‘Trantham 1 Caleb Trantham Mrs. Raymond UWRT-1103-E01 October 2015 ‘Trantham’s, Sons of England ‘The name Trentham originated from a hamlet on the Trent River near Stoke in England (Meyers, 234). I was able to trace the Trentham lineage all the way to England during the 1500°s. ‘There I found that the Trenthams were wealthy land owners. They were also devout Catholics. This is shown because of what happened to them. During this time, King Henry VIII was in power and was trying to marry another wife. The Catholic Church would not allow him to do this. The King went on to start a new chureh, the Church of England or Anglican Church. The King also developed a hate for Catholics and sought to persecute those within his empire. The ‘Trenthams were stripped of their land and wealth because of their beliefs (Meyers, 234). For ‘many years they lived in poverty and persecution. When Queen Elizabeth I came into to power, an opportunity for a better life was presented. The New World was being colonized and the Queen needed people willing to risk their lives for the cause. The Trenthams were some of the first settlers sent by Queen Elizabeth I. Martin Trentham I, my 7" great-grandpa, came to America during the ealy-1700's. He met Elizabeth Margar Eppinger, a German woman, on the boat over to America. They married and landed in Massachusetts together. They continued their journey south to North Carolina. ‘There they settled in Lillington, North Carolina. They had three children and grew wealthy with‘Trantham 2 land and opportunity. Their children grew up during time of the revolutionary jar and many fought against the British ("Ancestry’ Martin Trentham II, my 6" great grandpa, married Elizabeth “Betsy” Margar. They had four children and dwelt in Rowan County, North Carolina during the mid-1700"s. Elizabeth lived ‘on to be over one hundred and forty nine years old (Meyers, 232). Jeptha I Trentham, my 5" great-grandpa, married Hannah Smith in 1788 ("Aneéstry"). They begot one child, Joseph Trantham. For some reason the name changed from Trentham to Trantham in the history books. Itis believed to be a spelling error in Joseph Trantham’s records that never got corrected. As you can tell the ‘a” stuck, as itis my last name over six generations later (Meyers, 227). Joseph Trantham, my 4" great-grandpa, married Marry Whitaker in 181qCAnces ").) Joseph had hundreds of acres of land in Fairview County, North Carolina. They had several children, one of which being Jeptha Herman Trantham (Whitaker). Jeptha Trantham Ieft his father’s home at an early age and stole a horse from him (Meyels, 228), In Joseph Trantham’s will he gave all his land to his children, except Jeptha. Joseph ‘worte this for Jeptha, “Unto my son Jeptha I give the young mare he took away with him (Meyers, 228)" Jeptha Herman ‘Trantham, my 3" great-grandpa, married more than one wife. He had six wives, He also had as many as thirty eight children. Jeptha Trantham was not known to be good looking, in fact he was considered quite ugly. But, for some reason the women adored him, He also was very poor, he owned almost nothing, He would leave for months at a time and randomly return, Often his children were born within the same year from different mothers, so he would name them the same names. The people said, “Jeptha himself did not know how many children he had, nor did he give a damn (Whitaker2).” His last marriage was to a nineteen year old on‘Trantham 3 ‘September 20, 1888 ("Ancestry"). He was sixty eight years old and would only live for four more years (Whitaker2). Newton Jasper Trantham, my 2™ great-grandpa, was one of the many children. Newton was one of twelve of the first set of children. This made his mother Sarah Ann Helton, the first wife of Jeptha. Newton Trantham married Nora Russel and they had four children. They lived in Canton, North Carolina. One of the children was Fred Clifford Trantham, my great-grandpa. Fred Trantham married Pansy young and they had four children. Fred Trantham died at age fifty on April 21, 1968, so I never got to meet him (“Ancestry”). However, I did get to meet Pansy. She was a very sweet lady. I remember picking vegetables out of her garden when I was around six or seven, ‘Thomas Clifford Trantham, my grandfather, was bom on August 15, 1942. He married Marry Jane Brown on July 19, 1962. They had two children, Kevin and Keith Trantham. ‘They lived in Canton, North Carolina. Thomas ‘Trantham served in the United States Navy as a radar ‘man. He also was a pastor for several years. Then he became a successful businessmen selling HVAC Geothermal units. I get to see my grandpa many times a year when we go up to the mountains. Kevin Ray Trantham, my father, was born on November 9, 1965 in Canton, North Carolina. Kevin Trantham married Rhonda Janet Jones on February 24, 1996. Kevin Trantham is a licensed electrical engineer and Vice President of Operations at Avid Solutions Inc. I was born on December 1, 1996.‘Trantham 4 Cite Works \, Meyers, Bonnie. Best Yet Life and Lore of the Smokies. Leadership Options, 2002. Print. Whitaker, Bruce. "Jeptha Trantham- Wanderer and Ladies Man, Part One." The Fairview Town Crier. 2008. Web. 30 Oct. 2015. ‘whiaker, Bruce. "Jeptha Trantham- Wanderer and Ladies Man, Part Two.” The Fairview Town Crier. 2008. Web. 30 Oct. 2015. \[Drantham Family Tree." Join Ancestry. Web. 30 Oct. 2015.