North Carolina Covingtons
- westmohney
- Dec 20, 2024
- 9 min read
Updated: Dec 22, 2025
When the company struck the old Yadkin River, they build them a raft and went on board with their effects and named her Whippoorwill. . . ~ Pickney Preston Thomas
the first Covingtons arrive in North Carolina
Our grandparents John, Sr. (5GGF) and Mary Airey Covington (5GGM) had ten children, all born in Queen Anne's County, MD. Our grandfather was John, Jr. (4GGF), their second child.
All ten, with the exception of oldest son James (4U) who died in 1767, would eventually make their way 400 miles southeast to North Carolina, settling in the vicinity of what would become the town of Rockingham where the Pee Dee river reigned supreme.
When John, Sr. died in 1767, he left "two tracts of Land laying together one called Providence and the other called Rowlands Hazzard" to his two eldest sons, James and our grandfather, John, Jr (4GGF). John, Jr. had a family and owned property of his own at the time of his father's death. Just four months after receiving his inheritance, John sold his share of that property. Though it would be another three years before the move to North Carolina, certainly the idea had already taken seed for John who had recently lost his wife, Hannah Dockery.
James, in his thirties and never married, may have been ill at the time of his father's death. John, Sr. wrote this stipulation into his will, "if my Son James should Die without leaving Lawful issues, then I give his part to my Son Benjamin and his heirs forever." James did die shortly after his father and the property went to Benjamin who also sold his half of the inheritance. The plantation Providence, which had been in the Covington family for two generations, was then lost to the family.
But the loss of Providence evidently didn't matter to any of the Covington siblings at that point in their lives. By the early 1770s each and every one of them would pull up stakes and move to the greener pastures of North Carolina.
The first to make the move may have been our grandfather's brother Henry (4U). He purchased property east of the Pee Dee in December of 1767. According to our cousin DaCosta E. Covington (5C) in his Covingtons Remembered, “[h]is land was on Naked Creek, east of the Pee Dee River, which was in 1769 adjacent to Thomas Dockery. This creek empties into the Pee Dee River. . . This is the oldest Covington deed in Anson County."
Thomas Dockery was the father our grandfather John, Jr.'s deceased wife Hannah. Our cousin Lou Poole (5C) speculates that it was in September of 1769 when Thomas led a party of families from Maryland to the same area along the Pee Dee River where our Raiford, Wall, Terry and Thomas families had already settled. Included in the party were John Covington and two members of the Thomas family, our uncle Philemon (5U) and our cousin Daniel Thomas (1C6X), son of Philemon's brother Simon (5U).
Note: The Raifords, Walls and Terrys came from Virginia. The Thomas family, like the Covingtons, hailed from Maryland.
an account of the trip by Daniel Thomas' grandson
Our cousin Daniel, who was the first minister of the Cartledge Creek Church, may have related the story of his 400 mile journey from Maryland to North Carolina to his children and grandchildren many times. His great-grandson Pickney Preston Thomas (4C3X) wrote what he knew of the event. From the account, it appears that our cousin Daniel, a reverend and former Quaker, was also a slave owner.
When the company struck the old Yadkin River, they build them a raft and went on board with their effects and named her Whippoorwill and mounted a cannon on a pile of coble rocks found hard by with which to shell Mr "Injun" if perchance he whould make any warlike demonstrations from the shore. Old Ned, one of grandfather's niggers, was much afraid of the "Injuns" and when the sun went down and shades of night came on, old Uncle Ned would get 'powerful skeered' and would say, "Marsa I've done seed an Injun. Don't you spect we better fire that cannon?"
Since the Yadkin turns into the Pee Dee at the confluence of the Uwharrie River, we can trace the basic route the Dockerys, Covingtons and Thomases took from Queen Anne's County in Maryland to get to their new home in Rockingham, NC. The party probably went overland through Virginia, then picked up the Yadkin just over the border into North Carolina.
Below is a picture of the Pee Dee River just south of the Yadkin/Uwharrie confluence:
certificates of good character
When moving from place to place, it was common for men of stature to bring references of their good character to the new community. Thomas Dockery brought with him certificates from both the Queen Anne's County Court and the Presbyterian Church he belonged to in Maryland. The County petition which follows had the signatures of 19 men vouching for Thomas' worthiness:
WHEREAS THOMAS DOCKERY OF QUEEN ANNE COUNTY In the Province of Maryland Farmer aged about fifty years having an inclination to remove himself & family out of this Province and to settle elsewhere hath requested us to certify our knowledge of his life & behaviour in order that any strangers amongst whom he may hereafter incline to settle may receive him with civility & not a person fled from justice we the subscribers do therefore inform all persons whom these presents may concern that the sd Thos. Dockery has from his youth hitherto resided in this County except in the years seventeen hundred forty five & seven when he was in his Majestys Service on an expedition against Canady & that he has discharged various services in society and also has executed several offices civil & military in all which wehave understood he behaved himself well & faithfully discharged his duty & in general has supported the character of a peaceable neighbour. . .
The petition from the church verified that "that sd Dockery has been hitherto in full commendation and may readily be recommended to full membership in any Christian congregation where God in His Province may cast His lot"
Following in the footsteps of such an esteemed man assured that our relatives would also be readily welcomed into their new community. Added to his petition was the following:
Lately settled in Anson County connected with or depending on Thomas Dockery who is about fifty years old to wit Ann his wife aged about thirty two Michael his son aged about eighteen more and a half John Covington his son in law aged about thirty five Mathew Covington (4U) his Grandson aged about ten Hannah Covington (4A) his grand-daughter aged about seven & an half Mary Covington (4A) his grand-daughter about three & an half Sarah Covington (3A) his grand-daughter about three & ½ and Joseph Hull his cousin aged about sixteen.
