Richardson Family
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General Background

The Richardson family has very strong ties to South Carolina.  Richardsons (and the allied families of Manning, Cantey, McWillie and others) have been very much involved with the history and politics of the state -- many in my line served as governor of the State. 

In fact, one of my ancestors, Elizabeth Peyre Manning woman was featured in 1930 Ripley's - Believe it or Not" article because of her extensive relationships with governors of the state.  According to the article (and the record) Elizabeth was a niece, a wife, a sister, a mother, and aunt and a grandmother of a Governor!

According to "About.com" the Richardson name is a patronymic name meaning "son of Richard." The given name Richard is Germanic in origin, composed of the elements ric = power and hard = hardy, brave, and means "powerful and brave." Example: Richard the Lion Hearted.  Richardson is the 74th most popular surname in the United States.

Our earliest proven Richardson ancestor, General Richard Richardson (my fifth great grandfather) was born in Virginia.  Before that, we're not entirely sure where our Richardson ancestry originates  -- most likely England.

Richardsons in my line

• General Richard Richardson (my fifth great grandfather)
• James Manning Richardson, Sr. & Mary Spann Richardson (my great grandparents)

James Manning Richardson, Sr. (1848-1906) Parents:  Thomas Charles Richardson & Mary Cunningham McWillie	Mary Spann Richardson (1842-1904) Parents:  Richard Charles Richardson, Sr. & Elenora Norvelle Spann
Like so many of my Richardson ancestors, James and Mary were much more than simply "man and wife."  They were related to each other as second cousins (as depicted on the chart to the right).  This fact makes it a bit tricky to trace back through two generations to get to my fifth great grandfather, General Richard Richardson. In addition to being second cousins, my great grandparents also shared several other (often confusing) family connections. From James' perspective, his wife was... Sister-in-law to his first cousin, John Peter Richardson, III (1829-1899) John married his second cousin, Eleanora Norvelle Richardson (1840-1874) Niece of the wife of his uncle, James Burchell Richardson (1806-1860) James married his first cousin, Julia Anna Richardson (1818-1849) Sister-in-law to two of his first cousins, once-removed  John Cantey Manning Mary Hampton Manning Mother-in-law to his first cousin, once-removed, Camilla Cantey (1869-1941) Camilla married Richard Charles Richardson, Sr. (1871-1924)  Mother-in-law to his first cousin, twice-removed, Elizabeth Allen Richardson (1883-1975) Elizabeth married Henry Burchill Richardson, Sr.(1879-1943)   Their Children: Anne Sinkler 1870-1934 (m. Edward Percy Briggs, Sr.) Richard Charles 1871-1924 (m. Camilla Cantey) James Manning, Jr. 1873-1924 (m. Victoria Joseph) Thomas Charles 1875-1924 Elenora Norvelle 1877-1962 (m. Lucien E. Brailsford) Henry Burchell Richardson, Sr. 1879-1943 (m. Elizabeth A. Richardson) Other data/photos about this family Census Enumerations: 1870 | 1880 | 1900   The Watchman and Southron; Sumter, SC January 10, 1906 Family Photos of their daughter Anne Sinkler Richardson (married Edward P. Briggs) Family Descendancy Report Newspaper clipping discussing James M. Richardson's funeral

• Tracing between my great grandparents and my 5th great grandparents gets a bit tricky!  I have more than one Richardson 4th, 3rd, and 2nd great grandfathers/parents.  The Richardsons tended to intermarry amongst themselves -- probably to protect their wealth -- and that leads to some interesting genealogy.  It certainly does in my case:
  • From my great grandmother, Anne Sinkler Richardson's paternal lineage
    • My 2nd great grandfather: James Manning Richardson, Sr. (1848-1906)
    • My 3rd  great grandparents: Thomas Charles Richardson (c1815-1874) and Mary Cunningham McWillie (1823-1862)
    • My 4th great grandparents: John Peter Richardson, Sr. (1772-1811) and Floride Bonneau Peyre (1772-1844)
      • John Peter Richardson's will
  • From my great grandmother, Anne Sinkler Richardson's maternal lineage
    • My 2nd great grandmother: Mary Spann Richardson (1842-1904)
    • My 3rd  great grandparents: Richard Charles Richardson, Sr. (1815-1877) and Eleanora Norvelle Spann (1819-1907)
    • My 4th great grandparents: James Burchell Richardson, Sr. (1770-1836) and Ann Cantey Sinkler (c1773-c1864)

Richardson Governors

James Burchill Richardson 1770-1836 41st Governor -- 1802-1804	John Peter Richardson II 1801-1864 59th Governor -- 1840-1842	John Peter Richardson III 1831-1899 83rd Governor -- 1886-1890

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Miscellaneous

• Genealogical Listings/Database
  • Richardsons in my database  This will bring you to the index page of my RootsWeb database.  Just click on a name of interest.
  • Other databases
    • Singleton Family Database - An excellent website with over 400 Richardsons.  This link brings you to the page listing of surnames.
    • The Descendants of Charles Richardson (links to above RootsWeb database)  Charles was the father of General Richard Richardson (b. C 1704).
• Cemeteries
  • The Richardson Cemetery 
  • St. Marks Episcopal Church Cemetery
• Wills
  • General Richard Richardson
  • Gov. James Burchell Richardson
  • John Peter Richardson, Sr.
• Recollections/History/Storytelling
  • Recollections of the "Sand Hills" in the Olden Days - by Elizabeth Sinkler Manning Richardson, wife of Richard Charles Richardson, Jr.  Includes information about life in pre- and post-Civil War South Carolina.  Also includes much genealogical information.
  • Life of Elizabeth Sinkler (nee Manning) Richardson:  More information--also from Elizabeth
• Richardson Waltz.  The South Carolina state waltz
  •    (click to listen)
  • Background Article (includes video clips of Mary Richardson Briggs playing the waltz on the piano)
• Misc. Census Listings
  • Several pages of Richardsons from 1850 Census:
    • p. 95 top
    • p. 95 bottom
    • p. 96 top
    • p. 96 bottom
  • Partial listing of 1850 Census, Sumter County, South Carolina

Google Maps Listing of Richardson locations

 

View Richardson in a larger map

Footnotes

1. This newspaper clipping confirms children and that they were all living in Panola (located about five miles northwest of Summerton, in Clarendon County).  On the same newspaper page—page title: County Correspondence, subsection "Pinewood happenings"—there is reference to fact that "Hon. and Mrs. R. I. Manning, of Sumter, was down to attend Hon. JM Richardson's funeral."  This is almost certainly James' first cousin, once removed—and former South Carolina Gov.—Richard Irving Richardson, III (1859-1931).
   1. See Google Maps listing above for the relative location of the towns mentioned above.
   2. click here for a chart outlining this relationship