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Caswell County Genealogy
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 1807 - 1897 (89 years)
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| Name |
Lea, Solomon [1] |
| Title |
Reverend |
| Birth |
21 Nov 1807 |
Leasburg, Caswell County, North Carolina  |
| Gender |
Male |
| Reference Number |
3864 |
| Death |
30 Apr 1897 |
Leasburg, Caswell County, North Carolina |
| Burial |
Leasburg Community Cemetery, Leasburg, Caswell County, North Carolina |
| Person ID |
I3819 |
Caswell County |
| Last Modified |
23 Sep 2023 |
| Father |
Lea, Captain William, b. 17 Oct 1776, Caswell County, North Carolina d. 17 Jul 1873 (Age 96 years) |
| Relationship |
natural |
| Mother |
McNeill, Sarah, b. 24 Aug 1783 d. 6 Dec 1846 (Age 63 years) |
| Relationship |
natural |
| Marriage |
5 Nov 1800 |
Person County, North Carolina [2] |
| Reference Number |
62794 |
| Notes |
- Marriage Bond Record
Groom: William Lea, Jr.
Bride: Sarah McNiel
Bond Date: 5 November 1800
Bondsman/Witness: John McFarland, Vincent Lea
Location: Person County, North Carolina
Source: Person County North Carolina Marriage Records 1792-1868, Katharine Kerr Kendall (1983) at 50.
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| Family ID |
F1635 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Family |
Ainger, Sophia, b. 22 Nov 1810, London, England d. 2 Nov 1866, Leasburg, Caswell County, North Carolina (Age 55 years) |
| Marriage |
1837 |
Warrenton, Warren County, North Carolina |
| Reference Number |
29251 |
| Children |
| + | 1. Lea, Anness Sophia, b. 10 Sep 1838 d. 6 Nov 1892 (Age 54 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural] |
| + | 2. Lea, Henrietta, b. 24 May 1840, Boydton, Mecklenburg County, Virginia d. 12 Dec 1929, Milton, Caswell County, North Carolina (Age 89 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural] |
| + | 3. Lea, Adeline, b. 1842, Farmville, Prince Edward County, Virginia d. 1871 (Age 29 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural] |
| | 4. Lea, Wilhelmina, b. 9 Nov 1843, Virginia d. 23 Jun 1936 (Age 92 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural] |
| | 5. Lea, Edward Wadsworth, b. 1 Nov 1844, Greensboro, Guilford County, North Carolina d. 27 May 1921, Leasburg, Caswell County, North Carolina (Age 76 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural] |
| | 6. Lea, Lillian, b. 8 Jan 1845, Leasburg, Caswell County, North Carolina d. 21 Apr 1938, Reidsville, Rockingham County, North Carolina (Age 93 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural] |
| + | 7. Lea, Eugenia, b. 28 Aug 1846, Caswell County, North Carolina d. 16 Aug 1930, Ansonville, Anson County, North Carolina (Age 83 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural] |
| | 8. Lea, Robert A., b. May 1849 d. 7 Jul 1849 (Age ~ 0 years) [Father: natural] [Mother: natural] |
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| Family ID |
F2036 |
Group Sheet | Family Chart |
| Last Modified |
23 Sep 2023 |
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| Notes |
- Solomon Lea (1807-1897)
 
 
Letter from Solomon Lea to Brother Lorenzo Lea (1829).
Letter from Solomon Lea to Brother William Lea (1832).
(for larger image, click on photograph)
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See: Solomon Lea.
See Also: Inventory of the Lea Family Papers, 1797-1934 .
The following is from The Leasburg I Knew, William S. Dixon (April 28, 1968):
South of the school, was the Lea home, originally home of my Great-grandfather Solomon Lea, now the home of Uncle Ed and Aunt Willie, neither married. Aunt Willie was a talented musician. Not only could she play the piano well but she composed music and poetry as well. She gave piano lessons and both of her pianos were busy before and after school. Uncle Ed was quite a scientific farmer and used many advanced ideas on his farm. he read widely, was an interesting talker, and was quite a drawing card as he sat on the store porch to dispense his wealth of knowledge.
