The beautiful mountains of Western North Carolina
became home to many, many Tiptons from the late eighteenth century on. By 1798, Major Jonathan Tipton (1750-1833) had moved from the Watauga Settlements to these mountains. Until Tennessee statehood in 1796, the Settlements had been part of North Carolina.
North Carolina was one of the original 13 colonies of the United States and became a State in 1789. Tennessee was formed from the western part of North Carolina beginning in the Blue Ridge Mountains and running west to the Mississippi River.
At the time of Major Jonathan’s move south, most of what is today western North Carolina was within the one county of Buncombe formed in 1791. It is often stated that Jonathan lived in
Buncombe County, North Carolina. The county stretched from Tennessee to South Carolina.
So, our Tipton kin were first living in Buncombe County, North Carolina but not far from the newly established state line between Tennessee and North Carolina. If you consult today’s map, you will find it is only 22 miles as the crow flies from Elizabethton, Tennessee to Tipton Hill, North Carolina. Major Jonathan Tipton is considered the first Tipton to move to these mountains and he is honored as the founder of Tipton Hill.
As time passed, portions of Buncombe County became parts of newly formed counties. In 1833, Yancey County was organized followed by Madison County in 1851 and Mitchell County in 1861. This sequence of events is very important to consider in quests to find our Tipton ancestors. Because of the progression of the same geographical location being in different North Carolina counties, it must be sorted and recognized as the researcher quests to find their Tipton ancestors in western North Carolina. As an example, there are erroneous online statements that Major Jonathan Tipton lived in Asheville, North Carolina which is not true. This statement reflects lack of understanding of the progression of the formation of counties. It is probably an assumption made as he lived in Buncombe County and Asheville is the county seat.
One of the best, most interesting landmarks to the Tiptons who settled the area is the General Store in Tipton Hill, North Carolina that is still in operation and managed by a Tipton descendant.
Pictured below is Jerry Griffith.
Jerry manages the Store for his family which still owns the Store. The Tiptons and Griffiths were related by marriage when Frank Griffith opened the store in partnership with his brother-in-law Ferrell Tipton. Frank and Ferrell were married to sisters Faye Griffith and Blanche Tipton.
Illustrating what causes confusion regarding the counties in North Carolina and their being the home for numerous Tiptons and Tipton relatives, the General Store is in Yancey County but less than one mile from the border with Mitchell County.
Meeting in Maryville, Tennessee
The Tipton Family Association of America will hold its 2018 meeting in Maryville on 6th October. As has become TFAA tradition, Columbus Day weekend is the time period We Tiptons gather affording a three day weekend for those travelling to the meeting. The TFAA visit to Tipton, England is taking place on September 21st, 22nd and 23rd so the events of that visit will, no doubt, be reported and celebrated. Details of the meeting will be in subsequent newsletters.
Please Make it Known to TFAA President John Parrish that you are planning to meet We Tiptons and Our Kin in Tipton, England in September!
The Tipton Library and The Friends of the Tipton Library will be our hosts while we visit. Plans are for We Tiptons to gather at the Tipton Library on Friday, September 21st. During our stay, we will attend the annual Canal Festival in Tipton and visit the local Black Country Museum. The museum is a living history museum presenting past village life with re-enactors, guides and exhibits housed in the Museum’s Visitors Center.
Tipton is very accessible. It is 20 minutes by train from Birmingham, England. The Tipton Library is a 15 minute walk from the Tipton train station. The next newsletter will include the visit schedule and information about over-night accommodations in Tipton.
Pictured above is a street scene in the Black Country Museum
The Tipton Family Research Facebook Page is Popular and Useful. Charlotte Dade is its Designer and Administrator. She writes
“In December 2017 the Tipton Family Research Facebook Group was created at the request of the Tipton Family Association of America at its meeting in October 2017. The purpose of the closed/private group is to bring together those who descend from Jonathan Tipton (c1659-1757) and Sarah Pearce (c1670-c1705) so that they can share information and help others who are working on their Tipton lineages.
One of the major features of the group is a descendants’ list which provides the direct line from Jonathan Tipton and Sarah Pearce or from the earliest known Tipton ancestor to each member. In addition, the research group is pleased to have some individuals whose Tipton ancestors never came to the Colonies. Members of the group are encouraged to ask questions, share information, and help each other. Those who may be interested in joining this group must have an account with Facebook. They should search for the name, Tipton Family Research Group, ask to join, and provide the name of their earliest known Tipton ancestor who is a descendant of Jonathan Tipton (c1659-1757).”
