Clement Clem Johnson Jennings 1770 – 1837
Son of Robert Robin [B. or Garland] Jennings 1726 – 1794 & Rachel Allen Patterson 1728 – 1798
Research continues to validate birth and death dates, as well as Robert’s middle name.
Clement Johnson Jennings was probably born in 177o, rather than 1768 or 1769 as some genealogy profiles and family trees indicate. He was one of twelve or thirteen children, if Moody was not a cousin. His siblings arrived at rather regular intervals; about one every two years between 1755 and 1774. A 1770 birth seems logical because it fits properly into a fairly consistent pattern with the birth years for his siblings. Clem and all of his siblings were born in Prince Edward County, Virginia. His brothers, Allen, Robert Bob, David Davey, Elkanah, and Moody Jennings [possibly a cousin] are also each listed on the Prince Edward County property tax roll for 1792. Moody appears on the list below.
1792 Prince Edward County, Virginia Tax Roll
The Family
Wife 1: Ann Wimbish Cook 1776 – 1812
Ann married Clem on 27 January 1797 in Prince Edward County, Virginia.
Children by Ann Wimbish Cook:
1) Mary Polly 1798 – 1862
2) Jesse, 15 September 1802 – 1873
3) Stephen 1804 – 1838
4) Anderson Morton 1806 – 1868
5) Nancy Ann 1807 –1891
6) Sarah 1808 – 1859
7) Rachael 1810 – 1831
At the time of Ann’s death in August 1812, there were seven children in the household. They ranged in age from 2 to 14 years. There were three boys and four girls.
Clem remarried. He and Elizabeth Bennett married on the 26th of May in 1813. A marriage bond was registered with the Clerk in Wilson County, although the wedding took place in Sumner County. Elizabeth had seven additional children. So altogether, there were a total of thirteen.
Wife 2: Elizabeth Sitty Bennett 1782 – 1880
Elizabeth married Clem Jennings on May 26, 1813, in Sumner County, Tennessee. A marriage bond was recorded in Wilson County for Clem Jennings for $1,250, with Benjamin Estes serving as the guarantor. Three neighbors, Mr. Estes, a horse trader, Mr. Joshua Tipton, a blacksmith, and Mr. Whitson, endorsed the bond. James Vinson and William McElurath witnessed the marriage certificate.
Children by Elizabeth Bennett:
8) William Bennett 1814 – 1881
9) Catherine (Hitch) 1815 – Unknown
10) Malinda 1814 – Before 1847
11) Julia Ann 1817 – 1885
12) Clement Clem Anderson 1821 - 1852
13) Robert Bob 1823- 1824
The area where Clement Johnson Jennings and many of his relatives settled was first recorded in Sumner County, North Carolina, with Warrant number 783, dated February 4, 1786, under Grant number 410, dated June 27, 1793.
Probably, not long after his mother died in 1798, Clement Johnson Jennings and his first wife arrived in Nashville, Tennessee. They traveled from Prince Edward County, Virginia, with their first child and later settled in the northwestern portion of what became Wilson County. Like many of the first pioneers in Tennessee, Clement Johnson Jennings purchased land from early speculators, veterans of the Revolutionary War who’d previously obtained large land grants in the North Carolina Territory. Clem made multiple purchases during the next few decades and resold portions of them during his lifetime.
Note: Goodspeed’s History of Wilson County, Tennessee mentions Clement Jennings with other early settlers on [Big] Cedar Lick Creek.
Early settlers, Robert Taylor, Samuel Elliott, and William Wilson, owned significant acreage in northwest Wilson County. In addition to Clem, Robert Taylor also sold land to several of Clement’s relatives, including his brother-in-law Reverend Elliott Pitts, his wife’s brother, William Bennett, and his daughter-in-law’s family - the Bretts [Frequently misidentified as Britt].
Note: Click the Clement Anderson Jennings button above for a detailed explanation and additional information on how all of this came about. Click the Brett Family button there for still more information about interrelationships and land transactions between neighbors and kin.
