Keenan – Opening Doors in Brick Walls

Walking the Land Back to the Original Grant

A few weeks ago I shared The 1806 Administrator Bond for the Estate of William Johnson Sr. (1755-1805) and followed it up with last week’s post Time to Pull up Stakes and Move on about the land William and Amy sold in 1798 in Greenbrier County before moving to Kanawha County in what is now West Virginia.

William JOHNSON Sr. (1755-1805) and Amy NELSON (1757-1837) were my 5th great-grandparents. From the wording of the two land deeds, they were a part of an original 150 acres land grant. These are the steps I took to show the land they sold was the same land granted to William in 1796.

Plotting the Tracts

Early this year I tried my hand at abstracting call lines from a deed and plotting the tract. I found the tract on a present-day map and wrote about the tools I used in I Found the Coolest Site to Use for Land Records in West Virginia.

As I had been successful with my CLONCH ancestor’s land, I tried the same tactic with William and Amy’s two land tracts. I used the following tools:

Pole to Foot Converter

Tract Plotter

Johnston to Tennis, 62 acres on Lick Run

As I had already transcribed the deeds all I needed to do was to abstract the call lines and convert the poles to feet for the Tract Plotter. For the Johnston to Tennis land deed:

Begining at a Double white oak and chesnut corner to the old survey & thence through the survey south Eighty three Degrees East one Hundred & twenty pole
Call Line: S83E 120 poles (1980 ft)

to an aposite Corner of the old survey & Flathers & with old line North Thirty six Degrees west one Hundred and sixty eight pole
Call line: N36W 168 poles (2772 ft)

to four Locusts and soth (sic) Seventy Degrees wet forty four Pole
Call line: S70W 44 poles (726 ft)

to two white oaks & South thirteen Degrees East one Hundred and fourteen pole to the Begining
Call line: S13E 114 poles (1881 ft)

As can be seen below the call lines for the Johnston to Tennis tract calculate to 59.6 acres while 62 acres were seen in the deed.

Johnston to Kounts, 88 acres on Lick Run

The same was done for the Johnston to Kounts land deed:

Beginning at a black Oake & White Oake Corner to Kouns and with South thirty Eight Degrees East forty pole
Call line: S38E 40 poles (660 ft)

to two white oaks and North fifty two Degrees East one Hundred and Eighty two pole
Call line: N52E 182 poles (3003 ft)

to Red Oak & two white oaks Corner to Keenan and the old Survey, thence through the Survey with Tineses line North Eighty three Degrees West one Hundred and twenty pole
Call line: N83W 120 poles (1980 ft)

to the apasite Corner of old Survey and c? to Tennis on a Double White Oak and Chesnutt Oake on a Ridge and with old line South thirty two Degrees West Sixty six pole
Call line: S32W 66 poles (1089 ft)

to Chesnutt Oake and black Oake and South Seventy Degrees West Ninety pole
Call line: S70W 90 poles (1485 ft)

to two white oaks and South ten degrees west fifty pole
Call line: S10W 50 poles (825 ft)

to two White Oak Corner to Kounses own and with North Sixty Degree East Ninety one pole to the Beginning
Call line: N60E 91 poles (1501.5 ft)

The Johnston to Kounts tract calculates to 81.13 acres while 88 acres seen in the deed.

Merging the two tracts

After plotting the tracts I combined the two. The call lines N83W 1980 ft (Kounts) and S83E 1980 ft (Tennis) are the common boundary mentioned in the deeds. To combine them I used PicMonkey. The Tennis tract was reduced in size to match the scale of the Kounts tract.

The original 150 acres land grant

I looked at the original land grant of 150 acres only after I’d plotted the two land tracts side by side. I transcribed the description of the land, plotted the call lines, and came up with the same boundaries seen in the image (above) where the two were attached to each other.

…lying and being in the County of Greenbrier on the waters of Indian Creck a branch of New River and adjoining the Land of Patrick Kenan, Edward Fleathers and Samuel Black and bounded as followeth to wit. Beginning at a black and white oak, corner to Kenan and with the same South thirty eight degrees East forty poles two white oaks North fifty two degrees East one hundred and eighty two poles to a red oak and two white oaks on Fleathers’s line and leaving the same, North thirty six degrees West one hundred and sixty eight poles to four Locusts, South seventy degrees West forty four poles to two white oaks, South thirteen degrees East one hundred & fourteen poles to a double white and Chesnut oak, on the top of a hill thence South thirty two degrees West sixty six poles to a Chesnut and black oak, South seventy degrees West ninety poles to two white oaks, South ten degrees West fifty poles to two white oaks corner to Kenan thence North sixty degrees East ninety one poles to the beginning…

Call lines:
S38E 40 poles (660 ft)
N52E 182 poles (3003 ft)
N36W 168 poles (2772 ft
S70W 44 poles (726 ft)
S13E 114 poles (1881 ft)
S32W 66 poles (1089 ft)
S70W 90 poles (1485 ft)
S10W 50 poles (825 ft)
N60E 91 poles (1501.5 ft)

Where was the land grant found?

