The purpose of this research was to identify the descendants of James and Nellie Conner who lived in Mars Bluff, South Carolina. Mars Bluff is located in Jeffreys Township, which is now in Florence County, but was located in Marion County prior to the formation of Florence County in 1888. In addition, the ancestral James Conner Sr. resided in Marion Township, Marion County (not in Jeffreys Township) in 1870, and James Conner Jr. resided in Marion Township in 1900 as well.

James and Nellie Conner had seven known children-Mary J., Annie, James Jr., Nellie, Allen, David, and Sallie. Since much was already known about James Jr. and Allen Conner and their descendants, research focused on learning more about the other five children, David Conner and his four sisters.

Identifying the Daughters

It was clear from the start that learning more about James' daughters would likely be dif- ficult since the government in South Carolina did not record marriages until 1911. James' daughters were probably all married by that time. To learn more about them, their married names needed to be known. Fortunately, there are several ways to accomplish this without the benefit of government marriage records.

While the government in South Carolina did not keep marriage records before 1911,
many churches did. The marriages of James Conner's daughters might be found recorded in a local church in Mars Bluff where the family lived. Couples were often married at the house of the bride's parents or in the church that the bride and her parents attended. The client indicated that James Conner Jr. and his wife Anna were Methodists and attended Wise Chapel African Methodist Episcopal (A.M.E.) Church in Marion, South Carolina; while Allen Conner attended