Those Who Came Before Us
This is a humble effort to chronicle the ancestry of George Samuel Reid and LaVon Holt. The stories and references you will find herein span well over 300 years of history, from our early American immigrant ancestors to the lives of a great patriarch and matriarch.
Most of the writings are compilations from the exhaustive research of C. Richard Reid, Douglas Reid, Paul and Colleen Reid, Robyn Reid Dickson, and Stan and Patti Reid, as well as many others who have helped along the way. It is not a complete index to their findings, but rather, an extraction from those materials which help to document the family heritage. Inasmuch as it is not a complete account, these writings will be revised frequently to reflect current findings and present new perspectives.
Tracing the ancestry of George Samuel Reid and LaVon Holt began in earnest over 40 years ago. Initially the pursuit of C. Richard Reid (Uncle Dick), it has since become the combined effort of many family members who share in their great love of George and LaVon and desire to know more about their Reid family heritage.
Over the years, many have given selflessly of their time and talent, but we would be remiss if we did not acknowledge the special contribution to this work of a few of its most devoted. Uncle Dick dedicated much of his life to the research. His son Douglas spent hundreds of hours while living in Georgia, searching court houses and other local public record sources. Colleen Bennett Reid and her daughter Robyn Reid Dickson have spent the past 20 years sifting through countless books and films at the Family History library in pursuit of our past. Robyn, in particular, has a unique gift for the work, combining her special connection to our ancestors with unwavering determination and a penchant for detail. The majority of the references you will find herein are credited to her work.
In addition to those mentioned, many others have now engaged. In all, it’s hard to imagine greater devotion to a cause. We are very grateful to all who have, or yet will, contribute to this noble labor of love.
As grateful as we are for all that has been done, we realized that most of the records that have been collected in the research process were being stored in dusty boxes and seldom-accessed files. Hence, the genesis of this blog. This site has been created to share what we know of our ancestry with family, friends, and anyone else who may be interested.
This site is organized in two major sections: Ancestral Lines, and Research Files. The Ancestral Lines are organized by surname and contain detailed information about our Reid and other ancestors organized by heads of families. The Research Files are a collection of records gathered during the research process about people and locations that the Reids were associated with.
Here are a few tips for navigating the site:
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LOOKING FOR ANCESTORS? Follow the links in the sidebar under the category ANCESTORS.
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NOT SURE WHO BELONGS TO WHOM? The links near the bottom of the sidebar under the category FAMILY TREES provide access to family trees for ancestors by surname.
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LOOKING FOR RESEARCH FILES? Follow the links in the sidebar under the category RESEARCH FILES. You’ll find that those files are organized into two sub-categories: STATES and SURNAMES.
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LOOKING FOR RECENT POSTS? Check the RECENT NEWS page for updates on current research strategy, progress and other family news.
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STILL CAN’T FIND WHAT YOU’RE LOOKING FOR? Try the SEARCH utility. It’s a powerful tool to locate any person, place, or date containted in the site.
We have chosen a blog format to present this information for several reasons, not the least of which is that the research process is iterative and collaborative. There is much more to post here than there is time to do so in any one sitting. For that reason we hope you will check back often to see what has been added. We also hope that as you read this information you will be inspired to contribute any knowledge or feelings you might have about the people and areas to which this site is dedicated.
We welcome you, and hope you will find it informative and useful. We look forward to your comments.
This is awesome!
Thank you so much for doing this. What a great resource for us all.
Thank you to everyone who has gathered this information and worked so hard for so many years! Grandpa and Grandma are very happy, I am sure, of the fine examples of love and service you have all set. I have always wanted to know more but with a young family it is hard to get involved. My children are going to love this!! I have already been able to share a few stories. They love hearing about their great-grandparents. I know this will help others as well. Thank you again!
I have spent the evening browsing through the web site – blog and it is excellent. Since I was born in West Point, Georgia and grew up as a “lint head” in Lanett, Alabama, I especially enjoyed reading the history and other information you have included about Chambers County, Alabama and Troup County, Georgia.
Many of the Reid, Reed, et al names you have from Georgia have been in my dusty old files for years, so I really enjoyed finding our what became of Bailey Reed and finding out about some of the others.
You have a lot of data similar to Russell Reid. Are your, George Samuel Reid, and Russell Reid related?
Your thoughts appreciated.
Marilyn Dziama, a Reed Descendant
Check out – The Bennett Family of Sussex County, Delaware 1680 – 1860, J. Bennett Hill, Milford Chronicle Publishing Co., Milford Delaware
If you havn’t already, lots of Bennett, and Warren information.
I am so glad to find your site. How wonderful! I am the g-g-g granddaughter
of James Madison Read (b.1793 Greene Co GA, d. 1859 Newton Co GA,
bur. Salem Meth. Ch., Covington GA). We know his father was Zachariah
Read/Reid, d. Putnam Co GA 1824, that Zachariah married Polly Lawrence on 1/14/1790 in Greene Co. According to research done by Josie Reid (Mrs.
Harvey J. of Atlanta) back in the 1990’s, she thought Zachariah had
at least 2 brothers, Thomas (married Meddy Ward in 1808 in Putnam Co),
died 1833, Putnam Co., and maybe Samuel Reid (d. 1836 Oglethorpe Co-
about 70 years old) who married Margaret Parks (d. 1837 Oglethorpe Co. GA). There possibly were 3 other brothers. We have been UNABLE TO
LINK ZACHARIAH TO A GEORGIA, VIRGINIA OR NORTH CAROLINA
father with any certainty. If you have any information on James Madison
(who also had a brother, Zachariah L. Read/Reid, b 1801 Greene Co GA,
died 1884, Troup Co GA) Read, PLEASE CONTACT ME. Thank you.
Eleanor Kennnedy, kennedy209@comcast.net.
I’ve done some extensive research on the Holt line and found that William John Holt’s father, John Holt, was the son of John Holt born in 1754 to James Holt and Ann Blakeley, not Edward Holt and Molly Blezzard. If you would like a copy of the information that I have notify me by email and I will send you the new pedigree with sources and explainations.
This is so wonderful I cried my family, I’m so proud.
We have been reading several of these beautiful accounts together with some of our kids, thanks to Chad, Robyn, Aunt Colleen and Uncle Paul, Uncle Stan, and many of you who have contributed! Our kids love this and we all look at it often, I am finding myself getting addicted to family history, we love this family!
We have kids living in Georgia, need to take a long trip there:)
Kind words Kathy, and as you know there are so many more who have contributed greatly, including your father and Douglas who have blazed so many trails and continue to influence the work.