Years ago I discovered The Library of Virginia‘s collection Virginia Land Office Patents and Grants/Northern Neck Grants and Surveys. A search turned up a land grant in Greenbrier County for one William JOHNSTON described as 150 acres on the waters of Indian Creek a branch of New River and adjoining the lands of Patrick Kenan (sic), Edward Heathers (sic), & c.

At the time I knew Patrick KEENAN was a neighbor as my 6th cousin David Fridley had found the records of sale for two tracts of land totaling 150 acres and extracted only the short description of the land. It appeared to be a match but without the 1798 records which I transcribed in my previous post, I couldn’t be 100% certain.

Now with all three deeds “in hand,” I was able to compare and prove the 150 acres granted to William JOHNSON on 10 May 1796 is the same land he sold in two parcels in June 1798 to TENNIS and KOUNTS.

Questions remain

William JOHNSON used the Land Office Treasure Warrant number 12841 issued 2 July 1782 to obtain the grant of 150 acres in 1796.

On the Kentucky.gov Portal, they have a searchable database that includes all Virginia Treasury Warrants. I searched for the warrant number William used and found it was in the name of Edward KENON for 1470 acres.

Why would William JOHNSON use a treasury warrant issued to Edward KENON (KEENAN)?

The Library of Virginia has an interesting guide states, “At any time in the grant process after the treasury warrant was purchased, the purchaser could assign (sell) the right to part or all of the land described in the warrant.”

Apparently, Edward KEENAN assigned or sold the right to 150 acres of the original 1470 acres he purchased to William JOHNSON. Could there be a story behind this? Why did William JOHNSON sell the land only two years after he received the grant?

A complete transcription of the 1796 land grant to William JOHNSON will be share in a later post. Next week I’ll be making an announcement…

Time to Pull up Stakes and Move on

William JOHNSON Sr. (1755-1805) and Amy NELSON (1757-1837) were my fifth great-grandparents. I wrote about their son William JOHNSON Jr. (1793-1845) and his wife Nancy Ann SIMS (abt. 1793-1860s) in 2014 during my first year blogging.

I’m reviewing William and Amy’s records and looking into opening some doors which have remained closed mainly due to my not having access to Virginia records from their period. Instead of starting with the earliest records, I’m going to move back into time.

A few weeks ago I wrote about The 1806 Administrator Bond for the Estate of William Johnson Sr. (1755-1805). An inventory of his estate has yet to be found. With the Administrator Bond, we learned William died before 9 April 1806 and likely during the winter of 1805. I have not found a primary or secondary source confirming he died 22 December 1805.¹

In the General Index to Deeds of Kanawha County William JOHNSON Sr. wasn’t listed as a grantor nor as a grantee. He was not found on the land tax records of the county. Apparently, he did not acquire land during the seven years he lived in Kanawha County.

David Fridley, my double 6th cousin through William JOHNSON Sr. and Amy NELSON and through James SIMS and his first wife Phebe _____, has been supportive when it comes to researching our common ancestors over the years. We e-met in the days when mailing lists were active on Rootsweb and still keep up via email and Facebook.

David once mentioned two land records he’d abstracted from the deed books of Greenbrier County. He hadn’t noted the book or page number at the time. The deeds indicated William JOHNSON and his wife Amy deeded a total of 150 acres on Lick Run on 25 and 26 June 1798. As this was the last mention of them in Greenbrier County we believe they must have left for Kanawha County around 1798.

At the end of July, I located the deeds David found many years ago while checking into new collections on FamilySearch. The first thing I did was to send David the citations.

Johnston to Tennis, 62 acres on Lick Run

William JOHNSTON and Amy his wife sold 62 acres on Lick Run to William TENNIS as seen in the following deed.²

This Indenture made this 25 Day of June one Thousand seven Hundred and Ninety eight Between WIlliam Johnston and Amy his wife of the one Part and William Tennis of the other Each of the county of Greenbrier & State of Virginia Witnesseth that the said William Johnston and Amey his wife for & in consideration of the some (sic) of Five Shillings Current money of sd [said] State to them in hand Paid on or before the seling and delivering of their presents the Receipt whereof the Dead (sic) Hereby acknowledged have Bargained & sold & by these presents doe Bargain & sell unto the sd William Tennis and his heirs or assigns a certain tract or Percil of Land Containing sixty two acres it being part of a survey of one Hundred & fifty acres Granted to the sd Johnston by paten, lying & being in the county of Greenbrier on the Waters of lick run where sd Tennis now lives & is Bounded as followeth (to wit) Begining at a Double white oak and chesnut corner to the old survey & thence through the survey south Eighty three Degrees East one Hundred & twenty pole to an aposite Corner of the old survey & Flathers & with old line North Thirty six Degrees west one Hundred and sixty eight pole to four Locusts and soth (sic) Seventy Degrees wet forty four Pole to two white oaks & South thirteen Degrees East one Hundred and fourteen pole to the Begining with its appertainances to the sd William Tennis and his Heirs to the sole yeo? & behoof of the sd William Tennis his heirs or assigns forever and the sd William Johnston & Amy his wife for themselves and their Heirs Doth covenant with the said William Tennis and his heirs the said tract or parcel of land from themselves and their heirs to the said William Tennis and his Heirs or assigns against all and every person or persons whatsoever will warrent and will forever Defend in Witness Whereof we have hereunto set our Hands and seals the Day and the year above Written.

