RICHARDS FAMILY HISTORY

 

Richards Family

 

 

 

 RICHARDS is a common Celtic Welsh, or Cornish surname based on the English version of the parent's name ending in -S. In 1881 people with this surname were mainly located in Wales, Cornwall and adjacent South-West counties of England. By 1998 many Welsh and Cornish people had migrated to cities in England particularly those adjacent to these areas. Originally, it was an English surname brought to England in the great wave of migration following the Norman Conquest of 1066.

 

Recorded in over one hundred spelling forms ranging from the German Reichardt, Richardi, and Richar, the English Richard, the French Ricard, the Flemish, and diminutives or patronymics such as Riccardi, Liccardi, Richards, Richardson, Richardeau, Rickertssen and many others, this ancient surname is of pre 7th century Germanic origins. Deriving from the twin elements of 'ric' and 'hard', and translating as "powerful ruler", the name spread throughout Europe in the early medieval period. It was no doubt considerably helped in its popularity by its meaning, but the greatest impetus to its success came in the 12th century with the legendary exploits of King Richard 1st of England, (and much of France). He was the most prominent leader of the famous Crusades to free the Holy Land, and he became known throughout Christendom as 'Coeur de Leon'. Despite his 'title', Richard, Coeur de Leon, was unsuccessful in his attempts to suppress the Muslims, but by his efforts he achieved more than the other leaders, who in the manner of humans far and wide, were not pleased. Early examples of the surname recording taken from authentic European rolls and registers of the period include Nicol Richart of Basle, Switzerland, in the year 1260, Richardus Richardi of Pfullingen, Germany in 1273, and Thomas Richard, in the Oxfordshire 'Hundred Rolls' of England in 1276. Other recordings from these ancient times include Thomas Richardes of Worcester, England in 1327, and Olbrecht Reichart of Dresden, Germany, in 1396. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop", often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

The surname Richards was first found in Yorkshire where they held a family seat at Hatfield being ancient Lords of the manor of Ricard or Rycard. Over on the Isle of Wight in Yaverland, a small branch of the family was found at one time. "An ancient mansion of the Russells here, subsequently of the Richards family, and now a farmhouse, is a good specimen of the Elizabethan style."

 

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus, the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

 

Motto: Honore et amore

Motto Translation: With honour and love.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Surnames of Richards:  Henderson, Coleman, Cogburn, Sparks, Doler, Webb, Caldwell, Smith, Redus, McGahey, Thomas, Keasler, McGahey, Barefield, Dowdle, Bales, Kessler, Taggert, Hedrick, Campbell, Robertson, Boles, Watkins, Sherron, Roberts, Armstrong, Murray, Lawder, Muir, Rose, Stewart, Boyd, Brisbane, Fairlie, Colville, Wallace, Graham, Eglinton, Lindsay, Crawford, Cathcart, de Lucerne, Waleys, De Grainsby, Ramsey, Beaty, Boyd, Bellenden, Lauder, Caylor, Orman, Mahaffey, Curdup, Taylor, Thomas, Doler, Alcock, Sherron, Cundiff, Clarke, Browne, Guyton, Underwood, McCurdy, Whitaker, Stormant, Martin, Parker, Schoonhoven, Erskine

 

7^th Great Grandfather John Richards was born in 1690 in Westbury on Trym, Gloucestershire, England. He married Mary Aldington on 18 December 1718 at St Nicholas, Bristol, Gloucester, England and had 1 child

 

1-6^th Great Grandfather William Richards was Baptism on 18 October 1713 in Bristol, Gloucestershire, England. He died in 1751 in Bristol, England. He married Mary Elizabeth Gossate 28 July 1737 in Bristol, England. They had 3 children. 2 sons that I have not been able to fine yet.

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3-5^th Great Grandfather William Cornelius Richards was born in Ireland in 1735. He died in 1846 after going back to England. He died in Croydon, Surrey, England. (William Richards is famous for the Oconee Station in South Carolina in which is a Historic Site and on the National Register of Historic Places. Read more in Richards Stories) He married Elizabeth Cowlard 1821-1880 and they had 2 children.

I-Sarah Richards 1841-1841

 

 

2-4^th Great Grandfather Thomas Richards was born in England in 1755. He died in 1841 in Pickens County, South Carolina. He married Betsy Jackson from South Carolina, British Colonial, America. She was born in 1759 and died in 1850 in South Carolina. They had 5 children.

1-Eleanor Richards born in England in 1787 and died in Anderson County, South Carolina in 1863. She married Robert Breckenridge 1779-1870 and they had 9 children.

I-Thomas R Breckenridge 1810-1864

II-Agnes Elizabeth Breckenridge 1816-1888

III-Elizabeth Breckenridge 1818-

IV-Robert W Breckenridge Jr 1818-1891

V-James D Breckenridge 1819-

VI-Jeremiah P Breckenridge 1825-1872

VII-Sarah Breckenridge 1826-1903

VIII-David S Breckenridge 1832-

IX-Robert W Breckenridge 1838-

2-Margaret Polly Richards was born in 1800 in South Carolina. She died in 1869 in South Carolina. She married James Todd Jr 1799-1877 and they had 4 children

I-John Todd Sr 1825-1916

II-Elizabeth Todd 1826-

III-Jane Elizabeth Todd 1828-1873

IV-William R Todd 1830-1862

3-Jane Richards born in 1802 in South Carolina and died in Falls County, Texas in 1881. She married into one of the most famous royal family from the 1200’s. (Erskine) Hugh Erskine 1792- and they had 7 children

I-Elizabeth Erskine Steele 1821-1870

II-William Richardson Erskine 1823-1892

III-Mary Emeline Erskine McAllister 1824-1894

IV-Margaret Jane Erskine Sowders 1829-1900

V-Martha Agnes Erskine Hodges 1832-1900

VI-Amanda Erskine Bell 1839-1889

VII-John Wilford Erskine 1840-1913

4-Peggy Richards born in 1808-

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3rd Great Grandfather Dr William Richards

 

born in York County, South Carolina in 1789. He died in Reform, Alabama in 1850. He married Catherine Smith from Union County, South Carolina. She died in Pickens County, Alabama in 1865. They had 7 children.

 

1-Thomas A Richards born in South Carolina in 1818 and died in Pickens County, Alabama in 1853. Thomas married Mary B McGahey in 1849. She was born in Pickens County, Alabama in 1833. She died in 1911 in Reform, Alabama. They had 1 child together

 

I-Catherine Rebecca Richards born 1849 in Pickens County, Alabama. She died in 1939 in Golden, Texas. She married Mathew Thomas born 1833 in Pickens County, Alabama and died in 1875 in Golden, Texas. They had 2 children

 

I-Jesse A Thomas born 1869 and died in 1915 and was from Pickens County, Alabama. Jesse married Mollie Caylor born 1877 and died in 1916. They had 2 children

I-James Hubert Thomas born 1896 and died in 1955 born and died in Texas. He married Pansy Thomas born in 1904 from Texas. They had 1 child.

I-James H Thomas Jr 1926-1972 from Mineola, Wood, Texas. Married Nell Rose Woodard from Texas.

 

II-William Sterrett Thomas born in 1906 in Texas and died in Taylor County, Texas in 1979. He married Opel W West was born 1908 in Texas and died in Texas in 1992.

 

 II-Rufus K Thomas born in 1872 and died in 1955 born and raised in Texas.

 

3-Elvina Olivia Richards born in 1830 in Pickens County, Alabama and died in 1860 in Pickens County, Alabama. She was married to 2nd Great Grandfather Abner D Henderson born in 1822 from Reform, Alabama and he died in 1897 in Reform, Alabama. They had 9 children.

 

I-Sarah Catherine Henderson born in 1849 in Pickens County, Alabama and died in 1937 in Cass County, Texas. She married John Robert Lineberger on May 9, 1872 in Cass, Texas born in 1847 from Gaston, North Carolina. He died in   Gilmer, Texas in 1900. They had 9 children.

 

II-Mary Elizabeth Henderson born in 1851 in Pickens County, Alabama and died in Millport, Alabama in 1910. She married Jacob N Mouchette. They have 8 children.

 

III-Enoch Daniel Henderson born in 1856 in Pickens County, Alabama. Died in 1925 in Pickens County, Alabama. He married Ida Clovinger who was born in 1869 in Cass, Texas. She died in 1932. They had 16 children.

 

IV-Henry Goodlow Henderson born in 1867 in Pickens County, Alabama and died in Tuscaloosa, Alabama in 1940. He married Ada B Huff in 1889. They had 6 children.

 

V-Anne Henderson born in 1868 in Alabama.

 

VI-Nancy Isabell Henderson was born in 1870 in Pickens County, Alabama. She died in Columbus, Mississippi in 1954. She married Marion Buchanan “Buck” Logan 25 Jan 1888. He was born in 1856 in Alabama and died in 1938 in Columbus, Mississippi. They had 7 children.

 

SEE MORE INFO ON HENDERSON IN HENDERSON FAMILY

 

VII-William Sterling Henderson was born in Providence, Alabama in 1875. He died in Millport, Alabama in 1968. He married Fannie Robertson 18 October 1896. He married Hazzie Hodge. They had 5 children.

 

VIII-Andrew Clark Henderson was born in 1878 in Millport, Alabama. He died in 1963 in Hutchinson, Kansas.

 

IX-Great Grandfather Rufus Abner Henderson was born in 1882 in Pickens County, Alabama. He died in 1969 in Pickens County, Alabama. He married Great Grandmother Hattie Mae Brown 26 December 1907. She was born in 1892 in Pickens County, Alabama. She died in Reform, Alabama in 1964. They had 5 children.

 

4-Daniel Marion Richards born in 1831 in Pickens County, Alabama. He died in 1915 in Columbus, Mississippi. He married Sarah Elizabeth Richardson born in Carrollton, Alabama in 1848 and she died in 1938 in Columbus, Mississippi. They had 6 children.

 

I-William W Richards born in 1874 in Mississippi and died in Lowndes County, Mississippi. He married Annie Colmes Cotton. She was born in 1882 in Mississippi. She died in 1962 in Columbus, Mississippi. They had 6 children.

 

William Ward Richards 1874-1933

Daniel Dupree Richards 1875-1946 married Agnes B Bishop 186-1915 and they had 2 children Daniel D Richards Jr 1908-1963 and William Watson Richards 1913-2000

Dr Charles Clifton Richards 1877-1938 married Eula Randle 1886- they had 2 children. Carl Richards 1918- and Earline Richards

Thomas Tillman Richards 1880-1907

John Jay Richards 1883-1955 married Pal W Burris 1880-1953

Edward Earl Richards 1889-1965 married Ruth Howell 1892-1968

 

5-John R Richards born in 1833 in Pickens County, Alabama. He died in 1863 in the Civil War.

 

6-William Powell Richards born in 1844 in Pickens County, Alabama.

 

7-Mary J Richards born in 1847 in Pickens County, Alabama

 

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2-2nd Great Grandfather Elnathan David Richards born in South Carolina in 1823. He died in 1894 in Reform, Alabama. He married Sarah Frances Cogburn born in 1840 in South Carolina. She died in Reform, Alabama in 1915. They had 6 children.

 

I-Mary E Richards born in Pickens County, Alabama in 1862. She died in Liberty, Pickens County, Alabama in 1924. She married Andrew Sole Taggert on 1 November 1903, born in 1846 from Fayette County, Alabama and died in Lamar County, Alabama in 1919. They had 7 children.

I-Minnie Taggert 1868-1926 Lamar County, Alabama. Married 1-William Henry Hackleman and 2-James Martin Sims 1862-1942 and they had 2 children.

II-J L Taggert 1869-1872 Liberty, Pickens County, Alabama

III-William A Taggert 1874-1914 Liberty, Pickens County, Alabama.

IV-Webster Taggert 1883-1886 Liberty, Pickens County, Alabama

V-Lillian Duncan

VI-Louis F Duncan

VII-J L Taggert

 

II-Nancy J Richards born in 1864 in Pickens County, Alabama and died in 1945 in Reform, Alabama. She married Josiah D Keasler on 4 November 1894. He was born in 1871 in Pickens County, Alabama and died at Coalfire, Alabama in 1934. They had 1 child.

 

I-Charlie W Keasler 1897-1983 Pickens County, Alabama. Married Lydia Hogue 1907-1986. They had 8 children.

I-Allines Keasler

II-Bettie Keasler 1929-

III-Gwynn Keasler

IV-Dan Keasler

V-Dorrath Keasler

VI-Joe Keasler

VII-Charles H Keasler 1927-2011

VIII-Donald C Keasler 1929-1998

 

III-Artemisia N Richards 1877-1948 from Tuscaloosa, AL. Married Robert Alvin Dowdle 1875-1944 and had 6 children.

 

I-Andrew Bremen Dowdle 1902-1979 from Ethelsville, AL. Married Cliffie Bell Dowdle

II-Comer Richards Dowdle 1906-1953 from Cuba, AL. Married Gayle Booth 1919-1992

III-Robert E Dowdle 1908-1977 from Tuscaloosa, AL. Married Ruth Nelson 1909-2008

IV-Ina R Dowdle 1911-1977 from Aliceville, AL

V-John Tilmon Dowdle 1913-1991

VI-Helen Claire Dowdle 1921-2017 from Columbus, MS.

 

IV--Rufus Elnathan Richards born in 1879 in Pickens County, Alabama. Died in Reform, Alabama in 1967. He married Lucy Ottleyu McGahey born in 1885 in Pickens County, Alabama and died in 1963 in Millport, Alabama.  They had 6 children.

 

I-Henry W Richards 1905-1973 married Nancy ``Alabama” Huff 1903-1976 had 2 children. I-Net Arlene Richards 1933 and II-Ruthlene Richards 1933. Were Twins

II-Newman T Richards 1907-1938 married Ida Richards who died in 1964. They had 3 children.

I-Franklin Richards, II-Joan Nanna Richards, III-John Richards

III-Nannie Mae Richards 1911-1996 married Elton Ray Keasler 1911-1998

IV-Sallie M Richards 1914-1998 married Carlos C Hedrick 1910-1996

V-John Rufus Richards 1918-1987 married Mary E Pate 1924-2016 they had 1 child.

I-John D Richards 21 May 1944-30 May 1944

VI-Olene Richards 1922-

 

 

 

 

 

 

V--Sarah C Richards born in 1868 in Pickens County, Alabama. She died in 1925 in Pickens County, Alabama. She married Sterling B Bales born in 1864 and died in 1931. They had 1 child.

I-Sterling Bales 1898-1992 he married Eddie Lou Thomas 1901- they had 3 children

I-Joseph Bales 1936-1979

II-Sterling Bales III 1937-2007

III-Theora Teresa Bales 1939-

 

 

6-Great Grandfather Daniel Tillman Richards born in 1874 in Pickens County, Alabama. He died in Reform, Alabama in 1953. He married Elizabeth Rebecca Sparks born in 1871 in Pickens County,  Alabama and died in Reform, Alabama in 1952. They had 8 children.

 

I-Lila Mae Richards born in 1897 in Pickens County, Alabama and died in 1942 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

II-Allie C Richards born in 1899 in Pickens County, Alabama. She died in 1972 in Reform, Alabama. She married William Claud McGahey on 30 November 1933. Born in Pickens County, Alabama in 1897. He died in Reform, Alabama in 1964.

III-James Elnathan Richards born in 1902 in Pickens County, Alabama. Died in 1972 in Winfield, Alabama. He married Flora Redus born in 1904 and died in 1979. She was from and lived in Pickens County, Alabama.

IV-Daniel Clinton Richards born in Pickens County, Alabama in 1905. He died in Millport, Alabama in 1986. He married Mattie J Coleman born in 1901 and died in 1973. She was from Pickens County, Alabama. They had 4 children.

I-Elizabeth Coleman Richards 1928-2013 married Coleman Campbell Jr.

II-Leighton Edsel Richards 1931-

III-Yvonne Richards 1935-

IV-Dan Richards 1937-

 

 

 

V-Kathleen Richards born in Pickens County, Alabama in 1913. She died in 1990 in Flomaton, Alabama. She married Grady H Boles 22 July 1930, he was born in 1910 from Pickens County, Alabama. He died in Gordo, Alabama in 1996. They had 1 child

I-Charles G Boles 1934-2018

 

VI-Susie C Richards 1914 from Pickens County, Alabama

 

VII-Carl Givens Richards born in 1915 from Pickens County, Alabama and died in 2002 in Huntsville, Alabama. He married Evelyn Watkins born in 1912 from Millport, Alabama.

 

 

 She died in 1999 in Huntsville, Alabama. They had 3 children

I-Bettie Richards born in 1938. Died in Pickens County, Alabama.

II-Billie R Richards born in 1939. Died in 2011 in Pickens County, Alabama.

III-Larry Richards born in 1947

 

 

VIII-Grandfather Roy Lee Richards born in 1909 in Reform, Alabama and died in Tuscaloosa, Alabama in 1966. Lived in Moundville, Alabama. He married Audie Lee Henderson from Reform, Alabama. Born in 1913. She died in Moundville, Alabama in 1994. They 1 child

 

I-Mother Edith Lavelle Richards 1934-2010

 

 

 

 

 

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3rd Great Grandmother’s Family Side

Catherine Smith 1787 from Union South Carolina. Died in 1865 in Pickens County, Alabama.

4th Great Grandfather was Captain Abraham Smith born 1748 from Augusta, Virginia. He died in South Carolina in 1808. He married 4th Great Grandmother Mary Katherine Guyton born 1755 from Union County, South Carolina. She died in 1831 in Pickens County, Alabama.

5th Great Grandfather Captain Henry Smith was born in Ulster, Ireland in 1727. He died in 1792 in York, South Carolina. He married 5th Great Grandmother Catherine Amelia Hampton from Augusta, Virginia and was born in 1730. She died in 1808 in York, South Carolina.

 

6th Great Grandfather Colonel John Smith from Ulster, Ireland born in 1691. He died in 1783 in Smithland, Virginia. He married 6th Great Grandmother Margaret Shoonhoven from Ireland and was born in 1700. She died in 1785 in Virginia.

 

7th Great Grandfather Daniel Smith Sr from Marlborough, England and born in 1650. He died in 1692 in Rehoboth, Massachusetts. He married 7th Great Grandmother Rebecca Prime born in 1656 from Connecticut. She died in 1703.

 

 

 

 

GRANDPARENTS

 

**Matthew Sparks 1847-1931 2nd GGF Pickens County, Alabama

Susan R Doler 1844-1927

**Sterrett J Sparks 1800-1863 3rd GGF South Carolina

Elizabeth Webb 1800-1880

**Jesse Sparks 1775-1824 4th GGF South Carolina

Isabella S Armstrong 1779-1809

**Thomas Sparks 1722-1784 5th GGF South Carolina

Rachel Thomas 1730-

**John Sparks 1679-1737 6th GGF Virginia

Mary Sparks

**Patrick Doler 1814-1860 3rd GGF Ireland

Nancy S Sherron 1813-1893

**Curtis Roberts 1755-1819 5th GGF North Carolina

Cynthia Roberts 1755-1819

 

**Captain Abraham Smith 1748-1808 4th GGF Virginia

Mary K Guyton 1755-1831

**Captain Henry Smith 1727-1792 5th GGF Ireland

Catherine A Hampton 1730-1808

**Colonel John Smith 1691-1783 6th GGF Ireland

Margaret Shoonhoven 1700-1785

 

**Daniel Smith Sr 1650-1692 7th GGF England

Rebecca Prime 1656-1703

 

**Hendrick Claessen Van Schoonhoven 1652-1715 7th GGF New York

Cornelia Rache Swartwout 1667-1714

 

**Claas Hendricks Van Schoonhoven 1628-1715 8th GGF Netherlands

Cornelia Frederickse 1637-1664

**Hendrick Van Schoonhoven 1600-1677 9th GGF Netherlands

Altgen Adriens 1603-

**Wernhart Von Schaunberg 1575-162110th GGF Netherlands

 

**Samuel Guyton Jr 1669-1752 7th GGF England

Margaret Underwood 1670-1731

 

**Randel Browne 1626-1659 9th GGF England

Elizabeth Browne 1620-

 

**Joseph Guyton 1732-1818 5th GGF Maryland

Hannah Whitaker 1729-1812

**John Whitaker Sr 1660-1713 7th GGF England

Mary Kendall

**Aaron Whitaker 1640-1713 8th GGF England

 

**Captain Jabez Whitaker 1595-1649 9th GGF England

Lady Mary Bourchier 1598-1666

**William Whitaker 1548-1595 10th GGF England

Joan T Fenner 1552-1599

**Thomas Whitaker of Holme 1504-1598 11th GGF England

Lady Elizabeth Nowell 1525-1606

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

              

 

   STORIES BEHIND THE

 

RICHARDS FAMILY

 

The Richards came from England to South Carolina. They settled in York County, South Carolina in and around 1789. I can’t find the date when they first arrived in Pickens County, Alabama but I have Land Patents Papers from August 05, 1835 that my Grandmother had that I have now where Elnathan Richards and Daniel Richards bought 365 acres, 10 Acres, 15 Acres, 10 Acres, 100 Acres. 10 Acres, 10 Acres. There is a lot of land dealing going on with the Richards, McGahey, Keasler, Dowdle, Taggert and Sparks in Pickens County. All of the above were all married together. There is land dealing going on up to the year 1929. I have all the paperwork from my grandmother on these land deals.

