Capt. Isaac Ruddell’s Treason Trial, Letter of Isaac Zane, Marlbro Iron Works, [to] governor, January 14, 1783
Sir,
The Letter enclosed in the note you honored me with was immediately sent to General Muhlenburg on my arrival at home, and I had his answer the 2d inst. the 3rd he came to the forge and directly went in quest of Isaac Ruddle the person mentioned to him, and he brought him before me on the 5th I sent for the bearer Lieutenant Machen, he came, but the indisposition of some of his fellow sufferers and inability of others for want of horses - we adjourned the further examination to Winchester - where the deponents where confronted with the said Isaac Ruddle, and the inclosed depositions taken - by those you will be pleased to observe that there are several most material witnesses not present - they have passed on to the Western Waters, and not likely to be soon obtained - Nevertheless on the present Evidence it was the unanimous opinion of the several Justices (who did me the favor to attend) that the charge was tryable in the General Court only, in consequence of which there is an examining Court called to that purpose - General Muhlenburg's assiduity & attention, as well as the [illegible] respect he paid to the Civil Authority deserves Acknowledgment.
I have the honor to be your Excellencies Most respectfull Friend & Gent
Isaac Zane
Marlbro Iron Works, Jany 14th, 1783

Frederick Sct.
The deposition of sundry persons taken before Isaac Zane Gent. One of the Justices of the Peace in and for the County aforesaid in consequence of a charge against a certain Isaac Riddle for Committing sundry Treasonable practices against the United States.

John Machen of full age being duly sworn on the Holy Evangelists of the Almighty God Deposeth and saith that the motives which influenced his information against the said Isaac Riddle were in consequence of sundry informations he had received from John Dunkin, Judith Laforce, William McGuire and Christiana Gatliff to whose depositions he beged have to refer and also from the information he had received from Thomas Berry alledging that Riddle had advised him in a particular manner to alienate himself from his Country and enter into the service of his Majesty King George 3rd. That John McFall had informed him, this Deponent he was well assured from convienencing circumstances it was thro the means of Riddle that he (McFall) being then a prisoner with the British was transported from Detroit to Montreal. That Samuel Brooks had also informed him to the same purpose previous to his death which was occasioned he this deponent was well assured by the severities and hardships he had received in his confinement being released there from but a few days as supposed inconceivable. This deponent saith that injustice to himself and his fellow sufferers he could not suffer these circumstances to pass over in silence as during the whole time of his Captivity it was the prevailing Opinion among the prisoners, and which was demonstrated by the Conduct of Riddle that he was disaffected to his Countries Cause and further the deponent saith not.

John Dunkin being duly sworn on the Holy Evangelist Deposeth and saith that sometime in or about the month of October 1780 in course of conversation with Isaac Riddle he the said Isaac informed him he was at that time under pay of four shillings/day from the British for making out sundry returns. This deponent further saith that at the same time, Riddle informed him he had proposed to Captain Bird of the British his intentions of converting his property in Virginia, and slaves, and transporting them into Canada which he could readily do thro his son then in Virginia. This deponent saith that it was the universal opinion among the prisoners that Riddle was disaffected to the American cause and further saith not.Judith Laforce of full age being duly sworn on the Holy Evangelist Deposith and saith that being a prisoner sometime in or about the month of Octr. 1780 on a Sunday she was in conversation with Isaac Riddle who informed her that he the sd. Isaac was then under pay of the Congress and also the King, that as far as she could discover, the said Isaac Riddle's whole conversation was in favour of the British, this Deponent saith that she has since been informed by Capt. Stokely that he had turned Riddle out of his Quarters supposing him to be inimical to the Cause of America, and in a particular manner prejudicial to the prisoners and this Deponent saith that during the whole time of their captivity it was the prevailing Opinion among the prisoners, that the said Riddle was disaffected to the American cause.

Christiana Gatliff of full age being duly sworn on the Holy Evangelist Deposeth and saith that sometime in or about the month of Septr. 1780, while she was a prisoner in a Blockhouse at Detroit with John McFall who understanding he was like to be sent to Montreal declared that should an attempt of that kind be made, he would make his escape at the risk of his life upon information of which Isaac Riddle [illegible] by Sergeant Chapman of the British came to this Deponent and minutely interrogated her, what information she had made to John Conway (who has since taken protection under the King) respecting John McFall's declaration of making an attempt to escape to which the replies as above upon which Riddle Ordered the Sergeant immediately to take McFall into Custody and take care of him and since then she has never seen McFall. She further saith that about that time she was present when a difference arose between the said Isaac Riddle and Samuel Brookes a fellow prisoner concerning his non compliance with an agreement to go with him to some Island not far distant, to reside while in captivity, that within three or four hours after they parted a Sergeant of the Guard came to Brookes and took him into close custody, upon which Brookes demanded his crimes when the sergeant replied it was the major's order. In consequence of his refusal to accompany Riddle upon an Island after agreeing to do the same. This deponent further saith that during the whole time of Captivity it was the general opinion of the prisoners that the said Riddle was disaffected to the cause of America and further this deponent saith not.

William McGuire being sworn (at the particular request of Isaac Riddle) on the Holy Evangelist deposeth and saith that during the whole time of his Captivity with Isaac Riddle in Detroit & Montreal it appeared to be the universal opinion among the prisoners, that Riddle was disaffected to the cause of America but that after they were released, the said Riddle offered to lend him this deponent one or two Guineas. That it was also reported he hand lent Capt. Brown [illegible] a prisoner five Guineas & had profered to len money to other prisoners. And further the deponent saith not.

George Rogers Clark and His Men: Military Records 1778-1784
Payroll of Lieutenant John Mahan
A pay roll for ten prisoners that was taken at Martin’s Station in the year 1780 June 26 and was exchanged and sended on East bay the 6th day of November 1782 - John Mchan Lieu., Thomas Machen, William McGuire, Frances Berrey, Thos. Berrey, William Leforce, John Dunkin, John Dunkin Jr, Samuel Porter -----------
(signature) Charles Gatliff

Capt John Mchan Lieut, 29 month 11 days at 6/s £240:19:8
Thomas Mchan do 58:14:8
William Mchan do 58:14:8
Francis Berry do 58:14:8
Thos. Berry do 58:14:8
William Laforce do 58:14:8
Jno Dunkin do 58:14:8
Jno Dunkin, Jr. do 58:14:8
Council Chamber Nov. 12, 1783
The auditors will settle the payroll hereto annexed agreeable to law. Amt. Pay roll £769.11.8
(signature) Benj. Harrison
We do certify that Capt. Charles Gatliff at the time the __?__ was setting to settle the __?__ for the Kentucky District was gne to Meat his wife and children that was taken in Martin’s Station on the 26th June 1780 and for that Reason Could not attend the Commissioners Appointed for that purpose Given under my hand this 7th day of August 1783
(signature) Jn Bowman
(signature) John Edwards

Family Files and Research Papers of Delores Berry Blasé
1850 Federal Census Nicholas County, Kentucky

Family Files and Research Papers of Nancy Young Carter, Fruitvale, Texas
Birth of Francis Berry in Tennessee
1850 for census Nicholas County, Kentucky shows Francis Berry as 59 with a place of birth in Tennessee

Family Files and Research Papers of Delores Berry Blasé

1850 Federal Census Nicholas County, Kentucky
Birth of John Berry in Tennessee
1850 census for Montgomery County, Tennessee shows a 57 year old John Berry, Sr born in Tennessee

Milford Berry Biographical Sketch, Nicholas County, Union Precinct
John Berry, son of Thomas Berry/Jane Wallace, was "... brought to Kentucky by his parents in 1804 ..."
Thomas Berry and family migrate to Montgomery County, Kentucky from Tennessee

MILFORD BERRY, farmer, Moorefield, was born in Bath County, Ky., near old Springfield Church, Oct. 20, 1817, and is a son of John and Polly (Coons) Berry; he was born in Tennessee in 1796, was a farmer by occupation, and died April 15, 1867; he was brought to Kentucky by his parents in 1804, his wife Polly, was born in Montgomery County, Ky., in 1799, and died Jan. 15, 1845; the result of their union was nine children, of whom Milford, our subject, was one; he received a common school education in Montgomery County, and commenced his career in life as a farmer; he was married in Montgomery County, March 20, 1839, to Miss Elizabeth Howard, who was born in Montgomery County, in 1822, and died July 15, 1840, she was a daughter of John and Elizabeth (Anderson) Howard, both natives of Montgomery County, Ky. Mr. Berry was married again July 7, 1842, to Miss Frances Ann Hendricks, who died July 15, 1851, leaving to his care two children, viz: Mary Frances and Lucy Harriett. Mrs. Berry was a daughter of Levi and Rebecca (Hart) Hendricks, natives of Bath County, Ky. On Aug. 28, 1855, Mr. Berry was married to Eliza Ann Robertson, widow of William Edward Robertson, and daughter of John and Susan (Burroughs) Judy; she was born in Clark County, Dec. 25, 1823; they have three children, viz: James W., Ida and Elizabeth; Mr. Berry is a member of the Christian Church at Bethel, and is also a prominent member of the Masonic fraternity at Carlisle. By his industry and persistent energy, he has accumulated a large property and now has in his possession 360 acres of land, which, being a practical farmer, he keeps in a high state of cultivation, and well stocked; he is highly esteemed by the community, and is a warm advocate of the Democrat party.

