Harrodsburg Original Land Grants Map

This is on my computer desktop. I have no idea where I found this, although it HAD to be through a Google Books search because of the highlighted words.  I tried to find it again, but no luck…  Wish I could get rid of the highlights.

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Pioneer Stations Map

List of Stations by Sandra K Gorin, taken from Collins Historical Sketches of KY, History of Kentucky, Vol II, published by Collins Co in Covington, KY 1874, copy provided by Charles Barker. Compiled by Dr Christopher C Graham of Louisville ca 1874.
http://www.geocities.ws/Heartland/Ranch/5417/GenReports/StationMap/12.jpg

Smith Station is Number 7

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Smith Station – Message Boards

Posted 1 May 2000 at -http://boards.ancestry.com/localities.northam.usa.states.kentucky.counties.lincoln/1614.1633.1635.1726/mb.ashx

On Filson’s 1784 map of Kentucky there are two Smith’s stations which were at that time in Lincoln County. The most southwestern one is between Danville and Harrodsburg on a run that is not named on the map. However, I believe it may be Harrods run. My ancestor George Smith lived on Harrods run between Danville and Harrodsburg at that time.
Anyone know about these two stations which are quite close together. What is the definition of a Station?
Irma

Response on 31 July 2000 at  http://boards.ancestry.com/localities.northam.usa.states.kentucky.counties.lincoln/1614.1633.1635.1726.1993/mb.ashx

Irma:
James Smith Station is one of the stations shown in Lincoln County on Filson’s 1784 Map.
James Smith with the help of his older sons and brother Henry, established a station near the sinking spring on an early trace than ran from the settlements on the west side of Dick’s River to the deep ford at the mouth of Hickman Creek on the Kentucky River. At the Harrodsburg Land Court held 11/5/1779, James Smith claimed the right to a preemption of 400 acres lying on the east side of Dick’s river on a branch near a sinking spring by the said Smith making an actual settlement on the premises March 1, 1779. The Preemption Warrant no. 409 was issued 3/21/1780 for 160 pounds paid by James Smith to the Virginia Treasury. The land entry was dated 6/19/1780, 400 acres on waters of Dick’s River, adjoining Samuel Scott on the south, Andrew Gimblin on the east, and Archer on the south. Surveyed 10/17/1780 and the 400 acres was granted 6/1/1782 to James Smith by Benjamin Harrison, Governor of Virginia. Although Smith had many surveys of land in today’s Garrard County this is the Station Tract. James Smith, Henry Smith, William Smith, Townsend Fugate and Michael Woods spent the hard winter of 1779-80 at the early station. This station became a favorite stop over for travelers.
In 1794, Smith purchased an adjoining tract from Andrew Gimblin and built a log cabin that served as a tavern or inn. This later became Smithtown and in 1836 became the community known today as Bryantsville, Garrard County, Ky.
After James death in 1798, his son Edmond who married Jane Ann Findley, daughter of early settler, David Findley, established the “Burnt Tavern” at the site of the old cabin. In the 1950′s this famous Kentucky land mark was torn down and today part of this tract has become a subdivision and the part that contained the family cemetery is commercial property and the ground around it has been bull dozed down 8 feet and all the top-soil sold. All that remains is a small 1/8 acre that contains at least 20 of the Smith descendants. Edwin and Jane Ann Smith have a beautiful stone marker that has been torn down by a large fallen tree. Plans are to have this stone erected again as soon as funds are available.
In the last couple of years an effort started by a descendant that lives in Garrard County and with the financial help of the Smith/Findley families that migrated west to Missouri and California, a new chain link fence has enclosed the 1/8 acre of ground. A marker has been placed in memory of James Smith, who fought in the R. W. and plans are to erect a stone for his wife, Magdeline Woods, daughter of William Woods. I have a list of the known family members that are buried in this cemetery and will be glad to furnish them to interested parties.
Margaret

To Do:

• Find the Filson’s 1784 map of Kentucky
• Begin a group sheet for James Smith

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THE hint

This is the hint that started my Danville quest.  From “The History of Kentucky” (written in 1922) page 437-438 found in Google Books. (My own additions in parentheses.)

Oscar M. Smith has been a member of the Russellville bar for fourteen years, and during a large part of that time has occupied his present position as city attorney. Whatever he has found to do he has done to the limit of his strength and abilities, both of which have been of the highest order, and thus while rising in professional prestige he has also won and held public confidence and regard.  Mr. Smith was born in Russell County, Kentucky, August 21, 1872, and is a son of Rev. Elias and Mary C. (Davis) Smith.

The great-grandfather (my John M. Smith) was a native of Virginia and was the pioneer of the family in Kentucky, where he was an early settler of Danville and became a large landholder and the owner of many slaves.  His son, Elias Smith (father of Rev. Elias Smith) was born at Danville, and was twenty-one years of age when he came to Russell County, Kentucky. Following in the foorsteps of his father, he became a planter whose broad acres were tilled by slave labor, and his death occurred on his plantation when he was forty-eight years of age (the dates on his tombstone: 9 Feb 1810 – 21 July 1853) before the birth of his grandson (Oscar).  Elias Smith married Elizabeth Meadors (sic) who was born in Russell County in 1823 and died at Marrowbone, Cumberland County, this state in 1895. (I have confirmed the Elias Smith owned a large amount of land and slaves)

Rev. Elias Smith was born in 1847 in Russell County, Kentucky, and resided there on is farm until 1882. In that year he removed to Jamestown, this county, where he was a preacher of the Methodist Episcopal faith for one year, then going to Monticello, Kentucky, where he carried on preaching for four years.  The five years that followed were spent at Greenville, and for one year he was pastor of the church at Cerulean Springs, a like period being passed at Dixon. In October, 1905, he came to Russellville, where he purchased a home and farm, his main reason being to educate his daughters in Logan College, although he still carried on his ministerial labors. While driving in the streets of Russellville, April 21, 1914, his horse became frightened and ran away, and in the smash-up which followed Rev. Elias Smith was killed. (I wonder if I can find a newspaper account?)

