The Thomas Beals Story

1. William Beals

b 1625/30 England, m. 1649 England ----------, b. 1630 and d. in Pennsylvania
+2. I John Beals b. 1650

2. John Beals
b. 1650, England. m. October 2, 1682, Mary Clayton, b. June 29, 1665, Chichester, Rumaldsweek parish, Sussex, England and d. 1691, in Chester Co., Pennsylvania. John Beals d. 1726, Nottingham Twp., Chester Co., Pennsylvania. John and Mary Beals lie at rest near Calvert, Cecil Co., Maryland in the open section in the east Nottingham Meeting graveyard in a unmarked grave. Mary Beals d. some time after her husband John. Mary Beals was the daughter of William Clayton, who was b. in 1625, Sussex, England, and d. 1689, Phila. Penn. and Prudence (Lanckford), dau. of William Lanckford of Broughton Parish, Hampshire. William Clayton (Mary's father) was acting governor of Penn 1684-5 under William Penn.

Children of John and Mary Beals all born in Chester Co., Pennsylvania
3. I. John Beals Jr. b. Jan. 28, 1685 m. Sept. 14, 1711, Sarah Bowater
4. II. William Beals b. Feb. 1, 1687 m. April 26, 1712, Rebecca Chambers

Issue: Lydia, Mary, Ruth, Caleb, Rachel and Hannah
5. III. Jacob Beals b. Sept 28. 1689 m. 4th mo, [called June] 20, 1714 Mary Brooksby

Issue: John, Jacob, Mary, William and Daniel
6. IV. Mary Ann Beals b. Jan. 24, 1695 m. 4-1-1710 Richard Harrold

Issue: Elizabeth, Mary 1, John, Johnathan, Mary 2, Rachel, and Richard
7. V. Patience Beals b. April 16, 1695 m. 4-20-1717 Joseph Jones

Issue: Judith,Mary, Sarah and Charity
8. VI. Grace Beals b. ca 1697



3. John Beals Jr.
b. January 20, 1685, Ashton Twp., Chester Co., Pennsylvania.
m. September 14, 1711, Chester Co., Pennsylvania, Sarah Bowater, b. June 17, 1688,
Chester Co., Pennsylvania.
After John d. (ca 1745, 3 years befor the family moved to NC) Sarah m. 2nd, Alexander Underwood. Sarah was the daughter of Thomas and Sarah (Edge) Bowater, who were m. August 4, 1686.
John Beals death date and burial place is not known, some say he died in 1745, at Cold Springs, Virginia, however this has never been proven and this story may be a myth. Sarah died between 1756 and 1760 at Wellsville, York Co., Pennsylvania.


Children of John and Sarah Beals
9. I. Sarah b. May 20, 1713 - d. Sept. 9, 1800
m. John Mills III, both died at Deep River, Guilford Co., North Carolina
10. II. John b. Feb. 17, 1717 m. Margaret Hunt (son John Beals)
John Beals m. Susanna Johnson in 1778. He is supposed to be the father of Eleazer Beals b. 1793 in Guilford Co., N. C.
See the Mem. of Plainfield MM Indiana for a sketch of his life.
He died April 17, 1796, New Garden, Guilford Co., North Carolina
11. III. Thomas b. March 14, 1719 - d. Aug. 29, 1801 m. Sarah Antrim
12. IV. Mary Ann b. ca 1719- d. 7-10-1790 m. 1st, Thomas Hunt 2nd, William Baldwin
13. V. Phoebe b. ca 1720 - d. Aug. 19, 1805, Stokes Co., N.C.
m. 1st, Charles Canady 2nd, Robert Sumner, b. 1716 - d. 4-26-1777, Stoke Co., N.C
14. VI. Bowater b.------ m. Sarah Ann Cook Myers - four sons and five daughters
Beals; Ann, b. 1755; Ruth, b. 1757, m. Curtis Jackson in 1779; Thomas, b. 1762; John, b. 1764, m. Lois Branson in 1784; Jacob, b. 1766, d. *near Westfield, Ind. and bur. in cem. N of Westfield; Nathan, b. 1769. d. *8-13-1858, no children; Mary, b. 1771; Sarah, b. 1776. C. of Beals pg. 16.



11. Thomas Beals - Quaker Minister
b. March 16, 1719, Chester Co., Pennsylvania, d. August 29, 1801 Ross Co., Ohio. The son of John and Sarah (Bowater) Beals. m. December 9, 1741, Prince Georges Co., Maryland to Sarah Antrim, b. 1724 Chester Co., Pennsylvania, d. July 6, 1813, Highland Co., Ohio, dau. of Thomas and Sarah (Zelly) Antrim. Thomas ANTRIM, b. September 30, 1686, Burlington, New Jersey, the son of John (1657-1718) and [m. March 15, 1682] Francis (Butcher) Antrim, m. March 2, 1715 to Sarah Zelly. Thomas and his family moved to NC in 1748 being then 29 years of age and resided at Cane Creek and later at New Garden, (now Guilford co. NC) where no other white persons lived. The girls wore petticoats made of deerskins.... pg 4, Chonology of the Beals Family - page 526 Mills and Related Lines Fairfax Monthly Meeting Quaker Records: Thomas Beale, son of John and Sarah (Bowater), Prince Georges Co., Md. and grandson of John and Mary (Clayton) Beales of Chester co., Penn m 12-9-1741 (o.s.) Sarah Antrim, Prince Georges co., Md. (They had declared marriage intentions in Virginia (doubtless at Hopewell MM, whose early books were lost in a fire in 1759). Living within the verge of Fairfax MM, Va. when that MM (Monthly Meeting) was established and set off from Hopewell MM, Va. were automatically transferred from Hopewell MM to Fairfax MM 1744/5. Thomas and Sarah (Antrim) Beales and their 4 oldest children gct (granted cert. of transfer) Carvers Creek MM, Bladen co., NC, 26-6-1749. they were transferred to Cane Creek MM, Orange co., NC when Cane Creek MM was set up 7-10-1751 and were charter members when New Garden MM NC was set up in 1754, the family was transferred to that MM, the family supposedly never having removed from their first place of settlement.

