Trotter Family History
Well, the Trotter family that I am familiar with wasn’t/isn’t exactly what I would call a very close family. In fact, the only Trotters that I ever knew were just the few in my home town. From time to time I wondered what their background was, where they came from, etc. In other words, “Who the heck is this crazy Trotter family?”
The only Trotters I knew were very few in the Pacific Northwest . I only knew that my father was born in Ladysmith, Wisconsin . Prior to that…who knows!!
As a result of the earlier question I decided to go on the Internet and see what I would find out. I continue to be amazed at all of the information that is possible through the World Wide Web!! Before too long I was able to trace back to my ggg grandfather, William Joseph Trotter who was born in 1760 either in Scotland, North Carolina, or Virginia ( it seems his place of birth wasn’t exactly clear). Actually, it isn't even clear if his middle name was really Joseph.
So here is the story:
GGG Grandfather William Trotter b. 1760 d. 18 MAR 1830 in Wayne County , Ill.
GGG Grandmother Sara King b. 1765 d. 1820 in Wayne County , Ill.
Together, William and Sara King had 12 children:
Charles Trotter b. 27 SEP 1791 in South Carolina
Susanna Trotter b. 1796 in Barren County, KY
Elisha B. Trotter b. 12 DEC 1801 in North Carolina
James F. Trotter b. 1803 in Barren County, KY
George Trotter b. 1804 in Barren County, KY
Mary Trotter b. 1805 in Barren County, KY
Thomas Archibald Trotter b. 1807 in Barren County, KY
Isham Trotter b. 19 AUG 1815 in Barren County, KY
Robert Trotter b. 19 JUL 1816 in Barren County, KY
Shirley Trotter b. 15 FEB 1821 in Compton Hart County, KY
Rebecca Trotter b. 1823 in Barren County, KY
William Trotter b. 1825 in Barren County, KY
My family descended from Shirley Trotter and his third wife, Elizabeth Ann Reid (It turns out that the old guy had FIVE wives and outlived all but the last one. He was sort of a mousy looking guy but he sure must have had a way with the ladies!!). Shirley ended up fathering 12 children divided between the first four wives. Shirley died on 12 DEC 1899 in Rinard, Ill.
To view a few historic photos of the family, please select the Historic Trotter Photo Slideshow. There you will find photos of Shirley and Elizabeth Ann Reid as well as a photo of their home in Rhinard, Ill.
Several years before my grandfather's death he decided to put together an autobiography and Trotter Family history album which also include a little family history of my late grandmother's family.
Please select the subpage below to view the file.
If you are a Trotter who stumbled upon the TrotterFamily.org page and you feel that you are related, drop me an email at Lee.Trotter@charter.net and say hi.
Enjoy!!!