SKAGGS/SCAGGS/SKEGGS

No attempt has been made here to establish the earliest colonial generations of this Skaggs family. Many early Skaggs lineages constructed by researchers contain inconsistencies and are missing documentation. In an attempt to match up what has been written historically with what can be factually proven there appears to be some mixing of Skaggs families and/or generations. The research presented in "Skaggs," from Early Adventures on the Western Waters by Mary B. Kegley and F. B. Kegley is factual and falls short of claiming actual familial relationships. [See extract later in this compilation.] 1

A great deal has been written about the Skaggs families and about their exploits as Long Hunters and the enormous contributions they made in opening up the trans-Appalachian areas of Kentucky and Tennessee. 2

Combining the multitude of references to these early Skaggs individuals into cohesive family units is a daunting task. The challenge is complicated by the repetitiveness of given names coupled with the lack of records resulting from the primitive nature of the wilderness in which they lived. For example in the same area of early Virginia are found references to James Skaggs, James Skaggs, Sr., James Skaggs, Jr., James (Longman) Skaggs and Little James Skaggs.3

Besides being Long Hunters some of the Skaggs men were Baptist preachers dedicated to establishing churches and bringing the word of God into the remote wilderness settlements. 4

There are few records of births or marriages among the early Skaggs families. 5 It may be that the ministers among them conducted the ceremonies and either failed to record the events or their records did not survive. Regarding the heirs cited in the Moses Skaggs estate case it was suggested that their marriages had not been solemnized, but rather were of the "common law" variety. 6 Also wills are scarce.

In addition to their many exploits as frontiersmen, the Skaggs men had some exploits of a different nature. In a Washington County, Virginia, Court of 21November1781 Henry Skaggs was charged with adultery with Nancy Davis and Aaron Skaggs was charged with adultery with Sarah Lyon. 7 Between 1786 and 1791 a Jam es Skaggs was charged in Russell County, Virginia, with deserting his wife [not named] to cohabit with Leah Carter. 8 In another instance recorded in the Green County, Kentucky, equity case of Moses Skaggs in a deposition given by Frances Samples, a surviving partner of Jacob Skaggs, she stated she considered herself Jacob' s legitimate widow.9 Meanwhile Jacob Skaggs, who was by then deceased, had previously moved on to Tennessee, taken a new wife and raised a second family.10

One of the first pieces of concrete evidence to use as a base on which to begin constructing this Skaggs family's genealogy is the 1836 Moses Skaggs circuit court case in Green County, Kentucky. Even this case contains a few instances of conflicting information and untruths. Basically the case was being brought to recover damages from individuals involved in the disposition of the assets of Moses Skaggs after the death of his widow Elizabeth, and who were alleged to have appropriated the assets for their own use. Moses and Elizabeth had no children. 11

In the 1836 equity case in answer to the question of when and where Moses Skaggs died William Ratliff stated in his deposition that he was uncertain of the time of Moses Skaggs's death

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(perhaps forty years ago), and that Moses died in his own house in Green County. Other deponents placed the death of Moses in 1801 and 1805. Although her date of death is unknown, Moses' widow outlived him by many years. 12

Also named in the equity case are the siblings of Moses Skaggs: Henry, John, James, Susanna, Lydia, Charles, Richard, Elizabeth, Jacob and Nancy. 13 A 1769 land transaction suggests that James Skaggs, Sr., and his wife Rachel of Augusta County, Virginia, were the parents of a Henry and a James Skaggs, Jr. 14 Despite the prevailing opinion that this Henry and James Skaggs, Jr., probable sons of James Skaggs, Sr. and Rachel, are the same as the Henry and James Skaggs, brothers to Moses, this is not proven. Here again the repetition of given names makes positive identifications difficult to achieve.

James Skaggs [Sr] is found in Augusta County, Virginia, records in 1746 where he is conscripted to help build a road from Adam Harman's to the Roanoke River. 15 Later in 1749 he served as one of three appraisers of the estate of one John Elswick.16 James and his wife bought and sold land in the New River area of Virginia for the next thirty plus years. 17 James was probably dead when Rachel petitioned for a Montgomery County land survey in 1781, as he had opted out of service in Fincastle County in 1776 because of "the infirm state of his health."18

Rachel's date of death is not known.