 

 

 

 

The first settlers in Pickens County had come from South Carolina, came thru Tennessee, then down the Tennessee River thru North Alabama,

Some came over the Military Roads cut by the United States troops during the Indian Wars.

These settlers came down from Ditto T’s Landing in North Alabama, to Mud Town (now

Birmingham), thru Jones Valley into Tuscaloosa County, part of which was made into

Pickens County, then across Sipsey swamp to a bluff half a mile north of the Tombigbee

By 1823 the population of Pickens County was said to have around 5000 people. The

wealthier ones settled on the broad terraces along the creeks and rivers, The Tombigbee

River had long been an important highway Steamboats soon made their trips on the

Tombigbee, later some of these boats were destroyed by explosions or collisions.

Bad roads limited the contacts of many of the settlers, but soon the roads were widened

from trails to roads to serve vehicles, which soon brought mail services, carried by a four-

horse post=coach three times a week from Tuscaloosa to Pickenville in 1837.

 

 

The Richards lived in Vail Community, Providence Community, Liberty Community, Beard Precinct, Richardson Community and the Antioch Community in Pickens County.

I’ve been over to the area and always enjoy going back. Not much has changed over the years with Pickens County. When I went to look up records in Carrollton, Alabama, you know the first thing you have to do is look for the MAN’s FACE in the window. I guess if you’ve been to that area you have been told of the man in the window.

          The first courthouse in Carrollton was burned by troops under Union general John T. Croxton on April 5, 1865. The second courthouse was also destroyed by fire on November 16, 1876. Arson was suspected, and in January 1878 Henry Wells, a freed slave who lived near Carrollton, was arrested on circumstantial evidence and locked in the garret of the new courthouse, erected in 1877. According to legend, Wells was peering down from the north garret window awaiting trial as a mob gathered to hang him. A bolt of lightning struck nearby and copied Wells' anguished face into the window glass. A vague image resembling a face may still be seen in the lower right-hand pane of that window.

 

Granddaddy Roy Lee Richards left the Vail Community in the 30’s and moved to Moundville, Alabama. Roy Lee and Audie lived in Havana Junction at first in the Chaney Home. Then built a house in Griffin Circle. The Richards Family remained up to 1994 in Moundville, Alabama.  Grandchildren still live in the area. He also married Henderson. Audie Lee Henderson. It would show why he went to Auburn University to get a degree in Agriculture and was a teacher at Hale County High School teaching Ag. He loved fishing at Ford’s Lake in Moundville, Alabama. He lost his billfold one time while bream fishing. He got his Ag class at school to go with him to drag a net on the lake where he was fishing to try and recover it. He also loved bird hunting for Quail. He had two great bird hunting dogs. I just wished he had been around a lot longer for me to learn things from him.

 

There is not much history on the Richards, just what’s in the census records.

William Richards was a Doctor. His wife Catherine Smith has a ton of history on them. William also was a farmer. All the Richards from the year 1830 to 1940’s were farmers. After that from census records all their children and their children lived in the Pickens County area. Most Reform, Millport and Columbus, Mississippi. The Richards didn’t have large families like other families in the 1800’s. They were all small families. Some didn’t have children at all and there were quite a few in the Richards Family.

There is just not much to even write on the Richards Family. Now the Richards men married women with some backgrounds. There are a few that have a lot of history in their family. I would have never guessed that there were 4 Brigadier Generals in the Richards Families. Yes cousins but still kin.

 

The Henderson-Richards family produced a great family in the 1800’s. Elvira Olivia Richards married Abner Daniel Henderson. They were our Great Uncle and Aunt. They had 9 children. Their children had large families. 

Rufus and Hattie Mae had 4 children

William and Fannie had 6 children

Nancy and Marion had 7 children

Enoch and Ida had 16 children

Mary and Jacob had 8 children

Sarah and John had 6 children

(More Info in Henderson Chapter)

 

The Richards married into the McGahey Family. Allie Catherine Richards married William McGahey.

Thomas Richards married Mary McGahey.

Rufus Richards married Lucy McGahey

These 3 McGahey’s go back to what we knew as the family of Uncle Sam McGahey.

 

The Richards married into the Keasler Family which the Keasler’s are a very very large family. They believe in having big families. The Keasler’s have their own website and books. The Keasler’s in Gordo, Alabama helped me out with Bible records from Pickens County.

 

The Richards married into the Sparks Family which is another very large family. They have web sites and books on the Sparks Family.

 

William Cornelius Richards and son Thomas Richards

OCONEE STATION

In the late 18th and early 19th century, a small plot of land along South Carolina’s western frontier served as a military compound against attack from the Cherokees and later a trading post.

 

Today, that plot of land is Oconee Station State Historic Site.

 

The park just off S.C. 11 (Cherokee Foothills National Scenic Highway) contains two structures: Oconee Station, a stone blockhouse used as an outpost by the U.S. military from about 1792 to 1799, and the William Richards House, named for the Irish immigrant who built it as a trading post in 1805.

 

 

Oconee Station Falls

In 1792, what later became Oconee County’s first European settlers-built Oconee Station, a small wood and stone “blockhouse” about a mile from the falls. The military fort and accompanying 1805 residence were intended to protect settlers from the Cherokees and vice-versa. Today, they are on the National Register of Historic Places and tours are available from 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, or by appointment.

 

When established in 1792, Oconee Station was in Pendleton County within the overarching Washington District, which was abolished in 1798. In 1798, the very short-lived overarching Pendleton District was created, and Oconee Station was now in this district. In 1800, the overarching Pendleton District was abolished. A new Pendleton District (county) was established in 1800, and later split into Pickens District (county) and Anderson District (county). From 1826 to 1868, Oconee Station was in Pickens District (county).

 

The oldest building in Oconee County stands at Oconee Station in a remote section above the county seat of Walhalla. From the early colonial history of South Carolina, we learn that the outlying frontiers suffered from the depredations of the Indians from the years 1756-1760 and besought the government to come to their aid. Yielding to their entreaties, England, in the year 1760, sent Colonel Archibald Montgomerie with 1,200 men who landed at Charles Town where he was joined by a Scots regiment, and at the Congeries his forces were still further augmented. With this force he marched into the heart of Cherokee territory carrying fire and sword, burning villages, killing eighty braves and taking forty prisoners, mostly women and children.

He established three outposts but only this one remains. The story handed down by the early settlers is that the rough stone house was the guard house of Colonel Montgomerie's military post and that soldiers were kept there until after the American Revolution.

 

Located on a hill overlooking the mountains is a building of rough plaster with thick walls, the windows are high, narrow and deep-set. It consists of two rooms, roughly plastered with a large chimney in the center furnishing two huge fireplaces. From one of the rooms a narrow stairway leads into a basement which is filled with an assortment of household utensils of a half century ago. On the walls hang bunches of life everlasting, boneset, mulling, and jimsons, the latter to inhale for the asthma, festoons of onions and peppers, twists of golden-brown home-grown tobacco, dried apples on canes and a medley of peanuts, pumpkins, and potatoes. It is so peaceful now where once was heard the tramp of soldiers' feet, the savage yells of the Indians in war-paint and feathers, the cries of the panther and the howl of the wolf.

 

By the guard house stands a substantial two storied brick house and into the wall of this dwelling is inserted a marble slab bearing this inscription: William Richards-1805.

 

The early settlers tell that when the troops were removed after the American Revolution that the three Richard brothers remained, living for a while in a house at the foot of the hill, later building the present house which bears the name of William Richards.

 

The house was surrounded by an old English garden. Boxwood, euonymus, and English ivy form an old-world setting for the daffodils, roses, lilacs, and clumps of lavender and rosemary. No doubt the garden was lovingly tended by the English girl who came over to join her brothers, and the fragrance of her garden was like a breath of home in her wilderness dwelling.

 

Her grave lies at the foot of the hill and on her tomb, we read the following: "Margaret Richards who crossed the ocean for love of her brothers."

 

During the years that followed, the three brothers died and are buried in the same spot in unmarked graves. We are told that when the last brother died that a relative from England took over the property.

 

The property was later owned by James Doyle, Sheriff of Pickens District. His sons fought in the Confederate army and after peace was declared, all save one went to Texas, where they made honorable names for themselves, but never failed to love their native state. The McWhorter boys, John, Lee, Will, and Doyle, once called this home and later became merchants and heads of railways in other states. Here the genial Henry F. Alexander and his bride, Rebecca Doyle, set up housekeeping and their first child was born.

 

After their removal, it seems that this property fell into the hands of Mr. Green who came with his large family from the mountains of North Carolina.

 

Three of these kindly daughters still live here, Misses Parnecy, Tekorah, and Victoria Green. For half a century they have tended their fields and made the cloth for their clothing. They will gladly show you their treasured quilts, representing years of patient toil, calling them lovingly by name, a young man's fancy, rosebud and magnolia.

 

Oconee station & the William Richards House

This site was a frontier outpost and a meeting place between European American and Cherokees of this region during the late 1700s. The first building here, known as Oconee Station, was built as a garrisoned fort for armed troops and included a military blockhouse. Its initial purpose was to protect white settlers in the area from Indian attack. Soon Oconee Station became used as a trading post. Trader William Richards came to live on the property in 1795 and, in 1805, built a brick residence next to the station building.

 

Military Outposts and Trade

The sturdy stone structure at Oconee station housed as many as 30 soldiers at a time over a period of about eight years. We can only guess at the number of deerskins that passed through its doors during and since that time. Deerskin was in high demand in Europe, and Southwestern Indians responded by hunting millions of deer annually for trade. In exchange, they received weapons, cotton and linen fabrics, rum, ornaments, metal tools.

2. Oconee Station Marker - Military Outposts and Trade

and other items. European guns made it easier for Indians to hunt deer, but weapons were also valuable to them in defense against their enemies. Though trade was beneficial to both sides, it was disruptive of traditional Native American life, particularly as hunters. The Indians bartered other goods such as baskets, ginseng, and snakeroot, but deerskins remained their main trade good until Indian removal from the Southeast.

 

Material Cultures

In exchange for their valuable deerskin, many Southeastern Indians received clothing made of European cotton and other fabrics, wearing a mixture of European and traditional Indian apparel. The attire of the white Americans living on the frontier also showed a blending. The fringed deerskin jacket associated with the frontiersman is European in construction but Native American in its materials and decoration. The sharing of material cultures between European-Americans and Native Americans revealed the amount of contact between these two groups and symbolized the complexity of their relationships, which ranged from inflamed animosity to friendly cooperation.

 

Defending the South Carolina Frontier

As Europeans and European-American settlement expanded across South Carolina, the "frontier" moved west. Beginning in 1792, Oconee Station and six similar military outposts served as the westernmost defensive

3. Oconee Station Marker - A Sharing of Material Cultures

points for new settlers. Scouts based in these stations roamed the frontier areas and served as an early warning network of imminent Indian attacks, giving the alarm to local white settlers. This site was the only station on the South Carolina frontier that remained in operation after 1796. Its use by the military ended after 1799, when the threat of a major Indian attack became highly unlikely. Oconee Station, with its history as a military fort and trading post, reveals the complex and changing relationships between Southeastern Indians and white settlers, as the whites gained land and as the Indian Territory was pushed westward.

 

IN THE LATE 1700S, THE upstate of South Carolina was the western frontier for European settlers in America. To protect against raids from the native Cherokees, early colonists in what is now Oconee County erected military outposts, called blockhouses, that were garrisoned by local militiamen.

 

One of the few remaining blockhouses, Oconee Station, now stands in a small clearing at the Oconee Station State Historic Site in Walhalla. Right next to it is another historic building, a brick home and trading post built by an Irish American merchant named William Richards.

 

About 20 to 30 soldiers were stationed at the military blockhouse from around 1792 up until the troops were removed in 1799. By 1795, the station was used as a trading site, where colonists exchanged guns, livestock, and other wares for animal skin and furs from the Cherokee. In 1805, Richards built his two-story handmade brick home, which doubled as a trading post until 1809. An inventory from that year showed a stockpile of over 30,000 animal skins, 82 pounds of ginseng, and other goods of the era.

 

The historic site is located on 210 scenic acres along Oconee Creek. The grounds boast nature trails, a waterfall, and wildlife. The real gems, though, are the Oconee Station blockhouse and the Richards House, sitting side by side. Together they offer an interesting glimpse at the colonial history of the state, showing two sides of the relationship between the settlers and Native Americans.

 

The Cherokee were among the original inhabitants of the region, at one point controlling approximately 40,000 square miles of the Appalachian Mountains in parts of present-day Georgia, eastern Tennessee, and western parts of North and South Carolina.

 

 

Smith Family

11th Great Grandfather John Smith 1580-1631 of England. One of the founders of The Colony of Jamestown. Founder of the First Permanent English Settlement in American. Everyone knows Disney World’s “Pocahontas” John Smith etc: well this is John Smith.

Captain John Smith" redirects here. For other Captains named John Smith, see John Smith.

John Smith (baptized. 6 January 1580 – 21 June 1631) was an English soldier, explorer, colonial governor, Admiral of New England, and author. He played an important role in the establishment of the colony at Jamestown, Virginia, the first permanent English settlement in America in the early 17th century. He was a leader of the Virginia Colony between September 1608 and August 1609, and he led an exploration along the rivers of Virginia and the Chesapeake Bay, during which he became the first English explorer to map the Chesapeake Bay area. Later, he explored and mapped the coast of New England. He was knighted for his services to Sigismund Báthory, Prince of Transylvania, and his friend Mózes Székely.

 

 

Captain John Smith (1624)

Born

Lincolnshire, England

Baptized

6 January 1580

Died

21 June 1631 (aged 51)

London, England

Resting place

St Sepulchre-without-Newgate, London

Known for

Helping to establish and govern the Jamestown colony

Jamestown was established in 1607, and Smith trained the first settlers to farm and work, thus saving the colony from early devastation. He publicly stated, "He that will not work, shall not eat", alluding to 2 Thessalonians 3:10. Harsh weather, lack of food and water, the surrounding swampy wilderness, and attacks from Native Americans almost destroyed the colony. With Smith's leadership, however, Jamestown survived and eventually flourished. Smith was forced to return to England after being injured by an accidental explosion of gunpowder in a canoe.

Smith's books and maps were important in encouraging and supporting English colonization of the New World. He named the region of New England and noted: "Here every man may be master and owner of his owne labour and land. ... If he has nothing but his hands, he may ... by industries quickly grow rich." Smith died in London in 1631.

 

 

 

Window in St Helena's Church, Willoughby, displaying Smith's coat of arms

Smith's exact birth date is unclear. He was baptized on 6 January 1580 at Willoughby, near Alford, Lincolnshire where his parents rented a farm from Lord Willoughby. He claimed descent from the ancient Smith family of Cuerdley, Lancashire, and was educated at King Edward VI Grammar School, Louth from 1592 to 1595.

Smith set off to sea at age 16 after his father died. He served as a mercenary in the army of Henry IV of France against the Spaniards, fighting for Dutch independence from King Philip II of Spain. He then went to the Mediterranean where he engaged in trade and piracy, and later fought against the Ottoman Turks in the Long Turkish War. He was promoted to a cavalry captain while fighting for the Austrian Habsburgs in Hungary in the campaign of Michael the Brave in 1600 and 1601. After the death of Michael, the Brave, he fought for Radu Șerban in Wallachia against Ottoman vassal Ieremia Movilă.

Smith reputedly killed and beheaded three Ottoman challengers in single-combat duels, for which he was knighted by the Prince of Transylvania and given a horse and a coat of arms showing three Turks' heads. However, in 1602, he was wounded in a skirmish with the Crimean Tatars, captured, and sold as a slave. He claimed that his master was a Turkish nobleman who sent him as a gift to his Greek mistress in Constantinople, Charatza Tragabigzanda, who fell in love with Smith. He then was taken to the Crimea, where he escaped from Ottoman lands into Muscovy, then on to the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth before traveling through Europe and North Africa, returning to England in 1604.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Coat of Arms of John Smith

In 1606, Smith became involved with the Virginia Company of London's plan to colonize Virginia for profit, and King James had already granted a charter. The expedition set sail in the Discovery, the Susan Constant, and the Godspeed on 20 December 1606. His page was a 12-year-old boy named Samuel Collier.

During the voyage, Smith was charged with mutiny, and Captain Christopher Newport (in charge of the three ships) had planned to execute him. These events happened approximately when the expedition stopped in the Canary Islands for resupply of water and provisions. Smith was under arrest for most of the trip. However, they landed at Cape Henry on 26 April 1607 and unsealed orders from the Virginia Company designating Smith as one of the leaders of the new colony, thus sparing him from the gallows.

By the summer of 1607, the colonists were still living in temporary housing. The search for a suitable site ended on 14 May 1607 when Captain Edward Maria Wingfield, president of the council, chose the Jamestown site as the location for the colony. After the four-month ocean trip, their food stores were sufficient only for each to have a cup or two of grain-meal per day, and someone died almost every day due to swampy conditions and widespread disease. By September, more than 60 had died of the 104 who left England.

In early January 1608, nearly 100 new settlers arrived with Captain Newport on the First Supply, but the village was set on fire through carelessness. That winter, the James River froze over, and the settlers were forced to live in the burned ruins. During this time, they wasted much of the three months that Newport and his crew were in port loading their ships with iron pyrite (fool's gold). Food supplies ran low, although the Indians brought some food, and Smith wrote that "more than half of us died". Smith spent the following summer exploring Chesapeake Bay waterways and producing a map that was of great value to Virginia explorers for more than a century.

In October 1608, Newport brought a second shipment of supplies along with 70 new settlers, including the first women. Some German, Polish, and Slovak craftsmen also arrived, but they brought no food supplies. Newport brought a list of counterfeit Virginia Company orders which angered Smith greatly. One of the orders was to crown Indian leader Powhatan emperor and give him a fancy bedstead. The Company wanted Smith to pay for Newport's voyage with pitch, tar, sawed boards, soap ashes, and glass.

After that, Smith tried to obtain food from the local Indians, but it required threats of military force for them to comply. Smith discovered that there were those among both the settlers and the Indians who were planning to take his life, and he was warned about the plan by Pocahontas. He called a meeting and threatened those who were not working "that he that will not work shall not eat." After that, the situation improved, and the settlers worked with more industry.

 

 

 

 

Native Americans led by Opechancanough captured Smith in December 1607 while he was seeking food along the Chickahominy River, and they took him to meet Opechancanough's brother at Werowocomoco, the main village of the Powhatan Confederacy. The village was on the north shore of the York River about 15 miles north of Jamestown and 25 miles downstream from where the river forms from the Pamunkey River and the Mattaponi River at West Point, Virginia. Smith was removed to the hunters' camp, where Opechancanough and his men feasted him and otherwise treated him like an honored guest. Protocol demanded that Opechancanough inform Chief Powhatan of Smith's capture, but the paramount chief also was on a hunt and therefore unreachable. Absent interpreters or any other means of effectively interviewing the Englishman, Opechancanough summoned his seven highest-ranking kwiocosuk, or shamans, and convened an elaborate, three-day divining ritual to determine whether Smith's intentions were friendly. Finding it a good time to leave camp, Opechancanough took Smith and went in search of his brother at one point visiting the Rappahannock tribe who had been attacked by a European ship captain a few years earlier.

In 1860, Boston businessman and historian Charles Deane were the first scholar to question specific details of Smith's writings. Smith's version of events is the only source and skepticism has increasingly been expressed about its veracity. One reason for such doubt is that, despite having published two earlier books about Virginia, Smith's earliest surviving account of his rescue by Pocahontas dates from 1616, nearly 10 years later, in a letter entreating Queen Anne to treat Pocahontas with dignity. The time gap in publishing his story raises the possibility that Smith may have exaggerated or invented the event to enhance Pocahontas' image. However, Professor Leo Lemay of the University of Delaware points out that Smith's earlier writing was primarily geographical and ethnographic in nature and did not dwell on his personal experiences; hence, there was no reason for him to write down the story until this point.