Augusta County, Virginia Deed Book 33, page 149
Death of Thomas Berry probably in Montgomery County, Kentucky

Montgomery County, Kentucky, Deed Book __, pages 106,107
{Margin Notation: Duncan to Berry}
This Indenture made the twenty fourth day of March and in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred and ten between Andrew Duncan of the County of Montgomery and State of Kentucky of the one part, and Jane Berry of the County and State aforesaid of the other part. Witnesseth that the same Andrew Duncan for and in consideration of the sum of eighty pounds curent money, hath bargained sold and conveyed, and by these presents do bargain sell and convey, to the said Jane Berry one certain tract of parcel of land, lying and being in the County of Montgomery in the waters of Slate creek containing by estimation fifty acres be the same more or less which tract is part of a tract of one thousand acres granted to William Ellis deceased and by same Andrew Duncan conveyed to said Jane Berry, and bounded as followeth to wit)

Beginning at two box elders and a Sugartreee Thence East sixty five poles to two Sugartrees. Thence North one hundred and twenty eight poles to a hickory Sapling and small sugartree Thence West sixty five poles to a white thorn and pawpaw. Thence South one hundred and twenty Eight poles to the Beginning

To have and to hold the said fifty acres of Land with its appurtenances unto the said Jane Berry her heirs and assigns forever, and he the said Andrew Duncan doth covenant and agree to ---?--- with the said Jane Berry that the said Andrew Duncan and him will warrant and forever defend the right of the above sold land and premesis against the claim or [last line on page 106 unreadable] consider attend above ministered doth also make ones and relinquishes her right of dower of in and to the said fifty acres of Land and premises. In Witness whereof the said Andrew Duncan and Fanny his wife hath hereunto set their hands and seals the day ---?-- as above mentioned.
Test -----?--- Davis
Andrew [his mark] Duncan (seal)
Fanny [her mark] duncan (seal)
This day personally came Fanny duncan before us the subscribing two of the Commonwealth Justices of the peace for Montgomery County and being examined apart from her husband acknowledged that she relinquishes her right of Dower to the within parcel of part of land freely and willingly and without threat or fear of gaining the displeasaure of his husband. Given under our hands and seals this twenty fourth day of March Eighteen hundred and ten
Jeremiah Davis (seal)
Joseph Simpson (seal)
Montgomery County Clerks Office. March the twenty fourth Eighteen hundred and ten. This deed from Andrew Duncan to Jane Berry was acknowledged by the said Duncan to be his hand and seal ---?-- deed, and through --?- the same together with the relinquishment of dower of Fanny Duncan wife of said Andrew Duncan is duly recorded in this office.
Test Thos. Tripted Jr DC M

Samuel Wallace's Land in the Beverly Grant, Augusta County²¹

page 418.—27th February, 1749. William Beverley to Morris O'Frid (O'Friel), planter, 40 acres on Middle River. William King's line. Corner Samuel Wallace. Teste: William Robison.

     Determining an approximate birth date and relative birth order for Thomas Berry requires an even more indirect analysis. Francis Berry, presumably Thomas’ older brother, is believed to have been born about 1755 while the family was still living in Augusta County. By 1774, though, he had moved Washington County and was old enough to serve in the local militia. Since this was several years before Francis’ father, the elder Francis Berry, moved to the area (in 1777), it seems likely that a young man of his age would have been staying with relatives. While there were a number of Berry families already living in the area, his sister, Rachel Berry, and her husband James Trimble, had moved to southwestern Virginia from Augusta County by 1771 or 1772, and were living on the south side of the Holston River, which is the area where the militia unit Francis served in drew from. It seems quite likely that young Francis Berry was living with or near them. Unlike his brother, though, Thomas Berry does not appear in the Fincastle County militia records in 1774, probably because he was too young, but, in addition to and because of his relative youthfulness, it could also be that he was still too young to leave home and was still living with his parents back in Augusta County. His absence from southwestern Virginia in the early to mid 1770s, a time when many young people were heading westward, is quite conspicuous. In addition, Thomas’ brother Francis Berry was married and already had several children by the time he and Thomas Berry moved to Kentucky in the spring of 1779. Thomas was still several years away from his marriage at the time. It is also quite interesting to note that, despite the fact that both Thomas and Francis Berry moved to the Kentucky frontier, only Francis Berry attempted to acquire lands in the area before they were captured by British forces in the spring of 1780. Thomas made no attempts at establishing any land claims. If he had been older it seems likely that he would have sought ownership of his own property at this opportune time. None of this information is definitive, but together they suggest that Thomas was probably slightly younger than Francis, which pushes his birth date out at least to the late 1750s.

     While only the barest sketch of Thomas Berry’s early years can be reconstructed, both direct and indirect sources can be used to piece together a much more detailed view of his life from 1779 through 1782. At some point he moved from Augusta County to Washington County, and, presumably, arrived there with his parents in 1777. In March of 1779 Thomas Berry accompanied his brother, Francis Berry and his wife (Sarah Sharp Berry) and one of their children on an adventurous, overland trek from the Holston valley to the forks of the Licking River to build a new life on the Kentucky frontier. They traveled with a group of settlers, consisting mostly an extended family of Duncan, Sharp and Laughlins that Francis Berry had married into, although there may have been other, unrelated families attached to this group. Most likely their travels took them along the newly blazed Wilderness Trail from southwestern Virginia to Logan’s Station in the Bluegrass region of Kentucky. (Figure 92) In fact, in order to accomplish their emigration feat, the only logical option would have been to travel at least a portion of the Wilderness Trail, recently “blazed” just a few years earlier in the spring of 1775 by Daniel Boone as he led Richard Henderson’s settlers to establish Fort Boonesborough on the Kentucky River. (Figure 92) For much of their trek, Daniel Boone and his company of axmen had followed a series of ancient buffalo trails that directed these herds of herbivores between salt licks and grazing grounds. The Shawnee and Iroquois had also used the same pre-existing trails as their trade routes and war paths, so the European settlers utilized firmly established lines of communication that existed from the intermountain valleys of southwestern Virginia, through the mountains and northward to Ohio.

     At the time that Thomas and Francis Berry used this road it was not yet able to accommodate wagons, so all of the household gear that they planned to bring with them to build their new lives on the frontier had to be loaded onto the backs of a train of pack horses. With the dangers involved in such a journey through rough terrain inhabited by hostile Indians, a slow-moving pack train, hauling heavy gear and accompanied by a human caravan ranging in age from young children to elderly parents, would have been a tempting target for plunder. Consequently, to guarantee their security, these early settlers traveled together in a convoy bristling with well-armed men.

     Francis and Thomas Berry’s journey would have begun along the Holston River near modern day Bristol, Tennessee and headed toward one of the two major gaps in Clinch Mountain, a line of tall mountains starkly delineating the western edge of the Holston valley. The closest, Big Moccasin Gap, which was used by Daniel Boone’s trail-clearing crew intent on establishing Fort Boonesborough, lies straight west of Bristol. However, they could have used Little Moccasin Gap, which lies north and west of Bristol and straight west of Abingdon, Virginia, since they probably had to travel first either to William Russell’s station at Castlewood or to the Elk Garden station to meet up with the rest of the convoy. John Dunkin, the leader of the expedition, along with his family and elderly mother, and his brother in law, Solomon Litton, lived at or near the fortified station of Elk Garden. Samuel Porter, another brother in law of John Dunkin, appears to have been living close to Russell’s fortified station at Castlewood. From the Holston Valley, both stations can more easily be accessed via Little Moccasin Gap. (Figures 66 and 82) From either Castlewood or Elk Garden, the large pack train now consisting mostly of the extended families of John Dunkin, Solomon Litton, Samuel Porter and Francis and Thomas Berry, plus, quite possibly a number of other families, such as Thomas Mahan, John Loveless (Lovelace), Thomas Foster, Samuel Van Hook and Charles Gatliff, other settlers of Martin’s Station, headed westward. The composition of these emigrant groups is not known with certainty, so any of these families certainly could have traveled in separate groups and met at Logan’s Station, but they all ended up in the forks of the Licking.

     From either Elk Garden or Castlewood, the armed convoy would have slowly wound its way south and westward along the ancient Indian and buffalo pathways along linear mountain valleys and across gaps between mountain ranges toward the Cumberland Gap – the entrance to Kentucky. About twenty five miles before reaching that gap, though, they most likely would have stopped at Martin’s Station (located in southwest Virginia near Cumberland Gap), the last safe haven and source of supplies for westward bound emigrants. After continuing on, the party would have passed through Cumberland Gap along the well worn buffalo and warrior pathway northward to where the Cumberland River passes through another line of mountains at Pine Mountain Gap then onward to Big Flat Lick. Here, the Boone party had steered away from the buffalo-warrior trace in their trail-blazing efforts. Rather than following the relatively easy trail to the northeast, they headed northwestward into a rugged, hilly countryside filled with thick woods and underbrush and steep ravines. Even today this is a very isolated and remote part of the country, now designated as the Daniel Boone National Forest. After reaching the Rockcastle River they crossed over the last of the mountain wilderness and entered the edges of the Bluegrass region where they, once more, encountered easy to follow buffalo traces across gently rolling, forested and grassy countryside. One branch of the Wilderness Trail led to Fort Boonesborough, while the other led to Logan’s Fort and Fort Harrodsburg. (Figure 92)^148,976,977

     The large human, animal and supply caravan arrived in the forks of the Licking in the fall of 1779 after having made the strenuous overland journey along the Wilderness Trail from the Holston and Clinch valleys of Virginia. Rather than fanning out to their individual settlement sites, the families appear to have settled at one of the stations – either Martin’s or Riddle’s Station, since subsequent court documents indicate that at least for Solomon Litton and Francis Berry, no cabins had been built at their chosen settlement sites yet. In the spring, weather permitting and, more importantly, safety-permitting, they could begin the tedious process of clearing the land of underbrush and trees, constructing a cabin and probably livestock pens, as well as planting corn and other crops, seeds for which they must have brought with them.⁹⁷⁷

     Samuel Laughlin, a grandson of both John Duncan and John Laughlin, in his 1845 family history document, identified the route that his grandfather, John Duncan took from Virginia to Kentucky: ^{148,250,287,313,968,969,973,976,977,978}