By the hearing of the equity case in 1836, all Moses's siblings were deceased and any benefits due from his estate would have accrued to their children. Moses's sister Nancy Skaggs was noted as having been married to William Meridy [Meredith] and their children named were John, James, Daniel, Mathias and William. Although the interests in the estate of some of the second generation Skaggs descendants were bought out by the persons pursuing the suit, it was noted that the Meredith brothers were no longer living in that jurisdiction (Green County) and apparently were never located. Neither birth nor death dates are known for William and Nancy (Skaggs) Meredith beyond the fact that Nancy outlived her brother, Moses. 19

It is the opinion of this compiler that William and Nancy's son Daniel is the same Daniel Meredith found living in the late 1820's and early 1830's in Weakley County, Tennessee, along with Jacob Skaggs of the Moses Skaggs equity case and Jacob's sons, Mastin and James.20 Jacob would have been Daniel's uncle (brother to his mother Nancy Skaggs).21 By 1840 Jacob's sons Mastin and James Skaggs were found living in Pulaski County, Missouri, as was Daniel Meredith.22

1Mary B. Kegley and F. B. Kegley, "Skaggs," Early Adventures on the Western Waters, 5 vols. (Orange, VA: Green Publishers, 1980-2004), 1:367-368. [See extract later in this compilation.]

2C. P. Cawthorn and N. L. Warnell, Pioneer Baptist Church Records of South-central Kentucky and the Upper Cumberland of Tennessee, 1799-1899 ([United States: s.n.], c1985), pp. 62-63; Lyman Draper, The Life of Daniel Boone, ed. Ted Franklin Belue (Mechanicsburg, PA: Stackpole Books, cl988), pp. 268-269; and Lucullus Virgil McWhorter, Border Settlers of Northwestern Virginia (Hamilton, OH: Republican Publishing Co., 1915), p. 470. These represent only three of many applicable references.

3Mary B. Kegley, comp., New River Tithables 1770-1773 (Roanoke, VA: M. B. Kegley, 1972), pp. 3, 16 and 23. 4Pioneer Baptist Church Records of South-central Kentucky, pp. 62-63 and others. 5Diary of Archibald Thompson, William B. Harlin Memorial Library, Thompkinsville, KY; also found on the

web site of Doug Moore http://www.public.asu.edu/-moore/Archibald. This source contains a smattering of Skaggs related birth records.

2

6Green County, KY, Circuit Court in Chancery, Case #3871, 1836. Green County Courthouse, Greensburg, KY.

7Lewis Preston Summers, Annals of Southwest Virginia, 1769-1800 (Abingdon, VA: L. P. Summers, 1929), p. 1091.

8Russell County, VA, Law Order Book 1786-1791, 1 :103. Russell County Courthouse, Lebanon, Virginia.

9Green County, KY, Circuit Court in Chancery, Case #3871, 1836. 10Weakley County, TN, Tax Lists, 1828-1832, County Court of Weakley County, TN, Film No. 988756,

Family History Library, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, UT [hereafter FHL]; and U.S. Census, 1830, Weakley County, TN, pp. 337 and 343, Series Ml9, Roll 183. National Archives and Records Administration, Washington, D.C. [hereafter NARA].

11 Green County, KY, Circuit Court in Chancery, Case #3871.

12Ihid.

13Ibid.

14Augusta County, VA, Deed Book 16:48-51 , 17 August 1769. Augusta County Courthouse, Staunton, VA. All Augusta County civil records cited herein are found at this location.

15F. B. Kegley, Kegley 's Virginia Frontier: the Beginning of the Southwest; the Roanoke of Colonial Days, 1740-1783 (Roanoke, VA: Southwest Virginia Historical Society, 1938), p. 117. '

16 Augusta County, VA, Will Book 1 :276-278. Appraisement of the estate of John Elswick, 4 July 1749,

28 November 1750. 171bid., Deed Book 6:100, 11January1754 and 16:48-51, 17 August 1769. Also Montgomery County, VA,

Deed Books A:36, 2 Mar 1773 and A:157, 26 Oct 1773, Montgomery County Courthouse, Christiansburg, VA. This is only a sampling, not a complete listing of the real estate transactions by James Skaggs.

