Culture Heritage Museums. Colonel William Bratton House 1. In 1. 76. 6 William Bratton ca. Thomas Rainey on the South Fork of Fishing Creek in what was then Mecklenburg County, North Carolina. According to the deed of transaction, Bratton was already living on the property at the time he purchased it. At this time, the Fishing Creek area was on the Carolina frontier and was only thinly settled. Mecklenburg County records show several Bratton families settling in the Fishing Creek area in 1. Williams purchase of land was likely part of a larger family migration. Brattons whereabouts prior to his settling on Fishing Creek are unclear, although ongoing research by Culture Heritage Museums staff seeks to shed light on this question. AJC. com Get Atlantas News Now AJC access ATL Find Fun Things to Do myAJC Explore Exclusive Digital Extras and More AJC ePaper Read Todays Paper. Colonial records indicate that Brattons were living in Augusta County, Virginia, as early as 1. At this time Augusta County was on the Virginia frontier and during the French and Indian War 1. Indian raids. Many of the families in Augusta County migrated to the Carolina Piedmont in the 1. Indian depredations, and the Brattons may have been a part of this migration. What is clear is that Brattons ancestors probably his parents were immigrants from the Ulster Province in northern Ireland and were part of the large Scotch Irish migration to America in the first half of the 1. Bratton family traditions indicated that they came either from County Armagh or County Antrim however, current research leads us to favor County Tyrone as the most likely point of origin. Williams wife, Martha Robinson or Robertson ca. Scotch Irish. Bratton family traditions recorded in the late 1. William was born in Ireland and that Martha was born at sea during the Atlantic crossing. These same traditions indicate that William Bratton lived in Pennsylvania before moving South and that he married Martha in Rowan County, North Carolina. These traditions are as yet unverified by any reliable documentary evidence. The date of the Bratton houses construction is also uncertain. Virginia Mason Bratton 1. The Rainey Bratton deed transaction clearly indicates that William was living on the property in 1. It is certain that by 1. William Bratton, his wife Martha and five of their children were living in what is now known as the William Bratton House. The location of the house was well chosen and lay at the intersection of two important colonial roads a north south road known variously as the Armours Ford Road, Armstrong Ford Road, or Lincoln Road and a road running to the southeast known as the Rocky Mount Road. For many years, the William Bratton House probably looked a lot like the Mc. Connell House. It was a single pen, story and a half log house that rested upon stone piers. The log walls were likely uncovered and the few shuttered windows would have been small. The date of the brick chimney is unknownit may be original to the house or a later addition. The timber framed back room was probably added by 1. Family tradition states that by 1. The date and function of the narrow windows above the porch are debated. They may be original to the house or a later addition. Some suggest they were used as gun ports while others conjecture that they were built simply to allow light and air into the upper level. It is possible that the openings were designed with all of these functions in mind. At the time of the American Revolution William Bratton was a significant individual in the New Acquisition District of South Carolina, now known as York County. Romantic Horror Movies Felix The Cat Saves Christmas. He was appointed a justice of the peace in 1. He served as a captain, major and colonel in the New Acquisition militia and was one of the few slave holders in the area. The New Acquisition played an important role during the American Revolution. Men from the New Acquisition like William Bratton served in all of the important campaigns and battles in South Carolina between 1. On July 1. 2, 1. 78. Hucks Defeat took place on the plantation of James Williamson, a nearby neighbor of William Bratton. It was here that Loyalist forces under the command of Capt. Christian Huck of the British Legion were defeated by local militiamen led by William Bratton, Edward Lacey, John Mc. Clure and others. According to several sources, prior to the battle one of Hucks soldiers put a reaping hook to Martha Brattons throat and demanded to know her husbands whereabouts. Martha risked her life by refusing to betray the location of Col. Brattons camp. After the American Revolution, William Bratton, now referred to as Colonel Bratton from his service in the war, continued to prosper socially, politically and economically. In 1. 78. 6, Col. Bratton, eager to take advantage of the heavy traffic on the road that ran in front of his house, obtained a license to operate a tavern. He was again appointed tax collector in 1. South Carolina House of Representatives, a post he held until 1. In 1. 79. 1 he became a state senator and remained so until 1. Pinckney District 1. At some point after 1. Bratton acquired a cotton gin and joined the surge of cotton cultivation occurring throughout the upper South. To facilitate his cotton planting, Bratton acquired more land and slaves. In 1. 79. 0 Bratton owned 1. By the time of his death in 1. Bratton had increased his slave ownership to 2. William Bratton died on February 9, 1. The City Gazette of Charleston, S. C., published this obituary He was one of the old revolutionary characters, worthy to be remembered. His services were zealously devoted to his country throughout the Revolutionary war and for many years afterward in the State Legislature. He has left a widow and numerous family, besides a large circle of friends and acquaintances to lament his loss. Martha Bratton died a year later, on January 1. Both are buried at Bethesda Presbyterian Church cemetery in York County, South Carolina. An inventory of Colonel Brattons property dated April 1. Of that amount, 6,5. Negroes. Much of William and Marthas economic success can be attributed to their slaves who worked in the home and in the fields. It is unknown at this time where William Brattons slaves lived. Excavations conducted in the early 1. Bratton slaves resided in a small structure located just north of the house. This building is shown in an 1. Martha Bratton, granddaughter of Col. William and Martha Bratton. This small building might also have served as a detached kitchen, a common feature of Southern homes. Upon entering the house, visitors will find the interior furnished as a tavern from the late 1. Although we know Col. Bratton operated a tavern, we do not know exactly how he would have utilized his house as both a residence and a tavern. To date, there are no surviving records that indicate how he divided the home between living quarters and public space thus the current furnishings and appearance of the house interior is conjectural. The furnishings in the house are a mixture of antiques and reproductions. The large pine corner cupboard in the main room probably dates from between 1. The fearsome boars head over the mantel is that of a European wild boar such trophy heads were not uncommon in taverns of that time. In the kitchen, the bed likely dates to the second quarter 1. The small corner cupboard also likely dates to the early 1. Like the Mc. Connell House, the furnishings of the Bratton House feature a considerable quantity of relatively inexpensive red ware and some of it, such as the platters on the mantel, are very Germanic in design again, this is another sign of Moravian influences. The house also features reproductions of two sets of very common 1. Windsors. Ladder, or slat back chairs were produced by local craftsmen throughout America from the colonial period well into the 2. South. Ladder back chairs exemplified regional characteristics such as the design of the slats and finials, the style of the feet, and the turnings. Reds And Grays Free Online Movie© 2017