WebCatt's Genealogy

Kerley, Cearley and Carley
book excerpts

The following is from the book
"INFORMATION ON THE KERLEY, CEARLEY AND CARLEY FAMILIES OF THE SOUTH"
Compiled by William H. Carley, Sr. of San Angelo, TX in 1945.
The book may be purchased from the Higginson Book Co.,
14 Derby Square, PO Box # 778, Salem, MA 01970.

[excerpts contributed by John E. Kerley, from Fred Robinson]

[from the Preface]

As I found from the old records, some of my own ancestors were constantly migrating westward in colonial days, and later in the early years of the republic, they seemed to be constantly seeking new lands on the frontiers of Virginia, Kentucky, North Carolina, and Tennessee. In those early years there were but few schools if any at all on frontiers of those states, hence large numbers of early day pioneers were not educated, and could not read nor write their own names, hence their names are often spelled incorrectly in the old land grants and deeds by the recording clerks who no doubt would sign and record the name as it sounded to him, in the records of some documents we find a name spelled three different ways, we can find Kerley and Carley names spelled in many ways, as Kerby, Kerely, Kerley, Kearly, Kearley, Kearby, Curly, Curley, Curlee, Carlee, Corley, Carely, Careley, Cearley, Carley and other ways.

And in the Census Department in Washington, D C we find the same misspelling of the name in the old census reports. We can take the census reports for Smith County, Tennessee for 1820, William Carley Sr. is recorded as William Kerley, Sen. and his sons William, John and Luke as Kerley, but his son Jesse Carley is recorded as Jesse Kerby, and all of them living in the same neighborhood. We find the same condition in the census reports for 1830 in Hardeman County, Tennessee, the name being spelled Cerley, Kerley and Carley. The census for 1840 was correct in the name of Carley.

In the census reports of 1850 for Hardeman county, Tennessee the names were recorded as Kerley in error, but one Carley name was correctly recorded in the census of 1850 for Hardeman County, Tennessee. Mr. James Truslow Adams, in his work, "The Epic of America" has given us some of the reasons for much of the illiteracy of those early times in the United States, many of those old pioneers were opposed to schools, and the educating of their children. In some of those old records I found that many men of wealth, and among them some of my own family ancestors, could not sign their own names to legal documents. They would make an X mark, and the recording clerk would sign the name as it sounded to him, regardless of it's correctness, and in some old records it would be spelled three different ways in one legal document, this clearly indicates negligence on the part of the recording clerks whose duty it was to secure the signatures to the documents.

We believe that the Progenitor of the Kerley and Carley families in America today was one of the Kerley's that came from Dorset, England on the ship "Confidence" in 1638, and settled in Massachusetts. I am not sure that my Carley family is descended from one of those Kerley's that came over in 1638 or not, but we find in the old Massachusetts records the name of Carley as early as 1652. We may presume that the name of Carlye, Carler, and Carley may have came from the name of Kerley as we find the name of Kerley appearing in those old records first. I myself don't know if the Carley name came from the Kerley name or not. Later we find in old Virginia land records that Kerleys settled in Virginia as early as 1750,or earlier, as William Kerley was granted land by King George, July 5th, 1751, and as William Carley, he was granted land by King George on July 15th, 1760. The William Kerley of July 5th, 1751 and the William Carley of July 15th, 1760 was the same man.

The above settlements in Virginia may have been the first settlements of the families in the south. I think that it is impossible to find where the names of Kerley and Carley was so separated in those early colonial years so as to start different family lines. In my researches I find that the Northern branch of the Carley families has continued to spell their names Carley more consistently than the southern families have done.

[references to William Kerley]

(Note: by W. H. Carley, Sr. Some time before the year of 1750 the Kerley's or Carley's migrated to Virginia. I have no proof that they came to Virginia from Massachusetts, but I think they may have come from that Colony to Virginia. We find in Patent Book No 30, page 470, where King George II granted William Kerley land July 5, 1751. We find in Patent Book No 34 page 563 where King George II granted William Carley land on July 15, 1760. The records prove that William Kerley and William Carley was one and the same person. The land records are in the Land Office, Richmond, Virginia.)

From Births, Marriages, and Death Records of Lancaster, Mass. 1643 - 1850 by Henry S. Nourse, A. M. Lancaster, 1890. Page 5;
"For the aid of those who may be unfamiliar with the old style method of recording time, in English Church and Courts the year began with Lady Day: March being therefore the first month and January the eleventh. The present mode of computing time from January 1, as New Years Day was already in use in Scotland.
In all dates between January 1, and March 25 it became the fashion to indicate not only the year according to English reckoning, but that recognized in Scotland. The change from the Julian to the Gregorian Calendar was by act of Parliament adopted September 2, 1752, when eleven days were dropped, the next day becoming the fourteenth." For all dates previous to that, therefore in order to bring them into accord with the present calendar, it is necessary to add twelve days to the date, if before March 1700: or eleven day is subsequent to that day. Thus the destruction of Lancaster would be recorded as 10.12 m.1675 or February 1675-6, being according to the modern Calendar, February 22, 1676.

Index, "Carley, also see Kerley.
"Henry Kerley, and Elizabeth How, married at Charlestown 2m 18d 1677.
Abigail Carley, owned the Covenant & was Baptized, June 28, 1741.
Hezekiah Snow & Martha Carly was married 1734-5, by Sam Willard, Esq.
Ebenezer Snow & Elizabeth Carley was married by Oliver Wilder, Esq. Cot ye 10, 1745.
Then William Cerly of Lancaster, entered his purpose of marriage with Abigail Venham of Mendon, March ye 3d, 1739.
Ann, wife of William Kerley, Senior, died -- 12, 1.1658.
Brichett, wife of William Kerley, Senior. died -- 14.4m 1662.
Henry the son of Henrie Kerley and Elizabeth his wife was borne the 11-11 Mon.,1657.
William the son of Henrie Kerley and Elizabeth his wife was borne the 22-11 mo 1658.
Hannah, daughter of Henry Kerly & Elizabeth, his wife was borne 8,5mo, 1663.
Mary, daughter of Henry Kerly & Elizabeth his wife, was borne 14,8,1666.
William Kerley & Brichett Rowlandson, was maryed, ye 31,3mo1659.
William Kerley & Rebecca Joselin, was maryed 16,3,1664.
Joseph, Sonne of Henry & Elizabeth Kerly, borne March, 28,1669.
Martha, daughter of Hen & Elizab Kerly, borne 10,4,1672.
William Kerly, Senior, Died July 14, 1670.

Page 16. Victims of the Massacre of February 10, 1676.
Elizabeth (White) wife of Captain Henry Kerley. Henry Kerley, son of Captain
Henry age 18 years. William Kerley, son of Captain Henry aged 17 years.
Joseph Kerley, son of Captain Henry aged 7 years.

(Note by W. H. Kerley, Sr. Other records show that an infant son was also killed by the Indians. Young Henry Kerley was not killed, but was taken captive with some of his sisters, by King Philip and his band of Indians. After the destruction of Lancaster, the captives were later rescued from the Indians. This is the incident referred to on page 199 Vol. 37 of the N E Historical and Genealogical Register where it says, "Henry Kerley was a lieutenant of the Lancaster Company in 1675, and the name was commonly written Carley.")

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