Some family names are traced back to Eng., Wales, Ireland.
One family back to something like 988...

Kimmy

I can't find them before then, so many of
our ancestors came here just to find a piece
of land to settle on. I am pretty sure
they landed in PA and traveled down the Shenendoah
Valley before settling in the Mountains. It
reminded them of home!!

I have a family homepage .... am I allowed to link to it?

I'm lucky, one whole branch of family - Lindleys - were Quaker, so I have alot of data on them.

Just last year, I found another family line home, built ca. 1820. That family goes back to Accomack Co., VA before 1700. Haven't got any further with them, yet.

The one family name that I really want to 'connect' seems to be impossible due to County Courthouses being burned. One co. records burned 3 times....and the other once...loosing the connectors. Big Bummer!
Kimmy

I was fortunate to talk with 'the elders' of the
family 'before' they were gone. Cemetery records,
even a family bible and a 'grandson's journal'..
the rest I gleaned from census records, deeds,
wills etc....

Thru online genealogy forums, I was blessed to
connect with 'cousins' ....

Okay, I am going to attach the link, if it
doesn't work, let me know.

My Lindley's and Hadley's were Quaker and moved from PA to NC. Alot stayed in NC and some moved to Indiana.

Some Barrow's went to TN but the Barrow's are the family I can't connect to any of the major Barrow lines due to burned courthouses.

Kimmy

Then, we've found all sorts of interesting stories (like on my paternal grandfathers side - we can't locate immigration information because one of my great-greats jumped ship in New Orleans).

Some of my names are on my home page.

The documented every part of a family's life,
marriages, births, deaths, migrations etc.

I had a ggggranny who md. a Quaker man, he was
a widower, he was "dismissed for marrying
contrary to discipline"....which means he did
not receive the 'blessing' of the quakers to
marry my granny!!!

He also held back from joining the quaker church,
until after the Revolutionary War so that he
could 'fight'...then he joined his first wife
and family in being a good 'quaker'...

There are 3 very distinct Barrow lines in NC very early (2 lines before 1700). There's circumstantial evidence that points me in one direction, but it is very circumstantial. There have been quite a number of us looking for definitive info for years...with no luck due to those courthouse fires.
I'm on 'hiatus' right now...got so frustrated that I've had to stop for a bit.
The Barrow Family Association is meeting in NC this Spring. I'll get back into it before then.

Kimmy

Kimmy

I've got a bigger puzzle - my g-g-grandparents were apparently cousins - not sure how close though & married without family support (he was MUCH older than she was too). We can't find any information about them beyond death certificates. Her name also changes from document to document too.

Believe it or not it was not 'uncommon' for
cousins to marry back then. I had one
line that first cousins married....and my
Aunt married her second cousin, her MIL was
also her 'great aunt'.

I don't believe people realized that there might
be health 'problems' with children from inter-breeding.

The kings and queens of Europe were notorious
for marrying cousins!!! And I believe (not sure)
that Cleopatra was married to her brother.

And, your right, after the Revolutionary War men
were given 'bounty land' for service, don't forget
there was no 'currency' yet....so this is how
they were paid, and the West beyond the blue
ridge mountains was up for expansion whether
it was 'legal and/or ethical'.

Linda

One of the biggest reasons was transportation, or the lack of transportation.
People tended to marry those who lived close by, and families tended to 'settle' together.

There was quite a bit of intermarriage in my family, too. My grandparents on my mothers side were related. My father's parents were related.
It's really scary.
It's not just a cliche about everyone being related in NC...
But, in NC, people just didn't travel until the 1950's... there was the Depression... and other factors that really kept people's paths tight.

My people settled in Sevier County, TN ...
and the little community they lived in I
found that I am related to every single
family that settled there. And, you are
right, travel was tough so you married
neighbors and, yes, sometimes relatives.

These same people that settled an area
usually traveled there together also..
safety in numbers.

BTW Kimmy, I am almost positive my ROBERTS
line came across the mountains from NC....

We've also got whole sets of siblings marrying other sets of sibs. Actually, we've got it happening numerous times.

Being ostracized by family back then was 100
times worse than today!!!

My grandmother, Daddy's mama, was born out of
wedlock...as were her two sisters...their mama
never did marry!!! This was a family secret
that caused a great deal of upset when I
decided to do our 'family tree'...in fact one
Auntie stopped talking to me for awhile.

My heart goes out to my greatgrandma, imagine
what her life must have been like in this
small community of folks, and the 'so-called'
church ladies snubbing her!!! The sheriff
of the county was my greatgrandpa....and my
aunts and uncles knew him well.

Nothing in life has really changed, the same
things that go on now went on back then. It
is just that now if you are unmarried and
have a baby it is not cause for being run
out of town!!! She had to move to another
county for awhile, how sad for her.

My Grandmother wouldn't talk to me about her grandparents...found out after grandmother died that her grandfather committed suicide after being accused of fathering an illegitimate (sp?) child.
Her grandfather was a FWB minister...
The 'mother' of this child was an orphan, hired to 'keep house' for my gg grandfather after my gg grandmother died. GG Grandfather was a Civil War Vet, missing a leg. He lived in house with his 3 under 30 years of age sons...
I'd have to see the DNA to prove to me that it was his child. My bet is on one of the sons...
Kimmy