He and his family with many of their relatives removed to Kentucky by way of Cumberland Gap and Crabb Orchard, and settled in the country around about where Lexington now stands …

     It seems that, rather than heading to the new settlement of Lexington, they took the trail to Logan’s Fort where they met up with George Riddle/Ruddle, who led the party to the forks of the Licking River where he and his brother, Isaac Ruddle, had been doing work on their fortified site, known eventually as Ruddle’s Station. Francis Berry had served with George Ruddle in the 1774 Point Pleasant Campaign, so they were not complete strangers. About the same time John Martin was building another fortified station called Martin’s Station several miles upstream from Ruddle’s Station along a well traveled Indian-buffalo trail located where Stoners Fork and Hinkston Creek merged to form the South Fork of the Licking River. George Riddle had selected the site on previous trips to the area as early as 1775 or 1776, accompanied by Solomon Litton, and knew the this land was not only excellent for agriculture, but was also open for settlement. Sometime between the fall of 1779 and March 1780, many of these families, including Solomon Litton and the Berry brothers, moved from Ruddle’s Station to Martin’s Station to be closer to the lands they intended to claim.^{148,250,313,968,969,973,976,977,978}

     In May of 1779, shortly after they arrived in the area, several of the settlers, led by John Haggin who knew the area, trudged upstream from Riddle’s Station to Coopers Run in order to make settlement claims on open land. Francis Berry, Solomon Litton, John Loveless and Thomas Mahan headed up Coopers Run to establish their claims, and in early January of 1780 their claims were presented to and approved by the Virginia Land Commissioners, which then issued Preemption certificates to each individual. (Figure 93) Two months later, in March of 1780, a militia company was formed at Martin’s Station in order to provide for the common defense against the growing Shawnee threat. The unit actually may have formed prior to that date, but the date of the militia list is given as March of that year. The militia company undoubtedly required the membership of all able-bodied males in the area to provide for the communal defense, so an analysis of these names should provide an understanding of the composition, structure and origin of the families that chose to settle in the vicinity of Martin’s Station along and near the south fork of the Licking River. The people of European origin who settled the forks of the Licking in the late 1770s were a somewhat diverse ethnic and religious lot. There were Scotch-Irish Presbyterians, German (probably Protestants) and French Protestants who started their migration into the Bluegrass area of Kentucky from the valleys of the Appalachian Mountains in southwestern Virginia and the coastal plains of Virginia and North Carolina. Many of the militia members had recently acquired preemption grants from the Virginia Land Commission, and can be documented as owning land within a few miles of Martin’s Station. The overwhelming majority of the militia men at Martin’s Station were related to other militia members, so, obviously, many of the families were related, but they were related in clusters – many to each other but none to all. For example, Solomon Litton, Thomas Foster, John Dunkin and Francis Berry, were part of the John Dunkin extended family group which had recently traveled together from the Holston Valley. The Gatliffs and the McGuires were also related by blood and marriage as were the Fores/La Force/LaFarces and Mahans. There were also the Van Hook and the Loveless families, who, though not related to each other, or to other militia member families, were nevertheless comprised distinct and multiple families. Some of the militia members eventually submitted applications to the federal government for pensions based on their Revolutionary War era service, and their first-person accounts provide a rich historical basis for understanding the caste of characters living in the forks of the Licking. Other militia members can be shown to be related through birth and/or marriage, so genealogical investigations of those families has provided the documentary evidence for their connectivity. The bottom line is that this militia list represents the male side of several family groupings that had arrived in the area separately, from different parts of the colony and stemmed from ethnically diverse origins. This small population of European settlers came to occupy the same space through an accident of geography and then, through an accident of history, ended up sharing space in the pages of revolutionary American history. The individual stories of where they came from and how they got there provide an interesting backdrop for understanding the events that happened during and after the combined Shawnee and British attacks on Ruddle’s and Martin’s Stations.

     Charles Gatliff, who had served as a hunter for both Riddle and Martin’s Station, was an agent sent out to gather information on Indian movements (usually referred to as a spy in the records) on several occasions, and assisted in the construction of Riddle’s Station. He was selected as the captain of the Martin’s Station militia by the members of militia company. He had married Christiana McGuire who was a sister of both William and Thomas McGuire, also members of the Martin’s Station militia company. According to McGuire family history, William McGuire participated in the initial construction of Martins’s station in either 1775 or 1776, which was located near a major buffalo and Indian trail. The site was enlarged and improved upon when permanent settlers finally arrived in 1779. At the time of the attack on Martin’s Station, Charles Gatliff was on a hunting expedition, gathering food supplies for the fort, and even though he was listed as a private, according to family stories, William McGuire was left in command of the militia at the station in Gatliff’s absence.^979,983,987
 

     The brothers John and George Loveless were also militia members. John Loveless, the father of both men, lived about 12 miles from the modern day town of Abingdon in the Holston valley of southwestern Virginia prior to emigrating to Kentucky. In 1777 he was drafted for a six month tour in the Holston militia under Col. Bowman to protect the settlers from Indian depredations and to relieve the Shawnee siege of Fort Boonesborough, but his son, George, was his substitute. On that tour George served as a pack horse guard on the trip out to Kentucky. After the siege ended, he served sentry duty and went on hunting and scouting parties for the duration of his tour, so he was able to explore the countryside. He was discharged in late October 1777 and marched back to the Holston area. In the spring of 1778 he once again went to Kentucky as a militia member, and was also able to plant a corn crop on a plot of land he had selected as he and his fellow soldiers were guarding settlers in the area. His intent was to move his father and the rest of his family to the property he had started improving, but, for some reason, they were unable to make the trip that year. Early in the spring of 1779 he again planted corn and joined a party of local militia volunteers that participated in a campaign against the Shawnee towns in Ohio. On that raid the militia had stolen the best property of the Shawnee, along with many horses, and, to secure the enemy’s losses, they burned their town. Despite the fact that it was only marginally successful, it did cut down on Shawnee predatory attacks that year, which was when Francis and Thomas Berry were emigrating into the area. He was again discharged and returned to the Ruddle’s Station area to take care of his corn crop. In the fall of 1779 he returned to Virginia and brought out his father and family and about 19 other families then assisted in the construction of Martin’s Station.⁹⁸⁰

     Peter, Hezekiah, Silas and John Fore, and probably William LeForce, all brothers and, except for Silas, were privates in the Martin’s Station militia company. All were descendants of French Protestants (Huguenots) who had been forced to flee France in 1700 because of religious persecution. The family first migrated to Virginia, settling in Henrico County, and their name soon became anglicized to such variations as Ford, Fore, Foree, La Force and LeForce. Peter Fore, originally Pierre Faure, one of the sons of the original immigrant, as were Hezekiah, John and William, moved to Kentucky during the winter of 1779, accompanied by a rather large brood of siblings, children and grandchildren, and settled near Martins’ Station. Based on marriage records, however, they appear to have first moved to somewhere in the valley of Virginia – probably in Botetourt County, which is where the Mahans came in. Patrick Mahan and his wife, Isabella ? (unknown last name), were both born in the 1730s and originally from Scotland. They had migrated to the forks of the Licking from Botetourt County along with three of their sons, John (and his family), William and Thomas, as well as a married daughter Margaret Mahan Morrow and her family. Their oldest son, John Mahan, had married Agnes la Force in Botetourt County, Virginia in 1778. Thomas, William and Patrick Mahan were privates in the Martin’s Station militia, while John Mahan was the Lieutenant.^{981,984,985,986}

     Samuel Van Hook Sr. and Samuel Van Hook Jr. were both members of the Martin’s Station militia. Samuel Sr. served as a sergeant while Samuel Jr. was a private. Samuel Sr. was born in New Jersey in the 1730s, and since his father had passed away, accompanied his uncle and family when they moved to North Carolina, eventually ending up in the north central part of the state. Samuel Hook Jr. was born in the 1750s, possibly while the family was till in New Jersey. In the spring of 1779 Samuel Sr. migrated to the forks of the Licking River with his family, living first at Ruddle’s Station, then moving upstream to Martin’s Station where his wife was killed by Indians in March of 1780.⁹⁸²
 

     Thomas Berry first appears in primary source records when he was listed on the payroll of the militia company guarding Martin’s Station in Kentucky County, Virginia. All of the members of this militia unit were settlers living in the vicinity of the station, including Thomas’ brother Francis Berry. This definitively demonstrates that Thomas Berry had moved to the area with his brother and his family in late 1779. His name was also listed as one of the militia members supplying their own food rations while on duty. When Captain Bird’s force attacked Ruddle’s station on 22 June 1780, Thomas Berry and a young man named McGuire, whose name also appeared on the militia list, were sent on horseback from Martin’s Station to determine what was happening at nearby Ruddle’s Station. Both he and the other rider were intercepted by the Indian force. McGuire was captured, but Thomas escaped back to Martin’s Station, dodging bullets from his assailants as he fled back to the fort where he was eventually captured along with his brother and his family. Thomas Berry’s name then appears on the list of prisoners when Martin’s Station was subsequently captured, and on another prisoner list, identifying Americans captured in Kentucky and transferred to Montreal by the British during the war. After prisoners were exchanged and released at the end of the war, Thomas Berry was included on a roster of militia men due back wages for the 29 months and 11 days of militia service when they were held prisoner. It is also quite possible that some of these men were granted promotions, which may explain why Thomas Berry appears in 1787 Washington County tax records listed as a captain.

