There are many assumptions on FamilySearch. One common example is connecting individuals while disregarding existing evidence or without any evidence. Susannah Galley is an example of this exact scenario. Susannah Galley married William Eaton in Carroll County, Georgia in 1833. Could she be the daughter of Charles Henry Gilley? Is Susannah Galley the same person as Susan Eaton, wife of William Eaton in Chambers County, Alabama? I created a series of small research projects to try and find out.1
Table of Contents
Background
William and Susan Eaton are found in the 1850 U.S. Census in Chambers County, Alabama. The census shows William was born in England, but Susan and the children were born in Georgia. The 1850 U.S. Census does not include relationship statements, though the head of household was listed first, then the wife, and children from oldest to youngest.
| Name | Age | Gender | Birth place |
|---|---|---|---|
| William Eaton | 58 | M | England |
| Susan E | 36 | F | Georgia |
| William J | 10 | M | Georgia |
| Sarah A | 5 | F | Georgia |
| Martha J | 2 | F | Georgia |
This census gives us some interesting information that can help suggest where and when to look for more records. It seems most likely, that William and Susan married in Georgia about 1839. However, there is a significant age difference between William and Susan of 22 years. Susan could be a second wife or other relative. However, a research project showed that Susan was most likely the biological mother of the children and also William’s wife.3
Susan also appeared in the 1860 U.S. Census. This additional census gives a birth year range of 1814-1817 in Georgia.4 A possible marriage year of 1839 in Georgia and also the birth year range and place in Georgia could help locate additional records.
Georgia Marriage Record for Susannah Galley
A search of marriage record collections in Georgia, South Carolina, Florida, Alabama, and Tennessee turned up only one marriage record for William Eaton.5 This marriage took place in 1833 in Carroll County, Georgia between Susannah Galley and William Eaton.6
A handwriting analysis of this marriage record clearly shows the last name is Galley. The letter ‘a’ of the last name appears the same as the letter ‘a’ in Susannah and William Eaton. Despite this, many interpret the name as Gilley. There are no heads of households with the last name of Galley listed in the early census records for Carroll County, Georgia. But there are men listed with the last name of Gilley.
Assumptions
My primary research objective is to identify the biological family of Susan, wife of William Eaton in Chambers County, Alabama. However, many researchers have determined Susan Eaton and Susannah Gilley (not Galley) are the same person. Further, Susannah Gilley has been added as a daughter of Charles Henry Gilley. These connections have been made for many years without any documentation. An assumption was made based on the similarity of names, in a possibly correct location but never verified.
Please note: I am not calling out any one researcher who has added these connections to their trees. This assumption has been floating around for decades. The increased accessibility of records and DNA has made it possible to check the validity of the connection. One must always be cautious of connections without sources, even if dozens of researchers have this in their tree.
These are the assumptions that have been made:
- William Eaton of Carroll County, Georgia was the same person as William Eaton of Chambers County, Alabama.
- Susannah Galley was the same person as Susan Eaton.
- Susannah Galley’s name was recorded incorrectly and her name was actually Susannah Gilley.
- Susannah Gilley was the daughter of Charles Henry Gilley.
Charles Henry Gilley
Charles was born on 23 September 1783 in South Carolina. He died after 1859 in Georgia. He first married Margaret Patsy Grant in about 1805 in South Carolina. He married later to Susanna Cavender on 3 November 1849 in Paulding County, Georgia. According to Charles Henry Gilley’s FamilySearch profile, he had 3 sons and 2 girls, including Susannah Gilley.
However, not all is as it seems and the children need to be viewed with a bit of skepticism. There is no evidence for the two daughters and only some for the sons. This is a very common occurrence on FamilySearch where individuals have been linked together without supporting evidence being added to the tree. Sometimes the evidence does exist, it just needs to be added as a source. Other times, it is simply a wishful assumption.
If Charles had a daughter born between 1814 and 1817, that daughter should appear in the 1820 and 1830 U.S. Censuses. A daughter born between 1814 and 1817 would be between 3-6 years of age in 1820, young enough to still be at home. She would be about 13-16 years of age in 1830. This daughter may or may not be living with her father in 1830. She could either be married, living with other family members, or working in another household. However, if this daughter is Susannah “Galley” she would most likely be at home or with other family if she married in 1833.
Charles Henry Gilley in the Census
Charles Gilley is found in the 1820 U.S. Census in Habersham County, Georgia. He was living in Habersham County before moving to Carroll County by the 1830 U.S. Census. Both Charles Gilley and his father Charles Gilley, Sr., were in Carroll County, Georgia in 1830.
