James Scott Born at Sea, 1750

 

    James Scott is said to have been born at sea in the year 1750.   This is a claim largely accepted and often repeated in all genealogical references,  most particularly Oren F. Morton's  History of Monroe County West Virginia.  The first edition of this book  was published in 1916 and even then the account of James's life was largely from secondary sources passed down through local accounts by family and newspaper.  The good news for anyone seeking information about this pioneer is that his life within then newly created Monroe County is well documented for the time period.  Luckily,  the Monroe County Court records were never destroyed in a court house fire.  The bad news is that James's life before coming to Monroe is murky, and current attempts to find relevant information have not been fruitful.

    Morton also reports that James's parents came to settle in Rockbridge, and that's where  James is said to have moved from.   Rockbridge County exists today,  and encompasses the unique geographical feature Natural Bridge from which the County derives its name.  In James  Scott's life,  the area was one of the western most counties of Colonial Virginia,  Augusta County.  We have many records from the early period Augusta,  but none give us direct lineage from James's parents  back to their original location.  The History of West Virginia lists James Scott as a very early settler in Monroe County who originally  came from Scotland.  The earliest date given for his presence was detailed in The Monroe Watchman by a Mrs. McClung who relates him coming to that part of the country in 1769 and details the location in the Sinks were he settled. 

   If one accepts the "born at sea" scenario, it's interesting to speculate about  the lives of  James's parents and their trip to Virginia,  particularly the difficulty imposed by having and infant  on  a cramped and inhospitable small wooden ship crossing the Atlantic Ocean.  Historical records indicate that a typical traverse of the Atlantic from England averaged seven to eight weeks.  Some trips took as long as 12 weeks.  At best,  James's mother got passage to the New World when she was already  28 weeks pregnant in a 40 week gestation.  She could well have been much further along,  and the odds of an infant surviving a 12 week journey compared to one or two weeks is far less likely and there's no reason to assume James was the only child in the family.   

    The general description of life aboard an immigrant ship crossing the Atlantic in 1750 is "miserable". One account written by Gottleb Mittelberger describes the dire circumstances of immigrants who have obtained passage in the cheapest accommodations of a trans Atlantic voyage in 1750. The worst of it comes from passengers who have sold themselves into an Indenture on the American side, who may or may not have actually paid for the ride. Some indentures involved payment of the passage by the master, who would have entered into the contract specifying some long term bond between the two parties. Some people gained passage without even that assurance, and were kept at port until an indenture could be arranged. In some cases, the gamble worked, in others they perished prior to arrival or where in such bad health that none would seek to contract with them. These people had the worst living conditions, food, and support on the journey.

    Imagine then,  being very pregnant and placed deep within the hold of fetid, stinking vessel among livestock,  having little fresh water to drink and a very limited diet of sustenance surrounded by those sick from them motion of the sea and plagued by lice and fleas.  That's one possible scenario. 

    Maybe the Scott's had better resources, access to fresh water and a better variety of foods and accommodations which allowed our pregnant mother  so comfort and care. Maybe the journey was in the early spring of the year with gentle seas and comfortable temperatures?  None of the journeys were easy,  but they could be made less deadly.  It seems more probable the survival of a newborn and its parents would favor a passage with less tribulation that the worst of it. 

    What of the circumstances which led them to leave in the first place? Was it an economic decision based on difficult living in Scotland?   Was it because of political or religious considerations?  Did they have family that previously immigrated and sent for them?  All of these reasons and more are possibilities that fit within the history of immigration from Scotland,  but specific records which could shed light on this aspect of their journey remain lost in time, but a few clues exist which may help with some of the story.

 

 
 Augusta was the most western county before entering the  wild frontier and includes the Great Valley of Virginia which separates the Blue Ridge Mountains on the eastern side and the Allegheny Mountains on western side of the valley.  Long before colonists found their way into the region,  the various Native American people had made lived there and influenced the environment by setting seasonal fires and maintaining grasslands on which many animals lived.  Early European explorers were surprised to find swaths of  savannah like areas instead of  the rich and dense forests which covered the mountains.  While the approach to the Great Valley from the east was impeded by the Blue Ridge,  it was more easily accessed  from northern approaches via the Great Wagon Road. 

