Martha (Patsey) Bonner b. 8 Jan 1775 Virginia d. 18 Oct 1851 Carroll County, Tennessee: The McKenzies of Early Maryland

1775 - 1851 (76 years)

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Name	Martha (Patsey) Bonner
Birth	8 Jan 1775	Virginia
Gender	Female
Death	18 Oct 1851	Carroll County, Tennessee
Notes	Patsy Bonner created a sampler reflecting her marriage to Capt. John McKenzie. A photo/copy of it is appended to this site. It is currently in the National Archives as a result of having been sent to the War Department in the early 1840's in order for Batsy Bonner McKenzie to prove that she was the widow of Capt. John McKenzie so that she could secure a federal Revolutionary War pension. Patsey Bonner's Sampler, 1792 Martha Bonner, nicknamed Patsey, submitted her sampler later in life as a widow in 1846 to prove her marriage to her husband. She made the sampler in 1792 when she was about seventeen years old, shortly before she married John McKenzie. The identity of her parents is not known. She apparently lived in Washington County, Georgia at the time she made the sampler. (19) She likely was related to George Bonner and Sherwood Bonner, who held 250-acre land warrants each in the county. (20) Washington County was rural and not particularly prosperous. It is possible that Patsey learned needlework further east in a coastal area. (21) According to the 1850 population census schedule, she was born in Virginia, and perhaps she learned there the skills to make her sampler "worked with a needle in letters and figures." (22) Several things about Patsey's sampler are striking, beginning with its place of origin. Compared to New England and elsewhere in the North, relatively few samplers have survived from the South. Scholars have developed some theories surrounding this gap, focusing on the South's agrarian economy and its effect on education. Most of the samplers in the North were made in urban or well - settled areas that could support educating children in groups. The Southern population that could afford to educate its children generally sought private tutors instead, and these often were men, rather than women who could teach needlework along with academic subjects. Another potential factor is Southern weather. The very humid climate in many parts of the South is thought to be incompatible with the long - term survival of many samplers that may have been made but whose existence is not known. (23) More intriguing about Patsey's sampler is its design. Her work appears very unstructured for a girl in her upper teens, displaying an apparent preference for the letter "w." It is unlikely that this sampler was made under the watchful eye of a demanding teacher, but not all the stitching is of a simple nature. The repeated use of letters in contrasting stitches is unusual, as is the uneven spacing of the text. The mysterious combination of letters and numbers in the middle, the wavy bands below them, the name of her brother, and the relatively monochromatic color scheme in the silk thread are other surprising touches. Shortly after she married, Patsey added the information at the bottom about her marriage and started to stitch her brother James Bonner's birth date, but she never quite completed her work. Not surprisingly, John McKenzie had some slaves before his marriage. In 1791 or 1792, "he had two negros to run away from him when he lived in . . . Georgia and went to the Creek Indians and were lost to him entirely." For his loss, Congress compensated John with one thousand dollars. (24) After Martha married John, they moved from Georgia and lived in Murray County and Carroll County, Tennessee. They had children of their own and were well known in their vicinity. When John died in 1842, the former captain had been a pensioner for nine years. His death notice noted his Revolutionary War service and lamented his passing as one of "those who achieved our glorious Independence." (25) The Pension Office awarded his widow increasingly generous pensions in 1846, 1849, and 1851, the last in the amount of six hundred dollars annually. In her later years, Martha lived with her son James M. McKenzie and his family. (26) The town of McKenzie, Tennessee, in Carroll County is named for the family. Compliments of Bobbie Holt McKenzie 2011. The following are the footnotes and the references to the article written above. Michael A. McKenzie, Roswell, Georgia located these references during a search in 2011. (19) Deposition of Martha McKenzie, Oct. 3, 1843; pension file of John McKenzie, North Carolina/South Carolina/Virginia, W1049; M804, roll 1690. (20) Mary Bondurant Warren and Jack Moreland Jones, comps., Washington County, Georgia Land Warrants, 1784 - 1787 (1992), p. 12. (21) Ella Mitchell, History of Washington County (1924; reprint, 2000), pp. 11 - 12. (22) Deposition of Martha McKenzie, Oct. 26, 1846; pension file of John McKenzie, M804, roll 1690. (23) Ring, Girlhood Embroidery, pp. 532 - 538. Kimberly Smith Ivey's In the Neatest Manner is an expansive exhibit catalog focusing on Virginia samplers. Ivey's work demonstrates that there were, at least in Virginia, many young girls making samplers as part of their education (see pp. 49 - 52). (24) J.A.N. Murray to J. L. Edwards, n.d., pension file of John McKenzie, M804, roll 1690. (25) A copy of John McKenzie's November 11, 1842, death notice appears in his pension file. (26) Martha is enumerated with her son and his family in the 1850 federal population census.
Person ID	I05438	McKenzie Genealogy
Last Modified	29 Oct 2021

Family John McKenzie, b. 17 Sep 1757, Virginia d. 5 Nov 1842, Carroll County, Tennessee (Age 85 years)

