Abraham Congleton Papers

1804-1926
Manuscript Collection #592
Creator(s)
Congleton, Abraham, -1832
Physical description
0.055 Cubic Feet, 21 items
Preferred Citation
Abraham Congleton Papers (#592), East Carolina Manuscript Collection, J. Y. Joyner Library, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.
Repository
ECU Manuscript Collection
Access
No restrictions

Records (1804-1926) of Pitt County, NC Family, including birth and death records, deeds, petitions, and a plat for property in the flat swamp area, including Oak Grove Church and Academy.


Biographical/historical information

Abraham Congleton was born around 1742-44 in Beaufort County. He was the sixth child of William and Sarah Congleton. He and his wife, Martha had three sons and two daughters. Colonial records of North Carolina indicated that Abraham Congleton served as a soldier in the American Revolution and was listed as #795 on the militia roster of North Carolina soldiers. Colonial records also indicated that he was assigned to patrol for runaway slaves. Congleton was co-owner of land in Pitt and Beaufort Counties.

Abraham Congleton was a pastor at Rountree Church in Ayden, N.C., which was widely recognized as the mother church of the North Carolina Disciples of Christ, also known as the Christian Church. Congleton himself was incredibly influential in the rise of the North Carolina Disciples of Christ, spreading the teachings of its founders, Thomas and Alexander Campbell. According to the Biblical Recorder published on January 4, 1834, members of the Neuse Baptist Association declared that Congleton developed the habit of preaching doctrines which were deemed "heretical and subversive of the peach and best interests of our Churches". Congleton's devotion to the teachings of the Christian Church eventually led to the Neuse Baptist Association to recommend his exclusion from the pulpits of churches connected to the association. Congleton, however, continued his pastorate at Rountree, which became a church devoted to the Disciples of Christ. Abraham Congleton died in 1832.

Sources:

Information gathered from documents within the Abraham Congleton Papers.

University and N.C. Baptist Biographical Files Collection, N.p. Print, Z. Smith Reynolds Library, Wake Forest University, Wake Forest, North Carolina, USA - https://wakespace.lib.wfu.edu/handle/10339/84235

Congleton Descendants: Generation 3 - https://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/congleton/126/


Scope and arrangement

The papers include documents describing land sales, petitions, and deeds between the Congleton, Jolly, Clemmons, Keel, Rogers, and Gurganus families. Also included is a document describing a land sale between Oak Grove Church and Academy and Abraham Congleton. The majority of the papers pertain to land records in Pitt County, North Carolina.

Among the papers is a receipt for payment of a property tax for land in Pitt County, N.C. There is a quit-claim deed from Garrett County, Texas. The papers also include the birth and death records for a family named Gurganus, one drawing showing plots of land, and a legal document declaring Abraham Congleton's death.


Administrative information
Custodial History

April 23, 1990 21 items; Records (1804-1926) of a Pitt County, N.C. family, including birth and death records, deeds, petitions, and a plat for property in the Flat Swamp area, including Oak Grove Church and Academy. Donor: Mr. J. B. Congleton

Source of acquisition

Gift of J. B. Congleton

Processing information

Encoded by Apex Data Services. Processed by Nanette Hardison and Casey Harwick, October 2023

Copyright notice

Literary rights to specific documents are retained by the authors or their descendants in accordance with U.S. copyright law.


Related material

Transcription of Gurganus Family Deed, 1846 - Found on Our Family Tree - https://www.ourfamtree.org/doc_view.php?did=4093&fid=23183


Key terms
Personal Names
Congleton, Abraham, -1832
Corporate Names
Oak Grove Church and Academy
Places
Pitt County (N.C.)--Genealogy

Container list
Box 1 Folder b Deeds and Birth and Death Records for Gurganus Family, 1816, 1846, 1854
Box 1 Folder c Deeds - Properties co-owned with Rop family, Whichard family, Ward family, Jolly family, Clemmons family, Keel family, and Rogers family; Drawing showing plots of land along with additional information., 1856-1902