   

From Wikipedia 

The Great Wagon Road was a conduit for  migration through the valley to the southern regions,  and initially it provided German and Scotch Irish immigrants access to land in the Shenandoah Valley, then southward into North Carolina.  The city of Staunton was formed in 1746 and was center of civil and economic activity for the region.   At the time however,  the extent of expansion was limited to the lands east of the first ridge of he Allegheny Mountains.  The lands to the west were considered those of the various Native American people and treaties with the Colonial were supposed to prevent the settlement of these lands.  Alas,  such treaties looked good on paper,  but there was no mechanism of enforcement which would prevent eager settlers from finding pristine land beyond the first ridge of the Alleghanies.  Many took the chance to squat on these lands and accepted the danger.  

  

   With no safety or support,  they were on their own in terms of protection and at the mercy of  Native Americans who had plenty of pent up and warranted anger for such people and who also may have had been influenced by the French to extirpate people to benefit their position in their conflict with England.  One can read with great detail how the French and Indian War affected affairs of the time period.  In a practical sense,  it made people who had crossed the western boundary in the 1750's to flee back to the relative safety of the Great Valley while still lustfully  eyeing the lands to the west.  Generally speaking,  from 1750 to 1770 or so,  it was not a safe bet to travel west and set up a farm homestead.  

     Of course some people risked it anyway.   One such early squatter was James Hungard,  whose  last name gets spelled many different ways but who is said to have ventured into the frontier and settled in a creek valley  whose waters spill into the Greenbrier River.  Creeks are generally named after the families or settlers who first squatted and established a presences on their waters.   Not much is know about James Hungard,  except he settled in that particular valley when getting clubbed on the noggin  and having scalp removed was not an unreasonable expectation. We only know he lived there long enough for the creek to become associated with his last name.  Lots of creeks in Appalachia follow this naming convention.  This is the creek valley where my more recent ancestors settled right after the civil war and whose lands remained in the family until the late 1980's.

    By 1750,  Augusta already had a significant number of people with the Scott surname.  Luckily,  Lyman Chalkley went  through the court records for August County during the period of time and published The Chronicles of the Scotch-Irish Settlement in Virginia,  which has since been indexed for expedient analysis.   An avid genealogist of  has listed all the references to the Scot/Scott surname found in the court records.  I attempted to look at the chronology of the listings to assess the possibility that a James Scott,  born at sea,  might  be revealed through such records.  Between  Chalkley's  publication and the current wealth of digital records and family trees,  no solid was made between people with the Scott surname living in Augusta County and James Scott.  

 

Senator William L. Scott  from Wikipedia

  I am not first person to take a crack and finding the connection.   Nothing could be more American than the descendants of  such a pioneer as James making good on a national level.  In 1967,  a fourth generation  Scott by the name of William L. Scott won a congressional seat in Virginia's eighth district. He served two terms there before running for US Senate,  and won that race as well. One of his staff members was a pretty good genealogist and did some impressive research,  visiting libraries and court houses sorting through records and piecing together bits of information about James Scott.  This was before any digital content and involved a good deal of effort and travel.  Senator Scott's son,  William L. Scott Jr. was contacted through Facebook messenger and thinks the staff members names was Don Roberts.   He interviewed my Great Aunt, Faye and my Grandfather, Paul Scott and promised to make copies of the report he planned to file.  True to his word,  one was sent to my Aunt Faye,  who passed it to my grandfather and which then was given to me.   His report and records are here.

    Mr. Roberts checked will books,  land transactions , court records  and revolutionary soldier rosters in an effort to find some trace of James Scott who moved from somewhere in Augusta/Rockbridge into  Greenbrier /Monroe.  As mentioned,  the Scott surname among Scots Irish and Scottish Settlers was not uncommon.  There were already Scotts living in various parts of a vast Augusta County.  More confusing still,  James is was about as common a first name  as one can find,  so it's not so much find a James Scott as putting together dates and times  of the many James Scotts to make sense with the  facts claimed in "Born at Sea, 1750" narrative.   I had hoped the the Scott Y chromosome might eventually  connect James Scott to his male ancestors.  That's an entirely different rabbit hole of investigation that requires a rather arcane and complicated skill for investigation.

    For a comprehensive look at events during the settlement of the Greenbrier region,  I was lucky to find the work of  Sarah McCartney  whose 2018 dissertation,  ‘O’ER MOUNTAINS AND RIVERS’: COMMUNITY AND COMMERCE IN THE GREENBRIER VALLEY IN THE LATE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY sorts through available records of the time to piece together what was know of the frontier and people that sought lands there.  It provides insight into the hardships of daily life,  food, commerce and social interactions of  people who depend on each other all aspects of living.  It also speaks of the religious and political aspects of the period.  James Scott is not specifically mentioned, but his story fits into aforementioned aspects of a pioneer during this time period.  

