Greenberry Adamson

The son of Basil Adamon (1728 - 1785) was  born October 29, 1770 in Maryland.
Greenberry migrated to Georgia in 1789, and first settled in Wilkes County, Washington,
Georgia.  There he married Sarah Elizabeth Coates, daughter of Revolutionary War soldier
Nathaniel Coates and Martha Lamar.  Nathaniel Coates was from a Virginia family that had
emigrated to Wilkes County where he became High Sheriff.  The father of Nathaniel Coates
was Henry Coates, at one time of Richmond, VA, who was married to Sarah Young, whose
father was a man of great wealth in Scotland.  It was that way that the surname Young came
to be a given name in the Adamson family.

Greenberry was named for a relative of the family to which Col. Nicholas Greenberry, at one
time Deputy Governor of Maryland and Keeper of the Great Seal, belonged.  Greenberry
fought in the War of 1812, private, 1st Company (Capt. Tom Spruce), 1st Batt, 2nd
Regiment, Wilkes County, GA.

It was in Wilkes County that Greenberry and Sarah had 7 children.  In 1812 Greenberry
moved to Madison, Morgan County, GA, where another child was born.  He lived there
until 1822, when he moved to Henry County.  Clayton County was formed in 1858, and the
land he lived upon is now in that county, located on Fielder Road, west of GA Hwy 42, in the
community known as Rex, GA.   Greenberry died March 31, 1831; he and  Sarah are buried
on the property, now located in back of a house, and difficult to locate.  The names of their
eight children are inscribed upon their headstone, but the children are buried in various other
places.  The property was purchased in 1866 by Lewis Fielder.

These are the children of Greenberry and Sarah.  Many of their sons fought and died in the
War Between the States.

1.  John Coates, born October 27, 1794.  He married Nancy R. Pennington on
February 6, 1819.  They had 13 children, 8 sons, all of whom were in the War Between the
States.  John was in the War of 1812, serving in 4th GA Reserves in  Cpt. Phillips  Company.
He settled in Alabama, near Wetumpka, and died August 14, 1871 in Tallapoosa County, AL.

2.  William Coates, born February 9, 1797.  He married Elizabeth C. Crawley on
December 10, 1818.  They had 9 sons and one daughter.   One son settled in Ouachita Co.,
Arkansas.  His grandson, William Charles Adamson, was County Judge of Carroll County for
several years, and Presidental elector in 1892.  He was elected to Congress in 1896-1917,
Chairman of Interstate Commerce Committee in Congress, and was author of the Adamson
Law, pertaining to railroad workers.  Another grandson settled in Coolidge, Texas. William
Coates  settled in Bowden, Georgia, and died there July 13, 1879.

3.  George Washington, born February 22, 1799.  He married Mary Comer on
October 18, 1827, they had 13 children.  Six sons were in the War Between the States, only
one returned home.  George died March 19, 1878 in Clayton County, GA.

4.  Augustus Young, born July 25, 1802.  He married twice, first to Martha Bowden on
July 14, 1828, they had six children..  He married Elizabeth Caroline Robinson on
May 8, 1844, and they had 6 children.  Augustus Young died June 18, 1863, in Clayton
County, GA.

5.  James Jefferson, born May 16, 1805.  He married Elizabeth D. Harris on
February 4, 1832,  they had 10 children.  He died April 13, 1889, and he and Elizabeth
are buried in the Adamson Cemetery west of Glenn, GA.

6.  Martha Lamar, born February 13, 1808.  She married Hardy Ward on
December 6, 1829.  They had two sons and one daughter.  She died December 25, 1839
in Henry County, GA.

7.  Nathaniel Coates, born May 22, 1810.  He married Nancy Bibb McDaniel on
September 4, 1842.  They had six children, the oldest being Augustus Pitt, the writer of
Prospectus Genealogy of the Adamson Family.  Pitt was in the War, and later wrote a
book about his regiment, titled "A Brief History of the 30th GA Regiment".  Nathaniel
Coates died January 23, 1896 in Rex, Clayton Co., GA, he and Nancy Bibb are buried
at The Rock Baptist Church Cemetery in Rex, GA.

 8.  Mary Ann Amanda, born September 1, 1813 in Madison, Morgan County, GA.
She married Thomas Stephens on December 24, 1829; they had 8 children.  She died
in Coweta County, GA.

The Adamson family is very large in Central Georgia,  Alabama, and surrounding states;
all descended from Greenberry.  Most of his children had  large families, and many sons
to carry on the name.  The family has always had a good name, the members being hard
working, honest, church going, and law abiding citizens.

Linda James Farley
Feburary, 2001