John C. CATO

                   RESEARCH NOTES:
    Research information from GenCircles is copied in the PAF notes.  Probably not the John Cato who was a reverend in the Carolinas.  It appears this John Cato was illiterate, and his will was proved in Brunswick, VA in 1795, having been written in 1788.

Overseer of roads from Buffalo to Chesterfield county line in Kershaw county, South Carolina.---Source: Judy Patrick ---Source: "Rev. John Cato was living in Lancaster Co. with 1 slave and 2 in the family in 1790. He had three surveys in 1803 of 1,000 acres each, touching Little Buffalo Creek of Lynches Creek and the Camden Road, one of them being in the angle of the Camden Road, The Battalion Road, and the Meeting House Road on North Buffalo Creek. He was pastor of Lanes Creek apparently from 1798 to 1804. (Information from South Carolina Baptists, 1670-1805, by Leah Townsend, PH.D). Virginia marriage records from The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, The William and Mary College Quarterly, and Tyler's Quarterly, indexed by Elizabeth Petty Bentley shows several marriages by members of the Cato family. Of particular interest were William Dupree and Jannett Cato, 25 Jun 1788, John Cato (father) gives consent; John Shehorn and Crecy Cato, 28 June 1796, John Cato (father) gives consent; and Ruckner Shelton and Betsy Cato, 26 July 1792, John Cato (father) gives consent. There was a John Cato in Brunswick, VA. Records need to be checked. Burwell Cato's will was recorded in Brunswick, VA, in 1769. John Cato may have been in Anson Co., NC, prior to moving to Lancaster Co., SC. "Lancaster County Tours," by Viola C. Floyd, p. 85, Rev. John Catoe was one of the pastors of Flat Creek, Oldest Baptist Church in Lancaster Co., prior to 1790. On Feb. 4, 1769, John Cato deeded his son Henry Cato 250 acres of land on the north side of Fountain Creek in Brunswick (DB 9-495). John and Jane Cato moved to SC where on 31 Aug. 1784, he patented 500 acres of land in Camden Dist. on Buffalo Branch."---Provided by Jacque Otts"Brunswick Co., VA, Deed Book 9, p. 495-496, LDS Film 0030644: This indenture made this fourth day of February in the year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and sixty nine between John Cato of Brunswick County of the one part and Henry Cato of North Carolina son of the said John Cato of the other part Witnesseth that the said John Cato for and in consideration of the Natural Love and affection which he hath and bareth unto the said Henry Cato and for the better maintainance and livelyhood of him the said Henry Cato hath given granted alioned? en?? and confirmed and by these presents doth give unto the said Henry Cato his Heirs and assigns one certain tract or parcel of Land lying and being in Brunswick County on the North side of Fountains Creek supposed to be two hundred and fifty acres more or less and bounded as followed (to wit) Beginning at a Spanish Oak on Fountain Creek at the mouth of a small branch and thence along a dividing line made on purpose by tsaid John Cato to his back line at a pine thence along the said line as it meanders to Fountains Creek at a ?? oak then down the said Creek as it meanders to the Beginning Spanish oak. To have and to hold the said two hundred & fifty acres of land be the same more or less including all the land the said John Cato now holds above the above mentioned Dividing line with the appurtenances thereunto belonging unto the said Henry Cato his heirs and assigns forever to the only use and behoof? of him the said Henry Cato his Heirs and assigns for ever and the said John Cato for himself his Heirs Executors and Administrators doth command promise & grant to and with tsaid Henry Cato his Heirs and assigns by these presents that he the said Henry Cato his Heirs & assigns shall & may lawfully from henceforth forever hereafter peaceably and quietly have hold and occupy possess and Enjoy the said Tract or parcel of Land and premises above mentioned to be heregranted with ??? and every of their appurtenances free clear and discharged as well and sufficiently ?? & . . . . As Witness my hand and seal this day &year above written. John C. Cato (his mark which appears to be an I and marks through it). Test: Henry Wyche, William Brewer, Sterling Cato. Proven in court by Henry Wyche, William Brewer, and Sterling Cato, on 24 July 1769. [NOTE: Deed Book 10, p. 267-268, Brunswick 
