Parker/Little/Copeland Family
You might be wondering: why the multiple names for this Family Line? Good question! This line in particular has multiple matrilineal jumps. If you go back to the beginning, we start with the Copeland family arriving from Ireland. Skip a couple generations, and a Copeland daughter marries a Little. Next generation, a Little daughter marries a Parker. See the pattern now? When each name shifts to a new surname, that's pretty much as far back as that family line has been traced. We know very little about the Little and Parker families.
in 1998 a book was published looking at the Copeland/LIttle/Parker family history. You can view the scanned PDF here :
Some Copeland and Little Families
Part 1 (Pages 1-200)
Part 2 (201-453)
Index
The Parker/Little/Copeland family were some of the first American settlers into the new frontier of the early 1800s. The family migrated to Southern Illinois before 1815. We can trace this family line from Southern Illinois to Tennessee to North Carolina.
7. Mary Parker
6. Thomas Irvin Parker
5. Albion Robert Parker
4. William Parker/Jane Little
3. Robert Little/Sarah (Sally) Copeland
2. William Copeland
1. David Copeland
in 1998 a book was published looking at the Copeland/LIttle/Parker family history. You can view the scanned PDF here :
Some Copeland and Little Families
Part 1 (Pages 1-200)
Part 2 (201-453)
Index
The Parker/Little/Copeland family were some of the first American settlers into the new frontier of the early 1800s. The family migrated to Southern Illinois before 1815. We can trace this family line from Southern Illinois to Tennessee to North Carolina.
7. Mary Parker
6. Thomas Irvin Parker
5. Albion Robert Parker
4. William Parker/Jane Little
3. Robert Little/Sarah (Sally) Copeland
2. William Copeland
1. David Copeland
A large amount of the research has been completed by the book Some Copeland and Little Families written by A. Lucille Harney and Fairline Bigley. For a history of the Copeland family especially, it would be ideal to read the beginnings of this book.
Our Copeland family line arrived in the United States between 1763 and 1766 (one child born 1763 in Ireland, the next born 1766 in Virginia). David Copeland came to the New World with his sons William, James and Richard. According to the records, David and his sons were from Londonderry, Ireland. Upon further research, it is safe to assume that the Copeland family was not of Irish origins. Instead, they were part of the mass emigration of Scots and English settlers into the region of Ulster (modern day Northern Ireland). This was an attempt to "civilize" the Irish population and "Christianize" them into the correct religion. Many Irish maintained a Catholic faith despite the English efforts to push towards Protestant and Church of England religions.
Whether the Copelands were Scottish or Northern English is yet to be determined. According to the Some Copeland and Little Families book, records of Copelands in Scotland appear as early as the 1200s.
David Copeland and his wife lived the remaining years of their life in Hillsboro, Loudoun County, VA. The home they built still remains owned by a descendant to this day.
David's oldest son, William, served in the American Revolution before traveling westward with his family. By the early 1800s, William is in Montgomery County, TN where his daughter, Sarah (Sally) Copeland marries Robert Little. We do not know much about the background of Robert Little. We know he served in the Tennessee militia during the War of 1812 and may have been born in North Carolina.
I believe the Copeland/Little family followed the rivers from Tennessee to Southern Illinois not long after the end of the War of 1812. Here, Jane Little, the oldest daughter of Robert and Sarah (Sally), married William Parker. We know even less about William Parker than we do his father-in-law, Robert.
The likelihood of us ever finding out more on this family line is small. The family was among the first pioneers to settle on the frontier of the newly formed United States. More than likely, none of them ever learned to read or write. If they did, it was rudimentary at best. The areas they settled had little to no formal government. Southern Illinois at the time of statehood in 1818 was sparsely populated. Though the region known as Illinois today had been settled by Europeans since the 1600s, these settlements, settled by early French settlers, were along the Mississippi River between St. Louis and Cape Girardeau. Two forts were constructed at Fort Massac and near modern day Grand Chain, but these held little control over the land and did not stand for long.
Even after statehood the rural regions of Southern Illinois have little to no records. Census records from 1810 to 1840 show the heads of houses living here. Massac County was established in 1843, from a portion of Johnson County. As such, records before 1843 are located in Johnson County and not Massac County records. From 1850 on, the entire household is listed. Marriage, birth, and death records before 1850 are almost non-existent. By 1900, it is possible to find some records, but even these are spotty.
Since the Parker/Copeland/Little family were some of the first settlers into the region, their lives in the early years of Southern Illinois, we have some guesses on where they lived and where they were buried, but no concrete proof.
Our Copeland family line arrived in the United States between 1763 and 1766 (one child born 1763 in Ireland, the next born 1766 in Virginia). David Copeland came to the New World with his sons William, James and Richard. According to the records, David and his sons were from Londonderry, Ireland. Upon further research, it is safe to assume that the Copeland family was not of Irish origins. Instead, they were part of the mass emigration of Scots and English settlers into the region of Ulster (modern day Northern Ireland). This was an attempt to "civilize" the Irish population and "Christianize" them into the correct religion. Many Irish maintained a Catholic faith despite the English efforts to push towards Protestant and Church of England religions.
Whether the Copelands were Scottish or Northern English is yet to be determined. According to the Some Copeland and Little Families book, records of Copelands in Scotland appear as early as the 1200s.
David Copeland and his wife lived the remaining years of their life in Hillsboro, Loudoun County, VA. The home they built still remains owned by a descendant to this day.
David's oldest son, William, served in the American Revolution before traveling westward with his family. By the early 1800s, William is in Montgomery County, TN where his daughter, Sarah (Sally) Copeland marries Robert Little. We do not know much about the background of Robert Little. We know he served in the Tennessee militia during the War of 1812 and may have been born in North Carolina.
I believe the Copeland/Little family followed the rivers from Tennessee to Southern Illinois not long after the end of the War of 1812. Here, Jane Little, the oldest daughter of Robert and Sarah (Sally), married William Parker. We know even less about William Parker than we do his father-in-law, Robert.
The likelihood of us ever finding out more on this family line is small. The family was among the first pioneers to settle on the frontier of the newly formed United States. More than likely, none of them ever learned to read or write. If they did, it was rudimentary at best. The areas they settled had little to no formal government. Southern Illinois at the time of statehood in 1818 was sparsely populated. Though the region known as Illinois today had been settled by Europeans since the 1600s, these settlements, settled by early French settlers, were along the Mississippi River between St. Louis and Cape Girardeau. Two forts were constructed at Fort Massac and near modern day Grand Chain, but these held little control over the land and did not stand for long.
Even after statehood the rural regions of Southern Illinois have little to no records. Census records from 1810 to 1840 show the heads of houses living here. Massac County was established in 1843, from a portion of Johnson County. As such, records before 1843 are located in Johnson County and not Massac County records. From 1850 on, the entire household is listed. Marriage, birth, and death records before 1850 are almost non-existent. By 1900, it is possible to find some records, but even these are spotty.
Since the Parker/Copeland/Little family were some of the first settlers into the region, their lives in the early years of Southern Illinois, we have some guesses on where they lived and where they were buried, but no concrete proof.