Page:Southern Historical Society Papers volume 39.djvu/95

 Genealogy of Jefferson Davis. 83

military service, and in the course of time raised a company of infantry, which he commanded until peace was declared. It was during his connection with the Army, according to Presi- dent Davis, that he met Miss Jane Cook, the Scotch-Irish lassie who became his wife and the mother of his children. This may be a correct statement, but it appears more likely that Samuel Davis, always a strict attendant upon Baptist meetings, should have met her at some session of the Georgia Baptist Associa- tion, a very large and powerful body composed of churches situated on both sides of the Savannah River. She may have been a member of one of the Baptist churches in Edgefield or Abbeville District, South Carolina, whose hospitality the Georgia Association had been thankful to accept. The Rev. Mark Cook was a valued minister of the Georgia Association, and though he resided on the Georgia side of the Savannah, it is possible that he had come from South Carolina, and that Miss Jane Cook may have been a near relative. The union of two such splendid races as the Welsh and the Scotch-Irish was auspicious in many ways. It produced a man of remarkable spirit and capacity, who became one of the foremost figures in American history.

If anybody is willing to assist in promoting this investigation, he might render excellent service by examining the records of New Castle County, Delaware, for additional traces of the Davis family from 1703 to 1775. Possibly the records of Welsh Neck Church, or of Darlington County, S. C, might produce some notices of the life of Evan Davis in the period before his re- moval to Georgia. President Davis affirms that his father, Samuel Davis, was elected clerk of the county court where he resided in Georgia. If search was made, in Richmond or Co- lumbia County, for the books that were written during his term of office, it would be appreciated.

Welsh Tract and WelsR Neck were both important fanes of Baptist religion, but Kioka appears to have transcended them in power and influence. From Kioka the Baptist religion was extended all over Georgia, and likewise into portions of Middle