Clem’s Land Holdings in Wilson County, Tennessee
Initially, Clement Johnson Jennings and his brother Richard jointly purchased two hundred acres on Big Cedar Lick Creek from Michael C. Sweetman, of Davidson County, on the 24th of December in 1799. This farmland is adjacent to the river in the northwest corner of Wilson County. The property was bounded by Nonaville Road and the Cumberland River, downstream from where Big Cedar Lick Creek flows into the river. 1804 tax records show both Clem and his brother Richard living in Captain Crawley’s tax administration district.
Clem and Ann built their original home on top of a steep bluff overlooking the floodplain. This plot of land came to be known as the Lower Plantation. Their original house was situated north of their eventual second homestead, known as the Upper Plantation. There were no springs on the high ground, so water had to be hauled uphill from the river. For this reason, the brothers sold that property to William Crabtree 12 December 1807. He and Ann purchased 100 acres from William Sexton which was originally part of the Gleaves Land Grant in Davidson County, issued 27 July 1875.
Sexton and his brothers, Samuel, William, and Benjamin, jointly had also purchased an adjacent 100 acres from Cornelius Joiner on 26 September 1808. Joiner had previously purchased parts of that acreage from William Arrington and Themopolis Banks. Boundaries run from Little Cedar Lick Creek, on the old buffalo trail, going west to Drake's Lick. acreage along Big Cedar Lick Creek, which flowed north into the Cumberland River. There is no information available about where Richard and his wife may have lived. But it is reasonable to assume they departed with the proceeds from selling the original farm and relocated further west of Nashville.
Clem's family moved closer to Big Cedar Lick Creek, where he also had better bottom land and several good springs, with small branches and substantial stands of timber. This was a much better home site. Also there was plenty of room to expand, because neighbors were willing to sell some or all of their adjacent farm land.
Their original home was probably a double-crib log structure with a 'dog run' in the center. This type of log cabin was a fairly common design for early pioneer families. The original structure survived for nearly one and a half centuries. It was recognised as a historic landmark by the local community. However, it burned down in the 1960s. It is thought that a squatter may have caused the fire by secretly making moonshine there.
Additional land purchases were based around what had been a 640-acre Revolutionary War Veteran Land Grant to Charles Arrington in 1873. Arrington's property was located on Big Cedar Lick Creek, which was still in Sumner County, Tennessee at the time. The Arringtons lived just across the northern Tennessee border in southern Kentucky.
Note: After Charles Arrington died, his son William sold land to Theopolis Bass in 1801. Mr. Bass built a water powered mill,
on the creek, near the center of the property. Eventually Bass started selling additional tracts around the mill.
In 1808, Clement bought another 95 acres from Cornelius Joiner, originaly owned by William Arrington and Themopolis Banks. The boundaries of this property also run from Little Cedar Lick Creek, on the Old Buffalo Trail,going west to Drake's Lick. Early on thre was a property line dispute with the neighbors. Original property boundaries were placed 70 degrees east of true north which resulted in boundary disputes. Some of which were likely due to early magnetic survey errors and unrecorded, overlapping claims, from the land grant era. Eventually, agreements were reached and settlements were recorded in local church ledgers.
Next, Clem bought what was supposed to be 95 acres on the east side of Cedar Creek 09 September 1809. This land was in the southeast portion of Bass's property. In actuality though, it turned out to be nearly three hundred acres. Theopolis Bass had claimed the additional acreage to the south and settled boundary issues with Arrington and Sexton where Grant boundaries had overlapped.
Then Clement purchased an additional 120 acres from Mr. Bass in 1828. He sold 113 acres of it to his son Anderson in for $1.00 the following year. This property was located on the east side of Cedar Creek. Clem also added several additional acres to his holdings east of the creek during the next several years. By the 1850s, his son Anderson had extended his holdings to a point about one third of a mile from Benders Ferry Road. There is a large cave on that property. It is situated about a third of a mile west of Benders Ferry Road and one quarter of a mile north of Liberty Chapel Road. The cave entrance is high enough for a man to walk more than one hundred feet and remain standing. It ave continues much farther, but the ceiling drops as one goes further into it.
Note: The remaining seven acres were either the location of the original Taylor still or adjacent to it. Some of the corn
and other grains grown on the Jennings and other local farms were distilled into Tennessee 'mountain dew' – clear whisky.
Note: Based on multiple deeds over the next few decades, it is estimated that Clem eventually acquired slightly more than 900 acres. Yet, there are no records showing that he nor any of his immediate descendants or their siblings ever repurchased the original tract.
