Ezekiel AKINS b.1810 - Southern Roots and Shoots

Southern
Roots and Shoots presents

Ancestors & Descendants of
Ezekiel AKINS
1810 - Aft 1880
Pickens Co., GA

Ezekiel Akins was born 1810 in the French Broad River Valley, Old Walton Co., GA the son of John AKINS, Sr. and his 1st wife, Catherine CLARKE. He was a farmer all of his life but occasionally worked as a rock mason. In 1829, he married Melinda Jane CANTRELL d/o Jacob Cantrell and Elizabeth GILES who had relocated to the area from Spartanburg Dist., SC. They were still in Macon Co., NC for the 1830 census, living next door to his father, John AKINS, Sr.

1830 Macon Co., NC:
Ezekiel Aken; 1m 20-30; 1f 15-20

About 1836, Ezekiel and Jane moved with his father to Union Co., GA:

1840 Union Co., GA
HH#450 Ezekiel Akins 110001-12001
Ezekiel 30-40 b. 1800-1810
Wife b. 1810-1820
Dtr b. 1830-1835 [Nancy]
Dtr b. 1830-1835 [Sarah]
Son b. 1830-1835 [John]
Dtr. b. 1835-1840 [Lydia]
Son b. 1835-1840 [Benjamin]

About 1848, Ezekiel and Jane moved to neighboring Gilmer Co., GA to join her father and mother, Jacob and Elizabeth CANTRELL, who had moved from Buncombe Co., NC to start Goshen Baptist Church in the area now known as Kinard Corners which is where Hwy 52 branches for routes to Ellijay, Dawsonville and Jasper, GA not far from Amicalola Falls.. and the counties of Gilmer, Pickens, Dawson and Lumpkin converge.

1850 Gilmer Co., GA
Ezekiel 40 NC
Jane 40 NC
John 18 NC
Nancy 20 NC
Sarah 16 NC
Benjamin 14 GA
Lydia 12 GA
Silas 6 GA
Easther 6 GA
Mary 2 GA

Ezekiel and Jane settled on Akins Mountain just north of Jasper, Pickens Co., GA and are buried in their private family cemetery on this mountain which currently lies on private property in a developed subdivision not far from the Pickens County Library. This cemetery is abandoned with many buried headstones and is in dire need of repair and attention:

1860 Pickens Co., GA
37 455 383 Akins Ezekiel 50 M . Rock Mason 600 225 N.C. . . . . .
38 455 383 Akins Jane 49 F . . . . S.C. . . X . .
39 455 383 Akins Leddy 19 F . . . . Ga. . . . . .
40 455 383 Akins Catherine 15 F . . . . Ga. . . . . .
1 455 383 Akins Ester 13 F . . . . Ga. . . . . .
2 455 383 Akins Mary 11 F . . . . Ga. . . . . .
3 455 383 Akins Barbary L. J. 5 F . . . . Ga. . . . . .
4 455 383 Akins Silas 18 M . Farm hand . . Ga. X . . . .
5 455 383 Akins Amanda S. P. 14 F . . . . Ga. X . . . .

Indexed at Ancestry.com as Ezekiel AKEM
Year: 1860; Census Place: Talking Rock, Pickens, Georgia; Roll: M653_133; Page: 932; Image: 542.
1870 Pickens Co., GA:
Ezekiel AKINS 60 NC
Jane 59 SC
Barbary L. 15 GA
PARTAIN John L. 10 GA [he is probably the oldest son of Hiram J. PARTAIN and Eliza M. MONROE-PARTAIN [a/k/a PARTIN] who married 1859 in Pickens Co., GA. It doesn't appear that John L. PARTAIN is any kin to this AKINS family.
1880 Town, Pickens, GA
Ezekiel AKENS Self M Male W 70 NC Farmer SC NC
Jane AKENS Wife M Female W 69 SC Keeping House SC SC
Barbra L. HUDGINS Dau M Female W 24 GA No Occupation NC SC
Samuel P. HUDGINS GSon S Male W 5 GA GA GA
Benjamin J. HALE GSon S Male W 9 GA GA GA
Winnie C. AKEN Niece S Female W 23 GA House Keeper NC NC

Ezekiel and Jane CANTRELL AKINS children were:

Nancy AKINS b. 1830 Macon Co., NC and died aft 1850 in Gilmer Co., GA Nancy may have married a Stokes who died in Civil War. A Nancy Stokes is listed next to Sarah Akins Ammons on the 12/24/1863 Salt List for Pickens Co., GA, Sarah did marry Wm. STOKES after the Civil War and death of her husband, William C. AMMONS.
John W. AKINS b. 1832 Macon Co., NC married Nancy Jane DANIEL in 1853 Union Co., GA, the dtr/o Josiah Lafayette DANIEL, Sr. and Dicey WOOD. They travelled during the Civil War into AL, TN and even IL returning in 1867 to Winston Co., AL. After a short visit back in 1880 Union Co., GA, they settled in Gainesville, Hall Co., GA. They had 12 children. Nancy died in 1905 and John remarried to Eva FRICKS-MEDLIN in 1906. John was murdered sometime 1911-1920 and was buried without a death date on his headstone, next to Nancy, at Lebanon Meth. Ch. Cem. a/k/a King Cem., Hall Co., GA.

Benjamin Franklin AKINS b. 1833 in Macon Co., NC and died 1923 in Pickens Co., GA. He had 4 children between 2 wives. He is buried in Philadelphia Cem., Pickens Co., GA

Sarah AKINS b. 1834 in Macon Co., NC and married in 1855 Pickens Co., GA to William Calloway AMMONS. They had 3 children and he died CSA in 1863 Cobb Co., GA. They are shown as parents of Angeline TATUM in 1923 on her death certificate filed in Gilmer Co., GA. In 1865, Sarah re-married to William M. STOKES, had 5 children and she died in 1883. William re-married to Sarah C. BAILEY in 1884 he died in 1905 Mountaintown, Gilmer Co., GA.
Lydia AKINS b.1838 and died in Pickens Co., GA some time aft 1880. She had one child before marrying Calvin 'Tall' HUDGENS in 1868 and had one son by him. By 1880, there were 4 AKINS children living in her household.
Silas AKINS b. 1842 in Union Co., GA and died CSA 1863 in hospital in Petersburg, VA. He married Amanda S. 'Mandy' HALES in 1860 Pickens Co., GA and had 1 son . She re-married to Joseph L. COWART in 1868 and had 5 more children.

Catherine "Cate" AKINS b. 1845 in Union Co., GA was married to George W. McGAHA in 1863 Pickens Co., GA. She died in 1923 without issue and is buried in Norton Cem., Pickens Co., GA next to George.
Esther AKINS b. 1847 in Union Co., GA married a SIMONS and is buried on Akins Mountain.
Mary AKINS b. 1849 Gilmer Co., GA married Joseph W. HALES in 1865 Pickens Co., GA and had 3 sons by 1872. Joseph re-married to Elizabeth J. AKINS 1855-1924, dtr/o John AKINS, Jr. and Lydia REESE, his 1st wife's 1st cousin. See Elizabeth's death certificate.

Barbary L. J. AKINS b. 1854 was married 1874 Pickens Co., GA to Abraham HUDGENS and had 1 son. In 1886 she re-married to William CLARKE. She died in 1900 and is buried on Akins Mountain.

Ezekiel and Jane are buried on Akins Mountain in Pickens Co., GA. When I was there in 2004, their graves were covered over with leaves and were otherwise obscured from view. Thus, their exact death dates are not yet known but they did live beyond the 1880 census and Ezekiel served as Magistrate for Pickens Co. in Aug 1880.