Sothoron and Related Families - a Genealogical Pursuit
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Aut: Warren Haddox Sothoron, Jr. Published: 8/20/2005 Program Revised: 1/24/2016 Data Updated: 7/12/2017

Page updated 12 July 2017.

SORRY!

After publishing the updates to this page last month, I realized that there were multiple errors within the NOTES pages. I had updated my Family Tree Maker to 2014.1 and did not realize the "Export" function, by which a GEDCOM file is produced, was different (must use ANSI character set). I have reworked the download and believe it to now be free of errors--please let me know if you spot any.  I apologize for any inconvenience this has caused you.


Welcome to my family's genealogy site.  You may use whatever information is of interest to you. I ask only two things:  that you cite me as your source, and that none of this work is to be used for any commercial purpose whatsoever.

This is a work in progress.  I continue to pursue family information and will update this site periodically.  If you have additional information and would be agreeable to having it published here, I would be most grateful.  You would be cited as my source for that information:  source(s) is/are identified for all data herein.

"
From Winchester, VA, now
 in the possession of the author
Washington, DC     McLean, VA

Personal History & Focus

I am the elder of two sons born to Warren Haddox Sothoron, Sr. (“Haddox”) and Lulah Mae Bartleson (“Lulah” or “Lu” or “Lulie”). Our father and his brother George Mortimer III (“Mort”) were born in Washington, DC but raised by their mother Linnia Katherine Haddox (“Kate”) and two of her brothers–Warren Abiff (“Uncle Biff”) and Elroy Clifton Haddox (“Uncle Tip”)–on the Haddox family homestead, “Hillsboro,” near Flint Hill, Rappahannock County, Virginia. Their mother and their father, George Mortimer Sothoron II, had separated when the boys were very young. My grandfather Sothoron had no siblings who reached adulthood, and he died when my father was 13 years old. My grandmother, my father and Uncle Mort rarely talked about the Sothoron family. What little my mother had learned was generally presented with a tendency toward grandiosity. Knowing a bit more about my mother’s family and spurred by Alex Haley's “Roots,” I decided to learn more about the Sothorons.

The first 25 years of my efforts were marked with fits and starts due to the pressures of my profession. However, I made it my goal to collect everything I could relating to the Sothoron family from all known sources, the vast majority of which are in Maryland and DC.  As a result the reader will find considerable information on most Sothorons in their individual Notes.

Having put together the basic Sothoron tree using the information I had (most of which was completed by 2005), I began focusing on the related families.  The data for these individuals are unfortunately not yet so fully researched, due to constraints of time and resources.  Each individual's Notes contains all of his/her information I have collected to date.

Beyond ruling out a misspelling of "Sothoron" I have not tracked any names which are similar, such as Sotheran (currently some in Canada and California), Scothorn and Sotherland.  I do not know if they are related.

The reader will also find quite a bit of information on the Bartleson, Haddox, Pulliam and Sherier familes, all of whom are part of my ancestry.

The Sothoron Family

 The progenitors of the Sothoron family in this country were Richard Southerne and his wife Ann. In April of 1677 Richard, noted to be “of Calvert County,” was granted a warrant for 200 acres of land for transporting himself, his wife & two children into the Province of Maryland. The spelling of Richard’s name varied in public documents but was primarily as “Southerne” until the spelling “Sothoron” appeared and took hold in 1692.

Richard & family were not the first “Southernes” to arrive on these shores. Valentine Southerne (later also spelled “Sothoron”) settled on Kent Island, Maryland by 1659. He had one daughter who married a Dennis and had issue but no recorded male children; I have been unable to track them further. Edward Southerne and his wife Mary had property on the Eastern Shore of Maryland by 1655; there is no record of their having children. Nor did Thomas Southerne, who was transported with Valentine and lived on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Others of the same name have been found but I have not found any other evidence of descendants.

The Sothoron family is likely of English origin, and indeed appears in a genealogical monograph by Charles Sotheran*. To the best of my knowledge the link between the English & American lines has yet to be verified.

With rare exception, I have not found any descendants of Richard and Ann who now spell the surname differently.  The possible exceptions are Michael Richard Sotherland, son of Richard(2) and Mary Swift, whom I've not been able to track past his minority in Charles County, MD; and at least two instances in which given names of descendants were spelled "Southern," although I do not know if that were purposeful or a misspelling.

I have found several whose given name is Sothoron (including one of my grandsons!).  I have been able to trace the lineage of a few - but not all - of them back to the Sothoron line.  I continue to look...

Haddox Family caveat

With the January 2015 update I have included a large amount of information on the Haddox family.  The work is far from complete and some is of questionable reliability, but I wanted to get what I had on line. Please be careful in your use of these data for now!  As of this the 2017 update, I have made little headway with the Haddoxs...

What’s Here

With this Update I have rearranged the site to allow me more flexibility in further development. 

The PEOPLE page is where one will find all of the information I have been able to find for each individual  The various indices are self-explanatory.

The PLACES page is the access to several locations that are of particular importance in my family's history.  CEMETERIES are now accessed through this page.

The UNMATCHED page contains items of information that I have not yet entered into genealogy software because I am not yet sure where (or if) they relate, or I have not yet reconciled a discrepancy. I would REALLY like any available help with sorting out these items!

ARMORY presents Coats of Arms that I have collected.

SOURCES are cited throughout these pages.  Full information is found here for all sources which are marked with an appended asterisk. In the NOTES for each individual I first identify the source from which I obtained the information, adding that source's citations (if available) after a dash or in parentheses.  For example:  Reno* - Letter from Fresco* - St. Mary's County, MD Wills 3:346)

E-MAIL ME with your questions, additions, corrections and/or comments.  Please provide as much source information as possible.

Kudos

I am greatly indebted to the many who have shared the fruits of their labors with me, all of whom I have hopefully cited with the information they provided, included in the Sources section, and/or recognized here. I am particularly indebted to the following persons (listed alphabetically):

Eleanor Mildred Vaughan Cook*, who in the mid-eighties provided me with a copy of her extensive study of the Sothoron family (her husband, Fraise Anderson Cook (1915 - 1981), was a descendant of Jonothan Anderson and Mary Sothoron).

Kate (“Katie”) Lansdale Sothoron Curtis (1940-1987), a gracious and kind hostess who gave generously of her family information.

Howard Sothoron (“Suds”) Gilliams (1927-1996) and his sister Mary Kate Gilliams Fitzpatrick, who provided me with a great deal of information & direction early on.

Hope Grace, of the St. Mary’s County Historical Society, who in my early efforts provided direction, information and encouragement

Linda Davis Reno, genealogist and historian in St. Mary’s County, Maryland, who has graciously provided considerable information and invaluable critiquing of this work.

Julia Harrison Sothoron Buddington (1908-1990), who early on provided me with encouragement and with much information on her branch of the family.



Copyright © 2005-2017
W. Haddox Sothoron, M.D.