Charles Bealer of South Carolina was born in Prussia/Germany about 1737 or 1738, per his age of 54 when he died 13 Mar 1792. Still unknown are his exact birth date, birth place, birth parents' names, or even his birth name. But, a legend and theories exist...

According to an old family letter, Charles arrived in Charleston, South Carolina about 1750 alone, as an adolescent, and was taken in by a Mrs. Bull (possibly Mary Hannah Beale, wife of Dr. William Bull II, who was without children). Entering adulthood, Charles became a Planter in Beaufort District near Grahamville, SC. He served in the US Revolutionary War. Later in life, he served as a Deacon in the Euhaw Baptist church.

Beaufort court records prior to 1865 burned in Columbia, South Carolina where they had been taken for what was believed to be safekeeping during the war, so there are no old court records from which to glean family information. Church records seem scant or non-existent.

From this old family letter, we know that Charles Bealer married twice and had eight children, four by each wife. It also recorded what was known of the legend of his origins.

The legend:

The best available recorded version was written by Charles' granddaughter, Mrs. Laura Cole Smith [(1806-1883), born about 14 years after Charles' death] in a letter written about 1880, to her cousin Charles Inglesby, excerpted here (owner of the manuscript and transcription kindly provided by Catherine Robertson) [comments in brackets]:

It states: "...our claim to descent ... rests entirely upon the statement of our grandfather [Charles Bealer], and I don't see why we should doubt its correctness.

"First, because he was a man much respected, and beloved for his strict integrity, and earnest piety.

"Secondly, because there was no benefit which could possibly accrue to his family by their relationship to the royal family of Prussia, as he preferred this government, and had decided never to return to his native country.

"Thirdly, because I find it impossible to believe that such a man could willfully and deliberately tell a falsehood to anyone, and certainly not to his own children.

"... My uncles (Charles, George and William, sons of Charles Bealer) had much fuller information, but in obedience to their father's wish were silent on the subject, so I only know certainly what my mother [Mrs. Christiana Bealer Cole, daughter of Charles Bealer] heard him tell his own sons [her brothers]: that he [Charles Bealer] was a nephew of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia (1712-1786), was waited over by lords and ladies, had carriages and horses at his command, and was never allowed to walk on the ground unless it was his pleasure to do so. [This would make him a grandchild of Friedrich Wilhelm I King of Prussia (1688-1740) and of Sophia Dorothea of Hannover, Queen of Prussia (1687-1757)(daughter of George I King of Great Britain)].

"When he was 12 years old he was put aboard a ship under the care of a Mr. Bealer and his wife. Two large bags filled with gold pieces were given to Mr. Bealer, to defray the expenses of their journey, and his uncle, Frederick the Great, hung a gold medallion around our grandfather's neck telling him never to part with it, and to take it back to him when he returned home. During their voyage, the yellow fever made its appearance among the crew. The captain and Mr. and Mrs. Bealer all died of it, and perhaps others of the officers. At all events, those of the crew who escaped or recovered from the dreadful disease, took possession of the bags of gold, and not withstanding his earnest entreaties that they would spare him that, took his medallion also, and when they reached Charleston, put him on land in a state of utter destitution. [One story says that he adopted the Bealer surname of the couple aboard the ship who had been asked to look out for him on the voyage.]

"Mrs. Bull (I never heard her other name), hearing of his condition, took him to her home, and becoming very much attached to the gentle boy, sent him to school; and I presume continued to befriend him, until he was old enough to make his own way in life.

"When asked why he did not return to Prussia, he replied that he preferred this government, and the medallion being lost to him, and nothing else left by which he could prove his identity, he thought it best not to return.

"...My mother could not tell me whether her father was a son of his [Frederick the Great's] brothers, or one of his sisters."

----------------------------------------------

An examination of the siblings of the Frederick the Great who lived to adulthood, and their known life events, indicates that all of their known children seem to have been accounted for (except possibly one "rumored" child of Anna Amalia), so perhaps Charles was an illegitimate child of someone of age and available.

Siblings of Frederick the Great:

Friederike Sophie Wilhelmine (1709-1758). Married 1731. No.

Friederike Luise (1714–1784). Married 1729. No.

Philippine Charlotte (1716-1801). Married 1733. No.

Sophia Dorothea Marie (1719-1765). Married 1734. No.

Luise Ulrike (1720-1782). Married 1744. Faint maybe. Rumored to have had an affair with Count Tessin, but no mention of a child, and the dates don't line up.

[Charles Bealer was born about 1737 or 1738.]

August Wilhelm (1722-1758). Married 1742. Maybe. Was about 16 in about 1738.

Anna Amalia (1723-1787). Said to have been married in early 1744 to Baron Trenck, then annulled by her brother Frederick, King of Prussia. Said to have had twins, born late 1744, a boy, un-named, and a girl, Friederike. Probably a No, unless Charles was born 6 years later than we think he was.