Signed seald & Delivered
In the Presents off………………………..Williams (his mark) Jonston Seal
Edward Keenan
John Johnston………………………………Emey (her mark) Jonston Seal
Michael Kounts

At a Court held for Greenbrier County June the 26th 1798
This Deed from William Johnston to Wm Tennis was prest in Court & provd by the Oaths of Edward Keenan John Johnston & Michl Kounts and ordered to Record.
………………………………………Teste
………………………………………John Stuart C.G.C. (Clerk Greenbrier County)

Johnston to Kounts, 88 acres on Lick Run

William JOHNSTON and his wife Amy sold 88 acres on Lick Run to Michael KOUNTS as seen in the following deed.[^3]

This Indenture maid this Twenty ___ day of June one Thousand Seven Hundred and Ninety Eight between William Johnston and Eamy his wife of the one part and Michael Kouns of the other Each of the County of Greenbrier and State of Virginia Witnesseth that the said William Johnston and Eamy his Wife for and in consideration of the sum of one Dollar current Money of said State to them in hand paid on or before the Sealing and delivering of these presents the receit whereof the do hereby Acknowledge have bargained and sold and by these presents doe bargain and Sell unto the said Michael Kouns and his Heirs and Assigns a Certain Tract or parcell of Land containing Eighty eight Acres & being the Land sd Johnston now lives on Lying and being in the County of Greenbrier on the Lick Run Joining the Land of Edward Keenan Isaac Palton and Kounces own Land Bough of Keenan & being the S.W. End of said Survey of 150 Acres and is bounded as followeth (to Wit) Beginning at a black Oake & White Oake Corner to Kouns and with South thirty Eight Degrees East forty pole to two white oaks and North fifty two Degrees East one Hundred and Eighty two pole to Red Oak & two white oaks Corner to Keenan and the old Survey, thence through the Survey with Tineses line North Eighty three Degrees West one Hundred and twenty pole to the apasite Corner of old Survey and c? to Tennis on a Double White Oak and Chesnutt Oake on a Ridge and with old line South thirty two Degrees West Sixty six pole to Chesnutt Oake and black Oake and South Seventy Degrees West Ninety pole to two white oaks and South ten degrees west fifty pole to two White Oak Corner to Kounses own and with North Sixty Degree East Ninety one pole to the Beginning with all the appertainances thereunto belonging to the said Michael Kounts and his Heirs and Assignes to the sole use and behoof of the said Michael Kounts and his Heirs and Assignes forever and the said William Johnston and Eamy his Wife for themselves and their Heirs doth Covenant with the said Michael Kouns and his Heirs the said Tract or Parcil of Land from themselves and their Heirs to the said Michael Kouns and his Heirs, against all and every Person or Persons whatsoever will Warrant and will forever defend in Witness whereof we have hereunto set our Hands and Seals the Day and year above Written
Signd, Seald & Acknowledgd
in the Presents off……………………………William (his mark) Jonston Seal
Edward Keenan
John Johnson………………………………….Eamey (her mark) Jonston Seal
Wm Tennis

At a Court held for Greenbrier County June the 26th 1798
This Deed from William Johnston to Michael Kounts was presented in Court and proved by the Oaths of Edwd Keenan John Johnston and William Tennis and the same is order to Record
………………………….Teste
…………………………..John Stuart

Interesting thoughts from David

When I contacted David with the citations he wrote, “Thanks so much for following up with these citations! There’s an awful lot of data I have still from my days decades ago of visiting courthouses that need adequate citation today, and I’m thankful for the increasing amount of digitized records on FamilySearch.”

He further wrote, “It’s also useful to revisit the original documents, since there’s more to be learned from a current perspective, for example noticing that “Eamey E. Jonston” included a middle initial, which I don’t think I’ve seen before.”

I hadn’t noticed the use of the middle initial. When I transcribed the deeds I saw where David thought a middle initial was used. However, I believe it is a scribble and meant to be her mark.

Here are close-ups of the “signatures” on the recorded deeds. I don’t think these are their actual signatures.

“Signatures” on Johnston to Tennis deed (top) and Johnston to Kounts deed (bottom)

Taking a closer look at the names, on the bottom image, it is clearly noted these are their marks. William appears to have signed with an x. The mark copied into the book by the clerk for the second deed (bottom) looks similar to the E in the first name Eamey and likely why David thought she was using a middle initial. I believe Amy’s mark is two close or consecutive circles. It must be noted that Amy’s name was spelled Amey, Eamy, and Eamey in the records above.