     The first mention of James Scott in the vicinity of modern day Monroe County comes from an article in The Monroe Watchman by a Mrs. McClung who seems to think he was there as early as 1769.  He settled in a section of the region called Rocky Point.  Over time,  the area's name changed to Sinks Grove,  a name  which acknowledges the presence of numerous sink holes in region.  In fact,  the limestone karst conceals entire cave systems,  particularly one that existed below the lands that James Scott acquired.  It's not clear if James Scott  discovered it,  but there is  large cave system under the property called the "Scott Hollow Cave System".  Mapping of it began in 1985 and many miles of subterranean  features have been discovered, including a river.

    If  James Scott did arrive in the area circa 1769,  he certainly had his work cut out for him.  This was an undeveloped land with little in the way of commerce and without a convenient or functional road or path into the region.  We don't know where he came from,  but getting to the Sinks and establishing a homestead required all the energy and skill that pioneer could muster.  The most common route according to the aforementioned source by McCartney was through a rugged and mountainous path traveling west from Staunton then from highlands south into the Greenbrier Valley,  essentially where route 219 is today.  There were few comforts,  but lots of potential.  If he was born in 1750,  then he is only 19 years old,  a great age to take on onerous physical tasks , probably for others,  and to begin planning for life in a newly created community. 

    The first formal mention of his land acquisition is a land grand signed by Patrick Henry in 1784 for 350 acres.  These patents for land were traded and sold frequently,  and James does not seem to be the original recipient,  but rather gets the property from a chain of people who had claims on it.  Below is a transcription of the patent.   The original can be found in the Library of Virginia's digital collections.  This transcription was done as part of an analysis of patents in Monroe which can be put into Deed Mapper software,  which then shows a plat of the property.   

frm Patrick Henry Esq. Gov.
to James Scott Ass'ee Thomas Kincade Ass'ee of Samuel Sullard
!Who was Ass'ee of Thomas Soward
con 2 Cert's Rts. of Settlement
!Given by the Commissioners for adjusting the titles to
!unpatented Lands in the destrict of Augusta Botetourt
!and Greenbrier and in Consideration A.C. œ1.S15 Sterling
!350a by Survey bearing date the 1st of June 1784
re 350a Greenbrier Co. adj. Shadrack Harriman & a Survey made
!for Evan Kilbreath
loc 14208 -1536 F127 L0 P255
pt A) at two white Oaks in a Valley
ln E; 27P; fm a Valley
pt B) a white oak
ln N10E; 162P;
pt C) a white oak
ln N70E; 50P;
pt D) a white oak and Chesnut on Hermons line
ln N15W; 111P; Hermon [Shadrack Harriman?]
pt E) two black oaks
ln N74E; 58P;
pt F) two white oaks and leaving said line
ln N42W; 116P;
pt G) a whiteoak
ln N15E; 146P;
pt H) two black oaks
lm ; ; S21E 30P
pt I) a Spanish and white oaks
ln N6E; 84P;
pt J) three white oaks corner to Kilbreath & with his line
ln S45W; 180P; Evan Kilbreath
pt K) two Red oaks and Gum and leaving said line
lc S14E; 530P;

    Again, using the alleged birthdate, this makes makes James 34 years old in the County of Greenbrier.  Monroe County and it's court offices are not established until 1799.  According to the Rogers' research,  James eventually acquired over 650 acres of land through grants and purchases. which would seem to indicate that he did pretty well for himself.   His will and probate records also tell such a story of material success and give some insight to his ethical and moral character.   Listed below are the records from the Monroe County Court House for land acquired by James Scott from the Grantees Record Book.

1784-350 Acres

1786-96 Acres on Broad Run
1794 95 Acres In the Sinks

92 Acres on Broad Run

1819-44 Acres in the Sinks

His son, James Jr,  is given the 92 acres on Wolf Creek ( probably the Parcel listed on Broad Run , as it flows in to Wolf Creek. His son John is granted 10 acres on Broad Run. 

    Of course he did not accomplish such a life as single man.  His second wife's name was Mollie (Margaret) whose maiden name was Kincaid. There are no court records of their marriage and Mollie's family origins are not concretely established through the same kind of  confusion found when researching Scotts,  that is,  there are a bunch of Kincaides, Kincades, Kinkeads living in the Augusta/Greenbrier County and Margaret is a popular first name.   James was also married before he married Mollie.  Susan Evans,  with whom I have communicated regarding Scott DNA in genealogical research  found a reference to previous wife from the death records of one of  James's Scott's daughters,  Nancy Agnes Scott,  who indicates her mother was named Elizabeth.  Nancy was the 5th child,  so it may be that the first five children were from this unknown spouse.  