Yet, an additional fifty acres were purchased 01 November 1819 from Samuel Vick and Edward Blurton of Wilson County. This section was located just to the east of the 1818 purchase. Clem then purchased another seventy-six and a half acres adjacent to the land on the 24th of August, 1821, from Edward Blurton. It is located just to the east of the 1819 purchase. Land from both of these acquisitions was also originally part of the Sexton Grant.
Clem also bought another parcel from Theophilis Bass on 01 October 1823. This was the mill property. Then he acquired the adjacent 150 acres 04 May of the following year from Josiah Stephenson. This land is adjacent to the northwest portion of the Bass property. Clem accumulated still more land, after purchasing an additional one hundred-twenty acres 16 August in 1825, bordering the south side of his property, which had been part of the original John Donelson Land Grant. Then he sold a hundred and thirteen acres of it to his son, Anderson Jennings, for $1.00 on May 30, 1829.
Note: The 1831 Wilson County Tax List shows Clem's property tax was assessed on 600 acres. His son Anderson
was also listed with 113 acres. By this era, Clement Johnson Jennings was noted locally as a 'large' landowner.
Clement Anderson and his second wife, Elizabeth Bennett, bought another parcel of land from Robert Taylor. They built an eight-room house with clapboard siding on that property. That location came to be called the Upper Plantation. They also purchased the mill, built by Theopolis Bass. The new home was located just south of the mill on Big Cedar Lick Creek. In 1823, joint rights to use the mill pond were resold to the Taylors and Clem's brother-in-law, William Bennett, for $10.00.
Note: Elizabeth lived out her life at on the Upper Plantation, only a short distance from the north side of a rise overlooking
the Cumberland River. She lived there in a much grander home, fondly known as Granny Jennings' place. She died there at age 97, just before the 1880 census. Other newer homes have been built by multiple generations of descendants at almost the same location.
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The Jennings Farms
Clem and Ann built their original home atop a low bluff. It was most likely a double crib log structure, located near Big Cedar Lick Creek, where it flows into Old Hickory Lake. That homesite came to be called the Lower Plantation. It was situated north of the second homestead, which was known as the Upper Plantation. According to Goodspeed's History of Wilason County, Tennessee, published in 1886, Clement Jennings Sr. was an early settler on Cedar Lick Creek. Silver Springs is mentioned as a village in the Second Civil District. Old maps show the area was located four miles east of Mt. Juliet in Wilson County, just north of Interstate I-40 and west of State Route 109 are today. The Silver Springs Baptist Church is still there. And, the 1831 Wilson County tax list shows Clement Jennings owned 623 acres.
Note: Geography of the immediate area is somewhat unique. Higher ground is generally found to the south,
sloping downward toward the north and the river. Creeks and streams mostly flow from the south to the north and northwest.
Contemporary View of the Cumberland River
Currently, there is no documented family history detailing the residence of Clem's brother, Richard, and his wife, Elizabeth Wood between 1899 and 1807 when they sold their jointly owned acerage in Wilson County. Nor are there any records to show that Richard and his wife were still resident in Tennessee until the 1830.
Many of Clement Johnson's brothers and cousins from Virginia also sought new opportunities in Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, South Carolina and Alabama. The migration of descendants of Virginia colonial families to the south and west was largely driven by economic necessity. By the second and third generations, the expansive plantations of the earliest settlers had been divided into much smaller family farms. This left many families struggling, as the fragmented land was no longer sufficient to sustain an average-sized household. Consequently, it became increasingly common for families to sell their property to siblings or other relatives. In order to ensure economic viability, consolidating smaller farms became not just beneficial, but essential.
1800's Map of The Jennings Farms in Wilson County, Tennessee
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Clement Johnson Jennings's Will and Estate
Either before or shortly after he died in 1837, most of the land Clem Sr. acquired was conveyed to his children or sold to neighbors. Eventually, his son Anderson would also reacquire some of it from his brothers. Those who had not already received their inheritance were specifically named in Clement's Will. The will was signed on 19 March 1837. It was probated on 8 April. His father-in-law, Bartholomew Brett, was the witness. The Bretts were also next-door neighbors, who shared the property boundary at that time.
