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Welcome to the Willis DNA Project!
We maintain a database of DNA profiles
for men
whose last name is Willis. The purpose is to aid in family
research. All Willises are welcome to
participate. Our database is an approved project of Family Tree DNA, Inc.,
the world's leading DNA testing company for genealogy.
Earliest known ancestors of our project participants are:
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Abner
Willis of Pennsylvania
was born between 1745 and 1755 in Cumberland/York/Lancaster counties and
died in 1804. He was a blacksmith and a member of the Silver Spring
Presbyterian Church. (10917) |
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Abner
Willis of Washington County, Virginia
was married in Washington County, Virginia, in 1804 to Eva Sifers. He
owned property in Saltville Gap. Based on land records, Abner may be a
brother of Amos Willis, who may have moved to southern Kentucky.
Sometime between 1810 and 1820, Abner moved to Russell County, Virginia. A known son of Abner Willis is Richard J. Willis.
(Washington Co., VA Group/15233 and 64544) |
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Abraham
Willis of Herkimer County, New York
was born 1796 in NY, married Hannah Whaley in 1819. They appeared in
the 1820 census in Schuyler, Herkimer County, NY. In the 1850 census
they were in Fairfield Township, Huron County, Ohio. They both died in
Huron County, Ohio, 1880/1881. Children included: Alpheus David (b.1822
NY - d.1916 OH); James (b.1827 NY); Horace (b.1831 NY - d.1890 OH); Rebecah (b.1834 NY); Sarah E. (b.1839 NY - d.1917 OH); Joseph W. (b.1844
OH - d.1829 OH). (64317) |
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Andrew
Jackson Willis of Alabama
was born in 1815 in the Mississippi Territory and in 1818
moved to Franklin, Alabama, with his mother Mary (or Maria) and two
siblings by covered wagon. His father is unknown at this time. He
married Atimissa Sparks and had numerous children. He fought and was
wounded at Gaines Mill in the Civil War while serving in the 26th
Alabama Regiment. He died in 1880. (65516)
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Andrew
Willis of Dorchester County, Maryland was born in
1682 and died in 1738. He was married to Janet
Jones and lived
in Choptank Hundred, Dorchester County, Maryland. Many of Andrew's
descendents adopted the surname "Williss." (13266)
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Austin
Willis of North Carolina
was born about 1820 in North Carolina. He married Edney
Cook on December 26, 1846. Austin was a blacksmith for the North
Carolina railroad, in "Company Shop," North Carolina. He served as a
private in the Civil War in Company K, 47th North Carolina Regiment
(Alamance Minutemen). He died about 1880 in North Carolina. His son,
John Willis, was born in 1850 and died about 1900 in Nottoway County,
Virginia. (The Southern Group/20880) |
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Benjamin Willis of North Carolina
was born about 1765 in North
Carolina. His father, whose first name is unknown, is said to have
emigrated from England. A known son of Benjamin Willis is Rev. Thomas
Willis (husband of Keziah Grindstaff), whose Willis-surname descendants
lived in Mitchell County for many generations.
(The North Carolina Group/90449) |
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Britton Willis was born
in 1758 in North Carolina. He married Ann Gillespie. He died April 6,
1844 in Muhlenberg, Kentucky. Children were James, Winifred, Matthew G.,
Jane, Thomas, Ann G., David Gillespie, and Peggy.
(The
Southern Group/87203) |
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Daniel Campbell Willis
was b. 29 Jul 1807 in VA, near Wash. D.C. according to family
information. His father was believed to be Robert. He had a brother,
Robert, and two sisters, Elizabeth (Betsey) and Catherine. In 1814, the
family moved to southern KY near the TN border, according to family
information. Daniel moved to Greene Co, IL ca 1826, where he m.1)
Elizabeth Green 2 Feb 1832. He m.2) Frances Fears, b. 25 Dec 1813, Grainger Co. TN, on 17 Nov
1834 in Greene Co, IL. Their children were Robert, William, Susan, James
(all b. Greene Co, IL), Catherine, John, Samuel, Frances, Sarah (all b.