To Anson Inferior Court January Term 1770. On petition of the within named Thos. Dockery the within list and accounts together with the sd Petition was ordered by the sd court to be registered.
Note: In an interesting tidbit, it appears that Thomas Dockery was a slave owner in Maryland. His name appears in a report listing runaway slaves, convicts and apprentices. In 1766, Dockery hoped to retrieve his runaway slave, 18 year old Jeff Box, who, as of Jan 2 had been missing for 10 days. A reward of 2 pounds was offered.
the Cartledge Creek Church
When Thomas Dockery and his company arrived in the Rockingham area of North Carolina, most of the settlers who came from Maryland worshiped at the Prebsbyterian Church some distance away. Since there were no churches close by, Thomas "urged all friends, neighbors and settlers to come to his home for worship and Bible study on Sunday mornings." He had evidently become enamored of the new Baptist movement that had recently arrived in North Carolina from Virginia because that was the faith adopted for the Cartledge Creek Baptist Church.
In 1774, Thomas donated three acres of his own land for a church, a school and a cemetery. Much of the information we have on the church comes from our cousin Elizabeth "Miss Lib" Williams Covington's (4C1X) book "A Brief History of Cartledge Creek Baptist Church, 1774-1974." According to "Miss Lib," "the sanctuary of the present church was built from timbers salvaged from Dockery's Meeting House which was nearby." The log church that was first built was called Dockery's Meeting House.
Note: "Miss Lib" descended from both the Dockery and Covington families.
The first reverend of the new church was our cousin Daniel Thomas, son of our grandfather Stephen's (5GGF) brother Simon (5U). Daniel not only ministered at Cartledge Creek, he also organized other Baptist churches in the area. The first trustees of Dockery's Meeting House were Simon Thomas, William Covington (5U) and Thomas Dockery. Ca. 1770, Daniel married our aunt, Sarah Covington (4A) , sister of John Covington, Jr. (4GGF). The couple had their home near Daniel's uncle Stephen at Blewitt Falls on the Pee Dee.
A new church was built in 1826 to replace the original log church built by our relatives. None of the men involved in building the first church were still alive but our grandfather John Covington's son, William (3U), a trustee of the church at the time, donated 1 acre of land for the project. Reverend Daniel Thomas' son Elijah (1C5X) was also a trustee of the church at the time. Below is a photo of the Cartledge Creek Baptist Church which was taken in 2010:
In 1989, a marker was placed in the church cemetery commemorating the men and women buried there that were instrumental in founding the church. Our relatives buried in the Cartledge Creek Cemetery mentioned on the marker are our uncle William Covington (5U), our uncle Philemon Thomas (5U), our uncle Simon Thomas (5U), Simon's son, the Reverend Daniel Thomas (1C6X) and Nancy Covington Dockery (1C5X). Nancy was a niece of our grandfather, John Covington. She married Thomas Dockery's son, Thomas Dockery, Jr.
Uncle William Covington
Our grandfather John's (and our) uncle William Covington (5U), born in 1720, was the only Covington of his generation to come to North Carolina. He was close to 50 years old when he made the move. In 1742, while still back in Maryland, he had married his first wife, Sarah Newman. William and Sarah had five children before Sarah's death sometime before 1768. William chose as his second wife our cousin Rachel Thomas (1C6X). Rachel, daughter of our uncle Philemon Thomas (5U), was 30 years younger than William. At the time of their marriage, most of William and Sarah's children were grown.
We don't know the year of William and Rachel's marriage but her name is included on a land grant in North Carolina dated 1768. From that grant, it appears that William may have made the move to North Carolina a year before the Dockery party which included William's nephew John (4GGF), and Rachel's father Philemon (5U).
William's grant was for 150 acres of land on Cartledge Creek. He lived in close proximity to those who came in the Dockery party. When Thomas Dockery founded the church that would become the Cartledge Creek Baptist Church, William was chosen as one of the first trustees.
In 1787, William deeded over to his son John (1C6X) his entire 150 acre plantation. Most probably William and Rachel continued living on their original small plantation until William's death in 1794 at age 74. When he died, William had 11 children from his two marriages and Rachel was pregnant with the 12th. The will reveals that William had very little to leave to his heirs:
.
To my daughter Elizabeth my spoon moulds
To my daughter Sarah one cow an one chest
To my son Nath'l my wearing appearl
To my son William my large pot
To my son John one carpenters froe and drawing knife
To John (his youngest son from his first marriage) his heirs and assigns, a small parcel of land to be laid off from the north side of the land I now live on bounded by Baggots branch on the north with a small ditch formerly made by said son containing half an acre more or less
To my daughter Rachel a feather bed
To my daughter Pheby a parcel of feathers which she has in her possession
To my three sons Peter, James and Benjamin one cow and calf each when they come of age
To the child my wife now goes with one cow and calf
To my son Asa (his oldest son from his second marriage) his heirs and assigns forever all the remainder of my land plantation whereon I now live containing 85 acres more or less allowing my wife Rachel to hold and enjoy till my said son arrives of age and her one-thired part thereof during her natural life
All the remainder of my estate to my said wife
Below is the bottom half of Willam's will, witnessed by his nephew, our grandfather John Covington, and Thomas Dockery. It appears that our grandfather was illiterate as he signed with his mark.
William mentions no slaves in his will, so it appears that the massive slave-holding tradition that characterized the Covingtons in coming years did not begin with him, but rather with his multitude of nephews, including our grandfather John.
Next up: Our grandfather John Covington in North Carolina
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