18Mary Kegley and F. B. Kegley, Early Adventurers on the Western Waters, 1:367-368. Also Charles W. Crush, Montgomery County, Virginia: The First JOO Years, indexed by Frances Terry Ingmire (St. Louis: F. T. Ingmire, 1982 ), p. 12.

19Green County, KY, Circuit Court in Chancery, Case #3871.

20Weakley County, TN, Tax Lists, 1828-1832, County Court of Weakley County, TN, Film No. 988756. FHL; and U.S. Census, 1830, Weakley County, TN, pp. 337 and 343, Series Ml9, Roll 183. NARA.

21Green County, KY, Circuit Court in Chancery, Case #3871.

22U.S. Censes, 1840, Pulaski County, MO, pp. 199, 223 and 232, Series M704, Roll 229. NARA.

Compiled by:

(Mrs. Sam) Elizabeth Meredith 1720 South Gessner Road Houston, Texas 77063-1118 April, 2008 Revised: December, 2017

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GREEN COUNTY KENTUCKY

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The James Skaggs' Station is described as being on a tributary of Big Brush Creek where today's Jones Cemetery is near Highway Route 61 .

Colonel James Skaggs' Fort Blevins was on Big Brush Creek near Gum Springs.

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MILES

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FAMILY GROUP Chart No. SKAGGS-1

HUSBAND : SKAGGS/SCAGGS, James** occupation:

Event Day Month Year Town(shipl

Born: Mar.: Died: 1776-1781 12

Burted: Father.

b. d.

WIFE : MOREDOCK,? Rachel1**

Event Day Month Year Town(ship)

Born: Died: Buried: Father.

b.

alive 1781 12

d.

County

m.

County

m.

The order of children may not be correct and the list may not be complete. See Note 4.

CHILDREN & spouses Event Day Mo Year Town(ship)

1. Henry SKAGGS1 Born: 8 Jan 17233

Mary THOMPSON2 Mar.: b. 18 Aug 17392 d. about 1820 Died: 4 Dec 18103

2. John SKAGGS1 Born: about 1728 [1] Catherine HICKS 13** Mar.:

State Misc. Information

Mother: b.

State

Mother. b.

County

Green

Religion:

d.

Occupation:

Misc. Information See Note 1.

Religion:

d.

State Misc. Information

VA? Longhunter12

KY Bur: Hiseville-Park KY VA?

b. d. - - - -- -- - - - - -- - ---- -- -- -- -- - - -- -- -- -- -- - -- --

[2] Ruth BISHOP11·

13** Mar~ 178813 Green KY b. d. Died:

3. James SKAGGS1 Born: about 1732 VA? Baptist Minister.9

Susanna4** Mar.: See Note 2. b. d. Died:

4. Susanna SKAGGS1 Born: about 1734 VA? Richard WHITI1

Mar~

b. w. p. Jan 181314 Died: 4 Oct 179711 Montgomery VA

5. Moses SKAGGS1 Born: about 1736 VA Elizabeth1 Mar.: b. d. Died: 1799-18051 Green KY

6. Lydia SKAGGS1 Born: about 1738 VA Mathias HARMAN1 Mar.: b. about 1736 d. 2 Apr 18325 Died: 2 Oct 181411 Ory Fork Tazewell VA

7. Charles SKAGGS1 Born: 17403 VA Lucinda "LUCY' THOMPSON2 Mar.: b. 21 Feb 17 422 d. alive 18156 W.p.: 22 Jan 18166 Green KY

8. Richard SKAGGS1 Born: about 1742 VA Elizabeth7 Mar.: b. d. alive 18187

W.p~ May 18217 Barren KY

9. Elizabeth SKAGGS1 Born: about 17 44 VA John HANKINS1 Mar.: b. about 174015 d. 182515 Died: by 182015 Tazewell VA

Additional children and references are found on the following page. **Not Proven

I 11-74 I FAMILY GROUP (continued) - Chart No. SKAGGS-1

CHILD REN & spouses Event Day Mo Year Town[ship)

10. Jacob SKAGGS1

[1] Frances WHITT15

b. about 17 48 d. alive 18361

[2] Mary GORE10

b. about 1759 d. 185410

*11. Nancy SKAGGS1

William MEREDITH/MEREDY1

b. d. before 18361

Born: about 17 46 Mar.:

Mar.: Died: Oct 183010

Born: about 1748 Mar~

Died: before 18361

REFERENCES

County State

VA

Weakley TN

VA

KY?

