Joshua “Old Jock” Perkins

Not the same as Joshua Perkins, of Rutherford County

Joshua "Old Jock" Perkins

• Born 1732 in Accomack County, Virginia
• Died 10 Apr 1801 in Carter County, Tennessee
• Son of [father unknown] and Esther Perkins
• Husband 1) Mary in 1753 2) Mary “Polly” Black in 1793
• Father of 6: George Perkins, Jacob Perkins, Isaac Perkins, Joshua Perkins, Lewis Perkins, Mary “Polly” Perkins

Marriage

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Perkins-5538

Per deposition testimony from Anna Graves, Old Jock's granddaughter, in Perkins v White trial (1858 Tennessee), Mary Polly Black married Old Jock in 1793, in which case she could not have been the mother of his children. Joshua first wife was also named Mary and she is discussed in the Perkins v White trial notes at https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Space:J.F._Perkins_vs._J.R.... Per TAR Nelson's appeal points from that trial, Mary Polly Black was still alive in 1858 when she submitted an affidavit for use in the trial (the judge did not allow the affidavit into evidence). Estimating she was about 20 years old when she married, Mary Polly Black was born about 1773 and would have been 85 in 1858. [3]

Children

According to the 1858 Perkins v White trial, Joshua Old Jock Perkins had 5 sons: George, Isaac, Jacob, Joshua, and Lewis. Using Y-700 DNA tests, we have connected sons George, Jacob, Isaac, Joshua, and Lewis to haplogroup E-FT375579 or its subclade E-FT376097. Y-700 test results suggest Joshua's father was likely a descendant of Emanuel Driggers.

Children of Mary (unknown) & Joshua Perkins:

1. George Perkins Born 22 Mar 1754 in Craven, South Carolina. Husband of Keziah (Manning)
2. Isaac Perkins Born about 1756. Husband of Hannah (Sweat)
3. Jacob Perkins Born about 1758 in Bladen County, North Carolina. Husband of Nancy Ann (Graves)
4. Joshua Perkins Born Nov 1759 in Little Pee Dee, Marion County, South Carolina. Husband of Mary Mixon
5. Lewis Perkins Born about 1762 in South Carolina. Husband of Elizabeth (Unknown)
6. Mary "Polly" Perkins. Born about 1764

Origins

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Perkins-5538

Many assume Joshua's mother Esther was a white woman indentured to Thomas Blair and say she had children with an African slave. See e.g. https://www.theroot.com/tracing-your-roots-untangle-my-redbone-heri... The assumption about Esther's race may be inaccurate.

The following information would support the conclusion that Esther Perkins was mulatto vs white: A chancery court pleading in 1754 Accomack County case West v Gilchrist regarding the estate of James Gibson, the man to whom the Perkins children were indentured includes the following mention: “Joshua a youth of about eighteen or nineteen years of age, George his brother about two years younger and Keziah a sister also a servant about two years younger than George, children of Esther Perkins a free mulatto and who were bound to the said James [Gibson] by order of Accomack County Court.” The full pleading/case file is here:

https://www.lva.virginia.gov/chancery/case_detail.asp?CFN=001-1754-001

Notes:

The summary of testimony from the first four witnesses in Perkins v White, from the trial notes - for testimony of remaining witnesses, click on link at https://www.wikitree.com/index.php?title=Space:J.F._Perkins_vs._J.R...

No. 11 Catherine Roller age 80.
P.2 - Know the Perkins slightly. Old man was called Jock, large, tall, mixed blooded and not white. His wife fair skinned and named Mary. I knew Isaac, Lewis & Polly three of their children. I knew them at 12 years old. They had the same privileges as other folks. He looked half white.

David R. Kinnick, aged 77.
Has known the Perkins family 49 years. Knew Johnson Hampton, William Lindsay & Jacob Perkins on Rone's Creek. I taught school at Perkins school house. Johnson Hampton said they were Portuguese and he has seen Jacob's father and his mother, a Scotch woman. Jacob's color and features described. A little darker than Joshua. Jacob and his family associated white peoples, clerked at elections and voted and had all privileges. I lived in 2 1/2 miles. Never heard them called anything else than Portuguese. Cross examined. Never saw them called Negroes.

No. 2. Sarah Kinnick p. 3 aged 75
Knew them in Carter 40 years ago. The people there said they were of the Portuguese. Johnson Hampton said so. Jacob's hair straight. His color darker than Joshua. Hair combed. Knew Lydia. Some of them had light hair. I saw the relationship of the Perkins. Always called Portuguese. X exam. Never heard them called mulattoes or Portuguese. Names of brothers and sisters.

No. 5. Thomas Cook aged 75.
I knew old Joshua Perkins. He was a dark skinned man, darker than Joshua. Tall and spare. He resembled an Indian more than a negro. Was generally called a Portuguese Living well. Knew him well on Roane's Creek. Never saw him eating. Kept company with everybody. Kept race horses and John Watson rode them. I knew Jacob Perkins father of Joshua. He lived on Perkins mill creek. John Wilson lived in Crab orchard. X exam. Saw him at my fathers and at races. The first Indian I ever saw was at Thomas X. Roads[?]. I do not know the difference between an Indian and a Portuguese. Did not see old Joshua associate with white people. It was the general report amongst the people that old Joshua was a Portuguese. I never heard him or Jacob Perkins or any of them called negroes. Did not mean to say Portuguese and negroes were the same and misunderstood the questions.

References

• Descendants of Joshua Old Jock Perkins who have Y-DNA tested, please join the FTDNA “Driggers Y-DNA Project - Descendants of Emanuel Driggers and Joshua Old Jock Perkins”: https://www.familytreedna.com/groups/driggers/about The project includes descendants of Joshua Old Jock Perkins 1732-1801 because they are linked to the Driggers family by Y-DNA. Y-700 DNA testing on descendants of all 5 of Joshua Old Jock Perkins sons (George, Isaac, Jacob, Joshua, and Lewis) has been done. They all share haplogroup E-FT375579 or a sybckade if E-FT375579.
• Constantino, Laurie, "Big Y-700 DNA Testing Breaks Down Brick Walls in Family with African Ancestry," 27 Feb 2023 https://blog.familytreedna.com/big-y-breaks-down-brick-walls-africa...
• Constantino, Laurie (transcriber), "J.F. Perkins vs. J.R. White Trial Notes" https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:J.F._Perkins_vs._J.R._White_Tri...
• Heinegg, Paul, Free African Americans of Maryland and Delaware and Free African Americans of North Carolina, Virginia and South Carolina at http://www.freeafricanamericans.com/Nash_Peters.htm (scroll down to Perkins section of this document)
• https://www.theroot.com/tracing-your-roots-untangle-my-redbone-heri...
• West v Gilchrist in Accomack Chancery Court: https://www.lva.virginia.gov/chancery/case_detail.asp?CFN=001-1754-001
• https://melungeonnation.wordpress.com/2016/11/02/breaking-news-desc...
• Waak, Patricia, My Bones are Red: A Spiritual Journey with a Triracial People in the Americas, https://books.google.com/books?id=no_6YhhKPc8C
• https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Perkins-5538
• http://espl-genealogy.org/milesfiles/site/p769.htm#i76887