Note: Specifically named in his will were: wife Elizabeth, daughter Malinda, and sons Jesse and Clement Anderson Jennings. Clement Johnson Jennings had a total of thirteen children by two wives. Clem was also singled out in his father's will to receive proceeds from the sale of a colt.
At the time of his death in 1837, eleven of his children were still living - six males and five females. He stipulated that specific things be entrusted to his widow, Elizabeth, for their youngest child. Those included a dower for Elizabeth and 'The Mansion' on the 'Upper Plantation'. Although no photographs of this structure survive, it may have been similar to Anderson's home, for which a single photo survives.
See the Anderson Jennings page for the photo.
In addition to their second home at the Upper Plantation, Clement Johnson Jennings designated two hundred acres to be held in a trust for his son, Clem Jr. [Clement Anderson Jennings], until after Elizabeth died. As it turned out, this provision would complicate matters because Elizabeth outlived her son. Clem Jr. died at a relatively young age of only thirty-four in 1852. Elizabeth lived until 1880.
Newspaper Notice of Clement Johnson Jennings Estate Sale
1837 May 08 Republican Banner, Page 3
Clem made a significant effort to ensure his estate was shared equitably amongst both sets of his children from both wives. When he died, ten of his thirteen children were still living: five sons and five daughters. Elizabeth, his sons Clement Jr., Anderson, and Jesse, and daughter Malinda were each to inherit specific portions of his land. Jesse inherited the property that came from the 1819, the 1821, and possibly a portion of the 1818 purchases. Clem also stipulated: "It is further my will and desire that all the balance of my property, land, negroes, & etc., be sold and the proceeds to be equally divided among my ten children".
When he died in 1837, eleven of his thirteen children were still living. Clement's intent seemed to be equitable with everyone, including his daughters. He made allowances for the value of property already transferred to some, either directly or through gifts of land, including several household slaves, as already done for Anderson. Since he had also come from a large family with twelve or thirteen children, he may have clearly understood how family dynamics could get out of hand after his death without a will. Clement made an effort to maintain equity between his two sets of children.
Clement Johnson named his youngest surviving son Clement Anderson Jennings as the recipient of the land adjoining the Brett's line. Additionally, the will seems to have made allowances for the value of property already given to the other children. Unlike the other elder children, Jesse does not seem to have been given any acreage before Clem Sr.'s death. However, he was provided with a sizable portion of farmland from the will. Clement may have already helped Stephen purchase a farm in Alabama. It is possible that when Stephen departed from Tennessee, with a sufficient sum of cash for that purpose. Logically, this notion may account for the discrepancy between eleven living children and mention of only ten in Clems will. Stephen married and bought a farm in Alabama.
Clem's will was signed 19 March 1837 and recorded 08 April. It was witnessed by Isaac T. Stevenson [relationship unknown], his son William Bennett Jennings, and his father-in-law Bartholomew Brett. Alfred McClain and both sons, Anderson and William Bennett Jennings, served as executors.
On May 20, 1843, the estate executors jointly leased six acres on Cedar Lick Creek, including the Bass Mill Pond, to James H. Baird [husband of Clem Sr.'s daughter Julia Ann], Alexander Brett [husband of Clem Sr.'s daughter Malinda and brother of Cement Jr.'s wife Elizabeth], and William Bennett Jennings [Clem Sr.'s son]. The Bretts had already been involved in operating the mill for several years.
16 November 1852, Elizabeth received her widow’s allotment of the farm products from what had become her farm after her husband Clem Sr. died. It is fairly certain to assume she was well cared for. Typically, such allotments also included an annual cash payment from the farm’s proceeds and a portion of its increase from animal husbandry. As matriarch, she must have retained a lot of influence over both immediate and extended family. Eleven years later, there is another entry in the Wilson County Court for another set aside on behalf of Clement's widow. The same text from the 1852 stipend [shown below] was resubmitted and witnessed by her sons William Bennett Jennings and Enos Jennings in November of 1864. For some odd reason the county clerk did not record it until January 1865, possibly because that was hwne it was actually awarded.