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See Also: Heritage of Caswell County at 354-355 (Article No. 442)
Note the closeness of the reported birth dates of brothers Lorenzo Lea and Solomon Lea, which are troublesome. As the birth date for Solomon Lea is fairly well documented, this calls into question the birth date for Lorenzo Lea.
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"There were private schools [in Caswell County] after the Civil War, of course, just as there had been before, and many children received a good foundation for their education in schools for which tuition was charged. Several of the pre-war academies continued to operate for some time afterwards. Most notable of these was the academy in Leasburg operated by the Rev. Solomon Lea for boys and for girls. Business directories for various years between 1867 and 1884 list the Somerville Female Institute conducted by Lea and his daughters, while the Leasburg Male Academy of which Lea was principal was listed in 1867 and 1869. The Yanceyville Female Academy under the direction of Miss Lizzie Lowndes was listed in 1872, 1877-78, and in 1884, while the Dan River Institute, also in the county seat and under the direction of Joseph Venable, was listed in the 1869 directory. . . ."
Source: When the Past Refused to Die: A History of Caswell County North Carolina 1777-1977, William S. Powell (1977) at 395.
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Apparently was minister at the Connally Methodist Church near Milton in 1865.
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Solomon Lea (1807-1897) was the son of William and Sarah McNeil Lea. He graduated from the University of North Carolina in 1833. In 1837, Lea married Sophia Ainger, an English woman. In 1846, he became the first president of Greensboro Female College, the first regularly chartered female college in North Carolina and the second one "south of the Potomac." He returned to Leasburg, N.C, in 1847 and, in 1848, founded the Somerville Female Institute, a school for young women; the school closed in 1892. Solomon Lea and Sophia Ainger Lea were the parents of eight children: Henrietta, Wilhemina, Lillian (Lily Ann), Anness, Addie, Eugenia, Edward, and Robert Lea. Materials include letters between Solomon Lea and his wife Sophia Ainger Lea and their children. In the 1900s, there are letters written to the Lea children from other relatives. Also included is an account book containing entries for tuition, board, schoolbooks, and supplies for students at Somerville Female Institute, 1856-1859, probably kept by principal Solomon Lea. [Adapted from the entry by Mary McAden Satterfield in The Heritage of Caswell County (1985).]
Source: Caswell County Historical Association Collection (1791-2000s), The Southern Historical Collection at the Louis Round Wilson Special Collections Library (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, North Carolina).
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“My father attended a country school near home for a number of years, preparing himself for college, meanwhile, by hard study. He was sent, as were his two oldest brothers, to the University of North Carolina. His health failing, his studies were interrupted for a time; but an active outdoor life restored him, and he went back to complete the course, graduating in 1833 with fair honors. He then began his life work as a teacher at Warrenton, N.C., where he taught for two years. It was while teaching there that he met the lady whom he married a few years later. She was a teacher like himself.
“My father was married in 1837 to Miss Sophia Ainger, an English lady of marked piety and intelligence. She was a most congenial spirit and a great help to him in his work as a teacher. She died in 1866. The world little knew how sadly he missed her companionship and what a void was in his heart. Eight children were born to them, six daughters and two sons. One of the latter died in infancy. Two married daughters have passed away.
Source: Miss Wilhemina Lea (1843-1936), daughter of Solomon Lea and Sophia Ainger Lea: Interview by N. C. Newbold: "Rev. Solomon Lea," The Trinity Archive, February, 1898, by N. C. Newbold.
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William Lea (1777?-1873), was a merchant of Leasburg, N.C. He had three sons: Willis M., who became a physician and settled in Mississippi; Lorenzo, Methodist minister and teacher in Tennessee and Mississippi; and Solomon (1807-1897), Methodist minister and schoolmaster at Boydton, Greensboro, and Leasburg. Solomon's six daughters included Adeline, Lilianne, Eugenia, and Wilhelmina (1843-1936). The collection includes letters, 1812-1820s, consisting of family correspondence of William Lea (1777?-1873) and his brothers, Vincent and James, all merchants, writing from Leasburg, N.C., Petersburg and Norfolk, Va., and New York City, chiefly about business matters, prices, economic conditions, debts, current news, and other topics. Letters, 1820s-1850s, are chiefly between William Lea and his children and among the children. Willis M. Lea wrote from Philadelphia, where he was studying medicine, and later from Holly Springs, Miss. Solomon Lea was a student at the University of North Carolina and later lived at Boydton, Farmville, and Greensboro, N.C.