     As the Revolutionary War began heating up east of the Appalachians, Henry Hamilton, the British Governor of Canada who was headquartered in Detroit, initiated a campaign to use the tribes living north of the Ohio River to drive out the American settlers streaming into the Kentucky frontier, as well as to place pressure on the rebel American government by opening a western front in the war. Consequently, he enlisted the aid of the Shawnee, Wyandotte and Mingo tribes, the native groups most affected by the American invasion into Kentucky, by supplying them with arms and ammunition and promising security of their lands if they would launch attacks on these invading settlers. As a result, 1777, a year after the American Revolution began, was a particularly brutal one in Kentucky, being marked by numerous successful raids on the Kentucky settlements. These actions thoroughly shocked the settlers, who began abandoning Kentucky for safe refuge in the settlements farther east. To counter this threat, Lt. Col. George Rogers Clark, who had recently been promoted and placed in charge of the Kentucky militia, embarked upon a campaign with the overall goal of capturing Detroit. This would eliminate the combined British-Indian threat, stem the exodus of settlers from Kentucky and relieve the pressure from the west. The first step in this campaign was the capture the far western British outposts such as Kaskaskia and Vincennes, which controlled the entire region, and by the fall of 1778, these operations were successfully completed. In late December 1778, though Gov. Hamilton recaptured Vincennes, but two months later, both he and his army were captured by Col. Clark’s army in a surprise raid. While Col. Clark continued operations in the region, Detroit remained in British hands for the rest of the war.^858,976,990
 

     By early 1779 the Northwest Territories had been permanently secured for the American government, but, since Detroit had not been taken, surprise hit and run raids by heavily armed warriors continued to inflict devastating losses against small, isolated and outnumbered groups of settlers. On the other hand, there were some successful elements in the defense of Kentucky, perhaps the most important, of which were the fortified positions that began springing up throughout the Bluegrass area. Despite numerous assaults and sieges against them, none of the sieges were successful. There were actually two types of these fortified positions being built in Kentucky. What was typically called a fort, for example, Fort Harrodsburg, was characterized by a large, walled defensive structure, composed of logs, and occupied by a somewhat large and diverse community. A station, on the other hand, such as Martin’s Station, was typically built and operated by a private community, or, more explicitly, a group of extended families. Both types of fortified positions were designed and constructed to efficiently resist attacks by warriors armed only with rifles or bows, and their placement at or near a water supply provided a great deal of immunity to sieges. Furthermore, attacking such fortified positions was an element of warfare quite unfamiliar to the Shawnee. These stations served as the core linchpins in the successful defense against the organized assaults of the Shawnee and their allies, and the back of Kentucky resistance could not be broken if these fortified positions remained securely in the settlers hands. While hit and run tactics were successful against small isolated groups, successful siege warfare against such fortified positions required the use the use of artillery, and that could only be obtained through joint operations with their British allies.^858,976

     Another successful element in the defense of the Kentucky settlements was the availability of military relief and reinforcement. Many of the settlers who remained in Kentucky during this time became organized into militia units, especially when they lived at or near a fortified station. When they found themselves under siege, they were quite often able to send individual runners to make the two hundred mile trek to southwestern Virginia for militia support. The Holston militia is a term broadly used to define the Virginia militia companies populated by men from the Holston, Clinch and Powell River valleys of present day southwestern Virginia. One such unit of Holston militia, under the command of Col. John Bowman, arrived at Logan’s Fort in the late summer of 1777 to relieve a siege. A smaller unit of North Carolina militia also provided assistance, and soldiers were left at Fort Harrodsburg, Fort Logan and Fort Boonesborough to ensure local security.^{858,976,989,990}

     In the fall of 1777, the murder of a Shawnee chief, Cornstalk and his family, ignited another round of bloodshed. Cornstalk was widely viewed as a leader of the peace movement among the Shawnee, so his murder particularly enraged many Shanwnee warriors, and another series of raids against the settlers was initiated. A siege of Fort Booneborough in 1778 lasted for three weeks, and immediately following that event, Logan’s Fort experienced a series of attacks, followed by relief from the Holston militia. Responding to these raids, Col. John Bowman (the first military governor of the newly formed Kentucky County) and Benjamin Logan (the military leader of Logan’s Fort) led a punitive expedition in the summer of 1779 against the Shawnee settlements, using both local and Holston militia units, and the limited success of this operation resulted in a temporary lull in Shawnee attacks. Raids and counter raids, accompanied by atrocities and counter atrocities, what would most likely today refer to as war crimes, coupled by an absence of complete victories on either side served only to fuel the fires of revenge for both the settlers and the Indians.^{858,976,989,990,996}

     When good weather returned in the spring of 1780, the British launched a campaign to recoup their recent territorial losses in the west. A large force of soldiers was to sweep down the Mississippi valley from northern Michigan and meet up with another force advancing northward from the Gulf. Simultaneously, Captain Henry Bird was to move from Detroit through Shawnee territory with 1,000 men, capture the fort constructed by Col. Clark at the falls of the Ohio, then subdue the Kentucky settlements, and a fourth force was to advance from Chicago into the Illinois River area. Learning of the plan, Col. Clark rushed to St. Louis and rebuffed the British force that was intended to recapture the Illinois valley, then, learning of Captain Bird’s expedition from prisoner interrogations, he immediately headed up the Ohio River to intercept them. Meanwhile, Capt. Bird’s progress had been slowed because of the two cannons he was bringing to reduce the fortified stations. When he had reached the Ohio River, the bulk of his force, many, of whom, were Shawnee warriors, refused to move downstream to the falls at modern day Louisville, since they had heard Col. Clark was in that area. After two days of arguing with them, Capt. Bird altered his mission, directing an attack on the easier targets located on the Licking River. In his original plan, Captain Bird had indicated that attacking the lesser forts first would lead to a failure in the overall mission, since their ammunition would be used up, and the Indians, experiencing success, would be inclined to abandon the project. As predicted, after taking Ruddles and Martin’s Stations, and encumbered with the humanitarian issue of caring for a large number of prisoners, the expedition stalled and headed back north, first passing through the Shawnee villages. The Shawnee kept about 200 of the prisoners, while Capt. Bird continued on to Detroit with 150 of them. Based on Daniel Boone’s period of Shawnee captivity a few years earlier, it was found that prisoners who exhibited such traits as bravery, strength, good looks or congenial personalities were adopted by the tribe. Men with bad tempers or were hostile, on the other hand, were typically sold to the British, which might explain which group Captain Bird was able to bring back to Detroit. By late July, Col. George Rogers Clark had organized a force of almost 1,000 men to pursue Bird’s retreating forces and punish the Shawnee. Reaching their villages at Chillicothe, he burned buildings and destroyed crops, then continued on to Piqua where he was able to force the Shawnee out of their own fortifications with his cannon before eventually withdrawing his force. During the attack, however, the Shawnee executed many of the prisoners that they had captured at Ruddle’s and Martin’s Stations.^{858,990, 991,992,996}

     In 1779 Isaac Riddle, who was married to Col. John Bowman’s sister (Bowman was the commander of the Kentucky County militia), leading a group of mostly German settlers, reoccupied and fortified a station on the north side of the South Fork of the Licking River, which soon became known as Riddle’s or Ruddle’s Station. The site originally consisted of a number of cabins built in 1775 and 1776 by John Hinkston alongside a buffalo trace and later abandoned due to the Indian threat. Isaac’s brothers James and George Riddle followed soon thereafter. In the same year, and using Logan’s Fort as his jumping off point, John Martin, who had earlier spent time at John Hinkston’s Station, led another group into the same area to establish what became known as Martin’s Station, which became populated primarily by Scotch-Irish settlers, about eight miles upstream from Ruddle’s Station on the north side of Stoners Fork where a buffalo trace crossed the southern fork of the South Licking River.^{560,578,968,991,993,996}

     Captain Henry Bird’s army consisted of about 200 British and Canadien troops of the Eighth Regiment of his Brittanic Majesty King George III’s forces and, ultimately, 850 warriors comprising a rather large mix of tribes living near the Great Lakes, eventually including many Shawnee as they passed through the modern day state of Ohio and a small number of Tories, including Simon Girty. The first leg of this journey took them south from Detroit, traveling by sailing vessels, bateaux (flat-bottomed boats) and canoes, to the mouth of the Maumee River, then upstream to a rather difficult portage that took them over to the Miami River. From here, they returned to their boats and traveled downstream to the mouth of the Miami River. After settling the dispute on the direction of the campaign with his Indian allies at this point, the force turned upstream on the Ohio River toward the mouth of the Licking River, then proceeded up that stream to where the South Fork split from the main branch. Storing supplies in some quickly constructed huts, they left the river and proceeded overland, along the east side of the South Fork, widening a buffalo trace to accommodate their cannons as they went. They crossed over to the south side of the Licking River at a ford that is still known as Bird’s Crossing, then crossed back over, farther downstream, to the east side of the river south of the present site of Cynthiana, Kentucky. From here they were able to confront their first target – Ruddle’s Station. (Figure 94)^994,995,996
 

     In a letter written by a granddaughter of Francis and Sarah Berry, a daughter of Frank and Sarah’s son Lafayette Berry, to her son, George, in 1893, relayed some of the family stories she had heard as she grew up.^146,590
 

I don't know what it was nor how long they had been there til they were compelled to move for safety to a fort or blockhouse where they were taken by British officers and soldiers who had Indians with them to whom the British gave all their household goods except two suits of clothes and two blankets to each man and the same to each woman.

