Back in the late 1980s, I was either "given the opportunity to" or "saddled with the responsibility for", depending on your point of view (grin), investigating the Hope family genealogy. Since then, Dot and I have made numerous trips to the Shenandoah Valley and Front Royal Virginia, even more to South Carolina, especially Orangeburg, to Waynesboro and Augusta Georgia seeking Hardwick information and innumerable visits to the Virginia, Georgia and South Carolina Archives and State and County Libraries in search of information. We have become members of more genealogical and historical societies than I can remember (but they all remind me once a year). Beginning about 1990/91 (Geeze, could it have been 10 years?) I have sent around bits and pieces of stuff as Dot and I found it but I have lost track of what I have, and have not, sent out and to whom I have (or have not) sent it. On several occasions, I have started writing stuff up but never gotten it to the point of being ready to mail out (Heck, maybe this one will join the stack – grin). I have now forgotten which things I sent and which I didn’t, so I am going to start over and try to unload everything we have learned up to the time that this gets shipped out. I am going to start with our grandparents (you younger generations will just have to add a few additional "greats" to correct the data for yourselves), Florence Marion Zorn and George Henry Hope, Jr. – Fat Mama and Po Papa - and go backward. The "family trees" from Po Papa and Fat Mama are presented below. Please realize that I have included some ancestors who have not been proven, but they appear to be the most likely candidates given what we know at this point. I can’t claim credit for much of this data – others have graciously shared their research with us. By the same token, I have not verified much of the shared information so it must be taken with the proverbial "grain of salt" (or maybe a whole shaker!). All unverified data that I have included is generally internally consistent with that which I have verified. However, the objective was not to generate data that would stand up to legal scrutiny but to try to get an idea of where we came from and where we fit into the grand scheme of things. Some of this will just be a restatement of stuff we all know, but for those who come later, it may be new information. By the way, I don’t claim exclusionary rights to this activity so if anyone wants to jump in and help or take off on their own, feel free. I’ll be overjoyed to provide copies of everything I have to help you get started. Finally, if anyone knows of anything in addition to what is presented here, or if you have evidence - or even suspect - that any of this material is erroneous, please notify me!!!

We are indebted to Mr. Harold Zorn of Charleston for much (most!) of our Zorn information. The Zorns are our second entry into the Orangeburgh German/Swiss colony of the 1700s. While Mr. Zorn gave us the family tree from the earliest Orangeburgh Zorn, it carried little personal information about our ancestors. Some came from Sonny Zorn who allowed us to visit an old Zorn burial ground and cemetery on his property.

Florence Marion Zorn.

Florence Marion Zorn Hope, Fat Mama, was born in Waynesboro, Georgia, November 23, 1884, the eldest of four children of William Elijah Zorn and Nora E. Hardwick. Fat Mama married George Henry Hope, Jr. in Denmark on September 26, 1900. Fat Mama came to Denmark with her mother and two younger sisters after her father’s death in 1889. I know virtually nothing about Fat Mama’s early life. She married George Henry Hope at the age of 15. Cecile was born a year later and Hardwick and George Marion came along within four years. I am sure we all have our memories of Fat Mama and visits to her house. I remember flying June Bugs, "riding" the fuel oil tanks beside the fig tree and her fantastic mint candy. Fat Mama died May 24, 1966.

William Elijah Zorn.

The Zorn family genealogy was generously shared with us by Mr. Harold Zorn of Charleston. William Elijah Zorn (our Great Grandfather) was born March 16, 1855 in South Carolina, probably in Barnwell County. He married Nora E. Hardwick in Waynesboro, Burke co., Georgia on March 7, 1882. We know nothing about William Elijah beyond the fact that he was a law enforcement officer in Waynesboro. His obituary described him as "Marshall" but I don’t know if this was a generic term, implying only that he was a law enforcement officer, or indicated that he was a Town or U.S. Marshall. Some family lore suggests that he may have been the County Sheriff. He died in 1889 from a self inflicted, accidental, gunshot wound. According to the local paper, the True Citizen, He was cleaning a pistol when it discharged, hitting him in the groin. He died from loss of blood when the attending physician was unable to stop the bleeding. William Elijah was the son of Johnson Hagood Zorn and his second wife, Rebecca Lucy Grimes.