Des Moines Co, IA), Luther, and Alfred (both b. Adair Co, MO). Frances
(Fears) Willis d. 22 Jul 1863, Adair Co, MO. Daniel m.3) Frances' sister
Martha Ann (Fears) Butler, 11 Jul 1869, also in Greene Co, IL. Daniel
was a Methodist. He d. 17 Jul 1882 in Adair Co, MO. (The
Southern Group/54942) |
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David
Willis of Tennessee
was born in 1799 in Tennessee. He died in Clinton,
Dewitt County, Illinois. He had a son born in Edgar, Illinois on Dec 24
1829 who married Caroline Bruner. (The
Tennessee Group/37263) |
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Elijah
Willis was
born in Georgia in 1809, married Elizabeth Daniel in 1834 in Talbot
County, Georgia, and about 1836 or 1837 settled in Autauga County,
Alabama. Elijah's father was born in North Carolina. Children of Elijah
and Elizabeth were William (born in 1835 in Georgia), John, Mary
Francis,
James Wesley, George, and Joseph P. (The
North Carolina Group/99629) |
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Henry
Willis of Caswell County, North Carolina
died in 1820 in Caswell County. His sons were Nicholas, Henry Jr., and
Anderson. (The
North Carolina Group/42272) |
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Henry
Willis of Gloucester County, Virginia came to Virginia from Oxfordshire, England, in the
1600s. Early branches of the family lived in Gloucester County,
Virginia, and Fredericksburg, Spotsylvania County, Virginia. Project participants include a descendant of Byrd Charles Willis
(husband of Mary Lewis) and a descendant of William Champe Willis
(husband of Lucy Taliaferro), both of whom are sons of Lewis Willis, a son of Henry Willis of Fredericksburg (born about 1696).
Published genealogies of this family include A Sketch of the Willis
Family of Virginia, by Byrd Charles Willis and Richard Henry Willis
(1898) and A Sketch of the Willis Family, Fredericksburg Branch,
by Byrd Charles Willis (1909). (Gloucester County, Virginia
Group/29851 and 76114) |
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Henry
Willis of Long Island, New York
was born in 1628 in Warminster, Wiltshire, England. After being
persecuted because of his Quaker religion, he immigrated to Long Island
in 1674. His older son William remained in Long Island. His younger son
John settled in Pennsylvania. John's descendants founded branches
in Pennsylvania (William Willis of Manchester and York), Virginia (John
Willis of Franklin County), Kentucky (Joseph Willis of Mercer County),
Ohio (Henry Willis of Monroe County, West Virginia), Missouri (Isaiah
Willis of Franklin County, Virginia), Indiana (Jesse Willis), and other
states. A genealogy, Henry
Willis of Long Island, Vol. 1: 1550 - 1800,
was published in 2008
by the Administrator of this website. (The
Wiltshire, England Group/8404, 8430,
10112, 10381, 10862, 27840, and 30786) |
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Henry
Willis of Washington County, Virginia
settled in the area of Maiden Springs Fort on the Clinch River in
Washington County, Virginia. He married Mary Cochran (Coughron). In
1774 he fought in Lord Dunmore's War. About 1799 he may have moved to
Pulaski County, Kentucky, where he died about 1820. Children of
Henry Willis of Pulaski County are Elizabeth (born about 1780), Henry Jr. (born October 5,
1793, married Sarah Moore, died January 1, 1873 in Grayson County,
Kentucky), and Samuel (born about 1800, married Minerva Moore). Another
child may be Lewis Willis, who married Rachel Cox and moved to Scott
County, Missouri. (Henry Willis of
Washington County, Virginia/67855 and 73949) |
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Henry
S. Willis of Scott County, Kentucky
was born October 19, 1810 either in Virginia or in Kentucky. On April 7, 1836 he married Jane Parker Robinson. His
son Richard Perry Willis was born January 16, 1837, married Keturah Ann
Yates in Alabama on January 16, 1860, and had twelve children. Henry's
other known children were Mary, Catharine, Henry, Jane, William, Robert,
James E., and Nannie. (The
Southern Group/136256) |
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Jack
Willis
was born in Ketchum, Idaho, about 1901. He was
a mining engineer.