David also considered the price paid for the land and sent me a map with the location of the land. He wrote:

I also looked at the neighbors and grantees to see if there might be a family relationship given the very low price William sold his land for, but I’m not finding any right away. The price is a relative pittance compared to what land in the Shenandoah Valley was going for at the same time, but then, this was fairly remote, and I doubt William had any quantity of good bottom land that would make it more valuable. I’m attaching a map I created showing Lick Run in context of Monroe Co. with an inset showing the specific topography of Lick Run. It is a branch of Indian Creek, so the bottom land was only down by the creek. (There is another Lick Run in the SW portion of the county that emptied into Hans Creek, but looking at the other records of Tennis/Keenan/Counts-Koontz, it is apparent it is the Indian Creek one.)
William Tennis resold this land sometime after 1800 and headed to Adams Co., OH (bordering KY on the Ohio River). A list of his transactions (including the one with William) is compiled at https://www.ancestry.com/boards/localities.northam.usa.states.westvirginia.counties.monroe/439/mb.ashx. In this list are a number of land transactions from 26 June 1798 that involved William Tennis and Edward Keenan, some of which were also witnessed by John Johnson (doesn’t appear as Johnston), and one by a Thos Johnson. I wonder if either is related.

David refers to the land being in Monroe County. He is correct in terms of present-day geography. When William and Amy sold it in 1798 it was in the part of Greenbrier which would become Monroe County the following year.

Time to Pull up Stakes and Move on

With the sale of the land in Greenbrier County in 1798, the family of William JOHNSON and Amy NELSON were getting ready for their northwest move to Kanawha County where William died in 1805.

Next week will take us further back when I discuss how William JOHNSON came into the 150 acres he and his wife sold in 1798.

Greenbrier County (West Virginia) County Clerk, “Deeds (Greenbrier County, West Virginia), 1780-1901” (non-indexed images), FamilySearch (Microfilm of original records at the Greenbrier County Courthouse in Lewisburg, West Virginia), Film 593545, DGS #7765144, Deeds, v. 2 1798-1803, images 37 of 380 (page 52). Johnston to Tennis deed for 62 acres (25 June 1798, entered 26 June 1798). (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSM7-V4RY?i=36&cat=98577 : accessed 31 July 2019). ↩
Greenbrier County (West Virginia) County Clerk, “Deeds (Greenbrier County, West Virginia), 1780-1901” (non-indexed images), FamilySearch (Microfilm of original records at the Greenbrier County Courthouse in Lewisburg, West Virginia), Film 593545, DGS #7765144, Deeds, v. 2 1798-1803, image 80 of 380 (page 145). Johnston to Kounts deed for 88 acres (__ June 1798, entered 26 June 1798)(https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSM7-V45L?i=79&cat=98577 : accessed 31 July 2019). ↩

52 Ancestors: #33 Rachel WISEMAN 1769-bet. 1821-1824

“The challenge: have one blog post each week devoted to a specific ancestor. It could be a story, a biography, a photograph, an outline of a research problem — anything that focuses on one ancestor.”

This is entry #33 in Amy Johnson Crow’s Challenge: 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks.

#33 Rachel WISEMAN 1769-bet. 1821-1824

My 4th great-grandmother Rachel WISEMAN was born on 1 March 1769 in Berks County, Pennsylvania. She was the 6th child of Isaac WISEMAN (1738-1818) and Elizabeth DAVIS (1738-1807).

Isaac WISEMAN and Elizabeth DAVIS, both born in August 1738 in Berks County, were married about 1758, most likely in that county. They were the parents of 11 known children all born in Berks County, Pennsylvania:¹

1. Joseph (1759-1836) born 29 Mar 1759
2. John (1760-1842) born 18 Aug 1760
3. Sarah (1762-aft. 1841) born 17 Jul 1762
4. Isaac (1764-1852) born 19 Jun 1764
5. Jacob (1767-1839) born 12 Jan 1767
6. Rachel (1769-bef. 1824) born 1 Mar 1769
7. Samuel (1771-1861) born 15 Feb 1771
8. Abner (1772-1830) born abt. 1772
9. Elizabeth (1774-1830s) born abt. 1774
10. Margaret (1777-1869) born abt. 1777
11. William (1779-1842) born 6 May 1779

WISEMAN Family and the American Revolutionary War

Rachel was six when the American Revolutionary War began on 19 April 1775. By this time Isaac and Elizabeth had nine children aged between 1 and 16.

In August 1776 Rachel’s oldest brother Joseph WISEMAN was drafted in the first militia that went out of Berks County. This was only the beginning as can be seen in the declaration of service given by Joseph D. WISEMAN in 1832 at the age of 73 to obtain his Revolutionary War pension.²,³ His pension file includes the family records that his son Samuel submitted in 1847 when he applied for pension money on behalf of himself and his siblings as their parents were both deceased. These papers show the dates of birth and death of Rachel’s parents Isaac WISEMAN and Elizabeth DAVIS.

Wiseman1 — Elisabeth Wiseman daughter to Samuel Davis was born August 26th, 1838 and died July 19th, 1807.

Wiseman3 — Isaac Wiseman son to Isaac and Nancy Wiseman was born August 18, 1738 and died May the 3 in 1818.

WISEMAN Family Moves from Pennsylvania to Virginia

Family tradition is that Isaac and his brood, both married and single, left Berks County, Pennsylvania, and went up the Shenandoah Valley to Rockingham County, Virginia. In his declaration, Joseph states that he lived in Rockingham County, Virginia, about 10 years before moving in 1794 to Greenbrier County [the area which would later be Monroe County, West Virginia].