Henry Brooks Adams attempted to debunk Smith's claims of heroism. He said that Smith's recounting of the story of Pocahontas had been progressively embellished, made up of "falsehoods of an effrontery seldom equaled in modern times". There is consensus among historians that Smith tended to exaggerate, but his account is consistent with the basic facts of his life. Some have suggested that Smith believed that he had been rescued, when he had in fact been involved in a ritual intended to symbolize his death and rebirth as a member of the tribe. David A. Price notes in Love and Hate in Jamestown that this is purely speculation, since little is known of Powhatan rituals and there is no evidence for any similar rituals among other Native American tribes. Smith told a similar story in True Travels (1630) of having been rescued by the intervention of a young girl after being captured in 1602 by Turks in Hungary. Karen Kupperman suggests that he "presented those remembered events from decades earlier" when telling the story of Pocahontas. Whatever really happened, the encounter initiated a friendly relationship between the Native Americans and colonists near Jamestown. As the colonists expanded farther, some of the tribes felt that their lands were threatened, and conflicts arose again.

In 1608, Pocahontas is said to have saved Smith a second time. Chief Powhatan invited Smith and some other colonists to Werowocomoco on friendly terms, but Pocahontas came to the hut where they were staying and warned them that Powhatan was planning to kill them. They stayed on their guard and the attack never came. Also, in 1608, Polish craftsmen were brought to the colony to help it develop. Smith wrote that two Poles rescued him when he was attacked by an Algonquian tribesman.

In the summer of 1608, Smith left Jamestown to explore the Chesapeake Bay region and search for badly needed food, covering an estimated 3,000 miles. These explorations are commemorated in the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail, established in 2006. In his absence, Smith left his friend Matthew Scrivener as governor in his place, a young gentleman adventurer from Sibton Suffolk who was related by marriage to the Winfield family, but he was not capable of leading the people. Smith was elected president of the local council in September 1608.

 

Some of the settlers eventually wanted Smith to abandon Jamestown, but he refused. Some deserted to the Indian villages, but Powhatan's people also followed Smith's law of "he who works not, eats not". This lasted "till they were near starved indeed", in Smith's words, and they returned home.

In the spring of 1609, Jamestown was beginning to prosper, with many dwellings built, acres of land cleared, and much other work done. Then in April, they experienced an infestation of rats, along with dampness which destroyed all their stored corn. They needed food badly and Smith sent a large group of settlers to fish and others to gather shellfish downriver. They came back without food and were willing enough to take the meager rations offered them. This angered Smith and he ordered them to trade their guns and tools for fruit from the Indians and ordered everyone to work or be banished from the fort.

The weeks-long emergency was relieved by the arrival of an unexpected ship captained by Samuel Argall. He had items of food and wine which Smith bought on credit. Argall also brought news that the Virginia Company of London was being reorganized and was sending more supplies and settlers to Jamestown, along with Lord De la Warr to become the new governor.

 

 

John Smith taking the King of Pamunkey prisoner (1624 history)

In a May 1609 voyage to Virginia, Virginia Company treasurer Sir Thomas Smith arranged for about 500 colonists to come along, including women and children. A fleet of nine ships set sail. One sank in a storm soon after leaving the harbor, and the Sea Venture wrecked on the Bermuda Islands with flotilla admiral Sir George Somers aboard. They finally made their way to Jamestown in May 1610 after building the Deliverance and Patience to take most of the passengers and crew of the Sea Venture off Bermuda, with the new governor Thomas Gates on board.

In August 1609, Smith was quite surprised to see more than 300 new settlers arrive, which did not go well for him. London was sending new settlers with no real planning or logistical support. Then in May 1610, Somers and Gates finally arrived with 150 people from the Sea Venture. Gates soon found that there was not enough food to support all in the colony and decided to abandon Jamestown. As their boats were leaving the Jamestown area, they met a ship carrying the new governor Lord De la Warr, who ordered them back to Jamestown. Somers returned to Bermuda with the Patience to gather more food for Jamestown but died there. The Patience then sailed for England instead of Virginia, captained by his nephew.

Smith was severely injured by a gunpowder explosion in his canoe, and he sailed to England for treatment in mid-October 1609. He never returned to Virginia. Colonists continued to die from various illnesses and disease, with an estimated 150 surviving that winter out of 500 residents. The Virginia Company, however, continued to finance and transport settlers to sustain Jamestown. For the next five years, Governors Gates and Sir Thomas Dale continued to keep strict discipline, with Sir Thomas Smith in London attempting to find skilled craftsmen and other settlers to send.

 

 

John Smith Biography           

John Smith was a British soldier who was a founder of the American colony of Jamestown in the early 1600s.

Who Was John Smith?

English soldier John Smith eventually made his way to America to help govern the British colony of Jamestown. After allegedly being saved from death by Pocahontas, he established trading agreements with native tribes. With his governing tactics called into question, he returned to England in 1609 and became a staunch advocate of colonization via his published works.

Early Life

John Smith is believed to have been born in 1579 or 1580 in Lincolnshire, England. After a merchant’s apprenticeship, Smith decided on a life of combat and served with the English Army abroad. Working as a soldier for hire (and professing to be highly successful in his military ventures), Smith eventually embarked on a campaign against the Turks in Hungary. There he was captured and enslaved. He was sent to what is now Istanbul and served a kindhearted mistress who, not wanting Smith to be her enslaved person, sent him to her brother’s home, where he was forced to do farm work. After receiving harsh treatment from his master, Smith killed him and escaped, eventually returning to England in the early 1600s.

 

Jamestown Settlement

Smith then came to meet with Capt. Bartholomew Gosnold, who was involved with organizing a colony sponsored by the Virginia Company of London that would be sent to America. Smith was made part of a multi-person council that would govern the group, whose purpose was to generate profit in the form of mineral wealth and goods.

The voyagers set sail at the end of 1606. But during the trip, Smith was allegedly accused of mutiny and almost hanged. Managing to stay alive yet placed into custody, he arrived with the group at the Chesapeake Bay in April 1607.

 

The settlement was named Jamestown and would eventually be known as the first permanent British North American colony. Yet initially the population dwindled as colonists succumbed to starvation and disease. And the settlers were not alone, as they were attempting to claim a region that was home to multiple Native American communities, later understood to be part of the Powhatan Confederacy.

Released from custody weeks after arrival, Smith helped overturn the leadership of colony president Edward Winfield. Working with new president John Ratcliffe, Smith was tasked with overseeing the barter of food from the surrounding native tribes. He had also started to explore the region, which would later be detailed in publications. 

In an expedition along the Chickahominy River, Smith was captured by a native band and taken to Algonquin chief Wahunsonacock, whom the English referred to as Powhatan. It is said that Powhatan's 12-year-old daughter, Pocahontas, rushed to save Smith from being killed as he was held down. After this, Powhatan allegedly regarded Smith as a figurative "son," granting him territory while having expectations of allegiance and mutual protection.

(However, there are historians who question whether this event actually happened, as the relationship between Smith and Pocahontas has been largely romanticized by popular culture. It is also theorized that Smith might have been taking part in a ritualized acceptance ceremony as opposed to an actual execution. Powhatan possibly saw Smith as a resource in trade relations with the Europeans and the acquisition of arms, and hence wanted him alive.)

 

 

 

 

Upon returning to Jamestown, Smith was imprisoned for losing men on the failed Chickahominy expedition and on suspicion that he would try to usurp control of the colony with his new allies. He was soon freed and relations between Native Americans and the settlement went smoothly for a time. Pocahontas often visited the colony, arriving with her people as they brought goods.

In 1608, Smith dispatched a letter to England about what had been occurring, and it was published as the short length A True Relation... of Virginia, hence being seen as the first book to come from American soil. In September of the same year, he was elected president of the governing council, going on to contend with a difficult winter. Smith demanded a staunch work ethic from settlers with the hope of increasing survival and utilized harsh measures to keep them in line.

Also, due to a debilitating drought, Native American food supplies were scarce, and the Powhatan community refused to supply limited rations without the requested recompense; Smith responded by waging attacks on natives—ordering the burning of villages in some cases—and stealing food. Native people were also imprisoned, beaten and forced into labor.

Return to England

In 1609, after the Virginia Company had drafted a new charter for Jamestown, Smith was badly burned from a gunpowder explosion following more conflict with fellow colonists. He returned to England both to recover and face allegations of misconduct, thereby relinquishing leadership of the settlement. There are no records of a subsequent hearing or trial.

 

Back in Britain, Smith produced a published report on Virginia that included detailed descriptions of its tribal communities, flora, fauna and overall topography. In 1614, he visited the coast of Maine and Massachusetts and came up with the name "New England" to describe the region, as well as designating certain bodies of water.

Smith met Pocahontas again after she traveled to England in 1616 with her husband John Rolfe and son Thomas. Believing that Smith was dead, she was astonished that he’d never informed her that he was alive or intervened as matters worsened between the colonists and the Powhatans.

 

 

3rd Great Grandmother Catherine Smith 1787-1865 was from Union County, South Carolina. She married 3rd Great Grandfather Dr William Richards 1789-1850.

Her family had a lot of Military History. Catherine’s father was Captain Abraham Smith 4th Great Grandfather 1748-1808. He married Mary Katherine Guyton 1755-1831. They had 25 children.

I-Alice Smith 1778-1787

II-John Smith 1773-

III-Polly Smith 1775-

IV-Henry Smith 1778-1830

V-Daniel Smith 1779-1831

VI-Joseph Smith 1781-1781

VII-Samuel Smith 1781-1781

VIII-Sally Smith 1783-

IX-Mary Smith 1784-1784

X-Moses Smith 1785-

XI-Mary Smith 1786-1865

XII-Catherine Smith 1787-1865

 XIII-Kattegat Smith 1787-

XIV-Sarah Smith 1787-1840

XV-Moses Smith 1796-

XVI-Catherine Smith 1799-

XVII-Abram Smith (Died Infant)

XVIII-Catherine Smith (Died Infant)

XIX-Hannah Smith (Died Infant)

XX-John Smith (Died Infant)

XXI-Joseph L Smith (Died Infant)

XXII-Joseph Smith (Died Infant)

XXIII-Mary Polly Smith (Died Infant)

XXIV-Mary Polly Smith (Died Infant)

XXV-Moses Smith (Died Infant)

 

Abraham Smith's will

proven 14 Jun 1806

 

Union County, South Carolina, Will Book A pages 97-101

 

Will of Abraham Smith of Union District? to my son John Smith, 200 acres joining Clantons part of the land where he now liveth; to my daughter Polley Humphries, 100 acres, being the place whereon she now liveth, also negro Rachel; to my daughter Hannah Alexander, negro wench Windy, to my grandchild Polley Alexander, a negro girl Sarah, and to my grandchild Abraham Alexander, my young mare; to my son Henry Smith , the old survey where he now liveth in York District at the ford, about 100 acres also the land adjoining to him formerly granted to Bridges, including the place granted to his Grand Father whereon Joseph Lusk lived, also negro fellow Harry, now in his possession; to my son Joseph Smith, remainder of that tract of land upon Thickets Creek formerly called Stockpiles land adjacent below his brother John, and negro fellow Tom; to my son Daniel Smith, part of land whereon or adjoining to that I now live, upon Youngs old line, where Murphy's School house stood, Kelleys old field, adj. morgans, also negro fellow Nedd; to my daughter Salley Smith, negro wench Jude and child called Nancy with negro girl Patt, and bed & furniture; to my wife Molley Smith, all the remainder of my land whereon I now live to be enjoyed as her natural rite during her life or widowhood, also negro wenches Hannah & Renne and Kate, and three negroes London, Pompey & Mark, to raise and educating my two youngest child; to my son Moses Smith, the remainder of the land where I now live at his mother’s death or marriage, and negro boys Jacob & Charles; to my daughter Kattey Smith, my five little negroes Dave, Arnold, Sam, Faun & Chloe; my wife Molley Smith and my son Joseph Smith, 31 May 1806.

 

Abraham Smith (X), Witness: Nicholas Corry, Henry Good, Spencer Morgan. Proved by Nicholas Corry Esqr., 14 Jun 18

 

 

 5th Great Grandfather Captain Henry Smith born 1727 from Ulster, Ireland. He died in York, South Carolina in 1792. He married Catherine Amelia Hampton born in 1730 from Virginia and died in 1808 in York, South Carolina. They had 18 children.

I-John Smith 1747-1806

II-4th Great Grandfather Abraham Smith 1748-1808

III-Sarah Smith 1749-

IV-William Smith 1750-1781

V-Gideon Smith 1752-1783

VI-Elizabeth Smith 1754-1845

VII-Daniel Smith Jr 1756-1779

VIII-Henry Smith Jr 1756-1840

IX-David Smith 1761-1806

X-Jonathan Smith 1762-1829

XI-William Smith 1764-

XII-Sarah Smith 1766-1831

XIII-Britain Smith 1775-1862

XIV-Cynthia Smith (Died Infant)

XV-James Smith (Died Infant)

XVI-Nathaniel Smith (Die Infant)

XVII-Nelly Smith (Died Infant)

XVIII-Rachel Smith (Died Infant)

 

6th Great Grandfather Colonel John Smith born in Monaghan, Ireland in 1691. He died in Smithland, Virginia in 1783. He married 6th Great Grandmother Margaret Shoonhoven born in 1700 in Ireland and died in 1785 in Virginia. They had 7 children.

I-Lilly Smith 1709-1780

II-Colonel Daniel Smith 1724-1781

III-Captain Henry Smith 1727-1792

IV-Joseph Smith 1734-1766

V-Margaret Louisa Smith 1737-1812

VI-Jonathan Smith 1744-1848

VII-Captain James Smith 1746-

 

7th Great Grandfather Daniel Smith Sr was born in Marlborough, England in 1650. He died in 1692 in Rehoboth, Massachusetts. He married 7th Great Grandmother Rebecca Prime born in 1656 and died in 1703. They had 5 children.

I-Thomas Smith 1681-

II-Colonel John Smith 1691-1783

III-Mary Smith 1695-1765

IV-John Smith 1698-1776

V-Elizabeth Smith 1702-1702

 

Daniel P Smith born in 1779 and died in 1850. He was from Virginia.

Daniel Smith, "a learned, pure judge and good man," was born at or near Harrisonburg, in 1779, son of John and Margaret Davis Smith, grandson of Justice Daniel Smith (pp. 54, 68); he married Frances Strutter Duff, June 10, 1809; children, Margaret, Elizabeth, Lucius, Frances, Marie, John, Daniel; he died Nov. 8, 1850. In 1805 he was a member of the Virginia House of Delegates; from 1804 to 1811 he was commonwealth's attorney for Rockingham; on April 10, 1811, he was appointed a judge of the General Court, and from the same date till his death (1850) he was judge of the circuit superior court for Rockingham County. He succeeded Judge Hugh Holmes and was succeeded by Judge Green B. Samuels. His portrait now adorns the Rockingham County court room. Judge John Paul said of him:

 

No judge, perhaps, whoever presided on the Circuit Court bench in Virginia exerted a better or more lasting influence on the people within his jurisdiction. He was not only a great man intellectually, but he was great in the moral attributes necessary to the perfection of judicial character.

 

 

 

 

James McConnell Smith (1787-1856)

 

James McConnell Smith was born 14 June 1787. The site of his birth was a log cabin near the confluence of the Swannanoa and French Broad Rivers, very near what was to become the City of Asheville in Buncombe County, North Carolina. His father is Colonel Daniel Smith (1757-1824), his mother Mary McConnell Davidson (1760-1842).

 

Tradition has it that James McConnell Smith was the first child born west of the Blue Ridge Mountains. While this cannot be confirmed, he probably was among the first.

 

 

 

In 1814, he married Mary (Polly) Patton (1794-1853) of Swannanoa, and they had eleven children. Seven daughters and two sons lived to maturity. One of those sons is of particular interest to those studying Caswell County, North Carolina:

 

This is Jesse Siler Smith (1821-1870) who married Margaret Isabella (Maggie) Graves (1831-1911) of Yanceyville, North Carolina. They were married 15 Mar 1853 in Yanceyville, probably in the home of her father. This home would have been the Dongola mansion as her father was Jeremiah Graves, Sr. (1786-1868). Many with the name Smith and Lindsey now in Caswell County and surrounding areas are descendants of this union.

 

James McConnell Smith built and operated the Buck Hotel. This was a working-man's hotel that catered to drovers and provided for livestock to be corralled in the back. Smith owned a store across the street from the Buck Hotel, maintained a tannery and several farms, built and for several years managed Smith's Bridge, the first bridge in what is now Buncombe County across the French Broad River, afterwards selling the bridge to Buncombe County. Smith's Bridge, initially a toll ferry, was a toll bridge and may have been the beginning of his fortune.

 

James McConnell Smith was heavily invested in the stock of the Buncombe Turnpike Company, and he owned a gold mine. He was a large landowner in Asheville and other parts of Buncombe County and in nearby Georgia (owning at one time some 30,000 acres in Buncombe County). He was a judge, served as the first Chairman of Asheville's Board of Commissioners in 1849 (a chief executive position that became mayor), and his picture hangs in the hallway outside the Asheville City Council Chambers.

 

By the time of his death on May 18, 1856, Smith was one of the city's wealthiest and most prominent citizens. It is said that he needed armed guards to accompany him to Charleston so he could do his banking. James McConnell Smith is remembered as a man of untiring industry, economy, and perseverance.

 

 

Around 1840, James McConnell Smith built Victoria, today known as the Smith-McDowell house located at 283 Victoria Road in Asheville, North Carolina, for his young son John Patton Smith who never married and died in 1857. The house stands on property that was one of the land grants opening Western North Carolina to permanent settlement after the Revolutionary War. The plans for the house were brought from England. The brick walls are 18 inches thick, and some of the bricks were made in England, brought over as ballast on ships coming to Charleston, South Carolina. The bricks were then transported to Asheville by oxen teams.

 

In all probability the house was built by slaves owned by James McConnell Smith. It is an outstanding house and is opened as a museum today. This house and all of the adjoining land was willed to his son John Patton Smith and his heirs, however, John Patton Smith died nineteen months later without heirs. In 1858 the house was purchased at auction by a daughter of James McConnell Smith, Sarah Lucinda Smith (1826-1905), and her husband, William Wallace McDowell. They and their family lived in the house until 1881. Economic difficulties arising after the Civil War forced them to sell the house at that time.

 

Value of Real Estate Owned in 1850: $30,000. Source: 1850 US Census.

 

James McConnell Smith is buried with his parents and alongside his wife, Mary (Polly) Patton (1794-1853), in the Newton Academy Cemetery in Asheville, North Carolina.

 

Smith McDowell House Museum

 

 

The 4-story mansion was built on a plantation south of Asheville approximately twenty years before the Civil War. Constructed on a hill’s summit, ringed by picturesque mountains, the manse was constructed by slave labor. During a time when most people lived in log cabins, the imposing structure was composed of rare brick. Slave labor was probably used to construct the impressive home. Today known as The Smith-McDowell House, it is the oldest surviving house in Asheville and the oldest brick house in Buncombe County, North Carolina.

The mansion sits upon a plot of land acquired by Colonel Daniel Smith (1757-1824) via a land grant for Revolutionary War soldiers. Among the earliest settlers to the region, the Colonel’s son, James, is said to have been the first white child born west of the mountains in North Carolina. It was this son, James McConnell Smith (1787-1856) who would wed Mary “Polly” Patton (1794-1853) and build the impressive brick home. In 1833, J.M. Smith built and operated a state-licensed toll bridge over the French Broad River on the Buncombe Turnpike. The bridge was part of the Drovers Road, linking Greenville, TN and western North Carolina farmers to markets in South Carolina and Georgia. His monopoly on the bridge gave Smith great wealth and he became one of North Carolina’s most influential and leading businessmen, becoming a judge and a mayor and owning a store, tavern, two plantations, a tannery, gold mine and the Buck Hotel. At one time, Smith owned more than 30,000 acres across Buncombe County.

