Photo: My second great-grandparents Henry Preston and Mary Etta Cobb Brantley with their children. In the back row, from left, are Clara and Gladys. Standing between them is my great-grandfather, William “Willie” Brantley. Mary is seated in Mary Etta’s lap, and Guy is seated in Preston’s lap. Photo credit: Elsie Watkins Haynes /
I was grateful last week to open the mailbox and find my copy of “The Brantley Family: Preachers, Planters and Pioneers of the South” by Ken Brantley.
Ken is passionate about genealogy research, and we have exchanged many emails about our mutual family line. As large as a phone book and weighing what feels like about 25 pounds, it is the biggest and most comprehensive family history devoted to a single surname that I have ever seen. His website is also packed with information.
According to the introduction of the book, Brantley began his research in 1963, working the old-fashioned way through photocopies, letters to strangers and conversations with distant relatives he discovered during his research.
In 1987, he established The Brantley Association, and I am proud to be member No. 647.
The Brantley family represents a particularly meaningful branch of my family tree because I was close to my maternal grandmother, Virginia Brantley Lovelace (1917-2007). My wife and I also chose Brantley as our oldest daughter’s middle name.
My Brantley Family’s page in “The Brantley Family: Preachers, Planters and Pioneers of the South”
As a member of the association, I provided information about my own Brantley line. I even made it into the book, along with my third great-grandfather, Henry Day Brantley (1845-1918), and my second great-grandfather, Henry Preston Brantley (1872-1956).
my third great-grandparents Henry Day Brantley and Margaret Rebecca Steele
Most Brantley families living in the United States today descend from the sons of Edward Brantley, who, according to the book, died in 1736 in Southampton County, Virginia.
The first member of my Brantley line to live in Haywood County was Augustus Brantley (1811-1876). Born in Bertie County, North Carolina, he joined many of my other ancestors in migrating to Haywood County, Tennessee, during the early 1830s from Bertie County, N.C.
As an interesting side note, Augustus’ son, Solomon Normon Brantley (1848-1927), completed one of the Tennessee Civil War Veterans Questionnaires. His answers reveal a little about life on his father’s Haywood County farm and the culture of the area around the time of the Civil War.
My second great-grandparents Henry Preston and Mary Etta Cobb Brantley on their wedding day, 1894
I have already spent hours exploring the new Brantley book. In addition to more than 25,000 names and extensive genealogical information, it includes maps, migration patterns, charts and numerous photographs.
For anyone researching the Brantley family, I highly recommend getting a copy of “The Brantley Family: Preachers, Planters and Pioneers of the South” for your own library.
Update: Sadly, Ken Brantley died in 2024. The geneaology work he left behind will be used and appreciated by generations of researchers to come.
John Kenneth Brantley
February 8, 1942 ~ April 3, 2024
John Kenneth Brantley passed away peacefully at 7:05pm on Wednesday, April 3, 2024 at the age of 82 years. Born in 1942 in Austell, GA to Hudson Lee Brantley and Evelyn Jackson Brantley. He is survived by his loving wife of 63 years, Linda Hendrick Brantley, brothers Michael Lee (Lynn) Brantley and Dennis Edward (Laurie) Brantley, and his sister Dorothy Kay Brantley. Lovingly remembered by his 6 children, Jeanette (James Wade) Smith, John Kenneth (Leigh) Brantley, Jr., Candyon Robinson, Brandyon (Page) Brantley, Summer (Steven) Osborn, and Holly (Nathaniel) Hymer, as well as 20 grandchildren and 9 great grandchildren. Kenneth retired after 36 years with the Federal Aviation Administration in 1998, but continued to passionately pursue many interests after retirement including extensive genealogy work and publications, investing in real estate, and flying charter planes as a private jet pilot. He founded and directed The Brantley Association of America with 300+ members and traveled the United States and England to further his genealogical research, experiencing many miracles along the way. Kenneth published 3 books centered around his historical findings and freely shared his research through the Brantley Association’s website. Kenneth delighted in hard work and a good challenge. He found great joy in counseling and leading his wife, children and grandchildren. He will be greatly missed by his family, his LDS church community, and his network of fellow genealogy enthusiasts. Visitation will be held at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, Powder Springs on April 9, 2024, 11:30 – 12:30. Service to follow immediately after visitation.
Leave a Reply