By the end of the war on 14 January 1784, the family had increased to 11 children, the oldest son Joseph and the oldest daughter Sarah were married. The marriage record for Sarah shows that she married on 3 November 1782 in Rockingham County. This would suggest that the WISEMANs made their move in 1782 [or earlier] and Joseph may have followed them only after he married his second wife.

Marriages of the WISEMAN siblings

1782 – Sib 1: Joseph D. WISEMAN married(1) Susannah MANLY abt. 1782 in Berks County, Pennsylvania

1782 – Sib 3: Sarah WISEMAN married James BARLEY on 3 November 1782 in Rockingham County, Virginia⁴

1785 – Sib 1: Joseph D. WISEMAN married(2) Elizabeth BATEMAN on 10 February 1785 in Robeson (Rabbesin) Township, Berks County, Pennsylvania⁵ (location confirmed by son Samuel)

1786 – Sib 2: John WISEMAN married Sarah GREEN on 10 May 1786 in Rockingham County, Virginia⁶

1790 – Sib 4: Isaac WISEMAN married Mary Magdalene ARMENTROUT on 9 August 1790 in Rockingham County, Virginia [record not located]

???? – Sib 5: Jacob WISEMAN married Rachael _____. She is listed as his wife in his will in 1839 and seen in the 1840 census as the head of the household.

1795 -Rachel WISEMAN married Frederick HONAKER on 28 September 1795 in Rockingham County, Virginia⁷ (The marriage bond, per an article in the Honaker Family Newsletter, was recorded in Shenandoah County. Shenandoah bonds on FamilySearch were browsed 6 August 2022 and the record was not found.)

1797 – Sib 7: Samuel WISEMAN married Polly BOWYER on 10 May 1797 in Rockingham County, Virginia⁸

1798 – Sib 9: Elizabeth WISEMAN married John BLANTON on 9 August 1798 in Greenbrier County, (West) Virginia⁹

1799 – Sib 10: Margaret WISEMAN married Bartholomew RAMSEY on 21 October 1799 in Monroe County, (West) Virginia¹⁰, ¹¹

1800 – Sib 8: Abner WISEMAN married Isabel BLANTON on 18 February 1800 in Monroe County, (West) Virginia¹², ¹³

1801 – Sib 11: William WISEMAN married Polly RAMSEY on 22 Oct 1801 in Monroe County, (West) Virginia¹⁴, ¹⁵

1804 – Sib 11: William WISEMAN married Phebe KILBURN on 31 January 1804 in Monroe County, (West) Virginia [record not located]

Rachel WISEMAN Marries Frederick HONAKER

As seen above the marriage of Rachel WISEMAN and Frederick HONAKER took place in 1795 in Rockingham County and the marriage bond was recorded in Shenandoah County as follows:

Know all men, by their presents, that we Frederick Conickor and Isaac Wiseman are held and firmly bound unto his Excellency Robert Brooke, Esquire, Governor of Virginia, and his Successors, in the sum of one hundred fifty dollars to the payment whereof, well and truly to be made, we do bind ourselves, our heirs, and each of our joint and several heirs, executors and administrators, jointly and severally firmly by their presence, felled with our feats, and dated the 24th day of September 1795 in the 24th year of the Commonwealth. The condition of the above Obligation is such, that whereas there is a Marriage suddenly to be solomized between the above bound Frederick Coniker and Rachel Wiseman, daughter of Isaac Wiseman of Rockingham County; if therefore there shall be no lawful cause to object of said Marriage, then this obligation be void, otherwise to remain in full force and virtue.
Witness: M. Gambill. Signed Frederick Honaker, Isaac Wiseman
[Source: Honaker Family Newsletter]

Rachel and Frederick Had 8 Known Children

Ch 1: Isaac Morgan (1796-1885) born Bet.1796-1799
Ch 2: Elizabeth “Betsy” (1797- ) born Bet. 1797-1800
Ch 3: Margaret “Peggy” (1798-1879) born Abt 1798
Ch 4: Rachel (1804-1860) born Abt 1804
Ch 5: Sarah (1805-1862) born Bet. 1805-1806
Ch 6: Anna (1806-1873) born 10 Sep 1806
Ch 7: Letty (1810-1825) born Aft 1810
Ch 8: Frederick Styrus (1810-1836) born Aft 1810

As Rachel lived with her husband Frederick in Monroe County, (West) Virginia, following their marriage until her death, her children were most likely all born in that county. Estimated years of birth were calculated after analysis of the pre-1850 censuses for children who did not live to be seen in 1850 and later censuses.

Many changes took place in Rachel’s life. She gave Frederick six children before her mother Elizabeth DAVIS died on 19 July 1807. Rachel had two more children following the 1810 census. Her father Isaac WISEMAN died 3 May 1818. Isaac and Elizabeth spent the rest of their days in Monroe County and were buried in the Old Rehoboth Churchyard near Union, the county seat. Three of their children, Abner, Jacob and Elizabeth who married John Blanton went to Kentucky; Samuel, John, and Isaac II went to Ohio; Sarah who married James Barley remained in Rockingham County, Virginia; Joseph, William, and Margaret, who married Bartholomew Ramsey, and Rachel, who married Frederick Honaker, stayed in West Virginia.

