Our Reeves Origins

William Reeves Land Grant
where Eleby Creek joins Neuse River

After 40 years of researching this Reeves family, I still haven’t found the origins of our earliest documented ancestor, William Reeves, who arrived in North Carolina’s Neuse River basin by 1746 when he received a McCulloch land grant for 400 acres. This land is now just a few miles outside of the city of Durham, North Carolina where I-85 crosses the Falls of the Neuse Lake.

As a Co-Admin of the Reeves DNA Project at Family Tree DNA, I have reached out to every new match to our DNA Group 6A in hope that someone descending from this family has new clues to its origins. Thus far, what I have learned is that the Reeves’ family of Grayson County, Virginia and Ashe County, North Carolina who descend from revolutionary soldier George Reeves are part of our Reeves’ family. When some descendants of our ancestor George Reeves who migrated to Warren County, Kentucky were found to be DNA matches to descendants of this Reeves’ family of the New River area of Virginia and North Carolina, I was completely taken by surprise. No one had ever been aware of this connection and neither had the Reeves descending from George Reeves of Grayson County.

In fact, this Reeves’ family of the New River area had been under the impression that their George was part of the family of Henry Reeves of Essex County, Virginia based upon some published misinformation in a history of that area of North Carolina. When I became aware of this possible connection, I searched all of the extant historical records for some evidence that we, and George Reeves family, could be documented descendants of Henry Reeves but that was not the case. Then in my capacity as a Co-Admin of the DNA project, I also discovered that some descendants of Henry Reeves had participated in Y-DNA testing and none of them matched our DNA Group 6A members.

Another tidbit of information found in the course of searching through scans of original documents for both families that can be found in the records online at Family Search was the way they signed their names. All of the members of these two families signed their name as REVES, not the more common version of the surname, Reeves with two E’s. It is also noteworthy that all of the male children of both William and George Reeves were literate and they all signed their name as Reves as well. Some members of the family continued with the Reves spelling of the name through additional generations.

William Reeves signature as
Executor of the Estate of Woodson Daniel c1791

1784 Signature of George Reeves, Sr.
Grayson County VA

Some years ago, online, I read a posting that referred to a letter written by one of George Reeves of Grayson’s grandsons in which he referred to his origins being in eastern North Carolina. That could serve as documentation of a connection to our William Reeves family of Wake County, so I searched all available sources for that letter. Finally, several years ago, I found that a transcription of the letter had been published in a book by a descendant of Edward Reeves of Bladen County (no relation). The passage quoted from George W. Reeves' letter contained the following:

In December, 1897* (sic) George W. Reeves of Jefferson, Ashe County, North Carolina, then almost 86 years of age, wrote: "My grandfather's name was George Reeves whose birthplace I am unable to give, but was principally raised in eastern North Carolina. He was born about the year 1704 or 1705 (sic) and came from Neuse River, N.C., to New River, Grayson County, Virginia, about the year 1725 (sic) bringing his wife with him. They had born to them seven daughters and four sons, the youngest of which was John Reeves who was my father. When my grandfather came to Virginia no others of the Reeves family came with him, but my recollection is that he left others of the Reeves family in eastern N. C. whose names I am unable to give. But well remember my father had two cousins, William Reeves and Jeremiah Reeves, who visited my father since my recollection. I also remember that my grandfather's family frequently visited their relatives in eastern N. C, and I am sure that my grandfather left brothers and sisters in that part of the state...My grandmother's maiden name was Jane Burton."

The dates as transcribed are all incorrect so apparently handwriting of the numbers was difficult to read.

I still live in hope that eventually someone will participate in the Reeves DNA Project who will provide a clue to earlier ancestry of this family. Currently none of the Reeves populations in the American colonies or the Reeves in the United Kingdom who have tested are matches to our Reeves.