b. June 1806, d. 3 September 1879
Birth | Jun 1806 | Ebenezer Alexander Robinson was born on the 6th (notes from a Robinson family Bible) or the 8th (headstone) of Jun 1806 in Washington County, Virginia.4,5,6 |
Childhood | | He was the 7th of his parent's 9 children. The family lived in a log cabin on the north side of the Great Road opposite Old Glade Spring Church. |
Legatee | 29 Jun 1826 | Ebenezer's father died in 1826 leaving the bulk of his land to Ebenezer's older brother Moses. The men's stepmother Jane was to have the use of the east half of the family home; Moses received the west half. Ebenezer and his brother John each received 10 acres. Ebenezer's 10 acres was to be taken from the northeast corner of John Robinson's land. Ebenezer was to have enough money to sink a 30 foot deep well and to build a cabin on the land. He was also to receive 80 young apple trees from his father's nursery and a horse and saddle. In addition, John left Ebenezer and his brother John tuition fees so they could pursue their education, noting that they labored on the farm during school vacations.2 |
Land-Sell | 23 Sep 1837 | It is not clear that Ebenezer lived on the land left him by his father. There is no entry for him as the head of a household on either the 1830 or 1840 census. On Sept. 23, 1837 Ebenezer and his brother Moses sold a little over 37 acres of land to Nickerson Snead for $900. The land sat on both sides of the Great Rd and included some, and possibly all of the 10 acres devised to Ebenezer by his father's will.7 |
Cens-1850 | 21 Aug 1850 | In fact the brothers continued to live together in the family home and were enumerated together in 1850 when all members of a household were recorded by name for the first time. Moses (54) was listed as the head of the household. He owned land worth $8,000. John (45) and E.A. (37) were listed next, followed by Rebecka Fulton (25), James Buchanan (25) and Roger Reed (25). James was employed as a merchant and Roger was a clerk. The Robinson men were farmers.8 |
Legatee | | Ebenezer's brother John died June 3, 1852, having written his will in Dec. 1850. John, who had not married, left Ebenezer his interest in land purchased from William Beattie Jr. [adjacent to and north of the Robinson land], as well as the 10 acres left John by the men's father [on which Evan Smith lived]. John left Moses and Ebenezer jointly his interest in the store known as J.S. Buchanan & Company. John also asked Moses and Ebenezer to pay Rebecca Fulton $100. |
Marriage | 27 Jul 1854 | Two years later, on 27 Jul 1854 Ebenezer Alexander Robinson married Rebecca Fulton, daughter of Robert R. Fulton and Sarah (?), in Washington County. Ebenezer was 48 and Rebecca was 32.1,9 |
Legatee | | Ebenezer's brother Moses died from consumption on Aug. 3, 1857. He left the men's sister Elizabeth Kerr $25, and the rest of his land and interest in "the store" to Ebenezer. He also appointed Ebenezer as his executor.10 |
| | A few months later, on Nov. 18, 1857 Ebenezer's brother James also died from consumption. He had married some years earlier and lived immediately south of his unmarried siblings. |
Residence | | With the death of his brothers John and Moses, Ebenezer owned a large tract of land on both sides of the Great Rd. He built a large brick home facing the road and close to the log house in which Ebenzer had grown up. Here he and Rebecca raised two sons they named in memory of Ebenezer's brothers John and Moses.11,3,12 |
Cens-1860 | 3 Jul 1860 | The 1860 census noted that "E.A." Robinson owned land valued at $10,000 and personal property worth $7,000. Besides Ebenezer and Rebecca's 2 year old son John, the household included James Edmondson (18, farm laborer), Sallie Fulton (80) [probably Rebecca's mother] and Mary Snodgrass (35, seamstress, owns personal property worth $1,600).13 |
Cens-1870 | 29 Sep 1870 | A second son, Moses Walter, joined the family in 1864.11 |
Land-Sell | 15 Jul 1867 | Ebenezer and Rebecca sold small parcels of their land over the years. In 1867 they sold 10 acres to the Trustees of Glade Spring Church for the establishment of a parsonage. The trustees paid $1,000 for the property which sat on a small rise south of the church. The church expanded the land surrounding the parsonage in Nov. 1874 when the trustees purchased an additional 7 acres from Ebenezer and Rebecca for $300.14,15 |
Land-Sell | 3 Apr 1869 | And on April 3, 1869 Ebenezer and Rebecca sold 35 acres from the northwest end of their property to Peter Clark for $1,420. The southern edge of the parcel abutted the Stage Rd.16 |
Land-Sell | 4 Apr 1873 | This was followed by the sale, 4 years later, of an adjacent 16 acres to John M. & Thomas B. Clark [Peter Clark's sons] for $648.25.17 |
Death | 3 Sep 1879 | Ebenezer died on 3 Sep 1879 at age 73.4 |
Burial | | He was buried at Old Glade Spring Cemetery in Washington County.4 |