1820 U.S. Census
Head: Charles Gilley7
- Male under 10 years: 3
- Male 10-16 years: 1
- Male 26-45 years: 1
- Females 14-26: 1
- Female 45 years and up: 1
The 1820 U.S. Census only lists the head of household by name. Household members were counted and recorded based on gender and age ranges with tick marks or numbers. Charles Gilley was listed in Habersham County with a few household members. Charles was most likely the male aged 26-45 years and his wife was likely the female aged 45 years and up. That leaves 4 male children and one female child. The female child was aged 14-26 years, too old to be a match for Susannah Gilley.
1830 U.S. Census
Head: Charles Gilley Jr.8
- Male 50–60 years: 1
- Female 30-40 years: 1
Head: Charles Gilley Sr.
- Male 5-10 years: 1
- Male 80-90 years: 1
- Female 30-40 years: 2
Both Charles Gilley and his father Charles Gilley, Sr., were listed in the 1830 U.S. Census in Carroll County, Georgia. Neither household had a female listed in the right age range to be a match for Susannah Gilley.
Results Summary
Census records do not provide any evidence to connect Susannah Galley or Gilley to Charles Henry Gilley. The 1820 U.S. Census, specifically, does not show any evidence of a young female child of the right age range. While a person can be missed in a census count, it is unlikely for a young child to be missed. Therefore, it is unlikely for Charles Henry Gilley to have had a daughter born between 1814 and 1817. This means he likely did not have a daughter that matches with what is known about Susan Eaton. Therefore Susan Eaton and Susannah Gilley are not the same person and Susan Eaton is not the daughter of Charles Henry Gilley.
Could Susan Eaton be Susannah Galley, the daughter of a yet-to-be-named father? That possibility does exist, so more research is needed to find the biological family of Susan Eaton.
But What About DNA?
In full disclosure, there are DNA matches between the descendants of William and Susan Eaton and the descendants of Charles Henry Gilley. That DNA evidence needs a thorough analysis. However, a basic analysis suggests the DNA evidence is rather weak. A future study on DNA will be forthcoming in the coming months.
Further Research
- Look for William Eaton in Georgia in the 1820, 1830, and 1840 U.S. Censuses. Was William Eaton listed in the same counties as Charles Gilley?
- An analysis of DNA matches between descendants of William and Susan Eaton and descendants of Charles Gilley.
Sources
- These mini-research projects include marriage records for William Eaton, Charles Henry Gilley in census records, land records for William Eaton and Charles Gilley, and tax and probate records for William Eaton and Charles Gilley. This blog article is a summary of the paper on Charles Henry Gilley in census records. Contact me if you would like copies. ↩︎
- 1850 U.S. Census, Chambers County, Alabama, population schedule, 19th District, p. 368 (stamped), dwelling 1001, family 1001, William Eaton household; digital image, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 29 January 2023); citing NARA microfilm publication M432, roll 2. ↩︎
- Esther Melander, The Four Generations of the Eaton Family in Alabama: from Gracie Cleo Eaton, John Henry Eaton, William Jasper Eaton to William Jasper Eaton, (Idaho : Discover Your Origins, 2024). The paper is held privately. Please contact the author for a copy. ↩︎
- 1860 U.S. Census, Limestone County, Alabama, population schedule, division no. 1, Shoal Ford Post Office, p. 34 (penned), dwelling 234, family 234, Susan E. M. Eaton household; digital image, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org : accessed 29 January 2023); citing NARA microfilm publication M653. ↩︎
- There is a list of the record collections searched in my research log for this project. ↩︎
- “Georgia, County Marriages, 1808-1967,” index entry for William Eaton – Susannah Galley, p. 32, cert. 128, 29 July 1833, Carroll, Georgia; digital images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org : accessed 28 July 2024); citing Georgia Department of Archives and History, Morrow. ↩︎
- 1820 U.S. Census, Habersham, Georgia, population schedule, p. 122 (stamped), line 19, Charles Gilly household; digital image, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.org : accessed 8 September 2024); citing NARA microfilm publication M33.
↩︎ - 1830 U.S. Census, Carroll County, Georgia, population schedule, Merrill, p. 224 (penned), line 12, Charles Gilley Jr. household; digital image, FamilySearch (http://familysearch.com : accessed 15 September 2024); citing NARA microfilm publication M19. Charles Gilley Sr., is on line 5 of the same page as Charles Gilley Jr. ↩︎
