Biographical/historical information

William Timothy Paul was born September 1, 1818, in Craven County, North Carolina, to Zaccheus Harvey Paul and Penelope "Nelly" Elinor Bennett Paul. He married Eunice Unity Leigh on February 23, 1842, in Craven County, North Carolina. They had children Raymond, Edgar H., Lucinda, Elizabeth, Chester, Henry, and Benjamin. Eunice Unity Lee was born April 23, 1822, and died on August 15, 1855. William Timothy Paul then married Sarah "Sally" Bryan Smithwick on September 4, 1855, in Craven County, N.C. and they had children Dudley, Naron, Beverly, John, and Mandy.

William Timothy Paul's son Dudley (1856-1905) married Delilah J. Cowell (1860-1936) and one of their children was Grover Guy Paul. Grover was born December 1, 1882 in Alliance, Pamlico County, North Carolina, and died on February 11, 1968, in Carteret County, N.C. He had married Bertha Simpkins (1896-1953) and their son was Larry Smallwood Paul. Larry Smallwood Paul (born on February 3, 1928, in Oriental, Pamlico County, N.C., and died May 18, 1974 in Morehead City, Carteret County, N.C.) married Mary Ruth Nelson (born February 20, 1930 in Chicago, Illinois, and died March 13, 2010 in Morehead City, Carteret County, N.C.) in 1952 and their son Larry Smallwood Paul, Jr., is the donor of this collection along with his wife Nancy.

Another family member who shows up in this collection is Smith Paul. Smith was born May 27, 1809, in New Bern, Craven County, N.C., and died August 10, 1893, in Pauls Valley, Garvin County, Oklahoma. He was a first cousin of William Timothy Paul and he went out West. The 1860 U.S. Census had Smith living at Pickens with the Chickasaw Nation in Indian Territory. His obituary says he came to Oklahoma in 1859 and settled in what became known as Smith Paul's Valley. He married Ellen "Ela Teecha" Brown, a Chickasaw woman who had two children by her previous husband who had died, in 1845 and they had several children before her death in 1871. In 1875, Smith married Sarah Ann "Lilly" Wainscott and they had several more children.

Sources: Find a Grave and FamilySearch, accessed in February and March 2025.

Administrative information

Custodial History

March 13, 2025, (unprocessed), 0.30 cubic feet; Papers (ca. 1749-1905) of William Timothy Paul and his descendants and relatives of Craven, Pamlico, and Carteret Counties, North Carolina. The collection contains land deeds, documents signed by William T. Paul as a constable and as a justice of the peace, correspondence, receipts, and legal documents related to setting up a Mutual Aid Society, judgments and agreements, and to the Board of Commissioners of Pamlico County. Gift of Larry S. Paul, Jr., and his wife Nancy C. Paul.

Source of acquisition

Gift of Larry S. Paul, Jr. and Nancy C. Paul

Processing information

Processed March 2025 by Martha Elmore

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Metadata Rights Declaration

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