For years, the parentage of the three Pierce sisters who married Hopson brothers has been a mystery. With DNA, that mystery has been solved.
Back in 2012, when Ancestry began offering DNA tests, this was one branch of my family tree I was hoping to solve. 10 years later, as more and more people have submitted their DNA, the brick wall began to crumble until it finally revealed the truth.
Sophronia, Anna and Narcissa Pierce were the daughters of William Pierce Jr. and Lois Thomas.
William Pierce Jr. (b. 1766 Middleborough, Plymouth, MA / d. 1825 Orange, Meigs, OH) was the son of William Peirce/Pierce Sr. (b. 1740 Taunton, Bristol County, MA / d. Aft. 22 May 1790 Middleborough, Plymouth, MA) and Joanna Doggett (b. 16 Mar 1742 Marshfield, Plymouth, MA / d. 24 Jan 1788 Middleborough, Plymouth, MA). Our William Pierce is NOT William Rounseville Pierce (as many have mistaken). Our William’s marriage certificate to Lois Thomas lists him as William Jr and William Rounseville Pierce’s father was Ira Pierce.
Lois Thomas (b. 2 Mar 1767 Middleborough, Plymouth, MA / Mar 1826 Orange, Meigs, OH) was the daughter of Isaac Thomas (b. 28 May 1742 Middleborough, Plymouth, MA / d. 10 Feb 1822 Farmington, Franklin, ME) and Phoebe Thomas (a distant cousin of Isaac – b. 7 Nov 1745 Middleborough, Plymouth, MA / d. 16 Dec 1831 Farmington, Middlesex, ME).
William and Lois Thomas Pierce had the following children:
LOIS 'LOUIS MELISSA PIERCE (m. JAMES RYTHER)
1) Sally Ryther (m. Jonathan Quimby)
2) Mary Ryther (m. Daniel Walker)
3) Roxalana Ryther (m. Leroy Jones)
4) Hophni Ryther (m. Phoebe Wilson)
5) Peter Ryther (m. Amanda Fish)
6) James Ryther (m. 1. Isabella Caldwell and 2. Eliza Southard)
7) Royal Ryther
SARAH PIERCE (still tracking down any marriage records)
NATHANIEL PIERCE (m. PHEBE WATERMAN – she was deaf)
1) Isaac Thomas Pierce Sr. (m. 1. Mary Selby and 2. Elizabeth Thomas)
2) Lucinda Pierce
3) William Pierce (m. Priscilla McAnulty)
4) Amanda Pierce (m. Thompson Selby)
5) Harvey Pierce (m. Sophronia Woodworth)
6) Merinda/Miranda Pierce (m. James Etland White)
7) Lavinia Pierce (m. Henry Fesler Caldwell)
8) Edwin Barker Pierce (m. Jane Ann McAnulty)
9) Barker W. Pierce (m. Ellen Ross)
ISAAC PIERCE (m. FANNY STOUT)
1) Mary Pierce (m. Nathan Thompson)
2) Merrill Pierce (m. 1. Mercy Dailey and 2. Mary Day)
*One of Isaac’s grandchildren, Mary Augusta Thompson, married one of Sophronia Pierce Hopson’s grandchildren, William Thomas Taylor.
SOPHRONIA CAROLINE PIERCE (m. THOMAS HOPSON)
1) William Pierce Hopson (m. 1. Phebe Jane Boyles and 2. Lydia Ann Boyles)
2) Elam Hopson (m. Nancy Harris)
3) Sophronia Hopson (m. William Noble Boyles)
4) Mariah Harriet Hopson (died young)
5) Mary Harriet Hopson (m. Silas Slater)
6) Almira Hopson (m. Archibald Tuttle)
7) Eliza Jane Hopson (m. David M. Taylor)
8) Elizabeth Catherine Hopson (m. Daniel Cain)
9) Amanda Pierce Hopson (m. John Griffitts)
*One of Sophronia Caroline Pierce Hopson’s grandchildren, William Thomas Taylor, married one of Isaac Pierce’s grandchildren.