Letters from 1861 onwards are chiefly correspondence of the daughters of Solomon Lea, most written by Wilhelmina from the various places where she taught school, including Louisburg, Olin, and other places in North Carolina and Murfreesboro, Tenn., and at the Marshall Institute in Mississippi. Volumes are ledgers, 1797-1803, of William Lea (1751-1806), merchant of Leasburg and uncle of William (1777?-1873); school accounts, 1853-1862, of Solomon Lea, who taught at Somerville Seminary and founded Somerville Female Institute in Leasburg and was president of Greensboro College, 1846-1857; and reminiscences and a 19-volume diary, 1872-1934, of Wilhelmina Lea.
Source: The Southern Historical Collection, University of North Carolina.
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"Although there is scant material on James Lea Sr., his children residing in Leasburg were outstanding and left a rich history. Son Gabriel lived near Leasburg and his son William married Sarah McNeill who were parents to Lorenzo Lea and the famous educator Solomon Lea, president of Greensboro College and owner of the Somerville Institute in Leasburg. One of the pleasures of this writer's childhood was an annual summer afternoon visit in Leasburg with her parents to call on Miss Willie Lea the entertaining and gracious daughter of Solomon Lea."
Source: The Heritage of Caswell County, North Carolina, Jeannine D. Whitlow, Editor (1985) at 351 (Article #437, "James Lea" by Katharine Kerr Kendall).
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Solomon Lea
"Solomon Lea, my father, William Lea's 3rd son, married Miss Sophia Ainges [Ainger], an English lady, who was born and reared in London with every social and educational advantage. She came to this country with some friends when about 20 years of age. She expected to return to England, but began teaching in Philadelphia in the family of Dr. Shippen. Afterwards she went South and taught in a private family in Warren Co. N.C. My father, who was teaching in the town of Warrenton met her. It was love at first sight, but he was courting her for 5 years before he gained her consent to marry him. After his marriage he went to Virginia, in which state he taught for several years. Then he returned to N.C. and to Leasburg, his native place, and was conducting a school here, when elected to the presidency of Greensboro college. He served in that capacity for two years (1846 & 1847) then he resigned and came back to Leasburg.
"He then founded Somerville Female Institute a school that flourished and was extensively patronized up to the Civil War. Besides teaching, my father was a Local preacher in the Methodist church, and preached whenever opportunity afforded. He was called on to perform many marriage ceremonies, and to preach funeral sermons. He received his A.M. at Chapel Hill in 1833.
"My father was one of the most genial men, kept open house, and was almost universally popular. He loved the out-of-doors, and gardening, and was particularly fond of horse-back riding. He was exceedingly active and young in his looks and ways until his health failed. He was born 1807 and passed away in 1897 in his 90th year. My mother died in Nov. 1866, preceding him to the eternal world 31 years. He neve married again.
"To this happy, congenial union were born 8 children, 6 daughters, and 2 sons, Anness Sophia, Henrietta, Adeline, Wilhelmina, Lilianne, Eugenia, Edward Wadsworth and Robert Albert. The last died in infancy.
"Solomon Lea third son of Wm. Lea was born in Nov. 1807 and died here in May 1897. He graduated at the University of N.C. (Chapel Hill) and made teaching his life work. He also became a local preacher in the Methodist church. He was one of the most genial and hospitable of persons or individuals & a man of much energy. And with few exceptions later generations have honored their good heritage by being true in all the relations of life and leading exemplary lives."
Source: Lea, Wilhelmina. Reminiscences of Miss Willie Lea. Copied from Manuscript in Possession of Mrs. M. H. Moore (Weaverville, North Carolina). Southern Historical Collection, University of North Carolina (Chapel Hill, North Carolina). June 1943. Mostly a narrative account of her family, with biographical data, dates, and relationships, written in the 1930s. Typescript was made in 1943 from a manuscript lent by Mrs. W. S. Dixon.