     George Loveless, who had served in Holston Militia and was a member of Col. Bowman’s militia expedition to punish the Shawnee in the summer of 1779, was living near Martin’s Station in the spring of 1780. He noted that a number of small skirmishes occurred that spring, and in late March a large body of Indians assaulted Martin’s Station in a surprise attack. Several settlers were killed and wounded, his father, John Loveless, being one of the latter. The militia members in the station at the time, about 25 men held off the attack. Eventually the Indians moved off and assaulted Bryant’s Station with the same results. After that, they roamed the countryside in small squads, killing people and destroying property. This hostile activity in the spring of 1780 probably prevented the families in the area from developing their land claims and remaining confined within the safety of Martin’s and Ruddle’s Stations.^146,590,980

     On the morning of the 22nd of June 1780 the attack on Ruddle’s Station began during a drenching rainstorm. As the cannon were being emplaced a few rifle shots were exchanged between the attackers and the defenders. The first cannon fired a round that embedded itself into the wooden wall of the station, doing little damage, but a single shot from the second cannon, a larger wheeled gun, shattered the north wall of the structure with one shot. Immediately, the defenders realized their stockade was an inadequate defense against this weapon, and terms of the surrender were settled in negotiations held outside the gates. Captain Bird agreed that the men would be taken prisoner while the women and children would be allowed to safely travel to the nearest settlement. Realizing that this agreement deprived them of the opportunity to avenge the recent burning and pillaging of their villages, some, of the perpetrators probably being in the station, and, more importantly, comprising the majority of the attacking force, the warriors refused to comply with the agreement. As soon as the gates opened, they stormed in, seizing prisoners (which they referred to as slaves), plundering the cabins and killing many of those who were old, frail, ill and very young. Reports vary, but as many as twenty four people were murdered during this stage of the operation. Years later, the exposed, scattered bones of these victims were buried in a mass grave.^994,995

     Fortified by their success, and against the wishes of Captain Bird, who appears to have been disgusted by the behavior of his Indian allies, the warriors opted to move on to Martin’s and Bryant’s Stations, appearing in force before Martin’s Station on the morning of 26 June 1780. Silas Fore wrote in his pension application that all of the people at Martin’s Station could hear the firing during the attack on nearby Riddle’s Station, and prepared themselves for the inevitable attack on their station, which occurred two days later. They dispatched two men to run for reinforcements, but one of them, William McGuire, was captured. The other man, Thomas Berry, was able to escape and made it back to Martin's Station amid a hail of gunfire. When the British officers discussed the surrender terms with the Martin’s Station defenders, William McGuire was brought along to help convince them to comply with the demand. The entire fort was then surrendered without firing a shot, including men, women and children, as well as the luckless William McGuire. In his pension application, George Loveless noted that when Captain Bird’s artillery-supported force stood before Martin’s Station, the settlers accepted the terms of surrender offered by Capt. Bird, which stipulated that they would be considered Prisoners of War and held by British forces. They lost all of their property upon surrender, including their clothing, and all of their papers were burned. Sarah Berry told her family that, after the fort surrendered, each person was allowed to keep only two sets of clothes and two blankets. All other belongings were taken by the Indians. She also noted that the Indians, wanting only the cloth from their bedding, ripped the pillows and tossed them in the air, scattering the feathers as they laughed at the spectacle.^{146,590, 980,983,985}

     Sarah Berry described to her granddaughter some of the pillaging of the fort that occurred after the surrender:^146,590
 

I remember hearing my grandmother [Sarah ‘Sally’ (Sharp) Berry] tell how the Indians would toss the pillows in the air after they had ripped the ticking to make the feathers fly in the wind and how they would laugh. They wanted the cloth but not the feathers.

     She also noted that after the fort surrendered, each person was allowed to keep only two sets of clothes and two blankets. All other belongings were either destroyed or taken by the Indians.^{146,590, 969,980,983,985,998}

     While still in captivity, Solomon Litton provided the following description of the attack and the aftermath in a letter to his family back in Virginia.⁵⁸⁰
 

Ruddles and Martins forts were cannoned balled and after surrender most inhabitants were massacred. Brains of infants on trees, some crushed under cart wheels. Ye older inhabited were gutted and drawn to the pleasure of ye spectators. Ye lassies were raped and scalped by ye savages. Fort burned and stock and fowl slautered. A horrible massacre not yet equaled in this country.

     The campaign ground to a halt after Martin’s Station was reduced, and, after gathering up all of the prisoners, burning what they could not carry, and loading up their confiscated loot, this large contingent of humanity began a slow withdrawal, retracing their path northward, the prisoners being forced to carry household goods, plundered from their own cabins. Samuel Laughlin, a grandson of John Dunkin, made the following statement in regard to the immediate aftermath:⁹⁶⁹

The prisoners taken at Martins were united to the prisoners from Ruddle’s. There was understood to be an agreement between the British and Indians that the prisoners taken at Ruddle’s should belong to the Indians, and those at Martins to the British.

     Unfortunately, in their initial excitement, the Indians had indiscriminately slaughtered all of the settler’s livestock, which forced Col. Bird into a serious logistical corner. The victorious army, consisting of over a thousand attackers, was deep in enemy territory, and now encumbered with several hundred captives laden with booty from their own cabins, and without a sufficient food supply for such a large group of people. There was a great deal of ground to cover to reach the safety of British controlled space, and knowing that Col. George Rogers Clark would soon be in hot pursuit, Captain Bird was forced to drive the prisoners along as quickly as possible. Mrs. Wilson, a daughter of Patrick Mahan, both, of whom were taken prisoner at Martin’s Station, described conditions on the northward trek:^{146,590, 980,983,985,1003}

As we were traveling in, Captain Byrd [Henry Bird] was very ungenerous to us. He measured out to the men only a cup of flour, and the women and children only a half cup. Nor would they allow back rations. They travelled by water, or when by land, had to walk. They were longer on the road, and missed a day's rations. Mahon, the brother, said "Captain Byrd, I suppose we may expect back rations today." Byrd replied-no such indulgence would be given prisoners.

     In a letter to his superior, Major DePeyster, written on 1 July 1780, Captain Bird described some of his logistical challenges from his point of view:¹⁰⁰⁴

"I marched the poor wemen & children 20 miles in one day over very high mountains, frightening them with frequent alarms to push them forward, in short. Sir, by water & land we came with all our cannon & c., 40 miles in 4 days ... rowing fifty miles the last day -- we have no meat and must subsist on flour if there is nothing for us at Lorimiers (Lorimers)."

     Mrs. Wilson made note of some of the property stolen by the Indians:¹⁰⁰³

Saw an Indian riding a saddle I had, and one of my father's horses. Said "good Kentuck for me." There were 3 Indians on the horse. Another fine mare my father had, they had to crist-shoot here, before they could catch her. The Indians asked my brother whose horse that was. My brother replied it was his. The Indian said it was a lie, for it was his.

     She also described some of the severe treatment of the prisoners by the Indians:¹⁰⁰³

The Indians killed and scalped a number of children because they could not keep up on the march.

     Adelaide Berry Duncan also noted that her grandmother, Sarah Sharp Berry, had witnessed the death of several children on the trek northward.^146,590
 

There was one family along who had a young woman - a daughter who complained of a toothache for some weeks , when someone examined her mouth and found a cancer had eaten through her cheek, all but the skin. She died soon after and the officers only allowed them to stop long enough to pile up a few rocks on her body. Charles Gatliff was her father's name.

I heard grandmother (Sarah Sharp Berry) say she saw the Indians kill two children. It was very cold for part of their journey and once when a great fire of logs was burning where they camped, an Indian picked up a child that was standing near and threw it in the fire. No one dared to try to get it out. On another occasion, a woman was carrying a little babe, and she was almost exhausted, when an Indian jerked it from her arms and thrust his tomahawk in its head, threw the child to one side of the road, and drove her on.

     The unwieldy crowd of captives, soldiers and Indians headed northward on foot until they reached where the South Fork branched off from the main Licking River. At this point their boats had been cached, so they could switch to another means of conveyance. The Shawnee split from Captain Bird’s main force at this time, taking around 200 prisoners from Ruddle’s Station with them. The remaining British forces transferred the plundered goods, the prisoners, which numbered about 150, their military stores and the cannons to the boats and continued their original trip in reverse, arriving in Detroit on 4 August 1780 (Figure 94).^985,992,1006

     In his Revolutionary War pension application, George Loveless described the next leg of the trip:⁹⁸⁰

From our place of capture we were taken and carried prisoners by the British detachment down the Ohio River to the mouth of Big Miami; then up the same to a carrying place to M___ (Maumee River); then down to Lake Erie and thence to Detroit suffering the severest fatigue, hunger, and cold and wet having lost all our property, clothing, and papers burnt and destroyed after our surrender. He, the said George, with many other of the prisoners was kept prisoner of war until in the year 1784

     Solomon Litton also described the route:⁵⁸⁰

On ye 27th June we marched down ye Licking 70 miles to ye big Miami (down ye Ohio) thence, up ye Miami to ye head of, thence over land 18 miles to ye Glaise [Auglaize] thence down it ye Lake Erie, put aboard ye boat Goge, floated across to ye River Detroit thence put aground at ye Fort Detroit. At which place I was taken to ye Shawnee Town, twenty miles distant. Of the 300 marchers taken 90 were count of reaching Fort Detroit.

     Adelaide Berry Duncan gave the following account of this segment of the trip:^146,590

They then started on their march to Detroit, where they stayed awhile and then on to Montreal where they stayed until peace was declared.

