Noel Graves Christmas was born about 1780 to Nathaniel Christmas and Mary McLemore, most likely in North Carolina. He married Martha E. Williams on 16 January 1821 in Clarke County, Alabama.1 Noel and Martha had at least one child named Felix Guilbert Christmas. Noel died about 1826.
Table of Contents
FamilySearch Profile
The FamilySearch Profile for Noel Graves Christmas had not been updated since 2012 and had no sources. There were two additional wives with names consisting of a question mark. There were three children, with one who was likely not a child of Noel and Martha. The information on the profile probably did have a basis in fact, but without sources, everything was in doubt.
The current version of the FamilySearch Family Tree was launched in 2012, which included a migration of data from a previous version. The data that came over varied in quality, with few sources. The Noel Graves Christmas was last updated in 2012, which suggests this profile was a part of the data migration to the new Family Tree.
Cleanup
Before beginning research, Noel’s profile needed to be cleaned up. This included merging the question mark spouses, standardizing dates and locations, and evaluating sources of family members.
FamilySearch does have a lot of question mark profiles. Some of these profiles are attached to spouses, parents, and children. However, current FamilySearch policies recommend not adding a profile as a placeholder. FamilySearch policy prohibits the use of special characters, such as question marks, for a name.
In the past, profiles for an unknown wife were created by using a title and a spouse’s name. For example, these extra wives could be named “Mrs. Noel Graves Christmas.” This is also discouraged, but it is sometimes necessary to deal with uncertainty.
In this case, the question mark wives had no sources, no vital data, and no other family connections. The profiles did have a marriage date that was very close to the marriage date of Martha E. Williams. These profiles are rather meaningless and confusing. The best option for these profiles is to merge them into another profile.
The first step is to merge the question mark profiles. FamilySearch will complain about the names not matching or about using special characters in the name. Just disregard the warnings and merge the profiles. Next, merge the remaining question mark profile with Martha E. Williams. The extra profiles will be contained in the one profile that seems valid in Martha E. Williams.
The FamilySearch family group for Noel Graves Christmas and Martha E. Williams included a child named Evan Christmas, born in 1807. This birth year would mean that Martha, his mother, would have been seven years old when Evan was born. Noel and Martha were married in 1821, 14 years after his birth. While it’s possible Evan could be a child of Noel, he would not have been a child of Martha. Evan also did not have any sources that showed he was a child of the couple or had any connection to them. Detaching this child removed him from the family group.
Research
It can be difficult to research someone like Noel Graves Christmas because little is known. Targeted searches in specific record collections for Noel would be the best approach for professional-level research. Sometimes, broad searches can discover immediate, relevant results. Both Ancestry and FamilySearch can provide search results that match vital data in profiles to record indexes, and the user is given relevant results.
A broad search for Noel at Ancestry immediately surfaced several results for his marriage to Martha E. Williams. The search results were all for indexes, but the information for the marriage record could be tracked down. In the meantime, we can add the first source record to Noel’s profile and update his marriage information.
A search of FamilySearch’s Full Text search found an estate case file, orphan court documents, and probate documents for Noel. The estate case file included a document where Martha E. Christmas and Joseph Williams, Martha’s father, were appointed administrators of Noel’s estate. The date of the document helps support Noel’s death date of 1826.2
Another document from the orphan court recorded the appointment of guardianship of Felix Christmas, Noel’s son, to H. R. Williams. This document helps to establish the parent-child connection between Felix and Noel. The family group included a daughter named Amanda. Amanda’s profile had no source records that supported the connection to her parents. Her absence in the orphan court paperwork suggests she may not be the daughter of Noel and Martha, or she may not have survived childhood.3
Future Research
Noel Graves Christmas estate case file is extensive. The file has many documents that should be carefully studied and transcribed. His son Felix also has extensive documents. In other words, there is extensive research to explore for Noel and his family. Ancestry also suggested several additional records in its suggested records for Noel. Additionally, it may be possible to document Noel’s connection to his parents.
Here is a brief list of additional research:
- Explore and transcribe Noel’s estate case file. Extract names and dates of witnesses, administrators, and guardians.
- Search the estate case file for evidence of a daughter named Amanda. Amanda may or may not be a daughter of Noel and Martha.
- Search land records for Clarke County, Alabama, to find evidence of Noel’s land holdings. The estate paperwork indicates Noel had an extensive estate, including a large cotton farm.
- Look for a local history on Clarke County, Alabama. Noel arrived in Clarke County fairly early and could be mentioned in county histories. His son Felix was a physician, so he may also be included.
- The 1820 U.S. Census for Alabama was lost. Ancestry has an alternate census based on other collections. This could be searched for evidence of Noel.
Sources
- “Alabama, U.S., Compiled Marriages from Selected Counties, 1809-1920,” entry for Noel G. Christmas – Martha Williams, 16 January 1821, Clarke County, Alabama; index, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 19 December 2025; citing Dodd, Jordan R., comp.. Early American Marriages: Alabama, 1800 to 1920. ↩︎
- “Clarke, Alabama, United States records,” entry for Noel G Christmas, Clarke. Probate Estate Case Files 1810–1915, box 5, folder 40, 10 July 1826; digital images, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 19 December 2025), image 1420 of 1582, film number 008357864; citing Clarke County (Alabama), Judge of Probate. ↩︎
- “Clarke, Alabama, United States records,” entry for Noel G Christmas, Clarke. Probate Estate Case Files 1810–1915, box 5, folder 36, 9 February 1842; digital images, FamilySearch (http://www.familysearch.org : accessed 19 December 2025), image 1239 of 1582, film number 008357864; citing Clarke County (Alabama), Judge of Probate. ↩︎