When Smith died in 1856, his son, John Patton Smith (1823-1857), inherited the Smith-McDowell House. Upon John’s death a short year later, James's business partner and son-in-law, William Wallace McDowell (1823-1893), and Sarah Lucinda Smith McDowell (1826-1905) purchased the house and 350 acres for $10,000. On the eve of the Civil War, McDowell organized the Buncombe Riflemen, the first group of Confederate volunteers from Western North Carolina. W.W. McDowell achieved the rank of Major. During the course of the War, the house was visited by Union troops.

In 1951, the Catholic Diocese purchased the house for a boy's school dormitory. The then-dilapidated house and grounds were purchased by Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College in 1974. That same year, the Western North Carolina Historical Association rescued the house from demolition by negotiating a lease to restore the house as a heritage center. Due to fund-raising efforts and extensive restorations, the Museum opened in 1981. Today, the restored Smith-McDowell House is a nonprofit museum and is included in the National Register of Historic Places. It is the finest surviving example of brick antebellum architecture in Western North Carolina

 

The 3 generations of Smith’s there were 36 out of the Family that fought in the Revolutionary War.  13 of them were at the rank of Colonel. 7 Lieutenant and 12 were Captain.

 

 

9th Great Grandfather was Hendricks Van Schoonhoven born in 1600 in the Netherlands. He died in New York in 1677. He came over from the Netherlands in 1654 to New York.

 

 

 

Another Family in Richards were the Bowen’s. They had a few famous Military people in their family.

The BOWEN Family I went back to the year of 0913. The family went back to King Of Deheubarth Howell ap Owain born in 0913 and died in 0983 and was from Wales. He was our 25th Great Grandfather of the Husband of 6th Great Aunt. He had 2 wives of the name “Consort of Owain an Hywel dds” born in 0915 in Wales. His second wife was Angharad Verch Llewelyn born in 0917 and died in 1002. She was from Wales.

 

Deheubarth was a 10th-century king in Wales of the High Middle Ages. A member of the House of Dinefwr, his patrimony was the kingdom of Deheubarth comprising the southern realms of Dyfed, Ceredigion, and Brycheiniog. Upon the death of his father King Owain around AD 988, he also inherited the kingdoms of Gwynedd and Powys, which he had conquered for his father. He was counted among the Kings of the Britons by the Chronicle of the Princes.

Maredudd was the younger son of King Owain of Deheubarth and the grandson of King Hywel the Good. Owain had inherited the kingdom through the early death of his brothers and Maredudd, too, came to the throne through the death of his elder brother Einion around 984. Around 986, Maredudd captured Gwynedd from its king Cadwallon ab Ieuaf. He may have controlled all Wales apart from Gwent and Morgannwg.

Maredudd is recorded as raiding Mercian settlements on the borders of Radnor and as paying a ransom of a silver penny a head to rescue some of his subjects who had been taken captive in Danish raids. Viking raids were a constant problem during Maredudd's reign. In 987, Godfrey Haroldson raided Anglesey, supposedly killing one thousand and carrying away another two thousand as captives; Maredudd was said to have then paid a huge ransom for the freedom of the hostages.

Following Maredudd's death around AD 999, the throne of Gwynedd was recovered for the line of Idwal Foel by Cynan ap Hywel. The throne of Deheubarth went to a man named Rhain who was accepted as Maredudd's son by its people but who—after the kingdom's conquest by Llywelyn ap Seisyll—was recorded by most Welsh histories as an Irish pretender and usurper. The kingdom was later restored to Maredudd's family, but through Hywel, the grandson of his brother Einion.

 

Then we drop Down to the year 1081. King Gruffydd ap Rhys was born in 1081 and died in 1137 and was from Wales. He married Gwenllian Ferch Gruffydd born in 1100 and died in 1136 and was from Wales.

 

Then we are at the year 1167 where Prince Rhys Wyndod Ap Rhys Fychan born in 1167 and died in 1270 from Wales. He married Gwerfyl Verch Maelgwn born in 1191 from Wales.

 

Now to the year 1415 where Einion Ap Deikws Ddu was born in Wales in the year 1415 and died in France in 1514. He married Morfudd Verch Mathew born in 1419 in Wales and died in France in 1514.

 

In the 1500’s Lewis ap Gruffydd was born in 1525 in Wales. He died in Wales in 1600. He married Ethli Verch Edward ap Levantine born in 1520 and died in 1610 and was from Wales.

 

Robert Ap Lewis born in 1555 and died in 1645 and was from Wales. He married Gwrvyl Verch Llewelyn born in 1550 and died in 1610 in Wales. They had 21 children.

Then after Robert Ap Lewis came for the first time of the name BOWEN.

Lord Evan Ap Lewis Of Rhiwlas Bowen born in 1584 in Wales and died in 1668 in Wales. He married Jane Verch Cadwalader born in 1585 and died in 1668 in Wales.

 

Then down to the real world with real names of Moses Bowen born in 1674 and died in 1761. He came from Wales to Montgomery County, Pennsylvania and then on to Augusta County, Virginia. Moses Bowen and his wife Rebecca Reece were among the early Quaker Settlers in Pennsylvania. They emigrated with a large company from Wales about the year 1698 having purchased ten thousand acres of land in Guinness Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania.

Moses Bowen fought in the Revolutionary War.

 

Moses Bowen son John Bowen Sr 1696-1761 which was a Father-n-law to our 6th Great Aunt Lillian Stella Mcllhaney born in 1709 and died in 1780. He also fought in the Revolutionary War in Pennsylvania. They produce 15 children of which 8 fought in the Revolutionary War.

 

Lieutenant Rees T Bowen was killed at the Battle of Kings Mountain at Cleveland, North Carolina on 7 October 1780

From the "Bowen family history" the following account of the Battle of Kings Mountain and the over mountain Men October 7th, 1780 is taken.

 

" Colonel Campbell commanded the Washington County Military Force, and William Bowen, a company that belonged to Campbell's Command... In this company Reece Bowen was a First Lieutenant, his son John a Private...... 

 When the order came for Bowen's company to join the  regiment it found its Captain, William Bowen, sick of a fever, and this situation devolved the command of the company upon Lieutenant Reece Bowen, who led it into the battle of  King's Mountain, and there, together with several of his men, was killed and buried on the field.  His remains were never removed, for the reason that when opportunity was offered for their removal the spot in which he was buried could not be identified.  Campbell's Regiment lost in this battle 35 killed and wounded;  among the killed, other than Lieutenant Reece Bowen, were Captain William Edmondson, Robert Edmondson, Andrew Edmondson, and Henry Henninger, and among the wounded, Charles Kilgore and John Peery, the two latter and Henninger from the Upper Clinch Waters."

 

" William Bowen when hearing his brother was downed, went crazy, running to find his brother hoping that it was not too late. As he ran to where his brother had fallen, a sentry yelled, demanding the password of the day. William, so distraught, couldn't make sense of what the man was yelling and forgot the password. When they were about to shoot it out, an officer, recognizing William grabbed him, bringing him back to his senses. They hugged, grateful for not having to shoot each other, but distraught about finding his brother. When Rees was found, it was too late, he had died, the only son of 13 children to be lost in an actual battle, fought in the Rev. War. Years before, while on patrol, his baby brother Moses Bowen, died of a simple flesh wound, received in the field. It seems while washing the wound, it was done with river water that had not been boiled and he developed a fever, from which he died in 1776." [ref 2]

 

Note: An account by David E. Johnson states that Moses Bowen died of smallpox.

 

Over mountain victory national historic trail. The Battle of Kings Mountain

 

The battle of Kings Mountain, fought October 7th, 1780, proved to be the turning point in the British Southern campaign.

 

 The American Continental army suffered successive defeats at Charleston, Wax haws, and Camden, South Carolina, in the summer of 1780. By the fall, only the voluntary militia units remained in the field to oppose the armies of Cornwallis.

 

To recruit and equip militia loyal to the British cause, Cornwallis sent Major Patrick Ferguson into the western Carolinas. He was to raise a loyal militia army and suppress the remaining Patriot militia. Intending to cow the Patriots, in September he sent a proclamation to the mountain settlements, telling them to lay down their arms, or he would march his army west, and "lay waste the countryside with fire and sword."

 

The result was the march of the famous Over mountain men from the Sycamore Shoals of the Watauga River across the mountains in search of Ferguson. Overcoming hunger, weather, wrangling, and intrigue, the Patriots attacked and destroyed Ferguson's Loyalists at Kings Mountain.

 

The Patriot army, nominally under the command of William Campbell from Virginia, contained strong leaders who managed to combine their efforts. John Sevier would go on to serve as Tennessee's first governor. Isaac Shelby would be Kentucky's first governor. Benjamin Cleveland would serve as a civic leader and judge in North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia. Joseph Winston, Joseph McDowell, Andrew Hampton, William Chronicle, and Joseph Hambright all led troops from North Carolina. William Hill, Edward Lacey, and James Williams led contingents from South Carolina. William Candler led a small group from Georgia.

 

Charles McDowell from North Carolina helped organize the army. But he stepped aside before the battle to preserve a united Patriot army.

 

Henry Bowen was a Sergeant in the VA Continental Line from 1777 until he mustered out in February of 1780.

He was under the command of General George Washington at Valley Forge.

It is said that he joined the VA militia after his Continental Line duty and fought at the Battle of King's Mountain alongside his brothers to include Rees/Reese Bowen, Lieutenant, who was killed during the battle.

 

Henry married Ann Cunningham about 1770. Their daughter, my 4th great-grandmother Margaret married John McElhaney, Sr. possibly in Tennessee. A son John, Jr., my 3rd great-grandfather, was born in Tennessee in 1797 and served in the War of 1812 with the First Regiment of TN Volunteer Mounted Gunmen commanded by Major William Russell. After mustering out in the spring of 1815, John, Jr. eventually moved on to Mississippi and married Elizabeth Womack daughter of War of 1812 Lieutenant David Womack II of Louisiana. John and Elizabeth McLehaney are both buried at Simpson Co., MS on land owned by John. If there were ever headstones, they now do not exist.

 

 

Captain Robert Pickens Bowen served in the Continental Army as a member of Capt. William Bentley's Company, 3rd & 4th Virginia Regiment, commanded by Col. John Neville. He served as a private from 1777 to 1779.

He had four brothers who fought in the Virginia militia and Lieutenant Rees Bowen was killed at the Battle of Kings Mountain while serving with his brothers Captain John Bowen, Captain William Bowen and Private Charles Bowen.

 

Smyth County (VA) placed on the Courthouse lawn a monument honoring their Revolutionary War soldiers and patriots. This monument contains the names of 60 soldiers and patriots who were authenticated by the National Society of the Daughters of the American Revolution in Washington, D.C.

 

These western mountain patriot soldiers marched in September 1775 to Williamsburg to aid Patrick Henry in forcing Governor Dunmore to return the great store of gunpowder he had removed from the powder magazine in fear of the colonists. They fought the Battle of Guilford Courthouse and the savage Battle of King's Mountain, which Thomas Jefferson said, "turned the tide of war in favor of the United States and led Cornwallis to remove to Yorktown and surrender." Many died or were terribly wounded.

After the Revolutionary War, Captain Robert Bowen and Colonel John Gillespie, his brother-in-law, migrated with their families to George's Creek, Pendleton District, South Carolina which is now in Pickens County, S.C. In about 1805, Robert Bowen and his wife Mary moved to Hickman County, Tennessee.

 

Charles Bowen 1747-1834 On October 7, 1780 the foundation that would forever change the world was established. Fewer than one thousand American Heroes, through skill, luck, and the leadership of cunning strategists, defeated Patrick Ferguson, a brilliant star of the British military might. Charles Bowen was one of those Heroes.

 

His participation in the Battle of King's Mountain was documented in the "The Patriots at Kings Mountain" by Bobby Gilmer Moss which, along with "King's Mountain And Its Heroes: History Of The Battle Of King's Mountain, October 7th, 1780, And The Events Which Led To It" by Lyman Copeland Draper, Anthony Allaire, and Isaac Shelby, has long been recognized as the definitive listing of the participants.

Charles Bowen was the son of John Bowen and

Lillian Lily McIlhaney, DAR Ancestor Number A012714. Mrs. Bowen was awarded her own acknowledgement by the DAR, because she loaned money to the cause. Captain Bowen married Nancy Gillespie and they had a son, Charles, who married Susan Shell. There may have been other children: Charles is documented by the DAR.

State of Tennessee, Knox County: Personally appeared before me the undersigned, a justice of peace for the County of Knox in the State of Tennessee, Charles Bowen, who being duly sworn deposited and saith that, by reason of old age, and the consequent loss of memory, he cannot swear positively as to the precise length of his service but according to the best of his recollection he served not less than the periods mentioned below and in the following grades: for three months as a private soldier drafted: that he then volunteered for six months as a private soldier; he afterwards volunteered for three months and served as a private soldier; he again volunteered for six months and served as a private soldier; and again for the period of

three months he volunteered and served as a private soldier; and was again in the service as a volunteer for three months as a private soldier; and was in the Battle of Kings Mountain as stated in his declaration; he served some other short tours as a volunteer after the Tories but the periods he does not precisely recollect, so as to give any definite time to them. He further after obtaining his commission as Captain was out in service, he feels assured as a Captain for more than two years adding the different periods together. S/ Charles Bowen, X his mark Sworn to and subscribed before me the 12 November 1832. S/ Zach Boothe, J. P.

 Application for a Transfer State of Indiana, County of Putnam On this third day of February 1834 before me the subscriber, a Justice of the peace for the said County of Putnam, personally appeared, Charles Bowen, who on his oath declares that he is the same person who formerly belonged to the company commanded by Captain William Edmiston in the Regiment commanded by Colonel Campbell in the service of the United States; that his name was placed on the pension roll of the East Tennessee Agency in the State of Tennessee from whence he has lately removed; that he now resides in the State of Indiana where he intends to remain and wishes his pension to be there payable in the future. The following are his reasons for removing from Tennessee to Indiana, to wit, for the purpose of living in Indiana with his son who had previously emigrated to the State of Indiana. S/ Charles Bowen

 

Boan (Bowen), Capt. William was born in Virginia in 1742 and by age 35 had "accumulated quite a handsome estate." He fought in the Colonial Army of Virginia against the French and Indians, in the Battle of Point Pleasant on 10 October 1774, at Fort Randolph in 1775 and had been with Russell's Rangers when they helped relieve the besieged fort at Watauga. During the Revolutionary War he served in the cavalry protecting the frontiers in Virginia and Tennessee from the British, Indians, and Tories, At the end of the war he, with 15 other soldiers of the Continental army, traveled "all through Kentucky and the Cumberland country" prospecting for the best places to locate their land warrants. Captain Bowen claimed land in what is now Smith County, Tennessee "but the larger portion in Sumner County, about twelve miles from Nashville," where his family joined him in 1784. For two years they lived in a double log house and then built the first brick house west of the mountains. In good condition, it stands today in the Moss-Wright Park at Goodlettsville.28 His name appears on the 1787 military payroll.29 One "negro boy who is the possession of William Bowen" was sold to Andrew Jackson by George Augustus Sugg,30 and "William Bowen of Davidson County Metro sold unto Andrew Jackson a negro girl named Peg.

 

Captain William Bowen 1742-1804 married Mary Henley Russell from Virginia born in 1760 and died in 1827 in Gallatin, Tennessee. They had 15 children.

 

Mary Henley Russell’s father was Brigadier General William Washington Russell II. He was born in 1735 in Virginia and died in 1793 in Shenandoah, Virginia. He married Elizabeth Henry Campbell and then 2nd he married Tabitha Coates Adams. Between them two they had 34 children. He fought in the Revolutionary War for Virginia. He is also buried at Arlington National Cemetery.

 

 

 

            In 1773, Daniel Boone made arrangements with Captain William Russell of Castle's Wood in southwest Virginia to lead a group of settlers across the mountains into the rich lands of the Kentucky wilderness.  Boone's party, consisting of his family and closest friends, left their homes in the Yadkin Valley of North Carolina traveling to a predetermined point somewhere near Wallen's Ridge, in present day Lee County, Virginia.  Other parties were also preparing for the journey and all were to assemble there as one main body.

            From somewhere near present-day Abingdon, Virginia, Daniel Boone sent his eldest son, James, in his seventeenth year, and others on to Castle's Wood where they were to inform Captain Russell that Boone's party was en route.  While in Castle's Wood, James' party was to collect food, seed corn, and supplies for the journey.  About nine other young men joined James on the trip through Rye Cove and Kane's Gap towards the main rendezvous point.

            This party consisted of James Boone, John and Richard Mendenhall, Henry Russell (William Russell's son), Isaac Crabtree, Samuel Drake (son of John Drake) and two slaves named Charles and Adam.  Some reports indicate that two other, unidentified men may also have been included in the James Boone party.

            These young men camped for the night near Wallen's Creek, Virginia.  As morning broke on 10 October, they were attacked by Delaware, Shawnee and Cherokee Indians.  Only Isaac Crabtree and Adam escaped.  By early December, the attack was reported in newspapers as far away as Baltimore and Philadelphia.

 

Col. Henry Bowen represented Tazewell County in the House of Delegates 1802-1806 and was an officer in the war with Mexico." Jamie Ault Grady, Bowens of Virginia and Tennessee, Descendants of John Bowen and Lily McIlhaney.

 

William, b. 1742; was a Capt. in the VA militia and was to have led the Campbell rifleman on that fateful trip to Kings Mountain in S.C., in Aug of 1780. But due to illness, he was delayed and his older brother, famed Indian fighter, Lt. Rees Bowen took over for him. Historically, the Battle of King's Mountain, Oct. 7th, 1780 was the decisive battle that finally turned the tide for the fledgling nation. The description can be found in "King's Mountain, and it's Heroes" by Draper.

These wonderful mountain men of VA., fresh from their battles with Indians, dressed in buckskin, hair long, feather's on the ends of their rifles, came whooping and hollering with a combination of Indian War whoops and Highland battle cries that scared the daylights out of the British troops, waiting on King's mountain. They were routed so badly that they never did recoup.

Unfortunately, Lt. Rees Bowen was killed, William when hearing his brother was downed, went crazy, running to find his brother hoping that it was not too late. As he ran to where his brother had fallen, a sentry demanded the password of the day. William, so distraught, couldn't make sense of what the man was yelling and forgot the password. When they were about to shoot it out, an officer, recognizing William grabbed him, bringing him back to his senses. They hugged, grateful for not having to shoot each other, but distraught about his brother. When Rees was found, it was too late, he had died, the only son of 13 children to be lost in a battle fought in the Rev. War. Years before, while on patrol, his brother Moses Bowen, died of a simple flesh wound received in the field. It seems while washing wounds, it was done with river water that had not been boiled and he developed a fever from which he died in 1776.

Of a family of 13 children, 8 boys and 5 girls, all had made it to adulthood, only 2 were lost in wars fought settling the colonies. All eight sons served in the Militia, all were considered Revolutionary War heroes and are on the list as Patriot's for membership to the DAR and SAR. McIllhaney Bowen. During the War years, Lillian gave money, supplies and opened her home to the wounded. Lillian died just 2 months before her beloved son Rees, in 1780, in Washington CO., VA. Her son had been one of the first settlers in S.W.VA., and a founding father of Tazewell CO., VA. Rees's homestead, "Fort Maiden Spring's", which became "Maiden Spring's Farm" is still in existence and has had a "Rees Bowen" in residence for over 250 years. The homestead is located in the Upper Clinch Valley, Tazewell CO., VA. He left 8 small children upon his death. It's said that one of the reasons that William moved on was the crushing loss of his brother Rees. They were a remarkable close family and remain so to this day.

