Rebecca

Rebecca

Archibald Meherg (name variations: McHarg, Maharg) was the son of John McHarg Sr. and Susannah Woods McHarg, (for more on Susannah, see Robert Bolt Jr.) John McHarg was killed in the Revolutionary War in 1782. The McHargs were neighbors to the Bolts, and Robert Bolt Jr. may have been married to a McHarg daughter.

Tradition also has it that Archibald married a sister of Robert Bolt Jr., named Rebecca. Little evidence has surfaced to prove that Rebecca was indeed a Bolt, however, recent research may reveal that she was instead a "Thomas".

There is also the possibility that the blank name on the bible transcription is indeed an entry for Rebecca, the date of birth being 9 February 1760. This would put her age at two years older than Robert Jr. and the probability that she would have emigrated to South Carolina with her father, very likely.

Archibald and Rebecca Meherg did not reside in South Carolina for long after their marriage. They settled in St. Clair County, Alabama, which to this day, contains quite a few documents pertaining to the Meherg family, but little, if anything at all on Rebecca.

It may be possible to uncover the mystery if Rebecca was really a Bolt, or not, by mtDNA testing a direct female descendant (she would need to be on an unbroken female line of descent from Rebecca) and a direct female descendant of Mary Bolt Garrard. See Bolt DNA Project for more info.