Sylvester Caton
| Date | Location | Notes | Sources | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Birth | 1828 | [8] | ||
| Marriage | 4 Nov 1858 | To Louisa/Laura Jane Thomas | [5][9] | |
| Death | 1864 | [8] | ||
| Burial | Unknown Civil War battle area. Memorial stone at Thomas Family Cemetery,York Co., SC (Rt 98 off Rt160) |
[8][9][10] |
Ancestry chart segment
Generation 4 Generation 5
+-- John H. Caton
| (ca. 1792-????)
+--Sylvester Caton ------+
| (1828-1864) |
| +-- Sarah L. unknown
| (ca.1800-????)
+
|
| +-- Joseph Thomas Thomas
| | (1822-1897)
+-- Louisa Jane Thomas --+
(1840-1892) |
+-- Cynthia I. Burton
(~1817-1870)
[1][9]
Children
(children with Louisa Jane Thomas)
| Name | Gender | Date of Birth | Birthplace | Spouse | Notes | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Caton | M | ca. 1862 | expect York Co. SC | not in will of Joseph Thomas, 1897; possibly died young? | [3] | |
| Edward Caton | M | ca. 1863 | expect York Co, SC | [3][6] | ||
| Thomas Caton | M | ca. 1865 | expect York Co., SC | [3][6] |
Places of Residence
| Location | Dates | Notes | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| York Co., SC | born 1828- death 1864 | [2][8] |
Photos
Both Sylvester and Elijah Caton died in the Civil War and were buried elsewhere; their stones at Tega Cay are memorials, but do not mark their graves.
Sources
| Ref. Num. | Description | Image of original |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1850 United States Federal Census, York Co., SC. ancestry.com pg. 25. Date of census 15-16 Aug, 1850. Lines 12-15: John H. Caton age 58, farmer, $1080 real estate, born York Dist.; Sarah L. age 49, b. York Dist.; Sylvester age 21, laborer, b. York D.; Elijah age 14, b. York Dist. |
|
| 2 | Sylvanus Caton age 32, Harness maker, birthplace YD (York district) SC, Personal estate $135. Louisa J. Caton age 20, domestic, birthplace NC. | 
|
| 2B | 1860 United States Federal Census,Rock Hill, York Co. SC, p.38. Date of census 11 July 1860. Lines 18-19: Sarah Caton age 60, real estate $600, personal estate $300, born YD(York district) SC. Elijah Caton age 24, farmer, b. YD (York district) SC. |
|
| 3 | 1870 United States Federal Census, Fort Mill, York Co, SC page 36. Date of census 14 Sept., 1870(Data extracted); Joseph Thomas, age 60, white male, farmer, real estate value 620, Personal property value 380, born NC; Sintha Thomas, age 50, white female, born NC; Elizabeth Thomas, age 19, white female, born SC, can't read or write, (poorly legible, possibly marked as legible to vote). Living with the Thomas family are: Lewise Caten (sic), white female age 30, value personal property $100, born SC; John Caten(sic), white male age 8, born SC; Edwrd Caten(sic), white male age 7, born SC; Thos. Caten(sic), white male age 5, born SC. |  |
| 4 | 1880 United States Federal Census, Dist 120, Steel Creek Twp, Mecklenburg Co, NC page 6. Census dated 3/4 June 1880. Lines 1-5: Louisa Caton, age 40, widow, farming; Charles, 18; Thomas, 16; John, 19, married, carpenter; Fannie, 18, dau.-in-law, married. All (an all parents) born SC. |  |
| 4A | 1880 United States Federal Census, District 169, Fort Mill, York Co, SC, page 56. Census dated 15 June 1880. Lines 8-10: Thomas Thomason(sic)), 58, farmer; Catherine, 38, wife, keeping house; Lenore Katon (sic), 8, Niece. All born NC. The last name is unclear; appears to have been written "Thomason" and then the letters "on" crossed out. The names & location are otherwise a match to previous records/knowledge. |  |
| 5 | York County, South Carolina Marriage and Death Notices, 1823-65. for November, 1858.
On the 4th instant, by Rev. Landy Wood, Mr. Sylvester Caten, and Miss Louisa Jane, daughter of Mr. Joseph Thomas, all of this district. Taken from ancestry.com listing of marriage records, SC, York Co. | |
| 6 | Will of Joseph Thomas' names wife Catheron E. Thomas, son Andrew L. Thomas, daughter Laurer J. Caton, (see source notes) grandsons Edward Caton and Thomas Caton. A 100 acre estate with a gold mine on it borders lands of J. M (Ardrey) and (Canton), and (Thonens) Ferry Road. Signed 27 May 1889. Witnesses T. G. Culp and W. H. Kizer.