Following the 1820 census Rachel saw her oldest son Isaac Morgan HONAKER marry Rebecca Ann SAMS (1799-1860) on 28 October 1820 in Monroe County.¹⁶, ¹⁷

The next two marriages in the HONAKER house were those of Betsy and Peggy. As we do not know the exact date of Rachel’s death, she may or may not have seen these daughters marrying.

Elizabeth “Betsy” HONAKER married William SANDERS (1795- ) on 17 January 1822 in Monroe County, (West) Virginia.¹⁸, Betsy’s half-brother John HONAKER went bond with William SANDERS on 15 January 1822 in Monroe.¹⁹

Margaret “Peggy” HONAKER married Alexander CAMPBELL (1798-1881) on 30 Oct 1823 in Monroe County, (West) Virginia.²⁰ Peggy’s brother Isaac HONAKER went bond with Alexander CAMPBELL on the 20 October 1823.²¹

Rachel was the first of the WISEMAN children to pass away. She died between 1 April 1821 and December 1824 in Monroe County.²² She predeceased her husband Frederick HONAKER who died about December 1824 in Monroe County.²³

Three of Rachel’s daughters married within the year following Frederick’s death:

Rachel HONAKER married Elijah WOOD (1806-1885) on 4 January 1825 in Nicholas County, (West) Virginia.²⁴

Sarah HONAKER married Thomas J. REYNOLDS (1785- ) on 3 March 1825 in Monroe County, (West) Virginia.²⁵ Thomas went bond with Dudley G. Reade.²⁶

Anna HONAKER married Owen DUFFY (1800-1867) on 1 Sep 1825 in Monroe County, (West) Virginia.²⁷

The Burial Place of Rachel’s Parents

The log structure that was named Rehoboth was constructed in 1786 on land donated by Edward KEENAN. In 1788 the first American Methodist bishop, Francis ASBURY, preached the dedication service. In 1796 he ordained Frederick’s brother-in-law John WISEMAN as a Methodist minister. Nearly 50 years after Frederick HONAKER joined his parents-in-law in the grounds surrounding Old Rehoboth, a new meeting house was constructed. The old log relic lay abandoned for another half-century until it was restored in 1927. Another 30 years later a shed was constructed to further preserve the structure.

Robert N. Wiseman, the Senior Historian of the Wiseman Family Association, gave me permission to use this photo of the church taken in 1934 before the “shed” was added.

MRIN13888 Rehoboth courtesy of Robert N. Wiseman — Old Rehoboth Methodist Church, near Union, WV — Oldest existing Protestant church west of the Alleghany Mountains. Left to right: Cousin Ambrose SLAGLE, Uncle Ernest Newton WISEMAN, Grandpa John Newton WISEMAN. Their ancestors Isaac WISEMAN I and Elizabeth (Davis) WISEMAN (my 4th great grandparents) are buried near the right back corner of the church. Submitted by : Robert Newton Wiseman, Wiseman Family Association. Photo courtesy of Robert N. Wiseman, used with permission.

And this is what the building looked like 70 years later when Irene Warner and her husband took her parents to visit the cemetery and meeting house.

Old Rehoboth Meeting House near Union, Monroe County, West Virginia. Courtesy of Irene (Rose) Warner (Find A Grave Contributor #46586932)

After giving me permission to use her photos Irene sent more with this explanation: “I have attached pictures of the inside of the church. It was so special to get to see this old building in its original shape – very small inside; but it had a balcony…..[in this picture at the bottom and on the balcony are what] look like flat boards or similar; unfortunately, cameras didn’t do 3-dimensional pictures. They are pictures of the LOG seats – a log was split in half; a person sat on the inside part of the seat, the bark was at the bottom; there are “peg legs” on the logs. I’ll bet there weren’t too many long sermons in that church….don’t know how anyone could sit very long on a seat that hard…..”

Balcony in Old Rehoboth Meeting House near Union, Monroe County, West Virginia. Courtesy of Irene (Rose) Warner (Find A Grave Contributor #46586932)

Outside walls of Old Rehoboth Meeting House near Union, Monroe County, West Virginia. Courtesy of Irene (Rose) Warner (Find A Grave Contributor #46586932)

A New Discovery – What Do You Think?

Working my way back on my paternal line has me looking at things that I haven’t worked on in a long time. In the case of the HONAKER and WISEMAN lines, I never really went in and checked on all the census and vital records for collateral lines. Both families have associations with historians who are keeping track of these families and updating as new information is uncovered. The list of Rachel’s siblings grew and then shrunk as I checked and checked for supporting records while writing.

I thought I’d found another child for Rachel’s parents but she turned out to be a granddaughter.

When Rachel WISEMAN married Frederick HONAKER on 28 September 1795 Rachel brought Edith, her 10 years old daughter, into the marriage.

Supporting documentation? I don’t have three sources for every event but I’d say, “Yes!”

On 23 May 1803, in Monroe County, Frederick HONAKER went bond with Seth BOGGESS for the marriage of Edith WISEMAN to Seth.²⁸ Edith and Seth were married on 9 June 1803 in Monroe by John WISEMAN.²⁹ I did not find a permission slip from her parents.