(113004) |
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James
Willis of Alabama was born
in 1827 in Jackson County, Alabama, and died between 1870 and 1880. He
married Margaret Isbell between 1845 and 1847 in Jackson County,
Alabama. She was the daughter of James Isbell and Elizabeth Birdwell.
Their children were Susannah A., Calvin Ceveire, John Henry, Mary
Arezine, Nancy A., James Monroe, William Z., and Anna M.
Family Tree DNA has determined that James Willis of Alabama is a direct
patrilineal descendant of Niall of the Nine Hostages, who established a
dynasty of chieftains that dominated Ireland for six centuries. (Niall
of the Nine Hostages/25499 and 126553) |
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James
Willis of North Carolina
was
born about 1755 in Cumberland County, Virginia, and died in 1796 in Chatham
County, North Carolina. He married Elizabeth Wilson, daughter of
Benjamin Wilson, also of Cumberland County. Children mentioned in James'
will were Rebecca Caudle, Sally Crow, Suckey Willis (a daughter), Jemima
Willis, Wilson Willis, Larkin Willis (born in 1777), Molly Willis,
Nannie Willis, Elijah Willis, and Elisha Willis.
(The North Carolina Group/118615) |
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James
Willis of Tennessee
was born in the 1790's in North Carolina. He
later moved to Tennessee.
(The
Tennessee Group/9461) |
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James
H. Willis of Greene County, Tennessee and Grundy County, Missouri
married Hila Martha Johnson on September 13, 1847 in Greene County,
Tennessee. They moved to Grundy County, Missouri, in 1851.
(47200) |
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Jarvis
Willis of Maryland and Franklin County, Tennessee
was born in 1752 in Maryland. Jarvis Willis' son William was born about
1794 in Stokes County, North Carolina, and died before 1830 in Warren
County, Tennessee. He left three children - Harmon, Margaret, and Jane. Jarvis Willis' son John had a son James, who
had a son William Marion Willis of Alabama, who was born June 10, 1856
and died June 25, 1910 in Tuscumbia, Alabama. William Marion Willis
married first Sara Jane Bradford and second Molly Vest.
(The Maryland and Virginia Group/20484 and 56029) |
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Jesse
Willis of Georgia and Dale County, Alabama
was born about 1810 in Georgia. He married Martha (last name unknown)
and had two girls and a boy named Iverson Asbury Willis in Georgia
before moving to Dale County, Alabama, where he was a farmer listed in
the 1840, 1850, and 1860 Dale County Federal Census. His son Iverson
Asbury Willis served in "I" Company, Alabama 33rd Infantry Regiment, in
the Civil War and was killed on December 31, 1862 at the battle of Stone
River at Murfreesboro, Tennessee. (Craven
County, North Carolina Group/60675) |
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Jesse
Willis of Pennsylvania, Tennessee, and Indiana
was born May 3, 1761 in York County, Pennsylvania, and was raised in the
household of Joseph Hutton and Betty (Willis) Hutton. About June 1783 he
married Sarah Copeland, also of York County. Their children were
William, Isaac, John, Jesse, David, Rachel, Mary, and Abner. Jesse
Willis was a Quaker who sought to abolish slavery. His early
descendants lived in Wayne County, Indiana, and Dallas County, Iowa.
(Jesse Willis Group/31966 and 77992) |
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John
Willis of Dorchester County, Maryland
was born between 1650 and 1660 and died in 1712 in Dorchester County,
Maryland. He was the Town Crier for the Court of Dorchester County. Known children were John Willis Jr. (born before 1690 and died in 1764
in Caroline County, Maryland), William Willis, Grace Willis, Eliza
Willis, and Andrew Willis (born about 1690). A son of John Willis Jr.
was Richard Willis, who was born about 1718 and died about 1763 in
Caroline County. A son of Richard Willis was Richard Willis Jr., who
was born in 1760 and died in 1823 in Caroline County.