Probated 21 Sept 1897, signed by T. G. Culp. Heirs agreement to divide property, 10 Dec. 1897, signed by C. E. Thomas, A. L. Thomas, E. C. Caton, T. L. Caton, and R. D. McKees. |
(Will transcription) |
| 7 | News article re. Thomas family cemetery - News article from unknown newspaper, marked "10-6-78", by Bob Glendy, News Staff Writer. At the time of writing, cemetery was over 100 years old, but out of use for over 50 years, per Gladys Thomas, great granddaughter of Joseph Thomas, and her cousin Otis Blankenship, 78. Cemetery property, near Tega Cay horse stables,is owned by Leroy McCall who bought it from Gladys Thomas' mother, and leases it to Tega Cay. Family farm stretched from the present property across the state line into North Carolina. Graves include those of Joseph Thomas, Zeb Caton, other Thomas, Caton, and Wilson relatives. Mack King of Charlotte requested cemetery be fenced off. |  |
| 8 | Gravestone transcriptions, Thomas family cemetery, Tega Cay, York Co., SC, June 2007 by Elizabeth Wilson Williams. Cemetery coordinates N 35, 03.234' W81, 00.412'. This small cemetery lies near the corner of Rt. 160 and Gold Hill Rd. in Tega Cay. It appears to hold 8 or 9 graves. In June 2007 there are 5 complete stones, 2 broken stones, a field stone & flag apparently marking a grave, and another smaller field stone. The use of flags was unusual: American flags marked the graves of Louisa Thomas Caton, Cynthia Burton Thomas, and the larger field stone; Cynthia Burton Thomas' stone also bore a Confederate flag. The two military stones of the Catons did not have flags. Per Murphy Whisnant, these stones are memorials to Elijah and Sylvester Caton, who died in the Civil War and were buried elsewhere. Row 1,L to R (east to west): *(name illegible, partially missing), "Died Oct 25, 1855 aged 2 yrs 2 mos 2 da" *"Joseph Thomas born June 19, 1822, died May 14, 1897. If a man dies shall he live again." *"Synthia Thomas died Oct 22, 1870 Aged 53 yrs" *"Pvt Sylvester Caton, Co. B, 53 NC REGT CSA 1828 1864" *"Louiser J. wife of Sylvester Caton, Nov 16, 1840 - Jan 19, 1892. Gone but not Forgotten" *"Carrie S. Daughter of Mr & Mrs E. G. Caton Oct 1, 1886 - Aug 20, 1904" Below the first row were the two field stones and: *"Pvt Elijah Caton, CO B 53 NC REGT, CSA, 1836-1865" |
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| 9 | Research of Murphy & Robbie King Whisnant, correspondence & interviews of Murphy Whisnant by E. W. Williams, 1990-ongoing. | |
| 10 | Visit to the home sites of Joseph Thomas & Andrew L. Thomas families, the Tega Cay Cemetery and Flint Hill Cemetery by Murphy Whisnant, Nancy Williams Durham, E. Brady Williams, Jr. and Elizabeth Wilson Williams, June 2007. |
Source notes
- The will of Joseph Thomas: wording makes it almost certain that "Laurer J. Caton" is the same person as "Louisa Jane Caton", mother of Joseph's grandsons Edward and Thomas Caton. Laurer is to receive her support during her lifetime (if remaining unmarried) from the portion willed to Edward & Thomas.
Interestingly, both names are seen variously in the records as Louisa/Louiser and Laura/Laurer, a consequence of pronunciation.
Conjecture
From the gravestones at Thomas Cemetery, Tega Cay, SC:
- The 2 yr. old child who died in 1855 is assumed to be a Thomas child because of the stone's location next to those of Joseph and Cynthia Thomas. The youngest of the known Thomas children was born in 1851, so a birth in 1855 to the same mother is reasonable. The oldest Thomas daughter, Louisa Jane Thomas Caton, would only have been 15 in 1855, so it is probably not her child.
- Besides the Thomas family, the other identifiable graves are:
- Sylvester Caton, husband of Louisa J. Thomas.
- Elijah Caton who died in 1865, probably in the war. The stones of Sylvester & Elijah Caton are memorials; they are understood to have been buried near some Civil War battlefield.
- Carrie S., "daughter of Mr & Mrs E.C. Caton". She reported her birth year (1900 census) as 1868, not the 1866 inscribed on her gravestone. Born in NC, as were her parents, she married (apparently a cousin) Thomas L. Caton and they lived in Charlotte, NC. Their first son was named Sylvester, named for the family's first CSA casualty Sylvester Caton (d. 1864) per family tradition.
- The fieldstone-marked grave could belong to Lois Ann Thomas (b. 1841); or it could belong to Thomas L. Caton (b. 1866), husband of Carrie S. Caton. Also possibly E. C. Caton (father of Carrie S. Caton b. 1868) ; or to John H. Caton, father of Sylvester & Elijah Caton. Or to a Zeb (Zebulon?) Caton mentioned in the news article about the cemetery. Flags seem to have been dispersed indiscriminately, so do not necessarily indicate a veteran's grave (per source 12).
Sylvester & Elijah Caton were brothers, sons of John H. and Sarah L. Caton (1850 census). It is suggested they possibly married Thomas sisters, though we find no record of this. In 1860, Elijah, age 24, was living with his apparently widowed mother, 60 yr. old Sarah Caton. Elijah died five years later, 1865. Many men did marry on their way off to war, but Elijah's dates elude a census record; a church record or death record is needed to indicate any marriage.
Sylvester Caton, as the husband of Louise Jane Thomas from family sources, has been listed on this page as named "John" Sylvester Caton. We have found as yet no primary or secondary source listing Sylvester Caton as John Sylvester Caton, so expect this name is correct, from family knowledge or tradition. Our page for him is named simply Sylvester Caton, with this acknowledgement.
1900 Us Census Charlotte NC, Enum. Dist. 46, p. 7. Date of census 7 June 1900.
lines 54-59: Thomas L. Caton, b. Jan. 1866, age 34, Married 13 yrs. he & both parent born in South Carolina; Foreman house carpenters;own mortgaged house.
Carrie S., wife, born Sept 1868, age 32, married 13 yr., 4 children born, 4 living in 1900; she & parents born North Carolina.<nr>Sylvester, son, born 1887 in NC, age 12.
Earl, son, b. Jan 1889 in NC, age 11.
Floss, daughter, born Sept. 1893 in NC, age 6.
May, daughter, b. Aug. 1897 in NC.
All children: father born SC, mother born NC.
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Research
The material in this section is for research leads only. We do not wish to imply any connection to our family at present, nor suggest its use without additional confirmation.
