The Beard Familyof Bladen and Cumberland Counties, North Carolina
Gilliam Vance Beard seated on a painted seaside backdrop marked Ocean View, Va.Gilliam Vance Beard at Ocean View, Virginia Robert Earl and Laverne BeardRobert Earl and Laverne Beard, about 1938 Louise Wingate Beard standing on a downtown sidewalk holding a rolled newspaper, 1940s cars behind herLouise Wingate Beard downtown

A family from the Cape Fear country

Beards have lived along the river in Bladen and Cumberland Counties since 1746, when Neill Beard bought 250 acres from the Rev. Stephen Hollingsworth. These are their stories, as told by the people who remember them.

Start with Neill Beard

Stories

Welcome!

This site is being organized by myself, Jeff Beard, as an online resource for our family history. I'm of course being assisted, most graciously, by members of the family and other dedicated researchers.

If you're part of my family, feel free to contact me to say 'Hey', and share what you know. My email address is jeff at beardfamily dot org.

The Beards

Based on my small amount of research, it's obvious that the Beard family as a whole is extremely large. People named Beard emigrated to the United States from all over Europe and the U.K.: Scotland, Ireland, England, Germany, France. I've also come across mention of Beards of Flemish origin. One fellow did bit of research that follows his lineage back to some French Huguenots that settled in England before emigrating to Canada.

Still others that had settled in Pennsylvania and Virginia in the 17th and 18th centuries continued the migration South and West settling in what is now West Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and of course North Carolina.

There are Beards everywhere in the U.S. and they've been here since the very beginning of country.

The Project

Since I'm just starting this project, if you are a Beard whose origins are in Cumberland County N.C, drop me a line and say 'Hey'. I'd like to know who you are and what you've been up to.

As I gather information I'll be posting it here. The site will be under heavy development for a while as I'm just getting all the basic data gathered. Once I have that, I'll work on a nicer design and add some useful features like a searchable database of family members and a site search.

If you'd like to be made aware of when I make updates, send me an email and I'll include you on announcements of updates.

My Gratitude

There are some folks that have done a great deal of research on this family already and I'm grateful for what they are willing to share. So far these folks are (in no particular order):

  • Dee Thompson (you rock, Dee!)
  • Bonnie Haynes Chandler (Hollingsworth researcher)
  • Daniel Beard
  • James Thrower
  • Donnie Beard
  • Leah Beard (Contact: leahnpacefl _at_ gmail _dot_ com)
  • Patricia Earp
  • The Good FolksTM that maintain and share information on the Cumberland and Bladen County NCGenweb sites.