Rees BOWEN was the second white man who brought his family to make permanent residence in the Clinch Valley. Therefore, it is met that he and his family should be the second considered in the sketches I am writing of the pioneer families. The Tazewell BOWENs are of Celtic blood. Their immediate ancestor was Moses BOWEN, a Welshman, who married Rebecca Rees. They came from Wales to America a good many years before the Revolution, and settled in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. Their son John was a Quaker, and he married Lily McIlhaney. He and his wife moved from Pennsylvania to Augusta County, Virginia, soon after the first settlements were made in the Shenandoah Valley, perhaps as early as the year 1732, and located in that part of Augusta now embraced in the county of Rockbridge. They had twelve children and Rees was one of their five sons. He married Louisa Smith; whose parents then lived in that section of Augusta now known as Rockingham County. It is said that, after his marriage, he took up his abode on the Roanoke River close to where the city of Roanoke is now situated. In some way Rees BOWEN learned of the fertile lands and abundance of game that could be found in the Upper Clinch Valley; and he concluded to abandon his home on the Roanoke River and settle in this region, where he could locate and occupy, without cost, a large family in the vicinity of the great spring, to which he gave a peculiar name, he had not then selected the boundary of land upon which he would settle. After they went into camp, on the evening of the day he reached the place that has since been the home of the BOWENs, he went out to find and kill a deer to get a supply of fresh meat. While thus engaged he discovered the spring. Bickleythus tells of the discovery of the immense fountain and what followed: When Mr. BOWEN first saw the spring, he discovered a fine young female deer, feeding on the moss within the orifice from which gushes the spring. He shot it, and when he went to get his deer, saw a pair of elk horns standing on their points, and leaning against the rocks. Mr. BOWEN was a very large and tall man, yet he had no difficulty in walking upright under the horns. He chose this place for his, and the spring and river have since been known as Maiden Spring and Fork. The first four years after he and his family located at Maiden Spring were free from any hostile demonstrations by the Indians against the Clinch settlements. He was possessed of great physical strength and was very industrious, and in the four years he erected a large and strong log house, extended his clearings into the forests, and added considerably to the number of horses and cattle he brought with him from his home in Roanoke. Then came trouble with the Ohio Indians, in 1773, when the whole frontier of Virginia was threatened by the red man; and Rees BOWEN built a heavy stockade around his dwelling, converting it into an excellent neighborhood fort. In the meantime, his four brothers, John, Arthur, William, and Moses moved out from Augusta to find homes in the country west of New River. John settled at some point in the Holston Valley; Arthur located in the present Smyth County, four miles west of Marion; and William and Moses took up their abode in the Clinch Valley, but in what immediate locality is now unknown. When Dunmore's War came on the three brothers, Rees, William, and Moses went with Captain William Russell's company on the Lewis expedition to the mouth of the Kanawha River; and were prominent figures in the eventful battle of Point Pleasant. Moses BOWEN was then only twenty years old; and on the return march from the Kanawha, he was stricken with smallpox, from which frightful malady he died in the wilderness.

Rees (all documents of the time spelled it that way), was the son of John BOWEN and Lily Mcilhaney who spent most of their lives in Augusta Co, VA. Rees' grandparents were Moses BOWEN and Rebecca REES (originally spelled Rhys) who came from Wales to Gwynedd township, Chester Co, PA (near Philadelphia) in 1698 and purchased 10,000 acres. Rees BOWEN (I've never seen the name Hugh) was born in 1737 in Augusta Co, VA and died at the Battle of Kings Mountain in North Carolina, in 1780. About eight years prior to his death, Rees and Levisa, as she was commonly called, purchased a large tract of land in what is today Tazewell Co, VA and many of their descendants have remained there. That same land and the original house they built, with many additions through the years, is today owned by Rees BOWEN VII. Levisa Smith BOWEN lived to a very old age, reared her children as a widow, and was known for her courage, leadership, and strong business abilities. Margaret's family came to this country during the 1600's and that her lineage qualifies for membership in the Colonial Dames.

 

Lt. Rees Bowen, born 1737 in Rockingham County, Virginia, died October 7, 1780, in the Battle of King's Mountain. He was married in 1756 to Margaret Louisa Smith (1740-1834), daughter of Capt. John Smith.

 

Lt. Rees Bowen was one of the first settlers in Tazewell County, located at Maiden Spring about 1772. He and Louisa had 8 children.

 

Died at the Battle of King's Mountain in 1780 during the Revolutionary War.

 

A Patriot of the American Revolution for VIRGINIA with the rank of LIEUTENANT. DAR Ancestor #: A012723

 

In 1772 Rees built a blockhouse on his place "Maiden Spring" for a refuge. This blockhouse was also known as Bowen's Fort. He was in the Battle of Point Pleasant and went on to the relief of the Kentucky stations in 1778. Rees was known for his Herculean strength and great activity. Once a man named Fork, from Pennsylvania, who had a reputation of being a tremendous physical fighter came to Maiden Spring just to whip him. They fought for almost a day and Fork was defeated and died in about 20 days.

 

Revolutionary War Service

Rees was a Lieutenant under his brother Capt. William Bowen. Because his brother was ill, Rees took command under Major William Edmondson and Col. William Campbell and was killed at the Battle of Kings Mountain. According to The Kings Mountain Men by K.K. White, Rees had five brothers at the Battle of Kings Mountain. These being Capt. William Bowen, Capt. Arthur Bowen, Robert and Henry who were both officers and Charles, rank unknown. Rees' son John was at the battle also.

Death at the Battle of Kings Mountain

Near the end of the battle on Oct 7, 1780 Lieutenant Rees Bowen, who commanded one of the companies of the Virginia regiment was observed while marching forward to attack the enemy, to make a hazardous and unnecessary exposure of his person. Some friend kindly remonstrated him with - "Why Bowen, do you not take a tree--why rashly present yourself to the deliberate aim of the Provincial and Tory rifleman, concealed behind every rock and bush before you? -- death will inevitably follow if you persist." "Take to a tree, he indigently replied--no! --never shall it be said, that I sought safety by hiding my person, or dodging from a Briton or Tory who opposed me in the field." Well, had it been for him and his country, had he been more prudent, and, as his superiors had advised, taken shelter whenever it could be found, for he had scarcely concluded his brave utterance, when a rifle ball, shot by a Tory hiding behind a baggage wagon, struck him in the breast. He fell and expired. A “Tory” was an American colonist that remained loyal to England during the Revolutionary War.

The first three generations of the Bowen Family of Augusta Co., Virginia by John Blakemore 1963

BOWEN, LIEUTENANT REES son of John Bowen and Lilly McIlhaney Bowen. Born about 1742. Married Levisa (Louisa) Smith. Issue: John, Rees Jr., Nancy, Margaret (Peggy), Rebecca, Lilly, Louisa, and Henry. He was a large tall man, On 15 Nov 1762 Lillie Bowen (Bowan), deeded to Reece (Rees) Bowen (Bowen) 230 acres on Glade Creek of Roanoke River, Augusta Co, Va. DB 11-42.

On 20 Sep 1763 in the settlement of Lilly Bowen, administrator of the estate of Moses Bowen, he was listed as having been paid. WB 3-278 In 1766 he was paid by William Herbert for the estate of Robert Andrews. WB 4-70 On 10 Sep 1770, in Botetourt Co, Va. he served as a juryman in the case of William Hind v. Nicholas Lawrence. SA94 On 14 Nov 1770 he was a juryman in the case of William Hind v. William Fleming. SA100 On 16 Nov 1770 he was a juryman in the case of Robert Alexander v. William McCraddock. SA102 On 13 Mar 1771 he was a juryman in the case of John Kelly v. Arthur Campbell. SA108 On 14 Mar 1771 he was a juryman in the case of William Anderson v. John Daily. SA125 On 16 May 1771 he was a juryman in the case of Solomon Elliott v. Will Thornton. SA 125 On 8 Oct 1771 he was a juryman in the case of Robert Galloway v. John English. SA134 On 10 Oct 1771 he was a juryman in the case of James Matthews v. Walter Stewart SA 136 On 13 Nov 1771 a suit by Israel Christian v. He was tried by jury with a verdict for the defendant. He was a juryman in the case of Jonathan Smith v. William Hutchinson. SA 142, 144 On 15 Nov 1771 he was a juryman in the case of Anthony Bledsoe v. Charles Leonard. SA147 On 11 Feb 1772 he was a witness to the will of Joseph Phipps.WB A-18? SA585 It is stated by Bickley, Tazewell County, that he settled at Maiden Spring in 1772, but it is a family tradition that he had located there several years earlier. Draper in Kings Mountain and its Heroes wrote "Rees Bowen was born in Maryland about 1742, emigrated to Rockbridge County, Va. and in 1769 to the waters of the Clinch". His jury service would indicate that he did not go to the waters of the Clinch to settle until 1772. He built a fort at Maiden Spring. (Pendleton 242, 376). No attack by Indians was made on the fort at Maiden Spring, although on one occasion in his absence a small band of Shawnee threatened to make an assault, but were prevented from doing so by a clever ruse practiced by Mrs. Bowen, who was as fearless and resourceful as her husband.  On 13 May 1774 he and his wife, Lavinia, executed a deed to Thomas Blanton for 238 acres on Glade Creek, branch of Roanoke, Botetourt County, Va. (SA 551). In August 1774 he was a scout at the Upper Station (Tazewell County, Va.) (Pendleton 288) SA1425 from 16 Aug to 2 1774 he was a soldier at his fort at Maiden Spring. (Pendleton 286) He was released to go with Capt. William Russel to Point Pleasant (Pendleton 287). On 10 Oct 1774 he was at the Battle of Point Pleasant (Pendleton 314). On 7 Feb 1775 he was appointed by the Fincastle County Court, Va. as an appraiser of the estate of Joseph Cravens SA637. On 26 Feb 1777 he was recommended by the Washington County Court, Va. to be appointed Ensign of the Militia, with his first name being spelled "Rice '' OB 1-17 SA 958. On 30 Sep 1777 he, David Ward, and William Bowen were appointed appraisers of the estate of John Henry SA 971. On 17 Mar 1778 he, James Hill, and Andrew Lammy (Lamie) were appointed to view the way for a road from the CourtHouse to the Rich Lands, by Maiden Spring, and to the gap at Laurel Fork of the North Fork of the Holston River OB 1-12. On 18 Mar 1778 James Fowler was appointed overseer of the road from Hill's hill in the Rich Lands of Clinch, to the fork of the path between Rice (Rees) Bowen's (Bowen's) and Thomas Brumlie's to the foot of Clinch Mountain on the south side OB 1-24 SA 980. William Bowen to be overseer for the last part of the above road. On 19 Aug 1778 he was again recommended to be appointed Ensign of the Militia OB 1-40 SA 1001. On 4 Sep 1780 he was named in the will of Lilly Bowen as her child and legatee. WB 1-73 SA1345. The gallant Lieutenant Rees Bowen, with his Company (the Company of his brother William) of sterling patriots marched with Campbell to the Battle of Kings Mountain Pendleton 247. He was killed in that battle 7 Oct 1780 SA 1382 1583 Pendleton 247, 383, 384.

Excerpts from Bowens of Virginia and Tennessee Vol I Rees Bowen first settled at Big Lick, now Roanoke, Va. He was the second white man who brought his family to make permanent residence in the Clinch Valley. The first settler was John Craven. He learned of the fertile lands and abundance of game to be found in the upper Clinch Valley, so he decided to abandon his home on the Roanoke River and settle in the area of nearly level land containing about 15 square miles, fertile, well timbered and watered. He could locate and occupy, without cost, a large boundary of this unoccupied land. On the evening of the first day in camp after they reached the place that has since been the home of the Bowens, Rees Bowen went out to find and kill a deer to get a supply of fresh meat. It was on this occasion he discovered the spring. He also saw a fine young deer feeding on the moss within the orifice from which gushes the spring. He shot it and when he went to get the deer, saw a pair of elk horns standing on their points and leaning against the rocks. Mr. Bowen was a very large man and tall yet had no difficulty in walking upright under the horns. He chose this place for his home and the spring and river have since been known as Maiden Spring and Fork. (Bickley's History of Tazewell County, Va. 1856) The pioneer Rees Bowen was a man of large physique, a trait still evident in his scions. "Louisa (Levisa) Smith, his wife, was a small, neat, and trim woman, weighing only about one hundred pounds. It is told as a fact that she could step into her husband's hand and that he could stand and extend his arm, holding her at right angle to his body" (Johnson's New River Settlements Pages 383) " A great deal of Tazewell lands remain in the hands of families who pioneered in founding such estates, but none have perpetuated title in the same name for five generations as have the owners of Rees Bowen's Maiden Spring farm. Excerpts from Bowens of Virginia and Tennessee Vol 2 "Rebecca [Ed. sister of Rees Bowen] named one of her sons Jonathan who used to beg her to tell them about Uncle Reece and how he killed a boar. "I had two brothers traveling with Daniel Boone at one time or another. Reece and William, but it was your uncle Reece who killed the boar. He crushed it against his chest."

 

 

Lt. Rees Bowen and wife, Levisa Smith, were said to be the second white family on the frontier in SW Virginia in 1772. Their old home place still stands today in Tazewell Co, VA. He was the oldest son of John Bowen and Lily McIlhaney. Rees was killed in the Battle of King's Mountain.

Notes for Rees Bowen: Source: Pendleton's History of Tazewell County, Virginia. Rees married Louisa Smith; whose parents then lived in that section of Augusta now known as Rockingham County. It is said that, after his marriage, he took up his abode on the Roanoke River close to where the city of Roanoke is now situated. In some way Rees Bowen learned of the fertile lands and abundance of game that could be found in the Upper Clinch Valley; and he concluded to abandon his home on the Roanoke River and settle in this region, where he could locate and occupy, without cost, a large boundary of fine unoccupied land. It is known from tradition that when he arrived with his family in the vicinity of the great spring, to which he gave a peculiar name, he had not then selected the boundary of land upon which he would settle. After they went into camp, on the evening of the day he reached the place that has since been the home of the Bowens, he went out to find and kill a deer to get a supply of fresh meat. While thus engaged he discovered the spring. Bickley thus tells of the discovery of the immense fountain and what followed: "When Mr. Bowen first saw the spring, he discovered a fine young female deer, feeding on the moss within the orifice from which gushes the spring. He shot it, and when he went to get his deer, saw a pair of elk horns standing on their points, and leaning against the rocks. Mr. Bowen was a very large and tall man, yet he had no difficulty in walking upright under the horns. He chose this place for his, and the spring and river have since been known as Maiden Spring and Fork." The first four years after he and his family located at Maiden Spring were free from any hostile demonstrations by the Indians against the Clinch settlements. he was possessed of great physical strength and was very industrious, and in the four years he erected a large and strong log house, extended his clearings into the forests and added considerably to the number of horses and cattle he brought with him from his home on the Roanoke. Then came trouble with the Ohio Indians, in 1773, when the whole frontier of Virginia was threatened by the red men; and Rees Bowen built a heavy stockade around his dwelling, converting it into an excellent neighborhood fort. In the meantime, his four brothers, John, Arthur, William and Moses had moved out from Augusta to find homes in the country west of New River. When Dunmore's War came on the three brothers, Rees, William and Moses, went with Captain William Russell's company on the Lewis expedition to the mouth of the Kanawha River; and were prominent figures in the eventful battle at Point Pleasant. Moses Bowen was then only twenty years old; and on the return march from the Kanawha he was stricken with smallpox, from which frightful malady he died in the wilderness. After his return from Point Pleasant, for two years Rees Bowen, like all the pioneer settlers, was actively engaged in clearing up fields from the forest and increasing the comforts of his new home. While thus occupied the war between the colonies and Great Britain began; and the British Government turned the Western Indians loose on the Virginia frontiers. This caused the organization of a company of militia, expert Indian fighters, in the Clinch Valley. The two Bowen brothers were members of the company, William being captain, and Rees, Lieutenant. This company, composed of pioneers, did effective service for the protection of the settlers in the Clinch and the Holston valleys. When Colonels Shelby and Sevier, in the fall of 1780, appealed to Colonel William Campbell to join them in the expedition to King's Mountain, with a volunteer force from Washington County, Virginia, the company from Clinch Valley volunteered to go. Owing to illness from a serious attack of fever, Captain William Bowen was unable to lead his men on the expedition, and the command of the company devolved upon Lieutenant Rees Bowen. He marched with his company and joined Campbell at Wolf Hill (now Abington), and thence on to the Carolinas, and gave his life for American freedom, while leading his men in the memorable battle at King's Mountain.

WILLIAM CAMPBELL AND THE BATTLE OF KINGS MOUNTAIN It is beyond the scope of this narrative to discuss the Battle of Kings Mountain in any great detail. The noted military historian, Henry Lumpkin, gives a very good and objective account of the battle in his book From Savannah to Yorktown, at pages 91-104. The official report of the engagement, signed by Colonels Campbell, Shelby and Cleveland, was published in the Virginia Gazette on 18 November 1780 and was included in Lyman C. Draper's book Kings Mountain and Its Heroes, at pages 522-524. Prior to issuance of this official report, a shorter account had already been made in a letter written by the American commander, Colonel William Campbell, a few days after the battle. A transcript of Colonel Campbell's letter is as follows:

"October 25th, 1780

"Dear Sir, "Ferguson and his party are no more in circumstances to require the citizens of America. We came up with him in Craven County, South Carolina posted on a height called Kings Mountain, about 12 miles north of the Cherokee ford of broad River, about two o'clock in the evening of the seventh instant, we had marched the whole night before. Col. Shelby's regiment and mine began the attack & sustained the whole fire of the enemy for about ten minutes while the other troops were forming around the height, upon which the enemy was posted. The firing then became general, & as heavy as you can conceive for the number of men. The advantageous situation of the enemy, being on the top of a steep ridge, obliged us to expose ourselves exceedingly, and the dislodging of them was equal to driving men from strong breastworks; though in the end we gained the point of the ridge where my regiment fought, and drove them along the summit of it nearly to the other end, where Col. Cleveland and his country men were. Then they were driven into a huddle, and the greatest confusion; the flag for a surrender was immediately hoisted, and as soon as our troops could be notified of it, the firing ceased, and the survivors surrendered. The estimated prisoners at discretion. The victory was complete to a wish. My regiment has suffered more than any other in the action. I must proceed with the prisoners until I can in some way dispose of them, probably I may go on to Richmond in Virginia.

"I am etc.

"/S/ Wm Campbell, Col. Cdr."

________________________________________A History of The Middle New River Settlements and Contiguous Territory. By David E. Johnston (1906)