"Death Records for Agnes Scott (Recorded by her Nephew James K Scott) and James Scott (Recorded by his Brother Mathew Scott) lists their mother as Elizabeth Scott. "

Susan Evans speculated that her surname may have been Burdette, as it was common to use the wife's surname as a middle name for children. James's first child is William Burdette Scott. Morton's account of James Scott in Monroe also lists Mollie Kincaid as James's second wife.

Yet another reference has James married to a women named Catherine Sullivan,  who may be he mother of the first five children.

Here is what is known regarding the birth of children of James Scott.

1. William Burdette Scott 1775-1835 (will, no heirs. first wife)
2. James Scott 1777-1841 (will, first wife)
3. Polly Scott 1779 (probably deceased at a young age)
4. Jane Scott 1779-1840 (will, first wife)
5. John Scott 1782-1857 (will, first wife)
6. Agnes Nancy Scott 1783-1855 (will, first wife)
7. Mary Polly Scott 1784-(will)
8. Sarah Jane Scott 1787-1855 (will)
9. David E Scott 1789- 1850 (will)
10. Elizabeth Scott 1792-1830 (will)
11. Matthew Scott 1794-1884 (will)
12. Williams Robert Scott 1797- 1882 (will)

One thing that can be inferred about James is that he engaged in and cooperated within the established legal framework of life in early Monroe County. The best example of him making an effort to work within the legal system of the time is his will. The will, and the subsequent execution of it in probate is really a remarkable record for a common person of this time period. Moreover, it reveals his effort to make sure his family is taken care of after his passing and even makes specific orders for children who have special needs. The will is well preserved in Monroe County's courthouse and is available through digital collections online. To make better sense out of elegant cursive style of the time, I have transcribed it provided it below. In keeping with the traditions of law at the time, Margaret inherits 1/3 of his real estate.

I James Scott of Monroe County do hereby make my last will and Testament in manner and form Following that is to say:

First, I give to my wife Margaret Scott one horse side saddle and bridle and two Cows, also all of my beds and bed clothes and all of my household furniture of every name and description, to her & her heirs and assigns for ever.

Second, I give my said wife all the rest of my personal estate of what nature or kind soever it my be, for and during the term of her natural life.

Third, I give to my said wife for and during the term of her natural life, one third of my plantation, including the spring and orchard and Daugherty's cabin, my mansion house and barn and all other buildings and outhouses.

Fourth, I will and order that after my decease, my Executors hereafter named do rent out the other two thirds of my Plantation, and after the decease of my wife, the whole of it, and apply the rents and profits thereof for keeping and maintaining my two sons William Scott and John Scott, as long as they or any one of them continue in a state of mental derangement & inability to provide from themselves, and provided their own estates be not sufficient for their maintenance.

Fifth. I will and direct that, as soon as the necessity for maintaining my two sons aforesaid shall have ceased, either by death, or by their being restored to their reason, and after the decease of my wife, Executors process to sell off my estate both real and personal for ready money or on Credit, as they should think most advantageous, and the monies arising there from to be equally divided among all my children here named. William Scott, James Scott, Jane Burdett, John Scott, Mary Foster, Sarah Longinaker, Nancy Scott, David Scott, Elizabeth Scott, Matthew Scott and Williams Scott with this proviso; that if my Daughters Nancy and Betsy Elizabeth will give up what money they have in their possession belonging to my son William Scott so that some may be applied towards keeping and maintaining him and he, the said William Scott should die and leave the whole of any part of said money unexpended then said part of unexpended is to be refunded to the said Nancy and Elizabeth, and in the case of the same, should from any course whatever , to be refunded to them as aforesaid, then the said Nancy and Elizabeth shall receive as much out of my son William Scotts share herein will to him from my estate.

Sixth. I will that no amount taken be taken of anything I have heretofore given to any of my children by way of advancement, whether it be real or personal estate, but that they all take alike as directed above and with the above proviso.

And Lastly I do hereby constitute and appoint my son Matthew Scott and my trusty friend James Miller as the executor of my last will and testament and I do hereby revoke all other former wills and testaments by me heretofore made declaring this and no other to be my last will and testament. Desiring it may be received by all as such.

In witness where of I have here unto set my and seal this the 16th day of February in the year of our Lord 1825.

