Our Cargile family originated in Scotland. The surname is a place name derived from the ancient lands of Cargill, lying in the present Parish of Cargill in Perthshire, Scotland.
The ancient people of Scotland were of Celtic descent. They were given the name Pict by the Romans because of their custom of painting their skin. The fierce Pictish tribes fought the Romans for many years. Because Scotland and England shared an island, the Romans built a long wall on the English-Scottish border to control the Picts and keep them out of England. In the 500's a tribe of Celts, called the Scots from northern Ireland, settled in Scotland and eventually converted the fierce Picts to Christianity.
The Scottish Clans began around the year 1000. They grew out of a similar system formed in Celtic Ireland, from whence the Scots originated. The Clan system was an effective way of government in the Scottish Highlands. These clans were organized under the rule of a chief. The chief was head of the whole family or clan in Scotland. Chieftains were heads of branches of the family name. Each Clan had its own tartan, and members of each Clan were recognized by the tartan they wore.
In the late 1200's Scotland was again invaded by the English. The Scots suffered terrible oppression and brutality at the hands of the English. This gave rise to such famous leaders as William Wallace and Robert Bruce. Wars continued with England into the 1500's. When James V of Scotland died in 1542, his one week old daughter, Mary, was proclaimed Queen of Scotland. She was sent to France to be educated and did not return to Scotland until 1561.
Before 1560, the Roman Catholic Church was the official church of Scotland. Many Scottish leaders resented the power of the church and in the late 1550's drove out many Catholic officials and soldiers. When Mary Queen of Scots returned to Scotland in 1561, Scotland was in the process of establishing a Protestant Church. In 1567, Mary was forced to give up the throne, in part because she was Catholic. She escaped to England in 1568, but was captured and imprisoned. She was executed in 1587.
Mary Queen of Scots' infant son, James VI, was made King of Scotland in 1567. He was reared as a Protestant, and the Presbyterian Church became firmly established in Scotland. James inherited the English throne and ruled both England and Scotland as James I of England.
We found many records of Cargile immigration to America in the early 1700's. Many of these early immigrants settled on the fertile farming land of Virginia.
The following material is from Cargill/Cargile/Cargal of the South and Southwest, Descendants of Cornelius Cargill of Virginia, John Cargile of Virginia & North Carolina, John Cargile of Virginia & Georgia, Andrew J. & John Cargal of South Carolina & Georgia, by Patty Barthell Myers, copyright 1995, printed by Penobscot Press, Rockport, Maine, pages 19, 23, 26, 46-47, 53, 69-70. This material is not verbatim, but paraphrased. My sincere appreciation to Patty for permitting me to use her material here.
Our 6th great grandfather, Cornelius Cargill, was born about 1680. It is unknown exactly when he immigrated to America. He first appeared in Virginia records about 1712. Cornelius was married several times, and produced children by at least two of his wives. He married our 6th great grandmother, Mrs. Mary (Lucy) Anderson, widow of Thomas Anderson, before July 8, 1712, in Virginia. Mary Lucy was the daughter of Robert Lucy and Sarah (Barker) Taylor. Mary died about 1718. Cornelius was, among other things, a planter. He received ten different land patents from King George II between 1728 and 1755, totaling over 3000 acres. Cornelius and Mary had two children: John, born about 1714, and Mary born about 1718, who married Thomas Dendy. Cornelius married several times after Mary's death. He died between June 10, 1763 and February 21, 1764, in Halifax County, Virginia.