ANNA PIERCE (m. BENJAMIN DANIEL BRATT HOPSON)
1) William Hopson
2) Simon Hopson
3) Sylvanus Sylvester Hopson (m. Martha A. McKnight)
4) Cyrena Hopson (m. Byram H. Bryant)
5) Charles W. Hopson (m. Sarah ?)
6) Lois T.P. (Thomas Pierce) Hopson (m. John Baker)
7) Joseph Hopson
8) Alvira Hopson (m. James Freeman Walker)
9) Infant Daughter
10) John L. Hopson (m. Catherine McCullough)
11) Infant Daughter
12) Sarah Hopson
13) Infant Son
NARCISSA PIERCE (m. ROBERT HOPSON)
1) Elizabeth Janetta Hopson (m. James Middaugh)
2) Lucy Hopson (m. Jesse Harris)
3) Delilah Hopson (m. Zephaniah ‘Zenas’ Bush Nelson)
4) Diana Allana Hopson (m. 1. Washington Frederic Allen and 2. Samuel Eckles)
5) Katherine Hopson (died young)
6) Bradley Carter Hopson (m. Harriet Robertson)
7) Nathaniel Pierce Hopson (m. Delila Sutliff)
8) Joseph Selkuk Hopson (m. Martha Ann Tout)
9) William Wallace Hopson (m. Louisa Jane Adair)
10) Narcissa Jeanette Hopson (m. Eli Murdock Worthington)
11) Mahala Hopson (m. 1. Lindsay Morrison Kee, 2. Austin Asa Ellsworth and 3. William Newell)
12) George Retlidge Hopson (m. Nancy Helen Riley)
13) Lois T.P. (Thomas Pierce) Hopson (m. John W. Byers)
14) Emeline Hopson (m. Henry Blythe)
Nathaniel, Sophronia, Anna and Narcissa all got married in Athens, Ohio within a few years of each other. Also on the 1830 Census, Robert and Narcissa Pierce Hopson, are living two houses away from Nathaniel Pierce and four houses away from Isaac Pierce. You’ll also notice the children of Sophronia, Anna and Narcissa Pierce Hopson have names that match the Pierce and Hopson families. From the Pierce line, William Pierce Hopson, Lois T.P. (Thomas Pierce) Hopson, Lucy Hopson (Lucy Thomas was an aunt of the three sisters) and Nathaniel Pierce Hopson.
Over the years, the sisters have been listed as the daughters of Enoch Pierce and Molly Snow, Enoch Pierce and Experience Storrs and Jonathan Pierce and Abigail Prescott – but none of these families lived in the location of the Pierce sisters and we did not have any DNA matches to them.
I have had a test group of Ancestry DNA cousins from all three sisters change their trees and we match the William and Lois Thomas Pierce family. We have DNA matches to their other children, Lois, Nathaniel and Isaac. Those who are a generation above me also have matches to William Pierce’s sibling, Binajah Pierce and Lois Thomas’s siblings, Ezra Thomas, Lucy Thomas and Jedediah Thomas. Since these are all 4th and 5th great grandparent DNA matches, we will not match all cousins due to the thinning of the DNA. Out of the 6 test cousins from Sophronia, Anna and Narcissa’s descendants, all have matched cousins from Lois and Isaac Pierce’s line, but only one cousin so far matches Nathaniel Pierce’s line. And though we may all match Lois and Isaac, we match different cousins based on our genetic DNA cM strength. In other words, these are all 4th, 5th and 6th cousins.
4th cousins means you share a common set of GGG Grandparents – the likelihood of a DNA match is >50% and the % of DNA shared is <1%. When you get to 5th cousins, the % of DNA shared is sometimes not detectable and when you get to 6th cousins, often no DNA is detectable at the match level – it doesn’t mean that you’re not cousins, just that the shared DNA is so slim it is unreadable.
As for the three Pierce sisters, let’s get them matched to the correct family. There are hundreds of trees out there to correct. Hopefully some of you will see this and make the change.
Thank you, cousin! - Shonda Sayers Feather