(The
Maryland and Virginia Group/10590, 90447,
and N61310) |
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John
Willis of Old Rappahannock, Virginia
was born about 1648 in Old
Rappahannock, Virginia, and died 1715 in Richmond County, Virginia. His
son 2. William Willis was born about 1680 in Old Rappahannock, Virginia,
and died 1716 in Richmond County, Virginia. William's son 3. John Willis
died 1761-62 in Orange County, Virginia. 4. William Willis was born
about 1739 and died May 21, 1833 in Boone County, Kentucky. 5. William
Willis Jr. was born October 1781 in Culpeper County, Virginia, and died
1830 in Adair County, Kentucky. Paschal Willis was born August 7, 1822
in Green County, Kentucky, and died November 2, 1900 in Adair County,
Kentucky. (The
Maryland and Virginia Group/73893) |
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John C.
Willis was
born August 28, 1834 in Ireland (probably in County Down). He married
Margaret Caldwell, who was born May 21, 1830 in Drumballyroney,
Drumarkin Township, Barony of Dromore, County Down, Ireland. He
immigrated to San Francisco in 1851. He was a Methodist. A son Robert
John Willis was born June 11, 1862 in San Francisco, California.
(69640) |
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John
William Willis of Baltimore, Maryland and Warren County, Ohio
married Nancy Hite
on Dec. 13, 1798 in Baltimore, Maryland, at the 1st Presbyterian Church. George Willis signed the wedding certificate and James A. Willis was a
witness. Their son William H. (Billy) Willis, a minister, was born 27
March 1812 in Warren County, Ohio. (The
Maryland and Virginia Group/50374) |
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(Rev.)
Joseph Willis of Craven County, North Carolina
was born about 1713 and died in
1784 in Craven County. Some of his descendants moved to Gallatin
County, Illinois. Joseph had a son Caleb Willis who was born in 1746
and died in 1827 in Sumner County, Tennessee.
(Craven
County, North Carolina Group/46443, N4693, and 59200) |
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Joseph
Willis of New Jersey,
born c. 1680 (wife Patience Thompson), was a blacksmith in
New Jersey. He had four children, Joseph (II) born around 1721 (wife
Abigail), Benjamin, Mary and Anne. Benjamin married Abigail Winans;
when she died he married her cousin Anna Winans. Son Joseph (II), in
turn, had a son named Joseph (III), born 1759 (wife Grace Winans). Joseph (III) moved from Essex County, New Jersey, to Greene County,
Pennsylvania, prior to 1780, to Columbiana County, Ohio, in 1822, and
died in Jefferson County, Ohio, in 1843. (New
Jersey Group/95119
and 101870) |
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Joseph
Willis of Patrick County, Virginia
married Sally Nowlin on June 4, 1794. Their children were Elizabeth,
Greenville, Sarah, Delia, Charlotte, Ruth, John, Patsy, and James. Greenville's line stayed primarily in the Patrick/Floyd area. According
to family oral tradition, some of Joseph's and Greenville's sons moved
to Kentucky, West Virginia, and Ohio. (The
Southern Group/51081) |
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Peter
Willis of Rutherford County, North Carolina and Coffee County, Tennessee
was born about 1765 and first appears in the 1790 census of Rutherford
County, North Carolina. He died in 1839 in Coffee County, Tennessee.
