"Anderson" is a perfect name
The arrival of Bentley Anderson Adams, great great grandson of Melda Buskirk Hatfield Morris, on December 21, 2019, was the latest use of the name "Anderson" in generations of
Hatfields. Little Bentley Anderson's name can be traced back in our family to Bridget Anderson Smith in the seventeenth century.
Joseph Hatfield (abt. 1741-1832), the Revolutionary patriot, and his son Ephraim both married daughters of Ericus and Bridget Anderson Smith. Joseph's second marriage was to Rachel Smith, the daughter of Ericus and Bridget Anderson Smith, while Ephraim's first marriage was to Mary Smith.* These relationships are inferred from an August 21, 1797, deed among the heirs of Ericus and Bridget that included "Ephraim Hatfield and Mary his wife, Joseph Hatfield and Rachel his wife of Russell County."**
A review of the records of the Holy Trinity (Old Swedes) Church in Wilmington, Delaware, shows that Eric Smidt and Brigito Andersdotter were married on November 22, 1753. They
had a daughter, Maria, born November 25, 1754. These names are all consistent with the Anglicized versions of Smidt (Smith), Brigito Andersdotter (Bridget Anderson), and Maria (Mary) later found in Russell County, Virginia, court and tax records prior to 1800.
The name "Anderson" is used in subsequent Hatfield generations through the years. It is also prominent in several branches of the Hatfield family, most notably, William Anderson (Devil Anse) Hatfield, the grandson of Ephraim and Mary's son Valentine Hatfield.
George Hatfield, son of Ephraim and his second wife, Annie, named his son Anderson (Preacher Anse) Hatfield (1835-
1920). Anderson and his wife, Mary "Polly" Runyon Hatfield named one of their sons Anderson "Bud" Hatfield (1878-1926). Jeff and Polly, in turn, named their infant son Anderson (August 13, 1904 - September 6, 1904).
The name was not used in the generations of Jeff and Polly's grandchildren and great grandchildren, but reappears among their great great grandchildren. Chris and Michelle Bowe named their daughter Anderson FuRong, while Mitch and Michelle Hatfield named their son Owen Anderson. Now, Alex and Natalie Adams have introduced Anderson into the generation of Jeff and Polly's great great great grandchildren.
This information is derived from Love, Opal, the autobiography of Opal Stafford Hatfield, privately printed in 2008, and the Jeff and Polly Hatfield Family Tree, updated annually.
*Fugate, Mary D., compiler. Implied Marriages of Russell, Lee, and Scott Counties, Virginia, 33. Athens: Iberian Publishing Co., 1991.
**Ephraim was married a second time to Annie McKinney Musick Bundy Hatfield, who is the mother of Jeff Hatfield's direct ancestors. See the blog on this site about Hatfields and marriage.
***Burr, Horance, translator. The Records of Holy Trinity (Old Swedes) Church. Wilmington: Delaware Printing Co., 1890.
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