More information follows about the life of Rev. Smith, which I don’t think helps me in my quest.

Notes that I wrote to myself:

Oscar M. Smith – b. 21 Aug 1872 in Russell County.

Parents – Rev. Elias Smith and Mary C. Davis
b. 1847 in Russell County
moved to Monticello, Wayne Co. in 1883
d. 21 Apr 1914

Grandparents – Elias Smith and Elizabeth Meadows
b. in Danville (new information. According to “Russell Co, Kentucky, cemetery records by Irma Shepherd, Elias’ tombstone says he was born in 1810)
Elias came to Russell County at age 21 (abt. 1826-1831)
d. on his plantation at age 48
m. Elizabeth Meadows who was born in Russell County in 1823 d. in Marrowbone, Cumberland Co, 1895 (I know they were married in 1834 in Russell County)

Great-Grandfather – Would be John M. Smith
native of Virginia (all of Kentucky was Virginia until 1792)
early settler of Danville
large landowner with many slaves

There are several John Smith’s listed in Mercer County tax records and one in particular has 450 acres up to 1824. In at least 1 of these tax records, he’s listed with a military rank.  There is no John Smith with 450 acres listed in Mercer County in 1825 or 1826 – about the same time that John M. Smith purchases land in Russell County. I’d love to find land transactions that show when this man left Mercer County. Of course, if it happened to mention that he was moving to Russell County, I wouldn’t turn that down! I need to order the films and maybe have a chance to look at them over Thanksgiving break.

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Early Kentucky History Research

Thinking about RootsTech has got me in a genealogy mood, so I’m trying to think of “quick” things I can research and accumulate that might be helpful to me when I have a full day to research.  I’ve decided to concentrate on my Smith line.  (Doesn’t everyone have a Smith line?)

I have a brick wall at John M. Smith who was part of Russell County from the day it was formed.  I have a cousin who hired a professional researcher to try to break the wall down and he shared the results with me, but I have to say that I don’t agree with the analysis.  I took this researcher’s hypothesis – which they admitted was speculation because they could find no direct proof – and followed each family member forward in time and didn’t find anyone who could be my family.  Lot’s of questions, but no lightbulb moments.

In my own research, I found a biography of a descendant of John M. who is not in my direct line.  This biography did not use too many names, but it did list relationships such as “the grand-father of the subject”, etc.  I made a simple tree with the information that was given and it indicated that John’s family had been some of the original settlers of the Danville area – the first part of Kentucky ever settled.

So my current plan is to follow all Smith’s in the area forward as much as I can to eliminate all lines that I can and see if I can find a potential link to my family.  I’m basically talking about a 50 year time-frame.  The first settlers came to Kentucky around 1775 (Kentucky became a state in 1792) and John M. is in Russell County in 1826.

So when I do have a few minutes to research, I usually surf for information about Fort Harrod – the first settlement in Kentucky. And I often find an interesting image or map or list of individuals that I need to do a better job of keeping track of.  I think I’m going to use my blog for that purpose. I won’t be stressing over being analytical with the information at this point or giving thoughts on how it might fit in. I know that I just won’t ever post anything if I try to do that.  And later, when I do get a full day or week-end to work on my files, I’ll know exactly where to look to find that map or article and I can begin to put things together that way.

I don’t want to put all my eggs into the “Danville Basket”, so I’m also going to try to research Wayne County history because the Smith’s area of Russell County was carved out of Wayne County in 1825 and I might find something helpful that way as well.

Kentucky researchers!  If you have helpful links or information, I would LOVE to hear from you!

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A Wonderful Find – Now What?

I’m so excited about some discoveries I’ve made doing research with Google since Saturday!

I had read a story that one of my ancestors, along with his brothers, had a trading post in the Danville, Kentucky area around the time of Kentucky statehood and I wanted to try to confirm that.  The last ancestor that I have confirmed information on is John M. Smith from Russell County.  I know that John purchased land in 1827 (Russell County was formed in 1826) and also had two land grants around the same time.  I don’t know if John was in the area before his area became Russell County or where he might have come from before that.  I don’t know his wife’s name or his parents.

I’ve latched onto the Danville area trading post as the clue that’s going to move me back a generation.  But I have not been able to find anything helpful because there are too many Smiths in the county.  While doing a Google search for trading posts, I discovered that I should be Googling the term “Stations” instead of trading posts.  Then I came across a link that listed “Smith’s Station” located on the road from Danville to the mouth of Dick’s River.  Now I had a better idea of which part of Mercer County to be looking for the Smith’s in Mercer County.  Last night, I was THRILLED to find a map showing all of the pre-1800 Stations in Kentucky and there was Smith’s Station!  Another web site told me the 3 people who are attributed with beginning the station. Could these 3 names be John’s father and his brothers?

So I’m excited to get back to the library on Friday to see what I can find in the Mercer County history books and tax lists.  My hope has been to find that some of the people in John’s part of Russell County (witnesses, neighbors, etc) were also in the same area of Mercer County in the early 1800′s to help me confirm which John Smith in Mercer County could be my John Smith.

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