The Bowens, of Tazewell. This family is of Welch extraction, and the immediate ancestors of those that came hither were, long prior to the American Revolution, located and settled about Fredericktown, in western Maryland. Restive in disposition and fond of adventure, like all of their blood, they sought, fairly early after the first white settlements were made in the Valley of Virginia, to look for homes in that direction. How early, or the exact date, that Reece Bowen, the progenitor of the Tazewell family of that name, came in to the Virginia Valley from his western Maryland home, cannot be named with certainty; doubtless he came as early as 1765, for it is known that for a few years prior to 1772, when he located at Maiden Spring, he was living on the Roanoke River, close by where the city of Roanoke is now situated, then in Augusta County, he married Miss Louisa Smith, who proved to him not only a loving and faithful wife, but a great help meet in his border life. She was evidently a woman of more than ordinary intelligence and cultivation for one of her days and opportunity. She was a small, neat and trim woman, weighing only about one hundred pounds, while her husband was a giant in size and strength. It is told as a fact that she could step into her husband's hand and that he could stand and extend his arm, holding her at the right angle to his body. Prize fighting was quite common in the early days of the settlements, by which men tested their manhood and prowess. The man who could demolish all who chose to undertake him was the champion, and wore the belt until some man flogged him, and then he had to surrender it. At some period after Reece Bowen had settled on the Roanoke, and after the first child came into the home, Mrs. Bowen desiring to pay a visit to her people in the Valley, she and her babe and husband set out on horse-back along the narrow bridle way that then led through the valley, and on the way they met a man clad in the usual garb of the day--that is , buck-skin trousers, moccasins, and hunting shirt, or wampums. The stranger inquired of Mr. Bowen his name, which he gave him; proposed a fight for the belt. Bowen tried to beg off, stating that he was taking his wife and child, the latter then in his arms, to her people. The man would take no excuse; finally, Mrs. Bowen said to her husband; "Reece, give me the child and get down and slap that man's jaws." Mr. Bowen alighted from his horse, took the man by the lapel of his hunting shirt, gave him a few quick, heavy jerks, when the man called out to let him go, he had enough. It is also related of Mr. Bowen, that in a later prize fight, at Maiden Spring, with a celebrated prize fighter who had, with his seconds, come from South Carolina to fight Bowen, and when he reached Bowen's home and made known to him his business, he, Mr. Bowen, did what he could in an honorable way to excuse himself from engaging in a fight; but the man was persistent and Bowen concluded to accommodate him and sent for his seconds--a Mr. Smith and a Mr. Clendenin. The fight took place and the gentleman from South Carolina came off second best. Just when Reece Bowen first saw the territory of what Tazewell County is now cannot be definitely stated. Whether he was one of the large hunting party organized of men from the Virginia Valley, North Carolina and New River, which rendezvoused at Ingles' Ferry in June, 1769, and hunted on the waters of the Holstein, Powell's River, Clinch, and in Kentucky, is not known; his name does not appear among the number, but the writer, "Haywood's Civil and Political History of Tennessee," does not profess to give all the names of the party. Nevertheless, it is highly probable that Bowen was alone, or he may have gone out with the party the next year, or he may have met with the Witten's, and others, on their way out in 1771, and joined them. He seems not to have made his settlement at Maiden Spring until the year of 1772. He went with Captain William Russell's company to the battle of Point Pleasant, in 1774, leaving home in August of that year, and leaving Daniel Boone in command of that part of the frontier. As already stated in this volume, Boone had been forced to give up his journey to Kentucky in September, 1773, on account of the breaking out of the Indian War, and had spent the winter of 1773-4 in the neighborhood of Captain William Russell, near Castlewoods. Captain Russell's company belonged to Colonel William Christian's Fincastle Regiment, the greater part of which did not participate in the battle of Point Pleasant, being in the rear in charge of the pack horses carrying provisions for the army; but Shelby's and Russell's companies went forward with the main body and took an active part in the conflict. Moses Bowen, a relative of Reece, was with Russell's company, but died on the journey, from smallpox. From 1774 to 1781, when Reece Bowen marched away to the battle of King's Mountain, the border on and along the Clinch was harassed by bands of marauding Indians, and in many of the skirmishes and troubles Reece Bowen took a hand. During the period from the date of Bowen's settlement at Maiden Spring until his death, to procure salt, iron, and other necessary materials he had to travel across the mountains to Salisbury, North Carolina, carrying them on a packhorse, and would be absent for weeks, leaving his wife and children alone. His trips, however, were always made in winter, when there was no danger from the Indians. He left rifle guns and bear dogs at home, and with these his wife felt safe from danger, for she was a good shot with a rifle, often exceeding the men in ordinary rifle practice. Mr. Bowen had selected a lovely country for his home, and around and adjacent thereto, prior to the fall of 1780, had surveyed and secured several thousand acres of that valuable land, of which his descendants today hold about twelve square miles. When it was known that Lord Cornwallis' Army was marching northward through the Carolinas, and that Colonel Ferguson, who commanded the left wing of his Army, had sent a threat to the "Over Mountain Men" that if they did not cross the mountains and take the oath of allegiance to the King, that he would cross over and destroy with fire and sword, Evan Shelby, John Sevier, and William Campbell determined to checkmate Colonel Ferguson by crossing the mountains and destroying him and his army. Colonel Campbell commanded the Washington County Military Force, and William Bowen a company that belonged to Campbell's Command, though a part of his company lived on the Montgomery County side of the line. In this company Reece Bowen was a First Lieutenant, his son John a Private, and James Moore a Junior Lieutenant. When the order came for Bowen's company to join the regiment it found its Captain, William Bowen, sick of a fever, and this situation devolved the command of the company upon Lieutenant Reece Bowen, who led it into the battle of King's Mountain, and there, together with several of his men, was killed and buried on the field. His remains were never removed, for the reason that when opportunity was offered for their removal the spot in which he was buried could not be identified. Campbell's Regiment lost in this battle 35 killed and wounded; among the killed, other than Lieutenant Reece Bowen, were Captain William Edmondson, Robert Edmondson, Andrew Edmondson, and Henry Henninger, and among the wounded, Charles Kilgore and John Peery, the two latter and Henninger from the Upper Clinch Waters. Reece Bowen has in Tazewell County many highly respected, prominent and influential descendants, among them Mr. Reece Bowen, Colonel Thomas P. Bowen and Captain Henry Bowen, all brave and distinguished Confederate Soldiers; the latter, Captain Henry, being frequently honored by his people as a member of the Legislature of Virginia, and a Representative in Congress. The present Mr. Reece Bowen married Miss Mary Crockett, of Wythe; Colonel Thomas P., Miss Augusta Stuart, of Greenbrier, and Captain Henry, Miss Louisa Gillespie, of Tazewell.

Children of Rees Bowen and Margaret Louisa Smith are: John Bowen, d. date unknown. Rees Bowen, d. date unknown. Margaret Bowen, d. date unknown. Rebecca Bowen, d. date unknown. Lily Bowen, d. date unknown. Louisa Bowen, d. date unknown. Henry Bowen, d. date unknown. Nancy Bowen, b. 1778, Augusta, Virginia, d. October 8, 1835, Arkansas Among those of the Bowens who fought as officers in the War of the Revolution were Quartermaster-General Ephraim of Rhode Island, Captain Oliver of Georgia, Captain Prentice of New York, Captain Seth of New Jersey, Captain Thomas Bartholomew of Pennsylvania, and Lieutenants John and Reece of Virginia.

May/June 2009 issue of the D.A.R. Magazine: "Fort Maiden Spring Chapter, Tazewell, VA, joined the Clinch Mountain Militia Chapter, S.A.R. for a memorial dedication for Patriots Rees Bowen and Thomas Gillespie. The celebration was of great interest to the chapter because its namesake, Fort Maiden Spring, was the home of Rees Bowen. Bowen settled in the town in 1769 and led the local militia to the Battle of King's Mountain. There he died and was buried. After the battle, Thomas Gillespie married Bowen's daughter, Margaret." "The S.A.R. and government markers were placed in the cemetery at the Bowen home. The Bowen and Gillespie families were both well represented at the event. The two families have remained close through the years, and this event renewed those ties."

 

Additional Account of King's Mountain Battle: Rees Bowen Birth: 1750 Virginia, USA Death: Oct. 7, 1780 A Statement of the proceedings of the Western Army, from the 25th of September 1780, to the reduction of Major Ferguson, and the army under his command. On receiving intelligence that Major Ferguson had advanced as high up as Gilbert Town, in Rutherford county, and threatened to cross the mountains to the Western waters, Col. William Campbell, with four hundred men from Washington county, of Virginia; Col. Isaac Shelby with two hundred and forty men from Sullivan county, North-Carolina, and Lieutenant-Col. John Sevier, with two hundred and forty men from Washington county, North-Carolina, assembled at Watauga on the 25th of September, where they were joined by Col. Charles McDowell, with one hundred and sixty men from the counties of Burke and Rutherford, who had fled before the enemy to the Western waters. We began our march on the 26th, and on the 30th, we were joined by Col. Cleveland, on the Catawba River, with three hundred and fifty men from the counties of Wilkes and Surry. No one officer having properly a right to the command-in-chief, on the 1st of October, we dispatched an express to Major General Gates, informing him of our situation, and requested him to send a general officer to take command of the whole. In the meantime, Col. Campbell was chosen to act as commandant till such a general officer should arrive. We reached the Cowpens, on the Broad River, in South Carolina, where we were joined by Col. James Williams, on the evening of the 6th October, who informed us that the enemy lay encamped somewhere near the Cherokee Ford of Broad River, about thirty miles distant from us. By a council of the principal officers, it was then thought advisable to pursue the enemy that night with nine hundred of the best horsemen and leave the weak horses and footmen to follow as fast as possible. We began our march with nine hundred of the best men about eight o'clock the same evening, marched all night, and came up with the enemy about three o'clock P.M. of the 7th, who lay encamped on the top of King's Mountain, twelve miles north of the Cherokee Ford, in the confidence they could not be forced from so advantageous a post. Previous to the attack, in our march the following disposition was made: Col. Shelby's regiment formed a column in the Centre on the left; Col. Campbell's another on the right; part of Col. Cleveland's regiment, headed by Major Winston and Col. Sevier's, formed a large column on the right wing; the other part of Col. Cleveland's regiment composed the left wing. In this order we advanced and got within a quarter of a mile of the enemy before we were discovered. Col. Shelby's and Colonel Campbell's regiments began the attack and kept up a fire on the enemy while the right and left wings were advancing forward to surround them. The engagement lasted an hour and five minutes, the greatest part of which time a heavy and incessant fire was kept up on both sides. Our men in some parts where the regulars fought, were obliged to give way a small distance two or three times, but rallied and returned with additional ardor to the attack, and kept up a fire on the enemy while the right and left wings were advancing forward to surround them. The engagement lasted an hour and five minutes, the greatest part of which time a heavy and incessant fire was kept up on both sides. Our men in some parts where the regulars fought, were obliged to give way a small distance two or three times but rallied and returned with additional ardor to the attack. The troops upon the right having gained the summit of the eminence, obliged the enemy to retreat along the top of the ridge where Col. Cleveland commanded, and were there stopped by his brave men. A flag was immediately hoisted by Captain Dupoister, the commanding officer, (Major Ferguson having been killed a little before,) for a surrender. Our fire immediately ceased, and the enemy laid down their arms--the greater part of them loaded--and surrendered themselves to us prisoners at discretion. It appears from their own provision returns for that day, found in their camp, that their whole force consisted of eleven hundred and twenty-five men, out of which they sustained the following loss:--Of the regulars, one Major, one captain, two lieutenants and fifteen privates killed, thirty-five privates wounded. Left on the ground, not able to march, two captains, four lieutenants, three ensigns, one surgeon, five sergeants; three corporals, one drummer and fifty-nine privates taken prisoners. Loss of the Tories, two colonels, three captains, and two hundred and one privates killed; one Major and one hundred and twenty-seven privates wounded and left on the ground not able to march; one colonel, twelve captains, eleven lieutenants, two ensigns, one quarter-master, one adjutant, two commissaries, eighteen sergeants and six hundred privates taken prisoners. Total loss of the enemy, eleven hundred and five men at King's Mountain. 3

Given under our hands at camp, WILLIAM CAMPBELL, ISAAC SHELBY, BENJAMIN CLEVELAND

The loss on our side--

Killed—1 colonel, Wounded—1 Major, 1 Major, 3 captains, 1 captain, 3 lieutenants, 2 lieutenants 55 privates 4 ensigns, 19 privates 62 total wounded.  28 total killed.

 

Rees Bowen's home place on Maiden Spring History for Historic Register: Bowen Birth: 1750 (sic) Virginia, USA Death: Oct. 7, 1780 A Statement of the proceedings of the Western Army, from the 25th of September, 1780, to the reduction of Major Ferguson, and the army under his command. On receiving intelligence that Major Ferguson had advanced as high up as Gilbert Town, in Rutherford county, and threatened to cross the mountains to the Western waters, Col. William Campbell, with four hundred men from Washington county, of Virginia; Col. Isaac Shelby with two hundred and forty men from Sullivan county, North-Carolina, and Lieutenant-Col. John Sevier, with two hundred and forty men from Washington county, North-Carolina, assembled at Watauga on the 25th of September, where they were joined by Col. Charles McDowell, with one hundred and sixty men from the counties of Burke and Rutherford, who had fled before the enemy to the Western waters. We began our march on the 26th, and on the 30th, we were joined by Col. Cleveland, on the Catawba River, with three hundred and fifty men from the counties of Wilkes and Surry. No one officer having properly a right to the command-in-chief, on the 1st of October, we dispatched an express to Major General Gates, informing him of our situation, and requested him to send a general officer to take command of the whole. In the meantime, Col. Campbell was chosen to act as commandant till such a general officer should arrive. We reached the Cowpens, on the Broad River, in South Carolina, where we were joined by Col. James Williams, on the evening of the 6th October, who informed us that the enemy lay encamped somewhere near the Cherokee Ford of Broad River, about thirty miles distant from us. By a council of the principal officers, it was then thought advisable to pursue the enemy that night with nine hundred of the best horsemen and leave the weak horses and footmen to follow as fast as possible. We began our march with nine hundred of the best men about eight o'clock the same evening, marched all night, and came up with the enemy about three o'clock P.M. of the 7th, who lay encamped on the top of King's Mountain, twelve miles north of the Cherokee Ford, in the confidence they could not be forced from so advantageous a post. Previous to the attack, in our march the following disposition was made: Col. Shelby's regiment formed a column in the Centre on the left; Col. Campbell's another on the right; part of Col. Cleveland's regiment, headed by Major Winston and Col. Sevier's, formed a large column on the right wing; the other part of Col. Cleveland's regiment composed the left wing. In this order we advanced and got within a quarter of a mile of the enemy before we were discovered. Col. Shelby's and Colonel Campbell's regiments began the attack and kept up a fire on the enemy while the right and left wings were advancing forward to surround them. The engagement lasted an hour and five minutes, the greatest part of which time a heavy and incessant fire was kept up on both sides. Our men in some parts where the regulars fought, were obliged to give way a small distance two or three times, but rallied and returned with additional ardor to the attack, and kept up a fire on the enemy while the right and left wings were advancing forward to surround them. The engagement lasted an hour and five minutes, the greatest part of which time a heavy and incessant fire was kept up on both sides. Our men in some parts where the regulars fought, were obliged to give way a small distance two or three times but rallied and returned with additional ardor to the attack. The troops upon the right having gained the summit of the eminence, obliged the enemy to retreat along the top of the ridge where Col. Cleveland commanded, and were there stopped by his brave men. A flag was immediately hoisted by Captain Dupoister, the commanding officer, (Major Ferguson having been killed a little before,) for a surrender. Our fire immediately ceased, and the enemy laid down their arms--the greater part of them loaded--and surrendered themselves to us prisoners at discretion. It appears from their own provision returns for that day, found in their camp, that their whole force consisted of eleven hundred and twenty-five men, out of which they sustained the following loss:--Of the regulars, one Major, one captain, two lieutenants and fifteen privates killed, thirty-five privates wounded. Left on the ground, not able to march, two captains, four lieutenants, three ensigns, one surgeon, five sergeants; three corporals, one drummer and fifty-nine privates taken prisoners. Loss of the Tories, two colonels, three captains, and two hundred and one privates killed; one Major and one hundred and twenty-seven privates wounded and left on the ground not able to march; one colonel, twelve captains, eleven lieutenants, two ensigns, one quarter-master, one adjutant, two commissaries, eighteen sergeants and six hundred privates taken prisoners. Total loss of the enemy, eleven hundred and five men at King's Mountain. 3

Given under our hands at camp, WILLIAM CAMPBELL, ISAAC SHELBY, BENJAMIN CLEVELAND

The loss on our side--

Killed—1 colonel, Wounded—1 Major, 1 Major, 3 captains, 1 captain, 3 lieutenants, 2 lieutenants 55 privates 4 ensigns

 

Reese Tate Bowen 1809-1879 2nd cousin 5x removed went on to become a Brigadier General in 1856. Also represented Tazewell County, Virginia House of Delegates in 1863-1864. He was also elected Conservative Party to represent the 90th District in the 43rd Congress.

 

Dr Charles Urquhart Gravatt 1849-1922

State Senator in Virginia, US Navy Surgeon, made Rank of Rear Admiral US Navy.

 

John J Gravatt 1854-1925 Protestant Episcopal Church Clerical

 

William Loyall Gravatt 1858-1942 Bishop at the West Virginia Episcopal Diocese for 54 years.

 

 

 

 

Colonel John Amber 1762-1836

During the war John Ambler remained at "The Cottage," in Hanover County, Virginia. He went to school in the neighborhood to a man named Bates.

 

When the Revolutionary War closed, in which he had acted the part of a boy warrior, young John Ambler found himself of age and one of the richest men in the State of Virginia. Without ever being in debt to any amount, he owned the following estates:

1. Jamestown, in County of James City.

2. Maine, in County of James City.

3. Powhatan, in the County of James City.

4. An Estate, in the County of Surry.

5. Westham, in the County of Henrico.

6. Cottages, in the County of Hanover.

7. Mill Farm, in the County of Louisa.

8. Lakeland, in the County of Louisa.

9. Nero's -, in the County of Louisa.

10. Glen-Ambler, in the County of Amherst.

11. Saint Moore, in the County of Amherst.

12. Estate -, in the County of Frederick.

13. 1,015 acres of land, in Piedmont Manor.

14. 10,000 acres, in the Manor of Leeds.

15. Several lots, in the Town of Little York.

16. Several lots, in the Town of Manchester.

17. Several lots, in the Town of Richmond.

18. The Mill tract, in the County of Henrico.

19. Stock in the Bank of Virginia.

20. Stock in the Farmers' Bank of Virginia.

21. Stock in the Farmers' Bank of the United States.

22. Stock in the Dismal Swamp Canal.

23. Stock in the Richmond Dock.

24. 5,000 acres of land, in Mason County.

 

Col. John Ambler put his affairs in order, placed an overseer on each estate and employed a steward to superintend the whole. Before he was of age, John Ambler was elected to represent James City County, in the Legislature. He became the commander of a troop of cavalry in James City, which consisted of eighty men and was at the time the finest in the State. He took great pride in this company and presented it with an elegant banner.

 

When he removed to Richmond to live in 1807, he was made major in the 19th Regiment of Virginia Militia. And with this rank surrounded the troops who were sent to Norfolk in what was called the Chesapeake War, caused by British ships of war firing in the frigate Chesapeake and forcibly taking out some of her crew.

 

On his return he was promoted to the rank of Colonel of 19th Regiment-and in this rank he served through the War of 1812. He was stationed at Camp Bottoms Bridge about fifteen miles below Richmond on the road leading to the old City of Williamsburg, Virginia. His headquarters were at what has since been known as Frazer's Tavern. His usual style of traveling was in a "Coach and Four," with a gig and outriders. There is a most accurate portrait of John Ambler, which has the merit of being both a good likeness and a good painting, and from which is copied the engraving given on the opposite page. There is also an admirable portrait of the third Mrs. Ambler. The first of these portraits was painted by Petticolas and the last by King.

 

Col. Ambler's friends and associates were: Judge St. George Tucker, native of Bermuda’s, d. 1827; William Coleman, of Williamsburg; Wilson Miles Cary; Bishop James Madison; Col. Burwell Bassett; Dr. Philip Bernard, of Norfolk, Virginia, d. 1830; Wm. Marshall, of Richmond, husband of Mary Macon; General John Hartwell Cocke, of Surry; Philip Norborne Nicholas,

Mrs., John Ambler Née Bush, of Winchester, Va.-Widow Norton (Copied from painting by King) President of Farmers' Bank; Wilson Cary Nicholas, Governor of Virginia; John Marshall, Chief Justice of United States; Col. Edward Carrington, of Richmond; Edward Smith, Mrs. Ambler's brother-in-law; Mrs. Bannister, of Williamsburg, Virginia; Sam G. Adams, of Richmond; Col. Sam Travis, of Williamsburg.

 

John Ambler was on the jury which tried the celebrated Aaron Burr.

In the year 1806, Col. Ambler purchased an elegant house upon Shockoe Hill in the city of Richmond, to which he removed his family in the fall of the same year.

 

His estate, Westham, about eight miles above Richmond on James River, now became his principal source of pleasure. He was in the habit of visiting it about twice a week and took great delight in improving it. Even after he came to Richmond to live, he passed his summers in Winchester.

 

In 1818 John Ambler received from James City County an old christening vase, which had been given to the church of Jamestown nearly a century before by the wife and son of his ancestor Edward Jaquelin.

 

At his death, he was surrounded by all his children excepting Thomas Marshall and Richard Cary. He died with all the dignity of a philosopher and the calm and tranquil resignation of a devout Christian. In the War of 1812, he bore amongst the officers and soldiers of the army the sobriquet of Marshal Ney. And during the last years of his life, he was so large a land holder, that he was familiarly spoken of by his Richmond acquaintances as "The Duke."

 

His widow, the third Mrs. Ambler, survived him for ten years. She breathed her last on the 15th of June 1846, in the same room in which he died, surrounded by all the children except Philip Saint George and Richard Cary. She was buried by the side of her husband; under the marble pyramid she had assisted his children in rearing to his memory.

 

John Ambler's tombstone is a high shaft, with coat-of-arms, and this simple inscription:

 

John Ambler of Jamestown, Va. Born September 25, 1762. Died April 8, 1836. Erected by his widow and children.

On the right side of shaft is inscription:

Katharine Ambler, Widow of John Ambler Esq. Born May 9, 1773. Died June 16, 1846.

 

William Marshall Ambler 1813-1896 Virginia State Senate, Studied at William & Mary, Studied Law and Practice Law

 

 

The Henry Family

 

John Henry IV born in 1659 in Scotland and died in Scotland in 1708. He married Giselle Carney of Scotland. She was born in 1659 and died in 1708. John Henry IV came to American in 1683 and landed in Maryland from Scotland. In 1701 John and wife Giselle went back to Scotland. They had 8 children. The one that has to do with the Richards family is:

Alexander Patrick Henry from Foveran, Scotland. He was born in 1681. He died in Scotland in 1735. He married Jean Robertson also from Scotland. She was born in 1684 and died in 1735. Their son

 

Colonel John Henry born in 1704 in Scotland and died in 1773 in Virginia.

 

Painting of John Henry

The painting is entitled “Patrick Henry Arguing the Parson’s Cause Case at Hanover Courthouse.