John Hagood Zorn, our GGGrandfather, was born in Barnwell County on August 16, 1814, son of Henry Zorn Jr. and Ann Sobeski (Sobieski). After the death of his first wife, Elizabeth ????? some time after 1847, he married Rebecca Lucy Grimes sometime before 1851, the earliest date showing a child born to the couple. Johnson Hagood died April 26, 1859 and is buried in the Zorn Family Cemetery, known as the Flat Pond Cemetery. If so, this is the small graveyard beside the highway on Sonny Zorn’s farm. Our notes from a visit there indicate that his grave is in this cemetery.

Rebecca Lucy Grimes, Johnson Hagood Zorn’s second wife, is a real mystery. She was born January 5, 1830 and died May 20, 1897. After Johnson’s death, she married U.G. Milhouse. We don’t know anything about Rebecca’s parentage. There were Grimes in the area – specifically, Barnwell Co. - from very early but we don’t know which of these she belonged to, if any. Grimes is a variation of Graham/Graeme and is a good Scottish name. Rebecca is found as head of household in the 1860 census with nine children of Johnson Zorn, five by his first wife and four by Rebecca. They ranged in age from nineteen to two years of age. There is no William Elijah shown in this group but there is an Eliza W. aged five years. I suspect this is our Elijah (who would have been five, having been born in 1855), on the assumption that the census taker either wrote the name incorrectly or his writing was interpreted as "Eliza" by the transcriber. We need to follow up on this one.

Henry Zorn, Jr. – our GGGGGrandfather – was the son of Henry Zorn and Elizabeth _____. His birth date isn’t known but he died February 28, 1842. Henry Zorn, Jr.’s will identifies his son Johnson, leaving him 100 acres, " . . . a part of the tract purchased by me from Nimmary & Odom . . .". He married Ann Sobieski but the date and particulars are unknown. Little else is known of Henry Zorn, Jr.

Ann Sobieski is another mystery woman. We have found a Thaddeus C. Sobieski, Captain in the Army, in Charleston in 1816 and he shows up thereafter as Engineer for the Government, Surveyor and Engineer for several years after that time. He is also found in the 1820 census with several people in his household. Henry and Ann had a son named Thaddeus Sobieski Zorn, implying some sort of relationship to Thaddeus Sobieski in Charleston. Ann had children as early as 1803 so she must have been married well before Thaddeus Constantine Sobieski begins to appear in the Charleston documents. Hopefully, we will find more on this relationship. Sobieski is Polish and is derived from King Jan Sobieski who is credited with playing a major role in repulsing the Turks and Tartars from Austria in the 1680s.

Henry Zorn , our 5GGrandfather, was the son of Nicholas and Anna Catherina Zorn, who came from Germany/Switzerland to Orangeburgh around 1735. Henry’s brother, Nicholas, is shown in some records as being born in 1734 at Orangeburgh. However, Henry’s birth date and place are unknown. Henry was granted and bought and sold land in Berkley Co. (part of the Orangeburgh District). He is listed on the roll of Colonial Soldiers in the Indian Wars in Col. Chevillette’s unit. It is presumed that he married Elizabeth Grimes after arriving in Orangeburgh. We have no date for this marriage but it is implied by the Barnwell Co. Equity Records. Henry Zorn also received money from the government for supplying the American forces during the revolution. Beyond that, little is known of Henry Zorn.

Elizabeth Grimes.

We know nothing of 5GGrandmother Elizabeth Grimes. She is presumably out of one of the several Grimes families in the area. We only have evidence of her marriage to Henry Zorn from the Equity Records of Barnwell Co.