After finding the marriage I searched for the couple/family in the census, found them in 1820 and 1830, and then hit a dead end. As a last resort, I searched the internet for possible queries about the couple. An old GenForum posting³⁰ helped me locate the death record of Edith BOGGESS. I had been so focused on trying to locate the entire family in the census that I didn’t check for her death record.

On 5 February 1857 in Monroe County Edith BOGGESS died of cancer at the age of 72 years and 1 day. She was the daughter of Rachel WISEMAN (no father listed) and the consort of Seth BOGGESS. The informant was Wm SMITH, a relative.³¹

Further research shows that William SMITH was Edith’s son-in-law, the husband of her daughter Elizabeth.³² Per Edith’s death record she was born in Monroe and the date of birth can be calculated as 4 February 1785. The place of birth is not reliable as Monroe wasn’t formed until 1799. Her birth would have taken place about the time that the WISEMAN family came down the Shenandoah Valley to Rockingham. At this time, the only Rachel WISEMAN in the area who would have been old enough to have a child was Isaac and Elizabeth’s daughter Rachel who would turn 16 on 1 March 1785.

Would you agree that my 4th great-grandmother Rachel WISEMAN was the mother of an illegitimate daughter? Please leave a comment telling me what you think.

This Post was Updated on 14 August 2022: Missing source citations were added, images were scaled, and some corrections were made to the text and format.