Co., VA, LDS Film 0030645. Deed from Henry and Tabitha Cato to Drury Cook for property in the same area as above property. Might be same.]"WILLIAM AND MARY QUARTERLY - Brunswick County VA, 1748 Poll ListVol. 26, No. 1, p. 59BRUNSWICK COUNTY, VIRGINIA. POLL LIST 1748Brunswick Co. was created by Act of Assembly in 1720 fromPrince George County (see Robinson, Virginia Counties, p. 76)with additions from Isle of Wight and Surry in 1732. The firstcourt for Brunswick was held May 2, 1732, from which therecords of this county date.The following poll list for 1748 gives the names of the resi-dents of Brunswick voting for representatives in the House ofBurgesses for the sessions of October, 1748, and April, 1749, andwhich resulted in the election of Sterling Clack and Drury Stith.Burge of H. pole of their votes:P. 60Daniel Cato John CatoSource for most of the information on the descendants of John Catoe are from the Catoe family geneology book from Brenda Jo Cato Haigh, May 2001. My sincerest thanks to Brenda Jo for sending me copies of pages from this book. The book was researched and produced by Brenda's oldest sister Susanne Ophelia Cato Bodin who says of her Companion Burt Steele (in part) " (He was).. ; taking me all over the country, to the National Archives in Washington, D. C., city and county court houses, libraries, cemeteries and many other locations. We traveled about 10,000 miles a year for 6 1/2 years."Transcribed from the booklet:"Catoe Summary. The Catoe family came to Virginia in the 17th century. Our first certain ancester, JOHN CATOE, was born about 1710 (probably in Brunswick County, where he appears in 1731). He married JANE COOKE, a daughter of HENRY COOKE by his wife MARY CLARKE, and a member of a family which can be directly traced to Bristol, England, about 1550 and which first came to Virginia in 1635. JOHN CATOE and his wife had at least 6 sons and 1 daughter, four of who later moved to the Carolinas.JOHN's son HENRY (born about 1740) is the presumed father of NEEDHAM. He married TABITHA BREWER (or Vincent) by 1763 and had also moved to Downing Creek, North Carolina, where he was still living in 1769. So NEEDHAM, who was born in 1768 or 1769, was almost surely born there. Soon after, HENRY CATOE moved his family to the forks of Black River in South Carolina, about 20 miles east of Camden in present-day Sumter County. They were living there at the time of the Revolution, in which HENRY served as a First Lieutenant in the cavalry 1779-1782, and his son Burrell also served in the American Army. In 1784 HENRY received a grant of 640 acres on Black River and Tare Coat Swamp, adjoining lands of his brother STERLING.The CATOES did not remain on Black River long after this, however BURRELL CATOE states in his pension application that they moved after the war about 40 miles to Lynches River. The reason for this, apparently, was that old JOHN CATOE and his wife, HENRY's parents, moved to South Carolina about 1784, and JOHN received a grant of 500 acres in this area.JOHN CATOE was a licensed minister, and he filled the pulpit at Flat Creek and Lane's Creek (in upper Lancaster County) from the 1780's. He is also found at this period as overseer of the old Camden Road on which he lived, relinquishing this post to HENRY's son WILLIAM in 1793. In 1803 he was granted 3,000 acres on Buffalo Creek, and about that same year he was ordained a minister at Boggy Gut. He is last found preaching at Flat Creek in 1806 - - when he was about 94 years old. His son HENRY and his wife TABITHA were still living here in 1800, but they either died before 1810 or moved to Christian County, Kentucky, wher a HENRY CATOE and wife both over 45, are found in 1810.Because of poor record-keeping and losses of records, it is difficult to discover the names of all the children of HENRY and TABITHA CATOE (NEEDHAM's brother and sisters). Among those known are: 1. BURRELL (....) , 2. WILLIAM (....) , 3. VINCENT (....)"The comments for each person are listed under that person.Other children of John Catoe/Cato and Jane Cooke have been obtained from 
other sources on the internet.The following information on John Cato was received from Jacque Otts by email on 5/12/02: Notes for John Cato:Rev. John Cato was living in Lancaster Co. with 1 slave and 2 in the family in 1790. He had three surveys in 1803 of 1,000 acres each, touching Little Buffalo Creek of Lynches Creek and the Camden Road, one of them being in the angle of the Camden Road, The Battalion Road, and the Meeting House Road on North Buffalo Creek. He was pastor of Lanes Creek apparently from 1798 to 1804. (Information from South Carolina Baptists, 1670-1805, by Leah Townsend, PH.D). Virginia marriage records from The Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, The William and Mary College Quarterly, and Tyler's Quarterly, indexed by Elizabeth Petty Bentley shows several marriages by members of the Cato family. Of particular interest were William Dupree and Jannett Cato, 25 Jun 1788, John Cato (father) gives consent; John Shehorn and Crecy Cato, 28 June 1796, John Cato (father) gives consent; and Ruckner Shelton and Betsy Cato, 26 July 1792, John Cato (father) gives consent. There was a John Cato in Brunswick, VA. Records need to be checked.Burwell Cato's will was recorded in Brunswick, VA, in 1769. John Cato may have been in Anson Co., NC, prior to moving to Lancaster Co., SC. "Lancaster County Tours," by Viola C. Floyd, p. 85, Rev. John Catoe was one of the pastors of Flat Creek, Oldest Baptist Church in Lancaster Co., prior to 1790. On Feb. 4, 1769, John Cato deeded his son Henry Cato 250 acres of land on the north side of Fountain Creek in Brunswick (DB 9-495). John and Jane Cato moved to SC where on 31 Aug. 1784, he patented 500 acres of land in Camden Dist. on Buffalo Branch.