Misc. Information

See Note 3. Frances Skaggs married Samples after the death of Jacob Skaggs.15

1. Augusta County, VA, Deed Book 16:48-51, 17 Aug 1769, James Skaggs, Sr., and wife Rachel to Henry and James Skaggs, Jr., Augusta County Courthouse, Staunton, VA, in conjunction with Green County, KY, Circuit Court in Chancery, Case #3871, 1836, Green County Courthouse, Greensburg, KY. All Green County Civil records cited herein are at this location. This parent/children relationship is suggested, not proven. The sibling relationships are proven.

2. Diary of Archibald Thompson, William B. Harlin Memorial Library, Thompkinsville, KY, and also found 011, the web site of Doug Moore http://www.public.asu.edu( moore/Arcbibald.

3. Hiseville-Park Cemetery, Barren County, KY.

4. Montgome1y County, VA, Deed Book A385, 1785, James Skaggs, Jr., and wife Susanna to James McCorkle, Montgomery County Courthouse, Christiansburg, VA All Montgomery County civil documents cited herein are found at this location.

5. John Newton Harman, Harman Genealogy (Southem Branch) with Biographical Sketches, 1700-1924 (Richmond, VA W. C. Hill Print Co., 1925), p. 268.

6. Green County, KY, Will Book 1:137-139, Charles Skaggs, 9 Feb 1815/22 Jan 1816.

7. Barren County, KY, Will Book 2:256, Richard Skaggs, 10 Dec 1818/May 1821. Barren County Courthouse, Glasgow, KY.

8. Russell County, VA, Law Order Book 1786-1791, 1:103. Russell County Courthouse, Lebanon, Virginia

9. C. P. Cawthorn and N.L. Warnell, Pioneer Baptist Church Records of South-central Kentucky and the Upper Cumberland of Tennessee, 1799-1899 (United States: s.n., c1985l, p. 62.

10. Pedigree Resuource File, Disk #1. Submitter: Jim Pierce, 2871 Sierra Manor Dr, Minden, NV 89423-8854. Family History Library, Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Salt Lake City, UT.*

11. WorldConnect, RootsWeb.com, Database:3187753. Contact Linda Lanier, lkcopelanier@hotmail.com.*

12. Mary Kegley and F. B. Kegley, Early Adventurers on the Westem Waters, 5 vols. (Orange, VA Green Publishers, 1980-2004), 1:367-368. Also Charles W. Crush, Montgomery County, Viiginia: The First 100 Yeazs, indexed by Frances Terry Ingmire (St Louis: F. T. Ingmire, 1982 ), p. 12.

13. WorldConnect, RootsWeb.com, Database: bbuber. Contact Brent Huber, bcbuber@sbcglobal.net *

14. Montgomery County, VA, Will Book 2:120+. Richard Whitt

15. "Skaggs Surname Study'" by Ginny Keen. http://www.kykinfolk.com/green/skaggs surname study.btm.

NOTES

1. A number of researchers in a number of different venues identify Rachel's father as Abraham Moredock, however documentation is lacking.

2. As per Reference 8 above a James Skaggs was charged in Russell County, VA, with deserting bis wife [not named] and cohabiting with Leab Carter. It is unlikely that he was the James Skaggs, #3 child of this family group.

3. In a deposition given in the Chancery Court cited in Reference 1 in which the legitimacy of Jacob Skaggs's son William is questioned, Frances Samples, William's mother, states that she considers herself the widow of Jacob Skaggs.

