Patrick Henry Atkins

Quick Facts

Full name: Patrick Henry Atkins
Born: January 21, 1833, Charlotte County, Virginia
Died: October 21, 1906, Mecklenburg County, Virginia
Parents: Benjamin Atkins and Dosha Lawson
Spouse(s): Paulina Sue Lawson
Children: William Andrew Atkins, Robert Drury Atkins, Martha Adosia Atkins, David Franklin Atkins, Joseph Henry Atkins and others
Places: Charlotte County, Virginia; Cub Creek, Virginia; Keats, Virginia; Palmer Springs, Virginia; Mt. Auburn Church Cemetery

Verified Facts

Described in the family history as the second son of Benjamin and Dosha. Confirmed: Primary Source
Married Paulina Sue Lawson on January 12, 1855. Confirmed: Primary Source
Moved from Charlotte County to Mecklenburg County around 1866.
Worked at Boyd's mill across from Keats and purchased 1411 acres on Keat's Branch in 1882. Confirmed: Primary Source
Served in the Civil War after enlisting in 1859 at Robey's Shop in the Charlotte Rifles under Capt. Thomas J. Spencer, later Company K, 18th Virginia Infantry (Pickett's Division). Confirmed: Primary Source
The family history places him in or with units engaged at 2nd Manassas, South Mountain, Sharpsburg, Gettysburg (Pickett's Charge), Wilderness, Spotsylvania, Cold Harbor, Petersburg, and Saylor's Creek. Secondary Source

Biography

Patrick Henry Atkins stands near the center of the later Charlotte and Mecklenburg branch. In him, the family story gathers land, war, migration, faith, work, and memory into one life. He links the harder-to-prove earlier generation of Benjamin Atkins and Dosha Lawson to the much more vivid world remembered by later descendants. His Civil War service, especially the family's memory of his place in the Charlotte Rifles and the later campaigns of the 18th Virginia, gives his life a broader historical weight without separating him from the homeplace, the move to Keats, and the stories told at Palmer Springs.

Family Stories and Recollections

Family tradition says Patrick Henry once fired at the lead goose in a high migrating formation and dropped the last goose instead.
Wally still possesses Patrick Henry's bullet mold, a physical family artifact tied to his Civil War service.

Sources

A Long Time Ago: A History of the Atkins-Paynter and Allied Families

Research Questions

Can the Keat's Branch deed, military service records, and burial/reinterment documentation all be brought together on this page with primary citations?

Family & Lineage Diagram

The diagram below illustrates Patrick Henry Atkins's ancestry, marriage to Paulina Sue Lawson, and their children:

graph TD BA["Benjamin Atkins"] --> PHA["Patrick Henry Atkins (1833–1906) Co. K, 18th Va. Infantry"] DL["Dosha Lawson (ca. 1805–aft. 1880)"] --> PHA DL --> PSL["Paulina Sue Lawson (1838–1915)"] PHA --- PSL PHA --> WAA["William Andrew Atkins"] PHA --> RDA["Robert Drury Atkins"] PHA --> MAA["Martha Adosia Atkins"] PHA --> DFA["David Franklin Atkins"] PHA --> JHA["Joseph Henry Atkins (1866–1912)"] JHA --> RAA["Robert Alexander Atkins"]

Household Lineage Tree

Life & Civil War Geography

Key locations associated with Patrick Henry Atkins's civilian life, land acquisitions, and military muster:

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