Few passing by today are aware of the important ruin revealed if one could peer a little deeper into  the thick patch of woods. The site is most noticeable when viewed from overhead (right).

Registered in the Lee County deed book 23, page 488, Darius Thomas and wife Rosanna sold two and seven tenths acres for a price of $13.50 to Benjamin W. Hunter, John W. Laurence, John T. Kelly Sr., J. W. O. Thomas, William Bradley, John N. Smith, J. O. Kelly, John M. Hunter, and E. R. Partridge, trustees of the Methodist Episcopal Church South. Note this was a deed reregistered from its original conveyance dated 27 Mar 1882 and the men were trustees from nearby Memphis establishing a new church.

Concord Methodist was located “on Fall Creek, and lying on the southeast side of the Fall Road and joining the lands of the first part, the said Darius Thomas, Harrington and others.” The metes and bounds go further, mentioning adjoining lands owned by “Shepard” and Joseph Thomas.” Note that Andrew Shepard and son John are known to have acquired land in this area going back to the pre-revolutionary war days in which this land was located at that time in Cumberland County. Keep the name Shepard in mind.

Below are the metes and bounds along with a plat I drew overlaid atop of the Google map. Though deeded in the 1800s, it is nice that the bounds are recognizable today.

Founding this little church must have been a high-water mark in the life of Darius Thomas and yet, he must have been equally proud in hosting the 1889 marriage of his daughter Ida G. Thomas (Jonesboro Leader, 29 May 1889).

Concord Church existed for more than 40 years though all that remains today are vines covering the hidden heap of wood once a house of worship built on land previously owned by Darius Thomas.

The church and name of Darius Thomas, who I had yet to research, are but a loose-ends that, when looked at more closely, began to unlock information about the lands where more distant family lived in old Moore County.  Dated 3 Jan 1917, the court allowed a transaction to be registered as an old deed was deemed to be an original. Note that Moore is a burn county so many of the deed books for that county are lost. In this case, the old deed acknowledged in 1917 was actually for 275 acres sold by Henderson and Darius Thomas on 8 Mar 1845 to Joseph Thomas (Deed 13-620 Lee County). An accompanying plat (below) indicates the southern-most end joins Shepard to the west and the said Henderson Thomas to the east.  Like the church deed, the southern end of this great tract adjoins Shepard’s land with the end line running 41 degrees off of north.  The church tract likely adjoins this land to the south.

More importantly, the deed describes the 275 acres as being “the following part of the lands held at his death by Frederick Thomas which said parcel of land is bounded as follows in Moore County on both sides of Fall Creek.” So, it is known that Frederick Thomas died before 1845 at which time Henderson and Darius sold part of the land to Joseph Thomas.  Was this a transaction among heirs?   Yes! It was, and can be proven as on 10 Sep 1838, Frederick’s widow, Nancy Thomas, wrote her last will and testament mentioning

“my children namely that is to say – Henderson Thomas, Deros [Darius] Thomas, Joseph Thomas, Caty Thomas and Patsy Thomas all my undivided interest in the negroes [unnamed] belonging to my husband Frederick Thomas Dec’d.”

Darius Thomas is appointed executor and the will was witnessed by Aa’n [Aaron] Thomas and Fredrick Rollins.

Take a look at the plat below and note that I have listed adjoining landowners in red.  Also, note that the adjoining line with Henderson Thomas crosses the “mill pond” at the point where the line crosses Fall Creek. And lastly, see the house? That’s likely Frederick’s house and if only we could locate the land it would be a sinch to identify the general location where Frederick Thomas once called home. Take a look:
Now, for this re-recorded deed plat, it is mentioned to look also in the same deed book being  620, though five pages back at page 615. In doing so, I found aa second detailed plat in somewhat the same hand and style updated though reflecting the 1845 deed. This new plat, below, was unceremoniously written with the survey being completed Sept, 6 1916 and filed on 9 Jan 1917.  The plat represents the division of lands belonging to Joseph Thomas dec’d. Again, I believe the plat for the 1845 deed is modern, being drawn by and likely at the same time as the same surveyor for the land below. At any rate, some interesting observations follow:

Purple line indicates Fall Creek and an unnamed branch, the mill dam and mill race. Tract 1&2 allotted to Lonnie and Catherine Thomas Tract 3 allotted to Malissa Howard Tract 4 allotted to J. Clyde Thomas Tract 5 allotted to Edgar Thomas Tract 6 allotted to L. C. Rosser.

When overlaid atop one of the layers available at the Lee County GIS site, and as based in matching up old lines to what is seen today, it becomes easily possible to identify the lands once owned by Frederick Thomas as passed through his heirs Henderson and Darius before falling into the hands of their brother Joseph.  Also now known is the general area where Frederick’s home once stood along with the branch that once served as a “race” for Frederick’s mill. As for adjoining lands, we know where Shephard once owned land as well as Frederick’s son Henderson. We can also see the lot where Concord Methodist once stood and of Darius, brother of Henderson and the above Joseph. Being thirty years before he gave the land for the little Methodist church, Darius actually deeded land in provision of Juniper Spring Baptist, which is located just down Buckhorn Road to the west.  In those acts, one might suppose that Darius owned sizeable amounts of land south of Buckhorn Road, in the areas where the two churches served the community.

Zooming in using Google maps, one can study Fall Creek and the branch where once there was a lake roughly 6 chains or roughly 400 feet wide. The image below, looking in the area where the branch once flowed, pretty much identifies what could easily be the old lake and dam site.

In closing, concerning Henderson Thomas, I may have him misidentified in much earlier research on Asa Thomas (soon to be corrected). In 1870, Henderson and family, including wife Martha Norris Thomas, are listed on Buckhorn Creek in Wake County with Henderson listed as being a millwright. That choice in career makes sense as the said Henderson Thomas had a great opportunity to hew his occupation while working on the family mill. From my earlier post, here’s a bit of that I wrote:

“Born ca. 1815, Henderson Thomas married Martha Norris on 17 May 1847. Martha is the daughter of Needham Norris and Patience Pearson. In the 1850 census, Henderson Thomas (millwright) and family are enumerated next to Needham Norris. In April of 1851, two tracts purchased by Henderson Thomas were recorded in court. First tract (deed 19-11, Wake NC) from Gaston Jones was situated on Carries Creek adjoining S. P. Harris. The second tract from John Watson was for 44 acres on the north side of Buckhorn Creek. In 1852, Henderson Thomas sold 33 ½ acres on Fish Dam Road “near the Holly Spring Meeting House” Henderson sold the land to Andrew K. Clements, James Rogers and Andrew W. Betts; Masters and Wardens of Holly Spring Lodge # 115. The land was likely purchased as a site to build an academy for the town of Holly Springs.”

Looking at the 1870 census, it appears Henderson may have worked two mills in two different counties as he was enumerated in both Moore and Wake Counties:

1870 Sloan Township, Moore County

1870 Buckhorn Township, Wake County