My Lankford/Langford family line starts with Leaty Caroline, my great-great grandmother. Leaty’s birthdate is in question. Her headstone says 20 July 1848. Her death certificate says 1848. The 1900 census states Jan 1860 and various other censuses imply 1848, 1849, 1850, 1851, and 1852. She was probably born in Tennessee. She married William West 20 November 1866 in Polk County, Tennessee. Sometime in the 1860’s Leaty and William moved across the state line from Polk County, Tennessee to adjacent Murray County, Georgia. They lived in the Alaculsa Valley/Doogan area of Murray County for the remainder of their lives. They had eight children: Catherine, James, John, Mary, William, Jessie, Lizzie, and Robert. Leaty died on 20 February 1937 in Cisco, Georgia and is buried at Old Sumach Cemetery.
Leaty’s father was Wyatt Lankford. He was born about 1805 or 1810 in Georgia. His wife’s name was Morning Tabitha Bruer. They lived in Polk County in 1860 and moved to Murray County by 1870. They had seven or eight children: Justinia, Marion, Elizabeth, Leaty (Elizabeth and Leaty may be the same person), William, Abner, John, and Wyatt. He died sometime after 1880. I have not discovered his burial place yet.
I think that Wyatt’s parents were Abner Lankford and Letie. I have not found any direct evidence to connect them yet. Abner and Letie had a son named David and a David Lankford lived next door to Wyatt in 1850. David’s daughter named a Wyatt Lankford as a child of her grandparents, Abner and Letie, in her Eastern Cherokee application; another grandchild of Abner and Letie also named Wyatt as a child of his grandparents in his respective Eastern Cherokee application. Furthermore, Wyatt had a son named Abner and a daughter named Leaty.
Lankford Surname Fun Facts
Langford/Lankford/Longford is an English locational surname, usually meaning the “long, shallow, river crossing.” There were about 30,000 Lankfords or Langfords living in the United States in 1990; this is not a common surname. In 1920, there were 3797 Lankfords/Langfords; 277 lived in Georgia. In 1880, 647 of the 5,871 Lankfords/Langfords lived in Georgia. The 1840 census enumerated 314 Lankfords/Langfords; 13 lived in Georgia and 16 lived in Tennessee.
More about the Lankford Family
- A complete list of deceased Lankford and Langford family members in my database.
- Posts about Lankford ancestors and relatives in this blog.
- Lankford documents, photos, and headstones.
Research To-Dos
- Locate Wyatt Lankford family on 1860 census – I have found a record that may be them; I need to do more research to confirm.
- Look for Wyatt’s burial place.
- Check 1840 Hall County census for Wyatt’s family. David appears there, so it makes sense to look for Wyatt and it would help to confirm if they are brothers.
- Check Hall County marriage records for Wyatt and Morning.
If you have any additional information (or corrections) on this family line, comments are most appreciated!
This post is part of an ongoing series focusing on specific surnames. To see all posts in the series, click here.
The post Surname Saturday: Lankford/Langford appeared first on Tonia's Roots.