Wedding Wednesday: Solomon Scott and Nelly Little

This is the marriage license and return for Solomon Scott and Nelly Little. Solomon is my maternal 3x Great-Grandfather – he’s Scoatney’s dad. But Nelly is not my 3x Great-Grandmother.

In 1870, Solomon is living on a farm in Hancock County, Georgia. With him is a woman named Cherry, the mother of at least five of his children, and my 3x great-grandmother. But by late 1872 – November 16th to be exact – Solomon has married another woman, Nelly Little. What happened to Cherry? I don’t know. But let’s explore Solomon and Nelly’s story.

When Nelly married Solomon Scott, she was a transplant from Virginia who had likely been living in Georgia since at least 1852. She was a mid-thirty-something mother of at least six, maybe seven, children: Rebecca, Turner, Alfred, Spratley, Mary, Nancy and Nellie. (It’s possible that Mary and Nancy are the same person.) In 1870, four of these children were under the age of 10. By 1872, her daughter Nellie would have arrived, and would have been 2 or 3 years old. However, no clear husband or father of her children is shown in the records that I’ve found. Nelly is the head of household in 1870. She is carrying the load.

1870 U.S. Census, Putnam County, GA, showing Nelly Little and family.

But Nelly wasn’t entirely alone in supporting her family. While Nelly worked as a house servant in or around Putnam County, likely doing domestic work in a nearby white family’s home, the 1870 Federal Census shows 18-year-old daughter Rebecca is also working. She is a field hand. So, too, is her younger brother, 14-year-old Turner P. Little. Their combined efforts are likely what put food on the table.

Solomon Scott, meanwhile, was a somewhat older man, about 52 years old, and a native of Georgia. He worked as a farmer in neighboring Hancock County. Like Nelly, he was also a parent, but as recently as 1870, and perhaps up until 1872, his children’s mother was still in the picture. In 1872, he was the father of at least 6 children: Fed, Scoatney, Masonia, Daniel, James Solomon, and Mary. 

1870 U.S. Census, Hancock County, GA, showing Solomon Scott and family.

How did the two meet? I don’t know. Perhaps they had already known each other, when Solomon’s partner was still around – it is possible that Cherry had been from Putnam County, the same county that Nelly was living in. Perhaps they had mutual acquaintances. Perhaps they met while running errands, picking up supplies, or the like. Maybe in Solomon, Nelly saw someone who could help provide for her family? Maybe in Nelly, Solomon saw someone who could help to raise his young children? Maybe it was something else entirely.

What I do know is that they formed a blended family that was still together eight years later. By 1880, they were living in Washington County, just across the county line from Solomon’s previous residence in Hancock County. Solomon was still a farmer, but he had many more hands to help: Fed, Daniel, Mary, plus step-children Alfred, Spratley, Nancy, and Nellie are all working on the farm. There’s also a daughter named Martha who is helping. (She is listed as a biological daughter rather than a step-child, which may be an error on the part of the census-taker; it’s possible the child is actually Masonia.) 

1880 U.S Census, Washington County, GA - P1 of Solomon and Nelly Scott's Family

 

1880 U.S Census, Washington County, GA - P2 of Solomon and Nelly Scott's Family

 The family is either doing pretty well or Nelly’s labor is more necessary in her own home than in another family’s, because she is no longer working as a domestic servant – she is now “keeping house.” With a household of fifteen people – including three children born to Solomon: John W, Ananius, and Louisa – one can imagine that she had a lot of house keeping to do!

What does the rest of their time together look like? I don’t know. The destruction of most of the 1890 Federal Census means we don’t know what the household looks like that year. Tax records do suggest, however, that Solomon lived at least until 1890, and with some personal property to his name. Ten years later, in 1900, Nelly is living with her step-son Fed and son John back in Hancock County. Her step-daughter Masonia is living next door. Nelly is listed as widowed, and Solomon is not listed in any of his children’s households. Beyond 1900, I don’t find Nelly either.

1900 U.S. Census, Hancock County, GA, with Nelly Little Scott, son John, and step-children Fed and Masonia.

It would be easy to leave the story there, with two unknown deaths and a lot of mystery in between. But, perhaps the lives of Solomon and Nelly’s children can tell us something about the foundation their parents set? In fact, perhaps that’s true of Solomon and Cherry’s children as well. In that case, theirs were households where education, self-sufficiency, hard work and family were clearly prioritized. But those are stories for another day, and many more blog posts to come. Stay tuned!

Do you know something about Solomon Scott and Nelly Little, or their children? Let’s chat! Leave a note in the comments section to get the conversation started.