Friederich Heinrich Ludwig (1726-1802). No. Too young.

August Ferdinand (1730-1813). No. Too young.

---

From a 23andme DNA test of a Bealer direct male line descendant we know that Charles Bealer is of the Y-DNA Haplogroup I-M223. This branch is estimated to have originated roughly 17,500 years ago, but it is not very common today, perhaps less than 2 or 3% of males in present Germany.

----------------------------------------------

Regarding Charles' foster mother, "Mrs. Bull", there are only a small number of people that could have been in Charleston in about the year 1750. Bear in mind that his funeral sermon (see below) described him as having been "received by an opulent and worthy family."

1. The top possibility would seem to be Mary Hannah Beale (1725-1795), the wife of Dr. William Bull II, who was very active of the affairs of South Carolina, son of William Bull and Mary Quintyne, married in 1746, but without children. They had a house in Charleston at the NW corner of Meeting & Ladson sts., just a few blocks from the wharves, one of which was owned by her father Othneil Beale, and Ashley Hall Plantation, West (of the) Ashley (river), Charleston, and Newberry Plantation near Sheldon, Beaufort District. Dr. Bull attended school in London, England for a year, then was tutored back in Charleston. followed by him returning to Europe and earning a medical degree at the University of Leiden, Netherlands. Returning again to South Carolina, he spent most of his time in the administration and growth of the colony. He was also very interested in agriculture, a subject on which he had amassed a large library of books, the career path Charles Bealer followed in Beaufort District.

2. Judith Mayrant (1723-1802), the wife of Stephen Bull (1707-1750), son of William Bull and Mary Quintyne, married 1747 until he died about about 1750; In 1751 she remarried Robert Pringle.

3. Elizabeth Bryan (1718-1770), wife of Stephen Bull (1717-1770), son of Burnaby Bull, married 1739 and had nine children.

4. Mary Branford (ca.1702-1771), wife of John Bull (1693-1767), son of Burnaby Bull, married ca. 1720, three children.

----------------------------------------------

Another section of Laura's letter states: "an old German (who often visited my father [Richard Cole]) and was very fond of playing with the children, constantly remarked that we all had the Great Frederick's eyes. This excited the curiosity of the elder children, and so the history of our relationship to Frederick was told to us. Many persons have remarked that there was something peculiar about our eyes, which they had never seen in any other family. It descended to the grandchildren, and even the great grandchildren have not entirely lost it. The peculiar expression appears most decidedly, when we are excited, and is only observable in my grandfather's blue-eyed descendants."

Trying to illustrate this to some degree, attached are images of Frederick the Great (1712-1786) and one of Charles Bealer's great grandsons, Alexander W. Bealer (1860-1921).

----------------------------------------------

Timeline/Events:

About 1737-1738 Charles was born in Prussia, perhaps Berlin

About 1750 deposited in Charleston, South Carolina; taken in by a Mrs. Bull

ca. 1762 married 1st, Mary _______, daughter of _________ and _________

They had four children:
1. John born 23 Mar 1764, died ca. 1765
2. Charles born ca. 1766, died ca. 1794
3. George born ca. 1768, died ca. 1815
4. Mary born ca. 1770, died ca. 1819, married Charles Atkins

1763 Charles and Mary Bealer were sureties for the baptism of Sarah Robertson, dau. of Thomas and Elizabeth, born Apr 8, 1763, bap. Jun 29

1764, June 29, baptised their child John:
South Carolina Births and Christenings Index
Name John Bealer
Gender Male
Event Type Christening
Event Date 29 Jun 1764
Event Place ST HELENAS PARISH,BEAUFORT,SOUTH CAROLINA
Birth Date 23 Mar 1764
Father's Name Charles Bealer
Mother's Name Mary

Record:
"Bealer, John, Sn. Charles & Mary Born Mar. 23, 1764 Bapt.
June 29, 1764 by Rev. Mr. Ammarr, John Swain, Thos. Robinson &
Eliz. Swain, sureties."
-from The South Carolina Historical & Genealogical Magazine.
Vol. 2, p. 20

ca. 1770 Charles' first wife Mary died

ca. 1775, Charles married 2nd, Sarah Rivers, daughter of ___? Rivers and Miriam ___?; sister of Matthew Rivers, and sister of Elizabeth Rivers who married John Bowles.

They had four children:
5. William Porter Bealer, born ca. 1780, died ca. 1825
6. Miriam Bealer born ca. 1782, died 28 Sep 1803, married Henry Smith
7. Christiana Bealer born Oct 1784, died ca. 25 Nov 1855, married Richard Cole
8. Elizabeth Rivers Bealer born 25 Feb 1787 SC, died 13 Jul 1833 in Louisiana, married William Fendin Cheney

Charles fought in American Revolutionary War [328 days]:
"Bealer, Charles
He served sixty-two days in the militia during 1780 and two
hundred sixty-six days during 1781 and 1782. C.S.; A.A.1117;
A.A.6026; P14"
-from Roster of South Carolina Patriots in the American Revolution
[No DAR/SAR recognition?]

