1. Judge Daniel A. Adams, born December 18, 1813 in Roaring River, Wilkes, North Carolina; died February 07, 1892 in Warrensburg, Johnson County, Missouri. He was the son of 2. John A. Adams and 3. Abigail Adams. He married (1) Susannah McCrary January 28, 1840 in Johnson County, Missouri. She was born November 17, 1821 in , Howard County, Missouri, and died June 03, 1911 in Warrensburg, Johnson County, Missouri. She was the daughter of Esquire Elijah McCrary and Elizabeth Yates.

Notes for Judge Daniel A. Adams:

Daniel moved from North Carolina to Missouri with his family in 1834. He bought one warrant entitling him to 160 acres of the N.E. qt. of N.E. qt. of section 15 Warrensburg township 45. He then entered 300 acres of land from the Government located in Sections 14 and 15 where he built a log cabin, hewing and hauling the logs on a solid wooden wheel wagon drawn by oxen. The country where they settled was open prairie with no trees. The logs were two feet square at ends and as long as he laid them. There was a double fireplace in the two rooms he built, with two closets, one on either side of the fireplace. You could walk in the closets and see these large logs. The rooms were a story and a half. The ceilings had great wide beams above that shone like they were waxed. Later, when they had children, they added onto each side of the house, making a porch and kitchen and a bedroom on the north side. On the south side, there were two rooms and a porch. The southeast room was Daniel's study or office(1)

The following is from the wife of Solomon McCrary - given by Mararet Shields McCrary:

"Daniel Adams and Susan McCrary were married 28 Jan 1840 and went to house keeping in a brand new log house, March 1, 1840. Daniel and Susan went from Grandpa Adam's on Saturday, February 27th, to Grandpa McCrary's and stayed over Sunday. Sunday they went to church at Shilod. She was wearing a bottle green dress and dress bonnet and he was wearing a dark blue broad cloth suit. Rev. Sam King preached that Sunday. Then they rode back seven miles to Father Elijah McCrary. Then the next morning, her youngest brother, Solomon McCrary, harnessed up to our horse wagon to bring her to her new home. The household goods of the young bride, the furnishings of new house very simple, but ample for those times. She brought to the new home 1 chair, 2 feather beds, 2 home made quilts, and 6 quilts. He brought one feather bed, and 2 bed steads were purchased by the groom. And the purchase price being a cow and a calf.

The young couple followed the household goods on horseback, riding double. She wearing a homespun cotton dress, a blue and yellow medium check. They milked seven cows and by October had a barrel of butter to send to Lexington, Missouri, where the annual trip in wagons across the county was made to exchange the products for annual supply of groceries."

Daniel was elected Justice of the Peace in 1852 and served 4 years. He was re-elected and served 2 years.

During the Civil War, Daniel kept a barrel of whiskey for the many soldiers that were passing through. Daniel had two boys fight for the North (John and William). The Confederates were always looking for the Union boys who might be around, but the family was never bothered (they fed both sides). (1)

In 1866 he was elected county judge, serving 2 terms (3 years), and the end of which time he resigned. He was township clerk several years and has held the office of school director subsequent to the free school systems establishment in this Missouri. Daniel and Susan were members of the Cumberland Presbyterian Church. "Mr. Adams is one of those sterling pioneers whose force of character coupled with his industry has wielded a powerful influence in his neighborhood for good; hospitable and generous in nature, he has secured a large circle of friends." (2)

In the 1870 Missouri Census, Daniel is listed as Head of Household, residing in Johnson Country, Washington Township, age 50, occupation farmer, with $8,400 (?) in Real Estate and $2,500 in Personal Property. He had Susan (age 48), Anna E. (age 27), William (age 25), Jane A. (age 24), Elijah (age 22), Susan E. (age 20), Clara (age 18), Robert (age 15), Thomas (age 15), and James (age 11) residing with him.

His granddaughter, Effie, remembered him walking over his farm with his two dogs, Sanka and Moody, always at his heels. After Daniel and Susan died, Abbie and Bob lived on the place until they died in 1917 and 1921, respectively, when the farm was sold to a distant relative. While they were in Warrensburg one day, the house burned to the ground (1)

(1) Effie Adams Fitzgerald's journal

(2) The History of Johnson County, Missouri, 1881

More About Judge Daniel A. Adams:

Burial: Adams Memorial Cemetery, Montserrat Township, Johnson County, Missouri¹

Notes for Susannah McCrary:

In the 1900 U.S. Census: Susan is found in Montserrat, Johnson County, Missouri (175/179).