     John Dunkin’s descendants have recorded his documentation of this part of their journey in captivity. One important item is the site of the expected resupply post, Loromer’s Station, that Captain Bird referred to in his report.¹⁰⁰⁶

June 26, 1780 I was taken from licking creek in Kentucky county by Captain Henry Bird of the 8th Regiment of His Majesties’s forces in conjunction with about eight hundred Indians of different nations -vix. Mingos, Delawares, Shawnees, Hurons, Ottaways, Taways and Chippeways. We marched from our village the 27th being in number 129 men, women, and children. We marched down Linking about 50 miles to the Ohio and from thence up the Big Miami river about 170 miles to the Standing Stone, and from thence up said river to Larramie’s (Lorimer’s) store 11 miles on the head of the Miami: and from thence across by land 18 miles to the landing on the river Glaise - and from thence down said river passing a Taway village and to the mouth of said river about 80 miles at a small village of Miami Indians on the river Miami: from thence down said river about 40 miles to an Indian village called Rose De Boo - and from thence down said river about 18 miles to Lake Erie. Where we went on board the Hope. Mounted six pounders. Captain Graves commander: and so across the said lake to the mouth of Detroit river, and 18 miles up to the same to the fort and town of Detroit, which place we arrived at the 4th of August, 1780 …

     Upon their arrival in Detroit, the captives were split up further, with some forced to work on farms in the Detroit area as servants and slaves and the rest eventually sent by boat to Montreal. In his documentation, John Dunkin noted that about three weeks after their arrival in Detroit they were moved by boat to Montreal:¹⁰⁰⁶

… where we were kept until the 24th when 33 of us were put on board the Gage. Captain Burnit commander. Mounted 8 guns and from thence to Fort Erie - and thence in battoes 18 miles the river Niagara to Fort Slusher, at the head of the Great Fall - and form thence in wagons, 9 miles, where we again went in battoes down said river to Fort Niagara at the mouth of said river on the 29th: and on the 5th of September we were again put on board the Ontario, Captain Cowan commander, and sent off down the Long Sac and into Sandijest lake, and so down rapids into Grand river and through a small lake and so the Qlasheen. From thence by land 9 miles to Montreal on the 14th of September, 1780. And on the 17th we were sent into Grant’s Island and remained there until the 25th of October, when we were again taken back unto Montreal and billetted in St. Lawrence suburbs. I was put in confinement in the long gaol September 1st, and remained in close confinement until the 17th day of October. When I was permitted to go and live with my family with privilege of walking the town and suburbs.

     To summarize, from 24 June to 4 August 1780 the captives were on the move, traveling by foot and by boat to Detroit. After a brief respite, they were once again forced to travel. On the first leg of the trip they traveled by boat to Fort Erie, located at the head of the Niagara River. From here, they traveled by bateaux down to the limit of small boat travel at Fort Slusher, located just above Niagara Falls. At this point they were transferred to wagons for the short trip around the falls, whereupon they returned to boat travel, reaching the mouth of the Niagara River on 29 August 1780. On the last leg of the trip they traveled mostly by boat, finally reaching Montreal on 14 September 1780, 80 grueling days later and hundreds of miles from where they had been captured.^1006,1008

     Lewis Berry, the third child of Francis and Sarah, was born on 2 Nov. 1781 in Montreal. On 4 October 1782 a listing of American prisoners, who had traveled via Niagara to Montreal, was entered in British records. Francis and Sarah Berry, as well as two of their children, Isabelle and Lewis, were included in the list.^146,579,581

     Adelaide Berry Duncan relayed her grandmother’s description of their captivity in Montreal:^146,590
 

While they were in Montreal, the men were made to repair the Englishships and the women cooked and washed for the English officers. On one occasion, the men found a case of wine on the ship and drank the wine. The officers put them in prison or the guard house and my grandmother Berry (Sarah Sharp Berry) went to the guard house and begged for their release until they were released.

     By the late summer of 1782, negotiations, or at least discussions, were underway for the release and return of the American prisoners captured in Kentucky several years earlier. Col. Benjamin Logan, the founder of Logan’s Fort, began the conversation in a letter to the Virginia governor, who then passed the information on to General George Washington, the commander of the American Army. Apparently the exchange was not formalized until the Treaty of Paris, which officially ended the war, was inked by both sides in late November of 1782. At that time, the Virginia Assembly appropriated funding for bringing the prisoners back home.¹¹⁰⁴

31 August 1782

Colonel Benjamin Logan, County Lieutenant of Lincoln County KY, advised the Governor of Virginia of the remaining Kentucky prisoners, stating that "many of the men were taken to Detroit & their wives retained among the Indians as slaves. Some of the men are now at Montreal and others in different parts toward the [Great] Lakes.

 25 October 1782

Governor Benjamin Harrison relayed these facts to General George Washington, calling attention to an existing cartel for the exchange & relief of prisoners taken in the Southern department, by which these poor people [the Kentuckians] have a just cause to their release. However, nothing came of the matter until a preliminary treaty of peace between Great Britain and the United States was signed at Paris, France, on November 30th, 1782. Under this treaty, the prisoners taken at Ruddell and Martin's stations were finally released. On December 7th, 1782, Governor Harrison wrote that the Virginia Assembly had made an appropriation for the relief of 200 men, women & children, taken prisoners from  Kentucky, who were now on their way home. 

     On 12 Nov 1783 Francis and Thomas Berry, along with John, Thomas and William Mahan, William LaForce, John Dunkin and John Dunkin, Jr, all members of Martin’s Station militia company back in 1780, were listed as being recently exchanged prisoners and, based on their capture at Martin’s Station while serving in the militia, were awarded back pay by Col. John Bowman, the head of the Kentucky militia. The latter was also the brother in law of Isaac Ruddle, one of the prisoners. So, not long after the conclusion of the Revolutionary War, the captives were finally released in a prisoner exchange that took place at a  place called East Bay. That bay is located on a small embayment of Lake Ontario. From their exchange point Francis and Sarah returned to their home, with one leg of their trip involving travel on a lake ship crewed by French-Canadian sailors, and Adelaide Berry Duncan recorded Sarah Berry’s remembrances of part of that trip:^{146,560,590,1009} 

As the prisoners were leaving Canada, they crossed some lake in a ship which was very crowded and manned by French-Canadian sailors. A storm arose and the sailors got frightened, and quit work. They started to pray, and cross themselves, when an Englishman, perhaps an officer, came on them and cursed and swore and ripped and tore around and kicked them, and made then get to work. Finally they got safely to land. I remember hearing my father tell of hearing his father laughing about it. Grandmother (Sarah Sharp Berry) said there were piles of feathers floating in the eddies on the lake shore that looked like houses - the shedding of many waterfowls on the lake. 

     Since the ship appears to be commanded by British officers, this part of the journey probably represents the trip across Lake Ontario, so it must have been immediately before they were exchanged at East Bay. From there, they must have proceeded overland to the Niagara falls area, as evidenced by Adelaide Duncan Berry’s narrative:^146,590

As our ancestors were coming home they passed near Niagra Falls. All heard the roar and some of the men went to see it but the women and children were too weary to go.

      Upon their return to America, Isaac Ruddle, the commander of Ruddle’s Station, was tried in a Virginia court for treasonous activities he allegedly exhibited while he was incarcerated by the British. Thomas Berry submitted a deposition stating that Ruddle had advised him to switch sides and swear allegiance to the British crown at one point during his detainment. Ultimately, however, Ruddle was acquitted. Thomas Berry eventually returned to southwestern Virginia, probably to the home of his parents in Washington County. It was about this time that Janet Wallace and her sister, who were, by now, living in Washington County, finally sold the Augusta County land that they had inherited from their father. Just a few years later, in the fall of 1786, Thomas Berry and Janet Wallace were married in Washington County, Virginia. The following year, 1787, a Captain Thomas Berry appeared in the Washington County tax records as a white tithable over the age of 21 without any property, but owning a few farm animals. Since he was listed for only one tax year, Thomas and Janet must have left the area after that. One of the interesting notes from this tax record is that Thomas was listed as a captain. While he was in the militia for several years prior to this time, most likely he served at the lowest rank and most of it in the status of a prisoner. There is no paper trail that documents any promotion that would justify for the officer’s rank assigned to him in this tax record. Perhaps it was more of an honorarium or merely a unique designator assigned to him by the county clerks for differentiating the multiple Thomas Berrys in the tax records. On the other hand, if he remained in the military, then it is certainly possible he could have achieved that rank.

      Despite a thorough search of available source data, primary source records have not been located that would conclusively identify where Thomas and Janet Berry moved after 1787. Several of their children, in later census records, indicated that they had been born in Tennessee, so it is clear that they moved out of Virginia into what would eventually become the state of Tennessee. The date of birth of their first child, Samuel, who appears to have been named after Janet’s father, Samuel Wallace, is not known with certainty, but it seems quite likely that he was born in late 1787 or 1788, about a year after their marriage. Unfortunately, no information is available on his birth place. In the spring of 1791 their second child, Francis Berry, obviously named after Thomas’s father, was born, and in the 1850 census, this Francis Berry noted that he had been born in Tennessee. Two years later another son, John Berry, was born, possibly named after Thomas’ grandfather, the elder John Berry. Later census records for John also indicate a Tennessee birthplace. Further information is provided by a biographical sketch of Milford Berry, a grandson of Thomas and Janet Berry, who stated that his father, John Berry, had been brought to Montgomery County, Kentucky from Tennessee by his parents in 1804. From this data Thomas and Janet Berry can be confidently placed somewhere in Tennessee at least from 1791 and perhaps as early as 1788, and that they spent about 16 years of their lives somewhere in that state, leaving in 1804. Two more children were born between about 1795 and 1800, and based on the biographical sketch, they must have been born in Tennessee. Francis Berry, Thomas’ father, passed away sometime between early August 1799 and mid March 1800, just few years before they left Tennessee, leaving Thomas a small monetary inheritance.

      Documentation for Thomas Berry’s long stay in Tennessee is rather sketchy, incomplete and despite the fact that there are a number of Thomas Berry records available, none of them are directly correlatable to the Thomas Berry who married Janet Wallace. For sake of simplicity, the Thomas Berry who married Janet Wallace is here referred to as Berry/Wallace. Part of the data incompleteness is probably due to the fact that many courthouse records in the area were burned during the Civil War, which has rendered the usual method of tracking and differentiating individuals through court documents, tax data and deed records unavailable. Furthermore, the entire Thomas Berry Tennessee data set, sparse as it is, is complicated by the fact that several unrelated Berry families were living in eastern Tennessee during this time period so at least some of the available Thomas Berry data could represent more than one individual. On the other hand, there are a number of indirect associations that support a fairly strong circumstantial case for assigning many, if not all, of the data entries to Berry/Wallace. First, there is a consistent presence in Hawkins County Tennessee of at least one individual named Thomas Berry from 1787 through 1802, as documented through deed records, court records, militia records and the commission book of a Tennessee governor. Secondly, the Hawkins County Thomas Berry records begin at the same time that Thomas Berry disappeared from Virginia records, and end shortly before his known departure to Kentucky. Finally, census records from some of the Berry/Wallace children and a biographic sketch from a grandchild document a Tennessee connection. The correlation becomes complicated, however, by the Hawkins County deed records. In the instances where a Thomas Berry sold land, there is no record of a wife being questioned in regard to relinquishing her dower rights. The Berry/Wallace Thomas Berry was definitely married at this time, so his wife would be legally required to be questioned on whether or not she agreed to the transaction. Of course, the land could have been acquired by Thomas Berry before he was married, and, therefore not be par tof his wife’s dower rights. Either the latter case is true or these land records document an unmarried Thomas Berry. Consequently, even though a compelling circumstantial case can be made that Berry/Wallace is probably the Thomas Berry in the Hawkins County Tennessee records, the lack of any direct information connecting Berry/Wallace to this data and the absence of any dower release for the land sales requires that the association be considered tentative.

