The progenitor of this family in Rutherford
county is Captain William Lytle, who came to Tennessee to settle land grants
received for his services in the Revolutionary War. His grants, along
with his inherited land grants from his brother, Colonel Archibald Lytle,
are said to have provided him with over 26,000 acres. These covered
several counties in Middle Tennessee, as well as some in the Western lands
of Tennessee not yet settled.
Captain William Lytle’s family can be traced
to the first immigrant ancestor, Archibald Little (Lytle), who settled
in the area of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. He is buried at Compass,
Lancaster County. The Will of Archibald Little, of Lancaster County,
Pennsylvania written 25 Jan 1748/49 lists the following children:
Robert, Andrew, James, Archibald, Margaret, and Isobel.
On 9 Jun 1752, Robert Little sold his 1/3
share of his inherited estate to James Little and, traveling the Great
Emigrant Road from Lancaster to North Carolina, settled in Orange
County, North Carolina. Robert Lytle enlisted in the North Carolina Militia
as a Captain in 1755. His Will listed the following children: Archibald,
William, Andrew, Anne, Eleanor, Rachel, Robert, Margaret, Mary and Phoebe.
Colonel Archibald Lytle, oldest son of Captain Robert
Lytle, served in the Revolutionary War and was captured at Stony Point,
held captive, and released. He and his brother, Captain William Lytle,
and the father-in-law of William, Lieutenant John Taylor were charter members
of the Society of the Cincinnati. Archibald Lytle died, having never
married, and willed all of his estate to his brother, William, to be disposed
as as he saw fit.
Captain William Lytle married Nancy Ann Taylor,
daughter of John and Sarah Day Taylor. Only one other member of Taylor
family is known. Nancy Ann Lytle’s sister, Margaret. migrated to
Murfreesboro with the family and was still living in 1850 in the household
of William Franklin Pitt Lytle.
Five of the seven children of William and
Nancy Lytle were born in North Carolina before the move to Tennessee.
The remaining two, William Franklin Pitt and Julia Margaret were born in
Rutherford County.
Captain Lytle is said to have settled his
land and was the only family in the vicinty at the time. When there
was an Indian attach, he moved back to Davidson County for two years before
attempting to settle again. The second attempt was successful.
Rutherford county was formed from Davidson county in 1803, and when enough
settlers had come into the area, a decision was made to lay off a town.
After a lengthy debate as to the location, William Lytle offered to donate
60 acres for the site. It was named for Hardy Murfree, the officer
who had led the charge of the Patriots when they had stormed and seized
Stony Point on the Hudson, July 1770.
William Lytle built his home on his land in
1810 and it was to be remembered for its functional beauty with fluted
columns. It stood for 117 years before being torn down for the Carnation
Milk Plant. Many of its architectural features were said to have
been preserved in later built homes in the area.
In a letter dated, 7 Jun 1896, William Lytle’s
grandson, Marion DeSheill Lytle, describes his grandfather as a mechanical genius with a bluff and cordial disposition.
He was described as a large man weighing over two hundred pounds and a
man of strong will and purpose, his honesty and sense of righteousness
secure from suspicion, lots of good humor and horse sense thrown in.
The Lytle family lived and prospered well
in Rutherford County. The sons of Capatin William and Nancy Lytle raised large families. Their daughters were educated
at the Female Academy in Nashville, and married well. Jennet Mebane
Lytle married Ephraim Hubbard Foster of Bardstown, Kentucky, who later
became a Senator from Tennessee. Sarah Lytle married Richard Caswell,
son of General Richard Caswell, and former governor of North Carolina.
Her second marriage was to Benjamin McCollouch, early settler of Rutherford
County. The youngest daughter, Julia Margaret, married William Nichol,
of Nashville, merchant, planter, steamboat owner, and Mayor of Nashville.
He was known as the first Tennessee Millionaire. Their gracious
antebellum home still stands on Donelson Pike and Briley Parkway.
A notable descendant of Captain William Lytle
is Andrew Lytle, Southern Writer, (1898-1995) best known for his contribution
to the manifesto published by twelve Southerners, called, “I’ll Take My
Stand: The South and the Agrarian Tradition.” His many novels, especially,
“The Velvet Horn” has earned him additional respect in the literary world.
Another descendant is a gggrandson, Quentin McGarel Hogg, Lord Hailsham,
Baron of Marylebone, England.. Lord Hailsham’s mother, Elizabeth
Brown, married first, Archibald Marjoribanks, and after his death, married
Douglass Hogg, who was to become lord chancellor of England. When
their son, Quentin, became lord chancellor, it was marked in English history
as the only time a father and son had each held the post. Lord Hailsham
still lives, at the age of 91, in England and is a member of the House
of Lords.
The origin of the Lytle family has its beginning
in the Debateable Lands between Scotland and England, which has been in dispute since the invasion of England by
William the Conqueror in 1066.
Clan Little was one of the fighting clans of the West March, living
close up to the border on the Scottish side. Constantly raiding and
reiving (rob or plunder), the borderers on both sides held in comtempt
all who went on foot. By the close of the 16th century they had earned
a reputation as the finest light cavalry in Europe. The preferred
dress of the Borderers was “Trews” (close fitting tartan trousers) instead
of the kilt.
Early correspondence between members of the
Lytle family and different people of that Lytle-Little name in Scotland
and Ireland, failed to resolve the question of the lineage further back
than Archibald Little of Lancaster, Pennsylvania..
(The bulk of the above material was gleamed from early correspondence
between various members of the Lytle family. Some of this material
was used by Andrew Lytle in his book, “A Wake For The Living.” His
book tells many tales about his Lytle and Nelson families. Much of
it was included in my personal family book, “Lytles of Murfreesboro, From
Reiver to Founder.”. )
Submitted by:
Margaret Nolen Nichol
Jacksonville, Florida