The following is from the journal of Effie Adams Fitzgerald, Susan McCrary's granddaughter:

"With the going home of Grandma Adams there closed a long life marked by qualities of sterling worth, and child-like purity, whose influence will go on indefinitely, as the tiny circles, caused by a pebble thrown into the water go on and on, forming an ever widening circle.

Rarely does the life of one woman living so quiet a life touch and affect so many other lives as did hers, not only through the large number coming directly under her influence, but also by the unusual force and staunch uprightness of her character.

Grandma Adams was born in Howard County, Missouri, November 17, 1821, the same year that the state was admitted into the union.

Her personal knowledge of events and changes incident to the development of a new country form a most interesting history. A story of never-waning charm to her children and grandchildren. For she could tell not only of the fierce struggles of the early pioneer with the unbroken soil, but also of the prowlings of the wild animals of the forest and prairie; of long journeys by wagon, the only means of transportation, to establish a new home site, was governed by various physical features such as the convenient location of timber and natural springs of water.

Sometime during the thirties, she came to Johnson County with her parents and other members of a family of fourteen children, of whom she was the last survivor. They settled in the Clearfork neighborhood, southeast of Warrensburg, Missouri.

In 1840, she was married to Daniel Adams, who took her to the home he had prepared for her. The early pioneer prepared his home for his bride, building a snug house of logs at hand, with a large stone chimney and fireplace. Here, together by hard work and never flagging energy, reinforced by the dauntless courage that was their heritage from Revolutionary ancestry, they began a struggle that would dismay a young man and young woman of today, for it was literally hewing their way. The resources of the country were undeveloped. Every article for home use as well as for marketing had to be produced on the farm by the old-time methods. Any grain used for food must be ground by some simple process or taken to a mill and exchanged for flour or meal; every yard of material for clothing must be woven by the hands of the young wife or her helpers, from materials grown on the place and spun and otherwise prepared for use. All cooking was done on the coals of the fireplace, the fire of which must never be allowed to go out, for there were no matches to relight it.

Strenuous as was their life, they always found time for religious work and showed their freedom from narrowness and prejudice by zealous work in the two little churches that grew up in their neighborhood in the course of time, though neither was of their chosen denomination. They were charter members of Pleasant Grove Cumberland Presbyterian Church where, though it was some distance away, they always attended services as frequently as possible and always gave their portion toward its maintenance. From the organization of the Missouri Cumberland Presbyterian Sunday School Assembly until and including its twenty-second session, Grandma was a yearly attendant. The last year she was present at its meeting at Pertle Springs, her sight had failed, but nevertheless, she thoroughly enjoyed every service she was able to attend and always insisted upon a seat near the platform, 'to encourage the speaker,' as she said.

Grandma Adams was the mother of twelve children-- six sons and six daughters--all of them, with exception of one little daughter who died at the age of ten year, lived and attained a reasonable amount of success in life, as becomes the children of such parents. She also had thirty-eight grandchildren and thirty-three great grandchildren living at the time of her death, making a total of eighty-two living descendants. Eleven others had gone before her.

Not withstanding the fact that her children were at the age that calls for school advantages during the Civil War with all of its deprivations, she somehow managed to give them all a fair amount of education, following the firm conviction that an education was the best equipment for a young man or young woman's life's varied duties and calls. One of the strongest theories was that everyone, young people particularly, should embrace every opportunity for self-improvement as offered by reading, attending lectures and mingling with refined and educated people as well as attending school. A theory strengthened, no doubt, by the fact that during her own youth, educational advantages were extremely limited.

But Susan McCrary was endowed with a craving for knowledge that stopped at no obstacle, and largely by her own untiring efforts, acquired an education along certain lines, that would amaze the modern young woman with her great opportunities, this with practical information that came from her long years of experience in life's school, her mind a veritable storehouse of history and wisdom. For she could look back over the years which covered a period of development and formation of a new country, from a day of political unrest and unsettled government and most primitive implements and machinery, down to the present day, with its regulated government and every conceivable invention for man's convenience and comfort.

Grandma Adams was a thorough and constant student of the Bible, accepting literally the admonition to 'search the scriptures' and receiving its teachings without questions. After her sight failed several years ago, she found daily comfort in repeating long passages of her favorite chapters from memory.

Full as her heart and home always were, it never was too crowded to receive the lonely and troubled. Several orphan children have, for a time, found a home with her and each has gone out to make his or her way in the world, carrying with them a respect and reverence for Christian living that will never leave them, and strengthened and fortified by the lasting influence of a Christian home and the prayer of a strong Christian woman which to her latest day, never failed to include them, though not by name, yet her daily petition always included the phrase, 'Bless all those near and dear to us, and all others for whom we should pray.'