"...Charles Bealer of Euhaw..."
a reference to Euhaw Baptist church, which at the time was
located near the headwaters of Boyd's creek. Relocated to
Grahamville prior to Civil War.

"...In [1785?], certain planters of the Euhaw or "Indian Lands,"
who had worshiped formerly on Edisto Island, organized a
Baptist Church in "the neighborhood of Euhaw Creek." The
location is some six miles east of the present village of
Grahamville. An acre of ground for the initial building was
donated by George Pelot. Recorded names of these organizing
Baptists were Joseph Cook, Charles Bealer, John Rose, William
Hogg, Joseph Hill, John Screven, William Cheyney and Josiah
Hart. Other names of families associated with the church's early
history were Mills, Boyd, Pelot, Postell and Sealy..."
-from http://www.sciway3.net/clark/jasper/churches.htm
--also, see "South Caroline Baptists 1620 - 1805"

1790 Census, Beaufort, South Carolina, p. 12
Chas. Bealer

1792 Charles Bealer died. A sermon was given, then published in a small book:

"A sermon occasioned by the death of Mr. Charles Bealer,
delivered at Euhaw" by Henry Holcombe, published in 1793.

Mr. Charles Bealer,
A Deacon of the Baptist Church,
Euhaw, Upper Indian Land, South Carolina

"...Mr. Bealer was a German. He went to America a poor orphan
at ten years of age, and was kindly received by an opulent and
worthy family. Proving industrious and diligent, and acquiring
considerable skill in agriculture, he was encouraged in the line
of his business by several gentlemen of great wealth and
respectability.

At a proper time of life he entered into the conjugal relations
and acquitted himself as a tender and affectionate husband.

Blessed with children and servants, he proved a prudently
indulgent parent, and a generous master; and by the blessing of
heaven on his labor and frugality, he enjoyed the enviable
medium betwixt penury and affluence.

Towards his neighbors, and
strangers of all descriptions, he uniformly shewed kindness,
benevolence and hospitality. He was punctual in his
engagements, of undoubted veracity and strictly honest.

As a citizen, he cheerfully contributed his part for the support of
government, and, with the principles of a true patriot, he
discovered on every proper occasion a becoming concern for the
good of his country; nor did he spare to risk his life and his
health for its defense. In his military capacity, he was tender
of prisoners, cruel to none, and of unquestionable courage.

To these valuable moral endowments, God was pleased to add, in a
remarkable degree, his renewing grace. And though this crowning
and special blessing was bestowed as a period of his valuable
life somewhat advanced, his attainments in vital religion were
conspicuously eminent.

Decency and simplicity marked his
appearance; modesty, cheerfulness, and affability distinguished
his deportment. In conversation he was free, pious, and
edifying; in prayer he was brief, but frequent and fervent. He
was a constant reader, and a sincere lover of the holy
scriptures. Upon the maxims, and by excellent rules of these
lively oracles, he formed the most shining parts of his truly
amiable character. He heard the word preached, and he walked in
all the sacred ordinances of the gospel with a high degree of
reverence and devotion, and was distinguishingly zealous in the
cause of God. It is well known that in several of his last
years, he appeared to have the prosperity of religion infinitely
more at heart than his own private interest. In his happy
family, among mankind at large, and in the house of God, he was
undeniably the exemplary and eminent christian; but in the
office AS A DEACON, HE EVEN EXCEEDED HIMSELF. In the discharge
of this important trust, all his gifts and graces seemed to
converge to a single point, and shine and burn unrivaled. But,
alas ! He is gone ! A lingering and painful tympany, as
heaven's awful messenger, has borne him hence. Vain, in his
case, was the best of medical assistance.* But, in all his
continually increasing pains of body he possessed his soul in
patience.

He frequently expressed his hearty reconciliation to
all the dispensations of providence, and his sincere affection
for all men. With the utmost pleasure he spoke, on the verge of
time, of the Lord's gracious dealings with his soul, and
declared his full assurance of future happiness. Important
instructions, wise counsel, and pathetic exhortations, flowed
from his dying lips. The last words he uttered were, "Bless the
Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy
name."

To the last moment,
"His mind was tranquil and serene,
No terror in his looks were seen,
A Savior's smile dispell'd the gloom,
And smooth'd his passage to the tomb."

Ripened for celestial society, and filled with the divine
consolations of religion, he cheerfully resigned his happy soul
to God on the 13th of March 1792, in the 55th year of his life.
The emotions excited by this awful, solemn, and yet pleasing
event, in his worthy family, in his church, and in the vicinity
at large, language is too cold to describe.

*His Physician was Dr. Howseal.