(The
Southern Group/30700) |
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Richard
Willis of Derbyshire, England
was baptized on October 26, 1765 in Whitwell, Derbyshire, England,
married Sarah Varah on May 24, 1790 in the parish of Braithwell, in
south Yorkshire, England, lived in Bramley/Wickersley in Braithwell, and
died on October 23, 1814. They had at least four children (Joseph, Mary,
Sarah, and William). His brother, Joseph, married Mary Varah (sister of
Sarah). His father was probably Joseph Willis, born 1732, who married
Elizabeth Starkey,
lived in Whitwell, and
fathered at least seven children. At one
time the Willis family in Wickersley appear to have been quarry owners
providing grind stones to the steel industry in Sheffield. (127927) |
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Richard
William Willis of County Mayo, Ireland
was born in 1830. He married Mary Naughton. Their son Richard
immigrated to Scranton, Pennsylvania. (41076) |
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Robert
Willis of Indiana
was born about 1784 in Virginia according to the 1850 census, Randolph
County, Indiana. According to family tradition Robert's family was from
North Carolina. Robert married first Mary Blair, widow of Eli McVay, on
May 17, 1806 and second Mary Mumpower on February 14, 1816, both
marriages in Grainger County, Tennessee. Robert died in Randolph
County, Indiana, in 1857. Robert's sons were Eli (b. January 24, 1815),
Benjamin A. (b. 1817), William Henry (b. January 31, 1828), and Thomas
S. (b. May 9, 1829) and his daughters are believed to be Louisa J.,
Frances M., and Sarah. Robert's sons, except for Benjamin, moved to Van
Buren County, Michigan, in 1864 or shortly after. (The
Southern Group/99549) |
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Robert
Willis of Pennsylvania
was, according to family tradition, born in Scotland
about 1750, went to Ireland with his family as a youth, then immigrated
to Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, in the Colonies. His first confirmed
record in America is his membership in Captain John Allen's Company of
Militia, 2nd Battalion of Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania, on June 15,
1782. He lived in Westmoreland/Fayette County, Pennsylvania, through at
least 1800, and died in Belmont County, Ohio, in 1830. He had several
children, including William Willis, who was born in Pennsylvania in 1790
and died in Iowa in 1854. (N32250) |
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Roger
Willis of Sudbury, Massachusetts
married Ruth Hill in Dorchester, Massachusetts, in 1664.
(32435) |
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Thomas
Willis of Hampshire, England
was born about 1775. In 1818 he was living
in Hartlerow, Hampshire, England. His son, William, emigrated to Canada
with his wife, Elizabeth Snelling, shortly after they were married.
William's son, Benjamin Willis, was born in Nova Scotia, Canada.
(102820) |
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Thomas
Willis of Maryland
was born about 1810 in Maryland and died in 1852 in Kent County,
Maryland. (46774) |
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William
Willis of Alabama
was born in 1824. His father was born in Kentucky according to the 1880
census. William had a brother Andrew Jackson Willis born 1842 in
Alabama who served in the Civil War. Family Tree DNA has determined that
William Willis of Alabama is a direct patrilineal descendant of Niall of
the Nine Hostages, who established a dynasty of chieftains that
dominated Ireland for six centuries. (Niall
of the Nine Hostages/25499 and 126553) |
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William
Willis of Cambridgeshire, England
was born in 1674 in Linton, Cambridgeshire, England, and died in Linton
in 1716. He married Sarah (surname unknown), who died 1737. He was the
son of a man whose last name was also written Willows and Willowe, first
name unknown, whose wife was Hellen, maiden name unknown, who died in
1677 in Linton. One of William's descendants, James Brand Willis,
immigrated to Australia in 1852-53. (N12521) |
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William
Willis of Grainger County, Tennessee
and Harrison, Missouri was born July 22, 1813 in Grainger County,
Tennessee. He married Mary Ann "Polly" Seymour in Buchanan County,
Missouri, on October 6, 1844. They had ten children, all born in
Harrison County, Missouri. William died September 14, 1871 in Harrison
County, Missouri. (The
Tennessee Group/61051) |
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William Willis of Rowan County, North Carolina
married Cicily Coats in Rowan County in 1810. His oldest known son was
James Wilburn/Wilber Willis (b. Feb. 1812; m. Mary Posey in Coosa Co.,
AL). Another son was Joseph Yerby Willis (b.