      The Thomas Berry Tennessee records consist of data from three Tennessee counties: Hawkins, Washington and Sullivan. It should be kept in mind that white settlements in Tennessee at this time were restricted to two, noncontiguous zones – one was a southward extension of the Holston and Clinch River drainages in east Tennessee and the other was in central Tennessee centered around the area that eventually became the city of Nashville. Although the number of East Tennessee counties grew from 1787 through 1802, the time period when Thomas Berry appears in the Tennessee records, there were only four counties in the east Tennessee group in 1787, Greene, Hawkins, Sullivan and Washington. (Figure 103) All of the Tennessee Thomas Berry records were from three of these four counties, so the Thomas Berry (or Thomas Berrys) represented by this data lived in east Tennessee. In the Hawkins County records, one set of entries documents a Thomas Berry who served in the position of county sheriff; another set documents the militia service of a Thomas Berry; several record land sales, one entry notes that Thomas Berry served as sheriff then held the office of tax collector, and one entry identifies a Thomas Berry as being a Justice of the Peace. There are also a number of records in nearby Washington County, some of which identity the Thomas Berry as being a sheriff and contain references to Hawkins County. Some of these records note that this Thomas Berry was from Hawkins County but do not include any references to him being a sheriff, while several of them make no geographic references at all. Finally, there is one record for a Thomas Berry who served as a Justice of the Peace in nearby Sullivan County.

     The Hawkins County sheriff records show that a Thomas Berry served continuously as county sheriff from 1787 until June 1796 with the exception of 1793. In that year it appears that Thomas Berry was not appointed (or elected) to the office, and, coincidentally, that’s the only year a Thomas Berry appears in Sullivan County records as a Justice of the Peace. Hawkins and Sullivan County are adjacent to each other, and given the lack of residency requirements during that time period, it seems quite possible that these represent the same Thomas Berry. Furthermore, one of the data sources lists all of the Hawkins county sheriffs from 1787 through 1886, and only one individual named Thomas Berry was listed as holding that position during this entire time span. This association of data seems to support the interpretation that all of the Hawkins County data entries relating to Sheriff Thomas Berry represent the same person. During the time period that Thomas Berry served as Hawkins County sheriff, a number of entries appear in Washington County records for a Thomas Berry. Several of them refer to Thomas Berry being the sheriff and holding a bond for someone from Hawkins County although some of them merely refer to Thomas Berry being from Hawkins County or connect him to people with identified Hawkins County connections. The Washington County entries with the sheriff identification can be confidently interpreted as representing the same Thomas Berry from the Hawkins County records who served as sheriff. The other data entries probably refer to the same man, as well, but the lack of a direct connection makes an absolute correlation tentative.  

      Concurrent with his last term as sheriff in 1795, Thomas Berry was appointed to the position of Hawkins County Tax Collector, an office he held until the end of 1796. The following year he, or another Thomas Berry, was appointed to the position of Justice of the Peace. Since these appointments to positions of authority and responsibility in civil government occurred sequentially, and for the most part, are mutually exclusive, it seems logical to assume that they represent one individual who held a series of government posts over a period of time. In addition to these civil office appointments, a Thomas Berry can be tracked through Hawkins County militia records. In 1790 a Thomas Berry held the military rank of captain in the Hawkins County militia. In the spring of 1792 a Thomas Berry became a major in the county militia, and a year later, in 1793, a Thomas Berry was commissioned as a Lieutenant Colonel and commandant of the Hawkins County regiment. Rather than being disconnected bits of information, more than likely this data represents a single individual as he was promoted within the Hawkins County militia over a period of three years. The intriguing element is that the last time Berry/Wallace appeared in Virginia records he was listed as being a militia captain. It seems no coincidence that just three years later a Thomas Berry appears in a nearby Tennessee County as a militia captain.
 

     So, from 1787 through 1797 a Thomas Berry suddenly appeared in Hawkins County records and held a series of appointed positions of authority within the county government - sheriff, tax collector and Justice of the Peace. During the same period a Thomas Berry can be traced through the same county serving as an officer in the county militia, receiving regular promotions and eventually commanding the entire regiment. All of these jobs represent positions of increasing power and authority in both the civilian and military worlds. It makes perfect sense for a man holding legal civil authority to also serve as an officer in the militia with similar military authority. Consequently, it seems perfectly logical to conclude that all of this information represents one individual. All or most of the Hawkins County Thomas Berry entries, and at east some of the Washington County entries most likely represent one individual. The real question is whether or not this is the Berry/Wallace Thomas Berry. The indirect evidence is persuasive and this data most likely represents Berry/Wallace, but, at the present time, no definitive link has been established between Berry/Wallace and the Tennessee Thomas Berry data, so the correlation can only be viewed as being tentative.

1787 – 1790¹¹⁰⁹

History of Hawkins County from Goodspeeds History of Tennessee
Thomas Berry served as Hawkins County sheriff

3 Nov 1790¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Hawkins
Public Office: Sheriff

3 Nov 1790¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Hawkins
Public Office: Militia Captain

13 Nov 1790¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 1, Folder 3
Adam Meek, James Criswell (Creswell) of Hawkins County; bond with Thomas Berry, Col;

8 Mar 1791¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Hawkins
Public Office: Sheriff

28 May 1791¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 1, Folder 3
Abner Witt, Jonathan Douglass of Hawkins County; bond held unto Thomas Berry, sheriff; case of Alexander McMullins vs. Abner Witt;

6 June 1791¹¹¹²

Hawkins County, Tennessee Deed Book 1, page 9
Thomas Berry to Rawley Dodson Reg 5th July 1792 Transfer from Liber E page 75
This Indenture made this 6th day of June in the year of our Lord one thousand Seven hundred and ninety one Between Thomas Berry Sheriff of Hawkins County and State of North Carolina of the one part and Rawley Dodson of the county and state aforesaid of the other part Witnesseth that the said Thomas Berry for and in consideration of the sum of Hundred and Eleven pounds to him in hand paid by Virtue of an Execution before the Sealing and Delivering of these presents the Receipt whereof I do hereby acknowledge have Given Granted and Sold unto the said Rawley Dodson and to his heirs and assigns forever the following tract of Land to wit, One Hundred and Sixty three acres the same lying in the county of Hawkins and state aforesaid lying on the south side of Holston River Including two plantations
Beginning on the River Bank at Elm & white Walnutt sprout on Elisha Dodsons line Then with said line South Ten Degrees East One hundred & forty pole to a Dogwood Saplin & white Oak in Lazarus Dodsons line Then No Seventy East Two hundred and Eighteen pole to a Red Oak on William Payne[?] old line thence North Ninety four pole to a white Oak on the bank of the River then Down the meanders of the River to the beginning
Being a tract of Land sold by Execution the property of John Honeycutt To have and to hold the aforesaid land together with the appurtenances Bounded unto him the said Rawley Dodson and to his heirs & assigns forever to and for the only proper use & behoof of him the sd Rawleigh Dodson and his heirs & assigns forever In testimony whereof I do hereunto Sett my hand and Seal the day & year as above written
Thomas Berry {seal}

9 Jan. 1792¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 1, Folder 3
Isaac Brazelton, Elihu Swain, and John Mills of Hawkins County; bond held unto Thomas Berry, sheriff; case of Buller vs. Brazelton

24 Feb. 1792¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 1, Folder 3
Thomas Berry, George Rutledge; bond to prosecute, case of Thomas Berry vs. Robert Graysen

05 Mar. 1792¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Hawkins
Public Office: Sheriff

16 June 1792¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Hawkins
Public Office: Militia, First Major

11 May 1793¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Sullivan
Public Office: Justice of the Peace

24 Sept 1793¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Hawkins
Public Office: Militia, Lt. Col

16 April 1794¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Hawkins
Public Office: Sheriff

02 Feb 1795¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Hawkins
Public Office: Sheriff & 1795 Tax Collector

March 1795¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 1, Folder 6
Nathaniel Henderson, Robert King of Hawkins County; bond with Thomas Berry, sheriff; to answer a breach of covenant

3 March 1795¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 1, Folder 6
Nathaniel Henderson, Robert King of Hawkins County; bond with Thomas Berry, sheriff; to answer a breach of covenant

02 May 1795¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Hawkins
Public Office: Sheriff & until June 1796 term

27 June 1796¹¹¹⁰

Tennessee: Territory to Statehood, by Dave Foster, original copyright 2002, printed in the United States of America, Appendix A, Public and Military Officeholders of the Southwest Territory from 1790 to 1796
Name: Thomas Berry
County Hawkins
Public Office: Tax Collector for 1796

4 Oct 1796¹¹¹⁵

Commission Book of Governor John Sevier for Hawkins County, Tennessee, April 2, 1796-June 16, 1801
Thomas Berry received a commission for the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and served as commandant of the Hawkins County regiment