Records indicate that 6GGrandfatherNicholas Zorn was born about 1710 in Europe (Probably Germany or Switzerland). Nicholas and his wife, Anna Catherina came to Orangeburgh in 1735 as he was certified for 100 acres and a town lot in December of that year. He had died before 1741 when Anna Catherina, widow of Nicholas Zorn, was married to John Simmons. However, this date is not certain since the notation wasn’t dated directly but was among a number of other Giesendanner Church records from 1741 and 1742. He was certainly dead by 1748 when the council awarded his land to his children. Nicholas was father to three daughters (Madgalena, Susannah and Catharina) and two sons, Nicholas and Henry.

Anna Catharina is another mystery. Some records indicate that she was born in 1712 and had died before June 1775 in Orangeburgh. As a widow, she was married a second time, presumably, in 1741 to John Simmons.

Our Zorn line is presented below in outline form. These relationships have been pretty well researched and I believe are accurate.

Descendants of Nicholas Zorn

1 Nicholas Zorn

.. +Anna Catherina _______

...... 2 Henry Zorn

.......... +Elizabeth Grimes

............... 3 Henry Zorn, Jr.

................... +Ann Sobeski

....................... 4 Johnson Hagood Zorn

...........................+Rebecca Lucy Grimes

................................ 5 William Elijah Zorn

.................................... +Nora E. Hardwick

........................................ 6 Florence Marion Zorn

............................................ +George Henry Hope, Jr.

Our Hardwicks have been the second most frustrating of our genealogical lines. We can find people who seem like they must be our ancestors but can find no corroborating evidence. Information on this line probably existed in Waynesboro/Burke Co. at one time but multiple courthouse burnings (all prior to 1856 – not related to the War of Northern Aggression) have eliminated virtually all records of our Hardwicks. This is particularly frustrating because there are several Hardwick families in the vicinity but no evidence that links ours to any of them.

Nora Hardwick, our Ggrandmother, wife of William Elijah Zorn, was born February 25, 1859, Waynesboro, Ga. And died March 6, 1926, Denmark SC. Nora was the daughter of Andrew Hardwick and Ally Chance Hardwick. Nora was thirty when William Elijah died, had two young daughters and was pregnant with William Elijah, Jr. After Elijah’s death, Nora went to Denmark because her brother, Redding Hardwick, was a lawyer there. Elijah Zorn was made guardian of Ruth and Redding Hardwick in 1882, the year he and Nora were married. Grattan, her other brother, had been guardian but was supplanted by Elijah and Nora. Grattan, while still living in Waynesboro and ran a store there, never married, so Redding may have been judged a better choice to look after a widow with two and a half children than Grattan. At any rate, she moved to Denmark and lived there for the remainder of her life. She apparently married a Koon at some point, because she shows up in one census as Nora Koon and Jean says she remembers something about a marriage that apparently didn’t last very long. We know little about Nora’s personal life beyond these few facts.

Andrew Hardwick II, our GGGrandfather, was born, probably, in Waynesboro, Georgia, 1822 or 23 according to the 1850 census but Alice Hardwick Humphrey’s Bible indicates that he was born in 1817. We, currently, have no way of verifying either date. Andrew was employed as an Overseer in the 1850 census. Andrew II was likely the son of an earlier Andrew Hardwick (Andrew I) who was probably married to Hannah Hardwick. Hannah is generally accepted to be Andrew II’s mother but we have no irrefutable evidence of this. Andrew married Ally (Alice) F. Chance in 1849 or 50. They had at least eight children: Ruth, Walter L., Fanny G., Andrew Gratton, Alice, Nora, Redding and Moselle G.. Andrew bought 880 acres of land in Burke Co. in 1863 and later sold it according to Burke Co. deed records. Andrew is shown a being involved in lawsuits involving debts until about 1871 in Burke Co. Court Records. Superior Court Records show that an Andrew and Seaborn Hardwick were indicted for murder in 1838/9. Seaborn was convicted and sent to prison until 1843. Andrew was not prosecuted - reason not given. We cannot be certain which Andrew Hardwick this was, Andrew I or our GGGrandfather Andrew II, father of Nora, mother of Florence Marion Zorn. We suspect that it was Andrew II however and suspect that the reason he wasn’t prosecuted was his age. He would have been about 16 or 17 years old at the time. Also, we know that Andrew I had disappeared from the census in 1840 so had presumably died or left Waynesboro/Burke Co. in the 1830s. We hope to find more information about the murder and trial, primarily because we hope it will shed light on relationships among these people.

