Son of Thomas Bull Jr. and Sarah Randal, John Bull was born about 1766 in Halifax County, North Carolina. In ca. 1794, at age 28, John married Hanna Harvey (age 18).

Hannah Harvey was born June 5, 1776 (in either Halifax County, NC or Guilford County, NC), the daughter of Colonel Thomas Peyton Harvey (aka Hervey), Sr. and Sarahann Williams. The fact that John Bull married Hanna Harvey is significant because professional genealogical researchers have been studying Colonel Thomas Peyton Harvey, Sr. for quite some time.

And as we see from the “1790 U.S. Federal Census, North Carolina, Halifax, Edgecombe”, the Bull family and Harvey family were practically neighbors.

Harvey (Hervey) Family genealogist and author of “Mayflower to the Moon” (1984), Donald G. Hervey wrote the following about Colonel Thomas Peyton Harvey, Sr. – and mentions his daughter, Hannah Harvey (Bull).

In a letter to Donald G. Hervey, dated Nov. 18, 1984, Jean Reynolds pointed out the error of “Hannah Beele”, stating: “The relationship is through Hannah Hervey Bull (not Beele as shown in your book “Mayflower to the Moon”) who married John Bull ca. 1794.”

Also note the above article by Donald G. Hervey mentions that Elizabeth Sullivant “visited the sick William Harvey on March 5” and that her husband, William Sullivant, was made guardian of William Harvey's orphans. Prior to marriage, Elizabeth was “Bettie Harvey”… Hannah Harvey's sister. John Bull's brother, Randal Bull (b. 1764 – d. 1798), married a woman named Mary Sullivant (b. 1769 – d. 1832). It's possible that Mary Sullivant was somehow related to William Sullivant.

Indian lands purchased by the U.S. in 1818 opened for settlement the Western District, almost a third of the present state of Tennessee. In (or about) 1820, Hannah Harvey-Bull's brother, Oney S. Harvey moved his family west to Tennessee. Randal and Mary Bull also moved to Tennessee at approximately that time. Perhaps the two families traveled to Tennessee together (as neighbors and relatives often did at that time).

While some genealogists “believe” that John Bull moved his family to Stokes County, NC before 1800, the “1800 United States Federal Census” indicates that John Bull (age 34), had moved to Salisbury, Guilford, North Carolina by 1800.

Immediately following John Bull's entry on the “1800 United States Federal Census”, appears the name “Thomas Bull”. This may have been his brother, “Thomas Bull III”.

The debate over whether John Bull moved his family to Stokes County, NC or to Salisbury, Guilford, North Carolina is moot from a practical point because: (1) the counties are relatively close (Salisbury is actually located in Rowan County), and (2) it is possible that John Bull indeed lived in Stokes County and then moved to Salisbury, Guilford.

During ca. 1803, John Bull petitioned the North Carolina General Assembly (in Raleigh) to legally change his surname to “Randal” (his mother's maiden name). The petition also listed his wife (Hanna Harvey Bull – age 27) and their four children; Oney Cypress (age 7), John Leonard “Lenny” (age 3), Jackson Harvey (age 3) and Elisabeth H. (infant). The North Carolina General Assembly ratified the name change on December 22, 1803. In the years afterwards, some of the descendants of John and Hanna Randal added an additional letter “L” to their last name. For example one of Oney Cypress Randal’s sons was known as Oney Pinkney Randall.

Changing one's surname… especially in 1803, is a significant act. And must be justified by a very good reason. While we may never know the reason John Bull changed our family name to Randal (as the petition cannot be found), it is generally believed that he changed his surname because the British moniker “John Bull” was associated with describing “Loyalists” during the period leading up to the “American Revolutionary War” and beyond. With memories of the “American Revolutionary War” still fresh, and renewed threats from Great Britain (leading up to the “War of 1812”), this was certainly reason enough! There is also family history, handed down orally, that John Bull's wife, Hanna Harvey, urged him to change his surname for this reason as well. Considering that Hanna was the daughter of respected Revolutionary War Colonel Thomas Peyton Harvey (aka Hervey), Sr., the fact that she married a man named “John Bull” must have been a political embarrassment for her and the Harvey family.

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Much like “Uncle Sam” is a national personification of the United States, “John Bull” was a national personification of the United Kingdom in general, and England in particular, especially in political cartoons.¹⁾ An oral history of the family, specifically involving the name change, describes how Hanna urged John to change the family name. This is logical because of she would have likely had societal concerns being the daughter of a Revolutionary War Colonial — married to a man named “John Bull”!