 

 

 

 

 

John Henry came to America in 1730 from Scotland. He married Sarah Dannebrog Winston from Virginia born in 1710 and died in 1784.

Sarah Dabney Winston

 

 

 

They had 7 children.

John Syme Henry 1728-1805

Anne Henry Christian 1738-1790

Mary Jane Henry Meredith 1738-1819

Susannah Henry Madison 1742-1831

Elizabeth Henry Russell 1749-1825

Lieutenant William Henry 1734-1784

The famous Governor Patrick Henry of Virginia. Born in 1736 and died in 1799.

Governor Patrick Henry was well known for the SPEECH

“GIVE ME LIBERTY OR GIVE ME DEATH”

Patrick Henry married Sarah Shelton first born in1738 and died in 1775. They had 7 children from the marriage.

He married Dorothea Spotswood Dandridge from Virginia. She was born in 1757 and died in 1831. They had 10 children from this marriage.

Dorothea Spotswoods Dandridge 1757-1831 The First Lady of Virginia. Daughter of Nathaniel West Dandridge. She was Martha Dandridge Washington's 1st cousin. Wife of George Washington.

 

Brigadier General William C Campbell

William Campbell (born 1745 and died on August 22, 1781) was a Virginia farmer, pioneer, and soldier. One of the thirteen signers of the earliest statement of armed resistance to the British Crown in the Thirteen Colonies, the Fincastle Resolutions, Campbell represented Hanover County in the Virginia House of Delegates. A militia leader during the American Revolutionary War, he was known to Loyalists as the "bloody tyrant of Washington County", but to the Patriots he was known for his leadership at the Battle of Kings Mountain and the Battle of Guilford Courthouse.

Brigadier General

William Campbell

Personal details

Born

1745

Augusta County, Virginia

Died

22 August 1781 (aged 35–36)

Hanover County, Virginia

Spouse(s)

Elizabeth Henry

Relations

Patrick Henry (brother-in-law)

Military service

Allegiance

 

 United States

Branch/service

 

 Continental Army

Rank

 

Brigadier General

 

He was a militia leader of the American Revolutionary War, known for harsh treatment of Loyalists. It was alleged he had executed at least one loyalist, thus leading to their label of him as the "bloody tyrant of Washington County". He became a colonel in 1780 and was noted for leading his militia to victory at the Battle of Kings Mountain, where he charged the enemy while telling his men to "shout like hell and fight like devils!" Afterward, he worked in conjunction with Continental Army troops to oppose the British invasion of Virginia, providing support at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. The Virginia Assembly commissioned him a brigadier general in 1781, however, he died soon after.

 

Campbell was married to Elizabeth Henry, sister of Virginia Governor, Patrick Henry. They had two children: Sarah Buchanan Campbell, and Charles Henry Campbell. Following Campbell's 1781 death of an apparent heart attack, his widow subsequently married General William Russell.

 

The tract of land where the Campbells settled was called "Salt Lick" for the area's numerous salt deposits. The salt works that were eventually established there became an important source of revenue for the family, also playing an important role in supplying salt for the Confederacy during the Civil War. It had been surveyed in 1748, when James Patton entered the area with an expedition of several men, including one Charles Campbell. After William Campbell's death, the General Assembly of Virginia granted 5,000 acres to his young son, Charles Henry Campbell, in consideration of the distinguished services of his father.

Colonel William Campbell was the quintessential commander for the tough, independent-minded riflemen who formed the militia units from Campbell’s home in the mountains of southwest Virginia. Tall, muscular and dignified (although he had a fiery temperament when aroused), Campbell resembled a Scottish clan leader straight from a Sir Walter Scott novel, even carrying his Scottish grandfather’s broadsword, for which he had “… an arm and a spirit that could wield it with effect.”

 

Educated at Augusta Academy (a forerunner of Washington and Lee University) and holder of valuable lands in Southwest Virginia, Campbell often performed both civic and military duties, including service as a justice for the local courts and captain of militia in Lord Dunmore’s War against the Shawnee and Mingo nations in 1774, all in service to the British Governor of Virginia. Campbell broke openly with British governance and established his Revolutionary credentials in January 1775 when he was one of thirteen members of the local Committee of Safety to sign the Fincastle Resolutions, which included an early expression of support for armed resistance to the British Crown.

 

Campbell joined the war effort against the British in September 1775 when he led a company of volunteers to Williamsburg, then the capital of Virginia. He received a captain’s commission in Virginia’s Provisional Forces and was assigned to the First Virginia Provisional Regiment, commanded by Patrick Henry, with whom he became friends   Campbell was transferred from the Virginia command to the Continental Army five months later, and was commissioned a captain in the First Virginia Continental Regiment on February 3, 1776. He remained with his command in the Williamsburg area until the autumn of 1776 and found enough time away from soldiering to court Patrick Henry’s sister Elizabeth; they were married on April 2, 1776.

 

With the dangers of Tory and Indian incursions on the frontier, Campbell requested that he be released from Continental service to return to southwest Virginia to help protect that region.   His request was granted on October 6, 1776, after which he and his bride traveled home to their Aspen-Ville estate. In the ensuing years, William Campbell moved back and forth frequently between civic and military duties. For example, he was elected to the House of Delegates in 1780, but when the Governor of Virginia directed the commanding officers of Washington, Montgomery, Botetourt, Rockbridge and Greenbrier Counties to plan an expedition against “the Enemy Indians on the North West side of the Ohio,” the group recommended that Campbell be given command of the expedition. The House of Delegates granted him leave to be absent for the remainder of the session on Wednesday, June 21, and Governor Thomas Jefferson gave Campbell orders for this expedition in a letter dated the next day (“…you are hereby authorized to take command…”). However, the Governor soon countermanded those orders and directed Campbell to support Colonel William Preston in defending the lead mines in the region and quashing a Tory insurrection.

The Battle of King’s Mountain

 

By September 1780 Campbell was leading the men who marched to western North Carolina to confront Major Patrick Ferguson, a British Army officer who commanded a rampaging force of Loyalist militia. There were several units of riflemen that had assembled to confront Ferguson and they decided to name Campbell the overall commander, supporting all the Colonels of the various units who would meet in council every day. Therefore, although he was the least experienced of the senior officer’s present, William Campbell was considered the commander of the army of riflemen that overwhelmed Ferguson on October 7, 1780 at the Battle of King’s Mountain. His military reputation soared with this important victory.

 

There was a fierce side to William Campbell’s personality. In the fighting around his home in Virginia, he had hanged, without trials, British agents who incited tribes to harass the frontier settlements. After the Battle of King’s Mountain, he authorized the trials that resulted in the hanging of nine men who had served with Ferguson, and British commander Lord Charles Cornwallis was thought to have threatened to put Campbell to death if he was captured, for his “rigor against the Tories.” Not the least intimidated, Campbell resolved that “… if the fortune of war would place Cornwallis in his power, he should meet the fate of Ferguson “who had been killed on the battlefield.

 

Campbell returned home to southwest Virginia after the King’s Mountain battle and faced once again the threat of attacks by bands of Cherokees and ardent Loyalists. Whenever frontiersmen like William Campbell left home to fight the British, they worried about the danger to the families they left behind.

The Guilford Courthouse Campaign

 

In January 1781, after the American victory at Cowpens, Nathanael Greene was leading his small army north from the Carolinas toward the safety of Virginia, pursued every step of the way by the aggressive Lord Charles Cornwallis and his professional British army. Greene wanted desperately to turn and face Cornwallis in open combat, but he was far too weak to do so. He reached out in all directions for reinforcements, which included a series of urgent requests to William Campbell to bring 1,000 mountain riflemen to his aid.

 

While Greene was intensely focused on his hope for a large reinforcement of frontier rifle militia, William Campbell was beset by problems back home that undermined his recruiting efforts. Greene was understandably focused solely on the British troops that were pursuing him, but the frontiersmen had to defend the lead mines, keep one eye on the Cherokees, another on the local Loyalists, and be ready to defend against their attacks while considering what resources they could spare to support Greene and his Continental Army. Because of these conflicting priorities, Campbell was able to lead only sixty men to reinforce Greene, instead of Greene’s hoped-for 1,000 riflemen. Campbell and his small detachment arrived in Greene’s camp on March 4, 1781 and were involved in the skirmish at Weitzel’s Mill two days later where they fought with their accustomed skill.

 

After the affair at Weitzel’s Mill, Campbell was assigned to a “Corps of Observation” with Light Horse Harry Lee, and they participated in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse on March 15, 1781, which Campbell described in a letter written two weeks after the Battle:

 

we had Intelligence of the Enemy being in Motion and marching towards us, upon which Colo. Lee with his Legion, and about 30 of my Riflemen under the Command of Captain Fata of the Augusta Militia, went out to meet them, while the rest of the Riflemen, and Colo Washington’s Horse, formed at our Encampment to Support them in their Retreat back They met with the Van of the Enemy about two Miles from where we were formed, and immediately began to Skirmish with them, and continued retreating and fighting with them near half an hour, which disconcerted and retarded the Enemy very Considerably   In the meantime the main Body of our Army was formed about three quarters of a Mile in rear of us, and upon the Legions reinforcing us, we were ordered back to take our Position in the Line of Battle.

 

After these initial skirmishes, Lee and Campbell fell back to the left flank of the army where they became separated for a time from the American lines, and eventually rendezvoused with Greene after his army had retreated from the battlefield. Because he held the field, Cornwallis claimed that the Battle of Guilford Courthouse was a victory, but it was a Pyrrhic victory indeed. The British had received a brutal mauling that had cost Cornwallis one-fourth of his men. This battle was an important factor in Cornwallis’ decision to move north to Virginia, and eventually to his surrender at Yorktown.

 

Greene’s general orders the day after the battle gave generous praise to William Campbell and others:

 

The Gallant Behavior of the Corps of Observation consisting of the Detachments of Cavalry and Infantry commanded by Lieutenant Colonel (William) Washington & the Legion commanded by Lieutenant Colonel (Henry Lee in Conjunction with the Rifle men & Light Infantry commanded by Collo (William) Campbell & (Charles) Lynch.

 

In addition to this public praise, Greene wrote personally to Campbell shortly after the battle to extol his contribution and to give him permission to return home to southwest Virginia:

 

Sir: Your faithful Services and the Exertions which you made to second the efforts of the Southern Arms, on the 15th inst. claims my warmest thanks. It would be ungenerous not to acknowledge my entire approbation of your conduct, and the spirited and manly behavior of the Officers and soldiers under you. Sensible of your merit, I feel a pleasure in doing justice to it.

 

In this concluding sentence, Greene told the Colonel:

 

Most of the riflemen having gone home, and not having it in my power to make up another Command, you have my permission to return home to your friends; and should the Emergency of the Southern Operations require your further Exertions, I will advertise you.

Service in the House of Delegates; Promotion to Brigadier General

 

As William Campbell returned home Virginia was, as always during this War, beset by the needs to defend against British incursions, stave off Indian and Tory raids on the frontier, protect the lead mines, and support Nathanael Greene’s re-entry to North and South Carolina. The British threat was growing since Benedict Arnold had raided Richmond in January. General Phillips now led a force of about 2,000 men in Portsmouth, and Lord Cornwallis was moving north into the colony from Wilmington, North Carolina, where he had gone to regroup after the Battle of Guilford Courthouse. Questions of military recruiting, organization, and assignment dominated government deliberations.

 

Campbell regained his seat in the Virginia House of Delegates. He returned to the legislature in tumultuous times, when the members were under constant threat of capture from invading British forces. Accordingly, Campbell and his fellow delegates had to change the location of their meetings several times to avoid this danger. On May 10, 1781, the House of Delegates decided to leave Richmond because “of the approach of a hostile army” (Cornwallis) and to meet on May 24 in Charlottesville. The House then met in Charlottesville until June 4, when they decided to move their deliberations to Staunton, “…there being reason to apprehend an immediate incursion of the enemy’s cavalry to this place…” (Banastre Tarletan was conducting a raid that was designed to capture the Legislature and Governor Jefferson.)

 

On June 12 the House received a letter from the Marquis de Lafayette requesting support for his efforts to protect Virginia from the British incursions. Two days later Campbell’s fellow delegates elected him to be a Brigadier General.  The short time between Lafayette’s request and Campbell’s promotion may suggest that the subject had been discussed previously, and that the House was only looking for a proper opportunity to enact the promotion. With British forces roaming freely, the colony needed its best soldiers in the fight, and Campbell’s reputation, demeanor and commanding physical presence must surely have made an impression on his fellow Delegates in this time of danger. The influence of Delegate Patrick Henry, Campbell’s brother-in-law and friend, was presumably also very helpful.

 

On Saturday, June 16, the House granted the newly minted Brigadier General Campbell permission to be absent for the remainder of the session. Campbell moved quickly, and Lord Cornwallis reported only two weeks later that Lafayette had “received considerable reinforcements of militia and about 800 mountain riflemen under Campbell.”

Campbell’s Service in the Yorktown Campaign; His Illness and Death

 

Sadly, William Campbell was not able to serve for an extended period as a Brigadier General. He commanded the rifle corps in Lafayette’s army during the early stages of the Yorktown campaign that would result in the surrender of Lord Cornwallis’s army, but to the great regret of his comrades Campbell did not live to witness the surrender. He became ill with chest pains and fever and died near Richmond at the home of his wife’s half-brother, Colonel William Syme, on August 22, 1781. By the order of Lafayette, he was buried at that location with full military honors (his body was later moved to Aspen-ville in southwest Virginia by his son-in-law, where he was re-interred in a family cemetery under an impressive headstone). Lafayette wrote that Campbell was “an officer whose service must have endeared him to every citizen, and particularly to every American soldier.”

 

William Campbell’s death from illness at age thirty-six was a loss to the army, to Virginia and to the nation. Had he lived, he surely would have risen to roles of prominence and civic leadership, as did his peers who survived the war years. Lafayette said that Campbell’s name should have “everlasting honor and insure him a high rank among the defenders of liberty in the American Cause.”

 

On the other side of the Richards Family we go to the Muir, Boyd, Campbell and Wallace Families from Scotland. All Famous Families.

 

Campbell Family

9th Great Grandfather Colin Blythswood Campbell born in 1612 in Scotland and died in 1671 in Scotland. He married Janet of Rowallan Muir. Born in 1613 and died in Scotland in 1671. They had 20 enjoyable children. One which one named

Colin Campbell our 8th Great Grandfather 1636-1671. He married Margaret Lawder 1643-1674.

 

12th Great Grandfather William B Muir 1490-1590 born and died in Scotland. He married 12th Great Grandmother Sara Brisbane born in 1499 in Scotland and died in Scotland in 1590.

 

11th Great Grandfather Robert Muir born in 1540 and died in 1640 and was from Scotland. He married Margaret Boyd born in 1548 and died in Scotland.

Margaret Boyd’s parent were

13th Great Grandfather Thomas Boyd born in 1492 in Scotland and died in Scotland in 1548. He married 13th Great Grandmother Marion Fairlie born in 1495 in Scotland and died in Scotland in 1550.

 

14th Great Grandfather was Sir Alexander 3rd Lord Boyd of Kilmarnock Boyd. Born in 1449 in Scotland and died in Scotland in 1515. Born and raised at Kilmarnock Castle in Scotland.

 

 

Alexander Boyd, uncle and heir, and, but for the attainder of 1649, Lord Boyd (he does not appear to have been recognized as such), being second son of Robert 1st Lord Boyd. He became head of the family on the death of his 15-year-old nephew James, 2nd Lord Boyd in 1484. He was Chamberlain of Kilmarnock before 2 August 1488 and a witness to the sasine of Queen Margaret to the Lordship of Kilmarnock on 19 April 1504. He was still living 26 June 1508. He was said to be a favorite of King James IV.

 

Alexander Boyd married 14th Great Grandmother Janet, sister of Sir William and daughter of Sir Robert Colville of Ochiltree on 23 November 1505. They were related within the third and third and fourth and fourth degrees of consanguinity and had a dispensation for the marriage already contracted between them and legitimizing the children already born, 23 November 1505. Their children were:

• Robert, his heir and the 4th Lord Boyd

• Thomas (died 1547), ancestor of the Boyds of Pitcon

• Adam (died after 21 November 1577), ancestor of the Boyds of Penkill and Trochri

• Three other sons

• Margaret, wife of George Colquhoun, 3rd of Glens, by whom she had an only daughter and heiress, Margaret, who married her cousin-german, Robert Boyd, 5th Lord Boyd.

Euphemia, wife of John Logie of Logiealmond in Perthshire, by whom she had issued a daughter and heiress Margaret, who married Thomas Hay, and was mother of George Hay, 7th Earl of Erroll (d. 1573)

 

15th Great Grandfather Sir Robert 1st Laird Kilmarnock Boyd Lord High Chancellor of Scotland. Born in Scotland in 1425 and died in 1482 at Alnwick Castle in Northumberland, England.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Robert 1st Lord Boyd was eldest son and heir of Sir Thomas Boyd, whom he succeeded 9 July 1439. The Scots which tells us that a certain "Robert Boyd of Duchal," presumably this Robert, son of Thomas Boyd, Bailie of Duchal, slew Sir James Stewart of Ardgowan at Drumglass 31 May 1445. Sometime after 1451, King James II created him 1st. Robert Boyd was knighted, and was created a Peer of Parliament (Lord Boyd) by James II of Scotland at some date between 1451 and 18 July 1454 (the date he took his seat in Parliament). In 1460 he was one of the Regents during the minority of James III. In 1464 he was one of the commissioners at York for a truce with Edward IV of England.

The date of creation of Boyd's title can be further narrowed to between 1451 and 15 June 1452. On the latter date, the King confirmed the charter of Robert Boyd, Lord of Kilmarnock and of Dalry, conveying one-third of the lands of Lynn in Dalry to Robert Boyd of Lynn. Only three months earlier, Andrew Lynn in Dalry was described in another charter as Lord of that Ilk, meaning lord of a property of the same name as his family name.)

Lord Boyd conspired with his brother, Sir Alexander Boyd, and obtained possession of the young King's person in 1466 and was made by Act of Parliament sole Governor of the Realm; and Great Chamberlain for life, and Lord Justice General in 1467. Early in that year he procured the marriage of his eldest son, Thomas, (created Earl of Arran for that occasion) with Mary, elder sister of James III, which aroused the jealousy of the other nobles and made his eventual downfall inevitable since the King regarded the marriage as an unforgivable insult.

Lord Boyd obtained the cession of the Orkney Islands to Scotland, 8 September 1468, from Christian I, King of Norway, for whose daughter Margaret, he negotiated a marriage with James III. While absent for that purpose he and his son Thomas (the Earl of Arran) and his brother Sir Alexander Boyd, were obtained for high treason, whereby his peerage became forfeited. He was living Easter 1480/1, and died before October 1482, it is said, at Alnwick in Northumberland where he had fled in 1469. James III's biographer sums Boyd up as an unscrupulous political gambler and an inveterate optimist. To forcibly assume guardianship of an underage King was, indeed, a familiar path to power in medieval Scotland, but it was also a dangerous path. Boyd underestimated the dangers, overestimated his support, and made the fatal mistake of marrying his son to the King's sister, an insult the King would not forgive.

Family

Robert Boyd belonged to an old and distinguished family, of which one earlier Sir Robert Boyd, had fought with Sir William Wallace and Robert The Bruce.

He married Lady Marriott Janet “Mariot” Maxwell of Calderwood, born in 1430 and died in Scotland in 1472.

 

16th Great Grandfather Knight Thomas Kilmarnock Boyd 5th Baron of Kilmarnock. born in 1405 in Scotland and died in 1439 in Scotland. 

Sir Thomas Boyd; 5th feudal Baron of Kilmarnock; was born around 1400 lived at Kilmarnock, Ayrshire, Scotland. Imprisoned and fined by James l. He killed Sir Alan Stewart of Darnley in a feud 1439 and was killed in revenge by his victim's brother 9 July 1439.

 

Sir Thomas Boyd IV succeeded to the Kilmarnock Estates, but was only to hold them for seven years. He seems to have been an excessively war-like knight.

Sir Thomas fought at the battle of Craignaugh Hill in 1439. From Dena Castle he picked an argument with the Stewarts of Darnley and killed Sir Alan Stewart of Darnley in a fight at Polmaise Thorn between Linlithgow and Falkirk. A follower of Sir Alan's brother, Sir Alexander Stewart, promptly stabbed him to his death the next day, 9 Jul 1439, at Craighaught, Renfrewshire. It is recorded that his wife collapsed and died on seeing his body being carried back into Dean Castle

Sir Thomas married Lady Isabell Lyle, Baroness Boyd born in 1405 in Scotland and died in 1439 at Craignaught Hill, Scotland.

