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| The Move to Illinois |
Late in life, James
Broyhill moved to Illinois. Family tradition has long maintained
that James and his two sons James Jr. and William made the trip
together. This was not the case.
In an undated
letter, William Irving Broyhill, son of James Broyhill Jr., states that
he was born in Tennessee in 1821, and that his father had decided to
move to Illinois because of his opposition to slavery. William
Broyhill, son of James I, sold his farm in Wilkes on October 19, 1821,
and then probably joined his brother James Jr. in Tennessee. The
fact that James Sr. remained in Wilkes is well proven by the 1827 case
in which he testified in the death of William Johnson. |
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Most families migrated
westward in wagon trains. Sante Fe in Sight was painted
a long way from Illinois, but captures the excitement of such journeys. |
After leaving North
Carolina, his two sons William and James Jr. stayed in Tennessee a
short time, then moved to Sanagamon County, Illinois. James Sr. probably moved there
shortly after selling the tract on Warrior Creek to William Triplett in
1828. James was then 67 years old and the thousand mile trek across the
American wilderness must certainly have been an adventure. In the fall
of 1831, James moved to Tazewell County. He died there on January 7,
1842, and is reportedly buried on the old homestead. Roger Broyhill of
Peoria, Illinois believes that the land has now been turned into a
housing subdivision.
James and Rebecca had seven children: |
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SPOUSE |
ID No. |
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John Norman Broyhill |
1787??-1825> |
Polly Davis |
1 |
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Polly (or Mary) Broyhill |
1789??-1810> |
Nathaniel Broun |
2 |
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William Broyhill |
1792-1877 |
Nancy Johnson |
3 |
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Sally (or Sarah) Broyhill |
1795??-1857> |
Isaiah Hampton |
4 |
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Frances Broyhill |
1796??-1823> |
Elijah Hampton |
5 |
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James Broyhill Jr. |
1798-1849 |
Clarissa Johnson |
6 |
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Ann(e) Broyhill |
1800??- ? |
No further record |
7 |
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| Information provided by
Illinois Broyhill's state that when James' estate was settled his son
John Norman Broyhill and the four girls were in North Carolina. This
author has been unable to locate those estate records. The Broyhills of
North Carolina and Virginia descend from John Norman Broyhill.
Those from the mid-west descend from James Jr., except for Roger
Broyhill of Illinois, who is the only living male descendant of William. |
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