52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks - #52 Zillar Hunter

Zillar (or Zillah) Hunter was my maternal 6th great grandmother. Her father was Nicholas Hunter. I only have a first name for her mother--Rebecca. Some family trees on ancestry.com have her mother's maiden name as Grady and Boone. A couple of family trees on familysearch.org have Rebecca's maiden name as Hardy.

I have Zillar's birth year as about 1737 in Onslow County, North Carolina, but I don't know if that's correct. I've also seen her birth year estimated as 1732 and 1736. One of 12 children, her siblings were Easter/Esther, Reachell/Rachel, Kesiah, Elizabeth, Sarah, Ruth, Stephen, Ezekell, Lebbeus, William, and Joab. These children are listed in Nicholas Hunter's will.[1]

Zillar married Silas Weeks in Carteret County, North Carolina. I've seen various years for this, too: 1755, 1756, and 1757. The only children I have listed for them are James (b. before 1755), Theophilus (1760-1839), and Ada (about 1765-1852, my 5th great grandmother).

Zillar's husband Silas died during the American Revolution. His card record index on fold3.com notes that he died on May 22, 1778. I haven't done much research into this as of yet. I don't know if he was killed in a battle or died from disease or wounds. The card record below lists his death date beside "Casualties."

The Revolutionary War card index record for Silas Weeks (from fold3.com)

Silas joined Donoho's Company in the 6th North Carolina regiment in 1777 and served under Col. Gideon Lamb. Son Theophilus joined Donoho's Company the previous year in 1776 and survived the war.[2]

Zillar died in about 1784 in Carteret County, North Carolina. There's an interesting write-up about the Weeks family on the blog Swansboro, North Carolina.

My descent from Zillar Hunter:

Zillar Hunter and Silas Weeks
Ada Weeks and ? (John O'Steen was possibly her second husband and not the father of Phoebe)
Phoebe Weeks and John Roberts
William P. Roberts and Sarah Knight
William Roberts and Margaret Devane
John T. Roberts and Catherine Young
Leona Roberts and William Redles
Leona Redles and Albert Pendleton Jr.
Catherine Pendleton (me)

This is my last post for the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks challenge by genealogist Amy Crow at No Story Too Small. I decided after my first post that I would concentrate on my female ancestors, so 50 of my 52 posts are about them. Before publishing each post, I researched what was available online, in the local library, and in my parents' books to see if I could find out more about these ancestors. This challenge has given me the chance to learn more about them. I encourage you to take the 2015 challenge!

Catherine

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References:
[1] Ancestry.com. North Carolina Will Abstracts 1660-1790, for Nicholas Hunter. Database online.

[2] Fold3.com. Compiled Service Records of Soldiers Who Served in the American Army During the Revolutionary War. Database online; Roster of Soldiers from North Carolina in the American Revolution. Reprinted for Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Col, Inc., Baltimore, Maryland, 2000, 2003. Originally published by The North Carolina Daughters of the American Revolution, Durham, 1932, pp. 85, 91.