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"Literary Notice. THE examination of the Young Ladies of the Somerville Female Seminary, in Leasburg, will take place on the first Tuesday in June. At the close of the exercises in the evening, Rev. Samuel S Bryant of Danville, will address the Young Ladies. The friends of Literature and the community generally are respectfully invited to attend. SOLOMON LEA."
Source: The Milton Chronicle (Milton, North Carolina), 16 May 1850, Thursday, Page 3.
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Rev Solomon Lea m Sophia Ainger, Issue: 8. b 1807 Leasburg d 30 Apr 1897, Leasburg N. C.
Source: Amite County, Mississippi 1699-1890 (Volume #3): The Environs, Albert Eugene Casey (1957) at 555.
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With some degree of truth it may be claimed that Caswell was a cradle of education in North Carolina and that Archibald D. Murphey was the father of public schools. The state's most versatile biographer, R. C. Lawrence, has said of him: "The name of Murphey must stand near the top in any list of the great of Carolina." Rev. Solomon Lea was the founder of Leasburg's "Somerville Institute for Girls" and was afterwards the first president of the Methodist school, Greensboro Female College.
The list of notables in the teaching field is too lengthy to be given here, but Rev. Hugh Shaw, the Caldwell brothers, Joseph and John, Archibald C. Lindsay, and the Poteat brothers, William Louis and Edwin McNeill, should be mentioned.
The News and Observer (Raleigh, NC), 18 May 1940.
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Once, in the Solomon Lea School in Leasburg, Caswell County, North Carolina, a room was devoted to the memory of its namesake, with a large portrait displayed.
The Herald-Sun (Durham, NC), 31 March 1940.
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The following is from the Raleigh Christian Advocate (Raleigh, North Carolina), 4 February 1985 (paragraph breaks added):
Reminiscences of By-Gone Days
Camp-Meetings At Bethany Church, Near Leasburg, Caswell County Fifty Years Ago
By Rev. Solomon Lea
"It may be both interesting and instructive during these Centenary Years of Methodism to call to mind some incidents connected with these meetings, and the distinguished preachers who participated in them.
"Bethany Church still stands in a grove of venerable oaks, which, if they could speak, could tell many a thrilling tale. The house is of brick, which looks as fresh as if it was just built. It still stands as a monument to the memory of Benjamin F. Stanfield, and John Johnston, who lived near by, and who were the main leaders in its erection.
"The neat cabins for the tent-holders that surrounded the Church have all disappeared and the Church, as to members, has nearly gone down. In former times the membership amounted to hundreds, now it has dwindled to some eight or ten. They still cling to it and are unwilling to give it up.
"But the influence that emanated from these camp=meetings at Bethany Church have not died away. For many miles around the sacred spot, both in Caswell and Person, Methodism is fully established. Leasburg and the surrounding country are almost exclusively Methodist, and a more religious and moral community can hardly be found anywhere.
"Doubtless it may be traced back to these camp-meetings at Bethany Church held between 1831 and 1840. I call to mind some of the noted preachers who attended these meetings, and who have left their impress upon this community and the Church at large. Among them may be mentioned Moses Brock, Hezekiah G. Leigh, John Early, Peter Doub, Lewis Skidmore, Hammett, McAden, and several others. They have all long since gone to the better land, from the Church militant to the Church triumphant, where camp-meetings will never end. These ministers were giants in their day. They would preach sometimes two hours or more, hold the audience spell bound, many powerfully convicted, and when invited, there would be a general rush to the altar amidst the shouts of Christians. At some of the camp-meetings as many as seventy-five, and a hundred, and one time, one hundred and sixty-seven professed religion.