 

17th Great Grandfather was Thomas Boyd of Kilmarnock 1375-1432

Dean Castle, Scotland

 

18th Great Grandfather Sir Thomas Boyd of Kilmarnock 1355-1409

Scotland

 

19th Great Grandfather Thomas Boyd 2nd Baron Boyd of Kilmarnock 1323-1365

Scotland

 

20th Great Grandfather Sir Robert Boyd 1st Baron Boyd of Kilmarnock

Knight 1298-1333

Scotland

 

21st Great Grandfather Sir Robert Boyd II

1249-1330

Scotland

22nd Great Grandfather Sir Robert Boyd of Noddsdale

1230-1297

Scotland

 

23rd Great Grandfather Robert Boidh of Gavin and Risk 1164-1205

Scotland

 

9th Great Grandfather John Lauder born in 1595 in Melville Mills, Scotland. He died in 1692 in Edinburgh, Scotland. 1st Baronet of Newington and Fountainhall was a notable Scottish baillie and Treasurer of the City of Edinburgh, who was raised to a Nova Scotia baronetcy in 1688.

 

Lauder was born at Melville Mill and baptized 17 August 1595 at Lasswade church, the son of Andrew Lauder of Melville Mill, Lasswade (d. June 1658) and his first wife, Janet (d. April 1617), daughter of David Ramsay of Polton and Hillhead. His son, Sir John Lauder, Lord Fountainhall, recorded his ancestry in his Holograph Notes. He gives the 1st baronet's father as Andrew Lauder, and his father as William Lauder, a "second brother of [Robert] Lauder of that Ilk", sons of Richard Lauder, younger, of that Ilk (k. June 1567).

As John Lauder of Newington, he matriculated Arms with the Lord Lyon King of Arms c. 1672 as descended of a second son of Lauder of that Ilk.

 

Lauder, mentioned in his mother’s Testament, became a highly successful merchant-burgess in Edinburgh, being admitted as a Burgess on 23 November 1636. He served as Treasurer of the City of Edinburgh in 1652, and as bailie from 1657 to 1661. He purchased (before 1672) the estate of Newington, Edinburgh, and subsequently (10 June 1681) the lands of Woodhead and Templehall, which along with others in Edinburghshire and Haddingtonshire, were erected by Crown charter into the feudal barony of Fountainhall on 13 August 1681. He later purchased the lands of Edington (now Edington) near Chirnside, Berwickshire, from his third father-in-law, George Ramsay of Edington.

 

Lauder married three times: (1) 20 November 1639, at Edinburgh, Margaret (1618–1643) daughter of James Speirs by his wife Catherine née Curie; (2) 17 July 1643 at Edinburgh, Isabel (27 July 1628 – 2 February 1669), daughter of Alexander Ellis of Mortonhall and Stanhope Milnes by his wife Elisabeth, daughter of Nicol Edward, Dean of Guild in Edinburgh; (3) 15 February 1670, Margaret, daughter of George Ramsay of Edington (of the Dalhousie family), by his wife Margaret Seton. After Lauder's death his widow married William Cunninghame, younger of Brounhill, sometime Provost of Ayr.

 

On 17 July 1688, he was created a baronet, of Fountainhall, East Lothian in the Baronetage of Nova Scotia, with special remainder to the eldest surviving male heir of his third marriage. This patent was successfully contested and "reduced" (cancelled)

on 19 February 1692 having been replaced on 25 January 1690 with a new Letters Patent altering the succession to include his eldest surviving son from any marriage.

He died on 2 April 1692, in his 97th year and was interred in the Lauder vault within Greyfriars Kirk. He had, in all, twenty-four children by his three wives and was succeeded in the baronetcy by his eldest surviving son (of his second marriage) Sir John Lauder, 2nd Baronet, later Lord Fountainhall.

 

Sir Robert Lauder of The Bass born at Lauder Tower Forest in 1495. He died in 1561 in East Lothian, Scotland. He was the 13th Great Grandmother’s Husband.

was a Scottish knight, armiger, and Governor of the Castle at Berwick-upon-Tweed. He was also a member of the old Scottish Parliament. The Lauders held the feudal barony of The Bass (the caput of which was its castle), East Lothian, Edrington Castle and lands in the parish of Mordington, Berwickshire, Tyninghame in Haddingtonshire, and numerous other estates and properties elsewhere in Scotland.

 

Lauder was the eldest son and heir of Robert Lauder of the Bass (d.1495) by his first spouse Jonet, daughter of Sir Alexander Home

Prior to his father's death, Lauder was usually designated "of Edrington" in Berwickshire. After his purchase of the lands of Biell, in East Lothian he was designated 'of Biel'.

In 1462 Berwick-upon-Tweed was recovered by the Scots and Lauder was put in charge of Berwick Castle, until he was succeeded in 1474 by David, Earl of Crawford. In 1464 Lauder was paid £20 for repairs to the castle.

A notarial instrument dated 13 May 1465 narrates:

 Robert Lauder, son and apparent heir of Sir Robert Lauder of Eddington, asserted that David Lauder of Popil (East Lothian) had given sasine and heritable possession to his eldest son James Lauder and Jonete his spouse, their heirs etc., of a certain piece of land at Popil, to the prejudice of the first-mentioned Robert, who solemnly protested that the said sasine should neither be valid nor prejudice his right in the land, and for greater security, he, by throwing of earth and stone outside the house belonging to the piece of land, and by breaking a plate with his foot, broke and annulled the said sasine and so possession by James Lauder and his wife. Done at Popil at 7 a.m. on 13th May 1465 before Henry Ogil of Popil, James Ogilvy his eldest son, and others.

"Robert de Laweder de Edryngtoun" is the first witness to a Retour of Service, dated 7 April 1467, of Margaret Sinclair as one of the heirs of her grandfather John Sinclair in the lands of Kimmerghame, Berwickshire. Although he was not yet in formal possession of the Edrington estate (see next entry below) he appears to be regularly using the designation, as eldest son, 'of Edrington'.

 

In a charter of 1471, James III of Scotland confirmed to Robert Lauder, son and heir apparent of Robert Lauder of Edrington and the Bass, the lands of Edrington and Coalstell with the fishing of Edermouth (or mouth of the Whiteadder Water) plus the mill there (at Edrington) which Robert the father personally resigned to Robert junior and his male heirs failing which those relations bearing the Lauder arms.

In a further charter signed at Edinburgh on 26 June 1474 and confirmed there on 27 July 1475, James III confirmed a feu charter of Robert Lauder junior, Lord of Edrington, and superior of West Nisbet, to David Creichtoun of Cranstoun and his heirs, of the lands of West Nisbet in the barony of Pencaitland, East Lothian, which John de Colquhoun of Luss has resigned into the said Robert Lauder junior's hands. Witnesses included Robert Lauder of Bass, father of said Robert junior, and William Lauder.

 

King James III of Scotland again appointed Robert Lauder of Edrington as custodian and governor of the castle at Berwick-upon-Tweed for 5 years, with a retainer of 200 merks per annum.

In 1477 Robert was one of those entrusted by James III to escort the dowry of Princess Cecily of York for her planned marriage to James, Duke of Rothesay. Cecily was the third daughter of Edward IV of England and Elizabeth Woodville.

Bain records that on 2 February 1477: "James King of Scotland signifies to the bearers of the installment of the Princess Cecilia's dower due at Candlemass, that he has sent Alexander, Lord Hume, Robert of Lawdir of Edrington son and heir apparent to Robert of Lawdir of the Bass, and Adam of Blackadder of that Ilk, with the Lord Lyon King of Arms, to conduct them to Edinburgh."

A charter of 1477 to Alexander Inglis of tenements of land in Hide Hill etc., in Berwick-upon-Tweed, lists those who own neighboring properties, which include "Robert Lauder of Bass junior".

 

A Retour of Special Service was held at Berwick-upon-Tweed on 20 May 1477 serving Thomas Broun (of lawful age) as son and heir to John Broun (who has been dead three months), in a caracul of land with pertinent on the north side of Flemington, (near Eyemouth, Berwickshire), valued at four marks annually and held in chief of the Laird of Restalrig [near Edinburgh] and Flemington for service of ward and relief, such services being given as neighboring tenants in these lands are accustomed to give. Retour given by Henry Congiltoun, Sheriff deputy of Berwick. Amongst the jury was Robert Lawder of Edrington, Thomas Edingtoun of that Ilk, Thomas Lumsden of that Ilk, William Douglas, Archibald Manderston, John Skougall and William Lauder.

He witnessed a charter at the castle of Dunbar on 18 December 1475 as "Robert Lauder of Edrington". On 2 April 1486, a "Robert Lawedar" was one of the witnesses to a document signed on the High Altar at Holyrood Abbey. As the leading witness was William Hall, Vicar of Baro, it is probable that Robert is of the Bass family. Another witness was an Alexander Home.

In 1489 James IV of Scotland granted a charter to Lauder of the lands of Beil, Johnscleuch in the Lammermuir Hills, and "le Clientis", with their towers and mills etc., in the Barony of Dunbar, formerly owned by Hugo de Dunbar & Beil, with the lands and mill of Mersington, Berwickshire, which Hugo de Dunbar of Bele also resigned. The charter mentions Robert's wife Isabel Hay.

The Exchequer Rolls record Robert Lauder of Edrington in possession of the lands of Glensax in Yarrow, Selkirkshire in 1489/1490/1491.

 

A Petition to Pope Innocent VIII signed in the presence of Henry Congleton and others in January 1491, craved absolution for numerous people during the 'recent troubles' in Scotland and the Battle of Sauchieburn (11 June 1488). Lauder was named as son and heir of the Lord of Bass and Baron of Stenton. Others include Kentigern Hepburn of Waughtown, Patrick Skowgale, Alexander Sideserf, William Sinclair, David Renton of Billie & Lamberton, Alexander Home, Archibald Dunbar, William Manderston, Gavin Home, and John Sommerville.

On 4 August 1494 in a court held at Stenton, before John Swinton of that Ilk, depute and lieutenant of John, Lord Glamis, and Robert Lord l'Isle, King's Justiciars generally constituted from the south side of the Forth; Robert Lauder of Bass showed a charter or writ of resignation by the deceased Gilbert Duchry mentioning that Gilbert resigned the land or tenement of Duchray (in the Lammermuir Hills), in the tenement of Stentoun, in the hands of Walter, Stewart of Scotland, superior thereof. Robert Lauder of Beil, son and apparent heir of the said Robert, asserted that a charter by his father to him of the mains of Stenton and three-quarters of the town and territory made no reservation of the lands of Duchray. The witnesses were Robert Laweder, son and apparent heir of Robert Lauder of Beill, James Cockburn of Clerkington, William Hepburn of Athelstaneford, Alexander Sydserf of Ilk, James O'gill, David O'gill, and others.

 

13th Great Grandmother Alison Cranston was born in 1505 and died in 1567. She was from Scotland. She was born and raised at Ruthven Castle in Perthshire County, Scotland. Now the Castle is called Huntingtower Castle.

 

Jermyn Family-Torksey Castle

 

Torksey Castle is an Elizabethan manor house located in the village of Torksey on the east bank of the River Trent in Lincolnshire, England. It is 12 miles northwest of Lincoln on the A156 road. Seven miles to the north is Gainsborough Old Hall and 10 miles southeast is Lincoln Castle. It is a 16th-century Tudor stone-built fortified manor house founded by the Jermyn family of Suffolk. It is a Grade-I listed building and a scheduled ancient monument, but the building is on the Heritage at Risk Register. The site is private, with no public access and is only visible from the A156 road and a public footpath, on the west bank of the River Trent.

 

 

 

The country house was built by Sir Robert Jermyn in c. 1560. It may have been built as a waypoint for the Jermyn family's travels to York or as a gift to one of their sons. In 1645, the property was slighted during the English Civil War. Having been taken from the Royalist Jermyn family by Parliamentarians, it was burned by Royalist soldiers based at Newark. Very little of the structure remained.

Though the Jermyn family retained control of the estate after the Civil War, the property was not restored, but continued to deteriorate. The remains of the buildings were scavenged for usable building supplies by residents of the area. Also, the hall was built quite close to the flood-prone River Trent, which may have stood the family in good stead as a source of transportation and commerce (as the Lords of Torksey had been permitted to levy tolls on the river's travelers), but which also contributed to the damage of the building through flooding. In 1961, the Trent River Board buried part of the ruins when raising the riverbank.

The west facade and part of the rear wall survive. English Heritage undertook stabilization of the building in 1991 but the building is on the Heritage at Risk Register.

 

It is not known why Torksey Castle was popularly termed a castle. The building was never used as a fortress and would not have been suitable for that purpose. Although the structure is a hall rather than a castle, it bears similar architectural design features, including angular projecting towers and crow-stepped gables. According to Heritage Lincoln, these features may have led to its being termed castle. Alternatively, it may have been built on the site of an earlier medieval castle

The Frederickse, Van Schoonhoven & Swartwout Families of the Netherlands.

 

The origin of the names is explained in two ways; old historians claimed the “Belle Portus'' (beautiful harbor) and stated its real name was “Schoonhoven” with an a (Schoonhoven is beautiful and haven is harbor). Other historians derive the name from “Schoonhoven hoven” with an o, meaning beautiful farm, after the many rich farms and estates surrounding the town.

The Coat of Arms varied from each family in the Schoonhoven village. The Crest of Hendrich Van Schoonhoven emblem wS 4 climbing lions with a snake in their mouths. The first and last lion (stork) are black and the remaining are red. There are also coins with the same marketing that are found at Castle of Horst.

The bloodline relationship of Hendrich Van Schoonhoven and Olivier Van Schoonhoven, new owners of the Castle of Horst, is not known at this time however Hendrich was from the village of Schoonhoven and must have known the castle was occupied by Olivier Van Schoonhoven.

11th GGF Aelbrecht Van Schoonhoven 1535-1597 from Schoonhoven, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands

10th GGF Wernhart Van Schoonhoven 1575-1621 from Schoonhoven, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands

9th GGF Hendrich Van Schoonhoven 1600-1677 from Schoonhoven, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands. Died in Albany, New York

8th GGF Claas Hendrickse Van Schoonhoven 1628-1715 from Utrecht, Holland. Died in Fort Orange, New Netherland Colony, buried in Albany, New York

7th GGF Hendrick Claessen Van Schoonhoven 1652-1715 from Ulster, New York. Died in Ulster, New York.

Hendrick daughter

6th GGM Margaret Schoonhoven 1700-1785 from Virginia married into the Smith Family. (Richards/Smith)

 

 

Dorothea Spotswood Dandridge 1757-1831 from Hanover, Virginia.

Her mother's father was the Governor of the Colony of Virginia, Alexander Spottiswood and some say he is descended from Robert, the Bruce and the Thomas, Henderson’s are also. In addition, Dorothea Dandridge and President George Washington's wife, Martha Dandridge Washington, are 1st cousins.

 

 

Dorothea Dandridge is famous because she was the second wife of Patrick Henry, but she was a remarkable woman in her own right, with an illustrious pedigree. Her parents were Nathaniel West Dandridge (1729-1786) & Dorothea Spottiswood (1733-1773). Her father's father was a British Navy-Commander, Captain William Dandridge.

 

born in Hanover County, Virginia, on September 25, 1757, to Nathaniel West Dandridge and Dorothea Spotswood. Dorothea was the granddaughter of Alexander Spotswood, who was born in the Tangier Garrison, Morocco, in 1676. Dorothea married Patrick Henry and became the "first" First Lady of Virginia. After his term as governor, Patrick Henry moved his family to Red Hill and renewed his law practice in order to recoup his personal fortune which had been spent in support of the American Revolution. Dorothea had eleven children when Henry died in 1799. Henry’s will be indicated that Dorothea was to receive nothing if she remarried. She struggled for three years trying to manage the plantations and take care of her underage children. Finally, she married Judge Edmund Winston, and they moved to his estate in Lynchburg. When Judge Winston died in 1818, Dorothea moved to her daughter’s home, “Seven Islands,” in Halifax County. At age 74, Dorothea died and requested burial next to Patrick at Red Hill.

On October 9, 2002, the Dorothea Henry Chapter of the National Society Daughters of the American Revolution (NSDAR) dedicated a DAR Insignia grave marker at her gravesite next to her first husband, Patrick Henry. A courageous woman, Dorothea witnessed the birth of our nation as an insider. As our chapter’s namesake, she will continue to live in the hearts and memories of our DAR members. According to a short history of the chapter written in 1930, founders chose to name the newly organized chapter, Dorothea Henry, in “a moment of frenzied gratitude,” to commemorate the women who maintained homes for their families under the great stress and hardships of the Revolutionary War.

 

 

 

William Gascoigne

 

 

 

 

 

Sir William refuses to sentence Archbishop Scrope

Sir William Gascoigne (c. 1350 – 17 December 1419) was Chief Justice of England during the reign of King Henry IV.

Life and work

Gascoigne (alternatively spelled Gascoyne) was a descendant of an ancient Yorkshire family. He was born in Gawthorp to Sir William Gascoigne and Agnes Franke.

He is said to have studied at the University of Cambridge, but his name is not found in any university or college records. According to Arthur Collins, Gascoigne was a law student at the Inner Temple. It appears from the yearbooks that he practiced as an advocate in the reigns of Edward III and Richard II. When Henry of Lancaster was banished by Richard II, Gascoigne was appointed one of his attorneys, and soon after Henry's accession to the throne was made chief justice of the court of King's Bench. After the suppression of the rising in the north in 1405, Henry eagerly pressed the chief justice to pronounce the sentence upon Lord Scrope, the Archbishop of York, and the Earl Marshal Thomas Mowbray, who had been implicated in the revolt. This he absolutely refused to do, asserting the right of the prisoners to be tried by their peers. Although both were later executed, Gascoigne had no part in this. It has been doubted whether Gascoigne could have displayed such independence of action without prompt punishment or removal from office.

His reputation is that of a great lawyer who in times of doubt and danger asserted the principle that the head of state is subject to law, and that the traditional practice of public officers, or the expressed voice of the nation in parliament, and not the will of the monarch or any part of the legislature, must guide the tribunals of the country.

The popular tale of his committing the Prince of Wales (the future Henry V) to prison must also be regarded as inauthentic, though it is both picturesque and characteristic. It is said that Gascoigne had directed the punishment of one of the prince's riotous companions, and the prince, who was present and enraged at the sentence, struck or grossly insulted the judge. Gascoigne immediately committed him to prison and gave the prince a dressing-down that caused him to acknowledge the justice of the sentence. The King is said to have approved of the act, but it appears that Gascoigne was removed from his post or resigned soon after the accession of Henry V. He died in 1419, and was buried in All Saints' Church, the parish church of Harewood in Yorkshire. (This even attracted gazetteers in the 19th century, suggesting his tomb amongst places worthy of visit). Some biographies of him have stated that he died in 1412, but this is disproved by Edward Foss in his Lives of the Judges. Although it is clear that Gascoigne did not hold office long under Henry V, it is not impossible that the scene in the fifth act of Shakespeare's Henry IV, Part 2, (in which Henry V is crowned king, and assures Gascoigne that he shall continue to hold his post), could have some historical basis, and that his resignation shortly thereafter was voluntary.

Family

He was born in Gawthorp- in the valley below Harewood House, in an area later flooded to facilitate the landscape at Harewood (not in Gawthorpe in the West Riding of Yorkshire) - to Sir William Gascoigne and Agnes Franke. He married, firstly, in 1369 Elizabeth de Mowbray (1350–1396), daughter of Alexander de Mowbray, son of Roger de Mowbray, 1st Baron Mowbray. He married, secondly, Joan de Pickering, widow of Henry de Greystock.

The issue by his first marriage were:

Sir William Gascoigne II (1370–1422) m. Joan Wyman.

Elizabeth Gascoigne, m. John Aske

Margaret Gascoigne, m. Robert Hansard

Issue by second marriage:

Sir Christopher Gascoigne (born 1407)

James Gascoigne (born 1404), ancestor of poet George Gascoigne

Agnes Gascoigne (c. 1401 – after 1466), m. Robert Constable.

Robert Gascoigne (born c. 1410)

Richard Gascoigne (born c. 1413)

His brother, Nicholas Gascoigne, was ancestor of the Gascoigne baronets. Another brother, Richard (c. 1365 – 1423), married Beatrice Ellis, and was possibly the father of Thomas Gascoigne, Chancellor of Oxford University.