OVERVIEW
Location: Tarboro, Edgecombe County, North Carolina
Date Constructed/ Founded: 1789
Associated Surnames: Downing, Garrison, Harrison, Powell, Whitaker
Historical Notes: Richard Harrison was born in 1768 in St. Mary’s Co., Maryland. He inherited a plantation from his father Kennelm Harrison who died in 1777, and migrated to Edgecombe Co. (with his mother and two sisters) to develop the plantation in 1789. Richard Harrison quickly established himself as one of the largest and wealthiest planters in Edgecombe County and represented Edgecombe County in the State Senate (1801-1807). Joseph “Jessup” John Willis Powell was born in Edgecombe Co., in 1817. He married Martha B. Whitaker in 1844. Soon after his marriage, he inherited the plantation from his uncle Richard Harrison in 1845 and developed it into Coolmore Plantation. By 1860 he had enslaved 106 men, women, and children at Coolmore. In 1854 something prompted Powell to organize his estate (perhaps a serious illness) in a Will; in it he assigned guardianship of his children to his friend L.H.B. Whitaker, and management of the plantation to his brother Jesse H. Powell and his friend John L. Bridges until his son Richard came of age.
Associated Pages: none
Accession: NCedge00001
ASSOCIATED ENSLAVED PERSONS
1850: Male age 55 (b.1795), Male age 55 (b.1795), Male age 55 (b.1795), Male age 55 (b.1795), Male age 55 (b.1795), Male age 55 (b.1795), Male age 45 (b.1805), Male age 45 (b.1805), Male age 45 (b.1805), Male age 45 (b.1805), Male age 45 (b.1805), Male age 45 (b.1805), Male age 45 (b.1805), Male age 45 (b.1805), Male age 45 (b.1805), Male age 45 (b.1805), Male age 35 (b.1815), Male age 35 (b.1815), Male age 35 (b.1815), Male age 35 (b.1815), Male age 35 (b.1815), Male age 35 (b.1815), Male age 35 (b.1815), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 25 (b.1825), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 15 (b.1835), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 7 (b.1843), Male age 8 (b.1842), Male age 9 (b.1841), Female age 55 (b.1795), Female age 55 (b.1795), Female age 45 (b.1805), Female age 45 (b.1805), Female age 45 (b.1805), Female age 45 (b.1805), Female age 45 (b.1805), Female age 45 (b.1805), Female age 45 (b.1805), Female age 45 (b.1805), Female age 35 (b.1815), Female age 35 (b.1815), Female age 35 (b.1815), Female age 35 (b.1815), Female age 35 (b.1815), Female age 35 (b.1815), Female age 35 (b.1815), Female age 35 (b.1815), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 25 (b.1825), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 15 (b.1835), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843), Female age 7 (b.1843) [1850 U.S. Federal Census – Slave Schedule, Edgecombe Co., NC, Richard Harrison, 167 total]
1854: Will of Joseph J.W. Powell – to Martha Powell (wife) – Mariah
1860: Group 1 – Female age 61 (b.1799), Female age 53 (b.1807), Male age 62 (b.1798), Male age 58 (b.1802), Male age 26 (b.1834), Female age 55 (b.1805), Male age 53 (b.1807), Male age 40 (b.1820), Male age 49 (b.1811), Male age 36 (b.1824), Male age 35 (b.1825), Male age 18 (b.1842), Male age 20 (b.1840), Male age 29 (b.1831), Male age 26 (b.1834), Male age 19 (b.1841); Group 2 – Female age 43 (b.1817), Female age 17 (b.1843), Female age 29 (b.1831), Female age 26 (b.1834), Female age 19 (b.1841), Female age 29 (b.1831), Female age 31 (b.1829), Female age 30 (b.1830), Female age 24 (b.1836), Female age 30 (b.1830), Male age 13 (b.1847), Female age 8 (b.1852), Male age 5 (b.1855), Female age 15 (b.1845), Male age 11 (b.1849), Male age 8 (b.1852), Female age 14 (b.1846), Male age 12 (b.1848), Male age 10 (b.1850), Male age 7 (b.1853), Female age 5 (b.1855), Male age 14 (b.1846), Male age 10 (b.1850), Male age 11 (b.1849), Female age 6 (b.1854), Male age 6 (b.1854), Male age 8 (b.1852), Female age 3 (b.1857), Male age 3 (b.1857), Female age 3 (b.1857), Female age 2 (b.1858), Female age 2 (b.1858), Male age 1 (b.1859), Female age 1 (b.1859), Female age 1 (b.1859), Male age 3/12 (b.1860); Group 3 – Female age 21 (b.1839), Female age 21 (b.1839), Male age 28 (b.1832), Male age 23 (b.1837), Male age 26 (b.1834), Male age 17 (b.1843), Male age 19 (b.1841), Male age 18 (b.1842), Male age 24 (b.1836), Male age 31 (b.1829), Male age 26 (b.1834), Male age 42 (b.1818), Female age 21 (b.1839), Female age 26 (b.1834), Female age 11 (b.1849), Female age 8 (b.1852), Male age 14 (b.1846), Male age 13 (b.1847), Male age 14 (b.1846), Male age 13 (b.1847), Female age 1 (b.1859), Male age 14 (b.1846); Group 4 – Male age 62 (b.1798), Female age 48 (b.1812), Female age 26 (b.1834), Male age 21 (b.1839), Male age 10 (b.1850), Male age 8 (b.1852), Male age 7 (b.1853), Female age 5 (b.1855), Male age 13 (b.1847), Male age 12 (b.1848), Male age 9 (b.1851); Group 5 – Male age 37 (b.1823), Female age 30 (b.1830), Male age 1 (b.1859), Female age 10 (b.1850), Male age 8 (b.1852), Male age 6 (b.1854), Male age 3 (b.1857); Group 6 – Female age 22 (b.1838), Female age 2 (b.1858), Female age 4 (b.1856); Group 7 – Female (blind) age 62 (b.1798), Female age 3 (b.1857), Male age 20 (b.1840), Female age 20 (b.1840), Male age 29 (b.1831), Female age 30 (b.1830), Male age 60 (b.1800), Male age 20 (b.1840), Male age 25 (b.1835), Male age 22 (b.1838), Male age 23 (b.1837)