C. M. L. Wiseman, The Wiseman Family and the Old Church at New Salem : a brief sketch, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/library/books/records/item/57919-the-wiseman-family-and-the-old-church-at-new-salem-a-brief-sketch : accessed 12 February 2020), FL1103481_TN-76231, digitized by FamilySearch International, 2013, [originally published: Columbus, Ohio : Fred J. Heer, 1902], pg. 24, Family Record of Isaac Wiseman of Virginia, includes the dates of birth or year of birth for all of the known children. ↩
“Revolutionary War Pension and Bounty-Land Warrant Application Files, 1800-1900,” database and images, Ancestry.com (https://www.ancestry.com/search/collections/1995/), citing National Archives and Records Administration microfilm publication M804, 2,670 rolls. Records of the Department of Veterans Affairs, Record Group 15; National Archives, Washington, D.C., Joseph Wiseman and Elizabeth, file number R11741 (accessed 11 February 2020). ↩
“Southern Campaigns Revolutionary War Pension Statements & Rosters,” RevWarApps.org (online database http://www.revwarapps.org/), Pension Application of Joseph Wiseman (R11741) Elizabeth Wiseman NC PA, transcribed and annotated by C. Leon Harris, revised 3 March 2015. (http://www.revwarapps.org/r11741.pdf : accessed 12 February 2020). ↩
Dodd, Jordan. Virginia, Marriages, 1660-1800 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 1997. Original data: Electronic transcription of marriage records held by the individual counties in Virginia. ↩
Pennsylvania Church Records – Adams, Berks, and Lancaster Counties, 1729-1881 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2004. Original data: Extracted from microfilmed transcriptions of the original church records. The microfilmed records are located at the Family History Library. ↩
Dodd, Jordan. Virginia, Marriages, 1660-1800 ↩
“Virginia, Marriages, 1785-1940,” database with images, FamilySearch, FHL Film Number: 7579045, Rockingham County (Virginia) County Clerk, Marriage register (ministers’ returns), 1791-1852, Item 2, image 84 of 520, page 11, entry 8, Fred Coniker and Rachel Wiseman, 28 Sep 1795. (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89XF-296G-D?i=83 : accessed 6 August 2022). ↩
Ibid., FHL Film Number: 7579045, Rockingham County (Virginia) County Clerk, Marriage register (ministers’ returns), 1791-1852, Item 2, image 82 of 520, page 8, entry 8, Samuel Wiseman and Polly Bowyer, 10 May 1797. (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99XF-29DK-D?i=81 : accessed 12 August 2022). ↩
West Virginia Vital Research Records Project (database and images), West Virginia Division of Culture and History citing county records in county courthouses, West Virginia (A collaborative venture between the West Virginia State Archives and the Genealogical Society of Utah to place vital records online via the West Virginia Archives and History Web site accessible at https://archive.wvculture.org/vrr), West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 595040, image 11, Greenbrier County minister returns, Jno. Blanton and Eliza. 1797/9 (1798), left page, last entry. (http://images.wvculture.org/595040/00011.jpg : accessed 12 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710517, image 1380, Bartholomew Ramsey and John Wiseman went bond on 21 Oct 1799 in Monroe for the marriage of Margaret Wiseman and Bartholomey Ramsey. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710517/01380.jpg : accessed 12 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710516, image 1167, minister’s return by John Wiseman, page 1, 22 Oct 1799 Bartholomey Ramsey to Margaret Wiseman. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710516/01167.jpg : accessed 12 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710517, image 1405, Abner Wiseman and William Blanton went bond on 17 Feb 1800 in Monroe County for the marriage of Abner Wiseman and Isabel Blanton. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710517/01405.jpg : accessed 12 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710516, image 1168, Monroe County minister returns, page 3, entry 13, 18 Feb 1800, Abner Wiseman and Isabel Blanton married by John Wiseman. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710516/01168.jpg : accessed 12 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710518, image 116, William Wiseman and John Ramsey went bond on 17 Oct 1801 in Monroe for the marriage of William Wiseman and Mary Ramsey. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710518/00116.jpg : accessed 12 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710516, image 1169, Monroe County minister returns, page 6, entry 3, 22 Oct 1801, William Wiseman and Polly Ramsey married by John Wiseman. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710516/01169.jpg : accessed 12 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710519, image 1427, 28 Oct 1820 Isaac Honiker and Saml Sams went bond for the marriage of Isaac Honiker and Rebecca Sams. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710519/01427.jpg : accessed 17 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710516, image 1195, 9th entry, 31 Oct 1820, Isaac Honicker and Rebecca Sams. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710516/01195.jpg : accessed 17 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710516, image 1350, Monroe County minister returns, entry 2, Jas Christy married Wm Sanders to Betsy Honicker on 17 Jan 1822. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710516/01350.jpg : accessed 11 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710519, image 1837, William Sanders of John Honicker went bond on 15 Jan 1822 in Monroe for the marriage of William Sanders and Betsy Honicker. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710519/01837.jpg : accessed 11 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710516, image 1352, Monroe County minister’s return, 4th entry, 30 Oct 1823, Margaret Honicker and Alexander Campbell, married by James Christy. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710516/01352.jpg : accessed 17 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710520, image 10, Alexander Campbell and Isaac Honicker went bond 20 Oct 1823 in Monroe County for the marriage of Alexander Campell and Margaret Honicker. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710520/00010.jpg : accessed 17 August 2014). ↩
Monroe County (West Virginia). Clerk of the County Court, “Deed book, 1789-1901; deed index, 1789-1969,” database with images, FamilySearch, citing microfilm of original records at the Monroe County courthouse, Union., Deed book, v. F-G 1814-1823, images 547 of 651, Deed Book G, page 415, 31 March 1821, Frederick Honiker and wife Rachel to Hugh Caperton and Henry Alexander 13 acres in Monroe near Rehoboth Meeting House . (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-CSKV-G3X7-7?i=546&cat=98998 : accessed 7 August 2022). ↩
“West Virginia Will Books, 1756-1971,” database with images, FamilySearch, digital images of originals housed at local county courthouse in West Virginia, Monroe > Will book, v. 002 1819-1829 > image 149+150 of 295 > page 255-257, Last Will and Testament of Frederick Honaker presented in December Court 1824 and proven. (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:9392-HRS3-Z?cc=1909099&wc=M6DN-B38%3A179686801%2C179709801 : accessed 17 August 2014. ↩
WVCulture.org, West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 495643, image 130, West Virginia, Re-Index and Copy of Marriage Record No. 1–Nicholas County, line 6, 4 Jan 1925, Elijah Wood and Rachel Hannaker, married by Jno Campbell, citing Nicholas County. (http://images.wvculture.org/495643/00130.jpg : accessed 25 April 2013). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710516, image 1351, Monroe County minister return, 3 March 1825 Thomas Reynolds and Sally Honeker married by Jas. Christy. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710516/01351.jpg : accessed 17 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710520, image 401, Thomas J. Reynolds and Dudley G. Reed went bond on 3 March 1825 in Monroe for the marriage of Thomas Reynolds and Sally Honeker. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710520/00401.jpg : accessed 12 February 2020). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710520, image 491, Owen Duffy and Will Spotswood went bond for the marriage of Owen Duffy and Ann Honiker 1 Sep 1825 in Monroe County. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710520/00491.jpg : accessed 17 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710518, image 414, Seth Boggess and Frederick Honaker went bond on 23 May 1803 (27th year of the Commonwealth) in Monroe County for the marriage of Seth Boggess and Edith Wiseman. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710518/00414.jpg : accessed 12 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710516, image 1171, Monroe County minister’s return, 1803 entry 3, 9 Jun 1803, Seth Boggess and Edith Wiseman. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710516/01171.jpg : accessed 12 February 2020). ↩
GenForum, Wiseman Surname Forum, message 824, Re: Edith Wiseman b. 1780 PA or VA by Patricia Boggess 10 January 2001. (https://www.genealogy.com/forum/surnames/topics/wiseman/824/ : accessed 17 August 2014). ↩
WVCulture.org, West Virginia Deaths, 1804-1999, FHL microfilm 589915, image 17, Monroe County Register of Deaths, page 13, line 6, Edith Bogess, born abt. 1785, died 5 Feb 1857 in Wolf Creek, 72 years 1 day, married, mother Rachel Wiseman, spouse Seth Boggess. (http://images.wvculture.org/589915/00017.jpg : accessed 17 August 2014). ↩
Ibid., West Virginia Marriages, 1780-1970, FHL microfilm 1710879, image 466, William Smith and Seth Boggess went bond on 17 Sep 1832 in Monroe County for the marriage of William Smith and Elizabeth Boggess. (http://images.wvculture.org/1710879/00466.jpg : accessed 12 February 2020). ↩