    Children of Thomas and Sarah Beals - from Fairfax Monthly Meeting records

    15. I. Mary b. 6th mo. 15th day, 1742 d. infant
    16. I. Mary b. 8th. 30, 1743 m. March 30, 1768, Thomas Jessep
    17. II. Sarah b. 8th. 30, 1743 nfi
    18. III. Thomas Jr. b. 10th. 29, 1745 Va. dis., 1-31-1784, m. out of unity, -----
    19. IV. Patience b. 12th. 9, 1747 m. Feb. 11, 1784, Benjamin Carr
    20. V. William b. 6th 13, 1750 m. 2nd, May 14, 1777, Pricilla Horton at Louis Creek, Surry County, N.C.; 5 children, Beals; Thomas, b. 1778; Abraham, b. 1779; James, b. 1781; Patience, b. 1783 and William, b. 1784.
    21. VI. Daniel b. 2nd. 15, 1753 m. April 25, 1775, Susannah Jackson at Louis Creek, N.C., 6 children Beals; Phobe, b. 1776, d. early; Sarah, b. 1777; Curtis, b. 1779; Bowater, b. 1782; Jacob, b. 1783 and Elizabeth, b. 1785. Daniel Beals was one of the great bear hunters of his day and had many hand to hand combats with Bruin.
    22. VII. Elizabeth b. 4th 25, 1755 m. Jan. 11, 1775, Samuel Bond
    23. VIII. Margaret b. 10th. 12, 1757 m. Jan. 17, 1778 1st, James Horton, m 2nd, Daniel Huff
    24. IX. Hannah b. 12th. 13, 1759 m. Dec. 26, 1792, Isaac Williams
    25. X. Rachel b. 3rd. 9, 1763 m. 1789, William Thornbrough (Thornberry)*
    26. XI. John b. 3rd. 9, 1763 m. 1st, Oct. 23, 1788, Mary Caeter 2, Mary Johnson Hiatt ~ For more information on the linage of John Beals see Chronology of the Beals Family. pages 17 and 18+.
    27. XII. Jacob b. 10th. 28, 1768



*Able Thornberry was born November 16th., 1789, in Jefferson Co., Tennessee. [Lost Creek MM --- Jefferson co, TN] He married Sept. 20, 1817, in Clinton co., Ohio, Rhoda Johnson. He d. August 29, 1880 and was buried in Walnut Creek, Quaker cemetery. Fayette Co., Ohio, near New Martinsburg. They had eight children Lydia, Eliza B., Mary Ann (d), Mary Ann, Susan J., Rachel, William Johnson and John Thomas Thornberry who d. at age 15.
Tabithas Beals was born in 1786 in east Tennessee and is thought to be the illigetmite daughter of Rachel before she married William Thornburgh.


Clinton co., Ohio, Miami Monthly Meeting:
1804-11-8 John and children, Nathan, Thomas, Ann and Daniel, also his aged mother, Sarah Beals, her grandaughter Tabatha Beals, and a grandson Able Thornburgh [Thornberry] received on cert. [rocf] Mt. Pleasant Monthly Meeting, Virginia, dated 1803, 11, 26.
1806-9-11 Tabitha George (form Beals) condemed for marriage out of unity [con mou].
End Beals Linage

Daniel, John and Jacob Beals, sons of old Thomas Beals, came with their widowed mother, and were first to communicate the sad intelligence of the death of the venerable and loved Thomas, the preacher, which happened on their way out, and was caused from a hurt received by his horse running under a stooping tree. He died in a few hours afterwards in the woods on the banks of Salt Creek, Ohio. His sons and others who were with him found it utterly impossible to get plank or any material out of which to make a coffin, so they went to work and cut down a walnut tree and made a trough, which they covered with a slab. Thus prepared, they performed the sad rites, and the remains of the pure and good man were left to repose amid the profound solitudes of the unbroken forests. The Friends meeting of Fairfield, Highland Co., have recently sent down a committee for the purpose of enclosing the grave, which was done by erecting a permanent stone wall around it.
from: A History of Highland Co., Ohio page. 65


On the 29th of the 8th month, 1801, Thomas Beals died, and was buried on the 31st of the same month near Richmondale, Ross Co., Ohio in a coffin of regular shape, hollowed out of a solid white walnut tree. Gershom Perdew

In the fall of 1802 Sarah Beals, widow of Thomas, and her sons, John and Daniel settled on Lees Creek, in Highland co., Ohio... Sarah d. on the 7th month, 7th day, 1813, aged 89 years and was buried at Fairfield, Ohio.



See Mills and Related Lines by Paul Mills - Page 526
The Beals as a family were considered very stout and very attractive.


Tabitha (Beals) George

Note: Tabitha's family name was recorded by the next generation in Illinois as Bales.