[1860 U.S. Federal Census – Slave Schedule, Edgecombe Co., NC, Jo. J.W. Powell, 106 total, 25 houses]
ASSOCIATED FREE PERSONS
Harrison family (St. Mary’s Co., MD): Kennelm Harrison (b.1774-d.1837) – owner of the land that became Coolmore Plantation; Mary Ann Edelen Harrison (b.1737-d.1810) – wife (m.?) of K. Harrison
Harrison family: Richard Harrison (b.1768-d.1856) – owner of the land that became Coolmore Plantation, son of K. and M.A.E. Harrison; Martha Ann Smith Bell Harrison (b.1768-d.1833) – wife (m.1800) of R. Harrison, widow of Marmaduke Bell (d.1797); Milley Smith Bell (b.?-d.?) – dau. of M. and M.A.S. Bell; James Briscoe Harrison (b.1801-d.1826) – son of R. and M.A.S.B. Harrison; Martha Harrison (b.?-d.bef.1826) – dau. of R. and M.A.S.B. Harrison; Richard Harrison, Jr. (b.?-d.bef.1826) – son of R. and M.A.S.B. Harrison
Powell family: William “Willis” Richard Powell (b.1775-d.1811); Mary Harrison Powell (b.1774-d.1837) – wife (m.?) of W. Powell, dau. of K. and M.A.E. Harrison; Jesse H. Powell (b.?-d.?) – son of W. and M.H. Powell; Margaret Ann “Peggy” Powell (b.?-d.?) – dau. of W. and M.H. Powell
Powell family: Dr. Joseph “Jessup” John Willis Powell (b.1807-d.1861) – son of W.R. and M.H. Powell, inherited Coolmore Plantation (1845) from his uncle Richard Harrison; Martha Branch Whitaker Powell (b.1820-d.1892) – wife (m.1844) of J.J.W. Powell; Richard Harrison Powell (b.1845–d.1865) – son of J.J.W. and M.B.W. Powell; Henry Whitaker Powell (b.1845–d.1861) – son of J.J.W. and M.B.W. Powell; Joseph Clay Powell (b.1857–d.1909) – son of J.J.W. and M.B.W. Powell
Downing family: Henry Downing (b.?-d.?) – manager for J.J.W. Powell
Garrison family: James Garrison (b.1808-d.1897); Margaret Powell Garrison (b.1810-d.1854) – wife (m.?) of J. Garrison, dau. of W.R. and M.H. Powell; Elizabeth Garrison (b.1815-d.1869) – dau. of J. and M.P. Garrison; Margaret E. Garrison (b.1832-d.?) – dau. of J. and M.P. Garrison; John Henry Garrison, Jr. (b.1834-d.1913) – son of J. and M.P. Garrison; Robert Eli Garrison (b.1815-d.?) – son of J. and M.P. Garrison; Cynthia Louisa Garrison (b.1840-d.1910) – dau. of J. and M.P. Garrison; Sidney Solomon Garrison (b.1842-d.?) – son of J. and M.P. Garrison
HISTORICAL RECORDS AND DATA
- 1860 U.S. Federal Census, Edgecombe Co., NC, USA (Ancestry.com) – Jo. J.W. Powell, farmer, household 1288 (p.148 or 264)
- Dr Joseph John Willis Powell, memorial ID 22804410 (Find a Grave)
- Richard Harrison, memorial ID 69428307 (Find a Grave)
- Marriage: Joseph J.W. Powell and Martha B. Whitaker (Ancestry.com) – 1844, Halifax Co., NC
- 1854 Will of Joseph J.W. Powell (Ancestry.com) – Halifax Co., North Carolina; Martha Powell (wife), Jesse H. Powell (brother), Richard Powell (son), Henry Powell (son)
REFERENCES AND DATA SOURCES
- Ancestry.com. 1860 United States Federal Census [database on-line]. http://ancestry.com. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2009. (Year: 1860; Census Place: Edgecombe, North Carolina; Page: 264; Family History Library Film: 803896)
- Ancestry.com. North Carolina, U.S., Wills and Probate Records, 1665-1998 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2015.
- Ancestry.com. 1850 U.S. Federal Census – Slave Schedules [database on-line]. http://ancestry.com. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2004. (United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Seventh Census of the United States, 1850. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1850. M432, 1,009 rolls)
- Ancestry.com. 1860 U.S. Federal Census – Slave Schedules [database on-line]. http://ancestry.com. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., 2010. (United States of America, Bureau of the Census. Eighth Census of the United States, 1860. Washington, D.C.: National Archives and Records Administration, 1860. M653, 1,438 rolls)
- Geni. Willis Richard Powell [database online]. https://www.geni.com/people/Willis-Powell/6000000111905063923.
- Find a Grave. [database online]. http://findagrave.com.
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