1852 Widows Allotment
Recorded January 31, 1853 State of Tennessee Wilson County Court
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Tennessee was originally the Western half of the North Carolina. Davidson County was established on 17 May 1783, four years after the territory was officially opened for settlement. In 1786, Sumner County was established in North Carolina. Both counties became part of Tennessee when it was partitioned from North Carolina in 1796. Parts of Davidson and Sumner Counties became Wilson County 13 February 1799. It was named after David Wilson, a Revolutionary War hero. Go to the Wilson COunty button above for additional historical information.
Clem Sr. probably knew his son Stephen was dying. This could account for why only ten of his twelve children for the mentioned in his will. It is also possible that Clem Jr. was not counted among the ten children because he was still a minor, only sixteen at the time of his father's passing. Sixty acres were set aside, in trust managed by his mother, to be awarded to Clement Jr. when he reached the age of twenty-one. Both Robert and Rachel had already passed away prior their fathers death. Two hundred additional acres were also held in trust for Elizabeth until after her death. Because she outlived several of her children, however, the disposition of that property became very complicated. She lived until 1880.
Prince Edward County became Nottoway County in 1788. Boundaries and names changed multiple times. For additional information, click the Jennings of Virginia button above, then click the Virginia Counties and Maps button.
In addition to the Murfree family, several of the Jennings’ neighbors were from historically prominent families in Wilson County, Tennessee. Among those bordering the Cumberland River were farms belonging to Edward Mitchell, Elijah Moore, William Sanders, Cayleb Taylor, - Clem's father-in-law Bartholomew Brett, - William Johnson, Josia[h] Woods, W. T. Cole, Joseph Kirkpatrick, Henry Davis, James Tipton, Thomas Wray [Misspelled Ray], Ruben Slaughter, Daniel Glenn, James Hunter, Ransom King, Henry Locke, Ephraim Beasley, Sterling Tarpley, and William Putway. Along the course of Big Cedar Lick Creek were families of Theopolis Bass, John Everett, James Everett, John Gleaves, Ruben Searcy, Joshua Kelly, James H. Davis, Thomas Davis, Howell Wren, William Ross, Edmund Vaughan, George Smith, Harmon Hays, and Daniel Spicer.
Among those who lived along the Cumberland River were Edward Mitchell, Elijah Moore, William Sanders, Cayleb Taylor, Bartholomew Brett (Clem's father-in-law), William Johnson, Josiah Woods, W. T. Cole, Joseph Kirkpatrick, Henry Davis, James Tipton, Thomas Wray (often misspelled as Ray), Ruben Slaughter, Daniel Glenn, James Hunter, Ransom King, Henry Locke, Ephraim Beasley, Sterling Tarpley, and William Putway.
Families living along Big Cedar Lick Creek were those of Theopolis Bass, John Everett, James Everett, John Gleaves, Ruben Searcy, Joshua Kelly, James H. Davis, Thomas Davis, Howell Wren, William Ross, Edmund Vaughan, George Smith, Harmon Hays, and Daniel Spicer. Subsequent generations from these families frequently intermarried. Sons and daughters of the the Jennings family married into the Bass, Brett, Cole, Davis, Gleaves, Howell, Kelly, Wilson, Wray, Taylor, and Vaughan families. Click on the red Wilson County button at the top of this page for additional local history.
This is the middle portion of the story. The first portion will be available on the England to Virginia pages to be created in the future. The Brazilian saga will be in the third portion, also available in the near future. Look for red buttons in the banner box of each profile. These buttons also link to related families or interesting and helpful historical information for additional context in short stories about significant places or events. Round green buttons link to parental profiles, siblings, or children.
Sources
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Ancestry.com – Ahnentafel, Jon Kjellander, Tennessee Marriages
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My Heritage.com – Lisa Cagle, Linda Cernak, Dennis Adams, Eric Shapiro, Dylan Johnson, Dr. Wilton
McDonald II, Esq., Michael Small, Lori Whistler, John Maguire, Lucas, Troy Walker, Jacquelyn Hatton, William Benjamin Patterson
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Geni.com - David Scott O'Neil, Michael Small, Val John Jennings
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World Family Tree
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Communications with Charles Everett - Living Relative
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Communications with David Howell - Living Relative
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1792 Prince Edward County, Virginia Tax Roll, Page number cut off in microfilm image.