Marriage 20 Dec 1792 Washington County, Georgia

Children

	1. Carolina McKenzie d. UNKNOWN [Father: natural] [Mother: natural]
	2. John Jr. McKenzie d. UNKNOWN [Father: natural] [Mother: natural]
	3. Jeremiah H. McKenzie, b. 6 Nov 1793, Georgia d. 1858, Tennessee (Age 64 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural]
	4. Sarah McKenzie, b. 1796, Georgia d. Bef 29 Sep 1860, Henry County, Tennessee (Age < 64 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural]
	5. Alexander A. McKenzie, b. Abt 1799, Georgia d. UNKNOWN [Father: natural] [Mother: natural]
	6. Nancy Jane McKenzie, b. Abt 1805, Georgia d. 14 Sep 1867, Kenard, Tennessee (Age ~ 62 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural]
	7. James Monroe McKenzie, b. 14 Feb 1818, Tennessee d. 9 Oct 1873, McKenzie, Carroll County, Tennessee (Age 55 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural]

Family ID F03041 Group Sheet | Family Chart

Last Modified 29 Oct 2021

Photos

Photocopy of Martha (Patsey) McKenzie Sampler.jpg
Martha (Patsey Bonner) McKenzie was the wife of Capt. John McKenzie (b. 1757, son of Aaron, son of John McKenzie (b. 1687)). She forwarded her sampler to the War Department in the 1840's as proof that she was married to Capt. McKenzie in order to be able to secure her RW widow's pension.

Documents » Slide Show		RW File Martha Patsey Bonner McKenzie Final Payment Voucher.jpg
		Declaration of Emilly McKenzie Gilbert Page 1 Emilly McKenzie Gilbert was the sister of Capt. John McKenzie (Revolutionary War). Emilly supplied this affidavit on behalf of Martha (Patsey) McKenzie's Widow's Pension Application.
		Declaration of Emilly McKenzie Gilbert Page 2 Emilly McKenzie Gilbert was the sister of Capt. John McKenzie (Revolutionary War). Emilly supplied this affidavit on behalf of Martha (Patsey) McKenzie's Widow's Pension Application.
		Declaration of Emilly McKenzie Gilbert Page 3 Emilly McKenzie Gilbert was the sister of Capt. John McKenzie (Revolutionary War). Emilly supplied this affidavit on behalf of Martha (Patsey) McKenzie's Widow's Pension Application.
		Declaration of Jeremiah and Alexander McKenzie Jeremiah H. McKenzie was the oldest son of John McKenzie and Patsey. He was born in 1793. Alexander A. McKenzie was the second son of John and Patsey and was born in 1799.
		Declaration of Jeremiah H. McKenzie Page 1 Jeremiah H. McKenzie was the oldest son of John McKenzie and Patsey Bonner. He was born in 1793 in Georgia.
		Declaration of Jeremiah H. McKenzie Page 2 Jeremiah H. McKenzie was the oldest son of John McKenzie and Patsey Bonner. He was born in 1793 in Georgia.
		Declaration of Jeremiah H. McKenzie Page 3 Jeremiah H. McKenzie was the oldest son of John McKenzie and Patsey Bonner. He was born in 1793 in Georgia.
		Declaration of Samuel Winn Page 1 Samuel Winn was a friend of John McKenzie and Patsey Bonner.
		Declaration of Samuel Winn Page 2 Samuel Winn was a friend of John McKenzie and Patsey Bonner.
		Hancock County Deed Book H Page 228 (bottom) What I found interesting about these documents is that they involved Capt. John McKenzie and clearly shows his wife’s name – Patsey. It’s also a big transaction involving 400 acres of land located on Town Creek. Abraham Borland is the purchaser and the purchase price is $3,000.00. If I am reading the deed correctly, the land originally belonged to the Rev. Abraham Marshall and also contains a mill. The sale from John to Abraham Borland occurred on or about 24 June 1807.
		Hancock County Deed Book H Page 228 (full scan) What I found interesting about these documents is that they involved Capt. John McKenzie and clearly shows his wife’s name – Patsey. It’s also a big transaction involving 400 acres of land located on Town Creek. Abraham Borland is the purchaser and the purchase price is $3,000.00. If I am reading the deed correctly, the land originally belonged to the Rev. Abraham Marshall and also contains a mill. The sale from John to Abraham Borland occurred on or about 24 June 1807.
		Hancock County Deed Book H Page 228 (Patsey McKenzie release).JPG
		Martha (Patsey) Bonner McKenzie Sampler
		Patsey Bonner McKenzie Sampler (b. 1775)
		Declaration of Patsey Bonner 26 Oct 1846 Page 1
		Declaration of Patsey Bonner 26 Oct 1846 Page 2
		John McKenzie (b. 1757) and Patsey Bonner McKenzie Complete RW Pension Files This document is a complete scan of the Revolutionary Pension Files of John McKenzie (b. 1757) and Martha (Patsey) Bonner. The author obtained the files from United States Archives in 2011. In some places the reader may see yellow highlighting. The highlighting was added by the author when he first read the documents.