Fouraker Family Reunion - Descendants of Ichabod Fouraker & Nancy Daugherty

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Fouraker Family History

Provided by Mary F. Harris on April 29, 2004

Ichabod Fouraker was born in 1823 to Nancy Fouraker in Valdosta, Georgia. His father was Captain James Walker of Valdosta, Georgia. Nancy Fouraker and her sister Zilpha were indentured servants of James Walker. The records and stories of the older family show that James Walker's wife was an invalid. Pearlie Fouraker said the sisters came from England with their uncle and his son.

In the early 1800's, girls typically worked as slaves to pay the boat fare for the family. This was possibly a father and his three children. There are no records of the mother. Folks Huxford of the Huxford Genealogical Society asserted that this was true, and the Walkers from Valdosta know they were kin to the Fourakers. Mr. Huxford has said that he was kin to the Walkers.

The only historical Fourakers we have found in the South were as follows:

Ichabod Fouraker
1823 - 1883

Nancy Daugherty
1839 - 1919

Census records of St. Mary's, Georgia, 1820, listed Jesse and Aaron. Their ages could be consistent with those of a father and son. In 1830, Jesse apparently married and had another family. 1 male over 70 and under 80, a female over 40 and under 50, two males over 20 and under 30, 2 males over 5 and under 10, 1 male under 5, 1 female over 5 and under 10. Our family's assumption is that Jesse is the Father and Aaron, Zilpha, and Nancy are his children.

At the age of 17, Nancy Fouraker gave birth to one son, Ichabod. Zilpha, her sister gave birth to a son, Nathan, in about 1818 or 1820. The father of both was James Walker.

Nancy Fouraker (Ichabod's mother) married Jacob Yelvington and had 5 more children. Jacob died 10 years later leaving Nancy to raise Ichabod and the other children by herself. She remained single, and applied for and received a widow's pension from Jacob's service records in her older years. The children born to Jacob and Nancy were: Margaret in 1832, Gideon in 1833, Aaron in 1834, Jane in 1847, and Jesse in 1838. Sometime in their later years, Jesse took his family and his mother and moved to Volucia County, FL. There, Nancy died and was buried in an old cemetery which is now a cow pasture.

Ichabod enlisted in the service on March 1st, 1838 for six months during the Seminole Indian Wars, under Captain Thigpen and Jerrigein Company. He was discharged in August 1838, enlisted again April 30 to October 30, 1839 under Captain J. N. Cone's Company. He went into the service as a Musicianer. He is described as being 5 feet 7 inches tall with black eyes, black hair, and dark complexion. Grandmother Nancy described him as a farmer born in Camden County, GA. She said he was 15 years old when he enlisted.

William Williams married Ichabod Fouraker to Nancy Daugherty in March 1852 in Columbia County, FL. They had 15 children, 4 of whom died in infancy. Ichabod died in Clinch County, Georgia, on December 29, 1883 at 60 years of age. Both he and Nancy Daugherty are buried at Bethel Cemetery in Fargo, Georgia.

Aaron Fouraker was appointed as executor of Ichabod's estate, which was valued at $1,187.50, and on November 22, 1884 consisted of the following:

Forty head of stock cattle	$ 320.00
140 head of hogs	$ 210.00
1 horse	$ 40.00
1 mare	$ 100.00
1 yoke of oxen	$ 35.00
1 cart & miscellaneous farming tools	$ 15.00
1 steel mill	$ 5.00
10 bee gums	$ 12.50
1/2 lot of land # 397	$ 150.00
1 lot of land # 398	$ 250.00
1 lot of land # 417	$ 50.00

Nancy Daugherty applied for a widow's pension and received it until she died year of 1919. She died in Welborn County, Florida. She is believed to have died in the home of Aaron Fouraker.

Bethel Primitive Baptist Church, Home of the Fouraker Family Reunion

Bethel Primitive Baptist Church 1964 and 2009

The Bethel Primitive Baptist Church was originally constituted in 1843 and services were held continually until January 1992. The church was reconstituted April 18, 1993 and services were held until several years ago (source). The original church is believed to have been built during or about 1843. On September 23, 1930, the land on which it was built was bought from D.H. Register for the sum of $100.00. The description of the land, copied from the original deed, is as follows:

Two acres of land, lot # 464 in the 13th land District of Echols County, Georgia, and better described as follows, beginning at light wood post, near the well at church above named and running in South direction 100 yards to light wood post, thence East 119 yards to light wood post, thence North 100 yards to light wood post, thence West 119 yards to starting point, said tract or parcel of land where the church above and cemetery are now located.

On July 16th, 1959, two additional acres were purchased to enlarge the cemetary. They were bought from D. H. and Mary Register, who had bought them from Harley Langdale on January 25, 1944. In the year 1963, a new church building was built and is now standing. The money to build this church was donated by many including Ray and Nancy Morgan, Jesse and Sarah Fouraker, the Hamp Allen family, the James Fouraker family, the Joe Wetherington family, and many others.

The first ministers who preached there, to the best of our memory were Brother Davis and Brother O. J. Reeves. To preserve the family heritage, The Bethel Primitive Baptist Preservation and Historical Committee has obtained this church.

Mary Fouraker Harris, Long Time Fouraker Family Historian

Mary Harris was the daughter of Jesse F. Fouraker and Sarah Touchton, and the granddaughter of James Fouraker and Vashtie Burnett. She was the great-granddaughter of Ichabod Fouraker and Nancy Daugherty. Mary wed Ivey Harris and they had 5 children, 15 grandchildren, and 12 great-grandchildren.

As historian, Mary was always interested in Fouraker family history and genealogy - and we want to continue her dedicated work to recording & maintaining our family's history. We'd love to have an up-to-date lineage for your portion of the family tree. Right now, we have the lineage down to all of Ichabod and Nancy's children. If you have additional information about the Ichabod Fouraker family, or believe you are related, please contact us.