The “John Bull” character was created by Scottish-born physician, Dr. John Arbuthnot, M.D. Arbuthnot was a successful physician, writing on the value of diet in the fight against disease and was eventually appointed “Physician-in-Ordinary” to Queen Anne (1704). However, it is as a political satirist that he is best remembered. In 1712, Arbuthnot created “John Bull” in his pamphlet “Law is a Bottomless Pit” (1712). Originally derided, William Hogarth and other British writers made Bull “a heroic archetype of the freeborn Englishman.” Arbuthnot continued developing the character “John Bull” as the typical Englishman in a collection entitled “The History of John Bull” (1727).

While the character of “John Bull” changed over the years (much more so than his U.S. counterpart, “Uncle Sam”), he was usually depicted as a stout, middle-aged, country dwelling, jolly, matter-of-fact man. The political cartoons shown here dated 1798 would have been the image our ancestor associated with him prior to changing his name.

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Initially, Bull was almost always depicted in a buff-colored waistcoat and a simple frock coat (in the past Navy blue, but more recently with the “Union Jack” colors). As the character evolved, Bull was usually portrayed as a stout, portly man in a tailcoat with light-colored breeches and a top hat which by its shallow crown indicates its middle class identity. During the Georgian period his waistcoat is red and/or his tailcoat is royal blue which, together with his buff or white breeches, can thus refer to a greater or lesser extent to the 'blue and buff' scheme, used by supporters of Whig politics (a UK political party who contested power with the rival Tories from the 1680s until the 1850s) – which is part of what John Arbuthnot wished to deride when he invented the character. By the twentieth century however his waistcoat nearly always depicted a “Union Jack” Flag, and his coat was generally dark blue (but otherwise still echoing the fashions of the Regency period). He also wore a “low topper” (sometimes called a John Bull topper) on his head and was often accompanied by a bulldog. John Bull has been used in a variety of different ad campaigns over the years, and was a common sight in British editorial cartoons of the 19th and early 20th centuries.

As a literary figure, John Bull is well-intentioned, frustrated, full of common sense, and entirely of native country stock. Unlike “Uncle Sam”, he is not a figure of authority but rather a yeoman who prefers his small beer and domestic peace, possessed of neither patriarchal power nor heroic defiance. Arbuthnot provided him with a sister named “Peg Bull” (personifying Scotland), and a traditional adversary in Louis Baboon (the House of Bourbon in France). Peg continued in pictorial art beyond the 18th century, but the other figures associated with the original tableau dropped away. The character John Bull's surname is also reminiscent of the alleged fondness of the English for beef, reflected in the French nickname for English people, les rosbifs (the “Roast Beefs”). And it is also reminiscent of the animal, and for that reason Bull is portrayed as “virile, strong, and stubborn” like a bull.

Increasingly through the early twentieth century, John Bull became seen as not particularly representative of 'the common man', and during the First World War this function was largely taken over by the figure of “Tommy Atkins”. ²⁾

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In 1807, John Randal appears in the Franklin County, Georgia Tax List (Page 088, Database: GA 1792-1819 Tax Lists Index). And in 1819, a “J. Randal” appears in the Franklin County, Georgia Tax List (Page 093, Database: GA 1792-1819 Tax Lists Index). And in the “1830 United States Federal Census”, John Randel (probably a mis-spelling by the census taker) appears in Franklin County, Georgia.

The “free white male” between 10-14 years old (identified in the census) was possibly a grandson.

Ultimately, John and Hannah had 5 known children:

1. Oney Cypress Randal (obviously named for Hannah's brother, Onesiphorus “Oney” Scyprett) was born February 5, 1796 in North Carolina. He remained in Franklin County, Georgia when his parents died, and many of his descendants remain there today, spelling their name Randall.
2. John Leonard Randal (born February 11, 1800, in North Carolina.)
3. Jackson Harvey (“Harry”) Randal was born on November 27, 1800 in North Carolina. He married Mary Ann Trimble. They moved first to Louisiana and then to Texas. Jackson died in Meridian, Texas on December 9, 1881. Mary Ann died in Meridian, Texas on February 15, 1865.
4. Elizabeth Harvey Randal (Born about 1803 in Norh Carolina, died January 19, 1861 in Randolph, Texas in Houston County.)
5. Pinkney Harvey Randall, born about September 5, 1814, married Catron G. Pace on June 6, 1837. Pinkney and Catron had 6 children and stayed in Georgia. Pinkney died on January 27, 1887 in Fulton, Georgia. Catron died on November 6, 1864 in Milltown, Georgia.

Hannah Harvey Randal died on Nov. 25, 1832 (age 56) in Franklin County, Georgia. And according to “Find A Grave. Find A Grave” (http://www.findagrave.com/), Find A Grave Memorial# 85654270. According to a family Bible belonging to Jackson Harvey (“Harry”) Randal, “John Bull Randal” died on Dec. 30, 1851 (at age 85). It is not known where he was buried. ³⁾