Our 5th great grandfather, John Cargill, was born about 1714, in Surry County, Virginia, the son of Cornelius Cargill and Mrs. Mary (Lucy) Anderson. John married our 5th great grandmother, Rachel Tinsley. Rachel was the daughter of John Tinsley and Susannah Chiles. John and Rachel had at least eleven children: (1) John; (2) Clary, married William Dendy; (3) Sarah, married Tandy Walker, Jr.; (4) Cornelius, married Sarah Wilson; (5) Elizabeth, married Wettenhall Warner; (6) Thomas, married Elizabeth (last name unknown); (7) Mary, married Sherwood Allen and Wilson Woodruff; (8) Daniel; (9) Clement, married Martha (last name unknown); (10) Keziah, married John Nail and George Miller; and (11) Lucy. John moved to South Carolina after 1763. He received about 1100 acres in land grants in South Carolina. John died in 1777, in Craven County, South Carolina.
Our 4th great grandfather, John Cargill, was born about 1740, in Virginia, the eldest child of John Cargill and Rachel Tinsley. John married our 4th great grandmother, Keziah (last name unknown). John appears on the 1790 Laurens District, South Carolina census. The census shows three males over 16; one male under 16; and four females in the family. John and Keziah appear on the 1800 Laurens District census. The census shows one male over 45; one male 16-25; and one female over 45. I did not locate John or Keziah on the 1810 census. Their children included: (1) John Cargill, Jr., born 1770-1778; (2) William Cargile, born 1772-1780, married Margaret Lewis; (3) Unknown Son Cargile, born 1774-1784; (4) Sarah Cargill, married Charles Plant (they settled in AR); (5) Nancy Cargill, married William Plant; and (6) Unknown Daughter Cargile.
The following material is from our book, The History of Our Family, privately published in 1991, on the McClure, Cargile, Jones, Hess, Branham and Gloden families.
Our 3rd great grandfather, John Cargill, Jr., was born 1770-1778, the son of John Cargill and Keziah (last name unknown). John, Jr. first married (name unknown) about 1790-1792. They had three children.
We are unsure when John moved from South Carolina to Kentucky. He appears on the 1799 Christian County, Kentucky Tax List, in Livingston District 2. We believe John's first wife died between 1800 and November 1803. John, Jr. married (second) our 3rd great grandmother, Nancy Elizabeth Lewis, on November 27, 1803, in Christian County, Kentucky. Elizabeth Lewis was born about 1785, the daughter of Alexander Lewis and Elizabeth (last name unknown).
John, Jr. and Elizabeth appear on the 1810 Christian County census. The census shows one male 26-45; one male 10-16; three males under 10; one female 26-45; one female 10-16; and two females under 10. The family moved to Graves County, Kentucky prior to 1830.
About 1837, John and Elizabeth moved their family to Arkansas. John appears on the 1838 tax records of Johnson County, Arkansas, and the 1839 tax records of Searcy County, Arkansas.
John appears on the 1840 Searcy County census. The census shows John, age 60-70; one male 15-20; one female 50-60; one female 15-20; and one female 10-15. Living near John are his sons Ninion and Robert Lewis with their families. Two more sons are living in Conway County, Arkansas.
We believe John and Elizabeth both died between 1840 and 1850, as we did not find either of them on the 1850 census. Robert's wife died about 1849. It is possible they all three died about the same time.
Some of the children of John and Elizabeth Cargill spelled the name Cargile.
Children of John Cargill, Jr. and Unknown
1. Unknown Son Cargill, b. 1794-1800
2. Unknown Daughter Cargill, b. 1794-1800
3. Unknown Son Cargill, b. 1800-1803
Children of John Cargill, Jr. and Elizabeth Lewis
4. Unknown Daughter Cargill, b. abt 1804, probably d. young
5. Keziah Cargill, b. abt 1806, KY
6. Edward P. Cargile, b. abt 1808, KY
7. Nenion Elijah Cargile, b. abt 1810, KY (our line)
8. Delemore Burvel Cargile, b. 1812, KY
9. Robert Lewis Cargile, b. 1814, KY
10. Thomas H. Cargill, b. abt 1816, KY
11. Martha P. Cargile, b. abt 1820, KY
12. William W. Cargile, b. abt 1825, KY
13. Nancy Jane Cargile, b. abt 1829, KY
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