There is
something that warms the heart when you return to the area where your ancestors
lived long ago. Recently we visited Virginia and North Carolina, where my
ancestors lived during and after the Revolutionary War. When my 5th great grandfather, Thomas
Joyce, died in 1780 in Charlotte County,
Virginia, he left property in North Carolina to his children, including my
ancestor, George Joyce. George lived in what is now Rockingham and Stokes
Counties, North Carolina before migrating to Kentucky in 1806.
Thomas
Joyce, George's father, had a brother, Alexander Joyce, and both brothers had a number of children, with each having a son named John. There is a
family legend that explains how the two cousins named John were distinguished
from each other. Apparently, the two
John Joyce cousins went coon hunting and a dispute arose between them. The father of one cousin stated his
son bites like a coon. The father of the other said his son fights like a possum. The names
stuck and one John Joyce is listed as John Coon in public records and the other
became known as John Possum. The Coon line descends from Thomas Joyce and the Possum line descends from Alexander Joyce. That makes me a Coon Joyce although I descend from a brother to John
Coon. Even today, Joyce visitors to
Rockingham and Stokes Counties are often asked if they are a Coon or a Possum
Joyce.
The reason
for the visit to North Carolina was the first annual Joyce family reunion. We
originally met through a Facebook page dedicated to the descendants of
Alexander and Thomas Joyce. Most of us had never met face to face, but through
sharing family information and DNA
testing, we had become friends.
It seemed only natural to plan a get together to meet in person. We
arrived the day before the reunion and a cousin who lives in the area took us
on a tour of sites important in our family history - the old Joyce School, the
John Possom Joyce Cemetery, and Joyce Presbyterian Church. As you may gather,
Joyce is a very common name in the area.
Joyce Schoolhouse
Rockingham County, North Carolina
John Possom Joyce Cemetery
Rockingham County, North Carolina
A lot of
research is being done through DNA testing to determine the origins of our
family. So far, it appears we may not be from the area "across the
ocean" that we had assumed. I'll let you know when it becomes official. In the meantime, the Joyce cousins continue
to search for and share information. I am so pleased to be part of this large,
very interesting family.
Published 5 October 2017, Western Kentucky Genealogy Blog, http://wkygenealogy.blogspot.com/
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