Lettica ‘Lettie Hatchet Grey’ Howard

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Lettica ‘Lettie Hatchet Grey’ Howard (Durham)

Also Known As: "Letty", "Leticia", "Letcia", "Lettica", "Lettie", "* Letitia "Letty" Durham", "Letty Howard", "Letty Du Cherokee Indian", "Leticia Howard"
Birthdate:
Birthplace: North Carolina or, Wilkes County, Georgia, Colonial America
Death: September 01, 1843 (98)
Floyd Conty, Kentucky, United States
Immediate Family:

Daughter of Rev. Samuel Durham and Eliza Durham
Wife of Thomas J. Howard
Mother of John "War Jack" Howard, I; Polly Howard; Thomas Howard, Jr; Pvt. James Howard, I; Capt. Benjamin S Howard and 8 others
Sister of Ann Durham

Managed by: Joshua Andrew Walsh
Last Updated:

About Lettica ‘Lettie Hatchet Grey’ Howard

Lettica ‘Lettie Hatchet Grey’ Durham

  • Birth: Sep 13 1744 - Cherokee Territory - East , (near present day Asheville, North Carolina)
  • Death: Sep 1 1843 - Floyd Conty, Kentucky, United States
  • Parents: Samuel (Rev. Samuel Durham) Durham, Eliza (Mary Regan) Durham
  • Husband: Thomas * Howard
  • Children: John Covey "war Jack" Howard, I, Polly Howard, Thomas Howard Jr., James Morgan Howard, I, Benjamin S

Disputed Origins

From a Geni profile contributor

I am compelled to add here that Letty Durham has never been found in any records. It is widely rumored that she was a pure blood Native American woman, but of all the mighty researchers who have tried over many years to pin down her identity, NO ONE has ever been able to find a record of her existence. This is not to say she never existed.. but many researchers will dispute that she should never have been added into family trees as the wife of this Thomas Howard. Until someone can find record of her existence, I choose NOT to have her in my ancestry. I personally don't believe she ever existed and I am not alone in that assumption.


From https://www.geni.com/discussions/179332?msg=1206302

Eliza Durham's parents are non-existent. If Eliza existed she was a white woman, not a Cherokee.
About a dozen descendants of 'Letty' made application for the Guion Miller payment in 1907 and were all rejected as their ancestors had no connection to the Cherokee Nation. So no one is or was a "Cherokee maiden".


Letty (Hatchet Grey) Durham - Howard:

It's believed her name was Durham. Burial: in Kentucky. She was Full Blood Cherokee Indian she came from the Asheville, N.C.Area, it was part of the Cherokee Nation in North Carolina and the border of Tennessee, the War Trace trail went through Asheville and the Cherokee Nation and Hopewell Treaty on Keowee River was 28 Nov 1785.. She is registered with The Southeastern Band of Cherokee in NC, although I have yet to find where. Also, her grandson, Riley (Dood) Howard, son of William, filed a claim for Cherokee compensation in 1907. Riley made a claim for Cherokee compensation in 1907. He stated his grandmother was Cherokee and his grandfather was Thomas Howard. Refence #1843.

Her name could be Letita or Letica for her first name. She was full blood Cherokee Indian. According to information that Eulonda Snowden came across, Lettie's Cherokee Indian name was (Hatchet Grey) and she was from the North Carolina Reservation. So far, no one has papers to prove this fact.

Other Notes:

BIOGRAPHY: Native researchers do believe Letty to be full blood Cherokee because of her location and time of birth and because Durham is a very well known Indian name. There are many Durham's still living on Reservations today. They got the name from a Missionary who helped the Cherokee people. There was also a recent book published. It was about the Revolutionary War. It had a lot about Thomas Howard and a Cherokee Chief named Shyuica he fought with for the British. It leads you to believe that Thomas was well-liked by the Cherokee people. This info I got from NAAH kitty. She published a newsletter about Native Americans. I know Thomas was killed by Indians but it was probably the Shawnee Indians. malcolm broadhurst 10-1-2004


b. 1744 in Cherokee Nation, Wilkes, GA
Letty may have been a one-half Cherokee Indian.
Subj: Re: Elizabeth Howard Date: 7/9/99 7:34:06 PM Eastern Daylight Time From: DDoolin To: LaurieMcK Laurie, My cousin and I found your line of info the most fascinating thing we have found in a long time. If you could (I know this may be asking too much) send me starting with Thomas and Letty's children all the info you have. It would help many. There are so many researching this line. I have some more info on Letty. I have been in contact with many Native researchers. They all knew of Letty already. People have been trying to prove her origin for some time. Native researchers do believe Letty to be full blood Cherokee because of her location and time of birth and because Durham is a very well known Indian name. There are many Durham's still living on Reservations today. They got the name from a Missionary who helped the Cherokee people. There was also a recent book published (I forget the title). It was about the Revolutionary War. It had a lot about Thomas Howard and a Cherokee Chief named Shyuica he fought with for the British. It leads you to believe that Thomas was well-liked by the Cherokee people. This info I got from NAAH kitty. She published a newsletter about Native Americans. I know Thomas was killed by Indians but it was probably the Shawnee Indians

References

  1. Rejection rational for claim # 3809 https://archive.org/stream/easterncherokeea296unit#page/n749/mode/1up
  2. https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Durham-508
  3. https://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/risner/831/
  4. https://kirkhneely.com/2013/07/07/the-legend-of-skyuka/
view all 18

Lettica ‘Lettie Hatchet Grey’ Howard's Timeline

1744
September 13, 1744
North Carolina or, Wilkes County, Georgia, Colonial America
1766
1766
Knox County, Kentucky, United States
1769
1769
1770
June 8, 1770
Wilkes County, Georgia, United States of America
1772
September 13, 1772
Wilkes County, GA, United States
1776
1776
Wilkes, Georgia, United States
1779
1779
1781
November 1781
North Carolina, United States
1783
1783
Russell County, Virginia, USA