Hello Everyone,

http://www.rootsweb.com/~vaschs/cwvets.txt

I wanted you all to know I ran across the above website with a really great
list and nutshell paragraphs of Civil War Veterans with record-scarce
Nansemond County connections -- in my search for the family of Algernon Syden
DARDEN, who has got to be a connection of sorts for me.

My 3g grandparents were Michael Marsh, 1800-1859, and Elizabeth Landing of
Gates/Hertford Co NC.  Michael was the son of George & Mary unk wife.
Elizabeth Landing's Harrell/Landings and probably the Marshes had origins and
continuing close contact with families in Nansemond, Isle of Wight,
Southampton, Suffolk, VA, which were after all only ten to thirty miles away.

What I have is that Michael and Elizabeth Marsh, who moved ca 1826 to Bedford
Co TN:

(a) Named their first born son Algernon Darden Marsh, b. 1824.

(b) Named their second son Patterson Biddle Marsh, b. 1828.  There is an
Algernon Sydney Biddle who shows up in the Philadelphia Biddles in the 1840s;
this is a Quaker family and I have suspected George Marsh was a Quaker, but
no evidence.

(c) Named their third son (mine) Benjamin James Jordan Marsh.  Algernon
Sydney Darden married a Mary Swepson Allen.  They had a daughter named Annie
Jordan Darden.  Further, there are some Lee connections with these families
in Gates It appears that these Lees are thought be be second cousins or so of
Algernon Sydney Lee, son of Henry "Light Horse Harry" Lee and Ann Hill
Carter, going back to Northumberland Co., VA.

Then we have many other Algernon Sidneys as a given name born in NC with VA
roots, such Algernon Sidney ARRINGTON, son of John Arrington and Martha Joane
Williams DRAKE (so Paul where did their Algernon Sidney name come from?)

I am aware of the origin of the name Algernon Sydney/Sidney back with the
noble lines in England involving the Percys, Dudleys, and their various
allied Dukedoms, Earldoms, etc. (including Northumberland),

I just can't bring that name forward through any specific descendants in the
"New World".  I don't know if there was some incredibly remarkable individual
named Algernon Sydney in colonial Virginia who became the namesake for many
or what.  "Algernon Sydney" is not in my mind a name that one would choose
for a child because they liked the sound of it.  Off hand I would think young
boys would not be pleased with a nickname that could be used to suggest they
were pond scum, but maybe I am projecting back.  I don't even know if algae
was classified as such back then, but maybe some of you botanists do.

FYI, most of the above information  trying to get some ideas on the origins
of these given names, with the exception of the Biddle information, I found
through the frequently unreliable gedcoms at World Connect using their
wonderful search features.  For example, entering Algernon as a first name,
and then birthplace NC (or Gates, Hertford to narrow it down).
http://worldconnect.rootsweb.com/cgi-bin/igm.cgi

I particularly like the feature that allows you to just get those gedcoms
that have notes for people.  There are ALOT of wills, deed abstracts, etc.
that increasingly document-conscious folks are adding to their information
there.  Yes, yes, there may be errors in transcription, but..

Any thoughts on "Algernon" and "Algernon Sydney" as a given name welcome.

Best Regards,
Janet (Baugh) Hunter




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