The daughter of Hercules Sr. and Sallie Fuqua, whom Sarah (Dumas) Agee raised, was Mary James Agee. She married James Leake Terry on 7 November 1831, near Cheraw, Chesterfield County, SC. This is just over the SC border from the towns of Rockingham and Morven, in Anson and Richmond counties. The Terry families had lived in the area for quite a long time and were many in number, some active in the political scene.
Mary and James Terry had three sons and a daughter before pulling up stakes and making a trek south to the west coast of Florida sometime between 1840 and 1844 to try their hand at farming there. The Alafia Settlement, where they settled, was along the Alafia River (varied spellings, meaning "River of Fire" in the Seminole language because of the phosphorous content in the water), just south of Tampa.
Florida had recently declared statehood, in 1838. The Wars with the Seminoles were still in progress, led by the likes of Col. Zachary Taylor, so it seems like a rather adventuresome prospect to move there at this time. It must have been an arduous trip, as well, to this area of Florida in those years. It's possible that the Terrys came by boat, but more likely they made their way overland from the Carolinas in wagons pulled by oxen or horses along the old Indian trails, which in Florida territory were paved with oyster shells. No rail had yet been built in FL. Mary had inherited eight slaves from her father in 1822. In 1840, the Terrys still owned 8 slaves. It's not known if they were the same slaves by that time, of course, but by 1850 they owned ten, so they did have help with the move to Florida.
Shortly after 1850, the Terrys once again made a long distance move, this time directly west across the Gulf of Mexico, to Victoria, Texas. More than likely this trip was made by ship across the Gulf. Victoria is about 15 miles from the top of Matagorda Bay, north of Corpus Christi. James Terry died in 1851 in Victoria, soon after their arrival in that place, leaving Mary to farm the land and raise their children on her own. Once again, it must have taken great courage for Mary to survive in this place where a few short years before there had been fierce Comanche raids, and Mexican invasions. We will return to their life a bit later.
In the meantime, by 1850, Hercules Joseph Agee, 28, was living near the town of Morven, Anson County, North Carolina. This is only a few miles from Rockingham in Richmond County where we found "Hercles Agey" and the Dumas families 30 years before. Hercules J. Agee married Elizabeth Kate MacRae 18 June 1846. Their first child, a daughter, whom they named Cornelia Francis Agee, was born in 1848. (She was our great grandmother.) A son, Junius, was born about a year later.
The widowed Sarah Agee, resided with them as well in that year. She was 53. I imagine that with two toddlers on their hands, it was helpful to have Sarah living with the young family, but Hercules and Elizabeth did not lack help. They owned 36 slaves.
In their possession were 10 female and 5 male slaves over the age of 18. There were also 10 females ranging in age from 1 to 12, and eleven males in this age range. It was common, according to slave chronicles, for young slaves to be playmates for the owner's children, and there were plenty in this household to fill that need for Cornelia and Junius, but probably most of those slaves older than 5 yrs or so were kept busy in the fields. It would be fascinating to know what the Agees grew on their farm. Hercules is listed simply as a farmer. Possibly they grew tobacco in addition to cotton and grains, products that in those days drove the economy of the South. The Hercules Agee estate was worth $7200 in 1850.
Here is a picture of the place and time:
ANSON - A county in the S. part of North Carolina, bordering on South Carolina, has an area of 650 square miles. Rocky river forms its entire boundary on the N., and the Yadkin or Pedee on the E. It is also drained by Brown's and Lane's creeks. The surface is undulating or hilly; the soil is mostly fertile. Cotton is the staple product: Indian corn is also cultivated. In 1850 this county produced 389,828 bushels of corn; 35,796 of wheat; 95,113 of sweet potatoes, and 10,864 bales of cotton. The quantity of cotton was the greatest produced by any county in the state except Surry. It contained 26 churches and 2 newspaper establishments. There were 11 corn and flour mills, 9 saw mills, and 2 tanneries. Granite underlies a portion of the county. The forests contain the white oak and other hard timber. The Yadkin furnishes motive-power for several cotton factories in this county. It is intersected by a plank-road leading to Cheraw, South Carolina. Capital, Wadesborough. Formed in 1749, and named in honour of Admiral Anson, the famous navigator. Population, 13,489, of whom 6657 were free, and 6832 slaves.
This may be a good time to tell a bit about Hercules III’s wife, Elizabeth Kate McRae Agee. She was born 9 Nov 1826, in NC. Her father was Duncan McRae, son of Finlay Philip McRae of Scotland. Her mother was Francis L. Ledbetter, daughter of Rev. Henry Ledbetter of Brunswick, VA, and Mary Johnson. The book “Ledbetters from VA” by Roy C. Ledbetter et al mentions this family on page 50. In addition, the Richmond Estate Records include marriage information, and further estate records.
In 1850, Duncan and Francis were living in Montgomery, NC. Duncan was a tavern keeper. One can wonder if this occupation was deemed appropriate by his clerical father-in-law, who at age 80 was still living, helping to farm his son William's land in nearby Anson County. However, Duncan died in 1850 so perhaps the tavern closed not long after. Francis apparently inherited land and property from her husband and/or father, for in 1860 her personal worth was over $8600, a respectable amount in those days. She lived with grown sons and daughters. Of her eight children, these four never married. One other might not have married either but we lose track of him after 1850. Only our Elizabeth Kate, her brother George and sister Martha are known to have had families. Francis lived out her days in Montgomery County, NC, always residing with 2 or more of her unmarried children. She died in Nov. 1880 of "paralysis."
Backing up to 1860, the census tells us that Hercules and Elizabeth had left the remaining McRaes behind and moved their rather large household to Winston County, Mississippi. They had 10 fewer slaves, but their real estate was then worth $14,500 and their personal estate worth $45,000, a very substantial sum for that time. Perhaps it had to do with the sale of the property in North Carolina. In Winston, MS, they had 4 slave houses in addition to their own home.
Sarah Agee, from the census 10 years before, had probably died by this time. She would have been 63 years old in 1860, but she was not found on census here or elsewhere. There is always the possibility that she remarried and was listed under another name.
Also in 1860, Cornelia was listed as daughter “C. F. Agee,” age 12. Her brother, Junius was 10. They had three little sisters by then, Oreander, 9 years old, Mary, 7, and Sarah, 3, probably named for her grandmother.
Hercules' aunt Mary Agee Terry, in the 1860 Census, was still residing in Victoria, Texas. She was a 42 year old widow, farming with the aide of her 20 year old son, Mosely Terry. She had two young daughters still at home and the schoolmaster was living with them. Mary had real estate valued at $5500. and personal estate of $7000, so, though not wealthy, she had not been left penniless by the loss of her husband.