James Scott ((seal)

Signed sealed and published and xxxxx for the last will and testament for the above names James Scott. In the presence of Adam Thomas and Phillip Daugherty

We get a little insight into the estate James has acquired. James calls it a "Plantation" as opposed to a farm. He calls his primary home a "mansion" and the portion of the property that includes the spring, the barn, orchard and an additional cabin. Two thirds of the real estate gets leased out to create income to care for William and John, who are disabled in some way. More about William B. Scott is detailed in this separate post. The big news in this directive is that he wants everything he has acquired sold off after the death of his wife, Margaret. All real estate and all of his personal property and designates his son Matthew and good friend, James Miller, to do it. In the inventory of his estate, we can see that the designation of the a "plantation" is a valid description. This also seems to follow common practices of inheritance law from that time.

James Scott Personal Property Sale 1828

In August of 1828 Matthew Scott sells off some items from the personal property of James and the sale reveals a source of income which was probably very lucrative: Brandy! The will is specific in making sure that Mollie gets the portion of land with "the orchard", which helps explain where the brandy comes from. In terms of native fruit trees, most Americans are surprised to learn that the region's only native fruit offerings were persimmons, crab apples and paw paws. That's it. Peaches, apples, plums and pears are entirely introduced from Europe, and in the case of apples, they first migrated from central Asia. Peaches seem to have gotten a early start on the continent with introduction by the Spanish. Apples came later. Oren Morton writes in 1916 of a large apple tree in "Scott Hollow" which was planted in 1790, which would have been James Scott. Interestingly, two bee hives are also sold, indicating that James seems to well understand how pollinators are an important part of a successful orchard operation.

This makes sense for time period. If one has a large harvest of fruit, there's not a particularly long window of time where it can be useful. If the weather is hot and dry, apples can be dried and preserved. The better bet is mash them up and ferment them into a cider, and for a really good profit, distill the fermented liquid into brandy. Missing from James's will, is any mention of a copper still, which would have been an expensive and valuable item and clearly connected his product to the process of distillation Someone is distilling this, and it clearly is being sold as brandy in significant quantities. Distillation was a well known process among Scottish settlers. James Scott may have loved to eat apples and peaches, but I'm guessing that big orchard filled many a brown jug with brandy. In this early period of settlement, alcohol is a welcome addition to life. In subsequent decades, a temperance movement preached through church influence attempts to diminish the harmful role of alcohol consumption culminating in prohibition.

Mollie Scott lives on the plantation until her death in 1837 . As directed, Matthew Scott sells off all the personal property from the estate. This gives us more insight into life in The Sinks. This property inventory is transcribed below with question marks following the items whose identity I could not decipher. The images of the original records are here:

Part First

One young mare, side saddle and bridle
Two Cows
Bed and Bead clothes
Candle Stand and a bale of cotton yarn
Spinng Wheel and reel
1 Big Wheel
Drafren(?), ware, pails and churn
2 Kettles, 2 ovens & skillet, potrack & fireshovel
1 Table, 4 chairs, 2 old chests & bedstead a tripod
1 chain pot rack & 1 pair steelyards
1 pair Shears, pair of suilfras(?), 1 hackle

Part 2

55 gallons of brandy
2 bulls, 1 tension saw and drawing knife, 1 adze and shovel
1 pair of trucks, double tree, clevis and long chain
1 plow, 1 Iron teeth harrow
1 shovel plow, single tree and clevis
1 wheat fan and cutting box and flax brake
3 sets Hames, 3 hoes, 2 iron forks
1 mattock and iron wedge
16 sheep
1 old saddle
1 sow and 4 pigs
10 other hogs

By the listing, this is a plantation with all manner of self sufficient production. There are tools for production of wool and linen (flax). Farm and garden tools, sheep, pigs, cows and horses are part of the estate. Maybe chickens are not valuable enough to make the list, but one would think any such household would have plenty. They spin fabric from wool and flax, churn butter and raise crops and fruit. It is a self sufficient home. In James's personal estate sale lists, he also parts with 14 books. How I wish I knew what he was reading.

Sitting in front of my computer in the early days of 2024, I am a descendant of one branch of this man's family. My branch descends from James's last child, Williams Robert Scott. For those interested in the family history you may have noticed that James's first son is the disabled William, so he has two sons with similar first names. Matthew stays on the acquired land of his father and becomes a prominent man in the Sinks. He later donates land for the Sinks Grove Baptist Church which is a typical prototype of many a small church found through out the United States. Matthew lives to a ripe old age of 90 and is buried in The Scott Family Cemetery. Many Scott's are also buried in the cemetery of the aforementioned Baptist Church.



Photo by Steve Kirby












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