Early Greenbrier Settlers, Part 1

Is your ancestor in this list?

There are over 300 couples in Greenbrier County cemeteries with birthdates prior to 1800. Here are the earliest ones, along with maps showing the cemetery locations. I would take the cemetery location as a clue to where the settler lived, if not otherwise known. I am not yet researching these people. I am just trying to survey what Findagrave has.

SURVEY means:

Note that some of the Findagrave entries do include bios. If you are related, I will try to take a closer look.

As I looked through these, I noticed that only three died in 1763, when the Muddy Creek and Clendenin Massacres occurred. That means a lot of Greenbrier County people died who aren’t included in the Findagrave records.

I’ve added a lot of links. If any information or links are wrong, please do let me know.

1. Annie Legg (1665-1689). Buried in Frankford Cemetery in Greenbrier County, West Virginia. Who was she and how did she get there at such an early date?

2. Capt. Wallace Estill (1698-1792). Buried in Estill Cemetery, Greenbrier County, West Virginia. Married Marsha Bouche Estill (1694-1746), who was born in Monmouth, New Jersey, but who died in Bath County, Virginia. She is buried in Clover Creek Presbyterian Church Cemetery, in Monterrey, Highland County, Virginia. Bio provided.

3. John Alderson — This is a mistake in Findagrave. John Alderson Sr. (1700-1780) was the father of the first pastor of Greenbrier Baptist Church and is buried in Botetourt County, Virginia. See Dave Fridley’s research. Here is the correct location for John Alderson Sr.’s grave.

4. George Lewis—There seems to be a dispute as to whether the information provided is accurate. Caraway Family Cemetery.

5. Francis Baldwin (1710-1760). Buried in Friends Burying Grounds. Married Charity Harlen Hackney (1714-1764).

6. James Arbuckle (1713-1783). Buried in Welsh Cemetery. Married Margaret Thompson (1714-1761), who died in August County and whose burial place is unknown. He then married Rachel Gilmore. Bio provided.

7. John Thomas Williams (1714-1763) was killed by the Shawnee and is buried in the Bill McClung Cemetery. His wife, Mary McCoy, was taken captive. Lengthy bio provided.

8. Johann Frederick Michael Zeh (1718-1763). Was he also killed by the Shawnee? Buried in Muddy Creek Presbyterian Church Cemetery. Married Catharine Vanderpool.

9. George Wetzel (1719-1825). Buried in Old Stone Presbyterian Church Cemetery. Married Elizabeth Cutlip. I would like to know his connection to the Lewis Wetzel mentioned here.

10. Samuel Westlake, Jr. (1721-1796). Buried in Gilboa Cemetery. Married Sarah Welling. Lengthy bio provided.

11. Valentine Yokum (1722-1763). When you see that 1763 death date, think “killed by the Shawnee”. Buried at McKee Burying Grounds. No wife mentioned. Lengthy bio provided.

    

12. James Patterson (1723-1810). Married Elizabeth. Buried at Blue Sulphur Springs Cemetery.

13. Thomas Lee Caraway (1729-1817). Buried in Caraway Family Cemetery. Married Elizabeth Hollensberry.

14. John Newman (1730-1815). Buried in Old Greenbrier Baptist Church Cemetery. No wife mentioned, but he had a daughter.

15. Adam Arbaugh (1730-1800). Buried in the Arbaugh Cemetery. Married Mary Susan Blankenbaker.

16. Capt. Michael Bowyer (1730-1809). Buried at Calwell Family Cemetery. Married Frances Carpenter. Lengthy bio provided.

17. John Burnside (1730-1809). Buried in the Old Stone Presbyterian Church Cemetery. Married Mary Walker.

18. William Littlepage (1732-1825). Buried in the Old Stone Presbyterian Church Cemetery. No wife mentioned.

19. John Beard (1733-1808). Buried in the Beard-Hanna Cemetery. Married Jennet Wallace.

20. Robert Fleshman (1735-1798). Buried in Old Robert Fleshman Farm Cemetery. Wife was Dorothy Baumgardner. (The map on Findagrave is incorrect. It shows a location apparently in Asia. If you know the location, please tell us.)