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Clement Johnson Jennings Family Bible
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Anderson Jennings Family Bible
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DAR 377304, 718425
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SAR A1003, A062427, 895468, 9330, 95681
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Boddie, John Bennett - Seventeenth Century Isle of Wight Virginia, Chicago Law Printing Company, 1938
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Boddie John Bennett - Historical Southern Families, Volume IV: Jennings of Hanover, Virginia, Pacific Coast Publishing Company, Redwood City, California, 1960, Page 111
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Delgado, Sarah Hattie Hazel; Jennings, Thomas Earnest; Thurman, Modelle Rawls, and Williams, Frances Jennings – Jennings Descendants And Ancestors, Henington Publishing Company, Wolfe City, Texas 1988 LC 88-070684
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Doughtie, Beatrice Mackey – Documented Notes On Jennings And Allied Families, Bowen Press Inc., 1961
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Partlow, Thomas E. – Wilson County, Tennessee Tax Lists, 1955
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Wood, Tristin – Papers, 1808-1952, University of North Carolina Southern Historical Collections - Wilson Library at Chapel Hill, NC
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1772 North Carolina Land Grants Book D, Page 185
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1813 May 26 Wilson County, Tennessee Marriage Bonds
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1799 December 04 Wilson County, Tennessee, Deed Book A, Page 55
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1807 December 12 Wilson County, Tennessee Grant Book C, Page 70
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1808 September 25 Wilson County, Tennessee Deed Book D, Page 20
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1811 January 04 Wilson County, Tennessee Deed Book E, Page 01
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1819 February 01 Wilson County, Tennessee Deed Book G, Page 398
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1819 November 01 Wilson County, Tennessee Deed Book H, Page 143
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1821 August 24 Wilson County, Tennessee Deed Book I, Page 71
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1823 October 01 Wilson County, Tennessee Deed Book, I Page 522
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1824 May 04 Wilson County, Tennessee Deed Book K, Page 147, 148
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1825 August 16 Wilson County, Tennessee Deed Book M, Page 257
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1829 May 30 Wilson County, Tennessee Deed Book M, Page 432
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1930 Wilson County, Tennessee Census
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1837 Wilson County, Tennessee Will Book, Page 39
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1850 - 1858 Wilson County Clerks Settlement Book, Page 345
Errata
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Clement Johnson Jennings and his family did not live in Mt. Juliet or Silver Springs. Several genealogy profiles and family trees erroneously equate the postal office name with the location of their home. The Silver Springs post office was located about four miles east of present-day Mt. Juliet in Wilson County, Tennessee. This tiny hamlet was located just north of Interstate I-40 and west of State Route 109. The Silver Springs Baptist Church is still there.
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FamilySearch International's History of Tennessee incorrectly identifies the children of the second wife Elizabeth as having been born in Virginia. Only the first child, Mary Polly [not Molly], was born to the first wife Ann, in Virginia.
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Nearly every MyHeritage profile contains errors. Most of these are probably perpetrated by an AI that has associated incorrect information from multiple sources.
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Judish Simmons - Wife: Judish was the wife of his brother, Samuel.
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Mary Baldwin - Wife: Mary Baldwin (1776 - 1813) may have been born in Prince Edward County, Virginia. Genealogy profiles in Ancestry.com and Geni.com erroneosly identify her as the wife of Clement Johnson Jennings. The Geni.com profile also shows a daughter named Sally Standley. But there is no documentation to support any details. There is a connection between the Jennings family and the Baldwin family in Prince Edward County. Esther Baldwin was the wife of Clement's brother, Elkanah Cain Jennings.
We the undersigned freeholders of Wilson County after being duly sworn have proceeded to set apart to Elizabeth, widow of Clem Jennings so much of the crop and provisions on hand as will be sufficient [Illegible] to support her and her family one year from the death of the said husband, he set apart to her for said purpose the following [Illegible], 40 lbs. corn, 6 pork hogs, 1 cow & calf, 1 saw blade, 22 bushels wheat, the potatoes on hand, 10 pounds sugar, 50 pounds coffee, 5 $ worth of molasses, & [Illegible] lb. 1 stack fodder, 1 stack millet, and 500 bundles oats, & all the cotton on hand & five head of sheep and barrel salt.
Ayears Jamissons – Attendant to the widow of Clement Jennings and his dependents.