1 Nov 1797¹¹¹⁵

Commission Book of Governor John Sevier for Hawkins County, Tennessee, April 2, 1796-June 16, 1801
Thomas Berry, among several others, commissioned as a Justice of the Peace for Hawkins County

10 Nov. 1800¹¹¹⁴

Hawkins County, Tennessee Deed Book 19, pages 488
Thomas Berry to Hezekiah Hamblin Registered 18th January 1847
This Indenture made this tenth day of November in the year of our Lord one thousand eight hundred Between Thomas Berry of Hawkins County and State of Tennessee of the one part and and[sic] Hezekiah Hamblin of the State & county aforesaid of the other part Witnesseth that the said Thomas Berry for and in consideration of the sum of four hundred dollars to him in hand paid the Receipt of which is hereby acknowledged hath and by these presents doth grant Bargain Sell Alien enfeoff and Confirm unto the Said Hezekiah Hamblin his heirs and assign forever a certain tract or parcel of land containing three hundred and sixty five acres be the same more or less lying and being in the aforesaid Hawkins County upon Caney Creek Situate and bounded as follows(viz)
Beginning at two white Hickories at a Sinkhole and Running from thence along Robert Grays Pattent line North forty degrees West ninety six poles to Two corner white oaks in John Smiths line (or Ingrams) thence With Said Robert grays Pattent line South Eighty two degrees West ninety five poles to a Stake from thence with Said Grays pattent line South Sixty five degrees West one hundred and Eighty poles to a Red Oak Stump then with Said pattent line North Sixty seven west sixteen poles Crossing Caney Creek to the bank of the Creek then with Said Pattent line South fifty two west Ninety eight poles to a Stake opposite a bend of the Creek known by the name of the Pocket on the north west Side thereof from thence with a Conditional line that was made by William Cocke and Robert Kile (in the presence of Christian Pearson and others) South nineteen degrees East Two hundred and forty poles Crossing Caney Creek three times to a Stake in Said Greys Pattent line, then with Said Pattent line North forty six degrees East three hundred and ninety poles to the beginning
With all and Every the hereditaments and appurtenances thereunto belonging or otherwise appertaining Such as timber woods, ways Waters watercourses, Orchards Buildings, Mines and Minerals Standing being or growing upon Said land and the Reversion and Reversions rents and Issues and all the Estate right tile property Claim and demand of him the Said Thomas Berry and his heirs of and in the Same and every part and parcel thereof to the Said Hezekiah Hamblin his heirs and assigns forever to have and to hold in fee Simple and the Said Thomas S[?] Berry doth hereby bind himself and his heirs to warrant and forever defend Said premises and every part thereof to the Said Hezekiah Hamblin his heirs and assigns forever against the Just Claim or Claims of any person or persons whatsoever.
In witness whereof the Said Thomas hath hereunto Set his hand and affixed his Seal the day and date first above written.
Thomas Berry {seal}
Signed Sealed and delivered
in the presents of
John Harrison
John Hamblin
Hawkins County November Session 1800
Then the within deed was proven in Open Court by the Oath of John Harrison a witness thereto, let it be Registered.
Richard Mitchell Clerk
State of Tennessee, Hawkins County
This Deed Registered the 1st December 1800 in Liber G. Page 541 in the Registers office of Hawkins County.
Thomas Jackson C. Regr.
Transcribed into Book Containing F. H. G[?]. J.
Wm Alexander, Register

27 Nov. 1800¹¹¹³

Hawkins County, Tennessee Deed Book 1, page 32
Thomas Berry to William Goad
Regist 2nd December 1800
Transd from Liber E, page 240
This Indenture made this 27th day of November in the year of our Lord 1800 Between Thomas Berry of Hawkins County of the one part and William Goad of the other part both of the aforesaid county and State of Tennessee Witnesseth that for and in consideration of the sum of Fifty Dollars paid to him the said Thomas Berry the Receipt whereof is hereby acknowledged hath bargained and sold in fee simple a certain tract or parcel of Land containing one hundred and two acres be the same more or less lying and being in the said County of Hawkins on buck[?] creek it being part of a tract of Land Philisc[?] Walker obtained a Grant from the State of North Carolina for and bounded as follows
Beginning at an Elm and Running up the creek to the mouth of a Branch thence north up said branch to said Goads line thence along said line to James Morrisons[?] corner white oak thence three poles along a conditional line to a walnut thence along said morrisons[?] line three hundred poles to a stake then south fifty poles to a stake then west three hundred poles to the Beginning
Together with all houses fences ways waters watercourses hereditaments and appurtenances to the said tract of Land belonging or appertaining To have and to hold all and singular the aforesaid land and premises with the appurtenances from all the claims from or by me the said Thomas Berry or any other person or persons whatever and to the only proper use of the said William Goad his heirs Executors adms and assigns forever and the said Thomas Berry do hereby promise covenant and agree to and with the said William Goad his heirs Executors administrators and assigns that I have full and the only Right title and authority to sell and convey the aforesaid land and premises & will at the Reasonable request and proper charge of the sd William Goad make any other conveyance or assurance that shall be by law required to pass the fee simple of the said land and premises from me to the said William Goad his heirs &c forever In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand and seal the day and date above written.
Signed sealed and Delivered
Thomas Berry {seal}
Hawkins County Nov. Term 1800
This deed was proven in open court in presence of
Jos McCollough
Philmore Green Senr
by the oath of Jos McCollough
Let it be registered
Richd Mitchell Clk

2 Feb. 1801¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 2, Folder 1
Thomas Berry, William Courtney, James Coyle, Allen Anderson, and others; bond

March 1801¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 2, Folder 1
Thomas Berry, William Hord, and James Cooper (Hawkins County); appearance bond

March 1801¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 2, Folder 1
Robert Mitchell (Knox County); subpeona; James Armstrong vs. Thomas Berry

26 Aug. 1801¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 2, Folder 1
Thomas Berry (Hawkins County); capias ad respondendum; Jenkin Whiteside vs. Thomas Berry

26 Aug. 1801¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 2, Folder 1
Thomas Berry, William Hord, and James Cooper (Hawkins County); appearance bond

31 Aug. 1801¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 2, Folder 1
James Armstrong vs. Thomas Berry; court record

1 Oct. 1802¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 2, Folder 2
Thomas Berry (Hawkins County); fieri facias

1 Nov. 1802¹¹¹¹

Washington County Tennessee Court Records, Box 2, Folder 2
Thomas Berry vs. Jenkin Whiteside (Hawkins County); fieri facias

      The Thomas Berry records from east Tennessee, at least the bulk of them, probably do represent the Berry/Wallace Thomas Berry, but, as noted, the lack of a definite connection of Berry/Wallace to these records inhibits a firm correlation. The documented trail of Berry/Wallace comes back into focus, albeit briefly, when the Thomas Berry family left Tennessee in 1804 and moved to Montgomery County in east central Kentucky. Not long after the family moved to their new location, however, Thomas Berry passed away. The absolute date of his death is not known with certainty, but can be bracketed based on deductive reasoning. The biographical sketch from one of the Berry/Wallace grandchildren notes that the family moved to Kentucky from Tennessee in 1804, and that both grandparents, Thomas Berry and Janet (Wallace) Berry were alive at that point in time. By the early winter of 1805 (26 February to be exact), in a Power of Attorney document, Janet (Wallace) Berry was described as being the widow of the now deceased Thomas Berry. Presumably then, Thomas Berry passed away sometime between 1804, when the family moved to Kentucky, and 26 February 1805, when the Power of Attorney document was signed in Montgomery County, Kentucky. His place of burial is not known.

      In this legal document Janet (Wallace) Berry granted authority to Adam Hope, the husband of her sister Rachel Wallace, to sell her and her sister’s interest in 100 acres of land in Augusta County that they had inherited from their grandfather, Samuel Wallace. The land was eventually sold to their uncle, Robert Wallace, who, it seems, still lived on adjacent land back in Augusta County. After that, Janet Berry can be traced through Montgomery County tax records for a few years with her two youngest sons, Francis and Samuel Berry, then again in the federal census of 1810 with three of her sons ( the above two plus John) and two younger males, who could also be sons. In the spring of 1810 she purchased 50 acres of land on Slate Creek in Montgomery County, which had been part of a thousand acre patent granted to William Ellis. (Figures 104, 105 and 106) He had been issued a patent for 1,000 acres on the waters of the Main Licking River in Fayette County, Virginia based on two Virginia Land Office Treasury Warrants that were issued on 15 Oct 1799. The land was surveyed on 18 March 1784 and the patent was granted on 7 April 1786. His land was between parcels owned by John Goar to the north and Walter Carr to the south. Ellis eventually sold the entire tract to Andrew Duncan at an unknown date, who, in turn, sold the 50 acre parcel to Janet Berry on 24 March 1810. While the Virginia land grants of Ellis, Carr and Goar can be mapped relative to each other, they have not been accurately located on the ground. Likewise, the location of Janet Berry’s 50 acre plot within William Ellis’ 1,000 acre grant has not been ascertained, which is complicated by the fact that twenty such 50 acre tracts could fit within the 1,000 acres Ellis tract. During the time that William Ellis acquired this land, it was part of Fayette County, Virginia, but, by the time Janet Berry purchased her parcel, the county names and boundaries had changed significantly, and the area was now a part of Montgomery County, Kentucky. Montgomery County, in fact, had originally been much larger and had decreased in size since 1804 when she and Thomas had first moved there. Based on the configuration of the county at the time she purchased the land and the location of Slate Creek, though, a relative location within the county can be determined. From Figure 104 it can be seen that William Ellis’ land, and her 50 acre plot within it, must have been located somewhere within the drainage basin of Slate Creek in the northeastern part of the county. (Figure 104) Five years later she sold the land to her son, John Berry. Shortly after that, in March 1816, Janet (Wallace) Berry passed away in Montgomery County, Kentucky. Her place of burial is unknown.^650,1116
 

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