"I remember one thrilling incident. It was Sabbath, a vast crowd had assembled. Brock, I think, was the preacher (another brother thinks it was Hammet). As he proceeded in his discourse, a divine unction rested upon him, the word was attended with power, and when penitents were invited, among the scores that pressed to the altar, was Ned Davis, a notable character, a professional gambler and horse-racer. He was standing on the outskirts of the congregation, catching hold of the arm of one of his associates, he walked rapidly towards the pulpit, his friend releasing his hold, passed off. Just before reaching the altar, he turned around to the audience, exclaiming aloud, 'farewell world.' Advancing a few steps further, he knelt down amidst the cries of the penitents and the shouts of the Christians. It was not more than sixty minutes before he rose praising God. A shout went up from the camp that thrilled the whole congregation. Davis had his horses on the premises, attended by his negro boy, who said to his baster, 'what shall we do with the horses now?' As quick as thought, he replied, 'go to camp-meetings with them.'
"He had a very devoted pious father-in-law on the camp ground whose prayers were continually ascending in behalf of his son-in-law. Once he caught hold of the arm of Davis, held him fast and knelt down and poured out an agonizing prayer for him. He did not resist, but stood still until the prayer was finished and walked off apparently unaffected. Let us follow the career of this notable character. He disposed of his horses, became a most devoted Christian, moved out to the Western part of North Carolina where he worked and superintended a gold mine. The last I heard from him, he employed a minister to preach to the negroes while he himself held on to his religion.
"Doubtless he has long since died and gone to the Heavenly country, where he is exploring a mine more precious than gold. Hey yet speaketh, though dead."
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1850 United States Federal Census (Somerville Institute, Leasburg, NC)
Name: Soloman Lea
Age: 42
Estimated birth year: abt 1808
Birth Place: Caswell
Gender: Male
Home in 1850 (City,County,State): Caswell, North Carolina
Family Number: 697
Household Members: Name Age
John Johnston 67
John Pittard 47
Soloman Lea 42
Sophia Lea 40
Sophia A Lea 12
Henrietta Lea 10
Adaline Lea 8
Wilhelmin Lea 6
Lillia A Lea 5
Eugenia Lea 4
Edward Lea 2
Maria Montgomery 14
Fannie Wiley 14
Sarah Brown 14
Elizabeth Brown 11
Margaret Reid 13
Hannah Reid 14
Cynthia Reid 15
Jemima Reid 14
Nannie Snipes 14
Hallie Lewellyn 15
Elizabeth Scott 16
Sarah Harris 15
Mary Holden 16
Helen Palmer 20
1860 United States Federal Census
Name: Solomon Lea
Age in 1860: 53
Birth Year: abt 1807
Birthplace: North Carolina
Home in 1860: Leasburg, Caswell, North Carolina
Gender: Male
Post Office: Leasburg
Household Members: Name Age
Solomon Lea 53
Sophia Lea 50
Adeline Lea 18
Wilhelmina Lea 17
Lilinnia Lea 16
Eugenia Lea 14
Edward Lea 13
1870 United States Federal Census
Name: Solomon Lea
Birth Year: abt 1807
Age in 1870: 63
Birthplace: North Carolina
Home in 1870: Leasburg, Caswell, North Carolina
Race: White
Gender: Male
Post Office: Leasburg
Household Members: Name Age
Solomon Lea 63
Willie Lea 26
Lillie Lea 25
Edward Lea 22
1880 United States Federal Census
Name: Solomon Lea
Home in 1880: Leasburg, Caswell, North Carolina
Age: 73
Estimated birth year: abt 1807
Birthplace: North Carolina
Relation to head-of-household: Self (Head)
Father's birthplace: North Carolina
Mother's birthplace: North Carolina
Occupation: Teacher-Farmer
Marital Status: Widower
Race: White
Gender: Male
Household Members: Name Age
Solomon Lea 73
Willie Lea 32
Edward W. Lea 30
Addie C. Richmond 15
Ella Stipe 16
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The 1860 US Federal Census-Slave Schedule shows a Solomon Lea, Leasburg, North Carolina, as the owner of fifteen slaves. Whether this slave owner is the same Solomon Lea of this record has not been confirmed. See the other Solomon Lea entries in this database.
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| Sources |
- Details: Thomas McNeill of Caswell County, North Carolina, His Forebears & Descendants, Ben L. Rose (1984) at 35.
- Details: Person County North Carolina Marriage Records 1792-1868, Katharine Kerr Kendall (1983) at 50.
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