4. Many dates are highly speculative. All data not referenced to a primary source are unverified.

Compiled by: (Mrs. Sam) Elizabeth Meredith 1720 South Gessner Road Houston, Texas 77063-1118 May, 2007

*Disclaimer: Due to time and accessibility constraints, it bas not been possible to attempt to document the data from Internet sources or the Pedigree Resource File cited herein. Conversely, it seemed unfair to withhold this information as most is probably correct and ultimately may be verifiable.

GREEN COUNTY, KENTUCKY, CIRCUIT COURT CASE #3871, 1836

Green County, Kentucky, Circuit Court Case #3871, i.e., the 1836 Moses Skaggs Estate Case, serves as proof positive of the Skaggs/Meredith relationship. Providing the depositions are accurate, and there are some conflicts, the case establishes virtually two entire generations of this Skaggs family, that of Moses and his siblings, Henry, Richard, Charles, Jacob, John, [and according to some deponents, James], Susannah, Lydia, Elizabeth and Nancy and that of the sibling's children who were deemed legitimate.

This 1836 suit was filed about forty years after the death of one Moses Skaggs although the exact date of his death is not known. Neither Moses nor his wife Elizabeth who survived him had a will. Also they were childless. It was stated that Moses' only legal representatives were his siblings, five brothers and four sisters: Henry, Richard, Charles, Jacob, John, Susannah, Lydia, Elizabeth and Nancy. So little was known about Elizabeth, widow of Moses, that apparently no attempt was made to locate her heirs. The suit was alleging that the estate of Moses Skaggs was appropriated by the administrator and his successors for their personal use. Aaron and Jeremiah Lewis stated that they had "recently purchased for a valuable consideration the entire interest, right and title" of the various heirs of Moses Skaggs, i.e., the children of Moses' siblings and their spouses providing a virtual Who's Who of that generation of that branch of the Skaggs family.

Moses Skaggs and some of his brothers and sisters had migrated from Virginia to Green County, Kentucky, but several of his married sisters had remained in what had become Tazwell County, Virginia. As a result a number of the depositions in the case were taken in Tazwell County from the descendants of these sisters. Following is a transcription of the case omitting duplicated depositions and some references to the physical estate of Moses Skaggs. Most documents lack paragraphing and phonetic spelling is common. Some punctuation has been added for clarity. Blank spaces indicate blank spaces in the original document. Some pages from the court file may be out of their original order. An earlier transcription of the entire document can be found on the Internet at htrp:Uwww.usgwarchives.net/ky/green/green.html.

The final disposition of the case is not known to this compiler, however, this is not significant to the Skaggs/Meredith history as all the beneficiaries of Moses Skaggs' estate case had either been brought out by Aaron and Jeremiah Lewis or could not be found. One area that begs further research is that of the natural children of Moses Skaggs' brothers, other than John. These children, if any, were not deemed eligible to share in the estate, but would be equally significant to Skaggs family history.

Page 1: GREEN COUN1Y, KENTUCKY, CIRCUIT COURT CASE #3871, 1836

Aaron & Jeremiah Lewis Bill

Skaggs heirs & Admrs. No. 801

Page 2: To The Honerable Judge of the Green Circuit Court in Chancery sitting. Your oraters Aaron & Jeramiah Lewis would respectfully represent unto your Honor that many years since Moses Skaggs departed this life intestate and without issue in this county of Green leaving at his death a tract of land situate & being in this county afsd containing acres and a negro Woman Slave named Rachel and her children named and personal property consisting of horses cattle hogs and sheep to the value of $500 besides various articles of farming utensils, household and kitchen furniture worth $300 that said Moses left at his death Skaggs his widdow who lived on the tract of land afsd and kept and retained the slaves and other property named afsd in her possession without Administering on the estate of said Moses until the day of

when she departed this Life Leaving the slaves and a part of the personal property afsd & she having made use of and otherwise disposed of most of the personal property afsd before her death and the said slaves having since the death of said Moses incresed [sic) in number which is children of the said Rachel and has been born since the death of said Moses. That on the day of after the death of the widdow after a certain William Jones was regularly appointed Administrator of all and singular jt goods & chatles rights and credits of the said Moses Skaggs deceased by the County Court of Green [missing copy)

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