about 1819; m. Lettice Ann Williams in Coosa Co., AL). William moved to TN, possibly Lincoln County, with
the Coats family, and had at least two children there: Mary M. Willis
(b. 1827; m. James William Usrey in Shelby Co., AL) and John Wesley
Willis (b. 1830; m. Winifred Williams in Shelby Co., AL). William and
Cicily and these four children were in Shelby County, AL, by 1837. (123758) |
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William Willis of
Virginia was born
between 1725 and 1730 in Brunswick County, Virginia. The name of his
father, or possibly a brother, was Richard. By 1782 William moved to
Pittsylvania Co., VA. He died before April 9, 1792 in Mecklenburg Co.,
VA. William's children were Richard (moved to Spartanburg Co., SC),
Sterling (moved to Todd Co., KY), Sherod (moved to Jessamine Co., KY),
John (moved to Jessamine Co., KY), Drury (moved to Madison Co. KY),
Thomas (lived in Lincoln Co., TN in 1820), Edward (moved to Garrard Co.,
KY), Sarah, and Nancy Anne. Tradition has William's first wife
as Elizabeth Davis and the mother to all of his children.
(The
Southern Group/113965) |
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William
Alphus Willis
was born in 1849 in Georgia and died in 1920. He lived in Drew County,
Arkansas.
(N40775) |
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William
Austin Willis
was born in 1808 in North Carolina. In 1850 he was living in New Madrid
County, Missouri, where he is listed in the 1850 census with wife
Sarah (age 39, born in North Carolina), his four oldest children William
Cicero Willis, Henry Thomas Willis, Eli Samuel Willis, and Elizabeth A.
Willis, all born in Georgia between 1835 and 1843, and his two youngest
children Sarah (middle initial unknown) Willis and James Wesley Willis,
born in Missouri after 1847. (The
Southern Group/84019) |
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William
Ira Willis of Iowa
was born about 1835 in Iowa and died on August 6, 1907 in Louisville,
Clay County, Illinois. He married Elizabeth Curtis. Their children
were James Levi, Anderson, Laura Jane, Sarah Ellen, Joseph Oliver, and
David William (AKA Wilbert). (The
Southern Group/48626) |
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William
Richard Willis
was born about 1830 in Sligo, Ireland. He immigrated to Scranton,
Pennsylvania, from County Mayo, Ireland. (Sligo,
Ireland/41076
and 110342) |
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William
W. Willis was
born about 1812 in New Hampshire and married Jane G., who was born in
Massachusetts. William lived in Massachusetts in 1850. William was an
inventor and maker of agricultural tools, which required him to travel
to New York, Pennsylvania, Indiana, and other states. William's son
George W. was born about 1844 in Massachusetts and married Emma Striffler, from French parents who immigrated to New York. George signed
up in Tompkins County, NY, August 16, 1862, fought with the 137th New
York Infantry and was wounded at Gettysburg on July 2,
1863. George settled in Atchison County, Kansas. He died March 11,
1874 of a gun shot wound to the abdomen and is buried in Pardee, Kansas. (99264) |
The number(s) in parentheses is
the Family Tree DNA identification number ("Kit Number") of the person in our
project who is descended from that ancestor. This number is also a
cross-reference to the member's DNA test results, which are shown in the Test
Results page of this website.
How
a DNA Test can Help your Willis Family Research
The DNA that is tested is the part that
is passed down
from father to son, not to daughter.
It is virtually unchanged from generation to
generation. The test provides you with the set of
DNA numbers that is unique to your
particular line of Willis-surname ancestors.
We compare the DNA numbers to those of other Willis participants. If there is a
match or near match with another participant, you are very likely to be
related. If
there is not a match, the results become available for comparison with future
participants.
Besides helping with your Willis family
research, your
DNA numbers can tell you in what part of the world your distant patrilineal ancestor may
have lived thousands of years ago.
How to have a DNA
Test Done
1. Go to the Family Tree DNA website, click on
"Projects," and select "Willis."
2. Fill out the information form and
make a discounted group rate payment ($99 for a limited test; higher for a more comprehensive test).
3. In a week or so, you will receive a
self addressed envelope, along with two small swabs and bottles.
4. Rub the swabs on the inside of your
mouth,
put them in the bottles, and mail them back in the envelope.
5. In four to five weeks, you will receive
the results.
Your
name is kept
confidential.
Click here to visit the Family Tree DNA website.
You can join our database at their website by clicking on "Projects" and
selecting "Willis."
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