Truly, in the words of the wise, many of "Her children shall rise up and call her blessed."

More About Susannah McCrary:

Burial: Adams Memorial Cemetery, Montserrat Township, Johnson County, Missouri¹

More About Daniel Adams and Susannah McCrary:

Marriage: January 28, 1840, Johnson County, Missouri

2. John A. Adams, born April 20, 1792 in Wilkesboro, Wilkes County, No. Carolina; died January 29, 1870 in Johnson County, Missouri. He was the son of 4. Jacob Adams and 5. Mary Townson. He married 3. Abigail Adams February 04, 1813 in Wilkes County, North Carolina.

3. Abigail Adams, born November 07, 1793 in Wilkes County, No. Carolina; died June 23, 1849 in Johnson County, Missouri. She was the daughter of 6. Henry Adams and 7. Susannah Mitchell.

Notes for John A. Adams:

John married Abigail Adams in 1811. According to Effie Adams, his great granddaughter, Abigail was the daughter of Spencer Adams, and was either his first or second cousin.

John served in the War of 1812 under General Andrew Jackson. He served in the Seminole Creek Indian War. He served between 1812-1813, Capt Martin's Company, North Carolina Militia.

John moved near Warrensburg, Johnson County, Missouri with his family around 1834. He bought two land warrants in township 45 range 25 and built a house on section 11 (8 miles southeast of Warrensburg). He built a good-sized L-shaped house of white oak logs, one and a half stories high, where he lived until his death. A part of this house was still standing in 1972. (1)

In 1853 he returned to North Carolina and married his second wife, Peggy Evans, a woman who could neither read nor write.

His sons, Daniel, Abraham and George, lived on farms adjoining his. Tom located on a farm about four miles distant. That section of the country is still known by the name of "Adams Neighborhood". There is the Adams Cemetery and the Adams Schoolhouse, although the original old log schoolhouse is no more. All of his sons rest in the Adams Cemetery except Jackson and Hugh. Jane, who never married, is buried there.

When the Civil War broke out, George was the only son to join (most of the others were too old to join). George died within a year of enlisting (having drown in a river) and left a widow and three children. One of the children, Sarah/Sally, lived with John and Peggy. John's sons were strong Union men, but his daughters had married men whose sympathies were with the South. After the war, when things were too "hot" in Missouri, Margaret's family moved on to Texas. All of Susan McCrary's folks (except one brother and herself), had Southern leanings, not always openly expressed, but understood. Feeling ran very high for years in Missouri and Kansas over the War, and families were divided. (1)

John was listed in the Missouri 1870 Census as age 78, living with his second wife, Peggy/Margaret Adams, age 56. His occupation is listed as Farmer, with Real Estate valued at $14,000 and Personal Property valued at $1,100. It also states that he cannot write (it's possible that this was meant to refer to Peggy).

John was a Baptist. (1)

John was stricken with paralysis about a year before his death. (1)

(1) Effie Adams Fitzgerald's journal.

More About John A. Adams:

Burial: Adams Memorial Cemetery, Montserrat Township, Johnson County, Missouri¹

More About Abigail Adams:

Burial: Adams Memorial Cemetery, Montserrat Township, Johnson County, Missouri

More About John Adams and Abigail Adams:

Marriage: February 04, 1813, Wilkes County, North Carolina

Children of John Adams and Abigail Adams are:

4. Jacob Adams, born Abt. 1753 in Richmond, Chesterfield County, Virginia; died November 11, 1833 in Reddies River, Wilkes County, North Carolina. He was the son of 8. John Hobbs Adams and 9. Ann Caudill. He married 5. Mary Townson January 07, 1777 in Salisbury, Rowan County, North Carolina.

5. Mary Townson, born Abt. 1756 in Rowen, North Carolina; died Abt. 1823 in Reddies River, Wilkes County, North Carolina.

Notes for Jacob Adams:

Served in Revolutionary War as private in the 1st Maryland regiment. He enlisted in the army on February 5, 1777 in Rawlins Regiment. He is also mentioned on the muster roll of Corp. John Kershner's Co. He guarded prisoners at Fort Frederick on June 27, 1778. Col. Hugh Stevensons' Maryland Rifle Regiment. He served in Col. Wilson's Regiment. He served from 1777 through 1783. He fought at the Battle of King's Mountain. On March 24, 1783 he received back pay amounting to 78 pounds, 128, through Col. John Gibson.*

On June 24, 1783, he was issued Military Warrent#1153 for 200 acres of land in North Carolina. (Re: Abraham ADAMS & Mary CAUDILL (NC->MO) Posted by: Wallace Seymour Date: July 13, 2001 at 11:43:21 Genforum Adams Family Forum

Jacob and Mary were Baptists.

