 1805, Buncombe County, North Carolina ,   d. 7 Jun 1878, Buncombe County, North Carolina  (Age 73 years)   2. Ann Owenby,   b. 26 May 1814, McDowell County, North Carolina ,   d. 2 Aug 1869, Buncombe County, North Carolina  (Age 55 years)
  Last Modified	4 May 2006
  Family ID	F5965	Group Sheet  |  Family Chart

  
  

• Notes

  This information was from Paulette Ownbey: Porter Ownbey was the fifth child of John Ownbey and Nannie (Nancy) Porter. He was born in 1774 in Amherst, Virginia, being only a young lad at the time his family migrated to the Mountain Creek area of Old Tyrone County (now Rutherford Co.), North Carolina. Rutherford was formed in 1779 from Tyrone County. On the memorable date of March 23, 1797 Porter Ownbey united in marriage with Martha Morgan, the daughter of Perminter Morgan and Gracie Jones. They were married in McDowell Co., NC. The Morgan's were considered one of the more prominent families of the county at that time. Sometime after Porter and Martha Ownbey were married they moved to Buncombe County, NC. No doubt two prominent ministers had a great influence on Porter's life. The Elder Perminter Morgan and the Rev. Humphrey Posey. In 1812 Porter helped to build the first meeting house of the Hominy Baptist Church in Candler, NC (Buncombe Co.). The first pastor of the church was the Rev. Humphrey Posey, which he held until 1818. Porter was one of the first deacons and a charter member of the church. The building was a log, rectangular-shaped building with a large fireplace at either end. The men entered through one door the women through the other. They did not enter together, nor did they sit together. The building was used for educational purposes. This church, active since its beginning, is older by thirty-three years than the Southern Baptist Convention and is as old as the Foreign Mission Movement among Baptists in America. In the year 1816 a son was born to Porter and Martha and they named him Humphrey Posey after the Rev. Humphrey Posey. This son was their tenth child. In 1816 Porter Ownbey bought land on South Hominy near what is now Piney Mountain Methodist Church (Buncombe Co.). In 1837 after the Cherokee Indians had been driven out he sold 600 acres of land to Russell Jones, who was married to his daughter, Annie Ownbey, and he moved to Union County, Georgia just across the North Carolina line. Moving with him to Georgia were Henry Miller, Roland Warren and Uriah Warren. The 1840 census for Union County, taken by John Butts, Jr., indicates that Porter was 66 years old. Ten years later J. J. Logan enumerated the citizens of Union County and stated that Porter was 76, a farmer and worth $1200.00. The same census states that Martha was born in NC and was 73 years of age. Porter died in 1853 and Martha in 1863. While their graves are believed to be unmarked, the Mormon Center of Genealogy at Salt Lake City, Utah, states that their burial took place at Antioch Baptist Church Cemetery and lists their source to be the Ledford Family Bible. The Antioch Baptist Church (Union Co., GA.) was organized in 1841. Notes from Charles Holstein, who did extensive research by contacting family members: He died in his home on his farm, vicinity of Blairsville, Union County, Georgia, and was buried in Ebenezer Cemetery located some seven miles north of Blairsville, Union County, Georgia, being the 2nd person buried in this cemetery.