The following information was assembled from numerous sources and cannot be used directly as proof of Qualifying Service or Lineage.
It is considered a research aid and is intended to assist in locating sources that can be used as proof.
State of Service: NC
Qualifying Service: Patriotic Service
Author: Robert McDowell Hammond
William Whitson was said to have been born about 1760 in Rowan County, North Carolina in an area that subsequently became Burke County. He was the son of Capt. Thomas Whitson, so-called because of his defense of the area against Indian depredations as an officer in the local militia. William was in the Burke County militia as a captain and major. He was subsequently mentioned in numerous pension applications by veteran residents of the area. He served under his neighbors, Col. Charles McDowell and Col. Joseph McDowell. For his military service he received certificates for land, including one for property along the Duck River in Maury County, Tennessee in 1783. After the war, he was a lieutenant colonel in the Buncombe County militia. Around 1788, William married Ann McDowell, daughter of John and Ann McDowell of Burke County. They were married at her parent’s plantation, Pleasant Gardens. In September, 1790, William and his father, Thomas, signed a petition requesting that a portion of Burke County which was a significant distance from the Burke County courthouse be separated and a new county formed. The distance to the current court was such that it frequently prohibited many from the western area from attending court. Buncombe County was formed in 1791. The county seat was established in 1793 as “Morristown”. This was later renamed Ashville in 1797. Between 1804 and 1806, William began selling off his North Carolina property in preparation for a move to the Maury County, Tennessee property. He died in 1806 as his family finalized preparations for the trip. He is said to have been buried in the Swannanoa area but his grave, presently, cannot be located. The rest of his family continued with the move, relocating to the new property on the Duck River near what is now Williamsport, Maury County, Tennessee. His wife filed his will with the Maury County court and it is the first will contained in the county record books.
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Additional Information:
DAR Reference was not found
Find-a-Grave and Family Search both list William's birth as 1756, not 1760