The Proctors are one of Bulloch County’s founding families. The name Proctor is tied to those who were officers in the Admiralty or Ecclesiastical courts in England, who served as legal advisors. In some cases, this meant being in charge of overseeing the welfare of the poor and needy.
      The first ancestor whose line can be traced to them is Geoffrey Proctor, who was born in Nether Bordley about 1450 and died about 1525. His first wife was Katherine with whom he had no children. He then married Margaret and had the following children: William, born 1506, Richard, Henry and Robert.
     His son William Proctor was born in Nether Bordley in 1506 and died on a date unknown. He married Isabel Lilbourne in Shawdon, Northumberland, Eng., and they had the following children: Thomas; Cuthbert; Eustace; Barbara; Dowsabell; Dorothy and John Nicholas.
      John Nicholas Proctor was born between 1557 and 1559 in London, Middlesex, England. He married Graye. Their children were: John Graye Planter, Joshua, Thomas, Anthony, and Ambrose Sr. John Gray Planter Proctor was born about 1583.
      He married Alice Allie Proctor, who bore him six children: George; Robert; William; John; Richard; and a daughter whose name is unknown. George Proctor was born in 1622 in Paces Point, Jamestown Colony, in Va. He married Elizabeth Marriott in 1673, who gave birth to their children: George Jr.; Joshua; and Mary.
      Joshua Proctor was born in Surry County, Va.. According to records, Joshua had three wives. The first was Katherine Owens. Their children were: Elizabeth; Robert, Catherine, Richard, Sarah, Mary, and Hannah. The second was Sara Felton Ingersoll, with whom he had no children. The third was Martha Wainright, who gave birth to their son Grey in 1656 in Surry County, Va.
      Grey Proctor married around 1690. His wife, whose name is unknown, gave birth to their son Grey Thomas, who born about 1692 in Surry County, Va. Grey Thomas Proctor married Anne Stuart. Their child was John Grey, who was born in 1708 in Surry County, Va.
      John Gray Proctor Sr. was born 1708 in Surry Co, Va. and died in 1771 in Edgecombe County, NC. He married Mary Anne Bennett in 1745. Their children were: Patience; John Gray Jr.; Absalom; Shadrack; Aaron; Sampson; Moses T.; Delilah Delia; Frederick Gray; Molly; and Edith.
      John Gray Jr. was born in 1750 in Edgecombe County, NC. and died in 1782. He married Francis (also spelled Frances) Clarke about 1769, who bore him the following children: Jonas William; George; Jesse; Nancy; and Solomon.
      Jonas William Proctor was born in 1774 in Edgecombe, NC, and died about 1835 in Emanuel County, Ga. He married Harriet Annette Annie Lester in 1803 in Burke County, Ga. Their children were William Abraham Sr,; John T.; Allen I.; Harriet; Daniel Joseph; Emily Anne; and Seaborn Matthew.
      William Abraham Proctor Sr. was born in 1804 and died in 1871. According to some records, he first married Sylphia Cowart, and then married Martha Cowart, her sister. Most, if not all, of the Bulloch County Proctors are direct descendants of William Abraham Proctor Sr.
      William Sr. and Martha Proctor had ten children. They were: Ezekiel Lavant; Andrew Jackson; David Cowart Calhoun; John A. William Abraham Jr.; James Cowart; Doctor Washington; Mary Jane; Martha; and Margaret Keziah Katie.

      Roger Allen writes a genealogy column once a month. E-mail Roger at roger dodger53@hotmail.com