* Preserved in library known as V4, Page 77, signed by H.Z. Echenide, Archivist.

Notes for Mary Townson:

Family history states that Jacob married a "Holland-Dutch woman from the Schoggles."

More About Jacob Adams and Mary Townson:

Marriage: January 07, 1777, Salisbury, Rowan County, North Carolina

Children of Jacob Adams and Mary Townson are:

6. Henry Adams, born Abt. 1753 in Wilkes County, No. Carolina; died April 1822 in Reddies River, Wilkes, North Carolina. He was the son of 12. Charles Adams and 13. ?. He married 7. Susannah Mitchell 1783 in Wilkesboro, Wilkes, North Carolina.

7. Susannah Mitchell, born Abt. 1771 in Wilkes County, No. Carolina.

More About Henry Adams:

Burial: Adams Cemetery, Frank Faw Farm, Haymeadows, Wilkes, North Carolina²²

More About Susannah Mitchell:

Burial: Adams Cemetery, Frank Faw Farm, Haymeadows, Wilkes, North Carolina²²

More About Henry Adams and Susannah Mitchell:

Marriage: 1783, Wilkesboro, Wilkes, North Carolina

Children of Henry Adams and Susannah Mitchell are:

8. John Hobbs Adams, born 1727 in Stafford, Virginia; died 1804 in Roaring River, Wilkes, North Carolina. He was the son of 16. Benjamin Adams and 17. Nancy Ezell. He married 9. Ann Caudill 1746 in Fairfax, Fairfax County, Virginia.

9. Ann Caudill, born 1731 in Fairfax County, Virginia; died 1804 in Roaring River, Wilkes, North Carolina.

More About John Adams and Ann Caudill:

Marriage: 1746, Fairfax, Fairfax County, Virginia

Children of John Adams and Ann Caudill are:

12. Charles Adams, born 1711 in Wilkes, North Carolina; died Bef. June 1780 in Reddies River, Wilkes County, North Carolina. He married 13. ?.

13. ?, born 1727.

Children of Charles Adams and ? are:

16. Benjamin Adams²³, born Abt. 1707 in Isle of Wight, Virginia²³; died 1758 in Sussex County, Virginia²³. He was the son of 32. Thomas Adams and 33. Nancy. He married 17. Nancy Ezell.

17. Nancy Ezell, born Abt. 1707 in Sussex County, Virginia²³.

Children of Benjamin Adams and Nancy Ezell are:

32. Thomas Adams²³, born Abt. 1683 in Isle of Wight, Virginia²³; died 1752 in Virginia²⁴. He married 33. Nancy.

33. Nancy, born 1687 in Isle of Wight, Virginia²⁵.

Notes for Thomas Adams:

Family lore claims that there is a Sir William Adams among Thomas's English ancestors.

Children of Thomas Adams and Nancy are:

1. Missouri GenWeb, Adams Memorial Cemetery.

2. Effie Adams Fitzgerald's Journal.

3. US Genweb Archives.

4. Effie Adams Fitzgerald's Journal.

5. US Genweb Archives.

6. Effie Adams Fitzgerald's Journal.

7. US Genweb Archives.

8. Effie Adams Fitzgerald's Journal.

9. Missouri GenWeb, Adams Memorial Cemetery.

10. Effie Adams Fitzgerald's Journal.

11. Genforum, posting by John Pfost dated 6-26-2001.

12. World Family Tree, Volume 1, Tree 10.

13. World Family Tree, Volume 6, Tree 404.

14. Genforum, posting by John Pfost dated 6-26-2001.

15. World Family Tree, Volume 1, Tree 10.

16. Vanora Day, DAR Papers.

17. Effie Adams Fitzgerald's Journal, World Family Tree, Vol 1 Tree 10.

18. World Family Tree, Volume 1, Tree 10.

19. Familysearch.com.

20. World Family Tree, Volume 1, Tree 10.

21. Effie Adams Fitzgerald's Journal.

22. Descendants of Henry Adams, Family Treemaker.

23. Descendants of Thomas Adams, Family Treemaker.

24. Rootsweb.

25. Descendants of Thomas Adams, Family Treemaker.