New book publications connected to We Tipton and Our Kin
Sir and Miss Annie by Alice Tipton LaFleur; Copyright 2017, Lake Oglethorpe Press
“The unlikely account of how Ann Livingston Little and James Baird Tipton became a duo is one worth telling. I researched and wrote this book first and foremost as a legacy to my children, but also as a resource for Tipton and Little genealogists and readers interested in detailed personal histories from the European front in World War 2.”
Alice Tipton LaFleur, author and daughter of James Baird Tipton and Ann Livingston Little.
Alice’s book is available on Amazon.
Butterfield Station, a novel by Reba Rhyne aka Reba Carolyn Rhyne Meiller, Copyright 2018, EA Books Publishing.
“The book is historically correct with a romance mixed in. I’ve used the Tipton name for the main characters.” Reba Rhyne
The book is set in the time period 1858-9 just before the Civil War, after the Gold Rush to California, before the Pony Express, at the beginning of the Cattle Trails from Texas, after the Trail of Tears, and at the start of the massive amount of wagon trains crossing the prairie.
Butterfield Station is POD for $ 14.95 on Amazon plus shipping and taxes or from the author for $ 16.00 shipped by contacting Carolyn Meiller, 6634 Lanier Road, Maryville, Tn. 37801.
Both Alice and Carolyn are TFAA members. Congratulations to our Tipton cousin authors.
Also, Tipton, a novel by Hilary Holladay was published in 2014 by Knox Robinson Publishing, London and New York.
The novel’s beginning is set in the Tipton Home, an orphanage in rural Oklahoma, during the years leading up to World War II.
For Sale through the Tipton Book Library
A copy of the rare book We Tipton and Our Kin by Ervin Charles Tipton published with 1,564 pages of Tipton family genealogy and history under copyright 1975, San Rafael, California.
A TFAA member is offering the book for sale through the Association.
The book is hereby put out at auction for purchase.
Email your bid to the TFAA at firstname.lastname@example.org. Each bid with the dollar amount offered should be accompanied by an email address where the bidder can be reached, the bidder’s name and address to ship to. Auction details will follow. You will be notified if you submit the winning bid The TFAA newsletter editor is aware of two WTOK books to have sold in the past decade or so. Both those purchases were for $ 250.00. It is envisioned that consummation of this sale will need to include the cost of packaging and mailing the book to the buyer.
The book is in complete condition and has a red cover. The front and back cover are in very good condition however the binding is partially separated from the binding of the pages. This is not a serious flaw and in no way diminishes reading the book or use of information in the book.
Acceptance of an offer and/or the time limit to receive offers is entirely in the hands of the seller. Bidders will be communicated with by TFAA newsletter editor John Parrish on behalf of the seller. By submitting a bid, you agree to these terms. If you have questions, email them to email@example.com
The embroidered Tipton family crest shown in the pictures above is available to all if you
wish to have something embroidered. The set up fee has been paid so your cost would be the
article you have embroidered and the charges from:
Doe Valley Printing, 1282 Riverview Drive, Elizabethton, Tennessee 37643. You can place orders by mail or contact Anita Remme at firstname.lastname@example.org or call (423) 542-4616
Please share this newsletter with everyone you know that could be interested in our family’s history and association. If you are receiving this newsletter by snail mail, please let me know your email address so you can get the newsletter electronically and in color. My email is email@example.com.
Previous newsletters are archived on the TFAA website.
The TFAA and President thank the many TFAA members and friends who support our Association financially. That support makes our family’s association prosper and achieve its goal to preserve Tipton family history in the present!
Please support the Tipton Family Association by making your membership donation to the Tipton Family Association of America on the TFAA website: www.tiptonfamilyassociationofamerica.com
Many Thanks to All Who Make Their Membership Donations to
The Tipton Family Association of America
Tipton Family Membership donations make the TFAA able to accomplish the goals of the membership. In recent years, the TFAA has re-established meetings and newsletters, made the book We Tipton and Our Kin available on CD, provided a plaque in honor of William “Fightin’ Billy” Tipton in Savannah, assisted research in the Shenandoah Valley of Virginia on the farmland of Colonel John Tipton and the successful quest to find the burial place of Major Jonathan Tipton. With your financial support, we can continue to succeed and do more!