JOHN OR WILLIAM?
Which one was the Father of John and William Mullican?

By 1812 two brothers, John and William Mullican, were living on Mountain Creek in Warren County, Tennessee. For many years Mullican researchers have accepted as fact that the father of John and William Mullican was John Mullican. This is based on Rev. Ridlon’s chapter on the Mullicans of Casey Co., KY in his book. He states that John Mullican, SR married Nancy Ann Allen. Rev. Ridlon appears to have researched the families in his book, but it appears that most of his work on Casey Co., KY Mullicans was by oral tradition. It appears that his major informant was Polly Stanburry granddaughter of Solomon Mullican b 1784 of Casey Co., KY. After this John Mullican Rev. Ridlon’s work appears very accurate.

Rev. Ridlon’s lists the family of John Mullican, SR as:

John Mullican m Nancy Ann Allen:

  1. Thomas b bef [1763].

  2. William b [1769 VA] m1st Wilmoth Bruce m2nd Elizabeth Fuson m3rd Elizabeth Smith m4th Franky Barnes.

  3. John b [7 March 1772 VA] m1st Mary Bruce m2nd Nancy Tarwatter.

  4. Ning b [ca 1765-1784].

  5. Nancy b [1775 VA] m John Vickers.

  6. Sally b [ca 1784-1800] m. William Carr. Lived Kentucky and Alabama.

  7. Solomon b 1 Sept 1784 [VA] d 17 Nov 1871 Casey Co., KY m Nancy Ridgeway.

  8. James b [ca 1788] m _______ Lamb. Moved to Indiana.

Family tradition can be very helpful in researching our family lines, but if it is not correct then it can lead us astray. This then causes us to waste much of our research time looking for the wrong ancestor. This is true on the two Mullican brothers in Warren County. It is important to evaluate family tradition just as we do the records that we find. In family tradition if the event did not occur during the lifetime of the person giving the information the researcher should question the accuracy of any statement. I have found that an individual is fairly accurate through their grandparents, but after that it can be very inaccurate. But all family tradition can give us clues to look for in our research.

I have found that we find very few records that state a direct ancestry. This is especially true in researching families of the Upper Cumberland area. Most of our ancestors did not leave wills, and our only hope is an exhaustive search of all the available records. We also must examine with the same detail the records of associates, neighbors, and potential relatives of our known ancestors. We then have to take the pieces of evidence that we obtain and analyze them to fit them into a pattern that can provide us with the answer to our problem.

In researching my mother’s surname of Mullican I spent many years in looking for a John Mullican in Virginia and other states. I kept ignoring the principle that the answer to the problem is the ancestor himself. When I conducted detailed research in the area where John and William Mullican lived and died, I started to form a different opinion than what Rev. Ridlon had determined.

Key Research Findings in Kentucky and Tennessee:

  1. John and William Mullican first appear together in Warren County, Tennessee on the 1812 Tax list in Richard Cantrell’s District. Also in this district were Elias, James Jr. & Sr, and Julias Webb.

  2. In the 1813 petition of citizens living in extreme Northeast corner of Warren County to move the voting place to Pine Creek are the names of John Mullican, William Mullican, Jr., and William Mullican. At this time both of the Mullican brothers had sons named John and William, but none of them were old enough to vote.

  3. Known associates of the Mullicans were Allens, Bristers, Lambs, Vickers, and Webbs.

  4. The 1807 Tax List of Casey County, Kentucky had a William Mullican & William Mullican, Sr living on Knoblick Creek. The 1808 Tax List also had a William Mullican, Jr., William Mullican, Sr., and Solomon Mullican. There were no other Mullicans. There was also a deed from Samuel Coleman & Milly Coleman to William Mullican for 100 acres of land on Knoblick Creek. The 1813 tax list had Soloman Mullican with 200 acres of land purchased of William Mullican. Also found was a deed from William Mulakin & Ann his wife to William Hanna for land on Knoblick Creek. Also found were court records showing William Mullican filing suit against Samuel Coleman and Jonathan Lamb.

  5. Casey County, Kentucky was formed from Lincoln County in 1806. A search of Lincoln County records found a William Mullican on Knoblick Creek on the 1805 and 1806 Tax lists along with Jesse, Joel, and Townsend Webb.

  6. William Mullican was also found on the 1814, 1816, and 1818 Tax lists of Lincoln County, Kentucky.

At this point in my research I had a formed the theory that the father of the two Mullican brothers was William Mullican, and not John Mullican. Research in South Carolina and Virginia further strengthed this theory.

Key Research Findings in South Carolina and Virginia:

  1. William Mullican, William Mullican, Jr, Thomas Mullican, and Ninimon Mullican all own land on Horse Creek in Greenville District, South Carolina. Land of Thomas and William is adjoining. William Mullican, Jr. is witness to the deed of William Mullican, William Mullican witness to deed of Thomas Mullican, and James Mullican witness to deed when William Mullican sells his land in 1807.

  2. In 1787 &1807 the wife of William Mullican is Ann or Anney, in 1813 the wife of Thomas Mullican is Milley, and in 1813 the wife of Ninemon is Susannah.

  3. William Mullican, Jr. purchased land in Pendleton District, South Carolina from Joel Webb. William Mullican witness to deed of Joel Webb. William Brister and Nancy Vick[Vickers] witnesses to deed of Joel Webb. Benjamin Brister land borders Ninimon Mullican, and Benjamin Brister witness to deed of Ninimon.

  4. In 1799 William Millican, Jr [Mullican] of Pendleton District, South Carolina sold his livestock to William Millican [Mullican], Sr of Greenville District, South Carolina.

  5. The 1778 deed in Bedford County, Virgina in which William Mullikin[Mullican] and wife Nancy, William Handy and wife Elizabeth, and John White and wife Lucy sell land belonging to Robert Allen, decd. Nancy, Elizabeth, and Lucy identified as daughters of Robert Allen.

  6. The 1770 Will of Robert Allen in Bedford County, Virginia list daughters Betty[Elizabeth], Anny[Nancy Ann], and Lucy, and son-in-law William Handy is one of executors.

    7. In 1786 Thomas Mullican married Milley Routon in Bedford County, Virginia, and security for Thomas is William Mullican.

  7. In 1787 William Mullican and wife Ann sell land in Bedford County, Virginia.

It is clear from our research and using “the preponderance-of-the-evidence principle” that William Mullican must be the father of John and William Mullican found on Mountain Creek in Warren County, Tennesssee. There is interaction of William Jr. and William Sr, and also association in South Carolina with Brister and Webb families later found in Warren County, Tennessee. Also if Nancy Ann Allen is the ancestor of John and William on Mountain Creek it appears unlikely that two Mullicans could have married a Nancy Ann Allen. There is no association of the Mullicans thought to be part of the family with a John Mullican of proper age in Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennessee, or Virginia.

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