Ally Chance Hardwick, our GGGrandmother is another mystery. There is a note from another Hardwick researcher (Ms. Ethel Rose) stating that she was the daughter of Reuben Chance of Burke County but we could find no evidence supporting this. She married Andrew II in 1849/50. Her birth date is given in Alice Hardwick Humphrey’s bible as 1833 but the 1850 census gives her age as 19, implying a birth date of 1831. Beyond these bare facts, we have no information about Ally Chance Hardwick

Andrew Hardwick I, presumably the husband of Hannah and father of Andrew II, would be our GGGGrandfather – if, indeed, our assumptions about his relationships to Hannah and Andrew are accurate. Andrew first appears in the 1820 census with seven children (presumably all his own) and a wife about the right age to be Hannah. He also appears in the 1830 census with more children and wife. Andrew drew land in the 1827 Cherokee Land Lottery as a result of service in the Cherokee Indian Wars. He was a member of the First Division, Ga. Militia, 7th regiment, 1st Company, Thomas Burke, Capt.. Andrew I is listed as an Overseer in both censuses.

Hannah Hardwick, presumably our GGGGrandmother, was born about 1793 according to the 1850 census. Hannah Hardridge appeared in the 1840 census as head of household in the same census area that Andrew had been found in 1820 and 1830 with a wife of about her age. Hannah has been generally agreed to be Andrew II’s mother but we can’t prove that relationship. Hannah ran a boarding house and provided meals for jurors and prisoners for Burke County. Her home was just off the main intersection in Waynesboro near the current Waynesboro/Burke Co. Museum. The museum is in another, slightly newer, house that stood on the same lot according to some sources. There is some evidence that Hannah had several other children in addition to Andrew - Selena, Redding, Peter, Phillip and Seaborn being likely candidates. Several of these were involved in land transactions with Hannah, implying some sort of relationship. Again, the absence of county records render Hannah another mystery . . . we seem to have more than our share of these.

Our Hardwick line - as I believe it to be - is depicted below in tabular form, beginning with Andrew I and Hannah. I must emphasize that these relationships aren’t proven and could very well be incorrect. While these are only hypothetical, they are our best guesses at this time.

1 (Andrew??) Hardwick

.. +Hannah ________

...... 2 Andrew Hardwick

.......... +Allie F. Chance

............... 3 Grattan Hardwick

............... 3 Ruth Hardwick

............... 3 Walter Hardwick

............... 3 Alice Hardwick

................... +David M. Humphrey

............... 3 Nora E. Hardwick

...................+William Elijah Zorn

....................... 4 Florence Marion Zorn

........................... +George Henry Hope, Jr.

................................ 5 Cecile Hope

.................................... +Micah Pate

................................ 5 John Hardwick Hope

.................................... + Elizabeth Cone

................................ 5 George Marion Hope

.................................... +Jessie Candler Norman

....................... 4 Julia Zorn

....................... 4 Inez Zorn

...........................+_______ LeMaster

................................ 5 Mildred LeMaster

....................... 4 William Elijah Zorn, Jr.

............... 3 Redding C. Hardwick

................... +Mamie Carroll

...... 2 J. William Hardwick

...... 2 Harriet Hardwick

.......... +John B. Lightfoot

...... 2 Selena Hardwick

.......... +Wm. Goodwin

...... 2 five additional Males in 1830 census W/ Andrew Hardwick