Who was Abner Butler and do I care?

Abner Butler came into my life via a deed in Greenville, SC.  On 14 June 1797, two deeds for lands purchased by Samuel Kelley were registered at the Greenville courthouse.  The two purchases had been made in 1796.  One of them was registered by the oath of Abner Butler (attested by A. Butler and Valentine Butler) and the other was by the oath of James Gooch (attested by James Gooch and A. Butler).  James Gooch is known to be Samuel Kelley's son-in-law, but so far Abner has not been identified.

Witnesses to a deed do not have to have any familial relationship with the people involve, but Abner intrigues me because of James Gooch also being involved, and James was definitely a son-in-law  The first possibility of course is that Abner too is married to a Kelley daughter, but it seems unlikely.  In Samuel's 1819 will, he leaves something to his daughter Elizabeth Gooch, her son Tilman Gooch (but not any of her other children) and Samuel's grandson Samuel Forrester, with no mention of Forrester's parentage.  I would think that if his Forrester daughter was alive, he would have at least had to mention her, so it is unlikely that she was widow Forrester married to Butler.  No other children were listed.

It is also possible that Abner is a neighbor, but that does not appear to be the case in the 1800 census, where Abner was household 736 and Samuel (indexed as Melley) is household 1402.  Valentine does not appear in the 1800 census, but he did purchase land in Greenville County in 1797, from John Peek, land originally granted to John Micherson.  The description of Valentine's land and that of Samuel makes it sound like the two plots were very near each other.   One of Samuel's plots was purchased from John Peek, the other bordered John Peek's land and was land originally granted to Micherson.   Valentine sold his land in 1799 to Thomas Butler, who appears in the 1800 census as household 1318, so at least much closer to Samuel.  In 1804, Thomas in turn sold the land to Archibald Lester.  James and Simon Lister were two of the witnesses on Samuel Kelley's will. 

Lots of room for research here.  Is Sam just using neighbors to witness his transactions - very possible - or is there some closer connection.  Especially since Abner does not seem to in fact be a neighbor.

Samuel Kelley

Samuel Kelley (sometimes Kelly) died in Greenville, SC in 1819, leaving a will, which for a while was the only concrete fact known about him. However, he is starting to emerge from the shadows. Based on the fact that his daughter married in Caswell County, NC, looked there and found a Samuel Kelley, but the name is too common to assume it was the right one. However, that Samuel Kelly, fortunately, owed money and moved away without paying, generating several lawsuits against him. The lawsuits confirmed that he had moved to Greenville, SC. This, combined with his daughter's marriage (to a neighbor of the Samuel in Caswell) gives a fairly strong presumption that this is the same person. Further proof still to be sought, however.

Assuming it is the same, then the following is known about Samuel -

The first official record of him is 1778, when he was granted land in Caswell County, NC.

Caswell county records:
In 1779, he and Sarah Stafford witnessed a deed from Peter Bankston to Isaac Reeves.
In 1784, he paid tax on 300 Acres, with 1 poll.
In 1786, he sold 400 acres of land to David Jones.
In 1789, he sold 300 acres to David Enoch.
In 1793, a deed makes reference to bordering the land of Samuel Kelley. This was the final land record in Caswell County.
In 1800, Margaret Greer, administrator of the estate of Samuel Greer of Caswell County, sent a letter of Attorney to Jonathon Davis of Greenville, SC, to collect money owed by Samuel Kelley to Greer.
In 1807 This debt was paid.

Greenville County records:
In 1790, appears in the Greenville Census.
In 1796, he purchased 150 acres from Benjamin Kevil. However, this was not recorded until 1797, by the oath of Abner Butler.
Also in 1796, he purchased 320 acres from John Peek. Again this was recorded in 1797, immediately after the previous deed but by the oath of (son-in-law) James Gooch. "A. Butler" was one of the witnesses.

In 1819, he died leaving his property to his wife Mary Ann, his daughter Elizabeth Gooch, his grandson Tilman Gooch and his grandson Samuel Forrester. The other children of Elizabeth Gooch were not mentioned in the will.

Based on his will, Samuel's wife was Mary Ann. Her surname is unknown, but a David Porter in Caswell county mentions in his will his daughter Mary Kelly. Further investigation needed.

Samuel and Mary Ann (Polly) had at least two daughters - Elizabeth, who married James Gooch, and an unknown daughter who was the mother of Samuel Forrester.

No idea who Abner Butler was or what was his relationship to the family, but it is interesting that he swore to one land transaction and a known son-in-law swore to the other, which he witnessed. It is probable from the dates and the fact that the two records are sequential that both were probably registered at the same time. Definitely needs to be pursued.