Hollis,
I notice that you are looking for Dempsey Reed. He was living in Warren County,NC until at least 1791, according to the Tax Records of the County. You mention that one of the names in his family was James. I've been trying to find out what happened to an ancestor who married a James Reed, Brind/Breny Green, married August 29, 1807 in Warren Co. I have suspected that James was related to Dempsey, perhaps a son, but haven't found anything on that. Have you ever come across anything on this family?

Deloris